| 摘要 |
<p>BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention: The present invention relates to apparatus and methods for displaying three dimensional graphic information, and more particularly, to data processing apparatus and methods for generating or manipulating three dimensional images on a display system. 2. Art Background: In the computing industry, it is quite common to represent and convey information to a user through graphic representations. These representations may take a variety of forms, such as for example, alpha-numeric characters, Cartesian or other coordinate graphs, as well as three-dimensional shapes of well known physical objects. For example, in computer aided design (CAD) systems, three dimensional objects may be modeled, reconfigured, and assembled on a two-dimensional cathode-ray tube (CRT) display to assist design engineers in their tasks. However, in displaying three-dimensional objects on a two-dimensional display, the computer system generating the display must be able to include perspective in the images to add dimension. Moreover, in the case where solid three dimensional objects are to be depicted, some mechanism must be utilized such that hidden surfaces are recognized and portions of the image appropriately eliminated, to obtain the desired three dimensional effect. One common method for eliminating hidden surfaces in computer graphic images involves the use of a Z-buffer. In practice, a Z-buffer is a large memory implemented typically with dynamic random access memory (D-RAM) integrated circuits. A Z-buffer is generally organized into a linear array, wherein</p> |
