Skip to content

Spectacular experiments with Gaussian splatting

Immersive Lab researcher Keerthanan Vignarajah has been exploring the limitless possibilities of Gaussian splatting for several months now. Say what? And more importantly, what does that mean for your 3D creations?

Gaussian splatting is often used when rendering point clouds to create more realistic and visually appealing 3D scenes.
Some advantages of this technique:

  • Smooth transitions
    Gaussian splatting creates smoother transitions and gradients in your designs for a sleek, polished look.

  • Visualization of point clouds
    If your creative work involves point cloud data, such as LiDAR scans or 3D scan data, Gaussian splatting can help you visualize and process this often complex data more effectively.

  • Special effects
    In visual effects and computer-generated imagery (CGI), Gaussian splatting can be used as a creative touch to create certain effects: soft particles, atmospheric effects, or particle-based simulations, for example.

  • Data visualization
    In data visualization projects that include 3D data points, Gaussian splatting can help represent complex data in an attractive, clear way.

  • Custom shaders
    When included as a custom shader, Gaussian splatting can create unique visual effects for your 3D models or scenes.

  • Simulation and animation
    When applied to dynamic simulations and animations, Gaussian splatting allows you to achieve realistic and visually appealing motion and deformation effects.

  • Virtual Reality
    In this context, Gaussian splatting helps generate 360° environments based on photo or video material. It offers a lot of creative possibilities in terms of relighting and adjusting the aesthetic experience.

The photogrammetry studio at the Immersive Lab will undergo renovations later this year (with the support of VLAIO and AP Unviersity College) a major makeover, to generate even more impressive AI-infused 3D content. Meanwhile, researcher Keerthanan is skillfully working with the tools he has: see below for his fascinating comparative study between NeRFs and Gaussian Splatting.

Curious to see this experiment in action? Download the demo files.