RP-aided production of physical models from frozen dynamic sequences

This is a report of course efforts in exploring and visualizing shapes made by movements. A pedagogical attempt was made to visualize forms made by transition. The forms were made by 3D scans of body movements in playing tai chi and by applying a "stitch" or "blend" function between two profiles. These exercises showed the result of form which was originally difficult to comprehend in a virtual world. A rapid prototyping (RP) tool was used to build the models to clarify the modeling process and details. The exercises contributed to a valuable pedagogical experience in communicating design concepts between students and instructor.