Generalized Collision Object Velocity Analysis for Simulation Setup
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Solution Overview
Problem
Artists face difficulties in setting up initial conditions for physically based simulations of complex visual effects, such as a breaking wave, due to the lack of a systematic method for adding collision objects, sources, and sinks, often relying on intuition and manual animation.
Innovation Solution
A computer-implemented method that determines regions of a generalized collision object as sources, sinks, and regular collision objects based on differences between normal components of shape and material velocities, allowing for automatic enforcement of boundary conditions in simulations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If artists manually set up initial conditions and boundary conditions for physically based simulations, then they can control the simulation to achieve desired visual cues, but the process becomes difficult and time-consuming, especially for complex effects like breaking waves
Solution Approach 1:
The system automatically determines boundary conditions by analyzing the relationship between shape velocity and material velocity, enabling the simulation to self-configure without requiring manual artist intervention for each boundary condition setting
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the approach from manually specifying boundary conditions to automatically deriving them from velocity field parameters, where the boundary condition type (source, sink, or regular collision) is determined by comparing normal components of shape and material velocities
2Ease of operation
If artists use intuition to hand-animate collision objects, sources, and sinks, then they can create organic and plausible simulations, but there is no systematic method for adding these elements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transforms the complex task of manually configuring collision objects into a systematic process where boundary condition types are automatically determined by parameter comparison (velocity differences), providing both ease of operation and systematic methodology
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the manual mechanical process of hand-animating collision objects with an automated computational system that derives boundary conditions from velocity field analysis, eliminating the need for intuitive manual adjustment
3Reliability
If physically based simulations are used to create realistic visual effects, then complex effects can be simulated that would be infeasible to animate by hand, but artists still need to specify appropriate initial and boundary conditions which is difficult in many cases
Solution Approach 1:
The simulation system automatically determines appropriate boundary conditions based on velocity field analysis, maintaining physical realism while eliminating the difficulty of manual boundary condition specification
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces velocity field analysis as an intermediary between the physical simulation and boundary condition specification, where the comparison of shape and material velocities serves as the mediator to automatically determine boundary condition types
Data Source
AI summary
The disclosure provides an approach for simulating three-dimensional (3D) virtual environments using generalized collision objects. In one aspect, the generalized collision object includes a shape specifying the boundary of the generalized collision object, a shape velocity specifying how the generalized collision object moves and evolves through space, and a material velocity specifying how the material being simulated moves at the boundary of the generalized collision object. Taking the shape, shape velocity, and material velocity as inputs, a simulation application determines source and sink boundary conditions to apply in a simulation based on a difference between components of the shape velocity and the material velocity that are normal to the boundary of the generalized collision object. The simulation application then performs the simulation of the 3D virtual environment while enforcing velocity boundary conditions using the material velocity and the determined source and sink boundary conditions.