This contribution proposes strategies of reactivation of the central Apennine of MarcheRegion in Italy through creative design methods and virtual technologies. The research activities are connected to two related PhD projects: one focusing on architectural and urban design, the other one on heritage digitalization and new technologies and to other research activities of our interdisciplinary team. Cagli, a small town of 8.000 inhabitants, is currently undergoing socio-economic transformations that need to be addressed strategically with a cultural and spatial perspective. The research explores regenerative solutions and local development strategies to enhance the city and its cultural landscape. Participatory processes aided by digital tools and innovative design methods are tested in Cagli's living lab. The final output of the overall research is a "Reactive Map" combining a trans-scalar and multidisciplinary territorial analysis with visions to identify "potential spaces". The map is a design tool to define a shared strategy of enhancement of the city and its heritage. With this paper we present one of the methodological steps of the research, a WEB-APP built upon a point clouds database and assessed through a preliminary user test. The highly descriptive 3D environment is able to collect analysis and to be enriched in a participatory way during planned activities of co-thinking. The 3D environment, improved with interviews, plans, historical pictures and other media contents, is also paired with a virtual tour to offer a different representation of the "potential spaces". The fully boosting 3D digital technology thus represents a viable and effective solution to involve citizens and an innovative and interdisciplinary tool for knowledge advancement in the fields of architectural and urban design and heritage regeneration.
This paper introduces a new method for determining the shape similarity of complex three-dimensional (3D) mesh structures based on extracting a vector of important vertices, ordered according to a matrix of their most important geometrical and topological features. The correlation of ordered matrix vectors is combined with perceptual definition of salient regions in order to aid detection, distinguishing, measurement and restoration of real degradation and digitization errors. The case study is the digital 3D structure of the Camino Degli Angeli, in the Urbino’s Ducal Palace, acquired by the structure from motion (SfM) technique. In order to obtain an accurate, featured representation of the matching shape, the strong mesh processing computations are performed over the mesh surface while preserving real shape and geometric structure. In addition to perceptually based feature ranking, the new theoretical approach for ranking the evaluation criteria by employing neural networks (NNs) has been proposed to reduce the probability of deleting shape points, subject to optimization. Numerical analysis and simulations in combination with the developed virtual reality (VR) application serve as an assurance to restoration specialists providing visual and feature-based comparison of damaged parts with correct similar examples. The procedure also distinguishes mesh irregularities resulting from the photogrammetry process.
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