Layout Generation | Genesis Lab

A Workflow of Creating Datasets for Multi-modal Machine Learning on Graphs of Heritage Values and Attributes with Social Media

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Authors: Nan Bai, Pirouz Nourian, Renqian Luo, Ana Pereira Roders

Abstract:

Values (why to conserve) and Attributes (what to conserve) are essential concepts of cultural heritage. Recent studies have been using social media to map values and attributes conveyed by public to cultural heritage. However, it is rare to connect heterogeneous modalities of images, texts, geolocations, timestamps, and social network structures to mine the semantic and structural characteristics therein. This study presents a methodological workflow for constructing such multi-modal datasets using posts and images on Flickr for graph-based machine learning (ML) tasks concerning heritage values and attributes. After data pre-processing using state-of-the-art ML models, the multi-modal information of visual contents and textual semantics are modelled as node features and labels, while their social relationships and spatiotemporal contexts are modelled as links in Multi-Graphs. The workflow is tested in three cities containing UNESCO World Heritage properties - Amsterdam, Suzhou, and Venice, which yielded datasets with high consistency for semi-supervised learning tasks. The entire process is formally described with mathematical notations, ready to be applied in provisional tasks both as ML problems with technical relevance and as urban/heritage study questions with societal interests. This study could also benefit the understanding and mapping of heritage values and attributes for future research in global cases, aiming at inclusive heritage management practices.

Designing with Space Syntax A configurative approach to architectural layout, proposing a computational methodology

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Authors: Pirouz Nourian, Samaneh Rezvani, Sevil Sariyildiz

Abstract:

This paper introduces a design methodology and a toolkit developed as a parametric CAD program for configurative design of architectural plan layouts. Using this toolkit, designers can start plan layout process with sketching the way functional spaces need to connect to each other. A tool draws an interactive bubble diagram and a set of tools reveal feasible geometric interpretations of the proposed bubble diagram in terms of plan layout graphs. Offering real-time Space Syntax analyses at the same time, the tools provide feedback on the spatial performance, which is translatable into the likely social performance of the plan layout patterns.

Discrete event simulation procedure for validating programs of requirements; The case of hospital space planning

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Authors: Cemre Cubukcuoglu, Pirouz Nourian, Sevil Sariyildiz, Fatih Tasgetiren

Abstract:

This paper introduces a Discrete-Event Simulation (DES) tool developed as a parametric CAD program for validating a program of requirements (PoR) for hospital space planning. The DES model simulates the procedures of processing of patients treated by doctors, calculating patient throughput and patient waiting times, based on the number of doctors, patient arrivals, and treatment times. In addition, the tool is capable of defining space requirements by taking hospital design standards into account. Using this tool, what-if scenarios and assumptions on the PoR about space planning can be tested and/or validated. The tool is ultimately meant for reducing patient waiting times and/or increasing patient throughput by checking the match of the layout of a hospital with respect to its procedural operations. This tool is envisaged to grow into a toolkit providing a methodological framework for bringing Operations Research into Architectural Space Planning. The tool is implemented in Python for Grasshopper (GH), a plugin of Rhinoceros CAD software using the SimPy library.

Hospital layout design renovation as a Quadratic Assignment Problem with geodesic distances

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Authors: Cemre Cubukcuoglu, Pirouz Nourian, M. Fatih Tasgetiren, I. Sevil Sariyildiz, Shervin Azadi

Abstract:

Hospital facilities are known as functionally complex buildings. There are usually configurational problems that lead to inefficient transportation processes for patients, medical staff, and/or logistics of materials. The Quadratic Assignment Problem (QAP) is a well-known problem in the field of Operations Research from the category of the facility’s location/allocation problems. However, it has rarely been utilized in architectural design practice. This paper presents a formulation of such logistics issues as a QAP for space planning processes aimed at renovation of existing hospitals, a heuristic QAP solver developed in a CAD environment, and its implementation as a computational design tool designed to be used by architects. The tool is implemented in C# for Grasshopper (GH), a plugin of Rhinoceros CAD software. This tool minimizes the internal transportation processes between interrelated facilities where each facility is assigned to a location in an existing building. In our model, the problem of assignment is relaxed in that a single facility may be allowed to be allocated within multiple voxel locations, thus alleviating the complexity of the unequal area assignment problem. The QAP formulation takes into account both the flows between facilities and distances between locations. The distance matrix is obtained from the spatial network of the building by using graph traversal techniques. The developed tool also calculates spatial geodesic distances (walkable, easiest, and/or shortest paths for pedestrians) inside the building. The QAP is solved by a heuristic optimization algorithm, called Iterated Local Search. Using one exemplary real test case, we demonstrate the potential of this method in the context of hospital layout design/re-design tasks in 3D. Finally, we discuss the results and possible further developments concerning a generic computational space planning framework.

