Browsing by Subject "Virtual Environments"

Now showing 1 - 5 of 5

Open Access
Dynamic simulation in virtual environments as an evaluation tool for architectural design
(1999) Taşlı, Şule
Prediction and evaluation of future performance of buildings are essential aspects of an efficient design process. This thesis aims to discuss dynamic simulation as a prediction and evaluation tool for architectural design. It is discussed that since buildings are living entities, whole life-cycles of buildings should be dynamically simulated in a highly visualized virtual environment to evaluate the future performance of prospective designs. The media of architectural design (traditional media: paper-based drawings and physical scale models; and digital media) are analyzed in terms of their capacity to support dynamic simulations. It is concluded that virtual reality systems and resulting virtual envu'onments are yet the best media for the dynamic simulation of building designs. Some recent applications are mentioned and some important considerations for the future use of dynamic simulations in virtual environments are presented.
Open Access
Emotional responses towards the use of rectilinear, symmetrical curvilinear and asymmetrical curvilinear forms in virtual environments
(2016-07) Örer, Zeyca
The aim of the study is to understand the effect of various forms in designs of interior environments and compare different emotional responses of people towards those environments. Therefore, this study was conducted to compare positive or negative emotional responses of people experiencing interior environments designed by three different forms: rectilinear, symmetrical curvilinear and asymmetrical curvilinear. Twelve virtual interior settings were created according to these forms. A questionnaire involving Mehrabian and Russell’s PAD adjective pairs was utilized to measure emotional responses of 61 volunteer respondents contacted on Balgat Campus of Çankaya University. The results of one way ANOVA tests illustrated that respondents felt more pleasant and aroused in the setting designed with asymmetrical curvilinear forms than other settings. Moreover, men tended to be more aroused in the setting designed with symmetrical curvilinear forms than women.
Open Access
Exploring vertical navigation within a virtual environment : a staircase experience
(2012) Memikoğlu, İpek (Sancaktar)
Architectural cues are configured by architects in the initial phase of design process. Local architectural cues within an environment can aid individuals during navigation and influence their spatial orientation. Staircases, as a feature of local architectural cues that provide access to the other floors in a multi-level building can have an impact on vertical navigation. This study focuses on the issue of vertical navigation during virtual navigation by integrating the individual characteristics and the geometric attributes of a staircase pair within two different multi-level desktop virtual environments (VEs). The angle between the cue pairs with respect to the same observation point is altered in order to determine the staircase pair that is more efficient in navigation. Circulation paths, gender differences, navigational abilities and cue pairs are considered to be factors that affect staircase preferences for ascending and descending. For the VE with a 180° difference between the cue pairs, there was a relationship between the ascending and descending staircases. Further analysis indicated that the staircase preference in ascending was either related to the first or last visited rooms on the ground floor. For the VE with a 90° difference between the cue pairs, no relationship was found between the ascending and descending staircases as well as with any other factor. There was no significant relationship between gender and staircase preference except for the descending staircase with 180° difference between the cue pairs and was in favor of females. In addition, there was no significant relationship between the navigational abilities and staircase preferences.
Open Access
The sense of direction in virtual environments
(2005) Kutlu, Z. Gözde
Improvements in the computer technology lead people to investigate the potential of the virtual environments. The spatial factors, that are significant for spatial navigation in real- world environments, are important also in virtual environments. Performances of people during navigation through a virtual environment may be influenced by the individual differences as well as the learning method of the layout. In this experiment, sense of direction as an important spatial ability has been investigated considering the influence of gender and learning methodology in the virtual environments (VEs). The analysis of the experiment showed that sense of direction has a positive effect on the performances of the independent viewpoint participants in misaligned questions. Apart from this, contrary to the earlier bias, no significant difference was found related to gender and sense of direction ability as well as the learning performances of the participants in the VE.
Open Access
Updating spatial orientation in virtual environments
(2006) Sancaktar, İpek
Spatial reasoning in architectural design can be better understood by considering the factors that are affecting the spatial updating of the individual in an environment. This study focuses on the issue of spatial updating during rotational and translational movements in a virtual environment (VE). Rotational and translational movements based on an egocentric frame of reference via optic flow are compared separately in order to find the movement that is more efficient in spatial updating. Alignment of the objects with the viewer, different media utilized in architectural design drawings and gender are considered as factors that affect the spatial updating within the movement types. The results indicated that translational movement was more efficient in the judgment of relative directions. Furthermore, questions related to the objects that were aligned with the viewer were more correctly answered than on the misaligned ones. In comparison of hand, computer and both as drawing media, findings indicated that computer usage in architectural design drawings was the most effective medium in spatial updating process in a VE. Contrary to the previous studies, there was no significant difference between gender and movement types.