The Basilica of San Giorgio Maggiore is a complex system of environments that over the centuries—starting from an earlier pre-existence that arose between the eighth and ninth centuries—has undergone many variations and structural additions, from the Middle Ages to the present day. Despite the high tourist attendance and the vast decorative apparatus that the church houses, its fruition lacks support materials capable of guiding the ideal visitor in discovering the church, its history, and its features, as well as obtaining information regarding the sculptural and pictorial works. The essay is focused on the creation of a digital platform capable of guiding the ideal visitor through useful information for the museum visit: an online system that allows free access, both on-site and remotely, capable of providing an interactive guided tour. The platform takes advantage of appropriate hotspots positioned along an ideal visiting path; each hotspot allows access to descriptive panels through which the works of art are classified. The guided tour is implemented through texts, images, videos, and digital models, according to the most relevant environments: information is organized in thematic graphic layouts, accessible through intuitive and immediate readability. The work carried out is aimed at the touristic promotion of cultural heritage through the creation of a virtual environment and allows the sharing of content with a wider audience, ensuring the museum enjoyment of the environments involved and supporting the visit of the place.
Integration of AI-Based Methodologies for Surveying and Virtual Reconstruction: The Case of the Chiostro and the Cappella della Pace in the Monastery of Santi Giovanni e Paolo in Venice
The case study described below is part of a larger project entitled “RE-LIFE: accessibility and inclusiveness in the scenarios of reuse and enhancement of former monastic buildings” at the University of Padua, funded by the European Commission and still under development. The project involves the use of Building Information Modelling (BIM) reconstruction, historical-architectural analysis, accessibility studies, and the use of virtual and augmented reality to highlight, through a timeline, the various construction phases and works lost over the centuries. The present article focuses on the case of Santi Giovanni e Paolo and on the Chiostro and Cappella della Pace, both of which no longer survive. The objective of the article is to delineate the historical and graphic workflow pursued to reconstruct the chapel, a hypothesis based on the analysis of precise historical-graphic sources and on the digital survey. The latter was carried out on the cloister through photogrammetry using a Fujifilm MILC camera and an Insta360 X4 8K. The focus is on the use of 360 video shooting techniques for photogrammetric survey processing and on the possibility of integrating a Gaussian Splatting survey for the development of immersive realities, such as applied games or virtual tours. The article provides a comprehensive explanation of how diverse representation techniques can be converged for a singular divulgative purpose.
Augmented Reality for Heritage Tourism Applications: an Efficient Methodology Applied to the Milan Cathedral
Augmented Reality apps for tourism storytelling are evolving, covering diverse topics and objectives. This research defines a fast and effective methodology for developing AR applications for smartphones and tablets by directly using digital survey output. The approach relies on two key concepts: first, employing acquired digital data directly to bypass laborious raw data processing and modelling; second, using a flexible AR system that requires no targets (targetless), images (image tracking), or GPS (geo-positioned AR), making it effective even in complex indoor spaces. The study tests the Immersal SDK System with a mobile mapping system (Leica Geosystem BLK2GO) to establish a digital survey reference for AR positioning. Immersal’s Visual Positioning System (VPS) matches real-time camera images with a spatial map of visual features from a mobile mapping dataset. By identifying key points in real-time images and comparing them with pre-collected data, devices can determine their position and orientation, effectively using the environment as a marker. This solution enables seamless integration of digital content with the real world. The Unity game engine is used to build and customise the AR application. The Milan Cathedral serves as the case study, with designed itineraries tailored to different tourist experiences: a “quick journey” with general cathedral information, an “artistic journey” exploring architecture and art, and a “treasure hunt”. This study highlights AR’s potential to enhance cultural education, engage tourists, and improve heritage management, demonstrating its role in enriching architectural and cultural assets.
