Apps with love develops audio guide for "Sasso San Gottardo

For the "Sasso San Gottardo" theme world in the middle of the Swiss Gotthard mountain, designed by Holzer/Kobler, Apps with love developed a new type of audio guide on behalf of the operators and partner Swisscom: It guides visitors through the impressive tunnels and rock caverns inside the mountain. For the exhibition, it was important that the "Smart Guide" was child's play to use and that it did not disrupt the experience but positively supported it, Apps with love said in a statement.

The concept is based on an Android smartphone with Near Field Communication (NFC). This technology allows visitors to "catch" the spoken content at the respective info points with a single movement, without having to press a button or enter a number, the statement continues. Once visitors arrive at an info point, they can hold their guide up to a guide icon and actively get the additional content if they want it. When visitors hold the guide in their hand, the text can be read, and as soon as they hold the guide to their ear, as they would when making a phone call, the audio plays automatically. The guide uses the smartphone's various sensors to detect when the visitor has the device to their ear. If the guide is moved away from the ear, playback stops. This allows visitors to pause at any time, read up on the text, or talk to friends without having to press a button or miss any of the audio. The visitors get the additional information where they want it and are not otherwise disturbed by the guide, because they are not cut off from the other people by headphones.

The screen design is very reduced and contrasty white on black. This is to ensure that other visitors are not disturbed by the luminous displays and can find their way around intuitively. And the reduction of the operating concept to natural movements with a familiar device should make it easy to use for all age groups and nationalities.