We describe a PC-Cluster utility toolkit (GLUT) to create a scalable and efficient development environment for immersive displays with a PC cluster. The CLUT provides an API set similar to the GLUT, therefore, a high compatibility of source codes in these toolkits was achieved. The communication between PCs based on a message passing interface (MPI) is hidden in the CLUT, and using it, users can create 3-D applications in almost the same procedure as in a desktop environment. Moreover, the CLUT supports various styles of immersive display systems with a simple configuration. We developed some applications with it in three different kinds of immersive display systems and illustrated the characteristics of CLUT applications with an evaluation based on the amount of data transmitted and the complexity of the target 3-D scenes.

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A representation of shafts of light in Computer Graphics (CG) allows us to create high quality images that are beautiful and realistic. However, previous methods to represent these shafts of light take a lot of calculation time and are ineffective for stereoscopic viewing. Therefore, is difficult to using these methods for interactive applications in 3-D virtual environments. We describe a new method to create shafts of light for interactive 3-D applications using stereoscopic images. In this method, the intensity distribution of light is calculated for some texture images, and these images are mapped on a 3-D object that represents the shape of shafts of light. By using a texture mapping function for graphics hardware, the total performance is accelerated enough for interactive applications.

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The rapid increase in the volume of electronically archived images and video materials has given rise to a need for new methods of image retrieval. Therefore, various approaches have been proposed. Most conventional image retrieval methods are based on the content of objects or on features describing only the partial properties of images. But the diverse images we must deal with have induced a necessity to retrieve images more flexibly and effectively, focusing on the multiple properties of images. In this paper, we describe a new method of image retrieval based on two new ideas. One is adopting a fractal sequence designed to include multiple information of texture and to relate one's first impression of an image. The other is structural information of images by allowing rectangular regions, which are set to extract features in multiple points on the image, to be located at slightly varied positions dependent on the image features. Additionally, we show with the results of some experiments that image retrieval that widely perceives the information of images more variously can be achieved because of our applying the new method.

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The shape-constraint-based active contour model (SC-ACM), one of the Snakes, is robust against noise. However, an SC-ACM's extraction ability depends on initial contour locations so that it often fails to extract face features, because they are located too close to each other. Therefore, in order to resolve this problem, we use a splitting mechanism with the SC-ACM, whereby the proposed Snakes are split according to the difference between the results obtained by using the previous SC-ACM and other Snakes with an area term. The proposed Snakes with the splitting mechanism can extract every feature, even though the initial contour includes multiple objects. We simulated extracting face-features from TV news images of the upper part of an announcer maintaining a full face position. Our results show that the proposed method can extract each of the eyes with the brows and the mouth including its neighboring areas without getting trapped by other face features.

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When making a TV program in a studio, care must be taken that the camera does not shoot beyond the boundary of the studio set. In addition, limitations in cost and space for the set must be taken into account. In a virtual studio, on the other hand, we can solve this cost and space problem. But in turn, actors have to perform in front of a blue background screen, which is not an easy task. To solve these problems associated with real versus virtual studios, we have developed a new type of virtual studio called the Real Space-based Virtual Studio in which a real space image and a virtual one are combined naturally with no boundary seam. One major advantage in using this new virtual-real hybrid system is that the actors can concentrate on their roles. Another is that the camera work can be done without worrying about off-screen areas. In the present study, we constructed an omnidirectional image with ultra-high definition features and combined it with real studio image. We have developed an integration system and have shown that the omnidirectional and real studio images can be synthesized smoothly and naturally.

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