Browsing by Author "Webster, Dane"

Now showing 1 - 20 of 34
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    Artifacts of the Kree
    Fine, Justin Mitchell (Virginia Tech, 2015-06-18)
    The work presented in this thesis explores the creation and curation of fictional artifacts. The goal was to simultaneously explore and create a wholly fictitious civilization as a means of self-actualization and a grasp at the ineffable. The "Artifacts of the Kree" is a real-time interactive rendering of digitally fabricated objects belonging to a civilization that inhabited a planet far beyond the reaches of humanity. These objects were curated second hand by an unknown sentient species and cataloged in the system presented here.
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    BabyTalk: An App for the NICU
    Robinson, Rachel (Virginia Tech, 2015-06-03)
    The purpose of this project is to improve parents experience in the NICU through design, technology, communication and storytelling. A series of shadowing appointments were conducted to gain empathy and a greater understanding of the environment the design would be in. Next 15 user interviews were conducted. The qualitative data was then analyzed and a needs analysis for the application was determined by identifying patterns in the qualitative data. The design then went through three phases of design, testing and iterating, before the final prototype was complete. This study found that design, technology and storytelling could improve communication and the experience of parents in the NICU.
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    bipolar[i].discuss();
    Walker, Megan Anna Hein (Virginia Tech, 2013-09-17)
    This MFA thesis uses the medium of computer language to explore the chaos underlying Bipolar I Disorder, an enigmatic and disruptive illness. Using creative coding to generate a series of abstract systems representing human traits, I explore the common truth that pervades the seemingly randomness of mental illness: we all break the same.
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    Calvary
    Bush, Zachary (Virginia Tech, 2017-01-20)
    Calvary is a 3D fictional cathedral that is based around Christian beliefs. It is a new way to experience spiritual landmarks, fictional or nonfictional, using virtual reality. The goal is to allow the viewer to experience this space wherever they are located and to create a dialogue about who God is to them.
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    Come with Me
    Nikoo, Elham (Virginia Tech, 2018-02-27)
    Come with Me is the process of making a short 3D animation. Introducing the practice as a research method, I explored 3D animation production steps in a non-linear workflow. Each production step is then introduced along with the mind processes as Come with Me was developed from the story to the final animated scenes. The failed attempts are also included as an important part of this research. In the end, the workflows that allow for mistakes at each step of the 3D animation production are being explored.
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    Constructing a Virtual Paspahegh Village Instructional Plan
    Webster, Dane (Institute for Creativity, Arts, and Technology: Center for the Arts, 2012)
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    Design Study to Visualize Stock Market Bubble Formations and Bursts
    Iyer, Sruthi Ganesan (Virginia Tech, 2014-06-23)
    The stock market is a very complex and continuously changing environment in which many varying factors shape its growth and decline. Studying interesting trends and analyzing the intricate movements of the market, while ignoring distracting and uninteresting patterns has the potential to save large amounts of money for individuals as well as corporations and governments. This thesis describes research that was conducted with the goal to visualize stock market data in such a way that it is able to show how behavior and movement of various market entities affects the condition of the market as a whole. Different visualizations have been proposed, some that improve on existing traditional methods used by the Finance community and others that are novel in their layout and representation of data and interactions. The proposed design, by the use of interactive multiple coordinated views showing overviews and details of the stock market data using animated bubble charts and statistics, aims to enable the user to visualize market conditions that lead to the formation of a bubble in the market, how they lead to a crash and how the market corrects itself after such a crash.
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    Desire and Hope
    Tasooji, Reza (Virginia Tech, 2015-06-07)
    "Desire and Hope" is three short animations. The main concept in these three animations is human desires; the goal in each animation was to explore a ways to tell this concept by adding some level of ambiguity, so viewers can watch it through their own vision.
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    Discovering the New World: The Journey from England to Jamestown Instructional Plan
    Webster, Dane (Institute for Creativity, Arts, and Technology: Center for the Arts -Teacher resources, 2012)
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    Effect of Ornamentation on the Emotion Response and Perception of Motion Graphics
    Musselman, Ryan William (Virginia Tech, 2013-06-24)
    This study explores the effect of ornamentation on the emotional response and perception of motion graphics. A series of motion graphics were created, eye tracked, and tested for changes in emotional responses and perceptions based on the amount of ornamentation in the design. This study collected both quantitative and qualitative data to gain a better understanding of the viewer's overall emotional responses and perceptions of each video. Eye tracking data was studied to validate focal points and areas of interest. The quantitative data was analyzed by looking for correlations and trends. The qualitative data was analyzed for trends and reoccurring ideas. This study found that the amount of ornamentation in logo animations has a direct effect on the viewer's emotional responses and perceptions. More ornamentation led to overall positive changes in the emotional responses and perceptions of the brand or message, however there can be a turning point where the ornamentation can cause a negative response from the viewer.
