Chen Ruolan - P-Designer

Overview

P-Designer is a VR-native 3D modeling tool that enables designers to create, edit, and arrange primitives directly in immersive space using VR controllers. The system is built around a three-category interaction model — Creation, Editing, and Global Settings — each mapped to intuitive controller gestures to minimize cognitive load and keep the designer's flow state intact.

The key design challenge was condensing a complex 3D modeling workflow into a two-handed controller interface without a keyboard or mouse. Every interaction was evaluated for learnability and muscle memory — prioritizing physical metaphors (grab, scale, sphere-select) over abstract UI paradigms.

System Design Structure

Feature Breakdown

Creation Tools
Create Primitives · Duplicate · Delete
Instantly spawn basic 3D shapes into the scene. Duplicate retains transform context; delete is gesture-confirmed to prevent accidental removal.

Edit Tools
Color · Scale · Mesh
Color editing uses a spatial color picker; scale mode activates bimanual grip for proportional resize; mesh mode exposes vertex-level manipulation handles.

Global Settings
Grab Move · Sphere Select
Grab Move lets users reposition any object with a natural grab gesture. Sphere Select enables multi-object selection via a radial volume — ideal for grouping and batch operations.

Controller Interaction Mapping

Left Controller
Enter Scale Editing Mode · Enter Mesh Editing Mode · Create · Confirm & Exit Edit Mode
The left controller drives mode switching and confirmation — keeping the right hand free for object manipulation.

Right Controller
Duplicate (trigger) · Delete · Enter Color Editing Mode
Object-level actions are concentrated on the right, with trigger-based duplication and hold-together gesture for Grab Move across both controllers.

View Feature Demo on Google Drive