IIDB collaborates with Wexford Co Council in launch of AI technology to explore smart tourism and public engagement

IIDB collaborates with Wexford Co Council in launch of AI technology to explore smart tourism and public engagement

20/12/2021:  Wexford County Council in collaboration with the Irish Institute of Digital Business (IIDB) at Dublin City University is using Hello Lamp Post to bring state of the art interactive AI technology to various sites across Gorey, encouraging the public to engage with objects in local streets in an innovative and playful way while exploring how technology can change how the public think about and interact with the public realm in Gorey.

The new technology will enable members of the public to interact with objects in their everyday surroundings – all through text messaging on their phones. By scanning a QR code on a public object such as a lamp post or bench, members of the public will be able to engage in a friendly two-way conversation via text, enabling real-time answers to questions and information on Gorey town’s rich variety of cultural sites and landmarks.

Starting at Market House, people will be able to ‘chat’ with objects along the stretch which finishes at Ashdown Park including Gorey Station and Civic Centre. With an SMS enabled phone, they can say ‘Hello’ – sending a text to a particular object, for example, ‘Hello Bench’ and have fun conversations with each object. The public will also be asked to share insights about their experience and vision for the future of the area on an ongoing basis, which will be anonymously fed directly to the Irish Institute of Digital Business at DCU and Wexford County Council.

Hearing from the public about what they’d like to see more of in Gorey forms part of the long-term strategy in this rural town to see it grow into a bigger and better town for future generations. With the population continuing to grow and more businesses finding their home in Gorey, listening to those who live in, work in and visit the area is key to its future expansion and growth.

Gorey is a former IE Domain Registry ‘Digital Town’ winner and was selected for its achievements in cultivating a truly digital environment in the town, and for its ongoing successes in fully embracing digital for its residents and for local business. With innovation, creativity and technology at the core of Gorey’s identity, Hello Lamp Post makes a welcome addition, providing an exciting and accessible way of obtaining real-time insights from a variety of people in the area, whilst sharing important local information.

This pilot project is part of a wider “Town of Things” pilot project funded by the Department of Rural and Community Development under the Digital Innovation Programme 2021. In addition to Hello Lamp Post, connected sensors will also be placed along Gorey Main Street to measure air quality and noise throughout the day as well as the amount of vehicles and pedestrian traffic passing through the street.  Wexford County Council and the Irish Institute of Digital Business at DCU will be undertaking a series of research and outreach projects to support the project including student workshops, hackathons and other promotional events.

All those living in the area and visiting are encouraged to keep their eyes open for QR codes popping up around the town from 17th of December and to engage in a playful exchange or informative chat about the places we visit most. Hello Lamp Post can’t wait to hear from you!

Wexford County Council is delighted to collaborate with the Irish Institute of Digital Business at DCU on this exciting “Town of Things” project. The Digital Innovation Project funding was awarded under the “Innovation” category which included trialling of entirely new technologies or innovative uses of existing technologies. Hello Lamp post will provide an exciting and accessible way of communicating with the people in the area, whilst also sharing important local information to people. It is hoped that this may lead onto to additional sources of funding under the Scaling-up stream for using Smart technologies to implement digital transformation of our towns.

“The rollout of Hello Lamp Post in Gorey is the first in a series of pilot activities in a collaboration between Wexford County Council and IIDB that explores how digital technologies can support the digital transformation of rural towns,” said Theo Lynn, Professor of Digital Business at DCU Business School. “We believe that digital technologies, like Hello Lamp Post, can not only provide residents of Gorey and visitors with useful information but will help Wexford County Council optimise the delivery of public services, and catalyse innovation in Wexford. As the wider Town of Things project unfolds over the coming months, we hope Gorey will be a lighthouse for other rural towns seeking to make greater use of digital technologies to benefit their communities.”