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CumInCAD is a Cumulative Index about publications in Computer Aided Architectural Design
supported by the sibling associations ACADIA, CAADRIA, eCAADe, SIGraDi, ASCAAD and CAAD futures

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_id	d6d8
authors	Flemming, Ulrich and Woodbury, Robert
year	1995
title	Software Environment to Support Early Phases in Building Design (SEED): Overview
source	Journal of Architectural Engineering -- December 1995 -- Volume 1, Issue 4, pp. 147-152
summary	This paper describes the overall goals of SEED, the approach taken by its developers to achieve these goals, and the subprojects that comprise the entire project. SEED aims at providing computational support forthe early design phase in all aspects that can benefit from such support. It addresses specifically architectural programming, schematic layout design, and the generation of a fully three-dimensional configuration ofphysical building components like structure and enclosure. These tasks are handled by three individual modules, SEED-Pro, SEED-Layout, and SEED-Config. A standards processor is under development tosupport standards and code checking in any module, as is an object database to store and retrieve different design versions, alternatives, and past designs that can be reused and adapted in different contexts(case-based design). Usability issues, especially the interfaces to the modules, receive special attention. Subsequent papers elaborate on these efforts in greater detail. The present paper provides an overview of theentire project and introduces shared concepts presumed known in subsequent papers.
series	journal paper
email
last changed	2003/05/15 21:45