Impact of Varying Street View Perspectives on Urban Perception: The Case of Celoria Street in Milan
Urban environments significantly influence people’s perception and walkability. Advances in computer vision and the availability of open-source Street View Imagery (SVI) have increased the use of Google Street View (GSV) for perceptual predictions and walkability assessments. However, a critical issue arises from the discrepancies between GSV images, captured from street centerlines, and SVI taken from pedestrian perspectives on sidewalks. This study examines whether people’s perceptions and street element proportions derived from GSV images align with those from sidewalk viewpoints, providing a more accurate basis for urban studies. Taking Celoria Street in Milan as a case study, two sets of 360° panoramic images were collected, one from the street center and the other from the sidewalks. These images were processed using a pre-trained perception prediction model and image segmentation techniques to generate perception responses. Dynamic Time Warping (DTW) was applied to assess the consistency between the two datasets, while Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression was used to analyze the impact of viewpoint changes along the street scene. Findings indicate that differences in sampling perspectives can affect urban environment assessment and perception predictions. This study highlights the potential biases of GSV data for analyzing urban environments and perceptions, advocating for more cautious use of SVI to ensure robust predictions on urban perception and walkability.
XR in Serious Games an Application on Palazzo Barberini
This paper presents a scientifically controlled method for developing serious games focused on architectural heritage, emphasising their role in enhancing and popularising cultural assets. The study stems from work carried out during the PhD Course in History, Representation, and Restoration of Architecture, using Palazzo Barberini in Rome as a case study. By focusing on its outdoor spaces and façade, the research tested an operational workflow and addressed challenges in its implementation. Unlike other cultural assets, architecture requires a cognitive approach reflecting its experiential nature, as “architecture is like a great sculpture carved into which man penetrates and walks” [1]. Extended Reality (XR) technologies were applied to recreate this experience. The Serious Game for Palazzo Barberini integrates both interchangeable in situ and remote gameplay modes. Virtual reality enables immersion and spatial comprehension remotely, while augmented reality enhances interaction on-site. These technologies transform users from passive observers into active participants, fostering experiential learning and deeper engagement with cultural heritage. The game’s development relied on comprehensive digital surveys to ensure formal and spatial consistency with the architecture. Panoramic photographs and graphic enhancements were used to create interactive panoramas designed to spark curiosity and emotional engagement. In conclusion, combining serious games with XR proves highly effective for cultural enrichment and edutainment. This approach enhances accessibility, promotes both entertainment and education, and preserves the authenticity of cultural assets.
Txt2city. From the Prompt to the City’s Image
In the urban sphere, AI is often associated with the concept of smart cities and thus the use of technology and the enormous computing power of machines to increase the quality of life for citizens, creating greater efficiency in resources and services, but there are further applications. The sprawl of information technologies is changing relationships between people and space, contributing to the mutation of iconographic production and the way content is conceived and communicated. Digital management and communication processes focus on images. The set of images constitutes a highly evocative language; it can be immediately comprehensible or require decoding that refers to specific contexts and cultures. Their importance is evident in human-targeted communication, but they also constitute a data transmission vehicle for empirical knowledge generation by algorithms like those used for artificial image creation from other images. Text-to-image AI generators are trained through the analysis of hundreds of millions of images and their related textual descriptions, which allows the system to learn the relationship between text and visual elements. Through this process, the network is also able to infer other information about reality. Images can be the representation of actual objects, as well as a subjective product of imagination or sensory processing. So too are the images created by Italo Calvino’s Invisible Cities, which bear witness to mental and non-geographical spaces. Cities that cannot be seen can be constructed from their poetical descriptions. What textual variables affect the realization of an image? How do the datasets that different text-to-image tools draw on affect image realization? Can these tools be trained from the user’s realization of an image? The paper collects the first outcomes of a research project comparing the results produced by the main image-generation tools from text descriptions extracted from Calvino’s book.
