An interactive system for solving inverse illumination problems using genetic algorithms

This paper presents a new approach to illumination design by image synthesis in closed environments, based in a solution of an inverse illumination problem proposed by Schoenman et al 6. Schoeneman’s work lets the user paint (using a ’light paintbrush’) a scene so as to define a desired illumination of the scene. In this paper we propose to solve the above mentioned inverse illumination problem by using genetic algorithms as an optimization technique, and of radiosity based image synthesis. We have also implemented a viewer with 3d painting capabilities, to allow the interactive specification of the desired illumination. The method finds the best combination of number, positions and intensities of lights, allowing also the minimization of cost or energy consumption, that achieves (approximately) the desired illumination of the scene.