Published on 25 Jun 2026

XRculture at XR Salento 2026

XRculture at XR Salento 2026
2026 June
Salento, Italy
XR Salento

XRculture participated in XR Salento from 16 to 20 June, presenting our project in the Academic Research Showcase. 

This prestigious international conference is dedicated to presenting academic research and industrial achievements in the broad fields of virtual reality, augmented reality, mixed reality, virtual humans, and artificial intelligence. Supported by the University of Salento, the EuroXR Association and the University of Naples Federico II, it presents cutting-edge research and results, bringing together scientists, engineers, educators, students and entrepreneurs to share ideas, foster collaboration and explore new ways of understanding and experiencing reality. As well as keynote speakers, demonstrations, poster sessions and panels, the programme included a session dedicated to research projects, in which XRculture was presented by Ramona Quattrini. 

Entitled 'XRculture – eXplore & Reuse 3D Cultural Heritage within the Data Space', the presentation introduced the project's three focus areas: 

1. AI-based techniques for high-quality 3D 
  • New digitisations conducted in the project where traditional photogrammetry meets AI-powered NeRFs, and Gaussian Splatting is used for challenging surfaces. A total of 642 new high-quality 3D models were created beyond current limits. 
  • Improving existing 3D models using super-resolution AI to sharpen details and enhance textures; AI-based material recognition and synthetic texture generation; and automated procedures to optimise 3D models for XR. 

2. Enabling XR applications
  • XR for Heritage at Risk - a mobile AR application to support the protection of cultural heritage in areas threatened by confilc or environmental hazards, which enables guided 3D data capture, AI-based material recognition and procedures for conservation and evacuation.
  • XR for Heritage Tourism - simplified access to AR holograms as a low-cost solution for destination management organisations. 
  • XR for Dispersed Heritage - mixed reality experience to virtually reunite movable and immovable cultural heritage, which helps contextualise archaeological finds and collections that excavations and museum practices have separated. 
  • XR for Education - immersive VR learning tested agains traditional methods to demonstrate the value of 3D in education, using 3D models of architectural Lost Heritage to bring disappeared treasures closer to young audiences. 

3. Open framework for 3D visualisation 
  • Provides standardisation and interoperability for 3D cultural heritage; acts as an intermediary layer between storage, converters, viewers and user apps; supports 3D MIME types and oEmbed embedding. 
  • It creates the possibility for institutions to retain full ownership and control of 3D data, gain flexibility to select, customise, or switch 3D viewers, benefit from enhanced security, transparency, compliance, and enables interoperability across diverse applications and databases. 

The presentation also highlighted XRculture's commitment to capacity building and collaboration, emphasising the importance of creating lasting links with sister projects and the wider cultural heritage community alongside its technological innovations.

For more info about our work, check out our Zenodo account and follow our Youtube channel for videos of our digitisation work. 



 
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