Useful semantic product properties in virtual worlds

This paper deals with the question how semantic properties of product items can be used to enhance their usability in virtual scenes. The underlying thesis is that more "natural" behaviour of virtual product models will make it more easy, especially for untrained users, to plan and work in 3D-applications - such as electronic catalogues, product configurators, and CAD-based planning systems. The following is a report on basic concepts, as well as mid-term results, from a European project called SpacemantiX, funded under the IST programme's "Semantic Web Technologies" action line. The focus here is put on the results of user requirements, and its transformation into application logic and data modelling.