Multi-object image retrieval based on shape and topology

We aim at developing a geometry-based retrieval system for multi-object images. We model both shape and topology of image objects including holes using a structured representation called curvature tree (CT); the hierarchy of the CT reflects the inclusion relationships between the objects and holes. To facilitate shape-based matching, triangle-area representation (TAR) of each object and hole is stored at the corresponding node in the CT. The similarity between two multi-object images is measured based on the maximum similarity subtree isomorphism (MSSI) between their CTs. For this purpose, we adapt a continuous optimization approach to solve the MSSI problem and a very effective dynamic programming algorithm to measure the similarity between the attributed nodes. Our matching scheme agrees with many recent findings in psychology about the human perception of multi-object images. Experiments on a database of 1500 logos and the MPEG-7 CE-1 database of 1400 shape images have shown the significance of the proposed method.     

基于轮廓分层描述的目标识别算法研究

有效的目标轮廓分段是描述目标局部特征的关键环节.针对现有轮廓描述算法存在轮廓分段不合理的问题,本文基于认知心理学,提出了分层描述的轮廓描述算法.算法思想是首先根据角点特征将整个轮廓划分成一些轮廓分段,接着对轮廓分段的分布特点提出价值尺度,然后将多级轮廓分段按照价值尺度原则合并得到有限个能够完整描述目标轮廓的特征分段,最后将特征分段综合考虑长度尺度应用到Shape Context相似度检测模型中进行目标识别.通过对MPEG-7图像数据库中的图像进行实验分析表明该算法能够完整描述目标图像的形状特征,提高了目标识别率和形状检索率,并对部分遮挡的目标也具有良好的鲁棒性.基本满足目标识别识别和形状检索对准确率、稳定性、抗遮挡能力等方面的要求.     

基于形状及空间关系的场景相似性检索

为解决空间数据检索效率低、准确性差的问题,本文提出由空间对象形状描述模型、空间关系描述模型、场景相似性自适应计算模型构成的场景相似性检索方法.空间对象形状描述模型精准检索满足样例对象形状约束的数据库对象,提高空间对象形状的识别精度.空间关系描述模型检索满足样例场景关系约束的数据库场景,提高空间关系的描述精度.场景相似性自适应计算模型对满足形状及关系约束的完全匹配、局部匹配场景进行打分、排序,增加检索结果相似性打分的合理性.模拟场景、真实场景的实验表明本场景相似性检索方法具有良好的检索性能.     

Rate-constrained arbitrarily shaped video object coding with object-based rate control

The authors develop an object-based rate control algorithm for MPEG-4 arbitrarily shaped video object coding. There are three main contributions. An improved quadratic rate-distortion model for texture information is derived, which is more accurate for arbitrarily shaped video objects. Secondly, an accurate rate-distortion model for shape information is introduced. Combining the rate-distortion models for texture and shape information, an object level rate control is proposed. To achieve constant bit rate, the quantiser is adjusted based on buffer fullness. The tradeoff between picture quality and buffer fullness is considered. Compared with the rate control algorithm for the MPEG-4 verification model, the proposed scheme can achieve a more stable buffer without sacrificing picture quality.     

纹理图像检索的不同相似性度量方法的比较研究

图像特征和相似性度量方法的选取是基于内容图像检索的一个关键环节。针对该问题，提出一种基于整数小波包分解的纹理特征检索方法。通过连接小波包分解后各尺度内和尺度闯不同频带的小波系数，提取标准方差和均值信息描述纹理。此外，对8种相似性度量方法进行了分析和比较。通过对纹理库的检索实验表明，与传统的距离测度相比，Canberra和Bray—Curtis距离测度能有效地提高图像的检索性能。     

MPEG-4 and rate-distortion-based shape-coding techniques

We address the problem of the efficient encoding of object boundaries. This problem is becoming increasingly important in applications such as content-based storage and retrieval, studio and television postproduction, and mobile multimedia applications. The MPEG-4 visual standard will allow the transmission of arbitrarily shaped video objects. The techniques developed for shape coding within the MPEG-4 standardization effort are described and compared first. A framework for the representation of shapes using their contours is presented next. Such representations are achieved using curves of various orders, and they are optimal in the rate-distortion sense. Finally, conclusions are drawn     

基于多目标区域的图像检索

针对传统的基于目标区域的图像检索算法中存在的"语义鸿沟"问题,以及基于全局特征的图像检索算法不能很好地处理多目标检索问题,提出了一种基于多目标区域的图像检索模型,并实现了一款高效的检索算法.首先借助于目标检测算法定位出图像中的目标,然后使用卷积神经网络(CNN)提取各个目标的特征,最后采用新提出的多目标区域相似度测量方法计算其与数据库图像的相似度并返回检索结果.实验表明,所提算法与现有的其他检索算法相比,在多目标图像检索任务上性能更佳.     

