Abstract: A system adjusts floating-point-valued images prior to conversion to a display signal so that the dynamic range of the display device is effectively used. Images are adjusted using transfer functions to create an adjusted image within the dynamic range of the display device. The adjusted image also has a frequency distribution of pixel values to maximize the perception of visual detail. The system generates transfer functions from statistical attributes of one or more images. The transfer functions are applied to images on the fly as they are converted into a display signal. The statistical attributes of the image are computed on the fly as it is converted into a display signal. A first transfer function is applied to an image to produce an adjusted image in parallel with the generation of a second transfer function to be applied to a future image.

Abstract: A method, apparatus and computer program product for generating a texture map having a plurality of levels of detail for use in rendering an image which is displayed on a graphical display. A specified level of detail of the texture map is encoded as a sum of a plurality of scaled wavelet basis functions. A texture map corresponding to a more coarse level of detail of the texture map is generated from the wavelets comprising the lower frequency wavelets of the wavelet basis functions of the texture map corresponding to a finer level of detail. Preferably, the wavelet basis functions comprise Haar wavelet basis functions. Lower frequency wavelets from which the coarser level of detail texture map is reconstructed may comprise the lower half of the frequencies of the wavelet basis functions of the texture map corresponding to the immediately finer level of detail.