Example based editing of virtual terrain maps

A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing a program, which, when executed by a processor performs operations for generating a virtual terrain, the operations comprising:

• receiving one or more assets specifying characteristics of a terrain;
• adding each of the one or more assets to at least one layer, wherein each layer is configured to store geological features as a displacement field, wherein the virtual terrain is generated using overlapping displacement fields representing geological features from respective layers, and wherein the layers are overlaid on top of each other;
• receiving one or more edits to the virtual terrain, wherein the one or more edits are made to create peaks, create or trace ridges, synthesize terrain texture, and/or copy and paste geological features;
• adding each of the one or more edits to a respective layer;
• and
• blending the displacement fields representing the geological features stored in the layers using a frequency-aware layer blending technique to generate the virtual terrain, wherein the frequency-aware layer blending technique is a Laplacian blending technique applied to blend the displacement fields representing the geological features stored in the layers based on at least one or more user-specified strengths of frequency band contributions within the layers.

A system, comprising:

• a processor;
• and
• a memory, wherein the memory includes an application program configured to perform operations for generating a virtual terrain, the operations comprising:
• receiving one or more assets specifying characteristics of a terrain,
• adding each of the one or more assets to at least one layer, wherein each layer is configured to store geological features as a displacement field, wherein the virtual terrain is generated using overlapping displacement fields representing geological features from respective layers, and wherein the layers are overlaid on top of each other,
• receiving one or more edits to the virtual terrain, wherein the one or more edits are made to create peaks, create or trace ridges, synthesize terrain texture, and/or copy and paste geological features,
• adding each of the one or more edits to a respective layer, and
• blending the displacement fields representing the geological features stored in the layers using a frequency-aware layer blending technique to generate the virtual terrain, wherein the frequency-aware layer blending technique is a Laplacian blending technique applied to blend the displacement fields representing the geological features stored in the layers based on at least one or more user-specified strengths of frequency band contributions within the layers.

A computer-implemented method for generating a virtual terrain, comprising:

• receiving one or more assets specifying terrain features;
• adding each of the one or more assets to at least one layer, wherein each layer is configured to store displacement field features of the virtual terrain, wherein the features of the virtual terrain include features from respective layers, and wherein the layers are overlaid on top of each other;
• receiving one or more edits to the virtual terrain, wherein the one or more edits are made to create peaks, create or trace ridges, synthesize terrain texture, and/or copy and paste terrain features;
• adding each of the one or more edits to a respective layer;
• and
• blending the displacement field features stored in the layers using a frequency-aware layer blending technique to generate the virtual terrain, wherein the frequency-aware layer blending technique is a Laplacian blending technique applied to blend the displacement field features stored in the layers based on at least one or more user-specified strengths of frequency band contributions within the layers.