Research on User-Centered Digital Media Exhibition Design

Xiong Han

and Yi Luo

Visual Arts Foundation Department, Hubei Institute of Fine Arts, Wuhan, China

Keywords: New Media, Exhibition Design, Virtual Reality, Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), Design Methodology.

Abstract: In order to produce DMED for audience interaction experience that is consistent with the era of big data, use

AHP to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of DMED. First, this paper uses literature research to

summarize the concept and characteristics of new media exhibition design and AHP, then uses AHP to

establish a DMED evaluation model, and then obtains the index weight value of each layer through expert

scoring for analysis and comparison, and finally designs the project space through evaluation. The result has

produced a exhibition space design based on the audience's visual interaction and integrating various new

media technologies. Interactive AR display design with unity 3D software and computer programming. The

new media technology based on the audience's visual experience is very important in the exhibition space

design. The output of this paper can provide design ideas for other exhibition designs.

1 INTRODUCTION

With the change of new digital media technology

(DMT) in the age of mega-data, the Digital media

exhibition design (DMED) is no longer just the use

of traditional exhibition methods, but also needs to

have the technology update of resource optimization

and allocation in it. According to statistics, in the

global digital trend, many museums in China and the

West have made digital optimization in exhibition,

such as the British Museum, the Metropolitan

Museum of the United States and the National

Palace Museum of China have introduced DMT,

which reflects that the digital industry is a new trend

of exhibition space design and a key development

direction. Therefore, The research on the exhibition

space evolution of museums in the new media

environment has become a new issue of concern to

the academic research and relevant industries (Kang,

2020). Through comprehensive evaluation, we can

understand its construction and measure the current

development level, which can be used as a reference

for the planning of DMED.

New media means interactive and digital

composite media with network technology,

communication technology and digital technology as

the transmission carrier. With the development of

digital information, new media has constantly

evolved, changed people's information receiving

methods and habits, and enhanced the media's

communication power and influence. DMED is a

space planning activity that serves the exhibition

content, and the core purpose is to effectively spread

some information or culture. The exhibition design

plans the original space structure of the building, and

plans and uses a certain space range through

technical support and artistic techniques to conform

to the atmosphere of the exhibition content. The

design category of exhibition space tends to go

beyond the view of simple space design, presenting

a design of comprehensive methods.

Now traditional media begin to use information

technology to change their own operation mode, and

new digital media technology is also widely used in

DMED. It has changed the traditional exhibition

cabinet, booth and other forms, and adopted a

variety of digital media, new science and technology

to create a live exhibition atmosphere. Virtual

augmented reality exhibition technology, 3D stereo

and holographic interactive images, on-site

interactive visual experience and other large-scale

digital media exhibition design technologies for

enterprises have made it widely used, which enables

all visitors to obtain a truly comprehensive

interactive experience (Hornecker, 2019). These

technologies have historically changed the

traditional art exhibition methods, and used these

digital international exhibitions to develop new

forms of expression for exhibitors. From the initial

308

Han, X. and Luo, Y.

Research on User-Centered Digital Media Exhibition Design.

DOI: 10.5220/0011911100003613

In Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on New Media Development and Modernized Education (NMDME 2022), pages 308-314

ISBN: 978-989-758-630-9

 2023 by SCITEPRESS – Science and Technology Publications, Lda. Under CC license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

development of a single static form to the integration

of various dynamic processes of human visual,

auditory, olfactory and tactile interactions, people

can participate more freely, actively and

interactively (Vi, 2017).

Overview of AHP (Analytical Hierarchy

Process) analytic hierarchy process: AHP is a

practical multi scheme or multi criteria decision-

making method proposed by American operations

research scientist Professor Thomas L. Saaty in the

early 1970s. This method uses a hierarchical method

to express complex decision-making problems, and

uses human subjective judgment and scientific

methods to determine their advantages and

disadvantages. At present, AHP has been widely

used in various fields, creating good economic and

social benefits for enterprises and society (Yu,

2021).

This study selects DMED as the research object,

and uses AHP method to analyze the application of

new technology in exhibition design. Establish the

structural model and compare the weight of the

selected design elements, so as to find out the

successful way of the DMED in the application

through the weight comparison, so as to further

provide theoretical and data support for the DMED.

