Pioneering research and skills
Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
App tells tales from the past EPSRC-funded technology has been used in a mobile phone scheme that allows Oxfam customers to find out the stories behind its second-hand goods. The Shelflife phone app links stories and pictures provided by donors to tags attached to the goods. Browsers in the shops can then scan the tags using the app to find out about an individual item’s past. The Tales of Things and Electronic Memory (TOTeM) technology behind the scheme was developed by a team of researchers funded under the Research Councils UK Digital Economy Programme. During a trial period of the technology, Oxfam experienced a 53% increase in sales. Oxfam is now planning to expand the scheme and the technology is now also being used by several museums and art galleries so that visitors to interact with the objects and to encourage them to add their own history to artefacts. Further information: http://fields.eca.ac.uk/totem/?page_id=2
To download the Growth Stories app visit www.epsrc.ac.uk/growth
Image credits: Hollie Rosier