ray tracingn.
/ˈreɪ ˌtreɪsɪŋ/, U.S. /ˈreɪ ˌtreɪsɪŋ/ΚΠ
1847 G. Everest Acct. Measurem. Two Sections of Meridional Arc of India p. xix Most of the rays had to be worked out in this manner in the first instance, whence the method whether executed by minor triangulation or perambulator measurement, has derived the name by which it is known of ‘ray-tracing’, under which denomination it has ever since been extensively employed in topographical detail in India.
1848 Edinb. Rev. Apr. 397 The ingenious system of ‘ray-tracing’, which Colonel Everest contrived and put in practice, is altogether a new feature of trigonometrical surveying.
2. Optics. The calculation of the path taken by a ray of light through an optical system such as a lens or a telescope; an instance of this. Also in extended use.
ΘΚΠ
the world > matter > physics > electromagnetic radiation > light > emission of light, radiation > [noun] > optical path > calculation of
path difference1900
ray tracing1918
ray trace1942
1918 L. Silberstein Simplified Method of tracing Rays p. v Our purpose is not to treat the whole subject of geometrical optics, but..that part of it which is called by the short name of ‘ray tracing’... Given the ray incident upon any system of lenses..find the emergent ray.
1923 Trans. Optical Soc. 24 143 Such exact ray tracings may give valuable data concerning the optical performance of a lens system.
1943 D. H. Jacobs Fund. Optical Engin. xxiv. 381 Ray-tracing equations are all derived from one exact law: Snell's law.
1990 P. Kearey & F. J. Vine Global Tectonics ii. 15 The location and time of the earthquakes must be accurately known, and ray-tracing methods used to construct the travel paths of the rays.
1998 J. L. Heilbron Geom. Civilized v. 196 The itinerary of a sun ray through a droplet... A critical geometrician might object that this ray tracing rests on an identification so far unproven, namely that the angles formed by the rays and the radii are the angles of incidence and refraction.
3. Computing. A method of generating an image of an object or scene in which the paths of light rays (usually in reverse, from the camera or the eye to the object) are estimated by computer, allowing more accurate renderings of reflection and refraction.
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1971 Simulation Jan. 25/1 Geometric ray tracing is employed to compute a ‘picture’ of the object.
1980 Computer Graphics 14 113/2 For ray tracing algorithms, visibility determination is essentially a process of intersecting each ray with a set of objects.
1990 Amiga Computing Dec. 115/1 The design area..will be familiar to anyone who has used a CAD or ray tracing package.
2006 Daily Tel. 13 June 27/3 Pixar's rendering team wanted to use ray tracing in almost every shot to give its four-wheeled characters extra sparkle.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2008; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1847