DirectX Raytracing facts for kids
DirectX Raytracing (DXR) is a special feature from Microsoft's DirectX. It helps computers create very realistic pictures and videos, especially in games. It does this by using a technique called raytracing in real-time. Think of it like tracing the path of light rays to make shadows, reflections, and light effects look super real.
DXR was first developed to work with Nvidia's advanced computer chips. Some of the first products for people to buy that used DXR were Nvidia's GeForce 20 series graphics cards, which came out in 2018. DXR was added as an extra part to DirectX 12, not as a completely new version of DirectX. The public got to use DirectX Raytracing when the Windows 10 October 2018 update was released.
How DXR Works
DXR adds four main parts to the DirectX 12 system, which is like a set of tools for game developers. These parts help games use raytracing:
- Acceleration Structure: This is like a special map of the 3D world in a game. It helps the computer's graphics card (GPU) quickly find all the objects in a scene. This is super important for raytracing, as it needs to know where everything is to calculate how light bounces around.
- DispatchRays: This is a command that tells the computer to start the raytracing process. It's like pressing a "go" button for all the light rays to be traced.
- HLSL Shaders: These are special instructions for the graphics card. DXR adds new types of these instructions that are perfect for handling raytracing calculations.
- Raytracing Pipeline State: This is a set of rules that tells the graphics card how to handle all the raytracing tasks. It's similar to other rule sets that already exist for drawing graphics.
Images for kids
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This picture shows how real objects can look when raytracing is used. See the reflections and how light passes through the glass!
See also
In Spanish: DirectX Raytracing para niños
