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This Old Digital City Virtual Historical Cedar
Rapids, Iowa, circa 1900

• James Cremer and Joan Severson
• Computer Science, The University of Iowa
• Digital Artefacts, LLC

Shayne Gelo Digital Artefacts, LLC
Joe Kearney Computer Science, The University of
Iowa
Marise McDermott and Rich Riccio The History
Center, Cedar Rapids, Iowa
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Background

• Grocery store encounter neighbors Joan Severson,
  undergraduate researcher in Hank virtual
  environments lab at U. Iowa, and Marise
  McDermott, curator at The History Center
• Ms. McDermott wanted to do a multimedia project
  on the history of Cedar Rapids
• Ms. Severson says lets do virtual reality
  instead

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Vision

• Use University of Iowa expertise and experience
  in virtual environments, real-time
  person-in-the-loop driving simulation, and 3D
  modeling to create an engaging new exhibit
• 3D virtual environments as interface to
  historical archives
• create 3D virtual reconstruction of
  turn-of-the-20th-century Cedar Rapids, and let
  people explore history in an exciting engaging
  environment, accessing multimedia historical
  information in appropriate geographical setting

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Background The University of Iowa

• A world leader in virtual environments for
  driving simulation NADS, IDS, Hank, and others

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NADS (www.nads-sc.uiowa.edu)

• The National Advanced Driving Simulator. U.S.
  Dept. of Transportation facility operated by U.
  Iowa. Cost more than US 50 million. Fully
  operational within the next few months.
• Most advanced driving simulator in the world.
  High fidelity motion, vehicle dynamics, audio,
  control loading, data recording, and scenario
  (autonomous traffic, vehicles, and other
  entities) systems. Sophisticated visual database
  creation and scenario and experiment authoring
  tools.

• Use in many applications. Especially driving
  safety and human factors research effects of
  signage, drugs and alcohol, cell phone usage and
  other distractions, anti-lock braking systems,
  collision warning devices, heads-up displays.

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Hank (www.cs.uiowa.edu/hank)

• Small simulator in Computer Science. Focus on
  simulator development research and new uses of
  virtual environment technology rather than very
  large experiments of NADS.
• Collaboraration with Ford, IRISA (Rennes, FR), U.
  Valencia (ESP).
• Primary current project collaboration with
  pyschology researchers on use of virtual
  bicycling environment for child behavior studies.
  Children ride instrumented stationary bicycle
  through virtual town with traffic.
  Decisions/reactions recorded and measured.

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Hank Simulator
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Hank and Virtual Urban Environments

• As part of Hank project we developed expertise in
  3D modeling for real-time display. Created
  virtual present-day Iowa City (one student during
  the summer) and demonstrated at Iowa State Fair
  1998. Thousands of riders over 10 days of use.

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Digital Artefacts (www.digitalartefacts.com) and
The History Center (www.historycenter.org)

• Small company that grew out of the Hank group at
  The University of Iowa. President Joan Severson
  (and primary inspiration for and creator of TODC)
  has an art and theater background, but
  subsequently earned a computer science degree
  because she saw virtual reality as a great medium
  for her artistic skills.
• The History Center is a small museum in Cedar
  Rapids, Iowa. Since opening its new building in
  summer 1999 its had about 20,000 visitors and
  5,400 students involved in its programs.

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The TODC Project

• Initially a small project with one large screen.
  After presentation of ideas to local
  organizations who might provide funds, including
  the possibility of bigger things in the future,
  they said lets do the big one now.
• Goal an interactive virtual environment in which
  visitors can sit it and operate a time machine
  to explore 3D restoration of circa 1900 city.
  During exploration visitors can activate
  multimedia associated with significant locations
  in the environment.

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Initial TODC Ideas
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Physical Components

• Three large screens, each 6 feet (1.83meters)
  wide and 8 feet (2.44meters) tall. 120 degree
  angles between them. Enclosures behind screens
  house LCD projectors and mirrors arranged for
  rear-projection.
• The time machine, an H.G.Wells-ish device with
  seating for 4 or 5 adults, several controllers
  (joystick-like wand, buttons, a rocker switch),
  vibration motors, lights, etc. Includes a token
  slot and LED timer.

