Vector Graphics: Mastering Vector Graphics in Computer Vision

By Fouad Sabry

What is Vector Graphics

Vector graphics are a form of computer graphics in which visual images are created directly from geometric shapes defined on a Cartesian plane, such as points, lines, curves and polygons. The associated mechanisms may include vector display and printing hardware, vector data models and file formats, as well as the software based on these data models. Vector graphics are an alternative to raster or bitmap graphics, with each having advantages and disadvantages in specific situations.

How you will benefit

(I) Insights, and validations about the following topics:

Chapter 1: Vector graphics

Chapter 2: Raster graphics

Chapter 3: SVG

Chapter 4: Raster graphics editor

Chapter 5: Vector graphics editor

Chapter 6: Rasterisation

Chapter 7: Comparison of vector graphics editors

Chapter 8: Image file format

Chapter 9: Image tracing

Chapter 10: Boxy SVG

(II) Answering the public top questions about vector graphics.

(III) Real world examples for the usage of vector graphics in many fields.

Who this book is for

Professionals, undergraduate and graduate students, enthusiasts, hobbyists, and those who want to go beyond basic knowledge or information for any kind of Vector Graphics.

• Language: English
• Publisher: One Billion Knowledgeable
• Release date: May 13, 2024

Book preview

Chapter 1: Vector graphics

Vector graphics is a type of computer graphics in which images are formed directly from points, lines, curves, and polygons defined on a Cartesian plane. Hardware for vector display and printing, vector data models and file formats, as well as software based on these data models may be among the linked mechanisms (especially graphic design software, computer-aided design, and geographic information systems). Vector graphics is an alternative to raster and bitmap graphics, each of which has particular merits and limitations.

Vector hardware has mostly been replaced by raster-based displays and printers, but vector data and software are still frequently utilized, particularly where a high degree of geometric precision is required and when complicated information can be broken down into simple geometric primitives. Thus, it is the favored model for fields such as engineering, architecture, surveying, 3D rendering, and typography, but it is completely unsuited for photography and remote sensing applications, where raster is more effective and efficient. Some application sectors, like geographic information systems (GIS) and graphic design, use both vector and raster graphics depending on the intended usage.

Vector graphics are based on the mathematics of analytic or coordinate geometry and are unrelated to other mathematical applications of the name vector. This can lead to some confusion in fields that employ both meanings.

Vector graphics' logical data format is based on the mathematics of coordinate geometry, in which shapes are described as a set of points in a two- or three-dimensional cartesian coordinate system, as p = (x, y) or p = (x, y, z) (x, y, z). Because nearly all shapes are composed of an unlimited number of points, the vector model offers a limited set of geometric primitives that may be defined using a finite sampling of conspicuous points known as vertices. Using the coordinates of three of a square's four corners, for instance, the software may interpolate the connecting boundary lines and the inside space. Because it is a regular form, a square can also be characterized by the position of one of its corners, its size (width equals height), and its rotation angle.

The basic geometric primitives are the:

A solitary point.

A line segment defined by two endpoints that permits linear interpolation of the line in between.

An ordered list of points defining a polygonal chain or polyline, a collection of connected line segments.

A region of space represented by a polygon whose perimeter is a polyline with coincident beginning and ending vertices.

Multiple complex shapes can be accommodated:

Parametric curves, which augments polylines or polygons with parameters to define a non-linear interpolation between vertices, consisting of circular arcs, cubic splines, Catmull–Rom webbing, Bézier curves and bezigons.

Standard two- or three-dimensional parametric figures, such as circles, ellipses, squares, superellipses, spheres, tetrahedrons, superellipsoids, etc.

Uneven three-dimensional surfaces and solids, typically defined as a connected set of polygons (such as a polygon mesh) or parametric surfaces (e.g., NURBS).

Fractals are frequently described as iterated function systems.

In numerous vector datasets, each shape may be paired with a collection of characteristics. The most prevalent visual qualities include color, line weight, and dash pattern. In systems where shapes reflect real-world features, such as GIS and BIM, a number of attributes, such as name, age, and size, can be maintained for each represented feature.

If a dataset stored in one vector file format is converted to another file format that supports all the primitive image objects, then the conversion is lossless.

Vector-based devices, such as the vector CRT and the pen plotter, control a drawing mechanism directly to generate geometric objects. Due to the fact that vector display devices may define a line using just two points (the coordinates of either end of the line), the device can reduce the total amount of data it needs process by structuring the image in terms of pairs of points. Storage scope displays, such as the Tektronix 4014, were able to display vector images but could not be edited without first clearing the display. However, these were never as popular as the raster-scanning television displays, and by the mid-1980s, they had disappeared from all but specialist applications.

Technical drawing plotters continue to draw vectors directly onto paper by moving a pen through the two-dimensional space of the paper. As with monitors, however, these have been mostly superseded by wide-format printers that produce raster images (which may be rendered from vector data).

Numerous software tools for drawing, manipulating, and viewing vector graphics have been developed as a result of this model's applicability to numerous application domains. While all of these are built on the same fundamental vector data paradigm, they interpret and structure forms in vastly different ways and use vastly diverse file formats.

Utilizing a vector graphics editor or graphic art program, such as Adobe Illustrator, for graphic design and illustration. See Vector Graphics Editor Comparison for capabilities.

Geographic information systems (GIS) that may represent a geographical feature using a vector shape and a collection of properties. GIS capabilities include vector manipulation, mapping, and vector spatial analysis.

The application of computer-aided design (CAD) in engineering, architecture, and surveying. Similar to a GIS, Building Information Modeling (BIM) models add attributes to each shape.

Software for 3D computer graphics, especially computer animation.

Vector graphics are typically found in graphic file formats such as SVG, WMF, EPS, PDF, CDR, or AI, and are fundamentally distinct from raster graphics file formats such as JPEG, PNG, APNG, GIF, WebP, BMP, and MPEG4.

Scalable Vector Graphics is the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) standard for vector graphics (SVG). The standard is complex and its establishment has been relatively gradual, at least in part due to business interests. Numerous web browsers now provide partial capability for rendering SVG data, but full implementations of the specification remain uncommon.

In recent years, SVG has developed into a substantial format that is totally independent of the rendering device's resolution, generally a printer or display monitor. SVG files are essentially text files that specify both straight