Real-Time Computer Graphics

Recommended Prerequisites

Interactive Computer Graphics.

Teaching Methods

Theoretical-practical classes to develop concepts and learn tools through exercises.
Development laboratory classes to develop skills in a project context.

Learning Outcomes

In current video games, interactive installations and audiovisual performances, visuals are composed of complex scenes that mix captured and synthesized images, where both the aesthetics and the behavior of the objects in the scene are represented in a realistic way. As real-time interaction is a fundamental component of these media, the development strategy used must also be optimized to allow real-time execution. In this sense, the main objective of this discipline is to provide students with theoretical and practical knowledge for the development of image construction, processing and rendering algorithms optimized for real-time execution. Starting from the fundamentals of GLSL, students will be introduced to the fundamental concepts of creating optimized 3D geometries, texturing and lighting processes, animation and procedural simulation, and compositing real images with synthesized images.

Work Placement(s)

No

Syllabus

1. Introduction to the OpenGL programmable rendering pipeline:
a. Introduction to GLSL and GPU computing
b. Vertex and Fragment shaders
c. Vertex and Frame buffers
2. Geometry:
a. Polygon mesh construction and triangulation
b. Polygon mesh simplification and optimization
c. Dynamic and procedural meshes
3. Rendering:
a. Procedural textures
b. PBR materials
c. Lighting and shadow models
d. Occlusion and object detailing models
4. Animation and simulation:
a. Physics of rigid bodies
b. Physics of soft bodies
c. Fluid dynamics
d. Particle systems
5. CGI:
a. GPU image processing and effects
b. Compositing of real and synthesis images.

Head Lecturer(s)

João Afonso Libório Cardoso

Assessment Methods

Assessment
Research work: 30.0%
Project: 70.0%

Bibliography

OpenGL Programming Guide: The Official Guide to Learning OpenGL, Version 4.5 with SPIR-V" by John Kessenich, Graham Sellers, and Dave Shreiner.
Real-Time Rendering" by Tomas Akenine-Möller, Eric Haines, and Naty Hoffman.
NVidia GPU Gems: https://developer.nvidia.com/gpugems/gpugems/contributors
Gordon, V. S., & Clevenger, J. (2024). Computer graphics programming in OpenGL with C++. Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG.
Gambetta, G. (2021). Computer Graphics from Scratch: A Programmer's Introduction to 3D Rendering. No Starch Press.
Akenine-Möller, T., Haines, E., & Hoffman, N. (2019). Real-Time Rendering (4th ed.). CRC Press.