Abstract
In this paper, we propose a parallel processing technique for creating animation of swaying trees in the wind based on physical simulation. Our technique independently assigns each tree to computation nodes. The each node processes not only parallel rendering for tree shapes, but also parallel simulation of the wind and bending of branches. This independency reduces data traffics between nodes and realizes efficient parallel processing. When the each node independently simulates the wind, it is necessary to consider wind interactions between the upper and the lower side tree. Therefore, we realize cooperative wind simulation with independent cluster nodes, by inventing a novel method for estimates of wind velocity of lower-side trees from simulation results of upper-side trees. By synthesizing rendered images from each cluster, our system generates animations of swaying trees. Through many experiments using these techniques, it is shown that the efficiency of parallel processing for animation of swaying trees is verified.
