Originally presented as the author's Thesis--Universität Magdeburg, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (DDes) - Faculty of Design, Swinburne University of Technology, 2006. / Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor in Design, Faculty of Design, Swinburne University of Technology - 2006. Typescript. Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor in Design, Swinburne University of Technology, 2006. Bibliography: p. 88-101.

Thesis (M. Arch.)--Carleton University, 2000. / Compact disc. Includes bibliographical references (p. 82-83). Also available in electronic format on the Internet.

Na medida em que surgem novas tecnologias de criação de ambientes tridimensionais virtuais, como o WebGL, ampliam-se as possibilidades de uso destes e possibilita-se um aprimoramento da qualidade gráfica e das formas de interação com os mesmos. A presente pesquisa objetiva aproximar designers e a promissora tecnologia WebGL, ainda muito ligada a conhecedores da programação computacional escrita e distante de grande parte dos designers. Com isso, visa-se melhorar a qualidade de criação e distribuição dos trabalhos de Design Virtual. Para tal, propõe-se uma sistemática de criação de conteúdos interativos tridimensionais utilizando o padrão WebGL, balizada por requisitos estipulados com base na revisão bibliográfica do assunto. Dentre os principais requisitos estão a utilização de softwares e recursos que não exijam conhecimentos prévios de linguagem escrita de programação, a compreensão dos três principais pilares dos ambientes virtuais 3D (modelagem, animação e interação) e a exportação facilitada do conteúdo criado em um arquivo (HTML) executável nos principais navegadores web, empregando o padrão WebGL, sem o uso de qualquer complemento (plug-in). Após a análise de 34 ferramentas, escolheu-se o conjunto de programas Blender + Blend4Web para ser utilizado na sistemática. Como resultado, obteve-se uma sistemática de criação de ambientes virtuais tridimensionais com recursos bastante diversificados, que se mostrou útil na atualização dos conhecimentos de estudantes e profissionais de Design Virtual. / As new technologies for the creation of three-dimensional virtual environments, such as WebGL, the possibilities of their use are expanded and it is possible to improve the graphic quality and the ways of interacting with them. The present research aims to approach designers and the promising WebGL technology, still very much related to the knowledge of the written and distant programming of most of the designers. With this, it aims to improve the quality of creation and distribution of the Virtual Design works. For this, a systematic creation of three-dimensional interactive contents using the WebGL standard is proposed, based on requirements stipulated based on the bibliographic review of the subject. Among the main requirements are the use of software and resources that do not require prior knowledge of written programming language, understanding the three main pillars of 3D virtual environments (modeling, animation and interaction) and facilitating the export of content created in a file (HTML) executable in major web browsers, employing the WebGL standard, without the use of any plug-in. After the analysis of 34 tools, the set of Blender + Blend4Web programs was chosen to be used in the systematics. As a result, a systematic creation of threedimensional virtual environments with very diversified resources was obtained, which proved useful in updating the knowledge of students and professionals of Virtual Design.

