Abstract: An example-based filling system identifies appropriate filling material to replace a destination region in an image and fills the destination region using this material, thereby alleviating or minimizing the amount of manual editing required to fill a destination region in image. Tiles of image data are borrowed from the proximity of the destination region or some other source to generate new image data to fill in the region. Destination regions may be designated by user input (e.g., selection of an image region by a user) or by other means (e.g., specification of a color or feature to be replaced). In addition, the order in which the destination region is filled by example tiles may be configured to emphasize the continuity of linear structures and composite textures using a type of isophote-driven image-sampling process.

Abstract: To provide a more flexible and higher level visualization technique for combining a plurality of analysis methods and visual representations, a view composition system, for combining a plurality of visual representations, includes a view manager for managing as a view a set of data for individual visual representation, a view retriever for retrieving from a plurality of views those views that can be combined, and a view composer for combining the views obtained by the view retriever. Optionally, a view displayer, displays the view produced by the view composer. The view composition system can combine a plurality of views using the superimposition of views and neighboring dimensions that have compatible domains.

Abstract: The present invention varies the highlight color of a highlighted display area such that the salience of the highlighted display area remains constant to a user as the highlighted display area varies. A perceptual highlight color is determined based upon the total amount of highlighted display area and the background color of the non-highlighted display area and applied to text selected to be highlighted by a user as well as to text already highlighted on the display. In other embodiments, the perceptual highlight color can be based upon the total amount of highlighted display area and the text color of the text in the highlighted display area, and the total amount of the highlighted display area, the background color of the non-highlighted display area, and the text color.

Abstract: An image processing unit is provided that is configured so that it can display one or more objects deployed in virtual space and a character established so that it can move relative to such object or objects. A processing unit is comprised that is configured so that, when a character has met a certain condition (such as entering or leaving a building) relative to an object (the building), of the display elements configuring an object deployed in an area related to the movement of the character, the display density of at least some specific display elements (such as a wall existing in front of the building) can be gradually altered. It is possible, with such processing, to provide roll-playing games that feature a high sense of realism.

Abstract: Methods and apparatus including computer program products for combining source images to form a final image, each image being a digital image defined by color component values and a transparency value. The invention performs the steps of receiving two or more source images, each defined by color component and alpha information; assembling a new, mixed image in per-component format by applying a selection operation on the color and alpha information of the source images to define color component and alpha information of the new image according to a source selection definition; and converting the new per-component image into a shared-alpha format to generate the final image in shared-alpha format. In particular embodiments, the selection selects a color value and alpha pair from exactly one source image for each color component of the combined image. The mixed image in per-component format can be converted to a shared-alpha format through use of a matting color.

Abstract: A method, apparatus, and computer instructions for displaying data. Each entry in a plurality of entries for an overlay window attribute table (WAT) is set with identical information in which a window identifier is unnecessary for accessing the information in the overlay WAT. Information in a color WAT is retrieved using the set of window identifiers in response to receiving a set of window identifiers. The information in the overlay WAT is retrieved without requiring the window identifier. Pixels are displayed on a display screen using the information retrieved from the color WAT and the information retrieved from the overlay WAT.

Abstract: A method and system are provided for positioning characters within an arbitrarily sized graphics window in order to maximize the distribution of unused space. The method and system are particularly adapted for the redistribution of characters produced during a terminal emulation session with another computing system. Characters produced during the emulated session are adjusted to completely fill the graphics window, regardless of its size. A fill justification procedure distributes characters in areas within the graphics window that would otherwise appear as gutters or margins. A character spacing unit maintains correct character image proportions in the graphics window while not rigidly adhering to a uniform alignment of character rows and columns. A linear distribution procedure allows the character image to fill the graphics window completely with a natural appearance.

Abstract: In one embodiment, selecting auxiliary screen regions to activate in rendering a straight line segment on a screen of a computer monitor, wherein the straight line segment comprises points defined by an algebraic expression equal to zero, wherein the expression is expressed as a first constant multiplied by a x-axis value plus a second constant multiplied by a y-axis value plus a third constant, wherein the straight line segment has a width.

Abstract: A multiplication circuit (33a) of a modulation circuit (33) is provided to multiply color components from a texture mapping circuit (31) using a texture information and triangle vertex coordinates by color components from an interpolation circuit (32) using triangle vertex color information obtained using a perfect scattered reflection model and the triangle vertex coordinates. On the other hand, brightness components of three vertex color information from the interpolation circuit (32) is added to an output of the multiplication circuit (33) in a first adder circuit (33b) to generate color components of an output image. Thereby, an image having a three-dimensional vision can be generated without any increased scale of hardware and decreased speed of processing.

Abstract: An image generator is organized into a plurality of rendering engines, each of which renders an image of a part scene and provides the part image to a merge engine associated with that rendering engine. The image is a part image in that it usually contains less than all of the objects in the image to be rendered. The merge engine merges the part image from its associated rendering engine with the part image provided by a prior merge engine and provides the merged part image to a next merge engine. One or more merge engines are designated the output merge engines and these output merge engines output a merged part image that is (a portion of) the ultimate output of the image generator, the full rendered image. Each merge engine performs its merge process on the pixels it has from its rendering engine and from its prior neighbor merge engine, in a pipelined manner and without necessarily waiting for all of the pixels of the part image or the merged part image.