_id	2068
authors	Frazer, John
year	1995
title	AN EVOLUTIONARY ARCHITECTURE
source	London: Architectural Association
summary	In "An Evolutionary Architecture", John Frazer presents an overview of his work for the past 30 years. Attempting to develop a theoretical basis for architecture using analogies with nature's processes of evolution and morphogenesis. Frazer's vision of the future of architecture is to construct organic buildings. Thermodynamically open systems which are more environmentally aware and sustainable physically, sociologically and economically. The range of topics which Frazer discusses is a good illustration of the breadth and depth of the evolutionary design problem. Environmental Modelling One of the first topics dealt with is the importance of environmental modelling within the design process. Frazer shows how environmental modelling is often misused or misinterpreted by architects with particular reference to solar modelling. From the discussion given it would seem that simplifications of the environmental models is the prime culprit resulting in misinterpretation and misuse. The simplifications are understandable given the amount of information needed for accurate modelling. By simplifying the model of the environmental conditions the architect is able to make informed judgments within reasonable amounts of time and effort. Unfortunately the simplications result in errors which compound and cause the resulting structures to fall short of their anticipated performance. Frazer obviously believes that the computer can be a great aid in the harnessing of environmental modelling data, providing that the same simplifying assumptions are not made and that better models and interfaces are possible. Physical Modelling Physical modelling has played an important role in Frazer's research. Leading to the construction of several novel machine readable interactive models, ranging from lego-like building blocks to beermat cellular automata and wall partitioning systems. Ultimately this line of research has led to the Universal Constructor and the Universal Interactor. The Universal Constructor The Universal Constructor features on the cover of the book. It consists of a base plug-board, called the "landscape", on top of which "smart" blocks, or cells, can be stacked vertically. The cells are individually identified and can communicate with neighbours above and below. Cells communicate with users through a bank of LEDs displaying the current state of the cell. The whole structure is machine readable and so can be interpreted by a computer. The computer can interpret the states of the cells as either colour or geometrical transformations allowing a wide range of possible interpretations. The user interacts with the computer display through direct manipulation of the cells. The computer can communicate and even direct the actions of the user through feedback with the cells to display various states. The direct manipulation of the cells encourages experimentation by the user and demonstrates basic concepts of the system. The Universal Interactor The Universal Interactor is a whole series of experimental projects investigating novel input and output devices. All of the devices speak a common binary language and so can communicate through a mediating central hub. The result is that input, from say a body-suit, can be used to drive the out of a sound system or vice versa. The Universal Interactor opens up many possibilities for expression when using a CAD system that may at first seem very strange.However, some of these feedback systems may prove superior in the hands of skilled technicians than more standard devices. Imagine how a musician might be able to devise structures by playing melodies which express the character. Of course the interpretation of input in this form poses a difficult problem which will take a great deal of research to achieve. The Universal Interactor has been used to provide environmental feedback to affect the development of evolving genetic codes. The feedback given by the Universal Interactor has been used to guide selection of individuals from a population. Adaptive Computing Frazer completes his introduction to the range of tools used in his research by giving a brief tour of adaptive computing techniques. Covering topics including cellular automata, genetic algorithms, classifier systems and artificial evolution. Cellular Automata As previously mentioned Frazer has done some work using cellular automata in both physical and simulated environments. Frazer discusses how surprisingly complex behaviour can result from the simple local rules executed by cellular automata. Cellular automata are also capable of computation, in fact able to perform any computation possible by a finite state machine. Note that this does not mean that cellular automata are capable of any general computation as this would require the construction of a Turing machine which is beyond the capabilities of a finite state machine. Genetic Algorithms Genetic algorithms were first presented by Holland and since have become a important tool for many researchers in various areas.Originally developed for problem-solving and optimization problems with clearly stated criteria and goals. Frazer fails to mention one of the most important differences between genetic algorithms and other adaptive problem-solving techniques, ie. neural networks. Genetic algorithms have the advantage that criteria can be clearly stated and controlled within the fitness function. The learning by example which neural networks rely upon does not afford this level of control over what is to be learned. Classifier Systems Holland went on to develop genetic algorithms into classifier systems. Classifier systems are more focussed upon the problem of learning appropriate responses to stimuli, than searching for solutions to problems. Classifier systems receive information from the environment and respond according to rules, or classifiers. Successful classifiers are rewarded, creating a reinforcement learning environment. Obviously, the mapping between classifier systems and the cybernetic view of organisms sensing, processing and responding to environmental stimuli is strong. It would seem that a central process similar to a classifier system would be appropriate at the core of an organic building. Learning appropriate responses to environmental conditions over time. Artificial Evolution Artificial evolution traces it's roots back to the Biomorph program which was described by Dawkins in his book "The Blind Watchmaker". Essentially, artificial evolution requires that a user supplements the standard fitness function in genetic algorithms to guide evolution. The user may provide selection pressures which are unquantifiable in a stated problem and thus provide a means for dealing ill-defined criteria. Frazer notes that solving problems with ill-defined criteria using artificial evolution seriously limits the scope of problems that can be tackled. The reliance upon user interaction in artificial evolution reduces the practical size of populations and the duration of evolutionary runs. Coding Schemes Frazer goes on to discuss the encoding of architectural designs and their subsequent evolution. Introducing two major systems, the Reptile system and the Universal State Space Modeller. Blueprint vs. Recipe Frazer points out the inadequacies of using standard "blueprint" design techniques in developing organic structures. Using a "recipe" to describe the process of constructing a building is presented as an alternative. Recipes for construction are discussed with reference to the analogous process description given by DNA to construct an organism. The Reptile System The Reptile System is an ingenious construction set capable of producing a wide range of structures using just two simple components. Frazer saw the advantages of this system for rule-based and evolutionary systems in the compactness of structure descriptions. Compactness was essential for the early computational work when computer memory and storage space was scarce. However, compact representations such as those described form very rugged fitness landscapes which are not well suited to evolutionary search techniques. Structures are created from an initial "seed" or minimal construction, for example a compact spherical structure. The seed is then manipulated using a series of processes or transformations, for example stretching, shearing or bending. The structure would grow according to the transformations applied to it. Obviously, the transformations could be a predetermined sequence of actions which would always yield the same final structure given the same initial seed. Alternatively, the series of transformations applied could be environmentally sensitive resulting in forms which were also sensitive to their location. The idea of taking a geometrical form as a seed and transforming it using a series of processes to create complex structures is similar in many ways to the early work of Latham creating large morphological charts. Latham went on to develop his ideas into the "Mutator" system which he used to create organic artworks. Generalising the Reptile System Frazer has proposed a generalised version of the Reptile System to tackle more realistic building problems. Generating the seed or minimal configuration from design requirements automatically. From this starting point (or set of starting points) solutions could be evolved using artificial evolution. Quantifiable and specific aspects of the design brief define the formal criteria which are used as a standard fitness function. Non-quantifiable criteria, including aesthetic judgments, are evaluated by the user. The proposed system would be able to learn successful strategies for satisfying both formal and user criteria. In doing so the system would become a personalised tool of the designer. A personal assistant which would be able to anticipate aesthetic judgements and other criteria by employing previously successful strategies. Ultimately, this is a similar concept to Negroponte's "Architecture Machine" which he proposed would be computer system so personalised so as to be almost unusable by other people. The Universal State Space Modeller The Universal State Space Modeller is the basis of Frazer's current work. It is a system which can be used to model any structure, hence the universal claim in it's title. The datastructure underlying the modeller is a state space of scaleless logical points, called motes. Motes are arranged in a close-packing sphere arrangement, which makes each one equidistant from it's twelve neighbours. Any point can be broken down into a self-similar tetrahedral structure of logical points. Giving the state space a fractal nature which allows modelling at many different levels at once. Each mote can be thought of as analogous to a cell in a biological organism. Every mote carries a copy of the architectural genetic code in the same way that each cell within a organism carries a copy of it's DNA. The genetic code of a mote is stored as a sequence of binary "morons" which are grouped together into spatial configurations which are interpreted as the state of the mote. The developmental process begins with a seed. The seed develops through cellular duplication according to the rules of the genetic code. In the beginning the seed develops mainly in response to the internal genetic code, but as the development progresses the environment plays a greater role. Cells communicate by passing messages to their immediate twelve neighbours. However, it can send messages directed at remote cells, without knowledge of it's spatial relationship. During the development cells take on specialised functions, including environmental sensors or producers of raw materials. The resulting system is process driven, without presupposing the existence of a construction set to use. The datastructure can be interpreted in many ways to derive various phenotypes. The resulting structure is a by-product of the cellular activity during development and in response to the environment. As such the resulting structures have much in common with living organisms which are also the emergent result or by-product of local cellular activity. Primordial Architectural Soups To conclude, Frazer presents some of the most recent work done, evolving fundamental structures using limited raw materials, an initial seed and massive feedback. Frazer proposes to go further and do away with the need for initial seed and start with a primordial soup of basic architectural concepts. The research is attempting to evolve the starting conditions and evolutionary processes without any preconditions. Is there enough time to evolve a complex system from the basic building blocks which Frazer proposes? The computational complexity of the task being embarked upon is not discussed. There is an implicit assumption that the "superb tactics" of natural selection are enough to cut through the complexity of the task. However, Kauffman has shown how self-organisation plays a major role in the early development of replicating systems which we may call alive. Natural selection requires a solid basis upon which it can act. Is the primordial soup which Frazer proposes of the correct constitution to support self-organisation? Kauffman suggests that one of the most important attributes of a primordial soup to be capable of self-organisation is the need for a complex network of catalysts and the controlling mechanisms to stop the reactions from going supracritical. Can such a network be provided of primitive architectural concepts? What does it mean to have a catalyst in this domain? Conclusion Frazer shows some interesting work both in the areas of evolutionary design and self-organising systems. It is obvious from his work that he sympathizes with the opinions put forward by Kauffman that the order found in living organisms comes from both external evolutionary pressure and internal self-organisation. His final remarks underly this by paraphrasing the words of Kauffman, that life is always to found on the edge of chaos. By the "edge of chaos" Kauffman is referring to the area within the ordered regime of a system close to the "phase transition" to chaotic behaviour. Unfortunately, Frazer does not demonstrate that the systems he has presented have the necessary qualities to derive useful order at the edge of chaos. He does not demonstrate, as Kauffman does repeatedly, that there exists a "phase transition" between ordered and chaotic regimes of his systems. He also does not make any studies of the relationship of useful forms generated by his work to phase transition regions of his systems should they exist. If we are to find an organic architecture, in more than name alone, it is surely to reside close to the phase transition of the construction system of which is it built. Only there, if we are to believe Kauffman, are we to find useful order together with environmentally sensitive and thermodynamically open systems which can approach the utility of living organisms.
series	other
type	normal paper
last changed	2004/05/22 14:12

