Non-Photorealistic Volume Visualization

This paper is an introduction to non-photorealistic volume rendering and shall give an overview of the terms used and the main concepts. Recently the focus of research has concentrated on photorealistic rendering of 3D volume datasets. To overcome the constraints of photorealistic visualization new methods were found using nonphotorealistic rendering techniques. We present a comprehensible introduction into non-photorealistic volume visualization, its objectives and four different approaches. First we introduce to the non-photorealistic volume rendering pipeline and show at which levels of the rendering process non-photorealistic effects can be achieved. The second one deals with volume illustrations, its methods and two possible implementations. Stipple drawings extend the idea of volume illustrations and focus on quick previews in a good quality. The last method described adapts pen-and-ink-rendering to volumes.