Graphics image rendering with radiance self-transfer for low-frequency lighting environments
US7262770B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Mar 14, 2003 |
| Grant date | Aug 28, 2007 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | May 26, 2024 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06T15/506
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
Real-time image rendering of diffuse and glossy objects in low-frequency lighting environments captures soft shadows, interreflections, and caustics. As a preprocess, a global transport simulator creates functions over the object's surface representing transfer of arbitrary, low-frequency source lighting into exiting radiance, but including global effects like shadowing and interreflection from the object onto itself. At run-time, these transfer functions are applied to the actual source lighting. Dynamic, local lighting is handled by sampling close to the object at every frame; the object can also be rigidly rotated with respect to the lighting and vice versa. Lighting and transfer functions are represented using low-order spherical harmonics. Functions for radiance transfer from a dynamic lighting environment through a preprocessed object to neighboring points in space further allow cast soft shadows and caustics from rigidly moving casters onto arbitrary, dynamic receivers.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.