# Procedurally Performant Patterns

> A dynamic and flexible approach leveraging Procedural Design of performance-driven patterns in SideFX Houdini for Footwear and Industrial Design Applications. This workshop will establish a complete workflow from processing and importing CAD geometry, Algorithmic pattern design,…

## At a glance

- Format: On-demand course
- Price: €102.00 (list €120.00)
- Difficulty: Intermediate
- Duration: 8 Hours
- Schedule: Mar 22-23, 2025
- Instructors: David Burpee
- Categories: Footwear Design, 3D Modeling, Design Workshops
- Software: SideFX Houdini, Karma Renderer
- Students: 64
- Rating: 5.0 / 5
- Canonical: https://paacademy.com/course/procedurally-performant-patterns
- Enroll: https://paacademy.com/course/procedurally-performant-patterns

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## About this course

This workshop focuses on using Houdini for procedural design of performance-driven patterns in Footwear and Industrial Design, from CAD processing to prototyping.

## What you'll learn

- Contexts, operators, and attributes within Houdini

- Interoperability between CAD and Mesh workflows

- Concepts for Algorithmic Design 

- Processing and exporting geometry for Additive Prototyping

- Procedural material creation

- Rendering in Houdini / Karma

## Methodology

The workshop will provide an introduction to concepts within Houdini, such as the various contexts, operator types, attributes, and textual programming. We will cover a few common methodologies for interoperability between CAD and Mesh geometry workflows, including best practices for importing CAD geometry and preparing Mesh topology for downstream design processes.

This workshop will explore methods to integrate and combine multiple algorithms used in the design and creation of dynamic patterns used for outsole design, midsole or sidewall design in footwear, and other industrial design applications. We will include both visual and textual programming methodologies for advanced pattern creation.

This workshop will integrate performance data as an input to drive differentiation within pattern design, allowing patterns to adapt to various performance conditions. We will go beyond geometry creation, providing insight into leveraging the interconnected environment of Houdini to create procedural textures for product visualization and animation purposes. We will cover a basic rendering setup within Houdini utilizing the Karma rendering engine and some basic lighting, camera, and animation setups.

Finally, the workshop will provide an introduction to outputting geometry from Houdini for Additive prototyping. Ultimately, this workshop will take participants through a singular workflow covering multiple aspects of computational design in products and footwear, from design to visualization and beyond, highlighting Houdini's combinatory power within these domains.

## Curriculum

### Session 1
- Introduction + PAACADEMY Updates (08:16)
- Procedural Patterns Introduction (14:30)
- Houdini Setup and Preparation (16:52)
- Houdini Geometry Preparation Techniques (17:36)
- Houdini Pattern Control Setup (58:24)
- VEX Pattern Tool Creation (57:13)
- Geometry Manipulation in Houdini (56:32)

### Session 2
- Procedural Pattern Design (22:26)
- Generative Pattern Techniques (57:24)
- Curve-Based Pattern Control (19:50)
- Houdini Rendering Workflow Tutorial (56:47)
- Houdini Rendering Essentials (33:25)
- Houdini 3D Printing Insights (43:40)

## FAQ

### What software will I use throughout this workshop?
You will work primarily with SideFX Houdini for geometry processing and algorithmic pattern design, along with Karma Renderer for visualization.

### What specific footwear and product design applications will be covered in the lessons?
You will learn to create performance-driven procedural patterns for footwear components such as outsoles, midsoles, and sidewalls, as well as general industrial design applications.

### How will performance data be used to drive the design process in Houdini?
You will learn to integrate performance data directly into Houdini as inputs to dynamically adapt and vary pattern density and form across a product's surface.

### What geometry processing and coding techniques will be taught for mesh preparation?
You will learn best practices for importing CAD geometry, preparing mesh topology, and using visual and textual VEX programming in Houdini to generate dynamic pattern tools.

### What practical outcomes will I achieve for prototyping and product presentation by the end of the course?
You will complete a full end-to-end workflow, learning to export processed geometry for additive prototyping as well as setting up procedural textures, lighting, cameras, and animations.