Interactive animation: a language and system for procedural modeling and motion

A description is given of MML, a special-purpose programming language developed for procedural models. The language is used to specify both the generation of the model and the motion of the objects in the model. A motion specification technique that works well with natural phenomena is presented. It has the advantages of being independent of the detailed structure of the object and lending itself to the construction of good user interfaces for animation systems. The MML language can be used to produce both interactive and batch animation programs. The user interface for the interactive animation programs is automatically constructed by the MML system. Several examples of the use of MML are given.<>