Modelling Spatial Patterns of Outdoor Physical Activities Using Mobile Sports Tracking Application Data

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Authors: Rusne Sileryte, Pirouz Nourian, Stefan van der Spek

Abstract:

The paper presents a workflow for collecting, structuring and processing geo-referenced recreational mobility data from a sports tracking application as to monitor recreational usage of urban spaces. The data collected include GPS trajectories of people walking, jogging, and running for recreational purposes in European cities. The presented workflow includes systematic steps for aggregating the trajectories and attributing them to a spatial network model called Urban Space Network. The nodes of this network are the navigable spaces or streets and its links are the connections between them. A method is proposed to find a fuzzy notion of recreational space usage, using the number of distinct application users whose trajectories have been accounted for the space in question. The fuzzified space usage values are then attributed to the nodes of the network. This model can be primarily used to observe actual patterns of space usage and has the potential to be used as ‘ground truth data’ for validating and calibrating network-based models of recreational mobility. Patterns revealed by the workflow can be used to study where outdoor physically active mobility happens and where it is absent. Thus the proposed workflow can provide spatial and objective insight useful in planning, management and governance of cities in promoting active mobility that is already a rather global trend in urbanism.

Modelling walking and cycling accessibility and mobility; The effect of network configuration and occupancy on spatial dynamics of active mobility

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Authors: Pirouz Nourian, Samaneh Rezvani, Kotryna Valečkaitė, Sevil Sariyildiz

Abstract:

Purpose The most sustainable forms of urban mobility are walking and cycling. These modes of transportation are the most environmental friendly, the most economically viable and the most socially inclusive and engaging modes of urban transportation. To measure and compare the effectiveness of alternative pedestrianization or cycling infrastructure plans, the authors need to measure the potential flows of pedestrians and cyclists. The paper aims to discuss this issue. Design/methodology/approach The authors have developed a computational methodology to predict walking and cycling flows and local centrality of streets, given a road centerline network and occupancy or population density data attributed to building plots. Findings The authors show the functionality of this model in a hypothetical grid network and a simulated setting in a real town. In addition, the authors show how this model can be validated using crowd-sensed data on human mobility trails. This methodology can be used in assessing sustainable urban mobility plans. Originality/value The main contribution of this paper is the generalization and adaptation of two network centrality models and a trip-distribution model for studying walking and cycling mobility.

Optimal Design of new Hospitals; A Computational Workflow for Stacking, Zoning, and Routing

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Authors: Cemre Cubukcuoglu, Pirouz Nourian, M. Fatih Tasgetiren, I. Sevil Sariyildiz

Abstract:

The paper proposes a generative design workflow for three major hospital layout planning steps to satisfy multiplex configurational requirements. The initial step is stacking through clustering functional spaces into floor plans, for which a spectral method is presented. Subsequently, a novel simultaneous process of zoning and routing is proposed as a Mixed-Integer Programming problem-solving task; performed on a quadrilateral mesh whose faces and edges are allocated respectively to the rooms and the corridors. The paper situates the workflow in the context of an Activity-Relations-Chart for a general hospital while demonstrating, explaining, and justifying the generated optimal floor plans. The conversion of the hospital layout problem to a Mixed-Integer Programming problem enables the use of existing Operations Research solvers, allowing for the generation of optimal solutions in a digital design environment. The comprehensive problem formulation for a real-world scenario opens a new avenue for utilization of mathematical programming/optimization in healthcare design.

Parametric 'route structure' generation and analysis; An interactive design system application for urban design

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Authors: José Beirão, Pirouz Nourian, Van Walderveen

Abstract:

Marshall (2005) developed the concept of characteristic structure of a street network as a characteristic set of indicators extracted from the street network through a process which he called “route structure analysis”. In this paper we propose an integrated process for street network generation and route structure analysis embedded in a parametric urban design process. The street generator is compatible with a larger system aiming at the production of parametric urban designs. The system has been built in a parametric CAD environment and encompasses a method for interactive urban design allowing for dynamic visual responsiveness to morphological change and data change. The street network generator, presented in this paper, is based on a recursive rule which subdivides rectangles within the bounding box of a site area. For each set of goal inputs a street network is generated and “complexity” and “relative connectivity” are calculated through a semiautomatic procedure.

Parametric urban design; An interactive sketching system for shaping neighborhoods

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Authors: José Beirão, Pirouz Nourian, Bardia Mashhoodi

Abstract:

In this paper we show the structure of an urban design parametric system. The system is dynamic and builds an interactive relation with the designer updating the layout and related data at each input change. The responsiveness of the system allows the designer to gain awareness on the qualitative consequences of each design move by comparing a design state with a set of urban indicators and density measures which are automatically calculated along with the geometrical updates.

