Virtual Reality in Architecture Design   Term Paper ID:34563 Click to get this paper

Essay Subject: A discussion of virtual reality and the use of cyberspace in architectural design is ...... More...

12 Pages / 2700 Words 8 sources, 17 Citations, MLA Format $48.00 Return to List of Papers

Paper Abstract: A discussion of virtual reality and the use of cyberspace in architectural design is presented in essay format. The essay provides the argument that both Hegel’s and Croce’s views on art are embodied in virtual reality design. The essay also discusses the use of virtual reality designs to help small firms compete with large firms, to provide interactive benefits that are advantageous to clients, and how these technologies remove physical barriers from architectural design. Paper Introduction: Virtual Reality in Architecture DesignIntroduction The introduction of new technology is often a complex process thatretains strong ties with the cultural context into which the technology isintroduced We live in the computer age yet the process of its unfoldingis far from permitting us the ability to understand the full potential ofits impact This is particularly true due to the rapid-paced innovative and continually changing nature of technology development With respect toarchitecture the computer as a medium for long-distance designcollaboration visualizing negative space Text of the Paper: The entire text of the paper is shown below. However, the text is somewhat scrambled. We want to give you as much information as we possibly can about our papers and essays, but we cannot give them away for free. In the text below you will find that while disordered, many of the phrases are essentially intact. From this text you will be able to get a solid sense of the writing style, the concepts addressed, and the sources used in the research paper. Architectural design clearlydemonstrates the trend toward creating spaces and "places" that areimmaterial in cyberspace. This analysis will argue that bothCroce and Hegel's view of the mind's role in design and creation areenhanced by virtual reality which liberates the mind from physicalconstraints but immerses the perceptual physically.Body It is my assertion that computer technologies offer artists and thearts more freedom than ever before in history, especially from physicallimitations and barriers. With virtualreality, architects can directly create experiences for and shareexperiences with each other. Changes do nothave to wait for a new model partition or addition. "Making Virtual Reality Real." Architecture, Oct 1998: 162- 165.Taylor, Mark. This is particularly true due to the rapid-paced, innovative,and continually changing nature of technology development. Another example of the use of virtual reality is Universal Studios'new theater, "Back to the Future." It's modeled on a movie theater, whereyou have a general-purpose facility to feature different shows. When virtual reality becomes widely available, it will not be seen as a medium used within physical reality, but rather as an additional reality (Chesher 1).In describing their new technology in this manner, we see how both Hegel'sand Croce's theories are validated. Another piece of clothing generatingexcitement is the Data Glove, an air-pressure glove built by Jim Heniganthat relies on a bizarre new illusion. Nevertheless, theconventional physical gallery and design studio continue to be unique evenin the face of such innovative technologies and the blossoming ofcyberspace and virtual reality.Conclusion In conclusion, it is readily apparent how virtual realitytechnologies offer the architect greater freedom both physically andmentally. This entertainmentand others like it can transform into all kinds of shapes but also runs theshow and keeps the action moving. The architect and client go insidethe model and make changes they desire. Artists now engage in a freer display on theInternet and Web sites. This enhanced ability offers two questions; whether sensibility isat all possible in immaterial spaces, and what new perspectives have thesetechnologies provided for architects? Human Interface Technology Laboratory, 1994: 1-8.Gates, Charlie. More importantly, we see how the introduction of a new technologyinto society is strongly tied to the cultural context in which it isintroduced. Dace argues: The use of virtual reality early in the design process forced the detailed development of the interior space as much as the exterior. For example, Disney's Virtual RealityStudio uses Panda 3D system architecture, a design engine, to create allforms of entertainment. Virtual space is used routinely today as a source of space forexhibition and communication, from satellite weather Web sites and freephoto sharing sites to the transmission of a staggering number of emails,research articles and images every day. As Chesher (27) maintains, "Virtualreality...proposed a paradigm shift: that computers can be 'realitygenerators,' not just symbol processes." Hegel believed that the transition of art history represents adialectic development from the "physical" to the "mental." He usedexamples of Egyptian architecture, Grecian sculpture, and modern paintingto prove his theory. As San Luis Obispoarchitect Darric McCormack suggests, "I would love to say, 'Would you liketo walk through your building'" (Quoted in "Bop," 74). The studio is onlyopen to architects; the world does not share the inventions produced there.Today, cyberspace and virtual reality offer the technologies