46 research outputs found
Educational tool or expensive toy? Evaluating VR evaluation and its relevance for virtual heritage
No full textNo abstract available
Knowledge-based computational support for architectural design.
No full textThe process of architectural design aims to define a physical form that will achieve certain functional and behavioral objectives in a particular context. It comprises three distinct,but highly interrelated, operations: (1) definition of the desired objectives; (2) production of alternative design solutions; (3) evaluation of the expected performances of the solutions and their comparison to the predefined objectives. Design can be viewed as a process of research for a solution that satisfies stated needs, while at the same time adapting the need to the opportunities and limitations inherent in the emerging solution. Computational techniques were developed to assist each one of the three operations, with varying degrees of success. We propose to intergrate all three operaitons into one whole, by developing a computational model that will facilitate smooth transition from one operation to another. The role in supporting this model will include providing a database of prototypical design objectives and solutions, storing project-specific design goals and solutions, and predicting their expected performances. This paper discusses the rationale and background for developing such a knowledge-base design system, and presents the parameters for implementing it as a computational tool to support architectural design. Examples from a prototype implementation serve to illustrate the discussion
Preface, Introduction and Conclusions
No full textDesign, in the broad sense, did not escape the paradoxical trend of specialization and unification.
In the quest for increasingly more efficient methods and practices it swung from the magical “deus ex-machina” of the past – the artist-designer; to a segmented and fragmentary form of practice in a ‘Taylorist’ company of the last century – the clerk-designer; to a kind of achieved synthesis that ‘differed’ from preceding ones, combining unity and identity, specialist research and global synthesis – the actordesigner.
These new design methods and practices – united by the paradigm of collaboration – caught on in a wide range of activities and sectors. In design, however, particularly in the form designated as “Architecture, Engineering and Construction” (AEC), they drew renewed problem-solving impetus and fresh energy from pragmatic practices that had always been present. Indeed, buildings and projects are the outcome of a collective work carried out by specialists with different knowledge, cultural backgrounds, and often divergent objectives. Collaboration is not only necessary, but
also desirable, in order to reduce to unity the different aims of the various specialists, putting them all on the same footing in an effort to achieve a whole that is larger than
its several parts.
Collaboration in design thus became a goal in itself, to be pursued from all standpoints. It has become a well-defined systemic method: collaborative design
Modelling and Simulating Use Processes in Buildings
No full textIn this paper, we propose a new approach to simulating users’ behavior in yet un-built buildings. For this purpose, we have developed a model that connects two different representations: a formal representation of the building use, by means of a method borrowed from Business Process Modeling and Notation (BPMN) approach; and a game-engine based 3D virtual environment, where this process is effectively simulated and integrated with some autonomous behaviour of users/agents. The model has been applied to two test cases, where the activities of doctors, nurses, patients, and visitors in different hospitals were tracked, simulated, and reviewed by medical professionals for validation
An Event-Based Model to simulate human behaviour in built environments
No full textDuring a design process, few methods allow designers to evaluate if and how the future building will match and affect its intended use and its intended users. Computer simulation techniques have focused on prediction of human behavior in built environments in order to overcome this lack; nevertheless, their applications are limited to representation of specifi c behavioral aspects while a reliable representation of building response to actual use is still missing. Based on current developments in the video game industry, the research described here aims to establish a new approach to simulating human behavior in buildings, centered on a clear definition of use scenarios as specific structures of active entities called Events. They provide information about occurrences happening during the use process in terms of Actors involved, Activities performed and Space where the event takes place. Equipped with AI engines, events control and coordinate the actorsí behavior during the simulation, representing their interaction, cooperation and collaboration
Collaborative Working Environments for Architectural Design.
No full textPrefazione: inquadramento storico della progettazione collaborativa nell'ambito della progettazione assistita. Introduzione: illustrazione delle caratteristiche di tale paradigma in vari ambiti attraverso saggi che ne evidenziano le necessità e le potenzialità. Conclusione: prospettive della progettazione collaborativa.Preface: historical framework of collaborative design in the field of computer aided design. Introduction: illustration of the characteristics of this paradigm in various fields through essays that highlight the need and potential. Conclusion: prospects for collaborative design
Using Game-Like Narrative to Simulate Human Behaviour in Built Environments
No full textPredicting future users’ behaviour and their activities in a building is a highly complex task that designers have to face during the design process. Despite its importance, few methods exist that can predict and help evaluate this type of building performance during the design process itself. Simulative approaches are gradually overcoming this shortcoming, but at present their application is limited to the representation of specific occurrences and behavioural performance aspects, such as emergency egress. Based on current developments in the video game industry, our research aims to establish a new approach to human behaviour simulation in built environments, based on a clear and reliable representation of the use processes occurring in a building. At its core is simulation based on the notion of events, defined as active entities on their own, comprised of space, people, and activities. These events entities are structured into collections called narratives, which represent and allow the simulation of the step-by-step performing of activities by users in a built environment
