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Acta Polytechnica Vol. 51 No. 3/2011

A Taxonomy of Technical Animation

D. Vaněček, J. Jirsa

Abstract

The age in which we are living nowadays is characterized by rapid innovation in the development of information and
communication technologies (ICT). This innovation has a significant influence on the education process. This article
deals with computer animation in technical education. Our aim is to show the taxonomy of education animation. The
paper includes practical examples of animation.

Keywords: animation, taxonomy, didactic function.

Utilization of animation
The use of animation as a didactic tool is connected
with the following notions: [1]
• Displaying a simulated model
• Displaying phenomena that cannot be properly
processed by other didactic tools

• Equipment that cannot be demonstrated by
some other model because of its size or haz-
ardousness

• Displaying technologieswhicharecostly in terms
of money, time, etc., or which are inaccessible
However, animation can also be misused, and

it is necessary to beware of potential shortcomings
of animation. Some of them were summarized by
Skalková. [2] The primary problems are reduced con-
tactwith reality and reducedfirst-hand experience of
students. Young people may get the idea that they
have learned everything through an animation, and
that they do not need to come into contact with ac-
tual objects or phenomena. This is a fatal error that
can have immense consequences. There can also be
negative impacts on learners’health if they sit contin-
uously in front of a computer screen. The utilization
of these modernmeans can also lead to several prob-
lems affecting teachers. Firstly, the transfer of con-
trol over the learning process from the teacher to the
student can lose some of the benefits that a learner
can draw from the knowledge, influence and experi-
ence of a teacher. This maymake learning inefficient
and affect the student’s orientation in the topic un-
der discussion. In addition, the student’s ability to
gain information from a teacher about the relevance
of a topic for other fields of study is dramatically re-
duced. We can also point out that teachers may be
put under pressure by the need to keep up to date
with innovations in education and in education tech-
nology.

Classification of computer
animation — taxonomy

Computer animations designed for pedagogical pur-
poses can be divided into a number of categories.
From the didactic point of view, animation can be
classified:
According to the student’s activity:
• Passive, where a student only observes what is
presented to him/her.

• Active, where a student participates actively in
running and displaying the animation. The stu-
dent can manipulate certain constituents of the
animation. If the student is not active enough,
the animation does not run and becomes only a
static picture.
Classification of computer animations — taxon-

omy according to didactic function:
• Motivational—amotivational animation is usu-
ally applied by the teacher at the beginning of
a class when giving an introduction to the topic
under discussion. The goal is to get students’
attention, and to engage them in the problem
that is to be presented.
An example of motivational animation:
• Electric power generation (Figure 1)

• Illustrative — these animations are designed to
provide an insight into the patterns of the phe-
nomena, technologies or processes that are to
be presented. They aim to explain the phe-
nomenon, technology or process under study in
greatdetail, with emphasis on illustration, clear-
ness and intelligibility. The student has a pas-
sive roleasanobserver, andcreatesbasicnotions
about the topic problem on the basis of his/her
observations.

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Acta Polytechnica Vol. 51 No. 3/2011

Fig. 1: Electric power generation

Examples of illustrative animation:
• soldering components by the SMD remelt-
ing process (Figure 2)

• the principle of an extruder for cable pro-
duction (Figure 3)

• thermal treatment (direct bainite transfor-
mation) (Figure 4)

• two-stroke and four-stroke engines (Fi-
gure 5)

Fig. 2: Soldering components by the SMD remelting pro-
cess [3]

Here, it is important to note that the line between
motivational animation and illustrative animation is
not clear-cut. We can often encounter a combina-
tion of both types. In such cases we will speak of
illustrative-motivational animation.

Fig. 3: The principle of an extruder for cable produc-
tion [3]

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Acta Polytechnica Vol. 51 No. 3/2011

Fig. 4: Thermal treatment — direct bainite transformation [4]

Fig. 5: Two-stroke and four-stroke engines Fig. 6: Presentation of Snell’s law [3]

• Demonstrative-interactive animation —the stu-
dent participates actively, and can affect the
components of the animation (e.g. by changing
the parameters of the phenomenon, technology,
or process that is being presented). The anima-
tion is usually of a programmed, simplified in
most cases physical model, which corresponds
with the patterns of the real world.

Examples of demonstrative-interactive anima-
tion:
• Presentation of Snell’s law (Figure 6)
• Laboratory devices for introducing impreg-
nating processes (Figure 7)

• Diagnostic, practicing the subject, an examina-
tion in which the student affects the animation
and tests the knowledge that has been acquired.

