Face pose estimation with automatic 3D model creation for a driver inattention monitoring application

Texto en inglés y resumen en inglés y españolRecent studies have identified inattention (including distraction and drowsiness) as the main cause of accidents, being responsible of at least 25% of them. Driving distraction has been less studied, since it is more diverse and exhibits a higher risk factor than fatigue. In addition, it is present over half of the inattention involved crashes. The increased presence of In Vehicle Information Systems (IVIS) adds to the potential distraction risk and modifies driving behaviour, and thus research on this issue is of vital importance. Many researchers have been working on different approaches to deal with distraction during driving. Among them, Computer Vision is one of the most common, because it allows for a cost effective and non-invasive driver monitoring and sensing. Using Computer Vision techniques it is possible to evaluate some facial movements that characterise the state of attention of a driver. This thesis presents methods to estimate the face pose and gaze direction of a person in real-time, using a stereo camera as a basic for assessing driver distractions. The methods are completely automatic and user-independent. A set of features in the face are identified at initialisation, and used to create a sparse 3D model of the face. These features are tracked from frame to frame, and the model is augmented to cover parts of the face that may have been occluded before. The algorithm is designed to work in a naturalistic driving simulator, which presents challenging low light conditions. We evaluate several techniques to detect features on the face that can be matched between cameras and tracked with success. Well-known methods such as SURF do not return good results, due to the lack of salient points in the face, as well as the low illumination of the images. We introduce a novel multisize technique, based on Harris corner detector and patch correlation. This technique benefits from the better performance of small patches under rotations and illumination changes, and the more robust correlation of the bigger patches under motion blur. The head rotates in a range of ±90º in the yaw angle, and the appearance of the features change noticeably. To deal with these changes, we implement a new re-registering technique that captures new textures of the features as the face rotates. These new textures are incorporated to the model, which mixes the views of both cameras. The captures are taken at regular angle intervals for rotations in yaw, so that each texture is only used in a range of ±7.5º around the capture angle. Rotations in pitch and roll are handled using affine patch warping. The 3D model created at initialisation can only take features in the frontal part of the face, and some of these may occlude during rotations. The accuracy and robustness of the face tracking depends on the number of visible points, so new points are added to the 3D model when new parts of the face are visible from both cameras. Bundle adjustment is used to reduce the accumulated drift of the 3D reconstruction. We estimate the pose from the position of the features in the images and the 3D model using POSIT or Levenberg-Marquardt. A RANSAC process detects incorrectly tracked points, which are not considered for pose estimation. POSIT is faster, while LM obtains more accurate results. Using the model extension and the re-registering technique, we can accurately estimate the pose in the full head rotation range, with error levels that improve the state of the art. A coarse eye direction is composed with the face pose estimation to obtain the gaze and driver's fixation area, parameter which gives much information about the distraction pattern of the driver. The resulting gaze estimation algorithm proposed in this thesis has been tested on a set of driving experiments directed by a team of psychologists in a naturalistic driving simulator. This simulator mimics conditions present in real driving, including weather changes, manoeuvring and distractions due to IVIS. Professional drivers participated in the tests. The driver?s fixation statistics obtained with the proposed system show how the utilisation of IVIS influences the distraction pattern of the drivers, increasing reaction times and affecting the fixation of attention on the road and the surroundings

Face pose estimation with automatic 3D model creation for a driver inattention monitoring application

