A compact factored representation of heterogeneous subsurface scattering

Many translucent materials exhibit heterogeneous subsurface scattering, which arises from complex internal structures. The acquisition and representation of these scattering functions is a complex problem that has been only partially addressed in previous techniques. Unlike homogeneous materials, the spatial component of heterogeneous subsurface scattering can vary arbitrarily over surface locations. Storing the spatial component without compression leads to impractically large datasets. In this paper, we address the problem of acquiring and compactly representing the spatial component of heterogeneous subsurface scattering functions. We propose a material model based on matrix factorization that can be mapped onto arbitrary geometry, and, due to its compact form, can be incorporated into most visualization systems with little overhead. We present results of several real-world datasets that are acquired using a projector and a digital camera.