The modern graphics processing units (GPUs), found on almost every personal computer, use the Z-buffer algorithm to compute visibility. Ray tracing, an alternative to the z-buffer algorithm, delivers higher visual quality than the z-buffer algorithm but has historically been too slow for interactive use. However, ray tracing has benefited from improvements in computer hardware, and many believe...

Recently a breakthrough has occurred in graphics hardware: fixed function pipelines have been replaced with programmable vertex and fragment processors. In the near future, the graphics pipeline is likely to evolve into a general programmable stream processor capable of more than simply feed-forward triangle rendering. In this paper, we evaluate these trends in programmability of the graphics p...

Ray tracing and rasterization have long been considered as two very different approaches to rendering images of 3D scenes that – while computing the same results for primary rays – lie at opposite ends of a spectrum. While rasterization first projects every triangle onto the image plane and enumerates all covered pixels in 2D, ray tracing operates in 3D by generating rays through every pixel an...

An acoustical radiosity model was evaluated for how it performs in predicting real room sound fields. This was done by comparing radiosity predictions with experimental results for three existing rooms--a squash court, a classroom, and an office. Radiosity predictions were also compared with those by ray tracing--a "reference" prediction model--for both specular and diffuse surface reflection. ...

We present a method of ray tracing that is based on a system of differential equations equivalent to the eikonal equation, but formulated in the ray coordinate system. We use a first-order discretization scheme that is interpreted very simply in terms of the Huygens’ principle. The method has proved to be a robust alternative to conventional ray tracing, while being faster and having a better a...

We present a comparative study of GPU ray tracing implemented for two different types of ray-triangle intersection algorithms used with BVH (Bounding Volume Hierarchy) spatial data structure evaluated for performance on three static scenes. We study how number of triangles placed in a BVH leaf node affects rendering performance. We propose GPUoptimized SIMD ray-triangle intersection method eval...

This paper presents a complete ray-tracing based model which takes into account scattering from rough surfaces in indoor environments. The proposed model relies on a combination between computer graphics and radar techniques. The paths between the transmitter and the receiver are found thanks to a Bi-Directional Path-Tracing algorithm, and the scattering field after each interaction between the...

This dissertation presents an approach for interactive, physically exact simulation of specular reflections and specular refractions in virtual environments. The introduced approach is called Vertex Tracing and allows a hybrid rendering to add global illumination effects in traditional hardware rendering systems. The core of the Vertex Tracing is an adaptive progressive ray tracing. In contrast...

We present an introduction to the rendering technique known as “ray tracing.” We propose that its performance has reached the stage where it is feasible that it will take over from raster graphics in the near future for interactive gaming and other application domains. We investigate various aspects of ray tracing and compare and contrast them with the raster equivalent. Finally, we analyze ray...

We describe a simple extension for MSAA to ray tracing and describe how to integrate motion blur with MSAA. We show that MSAA extends naturally to a ray tracer, but it does not integrate well with motion blur. To solve this problem, we add a cache to help reduce unnecessary shading. We then show that the quality and performance of our MSAA + motion blur solution makes it worthwhile for many ray...