University of Texas Rio Grande Valley Welcomes INDE’s Augmented Reality Dinosaurs

Published: October 10, 2018

The Office of Public Art at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley in Edinburg, TX, opened its Augmented Reality exhibit to the public on October 1, 2018. This experience serves as a special attraction during the 17th annual HESTEC (Hispanic Engineering, Science and Technology) Week, a nationally recognized model for promoting science, technology, engineering and math careers to students of all ages

The large-screen AR system – developed by INDE – allows people to get up-close and personal with dinosaurs, whales and other fascinating creatures in a highly immersive 3D group experience. Installed at UTRGV, the Back to the Jurassic AR experience places viewers in the world of dinosaurs where they can interact with life-sized extinct creatures, and Traveller – originally created for National Geographic – allows them to meet some beautifully detailed, photo-realistic wild animals.

“The reaction of the visitors attending the exhibit has been one of amazement, excitement and fascination in the technology involved. The SnapShare feature of providing pictures and video of the Augmented Reality experience has been very well received and has created extra excitement among the school districts,” said Dr. Dahlia Guerra, DMA, Assistant Vice President of Public Art.

Close to 6,000 middle and high school students attended the exhibit during the opening week of HESTEC, and thousands more students and community citizens of all ages from throughout South Texas are registered to visit the AR exhibit during the next three weeks.

UTRGV is one of the largest universities in the U.S. to have a majority (80%) Hispanic student population.