Drawing Attention: A Field Study of Sketch-Based Penguin Identification for Aquarium Visitor Engagement

Paper Title

Drawing Attention: A Field Study of Sketch-Based Penguin Identification for Aquarium Visitor Engagement

Publication Info

• Topic area: Enhancing visitor engagement and education in zoos and aquariums through interactive sketch-based systems.
• Keywords: Penguin identification, visitor engagement, zoos and aquariums, sketch-based retrieval, human-animal interaction, HCI, conservation awareness, education, interactive systems, observation support.

Background and Problem

• Problem / challenge: Visitors to zoos and aquariums often struggle to recognize individual animals within groups, limiting their engagement and memory of specific individuals. Current identification methods, such as flipper bands, are difficult to use in real-time observation and fail to support active, individual-focused engagement.
• Significance: Identifying individual animals can foster empathy, enhance learning, and promote conservation awareness. Addressing this challenge can improve visitor experiences and support educational and conservation goals.
• Motivation and related work: Prior research has shown that individual identification increases empathy and conservation intentions. However, existing methods are primarily designed for researchers, not visitors, and lack real-world applicability in dynamic exhibition environments. This study builds on earlier work on sketch-based retrieval but addresses gaps in practical deployment and visitor behavior in natural settings.

Solution

• Proposed approach: A sketch-based penguin identification system that allows visitors to draw abdominal spot patterns on their smartphones to retrieve individual penguin profiles in real-time.
• Novelty:
  1. Conducted an empirical survey of penguin exhibition practices across 25 facilities to identify challenges in current methods.
  2. Refined a retrieval algorithm to handle partial observations of penguin abdominal patterns, addressing real-world visibility constraints.
  3. Developed and implemented a practical, interactive system for use in aquariums, integrating drawing-based retrieval with catalog and album features.
  4. Validated the system through a field study with 167 visitor groups, demonstrating its impact on engagement and identifying challenges for deployment.
• Procedure and key techniques:
  • Surveyed 25 zoos and aquariums to document current identification practices and challenges.
  • Refined a 3×3 grid-based retrieval algorithm to exclude unseen abdominal areas during sketching.
  • Constructed a drawing dataset for 47 penguins using participant sketches to serve as retrieval templates.
  • Designed a web-based system with features for drawing, catalog browsing, and saving observations.
  • Conducted a six-day field study at Sunshine Aquarium, observing visitor behavior and collecting qualitative and quantitative data.

Results

• Concrete findings:
  • The system was used by 167 groups (270 individuals), with collaborative use observed in 79 groups.
  • Retrieval accuracy improved with the inclusion of the invisible-area specification function (e.g., Top-5 accuracy increased from 33.3% to 50.0%).
  • Visitors frequently verbalized penguin names and individual differences, with 101 utterances recorded across categories such as name mentions and observation prompts.
• Advantage over baselines:
  • Overcame limitations of flipper bands by providing a direct, interactive means of identifying individual penguins.
  • Encouraged active observation, name-based conversations, and longer dwell times at exhibits.
• Experiments / evaluation:
  • Conducted at Sunshine Aquarium over six days, with signage and QR codes enabling naturalistic use.
  • Observed visitor interactions, recorded verbal utterances, and analyzed drawings and questionnaire responses.
  • Collected 11 questionnaire responses, showing high interest in penguins and positive impressions of the system.
• Limitations and future work:
  • Sample overrepresented frequent and highly motivated visitors; casual visitor engagement remains unclear.
  • Environmental factors like dim lighting and penguin movement affected retrieval accuracy.
  • Future work includes refining algorithms, supporting iterative sketch refinement, expanding to other species, and conducting long-term deployments.

Summary

This study introduced a sketch-based penguin identification system to enhance visitor engagement in aquariums. By allowing visitors to draw abdominal spot patterns and retrieve individual profiles, the system encouraged active observation, name-based conversations, and longer exhibit dwell times. A field study with 167 visitor groups demonstrated the system’s potential to foster personal connections with animals, though challenges such as environmental constraints and user diversity remain. Future work will focus on improving accuracy, expanding applicability to other species, and conducting longitudinal studies to assess long-term impacts on conservation awareness and visitor behavior.