Project facts

Duration: 2016-11-01 - 2020-01-31
Project coordinator: Technologiko Panepistimio Kyprou
Project consortium: Masarykova univerzita (CZ), Concordia University (CA), Univerzitet U Sarajevu (BA), Université d'Aix Marseille (FR), University of Cyprus (CY), 3D Research SRL (IT), Universaide Nova de Lisboa (PT), Holografika Hologrameloallito Fejleszto es Forgalmazo Kft (HU), Ministero della Cultura (IT), Pierides Foundation (CY)
Funding bodies: H2020-EU.3.6.3.1. - Study European heritage, memory, identity, integration and cultural interaction and translation, including its representations in cultural and scientific collections, archives and museums, to better inform and understand the present by richer interpretations of the past Topic(s)
Subject areas: Archaeology, Marine Biology, Natural Heritage, Natural Science
Contact: Prof. Dimitrios Skarlatos (Coodinator)
Budget: € 2 644 025
Website: https://imareculture.eu/project/

Presentation

Project's i-MareCulture scope is to raise public awareness of European identity by focusing in maritime cultural heritage, which by default bridges different civilizations. In particular, i-MareCulture aims in bringing inherently unreachable underwater cultural heritage within digital reach of wide public by implementing virtual visits, serious games with immersive technologies and underwater augmented reality. Scope of project is to design, analyze, develop and validate pioneer applications and systems in the context of Virtual Museums through collaborative and innovative research from a diverse group of scientists, researchers, archaelogists, experts and museums.

The project i-MareCulture is unique, innovative and promising, contributing fully to the H2020 Framework and the Digital Agenda for Europe, a H2020 initiative, for New Skills and Jobs. In addition, this projects abides by the EU's strategy to become a smart, sustainable, and inclusive economy by implementing the knowledge triangle by connecting the Education, Research and Industry by supporting and boosting innovative enterprise to develop their technological breakthroughs into viable products in the area of Virtual Museums and Digital Heritage, with real commercial potential.

Impacts & Results

The main objectives of the project are:

  • To study and analyse the ship routes of the classical and Hellenistic period through the re-use and spatial analysis from open GIS maritime data, ocean and weather data;
  • To study the existing data and digitised ancient ships, amphorae and anchors to create corresponding 3D libraries;
  • To develop digital narratives, media content and storytelling about each site and archeological site;
  • To study, analyse and undertake the modelling of the wreck site formation processes in order to feed the virtual reality applications as well as the serious game of underwater excavation with real or realistic data;
  • To study and analyse the 3D models of the ships by naval experts in order to obtain knowledge about their buoyancy. Data will be used as an input to the seafaring serious game and the storytelling;
  • To develop a 3D amphorae library that will be used as an input to the 3D automatic recognition and localisation of amphorae, in shipwreck sites. Automatic extraction of different types of amphorae present on the site, will help automatic the process of importing more shipwreck sites on the u-excavation serious game;
  • To develop two serious games: (i) a Seafaring game where the player will choose a ship loaded with merchandise and will navigate it over the recovered routes and (ii) an U-excavation game where the player will have to surface finds excavating a realistic but randomly regenerated underwater archaelogical site;
  • To undertake research over enhanced immersive VR experience for interactive u-visits in real underwater sites, such as Mazotos shipwreck, Baiae archeological site and XIendi shipwreck;
  • To carry out research for an underwater AR tablet, which will support several aspects of the underwater actual visit. The implementation will be done in Baiae (MBAC) submerged archae