Abstract: An imaging system includes a Read-Out Integrated Circuit (ROIC) configured to receive high spatial resolution imagery having a detected amount of energy from a detection device. The ROIC includes a mask generator and a high-resolution image decode. The mask generator applies a pixel mask to the high spatial resolution imagery so as to generate compressed high spatial resolution imagery that preserves the detected amount of energy. The high-resolution image decoder receives the compressed high spatial resolution imagery and decompresses the compressed high spatial resolution imagery and obtain the high spatial resolution imagery having a detected amount of energy.

Abstract: An imaging system includes a Read-Out Integrated Circuit (ROIC) configured to receive high spatial resolution imagery having a detected amount of energy from a detection device. The ROIC includes a mask generator and a high-resolution image decode. The mask generator applies a pixel mask to the high spatial resolution imagery so as to generate compressed high spatial resolution imagery that preserves the detected amount of energy. The high-resolution image decoder receives the compressed high spatial resolution imagery and decompresses the compressed high spatial resolution imagery and obtain the high spatial resolution imagery having a detected amount of energy.

Abstract: A blow molded nursery container is disclosed that includes a substantially circular side wall, a closed bottom end, an open top end, and a projecting lip positioned on the outer circumference of the open top end with a radial flange and recessed portion with a substantially hollow cross-section. At least two handles are connected to the container. Each handle includes a flexible member with a portion that is located above and spaced apart from the lip. The spacing of the flexible member permits access by a user's fingers. The flexible member extends through at least two holes in the side wall or flange and is restrained on the opposite side of the side wall or flange from the portion above the lip so as to connect the handle to the container. The two flexible members are preferably secured to one another.

Abstract: Surfaces without a global surface coordinate system are divided into surface regions having local surface coordinate systems to enable the caching of surface attribute values. A surface attribute value for a surface region may include contributions from two or more adjacent surfaces. Sample points may be arranged at the corners, rather than centers, of surface regions and include prefiltered values based on two or more surfaces. A renderer may sample the surface attribute function using these prefiltered values without accessing any adjacent surfaces, even if the renderer's filter crosses a surface boundary. A multiresolution cache stores surface attribute values at different resolution levels for surface regions of one or more surfaces, which may be discontiguous. Two or more resolution levels may have the same number of sample points but have values based on filters with different areas and spatial frequency limits. Resolution levels may be selected based on geodesic distance on a surface.

Abstract: A blow molded nursery container is disclosed that includes a substantially circular side wall, a closed bottom end, an open top end, and a projecting lip positioned on the outer circumference of the open top end with a radial flange and recessed portion with a substantially hollow cross-section. At least two handles are connected to the container. Each handle includes a flexible member with a portion that is located above and spaced apart from the lip. The spacing of the flexible member permits access by a user's fingers. The flexible member extends through at least two holes in the side wall or flange and is restrained on the opposite side of the side wall or flange from the portion above the lip so as to connect the handle to the container. The two flexible members are preferably secured to one another.

Abstract: Adaptive sampling alleviates aliasing by partitioning the field of view of an image sample point into depth regions. Portions of the scene are sampled within a depth region using sample rays. If a sample ray is not completely occluded in the depth region, corresponding sample rays are evaluated in adjacent depth regions. Sample rays can be recursively evaluated in further depth regions until all the subsamples intersect opaque objects or a depth limit or transparency threshold is reached. The value of an image sample point is the weighted combination of sample rays. The number of sample rays in each depth region may increase monotonically with distance along a line of sight from an image sample point for effects such as reflection, refraction, and illumination. The number of sample rays in each depth region may increase monotonically with distance from a focal plane for effects such as depth of field.

Abstract: An image may be represented by a directed acyclic graph (DAG) including a number of nodes on paths between input parameters and output values. Intermediate operations are performed at the nodes to produce intermediate output values. One or more of the input parameters may be modified (e.g., by an animator). A determination is then made as to which intermediate output values are affected by the modified input parameters. A simplified DAG is constructed from the nodes corresponding to the intermediate output values affected by the modified input parameters. The intermediate output values that are not affected by the modified input parameters and are maintained at a constant value corresponding to a previously determined value for the intermediate output value. The simplified DAG is evaluated to determine the output resulting from the modified input parameter such that the image may be re-rendered without re-evaluating the full DAG.

Abstract: A shader can include a series of instructions, among which are horizontal instructions and vertical instructions. Executing such shader for rendering animation information may mean many redundant computations on millions of graphic data points. Thus, vertical instructions are separated out from horizontal instructions and executed in a vertical manner, thereby reducing rendering time and cache space used during the process. That is, a block of instructions is recursively subdivided until a number of instructions that are to be executed in a horizontal manner are approximately minimized in each sub-block. All of the identified vertical sub-blocks can process each data point individually and independently from other data points, thereby achieving various advantages, including, but not limited to, temporary processing, index processing, efficient caching and the like.

Abstract: A degree of detail calculation required for calculations to process computer graphics data is determined based on input parameters that are varying in certain dimensions. During a detail analysis of a shader, a directed graph is built in such a way that each connection between nodes indicates a dependency among inputs and outputs of calculations and/or input parameters. For each input parameter, variability information about the input parameter is obtained. A lattice or a table representing dimensional variability is used to determine a variability value for each calculation for given input parameters and dependency relationships among other calculations. After a variability value has been determined for each calculation, calculations are grouped into several groups and executed once per the variability value.

