Inverse Design of Urban Procedural Models

Abstract

VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOkWmwD3OV0

How are 3D models of planned cities typically created? The most common approach is to model by hand every object in the planned development, including streets, lots, buildings and facades. This approach is as ubiquitous as it is inefficient. As a response to the limitations of manual modeling, procedural urban modeling is becoming increasingly popular. Procedural urban modeling refers to a set of techniques that are used to programmatically generate 3D geometric models of urban spaces. The most typical techniques use shape rules that are sequentially applied to starting shapes in order to generate increasingly complex derived shapes. A key basis for the popularity of city-scale urban procedural modeling is that it enables creating sets of rules that encapsulate the complex interdependencies within realistic urban spaces. Users who may or may not be aware of the internal details of the procedural model itself can work with procedural tools to quickly create large, complex 3D city models.