This paper advocates a visitor-centric approach to designing a solution for navigation and interpretation. The American Museum of Natural History iPhone application Explorer combines state of the art location awareness, interpretation, and social networking to deliver an enhanced visitor experience both onsite and online. AMNH had three objectives with this project: to facilitate visitor navigation, to provide an application that appeals to visitors and encourages repeat visits, and to enhance exhibit information without detracting from the exhibits themselves. This paper examines the reasoning behind utilizing a mobile device for wayfinding; the choice of the iPhone platform; the challenge of bringing “GPS indoors” and the resultant technical solution; feature set determination and usability; the role of mobile devices in the pre- and post-Museum visit continuum; the challenges of curated mobile content creation; deploying the application on Museum-supplied devices and through the iTunes store; and marketing of the device and app. We will present the challenges faced by AMNH in executing a cross-Museum enterprise and share lessons learned, in order to offer the wider museum community an opportunity to build on our experience and expertise. A paper from Museums and the Web 2011.

2. Mobile Parade: EXPLORER

3. AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY
Linda Perry-Lube, Chief Digital Officer, Digital Media
Melissa Lefkowitz, Project Manager, Digital Media

4. • 1.5 million square feet
• 46 exhibition halls
• 24 interconnected buildings
• 32 million specimens and cultural artifacts
• 38% (approx. 570,000 sq ft of public space)

5. Overview
Museum Objectives
• Facilitate visitor
navigation at the
Project Deliverables
Museum • State of the art handheld
museum navigation and
• Enhance exhibit
information without
guide
detracting from the
exhibits
• Wi-Fi entire Museum –
Public and Staff space
• Anneals onsite and
online experience

6. Approach
Keeping
the visitors
needs as
the central
component
of the
technology
and
content
approach

7. The Visitor Experience

8. Navigation and Interpretation
Current Method for Exploring Using the App to Explore the
Museum Museum
Map Map shows
current
location
Step-by-Step
Directions
Ask for Directions
in hand
Ability to Plan / Ability to Plan /
Look up Exhibit Look up Exhibit
Information online Information in the
moment

12. Thank you!
American Museum of Natural History

13. Contact Info
Linda Perry-Lube lperry-lube@amnh.org
Melissa Lefkowitz mlefkowitz@amnh.org