META ARCHITECTURE
Reality and virtuality suport and enhance each other in multiple dimensions. Meta architecture creates the link between the two worlds. Applications are manyfold:

Site Survey & Documentation
Digital site documentation brings the physical environment - built or natural - into a digital format with the utmost accuracy. It describes the “as-is” situation. Realized Projects:
> Balitit Fort, Hunza, Pakistan with AKTC (Aga Khan Trust for Culture)
> Bhatti Gate, Walled City of Lahore, Urban Regeneration with AKTC (Aga Khan Trust for Culture)
> Hotel Rio Dei Greci “Locanda Vivaldi”, Venice, Italy (Orthorectification) (with REARCA)
> Palazzo Scaligero, Verona, Italy (with WEIN Venice)

Restoration / Digital Heritage
Digital heritage has always played a vital role in current and future impacts and presentation of world heritage sites and its associated industry. The heritage in current era of digital world has brought together with tangible and intangible heritage with the digital mediums. It’s a great opportunity for the practitioners in the cultural heritage to explore and update these current emerging techniques and experimentation in this new perspective of cultural heritage as compared to the traditional one. As tourism being always the premium user of these services by the cultural heritage practitioners and the associated professions, it’s been so vital to engage these aspects of digital heritage, virtual realities, augmented realities to enhance the experiences of the users. Realized Projects:
> Lahore Fort, Pakistan with AKTC (Aga Khan Trust for Culture)
> Balitit Fort, Hunza, Pakistan with AKTC (Aga Khan Trust for Culture)
> Bhatti Gate, Walled City of Lahore, Urban Regeneration with AKTC (Aga Khan Trust for Culture)
> Veneto Agricoltura “Villago”, Belluno, Italy (with WEIN Venice)

Virtual Tours / Digital Art
Virtual reality, augmented reality and projections

projections

Reference Projects:
> Gilgit-BAltistan Petroglyphs (Vritual Tour and Epigrophy documentation)
> Lahore Fort, Pakistan with AKTC (Aga Khan Trust for Culture), Virtual Tours
> Museum Scuola Grande di San Rocco, Venice, Italy
> Church of Santa Maria Assunta, I Gesuiti, Venice, Italy (with Lithos)

Regardless of the end result and end use of the Meta Architecture, the following three steps are in common:

1) Mapping Reality
Capture reality by using various Electronic Distance Measurement (EDM) technologies as a survey tools for Digital Documentation (DD). Depending on the expected output all or only a selection of below techniques will be used:
> Laser Scanning (fixed and movable type)
> Photogrammetry
> GPS (Global Positioning System)
> GIS (Geographic Information System)

2) Data Processing
The data obtained as part of the Reality Mapping (point clouds, mesh models and data tables) needs to be filtered, compiled and merged to receive a comprehensive data information set, e.g. orthophotos.

3) Output Data
The processed data ultimately gets converted into an information base that can be used for restauration projects, virtual museum tours, augmented reality projects, … date issued depends on the requirement and might comprise of:
> virtual Tour
> as-built BIM Model (in format required: Revit, Archicad, Sketchup, Allplan, Rhino, …)
> 2d CAD drawings (as-built)

Lead Person for all historic structures as well as Meta Architecture: Kashif Esa