Composing layered synthetic graphics filters with limited scopes of operation
First Claim
1. A method for simplifying composition of an image of a scene with a computer illustration system, comprising the steps of:
- defining the scene with shapes that are layered in a list in a memory;
specifying one of the shapes in the list to be a lens with a filtering function;
the filtering function of the lens having a scope of operation that includes those shapes in the list of shapes layered below the lens;
limiting the scope of operation of the lens to exclude at least one of the shapes layered below the lens from being modified by the filtering function of the lens by defining a cluster of shapes that includes the lens in the list of shapes and selected shapes in the list of shapes layered below the lens; and
composing the image of the scene with the limited scope of operation of the lens defined by the cluster of shapes;
wherein said composing step further comprises;
computing an under-list of shapes for the lens;
the under-list of shapes identifying shapes in the list of shapes to which the filtering function of the lens may apply;
freezing the lens by replacing any shape specified as a lens in the under-list with shapes that are formed independently of other shapes; and
applying the filtering function of the lens to each shape in the under-list of shapes.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A computerized two-dimensional illustration system composes an image of a scene with layered synthetic graphics filters or lenses. The scene is defined by an ordered list of shapes. Some of the shapes in the ordered list of shapes are lenses. Each lens is a shape that has a fill color which is an operator rather than a constant. The operator of a selected lens performs a filtering function on the shapes ordered below it in the list of shapes. To compose a selected lens in the scene, the system computes an under-list of shapes for the selected lens. The under-list of shapes identifies shapes in the ordered list of shapes to which the filtering function of the selected lens may apply. After computing the under-list for a selected lens, the system freezes the shapes in the under-list and applies the filtering function of the selected lens to the shapes in the under-list. When a lens is frozen, it is replaced with a list of shapes that are formed independently of other shapes in the list of shapes. The scope of operation of the selected lens can be reduced by grouping the selected lens with other shapes in the scene as either a lens-in cluster or a lens-out cluster. A lens-in cluster limits the scope of operation of the selected lens by operating on only those shapes in the cluster, while a lens-out cluster limits the scope of operation of the lens by operating on only those shapes outside the cluster. As a result of limiting the scope of operation, grouping lenses with other objects in a scene enables the creation of different visual effects. In addition, depending on whether a lens is grouped as a lens-in or a lens-out cluster, the computed under-list of the selected lens may have a reduced number of shapes, thereby reducing the computational complexity of composing an image of the scene.
42 Citations
14 Claims
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1. A method for simplifying composition of an image of a scene with a computer illustration system, comprising the steps of:
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defining the scene with shapes that are layered in a list in a memory; specifying one of the shapes in the list to be a lens with a filtering function;
the filtering function of the lens having a scope of operation that includes those shapes in the list of shapes layered below the lens;limiting the scope of operation of the lens to exclude at least one of the shapes layered below the lens from being modified by the filtering function of the lens by defining a cluster of shapes that includes the lens in the list of shapes and selected shapes in the list of shapes layered below the lens; and composing the image of the scene with the limited scope of operation of the lens defined by the cluster of shapes;
wherein said composing step further comprises;computing an under-list of shapes for the lens;
the under-list of shapes identifying shapes in the list of shapes to which the filtering function of the lens may apply;freezing the lens by replacing any shape specified as a lens in the under-list with shapes that are formed independently of other shapes; and applying the filtering function of the lens to each shape in the under-list of shapes. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
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10. A computer illustration system for simplifying composition of an image of a scene, comprising:
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a user interface for defining in a memory the scene with shapes that are layered in a list; a user input device for specifying one of the shapes in the list to be a lens with a filtering function;
the filtering function of the lens having a scope of operation that includes those shapes in the list of shapes layered below the lens; anda processor for limiting the scope of operation of the lens to exclude at least one of the shapes layered below the lens from being modified by the filtering function of the lens by defining a cluster of shapes that includes the lens in the list of shapes and selected shapes in the list of shapes layered below the lens;
said processor composing the image of the scene with the limited scope of operation of the lens defined by the cluster of shapes;wherein said processor composes the image of the scene with the limited scope of operation for the lens defined by the cluster of shapes by; computing an under-list of shapes for the lens;
the under-list of shapes identifying shapes in the list of shapes to which the filtering function of the lens may apply;freezing the lens by replacing any shape specified as a lens in the under-list with shapes that are formed independently of other shapes; and applying the filtering function of the lens to each shape in the under-list of shapes. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14)
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Specification