of computeranimation and simulation now adopted in practice by many architects.Cyberspace is basically about a non-physical space we are able to interactwith in a manner that virtually simulates reality or the physicalinteraction process. The architect cansay to a client, "Let's simulate your building and go into the cyberspace." Building a full-scale prototype to achieve the same remains infeasible.But in cyberspace, once there, everything is interactively variable: thewindows, doors, stairs, walls, floors, lighting, furniture, colors andforms. The performers areinside the space with you, appearing as virtual beings. It is recognized that most of these benefits will occur onlyafter further advancements of technology." We are unable to deny theexistence of or even avoid the daily impact of such "New Wave" expressions.The arts and architectural design are no exception. Virtual reality demands morephysical and mental involved from the architect. In this way, virtual reality designs offerarchitects in small firms the tools to compete economically with largerfirms. In Tokyo, you can visit a departmentstore's kitchen sales are, where there's a VPL system. Thisis useful because it once more shifts the burden of achieving suchperspectives in physical reality to the burden of greater use of the mindto incorporate different viewpoints and perspectives of virtual spaces. As Dace (6) suggests, "Designers need a digital designmedium which allows them immediate, direct, and more intuitive control overtheir three-dimensional design, and virtual reality can help." It isdifficult in this statement not to see both Hegel's transition in art fromthe physical to the mental, as well as Croce's insistence that the enddesign or creation stems solely from the "mind." Virtual reality is also used to design buildings, cities, andelaborate interactive entertainments. For example, immersion and non-immersion virtual reality technologies offer the architectural designers abetter perception of space and the opportunity to explore simulatedbuildings physically. Details are easier to see and minor flaws are morereadily detected. Ata virtual reality exposition in the late 198 s, developers described theirnew technology as follows: Virtual reality is shared and objectively present like the physical world, composable like a work of art, and as unlimited and harmless as a dream. We can see that both Croce and Hegel's view of the mind's rolein design and creation are enhanced by virtual reality which liberates themind from physical constraints but immerses the perceptual physically. You use voice commands to saythings like, "Put the refrigerator here," or "Put the stove there," andbasically design your own kitchen virtually. The most celebrated item of clothingin a virtual reality system is a head-mounted display, known as virtualgoggles, built by Ivan Sunderland. In thismanner, we see the importance of the experiential underscored by virtualreality. Computer-aided imagination, new intellectual andmanual skills in electronic arts, and other technological advances offerthe architect the chance to similar realistic, fantastic and mixed - inevery sense - images of artificial worlds. One new software known asShadow-Light-Mirage allows architects to build lifelike models andtransport clients on a fly through of it. Jaron Lanier uses theterms "post-symbolic communication" and "reality conversation" to talkabout this new potential for communication by building a world togetherinstead of just sharing talk about building the world. Freed from the physical but immersed physically and moreperceptually in their creations, virtual reality opens a whole new space orreality to architects and artists. It should be the same function as an off-line museum andopen-design studio provide, which allow their clients to be involved andinteract with projects. In virtual space, computerizedart only reveals an image concept that the artist desires to express,without being limited or accompanied by a physical medium. As Chesher (1) comments of the above description of virtualreality: "With just a few words the inventors have invoked traditions ofart and representation, psychology and metaphysics, ontological philosophy,discovery, colonization and the frontier." With respect to architecturaldesign, architects have now transitioned from being reliant upon physicalspace and materials to a new reality that permits them to become physicallyand perceptually more involved with their creations. Colors, shapes,details and other design aspects are immediate, providing immediacy andactive engagement where before the process was drawn out, costly and farfrom active or immediate, "Rather than wade through a complex series ofmenu options or wait for glue to dry, architects can simply reach out andmanipulate the virtual world" (Architectural 1). "A Critique of Virtual Reality in the Architectural Design Process." Technical Report: R-94-3. No longer do artists have to mountshows and go through cumbersome work to display their art in physical orbrick-and-mortar venues. So, too, virtual reality has liberated thearchitect from physical necessities, including drafting papers, pens,physical models and other costly and cumbersome tools in comparison. As Mark Taylor (132) proclaims,"Nonlinear, decentralized, open, and complex networks are not merelyvirtual; rather, the virtual and the real are braided together to form anew architectural logic beyond information-processing machines." Forexample, in flying through designs, either