Interactive update of global illumination using a line-space hierarchy

Interactively manipulating the geometry of complex, globally illuminated scenes has to date proven an elusive goal. Previous attempts have failed to provide interactive updates of global illumination and have not been able to offer well-adapted algorithms controlling the frame rate. The need for such interactive updates of global illumination is becoming increasingly important as the field of application of radiosity algorithms widens. To address this need, we present a novel algorithm which provides interactive update rates of global illumination for complex scenes with moving objects. In the context of clustering for hierarchical radiosity, we introduce the idea of an implicit line-space hierarchy. This hierarchy is realized by augmenting the links between hierarchical elements (clusters or surfaces) with shafts, representing the set of lines passing through the two linked elements. We show how line-space traversal allows rapid identification of modified links, and simultaneous c...

• Type: Conference
• Year: 1997
• Where: SIGGRAPH
• Authors: George Drettakis, François X. Sillion
• Keywords: Computer Graphics, Global Illumination, Interactive Updates, Line-space Hierarchy, SIGGRAPH 1997