# WIA-EDU-023: Implementation Guide ## Cultural Heritage Digitization **Version:** 1.0.0 **Last Updated:** 2025-01-26 --- ## 1. Getting Started ### 1.1 Prerequisites **Hardware:** - Camera (20MP+) or smartphone with good camera - Computer with GPU for processing (recommended) - Storage: 1TB+ for projects - Optional: 3D scanner, LiDAR device **Software:** - 3D capture: Agisoft Metashape, RealityCapture, or Meshroom (free) - 3D editing: Blender (free), MeshLab (free) - Metadata: Spreadsheet or dedicated system --- ## 2. Quick Start Workflow ### Step 1: Planning 1. Assess artifact characteristics 2. Choose capture method (photogrammetry, LiDAR, etc.) 3. Prepare environment (lighting, background) 4. Set up color/scale references ### Step 2: Capture 1. Take overlapping photos from all angles 2. Include scale bars and color targets 3. Verify coverage completeness 4. Back up raw images immediately ### Step 3: Processing 1. Import images to software 2. Align photos (sparse point cloud) 3. Build dense point cloud 4. Generate mesh 5. Create texture atlas 6. Export to standard formats ### Step 4: Quality Check 1. Verify accuracy with measurements 2. Check for holes or artifacts 3. Validate color accuracy 4. Test model in viewer ### Step 5: Metadata 1. Complete Dublin Core fields 2. Add technical capture details 3. Document processing steps 4. Assign persistent identifier ### Step 6: Preservation 1. Store master files in archival format 2. Generate checksums 3. Create multiple backups 4. Document storage locations ### Step 7: Dissemination 1. Create optimized web versions 2. Generate thumbnails 3. Upload to repository 4. Share with appropriate licenses --- ## 3. Best Practices ### Photogrammetry Tips - Use manual camera settings (fixed ISO, aperture, white balance) - Shoot RAW for maximum quality - Overlap images 60-80% - Avoid shiny, transparent, or very dark objects (or use scanning spray) - Circle object in horizontal bands - Take additional detail shots ### Metadata Essentials - Document everything immediately - Use controlled vocabularies - Link to authority files (Getty, Wikidata) - Include uncertainty estimates for reconstructions - Store metadata with files (sidecar approach) ### Accessibility - Provide multiple formats (3D, 2D images, text) - Include detailed descriptions - Test with screen readers - Offer multiple languages - Ensure keyboard navigation --- ## 4. Common Issues ### Problem: Incomplete mesh coverage **Solution:** Retake photos from missing angles ### Problem: Texture seams visible **Solution:** Improve UV unwrapping, use blending in texture baking ### Problem: File too large for web **Solution:** Decimate mesh, compress textures, use Draco compression ### Problem: Colors don't match original **Solution:** Use color calibration targets, shoot in RAW, correct in processing --- ## 5. Tools & Resources ### Free/Open Source - **Meshroom:** Photogrammetry (Windows/Linux) - **Blender:** 3D modeling and optimization - **CloudCompare:** Point cloud processing - **QGIS:** GIS and georeferencing ### Institutional - **Agisoft Metashape:** Professional photogrammetry - **RealityCapture:** Fast photogrammetry - **Faro Scene:** LiDAR processing ### Validation - **ColorChecker Passport:** Color calibration - **Scale bars:** Dimensionally accurate references - **Control measurements:** Calipers, laser distance meters --- ## 6. Training Resources - WIA Online Courses: https://training.wiastandards.com - Cultural Heritage Imaging: http://culturalheritageimaging.org - Smithsonian Digitization Program: https://3d.si.edu - Community Forums: https://forum.wiastandards.com --- ## 7. Certification Path 1. Complete training modules 2. Submit portfolio (3 projects minimum) 3. Pass technical assessment 4. Peer review 5. Receive WIA certification --- ## 8. Support **Technical Support:** support@wiastandards.com **Community Forum:** https://forum.wiastandards.com **GitHub Issues:** https://github.com/WIA-Official/wia-standards/issues --- © 2025 WIA - MIT License ## Annex E — Implementation Notes for PHASE-4-INTEGRATION The following implementation notes document field experience from pilot deployments and are non-normative. They are republished here so that early adopters can read them in context with the rest of PHASE-4-INTEGRATION. - **Operational scope** — implementations SHOULD declare their operational scope (single-tenant, multi-tenant, federated) in the OpenAPI document so that downstream auditors can score the deployment against the correct conformance tier in Annex A. - **Schema evolution** — additive changes (new optional fields, new error codes) are non-breaking; renaming or removing fields, even in error payloads, MUST trigger a minor version bump. - **Audit retention** — a 7-year retention window is sufficient to satisfy ISO/IEC 17065:2012 audit expectations in most jurisdictions; some regulators require longer retention, in which case the deployment policy MUST extend the retention window rather than relying on this PHASE's defaults. - **Time synchronization** — sub-second deadlines depend on synchronized clocks. NTPv4 with stratum-2 servers is sufficient for most deadlines expressed in this PHASE; PTP is recommended for sites that require deterministic interlocks. - **Error budget reporting** — implementations SHOULD publish a monthly error-budget summary (latency p95, error rate, violation hours) in the format defined by the WIA