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Acta Polytechnica Vol. 51 No. 3/2011

Fig. 7: Animation of laboratory devices for introducing impregnating processes [3]

Fig. 8: Creating the cycle of a heat pump [5]

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Acta Polytechnica Vol. 51 No. 3/2011

Fig. 9: Characteristics of a silicon diode [6]

Here, it is necessary for some form of feed-back
to be incorporated to inform the student about
the correctness or incorrectness of the answer.
Dividing electronic components into correct cat-
egories, creating a correct network schema, cre-
ating the cycle of a heat pump, etc., can serve
as examples.
An example for gaining practice:
The principle of the heat pump — example of a

practical exercise, creating the cycle of a heat pump
(Figure 8)
According to the way of presenting the topic, with

regard to representation in space:
• Two-dimensional (2D), where plane geometric
figures are used to symbolize specific parts of
the technology. An isometric view can also be
used (so-called 2,5D) to emphasize the possible
dimensional configuration of the symbols.
An example of two-dimensional (2D) animation:

Characteristics of a silicon diode (Figure 9)
• Three-dimensional (3D)—all objects in the ani-
mation are representedby three-dimensional de-

piction and are also displayed in three dimen-
sions on the screen. Some modeling tools are
needed for creating the animation
An example of three-dimensional (3D) anima-
tion: Witness program— presentation of an in-
dustrial process (Figure 10)

Fig. 10: Witness program—presentation of an industrial
process

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Acta Polytechnica Vol. 51 No. 3/2011

Fig. 11: Program Third Wave AdvantEdge — thermal stratification

According to availability:
• Generally available, e.g. on the internet,
commercially-available educational CD-ROMs

• Restrictively available, only within specific edu-
cational facilities
It is obvious that these basic categories can be

combinedwitheachother. Theclassificationcouldbe
further specified, e.g. on the basis of specific special-
ized subjects, but that would lie beyond the frame-
work of this paper.
A simulation can be understood as a specific case

of an animation.
A simulation is a visualization of a specificmath-

ematical model. The input parameters have to be
set. The mathematical model generates output data
fromtheparameters. The inputdata is usually in the
formof specificphysicalquantities (e.g. tension, tem-
perature, pressure, force). The difference between a
simulation and ananimation lies in the incorporation
of random phenomena which exist in the real world
and affect the final behavior of the model. An exam-
ple is a simulationof an industrial process, a proposal
for interior lighting, a proposal for traffic operation,
etc.
Example of a simulation: Simulation of a cutting

process in theAdvantEdgeprogram—thermal strat-
ification (Figure 11)

Conclusion
Thispaperhasattempted topresentacategorization,
descriptionand explanation of specific variants of an-
imations for e-learning that teachers can encounter
in their profession. The main emphasis has been on
the teaching and learning aspects of the animations.
For the sake of better understanding, the theoretical
categorizationwas supplementedby specificpractical
examples. Technological aspects of creating anima-
tions are dealt with in the first and the third parts of
this three-part paper.

References

[1] Vaněček, D.: Informační a komunikační tech-
nologie ve vzdělávání. Praha : ČVUT, 2008.
ISBN 978-80-01-04087-4.

[2] Skalková, J.: Obecná didaktika: vyučovací pro-
ces, učivo a jeho výběr, metody, organizač-
ní formy vyučování. Praha : Grada, 2007.
ISBN 978-80-247-1821-7.

[3] Jirsa, J.: Tvorba počítačové animace pro potřeby
výuky technických předmětů, BP MÚVS ČVUT,
Praha 2009, ved. práce D. Vaněček.

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Acta Polytechnica Vol. 51 No. 3/2011

[4] Učeň, M., Filípek, J.: Izotermické tepelné
zpracování MendelNet’04 Agro Ed. R. Cerkal,
P. Ryzny, E. Fryščáková, T. Středa, Brno :
Mendelova zemědělská a lesnická univerzita
v Brně, 2004.

[5] Kříž, Č., Tvorba animace pro e-learningový kurz,
BP MÚVS ČVUT, Praha 2006, ved. práce
D. Vaněček.

[6] Kropelnický, R.: Využití animace při tvorbě e-
learningového kurzu, BP MÚVS ČVUT, Praha
2007, ved. práce D. Vaněček.

Ing. Paed. IGIP. David Vaněček, Ph.D.
E-mail: david.vanecek@muvs.cvut.cz
Czech Technical University in Prague
Masaryk Institute of Advanced Studies
Department of Engineering Pedagogy
Horská 3, 128 00 Praha 2, Czech Republic

Ing. Bc. Jan Jirsa
E-mail: jirsaj@fel.cvut.cz
Czech Technical University in Prague
Faculty of Electrical Engineering
Technická 2, 166 27 Praha 6, Czech Republic

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