<title>Utilizing commercial off-the-shelf PC graphics hardware for real-time hardware-in-the-loop scene generation</title>

Abstract

Stressing requirements for real-time hardware-in-the-loop scene generation include high performance and high precision. Scene generation frame rates in excess of 100 Hz are common to stimulate fast frame rate sensors. In addition, high bit precision requirements from 12 bits to 24 bits for rendered imagery depend on sensor dynamic ranges and projector capabilities. Until recently, the use of PC-based graphics hardware was unsuitable for high-end scene generation because of the inability of meeting these requirements. However, PC graphics chip technology has evolved to a level where these requirements can now be satisfied. The latest generation of PC graphics chips can perform computations with 32-bit floating-point precision per color component throughout the entire graphics pipeline. This high precision coupled with the flexibility of programmable graphics allows for targeted rendering algorithms specifically designed for various types of sensors including visual, infrared, and ladar. Graphics performance also has increased with each successive chip generation. Integration of this technology into a commercially available scalar multi-chip system with frame synchronization provides a solution with the highest performance possible on a PC-based platform. By partitioning the rendering of a frame among each synchronized system unit, the frame rate performance can be increased to meet the sensor requirements.