[comp.graphics] Octree threshold values??

brownrigg@kuhub.cc.ukans.edu (02/01/91)

(this is a re-post - I belive the first attempt never made it beyond here - 
 sorry if duplicated).

I'm attempting an octree-based optimization for a ray tracer.  The thing seems
to perform quite miserably when confronted with the 'ole "teapot in a stadium"
[Haines] type of scene.

My question is:  What have other people found to be reasonable termination
criteria during the construction of the tree?  What's a reasonable maximum
depth and/or objects per node?

On, say the SPD's tree.c type of scene, I find that depths of about 6, with
max. objects of around 5-10 are necessary to keep my code from killing my
machines (Mac ci w/5 Megs;  Iris 4D/25 w/16 Megs).

Rick Brownrigg
Kansas Geological Survey