I can’t help to see the similarities of Graffiti discovery and new Beacon technology usage. In detecting and using a public smart device, a Beacon announces to a receiver. If the receiver, such as a cellphone, is looking for the Beacon, it can allow instant interactions with the device.
In discovering Graffiti, a person using their eyes recognizes an intentionally created public art piece. With the sheer number of pictures being taken of Graffiti at any moment, I think there is a place for tools that help detect Graffiti using digital mediums.
Approximately every 2 seconds, a new picture tagged with streetart or graffiti is posted on Instagram. Out of those pictures, about 40-60% contain geotagged meta data. Using this data on a massive scale, a cell phone could be used as a digital Graffiti detection tool.
Google released a github repository today called “Physical Web”. The repository contains a prototype for an Android Beacon detection app.
The app discusses the need for digital interactions that don’t require apps. They state:
“People should be able to walk up to any smart device: e.g. a vending machine, a poster, a toy, a bus stop, a rental car, and not have to download an app first in order to use it”.
Im going to be watching this project closely.