Procedural Techniques and Real-Time Graphics

Introduction to Procedural Modeling and Animation We are working in a very exciting time in computer graphics. The combination of increased CPU power with powerful, and now programmable, graphics processors (GPUs) available on affordable PCs has started an age where we can envision and realize interactive complex procedural models. 1.1 Procedural Techniques and Computer Graphics Procedural techniques have been used throughout the history of computer graphics. Many early modeling and texturing techniques included procedural definitions of geometry and surface color. From these early beginnings, procedural techniques have exploded into an important, powerful modeling, texturing, and animation paradigm. During the mid- to late 1980s, procedural techniques for creating realistic textures, such as marble, wood, stone, and other natural material gained 2 widespread use. These techniques were extended to procedural modeling, including models of water, smoke, steam, fire, planets, and eve