2 RESEARCH PROCESS

The research process of this article is as follows in

this figure(fig1）:

(1) Pre-investigation to establish the theoretical

basis, and theoretical analysis based on literature

research.

(2) Listen to expert opinions and establish an

AHP model for evaluation (Chang, 1996).

(3) Weight ordering based on evaluation results

(4) Project design from dissemination,

suitability, interactivity and technicality.

3 RECENT RESEARCH

In China, many researchers have emerged in China

to apply to space design and have made remarkable

research achievements. Zhang made a brief

interpretation of the theoretical method, practical

application and research results of space design by

exploring new media technology from different

levels.

Juan summarized practical design methods of

experiential exhibition space from architectural

design, user application design and other aspects. In

addition, in order to improve personal thinking about

the design method of exhibition experience space. In

addition, Chinese scholars Jin and Wen co authored

a systematic introduction to the practical application,

potential problems and future development of the

popular digital exhibition design; In recent years,

Qingqing and others elaborated the theoretical basis,

research methods, design applications and

development prospects of new media exhibition

design from the basic new media technology and

exhibition design theory, which has become a

practical manual of Digital media exhibition design

(DMED). These literatures objectively introduce the

DMED theory, project practice, technology

provision and the limitations of practical application,

providing theoretical and technical references for

this study.

Ronch pointed out that: "In the information age,

digital media information has become the most

popular way of cultural and artistic communication

for the audience”. Compared with traditional

methods, multimedia information is more easily

accepted by the public. Also, Sulema explored how

to use digital media technology to integrate smell,

touch, heat, etc. into media objects, so as to enrich

traditional multimedia content and enhance

immersion. Siorffe analyzed how to integrate digital

media The technology is integrated into the space,

forming the interaction between the audience and the

physical space enhanced by technology. Susan

McLeod discussed the adaptive design of the

exhibition space under the application of digital

media narrative technology in her research, further

proposed the concept of new media technology

applied to the exhibition design, and expanded the

application of new media technology in multi type

exhibition spaces.

Through the literature review, it is found that

both focus on digital media technology innovation,

and the research on how to reasonably layout

technology and user experience study remains on the

surface. From the existing research results, most of

them ignore the synergy and differences of DMED.

Therefore, it is of great theoretical and practical

significance to study the evolution model of

exhibition design in the new media environment by

combining AHP, considering the differences of

communication forms between new media and

exhibition space.

Research on User-Centered Digital Media Exhibition Design

309

Figure 1: DMED Design Flow Chart

4 EVALUATION MODEL

4.1 Build A Hierarchical Analysis

Model

DMED are not only reflected in the aspect of

communication, but also the interactivity and

technicality cannot be ignored. Stand at the visitor's

point of view to establish an index system which

follows the dissemination, suitability, interactivity

and technical, and includes four dimensions and 20

indicators (Zancanaro, 2007), as shown in the this

figure (fig 2).

Figure 2: DMED evaluation chart

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4.2 Build Judgment Matrix

AHP is used to calculate the preliminary subjective

weight, and the pairwise judgment matrix

constructed by seven experts on indicators according

to the 1-9 scale theory is collected. The 1-9 scale and

its significance are shown in this table(tbl1).

Table 1: Definition notes

Scale/a

Definition notes

Two indicators have the same effect on one

attribute

Compared with the two indicators, one

indicator is slightly more important than the

othe

Compared with the two indicators, one

indicator is obviously more important than

the othe

Compared with the two indicators, one

indicator is much more important than the

othe

Compared with the two indexes, each

element is extremel

ortant

2、4、

6、8

Scales when a compromise between the

above two criteria is required

1/b

Inverse com

arison of two indexes

Establish the indicator system, and set the second

level indicators as {ABCD}an shown in this

table(tbl2).

Table 2: indicator system

CODE A B C D

A 1 2 5 5

B 1/2 1 2 3

C 1/5 1/2 1 1

D 1/5 1/3 1 1

This comparison uses the sum product method to

calculate the eigenvector of the judgment matrix

elements. First, calculate the sum of the columns,

and then normalize the columns. Next, add the

normalized matrix to the same row. Finally, divide

the vector obtained after the addition by n to obtain

the weight vector of each indicator. As shown in the

table (tbl3).

Table 3: Weight value.

