Beal Botanical Garden Augmented Reality Experience
The Beal Botanical Garden uses Augmented Reality (AR) to raise awareness of rare Michigan plants for our visitors! Virtually explore plants throughout the garden while we collect live specimens for observation, education, and conservation.
Images: digital model of mullein foxglove (Dasistoma macrophylla) (left), digital model of snow trillium (Trillium nivale) (right).
What Is Augmented Reality?
Augmented Reality (also known as AR) is an interactive experience using both a mobile device with a camera, such as a smartphone or tablet, and real, physical components. Using a smartphone or other mobile device, our AR experience will overlay digital plant models onto the actual landscape seen through your device's camera!
How does it work?
Simply find one of our AR stations in the garden, scan the QR code, and point your mobile device's camera at the station. You can also find the AR program through your web browser here. You will see a Michigan rare or endangered plant appear on your phone, along with the natural beauty of the garden.
You can move your camera around the station to see the plant model from different angles or zoom in/out. You can also press the magnification icon to see a zoomed-in version of the plant and learn more about the species.
Can I do this from home?
While you can access the AR app from home, you will not be able to see the full experience without the physical AR stations in the garden.
Are these plants realistic?
Yes! A Beal Scholar specializing in digital art extensively studied photos and preserved specimens of these plants to create an accurate digital representation. While no single digital model can cover all the minute variations seen in nature, we created an accurate representation that will allow you to recognize the plant when you are out exploring the natural world.
Why use AR instead of actual plants?
We intend to do both! Beal Botanical Garden brings rare Michigan plants to the garden to educate the public on their beauty and resilience as well as protect them as their natural habitats are being threatened. We have applied (and obtained) permits to collect some of these species and you should see them come to life in the garden in the coming years.
In the meantime, this AR experience allows you to learn about the plants outside of their normal growing season, creating a year-round educational opportunity.
Student Credits:
Special thanks to our AR Team for developing this experience:
Zane O'Dell - Beal Scholar (Creative Technology), Computer Science and Engineering, 2024
Anthony Zheng - Beal Scholar (Digital Art), Game and Interactive Media Design, 2024
Copyright Citations:
Consortium of Midwest Herbaria. 2024. https://midwestherbaria.org/portal/index.php. Accessed on March 11.
Trillium nivale Riddell© Paul Rothrock, CC-BY-SA
IND-0162961 © Richard Hull, CC-BY-NC
Mullein-Foxglove © Richard Hull, CC-BY-NC
Mullein-Foxglove © Paul Rothrock, CC BY-SA
Mullein-Foxglove © Richard Hull, CC-BY-NC
American-Ginseng © Kerry Wixted, CC BY-NC 2.0 DEED
Flickr.com. 2024. https://www.flickr.com/. Accessed on March 11