Using a classification tree to speed up rendering of hybrid surface and volume models

First name and Last name Maria Ferre and Anna Puig and Dani Tost
Rovira i Virgili University and Polithechnical University of Catalonia
Computer Science and Math Department and Center of Biomedical Engineering Research
ZIP code & City 43007 Tarragona
Country SPAIN

Abstract

Hybrid  rendering   of volume and  polygonal   model is an interesting
feature of  visualization systems, since   it  helps users  to  better
understand the relationships between internal structures of the volume
and fitted  surfaces as   well  as external  surfaces.  Most   of  the
existing bibliography focuses  at the problem of correctly integrating
in depth both types of information.  The  rendering method proposed in
this paper is built on these previous results.  It is aimed at solving
a different problem: how to efficiently access to selected information
of  a hybrid  model.   We propose to   construct a decision  tree (the
Rendering Decision Tree), which  together with an auxiliary  run-length
representation  of the model  avoids  visiting unselected surfaces and
internal regions during a traversal of the model.