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FlowControl

University of Pennsylvania, CIS 6600: Advanced Computer Graphics Spring 2026, Final Project.

A project by Anya Agarwal and Caroline Fernandes.

Introduction

Flow Control is a Maya Plugin recreating the SIGGRAPH paper Going with the Flow from 2024. In doing so we hope to create animations that are an approximation of fluid dynamics; this won't require costly volumetric calculations, which leads to an efficient and stable tool for animators.

Goals and Objectives

  • Production Need: Bridges the gap between static keyframed animation and high-fidelity expensive global fluid simulations to capture nuanced behaviors between a body and the fluid around it.
  • Core Functionality: The system approximates the simulation using only local calculations at the body's surface
  • Main Capabilities: Supports both rigid and shape changing geometry
  • Real World Simulation: Accurate simulation across varying fluid densities

Technical Approach

  • Kirchhoff Tensor: Accounts for the combined inertia of the body and the surrounding fluid.
    • Added Mass calculated via the inverse average mean curvature
  • Momentum: body momentum, fluid momentum approximation
  • Local Force Approximation: Avoids the Poisson solve — the fluid's kinetic energy is approximated near the boundary
  • Resistive Thrust: simulate propulsion
    • Lift & Drag: Per mesh face angle
  • Geometric Integration: Solved using Newton's method
    • The variational integrator is on the Lie group SE(3)

Results

Sea Turtle

By simulating a turtle in water ($\rho = 998$), the plugin recovers forward propulsion from a stationary flipper cycle. We achieve neutral buoyancy by precisely balancing the body mass (24.45 kg) against the 0.024 m³ displaced volume.

Input: Animated Sequence Output: Simulated Animation in Water

Fountain

The user can keyframe the fluid density of the simulation, so that the fluid material can change from air to water. This allows for the cannon scene, where the object is moving through air, and then slows down after hitting the water. Once in water, the objects sink according to their geometry shape and mass. For example, the propeller slightly spins in the water.

Cannon from Air to Water Objects Sinking in Water

Paper Copter

This simulation can also capture the fluttering and spinning descent of light objects. It utilizes volume-weighted mass density to simulate the "paperclip effect", lowering the center of mass to stabilize the aerodynamic flight path.

Paper Copter Falling Close Up of Copter

Leaf

Similarly, the light mass of the leaf as well as its shape creates the effect of the leaf fluttering through the air. The simulation makes this movement look quite accurate.

Paper Copter Falling Close Up of Copter