FormIt + Dynamo
Integrated Computational and Conceptual Design
Autodesk, Summer 2015
Objective:
The goal of this project was to develop a prototype of FormIt Web application using the computational geometry power of Dynamo. This was accomplished using Dynamo Reach, a Cloud-based service for Dynamo.
Dynamo is a visual programming tool for computational design and FormIt is a conceptual design modeler that helps designers to sketch, collaborate and do analysis on BIM-based conceptual model of the building.
The breakthrough in creating the integration between Dynamo and FormIt is to enable algorithmic design capabilities for conceptual modeling in FormIt.
Design and Implementation:
A prototype of FormIt Web application was developed so that the users can access their Dynamo Reach workspaces by using the “Customizer” module in FormIt UI. Upon selecting a specifi c workspace, the user gets a fully-parametric model in FormIt with its corresponding inputs listed on the right panel. When user changes the value of the inputs in FormIt, the geometry updates accordingly based on the Dynamo logic.
The ability to access this fully-parametric model in FormIt without the complexity that comes across with the algorithm definition adds a significant value to the conceptual design process.
Techniques Used:
Web development in CoffeeScript and JavaScript
Geometric data model mapping between ASM and WSM
Programming in C++, HTML, CSS
Utilizing REST API and implementing WebSockets