Generating Innovative Designs Using Qualitative Spatial Reasoning

In this paper we present a generative system supported by qualitative spatial reasoning. The approach incorporates qualitative modelling in an evolutionary system to automate the design of novel solutions assessed as compatible with a set of existing designs. The system is presented through an application of door design and demonstrates how development guidelines aimed at preserving a building or streetscape’s visual character can be met by novel designs. The results presented in this paper illustrate the generation of novel designs that intuitively capture key characteristics of the corpus of existing designs at a qualitative level. This approach provides the basis for new kinds of design tools