Steady State Stokes Flow Interpolation for Fluid Control

Abstract

Fluid control methods often require surface velocities interpolated throughout the interior of a shape to use the velocity as a feedback force or as a boundary condition. Prior methods for interpolation in computer graphics velocity extrapolation in the normal direction and potential flow suffer from a common problem. They fail to capture the rotational components of the velocity field, although extrapolation in the normal direction does consider the tangential component. We address this problem by casting the interpolation as a steady state Stokes flow. This type of flow captures the rotational components and is suitable for controlling liquid animations where tangential motion is pronounced, such as in a breaking wave.