Abstract: A system and method for environment mapping determines a computer-generated object's reflective appearance, based upon position and orientation of a camera with respect to the object's location. An embodiment of the present invention is implemented as a real-time environment mapping for polygon rendering, however, the scope of the invention covers other rendering schemes. According to one embodiment of the present invention, a vector processing unit (VPU) uses a modified reflection formula—r=e?(e·(n+eo))(n+eo)/(1?nz)=e?(e·[nx, ny, nz?1])[nx, ny, nz?1]/(1?nz), wherein eo=[0,0,?1], and nx, ny, and nz are the components of the surface normal vector n—to compute reflective properties of an object.

Abstract: A system and method for combining images generated by separate sources. The system comprises a plurality of video image data sources that generate separate video images. The video images are captured and scaled by image processing hardware to fit within the viewports of a target window generated by a computing device. The parameters of the viewports are associated with the parameters of the target window such that changes to the target window result in corresponding changes to the viewports. The method comprises scaling the separate images to fit within the viewports using redundant data within each video image to interpolate pixel data at the boundary regions of adjacent images to eliminate artifacts at the boundary regions.

Abstract: Exemplary embodiments of color conversion circuits and color conversion methods convert input color data into output color data. The input color data is positioned in a three-dimensional color space, which is divided into a plurality of unit cubes each having a fixed dimension. The input color data is converted by performing interpolations using conversion coefficients at vertexes of the unit cube within which the input color data is positioned. When the input color data is positioned on a gray axis of the color space, a substitution circuit substitutes some of the conversion coefficients such that the interpolation becomes a linear interpolation. As a result, it is assured that input color data positioned on the gray axis is converted to gray output color data.

Abstract: An operation displaying unit displays thereon a preview image of input information. A receiving unit receives a request for rotating displayed preview image. A processing unit rotates the displayed preview image in response to received request for rotating the displayed preview image, and displays rotated preview image on the operation displaying unit.

Abstract: Disclosed is a device and method for inputting characters or drawings on a mobile terminal using a virtual screen. To input characters or drawings through a virtual screen, the mobile terminal includes an electronic pen, a virtual screen generator, a position detector for detecting the electronic pen position, and a character recognition algorithm for recognizing a trail as a character. When a signal is input from the electronic pen, the mobile terminal detects the originating position of the signal and its trail. The mobile terminal recognizes the detected trail as a character and generates a virtual screen with the recognized character.

Abstract: An efficient symbolic differentiation method and system that automatically computes one or more derivatives of a function using a computing device. A derivative graph is used to graphically represent the derivative of a function. Repeated factorization of the derivative graph yields a factored derivative graph. The derivative is computed by summing the products along all product paths in the factored derivative graph. The efficient symbolic differentiation method and system operates on both single input/single output and multiple input/multiple output functions. For a single input/single output function, the order of the factoring does not matter. However, for a multiple input/multiple output function, the factoring order is such that the factor subgraph appearing most frequently in the derivative graph is factored first. The method and system also use a product pairs priority queue to avoid the re-computing of sub-strings that are common between product paths.

Abstract: A three dimensional (3D) graphics applications programming interface (API) extension provides support for specifying images in a packed float format. In the packed float format, floating point values of three color components are represented as N bits, where N is less than the total number of bits required for a standard half-precision or full precision format. For example, the blue, green, and red components may each be encoded to have a 5-bit exponent and a 5- or 6-bit mantissa with an implied leading 1. The packed float format is used to represent high dynamic range textures in a compact encoding to reduce the memory footprint needed to store the image data compared with other high dynamic range formats.

Abstract: The present disclosure is directed to novel methods and apparatus for managing or performing the dynamic allocation or reallocation of processing resources among a vertex shader, a geometry shader, and pixel shader of a graphics processing unit. In one embodiment a method for graphics processing comprises assigning at least one execution unit to each of a plurality of shader units, the plurality of shader units comprising a vertex shader, a geometry shader, and a pixel shader, wherein an execution unit assigned to a given shader unit performs processing tasks for only that shader unit, determining that one of the plurality of shader units is bottlenecked, and reassigning at least one execution unit from a non-bottlenecked shader unit to the shader unit determined to be bottlenecked.

Abstract: Various technologies and techniques are disclosed for improving output rendering in anti-aliased rendering scenarios. A pixel snapping mode of operation is turned on and off to improve output rendering. When the system detects that an animation has started, the pixel snapping mode is turned off, and when the system detects that the animation has stopped, the pixel snapping mode is resumed. Techniques for providing a smooth transition can be used when turning pixel snapping on. One example of a transition technique includes turning off pixel snapping when an animation begins by immediately lowering the strength of an effect of the pixel snapping mode to zero. Another example includes turning on pixel snapping when the animation finishes by raising the strength of the effect of the pixel snapping mode over a period of time until the strength is full strength.

Abstract: A face, as well as any other soft tissue of a character, can be animated much in the same way that a skeleton is animated by creating a soft tissue solver attached to the surface mesh. In particular, deformation objects are associated with regions of the surface mesh. The deformation objects deform the mesh according to deformation operators in response to a change in a control object. This soft tissue solver can be generated automatically given a set of salient points specified on an input mesh and a format file for the class of objects of which the input mesh is an example. The format file specifies what the salient points are, and the relative placement of the deformation objects and control objects as functions of the salient points. Specific deformation operators can be defined and associated, through the format file, with the deformation objects and control objects.