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    Forbidden City: An Immersive Virtual Reality World Using the HTC VIVE to explore the real imperial palace of China
    Liu, Fang (Virginia Tech, 2017-06-07)
    Forbidden City is a 3D virtual tour of an ancient Chinese architectural masterpiece, first of the world's top five palaces -The Imperial Palace in Beijing, China. This travel guide is designed to give you useful information that will greatly enhance your experience, and it will bring you into an immersive virtual world by using the device of the HTC VIVE rather than static texts and images. This 3D guide integrates cultural and historical information, which is practical and informative. You can get a comprehensive understanding of the palace history, architectural characteristics and Chinese culture through interaction within the immersive experience. Forbidden City travel guide 3D virtual tour provides all the necessary functions and information for planning a visit to the Forbidden Cty palace in the capital of Beijing, China. With the tour guide character "Doctor Guider" within this experience/game, your tour to this Forbidden City will be purposeful and fun.
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    A Framework for the Implementation of Digital Technologies in the Concept Stage of the Architectural Design Process
    Al-Rqaibat, Sana'A Mohammad (Virginia Tech, 2019-04-29)
    The use of digital tools such as Sketchup, Rhino, AutoCAD and others is now commonplace in the architectural design process. These tools have advantages for time management and support the iterative nature of design, while also providing an efficient connection to later stages of design development and construction documentation. However, it could be argued that the use of digital tools during the ideation and concept phases of designing limits the cognitive connection between thought and the hand that is present in freehand sketching. If we accept that this cognitive connection is foundational to the design process, then new digital sketching tools are needed that have features similar to freehand sketching while processing sketches to 2D and 3D representations that are translatable to 3D printing, digital fabrication, and eventually Building Information Modeling. What this new tool might be is currently unclear. The purpose of this research is to identify the characteristics of a next generation of sketching tools that could support ideation activities in the concept stage of architectural design. The results will help to design a roadmap for the implementation of digital technologies in the architectural design process. This research will contribute to a shift in the implementation of digital tools in the architectural design process. This research relied on multiple data sources. First, a logical argument tactic was used to develop the research design model through a comprehensive review of the scholarly work that addresses the design process in the concept stage and the role of sketching and digital tools throughout these processes. Second, case study observation and interviews were used to explore how architects and architectural students at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (Virginia Tech) use sketching, 3D modeling, and existing digital tools to represent, develop, iterate, and communicate their design ideas in the concept stage and how the tools they used affect their design process. Third, two immersive case studies were conducted to identify and develop the characteristics of a digital sketching tool. The last step was to determine consensus for the appropriateness of the To-Be model through Delphi tactics.
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    GPU Based Large Scale Multi-Agent Crowd Simulation and Path Planning
    Gusukuma, Luke (Virginia Tech, 2015-04-26)
    Crowd simulation is used for many applications including (but not limited to) videogames, building planning, training simulators, and various virtual environment applications. Particularly, crowd simulation is most useful for when real life practices wouldn't be practical such as repetitively evacuating a building, testing the crowd flow for various building blue prints, placing law enforcers in actual crowd suppression circumstances, etc. In our work, we approach the fidelity to scalability problem of crowd simulation from two angles, a programmability angle, and a scalability angle, by creating new methodology building off of a struct of arrays approach and transforming it into an Object Oriented Struct of Arrays approach. While the design pattern itself is applied to crowd simulation in our work, the application of crowd simulation exemplifies the variety of applications for which the design pattern can be used.
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    Imperceivable World
    Nguyen, Phat Hung (Virginia Tech, 2017-01-09)
    Imperceivable World is an immersive multi-media exhibition that allows the audience to explore the imperceivable micro world of various organisms. These microorganisms occupy a space within our world that is so minuscule that it might seem like fiction. A series of short animations are an exploration into how these organisms behave and interact, giving the viewer a brief glimpse into this micro world. Imperceivable World utilizes the Cyclorama, which is a massive cylindrical screen that can display 3D stereoscopic animations which provide the audience a larger than life perspective of these microorganisms. Along with cyclorama Imperceivable World uses the Cube's audio space to give the audience a fully immersive experience.
