[SOLVED] CS AI GPU Computer Animation Middleware Software

Computer Animation Middleware Software
Jernej Barbic University of Southern California
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Game Engines
Unity (Unity Technologies)
Unreal Engine (Epic Games) Source, Source2 (Valve)
CryEngine (Crytek)
AnvilNext (Ubisoft)
Frostbite (Electronic Arts)
(not an exhaustive list)
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Character Animation Middleware
NaturalMotion
(real-time motion control using biomechanics)
(acquired by Zynga for $527M in 2014)
IKInema (full-body IK solver)
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Physics in games Custom, in-house software
Off-the shelf libraries Physics middleware
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Physics Engines
Real-time
Video games
High precision Slow
Film
Scientific computing
Half-life 2 6

Real-time physics engines: open source
Open Dynamics Engine (ODE) Bullet
SOFA
Vega FEM
and several others
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Real-time physics engines: commercial
Havok (Ireland) (Intel => now Microsoft) Physx (formerly NovodeX, now nVidia)
Vortex (Montreal)
Rubikon(Valve)
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Components of physics engine
Collision detection
Dynamics
rigid objects
cloth fluids
Fracture
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Rigid object contact
Penalty-based
popular with soft/deformable objects
Impulse-based
Constraint-based
expensive, suitable for continuous contact
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Real-time simulation
Speed more important than accuracy
Objects have two representations:
Complex geometry (rendering)
Simplified geometry (collision detection,
dynamics)
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Characters
Rag-dollphysics Rigid objects
Cloth
Controller
NaturalMotion
Particles(hair)
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Physics processing unit (PPU)
Dedicatedphysics co-processor
SPARTAandHELLAS academic
Penn State, Univ. of Georgia
Ageia(Switzerland,2006)
later merged into nVidia use AGEIAs PhysX SDK
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GPGPU
Havok FX
was cancelled
Multi-GPU technology
AMD (CrossFireX)
nVidia (Scalable Link Interface (SLI))
SLI just parallelizes rendering,
but can dedicate a specific card just to Physx (similar to AGEIA)
Increasingly more suitable for physics
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Intel Larrabee
Many-corex86
FusionofCPU and GPU
Suitableforphysics
Wasscheduledfor2010,butcanceled
AMD:APU(comboofCPUandGPU)
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Havok
Real-timecommercialphysicsengine
CompanyboughtbyIntel(2007) ($110 million)
Usedinover300games Halo
Half Life 2
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Havok Engine
Animation
Fast playback
Real-time blending Inverse kinematics Retargeting
AI
path-finding
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Havok Engine
Behavior
Character behavior development tool
Cloth
Destruction Physics
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Havok Physics
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Havok Physics Collisiondetection
Constraints
Rigidbodies
Cloth
Continuousphysics
Uncharted 2: Among thieves 20

Havok Physics Vehicle simulation
Human ragdolls
Character controller
simulate enemy characters being hit
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Havok Physics
Visualdebugger and profiler
Contentcreation tools
Integrationwith 3rd-party renderers
3D Studio Max Maya
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Havok Physics
Extensively optimized (machine code)
Microsoft Xbox
Sony PLAYSTATION
Nintendo Wii
PC
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Havok Physics is not
Simple technology
Must invest time to use it
Black box
Must understand the components and recombine them
Commercial renderer
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Havok Physics
TheHavokWorld (hkpWorld)
Containsall physical objects in the simulation
Timestepsthe simulation forward in time
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Rigid objects The central object in Havok
hkpRigidObject class
Add to the world
Set mass, inertia tensor, etc.
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Constraints
Ball and socket
Hinge Translational
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Constraints
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Constraints
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Collision Detection Broad phase and narrow phase
Broad phase
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Collision Detection
Narrow phase Spheres
AABBs
Cylinders
Capsules
Compound shapes
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Collision Detection: Queries
Closest points between two bodies
Whether two bodies penetrate
Raycast a point through space and get colliding objects
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Continuous Physics
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Continuous Physics Time of impact:
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