(continued)

Besides IsoVist, the prototype software can launch Archie, a library of post-occupancy evaluation case studies developed at Georgia Tech; the Great Buildings Collection from Artifice, Inc., an encyclopedia of hundreds of famous buildings; a numeric calculator; and a geometric modeler that converts sketched rectilinear massing into a 3D model that can then be turned and viewed from other perspectives.

Do points out that in theory, "The Right Tool at the Right Time" can link to any number of support applications, including commercial design software such as AutoCAD or form-Z.

This is the fourth part of a six-part series on innovative research projects that may eventually lead to exciting design tools for architects. Next week this series continues with a report on software that merges energy analysis into early design phases.

B.J. Novitski is managing editor for ArchitectureWeek and author of "Rendering Real and Imagined Buildings."

This article first appeared in Architectural Record, December, 1999.

A 3D modeler is part of the Right Tool and the Right Time. Image: Ellen Do Archie, a library of post-occupancy evaluation case studies. Image: Ellen Do Irregular sketches made in the digital notebook are automatically translated into the equivalent, rectified figures. Image: Ellen Do Isovist, for displaying a view analysis. Image: Ellen Do Screen image of the Great Buildings Collection on CD-ROM. Image: Artifice, Inc.