The ARTutor application is available for free at the Google Play Store.
You can download the application by clicking on the Google Play button or by scanning the QR code with your mobile device.
ARTutor uses Google’s ARCore library for creating immersive augmented reality experiences.
A list of devices that currently support ARCore is available at: https://developers.google.com/ar/devices.
The list is updated constantly.
With ARTutor you can add digital content on top of printed material or on top of electronic material!
You can add multiple types of augmentations that are displayed when a trigger image is detected by the camera of the mobile device.
Augmentations can be:
-Images
-Sounds
-Videos
-YouTube videos
-3D Models
-URL links
Using ARTutor, you can quickly create rich and immersive AR experiences without coding.
All types of augmentations are fully interactable and you can use touch gestures to play with the augmentations.
You can also use our new AR Experience editor to create complex augmentations that combine images, videos, shapes and 3D models all in the same augmentation.
ARTutor now supports Location-based AR and experiences can be triggered in specific locations.
Also, multiple users can now edit the same AR experience collaboratively.
ARTutor is available for Android devices and soon for iOS devices.
AR has surged in popularity in recent years, and for good reason. However, while a multitude of commercial platforms for developing AR applications already exist, very few are free-to-use and only a small percentage of those have been developed for educational purposes.
ARTutor is an Augmented Reality Educational Platform developed by the Advanced Educational Technologies and Mobile Applications (AETMA) Research Lab of the Computing Science Department of the International Hellenic University. It consists of a Web Platform for creating the augmented reality experience while the Mobile Application is used to view the experience in the mobile device. An advanced tool, AR Experience Editor, for creating complex augmentations in the 3D world was added in the latest version ARTutor 4.
With ARTutor, you can add digital content to traditional educational books and other texts, which assists both teachers and students’ independent studies.
Here are just a few of the benefits of using ARTutor to printed material to life:
– Boost learner engagement and emotional connectivity.
– Equip teachers with limited IT skills the tools they need to develop AR books and create highly immersive educational activities and experiences.
– Improve learner comprehension and knowledge retention.
– Remove accessibility roadblocks by implementing a single mobile application with enhanced digital content.
– Promote independent, self-paced distance learning.
– Empowers remote learners by giving them the opportunity to act as content creators in the education environment.
Thanks to its simplicity, ARTutor can be used by any educator, regardless of their tech know-how or level of programming skills. It can be applied in any domain, from mathematics and history to the arts and philosophy. Another standout benefit is that this versatile platform supports all levels of education, whether it’s at the Primary, Secondary or University level.
The ARTutor platform is available for download, free of charge, via Google Play and the IOS App Store. The main aim is to help educators and students develop technology enhanced educational material and improve educational performances and experiences on a global scale. It embraces the UNESCO initiative “Education for All”, in its effort to break down the socioeconomic or cultural barriers which prevent access to high-end educational technologies and to tech-enhanced learning, as a whole.
To create an AR experience in ARTutor you will need to sign up.
The process takes just a few minutes and is completely free!
You will need an email account to verify your ARTutor account.
Once you register, you can sign-in to the platform and create your first AR experience.
To create a Book you must first have the book available in pdf format. If you have the book in another format such as .doc or .ppt, you can very easily convert it to pdf and then upload it to the platform.
After creating the Book, you can add Augmentations to it.
You can also add other users to create augmentations on the same Book.
Once the Book is created, you can add augmentations to bring your book to life.
The augmentations are displayed when the camera of the mobile device detects the trigger image that you have set.
When creating augmentations, you can select the multimedia information (image, video, 3D model, audio, web page, YouTube video) that will be displayed when the trigger image is located by the camera.
You can add as many augmentations as you wish to a Book.
Simple augmentations of any type can be added to each Book, such as image, video, 3D model, audio, webpage or a YouTube video.
With AR Experience Editor you can add complex augmentations that combine images, videos, 3D models and 3D shapes.
The complex augmentation will be displayed when the camera of the mobile device detects the trigger image that you have set.
The complex augmentation will appear exactly as you designed it in the AR Experience Editor.
To view an augmented reality experience on your mobile device, you must first have downloaded the ARTutor application.
Then, you can search for the Book in the app or use the book’s QR code.
The camera of the mobile device will then open and as soon as an activation image is found, the augmented reality experience will be displayed.
Field trips constitute a powerful educational tool, providing students with the opportunity to acquire authentic, hands-on experiences by direct contact with the natural environment. Technological advances, especially augmented reality (AR) applications, can add a whole new dimension to field trips. A field trip took place at the volcano Sousaki, enriched with AR activities that were created using the educational platform ARTutor. The students that took part in the field trip were asked to locate different rock formations on site from the pictures they had been given. By scanning these pictures with the use of the ARTutor application on their mobile devices they were given access to educational material that had been loaded in the ARTutor platform. The augmentations were pictures, videos and text and provided a great deal of information regarding the rock formations of the volcano.
The instructors were asked to comment on the whole experience from planning this field trip to watching students’ reactions and evaluating the level of their engagement and satisfaction. They reported that after setting the learning goals, the design of the augmented reality activities was problem-free. The platform was very helpful when uploading the augmentations chosen and they only had to check the signal reception at the volcano site so that they could confirm that there would be an internet connection during their visit. The quality of the content and the integrity of the materials could not be questioned, since they were uploaded on the educational platform after a great deal of consideration and rigorous screening on the part of the instructors.
Following the educational outing, the instructors expressed how positive this experience had been for the students, who enjoyed working together in groups, had fun locating the spots from the pictures and were amazed by the information provided to them through the AR application. All in all, the true potential of such a field trip was appreciated and taken full advantage of and, as they reported, it was something that they would definitely like to do again. They also pointed out how important such endeavours are for preserving our geological heritage.
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Source: Psychogiou, M., Georgiou, K., Antonarakou, A., & Drinia, H. (2019). A field trip enhanced with ARTutor, an augmented reality educational platform. Eur. Geol. Eur. Geol.
https://eurogeologists.eu/psychogiou-a-field-trip-enhanced-with-artutor-an-augmented-reality-educational-platform/
ARTutor was presented and utilized at the 2nd International Hackathon, under the Erasmus + program “Immersive Technologies for Education (ImTech4Ed)”, which focuses on the application of augmented and virtual reality technologies in STEAM education.
During the program, participants explored the possibilities of implementing educational games and applications prototypes using ARTutor 3. In particular, they worked in small teams and conceptualize and develop prototypes targeting school kids in the age range 14-16 yrs.
The training was attended by teachers of different STEAM domains and students from different study programs (computing, game design, arts, humanities & social sciences) in universities of various European countries (Cyprus, Greece, Germany).
The training took place from 6th to 10th of December 2021
