Accelerated Ray Tracing on the KSR 1 Virtual Shared - Memory Parallel Computer

This report describes the results of experiments with accelerated ray tracing on a virtual shared-memory parallel computer. The machine used, the Kendall Square Research KSR1, is described in sufficient detail for its novel features to be appreciated. The report describes a new ray tracer written specifically to capitalise on the KSR1’s features. Models used in the experiments include well-known test cases from the Haines database, permitting comparison with previously reported results. The results show a speed-up which is 76.9% of linear scaling on 256 processors. The report analyses the performance of the software and draws conclusions about the suitability of this type of machine for image synthesis.