Mixed Reality Boundaries in Museum Preservation Areas

1. Introduction

The work we present employs multidisciplinary research in the field of mixed-reality boundaries, which can be defined as a mixture of the architectural ‘borders’ of physical space and the spatial ‘icons’ of virtual- reality techniques (William Mitchell 1996) [ 1]. This kind of work fits into the field of augmented reality, otherwise known as mixed reality. Nowadays, augmented reality applications try to relate a digitized three-dimensional space supported by programmable or interactive platforms with the three-dimensional space of complex areas of urban landscapes or inner space within buildings (physical-mechanical; static and non-programmable).

The most widely used applications today complement views with synchronized geographical information systems (GPS) or social networking which supplements the digital landscape (i.e. the Google MR glasses). They have instructions for users that allow for an interaction with the constructed space and the facilities within it (workshops, classrooms, etc.) The most widely used types of interface are portable devices with geographical positioning systems which employ different kinds of body-motion sensors.

In the mixed or augmented reality interfaces described, the architectural space is a very important part of the applications. This is the space of the building, regarded by architects and designers as a topological ‘place’, and its material characteristics as defined by the concept of tectonics, i.e. layers of building materials organized in a three-dimensional, topological arrangement. The ‘tectonics’ of the building involve different design disciplines. Some of them were employed in this work on ‘mixed-reality boundaries’ or mixed architectures here presented.

The work focuses on an exploration of the virtual reality which manipulates the borders of architectural or tectonic spaces: “mixed-reality boundaries in the words of Professor Benford (1998; Darlagiannis et al., 2010): a kind of composite electronic/ tectonic space. Benford designed a new kind of audience hall in which some of the ‘tectonic’ borders (walls) were actually 3d avatar-displays guided by users located outside of the hall itself. Thus, parts of the building were transformed through virtual reality projections and both real and virtual spaces were merged into an audience hall. Unlike most MR or AR applications, which employ body-type interfaces or ‘tectonics´, those of the mixed reality boundaries’ interfaces explore an integrated approach to architecture space.

To achieve ´mixed reality boundaries´, the usual hardware and software applications must be extended to include the architectural design --the actual built space -- then modified by the impact of electronics, as explained in Table 1.

Such 'mixed reality boundaries' or mixed architectures thus also actually mean the design of new types of buildings or architectural typologies.