Detail-directed hierarchical distance fields

摘要

A method generates a detail directed hierarchical representation of a distance field that is enclosed by a bounding box. The method begins by partitioning the bounding box enclosing the distance field into cells. Each cell has a size corresponding to detail of the distance field and a location with respect to the bounding box. Next, the distance field is sampled to obtain a set of values of the distance field for each cell. A method for reconstructing the portion of the distance field enclosed by the cell is specified for each cell. The location and size, the set of values, and the method for reconstructing for each cell are stored in a memory to enable reconstruction of the distance field by applying the reconstruction methods of the cells to the values.