_id	cbe2
authors	Fenves, S., Rivard, H., Gomez, N. and Chiou S.
year	1995
title	Conceptual Structural Design in SEED
source	Journal of Architectural Engineering -- December 1995 -- Volume 1, Issue 4, pp. 179-186
summary	Although there are many computer-based tools for analyzing structures whose geometry, topology, and member properties have already been determined, there are very few general-purpose tools to assiststructural designers in synthesizing structural configurations to be subsequently sized, analyzed, and detailed. The comceptual-structural-design submodule of the Software Environment to Support the EarlyPhases in Building Design (SEED-Config) is intended to fill this void. The process starts with a geometric model of the building's massing, a set of functional requirements to be satisfied, and a toolkit oftechnologies capable of generating potential structural system and subsystem alternatives. Structural alternatives can be rapidly generated under designer control to the level of detail desired and evaluated against arange of criteria. Provisions are made to store design cases as well as to retrieve and adapt these to meet new requirements.
series	journal paper
last changed	2003/05/15 21:45

_id	79fd
authors	Jabi, Wassim and Hall, Theodore
year	1995
title	The Role of Computers in Synchronous Collaborative Design
source	Proceedings of the 14th International Congress on Cybernetics. Namur, Belgium: International Association for Cybernetics, 1995, pp. 71-76
summary	In this paper we discuss the role of computers in supporting real-time synchronous design among geographically dispersed team members using the global network of computers known as the Internet. To enable efficient and functional synchronous design activity, we advocate a new generation of design-oriented software that combines collaboration technologies with a meaningful and parsimonious representation scheme. We are particularly interested in supporting the early design phases, wherein many of the most important decisions are made and collaboration is most important. These activities are crucial to the evolution and quality of the final design, and they are receptive to and can benefit from computer support. Furthermore, these are precisely the areas where current CAD systems are weakest. As a general theoretical direction, our emphasis is not on integrated databases, but rather on shared protocols of interaction that are independent of implementation and storage schemes. Our first experimental phase involved the simultaneous development and testing of prototypes for a Synchronous Collaborative Design Environment (SYCODE) on heterogeneous computer systems at two geographically dispersed sites. The applications were developed independently, based on a verbal description of protocols, with minimal sharing of actual source code. Though their user interfaces and implementation details are different, these prototypes allow multiple users to share a virtual design space - both within and between the remote sites - in which to create and manipulate architectural elements.
keywords	Computer Supported Collaborative Design, Synchronous Design, Collaboration, Computers, CAD, Internet
series	other
email
last changed	2002/03/05 19:53