reporting profile to facilitate cross-vendor comparison without exposing tenant-specific data. These notes are not requirements; they are a reference for field teams mapping their existing operations onto WIA conformance. ## Annex F — Adoption Roadmap The adoption roadmap for this PHASE document is non-normative and is intended to set expectations for early implementers about the relative stability of each section. - **Stable** (sections marked normative with `MUST` / `MUST NOT`) — semantic versioning applies; breaking changes require a major version bump and at minimum 90 days of overlap with the prior major version on all WIA-published reference implementations. - **Provisional** (sections in this Annex and Annex D) — items are tracked openly and may be promoted to normative status without a major version bump if community feedback supports promotion. - **Reference** (test vectors, simulator behaviour, the reference TypeScript SDK) — versioned independently of this document so that mistakes in reference material can be corrected without amending the published PHASE document. Implementers SHOULD subscribe to the WIA Standards GitHub release notifications to track promotions between these tiers. Comments on the roadmap are accepted via the GitHub issues tracker on the WIA-Official organization. The roadmap is reviewed at every minor version of this PHASE document, and the review outcomes are recorded in the version-history table at the start of the document. ## Annex G — Test Vectors and Conformance Evidence This annex describes how implementations capture and publish conformance evidence for PHASE-4-INTEGRATION. The procedure is non-normative; it standardizes the shape of evidence so that auditors and downstream integrators can compare implementations without re-running the full test matrix. - **Test vectors** — every normative requirement in this PHASE has at least one positive vector and one negative vector under `tests/phase-vectors/phase-4-integration/`. Implementations claiming conformance MUST run all vectors in CI and publish the resulting pass/fail matrix in their compliance package. - **Evidence package** — the compliance package is a tarball containing the SBOM (CycloneDX 1.5 or SPDX 2.3), the OpenAPI document, the test vector matrix, and a signed manifest. Signatures use Sigstore (DSSE envelope, Rekor transparency log entry) so that downstream consumers can verify provenance without trusting a private CA. - **Quarterly recheck** — implementations re-publish the evidence package every quarter even if no source change occurred, so that consumers can detect environmental drift (compiler updates, dependency updates, OS updates) without polling vendor changelogs. - **Cross-vendor crosswalk** — the WIA Standards working group maintains a crosswalk that maps each vector to the equivalent assertion in adjacent industry programs (where one exists), so an implementer that already certifies under one program can show conformance to PHASE-4-INTEGRATION with reduced incremental effort. - **Negative-result reporting** — vendors MUST report negative results with the same fidelity as positive ones. A test that is skipped without recorded justification is treated by auditors as a failure. These conventions are intended to make conformance evidence portable and machine-readable so that adoption of PHASE-4-INTEGRATION does not require bespoke auditor tooling. ## Annex H — Versioning and Deprecation Policy This annex codifies the versioning and deprecation policy for PHASE-4-INTEGRATION. It is non-normative; the rules below describe the policy that the WIA Standards working group commits to when amending this PHASE document. - **Semantic versioning** — major / minor / patch components follow Semantic Versioning 2.0.0 (https://semver.org/spec/v2.0.0.html). Major bump indicates a backwards-incompatible change to a normative requirement; minor bump indicates new normative requirements that do not break existing implementations; patch bump indicates editorial changes only (clarifications, typo fixes, formatting). - **Deprecation window** — when a normative requirement is removed or altered in a backwards-incompatible way, the prior major version is maintained in parallel for at least 180 days. During the parallel window, both major versions are marked Stable in the WIA Standards registry and either may be cited as "WIA-conformant". - **Sunset notification** — deprecated major versions enter a 12-month sunset window during which the WIA registry marks the version as Deprecated. The deprecation entry includes a migration note pointing to the replacement requirement(s) and an explanation of why the change was made. - **Editorial errata** — patch-level errata are issued without a deprecation window because they do not change normative behaviour. Errata are tracked in a public errata register and each entry is signed by the WIA Standards working group chair. - **Implementation changelog mapping** — implementations SHOULD publish a changelog mapping each PHASE version they support to the specific build, container digest, or SDK version that satisfies the version. This allows downstream auditors to verify version conformance without re-running the entire test matrix on every release. The policy is reviewed at the same cadence as the PHASE document and any changes to the policy itself are tracked in the version-history table at the start of the document.