Vanderbilt Mansion App

This was a group project executed by myself, Lindsay Brett, Kevin McCusker, and Bridget Deluca as part of our Interaction Design class. The challenge was to create an app prototype for a specific place, and we chose the Vanderbilt Mansion in Hyde Park, NY. We visited and toured the mansion, took notes and photographs, and interviewed our guide. Through this process we decided that this National Historic Landmark needed a more easily understandable map, calendar of events, and for added fun, an augmented reality tour! We also wanted to add features focusing on assisting those with disabilities. The interior of the mansion served as inspiration for the feel of the app, and we made sure to make it simple enough so that our broad audience (the many visitors of the mansion) would be able to navigate through it. Watch the click-through below or scroll for more details!

To start, the app opens to three options: general information, maps, or an augmented reality tour.

After choosing the Info tab, you are presented with the address, hours of operation, fees for the mansion, contact information, and a calendar icon that takes you to a calendar of events page.

After choosing the Maps tab, you are presented with a map of the grounds with icons for parking, the welcome center, and the mansion. Additionally, there are three icons on the side to indicate options for two supporting accessibility maps. The second icon is for physical disabilities, which includes map icons for handicap entrances and updates with alerts if elevators are down. The third icon is for mental disabilities, including a key for this map's icons which designate possibly loud, busy, or populated ares, calm areas, and places that offer tactile opportunities.

After choosing the Tour tab, an explanation of augmented reality appears on the screen for those who have never encountered it before. After pressing "Get Started" a screen lists the different rooms where AR is applicable, and would be pointed out by the mansion tour guides. Then, your camera opens and the room comes to life around you! There is also an option for audio to go along with what you're seeing on your phone, or a transcript for the hard of hearing or those without headphones.

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