3D sketching for multi-pose products

Abstract

During the initial stage of design, 2D perspective sketching is an essential tool for designers. However, for products with multiple moving parts that assume multiple poses during usage, 2D perspective sketching can be painstaking and time-consuming. In this study, we show that such multi-pose products are prevalent in the context of product design and therefore propose a 3D sketching system tailored to multi-pose products. Our system enables designers to sketch 3D curves that can be freely posed and easily viewed from different directions; it makes sketching chained moving parts and propagating changes to different poses and perspectives effortless. We show that, with interactions closely resembling traditional 2D perspective sketching and the physical manipulation of an articulated object, designers can focus solely on ideating, iterating, and communicating multi-pose product concepts during the initial stage of design.