PhD Dissertation

Towards Realistic Real-Time Physics-Based Simulation

Anka He Chen

Doctor of Philosophy in Computing Kahlert School of Computing, The University of Utah, December 2024

Committee:

• Cem Yuksel (Chair)
• Yin Yang
• Mike Kirby
• Sheldon Andrews
• Giljoo Nam

Abstract

This dissertation addresses the challenge of achieving realistic real-time physics-based simulation. My research concentrates on creating parallel solutions for implicit time integration, delivering robust and efficient strategies for handling elasticity, collisions, and the dynamics of rigid bodies. A central contribution is the Vertex Block Descent (VBD) solver — a robust and parallel physics solver optimized for GPU architectures, capable of simulating coupled multiphysics systems including robots, soft bodies, cloth, cables, and rigid bodies.

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Award

ACM SIGGRAPH / Eurographics Symposium on Computer Animation (SCA) 2025 Best Doctoral Dissertation Award