Physical forces aware aging simulation on cultural heritage artifacts

Cultural heritage objects tend to change in appearance over time due to weathering phenomena and physical force effects, such as gravity or wind. Simulating such phenomena can be a useful guide for conservators and restorers. In this direction, the current paper proposes an aging simulation method which models the impact of physical forces using a particle-based approach. The proposed simulation method enhances the realism of the aging simulation through the creation of realistically shaped geometry regions for the decay formation under the effect of physical forces. Particularly, the case of gravitational accelerations effect was examined. The method is general and its application can be extended to different kinds of materials and weathering phenomena. A metallic sculpture has been used as a case study and the qualitative results presented in each intermediate processing step, demonstrate the overall functionality and the promising potential of the suggested approach in comparison with other existing methods and the decayed appearance of cultural heritage objects in their natural environment.