A robust incremental clustering-based facial feature tracking

Emerging significance of person-independent, emotion specific facial feature tracking has been actively tracked in the machine vision society for decades. Among distinct methods, the Constrained Local Model (CLM) has shown significant results in person-independent feature tracking. In this paper, we propose an automatic, efficient, and robust method for emotion specific facial feature detection and tracking from image sequences. A novel tracking system along with 17-point feature model on the frontal face region has also been proposed to facilitate the tracking of human basic facial expressions. The proposed feature tracking system keeps patch images and face shapes till certain number of key frames incorporating CLM-based tracker. After that, incremental patch and shape clustering algorithms is applied to build appearance model and structure model of similar patches and similar shapes respectively. The clusters in each model are built and updated incrementally and online, controlled by amount of facial muscle movement. The overall performance of the proposed Robust Incremental Clustering-based Facial Feature Tracking (RICFFT) is evaluated on the FGnet database and the Extended Cohn-Kanade (CK+) database. RICFFT demonstrates mean tracking accuracy of 97.45% and 96.64% for FGnet and CK+ database respectively. Also, RICFFT is more robust by minimizing average shape distortion error of 0.20% and 1.86% for FGnet and CK+ (apex frame) database, as compared with classic method CLM.     

Real time 3D face and facial feature tracking

Detecting and tracking human faces in video sequences is useful in a number of applications such as gesture recognition and human-machine interaction. In this paper, we show that online appearance models (holistic approaches) can be used for simultaneously tracking the head, the lips, the eyebrows, and the eyelids in monocular video sequences. Unlike previous approaches to eyelid tracking, we show that the online appearance models can be used for this purpose. Neither color information nor intensity edges are used by our proposed approach. More precisely, we show how the classical appearance-based trackers can be upgraded in order to deal with fast eyelid movements. The proposed eyelid tracking is made robust by avoiding eye feature extraction. Experiments on real videos show the usefulness of the proposed tracking schemes as well as their enhancement to our previous approach.

Robust facial feature tracking under varying face pose and facial expression

This paper presents a hierarchical multi-state pose-dependent approach for facial feature detection and tracking under varying facial expression and face pose. For effective and efficient representation of feature points, a hybrid representation that integrates Gabor wavelets and gray-level profiles is proposed. To model the spatial relations among feature points, a hierarchical statistical face shape model is proposed to characterize both the global shape of human face and the local structural details of each facial component. Furthermore, multi-state local shape models are introduced to deal with shape variations of some facial components under different facial expressions. During detection and tracking, both facial component states and feature point positions, constrained by the hierarchical face shape model, are dynamically estimated using a switching hypothesized measurements (SHM) model. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method accurately and robustly tracks facial features in real time under different facial expressions and face poses.     

一种基于预测的实时人脸特征点定位跟踪算法

当前的人脸特征点定位跟踪方法因其计算量大,实时特性欠佳。给出了一种基于改进Viola-Jones算法和Kalman滤波器预测机制的定位及跟踪算法。该算法通过使用改进的Viola-Jones算法对本次人脸特征点进行定位,同时使用Kalman滤波算法对特征点下次出现位置进行预测,缩小了下一帧特征点定位过程中特征点的搜索范围,因而缩短了定位搜索时间。实验结果表明该方法在保证定位准确性和鲁棒性的同时明显增强了算法的实时性。     

基于强跟踪滤波器预测的主动表观模型人脸特征点跟踪

利用主动表观模型(AAM)可以对视频序列中人脸进行特征点定位,当目标对象与初始位置偏离过大时,就会使拟合过程陷入局部最小,使迭代无法收敛到正确位置,造成定位失败。针对此问题,提出了一种基于强跟踪滤波器(STF)预测的AAM(STF-AAM)人脸特征点跟踪方法。首先,将视频中头部运动看成动态系统,然后利用强跟踪滤波器对其进行预测跟踪,从而找到每一帧的拟合初始位置并进行拟合运算。由于视频序列中每一帧中的拟合初始位置都能被快速找到,从而取得了比较精确、快速的跟踪结果。实验结果表明,所提方法与传统方法相比在保证拟合精度的同时,提高了算法的跟踪定位速度。     

A quantitative feedback solution to the multivariable tracking error problem

This paper introduces a novel solution for the multi‐input multi‐output (MIMO) quantitative feedback theory control design problem with tracking error specifications. Looking for a minimum controller overdesign, the technique finds new controller quantitative feedback theory bounds based on necessary and sufficient conditions for the existence of suitable associated prefilter matrix elements. It improves previous approaches to the subject and includes (i) the possibility of a free selection of the nominal plant, (ii) a less conservative application of the Schwartz inequality to decisively reduce the potential controller overdesign, (iii) a methodology to design independently the elements of the prefilter matrix, and (iv) a scope of application to both sequential and nonsequential MIMO controller design methods. The benefits of the new control design technique are illustrated by means of two examples. The first one, a standard 2 × 2 MIMO problem, is provided for comparison purposes with previous approaches. The second example, included as a major control challenge, deals with a well‐known demanding distillation column benchmark problem. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A face recognition system based on automatically determined facial fiducial points

In this paper, a completely automatic face recognition system is presented. The method works on color images: after having localized the face and the facial features, it determines 24 facial fiducial points, and characterizes them applying a bank of Gabor filters which extract the peculiar texture around them (jets). Recognition is realized measuring the similarity between the different jets. The system is inspired by the elastic bunch graph method, while it does no assumption on the scale, pose, and the background. Comparison with standard algorithms is presented and discussed.     

Strong tracking filter based adaptive generic model control

Generic Model Control (GMC) is a control algorithm capable of using nonlinear process model directly. Parameters in GMC controllers are easily tuned, and measurable disturbances can be compensated effectively. However, the existence of large modeling errors and unmeasurable disturbances will make the performance of GMC deteriorate. In this paper, based on the theory of Strong Tracking Filter (STF), a new approach to Adaptive Generic Model Control (AGMC) is proposed. Two AGMC schemes are developed. The first is a parameter-estimation-based AGMC. After introducing a new concept of Input Equivalent Disturbance (IED), another AGMC scheme called IED-estimation-based AGMC is further proposed. The unmeasurable disturbance and structural process/model mismatches can be effectively overcome by the second AGMC scheme. The laboratory experimental results on a three-tank-system demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed AGMC approach.