Gaussian Swaying: Surface-Based Framework for Aerodynamic Simulation with 3D Gaussians

TL;DR

Gaussian Swaying introduces a surface-based aerodynamic simulation framework using 3D Gaussians, enabling efficient, realistic, and unified simulation and rendering without complex meshing or discrete particles.

Contribution

It presents a novel Gaussian-based surface representation for aerodynamic simulation that unifies dynamics and rendering, improving efficiency and realism over traditional methods.

Findings

Achieves state-of-the-art performance in aerodynamic simulation.

Demonstrates efficiency and scalability on synthetic and real-world datasets.

Provides a unified framework for simulation and rendering using Gaussian patches.

Abstract

Branches swaying in the breeze, flags rippling in the wind, and boats rocking on the water all show how aerodynamics shape natural motion -- an effect crucial for realism in vision and graphics. In this paper, we present Gaussian Swaying, a surface-based framework for aerodynamic simulation using 3D Gaussians. Unlike mesh-based methods that require costly meshing, or particle-based approaches that rely on discrete positional data, Gaussian Swaying models surfaces continuously with 3D Gaussians, enabling efficient and fine-grained aerodynamic interaction. Our framework unifies simulation and rendering on the same representation: Gaussian patches, which support force computation for dynamics while simultaneously providing normals for lightweight shading. Comprehensive experiments on both synthetic and real-world datasets across multiple metrics demonstrate that Gaussian Swaying achieves state-of-the-art performance and efficiency, offering a scalable approach for realistic aerodynamic scene simulation.