GPU-Based High-Precision Adaptive Vertex Depth Rendering

Junwon Kang, Sungkil Lee

http://doi.org/10.5626/JOK.2021.48.7.756

The Z-buffer algorithm is a standard technique for visibility determination in the modern 3D graphics pipeline. However, its limited precision can lead to z-fighting. This can be mitigated by adjusting per-object projection matrices, but its per-object iteration and draw calls become costly for complex scenes. In this paper, we introduce a GPU-based high-precision adaptive vertex depth rendering technique. The technique adjusts the z coordinates of the vertices in the clip space in the vertex shader. The adjusted vertices are adaptively biased depending upon the location of the objects through the rendering pipeline. Our technique can be applied to problems relating to depth precision including GPU occlusion culling and shadow mapping.