Smoke Propagation Visualization with Adaptive Clipping
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current visualization tools for smoke and fire propagation in 3D building models often suffer from cluttering and occlusion, making it difficult to identify smoke propagation paths, especially when smoke moves between floors, and fail to clearly indicate vertical propagation directions.
Innovation Solution
The system employs slide bars to adjust visualization strength, adaptive clipping planes to eliminate unnecessary building elements, and automatic perspective adjustments to reduce occlusion, along with visual aids like arrows and icons to highlight vertical propagation, allowing for clear visualization of smoke propagation paths and density in multiple floors.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If smoke propagation is visualized in 3D building models with multiple floors, then users can obtain paths of smoke and fire, but the visualization causes great cluttering and occlusion when complex building elements are visualized simultaneously
Solution Approach 1:
The building model is divided into multiple floor levels, and the visualization system segments the display by showing only the current floor in solid mode while making other floors transparent. This segmentation reduces cluttering and occlusion by isolating the view to relevant spatial zones, allowing users to trace smoke propagation paths without interference from building elements on other floors.
Solution Approach 2:
The system introduces a vertical dimension to the visualization by implementing floor-level transparency control and camera positioning along the vertical axis. When smoke propagates vertically between floors, the system adjusts the transparency of intermediate floors and positions the camera to provide optimal viewing angles, transforming the 3D visualization into a multi-layered display that reduces occlusion while maintaining spatial context.
2Speed
If smoke propagates from a certain floor to its neighbor floor, then users can see smoke movement, but it causes great trouble in identifying the smoke propagation path in each floor and prevents indication of vertical propagation direction
Solution Approach 1:
The system employs color coding to indicate vertical propagation direction and floor association. Smoke particles are colored based on their source floor, and building elements such as stairs and elevators are highlighted with distinct colors when smoke is present. This color differentiation allows users to easily identify the origin floor and track the vertical propagation path of smoke through multiple floors without confusion.
Solution Approach 2:
The system introduces intermediate visual indicators such as colored arrows, icons, and highlighted building elements that act as mediators between the smoke particles and the user. These intermediaries provide explicit directional information about vertical smoke propagation, making the path from source floor to destination floor clearly identifiable even when smoke moves rapidly through multiple levels.
3Quantity of substance
If several consecutive floors are crowded with smoke, then smoke propagation can be observed, but it causes great trouble in indicating the association between smoke and floors
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies local quality by making building elements and smoke on the current active floor fully opaque and prominently displayed, while floors above and below are rendered with decreasing transparency. This creates a focal point on the current floor where smoke-density information is most critical, while still allowing users to perceive smoke presence on adjacent floors through the transparent layers, maintaining floor association without overwhelming the display.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses color gradients and floor-specific color coding to maintain association between smoke and its source floor. Each floor is assigned a distinct color scheme, and smoke particles inherit colors from their source floor. Even when multiple floors are crowded with smoke, users can distinguish which smoke belongs to which floor through these color indicators, preventing loss of floor association information.
4Shape
If building elements are visualized in solid mode to show structure, then building clarity is maintained, but smoke propagation paths become difficult to identify due to occlusion
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements dynamic rendering mode switching where building elements automatically transition between solid and transparent modes based on smoke presence and camera position. When smoke is detected on a floor, the building elements on that floor and adjacent floors dynamically adjust their transparency to optimize the visibility of smoke propagation paths while maintaining sufficient structural context. This dynamic adaptation resolves the contradiction by making the visualization mode responsive to the actual fire scenario.
Solution Approach 2:
The building model is segmented into multiple transparency layers corresponding to different floor levels. The system can selectively apply solid rendering to specific floors while making other floors transparent, allowing users to examine smoke propagation on individual floors without occlusion from building elements on other floors. This segmented approach maintains building structure clarity where needed while maximizing smoke path visibility.
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3
Figure 4
AI summary
A method of displaying smoke propagation in a region minimizes distractions due to building structural elements so that a user can focus on the smoke flow. An associated apparatus includes a plurality of smoke detectors and a display device which respond to smoke in the building. The apparatus generates the displays indicating the path of propagation of the developing smoke between floors. The display device can be wirelessly coupled to the apparatus.