Physical simulation for monocular 3D model based tracking

The problem of model-based object tracking in three dimensions is addressed. Most previous work on tracking assumes simple motion models, and consequently tracking typically fails in a variety of situations. Our insight is that incorporating physics models of object behaviour improves tracking performance in these cases. In particular it allows us to handle tracking in the face of rigid body interactions where there is also occlusion and fast object motion. We show how to incorporate rigid body physics simulation into a particle filter. We present two methods for this based on pose and force noise. The improvements are tested on four videos of a robot pushing an object, and results indicate that our approach performs considerably better than a plain particle filter tracker, with the force noise method producing the best results over the range of test videos

Progressive refinement rendering of implicit surfaces

The visualisation of implicit surfaces can be an inefficient task when such surfaces are complex and highly detailed. Visualising a surface by first converting it to a polygon mesh may lead to an excessive polygon count. Visualising a surface by direct ray casting is often a slow procedure. In this paper we present a progressive refinement renderer for implicit surfaces that are Lipschitz continuous. The renderer first displays a low resolution estimate of what the final image is going to be and, as the computation progresses, increases the quality of this estimate at an interactive frame rate. This renderer provides a quick previewing facility that significantly reduces the design cycle of a new and complex implicit surface. The renderer is also capable of completing an image faster than a conventional implicit surface rendering algorithm based on ray casting

3D Simulation with virtual stereo rig for optimizing centrifugal fertilizer spreading

Stereovision can be used to characterize of the fertilizer centrifugal spreading process and to control the spreading fertilizer distribution pattern on the ground reference. Fertilizer grains, however, resemble each other and the grain images contain little information on texture. Therefore, the accuracy of stereo matching algorithms in literature cannot be used as a reference for stereo images of fertilizer grains. In order to evaluate stereo matching algorithms applied to images of grains a generator of synthetic stereo particle images is presented in this paper. The particle stereo image generator consists of two main parts: the particle 3D position generator and the virtual stereo rig. The particle 3D position generator uses a simple ballistic flight model and the disc characteristics to simulate the ejection and the displacement of grains. The virtual stereo rig simUlates the stereo acquisition system and generates stereo images, a disparity map and an occlusion map. The results are satisfying and present an accurate reference to evaluate stereo particles matching algorithms

A progressive refinement approach for the visualisation of implicit surfaces

Visualising implicit surfaces with the ray casting method is a slow procedure. The design cycle of a new implicit surface is, therefore, fraught with long latency times as a user must wait for the surface to be rendered before being able to decide what changes should be introduced in the next iteration. In this paper, we present an attempt at reducing the design cycle of an implicit surface modeler by introducing a progressive refinement rendering approach to the visualisation of implicit surfaces. This progressive refinement renderer provides a quick previewing facility. It first displays a low quality estimate of what the final rendering is going to be and, as the computation progresses, increases the quality of this estimate at a steady rate. The progressive refinement algorithm is based on the adaptive subdivision of the viewing frustrum into smaller cells. An estimate for the variation of the implicit function inside each cell is obtained with an affine arithmetic range estimation technique. Overall, we show that our progressive refinement approach not only provides the user with visual feedback as the rendering advances but is also capable of completing the image faster than a conventional implicit surface rendering algorithm based on ray casting

Procedural Surface Weathering of Cultural Stone Through Physically Based Mesh Deformations

Weathering in computer graphics is crucial to creating believable objects. Common methods to add wear to an object include the application of 2D texture maps or direct model deformations through sculpting. These methods require an artist’s time and expertise, often at a cost to quality or iteration time for the asset. This creates a need for a method that is quick to iterate upon and easy to manipulate. This thesis outlines a new procedural method that combines principles of 2D texture maps and 3D sculpting to achieve large-scale mesh deformations in stone surfaces. The method involves the use of procedural 3D noise to define a stone’s composition combined with particle systems to simulate rainfall on an object, deforming it over time. A custom user interface with preset stone options is implemented to reduce the level of expertise needed to use the system

Dynamic textures

In this research study we introduce a new way to create textures by using (Reynolds, 1987) model. The study builds and extends upon principles outlined by (Reynolds, 1987). The study defines a class of textures that can be generated with boids behavior. Boids are tested with a combination of vector fields in 2D. The combination produces interesting color and image effects. Movement of boids and generation of textures on a 3D surface are explored as well. A novel way for boids to move on a surface of a 3D model is develope