When Beijing's Central Axis is equipped with "digital wings": gaming technology is used for the first time in World Heritage application
2024-08-07
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Recently, the "Beijing Central Axis", which has gone through years of precipitation and cultural baptism, was officially approved by UNESCO to be included in the "World Heritage List", becoming another shining pearl in the treasure house of cultural heritage in China and even the world. This is also the 59th World Heritage owned by China, marking that China has taken a solid and important step in the protection and inheritance of cultural heritage. With the blessing of contemporary digital technology, this ancient world heritage is continuing to radiate new charm. Explore the diversified scene application of digital resources on the central axis, build a cultural heritage monitoring and protection platform, and invite the public to "cloud" guard the central axis... In recent years, Beijing has continuously innovated the use of digital means to give unlimited possibilities for the protection of the cultural heritage of the central axis.
Digital Presentation
The digital world recreates the grandeur of the central axis
The Beijing Central Axis was first built in the Yuan Dynasty and has a history of more than 700 years. It runs through the old city of Beijing, with the Bell and Drum Tower at the north end and the Yongding Gate at the south end. It is 7.8 kilometers long and is a group of urban buildings composed of ancient royal palaces, ancient royal sacrificial buildings, ancient urban management facilities, national ceremonial and public buildings, and central road remains. As the soul and backbone of the old city of Beijing, the Beijing Central Axis has always led the spatial pattern and urban functions of Beijing, representing the great creation and outstanding talent of Chinese civilization in urban planning and construction. It is the crystallization of the wisdom of the Chinese people and a precious cultural heritage, and it concentrates on the image of the capital of a great country and the charm of Chinese culture.
Cultural relics are not static objects, but carriers of culture. Bringing cultural relics and cultural heritage to life is the key to the integration of cultural relics with the new era. In order to strengthen the creative transformation and innovative development of cultural heritage, Beijing has joined hands with Tencent, iFLYTEK and other companies to use digital engines, 3D reconstruction, scene codes, blockchain and other digital technologies as a starting point. Through innovative public development models, innovative digital technical means and innovative operational feedback models, it has effectively promoted the systematic protection, revitalization and innovative inheritance of the cultural heritage of the central axis of Beijing, and achieved remarkable results.
On the evening of July 27, at the "Central Axis Night, Glorious Ancient Capital" event at the New Delhi International Convention and Exhibition Center in India, the "Digital Central Axis Micro Universe", which was created by the Beijing Municipal Cultural Heritage Bureau, the Beijing Central Axis World Heritage Application and Protection Office and Tencent over a period of three years, was officially released to the world as an important achievement of digitalization to assist the Beijing Central Axis World Heritage Application.
After entering the "microuniverse", people can see Beijing swifts flying from north to south over the 15 heritage elements on the central axis of Beijing. Users transform into young people in the game, put on a backpack, and, under the guidance of a tour guide, start from the Xiannongtan to find the soul of the central axis. They can also follow the "Xuanniao" to overlook the central axis of Beijing and watch the Qing emperors holding sacrificial ceremonies at the Xiannongtan and Taimiao, and experience the construction of the Zhengyangmen Tower with their own hands. People can also try to put the five-colored soil of the Shejitan into the corresponding correct position... This is the first time in the world that game technology has been used in the application for World Heritage.
"Digital Central Axis·Micro Universe" is based on the latest research and protection results of the central axis. It uses high-definition scanning, game engine, Physion Groom (real-time hair physics simulation technology), SmartGI (real-time dynamic global illumination solution), cloud games, PCG procedural content generation and other technologies to finely restore and reproduce the 7.8-kilometer core heritage area of Beijing's Central Axis, and combines artificial intelligence content generation capabilities to generate ultra-large-scale terrain, vegetation and building complexes.
It is understood that Tencent's "Digital Central Axis" team has successively completed high-definition photography and scanning of heritage sites such as the Xiannongtan, Bell and Drum Tower and Wanning Bridge. By developing a series of products such as the "Beijing Central Axis" official website and the "Cloud Central Axis" applet, it has reproduced the magnificent scenery of the Beijing Central Axis in the digital world, created the world's first digital immersive interactive experience of a super-large urban historical landscape, and popularized the central axis culture in an entertaining and educational way.
Digital management
Using data to improve heritage protection
In the "panoramic map" of the Central Axis Heritage Area and Buffer Zone of the Beijing Central Axis Heritage Protection Center, 221 cultural relics protection units, 33 historical and cultural blocks, more than 1,000 traditional alleys, and even more than 8,000 ancient trees are all clearly visible. Strengthening daily heritage monitoring and effectively improving the level of heritage protection and management is one of the important tasks of the Beijing Central Axis World Heritage Protection. In view of this, the World Heritage Office assisted the Beijing Central Axis Heritage Protection Center in developing the Central Axis Heritage Monitoring Platform to collect information on the heritage, style, environment, and management of the Central Axis Heritage Area, conduct preventive monitoring, and implement emergency response measures for sudden disasters that may occur in the heritage area.
