Tricubic Interpolation of Discrete Surfaces for Binary Volumes

Binary-defined 3D objects are common in volume graphics and medical imaging as a result of voxelization algorithms, segmentation methods, and binary operations such as clipping. Traditionally, renderings of binary objects suffer from severe image quality problems, especially when one tries to zoom-in and render the binary data from up close. We present a new rendering technique for discrete binary surfaces. The technique is based on distance-based normal estimation, an accelerated ray casting, and a tricubic interpolator. We demonstrate the quality achieved by our method and report on its interactive rendering speed.