Autodesk, Inc.
GENERATING DESIGNS FOR MULTI-FAMILY HOUSING PROJECTS USING RIGID BODY SIMULATIONS

Abstract:

A design simulator executes a rigid body simulation to position design elements within various design options according to configurations that meet design criteria while also promoting feasibility and desirability. The design simulator assigns physical properties to each design element, including a mass value and a velocity value. The design simulator then simulates rigid body interactions between design elements over a sequence of simulation steps. The design simulator stops the rigid body simulation when no collisions between design elements are detected or when other termination criteria are met. Once the rigid body simulation is complete, the final positions of each design element relative to one another represent a specific configuration of design elements for the corresponding design option.