the architect or client ispresented with multiple viewpoints not possible with physical models. Itincorporates live performers in an exciting new way. The new space ofvirtual reality permits Hegel's transition from the physical to the mental,while permitting full immersion of Croce's "mind." Virtual reality permitsarchitects to basically create their structures and test them physicallywithout using any of the physical resources formerly needed to complete themodels or structures in reality. Virtual Reality and the Built Environment. Afterwards, Italian philosopher Beneditto Croceproposed an even more radical notion, that art lay only in the "mental."Though conventional art of Croce's era could not be liberated from physicalconstraints, the artist's intuitive mind realized the final product.Ridiculed and scorned for his views, computer technologies like virtualreality have revitalized interest in Croce's assertions among contemporaryphilosophers, architects, and artists. Even if it occasionally looks natural, this space remains whollyartificial. Architecthas no theoretical laboratory, apart from the studio. Nowarchitects are designing using a three-dimensional, real-world toolkit thatpermits expansion of both physical capacity and the need for greaterintuitive skills. City planning architects also have many barriers removed by theuse of virtual reality. New technologies provide even greater virtual reality interactionfor both architects and their clients. Architecture, then, relies on virtual reality as a communicationtool that lets them put their clients inside the building proposes andhelps verify the correctness of computer design models. Chicago, ILL, Jan 2, 2 3: 1-2."Bop Through the Blueprint." U.S. Virtual reality provides architects another tool; with it wecan directly created experiences for each other to share in imagination,something that could lead to extraordinary outcomes. Likewise, higher resolution is possible and modelcomplexity is broadened. It is easier and quicker to manipulate theviewpoint of the designer or clients with virtual reality technologies.Color used to be relegated to an inferior position in the physicalconstruction or design of models that were offered in monotone shades.Virtual reality permits color and other aspects of design to be manipulatedreadily, permitting much broader design options and enhanced creativity.Virtual reality technologies also demand more from the architect during thedesign process. With respect toarchitecture, the computer as a medium for long-distance designcollaboration, visualizing negative space as a problem-solving strategy,requiring code compliance software, and as a graphic grammar system thatgenerates designs for human interpretation has become a great inspirationand practical tool for architects and other artists. Architecture is sculptural and sculpture can be inhabited. Not only architects but their clients can also beimmersed in virtual buildings through new technologies that engageindividuals wholly in virtual reality, "All that architects have tried toexpress with endless models, plans, and ornate boards, can now bedemonstrated by actually immersing the client in the design" (Architectural1). They are forced to become physically involved with their creations, rather than gaze upon them quietly from afar" (Architectural 1).One can see, then, that the physical is involved in virtual reality design,but only as a transition or means of demanding greater use of thearchitect's perceptual skills and "mind." One can see how both thetheories of Hegel and Croce on art are embodied in this new technology. By having the opportunity to 'go inside' the design and see it from within, the designer was forced to solve complex connections and details which would not have been apparent with other media (Dace 4). Works Cited"Architectural Design in Immersive Virtual Reality." ISPACE Gallery, (Leaflet). News & World Report, Nov 6, 2 : 74-76.Campbell, Dace A. In Great Britain, culture secretary Tessa Jowell isfighting a plan to erase historical and cultural buildings and propertiesin a virtual simulation, "Historical buildings and cultural properties inGreat Britain will be demolished and then preserved using virtual realitytechnology in order to make way for modern architecture and real estatedevelopment" (Gates 1).Most fundamentally, architecture is the art of space. In an examination of virtual reality, I find support for bothHegel's theory of transition from the "physical" to the "mental" andCroce's assertion that art lie in the "mental," especially as virtualreality applies to architectural design. New hyper- and multi-media technologies offer architects the abilityto introduce cyberspace simulations into designs with enhanced and morenumerous options for artistic quality. However, this program is basedon full-scale design, with virtually everything being designed in life-sizeterms: Architects are forced to use their bodies for scale, to stretch out their arms, move from side to side, duck under planes, look over them, back away, or move in. Virtual reality is the mostphysical computer interface, because it puts your body inside thesimulation. As Goslin (112) explains, "They have used theengine to design both theme parks and theme park attractions, as theplatform for a variety of research and development projects, and as theengine for the successful massively multiplayer online Toontown game." As architects who are part of such innovative new communicationssystems, we could better