Texto en inglés y resumen en inglés y españolRecent studies have identified inattention (including distraction and drowsiness) as the main cause of accidents, being responsible of at least 25% of them. Driving distraction has been less studied, since it is more diverse and exhibits a higher risk factor than fatigue. In addition, it is present over half of the inattention involved crashes. The increased presence of In Vehicle Information Systems (IVIS) adds to the potential distraction risk and modifies driving behaviour, and thus research on this issue is of vital importance. Many researchers have been working on different approaches to deal with distraction during driving. Among them, Computer Vision is one of the most common, because it allows for a cost effective and non-invasive driver monitoring and sensing. Using Computer Vision techniques it is possible to evaluate some facial movements that characterise the state of attention of a driver. This thesis presents methods to estimate the face pose and gaze direction of a person in real-time, using a stereo camera as a basic for assessing driver distractions. The methods are completely automatic and user-independent. A set of features in the face are identified at initialisation, and used to create a sparse 3D model of the face. These features are tracked from frame to frame, and the model is augmented to cover parts of the face that may have been occluded before. The algorithm is designed to work in a naturalistic driving simulator, which presents challenging low light conditions. We evaluate several techniques to detect features on the face that can be matched between cameras and tracked with success. Well-known methods such as SURF do not return good results, due to the lack of salient points in the face, as well as the low illumination of the images. We introduce a novel multisize technique, based on Harris corner detector and patch correlation. This technique benefits from the better performance of small patches under rotations and illumination changes, and the more robust correlation of the bigger patches under motion blur. The head rotates in a range of ±90º in the yaw angle, and the appearance of the features change noticeably. To deal with these changes, we implement a new re-registering technique that captures new textures of the features as the face rotates. These new textures are incorporated to the model, which mixes the views of both cameras. The captures are taken at regular angle intervals for rotations in yaw, so that each texture is only used in a range of ±7.5º around the capture angle. Rotations in pitch and roll are handled using affine patch warping. The 3D model created at initialisation can only take features in the frontal part of the face, and some of these may occlude during rotations. The accuracy and robustness of the face tracking depends on the number of visible points, so new points are added to the 3D model when new parts of the face are visible from both cameras. Bundle adjustment is used to reduce the accumulated drift of the 3D reconstruction. We estimate the pose from the position of the features in the images and the 3D model using POSIT or Levenberg-Marquardt. A RANSAC process detects incorrectly tracked points, which are not considered for pose estimation. POSIT is faster, while LM obtains more accurate results. Using the model extension and the re-registering technique, we can accurately estimate the pose in the full head rotation range, with error levels that improve the state of the art. A coarse eye direction is composed with the face pose estimation to obtain the gaze and driver's fixation area, parameter which gives much information about the distraction pattern of the driver. The resulting gaze estimation algorithm proposed in this thesis has been tested on a set of driving experiments directed by a team of psychologists in a naturalistic driving simulator. This simulator mimics conditions present in real driving, including weather changes, manoeuvring and distractions due to IVIS. Professional drivers participated in the tests. The driver?s fixation statistics obtained with the proposed system show how the utilisation of IVIS influences the distraction pattern of the drivers, increasing reaction times and affecting the fixation of attention on the road and the surroundings

Ricerche di Geomatica 2011

Questo volume raccoglie gli articoli che hanno partecipato al Premio AUTeC 2011. Il premio è stato istituito nel 2005. Viene conferito ogni anno ad una tesi di Dottorato giudicata particolarmente significativa sui temi di pertinenza del SSD ICAR/06 (Topografia e Cartografia) nei diversi Dottorati attivi in Italia

Why do we optimize what we optimize in multiple view geometry?

