Physically Based Deformable Models in Computer Graphics

Physically based deformable models have been widely embraced by the Computer Graphics community. Many problems outlined in a previous survey by Gibson and Mirtich have been addressed, thereby making these models interesting and useful for both offline and real‐time applications, such as motion pictures and video games. In this paper, we present the most significant contributions of the past decade, which produce such impressive and perceivably realistic animations and simulations: finite element/difference/volume methods, mass‐spring systems, mesh‐free methods, coupled particle systems and reduced deformable models‐based on modal analysis. For completeness, we also make a connection to the simulation of other continua, such as fluids, gases and melting objects. Since time integration is inherent to all simulated phenomena, the general notion of time discretization is treated separately, while specifics are left to the respective models. Finally, we discuss areas of application, such as elastoplastic deformation and fracture, cloth and hair animation, virtual surgery simulation, interactive entertainment and fluid/smoke animation, and also suggest areas for future research.     

Deformable Motion: Squeezing into Cluttered Environments

We present an interactive method that allows animated characters to navigate through cluttered environments. Our characters are equipped with a variety of motion skills to clear obstacles, narrow passages, and highly constrained environment features. Our control method incorporates a behavior model into well‐known, standard path planning algorithms. Our behavior model, called deformable motion, consists of a graph of motion capture fragments. The key idea of our approach is to add flexibility on motion fragments such that we can situate them into a cluttered environment via constraint‐based formulation. We demonstrate our deformable motion for realtime interactive navigation and global path planning in highly constrained virtual environments.