A cognitive walkthrough towards an interface model for shape grammar implementations

Abstract

The present study arises from the interest in computing as an important partner in the design process and the new paradigms in design practice that emerge with the use of computation. Shape Grammars (SG) are an example of ruled-based systems that, used in applications in the field of computational creativity, might assist architects, designers and artists in the creative process, not only creating solutions but also as a way of developing new ideas. However, SG applications developed so far developed so far address neither the specific work of creative projects nor the computational knowledge and habits of the designers-in-general. With this in mind, this research intends to reveal our proposal of IM-sgi (the initials IM stand for Interface Model and sgi for shape grammar implementations), a model of interface for SG implementations that can help SG to be introduced in the project practice, as this is not a reality yet and could mean a great contribution for new creative and complex architectural and design projects. This paper presents the description of the analysis used to define the IM-sgi model, with the result of a Cognitive Walkthrough (CW) made to a group of SG implementations and with the interaction model of Scott Chase [1] as the basis to define the users and how they communicate with the SG implementation.