Professional Development Activity: Conference paper: Augmented Reality in your library – dARing to create new user experiences
For the topic of emerging technologies I decided to delve into Augmented Reality (AR) by reading the conference paper Augmented Reality in your library – dARing to create new user experiences, written by Kat Cuttriss and Chris Pigott, presented at the Asia-Pacific Library and Information Conference 2018. Augmented Reality is “technology that superimposes a computer-generated image on a user’s view of the real world” (Abram, 2019, para. 1). The conference paper detailed two New Zealand library services joint venture into AR, developing a “ScavengAR Hunt” in collaboration with a local tech start-up. There was information given on the AR activity, the successes and improvement opportunities were highlighted.
It was beneficial to hear from library staff how AR was utilised in a public library setting. However, after reading the paper I still did not have a fantastic grasp on what AR is, so more research was needed. A search on YouTube led me to a video from two Australian public library staff who were awarded the Margery C Ramsay Scholarship from the State Library in Victoria in 2018 to complete their project “Augmenting libraries: Preparing public libraries for virtual and augmented reality”. In their video, Snapchat filters and Pokémon GO were given as examples of AR (Augmented Libraries, 2019, 1:21-1:48)., and this visual helped me gain a greater understanding of AR being a blend of the digital world with real life, creating an augmented reality (Abram, 2019, para. 6).
In the New Zealand project, AR was used in a scavenger hunt with participants solving challenges. The activity was designed for all ages but was launched in school holidays. The staff found the AR scavenger hunt to be an enjoyable activity for customers and something they would continue to use and adapt in the future.
Further research found more uses for AR in a library setting, both for customer use and aimed at library staff. There are AR applications designed to improve the workflow of library staff, such as ShelvAR, which was developed by the Miami University Library (Spina, 2014, para. 3). Readers’ Advisory is another avenue for AR which could help young readers discover reading material in a manner they are more comfortable using, as an alternative to the traditional Online Public Access Catalogue (OPAC) (Meredith, 2014, p.73).
There are some challenges that come with AR, such as access to a compatible device. In New Zealand the libraries provided library-owned devices for people to complete the challenge. The use of GPS functions is limited indoors and so would be a challenge with some AR applications (Meredith, 2014, p. 75). The costs of using this technology could be a challenge, hence the joint venture in New Zealand between two library services.
I did not know anything about AR before beginning this research. AR has been spoken of for years but is recently emerging as a practical tool for libraries (Abram, 2019, para. 2). I plan to look out for libraries that utilise AR and explore these uses to perhaps one day implement this technology in my own workplace.
References
Abram, S. (2019, January 22). Augmented Reality in Libraries: Technology Trends that Aren’t “Out-There” Anymore! https://lucidea.com/blog/augmented-reality-in-libraries-technology-trends-that-arent-out-there-anymore/
Augmented Libraries. Augmented Libraries 01 Introductions [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RtfG6b8zEgg
Cuttriss, K. & Pigott, C. (2018, July 30 – August 2). Augmented Reality in your library: dARing to create new user experiences. Asia-Pacific Library and Information Conference, Gold Coast, Australia. https://read.alia.org.au/augmented-reality-your-library-daring-create-new-user-experiences
Meredith, T. R. (2014, September 10). Using Augmented Reality Tools to Enhance Children’s Library Services. Technology, knowledge and learning, 20 (1), 71-77. https://link-springer-com.ezproxy.csu.edu.au/content/pdf/10.1007/s10758-014-9234-4.pdf
Spina, C. (2014, February 18). Keeping up with…Augmented Reality. Keeping Up With…, Association of College and Research Libraries. http://www.ala.org/acrl/publications/keeping_up_with/ar