Reconfigurable Domes; Computational design of dry-fit blocks for modular vaulting

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Authors: Selina Bitting, Shervin Azadi, Pirouz Nourian

Abstract:

In contrast to the contemporary aesthetic account, Muqarnas are geometrically complex variations of Squinches used for structural integration of rectilinear geometries and curved geometries. Inspired by the historical functionality of Muqarnas, we present a generalized computational workflow for generating dry-fit stacking modules from two-dimensional patterns in order to construct a dome. Similar to Muqarnas these blocks are modular in nature, complex in geometry, and compression-only in their structural behavior. We demonstrate the design of such structures based on the exemplary Penrose pattern and showcase the variations & potentials of this method in comparison to conventional approaches.

Reuse; On Evaluating the Fitness of Spatial Configurations Before & After Retrofitting for Reuse of Architectural Heritage

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Authors: Pirouz Nourian, Nan Bai

Abstract:

Focusing on the quality of reuse of buildings with respect to the efficiency of human movement patterns and the effectiveness of allocation of functional spaces with respect to their needs for social encounter and avoidance reveals the configurative nature and the human impact of architectural design. By comparing such functionality assessments before and after a redesign process for retrofitting, a clearer grasp of the effect of the spatial configuration on the efficiency and the effectiveness of a design can be explicated. In configurational analysis the focal point of attention is the structure of the walkable space in the building, detached and abstracted from the shape of the building. In configurational functionality assessment, the focus is to synthesize multiple analyses, aggregate the results, and derive indicators of quality with respect to either quantitative objectives or qualitative ideals. Does the structure of the space and the allocation of functional spaces to various locations in the spatial network of a building have an effect on its overall functionality/utility? How can we study these effects? Are the functional spaces placed in their best-fitting locations? Do the design operations like adding an external staircase or tearing down an interior wall make a difference in the accessibility of functional spaces? By digging into this topic, you will gain a methodology with which you can describe and analyse a spatial configuration in a reproducible way.

Shape Based Classification Of Seismic Building Structural Types

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Authors: Raphael Sulzer, Pirouz Nourian, Michele Palmieri, Jan Van Gemert

Abstract:

This paper investigates automatic prediction of seismic building structural types described by the Global Earthquake Model (GEM) taxonomy, by combining remote sensing, cadastral and inspection data in a supervised machine learning approach. Our focus lies on the extraction of detailed geometric information from a point cloud gained by aerial laser scanning. To describe the geometric shape of a building we apply Shape-DNA, a spectral shape descriptor based on the eigenvalues of the Laplace-Beltrami operator. In a first experiment on synthetically generated building stock we succeed in predicting the roof type of different buildings with accuracies above 80%, only relying on the Shape-DNA. The roof type of a building thereby serves as an example of a relevant feature for predicting GEM attributes, which cannot easily be identified and described by using traditional methods for shape analysis of buildings. Further research is necessary in order to explore the usability of Shape-DNA on real building data. In a second experiment we use real-world data of buildings located in the Groningen region in the Netherlands. Here we can automatically predict six GEM attributes, such as the type of lateral load resisting system, with accuracies above 75% only by taking a buildings footprint area and year of construction into account.

Spectral Modelling for Spatial Network Analysis

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Authors: Pirouz Nourian, Samaneh Rezvani, Sevil Sariyildiz, Frank van der Hoeven

Abstract:

Spatial Networks represent the connectivity structure between units of space as a weighted graph whose links are weighted as to the strength of connections. In case of urban spatial networks, the units of space correspond closely to streets and in architectural spatial networks the units correspond to rooms, convex spaces or star-convex spaces. Once represented as a graph, a spatial network can be analysed using graph theory and spectral graph theory. We present four steps of modelling a spectrum for an urban spatial network; present an implementation of a state-of-the-art spectral graph-drawing algorithm and showcase a Spatial Eigenvector Centrality index, which is based on a novel definition of spatial networks based on Fuzzy Closeness indicators computed using Easiest Path distances.

TOWARDS 3D RASTER GIS; ON DEVELOPING A RASTER ENGINE FOR SPATIAL DBMS

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Authors: Sisi Zlatanova, Pirouz Nourian, Romulo Goncalves, Vu Vo

Abstract:

Three-dimensional (3D) raster are simple representations, which have long been used for modelling continuous phenomena such as geological and medical objects. However, they can result in large data sets when high resolution is used, which poses challenges to algorithms for vector-to-raster conversion and data storage. This paper presents a research towards developing generic techniques and tools for efficient storage, management, and analysis of 3D spatial data types in the context of the column-store database system MonetDB. This paper focus on some issues in converting vector to raster data models in 3D spaces.

