Object oriented framework for character animation and design

Due to the character of the original source materials and the nature of batch digitization, quality control issues may be present in this document. Please report any quality issues you encounter to [email protected], referencing the URI of the item.Includes bibliographical references (leaf 16).Three-dimensional computer character animation is becoming more and more prevalent in the entertainment industry. As the demand grows, so does the need for tools that allow animators to create animations quickly. In this thesis, we present a framework for animating with the goals of minimizing the time to train new animators, the time to develop new characters, and the time to make a finished animation. We propose a system that is analogous to object oriented paradigms in software development - namely reuse and encapsulation. We then demonstrate the feasibility of the model by describing the prototype developed during the course of this research

Interactive Methods for Authoring Behaviors of Multiple Agents

Virtual environments and simulations are being used increasingly to both visualize and understand data as well as to create scenarios for training and analysis purposes. In this paper, we are interested in the use of simulation and visualization of interactive virtual agents to create realistic motions for training scenarios. We explore the creation of animated scenarios for domains with complex spatial and temporal interactions to prepare or train for real possible events. Although, we are specifically studying 2D interactions exhibited in the game of American Football, the concepts and methods adopted can be extended to various fields involving spatial and temporal interactions. We present an approach for the coach to author various spatial and temporal actions by allowing him to interactively author plans, modifications, and corrections for the players’ (agents’) behaviors

IMPACT MULTIMEDIA THROUGH VIRTUAL REALITY TECHNOLOGY ON COMMUNICATIONS

U radu se opisuje utjecaj multimedije posredovane tehnologijom virtualne realnosti na komunikaciju i komuniciranje. Tehnologije virtualne realnosti označavaju skup tehnologija koja omogućuje razgovore između ljudi koji su fizički odvojeni tj. prostorno dislocirani. Cilj takve tehnologije je omogućiti razgovor između ljudi koji se nalaze na različitim zemljopisnim mjestima na svijetu, a povezani su poslovno, obiteljski ili prijateljskim odnosima i vezama. Zapravo, pod pojmom „tehnologije virtualne realnosti“ u ovom radu se podrazumijeva skup tehnologija tehnologije za videokonferenciju, videotelefoniju i telerobotiku, koje obavljaju komunikaciju preko virtualnog utjelovljenja odnosno holograma. Tehnologije virtualne realnosti pružaju jeftin i brz način komuniciranja bez obzira na prostornu udaljenost. S komunikološkog aspekta gledano samo su telekonferencije napravile veliki pomak u smislu održavanja stalne i kvalitetne komunikacije koju je lako uspostaviti, ali je skoro u potpunosti eliminiran pristup „licem u lice“, što se može smatrati jednom od „manjkavosti“ u njihovoj primjeni.This paper describes the impact of multimedia mediated virtual reality technology to communication. Technology of virtual reality are a set of technologies that enables conversations between people who are physicaly dislocated. The goal of this technology is to enable conversation between people who are located in different geographic areas of the world and are related to business, family or friendly relations. In fact the term "technology of virtual reality" in this paper meant as a set of technologies for videoconferencing technology, videophones and telerobotics, which perform communication via a virtual incarnation or holograms. Technology of virtual reality provide an inexpensive and fast way to communicate regardless of geographical distance. With the point of communication view only teleconference made great progress in terms of maintaining the quality and continuous communication that is easy to set up, but is almost completely eliminated access "face to face", which can be considered one of the "deficiencies" in their application

Animating Athletic Motion Planning By Example

Character animation is usually reserved for highly skilled animators and computer programmers because few of the available tools allow the novice or casual user to create compelling animated content. In this paper, we explore a partial solution to this problem which lets the user coach animated characters by sketching their trajectories on the ground plane. The details of the motion are then computed with simulation. We create memory-based control functions for the high-level behaviors from examples supplied by the user and from real-world data of the behavior. The control function for the desired behavior is implemented through a lookup table using a nearest neighbor approximation algorithm. To demonstrate this approach, we present a system for defining the behaviors of defensive characters playing American football. The characters are implemented using either point-masses or dynamically simulated biped robots. We evaluate the quality of the coached behaviors by comparing the resulting trajectories to data from human players. We also assess the influence of the user's coaching examples by demonstrating that a user can construct a particular style of play