establish and create virtual spaces to helpperform theatrics. As architect Mike Rosen of Mike Rosen & Associates declares,"Virtual reality levels the playing field between big firms and small firmsby allowing clients to experiences spaces as architects develop designs"(Mays 162). However, as Whyte (1) suggests, "Virtual reality ismost widely used at the later stages of design, but there is not one singleapproach to its use." Computer art and design used to be considered a fador something less than real art, but there are still some challenges to Webart becoming a valid and respected practice among architects and otherartists. The salesman inputsdata about your house's kitchen, then you put on goggles and a glove andyou're in a space of identical dimensions. Architectural Press, 2 2. We live in the computer age, yet the process of its unfoldingis far from permitting us the ability to understand the full potential ofits impact. "Treasures Face Cyber Scrapheap." Building Design, Mar 24, 2 5: 1-2.Goslin, Mike. Virtual Reality in Architecture DesignIntroduction The introduction of new technology is often a complex process thatretains strong ties with the cultural context into which the technology isintroduced. As one architect maintains, virtual reality designs offer greateradvantages to enhance the value of design for clients. Computer technologies like virtual reality add athird dimension to the architect's designs. Noise levels, temperature fluctuations, air movements and otheraspects can be virtually simulated using digital technologies. Meredith Bricken describesvirtual reality's impact on the physical and mental: "Because theparticipant is both physically and perceptually involved with theenvironment, the process co-ordinates the cognitive, the psycho-motor, andthe affective domains of experience" (Quoted in Chesher 18). The rewards of such new technologies, like cyberspace buildings orvirtual reality cities have greatly enhanced the design process, making itfaster and much less expensive. Recent technologieshave caused a shift in the perspective of computer technology and designfrom an architectural perspective. "The Panda 3DE Graphics Engine." Computer, Oct 2 4: 112- 114.Mays, Patrick. Design is now a more active process for thearchitect, one that allows freedom from physical and greater reliance onactive, intuitive engagement with the designs themselves. Both theoretically and technically, suchdevelopments will continue to expand in future. Assuch, the boundaries between physical space and cyberspace are shrinkingrapidly. For architects,virtual reality and technologies support design metaphors and illustrateprogress in the ability to electronically represent design knowledge.However, both physical and perceptual immersion without physicalconstraints is now offered by virtual reality technologies, "Now, virtualreality has advanced architectural drawings to 'full body design,' lettingarchitects experience their creations, rather than just seeing thosecreations in front of them" (Architectural 1). "Mark Taylor Argues that Creativity can be Found at the Edge of Chaos." Architectural Record, May 2 3: 132-138.Whyte, Jennifer. As Dace (2) makes clear,"Virtual reality has been proposed as a useful new tool for architects anddesigners. However, during the design process, cyberspace and virtualreality technologies offer the architect great enhancements invisualization, sensualization, and physical experience of virtual rooms.All of this is achieved at a fraction of the cost and speed of achievingsuch outcomes in physical space. If this paper is not what you are looking for, you can search again: Search for: or Click here to request an essay written just for you.

Many of our Papers can be Downloaded From This Site!

PLEASE READ THIS, IT IS IMPORTANT!

Office hours are Monday through Friday, from 9 am to 5 pm (PST). You may place orders for custom research over the phone during office hours. E-mail requests can be made to our graduate and undergraduate department any time, and will be reviewed during office hours. You may also contact customer service any time through e-mail, and we will review your message during business hours. A great many papers can be downloaded right from this site, but not all of them. If you would like to know if a particular paper is downloadable, just look in the description for: "Available for Internet Download: Y" or "Available for Internet Download: N" If you wish to purchase a paper which is NOT available for immediate download, you will need to make other shipping arrangements. Also, please be aware that these orders are processed Monday through Friday from 9 am to 5 pm (PST). If you place your order after 4:45pm on Friday, it will not be processed until the following Monday morning. We charge $8 per page for all of our pre-written reports, plus shipping (and tax for California residents). However, the highest cost of any ONE report is $136, or 17 pages. Please, take a moment. Make sure you have chosen the report you want or need BEFORE you complete your order. If you are not sure, allow us to help you. We do not offer refunds or exchanges, so it is important for you to let us answer your questions during office hours. Reports which are e-mailed or downloaded are in Microsoft Word format. We are making more reports available for e-mail delivery faster than we can update our listings. Please call to check on the status of particular reports. There are many other shipping options which are listed on the Checkout page.