Abstract: Systems and methods for converting between a first color space format and a second color space format are described herein. The system receives a video cell in a first color space format comprising a plurality of pixels. Each pixel in the cell has a luminance value and a chrominance value. The luminance values of each pixel are compared to determine the brightest pixel in the received cell. The cell is downsampled to generate a second cell in a second color space format. The second cell in the second color space format comprises a downsampled chrominance value that is computed based at least in part on the chrominance value of the brightest pixel. The method advantageously reduces tinting of a high intensity pixel by the chrominance component of a neighboring low-intensity pixel.

Abstract: Methods and systems for displaying an image as a virtual representation of an object based upon detected external light are described. An illustrative computer-implemented method includes steps of detecting the ambient light of an environment, such as a room, at a display surface. Data representative of the detected ambient light is processed to determine a direction of the detected light with respect to the display surface. An image is displayed on the display surface as a virtual representation of an object based upon the detected ambient light. Shadowing affects may be displayed to create the appearance that the virtual representation of the object casts a shadow on the display surface. Physical objects placed against or near to the surface of the display surface may also have images displayed on the display surface corresponding to shadows created by the ambient light.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for buffering graphics data are described. In one embodiment, a graphics processing apparatus includes a storage unit and a reorder control unit that is connected to the storage unit. The reorder control unit is configured to coordinate storage of vertex attributes in the storage unit so as to convert the vertex attributes from an initial order to a modified order. The reorder control unit is configured to identify a subset of the vertex attributes to be stored within a common range of addresses in the storage unit, and the reorder control unit is configured to access the storage unit such that the subset of the vertex attributes is written into the storage unit substantially in parallel.

Abstract: Motion capture animation, shape completion and markerless motion capture methods are provided. A pose deformation space model encoding variability in pose is learnt from a three-dimensional (3D) dataset. Body shape deformation space model encoding variability in pose and shape is learnt from another 3D dataset. The learnt pose model is combined with the learnt body shape model. For motion capture animation, given parameter set, the combined model generates a 3D shape surface of a body in a pose and shape. For shape completion, given partial surface of a body defined as 3D points, the combined model generates a 3D surface model in the combined spaces that fits the 3D points. For markerless motion capture, given 3D information of a body, the combined model traces the movement of the body using the combined spaces that fits the 3D information or reconstructing the body's shape or deformations that fits the 3D information.

Abstract: A system, method and computer program product are provided for packing graphics attributes. In use, a plurality of graphics attributes is identified. Such graphics attributes are packed, such that the packed graphics attributes are capable of being processed utilizing a pixel shader.

Abstract: The present invention provides an image processing apparatus including: a production section configured to determine polygon groups each composed of a predetermined number of polygons juxtaposed in a first direction successively as an object block, which is an object of a production process, in an order in which the polygon groups are juxtaposed in a second direction substantially perpendicular to the first direction and produce apex data of the polygons which compose the object block in a unit of a polygon; and a determination section configured to store image data corresponding to those polygons which are positioned in a boundary portion of an immediately preceding block, which is a preceding object block to the object block, with respect to the object block from among those polygons which compose the immediately preceding block into a storage section for storing the pixel data in a unit of a data block to determine the number of the polygons which compose the polygon groups and are juxtaposed in the first

Abstract: A parallel graphics rendering system is embodied within a host computing system and includes a plurality of graphic processing pipelines (GPPLs) and graphics processing modules. The parallel graphics rendering system supports one or more modes of parallel operation selected from the group consisting of object division, image division, and time division. a plurality of graphic processing pipelines The GPPLs support a parallel graphics rendering process that employs one or more of the object division, image division and/or time division modes of parallel operation in order to execute graphic commands and process graphics data, and render pixel-composited images containing graphics for display on a display device during the run-time of the graphics-based application. An automatic mode control module automatically controls the mode of parallel operation of the parallel graphics rendering system during the run-time of the graphics-based application.

Abstract: A framework for performing graphics animation and compositing operations has a layer tree for interfacing with the application and a render tree for interfacing with a render engine. Layers in the layer tree can be content, windows, views, video, images, text, media, or any other type of object for a user interface of an application. The application commits change to the state of the layers of the layer tree. The application does not need to include explicit code for animating the changes to the layers. Instead, an animation is determined for animating the change in state. In determining the animation, the framework can define a set of predetermined animations based on motion, visibility, and transition. The determined animation is explicitly applied to the affected layers in the render tree. A render engine renders from the render tree into a frame buffer for display on the computer system.

Abstract: A system of processing map images includes a Web Mapping Service (WMS) for storing map images. A WMS proxy is operative with the WMS and receives from a client a request for a map image for display at the client. A WMS proxy includes a tile broker module that converts the request for the map image into a series of requests for obtaining map tiles. A cache system that stores the map tiles. The tile broker module is operative for returning cached map tiles if they already exist within the cache and retrieving map tiles from the WMS if map tiles are not returned from the cache. A tile building module is operative for building a map image at the WMS proxy from the map tiles in a requested format and resolution and displaying the map image at the client without resampling at the client.

Abstract: Graphical user interface objects are specified by a collection of attribute-value pairs, the collection of which comprise a complete description of the object and may be used by a rendering element to create a visual representation of the object. In practice, each of a first portion of attributes may be associated with two or more values—each value (for a given attribute) specifying that attribute's value for a unique resolution. A second portion of attributes are associated with a single value and are, therefore, display resolution independent. Accordingly, the target object may be displayed at any of the specified design display resolutions or accurately displayed at any resolution between the specified design display resolutions.