VIRTUAL REALITY______

VIRTUAL REALITY IN ARCHITECTURE

DESCRIPTION

Virtual reality provides an impressive computer interface that makes the users believe they are inside the computer-generated environment. In many domains, virtual reality is starting to change the way in which people use computers to interact with and manipulate digital information. This course explores the technologies, the underlying principles, and the potential applications of virtual reality in architecture. Lectures and lab sections will present the theoretical and technical information required for developing a number of virtual reality applications in architecture. There will be no computer programming background required for this course. However, students are assumed to have a background in using geometric modeling applications such as AutoCAD or FormZ. The course is divided into two segments. The first introduces the principles, tools, and technical skills that are required for building virtual reality applications. In the second segment, students will build a virtual reality application that applies the principles covered in the first segment to architecture.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

Introduce the principles and existing technologies of virtual reality through hands on exercises, explore some of the potential application in architecture, discuss some of the evaluative criteria that make a "good" VR application in architecture, introduce a number of approaches to creating virtual environments.

For Additional Information

For more information on Virtual Reality at the University of Michigan, please visit the some of the following links:

  • The VRL lab at the University of Michigan.
  • The VR lab at the Media Union.

DESCRIPTION

Working in groups of two or individually, students were asked to start from any existing building model or create a new one. In selecting the projects students were required to demonstrate a number of the virtual reality techniques that were introduced in the course and be able to provide more than just a walk through. Each group was required to write a proposal that described their project, its objectives, the environments that will be modeled and the expected user interaction with the environment. The environments were modeled in AutoCAD r13, FormZ, or 3DS Max. Students used VRML 1.0, Open Inventor, and World Up for the VR interactions.

SAMPLES OF STUDENTS' PROJECTS
(From Arch509-93 Spring 1997)

ples may be available when I find some time to optimize the files.


Fantasy Environment /
A Partial Virtual Model of a 3d Website

Assembling a Transportable House /
Interactive Walkthrough (Kidosaki House, Tadao Ando)

A VR Presentation of a Housing Project

Samples of Student Work

Modeling was done in AutoCAD or FormZ. These projects were generated by my students in both Spring '95 and Spring '96.

CAD FUNDAMENTALS II

COURSE OVERVIEW

The course focuses on three-dimensional computer-aided modeling and rendering of architectural forms. It is intended for individuals with little computer-aided design knowledge who wish to learn how to use existing architectural CAD software. The course investigates a number of modeling concepts and rendering techniques through a set of software packages that are commonly used in professional offices.

The software packages that will be used through the course are AutoCAD R.13 and FormZ for solid and surface modeling; Auto Vision and Render Zone for rendering and animation. The main strengths of FormZ are its robust 3-dimensional modeling environment and its ease of use. AutoCAD provides an integrated environment for creating architectural models, manipulating their elements, and representing their material, thermal, as well as structural properties into data-bases. Notable examples of architectural precedent will be the vehicle for introducing the main topics of this course.

In addition to learning the concepts of three-dimensional graphics and how to use existing software packages, students will learn how to convert their models into VRML (Virtual Reality Modeling Language) the language used to put three dimensional models on the web. The basic concepts of HTML and VRML will be covered towards the end of the term.

Note! As the size of AutoCAD and FormZ 3D modeling files can grow rather quickly you will not be able to use diskettes to store your work. Instead you need to have an IFS home directory and save all your work there. If you do not know what IFS is, do not worry you will soon learn all about it. If you use Mailstrom or Pine to read your email, then you already have one.

REQUIREMENTS AND GRADING

Each week, we will cover a new set of new modeling commands and techniques through a number of tutorials and weekly exercises. The tutorial handouts will usually be distributed at the beginning of each week and will be explained extensively through the lectures. The purpose of these tutorials is to help students gain an understanding of the key concepts and commands that are needed to do the weekly assignments. The assignments are handed out on Mondays and are usually due on the following Monday or Wednesday. They are carefully selected and organized to develop introductory skills, critical thinking, and aid the integration of knowledge accumulated through the course. The grading for this course will be based on class attendance, participation, and the completion of the weekly assignments and a final project.

  • Modeling Assignments (AutoCAD and FormZ) 40%
  • Rendering and Animation Assignments (Auto Vision and Render Zone) 20%
  • VRML Assignment 5%
  • Final Project 30%
  • Attendance and participation 5%

* (Subject to some adjustments at the discretion of instructor)

Fulfilling the requirements for each assignment on time will guarantee you most of the full grade (technique and presentation style count. Make sure you think about them). Extra credit will be given to students who do more than the basic requirements. As each assignment builds upon concepts covered in the previous one, late assignments are strongly discouraged and will be marked down 5% for each late day.

System :

Computer Human Interfaces

Computer Human Interfaces, ergonomic, etc.

General information

EVENTS

CHI'99

ACM SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems Pittsburgh, PAMay 15th-16th, 1999

STARTING POINTS

HCI Bibliography

Holds some 10,000 references to literature on human-computer interaction, including hypertext/hypermedia Journal, Magazines, etc.

