Abstract:

Construction toys are a superb medium for creating geometric models. We argue that such toys, suitably instrumented or sensed, could be the inspiration for a new generation of easy-to-use, tangible modeling systems---especially if the tangible modeling is combined with graphical-interpretation techniques for enhancing nascent models automatically. The three key technologies needed to realize this idea are embedded computation, vision-based acquisition, and graphical interpretation. We sample these technologies in the context of two novel modeling systems: physical building blocks that self-describe, interpret, and decorate the structures into which they are assembled; and a system for scanning, interpreting, and animating clay figures.