The Cornell Box is a test aimed at determining the accuracy of 3D rendering applications by comparing the rendered scene with an actual photograph of the same scene.

The environment of the test is composed of :

  • One light source
  • Two boxes
  • Four walls :
    • The right one is green
    • The left one is red
    • The back and the front ones are white
  • The ceilling and the floor are also white

These settings are reproduced in reality and a picture is taken with a CCD camera. The exact settings are then measured from the scene : emission spectrum of the light source, reflectance spectra of all the surfaces, exact position and size of the boxes, walls, light source and camera.

The same scene is then reproduced in the tested application, and the output file is compared with the photography.

Standard Cornell Box (rendered with POV-Ray) :

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