Mindful Manifestation: From EEG to Virtual Reality

<p>Throughout millennia, the human mind has been attributed to the advancements of human society today. Architecture, likewise, a result of human wit and intelligence. This research takes a particular interest in the architecture that is, pre-conceived before its existence. From the inception of this research, it began with a particular interest in this design process, or creative. The objective, to develop a means for people to design using their mental imagination. The objective, while novel and realistic, demonstrate itself to be highly challenging in its enormous complexity. The investigation focuses now settles towards the development of an “integrated foundational” brain-computer interface (BCI) to design architecture through meaningful and intentional design interactions through human brain activities in real-time inside an immersive virtual environment. The research methodology deploys the conglomeration of the following of hardware: • 14-Channel EPOC+ electroencephalograph (EEG) headset (a brain electrical activity detector) • High-end computer with VR capable graphics card • HTC Vive Virtual Reality (VR) Headset In terms of software, CortexUI, a cloud-based platform to stream live EEG data, Grasshopper (GH), a commonly used architectural visual scripting plugin software, followed by Unity, a commonly used tool to develop interactive VR/3D environment. The user shall be wearing both EEG and the HMD to interactive with the presented material. The EEG is used to detect brain activities through its electrodes measuring variation in of electrical potential caused by passing signals sent within the brain’s neurons. These raw data are transferred into Grasshopper in numerical forms, where these data are inputs to manipulate a series of pre-defined forms and interactions in Grasshopper, a plugin in Rhino software. The translation process involved data manipulation for desired design interaction, which altered the abstracted formal qualities of locations, scales, rotations, geometries and colours, with a minor implementation of certain artificial neural networks (ANN) within a design environment context. Virtual Reality consequently performs as a visualisation tool and immersing the user within that design interaction as well as become a design feedback tool. The user is stimulated to generate various design variations and able to capture that result in Rhino through baking the design in Grasshopper. The exported geometries act as an abstracted visualisation of the BCI system’s user’s mental state at that point in time. The research outcome exceeded the aims & objectives from its “foundational” status in its ability to harbour multiple design interactive scenarios. However, there are considerable technical limitations and room for future research within this experiment, all of which shall be mentioned within the discussion section of this inquiry. A technical understanding and overall framework have been developed as a result of this study, tending towards creating a BCI-VR system to design architecture directly from the human imagination from the mind’s eye.</p>

Mindful Manifestation: From EEG to Virtual Reality

<p>Throughout millennia, the human mind has been attributed to the advancements of human society today. Architecture, likewise, a result of human wit and intelligence. This research takes a particular interest in the architecture that is, pre-conceived before its existence. From the inception of this research, it began with a particular interest in this design process, or creative. The objective, to develop a means for people to design using their mental imagination. The objective, while novel and realistic, demonstrate itself to be highly challenging in its enormous complexity. The investigation focuses now settles towards the development of an “integrated foundational” brain-computer interface (BCI) to design architecture through meaningful and intentional design interactions through human brain activities in real-time inside an immersive virtual environment. The research methodology deploys the conglomeration of the following of hardware: • 14-Channel EPOC+ electroencephalograph (EEG) headset (a brain electrical activity detector) • High-end computer with VR capable graphics card • HTC Vive Virtual Reality (VR) Headset In terms of software, CortexUI, a cloud-based platform to stream live EEG data, Grasshopper (GH), a commonly used architectural visual scripting plugin software, followed by Unity, a commonly used tool to develop interactive VR/3D environment. The user shall be wearing both EEG and the HMD to interactive with the presented material. The EEG is used to detect brain activities through its electrodes measuring variation in of electrical potential caused by passing signals sent within the brain’s neurons. These raw data are transferred into Grasshopper in numerical forms, where these data are inputs to manipulate a series of pre-defined forms and interactions in Grasshopper, a plugin in Rhino software. The translation process involved data manipulation for desired design interaction, which altered the abstracted formal qualities of locations, scales, rotations, geometries and colours, with a minor implementation of certain artificial neural networks (ANN) within a design environment context. Virtual Reality consequently performs as a visualisation tool and immersing the user within that design interaction as well as become a design feedback tool. The user is stimulated to generate various design variations and able to capture that result in Rhino through baking the design in Grasshopper. The exported geometries act as an abstracted visualisation of the BCI system’s user’s mental state at that point in time. The research outcome exceeded the aims & objectives from its “foundational” status in its ability to harbour multiple design interactive scenarios. However, there are considerable technical limitations and room for future research within this experiment, all of which shall be mentioned within the discussion section of this inquiry. A technical understanding and overall framework have been developed as a result of this study, tending towards creating a BCI-VR system to design architecture directly from the human imagination from the mind’s eye.</p>

Finite State Machine in Game Development

Finite State Machine is one of the oldest techniques in gaming where it was used in old games like PACMAN and new games like TOM RAIDER also. In all these games one major goal was to make non player characters more intelligent. There are some advance types also available but FSM still is one of the most used technique for non-player characters. The main goal of this paper is to explain how FSM works, how to create FSM and implement it in games using scripting or visual scripting. Hierarchical Finite State Machine is also discussed in this paper as it overcomes the limitations of older simple FSM. Using FSM, we can create intelligent AI agents. We can implement FSM and HFSM in games to make NPS’s behave like AI.

