Course Description

Virtual reality provides an immersive computer interface that makes the users believe they are inside the computer generated environment. In many domains, virtual reality is starting to change the way in which people use computers to interact with and manipulate digital information. This course explores the technologies, the underlying principles, and the potential applications of virtual reality in architecture. Lectures and lab sections will present the theoretical and technical information required for developing a number of virtual reality applications in architecture. There will be no computer programming background required for this course. However, students are assumed to have a background in using geometric modeling applications such as AutoCAD or FormZ. The course is divided into two segments. The first introduces the principles, tools, and technical skills that are required for building virtual reality applications. In the second segment, students will build a virtual reality application that applies the principles covered in the first segment to architecture.

Course Objectives

Introduce the principles and existing technologies of virtual reality through hands on exercises, explore some of the potential application in architecture, discuss some of the evaluative criteria that make a "good" VR application in architecture, introduce a number of approaches to creating virtual environments.

Instructor

Samir Emdanat
Room 1236
Doctoral Program in Architecture
College of Architecture and Urban Planning

For Additional Information

For more information on Virtual Reality at the University of Michigan, please visit the some of the following links:

• The VRL lab at the University of Michigan.
• The VR lab at the Media Union.

Arch509-93: Virtual Reality in Architecture, CAUP, UM
The Top Page for this site is http://www-personal.umich.edu/~emdanat/VR
Last updated: 05/12/98