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    Jan. 25 ( Story of a Girl )
    Ramadan, Hadeel M. (Virginia Tech, 2015-02-03)
    The work presented in this thesis explores the possibility to integrate two dimensional drawings with three dimensional animated characters in 3D computer graphics. The goal was to preserve the effects of the cartoonish artistic style and produce a strong emotional and moving story without realistic animation feel. Inspiration of the storyboard was based on a true story from the Arab Spring events that occurred in several Arab countries, I focused my work on the context of Egypt.
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    Libero
    Mittra, Anirudh (Virginia Tech, 2017-03-27)
    Libero is a 2D video game that aims to explore the concepts of dealing with personal issues such as insomnia and anxiety. It is a 2D stealth puzzle game that takes influence from older dungeon-crawlers and rogue-likes from the 1990s as well as inspiration from modern games designed for mobile platforms such as iOS and Android phones. The game experiments with new 2D normal mapping technologies for a unique take on pixel art.
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    Man in the Mirror: A Mythology-Driven Exploration of Multiple User-Interpretations in a Multimedia Space
    Otitoju, Oluwabukumni Sharon (Virginia Tech, 2007-04-19)
    Artists, designers and writers have long employed ambiguity as a tool in compelling their audience to deduce a personal meaning to their work. As computing becomes less of a strictly workspace, task-oriented phenomenon and more of a ubiquitous, life-space one, it is increasingly important to consider the intelligence of the user in the design of everyday computer-based things. Support of multiple user interpretation through ambiguity is an element whose appropriate inclusion in system design can compel the user to deduce a personal interpretation of the system's meaning and utility. The work in this paper explores the process by which users may come to deduce a meaning to an ambiguous work, both as individuals and collaboratively. Incorporating elements of ambiguity, we created SenSpace, an immersive physical environment that embeds the Greek myth of Narcissus within itself. The subsequent user study provided insight on the process by which naïve visitors may come to deduce their meanings of a work, both individually and collaboratively. Our results showed that there exists a trade-off between a user's level of interaction and depth of the interpretation of the multimedia environment. We also show how ambiguity can be used as a design method, by incorporating observed user expectations into the system. This paper uses experimental evidence to advocate the design of systems that support not only the system goal the designer has in mind, but also the multiple perspectives and meanings that the user often brings to the system.
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    A Motion Graph Approach for Interactive 3D Animation using Low-cost Sensors
    Kumar, Mithilesh (Virginia Tech, 2008-07-14)
    Interactive 3D animation of human figures is very common in video games, animation studios and virtual environments. However, it is difficult to produce full body animation that looks realistic enough to be comparable to studio quality human motion data. The commercial motion capture systems are expensive and not suitable for capture in everyday environments. Real-time requirements tend to reduce quality of animation. We present a motion graph based framework to produce high quality motion sequences in real-time using a set of inertial sensor based controllers. The user's action generates signals from the controllers that provide constraints to select appropriate sequence of motions from a structured database of human motions, namely \emph{motion graph}. Our local search algorithm utilizes noise prone and rapidly varying input sensor signals for querying a large database in real-time. The ability to waive the controllers for producing high quality animation provides a simple 3D user interface that is intuitive to use. The proposed framework is low cost and easy to setup.
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    Orbital
    Yourshaw, Matthew Stephen (Virginia Tech, 2017-01-19)
    Orbital is a virtual reality gaming experience designed to explore the use of traditional narrative structure to enhance immersion in virtual reality. The story structure of Orbital was developed based on the developmental steps of 'The Hero's Journey,' a narrative pattern identified by Joseph Campbell. Using this standard narrative pattern, Orbital is capable of immersing the player quickly and completely for the entirety of play time.
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    Our Third Ear: A Multi-Sensory Experience of Sound
    Mills, David Robert (Virginia Tech, 2016-07-06)
    Our Third Ear aims to create a multi-sensory experience by fusing sight, touch, and sound. By creating a means of physically feeling music, listeners can connect with songs, bands, and individual musicians on a profoundly personal level. The potential for unintended applications like learning to play an instrument, broadening the understanding of music for people with hearing impairments, or providing a means of therapy are also exciting prospects. The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the process involved in creating a multi-sensory experience of music from concept to prototype. The culmination of interdisciplinary research and a broad range of creative technologies resulting in a working system. The multi-sensory experience consists of primarily tactile, but also visual responses triggered by music and executed in conjunction with aural music. Tactile investigation involved varied tactile sensations such as vibration, temperature, pressure, proprioception, and touch. Further research questioned the practicality, feasibility, and psychological impacts of using such sensations as well as where on the body such sensations would optimally be received. Visual research involved the visual representation of notes, chords, and sounds, as well as, how music could directly affect visuals in a real time environment. Additional research explored active interaction and passive interaction of visual cues using human computer interfaces.