Image generation system and information storage medium

1. An image generation system for generating an image, comprising:

means which performs a light-source simple processing, the processing being necessary to change at least one of the brightness and color of a surface of a simple object according to the amount of light that is sent from a light source and received by the surface of the simple object; and

means which generates an image of the simple object based on a result of the light-source simple processing,

wherein computation for obtaining information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of a primitive surface constructing the simple object is performed based on an angle difference between a line-of-sight vector of a virtual camera and a light vector from the light source, without using a normal vector for each primitive surface.

2. An image generation system for generating an image, comprising:

means which performs computation to obtain information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of a primitive surface constructing a simple object, based on an incident angle of a light vector from a light source; and

means which generates an image of the simple object based on the information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of the primitive surface constructing the simple object,

wherein computation for obtaining the information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of the primitive surface constructing the simple object is performed based on an angle difference between a line-of-sight vector of a virtual camera and a light vector from the light source, without using a normal vector for each primitive surface.

3. An image generation system for generating an image, comprising:

means which performs a light-source simple processing, the processing being necessary to change at least one of the brightness and color of a surface of a simple object according to the amount of light that is sent from a light source and received by the surface of the simple object; and

means which generates an image of the simple object based on a result of the light-source simple processing,

wherein computation for obtaining information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of a primitive surface constructing the simple object is performed based on an angle difference between a line-of-sight vector of a virtual camera and a light vector from the light source.

4. The image generation system as defined in claim 3 ,

wherein the angle difference is computed based on two-axis components in both the line-of-sight vector of the virtual camera and the light vector from the light source.

5. An image generation system for generating an image, comprising:

means which performs computation to obtain information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of a primitive surface constructing a simple object, based on an incident angle of a light vector from a light source; and

means which generates an image of the simple object based on the information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of the primitive surface constructing the simple object,

wherein computation for obtaining the information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of the primitive surface constructing the simple object is performed based on an angle difference between a line-of-sight vector of a virtual camera and a light vector from the light source.

6. The image generation system as defined in claim 5 ,

wherein the angle difference is computed based on two-axis components in both the line-of-sight vector of the virtual camera and the light vector from the light source.

7. An image generation system for generating an image, comprising:

means which performs a light-source simple processing, the processing being necessary to change at least one of the brightness and color of a surface of a simple object according to the amount of light that is sent from a light source and received by the surface of the simple object;

means which generates an image of the simple object based on a result of the light-source simple processing; and

means which rotates the simple object such that a normal vector of primitive surfaces constructing the simple object becomes parallel to a line-of-sight vector of a virtual camera.

8. The image generation system as defined in claim 7 ,

wherein the light source is a source of parallel rays.

9. The image generation system as defined in claim 7 ,

wherein the simple object or primitive surfaces constructing the simple object are set to have first and second color information; and

wherein information relating to the color of the primitive surfaces is computed by interpolation computation based on the first and second color information and information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of one of the primitive surfaces.

10. An image generation system for generating an image, comprising:

means which performs computation to obtain information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of a primitive surface constructing a simple object, based on an incident angle of a light vector from a light source;

means which generates an image of the simple object based on the information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of the primitive surface constructing the simple object; and

means which rotates the simple object such that a normal vector of the primitive surfaces constructing the simple object becomes parallel to a line-of-sight vector of a virtual camera.

11. The image generation system as defined in claim 10 ,

wherein the light source is a source of parallel rays.

12. The image generation system as defined in claim 10 ,

wherein the simple object or the primitive surfaces constructing the simple object are set to have first and second color information; and

wherein information relating to the color of the primitive surfaces is computed by interpolation computation based on the first and second color information and information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of one of the primitive surfaces.

13. An image generation system for generating an image, comprising:

means which performs a light-source simple processing, the processing being necessary to change at least one of the brightness and color of a surface of a simple object according to the amount of light that is sent from a light source and received by the surface of the simple object; and

means which generates an image of the simple object based on a result of the light-source simple processing,

wherein information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of a primitive surface constructing one simple object among a plurality of simple objects is used to generate an image of a primitive surface of another simple object among the plurality of simple objects.

14. An image generation system for generating an image, comprising:

means which performs computation to obtain information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of a primitive surface constructing a simple object, based on an incident angle of a light vector from a light source; and

means which generates an image of the simple object based on the information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of the primitive surface constructing the simple object,

wherein the information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of a primitive surface constructing one simple object among a plurality of simple objects is used to generate an image of a primitive surface of another simple object among the plurality of simple objects.

15. An image generation system for generating an image, comprising:

means which performs a light-source simple processing, the processing being necessary to change at least one of the brightness and color of a surface of a simple object according to the amount of light that is sent from a light source and received by the surface of the simple object; and

means which generates an image of the simple object based on a result of the light-source simple processing,

wherein computation for obtaining information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of a primitive surface constructing the simple object is performed based on an angle difference between a line-of-sight vector of a virtual camera and a light vector from the light source, without using a normal vector for each primitive surface,

wherein the simple object or primitive surfaces constructing the simple object are set to have first and second color information, and

wherein information relating to the color of the primitive surfaces is computed by interpolation computation based on the first and second color information and information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of one of the primitive surfaces.

16. A computer-usable program embodied on an information storage medium or in a carrier wave, the program implementing on a computer:

means which performs a light-source simple processing, the processing being necessary to change at least one of the brightness and color of a surface of a simple object according to the amount of light that is sent from a light source and received by the surface of the simple object; and

means which generates an image of the simple object based on a result of the light-source simple processing,

wherein computation for obtaining information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of a primitive surface constructing the simple object is performed based on an angle difference between a line-of-sight vector of a virtual camera and a light vector from the light source, without using a normal vector for each primitive surface.

