Virtual reality performance for virtual geometry

We describe the theoretical and practical visualization issues solved in the implementation of an interactive real-time four-dimensional geometry interface for the CAVE, an immersive virtual reality environment. While our specific task is to produce a “virtual geometry” experience by approximating physically correct rendering of manifolds embedded in four dimensions, the general principles exploited by our approach reflect requirements common to many immersive virtual reality applications, especially those involving volume rendering. Among the issues we address are the classification of rendering tasks, the specialized hardware support required to attain interactivity, specific techniques required to render 4D objects, and interactive methods appropriate for our 4D virtual world application