CS 431/636 - Advanced Rendering Techniques

Spring 2006

Description: The creation of realistic images from 3D models is central to the development of computer graphics. The ray tracing algorithm has become one of the most popular and powerful techniques for creating photo-realistic images. Ray tracing's simplicity, elegance and ease of implementation make it one of the most important image generation algorithms in computer graphics. This class will explore in detail the algorithmic components of ray tracing.

These include

• Object representations
• Object-ray intersections
• Viewing/camera models
• Shading models
• Reflection & refraction models
• Acceleration techniques
• 2D/3D texture mapping
• Anti-aliasing & filtering
• Participating media

Students will implement many of these components in their class programming projects.

Images made by the students!

Location - Matheson 308

Time - Tuesday, 6:00 PM &rarr 8:50 PM

Instructor

Dr. David Breen
University Crossing 114
david AT cs.drexel.edu
215-895-1626


Office Hours - Wednesdays, 4PM &rarr 5:30 PM

Textbooks

• Realistic Ray Tracing, 2nd Edition, Peter Shirley and R. Keith Morley, AK Peters, 2003, ISBN: 978-1568811987
• An Introduction to Ray Tracing, Andrew S. Glassner (ed.), Morgan Kaufmann, 1989, ISBN: 978-0122861604

Grade

Graduate Section

• Programming Assignments - 85%
• In-class Presentation - 10%
• Class Participation - 5%

  Undergraduate Section

• Programming Assignments - 95%
• Class Participation - 5%

Each graduate student will present a research paper in class on a topic not covered by the regular class lectures.

Choose a paper from this list. It is a much shorter version of this list.

There will not be a final exam.

Assignments due at 11:59PM on due date
  Post images and code on the web
  E-mail me the URL

Late Policy

• One point off per day late, up to a maximum of 5 points.
• All regular assignments due last day of classes at 11:59 PM.
• No Incompletes!

Assignments

Each regular assignment worth 10 points

• Programming Assignment 1 - Basic ray tracer with spheres and triangle meshes
  • Due April 16th
• Programming Assignment 2 - Add diffuse/specular shading model with point lights
  • Due April 28th
• Programming Assignment 3 - Add an acceleration technique
  • Due May 10th
• Programming Assignment 4 - Add adaptive supersampling/anti-aliasing
  • Due May 17th
• Programming Assignment 5 - Add shadows and reflections
  • Due May 28th
• Programming Assignment 6 - Add refractions
  • Due June 9th
• Extra Credit Assignment - Add 2D and 3D texture mapping, more primitives and directional lights
  • Due June 16th

Student Presentation Schedule

• Week 6 - Yaqi Zhang
  • Hank Weghorst, Gary Hooper, and Donald P. Greenberg, "Improved computational methods for ray tracing," ACM Transactions on Graphics, 3(1):52-69, January 1984
• Week 7
  • Manolya Eyiyurekli
    • James F. Blinn, Martin E. Newell, "Texture and Reflection in Computer Generated Images," Communications of the ACM, Vol. 19, No. 10, Oct. 1976, pp. 542-547
  • Jasper Zhang
    • Henrik Wann Jensen, "Rendering Caustics on Non-Lambertian Surfaces," Proc. Graphics Interface, 1996, pp. 116-121
• Week 8 - Dan Brooks
  • John Amanatides, "Ray Tracing with Cones," Proc. SIGGRAPH '84, July 1984, pp. 129-135
• Week 9 - David Turner
  • John C. Hart, Daniel J. Sandin, Louis H. Kauffman, "Ray tracing deterministic 3-D fractals," Proc. SIGGRAPH '89, July 1989, pp. 289-296
• Week 10 - Simon Galperin
  • Ruediger Westermann and Thomas Ertl, "Efficiently using graphics hardware in volume rendering applications," Proc. SIGGRAPH '98, July 1998, pp. 169-177

Class Schedule

Week 1 - 4/4/06

• Read Shirley & Morley: Chapters 1, 2 & 3
• Read Glassner: Chapters 1 & 7
• Related paper
  • T. Whitted, "An Improved Illumination Model for Shaded Display," Communications of the ACM, Vol. 23, No. 6, June 1980, pp. 343-349
• Lecture Topics - Class Logistics, Ray Tracing Fundamentals, Intersection Algorithms
• Programming Assignment 1 - Basic ray tracer with spheres and triangle meshes

Week 2 - 4/11/06

• Read Shirley & Morley: Chapters 7 & 8
• Read Glassner: Chapter 2
• Lecture Topics - Polygonal Models, Transformations and Hierarchical Models
• Assignment 1 due 4/16/06

Week 3 - 4/18/06

• Read Shirley & Morley: Chapter 11
• Related paper
  • D. Warn, "Lighting Controls for Synthetic Images," ACM Computer Graphics (SIGGRAPH '83 Proceedings), 1983, pp. 13-21
• Lecture Topics - Color, Light and Shading Models
• Programming Assignment 2 - Add diffuse/specular shading model with point lights

Week 4 - 4/25/06

• Read Glassner: Chapter 6
• Read Shirley & Morley: Chapter 9
• Lecture Topics - Acceleration Techniques
• Programming Assignment 3 - Add an acceleration technique
• Assignment 2 due 4/28/06

Week 5 - 5/2/06

• No Class

Week 6 - 5/9/06

• Yaqi Zhang presentation
• Read Glassner: Chapter 5
• Lecture Topics - Sampling & Anti-aliasing
• D. Luebke's sampling notes
• Programming Assignment 4 - Add adaptive supersampling/anti-aliasing
• Assignment 3 due 5/10/06

Week 7 - 5/16/06

• Manolya Eyiyurekli presentation
• Jasper Zhang presentation
• Read Glassner: Chapter 4
• Related paper
  • R. Hall and D. Greenberg, "A testbed for realistic image synthesis," IEEE Computer Graphics and Applications, Vol. 3, No. 8, November 1983, 10-20.
• Lecture Topics - Hall Shading Model
• Programming Assignment 5 - Add shadows and reflections
• Assignment 4 due 5/17/04

Week 8 - 5/23/06

• Dan Brooks presentation
• Read Shirley & Morley: Chapter 6
• Related paper
  • P. Heckbert, "Survey of Texture Mapping," IEEE Computer Graphics and Applications, Vol. 6, No. 11, Nov. 1986, pp. 56-67
• Lecture Topics - 2D Texture Mapping
• Assignment 5 due 5/28/06

Week 9 - 5/30/06

• David Turner presentation
• Read Shirley & Morley: Chapter 5
• Related paper
  • K. Perlin, "An Image Synthesizer," Proc. SIGGRAPH '85, July 1985, pp. 287 - 296
• Lecture Topics - Procedural & 3D Texture Mapping
• Programming Assignment 6 - Add refractions

Week 10 - 6/6/06

• Simon Galperin presentation
• Read Glassner: Chapter 3
• Related paper
  • R.A. Drebin, L. Carpenter, and P. Hanrahan, "Volume Rendering," ACM Computer Graphics (SIGGRAPH '88 Proceedings), 1988, pp. 65-74
  • D. Greenberg, M. Cohen and K. Torrance, " Radiosity: A method for computing global illumination," The Visual Computer, 2(5):291--7, September 1986.
• Non-Photorealistic Rendering Publications
• Lecture Topics - Volume Rendering, Non-photorealistic Rendering & Radiosity
• Assignment 6 due 6/9/06
• Extra credit assignment due 6/16/06

Last modified on June 6, 2006.