Abstract: An ordered object list is compared with an ordered ray list and if the coordinate value of an entry in the ray list is less than the coordinate value of an entry in the object list, then the ray is added to an active ray list, and a trace of that ray is made against all objects in an active object list. If the coordinate value of the entry in the ray list is greater than the coordinate value of the entry in the object list, then the coordinate value corresponding to the entry in the object list is added to an active object list, and a trace of all rays in the active ray list is made against that coordinate value. Rays and objects are removed from the active lists based on determinations as to whether a trace hit occurred and/or which object point is encountered.

Abstract: Methods for processing print jobs in rendering devices include representing multiple to-be-printed objects with fewer such objects before processing of the objects occurs. In this manner, processing and memory requirements are optimized. Examples include utilizing a single raster operation function of one object for an entirety of objects; using fewer raster operation functions than originally required for the entirety of objects; creating a no processing (NOP) situation; and effectively creating a mask. Other aspects include modifying raster operation functions of one or more objects to have fewer variables than originally specified by the print job. Printers having stored or accessible computer executable instructions for performing the steps are also disclosed as are host devices that may direct or control the printer to perform the same.

Abstract: A method for rendering an image including objects defined by surfaces. A rendering application selects an object in a first image and determines a surface of the object. An initial set of illumination values is calculated and is separated into low and high spatial frequency components associated with the surface of the object. The rendering application independently adjusts the illumination values of the low and high spatial frequency components based lighting information in the first image, and generates a modified set of illumination values by combining the adjusted low and high spatial frequency components. The surface of the object is then rendered using the modified set of illumination values. Advantageously, embodiments of the invention provide techniques for rendering an object without introducing halo effects around the object. Additionally, embodiments of the invention provide for rendering a sequence of frames without introducing fluctuations in the low frequency components from across frame.

Abstract: A contribution of a geometric element's attribute to a value of the image sample is determined analytically for an analytic dimension of evaluation and using sampling for a discrete dimension of evaluation. Motion blur effects are rendered by analytically determining the proportions of shutter time during which image samples are exposed to objects. Space-time projections are determined by the geometry edges' positions at the beginning and the end of the shutter time, which define surfaces of space-time projections. The times that the sample ray of an image sample enter and leave the space-time projections specify the proportions of the image sample's shutter time during which scene geometry is exposed to image sample points. The attribute value of an image sample point is determined from values of all of the scene geometry visible to the image sample point during the shutter time, each weighted by the time that it is visible.

Abstract: A method for a computer system includes opening a model of an object, wherein the model comprises a plurality of geometric elements, determining a subset of geometric elements from the plurality of geometric elements of the model, modifying properties of one or more of the geometric elements in the subset of geometric elements to form a modified subset of geometric elements, and using the modified subset of geometric elements to represent the model of the object in the computer system.

Abstract: Methods for processing print jobs in rendering devices include representing multiple to-be-printed objects with fewer such objects before processing of the objects occurs. In this manner, processing and memory requirements are optimized. Examples include utilizing a single raster operation function of one object for an entirety of objects; using fewer raster operation functions than originally required for the entirety of objects; creating a no processing (NOP) situation; and effectively creating a mask. Other aspects include modifying raster operation functions of one or more objects to have fewer variables than originally specified by the print job. Printers having stored or accessible computer executable instructions for performing the steps are also disclosed as are host devices that may direct or control the printer to perform the same.

Abstract: Methods for processing print jobs in rendering devices include representing multiple to-be-printed objects with fewer such objects before processing of the objects occurs. In this manner, processing and memory requirements are optimized. Examples include utilizing a single raster operation function of one object for an entirety of objects; using fewer raster operation functions than originally required for the entirety of objects; creating a no processing (NOP) situation; and effectively creating a mask. Other aspects include modifying raster operation functions of one or more objects to have fewer variables than originally specified by the print job. Printers having stored or accessible computer executable instructions for performing the steps are also disclosed as are host devices that may direct or control the printer to perform the same.

Abstract: Function spaces defined by scaling functions are used to generate bandlimited noise octaves and other attribute data sets. Scaling functions are basis functions that admit multiresolution analysis and include piecewise constant scaling functions, piecewise polynomial scaling functions, bandlimited scaling functions, Daubeschies scaling functions, as well as other multiresolution analysis scaling basis functions known to those of skill in the art. Scaling basis functions can be locally supported or have infinite support. The properties of the scaling basis functions used to construct bandlimited noise octaves may ensure that any bandlimited noise octave at resolution level N is orthogonal to bandlimited noise octaves and their associated scaling basis functions at all resolution levels less than N. Bandlimited noise octaves can be scaled to any resolution level and guaranteed to have no effect on images at any lower resolution level.

Abstract: A method for a computer system includes determining first shading results associated with a geometric object in response to first shading computations and first shading data associated with the geometric object and associated with both a first scene and a second scene, determining second shading results associated with the geometric object in response to second shading computations and second shading data associated with the geometric object, and determining first combined shading results associated with the geometric object in response to the first shading results and to the second shading results, wherein the first combined shading results is associated with the second scene, wherein a second combined shading results is associated with the geometric object, wherein the second combined shading results is associated with the first scene, and wherein the second combined shading results is not determined in response to the second shading results.

Abstract: A method for a computer system includes receiving a geometric description of an object to be rendered in a first image and a second image, and performing a plurality of rendering operations for the object for the first image and for the second image, wherein the plurality of rendering operations includes a first plurality of rendering operations and at least a second rendering operation, wherein the second rendering operation for the object for the first image and the second rendering operation for the object for the second image are substantially similar, wherein the first plurality of rendering operations is performed for the first image, wherein the first plurality of rendering operations is performed for the second image, and wherein the second rendering operation is performed once for both the first image and for the second image.