Kookie Talk Augmented Reality Application

University of Melbourne, Office for Environmental Programs, 2017
Area Culture Civic Sustainability Medium Information Visualization Augmented Reality Type Research Contract

Visualizing sustainable cities through Augmented Reality Application

Kookie Talk is an application designed to take people around the city of Melbourne, appreciating its culture, history and biodiversity and visualize it through virtual Kookie, juxtaposed on to the real world.

Kookie Talk App is the platform for creating connections between multiple organizations, holders of knowledge database, e.g. the City of Melbourne, Museum of Victoria or Indigenous Australia, and the people of Melbourne. The App is a knowledge hub, which collects, systematizes and translates complex city data on sustainability, biodiversity and traditional culture in a simple and engaging way. It encourages informal learning through engaging people and guiding them around the city.

Kookie AR App is designed for smart-phones. The main character of the game is Kookie the Bird, Kookkaburra's virtual identity. Kookaburra is a native bird to Australia. For many years, Kookaburra lived in forests and could be rarely seen in urban areas. Augmented Reality brings Kookaburra into the streets, parks and open areas of the city. The players are people who live in or visit the city. The game includes multiple levels built around Virtual Interaction, Team Challenge and Leadership, with the higher levels encouraging group interaction, creating stronger communities. At each level the players receive Kookie points for successfully completing treasure hunt. After completing the Virtual Interaction and Team Challenge levels the players are invited to contribute to Kookie knowledge database and share their own story.

Kookie Talk App is a fresh look at innovation, a visualization tool, encouraging people to explore their city and its hidden culture through ?green? perspectives.

Links

Authors

  • Ratnavel, Madhana University of Melbourne
  • Badina, Anastasia University of Melbourne