Abstract
We present an approximate object modeling method which makes use of “basic deformations” understandable for non-expert users. By using the basic deformations as the shape features of modeling, the shapes and deformations of objects are represented simultaneously. This helps users to recognize current shapes, and anticipate deforming results. In this study, a rectangular prism was chosen as the original shape. An extended generalized cylindrical model (GCM) is used to represent a shape, and two kinds of deformations are treated: (1) an axis-based deformation that can be described by the changes of GCM parameters; and (2) a face-based deformation the direction of which is determined according to the principal axis. Among these kinds of deformations, five basic deformations are contrived experimentally from a questionnaire survey result. Finally, we construct a modeling system using ten operations to attain the basic deformations and show our method's feasibility for an approximate modeling.
