Abstract
We introduce the Dynamic Animation and Control Environment (DANCE) as a publicly available simulation platform for research and teaching. DANCE is an open and extensible simulation framework and rapid prototyping environment for computer animation. The main focus of the DANCE platform is the development of physically-based controllers for articulated figures. In this paper we (a) present the architecture and potential applications of DANCE as a research tool, and (b) discuss lessons learned in developing a large framework for animation.
