Patent ID: 6633297
Filing Date: 2003-10-14
Classification: G06T

Abstract:
A graphics pipeline comprising:a rasterizer circuit that generates fragments for an image, the image having multiple surfaces, each surface tessellated into primitive objects; the image including a pixel having associated therewith a first and a second fragment; the first fragment being generated by the rasterizer circuit and having associated therewith an object comprising a respective primitive object of said primitive objects; and the second fragment being selected from a group consisting of a fragment generated by the rasterizer circuit and having associated therewith an object comprising a respective primitive object of said primitive objects, and a combination of a plurality of fragments generated by the rasterizer circuit and having associated therewith an object comprising a union of a plurality of respective primitive objects of said primitive objects; a merge buffer that combines the first fragment with the second fragment to create a new merged fragment that replaces the first and second fragment when predefined merge criteria are met, the predefined merge criteria include criteria that probabilistically establish that the first fragment's associated object is adjacent to the second fragment's associated object, that the first and second fragments are from a common tessellated surface of the multiple surfaces, and that the first and second fragments are sufficiently similar to avoid visually objectionable artifacts when the first and second fragments are merged; and a frame buffer that receives fragments from the merge buffer, the frame buffer storing fragments and outputting the fragments combined into pixels to a display.