MRT - A visualization tool addressing problems 'outside' the classical rendering domain

We present an object-oriented software architecture for a 3D rendering environment which drastically improves the programmer's productivity, and, most importantly, consists of building blocks that lend themselves to customization thus making 3D image synthesis more accessible. The rendering platform MRT is object-based rather than drawing based and consists of an extensible set of objects that perform a variety of operations. Experiences with our (inhomogeneous) user population prove that the system meets its design goal of being highly customizable and extendable. Furthermore, it serves as a compact testbed for various rendering aspects as well as for new algorithms 'outside' of the classical rendering domain. This is supported by a recent cooperation with a German mobile communication network supplier. The development of a prototype package to simulate the 3D distribution of radio waves in urban environments based on MRT could be completed by one of our students within three weeks. The incredibly short development time (considering that we started from scratch) in combination with the fact that the prototype was significantly faster than what was available before was a convincing argument to start this cooperation.