Layered Depth Images

Overview

In this paper we present a set of efficient image based rendering methods capable of rendering multiple frames per second on a PC. The first method warps Sprites with Depth representing smooth surfaces without the gaps found in other techniques. A second method for more general scenes performs warping from an intermediate representation called a Layered Depth Image (LDI). An LDI is a view of the scene from a single input camera view, but with multiple pixels along each line of sight. The size of the representation grows only linearly with the observed depth complexity in the scene. Moreover, because the LDI data are represented in a single image coordinate system, McMillan's warp ordering algorithm can be successfully adapted. As a result, pixels are drawn in the output image in back-to-front order. No z-buffer is required, so alpha-compositing can be done efficiently without depth sorting. This makes splatting an efficient solution to the resampling problem.

Personnel

Jonathan Shade - UW
Steven Gortler - Harvard University
Li-wei He - Stanford University
Rick Szeliski - Microsoft Research
Michael Cohen - Microsoft Research

Software

LDI Viewer -- LDIViewer.exe
LDI Viewer Optimized for Pentium III -- LDIViewer_SSE.exe

Data

Chestnut Tree, low density -- chestnut_low_density.ldibrtqp [8 MB]
Chestnut Tree, high density -- chestnut_high_density.ldibrtqp [17 MB]
Conifer Tree, low density -- conifer_low_density.ldibrtqp [4 MB]
Conifer Tree, high density -- conifer_high_density.ldibrtqp [8 MB]
Il Redentore, low density -- ilredentore_low_density.ldibrtqp [10 MB]
Maple Tree, low density -- maple_low_density.ldibrtqp [5 MB]
Stream Scene, high density -- stream_high_density.ldibrtqp [10 MB]
Sunflowers and Maple, low density -- sunflower_maple_low_density.ldibrtqp [7 MB]

Publications

Layered Depth Images [841k pdf 3.0]
Jonathan Shade, Steven J. Gortler, Li-wei He, Richard Szeliski. SIGGRAPH 98.

Last updated on May 19, 1998.