New technology support for cultural tours

Visitors to museums and historical parks in Thailand will soon able to plan their trips by using mobile phones, and will later be able to retrace the steps of their cultural-discovery tours by visiting a website.

The new systems are being implemented by a cooperative venture between the Culture and Science and Technology Ministries called Cultural Development from Grass Roots to International Project.

Science and Technology Minister Kalaya Sophonpanich said the project would promote local intellectual property and local wisdom from grass-roots communities, delivering it as an international cultural attraction.

The project, which is a flagship for cooperation between ministries, will support the creative economy and creativity in the Thai community generally, increasing the quality of life in local communities, she said.

National Electronics and Computer Technology Centre (Nectec) researcher La-Or Kovavisaruch said radio frequency identification (RFID) technology would be employed to support the project.

This technology will be installed at information or ticket counters at museums and historical parks. When visitors purchase entry tickets, either the tickets or a bracelet will incorporate an RFID tag.

La-Or said visitors would be greeted as they entered the museum when their RFID tag was detected by an RFID reader at the door. As the visitors proceeded around the museum, RFID readers attached to features or relics would deliver information to them via text.

Moreover, the RFID readers will send information to a server whenever the tourist visits a cultural site, so visitors will later be able to trace their cultural journey around Thailand at a website.

She said implementation of the system would begin in the near future. Nectec is currently studying and surveying cultural sites throughout the country in order to develop hi-tech museums.

The project also aims to provide what it calls Intelligent Travel Planning and Thai Fiesta on Mobile. It is an application for users of mobile phones equipped with a Global Positioning System, enabling them to make timely plans for cultural tours.

Nectec researcher Rattapoom Tuchinda said this would allow visitors to access travel information before leaving for cultural tourism destinations, so they could arrange transportation and visit interesting locations.

Nectec assistant researcher Pornchai Tummarattananont said Thai Fiesta on Mobile would provide information for tourists in three key categories: Thai festivals, Thai culture and cultural games. Mobile users will able to access information on Thai festivals around the country, including a month-by-month festival calendar, locations, times and transportation from starting point to destination.

The Thai culture category will suggest popular locations and provide information on nearby destinations. The cultural games category will invite mobile users to play culture-related games and answer questions about cultural locations and interesting places.

The application will allow mobile users to access cultural information by text, picture, location awareness and GPS coordinates. 

Culture Ministry Deputy Permanent Secretary Somchai Seanglai said that in a first step early next year his ministry would enable tourists to access information about the Ayutthaya Historical Park and the living culture and interesting locations in Suphan Buri Province. Visitors would be able to plan and prepare their transportation beforehand, by mobile phone.

Culture Minister Teera Slukpetch said cooperation between the two ministries would integrate local wisdom and living culture, promoting cultural knowledge via digital content and lifting Thailand's creative economy as a whole.