_id	c642
authors	Andersen, T. and Carlsen, N.V.
year	1995
title	Software design of maintainable knowledge-based systems for building design
source	Automation in Construction 4 (2) (1995) pp. 101-110
summary	Identifying and establishing a basic structure for knowledge representation is one of the keys to successful design of knowledge-based computer systems. In Building Design and Construction, this initial knowledge structure can be achieved by utilizing a query driven approach to software engineering. As (user) queries reflect the user's demand for in/output, it is natural to link the overall user dialogue with key elements in the knowledge base direct connections between user screen and objects in the knowledge base support prototyping and testing the application during development. However, the price for pursuing this approach in its pure form can be high, as needs for later maintenance and augmentation of the system can be very hard to fulfill. To overcome these problems, a strict user interlace, software separation strategy must be. introduced at early stages of software design. and implemented as a global control module as independent of the knowledge processing as possible.
keywords	Knowledge-based; Query driven: Software design; User interlace: Separation; Maintainable systems
series	journal paper
more	http://www.elsevier.com/locate/autcon
last changed	2003/06/02 09:35

_id	8955
authors	Donath, Dirk and Regenbrecht, Holger
year	1995
title	VRAD (Virtual Reality Aided Design) in the Early Phases of the Architectural Design Process
source	Sixth International Conference on Computer-Aided Architectural Design Futures [ISBN 9971-62-423-0] Singapore, 24-26 September 1995, pp. 313-322
summary	With this paper we are introducing a system which supports the early phases of the architectural design process. The system consists of two main components: the software solution ìvoxDesign" and the physical environment "platform". Our aims are: to formulate, develop, and evaluate an architectural design system through the use of VR (virtual reality)-space. The exploration and development of design intentions is supplemented by a new method of three dimensional sketching.
keywords	Virtual Reality, Architectural Design, Human Computer Interfaces, Design Techniques
series	CAAD Futures
email
last changed	2003/05/16 20:58

_id	c6b2
authors	Fenves, S.J., Garrett, J.H., Kiliccote, H., Law, K.H. and Reed, K.A.
year	1995
title	Computer representations of design standards and building codes: a U.S. perspective
source	The Int. Journal of Construction IT3(1), pp.13-34
summary	Standards representation and processing in the United States has had a long and interesting history of development. The work in the past has focused primarily on representing a standard, evaluating the intrinsic properties of that represented standard, and evaluating designs for conformance to that standard. To date, for a variety of reasons, standards writing organizations and computer-aided design software vendors have not adopted much of the results of this research. The failure of the approach so far in the U.S. can be traced to two distinct areas. One major cluster of causes is methodological: the initial concepts were not backed up by usable, persistent computer tools; and the initial application and model were not representative. The second cluster of causes of failure is professional, and has a lot to do with the dynamics of interaction of individuals and organizations. Future research must address the inadequacies of the current representations and create models that are able to represent all, or almost all, of the different types of provisions in any given standard; investigate and deliver a much richer set of processing functionality's, such as more support for use of design standards in earlier phases of design; support the treatment of multiple, heterogeneous standards available from distributed sources; and determine what type of support is needed to go from the textual versions of design standards to the formal models that can support sophisticated computation.
series	journal paper
last changed	2003/05/15 21:45

_id	09b4
authors	Ismail, Ashraf and McCartney, Kevin
year	1993
title	A Tool for Conceptual Design Evaluation Based on Compliance with Site-Development Briefs and Related Planning Regulations
doi	https://doi.org/10.52842/conf.ecaade.1993.x.c6i
source	[eCAADe Conference Proceedings] Eindhoven (The Netherlands) 11-13 November 1993
summary	The need has been established for a computer based decision support tool to use during the conceptual stages of architectural design. The main functions are to check design compliance with the requirements of local planning authorities; characteristics evaluated will include building size, height, plot ratios, circulation and accessibility, and the preservation of natural features on site. This tool is being developed to operate under AutoCAD environment; the construction industry standard computer aided design software, following standard layering convention, integrated command lines, and pull-down menus. In addition to the common graphical output; i.c. plans, elevations and three dimensional models, it will generate textual analysis in report format to use as part of the Environmental Impact Analysis of proposed development. The tool's functions will be based upon the result of two types of field studies. First, interviews and questionnaires will be carried out with architects and planners of both private and public sectors. These will cover issues related to the performance of Computer Aided Architectural Design applications with regard to the evaluation of design schematics, and decision-making for the production of data for environmental statements. Second, field observation and participation will be carried out to observe decision-makers behaviour during assessment of building design proposals. A prototype is currently under development and will be tested against the expectations of the tool designer, Ashraf Ismail, and a team of professionals to be involved in the field studies. A critical analysis of the prototype design methodology and the study findings will be documented in the research thesis to be presented in June 1995.
series	eCAADe
last changed	2022/06/07 07:50

