An application of projection imaging systems for museum exhibitions

Museums hold a wide variety of cultural properties and they organize exhibitions for the public. In history museums, a number of interpretive materials are necessary to present a specific historical theme. However, due to limitation of space, the number of displayed materials is severely restricted. There are various types of guidance systems in museums, however, most systems have not yet responded to visitors' needs. Therefore, a useful guidance system is necessary to satisfy their needs and also to enhance their understandings of the exhibitions. In order to create such guidance system, applications of imaging technology can become a solution to overcome these restrictions and meet the requirements. In this research, a visual guidance system using a data projector was examined in the National Museum of Japanese History. In the kimono (traditional Japanese clothing) section, the projector was used to simulate color changes of the materials under different illuminants. The projector also highlighted areas where annotations were featured in the kimono. The validity of using the projector system was confirmed by results from an interview survey. To further develop this visual guidance system, an augmented reality system consisted of cooperation between the projector and a digital camera was also examined.