First foundations of this technology, based on a unique concept, were laid at the beginning of the year 1996, when Vincent Pourieux, now CEO of VWORLD, hit upon the idea of devising algorithms which would enable to create terrain from procedural equations. First visual results were encouraging, and Pourieux decided to add DEM data parameters to his equations in order to achieve more realistic results.

In 1997, Pourieux formed CPU Software. He dedicated himself to research and development on the technology. A few months later, he was producing a first real-time 3D terrain simulation using satellite databases. From that first simulation (Italy in 3D) derived a new concept, and Pourieux decided to take another step: to simulate the entire planet. The technology was therefore named V-world. In 1998, Vincent Pelisson took interest in the research work on V-world and offered his expertise in the field of graphic design. Graphics took a great leap forward; together, they were reaching a much improved degree of realism in the simulation.

In 1999, CPU Software was running a first real-time 3D simulation of the entire Earth on PCs. It had been adding new capabilities to V-world, all based on its proprietary procedural algorithms, such as dynamic weather system, management of the vault of heaven, as well as rendering of seabeds and management of Autonomous Life Forms. At the time V-world technology was making use of the GTOPO30 DEM database.

1998

1999 1999

In 2000, Pourieux and Pelisson met with Jean-François Lévigne, who was working for M-Sat, a company providing satellite imagery in true colors. Lévigne was greatly interested in V-world and wanted to get started on a common project, so that V-world could benefit from his contribution as a satellite database processing engineer. One year later, the first real-time 3D simulation of the Earth on two CD-ROMs was released : Eingana. A slightly upgraded version, Eingana 1.5 was released two years later.

1999 1999

2001

2001

2001

2002

2003

2003

In 2002, CPU Software’s team was asked to contribute to the development of Dark and Light, an MMORPG project. V-world technology was therefore chosen to manage and render the game’s terrain and vegetation. It also offered, among others things, its dynamical weather device and its ALFs system to the project. Thanks to its use of the technology, DnL featured in 2003 as “the largest MMORPG you’ve ever seen”.

2003

2004

2004

2005

2005	In April 2004, VWORLD LLC, co-founded by Pourieux, Pelisson and Lévigne, succeeded to CPU Software. The VWorldPowered label was taken and the corresponding website dedicated to marketing the technology appeared. V-world was then renamed VWorldTerrain.

 

***