A Survey on Procedural Modelling for Virtual Worlds

Procedural modelling deals with (semi‐)automatic content generation by means of a program or procedure. Among other advantages, its data compression and the potential to generate a large variety of detailed content with reduced human intervention, have made procedural modelling attractive for creati...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Computer graphics forum Vol. 33; no. 6; pp. 31 - 50
Main Authors: Smelik, Ruben M., Tutenel, Tim, Bidarra, Rafael, Benes, Bedrich
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Oxford Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.09.2014
Subjects:
Analysis
Computer & video games
Computer based modeling
Computer graphics
Computer Graphics [I3.5]: Computational Geometry and Object Modelling-Geometric algorithms
Data compression
languages
procedural content generation
procedural modeling methods
Simulation
Studies
systems
virtual worlds
ISSN:0167-7055, 1467-8659
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:Procedural modelling deals with (semi‐)automatic content generation by means of a program or procedure. Among other advantages, its data compression and the potential to generate a large variety of detailed content with reduced human intervention, have made procedural modelling attractive for creating virtual environments increasingly used in movies, games and simulations. We survey procedural methods that are useful to generate features of virtual worlds, including terrains, vegetation, rivers, roads, buildings and entire cities. In this survey, we focus particularly on the degree of intuitive control and of interactivity offered by each procedural method, because these properties are instrumental for their typical users: designers and artists. We identify the most promising research results that have been recently achieved, but we also realize that there is far from widespread acceptance of procedural methods among non‐technical, creative professionals. We conclude by discussing some of the most important challenges of procedural modelling. Procedural modeling deals with (semi‐)automatic content generation by means of a procedure. This article surveys procedural methods that generate features of virtual worlds, including terrain, vegetation and cities. Promising results are identified, and the most salient challenges are discussed. A special focus is put on their degree of control and interactivity, essential for a more widespread use by creative professionals.
Bibliography:ark:/67375/WNG-WWHXZS9J-4
istex:2FA96F7A3A8651BE4113B431B3A7B6DEC6E4F2CB
ArticleID:CGF12276
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-1
content type line 14
ISSN:0167-7055
1467-8659
DOI:10.1111/cgf.12276