Abstract: A system, method and computer program product are provided for transparency rendering in a graphics pipeline. Initially, colored-transparency information is collected from a plurality of depth layers (i.e. colored-transparency layers, etc.) in a scene to be rendered. The collected colored-transparency information is then stored in memory. The colored-transparency information from the depth layers may then be blended in a predetermined order.

Abstract: A method is provided of associating objects on a non-linear contour according to one or more corresponding values. The method includes assigning a value to each object in a set of one or more objects, providing a starting point and an end point on a non-linear contour, graduating points on the non-linear contour covering a range of values inclusive of the values associated with each of the objects, and associating each object in the set of objects along the non-linear contour according to the value assigned to the object and the corresponding value associated with a point along the non-linear contour.

Abstract: A method for tiling multiple displays to generate a large area display of moving data. Specifically, one embodiment of the present invention includes a system for generating a large area display of moving data. The system comprises a display image generator for rendering pixels of an image to be displayed as the large area display. Furthermore, a plurality of tiled image projectors are coupled to the display image generator to receive pixel data and to generate the large area display. The plurality of tiled image projectors comprise at least two image projectors. A first image projector which performs a first type of raster scanning sequence to display a first portion of the pixel data. Moreover, a second image projector which performs a second type of raster scanning sequence to display a second portion of the pixel data, wherein the second type of raster scanning sequence is different than the first type of raster scanning sequence.

Abstract: A system and method of graphical display of survey information in which input survey data is classified as important or less important and the graphical display shows the important data as a point and a solid vector, and the less important data as a point and a stub-vector, such that the display of the less important data does not significantly obscure the display of the important data.

Abstract: In a polyhedron generating method for generating a polyhedron enveloping a sequence of points present in a coordinate space, polygon data representing polygons constituting the polyhedron is generated based on the sequence of points present in the coordinate space, and the polygon data is changed in such a manner that the normal vectors of the polygon data satisfy a predetermined condition.

Abstract: In an image displaying system, the distribution of functions among the image displaying apparatus, the information processing apparatus, and an operating system controlling the operations of the information processing apparatus are clarified, and the capability of the image displaying apparatus to display an image with a display attribute varying from area to area on the display screen of the image displaying apparatus is determined. The image displaying system includes an image displaying apparatus having such a capability, and an information processing apparatus that can generate an image signal and transmit the image signal to the image displaying apparatus. The system can communicate according to USB standards, or according to DDC standards. The information processing apparatus transmits area-attribute information for changing a display attribute of a specific area on the display screen to the image displaying apparatus.

Abstract: The invention is a method and apparatus for clipping a function, such as a quadratic Bezier function defining a shading characteristic of an object being modeled. In accordance with the invention, a second or higher order function is clipped in “linear” fashion using barycentric coordinates. In accordance an embodiment of the invention, the method comprises the steps of determining a second or higher order function to be clipped, determining barycentric coordinates for at least one clipping point associated with a first order (i.e. linear) function associated with the second or higher order function and generating at least one clipping point associated with the second or higher order function using the barycentric coordinates. In one or more embodiments of the invention, the method includes the steps of using the barycentric coordinates to determine a reparameterized clipped function.

Abstract: In a data processor and a shading apparatus used in the data processor, the data processor selects an address based on the information of a memory or a translation look-aside buffer. Therefore, even when the same data are accessed, a different address at high speed is adopted according to the hardware, object to be processed, processing, etc. A plurality of geometric vectors are given as the parameters for the vertexes of a picture, the vectors are interpolated in the picture, and the luminance of each small area in the figure is calculated using the vectors generated by the interpolation. Therefore, a spotlight or highlight can be expressed with high accuracy and at high speed even when the amount of the hardware and the extent of the picture are small.

Abstract: A three-dimension image processing apparatus includes a CPU. When the CPU detects by collision determination that another object, e.g., a wall, is existent between an operable object and a camera, it calculates such a moving angle of the camera that an eye of the camera to the operable object is not obstructed by the other object. The camera is moved in accordance with the moving angle to a position where the operable object and the other object existing in a photographed three-dimensional space are displayed on a display.

Abstract: An image data generating method and apparatus in which, when performing viewing point conversion processing on data of strings of parallax images each made up of plural images containing the parallax information, data of a new string of parallax images can be generated promptly. To this end, a lookup table showing the relation of correspondence between pixels of respective images making up an original string of parallax images and pixels of respective images of a new string of parallax images is prepared at the outset and stored in a lookup table memory 72. The pixel interchanging is effectuated, based on the lookup table, in order to effectuate viewing point conversion processing, to generate the data of the new string of parallax images.

Abstract: A computer-assisted technique for constructing a three-dimensional model on top of one or more images (e.g., photographs) such that the model's parameters automatically match those of the real world object depicted in the photograph(s). Camera parameters such as focal length, position, and orientation in space may be determined from the images such that the projection of a three-dimensional model through the calculated camera parameters matches the projection of the real world object through the camera onto the image surface. Modeling is accomplished using primitives, such as boxes or pyramids, which may be intuitively manipulated to construct the three-dimensional model on a video display or other display screen of a computer system with a two-dimensional input controller (e.g., a mouse, joystick, etc.) such that the, displayed three-dimensional object manipulation emulates physical three-dimensional object manipulation.

