Texture Management With Perceptual Reuse for Lower Storage

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Solution Overview

Problem

The increasing size of digital content, particularly due to high-quality textures in video games, poses challenges for storage and transmission, especially for users with slow or metered internet connections, as existing solutions like optional texture packs or compression are inadequate.

Innovation Solution

Implementing a texture management system that identifies perceptually equivalent textures, allowing reuse of existing textures by storing pointers or generating new textures based on perceptual similarity, thereby reducing the number of textures needed for storage and download.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Manufacturing precision

If high-quality textures are used to improve graphical quality, then visual fidelity is improved, but storage space requirement increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvevisual fidelityVSAvoidstorage space requirement
Core Design Contradiction:
Manufacturing precisionVSVolume of stationary object

Solution Approach 1:

The patent merges multiple textures into a single atlas texture, combining multiple individual texture files into one consolidated texture resource. This reduces the total number of texture files and their associated metadata, thereby decreasing storage space requirements while maintaining the visual fidelity of individual textures within the unified atlas structure.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The texture atlas serves multiple functions simultaneously: it stores multiple different textures in a single file, provides a unified coordinate system for texture sampling, and enables efficient batch loading and management. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for separate texture files and management overhead, reducing overall storage requirements while maintaining high-quality visual output.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

2Manufacturing precision

If high-quality textures are used to improve graphical quality, then visual fidelity is improved, but transmission data volume increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvevisual fidelityVSAvoidtransmission data volume
Core Design Contradiction:
Manufacturing precisionVSQuantity of substance

Solution Approach 1:

By merging multiple textures into a single atlas, the patent reduces the total data volume that needs to be transmitted. Instead of downloading multiple separate texture files, the system transmits one consolidated atlas file, eliminating redundant data and reducing the overall transmission burden while preserving the quality of individual textures.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The texture atlas provides a universal resource that can serve multiple rendering needs simultaneously. By creating a single multi-purpose texture file that contains multiple textures, the system reduces the total data transmission required compared to transmitting multiple separate texture files, while still providing high-quality visual fidelity for various game assets.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

3Manufacturing precision

If texture detail is increased to improve visual quality, then perceptual quality is improved, but memory usage increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveperceptual qualityVSAvoidmemory usage
Core Design Contradiction:
Manufacturing precisionVSVolume of stationary object

Solution Approach 1:

The patent combines multiple detailed textures into a single atlas, allowing the system to manage memory more efficiently. By consolidating textures, the system reduces the overhead of managing multiple texture objects in memory, including separate metadata, binding states, and cache entries for each individual texture, while still maintaining the high perceptual quality of the individual texture details within the unified atlas structure.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Data Source

PatentEP4610932A1Texture management system and method
Publication Date: 2025.09.03 SONY INTERACTIVE ENTERTAINMENT LLC
  • EP4610932A1 patent drawingFigure 1~2
  • EP4610932A1 patent drawingFigure 3~4
  • EP4610932A1 patent drawingFigure 5

AI summary

A system configured to manage the storage of textures corresponding to respective content, the system comprising a texture identification unit configured to identify a texture to be stored at a device, the texture being associated with first content, an equivalence identification unit configured to identify a degree of perceptual similarity between the texture associated with the first content and each of one or more candidate textures associated with content other than the first content, the one or more candidate textures being stored at the device, wherein perceptual equivalence between textures is identified in response to an above-threshold degree of perceptual similarity being identified for those textures, and a management unit configured to, in the case that a perceptual equivalence is identified between the texture associated with the first content and a candidate texture, generate and store a pointer directed toward that candidate texture instead of the texture associated with the first content, or in the case that no perceptual equivalence is identified between the texture associated with the first content and any candidate texture, store the texture associated with the first content.