3D techniques to create interactive virtual museums

Information and multimedia, such as images or 3D models, stored in databases are very important to preserve the information about historical artefacts and works of art. Nevertheless, the potential of digital content in databases is not fully exploited until it is used to create interactive ways to communicate to non CH specialist the significance that these objects have. 3D virtual environments are a suitable mechanism for giving context to, otherwise isolated, pieces of information. To achieve this, different techniques for 3D acquisition, integration and visualisation must work together in order to create 3D interactive virtual environments which are engaging and accessible for the visitors of a museum. In this paper we will describe the state of the art of the techniques for achieving this type of environments within the partners of the EPOCH Network of Excellence.