Abstract: A system and method for interactively modeling a room using camera images. Images of the room are input. The floor is marked with calibration markers placed at known (x,y) locations. The user runs a program that lets him “click” on these points to establish a correspondence between their absolute (x,y) coordinates on the floor and their image coordinates in each view. These correspondences are used to compute a “homography” for each image which in turn is used to compute a warped version of each image, showing what the room would look like if viewed from above. These warped images are each rendered with respect to the same origin and are used as guides in a drawing program to drag drawings of objects to place them on top of the corresponding objects in the warped images. The warped images are then deleted, leaving behind the room's objects in their correct locations.

Abstract: In a method for representing a graphic object, rays are cast through the object. The rays originate at orthogonal planes surrounding the object. The surface of the object is sampled for shape and shade attributes at points where the rays intersect the surface. The sampled shape and shade attributes of each sampled point are stored in an octree stored in the memory.

Abstract: A system and method for intuitively generating computer-assisted animation utilizes a transformation space in which a computer input device such as a three-dimensional drawing wand is moved to generated constructed poses from a plurality of source poses. The transformation space may be in the form of a tetrahedron with each of the four vertices representative of a source pose. At any point within the three-dimensional volume of the tetrahedron, a constructed pose may be defined based on weighted averages of the four source poses. The animator may create a sequence of animation simply by moving the drawing wand within the tetrahedron. The rate of change of the transformations of the constructed poses is controlled by the rate of movement of the drawing wand but may be altered after the sequence of constructed poses is defined.

Abstract: A computer graphics system may comprise a graphics processor, a sample buffer, and a sample-to-pixel calculation unit. The graphics processor renders samples into the sample buffer in response to received graphics data. The sample-to-pixel calculation unit generates a plurality of output pixels by filtering the rendered samples based on a filter function. The pixels may be computed by generating a weighted sum of sample values (e.g. red sample values) for samples falling within the filter support. The coefficients used in the weighted sum may be added to form a normalization factor. One weighted sum of sample values may be computed per pixel attribute such as red, green, blue and alpha. The normalization factor may be computed in parallel with one or more of the weighted sums. Normalized pixel values may be obtained by dividing the weighted-sums by the normalization factor.

Abstract: A graphics pipeline system is provided with a transform module positioned on a single semiconductor platform for transforming graphics data. Also included is a lighting module positioned on the same single semiconductor platform as the transform module for lighting the graphics data. In use, various operations may be performed utilizing the single semiconductor platform such as rendering, fog operations, blending, coloring operations, etc.

Abstract: The present invention provides post tile sorting setup in a tiled graphics pipeline architecture. In particular, the present invention determines a set of clipping points that identify intersections of a primitive with a tile. The mid-pipeline setup unit is adapted to compute a minimum depth value for that part of the primitive intersecting the tile. The mid-pipeline setup unit can be adapted to process primitives with x-coordinates that are screen based and y-coordinates that are tile based. Additionally, to the mid-pipeline setup unit is adapted to represent both line segments and triangles as quadrilaterals, wherein not all of a quadrilateral's vertices are required to describe a triangle.

Abstract: A backface culling technique for clusters of polygons, as well as a method for generating efficient clusters from a set of triangle strips. The cluster backface test is directly derived from the traditional single-polygon test, and has about the same complexity. Memory requirements are 40 bytes per test. The cluster backface tests may be arranged hierarchically, with frontface tests added for symmetry. Experiments show graphics performance improvements of up to 50% in terms of number of effective polygons rendered per second.

Abstract: There is provided a method for accelerating the generation and display of volume-rendered cut-away-views of three-dimensional images. The method includes the step of rendering a three-dimensional image from a set of textured image surfaces. At least one image corresponding to at least one intermediate result of the rendering step is accumulated. The at least one image includes at least one accumulation of at least two of the textured image surfaces. The at least one image is stored in a volume buffer for subsequent rendering of cut-away-views of the three-dimensional image therefrom. The accumulating step includes the step of accumulating one image for each of the plurality of textured image surfaces. Alternatively, the accumulating step includes the step of accumulating one image for only some of the plurality of textured image surfaces.

Abstract: A geometric transform coder encodes the residual between a transformed base mesh and the original mesh, for each of a series of meshes in a time dependent geometry stream. The geometric transform that matches the base mesh to the current mesh can be derived from the input stream or provided by the author of the model.

Abstract: A method of constructing surface element layers for improving boundary shape of a hexahedral mesh used in finite element analysis comprises constructing a core mesh by superimposing a regular grid on a region to be meshed and removing external elements and external nodes of the region to be meshed; amending the core mesh to have a boundary shape similar to that of the region to be meshed by repositioning nodes on the boundary of the core mesh; constructing imaginary thin surface element layers on a boundary surface of the amended core mesh; and performing a mesh smoothing on the imaginary thin surface element layers.

