Bas-relief Generation from Point Clouds Based on Normal Space Compression with Real-time Adjustment on CPU

Bas-relief generation based on 3d models is a hot topic in computer graphics. State-of-the-art algorithms take a mesh surface as input, but real-time interaction via CPU cannot be realized. In this paper, a bas-relief generation algorithm that takes a scattered point cloud as input is proposed. The algorithm takes normal vectors as the operation object and the variation of the local surface as the compression criterion. By constructing and solving linear equations of bas-relief vertices, the closed-form solution can be obtained. Since there is no need to compute discrete gradients on a point cloud lacking topology information, it is easier to implement and more intuitive than gradient domain methods. The algorithm provides parameters to adjust the bas-relief height, saturation and detail richness. At the same time, through the solution strategy based on the subspace, it realizes the real-time adjustment of the bas-relief effect based on the computing power of a consumer CPU. In addition, an iterative solution to generate a bas-relief model of a specified height is presented to meet specific application requirements. Experiments show that our algorithm provides a unified solution for various types of bas-relief creation and can generate bas-reliefs with good saturation and rich details.