Architecture as Ornament

<p><b>We are currently in the middle of the 4th industrial revolution, where digital technology and fabrication tools have the potential to drastically change the way we think about architecture. Contemporary architectural design is now being driven by an influx of digital tools, including parametric modelling, digital fabrication, and robotics. These tools allow designers to create forms with complexity, creating new textures, patterns and styles, they are however being under-utilised. Because the focus of these methods remains on mass-production and efficiency, as they were from the second industrial revolution, architecture has now become sleek and un-ornamental. When ornamentation is used it is now generally limited to façade design, and the focus is towards ideas such as tessellation and repetition. These styles can sometimes be successful, however they lack the sense of depth and craft that classical ornamentation once had. A variety of social, cultural, technological and historical influences means that contemporary ornamentation no longer holds the significance and importance it once had. This research questions this reality and explores the use of contemporary computational design and fabrication techniques to understand how ornamentation can be revitalised and reimagined in contemporary architecture. </b></p> <p>By building upon literature and case study analysis, this research uses the architectural column as a design mechanism, and parametric modelling to redefine the place that ornamentation has in contemporary architecture. By using a process of visual scripting and digital modelling, these techniques are used to explore how digital tools and the influence of history can reimagine ornamentation. This research process begins with small-scale digital tests which then translate into small-scale prototypes through the use of additive manufacturing. After an evaluation and critical-reflection of these prototypes, these ideas are translated into clay prototypes by using robotic fabrication. To further refine and finalise the designs the research is then applied to an architectural design context, and a final large-scale column is robotically fabricated. This final stage works to clearly show the design intent, to understand not only how traditional ideas and nature can be translated into contemporary designs, but also how the process of parametric design can create design variation, rather than identically replicated components. This research found that there is an immense amount of potential for using these visual scripting tools and methods of digital fabrication for revitalising ornament, creating mass-customisable architecture, not mass-replications.</p>

Architecture as Ornament

<p><b>We are currently in the middle of the 4th industrial revolution, where digital technology and fabrication tools have the potential to drastically change the way we think about architecture. Contemporary architectural design is now being driven by an influx of digital tools, including parametric modelling, digital fabrication, and robotics. These tools allow designers to create forms with complexity, creating new textures, patterns and styles, they are however being under-utilised. Because the focus of these methods remains on mass-production and efficiency, as they were from the second industrial revolution, architecture has now become sleek and un-ornamental. When ornamentation is used it is now generally limited to façade design, and the focus is towards ideas such as tessellation and repetition. These styles can sometimes be successful, however they lack the sense of depth and craft that classical ornamentation once had. A variety of social, cultural, technological and historical influences means that contemporary ornamentation no longer holds the significance and importance it once had. This research questions this reality and explores the use of contemporary computational design and fabrication techniques to understand how ornamentation can be revitalised and reimagined in contemporary architecture. </b></p> <p>By building upon literature and case study analysis, this research uses the architectural column as a design mechanism, and parametric modelling to redefine the place that ornamentation has in contemporary architecture. By using a process of visual scripting and digital modelling, these techniques are used to explore how digital tools and the influence of history can reimagine ornamentation. This research process begins with small-scale digital tests which then translate into small-scale prototypes through the use of additive manufacturing. After an evaluation and critical-reflection of these prototypes, these ideas are translated into clay prototypes by using robotic fabrication. To further refine and finalise the designs the research is then applied to an architectural design context, and a final large-scale column is robotically fabricated. This final stage works to clearly show the design intent, to understand not only how traditional ideas and nature can be translated into contemporary designs, but also how the process of parametric design can create design variation, rather than identically replicated components. This research found that there is an immense amount of potential for using these visual scripting tools and methods of digital fabrication for revitalising ornament, creating mass-customisable architecture, not mass-replications.</p>

Generative Design Strategies for Customizable Prototypes

This chapter shows some results of academic research and didactic activities about innovative design and productive processes based on modeling and digital fabrication integrated strategies. The results of these experiments are customizable lamps prototypes. Digital modeling is based on algorithmic-generative visual scripting approach and geometric theories to manage primitive or complex shapes and patterns to optimize digital manufacturing. The following paragraphs and sub-paragraphs describe a prototypes collection designed, manufactured, and assembled by students on their first experience in VPL and digital prototyping. Lamp prototypes are made using additive and subtractive techniques according to different shaping approaches. The main goal of this academic approach is to collaborate in design and architectural geometry research field: the main goal is to support training and entrepreneurial activities of students aimed at management of complex data systems according to new potential of digital tools for advanced shaping, new manufacturing processes, and ecological strategies.

POINT CLOUD SEGMENTATION AND FILTERING TO VERIFY THE GEOMETRIC GENESIS OF SIMPLE AND COMPOSED VAULTS

<p><strong>Abstract.</strong> This research work proposes a methodology to statistically determine the geometric configuration of a masonry cross vault. Within Cultural Heritage it is possible to find architectural elements with absent or scarce historical sources about design approach or construction techniques. The cross vault case study belongs to a partially destroyed vaulted system distributed along the aisles of ancient Assunta’s Cathedral which is part of the Aragonese Castle on Ischia island, near Naples (Italy). Using photogrammetrical data acquisition, standard geometric analysis, numerical processes, computing and statistics this paper shows a method to objectively determine the geometric shape which best fits one of the existing Cathedral vault according to critical interpretation about stylistic and cultural contents linked to specific geographical and temporal contexts. This paper provides explanations, methods and objective calculation algorithms to find the best-fitting shape for a generic given point cloud and it is aimed at demonstrating the complementarity between descriptive geometry and algorithmic mathematical approaches. The final product of this multidisciplinary workflow is a 3D model deriving from the comparison between an ideal automatic model built thanks to the translation of traditional geometric rules in visual scripting language and an automatic model deriving from the mathematical analysis of survey data, curves and surface, of the architectural element. This experimentation generates 3D models to perform in-depth multidisciplinary tests and AR and VR applications to promote the communication of destroyed or inaccessible cultural heritage.</p>