Real-Time Extendible-Resolution Display of On-line Dynamic Terrain

Abstract

We present a method for multiresolution view-dependent real-time display of terrain undergoing on-line modification. In other words, the method does not assume static terrain geometry, nor does it assume that the terrain update sequence is known ahead of time. The method is both fast and space efficient. It is fast because it relies on local updates to the multiresolution structure as terrain changes. It is much more space efficient than many previous approaches because the multiresolution structure can be extended on-line, to provide higher resolution terrain only where needed. Our approach is especially well-suited for applications like real-time off-road driving simulation involving large terrain areas with localized high-resolution terrain updates.