_id	2e3b
authors	Kvan, Thomas and Kvan, Erik
year	1997
title	Is Design Really Social
source	Creative Collaboration in Virtual Communities 1997, ed. A. Cicognani. VC'97. Sydney: Key Centre of Design Computing, Department of Architectural and Design Science, University of Sydney, 8 p.
summary	There are many who will readily agree with Mitchell’s assertion that “the most interesting new directions (for computer-aided design) are suggested by the growing convergence of computation and telecommunication. This allows us to treat designing not just as a technical process... but also as a social process.” [Mitchell 1995]. The assumption is that design was a social process until users of computer-aided design systems were distracted into treating it as a merely technical process. Most readers will assume that this convergence must and will lead to increased communication between design participants; that better social interaction leads to be better design. The unspoken assumption appears to be that putting the participants into an environment with maximal communication channels will result in design collaboration. The tools provided; therefore; must permit the best communication and the best social interaction. We think it essential to examine the foundations and assumptions on which software and environments are designed to support collaborative design communication. Of particular interest to us in this paper is the assumption about the “social” nature of design. Early research in computer-assisted design collaborations has jumped immediately into conclusions about communicative models which lead to high-bandwidth video connections as the preferred channel of collaboration. The unstated assumption is that computer-supported design environments are not adequate until they replicate in full the sensation of being physically present in the same space as the other participants (you are not there until you are really there). It is assumed that the real social process of design must include all the signals used to establish and facilitate face-to-face communication; including gestures; body language and all outputs of drawing (e.g. Tang [1991]). In our specification of systems for virtual design communities; are we about to fall into the same traps as drafting systems did?
keywords	CSCW; Virtual Community; Architectural Design; Computer-Aided Design
series	other
email
last changed	2002/11/15 18:29

_id	ddss9464
id	ddss9464
authors	McCartney, Kevin and Ismail, Ashraf Lotfy R. M.
year	1994
title	A Tool for Conceptual Design Evaluation Based on Compliance with Supplementary Planning Guidance and Local Planning Policies
source	Second Design and Decision Support Systems in Architecture & Urban Planning (Vaals, the Netherlands), August 15-19, 1994
summary	The need has been established for a computer based decision support tool to use during the conceptual stages of architectural design. The main functions are being designed in order to check design compliance with the requirements of local planning authorities; with regards to building size, height, plot ratios, circulation and accessibility, and the preservation of natural features on site. The measures to determine proper evaluation will be based upon site-development briefs, and design guides produced by the local planning authorities. This tool is being developed to operate under AutoCAD environment; the construction industry standard computer aided design software, following standard layering convention, integrated command lines, and pull-down menus. It will also provide many functions for editing two and three dimensional drawings specifically for the environmental analysis tasks. In addition to the common graphical output of Aut0CAD; i.e. plans, elevations and three dimensional models, the tool will generate textual analysis of the design in report format to use as part of the Environmental Impact Statement of proposed development. The speculative tool's functions will be based upon the result of two types of field studies. First, interviews and questionnaires will be carried out tailor-made for architects and planners of both private and public sectors. These will cover issues related to the performance of Computer Aided Architectural Design applications with regard to the evaluation of design schematics, and decision-making for the production of materials for environmental statements. Second, field observation will be carried out to observe the concerned professionals as decision-makers while assessing building design proposals. A prototype will be designed and then tested against the expectations of the tool designer, then the tool performance will be evaluated by a team of professionals participated in the field studies. A critical analysis of the prototype design methodology and the concluding study findings will be documented as part of a postgraduate research thesis to be completed in June 1995.
series	DDSS
last changed	2003/08/07 16:36

_id	8378
authors	Arlati, Ezio
year	1995
title	Patriarch: A Hypermedia Environment for the Support of Architectural Design
doi	https://doi.org/10.52842/conf.ecaade.1995.187
source	Multimedia and Architectural Disciplines [Proceedings of the 13th European Conference on Education in Computer Aided Architectural Design in Europe / ISBN 0-9523687-1-4] Palermo (Italy) 16-18 November 1995, pp. 187-198
summary	This paper reports on current research in the field of architectural design and knowledge- based systems, through the conception and implementation of two software tools operating as a part of an integrated hypermedia environment denominated PatriArch. Main concern of this set of tools operating in PatriArch is the support of design since the very beginning, in that phase of not yet correctly explored or interpretated constraints and of scarcely specified goals, in which an initial solution model - provisionally composed of fragments of supposed fitting ideas - for the design theme has to take place. The creative activity of the designer is assumed as an 'intentional planning activity' that represents the acquired level of knowledge of the network of connections defining the nature, function, shape in the space etc. of the increasingly integrated solution-model: the final design will be an evolution of this - and other competitive and concurrent - models. PatriArch is meant to be the environment containing and allowing the representation of this evolution through its ability of linking the fragments of designers' knowledge, supported by an integrated relational data base: Sysinfo. These works were conceived inside an educational software development program for architecture students.
series	eCAADe
more	http://dpce.ing.unipa.it/Webshare/Wwwroot/ecaade95/Pag_25.htm
last changed	2022/06/07 07:54

