The Virtual Villages in 3D Liiver project, led by Seinäjoki University of Applied Sciences, is looking for active villages to harness modern virtual technology for the benefit of villages. The project aims to create three different models of how new digital technology can be utilized in recording, presenting and modeling activities, future planning or cultural traditions that are important to villages.
Sami Alho has worked on regional development projects since 2009. His tasks have included, among others, planning the Rytmikorjaamo area together with the youth of the Liiveri region. In his free time, he enjoys music and the production and publication of related audiovisual material.
– The project will select the most feasible projects from three different villages, which will model a product or application based on new technology for use by the villagers by the end of June 2018, says the project manager. Sami AlhoThe starting point is that, in collaboration with the villagers and SeAMK, a game-type product, application or "virtual village walk" will be designed, which can promote the activities of the villages in a new way, both nationally and internationally.
The possibilities for interactive modeling in virtual and augmented reality, combining different technologies, are constantly improving. Modern technology can be used to model and record, for example, buildings, landscapes, and historical sites.
Virtual village hall or bringing history to life
As an example of modeling, Alho suggests the idea of a virtual village house, where villagers can gather via their own computer or mobile device. The house can be modeled in three dimensions and can include various services, hobbies, education or information sharing.
– The target could just as easily be a village construction simulation. That is, the topography and buildings of an area are modeled, after which the area's land preparation and future new buildings can be planned and different options can be modeled virtually.
Alho also thinks it would be an interesting idea to bring historic areas back to life by scanning landforms and finding buildings in the area that no longer exist to model.
-With this kind of presentation, events related to the village can be presented from history through the present day to the future using three-dimensional graphics and video images, Alho explains. Additional information based on location data, so-called augmented reality, can also be added to the presentations, which users can view using their own mobile device or virtual glasses. Alho herself has gained experience in the world of cinema from her previous work history, where computer-generated realities have come to life on the big screen.
How to join?
-If you have, or have an idea about how you would like to utilize 3D modeling in your own village, don't hesitate to get in touch. In the virtual world, everything is possible, encourages Sami Alho. The project's task is to find a suitable technical platform and the necessary guidance and training for the villagers working on the project.
For more information: Sami Alho, project manager, Seinäjoki University of Applied Sciences, Virtual Villages in 3D Liiver project, tel. +358 40 830 4289, email: sami.alho@seamk.fi
Examples of modeling:
Turku Cathedral, The Blacksmith of the Word