Abstract: An image reducing device comprises a simple-averaging device that calculates a simple average of data of pixels of each simple-averaging area of original image data to acquire a pixel of middle image data, and a weighted-averaging device that multiplies data of pixels of the middle image data that are adjacent to a pixel of reduced image data by weight coefficients according to positions of the pixel of the reduced image data and the pixels of the middle image data to acquire the pixel of the reduce image data. In this method, the weighted-averaging is performed after the number of pixels are reduced by the simple-averaging, and this can obtain the reduced image of high quality without overloading the software and hardware. In addition, the edging can be easily performed at the same time as the weighted-averaging.

Abstract: A graphics system may be configured to render anti-aliased dots in terms of samples and to generate pixels by filtering the samples. The pixels are supplied to one or more display devices. The means used to generate the samples may perform the computation of radial distance at positions on a grid in a rendering coordinate space, and interpolate estimates for the radial distances of samples around the dot as needed based on the radii at the grid positions.

Abstract: Method and apparatus for observing a specimen image on a scanning charged-particle beam instrument in such a way that the original observational position can be automatically resumed after movement of a specimen or its image. When an image is observed at the original position after a specimen or its image is rotated or moved, a keyboard or a pointing device is operated to command reconstruction of the image. In response to this, the CPU of the instrument reads data from a memory that indicates the history of rotations and movements of the specimen and image. For example, if the specimen has been mechanically rotated, the CPU controls a rotational drive circuit according to the data read from the memory, the data indicating amounts and directions of rotations. The specimen stage is rotated through a given angle in a direction opposite to the previous direction. As a result, the specimen can be returned to the position assumed prior to the rotation.

Abstract: Methods and computer programs for processing a computer graphics illustration having overlapping pieces of artwork. The method includes flattening at least some of the pieces of artwork into non-overlapping regions, storing information describing how the appearances of one or more pieces of artwork can be combined to determine an appearance for at least one of the non-overlapping regions, determining an appearance for at least one of the non-overlapping regions based on the stored information, and outputting the determined appearance.

Abstract: A system for typographic glyph construction includes a graphics system, a glyph server coupled to the graphics system, and an operating system coupled to the glyph server. An apparatus for typographic glyph construction of input text in a graphics system running on a computer system and output on an output device of the computer system includes a line layout core unit, a glyph cache unit coupled to the line layout core unit, an open font architecture services unit coupled to the glyph cache unit, at least one scaler unit coupled to the open font architecture unit, a font object management unit coupled to the at least one font scaler, and an attribute group support unit supporting a data structure for communication among the units of the apparatus.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method, system, and computer program product for reflection space image based rendering of an object at an interactive frame rate. A set of source radiance environment maps associated with a set of source viewing vectors are warped to create a destination radiance environment map associated with a destination viewing vector in a current frame. Blending and weighting operations can also be applied in creating the final destination radiance environment map. An object is then rendered with texture environment mapped from the destination radiance environment map.

Abstract: A processing circuit capable of realizing an operation including a logarithm of 2 operation with a small scale circuit configuration, wherein a priority encoder and a shaft circuit normalize g data, a table outputs &mgr;=“log2({1, qm})−qm” corresponding to a mantissa qm, another shift circuit shifts data obtained by bit coupling a data maxe comprised by only an integer part and a &mgr; data toward the MSB by L, another shift circuit shifts data obtained by bit coupling an exponent qe and the mantissa qm toward the MSB by L, an adder circuit adds −&dgr;2, −&ggr;2, and {K, 3′b0, 10}, and a clamp circuit clamps the result of addition to a predetermined number of bits.

Abstract: A display apparatus creates, for each image, a number of subfields Z from a first subfield to a Zth subfield in accordance with a Z bit representation of each pixel, a weighing value for each subfield, and a number of gradation display points. The display apparatus detects a peak image brightness level and an average image brightness level. A weighing multiple including a positive integer part and a fractional part is determined based on the peak image brightness level and the average image brightness level. The weighing multiple is multiplied by the weighing value of each subfield to obtain a product capable of having a positive integer part and a fractional part. An integer value near the product is defined as a number of drive pulses for each subfield. The weighing multiple is increased as the average image brightness level decreases and as the peak image brightness level increases.

Abstract: A method and apparatus are provided relationally modeling a trimmed NURBS surface. The relational model may be formed of a NURBS surface object, a trimming curve object that depends on the NURBS surface object, and a third object which depends on both the NURBS surface object and trimming curve object. Modeling a NURBS surface and a trimmed NURBS surface as separate objects eliminates the issue of circular definitions discussed earlier with respect to relational modeling of trimmed NURBS surfaces.

Abstract: A printer forms an approximate of a Bezier curve as a sequence of line segments. Two parametric equations, X(t) and Y(t), are employed. Two methods can be used to evaluate the parametric equations. Both use fixed point integer arithmetic to directly calculate points along the curve which are the values of the X(t) and Y(t) equations. The first method sets the number of steps of the parametric variable are equal to an integral power of 2. This gives a predictable execution time and uses line segments to connect the points as a piecewise straight line approximation to the curve. The number of steps is set as the next higher power of 2 than an estimated length of the curve. The second method allows Y(t), the scan line variable, to change only in predetermined integer steps. The value of X(t) is evaluated for each t corresponding to the integer step in Y(t). This second method has a natural advantage, if a closed path is being decomposed as a run array rather than a collection of trapezoids.