Interactive Water Ripple Simulation

Project by Altamash Sheikh

Personal Computer Graphics Project Submitted as Final Project for COMP 438/6381 at Concordia University

Demo Video Link

Overview

This project is an interactive water ripple simulation built using libigl (C++). The goal is to simulate realistic wave-like ripples on a 3D surface, triggered by user interaction. Clicking on the surface generates ripples that spread, interact, and fade over time, mimicking the behavior of real water.

---

Features

• Click to Create Ripples
  • Left-click anywhere on the surface to generate a ripple.
• Adjustable Ripple Intensity
  • Q - Decrease ripple intensity
  • E - Increase ripple intensity
• Pause/Resume Simulation
  • Space - Toggle pause/resume
• Realistic Wave Dynamics
  • Ripples interact, overlapping waves amplify or cancel out.
  • Gradual wave decay for a smooth, natural fade-out.
• Reset surface to Default
  • R - Resets surface to Default (flat)
  • Useful to clear ripples/waves from surface

---

How It Works

The simulation is based on a triangular mesh plane that deforms dynamically. When a user clicks:

1. A damped sine wave function is applied to simulate a ripple at the clicked location.
2. The ripple spreads outward, modifying vertex positions in real time.
3. Overlapping waves combine (constructive interference) or cancel out (destructive interference).
4. The wave amplitude gradually decays to simulate realistic water behavior.

---

Installation & Usage

Requirements

• C++ compiler
• CMake
• libigl

Build Instructions

git clone https://github.com/altam-sh/WaterRippleSimulator.git
cd libigl-example-project
cd build
rmdir /S
cmake ..
make
./WaterRippleSimulator

From there, simply navigate to \libigl-example-project\build\Debug and run the example.exe

Note: If the build fails or the cmake .. command is causing issues, I've found success running the following command instead:

cmake -DCMAKE_POLICY_VERSION_MINIMUM="3.5" ..

Running the Simulation

Once launched, left-click to generate ripples, adjust intensity with Q/E, and pause/resume with Space.

You can also

• Zoom in and out with the mouse scroll wheel
• Pan the camera by dragging mouse
• Rotate view by dragging with right click

Known Issue & Troubleshooting

Ripple Positioning Bug

• Sometimes, when moving the camera, ripples may not appear at the expected position.
• The terminal will display a warning when clicks fail to register on the mesh.
• Solution: If this happens, it's best to restart the application.

Why This Project?

I've always been impressed by real-time physics simulations and how simple mathematical functions can create visually engaging effects. To me, they serve to blur the difference between the physical, natural world, and the digital world. It's easy to overlook everything that goes into replicating the various realities that come by default in the world. Having no experience myself with what exactly it took to produce them, computer graphics have always been an interesting enigma of sorts, so I took this opportunity enlighten myself.

This project was a deep dive into mesh deformation, interaction, and wave physics, with plenty of technical challenges along the way. All valuable skills to gain experience in, all the while producing a visually engaging project which was important to me.

Water ripples are often associated with calmness, and the mundane phenomenon is something that's always fascinated me. The wishing well representing a personal symbol of mine, the ripples on the surface of water seemed like a sound place to start.

[Thank you for your interest!]