Towards A Finer Heritage Management; Evaluating the Tourism Carrying Capacity using an Agent-Based Model

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Authors: Nan Bai, Pirouz Nourian, Anping Xie, Ana Pereira Roders

Abstract:

As one of the most important areas in the Palace Museum, Beijing, China, the Hall of Mental Cultivation had suffered from overcrowding of visitors before it was closed in 2016 for conservation. Preparing for the reopening in 2020, the Palace Museum decided to take the chance and initiate finer-grained tourism management in the Hall. This research intends to provide an audio-guided touring program by dynamically evaluating the Tourism Carrying Capacity (TCC) with the highlight spots in the Hall, to operate the touring program spatiotemporally. Framing an optimization problem for the touring program, an agent-based simulator, Thunderhead Pathfinder, originally developed for evacuation in the emergency, is utilized to verify the performance of the touring system. The simulation shows that the proposed touring program could precisely fit all the key requirements to improve the visitors' experience, to guarantee heritage safety, and to ensure more efficient management.

Voxelization Algorithms for Geospatial Applications

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Authors: Pirouz Nourian, Romulo Goncalves, Sisi Zlatanova, Ken G. A. Arroyo Ohori, Anh-Vu Vo

Abstract:

Voxel representations have been used for years in scientific computation and medical imaging. The main focus of our research is to provide easy access to methods for making large-scale voxel models of built environment for environmental modelling studies while ensuring they are spatially correct, meaning they correctly represent topological and semantic relations among objects. In this article, we present algorithms that generate voxels (volumetric pixels) out of point cloud, curve, or surface objects. The algorithms for voxelization of surfaces and curves are a customization of the topological voxelization approach [1]; we additionally provide an extension of this method for voxelization of point clouds. The developed software has the following advantages:•It provides easy management of connectivity levels in the resulting voxels. •It is not dependant on any external library except for primitive types and constructs; therefore, it is easy to integrate them in any application. One of the algorithms is implemented in C++ and C for platform independence and efficiency.

WHOSe Heritage; Classification of UNESCO World Heritage "Outstanding Universal Value" Documents with Smoothed Labels

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Authors: Nan Bai, Renqian Luo, Pirouz Nourian, Ana Pereira Roders

Abstract:

The UNESCO World Heritage List (WHL) is to identify the exceptionally valuable cultural and natural heritage to be preserved for mankind as a whole. Evaluating and justifying the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) of each nomination in WHL is essentially important for a property to be inscribed, and yet a complex task even for experts since the criteria are not mutually exclusive. Furthermore, manual annotation of heritage values, which is currently dominant in the field, is knowledge-demanding and time-consuming, impeding systematic analysis of such authoritative documents in terms of their implications on heritage management. This study applies state-of-the-art NLP models to build a classifier on a new real-world dataset containing official OUV justification statements, seeking an explainable, scalable, and less biased automation tool to facilitate the nomination, evaluation, and monitoring processes of World Heritage properties. Label smoothing is innovatively adapted to transform the task smoothly between multi-class and multi-label classification by adding prior inter-class relationship knowledge into the labels, improving the performance of most baselines. The study shows that the best models fine-tuned from BERT and ULMFiT can reach 94.3% top-3 accuracy, which is promising to be further developed and applied in heritage research and practice.

“WHAT IS OUV” Revisited; A Computational Interpretation On The Statements Of Outstanding Universal Value

Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000

Authors: Nan Bai, Pirouz Nourian, Renqian Luo, Ana Pereira Roders

Abstract:

The Statements of Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) concerns the core justification for nominating and inscribing cultural and natural heritage properties on the UNESCO World Heritage List, ever since 2007. Ten criteria are specified and measured independently for the selection process. The 2008 ICOMOS Report “What is OUV” has been a successful example to interpret OUV as an integral concept by inspecting the associations of the selection criteria in all inscribed properties. This paper presents a novel methodology for interpreting OUV using computational techniques of Natural Language Processing, Machine Learning, and Graph Visualization. Firstly, frequent phrases appearing in Statements of OUV are used to construct a lexicon for each selection criterion; Secondly, three similarity matrices are constructed as graphs to represent the pair-wise associations of the criteria; Lastly, the lexicon and graphs are visualized in 2D. The study shows that the lexicon derived from computational techniques can capture the essential concepts of OUV, and that the selection criteria are consistently associated with each other in different similarity metrics. This study provides a quantitative and qualitative interpretation of the Statements of OUV and the associations of selection criteria, which can be seen as an elaborated computational extension of the 2008 Report, useful for future inscription and evaluation process of World Heritage nominations.