L'estensione dell'accessibilità ai beni culturali

Accessibility is a multi-faceted issue depending on the field for which it is considered. In the case of cultural heritage, accessibility may concern different types of assets, in different conditions, for which it should be ensured to the greatest number of people, whether or not they have disabilities. Cultural heritage may be inaccessible due to its dimensions, management problems, state of preservation or special conservation needs, location, as well as psycho-physical deficits of visitors/users. Overly large cultural buildings may be inaccessible to people with mobility disabilities, buildings for which there is no management ensuring organised access are very often inaccessible, buildings in a poor state of preservation are inaccessible due to safety problems for visitors or the building itself, and buildings in particular locations may be inaccessible or difficult to access for people with disabilities as well as for the so-called "able-bodied". The I-Access project was carried out by the Icar-CNR research group, which dealt with technological accessibility, developing a system enabling the sharing of various types of information, including georeferenced information, and the creation of 3D models and virtual and augmented reality applications with the possibility of reproducing the models by means of 3D printing systems for tactile exploration by the blind and visually impaired.