Methods and apparatus for efficiently generating isosurfaces and for displaying isosurfaces and surface contour line image data
US5522019A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jul 14, 1995 |
| Grant date | May 28, 1996 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jul 14, 2015 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06T17/20
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
Methods and apparatus are provided for generating isosurfaces, given input data that includes (1) the representation of a set of points in three-dimensional space; (2) connectivity information with respect to the set of points and (3) a scalar field. The methods and apparatus allow the desired isosurfaces to be produced efficiently on all hardware platforms, including those not equipped to rapidly generate such isosurfaces using normally computation intensive processes, by utilizing a precomputed isofacet configuration table and predefined tetrahedron component labeling data (preset relationships among the vertices, edges and faces of a tetrahedron). Further aspects of the methods and apparatus include (1) methods and apparatus which support the selective display of isosurface and contour line images, and (2) methods and apparatus which utilize parallel processing techniques to enhance the efficiency of the isosurface generation process.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.