TY  - JOUR
T1  - Augmented Reality in Cultural Heritage: A Systematic Review of Mobile Applications and User Experience Evaluation
TT  - Augmented Reality in Cultural Heritage: A Systematic Review of Mobile Applications and User Experience Evaluation
AU  - Şenyer, Nurettin
AU  - Alzatma, Aya
PY  - 2025
DA  - July
Y2  - 2025
DO  - 10.34248/bsengineering.1709786
JF  - Black Sea Journal of Engineering and Science
JO  - BSJ Eng. Sci.
PB  - Karyay Karadeniz Yayımcılık Ve Organizasyon Ticaret Limited Şirketi
WT  - DergiPark
SN  - 2619-8991
SP  - 1245
EP  - 1257
VL  - 8
IS  - 4
LA  - en
AB  - This systematic review compares four leading AR applications for cultural heritage interpretation, providing comprehensive insights for future AR development in cultural contexts. It analyzes Google Lens, Civilisations AR, Timelooper, and Artivive across technological methods, user experiences, and effectiveness at cultural heritage sites. Drawing on peer-reviewed studies from 2017 -2025, sourced from academic databases including Google Scholar, the review highlights diverse implementation strategies and immersion levels through systematic comparative analysis. Results demonstrate that Google Lens excels in AI-driven accessibility, Civilisations AR in 3D educational depth, Timelooper in narrative immersion, and Artivive in dynamic art overlays. The findings suggest that next-generation AR applications should adopt hybrid approaches combining the best features of each model while addressing current limitations in content scalability and user engagement.
KW  - Augmented reality
KW  - Cultural heritage
KW  - Digital transformation
KW  - Mobile applications
KW  - User experience
N2  - This systematic review compares four leading AR applications for cultural heritage interpretation, providing comprehensive insights for future AR development in cultural contexts. It analyzes Google Lens, Civilisations AR, Timelooper, and Artivive across technological methods, user experiences, and effectiveness at cultural heritage sites. Drawing on peer-reviewed studies from 2017 -2025, sourced from academic databases including Google Scholar, the review highlights diverse implementation strategies and immersion levels through systematic comparative analysis. Results demonstrate that Google Lens excels in AI-driven accessibility, Civilisations AR in 3D educational depth, Timelooper in narrative immersion, and Artivive in dynamic art overlays. The findings suggest that next-generation AR applications should adopt hybrid approaches combining the best features of each model while addressing current limitations in content scalability and user engagement.
CR  - Artivive GmbH. 2024. Artivive (Version 4.8.2) [Mobile app]. AppStore. URL:https://apps.apple.com/app/artivive/id1188737494
CR  - BBC. 2018. Civilisations AR launches. BBC MediaCentre. URL:https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/latestnews/2018/Civilisations-ar-launches
CR  - Boboc RG, Băutu E, Gîrbacia F, Popovici N, Popovici DM. 2022. Augmented reality in cultural heritage: an overview of the last decade of applications. Appl Sci, 12(19): 9859
CR  - de Morais Sarmento MLF. 2024. Design of Immersive Museum Experiences: Improving Visitor Engagement Through Co-Creation, Augmented Reality and Gamification. Universidade do Porto, Institute of Design and Fine Arts, Porto, Portugal, pp: 24-65.
CR  - Ghouaiel N, Garbaya S, Cieutat JM, Jessel JP. 2017. Mobile augmented reality in museums: towards enhancing visitor's learning experience. Int J Virtual Reality, 17(1): 21-31
CR  - Google LLC. 2024. Google Lens (Version 1.17). URL:https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.ar.lens
CR  - Hammady R, Ma M, Powell A. 2018. User experience of markerless augmented reality applications in cultural heritage museums: ‘museumeye’ as a case study. In: Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, and Computer Graphics: 5th Int Conf, AVR 2018, Otranto, Italy, June 24–27, 2018, Proc Part II 5: 349-369. Springer Int Publishing
CR  - Kleftodimos A, Evagelou A, Triantafyllidou A, Grigoriou M, Lappas G. 2023. Location-based augmented reality for cultural heritage communication and education: the Doltso district application. Sensors, 23(10): 4963
CR  - Lampropoulos G, Keramopoulos E, Diamantaras K. 2020. Enhancing the functionality of augmented reality using deep learning, semantic web and knowledge graphs: A review. Vis Informatics, 4(1): 32-42
CR  - Michel-Acosta P, Chaljub-Hasbún J, Cabero-Almenara J, Conte-Ayala ED, Peguero-García J, Pepín-Ubrí J. 2024. Evaluating an augmented reality app for learning about climate change among university students: A pilot study. Rev Electrón Educare, 28(3): 227-245
CR  - Rinaldi AM, Russo C, Tommasino C. 2022. An augmented reality CBIR system based on multimedia knowledge graph and deep learning techniques in cultural heritage. Computers, 11(12): 172
CR  - Sylaiou S, Dafiotis P. 2020. Storytelling in virtual museums: engaging a multitude of voices. In: Visual Computing for Cultural Heritage, Springer, Cham, pp: 369-388
CR  - The Org, n.d. Yigit Yigiter – TimeLooper org chart. The Org. URL:https://theorg.com/org/timelooper/org-chart/yigit-yigiter (accessed date: May 30, 2025)
CR  - TimeLooper Inc, 2024. Xplore - AR by TimeLooper [Mobile app]. Google Play Store. URL:https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.Timelooper.XPLORE.
UR  - https://doi.org/10.34248/bsengineering.1709786
L1  - https://dergipark.org.tr/tr/download/article-file/4917334
ER  -