Computer Aided Design (CAD) typically involves tasks such as adjusting the camera perspective and assembling pieces in free space that require specifying 6 degrees of freedom (DOF). The standard approach is to factor these DOFs into 2D subspaces that are mapped to the x and y axes of a mouse. This metaphor is inherently modal because one needs to switch between subspaces, and disconnects the input space from the modeling space. In this paper, we propose a bimanual hand tracking system that provides physically-motivated 6-DOF control for 3D assembly. First, we discuss a set of principles that guide the design of our precise, easy-to-use, and comfortable-to-use system. Based on these guidelines, we describe a 3D input metaphor that supports constraint specification classically used in CAD software, is based on only a few simple gestures, lets users rest their elbows on their desk, and works alongside the keyboard and mouse. Our approach uses two consumer-grade webcams to observe the user's hands. We solve the pose estimation problem with efficient queries of a precomputed database that relates hand silhouettes to their 3D configuration. We demonstrate efficient 3D mechanical assembly of several CAD models using our hand-tracking system.

Articulated hand-tracking systems have been widely used in virtual reality but are rarely deployed in consumer applications due to their price and complexity. In this paper, we propose an easy-to-use and inexpensive system that facilitates 3-D articulated user-input using the hands. Our approach uses a single camera to track a hand wearing an ordinary cloth glove that is imprinted with a custom pattern. The pattern is designed to simplify the pose estimation problem, allowing us to employ a nearest-neighbor approach to track hands at interactive rates. We describe several proof-of-concept applications enabled by our system that we hope will provide a foundation for new interactions in modeling, animation control and augmented reality.

We explore the use of space-time cuts to smoothly transition between stochastic mesh animation clips involving numerous deformable mesh groups while subject to physical constraints. These transitions are used to construct Mesh Ensemble Motion Graphs for interactive data-driven animation of high-dimensional mesh animation datasets, such as those arising from expensive physical simulations of deformable objects blowing in the wind. We formulate the transition computation as an integer programming problem, and introduce a novel randomized algorithm to compute transitions subject to geometric nonpenetration constraints. We present examples for several physically based motion datasets, with real-time display and optional interactive control over wind intensity via transitions between wind levels. We discuss challenges and opportunities for future work and practical application.

Enveloping, or the mapping of skeletal controls to the deformations of a surface, is key to driving realistic animated characters. Despite its widespread use, enveloping still relies on slow or inaccurate deformation methods. We propose a method that is both fast, accurate and example-based. Our technique introduces a rotational regression model that captures common skinning deformations such as muscle bulging, twisting, and challenging areas such as the shoulders. Our improved treatment of rotational quantities is made practical by model reduction that ensures real-time solution of least-squares problems, independent of the mesh size. Our method is significantly more accurate than linear blend skinning and almost as fast, suggesting its use as a replacement for linear blend skinning when examples are available.