HCI Letters

International Journal of Human-Computer Studies

The International Journal of Human-Computer Studies publishes original research over the whole spectrum of work on both the theory and practice of human-computer interaction and the human-machine interface. The journal covers the boundaries between computing and artificial intelligence, psychology, linguistics, mathematics, engineering, and social organization.

the News Letter on Intelligent User Interfaces

Articles

"The Foundations of Web Design"
by Jeffrey Veen
Wired Digital, Feb 1998
Some lessons on site building Associations, ...

ACM SIGCHI

HFES
Human Factors and Ergonomics Society

European Network for Intelligent Information Interfaces

i3, the European initiative for intelligent information interfaces, was created in 1997 in order to take a human-centred approach to the exploration of new, visionary interactive systems for people in their everyday activities

HCIRN

Human-Computer Interaction Resource Network. The HCIRN mission is to advance the practice of human-computer interaction (HCI) by providing HCI professionals with relevant, accurate and timely information on HCI theories, methods, practices and resources.

ETHZ MAN-MACHINE-INTERACTION

Development of Man-machine-Systems by understanding human behavior, both from a cognitive and an ecological point of view.

SYSTEMS

Build-It At Ethz Man-Machine-Interaction

BUILD-IT is a planning tool based on computer vision technology, with a capacity for complex planning and composition tasks. The system enables users, grouped around a table, to interact in a virtual scene, using real bricks to select and manipulate objects in the scene.

TOOLS AND TOOLKITS

The SAGE Project (CMU)
The SAGE Project involves the automatic and interactive design of graphical presentations of information.

User Interface Software Tools
A very good list of products related to the design of CHI

  • Wxwin
    A free C++ library for building plateform independant interfaces

VISUAL LANGUAGES

  • news:comp.lang.visual
  • Visual Languages and Visual Programming

Other

  • Desktop.com
  • MyInternetDesktop.com

Adaptive Interfaces

AH 2000

International Conference on Adaptive Hypermedia and Adaptive Web-based Systems
Trento, Italy
28-30 August 2000

STARTING POINTS

Articles, papers

"Exploiting user models for personalizing news presentations"

Liliana Ardissono, Luca Console, Ilaria Torre
Proceedings of the 2nd Workshop on Adaptive Systems and User Modeling on the WWW, 1999.

This paper presents a framework for the generation of adaptive hypertexts for accessing on-line news servers. The aim of this system is to present the most appropriate set of news (and advertisements) to each user, choosing the "right" detail level for each news item. This is obtained by using knowledge representation, user modeling and flexible hypermedia techniques.

"ADAPTS: Adaptive hypermedia for a Web-based performance support system"

by Peter Brusilovsky
2nd Workshop on Adaptive Systems and User Modeling on the WWW, 1999

ADAPTS provides an intelligent, adaptive electronic performance support system for maintaining complex equipment. ADAPTS maintains a dynamic characterization of a technician's knowledge, experience, and preferences in the form of a user model. This model influences the diagnostic strategy, technical information content, and navigation support offered to a technician.

PROJECTS & SYSTEMS

eGenie
from Open Sesame!
Open Sesame tells you about brand-new books, CD's, movies, and upcoming concerts, events, and TV shows that interest you.

As you interact with the system, eGenie learn more about you and adapt its interface. (the agent learns about you by observing your behaviour).

Open sesame as been acquired by Allaire Corp.

"SeTA"
User Adaptive Web-Based Systems & Personalized Interaction in On-Line Shops

Project Avanti (ACTS EC project)

AdaptiVe and Adaptable INteractions for MultimediaTelecommunications ApplIcations
The project has in particular developed a User Model Server

System:

Decision Making

Decision support systems, etc.

STARTING POINTS

STRATEGYWEB
provides Q&A hyperbook interactions with experts in business strategy.
StrategyWeb is a free resource for market analysts and researchers, strategic planners, and others involved in market knowledge management.

FORECASTING BUSINESS CONNECTION

The objective of this page is to provide academic researchers and business users with convenient access to a growing body of material on forecasting.

DecisionNet
DecisionNet is a WWW based information system that offers easy access to a distributed network of modeling and decision support systems.

It allows providers of modeling and decision support services to have their services (data, decision models, algorithms, and decision support packages) publicised, browsed, and executed over the WWW.

DSS Lab

The Decision Support Laboratory. DSS Lab provides clear empirically-grounded information on DSS-related tools, technologies and architectures within a real world problem-solving context.

Journals

  • Decision Support Systems
  • Decision Sciences Web
    Decision Sciences Journals and Handbooks

Articles, papers

  • Archive of Columns on Decision Support

Institutes

The University of California Institute on Global Conflict & Cooperation

Labs, research groups, etc.

The Harvard Decision Systems Group (DSG)

The overall goal of the DSG is the creation of software environments that facilitate problem-based, integrative access to information, to facilitate decision making, for health care providers, health care managers, and the public.

CMU Department of Social and Decision Sciences

People

Mary Frances Luce
Consumer decision making under stress and negative emotion; medical decision making from the patient/consumer perspective; effects of stress and emotion on reactions to advertising

Dave Moriarty

Sequential decision tasks appear in many practical real-world problems including control, resource allocation, and routing. ...

