TY - GEN
T1 - From Hands to Algorithms
T2 - 20th ACM SIGGRAPH International Conference on Virtual-Reality Continuum and its Applications in Industry, ACM SIGGRAPH VRCAI 2025
AU - Cui, Yizhe
AU - Zhang, Tengyue
AU - Zhang, Xuanrui
AU - Xie, Jing
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2025 Copyright held by the owner/author(s).
PY - 2026/2/5
Y1 - 2026/2/5
N2 - Traditional Chinese timber architecture, recognized by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage, faces a transmission crisis as the tacit wisdom of senior craftsmen fades. This study presents an integrative physical-digital-physical methodology for decoding the craftsmanship of Master Wang, a specialist in spiral zaojing (caisson ceilings). Combining participatory ethnography, 3D scanning, and parametric reconstruction, we reverse-engineer the master's cognitive logic. The study validates this logic through a "Validation-through-Fabrication"framework: a student-led workshop that successfully replicated the structure using a hybrid workflow of photogrammetry, parametric modeling, and CNC/3D-printing fabrication. While identifying challenges in scan-to-NURBS interoperability, the results confirm that the decoded geometric rules (e.g., the 4:10 height-to-diameter ratio) allow for the effective transmission of "unspeakable"embodied skills. This research moves beyond passive archiving to active reconstruction, offering a replicable computational toolkit for heritage preservation.
AB - Traditional Chinese timber architecture, recognized by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage, faces a transmission crisis as the tacit wisdom of senior craftsmen fades. This study presents an integrative physical-digital-physical methodology for decoding the craftsmanship of Master Wang, a specialist in spiral zaojing (caisson ceilings). Combining participatory ethnography, 3D scanning, and parametric reconstruction, we reverse-engineer the master's cognitive logic. The study validates this logic through a "Validation-through-Fabrication"framework: a student-led workshop that successfully replicated the structure using a hybrid workflow of photogrammetry, parametric modeling, and CNC/3D-printing fabrication. While identifying challenges in scan-to-NURBS interoperability, the results confirm that the decoded geometric rules (e.g., the 4:10 height-to-diameter ratio) allow for the effective transmission of "unspeakable"embodied skills. This research moves beyond passive archiving to active reconstruction, offering a replicable computational toolkit for heritage preservation.
KW - Digital Heritage
KW - Intangible Cultural Heritage
KW - Tacit Knowledge
KW - Traditional Chinese Timber Architecture
UR - https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105032374053
U2 - 10.1145/3779232.3779456
DO - 10.1145/3779232.3779456
M3 - Conference contribution
AN - SCOPUS:105032374053
T3 - VRCAI 2025 - 20th International Conference on Virtual Reality Continuum and its Applications in Industry
BT - VRCAI 2025 - 20th International Conference on Virtual Reality Continuum and its Applications in Industry
A2 - Spencer, Stephen N.
PB - Association for Computing Machinery, Inc
Y2 - 13 December 2025 through 14 December 2025
ER -