Graphics application programming interface avoiding repetitive transfer of texture mapping data
US6046747A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Aug 4, 1997 |
| Grant date | Apr 4, 2000 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Aug 4, 2017 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06T15/10
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A computer graphics system includes a host computer, including a graphics application program and an application programming interface, and graphics hardware. The application programming interface creates a display list for receiving and storing user-specified commands and stores each user-specified texture download command in a texture image list. When a texture processing command is received and the corresponding texture map is optimizable, the texture image list is stored in a texture object, the texture object is marked as not downloaded and a bind texture call is inserted in the display list. The bind texture call contains a reference to the texture object. When the display list is executed, each bind texture call in the display list is processed by: (a) downloading the texture map referenced by the bind texture call to the graphics hardware when the referenced texture object is marked as not downloaded, and marking the referenced texture object as downloaded, and (b) binding texture information in the texture object to a current texture state, wherein the texture map is downloaded to the graphics hardware only once for a given texture state of the application programming inte…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.