3D Modeling and Visualization of Archaeological Sites using Modern Engineering Tools to Promote Tourism in Sri Lanka

The development of technology has paved the way to apply modern engineering tools in interdisciplinary perspectives. As a country relying heavily on tourism, the ancient heritage of Sri Lanka has its unique features, though it has not been well presented to the world of tourism. Thus, there exists a research gap in reaching out to the world, where the solution lies in collaborating among the fields of Engineering, Archeology and Tourism. The aim of the research is to reduce this gap in visualization of archaeological sites in Sri Lanka integrating modern engineering tools. The methodology involved site visits for physical data collection, drone mappings and 3D scanning. The obtained data is digitized using suitable mapping techniques. The digitized data is used for 3D model creation and visualization which involves steps of platform selection, texturing and rendering with the aid of Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality Techniques. The established framework is applied to two case studies; Thuparamaya Circular Relic House and Jethawanaramaya Image House. With the successful validation of the developed framework for the two case studies, it can be concluded that the developed framework can be used at other ancient archeological sites to promote tourism in Sri Lanka.