Digital Tools for the Fruition of the Monuments of the Nuragic Civilization
The Nuragic civilization, which flourished in Sardinia between the Bronze Age and the Iron Age (ca. 1800–800 B.C.), left an archaeological legacy of extraordinary importance, evidenced by iconic monuments such as nuraghi, tombs of giants and sacred wells. This study analyses and enhances the village of Serra Orrios, a paradigmatic example of Nuragic architecture and social organization, through an integrated methodological approach combining advanced photogrammetric survey techniques, 3D modelling and augmented reality. The project produced detailed site documentation, including an updated planimetric map, and developed an AR application to improve public enjoyment and understanding of the heritage. The multidisciplinary approach highlighted the potential of these technologies for conservation, communication, and education and outlined research perspectives, including cultural comparison, sustainability, and methodological replicability. The case of Serra Orrios thus emerges as an experimental model for archaeological heritage management and enhancement.
Urban Wunderkammer: Physical and Digital Experiences in the Historic Center of Turin
Through this contribution, the authors aim to illustrate a pathway for the knowledge, communication, and accessibility of urban heritage by utilising and applying current survey and representation tools based on AR technologies. Specifically, the area of focus is Piazza IV Marzo, located in the centre of Turin, whose original Roman layout has been modified over the centuries. Our research begins with a historical and philological study of the square, followed by the acquisition of metric data using a laser scanner. We then develop a three-dimensional reconstruction of the buildings through BIM processes, create a 1:500 scale 3D-printed model of the square, and conduct AR experience tests applied to the scaled model. Harnessing the power of augmented reality and interactive media, our prototype, Urban Wunderkammer, is an attempt to transform a “passive” informational experience into an active and exploratory one, with the potential to revolutionise the way we interact with and understand our urban heritage.
From Theatre to Museum. An Online Collection for the Digital Sharing of Lipari Masks
The paper, after having illustrated introductory aspects of a disciplinary nature and having contextualized the topic, shows some results relating to an ongoing research experience currently being carried out at the Bernabò Brea Archaeological Park in Lipari. These outcomes are based on the construction of a shared digital collection through the use of a well-known web platform of 3D resources. The selected finds were digitized through the use of Structure From Motion (SFM) digital photogrammetry. The digital models produced were uploaded into the Sketchfab online repository service and inserted into a virtual museum collection created for this purpose. The construction of the collection allows the use of the finds themselves through direct viewing (by sharing the link or using QR codes) on any mobile or desktop browser, or through virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) headsets. The finds can also be included in museum itineraries built as virtual tours. The virtual collection is now populated by sixteen masks; however, the alignment aimed at loading the other finds already acquired is currently underway. It is therefore expected, at the end of the step currently underway, to share between 20 and 25 masks belonging to different types, in order to provide a significant sample of the large Lipari collection. Open prospects and ongoing scientific investigations concern studies on the physical wearability of models, transformed to an appropriate scale, the production of analog replicas and collaboration in the preparation of museum spaces for accessibility, and the digital manipulation of artefacts.
Exploring Rapid 3D Heritage Asset Documentation: A Comparative Study of Laser Scanning and NeRF Algorithms in Museum Reconstruction
This paper explores the use of digital techniques for rapid surveys in cultural heritage, focusing on the creation of virtual environments for educational purposes. It compares two prominent methods for 3D reconstruction: laser scanning and AI-enhanced photogrammetry, particularly Neural Radiance Fields (NeRF). The case study centers on the virtual reconstruction of the Eccel Kreuzer Museum in Bolzano, South Tyrol, which involved documenting its original layout before an exhibition change. The research evaluates the performance of the Leica BLK laser scanner against the NeRF-based 3D models generated from video footage captured with an Insta360 ONE camera. While laser scanning provides high-quality results, the NeRF method, leveraging AI-based algorithms, offers a faster, cost-effective solution, particularly in environments with reflective surfaces and confined spaces. Despite challenges in accuracy and computational demands, the AI approach proves suitable for rapid documentation, especially when precision is less critical. The study highlights the advantages and limitations of both techniques, contributing to the ongoing development of 3D digital heritage assets that balance speed, cost, and quality in various applications such as VR and AR educational environments.