ChronoPoints is working with Dr. Scott Branting to develop DATCH, Documenting and Triaging Cultural Heritage, a prototype open-source software for field assessment and documentation of built and movable cultural heritage using mixed reality hardware with or without network connections. It will permit real-time overlay comparisons of cultural heritage against earlier documentation while also enabling the creation of new scaled drawings using gestures, even in field situations with no network connections. When network connections are available additional features such as video calls with specialists and data sharing with management systems will be enabled. DATCH will aid rapid needs assessments of cultural heritage in conflict situations, ongoing assessments of cultural heritage in the field, and enable fieldwork across multiple disciplines. The prototype software is being developed and field-tested with Microsoft’s HoloLens but with a goal of cross-platform compatibility across head-mounted display mixed reality devices. For additional information, please visit the DATCH website at https://sciences.ucf.edu/anthropology/datch/
Supported by a Digital Humanities Advancement Grant