A Virtual Path Into a Once-Forbidden City

The Smyrna, Ga., resident has long been interested in merging science and art -- he graduated with a physics degree from the University of Georgia and enjoyed making clay models as a child -- and the Pixar (Nasdaq: PIXR) movie drove the point home.

"When I saw that, I really saw the potential for 3-D," he said.

Now a designer at IBM (NYSE: IBM) , Patel headed a 12-member team that recently finished an ambitious two-year project: a virtual recreation of China's Forbidden City that opened to the public Oct. 10.

Immersive Environment

In the online world, which resembles Second Life and other multiplayer video games, users will be able to create characters and explore the city, talking with other people and learning more about Chinese history.

Online character interaction is not new, and gamers have been teaming up to explore fantasy environments for years. But virtual worlds have now been dragged into the mainstream for social networking and cultural outreach.

Stanley Litow, IBM's vice president for corporate citizenship and corporate affairs, sees "The Forbidden City: Beyond Space and Time" as a way gaming technology can be used to advance cultural understanding.

"Something like that has never been done before," he said.

Long Time Coming

Litow said discussions with China's government and the Chinese Palace Museum started about four years ago.

"I think there was a meeting of the minds," he said. "We collaborated on this very closely."

The Forbidden City was built in the early 15th century and served as the imperial palace until 1912, when the last emperor of China forfeited his throne. The complex covers 178 acres and consists of hundreds of buildings.

The government allowed IBM's team special access to the Forbidden City, which researchers and photographers studied for more than two years.

"It was almost like a production team making a movie," Litow said.

Multiple Sources

Patel said his team of about a dozen people pooled information from satellite photography, paintings and books.

There were also two rounds of photography within the city, one for the buildings and one for the textures.

The team also videotaped a walkthrough to create a sense of scale.

"One thing you don't realize from the photography and the videos is how big it is," he said.

Then Patel's team constructed 3-D models from the images.

The next step was to populate the virtual city with characters using motion-capture animation. That involved studying clothing and customs to ensure historical accuracy.

Designers also added scripted events and activities. Users will be able to observe imperial residents and participate in cricket fights or archery practice.