This thesis aims at developing a better understanding of the design process and the tools required to support it. Specifically it focuses on the early or conceptual stages of the industrial design process and the role of emerging technology based artifacts in supporting this activity. The starting point for this thesis is that industrial design focuses on discovery of new knowledge and that this process of discovery is reflective in nature. Further designers make use of artifacts throughout the design process to support them in this discovery and their reflection. To reveal the role of artifacts in this process, a study of the interaction between designers and their artifacts has been undertaken. To intensify these relationships this thesis has focused on design review activity undertaken in the early stages of industrial design process. Two ethnographic case studies were conducted which allowed for teams of final year industrial design students to be observed during a conceptual design review. The first case study focused on the student designers interacting with traditional artifacts such as sketches, form studies and illustrations as part of the design review session. In the second case study, the student designers made use of low fidelity digital models which were displayed in a highly immersive virtual reality environment to support the design review. Both case studies captured a time slice of a larger design project which the students were undertaking as part of their university studies. The design project focused on the redesign of a consumer product where the students were required to innovate on an existing design based on a number of technology and market constraints. The design review session which formed the basis of the case study was part of a weekly design critique which required the students to bring to the class all of their design development progress. Students were offered an additional review session which was held in a virtual reality facility to supplement their weekly design review session which formed the basis of the second case study. The objective of the review sessions were for the designers to discuss their progress, identify where they were having difficulty, be challenged on design decision and develop a shared understanding of their direction with the class. The case study approach has allowed for an authentic in situ account of how designers make use of artifacts within the early stages of an industrial design process. It has allowed for a comparison between traditional and technology based artifacts and has revealed how they impact on the nature of discovery and reflection. Through a detailed qualitative analysis of the video data which was captured from the case studies, this thesis makes a number of substantial contributions to the current knowledge gaps on the role of artifacts and to our understanding of this phase of design activity. It substantiates conceptual design activity as a reflective process allowing for new discoveries to be made by representing our existing knowledge and understandings in artifacts which can be reflected upon and extended to create new meaning and innovation. From this grounded perspective it has enabled further understandings into the role of the artifact in supporting the design activity. Artifacts are seen as critical in supporting early stage design activity. However it is the nature of the interaction between the designers and their artifacts within the different settings which have been revealed through this research which is of significance. The affordances of the different artifacts have been shown to alter how the students situate their activity and modify their actions within a design review. page 5 of 171 Further designers are required to make use of additional resources such as gestures and rich design language to supplement their design engagement; and they are required to adapt to the environment where the review is being undertaken to ensure that the objective of the design review can be achieved. This thesis makes its primary contribution in outlining the differences between the various types of artifacts and how they can be used to positively support early stage design activity. It is recommended that both traditional and virtual artifacts have a role in supporting activity, but future approaches should consider them as complimentary and consider ways in which they can be merged. The significance of the research is three fold. Firstly, from a pedagogical perspective, within an educational or practiced based setting, it provides a framework to consider the use of emerging technology based artifacts to support early stage design activity. Secondly, from a technology development perspective the grounded observation in authentic experience of design activity, it provides the foundation to inspire and develop new interfaces to support designer interactions with artifacts. Finally, it makes a substantial contribution to the growing body of design research substantiating and revealing new understanding between designers and their artifacts to support early stage design activity.

Thesis (M.Arch.) - Carleton University, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 140-150). Also available in electronic format on the Internet.

Thesis (M. Arch.)--Carleton University, 2001. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 130-137). Also available in electronic format on the Internet.

As cirurgias de reconstrução parcial ou total de orelha são um desafio na medicina, exigindo técnicas complexas e qualificadas, sendo as mais utilizadas àquelas que fazem uso de material autógeno (cartilagem da costela do próprio paciente). Trata-se de um processo artesanal em que o cirurgião deve esculpir manualmente a cartilagem para formar o modelo tridimensional da orelha, denominado framework, dessa forma, o resultado final depende, principalmente, da habilidade do cirurgião plástico. Tendo isso em vista, busca-se, neste trabalho, empregar as tecnologias computacionais utilizadas no Design Virtual para auxiliar o planejamento cirúrgico, utilizando digitalização tridimensional e fabricação digital para aprimorar o resultado da técnica de reconstrução auricular. A metodologia proposta sugere a digitalização tridimensional do paciente e, a partir disso, são projetados templates cirúrgicos para auxiliar a modelagem e o posicionamento do framework. A aplicação cirúrgica valida alguns pontos e possibilita o estudo de melhorias em determinados templates, utilizados então em outras duas reconstruções, obtendo-se resultados positivos. Assim, o uso do Design Virtual mostra-se confiável e útil na cirurgia de reconstrução auricular, levando à melhoria no planejamento e, assim, diminuição do tempo cirúrgico, sem riscos ou complicações ao paciente e com melhores resultados anatômicos. / The partial or total reconstruction of ear is a challenge in plastic surgery, requiring complex and skilled techniques. The most successful reconstructions use autogenous material (cartilage from the patient's own rib). It is a handmade process in which the surgeon must manually sculpt the cartilages to form the three-dimensional model of the ear, usually called as framework. Considering this, the final result depends mainly on the plastic surgeon's skill. In this scenario, the aim of this research is employ computer technologies used in Virtual Design to aid surgical planning, using three-dimensional scanning and digital manufacturing to improve the result of ear reconstruction technique. The proposed methodology suggests surgical templates, based on 3D patient scan, designed to assist the modeling and positioning of the framework. The surgical application validates some points and allows the study of improvements in certain templates, then used in other two surgeries, with positive results. Thus, the use of Virtual Design proves to be reliable and useful in ear reconstruction surgery, leading to improved planning and decreasing surgical time, without any risks or complications for the patient and with better anatomical results.

