Museum Accessibility and Digital Design
UX Case Study
Challenge: Identify the pain points and limitations of visiting the Dyckman Farmhouse Museum, propose solutions to mitigate potential friction, and develop a prototype for an interactive online Virtual Reality tour of the museum.
Deliverables: Strategy. User Research Report. Persona. Task Flows. Sketches. UI. Prototype.
Role: UX Designer
Enhancing accessibility in historic house museums remains a challenging issue, often compounded by governmental agreements on preserving historical structures and occasional constructional inadequacies. To provide a more immersive experience for visitors who face challenges in navigating stairs at the Dyckman Farmhouse Museum, the implementation of a virtual reality tour guide system could offer a solution. This system would create a realistic illusion of movement within the actual space, catering to visitors with mobility impairments.
Research
From previous class projects, I learned that most historic house museums cannot adapt their original structures to improve accessibility. The most common solution is to offer an introductory video at the gift shop for visitors facing physical mobility challenges, which is also the approach taken by the Dyckman Farmhouse Museum. During my visit to the Dyckman Farmhouse Museum and through discussions with the operating team, I uncovered several facts:
The physical layout of the museum, with its steep stairs, insufficient lighting, and low beams, poses risks for the elderly, individuals who are blind, and those with physical impairments.
The museum is a non-profit organization operated by a small team and has very limited opening hours. This scheduling constraint can lead to conflicts for those interested in personal tours. If there are many visitors requiring assistance or accompaniment simultaneously, the team may struggle to provide adequate support.
The surrounding community is characterized by relatively lower levels of education and income. The Dyckman Farmhouse Museum is one of the few easily accessible non-profit educational organizations/museums in the area, serving as a valuable resource for residents.
The museum would be temporarily closed in the summer of 2023.
Main Problems
Current Limitations of Dyckman Farmhouse Museum:
No reconstruction permits from the government
Limited human resource
Limited museum access
Visitors’ Pain Points That I Am Going To Focus On：
Sloppy Stairs--Physical Friction
Lack of History Background and Explanation—Cognitive Friction
Dim Lighting—Visual Friction
I gathered feedback from various visitors and my classmates who visited the museum. These comments were then categorized into two areas: the limitations of the museum and the visitors' pain points. My primary focus will be on digitally addressing the physical accessibility challenges to create a more immersive tour experience that eliminates the need to climb stairs. Additionally, I will consider factors related to visual and cognitive accessibility to ensure inclusivity.
Persona
Task Flow
Ideate
I created task flows for steps a person typically goes through when they want to visit Dyckman Farmhouse Museum. Here are the three main questions that I want to focus on:
Visitors check if the museum is open.
Visitors check if there is any physical challenge.
Visitors check if there is any visual challenge.
To better understand visitors’ potential struggles, I create this task flow based on three main focus ( listed in red diamond shape).
Watching a plain video might not be worthy enough for someone with a disability traveling to the museum.
If the museum is busy on that day, the visitor may need to wait for a museum staff's assistance.
According to the chart above, many potential visits to the Dyckman Farmhouse end up with cancellations. If visitors have physical or visual impairments, their experience might not be optimal, even if they manage to visit. To ensure that visitors with disabilities have an immersive experience at the Dyckman Farmhouse Museum, creating a WEB VR tour guide system would be more efficient. This system would allow people to navigate the space digitally and listen to the story with subtitles on the screen. Visitors could easily have an immersive experience through the museum's official website. Additionally, this system could also be used inside the museum, reducing the need for staff to provide constant guidance. It would also serve as an educational open resource on the website, accessible to those who cannot physically visit the museum. Furthermore, it presents an opportunity to introduce interactive VR technology to local residents. Ultimately, the WEB VR tour guide system would offer visitors an alternative way to experience the Dyckman Farmhouse, especially when facing difficulties in visiting in person.
Advantages of The Web VR Tour Guide System
Bring Your Own (Accessible) Device
It allows visitors to operate the tour guide system with the devices in a personalized setting that they are familiar with, so they don’t have to get along with an audioguide that they operate for the first time or wait for the museum staff to accompany them throughout the tour.
Open-resource Online Immersive Experience
This system can accommodate those who face challenges in making a physical trip, especially considering that the museum is open only three days a week. The Web VR technique could spark public curiosity by showcasing the interior and background story in a relatively immersive way, potentially attracting more visitors to the farmhouse. Consequently, the Dyckman Farmhouse could also become a valuable resource for introducing this emerging technology to the developing community in which it is situated.
Interaction Related to the History
Drawing inspiration from the 'Nine Men’s Morris' game carved into the bedrock of the house, we have digitally integrated this game into our system. This creates a playful interactive experience for visitors, helping to illustrate life in the farmhouse during that era. It will also engage children on the tour, fostering their curiosity about the building's history and construction.
Paper Prototype
Prototype
Considering the identified pain points and the museum’s limitations, I have sketched a series of scenes that demonstrate the basic structure of the tour guide system. These sketches illustrate the steps and views a user may encounter upon starting the online tour.
Dyckman Farmhouse Museum WEB VR Tour Guide System Homepage
First-floor View With Available Directions Marked With Arrows
Sitting Room Start Perspective
Sitting Room Portrait With History Introduction On The Bottom
The Second Floor View With the Main Bedroom Direction Arrow
Main Bedroom Start Perspective
Bedroom Embroidery Zoom In With Introduction On The Bottom
Kitchen View With History Introduction On The Bottom
Hi-FI Prototype
Based on the lo-fi sketches, I created more detailed digital sketches using Figma.
Customizable Components At The Beginning Of The Tour Guide System
Components After Entering The VR Space
Hidden Game On The Way To The Kitchen
Coding Features
Main Structure: 2D Map + 3D Environment
Map/Signage System
Floor selection via HTML interface
Spot selection and state change via javascript DOM
Color-blind friendly design
Expand/close map via javascript DOM
“Elevator arrows” between floors
A-frames objects are added to the scene where the current spot is close to the staircase. Clicking on the elevator arrows will teleport the user to the respective floor.
The arrow objects are attached with click functions that will trigger a clicking behavior on the respective spot.
Voiceover
If there is a background introduction of the current scene, a voiceover is automatically played when the user moves to the spot.
The voiceovers are pre-recorded audio files from an online AI voice generator.
Hidden story
Users will be able to trigger certain interactions when they explore the Farmhouse
When the coordinate system detects that the user is facing toward the artifact (i.e. world.getUserRotation( ).y is within a certain range), a hidden introduction and voiceover will appear.
After Thoughts
This UX case study has been both challenging and rewarding. It was my first time applying VR technology to solve a real-world problem, and the experience of understanding users and clearing barriers for them through a digital immersive experience has been amazing.
I am pleased to have learned how to make a digital product more inclusive for users. Accessibility design is such a crucial aspect of humanity and empathy.
Note: This UX study was conducted as a final project for the course Museum Accessibility and Digital Design at NYU.
Special Thanks to Professor Rosanna Flouty and Professor Craig Kapp.
Reference
Race, Lauren, Charlotte Martin, Xinwen Xu, Cheryl Fogle Hatch, and Amy Hurst. “Bring Your Own (Accessible) Device: A Mobile Guide Solution for Promoting Accessibility, Social Distancing, and Autonomy in Museums.” The International Journal of the Inclusive Museum 15, no. 2 (2021): 1–23. https://doi.org/10.18848/1835-2014/cgp/v15i02/1-23.