Automatic global path generation for large-scale 3D scene exploration

Abstract

Large-scale virtual scene exploration is still a challenging task. The novice users can easily get distracted and disorientated, which results in being lost in space. Assisted camera control technology is the most effective solution for virtual environment exploration problems which requires viewpoint computation and path planning. In this paper, a novel approach for large-scale virtual scene based on viewpoint scoring is proposed. First, the scene was adaptively divided into several meaningful and easily analyzed subregions according to the optimal view distance criterion. Second, a novel viewpoint scoring method based on visual perception and information entropy fusion was developed for optimal viewpoint determination and greedy N-Bestviewpoint selection algorithm was utilized for visual perceptibility calculation. Then evolutionary programming approach for the Traveling Salesman problem was applied for intra-subregion and inter-subregion exploring path optimization. Finally, the Cubic Hermite Curve was introduced to smoothen the inflection point on the exploration path. The experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method can effectively generate an automatic smooth, informative, aesthetic and non-intersecting path, with the characteristics of good exploring comfort, strong immersion and high scene information perception.