Note: Make use Genetic Algorithms and Neural Networks.

COMPANIES

Group Decision Support Systems, Inc.

GDSS provide expertise in decision-making technologies and group collaborative planning.

Think Tools

Think Tools is a software-based support system for qualitative reasoning, decision-making and knowledge management.

Logical Decisions

Logical Decisions for Windows is decision support software for evaluating choices. Logical Decisions (LDW) lets users evaluate choices by simultaneously considering many variables, separating facts from value judgments, and explaining their choice to others. LDW provides five methods for assessing attribute weights, provides many results displays and has many sophisticated features. It uses techniques from the field of decision analysis to help you make better and more logical decisions.

DECISION ALCHEMY
from Kikkup int.

Decision support systems for electronic commerce (customers)
Decision Alchemy is a software tool that helps people identify the right choice from a large number of possible options. They have specifically designed it to help an individual choose and buy the best-fit products for their needs in the smallest amount of time. It can be tailored to almost any product category, from cars to cameras to computers.

Lumina Decision Systems, Inc.

Lumina Decision Systems develops, markets, and supports Analytica, a software package for creating, analyzing and communicating quantitative business models.

DSP Development Corporation
Author of DADiSP.

Business Software & Consulting

Business Decision Wares

DADiSP
The Engineering Spreadsheet
From DSP Development Corporation.
A graphical data analysis software program for scientists and engineers.

Die Denkfabrik GmbH (Butzbach - Frankfurt, Germany)
Distributor of MBA-ware (DPL, Forecast Pro, ...)
Contact Larry Moffett

RESEARCH

"The Open DSS Protocol "

His Website is to provide information on an Open DSS protocol that has been proposed to facilitate the discovery of Decision Support Systems (DSS) on the WWW.

Microsoft Belief Network Tools
Tools for Bayesian Inference

A Windows application is freely available for research purpose. This application allows the creation, assessment and evaluation of Bayesian belief networks.

Artificial Intelligence :

Expert Systems

Rule based systems, etc.

The International Journal of Applied Expert Systems

Articles, Papers

"You can call Compaq's virtual technician "Al"
by Joe Wilcox
CNET News.com, September 28, 1999
Compaq Computer plans to pack a virtual self-help technician, "Al," in every new Presario Internet PC

Expert System Shells

Jess
Jess, the Java Expert System Shell.
Jess is a rule engine and scripting environment written entirely in Java

Ultrexx
The CruXpert range of products provide a complete, user-friendly tool kit that enables the development of Intelligent Interactive applications, even by a person with no programming skills. Typical application areas include trouble-shooting, diagnosis, product selection/configuration, Help-desk, training and so on.The visual graphical design interface permits intuitive development of knowledge-rich, multi-media enabled applications with point-and- click ease. CruXpert automatically generates the application in Java , thus making it a truly portable and versatile Internet/Intranet application.

  • --- other
  • ConceptBase
    A deductive object manager for meta databases
    ConceptBase is a multi-user deductive object manager mainly intended for conceptual modeling and coordination in design environments. The system implements O-Telos, a dialect of Telos which amalgamates properties of deductive and object-oriented languages. (free software available)

EXPERT SYSTEMS

"Applying Expert System technology to enhance sort performance"
by Dr. Peter Liu, Syncsort Incorporated

The need to automate performance tuning has grown because of the shortage of skilled personnel, the increasing complexity of computer systems, and the overwhelming amount of performance-related data supplied by new reporting tools. To meet this need, performance analysts have shown a strong interest in using expert system technology. Because of the importance of the system sort product in improving overall system performance, a prototype expert system designed to enhance sort performance was developed. When embedded in the system sort utility, the prototype optimized the CPU time performance.

  • InteliQuest
    Evergreen Internet, Salt Lake City, UT, US
    InteliQuest is offering "The World's 100 Greatest Books--Audiocassette Collection"(TM)(C) for purchase online. This collection encompasses many of the great classical works of literature. The Instant Expert Learning System(TM)(C) is designed to help you retain the information contained in the works.

Internet

Java

Discussions, News, ...

  • comp.lang.java
  • Strong Software Inc.

This Java powered site is focused specifically on displaying important Java dates and events. Java news site
It contains links to articles from various online ezines and press releases concerning all aspects of java and is typically updated daily.

STARTING POINTS

  • Java
    The main source of information for Java
  • Gamelan
    A Directory and Registry of Java Resources
    The main source of information about Java applications
  • Java in the Yahoo Classification
  • Inside Java

This site deals with advanced java topics and examples, as well as the latest Java news and developments.

  • The World Wide Web Virtual Library: The Java Programming Language
  • Java or JavaScript programming tutorials
  • Java-channel.org/

Groups, associations, etc.

  • Club Java
    Le Club a pour vocation de promouvoir la technologie Java et de la mettre en avant sous forme d'actions de péedagogie, d'aide et d'assistance pour ses adhérents.
  • Java Cyber Club France

ARTICLES

"Get smart with proxies and RMI. Use dynamic class loading to implement smart proxies in RMI"
by M. Jeff Wilson
Javaworld, November 2000