Na medida em que surgem novas tecnologias de criação de ambientes tridimensionais virtuais, como o WebGL, ampliam-se as possibilidades de uso destes e possibilita-se um aprimoramento da qualidade gráfica e das formas de interação com os mesmos. A presente pesquisa objetiva aproximar designers e a promissora tecnologia WebGL, ainda muito ligada a conhecedores da programação computacional escrita e distante de grande parte dos designers. Com isso, visa-se melhorar a qualidade de criação e distribuição dos trabalhos de Design Virtual. Para tal, propõe-se uma sistemática de criação de conteúdos interativos tridimensionais utilizando o padrão WebGL, balizada por requisitos estipulados com base na revisão bibliográfica do assunto. Dentre os principais requisitos estão a utilização de softwares e recursos que não exijam conhecimentos prévios de linguagem escrita de programação, a compreensão dos três principais pilares dos ambientes virtuais 3D (modelagem, animação e interação) e a exportação facilitada do conteúdo criado em um arquivo (HTML) executável nos principais navegadores web, empregando o padrão WebGL, sem o uso de qualquer complemento (plug-in). Após a análise de 34 ferramentas, escolheu-se o conjunto de programas Blender + Blend4Web para ser utilizado na sistemática. Como resultado, obteve-se uma sistemática de criação de ambientes virtuais tridimensionais com recursos bastante diversificados, que se mostrou útil na atualização dos conhecimentos de estudantes e profissionais de Design Virtual. / As new technologies for the creation of three-dimensional virtual environments, such as WebGL, the possibilities of their use are expanded and it is possible to improve the graphic quality and the ways of interacting with them. The present research aims to approach designers and the promising WebGL technology, still very much related to the knowledge of the written and distant programming of most of the designers. With this, it aims to improve the quality of creation and distribution of the Virtual Design works. For this, a systematic creation of three-dimensional interactive contents using the WebGL standard is proposed, based on requirements stipulated based on the bibliographic review of the subject. Among the main requirements are the use of software and resources that do not require prior knowledge of written programming language, understanding the three main pillars of 3D virtual environments (modeling, animation and interaction) and facilitating the export of content created in a file (HTML) executable in major web browsers, employing the WebGL standard, without the use of any plug-in. After the analysis of 34 tools, the set of Blender + Blend4Web programs was chosen to be used in the systematics. As a result, a systematic creation of threedimensional virtual environments with very diversified resources was obtained, which proved useful in updating the knowledge of students and professionals of Virtual Design.

From the earliest days of mass production in the automotive industry there has been a progressive move towards the use of flexible manufacturing systems that cater for product variants that meet market demands. In recent years this market has become more demanding with pressures from legislation, globalisation and increased customer expectations. This has lead to the current trends of mass customisation in production. In order to support this manufacturing systems are not only becoming more flexible† to cope with the increased product variants, but also more agile‡ such that they may respond more rapidly to market changes. Modularisation§ is widely used to increase the agility of automation systems, such that they may be more readily reconfigured¶. Also with globalisation into India and Asia semi-automatic machines (machines that interact with human operators) are more frequently used to reduce capital outlay and increase flexibility. There is an increasing need for tools and methodologies that support this in order to improve design robustness, reduce design time and gain a competitive edge in the market. The research presented in this thesis is built upon the work from COMPAG/COMPANION (COMponent- based Paradigm for AGile automation, and COmmon Model for PArtNers in automatION), and as part of the BDA (Business Driven Automation), SOCRADES (Service Oriented Cross-layer infrastructure for Distributed smart Embedded deviceS), and IMC-AESOP (ArchitecturE for Service- Oriented Process – monitoring and control) projects conducted at Loughborough University UK. This research details the design and implementation of a toolkit for building and simulating automation systems comprising components with behaviour described using Finite State Machines (FSM). The research focus is the development of the engineering toolkit that can support the automation system lifecycle from initial design through commissioning to maintenance and reconfiguration as well as the integration of a virtual human. This is achieved using a novel data structure that supports component definitions for control, simulation, maintenance and the novel integration of a virtual human into the automation system operation.