Optimal Combination of Ray Tracing and Rasterization (R squared)

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Thorsten Grosch
• Subject Area: Image and Language Processing, Computer Graphics and Visualisation, Human Computer Interaction, Ubiquitous and Wearable Computing
• Term: since 2023
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 524961573

Today, global illumination is mostly simulated with Monte Carlo methods, where the integral equation is solved step by step by generation of random paths. Due to the ray-tracing hardware that has been available for some years, these methods have become partially real-time capable. On the other hand, many fast rasterization-based methods exist for real-time global illumination. Thus, the question arises whether a suitable combination of the two approaches can achieve an acceleration of the image generation. The aim of the project is therefore to find the optimal combination of ray tracing and rasterization, such that no visible changes appear in the image of a global illumination simulation, but a significant acceleration of the image generation is achieved. In the Monte Carlo simulation, suitable rasterization techniques are to be used selectively along a random path. In addition, a purely rasterization-based real-time illumination with a geometry buffer should be supported selectively by a ray tracer.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants