Graphics and Visualization

This chapter describes the graphics and visualization in computer system. The field of computer graphics encompasses many areas of synthetic image generation and representation. Applications of computer graphics range from modern user interface libraries to three-dimensional modeling and rendering. As more computer performance is made available, the ability to make use of high performance has enhanced the techniques used and images created by computer graphics systems. Most image processing and rendering techniques are used to project three-dimensional objects onto a two-dimensional surface. There are basically three ways to incorporate illumination into a graphics image: (1) the empirical model, (2) the transitional model, and (3) the analytical model. The basic idea behind the ray tracing algorithm is to consider all possible light sources and how they physically interact with each object in the object space. The Reality Engine is a specialized graphics system designed for rendering lighted, smooth-shaded, and texture-mapped objects. The Reality Engine is built as a collection of FIFO queues, command processor, geometry engines, fragment generators, and image engines.