_id	05f7
authors	Carrara, G., Confessore, G., Fioravanti, A. and Novembri, G.
year	1995
title	Multimedia and Knowledge-Based Computer-Aided Architectural Design
doi	https://doi.org/10.52842/conf.ecaade.1995.323
source	Multimedia and Architectural Disciplines [Proceedings of the 13th European Conference on Education in Computer Aided Architectural Design in Europe / ISBN 0-9523687-1-4] Palermo (Italy) 16-18 November 1995, pp. 323-330
summary	It appears by now fairly accepted to many researchers in the field of the Computer Aided Architectural Design that the way to realize support tools for these aims is by means of the realization of Knowledge Based Assistants. This kind of computer programs, based on the knowledge engineering, finds their power and efficaciousness by their knowledge base. Nowadays this kind of tools is leaving the research world and it appears evident that the common graphic interfaces and the modalities of dialogue between the architect and the computer, are inadequate to support the exchange of information that the use of these tools requires. The use of the knowledge bases furthermore, presupposes that the conceptual model of the building realized by others, must be made entirely understandable to the architect. The CAAD Laboratory has carried out a system software prototype based on Knowledge Engineering in the field of hospital buildings. In order to overcome the limit of software systems based on usual Knowledge Engineering, by improving architect-computer interaction, at CAAD Lab it is refining building model introducing into the knowledge base two complementary each other methodologies: the conceptual clustering and multimedia technics. This research will make it possible for architects navigate consciously through the domain of the knowledge base already implemented.
series	eCAADe
more	http://dpce.ing.unipa.it/Webshare/Wwwroot/ecaade95/Pag_39.htm
last changed	2022/06/07 07:55

_id	0128
authors	Engeli, M., Kurmann, D. and Schmitt, G.
year	1995
title	A New Design Studio: Intelligent Objects and Personal Agents
doi	https://doi.org/10.52842/conf.acadia.1995.155
source	Computing in Design - Enabling, Capturing and Sharing Ideas [ACADIA Conference Proceedings / ISBN 1-880250-04-7] University of Washington (Seattle, Washington / USA) October 19-22, 1995, pp. 155-170
summary	As design processes and products are constantly increasing in complexity, new tools are being developed for the designer to cope with the growing demands. In this paper we describe our research towards a design environment, within which different aspects of design can be combined, elaborated and controlled. New hardware equipment will be combined with recent developments in graphics and artificial intelligence programming to develop appropriate computer based tools and find possible new design techniques. The core of the new design studio comprises intelligent objects in a virtual reality environment that exhibit different behaviours drawn from Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Artificial Life (AL) principles, a part already realised in a tool called 'Sculptor'. The tasks of the architect will focus on preferencing and initiating good tendencies in the development of the design. A first set of software agents, assistants that support the architect in viewing, experiencing and judging the design has also been conceptualised for this virtual design environment. The goal is to create an optimised environment for the designer, where the complexity of the design task can be reduced thanks to the support made available from the machine.
keywords	Architectural Design, Design Process, Virtual Reality, Artificial Intelligence, Personal Agents
series	ACADIA
email
last changed	2022/06/07 07:55

_id	c0ef
authors	Kalay, Yehuda and Séquin, Carlo
year	1995
title	Designer-Client Collaboration in Architectural and Software Design
doi	https://doi.org/10.52842/conf.acadia.1995.383
source	Computing in Design - Enabling, Capturing and Sharing Ideas [ACADIA Conference Proceedings / ISBN 1-880250-04-7] University of Washington (Seattle, Washington / USA) October 19-22, 1995, pp. 383-403
summary	An upper-level undergraduate architectural design studio and a graduate computer science CAD course were paired to study client-designer interactions. The dual nature of these courses led to two sets of products: building designs compatible with the specifications of the clients, and prototype CAD tool to assist architects in the conceptual design phases. First, the computer scientists acted as clients to the architects, who designed a building for the computer science department. Once the computer science students had become familiar, through observation, with the architectural design process, they began developing tools for the architects' use. In that reversed-role, the architects became the clients of the computer scientists. For both parties this interaction provided an opportunity to experience the social aspects of the design process, in particular, the designer-client relationships, which most often are absent in traditional educational settings. This paper describes the objectives of this integrated pair of courses, the methods and processes used, and some of the results.
keywords	Design, Design Process, Design Studio, Design Education, Architectural Design, CAD
series	ACADIA
email
last changed	2022/06/07 07:52

_id	ab9c
authors	Kvan, Thomas and Kvan, Erik
year	1999
title	Is Design Really Social
source	International Journal of Virtual Reality, 4:1
summary	There are many who will readily agree with Mitchell's assertion that "the most interesting new directions (for computer-aided design) are suggested by the growing convergence of computation and telecommunication. This allows us to treat designing not just as a technical process... but also as a social process." [Mitchell 1995]. The assumption is that design was a social process until users of computer-aided design systems were distracted into treating it as a merely technical process. Most readers will assume that this convergence must and will lead to increased communication between design participants, that better social interaction leads to be better design. The unspoken assumption appears to be that putting the participants into an environment with maximal communication channels will result in design collaboration. The tools provided, therefore, must permit the best communication and the best social interaction. We see a danger here, a pattern being repeated which may lead us into less than useful activities. As with several (popular) architectural design or modelling systems already available, however, computer system implementations all too often are poor imitations manual systems. For example, few in the field will argue with the statement that the storage of data in layers in a computer-aided drafting system is an dispensable approach. Layers derive from manual overlay drafting technology [Stitt 1984] which was regarded as an advanced (manual) production concept at the time many software engineers were specifying CAD software designs. Early implementations of CAD systems (such as RUCAPS, GDS, Computervision) avoided such data organisation, the software engineers recognising that object-based structures are more flexible, permitting greater control of data editing and display. Layer-based systems, however, are easier to implement in software, more familiar to the user and hence easier to explain, initially easier to use but more limiting for an experienced and thoughtful user, leading in the end to a lesser quality in resultant drawings and significant problems in output control (see Richens [1990], pp. 31-40 for a detailed analysis of such features and constraints). Here then we see the design for architectural software faithfully but inappropriately following manual methods. So too is there a danger of assuming that the best social interaction is that done face-to-face, therefore all collaborative design communications environments must mimic face-to-face.
series	journal paper
email
last changed	2003/05/15 10:29

