Precise Ink Drawing of 3D Models

Abstract

Drawings made with precise pen strokes accurately reveal the geometric forms that give subjects their characteristicshape. We present a system for non-photorealistic rendering of precise drawing strokes over dense 3Dtriangle meshes with arbitrary topology. During an automatic pre-process, we construct an extended version ofthe edge-buffer data structure to allow the calculation of shape measures at each mesh edge, by adapting numericalmethods used in geomorphology. At runtime, feature edges related to shape measures are extracted andrendered as strokes with varying thickness and pen marking styles. Stroke thickness is automatically adjusted byconsidering surface curvature. Pen marking styles and visual effects of ink distribution are both controlled by theuser. We demonstrate precise drawing strokes over complex meshes revealing a variety of shape characteristics.