Multiresolution Modeling: This problem requires a suitable internal representation of the object and algorithms that enable to switch between the various levels of detail..
When modeling geometric objects it is important to be able to switch between different levels of resolution of the object: At one time one might want to create fine details, like the eyes of a character, another time the designer may want to change the overall shape of the object without losing these details. This problem requires a suitable internal representation of the object and algorithms that enable to switch between the various levels of detail. In fact a decomposition of the geometric shape into disjoint “frequency bands” is necessary (multiresolution representation).
If the different levels of detail are defined relative to each other then we have a fully hierarchical representation of the underlying object. Our research is focussing on algorithms that allow the designer to interactively edit a freeform object on arbitrary levels of resolution. Besides the underlying mathematical methods we are investigating new design metaphors to facilitate the handling of multiresolution surfaces within an interactive framework.