With the increased accessibility of capture devices and techniques, rich amounts of real-world data is available to us in various forms including images, video, 3D models, motion capture, weather patterns, etc. On the other hand, one of the primary goals in computer graphics has been to synthesize this data from first principles either through simulation or user interaction. My research goal has been to develop synthesis-friendly models from spatio-temporal data that not only exploit the richness of real data, but also afford the controllability of simulation and interaction.

In this talk, I will focus on synthesis methods that treat visual as well as dynamic data as texture. Such textural modeling is especially conducive for controllable synthesis because of its locality in space and time. I will first demonstrate a technique that allows for spatio-temporal extension of image and video data, and combined with intelligent user interfaces, can be used for computational photography applications such as smart image compositing and storyboarding. I will then describe a more flexible texture model that can be used to augment fluid simulation with appearance and shape textures to generate complex fluid effects such as ripples and foam in turbulent flow and patterns in the crust of flowing lava. I will also show how we can incorporate physical and geometric characteristics of the flow into the synthesis process in a temporally coherent manner. This technique, besides adding to the visual realism of the simulated fluid, also provides a handy visualization tool that lays bare significant features on the surface of the flowing fluid, which may not be apparent otherwise.

Thursday, April 19, 2007
3:00 pm - 4:15 pm
Wu & Chen Auditorium