SBIR Phase II: Computer-Aided Mosaic Design and Construction

这个小企业创新研究（SBIR）的第二阶段项目将开发一个计算机辅助的马赛克设计和机器人装配系统，以实现一个有几个世纪历史的手工过程的自动化。尽管马赛克在艺术和建筑中占有重要地位，但设计和组装起来却很困难。劳动密集型方法顽固地抵制自动化，增加了相当大的成本和项目延误。Artaic的第一阶段研究证明了计算机辅助设计软件创建手工马赛克的渲染图和数字蓝图的可行性，该软件引入了一个精简的、程序化的瓷砖布局工作流程，与马赛克艺术家的工作流程非常相似，并且比手工方法快10倍以上。第二阶段研究的目标是展示这种镶嵌设计和机器人装配系统的速度、有效性、实用性和艺术性。第二阶段的主要目标是：(1)展示一个手工马赛克设计系统的原型；(2)演示机器人马赛克生产系统，该系统将：(3)通过用户评估验证准确性、速度和质量；(4)评估经济和商业潜力。预期的技术成果将使马赛克设计和生产过程从手工到自动化的革命性进步，堪比数码相机技术对胶片的取代。这个项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力在于艺术、设计、建筑和建筑。软件和机器人自动化将降低马赛克的成本，并增加其装饰公共、商业和住宅空间的传统社会影响。艺术家、设计师和建造者将有一种明显更快的方法来制作手工马赛克，而不需要手工设计和生产的高成本和时间。这种计算机辅助马赛克设计和制造系统所带来的效率将使Artaic能够扩展到全球数十亿美元的瓷砖市场，并培养国内劳动力与全球手工马赛克艺术品制造商竞争。此外，第二阶段开发的渲染算法的计算需求将推动先进gpu和cpu的进一步发展——英特尔、英伟达和AMD等公司将为越来越先进的渲染算法提供解决方案。也许这项技术的发展最显著的社会效益是它的潜力，使手工马赛克设计和生产可访问和负担得起的普通大众，因为这项研究使任何Photoshop艺术家成为马赛克艺术家，它也具有重要的承诺作为教育工具在我们国家的学校。

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project will develop a computer-aided mosaicdesign and robotic assembly system for automation of a centuries-old manual process. Despite theirprominence in art and architecture, mosaics are arduous to design and assemble. Labor-intensivemethods have stubbornly resisted automation, adding considerable cost and delay to projects. Artaic'sPhase I research proved feasibility of computer-aided design software to create renderings and digitalblueprints of artisanal mosaics by introducing a streamlined, procedural workflow for tile layout thatclosely mimicked the workflow of mosaic artists, and did so over 10x faster than manual methods. Thegoal of the Phase II research is to demonstrate the speed, effectiveness, utility, and artistic quality of this mosaic design and robotic assembly system. The key Phase II objectives are to: (1) demonstrate aprototype artisanal mosaic design system and; (2) demonstrate a robotic mosaic production system, thatwill be: (3) validated for accuracy, speed, and quality through user assessment, and; (4) evaluated foreconomic and commercial potential. Anticipated technical results will enable a revolutionaryadvancement from manual to automated processes in mosaic design and production, comparable to thedisplacement of film by digital camera technology.The broader impact/commercial potential of this project lies in art, design, construction, andarchitecture. Software and robotic automation will lower the cost of mosaics and increase its traditionalsocietal impact of adorning public, commercial, and residential spaces. Artists, designers, and builderswill have a significantly faster method to produce artisanal mosaics without the high cost andtime associated with manual design and production. The efficiencies made possible by this proposedcomputer-aided mosaic design and manufacturing system will enable Artaic to expand into the globalmulti-billion dollar tile market and develop a domestic workforce to compete against globalmanufacturers of handcrafted mosaic artwork. Additionally, the computational demands of the renderingalgorithms developed during Phase II will give impetus to further development of advanced GPUs andCPUs -- with companies such as Intel, Nvidia, and AMD providing solutions for increasingly moreadvanced rendering algorithms. Perhaps the most significant societal benefit from the development ofthis technology is its potential to make artisanal mosaic design and production accessible and affordableto the general public, and because this research enables any Photoshop artist to become a mosaic artist, italso hold significant promise as an educational tool in our nation's schools.