After organizing a professional team to work day and night to overcome difficulties, the monitoring platform was successfully launched in May 2023. It basically realized real-time monitoring of changes in the heritage of the central axis, identified potential risks, and prevented dangerous situations, providing strong support for the protection of the Beijing Central Axis. This is also the first heritage monitoring platform in China to use three-dimensional digital twin technology. The corresponding monitoring plan is also very detailed, covering five aspects: heritage protection status, sustainable development, heritage governance, management system, and capacity building, and is broken down into 17 categories and 69 items. In the future, the monitoring work will be carried out in a refined manner.
In August 2023, international experts stated in an on-site evaluation that the Beijing Central Axis Monitoring Platform is second to none, has comprehensive functions, and plays a positive role in heritage protection and management. In 2023, the monitoring platform was selected as the first batch of 5G+ smart city application pilot projects. The Beijing Central Axis Monitoring Platform has accumulated about 3TB of data, and some non-confidential and shareable data has completed the first spatial data transaction in the country, which is of great value in promoting the development of the capital's digital economy and building a digital city with exemplary significance. In the future, the platform will be gradually iterated and improved to provide more sophisticated, three-dimensional and comprehensive technical support for the protection of the central axis.
The purpose of strengthening archive management is to provide support for decision-making and management of the cultural heritage of the Beijing Central Axis. At present, the Beijing Central Axis Heritage Protection Center has established basic records and archives of heritage elements. After three years of continuous construction, the main types of archives collected and sorted include: Chinese and English international charters, conventions, and guidelines, domestic laws and regulations, standards and specifications, monitoring projects, cultural relics protection projects, cultural relics protection units, cultural traditions, historical buildings, and historical images, historical mapping, high-definition satellite images, survey pictures and panoramic photos related to the Beijing Central Axis, electronic books, paper books, research documents, journals and historical maps related to the Beijing Central Axis, etc.
Digital Utilization
Combining ancient artifacts with immersive exhibitions
In recent years, digital products related to the central axis have been constantly refreshing people's understanding of this "line", allowing more and more people to walk into the central axis and touch the rich history. For example, the "Central Axis Meta Plan" project, which combines the concept of "metaverse", provides the public with immersive and highly interactive traditional cultural content through NFT digital collections, short videos and fine pictures and texts. The newly launched Cloud Central Axis applet integrates the three functions of central axis map guide, AI knowledge quiz and collection, guiding the public to appreciate the magnificent beauty of the central axis of the ancient capital Beijing, and truly realizing the protection and utilization of cultural relics enabled by science and technology.
On the central axis, the practice of digital protection and utilization of relevant cultural relics has long been carried out. For example, the Drum Tower exhibit "The Story of Time" meets the audience with a new type of immersive digital exhibition and rich interactive experience, vividly showing the charm of ancient buildings along the central axis, and becoming a practical model for digital empowerment of cultural relics. Hongen Temple, which is close to the Bell and Drum Tower, actively explores to allow culture, art, and technology to be superimposed into traditional architectural spaces, and also creates cultural consumption scenes such as the Central Axis Digital Museum, the Central Axis Theme Bookstore, the Central Axis Theme Post Office, and the Hongen Temple Historical and Cultural Exhibition Hall. In addition, the Beijing Municipal Cultural Relics Bureau (World Heritage Application Office) is studying and promoting the preparation of the overall revitalization and utilization plan of Xiannongtan and the pilot work of the protection and utilization of Qingcheng Palace, and plans to build the Xiannongtan area into a window to showcase China's traditional agricultural civilization.
Digital protection
"Digital Night Watchmen" jointly guard the central axis
In ancient times, night watchmen patrolled at night to announce the time and also reminded people to prevent fire and theft. Today's "night watchmen", whether old or young, can become the guardians of the central axis, and social forces can also smoothly participate in daily heritage monitoring. Since July 2023, the Beijing Municipal Cultural Relics Bureau (World Heritage Application Office) has jointly launched the "Digital Night Watchman" project with Tencent, Weiming Cultural Museum and other institutions, aiming to encourage the public to conduct digital inspections of the central axis heritage through the "Cloud Central Axis" applet, so that cultural heritage protection can be better integrated into people's daily lives. Social forces scan the QR code of the heritage point boundary stakes through WeChat, or take photos of the buildings and cultural relics around them through the "Cloud Central Axis" applet, and the data generated can be transmitted to the heritage monitoring platform in real time.
The project innovatively provides a platform for the public to participate in the protection of the central axis. In just one summer vacation last year, the "Digital Night Watchman" collected 7,000 inspection data pictures, most of which were completed by young people aged 10-16. At present, the "Digital Night Watchman" has become an important auxiliary means for professional inspections of various heritage sites, forming a "public + professional" integrated development model, which effectively promotes the public's protection, inheritance, promotion and innovation of the historical and cultural values carried by the Beijing Central Axis.
The successful application of Beijing's Central Axis for World Heritage status is a milestone and a new starting point, marking a new stage in the protection of the cultural heritage of Beijing's Central Axis and the overall protection of the old city. In the future, Beijing will continue to actively cultivate new digital formats for cultural heritage, fully empower the protection and inheritance of the cultural heritage of Beijing's Central Axis through the construction of a "digital central axis", and make cultural relics truly "live" and become a deep nourishment for strengthening the construction of socialist spiritual civilization.
