San Jose, CA, May 24,
2000 - The Boeing Military
Aerospace Support organization has selected Quantum3D's Heavy
Metal™ AAlchemy™ PC-based image generators (PC-IGs) for the
high-resolution multiple Target Projection System (TPS) - a
key component of Boeing's Visual Integrated Display System (VIDS).
The VIDS is a commercial product and is used by military training
customers for aviation mission training and rehearsal. Boeing
will employ Quantum3D's AAlchemy systems to drive the TPS and
provide high-fidelity images of targets for display and presentation
to pilots and weapons officers training with VIDS. Heavy Metal
AAlchemy delivers Quantum3D's patent-pending, unparalleled full-scene,
sub-pixel anti-aliasing image quality with SwapLock™ precision
inter-channel synchronization, high resolution support, greater
polygon throughput, a significantly higher fill rate, faster
texture download, texture compressions, and improved image quality
achieved via higher color depth support.
The VIDS is available in a range
of configurations, including a wide field-of-view (FOV) (216
degrees) or full-FOV (360 degrees) display system that integrates
out-the-window background and TPS back-projection target displays,
image generators, databases, and trainer cockpit interface.
A number of U.S. and foreign military training pilot instructors
and students are using the VIDS with TPS, for example: the USAF
Air Combat Command (ACC) at Eglin, Langley, and other F-15C
Distributed Mission Training (DMT) centers; the USAF Air and
Education Training Command (AETC) at Tyndall and other AFBs;
USAF T-38; the USAF ACC at Shaw and Mountain Home AFBs for F-16
DMT Mission Training Centers (MTCs)and Finnish F/A-18C.
Boeing will take delivery of
the first Heavy Metal AAlchemy systems in June, 2000.
"VIDS is used for training and
mission rehearsal for some of the most advanced military aircraft
in the world. The selection of AAlchemy for TPS by Boeing demonstrates
their ongoing commitment, as a global leader in the aerospace
industry, to delivering world-class products using the most
advanced and cost-effective technologies," said Rick Bess, Vice
President of Marketing, Quantum3D. "Increasing the realism and
sense of immersion of the training experience results in significantly
better execution in the field. Accurate target recognition is
a key factor in mission training and rehearsal, and AAlchemy
delivers the mission critical performance and image quality
that these essential applications require, at prices that enable
Boeing to meet critical acquisition and life-cycle cost objectives."
Quantum3D's commitment to open
architecture - and demonstrated compatibility with leading third
party software - enables Boeing to deploy the Heavy Metal AAlchemy
systems in a heterogeneous computing environment that includes
SGIä Onyx2® Infinite Reality® and PC-based systems and still
use the same scene management software (MultiGen-Paradigm Vega™
for Windows® NT) and database creation tools MultiGen® and DART™,
thereby simplifying the development and support logistics and
overall program costs. Vega, in turn, will employ Quantum3D's
visual simulation optimized implementation of OpenGL®, SimGL™,
as the realtime 3D graphics API. The TPS control software is
a Boeing-developed application that is embedded within the VIDS
Visual Systems Controller (VSC). Additional information on VIDS
and TPS is available from Boeing's Visual Integrated Display
Systems Product Center, Training and Support Systems, The Boeing
Company, St. Louis, MO, Tel (314) 233-8658, Fax (314) 232-4231;
www.boeing.com/defense-space/military/as.htm.
Heavy Metal AAlchemy
Quantum3D's Heavy Metal AAlchemy family, based on 3dfx® VSA-100
and Intel® Pentium® III Technology, delivers scalable pixel
fill rates from 183 megapixels per second to greater than one
gigapixel per second, with trilinear filtering and Quantum3D's
patent-pending full-scene, sub-pixel anti-aliasing enabled,
depending on the AAlchemy model and system configuration. AAlchemy
features enhanced geometry processing and texture download throughput
to deliver industry-leading polygon and texture paging performance.
AAlchemy supports high-resolution displays (1280x1024 or greater),
and delivers 32-bit per-pixel color with 8-bit per pixel source
or destination alpha and 24-bit per pixel floating point Z with
8-bit per pixel stencil buffering, advanced texture compression,
enhanced transparency support, and advanced video capabilities.
AAlchemy also supports important simulation features via add-on
hardware and software modules that will be introduced subsequently.
AAlchemy is compatible with a
wide range of leading realtime 3D scene managers including CG2's
VTree™, CATI's X-IG, Lockheed Martin's SE/View, MultiGen-Paradigm's
Vega, Reality2's Tiepolo, Soft Reality's SoftVR™, and Thomson
Training and Simulation's SPACE Magic, as well as Quantum3D's
OpenGVS®, via 3D graphics APIs including SimGL, and 3dfx Glide®;
with realtime 3D file formats such as OpenFlight® and Terra
Page; and with leading PC operating systems.AAlchemy per-channel
pricing starts at $14,999 (NAFTA) and $17,499 (International).
About Quantum3D
Quantum3D, San Jose, California, leads the industry in delivering
PC-based visual computing systems with full-scene, hardware
anti-aliased graphics capabilities for visual simulation and
training. The company develops and markets integrated PC-based
interactive 3D visual computing systems, realtime 3D graphics
subsystems, and system software, that combine to deliver sustained
realtime frame rates, superior graphics quality, and value.
Quantum3D delivers complete 3D visual computing solutions for
the visual simulation and training and out-of-home entertainment
markets, and is the exclusive supplier of 3dfx graphics technology
into those markets. Quantum3D creates and distributes realtime
3D development software tools and products, enabling developers
to fully optimize their applications to benefit from the company's
visual computing systems.
Quantum3D, AAlchemy, Heavy Metal,
SimGL, and OpenGVS are trademarks of Quantum3D, Inc. All other
trademarks are the property of their respective holders.
###