Abstract: A method of updating in real-time the locations and velocities of mass points of a two- or three-dimensional object represented by a mass-spring system. A modified implicit Euler integration scheme is employed to determine the updated locations and velocities. In an optional post-integration step, the updated locations are corrected to preserve angular momentum. A processor readable medium and a network server each tangibly embodying the method are also provided. A system comprising a processor in combination with the medium, and a system comprising the server in combination with a client for accessing the server over a computer network, are also provided.

Abstract: Image data is converted to nonplanar image data for display on a nonplanar display, using a planar image graphics computer system, such as an OpenGL® system, which converts image data to planar image data for display on a planar display. A transformation matrix is obtained from the planar image graphics computer system. A plurality of vertices of the image data are multiplied by the obtained transformation matrix, to produce transformed image data. The transformed image data is nonplanarly distortion corrected to produce nonplanar image data. A passthrough transformation matrix, such as an identity matrix, is provided to the planar image graphics computer system. The nonplanar image data is then input to the planar image graphics computer system for further processing. The nonplanar image data which is processed by the planar image graphics computer system is then displayed on a nonplanar display.

Abstract: A system and method of interactively determining and displaying geometric relationships between three dimensional (3D) objects includes the steps of and apparatus for detecting the position of an input device, moving a selected 3D graphic object relative to a graphic pointing symbol in a 3D representation based on position of the input device, determining if the selected graphic object is moved to occlude an underlying 3D graphic object, and positioning and displaying the selected graphic object with respect to the underlying graphic object according to predetermined geometric constraints and the position of the input device. The system and method further dynamically moves and displays the selected graphic object according to movement of the input device and the predetermined geometric constraints while the selected graphic object occludes the underlying graphic object.

Abstract: A voxel transfer circuit that implements high-speed voxel transfer operations. When implemented in a 2D or 3D texture mapping circuit of a graphics system, or in a graphics card adapter of a workstation, the voxel transfer circuit provides a comprehensive, accelerated volume rendering capability to the existing imaging pipeline. For each voxel in a volume data set, the voxel transfer circuit generates a texel having an opacity value and a color value based on one or more properties of the voxel including the local gradient magnitude and a lighting model. The relationship between these values is referred to herein as a classification or transfer function. In the present invention, the voxel transfer circuit implements a transfer function that employs a gradient-influenced classification. Such a transfer function generates opacity and color values of structures with excellent edge and surface discrimination.

Abstract: A system and method for rapid processing of scene-graph-based data and/or programs is disclosed. In one embodiment, the system may be configured to utilize a scene graph directly. In another embodiment, the system may be configured to generate a plurality of structures and thread that manage the data originally received as part of the scene graph. The structures and threads may be configured to convey information about state changes through the use of messaging. The system may include support for messaging between threads, messaging with time and/or event stamps, epochs to ensure consistency, and ancillary structures such as render-bins, geometry structures, and rendering environment structures.

Abstract: A system simplifies a geometric model to accelerate the rendering of the geometric model. A surface description of the geometric model is stored in one or more of the system memories. A wire-frame description of the geometric model is also stored. A surface simplification process alters the surface description to create an approximation of the original surface description. A wire-frame draping process drapes the wire-frame description onto the simplified surface and simplifies one or more of the line segments that are draped, the simplified line segments and the simplified surface description are rendered onto a display device.

Abstract: A system and method of displaying a pedigree chart are described. The system allows for the adjusting of the resolution of the pedigree chart on the display. For example, the amount of information regarding each individual, the font size of the text describing the individual, and the zoom of the pedigree chart may be altered. The display may also include another frame which shows a“hand print” of a selected individual in the pedigree chart. Hint information, conflict information, chronological sibling order, the end of ancestral lines, and descendant structure for individuals may also be clearly displayed.

Abstract: A realistic image of buildings collapsing, as in a monster movie, is displayed. Each of the display blocks to be scattered after the collapse is previously set as collective movable display elements (1˜29), and objects (OBJ) simulating buildings and the like composed of display elements are structured and displayed. By separating the display elements, it is possible to create an image similar to concrete blocks after as actual collapse. Further realism is provided by changing the way the blocks fall upon a collapse of a building.

Abstract: An immersive video system for displays a view window of an environment using multiple video streams. The immersive video system includes a video source containing multiple overlapping video streams. An immersive video decoder selects an active video stream based on the location of the view window. A video decoder decodes the active video stream for the immersive video decoder. The immersive video decoder then selects the appropriate parts of the video stream to display in the view window.

Abstract: Methods and arrangement are provided for compressing and transporting image-based rendering (IBR) data using alignment and three-dimensional (3D) wavelet transform techniques, and selectively decompressing portions of the resulting compressed data to render various two-dimensional (2D) views of a 3D scene. A compression engine compresses the IBR data using a 3D wavelet transform and outputs a compressed bitstream comprising encoded frequency coefficients associated with the IBR data. This compressed bitstream can then be provided to a separate decompression engine that selectively decodes portions of the compressed bitstream based on an access request for image data associated with a desired view from a rendering engine. Through a mixed cache, the progressive inverse wavelet synthesis (PIWS) engine decompresses the decoded portions with minimum calculation, and provides the decompressed IBR data to the rendering engine.