Computational model for hyper-realistic image generation using uniform shaders in 3D environments

Abstract

3D engines for real time CAD geometry representation have been improved extremely in recent years, both, thanks to the evolution of the computer industry itself and the new technologies used for computer graphics, like OpenGL shaders and their implementation in the last graphic cards generation. Raytracing and radiosity rendering techniques are achieving more and more close to reality results thanks to these improvements. Many manufacturing industries are taking advantage of these technologies, like footwear industry, where 3D CAD shoe models are been rendering in real time with a huge qualitative leap in terms of efficiency, costs and close-to-reality visualization results. All the same, the performance of the computational models used for the representation of virtual materials, texture maps (like normal or roughness map), specular and diffuse reflection models, illumination or shadows among many other elements, is leading to having different visualization results depending on the 3D engine that it is been used, even though we work with the same CAD model together with its materials and representation scene. Furthermore, if we bring all these implementations to web technologies, like WebGL, we must tackle not only the visualization problem but also, data optimization and computational capacity issues due to the fact of the web browsers and Internet nature. This paper proposes a computational model for hyper-realistic representation in 3D engines that offers correct results for both, 3D engines optimized for computers and 3D engines for web environments. The proposed model adapts the different characteristics of both environments and makes possible an identical visualization of a 3D CAD shoe model whatever the environment chosen.