Modeling a fluid using a particle system

Abstract

The article discusses one of the important problems of modern computer graphics - the problem of physically accurate animation of such complex objects as water, smoke, fire. These objects can take on complex physical shapes and flow around other objects on the stage. Their behavior depends on many factors: the influence of gravity; flows of other gases and liquids; pressure. To describe this dynamic behavior, computationally complex equations are used, which can be prohibitively expensive for the computer graphics field to execute, especially if the animation needs to be done in real time. Without a reliable physical model of water and smoke, it is extremely difficult to create photorealistic animation, since the incorrect behavior of the described objects immediately catches the eye. This article discusses a physical model of water built on the basis of an implicit particle system. The algorithm is a hybrid one, using both a particle system and vector fields to model the behavior of water and is based on the existing PIC/FLIP algorithm. An approach to implementing the algorithm using Cuda technology is considered - a GPGPU hardware and software solution that is well suited for algorithms of the PIC and FLIP families. However, the approach to solving the problem can be used with other software solutions, such as OpenMP.