CODE A B C D W

A 0.076 0.154 0.385 0.385 0.527

B 0.077 0.154 0.308 0.462 0.261

C 0.111 0.278 0.556 0.556 0.111

CODE A B C D W

D 0.079 0.131 0.395 0.395 0.101

The specific steps are as follows:

Record the corresponding elements of the

judgment matrix {ABCD} layer in the table as bij

（i,j=1,2,...,4），

The elements in each column of the judgment

matrix are normalized into:

bij = bij/ bij





(1)

Add all columns in the same row of the

normalized matrix, namely:

wi =  bij





(2)

Normalize wi, the formula is：

wi = wi/ wi





(3)

Then: w=[w1 w2 w3 w4]=[0.527 0.2641 0.111

0.101] is the indicator weight.

In order to avoid the error between the subjective

judgment matrix and the objective facts, the

consistency test shall be conducted. The necessary

and sufficient condition for the consistency of the n-

order matrix is the maximum eigenvalue

AW =

(4)

A is the judgment matrix; λ Is the characteristic

value; W is the eigenvector. Minor inconsistencies

in the judgment matrix are unavoidable and

acceptable, and the consistency judgment is as

follows.

the greatest characteristic root:

ΛMAX =



BWI





= 4.016

(5)

Judgment Matrix Consistency Index C.I., R. I is

the random consistency index, C. R is a random

consistency ratio

consistency index CI：

CI =

maxn

n1

= 0.005

(6)

Random Consistency Indicators for Queries:

RI =

maxn

n1

= 0.882

(7)

Consistent ratio CR：

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CR =

= 0.006

(8)

If CR < 0.1, consistency of the judgement matrix

is acceptable. If CR < 0.1, the judgement matrix

should be modified until consistency is acceptable.

So CR=CI/RI=0.006<0.1, the above calculation

shows that the judgment matrix achieves satisfactory

consistency index and meets the consistency

requirements, so the weight is valid, when the

proportion of the four dimensions is 52.7%, 26.1%,

11.1%, 10.1%, respectively.

According to the above decision table

construction, sample data processing and attribute

weights calculation process, the importance and

attribute weights of each factor in criteria layer and

index layer are calculated respectively, and the

results are shown in table and table.

Table 4: Evaluation results for communicability（A）.

COD

A1 A2 A3 A4 A5 A6

Eigenv

ecto

Weight

(%)

A1 1 2 3 0.333 5 3 1.763 22.575

A2 0.5 1 2 0.333 3 1 1 12.807

A3 0.333 0.5 1 0.167 1 0.5 0.49 6.279

A4 3 3 6 1 6 4 3.302 42.286

A5 0.2 0.333 1 0.167 1 0.5 0.421 5.39

A6 0.333 1 2 0.25 2 1 0.833 10.664

“Communicability” result in this table(tbl4):

Participation rate is relatively important in the

criteria for assessing dissemination (0.423).

Table 5: Evaluation results for suitability（B）.

CODE B1 B2 B3 B4 Eigenvector

Weight

(%)

B1 1 0.5 0.333 0.25 0.452 8.611

B2 2 1 0.2 0.167 0.508 9.684

B3 3 5 1 0.5 1.655 31.54

B4 4 6 2 1 2.632 50.165

“Suitability” result in this table(tbl5): The

interaction rate is relatively important in the

suitability evaluation criteria (0.502).

Table 6: Evaluation results for Interoperability（C）.

C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6

Eigenve

cto

Weight

(%)

C1 1 2 6 6 2 3 2.749 35.868

C2 0.5 1 4 4 1 2 1.587 20.708

C3 0.167 0.25 1 1 0.25 0.333 0.389 5.076

C4 0.167 0.25 1 1 0.2 0.5 0.401 5.233

C5 0.5 1 4 5 1 2 1.648 21.493

C6 0.333 0.5 3 2 0.5 1 0.891 11.622

“Interactivity” result in this table(tbl6): Visual

perception is relatively important in the criteria for

assessing interactivity (0.359).

Table 7: Evaluation results for technicality（D）.

CODE D1 D2 D3 D4 Eigenvecto

Weight (%)

D1 1 4 5 2 2.515 49.959

D2 0.25 1 2 0.5 0.707 14.047

D3 0.2 0.5 1 0.25 0.398 7.899

D4 0.5 2 4 1 1.414 28.094

“Technicality” result in this table(tbl7): Virtual

reality technology is relatively important in the

technical evaluation benchmark (0.500).

