Environmental Design (EVDS) PhD candidates, Rozhen Mohammed-Amin and Kamaran Noori, joined an international project team rebuilding the city of Christchurch after the September 2010 earthquake.
Christchurch has been hit by a number of large earthquakes since 2010, damaging numerous buildings in the inner city, including the iconic Christchurch Cathedral. As a result of the severe damage to structural foundations, many of the buildings will be demolished to make way for new construction.
The Human Interface Technology Laboratory in New Zealand (HITLabNZ), a leading human computer interaction research centre at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand, is playing a crucial role in the reconstruction of the city’s centre. In 2011, Mohammed-Amin and Noori earned internships with HITLabNZ and the lab’s CityViewAR Project.
The project is an augmented reality (AR) mobile app which allows Christchurch residents and visitors to see life-sized 3D models of the demolished buildings augmented in the locations they once stood on their iPhone or Android phones. This free app also provides historical information and pictures of the buildings.
“CityViewAR is a noble project,” says Mohammed-Amin, “not only for keeping the memory of the pre-quake Christchurch alive, but also providing a new platform for the public to participate and be recognized in building and/or rebuilding of their cities; something that is novel to architecture practice.”
The app works as an urban scale museum that revives memories of the city and presents them to the public using a cutting-edge technology. Future works on the CityViewAR app will allow users to virtually see proposed building designs in specific locations. This will further engage the public in rebuilding Christchurch by collecting their feedback on proposed designs.
“The app is important because it brings together the past, present and future of Christchurch,” says Noori. “It serves as a window through which the future of the city can be visualized on-site.”
Mohammed-Amin and Noori have played an integral role on the project’s multi-disciplinary team, which includes individuals with computer science, architecture, and design backgrounds.
“My experience at HITLabNZ was truly valuable. Not only for the challenging work at this internationally recognized lab but also because of the people, of course, the breathtaking landscape of New Zealand,” adds Mohammed-Amin.
For the full story by Rozhen Mohammed-Amin in Utoday, click here.