Abstract: A computer graphics system renders an image on a display device using improved pre-filtering techniques that minimize aliasing artifacts in the image, particularly at the endpoints of lines. To anti-alias the image, a plurality of edges are placed near a line in the image. An edge function represents the edge. This edge function is multiplied by a scale factor to produce a distance function. This scale factor is the reciprocal of the Euclidean length of the line. The distance function is evaluated to determine the distance of selected pixels from each edge in units of pixels. These distances determine the intensity value for each selected pixel. Pixels on or beyond an edge, with respect to the line, are given a minimum intensity value; pixels inside all edges are given intensity values corresponding to their distances from the edge. An intensity function describing a relationship between pixel distances from the edges and their corresponding intensity values is developed.

Abstract: Color images are processed in a digital electronic device as data in the YCBCR (YUV) (luminance, chrominance-blue, chrominance-red) color space. However, output devices usually require the color data to be converted to RGB (red, green, blue) data and may have a color resolution less than the color resolution of the original image. The present invention provides a method of constructing a perceptually optimized color palette useful in converting higher resolution images of YCBCR data to lower resolution images of RGB data. To construct the palette the RGB color gamut is defined in the YCBCR color space. The YCBCR color space is divided into a grid of colors equally spaced along the CB and CR axes and perceptually equally spaced along the luminance, Y, axis. Colors in the grid are moved to the boundary of the RGB color gamut in each luminance plane to ensure maximally saturated colors.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus that blend graphics data. In a printing device, a first object is received and rendered into a frame buffer; a second object including blending instructions is received for blending with the first object; and rendered data associated with the first object is retrieved from the frame buffer and a blend of the two objects is rendered according to a user-selectable blending algorithm. The frame buffer may be a deep frame buffer. The blended data printed may be of a bit depth reduced from that of the frame buffer. The reduced bit depth may be achieved by halftoning the blended data. The blending algorithm may be transparency, shadow, overprinting, darkening, lightening, screen effect or additive effect. The blending instructions may include a blend operator defining a blend algorithm for blending two objects.

Abstract: An image generating system and information storage medium for generating an image preferable for a game in which a virtual camera follows a displayed object. The angle of view &thgr; of the virtual camera is changed based on the coordinates of the player's game character and ball while causing the virtual camera to follow the player's game character. As the distance D between the player's game character and the ball decreases or increases, the angle of view &thgr; is increased or decreased. Thus, the player can clearly grasp information about things around the ball. If the distance D becomes shorter than a threshold value Dth, the angle of view &thgr; is set at a fixed value &thgr;fix. This prevents an image from being distorted. The ball is always displayed on the screen in the central part thereof by directing the virtual camera in a direction from the player's game character toward the ball.

Abstract: A digital map display scrolling method is provided which is for successively scrolling a displayed portion of a digital map as map information in digital form within a display screen, the method comprising the steps of displaying the displayed portion of the digital map at the display screen, shifting a pointer within the displayed portion of the digital map displayed at the display screen, and making an amount by which the pointer positioned at the displayed portion is shifted correspond to the scrolling speed of the displayed portion of the digital map within the display screen.

Abstract: A computer-implemented method traps an edge in a color page described by page data, independently of the output device. The method comprises identifying, based on page data for a color page, an edge and first and second adjacent regions having the edge as a common boundary. defining a clip region, including the edge and at least part of one of the first and the second regions, and generating and storing device-independent trap data representing the clip region for use by an unspecified output device for trapping the edge. A page trapped by the method for output on an unspecified output device includes trap data for at least one edge represented in the page, the trap data for each edge comprising edge data, defining the edge, adjacent region data, describing a first and a second adjacent region sharing the edge as a common boundary, and clip region data, defining a clip region including the edge and at least part of the first or the second adjacent regions.

Abstract: A method, apparatus, and article of manufacture provides an interactive, dynamic, automatic dimension arrangement generator for a computer-aided drafting (CAD) system. The dimension arrangement generator selects one or more geometric entities displayed on the monitor of the CAD system and extracts one or more relevant dimension points for the selected geometric entities. The dimension arrangement generator selects one or more dimension line positions for the relevant dimension points, and then generates and displays the dimension arrangement for the selected geometric entities on the monitor of the CAD system in accordance with the extracted dimension points and selected dimension line positions.

Abstract: A data processor controlled display system is provided having on-screen graphic control objects which are a composite of portions formed by vector graphics and portions formed by raster graphics. The peripheral regions of the individual objects are formed by vector graphics and preferably have curvilinear portions while the non-peripheral portions of objects formed by raster graphics have higher visual resolutions.

Abstract: Disclosed is a method of reducing the complexity of hidden surface removal in 3D grapghic systems. A fuzzy projection (FF) of a surface (SU) as seen from a number of viewpoints (VP) in a bounding box (BB) is stored in a buffer (FA) having elements (FE). A combination of all the patches (PT) of the surface (SU) viewed form a fuzzy region (FR) where surfaces can be either visible, hidden, or unable to be determined with certainty as to whether or not visible/hidden. A non-fuzzy region (NF) describes those patches (PT) that are always visible.