Sprite compositor and method for performing lighting and shading operations using a compositor to combine factored image layers
US6016150A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jul 30, 1997 |
| Grant date | Jan 18, 2000 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jul 30, 2017 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06T15/60
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A layered graphics rendering pipeline for real time 3D animation independently renders terms in a shading model to separate image layers. The layered pipeline factors the shading model into separate image layers and renders geometry to these layers independently. Each layer can have an independent update rate and a spatial resolution different than the resolution of the output images. A compositor that supports one or more image operators composites the factored layers into an output image to generate frames of animation. To reduce rendering overhead, factored terms can be rendered once and then re-used in later frames by warping the initial rendering.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.