X-Nico

9 unusual facts about Wavefront Technologies

Alias Systems Corporation

The company was formed in 1995 when Silicon Graphics bought Alias Research, which was founded in 1983, and Wavefront Technologies, founded in 1984, then merged the two companies.

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Wavefront Technologies founders Bill Kovacs and Roy A. Hall received a 1997 Academy Award for the creative leadership (Kovacs) and the principal engineering (Hall) efforts that led to the Wavefront Advanced Visualizer computer graphics system.

Bill Kovacs

He later co-founded Wavefront Technologies as CTO (1984-1994), leading the development of products such as The Advanced Visualizer as well as animated productions.

Kinemation

Kinemation was one of the first inverse kinematics packages for 3D computer animation, created for Wavefront Technologies' package The Advanced Visualizer (TAV).

Nicole Stenger

The project foundation was laid out at the Visual Arts Program at MIT, employing Wavefront's Advanced Visualizer on a Silicon Graphics personal IRIS.

Robert Abel and Associates

Many people who worked at RA&A went on to other ground-breaking projects, including the founding of Wavefront Technologies, Rhythm and Hues Studios and other studios.

The Advanced Visualizer

The Advanced Visualizer (TAV), a 3D graphics software package, was the flagship product of Wavefront Technologies from the 1980s until the 1990s.

Wavefront .obj file

OBJ (or .OBJ) is a geometry definition file format first developed by Wavefront Technologies for its Advanced Visualizer animation package.

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The Material Template Library format (MTL) is a standard defined by Wavefront Technologies for ASCII files that define the light reflecting properties of a surface for the purposes of computer rendering, and according to the Phong reflection model.