Patent ID: 9087409
Filing Date: 2015-07-21
Classification: G06T

Abstract:
1. A method comprising: rasterizing, with a rasterization block included in a graphics pipeline of a graphics processor, a first primitive to generate one or more source pixels that correspond to the first primitive, the one or more source pixels that correspond to the first primitive including a first source pixel; rasterizing, with the rasterization block, a second primitive different than the first primitive to generate one or more source pixels that correspond to the second primitive, the one or more source pixels that correspond to the second primitive including a second source pixel; retrieving, with a pixel processing pipeline included in the graphics pipeline of the graphics processor, a destination alpha value from a bin buffer, the destination alpha value being generated in response to processing the first source pixel generated by the rasterization block and associated with the first primitive; determining, with the pixel processing pipeline and based on the destination alpha value, whether to perform an action that causes one or more texture values for the second source pixel generated by the rasterization block to not be retrieved from a texture buffer, the second source pixel being associated with the second primitive, wherein the graphics processor and the bin buffer reside on a first microchip, and wherein the texture buffer resides on a second microchip different than the first microchip; and evaluating the destination alpha value to determine if a condition is satisfied; if the condition is satisfied, performing, with the pixel processing pipeline, the action that causes the one or more texture values for the second source pixel to not be retrieved from the texture buffer.