LEAN Mapping: Research experience at a game company

Abstract: Normal maps are a common method to increase apparent surface detail in games and other interactive 3D graphics applications. However, when seen at a distance, normal mapped surfaces tend to look too smooth and shiny since the surface detail they provide is smoothed away without any corresponding change to the aggregate surface reflectance. While on sabbatical at Firaxis Games, Dr. Olano developed Linear Efficient Antialiased Normal (LEAN) Mapping, a fast and efficient solution to this problem. LEAN mapping is ultimately a simple addition to existing normal mapping, but its development draws on knowledge of Physics, signal processing, probability, and graphics hardware. This method is used in the Civilization V game, released in September 2010. This talk will present the normal mapping problem, LEAN map solution, and insights into what kinds of research solutions are feasible for incorporation into current video games.

Bio: Dr. Marc Olano is an Associate Professor in the Computer Science and Electrical Engineering department at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, and director of the department\'s Computer Science Game Development Track. He spent a year on sabbatical at Firaxis Games, developing new technology for the Civilization V title. Before coming to UMBC, Dr. Olano worked at Silicon Graphics on some of the earliest commercial efforts to develop programmable graphics hardware. His received his PhD from the University of North Carolina for the first procedural shading graphics hardware, now one of the defining features of graphics accelerators.