Modeling fluid phenomena for computer graphics and special effects
Nicholas D. Foster, Dimitris Metaxas · Scholarly Commons (University of Pennsylvania) · 1997
This document describes a new animation technique for modeling the turbulent rotational motion that occurs when liquids and gases interact with solid objects and the surrounding medium. Realistic fluid behavior is achieved by using the Navier-Stokes equations for incompressible flow, while computation times are minimized by solving these equations at a relatively low resolution. The result is a stable and efficient animation tool for computer graphics, that can handle effects such as swirling steam, rolling or billowing smoke, gusting wind, ocean wave motion, fountains, and simple explosions. In addition, the numerical method developed provides mechanisms for controlling and specifying particular fluid behavior as well as for incorporating limited interaction with dynamic buoyant objects. Particular emphasis is given to issues of computational efficiency and ease-of-use of the method by an animator. We present the details of the model, together with examples illustrating its use.