Ray Tracing Rational B-Spline Patches in VLSI

Abstract

Rational B-spline surfaces make it possible to merge the concepts of freeform surfaces and that of surfaces described by rational polynomials especially conic sections. For ray tracing it is crucial to determine the intersection between ray and object. Therefore an algorithm is developed that is suitable for a VLSI implementation. Some alternatives for the implementation of this algorithm are presented and discussed. The paper concludes with a discussion of some problems and possible further developments.