UTILIZING PHOTOGRAMMETRY AND 3D PRINTERS TO CREATE INCLUSIVE NATURAL HISTORY TOURS AND ACTIVITIES FOR THE VISUALLY IMPAIRED AT THE RUTGERS GEOLOGY MUSEUM

Museums exist as a way to share something special with their visitors, and much time and dedication is spent making sure that the space and exhibits are accessible to all. Ramps and elevators are commonplace; however, adaptations for visually impaired visitors are not. With over 1 billion people living with some sort of visual impairment, a significant portion of the population is left out of many museum experiences. Audio tours are a popular way to address this issue; however, with recent advances in technology, museums are beginning to implement new ways to combine visual, auditory, and tactile experiences to engage visually impaired visitors in new ways.

Many museums have long utilized 3D printing technology to create reproductions of display items that can be independently manipulated by visitors during self-guided trips or in addition to guided specially-designed, descriptive tours. While not exclusively used in big museums and institutions, many of these programs only exist at larger establishments where there is ample staff and resources to implement such a program. With recent advances in photogrammetry, computer programs that render 3D images from a series of 2D photographs, and the widespread availability of 3D printing software and printers, the opportunity exists to implement programs of this nature in a variety of informal and formal educational settings.

Here we present a program that has been created at the Rutgers University Geology Museum (RUGM) that incorporates the Structure from Motion photogrammetry program and 3D printing to create low-cost reproductions of objects and artifacts at the museum. By working with the Rutgers University Makerspace, the Office of Disability, and other local museums, the RUGM staff was able to create a multi-sensory tour designed specifically for visually impaired audiences. By utilizing published and currently used best practices for engaging visually impaired visitors along with recent advances in technology, we have created a program that can be implemented with minimal staff and resources. Methodologies can easily be adapted for the formal K-16 classroom and all materials are available upon request.