A volunteered geographic information system for collecting and rating petroglyph data

In this paper we exploit a volunteer-based paradigm for archeological aims. In particular, we present PetroAdvisor, a system supporting several fundamental activities to digitally preserve petroglyph sites. The system exploits a rewarding strategy to stimulate people participation to the project, so that those entering useful information gain free archeological data, tips on excursions and tours, opinions and rating from previous tourists, and so forth. User provided information typically consists of petroglyph pictures, descriptions, and several useful metadata, such as geo-referenced information, petroglyph contours, and so forth, which can potentially empower the work of the archeologists, enabling them to tackle technology shortfalls. HighlightsA VGI system to digitally preserve petroglyph sites is proposed.The system uses a rewarding strategy to stimulate people participation.The user provided information allows automating petroglyph recognition.The system is able to generate personalized tourist routes.