IIS (G&V) EAGER: Modeling and Rendering a Fibre Bundle

Washington State University, Pullman WA

Investigators

Abstract

Abstract Considerable work in computer graphics has gone into the realistic modeling and rendering of flames. Modeling and rendering the underlying wood combustion process has received some attention recently, but prior work has not incorporated effects of internal wood properties such as density variation (i.e. ?grain?) and pre-combustion processes such as drying. A concept called ?fiber bundles? is proposed that can realistically represent the structure of fibrous materials such as wood. Fiber bundles consist of an arbitrarily large number of almost-parallel, never-intersecting curves. Model properties at any point in space depend on (a) the curve that comes closest to that point and (b) the distance to that curve. Space is partitioned by the Voronoi volume of these curves. This is a new concept in graphical modeling and, if viable, would be transformative in the representation of both natural and synthetic fibrous materials, allowing for physically correct simulation. Significant issues arise in computing these fiber bundles and this research is designed to show that mathematical algorithms for processing fiber bundles can be developed and implemented in ways that are computationally viable in terms of both time and space efficiency. If successful, the research can lead to improved new representation of fibrous materials. This will be applicable not only for wood combustion, but also wherever plants, plant materials, or synthetic fibers are modeled. The impact goes beyond the entertainment industry. It would, for example, provide essential predictive capabilities to design systems for fire engineering as well as for disaster planning and management.