Exploiting multiresolution models to accelerate ray tracing

Abstract In this paper, it is shown how multiresolution models can be exploited in order to improve the efficiency of the ray tracing process without significant image deterioration. To this effect a set of criteria are established which determine the level of detail model that should be used for each ray–object intersection. These criteria include the distance from the observer and the amount of distortion to which a ray has been subjected before hitting the object. The resulting images are indistinguishable to the naked eye from those obtained using the maximum resolution models but require significantly less time to compute. Our method can be used in conjunction with previous ray tracing acceleration methods.