PW45_2026_Boston: Add project ThatRenderingThing

Author: sjh26

PW45_2026_Boston/Projects/ThatRenderingThing/README.md

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+---
+layout: pw45-project
+
+permalink: /:path/
+
+project_title: That Rendering Thing
+category: VR/AR and Rendering
+presenter_location: 
+
+key_investigators:
+
+- name: Steve Pieper
+  affiliation: Isomics
+  country: USA
+
+---
+
+# Project Description
+
+<!-- Add a short paragraph describing the project. -->
+
+
+I've been experimenting with [wgpu-py](https://github.com/pygfx/wgpu-py), an implementation of WebGPU that you can pip_install directly into Slicer.
+
+The work in progress in [SlicerWGPU](https://github.com/pieper/SlicerWGPU), which is now working pretty nicely in demo mode.
+
+#### Key Features
+* Easy to install, can work with any recent Slicer release.  Don't even need to restart Slicer.
+* Can write shader code easily that works on Vulkan, DirectX, and Metal.
+* It supports multi-volume rendering with full quality compositing
+* It can directly render segmentations and provides instant updates in response to edits
+* It supports interactive rendering of volumes under non-linear transforms
+* Interactive elements like transform handles and markups are still handled by VTK and seamlessly composited
+
+#### Current status
+* Currently in demo mode.  Some things are integrated to work with the MRML scene while, others work alongside.
+* The VTK OpenGL render window is tapped into so that most rendering works cleanly, but SlicerWGPU uses a different method to composite multiple translucent surfaces (A-Buffer compared to Depth Peeling) so those aren't currently combined.
+* Performance seems about the same as VTK's GPU renderer, but no extensive testing has been done. 
+
+#### How to try it
+* Clone the [SlicerWGPU](https://github.com/pieper/SlicerWGPU) repository
+* Drag and drop the folder onto a running Slicer (5.10.0 or really any version should work).
+* Be sure to load the `Scene Rendering` module (you can ignore the others)
+* Go to the `Scene Rendering` module and try the buttons.  The top block of buttons (the "VTK Injection" block) are the current demos and the "Dual View" bock are some older experiments.
+
+<img width="539" height="308" alt="Image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/5c518029-b73d-4881-91d9-50b3eecf0ab9" />
+
+
+
+## Objective
+
+<!-- Describe here WHAT you would like to achieve (what you will have as end result). -->
+
+
+1. Give demos to anyone who might be interested and collect feedback
+2. Collect use-cases where existing Slicer rendering doesn't fully meet requirements but the SlicerWGPU code could
+3. Consider what would be needed for a more complete integration (i.e. possible custom display nodes and dedicated GUI).
+
+
+
+
+## Approach and Plan
+
+<!-- Describe here HOW you would like to achieve the objectives stated above. -->
+
+
+1. Experiment with an updated Volume Rendering module to take advantage of advanced features
+2. Try implementing any new features or use cases people suggest
+3. Think about how to render volumes that are too large for GPU memory (i.e. paging texture data)
+4. Consider how to make this more easily available and useful
+
+
+
+## Progress and Next Steps
+
+<!-- Update this section as you make progress, describing of what you have ACTUALLY DONE.
+     If there are specific steps that you could not complete then you can describe them here, too. -->
+
+
+(TBD)
+
+
+
+# Illustrations
+
+<!-- Add pictures and links to videos that demonstrate what has been accomplished. -->
+
+
+<img width="400" alt="Image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/2fc3ddb2-f485-40a6-b8e1-241e4fe4d155" />
+
+<img width="400" alt="Image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/6e41c142-0e47-427e-9bbd-e5efac80069e" />
+
+<img width="400" alt="Image" src="https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/18f1e66d-4939-450b-9d88-bcd8de74c3da" />
+
+
+
+# Background and References
+
+<!-- If you developed any software, include link to the source code repository.
+     If possible, also add links to sample data, and to any relevant publications. -->
+
+
+SlilcerCL: https://github.com/pieper/SlicerCL (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFxTyLPjQd0)
+STEP: https://github.com/pieper/step (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ML9_JWAz1kY, https://youtu.be/8dputUoKBTA)
+Transfer function editor: https://youtu.be/4Q9NfNmN-9w
+