Abstract: The introduced method and system use a 4-dimensional (4D) light field as a background of a scene, instead of 2D background image. Realizing computing a light field takes tremendous amounts of processing power, data storage and time (even with the currently available hardware), the introduced method and system compute and store the light field before rendering a scene. To reduce the time storing and accessing the light field during the rendering process, the introduced method and system also uses a modified video codec to compress and decompress the light field as 2D images.

Abstract: The introduced method and system use a 4-dimensional (4D) light field as a background of a scene, instead of 2D background image. Realizing computing a light field takes tremendous amounts of processing power, data storage and time (even with the currently available hardware), the introduced method and system compute and store the light field before rendering a scene. To reduce the time storing and accessing the light field during the rendering process, the introduced method and system also uses a modified video codec to compress and decompress the light field as 2D images.

Abstract: A material representation data structure and a method of representing a material for digital image synthesis. The data structure may be embodied in a graphics processing subsystem, including: (1) a memory configured to store a material representation data structure according to which a material is declaratively represented by a property indicative of an interaction between the material and light, and (2) a processor operable to gain access to the memory and employ the property in a rendering procedure defined independent of the material representation data structure and designed to effect the interaction.

Abstract: A processing system, a method of carrying out sample-based rendering (such as true or quasi-Monte Carlo rendering) in a multi- or many-core processor processing system and a graphics processing unit (GPU) incorporating the processing system or the method. In one embodiment, the processing system includes: (1) a sample-space distributor operable to distribute a first subset of samples for a pixel of an image to a first compute core for sample-based rendering therewith and a second subset of samples for the pixel to a second compute core for the sample-based rendering therewith, the second subset differing from the first subset and (2) a sample-space combiner associated with the sample-space distributor and operable to combine results of the sample-based rendering.

Abstract: A material representation data structure and a method of representing a material for digital image synthesis. The data structure may be embodied in a graphics processing subsystem, including: (1) a memory configured to store a material representation data structure according to which a material is declaratively represented by a property indicative of an interaction between the material and light, and (2) a processor operable to gain access to the memory and employ the property in a rendering procedure defined independent of the material representation data structure and designed to effect the interaction.