Computer Graphic Books

John Vince explains a wide range of mathematical techniques and problem-solving strategies associated with computer graphics, computer animation, virtual reality, CAD and other areas of computer graphics in this completely revised and expanded fifth edition.

This book is for people working in computer graphics who know that they have to use mathematics in their day-to-day work, and don't want to get too embroiled in axioms, truths, and Platonic realities. 

The objective of the book is to inform the reader about functions and their derivatives, and the inverse process: integration, which can be used for computing area and volume.

The book includes chapters on matrix notation, determinants, matrices, 2D transforms, 3D transforms and quaternions, and includes many worked examples to illustrate their practical use.

Quaternions for Computer Graphics introduces the reader to quaternion algebra by describing concepts of sets, groups, fields and rings. It also includes chapters on imaginary quantities, complex numbers and the complex plane, which are essential to understanding quaternions.

Rotation transforms are used everywhere in computer graphics from rotating pictures in editing software, to providing an arbitrary view of a 3D virtual environment. Although the former is a trivial operation, the latter can be a challenging task.

This book is for people working in computer graphics who know that they have to use mathematics in their day-to-day work, and don't want to get too embroiled in axioms, truths, and Platonic realities.

Filled with lots of clear examples, full-colour illustrations and tables, this compact book provides an excellent introduction to geometric algebra for practitioners in computer games and animation.

The first five chapters review the algebras of real numbers, complex numbers, vectors, and quaternions and their associated axioms, together with the geometric conventions employed in analytical geometry.

Vector Analysis for Computer Graphics provides a complete introduction to vector analysis, especially within the context of computer graphics. The author shows why vectors are useful and how it is possible to develop analytical skills in manipulating the vector algebra.

Geometry is the cornerstone of computer graphics and computer animation, and provides the framework and tools for solving problems in two and three dimensions.

Essentially, virtual reality is about the navigation and manipulation of 3D computer-generated environments. A VR user is able to navigate by walking, running or even flying through a virtual environment and explore viewpoints that would be impossible in the real world. But the real benefit of VR is the ability to touch, animate, pick up and reposition virtual objects and create totally new configurations.

In this 2nd edition, John Vince expands the scope of the original book to include applications of calculus in the areas of arc-length parameterisation of curves, geometric continuity, tangent and normal vectors, and curvature.

This second edition of Vector Analysis for Computer Graphics has been completely restructured, resulting in a compelling description of vector analysis from its first appearance as a byproduct of Hamilton’s quaternions, to the use of vectors in solving geometric problems.