van Leeuwen, J.P., Quanjer, A.J., Jylhä, A., et al. 2018. Kunstmatige Intelligentie in de Publieke Ruimte in Scheveningen – Projectrapportage. Den Haag: De Haagse Hogeschool, okt. 2018.

Samenvatting | Download het volledige rapport

In deze rapportage wordt verslag gedaan van het project “Kunstmatige intelligentie in de Publieke Ruimte”. De Haagse Hogeschool deed, in samenwerking met lokale creatieve ondernemers, onderzoek naar de mogelijkheden van toepassingen van kunstmatige intelligentie in de publieke ruimte. Aanleiding hiervoor was het voornemen van de gemeente Den Haag om een zogenaamde Smart City Infrastructuur te realiseren.

De gemeente Den Haag heeft, met een consortium van leveranciers van services en infrastructuur, het voornemen om te investeren in de bouw van een zogenoemde Smart City Infrastructuur (SCI). Deze infrastructuur zal bestaan uit “Smart City Hubs”, nog te ontwikkelen WiFi-stations met sensortechnologie, geïnstalleerd in lichtmasten in de publieke ruimte.

Lees verder “Kunstmatige Intelligentie in de Publieke Ruimte in Scheveningen” →

van Leeuwen, J.P., Hermans, K., Jylhä, A., Quanjer, A.J., Nijman, H. 2018. “Effectiveness of Virtual Reality in Participatory Urban Planning.” In: Proceedings of the Media Architecture Biennale, Beijing, China, Nov. 2018.

Abstract | Full text

In urban planning, 3D modeling and virtual reality (VR) provide new means for involving citizens in the planning process. For municipal government, it is essential to know how effective these means are, to justify investments. In this study, we present a case of using VR in a municipal process of civic participation concerning the redesign of a public park. The process included co- design activities and involved citizens in decision-making through a ballot, using 3D-rendered versions of competing designs. In co- design, 3D-modeling tools were instrumental in empowering citizens to negotiate design decisions, to discuss the quality of designs with experts, and to collectively take decisions. This paper demonstrates that, in a ballot on competing designs with 1302 citizens, VR headsets proved to be equally effective compared to other display technologies in informing citizens during decision making. The results of an additional, controlled experiment indicate that VR headsets provide higher engagement and more vivid memories than viewing the designs on non-immersive displays.

By integrating research into a municipal process, we contribute evidence of cognitive and engagement effects of using 3D modeling and immersive VR technologies to empower citizens in participatory urban planning. The case described in the paper concerns a public park; a similar approach could be applied to the design of public installations including media architecture.

van Leeuwen, J.P., Hermans, K., Quanjer, A.J., Jylhä, A., Nijman, H. 2018. “Using Virtual Reality to Increase Civic Participation in Designing Public Spaces.” In: Proceedings of the European Conference on Digital Government, Santiago de Compostela, Spain, Oct. 2018.

Abstract | Full text

Municipalities increasingly seek to include citizens in decision-making processes regarding local issues, such as urban planning. This paper presents a case study on using Virtual Reality (VR) in a process of civic participation in the redesign of a public park. The municipality included citizens in intensive co-design activities to create three designs for the park and engaged the neighbourhood community in co-decision, in the form of a ballot. Through the civic participatory process, we studied the effectiveness of using VR technology to engage the community in participating in the co-decision process. The three designs were presented using highly realistic 360 ̊ visualisations and the effects on engagement were compared between various devices: VR headsets, smartphones, tablets, and computers. Viewing the designs in 2D paper plans was also included in the comparison. The study included over 1300 respondents that participated in the ballot. A statistical analysis of the collected data shows that participants viewing the 360 ̊ rendered images with VR technology expressed a significantly higher engagement in the co-decision process than those using their computer at home or viewing 2D paper plans. The paper describes the complete participatory design process and the impact of the e-governance used on the target group as well as on the actors organizing the e-governance process. We discuss how the use of new technology and active presence of a voting-support team inspired citizens to participate in the co-creation process and how the investment in this procedure helped the local authorities to generate support for the plans and strengthen its relationship with the community. The use of realistic visualisations that can be easily assessed by citizens through user-friendly technology, enabled a large and diverse audience to participate. This resulted in greater visibility of municipal efforts to enhance the living environment of citizens and is therefore an important step in increased civic engagement in municipal policy-making and implementation.

Jylhä, A., Harraou, I., Quanjer, A.J., van Leeuwen, J.P. 2017. “Using Behavior Data for Creating Awareness in Motorists about Emission Consequences.” In: Proceedings of the workshop on People, Personal Data and the Built Environment at DIS 2017. Edinburgh, June 10, 2017.

Abstract | Full text