Physically-based geometric constraint resolution

In the control panel design of audio visual products, 2D objects representing buttons, dials, meters and icons must be properly arranged within a limited region corresponding to the panel frame. In such layout design process, various types of geometric constraints concerning the configuration of the user-interface objects must be considered. In this paper, the authors propose a physically-based approach for resolving the geometric constraints appearing in the layout design. Most of the constraints concerning the object arrangement can be translated to a set of non-interference conditions between polygons. Satisfaction of the non-interference conditions can be achieved by applying virtual repulsion forces to colliding polygons in the design process to avoid their further penetration. Based on this concept, physically-based kinematic simulation technology is applied to resolve the constraints. The proposed method is implemented and an experimental system for assisting the panel design is demonstrated