_id	c449
authors	Millard, Lesley
year	1995
title	A Strategic Approach to Climate Responsive Design Using Computer Based Learning
doi	https://doi.org/10.52842/conf.ecaade.1995.177
source	Multimedia and Architectural Disciplines [Proceedings of the 13th European Conference on Education in Computer Aided Architectural Design in Europe / ISBN 0-9523687-1-4] Palermo (Italy) 16-18 November 1995, pp. 177-182
summary	Existing computer software to support the teaching of environmental issues to architecture students is mainly based on energy calculation methods or packages of information split into subject areas. Neither approach seems to adequately support the early stages of the design process. The paper explores the construction of a model for a computer based learning system to teach the development of environmental strategies. Different strands of educational theory were used to develop teaching principles based around consideration of the subjective quality of knowledge influenced by ideas and theories from different sources, the importance of learning a "language" consisting of methods and theories of a subject and their application in context and the suggestion that "deep" learning requires conceptual changes. A suitable framework for the development of environmental strategies is suggested and its implementation using multi-media software as a method of integrating different types of information and learning materials is proposed. The paper concludes that the process of analysis is a key part of the system and should be made the focus of the structure and contents.
series	eCAADe
more	http://dpce.ing.unipa.it/Webshare/Wwwroot/ecaade95/Pag_23.htm
last changed	2022/06/07 07:58

_id	fc79
authors	Ostwald, J.
year	1995
title	Supporting Collaborative Design with Representations for Mutual Understanding
source	ACM CHI
summary	This paper describes a research effort to investigate cross-cultural collaboration in software development. The work is based on a model of collaborative design that calls for stakeholders (including developers and end-users) to iteratively construct an understanding of design problems and potential solutions through the construction and refinement of design representations. The Evolving Artifact (EVA) software design environment has been implemented to support this process. EVA has been used in a development project in a regional telephone company. A case study of this project will be analyzed to yield guidelines and design principles for constructing representations for mutual understanding.
series	other
last changed	2003/04/23 15:50

_id	6b82
authors	Week, David
year	1995
title	The Database Revisited: Beyond the Container Metaphor
doi	https://doi.org/10.52842/conf.acadia.1995.053
source	Computing in Design - Enabling, Capturing and Sharing Ideas [ACADIA Conference Proceedings / ISBN 1-880250-04-7] University of Washington (Seattle, Washington / USA) October 19-22, 1995, pp. 53-70
summary	The growth of international networks, and of international trade in general, has increased the opportunities for architects to work together over distance. In our practice at Pacific Architecture, we’ve been using first modems, and now the Internet, to connect co-workers at sites in Australia, Oregon, Scotland, and Papua New Guinea. Design collaboration has been primarily through the e-mail exchange of text and drawings. We’ve also assessed other CMC tools. Products like Timbuktu and video-conferencing software allow for real-time collaboration, based on the metaphor of two (or more) people together at a table, able to see and hear each other, and to work together on the same document. Groupware make intragroup communication the basis for building a workgroup’s knowledgebase. On recent projects, we’ve begun using database software as the basis for collaborative design communication. We’ve taken as a model for data structure Christopher Alexander’s ‘pattern language’ schema. Conversations about the design take the form of a collaborative construction of the language. Inputs into the database are constrained by the ‘pattern’ format. The CAD drawings run in parallel, as an ‘expression’ or ‘instance’ of the language. So far, CAD and database do not have an integrated interface. This paper describes our experience in these projects. It also outlines a set of design criteria for an integrated CAD/database environment economically and incrementally achievable within the constraints of currently available software. Formulating such criteria requires the reconceptualisation of notions of ‘database’. This paper looks at these notions through philosophical and linguistic work on metaphor. In conclusion, the paper analyses the way in which we can use a reframed notion of database to create a useful collaborative communication environment, centred on the architectural drawing.
series	ACADIA
last changed	2022/06/07 07:58

