In January 2014, the Creative Augmented Realities Hub at Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU) started the first Google Glass project in cooperation with Manchester Art Gallery and 33 Labs from California. Being among the first in the UK, the project was aiding Manchester’s Digital City strategy of becoming a leading city for digital technologies. More and more people use mobile devices on a daily basis and wearable gadgets are at the forefront in 2014, expected to become the next big thing on the technology stage. Visitors were able to explore the art gallery in a completely different light, receiving augmented information to create a unique experience of cultural heritage. This project aided Manchester in its aim to become a leading Smart City.
Source: Manchester Evening News
From the initial discussion to start the project back in September, after a stakeholder meeting with Manchester Art Gallery, Marketing Manchester, MMU and 33 Labs in January, it was decided to pursue the project and be amongst the first ones in Europe to test google Glass in the Art Gallery environment.
The first step of the project included the testing of a very simple prototype application based on one painting “Cheetah and Stag” in April 2014. 29 participants tested the application on Google Glass and participated in a short interview to identify user requirements for the prototype development.
Basic feedback was:
– Social networking
– Connection between painting
– Navigation and maps
Based on the feedback from the first test, the prototype was developed and tested in June 2014 with 22 participants.
Overall, after two tests at Manchester Art Gallery, with a total of 51 visitors, outcomes include:
– More convenient hand free experience
– Personalised experience
– Enhanced interaction
– Better understanding of connections between paintings
– Increased dwelling time
– Sharing functions
– Issues with heating up of device
– Problems with loading times and videos
– Battery life
Feedback was generally positive and participants were excited by the opportunities of this new and innovative technology. Time will tell how Google Glass and other head mounted displays will be accepted in the future; if museums and art galleries will offer devices or whether visitors have to own their own glasses and download the application from an app store.
During the course of the project we have experienced some interest in our ideas and it was great to be covered by newspapers such as The Independent and Manchester Evening News as well as numerous online blogs.
