Vineet Kamat's CIC Center

Center for Computer-Integrated Construction at the University of Michigan is the website for Vineet Kamat's research group. Dr. Kamat will provide the guest lecture on Thursday.

Computation Day - Feb 17

The Penn State Institute for Computational Science is sponsoring a Computation Day on Feb 17, 2005 in the Hub. This should be interesting to attend.

Fakespace Systems

Fakespace Systems Inc. is the manufacturer of the CAVE system along with many other immersive VR systems. This site provides a good opportunity to see the different types of systems that exist in the marketplace.

VR for Courthouse Design

Architectural Record | Tech Briefs - January 2005 - Virtual reality and digital modeling go on trial for a federal courtroom design is an interesting article on the use of a CAVE for the visualizing a new courthouse project being performed by GSA. This is one of only several good examples of the use of immersive display technology on projects that is published for US projects.

IAI International

The International Alliance for Interoperability is a large alliance of organizations focused on the development of methods to share data within the design and construction industries. IAI is the developer of the Industry Foundation Classes (IFC) which is the most advanced effort to develop a common data model for sharing data between AEC Industry applications.

Two Great Prototyping / Innovation Books

I highly recommend reading the following books. The first is Serious Play: How the World's Best Companies Simulate to Innovate which contains a great discussion of the value of prototyping and how it encourages innovation. The second book is The Art of Innovation which discusses the IDEO process for prototyping (along with other issues related to innovation).

BlogThis! for Easy Posting

BlogThis! is an easy way to set up posting to this blog for enrolled users. This gives instructions to get set up.

Torque Game Engine

The Torque Game Engine has been used by researchers (Moloney & Amor) to import 3D models and perform collaborative navigation and review of the models. You can read more about the project in his CONVR 2003 conference paper.

Unreal Technology

The Unreal Game Engine can be used to create an interactive model that you can load in the Unreal game. You can import 3DS Max and Maya models into this game engine which is an editing application to develop virtual worlds.

NASA - ASK Magazine on Prototyping

The NASA - ASK Magazine - Volume 13 is dedicated to prototyping. It has some great articles that discuss the practical application of prototyping.

CIS/2 to VRML Translator from NIST

The CIS/2 to VRML Translator is a great example of formating a standard data format (CIS/2 for steel data) into a VRML or X3D model. This application can be used to convert steel models developed in detailed steel packages into VRML files for use in Common Point 4D or BS Contact Stereo in the Immersive Envionments Lab. Please submit your information to download the latest version as requested on the webpage.

Blog Audio Book - Discusses Knowledge and Blogs

This book is a free audio book from audible.com that discusses knowledge, information and the impact of digital media on this knowledge and information. It is thought provoking when you consider it's impact on knowledge management within the AEC industry. It was also part of the inspiration for the initial development for this blog.

BS Contact VRML/X3D Loader

The BS Contact viewer is a plugin to Internet Explorer that allows users to view VRML or X3D format. This loader also supports stereo viewing of models if you purchase the stereo version. We have used this application in our Immersive Environments Lab and it is a relatively low cost method (approximately $1,500) for getting VRML models into immersive display sytems. It does allow for the use of a joystick to control navigation in the models if you add these controls from BS Contact to the VRML file.

AECCafe.com - Daily news briefs

AECCafe.com offers a free daily email with CAD and vizualization application news and events. It is worth scanning each day for information on new program releases and current events in the IT sector focused on the AEC industry.

CIFE at Stanford

The Center for Integrated Facilities Engineering (CIFE) is one of the leading research groups that is performing research on virtual design and construction issues related to the Architecture/Engineering/Construction (AEC) industry. The CIFE website contains important information on previous and current research projects as well as course presentations from current Stanford courses related to virtual design and construction.

Blog Purpose

This BLOG has been developed to capture important sites and research concepts related to the process of virtual facility prototyping.