4 Times When Augmented Reality Played a Role in Wildlife Conservation
Digitally “resurrecting” certain animal species or keeping extinct ones in digital form for future generations has always been near and dear to our hearts at INDE. We firmly believe that immersive technologies such as Augmented Reality can raise awareness of critically endangered species by providing them with a layer of interactivity, which generates recollection.
Here are four projects from the last 8 years when AR was a key tool in the armoury of conservation.
The beginnings
One of our very first projects was a large-screen AR experience for National Geographic, and ever since that the digital conservation of it has played a key role in our growth. The Air, Land & Sea AR experience offered users a unique chance to travel to some incredible locations via our BroadcastAR system.
Air, Land & Sea BroadcastAR Augmented Reality experience by INDE x National Geographic
The content centred around a dynamic, ever-changing watering hole, the experience allowed them to meet a diverse range of rare species from Africa to the Arctic as they graze, drink, and interact with the environment around them.
An augmented reality app dedicated to the memory of Sudan, the last male Northern White Rhino
In 2018 we had the honour of bringing back to life the last male Northern White Rhino by creating a MobileAR application that allowed users to interact with these special creatures. The project was the digital extension of The Last Three, the world's biggest rhino sculpture that captured the attention of millions across the globe. The app allowed users to interact and take pictures with animated, photo-realistic versions of Sudan and his daughter and granddaughter.
The Last Three: The World's Biggest Rhino Sculpture by Gillie and Marc & Augmented Reality by INDE
Although our content team has never had a chance to visit them during the development personally, they became honorary members of the INDE-family after we spent long months studying them. Needless to say, we were all devasted when Sudan had to be euthanised on March 19, 2018, due to age-related complication.
Keeping the Sumatran Rhino legacy alive
After the loss of Sudan, we had a chance to spotlight the depleting population of another rhinoceros species, the Sumatran Rhino. In 2019 National Geographic chose our cutting-edge technology once again to bring this beautiful mammal back from the brink on a dedicated panel on their Explorers Festival.
National Geographic chose INDE to keep the Sumatran Rhino legacy alive
Since the National Geographic team already 3D scanned Haarpan - or Harry for short, a young male that was born at Cincinnati Zoo in 2007, we "only" had to animate the virtual animal and render it to match the lighting conditions and the layout of the auditorium. Our 3D team did a good job once again: nothing proves this better than the fact that the audience was in awe after engaging with the life-sized, digital version of Harry.
Endangered species and dinosaurs off-the-shelf
As you can see we are no strangers to challenging custom projects, but due to a popular demand we have launched ready-made 3D augmented reality content packages for our award-winning BroadcastAR system, too. It has been very popular among both educational institutes and retail spaces: it doesn't just increase attendance numbers or footfall, but it gives their visitors a personalised experience they won't be likely to forget.