Virtual Tour Lawang Sewu

research

Virtual Heritage Development of Lawang Sewu

Lawang Sewu is one of the most iconic historical buildings in Semarang City, Central Java, originally constructed in 1904 by the Dutch colonial government as the headquarters of the Nederlandsch-Indische Spoorweg Maatschappij (NIS), the railway company of the Dutch East Indies. The name “Lawang Sewu,” which literally means “A Thousand Doors,” derives from its distinctive architectural characteristics, featuring numerous doors and large windows that create a monumental and spacious impression.
The development of Virtual Lawang Sewu media aims to support digital heritage conservation, serve as an educational medium, and function as a virtual tourism platform.

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a. UI/UX Development Stages

The Virtual Reality (VR) application is designed with an intuitive and accessible user interface (UI) to enable users to interact deeply with the digital representation of Lawang Sewu. The UI is structured into several primary components, including exploration mode, application information, and educational mode. Each component is developed based on UI design principles emphasizing ease of navigation, user engagement, and clear information delivery. According to Norman [8], an effective UI should reduce system complexity while providing a satisfying user experience.

At the initial stage, users are presented with a virtual tour landing page that guides them to begin the exploration. The UI displays the starting location of the tour at the front façade and main entrance of Building A, accompanied by several informational points that provide contextual details about the current location. Each selectable location presents a visual preview and a brief description, offering users contextual understanding before entering the virtual environment. This design adheres to spatial navigation principles in VR, which, according to Bowman et al. [9], are crucial for helping users maintain orientation within large and complex virtual spaces.

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b. 3D Model Development Stages

The development of visual assets for the Lawang Sewu VR application was carried out using Blender, following several critical stages from conceptualization to the production of deployable assets. Blender is a leading open-source software widely used for 3D modeling, animation, visual effects, and game development. It offers comprehensive features, including 3D modeling, rigging, animation, simulation, rendering, compositing, and motion tracking. Beyond its technical capabilities, Blender benefits from an active global community, ensuring continuous development and free accessibility for creators and researchers.

The first stage is the concept development phase, in which the fundamental ideas and objectives of the visual assets are defined. In this project, the visualization of Lawang Sewu required accurate historical, archaeological, and architectural references to ensure fidelity to the original structure. This stage involved creating preliminary sketches or storyboards to visualize the desired 3D models and determine which architectural elements would be included.

Following the conceptual phase, the process continued with 3D modeling, where the geometric structure of Lawang Sewu was constructed in Blender. Modeling involves building the base forms of architectural elements such as towers, terraces, and ornamental details. The process begins with creating a basic mesh, which is then refined using tools such as extrude, scale, and subdivide to achieve more complex forms. Precision is essential at this stage to ensure accurate proportions and architectural details.

After texturing is completed, the 3D models undergo optimization to ensure efficient performance within the VR application. Optimization techniques include reducing polygon counts, reorganizing UV maps to minimize memory usage, and adjusting Levels of Detail (LOD) to ensure consistent performance across different devices. This step is critical to ensure that the visual assets not only appear realistic but also function smoothly within hardware-constrained VR environments.

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c. Virtual Tour System Development Stages

The system development phase of the Lawang Sewu virtual tour focuses on integrating the previously developed visual assets into an interactive virtual environment. This process was conducted using Babylon.js, a JavaScript-based framework optimized for web-based 3D graphics. Babylon.js enables the creation of immersive virtual tours that can be accessed directly via web browsers or Head-Mounted Displays (HMDs) such as Oculus Rift and HTC Vive. Its primary advantage lies in its ability to balance high-performance 3D rendering with cross-platform responsiveness.

The first step in system development involves configuring the development environment, where all components and visual assets are integrated. In Babylon.js, creating a scene serves as the foundational step. This scene functions as the virtual space in which the 3D assets of Lawang Sewu are placed and controlled. Through JavaScript scripting, developers define scene parameters, including virtual cameras, lighting systems, and environmental settings that influence the overall visual appearance.

Once the base scene is established, the next step is importing the 3D models of Lawang Sewu developed in Blender. This process requires converting the models into formats supported by Babylon.js, such as GLTF or OBJ. After successful importation, adjustments to positioning, scaling, and rotation are performed to align the models with the designed virtual environment. Babylon.js also allows direct application of materials and textures through code, enabling further refinement to closely match the real-world appearance of the building.

The final stage of system development involves testing and optimization. Given the requirement for multi-platform compatibility, extensive testing was conducted across different browsers and HMD devices to ensure system stability and performance. This phase includes performance optimization, code refinement, latency reduction, and frame-rate enhancement to deliver a smooth and immersive virtual tour experience.

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