_id	c675
authors	Kim, Inham
year	1995
title	Design Tools Integration in an Integrated Design Environment
doi	https://doi.org/10.52842/conf.acadia.1995.075
source	Computing in Design - Enabling, Capturing and Sharing Ideas [ACADIA Conference Proceedings / ISBN 1-880250-04-7] University of Washington (Seattle, Washington / USA) October 19-22, 1995, pp. 75-95
summary	The design problem has a multi-disciplinary nature and the design itself evolves as solutions are attempted by the designer. To support inter-disciplinary communication of design concepts and decisions, the integration of relevant CAAD tools is essential. Based upon a large set of design criteria and all corresponding knowledge, with the help of computer aided design tools, the result could be highly effective and novel. The integration of CAAD tools should be performed on the basis of generating better solutions by enabling designers to manipulate and appraise various solutions quickly and with a minimum of effort. The proposed system provides the foundations for a seamless and continuous working environment for architects and building engineers through a data modelling module, an integrated data management framework and various design tools. In the environment, stand-alone design tools can be plugged-in in order to access information stored in central databases. The suggested data modelling module helps integrated CAAD systems represent and exchange domain dependent design information at a semantic level, such as exchanging components and features of a building rather than graphical primitives. The suggested data management framework supports the straight-forward mechanisms for controlling the data representation through the inter-connected modules and design tools.
series	ACADIA
last changed	2022/06/07 07:52

_id	c7e9
authors	Maver, T.W.
year	2002
title	Predicting the Past, Remembering the Future
source	SIGraDi 2002 - [Proceedings of the 6th Iberoamerican Congress of Digital Graphics] Caracas (Venezuela) 27-29 november 2002, pp. 2-3
summary	Charlas Magistrales 2There never has been such an exciting moment in time in the extraordinary 30 year history of our subject area, as NOW,when the philosophical theoretical and practical issues of virtuality are taking centre stage.The PastThere have, of course, been other defining moments during these exciting 30 years:• the first algorithms for generating building layouts (circa 1965).• the first use of Computer graphics for building appraisal (circa 1966).• the first integrated package for building performance appraisal (circa 1972).• the first computer generated perspective drawings (circa 1973).• the first robust drafting systems (circa 1975).• the first dynamic energy models (circa 1982).• the first photorealistic colour imaging (circa 1986).• the first animations (circa 1988)• the first multimedia systems (circa 1995), and• the first convincing demonstrations of virtual reality (circa 1996).Whereas the CAAD community has been hugely inventive in the development of ICT applications to building design, it hasbeen woefully remiss in its attempts to evaluate the contribution of those developments to the quality of the built environmentor to the efficiency of the design process. In the absence of any real evidence, one can only conjecture regarding the realbenefits which fall, it is suggested, under the following headings:• Verisimilitude: The extraordinary quality of still and animated images of the formal qualities of the interiors and exteriorsof individual buildings and of whole neighborhoods must surely give great comfort to practitioners and their clients thatwhat is intended, formally, is what will be delivered, i.e. WYSIWYG - what you see is what you get.• Sustainability: The power of «first-principle» models of the dynamic energetic behaviour of buildings in response tochanging diurnal and seasonal conditions has the potential to save millions of dollars and dramatically to reduce thedamaging environmental pollution created by badly designed and managed buildings.• Productivity: CAD is now a multi-billion dollar business which offers design decision support systems which operate,effectively, across continents, time-zones, professions and companies.• Communication: Multi-media technology - cheap to deliver but high in value - is changing the way in which we canexplain and understand the past and, envisage and anticipate the future; virtual past and virtual future!MacromyopiaThe late John Lansdown offered the view, in his wonderfully prophetic way, that ...”the future will be just like the past, onlymore so...”So what can we expect the extraordinary trajectory of our subject area to be?To have any chance of being accurate we have to have an understanding of the phenomenon of macromyopia: thephenomenon exhibitted by society of greatly exaggerating the immediate short-term impact of new technologies (particularlythe information technologies) but, more importantly, seriously underestimating their sustained long-term impacts - socially,economically and intellectually . Examples of flawed predictions regarding the the future application of information technologiesinclude:• The British Government in 1880 declined to support the idea of a national telephonic system, backed by the argumentthat there were sufficient small boys in the countryside to run with messages.• Alexander Bell was modest enough to say that: «I am not boasting or exaggerating but I believe, one day, there will bea telephone in every American city».• Tom Watson, in 1943 said: «I think there is a world market for about 5 computers».• In 1977, Ken Olssop of Digital said: «There is no reason for any individuals to have a computer in their home».The FutureJust as the ascent of woman/man-kind can be attributed to her/his capacity to discover amplifiers of the modest humancapability, so we shall discover how best to exploit our most important amplifier - that of the intellect. The more we know themore we can figure; the more we can figure the more we understand; the more we understand the more we can appraise;the more we can appraise the more we can decide; the more we can decide the more we can act; the more we can act themore we can shape; and the more we can shape, the better the chance that we can leave for future generations a trulysustainable built environment which is fit-for-purpose, cost-beneficial, environmentally friendly and culturally significactCentral to this aspiration will be our understanding of the relationship between real and virtual worlds and how to moveeffortlessly between them. We need to be able to design, from within the virtual world, environments which may be real ormay remain virtual or, perhaps, be part real and part virtual.What is certain is that the next 30 years will be every bit as exciting and challenging as the first 30 years.
series	SIGRADI
email
last changed	2016/03/10 09:55

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