Enabling generative behavior within an interactive evolutionary design system using a component-based representation

The paper describes further research relating to an interactive evolutionary design system (IEDS) with emphasis upon extending it to support free-form design. A generative feedback loop is also introduced which, when using a component based representation, extracts user preferences regarding the various components at run-time. This information is fed back into the system to enhance the quality of the generated solutions. The background work leading to the free- form version of the IEDS for urban furniture design is introduced followed by a description of the component preferences extracted from user evaluated solutions. Finally, results of a multi-user comparative study between randomly generated solutions and solutions generated using preference data is presented.