System for depicting surfaces using volumetric distance maps
US6040835A · kind A · utility
26Cited by
2References
8Claims
0Family size
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Key dates
| Filing date | Nov 6, 1997 |
| Grant date | Mar 21, 2000 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Nov 6, 2017 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06T15/50
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A volumetric data representation for graphical objects encodes the distance of data elements to the nearest object surface, with means being provided for estimating the direction and magnitude of surface normals from the tance values. The subject system can be used to accurately reconstruct the normal direction of a slowly varying surface in volume sampled data for high quality Volume Rendering, accurate force reflection in haptic feedback, and accurate force calculation and object penetration estimation in physically-based graphics.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.