A mobile phone guide: spatial, personal, and social experience for cultural heritage

Abstract

We have built a mobile phone-based guide system to strengthen the user experience in a cultural heritage site by supporting spatial awareness, personalization, and social connectedness. Our mobile phone guide implemented on a Java-enabled mobile phone provides both audio and visual content that is tailored by tracking user movement with GPS, collecting various user inputs and demographics, and allowing for socially acceptable eavesdropping via wireless networking. We applied our system to a cemetery site and present the results of a user study. We also conducted a performance evaluation to verify the effectiveness of both content filtering in personalization and content synchronization in social connectedness. Spatially, our results validated that our system provided a satisfying physical exploration of historic space. With respect to personalization, the content presented to visitors was well tailored to their real-time feedback over the course of their visit. Socially, the effectiveness of our sharing interface motivated visitors to frequently synchronize content among themselves. Our system will hopefully broaden the appeal of mobile phones as electronic tour guides providing adequate support for spatial awareness, personalization, and shared group experiences.