CMU School of Drama


Friday, March 25, 2016

Gravity Sketch app aims to "lower the barriers to 3D literacy"

www.dezeen.com: The team behind a virtual reality tool that allows designers to sketch in three dimensions has launched an iPad app that turns drawings into virtual and physical 3D models (+ movie).

Tech startup Gravity Sketch released the app of the same name today, which can be used to create digital models for sharing, viewing with augmented reality, or 3D printing.

7 comments:

Monica Skrzypczak said...

This is a really cool app. The way they make it look so easy to create a 3D model, gives me hope that it really is that easy. And if it is that easy, this app is almost revolutionary. The ability to send it straight to a 3D printer after just drawing it with your finger is pretty cool. I can’t help but think though, that this is only useful if you’re an animator or avid 3D printer. The idea of making gifts with this app is really cute, and add a personal touch that you couldn't get any other way, and the ability to send out the file to be 3D printed so you don't have to buy a printer is probably a lot cheaper and accessible. Hopefully this app will open up the field for regular people to start animating more professional quality things in 3D, which would open up creative door for people who are struggling with 3D but have a lot of ideas. It will be interesting to see where this app grows and how it will be used most by the everyday consumer.

Emma Reichard said...

I love hearing about apps like this, because it makes complicated art practices so much more accessible. It allows everyone, of nearly every age, to learn about 3D modeling and printing. This can help emerging artists learn enough to eventually move on to better 3D platforms. It can also be super helpful in classrooms and projects, and the ability to send an order for printing through the app means that anyone could use it. 3D printing is quickly becoming the affordable, go-to solution to a lot of problems. People are 3D printing prosthetics, custom parts for projects, and a number of other things. Programs like this app could even let children create their own toys and dolls, making the experience much more meaningful and educational. But the effectiveness of the app depends almost entirely on its cos, because if this program costs more than what the average person will pay, then it loses its accessibility.

Unknown said...

How wild! I wonder if it is as user friendly as this video makes it seems. None the less even if there is an initial learning curve I still think this is a great way to get your foot in the door with 3D modeling. And then you can have it 3D printed with the touch of a finger! While I do see people making a ton of errors when 3d printing for the first time, I still think this is cool. I wonder if they will have a tool in the app that catches certain errors before people are able to send it to the printer, like corners not being flush end other things like that. That would be smart. I really love that this is also marketed as something children can use. I always wonder in such a technology dependent world what children will be able to play with and create with. And here it is. Futuristic Legos.

Annie Scheuermann said...

This is crazy! I absolutely love learning about new technology and find it so fascinating. This is such a cool thing, the images really looked 3D and having the technology to capture it like a floating object in another video is incredible. As much as I love technology advances and the innovative creations, I worry about its effect on the entertainment industry. It sometimes saddens me how easy it is to simple create places in movies through editing, it leads to less care and realness to the piece. This technology I can totally see used in the the future for live theater and for film making. Which allows for some incredible things to be done, however I think people already over use the technology we have when it doesn't add anything. I am really all for keeping things authentic unless their is a reason for it.

Noah Hull said...

This app sounds amazing. 3D modeling is one of the things I’ve always meant to learn or teach myself but I’ve never been able to find the time to learn another cad/design software. Autocad is complicated enough to learn and we have a class devoted to that. I don’t even know where I’d start wit teaching myself 3D modeling, let alone what program I would use. It probably doesn’t help anything that I could probably ask 3 different people that question and get 3 different answers. This app seems like it would be a good answer to that question though, especially if is similar to google sketch up in terms of layout and tools. Sketch up was my introduction to drafting software (and really basic 3D modeling) so it would be fitting if something similar acted as an introduction to 3D work (also sketch up was a pretty friendly interface to try and learn so hopefully this would be too.)

Alex Kaplan said...

This app seems really cool. I think that 3d printing and 3d literacy is so important in today’s world as 3d printing continues to get more prevalent. I think that 3d printing is really cool and from the article, the Gravity Sketch app seems like a good way to teach people how to do it, as well as how to think in a 3d space. This is a really important component to 3d printing, as most of us are use to drawing in a 2d space and using our minds to put it all together in a 3d one. I am currently learning how to 3d print in a class I am in and it is amazing. I think that it opens up a horde of new possibilities half of which probably haven't even been thought of yet. I will definitely look into this new app, as it seems like an easy and fun way to learn more about 3d printing.

Chris Calder said...

This app seems to be something that everyone would love. I can image this being a big hit for kids birthdays and even little knickknacks that you might. Want. Not everyone has the capability to use something like a 3-D printer or another piece of technology to make a rendering come to life. Maybe instead of your kids making birthday wish lists they will instead be able to design their gifts and see them as a reality.

I have a little brother and he is always looking in the app store for another cool game that will keep him engaged. I see this not as a product design app but more along the lines of a game. So many of the apps that are available on your tablet have you drawing and creating things; why not have them be able to interact with the design on a personal level. I can’t wait until I can download this onto my tablet and start experimenting with the various opportunities.