Position-Based Simulation of Continuous Materials

We introduce a novel fast and robust simulation method for deformable solids that supports complex physical effects like lateral contraction, anisotropy or elastoplasticity. Our method uses a continuum-based formulation to compute strain and bending energies for two- and three-dimensional bodies. In contrast to previous work, we do not determine forces to reduce these potential energies, instead we use a position-based approach. This combination of a continuum-based formulation with a position-based method enables us to keep the simulation algorithm stable, fast and controllable while providing the ability to simulate complex physical phenomena lacking in former position-based approaches. We demonstrate how to simulate cloth and volumetric bodies with lateral contraction, bending, plasticity as well as anisotropy and proof robustness even in case of degenerate or inverted elements. Due to the continuous material model of our method further physical phenomena like fracture or viscoelasticity can be easily implemented using already existing approaches. Furthermore, a combination with other geometrically motivated methods is possible.