The Alliance for Open Media (AOMedia) has announced that its Volumetric Visual Media (VVM) Working Group has opened a call for proposals on static polygonal mesh coding technology. Submissions will help the Working Group identify potential technologies needed to create compression tools that aim to optimise the performance and delivery of high-quality 3D graphics, such as those used in gaming, filmmaking, animation, AR, VR, architecture, manufacturing, and cultural heritage applications.

AOMedia’s VVM Working Group was formed in February 2022 and is led by Co-Chairs Khaled Mammou, Principal Engineer at Apple, and Shan Liu, Distinguished Scientist and General Manager at Tencent.

“AOMedia is excited to invite our members and the broader community to participate in the development of new tools for the compression of volumetric visual media. Volumetric visual media powers existing experiences such as mapping, gaming, and design and will help revolutionise the growing VR/AR space,” said AOMedia Chair Matt Frost. “The planned work project will enhance the quality of applications and user experience, from product and service providers to consumers. We encourage everyone—members and non-members alike—to join in contributing their ideas and expertise to this important effort.”

In this growing area of technology, new tools can ensure the best tradeoff in terms of quality and storage when compressing a 3D model, such as a graphical environment, character, or visual asset. For certain applications, this may mean shorter delivery times and reduced network bandwidth.

Call for Proposals Overview and Deadlines

All AOMedia members are invited to submit proposals. The submissions will be evaluated based on objective and subjective metrics described in the document, which includes information such as the project timeline, content testing details and all other submission requirements.

Evaluation results will be anonymised before being shared within AOMedia’s Volumetric Visual Media Working Group. Proposal submitters must declare their interest in submitting by June 13, 2023, and submit their results by October 31, 2023. Winning proposals will be announced in November 2023, and the selected proposals will be considered as the starting point for the development of a new mesh coding AOMedia standard.