TECH Signal 407
WebGPU compute shaders extract and stylize scene motion as a shader input
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A new article demonstrates using WebGPU compute shaders to extract motion from frame sequences via frame differencing and use it as the basis for visual effects like trails, blob tracking, and motion blur.
Most screen-space shader effects treat a single frame as a spatial medium, sampling color, depth, or luminance. By treating motion as a temporal input, developers can create effects that respond to change over time rather than just static pixel properties, opening up a different category of visual feedback.
Written by elseif from the cluster below · every claim links back to a sourceThe three things worth knowing
Frame differencing compares current and previous frame luminance to produce a grayscale motion mask, with thresholds to filter noise.
The raw motion mask output flickers and is not smooth, requiring additional processing techniques to improve quality.
The pipeline supports effects ranging from simple trails to blob tracking, directional effects, and motion blur with object smearing.
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