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Mathematical Surface Representations for Conceptual Design

Project Type: 
complet

The focus of this project is to develop new mathematical representations, or build upon existing ones, to capture the essence of shape as perceived by designers.

Project Leader(s): 

Dr. Karan Singh , University of Toronto

How quickly and effectively a designer can transform a mental concept into a digital object that is easy to refine and reuse is a central challenge in computer graphics. The focus of this project is, therefore, to develop new mathematical representations, or build upon existing ones, to capture the essence of shape as perceived by designers. In the past year, a freeware software program, Shapeshop, which was developed by the project team was released for download. A 3D modeling and design tool with an easy-to-learn interface, Shapeshop is a sketch-based shape creation and editing tool that makes it simple to quickly translate ideas into a 3D shapes. Research on sketch based modeling in this project this part year will be further commercialized by a spin-off company Sketch2 Inc., that has recently secured venture funding to develop a prototype for the rapid creation, visualization and costing of office interiors.

Project team: 
Dr. Ravin Balakrishnan, University of Toronto
Dr. Eugene Fiume, University of Toronto
Dr. Pierre Poulin, Université de Montréal
Dr. Alla Sheffer, University of British Columbia
Dr. Michiel Van de Panne, University of British Columbia
Dr. Richard Zhang, Simon Fraser University
Funding period: 
April 1, 2021 - March 31, 2021