PicToSeek: combining color and shape invariant features for imageretrieval

We aim at combining color and shape invariants for indexing and retrieving images. To this end, color models are proposed independent of the object geometry, object pose, and illumination. From these color models, color invariant edges are derived from which shape invariant features are computed. Computational methods are described to combine the color and shape invariants into a unified high-dimensional invariant feature set for discriminatory object retrieval. Experiments have been conducted on a database consisting of 500 images taken from multicolored man-made objects in real world scenes. From the theoretical and experimental results it is concluded that object retrieval based on composite color and shape invariant features provides excellent retrieval accuracy. Object retrieval based on color invariants provides very high retrieval accuracy whereas object retrieval based entirely on shape invariants yields poor discriminative power. Furthermore, the image retrieval scheme is highly robust to partial occlusion, object clutter and a change in the object's pose. Finally, the image retrieval scheme is integrated into the PicToSeek system on-line at http://www.wins.uva.nl/research/isis/PicToSeek/ for searching images on the World Wide Web.     

运动目标的自动分割与跟踪

该文提出了一种对视频序列中的运动目标进行自动分割的算法。该算法分析图像在L U V空间中的局部变化,同时使用运动信息来把目标从背景中分离出来。首先根据图像的局部变化,使用基于图论的方法把图像分割成不同的区域。然后,通过度量合成的全局运动与估计的局部运动之间的偏差来检测出运动的区域,运动的区域通过基于区域的仿射运动模型来跟踪到下一帧。为了提高提取的目标的时空连续性,使用Hausdorff跟踪器对目标的二值模型进行跟踪。对一些典型的MPEG-4测试序列所进行的评估显示了该算法的优良性能。     

一种基于内容的快速视频运动对象分割算法

自从MPEG-4和MPEG-7标准公布以来。基于内容的视频编码与基于对象形状的检索成为视频领域新的发展趋势，而准确地从背景中分割出视频对象是实现上述功能的前提条件。对视频运动对象分割算法进行了研究，该算法结合对称差分和自适应阚值选取，获得变化检测模板，并最终分割出视频运动对象。实验结果表明该算法对运动对象敏感，能实时准确地分割出视频运动对象。但对象的关节运动以及背景的全局运动都将导致分割精度的降低，这也是今后研究的重点。     

图像区间模糊模型及其在图像检索中的应用

在HSV颜色空间下,通过非均匀量化方法,构建了图像区间模糊模型.在此模型下,图像可以看作是一个区间模糊集合(IVFS,interval-valued fuzzy set).IVFS之间相似性度量可以用来衡量图像之间的相似程度.给出一种基于LP范数距离的IVFS集合度量(简称IVFSLp)并将它应用于图像检索中.实验数据表明:IVF-SLP与直方图距离(histogram distance)和普通模糊集的相似性度量(general fuzzy similarity measure)相比具有更好的性能.     

Similarity measure for superquadrics

Superquadrics with parametric deformations are suitable models for use as solid primitives for describing a complicated 3-D object. Some different methods for the recovery of superquadric primitives from range data have been proposed, but there is still no effective similarity measure for the matching task between two superquadrics in a 3-D object recognition system. The authors propose a similarity measure to evaluate the degree of shape similarity between two superquadric-based objects. This similarity measure is defined as the volume of regions bounded by the surfaces of two 3-D objects. The proposed measure has been proved to be a metric. The metric value is computed by the Monte Carlo integration method. The experimental results illustrate that the proposed similarity measure is effective in matching a recovered superquadric with a set of superquadrics in the model database     

A hybrid scheme for low bit-rate coding of stereo images

We propose a hybrid scheme to implement an object driven, block based algorithm to achieve low bit-rate compression of stereo image pairs. The algorithm effectively combines the simplicity and adaptability of the existing block based stereo image compression techniques with an edge/contour based object extraction technique to determine appropriate compression strategy for various areas of the right image. Unlike the existing object-based coding such as MPEG-4 developed in the video compression community, the proposed scheme does not require any additional shape coding. Instead, the arbitrary shape is reconstructed by the matching object inside the left frame, which has been encoded by standard JPEG algorithm and hence made available at the decoding end for those shapes in right frames. Yet the shape reconstruction for right objects incurs no distortion due to the unique correlation between left and right frames inside stereo image pairs and the nature of the proposed hybrid scheme. Extensive experiments carried out support that significant improvements of up to 20% in compression ratios are achieved by the proposed algorithm in comparison with the existing block-based technique, while the reconstructed image quality is maintained at a competitive level in terms of both PSNR values and visual inspections.