17. A computer-usable program embodied on an information storage medium or in a carrier wave, the program implementing on a computer:

means which performs computation to obtain information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of a primitive surface constructing a simple object, based on an incident angle of a light vector from a light source; and

means which generates an image of the simple object based on the information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of the primitive surface constructing the simple object,

wherein computation for obtaining the information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of the primitive surface constructing the simple object is performed based on an angle difference between a line-of-sight vector of a virtual camera and a light vector from the light source, without using a normal vector for each primitive surface.

18. A computer-usable program embodied on an information storage medium or in a carrier wave, the program implementing on a computer:

means which performs a light-source simple processing, the processing being necessary to change at least one of the brightness and color of a surface of a simple object according to the amount of light that is sent from a light source and received by the surface of the simple object; and

means which generates an image of the simple object based on a result of the light-source simple processing,

wherein computation for obtaining information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of a primitive surface constructing the simple object is performed based on an angle difference between a line-of-sight vector of a virtual camera and a light vector from the light source.

19. The program embodied on an information storage medium or in a carrier wave as defined in claim 18 ,

wherein the angle difference is computed based on two-axis components in both the line-of-sight vector of the virtual camera and the light vector from the light source.

20. A computer-usable program embodied on an information storage medium or in a carrier wave, the program implementing on a computer:

means which performs computation to obtain information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of a primitive surface constructing a simple object, based on an incident angle of a light vector from a light source; and

means which generates an image of the simple object based on the information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of the primitive surface constructing the simple object,

wherein computation for obtaining the information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of the primitive surface constructing the simple object is performed based on an angle difference between a line-of-sight vector of a virtual camera and a light vector from the light source.

21. The program embodied on an information storage medium or in a carrier wave as defined in claim 20 ,

wherein the angle difference is computed based on two-axis components in both the line-of-sight vector of the virtual camera and the light vector from the light source.

22. A computer-usable program embodied on an information storage medium or in a carrier wave, the program implementing on a computer:

means which performs a light-source simple processing, the processing being necessary to change at least one of the brightness and color of a surface of a simple object according to the amount of light that is sent from a light source and received by the surface of the simple object;

means which generates an image of the simple object based on a result of the light-source simple processing; and

means which rotates the simple object such that a normal vector of primitive surfaces constructing the simple object becomes parallel to a line-of-sight vector of a virtual camera.

23. The program embodied on an information storage medium or in a carrier wave as defined in claim 22 ,

wherein the light source is a source of parallel rays.

24. The program embodied on an information storage medium or in a carrier wave as defined in claim 22 ,

wherein the simple object or primitive surfaces constructing the simple object are set to have first and second color information; and

wherein information relating to the color of the primitive surfaces is computed by interpolation computation based on the first and second color information and information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of one of the primitive surfaces.

25. A computer-usable program embodied on an information storage medium or in a carrier wave, the program implementing on a computer:

means which performs computation to obtain information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of a primitive surface constructing a simple object, based on an incident angle of a light vector from a light source;

means which generates an image of the simple object based on the information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of the primitive surface constructing the simple object; and

means which rotates the simple object such that a normal vector of the primitive surfaces constructing the simple object becomes parallel to a line-of-sight vector of a virtual camera.

26. The program embodied on an information storage medium or in a carrier wave as defined in claim 25 ,

wherein the light source is a source of parallel rays.

27. The program embodied on an information storage medium or in a carrier wave as defined in claim 25 ,

wherein the simple object or the primitive surfaces constructing the simple object are set to have first and second color information; and

wherein information relating to the color of the primitive surfaces is computed by interpolation computation based on the first and second color information and information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of one of the primitive surfaces.

28. A computer-usable program embodied on an information storage medium or in a carrier wave, the program implementing on a computer:

means which performs a light-source simple processing, the processing being necessary to change at least one of the brightness and color of a surface of a simple object according to the amount of light that is sent from a light source and received by the surface of the simple object; and

means which generates an image of the simple object based on a result of the light-source simple processing,

wherein information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of a primitive surface constructing one simple object among a plurality of simple objects is used to generate an image of a primitive surface of another simple objects among the plurality of simple objects.

29. A computer-usable program embodied on an information storage medium or in a carrier wave, the program implementing on a computer:

means which performs computation to obtain information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of a primitive surface constructing a simple object, based on an incident angle of a light vector from a light source; and

means which generates an image of the simple object based on the information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of the primitive surface constructing the simple object,

wherein the information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of a primitive surface constructing one simple object among a plurality of simple objects is used to generate an image of a primitive surface of another simple objects among the plurality of simple objects.

30. A computer-usable program embodied on an information storage medium or in a carrier wave, the program implementing on a computer:

means which performs a light-source simple processing, the processing being necessary to change at least one of the brightness and color of a surface of a simple object according to the amount of light that is sent from a light source and received by the surface of the simple object; and

means which generates an image of the simple object based on a result of the light-source simple processing,

wherein computation for obtaining information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of a primitive surface constructing the simple object is performed based on an angle difference between a line-of-sight vector of a virtual camera and a light vector from the light source, without using a normal vector for each primitive surface,

wherein the simple object or primitive surfaces constructing the simple object are set to have first and second color information, and

wherein information relating to the color of the primitive surfaces is computed by interpolation computation based on the first and second color information and information relating to at least one of the brightness and color of one of the primitive surfaces.