Ray tracing on a mini-computer

Abstract

It would appear that most people engaged in solving problems in ray- tracing, use programs written for large computers . These machines commonly have large memory sizes, fast cycle times and large word length 0 This paper describes how SACLANTCEN has provided a ray-tracing capability on a mini-computer. Let us firstly define what we mean by a mini-computer. It is typically a machine with a memory size of between lK and 32K words, each word being of between 12 and 18 bits in length. Cycle times of between 1 and 2 ~s are the norm for this type of computer. Standard peripherals are a system Teletype, photo-reader and paper tape punch . Extra peripherals can be added easily by using plug-in card interfaces , memory expansion is often available so that a user can build up a system to his own requirements.