MobiDENK - mobile multimedia in monument conservation

Modern monument conservation aims to foster the public\´s perception of cultural heritage. To support this aim, we developed a mobile, location-aware information system that draws the visitor\´s attention to historic sites of interest and provides location-dependent multimedia information. We call the system mobiDENK, which is the acronym for mobile monuments in German: "mobile Denkmaler". Essentially, the mobiDENK application runs on a personal digital assistant (PDA) with an integrated global positioning system (GPS) receiver. By locating the user and showing position and path on an interactive map, mobiDENK offers visual navigation support. As the user casually tours an area, mobiDENK provides location-based multimedia information about points of interest (POIs) along the way, such as monuments and significant historical sites. MobiDENK is one application of the highly modular, flexible Niccimon system architecture that we developed for rapid mobile application development. The project\´s aim is to provide the public with mobile, location-based multimedia information about significant cultural sites in Lower Saxony.