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Physical components

• Four networked computers. One master, three
  slaves. Each slave does graphics processing for
  one screen. High-end but cost-effective PCs
  off-the-shelf 933MHz IBM Intellistations.
  Graphics cards 64MB GeForce2 graphics cards in
  current prototype. At opening in a few weeks,
  might possibly use Intense3D Wildcat 4210 (higher
  quality antialiasing, but lower overall fill
  rate) or GeForce2 Ultras (if we can get them by
  then!)

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Physical components
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Physical components
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Construction of the 3D Historical Model

• The most challenging part of the project. Of more
  than 100 buildings modeled, 6 remain standing.
• Archivists and others gathered a variety of raw
  materials
• Sandborn insurance maps provided accurate road,
  sidewalk, building footprints, dimensions, and
  function (names of businesses, etc.)
• photographs, postcards, blueprints, newspapers
• city records and other documents, books with
  information about colors used in the time period
  (all the photographs were black-and-white or
  sepia-toned we wanted a colorful environment!)

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3D Model Construction
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3D Model Construction
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3D Model Construction
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Construction of the 3D Historical Model

• Georeferencing the raw materials, associating
  images and other information geographic
  location/maps was important, critical to good 3D
  modeling, but time consuming.
• Primary tools Multigen and Photoshop, plus a
  little bit of 3D Studio Max

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Visualization, Interaction, and Multimedia
Software

• Custom visualization, interaction, and network
  synchronization software. Developed in C and
  the OpenGVS real-time graphics SDK.
• Master processor interacts with time machine
  via data acquisition card (time machine is an
  expensive joystick!) and synchronizes and
  controls PCs doing the 3D graphics. Master also
  handles audio.
• Center PC, in addition to 3D graphics, displays
  MPEG2 and/or AVI video associated with locations
  in 3D environment. (Video, as well as 3D
  graphics had to be rotated 90 degrees
  projectors are on their sides).
• The software also controls region-based playback
  of some narrative audio and ambient sound.

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Visitor Scenarios

• Free navigation and exploration of virtual
  environments can be immersive, engaging, and
  entertaining.
• Does not always fit with educational goals and
  time constraints of museum or similar setting
• Initial TODC goal 5 to 10 minutes user
  experiences (museum visitors each given one token
  that activates environment for a certain amount
  of time).
• Initial scenarios free exploration with
  enticement to access content. Simple
  representations of characters at key locations
  inviting visitor to visit. I.e. access multimedia
  content associated with the location.

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Visitor Scenarios

• We are developing other kinds of scenarios such
  as guided tours in which visitor movements are
  more constrained. Our experience shows that not
  everyone is comfortable with the full freedom
  afforded by virtual environments. Theyd prefer
  to be shown around. In guided tour scenarios,
  the gross motion paths are controlled by the
  software, while the user retains some control
  over speed and fine path variations.
• Determining good visitor scenarios will be a very
  exciting part of this project. Certainly, our
  initial experiences tell us that we should
  develop several types of scenarios, some better
  suited to children, others to senior citizens.

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Demonstration of prototype at August 2000 Iowa
State Fair

• Single screen, joystick, 3D model, and multimedia
  content not quite finished.
• As in 1998, many users over the course of 10
  days.
• Interesting to observe people of all ages really
  liked it, but in different ways or for different
  reasons. Kids thought it was cool and fun, their
  parents/other adults like it because they could
  learn interesting things, senior citizens from
  the Cedar Rapids area loved it because of the
  nostalgic memories it evoked.
• Showed us we need to tailor multimedia content to
  particular audiences when possible (many children
  want to leave the multimedia content and get
  back to 3D real-time environment quickly. Video
  content not enaging enough.

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Iowa State Fair 2000
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Educational Impact and Next Steps

• We are very excited about the potential
  educational impact of derivatives of this effort.
  We are working to take it out of the museum and
  into schools. For instance, we are developing
  software that will by used by area school chilren
  (3rd, 4th, 11th grades initially) to participate
  in many of the research, content creation, and
  even 3D modeling activities involved in creating
  TODC. One component is map-based georeferencing
  software that enables associating and accessing
  content and research results with physical
  locations.

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More Next Steps

• Bring the city to life by adding moving
  characters. Related to University of Iowa work
  on scenario control and semi-autonomous agents
  for driving simulation.
• Enable time travel. Develop 3D models and
  content for other time periods.