Accessibility Solutions: Artifacts to Reality
Updated: Jun 21, 2023A collaboration between: Antonio Guimaraes, Fabiha Ahmad, Dina Khalil, Myra KhanProject was picked up by the Intrepid Museum
Publication can be found here
The What?In museums, objects are often placed behind glass, making them completely inaccessible to visually impaired visitors since the only interaction is visual. To solve this problem, we proposed a simple solution: 3D printing the objects. This would enable visually impaired visitors to experience the objects by touch. The printed replicas would be placed on a round stand, allowing exploration from different angles, with consideration for wheelchair accessibility.
If you take a closer look, you'll notice a green and a yellow button. These buttons are used to play information about the appearance and history of the artifact, presented from various viewpoints.
We approached Sarah Lowenburg, the education manager at the Louisiana State Museum, to provide us with a historical artifact from their collection for digital prototyping. Ms. Lowenburg, along with her team—Karen Leathem and Cassandra Erb—kindly provided us with information and a picture of a stove from the 17th century. Our examination of this stove included perspectives from a guide, a historian, an enslaved cook, and a patron.
The How?Software: Autodesk AutoCAD, Arduino.
Skills: 3D printing.
Time: May, 2020.
Behind the Scenes of the Audio Box