The Design of a Smartphone VR Viewer Inspired by 19th Century Stereoscopes

Abstract

Stereoscopic photography was one of the main forms of visual communication in the second half of the 19th century, leaving even today an important impact on our visual culture. In this work, we have re-imagined the classical stereoscope in order to take advantage of smartphone-VR technological capabilities, while still maintaining a viewing experience close to the original. This pictorial describes the design process, functionality, and evaluation of the Spectare device for experiencing stereoscopic photographs. Spectare has been used for experiencing Cultural Heritage content related to the virtual reconstruction of the Monastery of Santa Cruz, Coimbra, Portugal, as it was in 1834.