Today's guest blog comes from our friends at Balance Studios.

They are innovators in the area of exhibit technology, and are meeting the challenges of how to adapt digital interactives in the age of coronavirus.

Staying Engaged While Losing Touch: Adapting Your Interactive Touch-Screen Exhibits in a Post-Covid-19, Touch-Free World

At Balance Studios we bring information to life. We have worldwide clientele and have partnered with a wide variety of museums to help them engage, entertain and educate their guests through augmented reality, application creation, touchscreen kiosks, and multi-gestural tables. Our interactive exhibits delight children and adults alike and each museum who trusts us with their stories becomes our valued partner.

We have created interactive touchscreen exhibits for some of the most esteemed institutions in the world and, while we've been in business for nearly 20 years, the thrill of watching their content and our ideas marry and come alive makes us feel as committed and connected to this industry as we were when we first opened our doors. We help our museum partners create connections as well—with all who enter their doors. Through a simple touch on an exhibit interactive, we transform guests into explorers.

A simple touch.

So simple, and yet, all of a sudden so very complicated.

In the wake of the Coronavirus pandemic, everything has changed. Nations have closed. People grew distant in an effort to stay healthy. And a simple touch is no longer something that explorers can do.

At Balance, we opened our doors on another life-changing day, September 11, 2001. Our company was born in difficult times, and we are no stranger to them. We understand how events can alter our cultural landscape. It is not always easy to adapt and at times, it seems nearly impossible. But it is something that we have been doing as innovators and as an agency since day one.

Today, COVID-19 is changing our daily lives in thousands of ways. One change that many museums and organizations had not considered, and are struggling with, is how to continue to use their interactive touchscreen kiosks and applications—that engage so many—in their institutions. The problem is new; administrators and curators want to maintain their current exhibits, and, of course, the most popular ones often use interactive touchscreens.

So how do we keep explorers engaged and interested in spite of the new precautions everyone needs to take? We've come up with some ideas and solutions for touchscreen exhibits, to adapt current kiosks and experiences for museums.

Gesture technology in lieu of, or in addition to, a touchscreen exhibits.

Technology that recognizes gestures and hand movements without requiring touch would enable the user to still control the screen without either touching it, or connecting with an alternate device or technology. Users could wave their hands or make other specific gestures to perform actions on-screen, and participate fully in the touchscreen interactive experience.

Converting the touch screen experience to work on the guest's phone.

To make this happen, the user would connect to the same technology at the exhibit via a QR code, URL, or downloadable app. The touchscreen technology of the exhibit would still exist, but would be replicated entirely on the user's personal device, with all content accessible through the app. Instead of using the touchscreen, visitors of the exhibit would go through the entire experience on their personal device. Guests could enjoy the interaction to the same degree, but without the risk.

Using personal devices to interact with the touchscreen.

This would be achievable through a downloaded app. Instead of downloading and accessing the full content of the exhibit, the app would transform the user's phone into a proxy hand, with the app on the phone actually controlling the exhibit touchscreen, and closely replicating the complete original experience without having to touch the shared surface.

The question is simple: how do we prevent the spread of illness without sacrificing the immersive edu-tainment moments that create engaging experiences for guests? We have answers and options that can solve this problem. The right touchscreen exhibit solution will vary greatly for each organization. At Balance Studios, we pride ourselves on customization, and this concern is no different. Call us to start formulating your plan to address this new reality; we will work together to find safe solutions to keep your visitors learning. This is nothing that innovation, collaboration—and a touch of creativity—can’t fix.

Thank you to Balance Studios for sharing their innovations and solutions in this week's blog! You can check out all of their services here. You can learn more about our museum exhibit fabrication and design firm, or if you have any questions, you can contact Taylor Studios.