Humans live in architectural environment. The first function of archi- tectural space is a shelter to protect humans. Architectural space satisfies functional, structural and aesthetic needs of humans. People perceive the environment, are stimulated b...
Humans live in architectural environment. The first function of archi- tectural space is a shelter to protect humans. Architectural space satisfies functional, structural and aesthetic needs of humans. People perceive the environment, are stimulated by it, and react to it. Most of stimulation and perception rely on the vision. Information necessary to perceive space is obtained through visual perception. Therefore, analytical theories and evaluation standards for space are based on visual properties.
The analysis of space structure does not have a long history. In the past, qualitative evaluation was used mostly. However, as the society be- comes more diversified and the relationships between members of society become more complex, more objective and quantitative space evaluation systems that could create social consensus are needed. And the necessity of such analytical methods become more urgent with the coming of in- dustrial society.
The conceptual framework for such quantitative analytical methods began to be proposed in the 1970s. The analytical methods can be divided into the statistical theory and graph theory, As the latter allows estimation in advance and presents intuitive results, it has drawn a lot of attention recently.
However, the graph theory remained as a theory only because an anal- ysis using it involved complex correlations between space elements and practical analysis was difficult. In this situation, the emergence of com- puter graphic technology in the mid 1970s enabled complex computation and visualization, which facilitated research in this field. However, the range of its application is still limited because most of the analytical theo- ries are concerned with the analysis of visual properties of the plane and the viewpoint is fixed. Moreover, the architectural space is becoming more complex and the trend of three dimensional space composition, such as division between floors and ambiguous visual relationship in space, be- comes more prevalent, and the existing two dimensional analytical theo- ries reveal their limits. Therefore, an appropriate three dimensional ana- lytical theory is needed more than ever.
The limits of the existing graph analysis theory related to visual space structure analysis can be summarized as the limit of two dimensional anal- ysis method and the limit of fixed viewpoint. This study proposes a method to analyze the visual structure of space by solving these two problems.
The first problem, the problem of two dimensional analysis method, is a problem related to the analysis of visual properties. This study pres- ents a method to expand the analysis model to a three dimensional analysis method based on most frequently used isovist and visibility graph analy- sis(VGA). In addition, based on existing evaluation indices. basic indices including 3ICD, 3IBD, VFg, and VF,, and partial analysis indices including LD, SD, ID, PVD, and VDC, which are applied indices for the relationship between the basic indices, are used.
Furthermore, this study proves that it is possible to produce the pro- posed indices through a three dimensional structure analysis of space by making an analysis tool to find out the possibility of analysis. And, the validity of results obtained is verified by comparing the results obtained from existing tools and the possibility of finding out the characteristics of three dimensional space analysis is proven.
The technical mechanism of three dimensional analysis is realized through the polygon decomposition of the model set in the virtual space and eye ray collision detection algorithm. And through data interchange with CAD system, statistical analysis, production of indices, and deriving of characteristics become possible.
When the three dimensional analysis tool is applied to the example model, it is possible to analyze the difficult to interpret areas in the same context with the existing theory, and it is possible to obtain more detailed data from previously analyzable areas.
The second problem is the problem of fixed viewpoint. The possibility of applying its solution to actual research projects is examined by propos- ing two expansion indices of VF, and VFf, and applying path simulation and vision simulation to the examples.
VF_(p) is a nondirectional theory that does not point to the target and it is produced through path simulation. The possibility of its application is examined by applying it to the models of interior space and outside com- plexes through measurement of visual accessibility of space, measurement of space openness, selection of effective patrol path, selection of the loca- tion of visual installation, and analysis of the characteristics of sky blockage,
VF_(f) is a directional theory that points to the target and it is produced through vision simulation. The possibility of its application is examined by applying it to examples through acquisition of space information on view path, evaluation of blockage ratio of landscape management ele-ments, and creation of the diagram of sunshine distribution in the complex.
When measuring VFg, this study proposes and examines cVF that gives weight to the frequency of expected space use. The analysis of sunshine distribution is supplemented by the amount of sunshine per unit area data. Through such experiment and review of the theory, it is found that it can be used for the visual interpretation of various spaces.
This study proposes a theory that overcomes the two dimensional limit of existing visual analysis of space and improves the applicability to actual situation by using multiple viewpoints for analysis. This study is mean- ingful because it has created a computer model that can be applied to vari- ous space analysis applications. It is a leading study that utilized the game engine, which has drawn a lot of attention in the architectural field as a next generation virtual reality media. It is important because it has ex- panded the virtual reality technique, which was in the expression stage in the study of architecture, to processing area.
It is expected that the results of this study will illuminate the visual structure analysis of space again and they will be applied to various areas with the development of improved analysis methods.