Rendering participating media is important for a number of domains, ranging from commercial applications (entertainment, virtual reality) to simulation systems (driving, flying and space simulators) and safety analyses (driving conditions, sign visibility). This article surveys global illumination algorithms for environments including participating media. It reviews both appearance-based and physically-based media methods, including the single scattering and the more general multiple-scattering techniques. The objective of the survey is the characterization of all these methods: Identification of their base techniques, assumptions, limitations and range of utilization. We conclude with some reflections about the suitability of the methods depending on the specific application involved, and possible future research lines.
This paper surveys global illumination algorithms for environments including participating media and accounting for multiple scattering. The objective of this survey is the characterization of those methods: Identification of their base techniques, their assumptions, limitations and range of utilization. To this end, the algorithms are grouped into functional categories and each method is briefly reviewed, with a discussion of its complexity and its pros and cons. We finish by discussing some applications as well as remaining areas for investigation.
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