This project presents an optimized 3D modelling procedure for the development of immersive Virtual Reality (iVR) experiences. It has been tested by conducting the virtual reconstruction of the Roman city of Aquinum (Italy), a key archaeological site. The resulting 3D model demonstrates a high Level of Detail (LoD) across a total area of 17,570 m² (2,470 m² of which are explorable) with a file size of only 46.2 MB, incorporating just six unique textures in 4 texture atlases. This research not only delivers an accurate reconstruction of the city of Aquinum but also introduces an effective optimization method based on open-source tools.
Virtual reconstruction of the city of Aquinum
The purpose of this project is to virtually reconstruct the Roman city of Aquinum using an optimized 3D modelling procedure tailored for standalone Virtual Reality devices. The main objectives of this project are:
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HISTORICAL ACCURACY IN RECONSTRUCTION
The reconstruction is based on the archaeological and historical study of the area conducted over the last decades. Thanks to this research, numerous results have been obtained through techniques such as aerial photography, Ground-Penetrating Radar, and archaeological excavations.
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DEVELOPMENT OF AN OPTIMIZED PROCEDURE FOR STANDALONE DEVICES
To create a large-scale 3D model such as the city of Aquinum with a high Level of Detail, an optimized modelling procedure for standalone Virtual Reality devices has been developed. This procedure has successfully produced a highly optimized, lightweight 3D model.
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CREATION OF A VIRTUAL REALITY EXPERIENCE
To test the generated 3D model, an explorative Virtual Reality experience has been developed for standalone devices such as Oculus Meta Quest. In this experience, users can explore the city of Aquinum.
This project was carried out using open-source software as primary tools, with Blender, GIMP, and Materialize (Bounding Box Software) being the most important.
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STUDY OF REFERENCES
Firstly, the historical and archaeological references resulting from the study of the site were analyzed.
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ASSET CREATION AND HISTORICAL REVIEW
Based on these references, 3D modelling and texturing assets were created, always using archaeological remains whenever possible for retopology as 3D assets or for sampling as textures. All these assets were instantiated and subjected to historical review.
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ASSET VARIATION
Once the assets were approved, variations were created by mixing UV channels, using decals, and vertex painting to achieve a better result.
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PROJECT PACKAGING
Finally, the entire project was packaged into a series of 3D models to take advantage of the development engine’s culling, and the textures were compressed into four atlases, using the RGB channels to encode additional textures.
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VIRTUAL REALITY EXPERIENCE
Using Unreal Engine 5, an explorative Virtual Reality experience was created.
- Bruno Rodríguez-García, Giuseppe Ceraudo, Laura Corchia, Lucio Tommaso De Paolis, (2025), Optimization Strategies for Standalone Virtual Reality Experiences: the Virtual Reconstruction of the City of Aquinum, http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/VRW66409.2025.00370
This project was supported through Humanaid project (TED2021-129485B-C43) funded by the Ministry of Science and Innovation of Spain (MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033) and by the European Union “NextGenerationEU”/PRTR funds.
Project details
PROJECT TITLE:
Virtual reconstruction of the city of Aquinum
FIELD:
Education
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