Simulation Controlling Method for Generating Desired Water Caustics

Abstract

In this study, we present a method for controlling the surface shape of transparent liquids that generate caustics due to luminance distribution of an arbitrary image. Our method consists of the process of caustics design and the process of liquid surface control. While designing caustics, an arbitrary grayscale image is treated as the input image and the surface shape of transparent liquid that generates caustics is calculated based on the luminance distribution of that input image. We utilize the Poisson's equation to obtain a continuous liquid surface. A driving force based on the current height field and the target height field is introduced as the external force. This force that configures the current liquid surface into the target shape in the previous process is calculated and the change in the water surface and the caustics due to this force is verified using fluid simulation.