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ARIES

ARIES (Augmented Reality Interactive Environment System) is a pioneering project to demonstrate how cutting edge technology can enhance community consultation. Augmented Reality is concerned with blurring the divide between the real and virtual, by enhancing the real world with relevant multimedia content. An example is the type of visual display used by fighter plane pilots, where text and simple graphical information are overlaid onto a view of the real world.

ARIES is currently being deployed within the Elevate project and is in the stage of user testing and development.

The Brief

The ARIES technology is to be used to show residents how a building, street or other area will look in the future, according to current development and regeneration plans.

Using a PDA-type device, the resident will be able to travel around a chosen area and, at different locations view and listen to information about how it will look in the future. Through GPS (Global Positioning System), the PDA will be sensitive to both position and orientation and automatically present an interactive guided tour of the planned development in that location. This could include 3D renderings, pictures and videos of how the area will look in the future, location-specific voiceovers that describe features and facilities, and additional detailed information about the area such as for example plans of the proposed housing stock.

The PDA also provides the facility for the resident to record comments about what they are presented with, both in response to structured questions and as free audio comments. These comments would then be saved to a database for subsequent review and analysis.

Clicks and Links came were brought in to do the essential consultancy work for the ARIES/Elevate project. Other companies involved include BT and ....

The Process

The pilot are will be within a suitable East Lancashire ADF (Area Development Framework) area, where a sufficient amount of planning exists to create coherent and compelling visualisations of what the future will hold for the neighbourhood. A Community Panel of about 6-10 volunteer local residents took part in the technology evaluation. The volunteers were made up of a mix of experienced and inexperienced technology users.

The Aries project is an ongoing project still in development.