https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/10956 Wed, 08 Apr 2026 05:01:29 GMT 2026-04-08T05:01:29Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/144338 Title: Towards the efficient adaptation of offline physically based methods for real-time rendering Abstract: Rendering physically accurate caustics in real-time remains a persistent challenge due to their complex light interactions and high-frequency features. This thesis presents a comprehensive exploration into adapting oìine physically based rendering techniques for real-time caustic synthesis on modern GPU architectures. Central to this work is CandelaDXR, a GPU-accelerated light tracer that employs novel importance sampling strategies to improve convergence speed and visual adelity for caustics. By generating dynamic probability distribution functions conditioned on scene geometry, camera parameters, and material properties, CandelaDXR prioritises specular interactions and focuses sampling eêorts on perceptually relevant regions. To support this system, two auxiliary tools were developed: Anvil, a modular visual debugging platform for rendering pipelines, and Forge, an evaluation framework designed to facilitate reproducible, cross-system comparisons. These tools provide both insight and rigour in diagnosing rendering artefacts and validating algorithmic improvements. Additionally, the thesis introduces a spectral denoising pipeline tailored to the distinct characteristics of caustic signals, demonstrating the eêectiveness of Fourier, wavelet and curvelet-based transforms in preserving detail while reducing noise. Quantitative results across multiple scenes and viewpoints reveal signiacant performance gains, noise reduction, and perceptual improvements in CandelaDXR over baseline methods. Collectively, this work contributes a uniaed architecture for real-time caustic rendering, debugging, and evaluation, offering practical advances in both rendering theory and implementation for real-time physically based graphics. Description: Ph.D.(Melit.) Wed, 01 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/144338 2025-01-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/140084 Title: Beyond single traces : implementing multiple execution monitoring in DetectEr Abstract: Runtime verification (RV) has emerged as a crucial technique for ensuring software correctness by monitoring system execution against formally specified properties. However, traditional RV approaches are limited to analyzing single execution traces, restricting their ability to verify properties that require evidence from multiple system runs, particularly in branching-time systems. This project extends DetectEr, an open-source runtime verification tool for actor-based systems, to support multiple execution monitoring. The extension enables verification of safety properties expressed in sHML∨ Det, an enhanced specification language that incorporates disjunctive operators beyond the original Safety Hennessy-Milner Logic (sHML). The implementation addresses three key challenges: adapting the theoretical framework to handle first-order events with data values, developing a robust history aggregation mechanism using Erlang Term Storage tables with trace normalisation, and implementing a breadth-first search algorithm for the history analysis proof system. The approach successfully demonstrates the practical feasibility of multiple execution monitoring through evaluation using a calculator server case study. The results show that the extended framework maintains backward compatibility with existing DetectEr functionality while enabling verification of previously unmonitorable properties, such as implication-based conditions requiring evidence across multiple execution traces. This work contributes to the runtime verification field by demonstrating that multiple execution monitoring can be effectively integrated into existing RV frameworks, expanding their verification capabilities. Description: B.Sc. (Hons)(Melit.) Wed, 01 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/140084 2025-01-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/140083 Title: A novel data structure for voxel rendering Abstract: This project presents a novel data structure implementation designed specifically for voxel‐based rendering. The primary aim is to develop a dynamic system capable of managing voxel data efficiently while supporting real‐time updates and rendering. By leveraging a tiered hierarchy of sectors, chunks, and compact voxel arrays, the system allows for fast access, minimal memory overhead, and smooth integration with a mesh generation pipeline. Key features include spatial indexing, chunk‐level organisation, and dynamic streaming, all geared towards maintaining responsiveness in large or procedurally generated worlds. To evaluate the effectiveness of the design, a range of configurations and workloads were tested, including variations in voxel storage models, mesh generation strategies, and level‐of‐detail (LOD) approaches. Benchmarks were gathered to assess memory usage, update times, and mesh complexity across different scenarios. While the implementation does not aim to outperform all alternatives, it prioritises simplicity, extensibility, and practical performance for real‐time applications, offering a solid foundation for further development and experimentation. Description: B.Sc. (Hons)(Melit.) Wed, 01 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/140083 2025-01-01T00:00:00Z https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/140081 Title: Comparing performance and scalability of a microservice oriented architecture vs a monolithic architecture for e‐commerce platforms Abstract: This dissertation presents a comprehensive performance evaluation and architectural comparison between microservices and monolithic systems within the context of an e‐commerce application. The study involves the development of two implementations: one as a distributed system comprising several microservices, namely the user‐service, order‐service, and product‐service, coordinated by an Application Programming Interface (API) gateway that converts JSON Web Token (JWT) tokens into custom headers for inter‐service communication, and the other as a traditional monolithic system. The microservices integrate Kafka for asynchronous messaging, and both architectures integrate PostgreSQL for shared data persistence, with container orchestration provided via Docker. Performance tests using Apache JMeter reveal that, under identical resource allocations, the monolithic architecture consistently delivers lower latency and higher throughput due to the absence of inter‐service overhead. Only when compute cores are reallocated to the hot path in the microservices setup does it surpass the monolith, achieving a 37% reduction in mean latency and a 59% increase in throughput, albeit at the expense of nearly double the peak CPU utilisation. In addition, database statistics gathered and visualised using Postgres‐exporter, cAdvisor and Grafana provide insights into query patterns and resource utilisation, confirming that neither architecture is database bound and that application and network factors dominate end to end performance. Description: B.Sc. (Hons)(Melit.) Wed, 01 Jan 2025 00:00:00 GMT https://www.um.edu.mt/library/oar/handle/123456789/140081 2025-01-01T00:00:00Z