The results of the above analysis show that if the

four dimensions "dissemination", "suitability",

"interactivity" and "technicality" are used to promote

the development of DMED, attention should be paid

to improving the service level of high-tech design

first, and then to strengthening the customer

participation and experience of DMED in providing

services. To improve audience interaction, especially

the user experience, so that the audience can actively

participate in it.

5 DESIGN PRACTICE

5.1 Project Background

The front door of Beijing is an important part of the

historical and cultural area of Beijing. Due to the

needs of civil air defense conditions in wartime, a

network of civil air defense tunnels has been formed.

Through the Qian-men Underground Museum

project, relying on new media technology and

various visual exhibition methods, a new cultural

museum is created, which is inherited from top to

bottom and integrates collection, research and

exhibition.

1. Provide a exhibition platform for Beijing

Qian-men culture

To preserve our original cultural memory, we

used this museum to show the culture of the front

door and describe the history of the area.

2. Integrate visual exhibition of digital media

into traditional cultural space

Traditional culture is blended with new media

technology in a limited space, with visual perception

as the main exhibition method, and a large number

of new media exhibition methods to make the

audience experience a visual blending of traditional

and modern art.

3. Rebuilding and utilizing the original

underground space

In order to save land resources and economic

expenditure, we have transformed the original space

of Qian-men Underground City to avoid wasting

space resources.

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5.2 Design Output

The business area is one of the outlets of

underground space in this figure (fig3(A)). Spatial

division in the form of curves mainly deals in the

creation of Qian-men culture. Relevant video is

played in this area to directly introduce Qian-men

culture and its derivatives to enhance the visual

perception of the audience.

Space one in this figure (fig3(B)) introduces the

old brand stores of the Qian-men which is moving

in, moving out and still running. The overall design

of the space uses virtual reality technology (AR) to

simulate the form of plaques, transparent plaques to

represent the disappeared brand, and black plaques

to represent the changed in brand. The comparison

between the two forms a visual impact, and LED

video technology to introduce the brand in the back

wall to enhance the audience experience.

Append a script to the model to display and drag

AR of the model through Unity3d , as shown in this

figure(fig 4).

Figure 4: Cut code

Space two in this figure (fig3(C)) shows the

emergence of new things in modern Beijing that first

appeared in Qian-men area, which is reflected in the

leading role of Qian-men as a commercial center in

several fields in the process of the modernization of

the ancient capital. The space takes tram as the

starting point, and displays the real form simulation

of the old Beijing tram in the exhibition hall. The

window is an interactive screen for the audience,

showing the "news" of the old Beijing, as if those

histories were already in sight, creating a variety of

different visual effects for the audience. In the

headquarters area, a control screen has been added,

which enables the audience to interact with each

other, to arouse the interest of the audience and to

gain a deep understanding of this culture.

Due to the limitations of underground space and

narrow aisles, a single form is used to prevent people

from jamming.

The left wall displays the relevant documents of

the time when the air defense shelter was built. The

photo is used as the base of the exhibition wall, and

the traditional visual way is used to spread the

exhibition so that the audience has a basic

understanding of civil defense in wartime. The right

side uses projection technology to introduce the real

scene at that time to the audience, so that they can

recognize the difficulty of war. The place as shown

in this figure (fig3(D)).

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Figure 3: Design element description

6 CONCLUSION AND FUTURE

RESEARCH

The application of new media has significantly

improved the dissemination rate and audience

interaction rate of exhibition space, and improved

the wartime environment. More and more exhibition

designs have introduced new media technology for

spatial exhibition. Based on the new media and

exhibition design theory, this paper constructs a

DMED evaluation model for data analysis. The data

results verify the validity of the model, and provide

a new theoretical perspective and practical direction

for how to use more effective methods and

innovative technologies for spatial exhibition in

DMED. In the final project practice, it combines

virtual reality technology, holographic projection

technology and historical scene restore methods to

be used in various spaces to enhance the interactive

experience of the audience. A DMED project in

Beijing was produced and received good reviews.

Future research will further explore historical scene

restoration in the VR, increasing immersion from a

technical perspective.

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Hornecker, E., &Ciolfi, L. (2019). Human-Computer

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Kang, Y., & YANG, K. (2020). Employing Digital Reality

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