Foundations of 3D Digital Libraries : current approaches and urgent research challenges

Abstract

3D documents are an indispensable data type in many important application domains such as Computer Aided Design, Simulation and Visualization, and Cultural Heritage, to name a few. The 3D document type can represent arbitrarily complex information by composing geometrical, topological, structural, or material properties, among others. It often is integrated with meta data and annotation by the various application systems that produce, process, or consume 3D documents. We argue that due to the inherent complexity of the 3D data type in conjunction with and imminent pervasive usage and explosion of available content, there is pressing need to address key problems of the 3D data type. These problems need to be tackled before the 3D data type can be fully supported by Digital Library technology in the sense of a generalized document, unlocking its full potential. If the problems are addressed appropriately, the expected benefits are manifold and may lead to radically improved production, processing, and consumption of 3D content.