UCLA Creating Computerized 3-D Map of Los Angeles Basin
The UCLA Department of Architecture is putting together a 3-D map of the 4,000- square-mile Los Angeles Basin.
The map--which would project the details on a television or computer screen and allow the user to navigate the city with a computer mouse--is expected to be completed in five years. It has so far covered 20 square miles, said Bill Jepson, the department’s director of computing.
“We wanted to come up with a map through which you can walk, fly, or drive using a computer mouse. You will be able to read the signs in the windows and graffiti on the walls,” he said.
The cost thus far is about $300,000, with the final price tag still unknown.
Costs are being underwritten mostly by commercial developers. “This technology has previously been used a mile at a time,” Jepson said. “But going to this size, we need to come up with tools which have not yet been invented.”
The map allows users to simulate the effects of a proposed development, allowing “community members to better understand its impact,” Jepson said.
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