SK Telecom, South Korea’s largest wireless carrier has launched Changdeok ARirang, together with Google and the Cultural Heritage Administration. It is an Augmented Reality (AR) service based on 5G edge cloud technology to give an immersive experience for visitants of Changdeokgung Palace.
Changdeokgung Palace is one of the Five Grand Palace built by the kings of the Joseon Dynasty in 1405. Changdeokgung Palace is the first palace to be rebuilt in 1610 as all palaces in Seoul were burnt down during the Japanese invasion in 1592. This Palace was chosen as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and regarded as a classic masterpiece of Korean palace architecture where the buildings are in absolute harmony with the natural setting.
The visitors after activating the Changdeok ARirang app and holding their smartphones towards the palace will get a surprise welcome from Haechi. Haechi is a mythical creature believed to safeguard the palace. Haechi is chosen as the virtual guide who will escort the visitors all around the palace and provides detailed information about the 12 different tourist spots within the palace as well as narrating some exciting historical stories.
SK Telecom worked jointly with Google, Seerslab, and Nexus Studios to recreate Changdeokgung Palace in AR. Changdeok ARirang offers diverse AR experiences to visitors to make the visit more interactive and memorable by letting them watch a royal court dance performance take AR pictures and play Korean traditional games in AR. The app lets visitors take a closer look around restricted areas such as Huijeongdang and secret garden of the palace, through 360-degree Augmented Reality. Visitors will see an AR portal from which visitors were brought to the enchanting Secret Garden upon reaching the entrance of Secret Garden, which is a restricted area.
The app which supports both the Korean and English languages can be downloaded from Google Play and One Store by 5G Android smartphone users. Changdeok ARirang is meant to provide a true 5G-based AR experience to its users by realizing ultra-low latency data communication. SK Telecom has installed a total of 12 units of 5G base stations in Changdeokgung palace and made the service in the 5G edge cloud-deployed at its Central Office in Seongsu-dong, Seoul. Visitors of Changdeokgung Palace can experience about 60 percent faster speed while downloading content from the Changdeok ARirang app.
