class mrpt::opengl::PointsProxy

Overview

GPU-side proxy for rendering point clouds.

This proxy handles rendering of any CVisualObject that uses the POINTS shader, such as:

CPointCloud
CPointCloudColoured
Any object derived from VisualObjectParams_Points

The proxy manages:

Vertex buffer (3D positions)
Color buffer (per-vertex RGBA colors)
Point rendering parameters (size, variable sizing)
VAO for efficient attribute binding

Point rendering features:

Fixed point size or variable (distance-based) point size
Per-vertex colors
Alpha blending for transparency

Typical data flow:

compile() : Upload initial point positions and colors to GPU
updateBuffers() : Re-upload when points change
render() : Draw points every frame

Inherited Members

public:
    // methods

    virtual void compile(const mrpt::viz::CVisualObject* sourceObj) = 0;
    virtual void updateBuffers(const mrpt::viz::CVisualObject* sourceObj);
    virtual void render(const RenderContext& rc) const = 0;
    virtual std::vector<shader_id_t> requiredShaders() const = 0;
    virtual bool castsShadows() const;
    virtual mrpt::math::TBoundingBoxf getBoundingBoxLocal() const;
    virtual const char* typeName() const;
    RenderableProxy& operator = (const RenderableProxy&);
    RenderableProxy& operator = (RenderableProxy&&);
    virtual void compile(const mrpt::viz::CVisualObject* sourceObj);
    virtual void updateBuffers(const mrpt::viz::CVisualObject* sourceObj);
    virtual void render(const RenderContext& rc) const;
    virtual const char* typeName() const;

Methods

virtual void compile(const mrpt::viz::CVisualObject* sourceObj)

Initial compilation: uploads object data to GPU.

This is called once when the proxy is first created. It should:

Create OpenGL buffers (VBOs, VAOs, textures)
Upload initial vertex/color/normal/texture data
Cache any frequently-used values

Must be called from OpenGL context thread

After this call, the proxy should be ready to render

Parameters:

sourceObj

The abstract viz object (read-only access)

virtual void updateBuffers(const mrpt::viz::CVisualObject* sourceObj)

Incremental update: refreshes GPU buffers with changed data.

This is called when the source object’s dirty flag is set (hasToUpdateBuffers() returns true). It should:

Re-upload only the changed data (vertices, colors, etc.)
Be as efficient as possible (don’t recompile everything)

Must be called from OpenGL context thread

Default implementation calls compile() - override for efficiency

Parameters:

sourceObj

The abstract viz object (read-only access)

virtual void render(const RenderContext& rc) const

Renders this object using the provided context.

This is called every frame for visible objects. It should:

Bind appropriate buffers (VAO, VBO, textures)
Set shader uniforms (model matrix, material properties, etc.)
Issue draw calls (glDrawArrays, glDrawElements, etc.)

Must be called from OpenGL context thread

The shader program is already bound when this is called

Common matrices (P, V, M) are already uploaded by CompiledViewport

Parameters:

rc	Rendering context (shader, matrices, lights)

virtual const char* typeName() const

Returns a human-readable type name for this proxy.

Used for debugging and logging.

virtual std::vector<shader_id_t> requiredShaders() const

Returns the list of shader programs this object needs.

Most objects use a single shader, but some may use multiple (e.g., different shaders for shadow map pass vs. normal rendering).

Returns:

Vector of shader IDs, typically with 1 element

virtual bool castsShadows() const

Does this object cast shadows?

Used to determine if the object should be rendered during the shadow map generation pass (1st pass of shadow rendering).

Returns:

true if object casts shadows (default: true)

virtual mrpt::math::TBoundingBoxf getBoundingBoxLocal() const

Returns the object’s bounding box in local coordinates.

Used for frustum culling and spatial queries. The bounding box should be as tight as possible for efficient culling.

This is in the object’s local frame, before applying pose transform

Returns:

Bounding box, or empty box if not applicable