Para que un computador sea capaz de entender la geometría 3D de su entorno, necesitamos derivar las relaciones geométricas entre las imágenes 2D y el mundo 3D.La geometría de múltiples vistas es el área de investigación que estudia este problema.La mayor parte de métodos existentes resuelve pequeñas partes de este gran problema minimizando una determinada función objetivo.Estas funciones normalmente se componen de errores algebraicos o geométricos que representan las desviaciones con respecto al modelo de observación.En resumen, en general tratamos de recuperar la estructura 3D del mundo y el movimiento de la cámara encontrando el modelo que minimiza la discrepancia con respecto a las observaciones.El enfoque de esta tesis se centra principalmente en dos aspectos de los problemas de reconstrucción multivista:los criterios de error y la robustez.Primero, estudiamos los criterios de error usados en varios problemas geométricos y nos preguntamos`¿Por qué optimizamos lo que optimizamos?'Específicamente, analizamos sus pros y sus contras y proponemos métodos novedosos que combinan los criterios existentes o adoptan una mejor alternativa.En segundo lugar, tratamos de alcanzar el estado del arte en robustez frente a valores atípicos y escenarios desafiantes, que a menudo se encuentran en la práctica.Para ello, proponemos múltiples ideas novedosas que pueden ser incorporadas en los métodos basados en optimización.Específicamente, estudiamos los siguientes problemas: SLAM monocular, triangulación a partir de dos y de múltiples vistas, promedio de rotaciones únicas y múltiples, ajuste de haces únicamente con rotaciones de cámara, promedio robusto de números y evaluación cuantitativa de estimación de trayectoria.Para SLAM monocular, proponemos un enfoque híbrido novedoso que combina las fortalezas de los métodos directos y los basados en características.Los métodos directos minimizan los errores fotométricos entre los píxeles correspondientes en varias imágenes, mientras que los métodos basados en características minimizan los errores de reproyección.Nuestro método combina de manera débilmente acoplada la odometría directa y el SLAM basado en características, y demostramos que mejora la robustez en escenarios desafiantes, así como la precisión cuando el movimiento de la cámara realiza frecuentes revisitas.Para la triangulación de dos vistas, proponemos métodos óptimos que minimizan los errores de reproyección angular en forma cerrada.Dado que el error angular es rotacionalmente invariante, estos métodos se pueden utilizar para cámaras perspectivas, lentes de ojo de pez u omnidireccionales.Además, son mucho más rápidos que los métodos óptimos existentes en la literatura.Otro método de triangulación de dos vistas que proponemos adopta un enfoque completamente diferente:Modificamos ligeramente el método clásico del punto medio y demostramos que proporciona un equilibrio superior de precisión 2D y 3D, aunque no es óptimo.Para la triangulación multivista, proponemos un método robusto y eficiente utilizando RANSAC de dos vistas.Presentamos varios criterios de finalización temprana para RANSAC de dos vistas utilizando el método de punto medio y mostramos que mejora la eficiencia cuando la proporción de medidas espúreas es alta.Además, mostramos que la incertidumbre de un punto triangulado se puede modelar en función de tres factores: el número de cámaras, el error medio de reproyección y el ángulo de paralaje máximo.Al aprender este modelo, la incertidumbre se puede interpolar para cada caso.Para promediar una sola rotación, proponemos un método robusto basado en el algoritmo de Weiszfeld.La idea principal es comenzar con una inicialización robusta y realizar un esquema de rechazo de valores espúreos implícito dentro del algoritmo de Weiszfeld para aumentar aún más la robustez.Además, usamos una aproximación de la mediana cordal en $SO(3)$ que proporciona una aceleración significativa del método. Para promediar rotaciones múltiples proponemos HARA, un enfoque novedoso que inicializa de manera incremental el grafo de rotaciones basado en una jerarquía de compatibilidad con tripletas.Esencialmente, construimos un árbol de expansión priorizando los enlaces con muchos soportes triples fuertes y agregando gradualmente aquellos con menos soportes y más débiles.Como resultado, reducimos el riesgo de agregar valores atípicos en la solución inicial, lo que nos permite filtrar los valores atípicos antes de la optimización no lineal.Además, mostramos que podemos mejorar los resultados usando la función suavizada L0+ en el paso de refinamiento local.A continuación, proponemos el ajuste de haces únicamente con rotaciones, un método novedoso para estimar las rotaciones absolutas de múltiples vistas independientemente de las traslaciones y la estructura de la escena.La clave es minimizar una función de coste especialmente diseñada basada en el error epipolar normalizado, que está estrechamente relacionado con el error de reproyección angular óptimo L1 entre otras cantidades geométricas.Nuestro enfoque brinda múltiples beneficios, como inmunidad total a translaciones y triangulaciones imprecisas, robustez frente a rotaciones puras y escenas planas, y la mejora de la precisión cuando se usa tras el promedio de promedio de rotaciones explicado anteriormente.También proponemos RODIAN, un método robusto para promediar un conjunto de números contaminados por una gran proporción de valores atípicos.En nuestro método, asumimos que los valores atípicos se distribuyen uniformemente dentro del rango de los datos y buscamos la región que es menos probable que contenga solo valores atípicos.Luego tomamos la mediana de los datos dentro de esta región.Nuestro método es rápido, robusto y determinista, y no se basa en un límite de error interno conocido.Finalmente, para la evaluación cuantitativa de la trayectoria, señalamos la debilidad del Error de Trayectoria Absoluta (ATE) comúnmente utilizado y proponemos una alternativa novedosa llamada Error de Trayectoria Discernible (DTE).En presencia de solo unos pocos valores espúreos, el ATE pierde su sensibilidad respecto al error de trayectoria de los valores típicos y respecto al número de datos atípicos o espúreos.El DTE supera esta debilidad al alinear la trayectoria estimada con la verdadera (ground truth) utilizando un método robusto basado en varios tipos diferentes de medianas.Usando ideas similares, también proponemos una métrica de solo rotación, llamada Error de Rotación Discernible (DRE).Además, proponemos un método simple para calibrar la rotación de cámara a marcador, que es un requisito previo para el cálculo de DTE y DRE.<br /

Videos in Context for Telecommunication and Spatial Browsing

The research presented in this thesis explores the use of videos embedded in panoramic imagery to transmit spatial and temporal information describing remote environments and their dynamics. Virtual environments (VEs) through which users can explore remote locations are rapidly emerging as a popular medium of presence and remote collaboration. However, capturing visual representation of locations to be used in VEs is usually a tedious process that requires either manual modelling of environments or the employment of specific hardware. Capturing environment dynamics is not straightforward either, and it is usually performed through specific tracking hardware. Similarly, browsing large unstructured video-collections with available tools is difficult, as the abundance of spatial and temporal information makes them hard to comprehend. At the same time, on a spectrum between 3D VEs and 2D images, panoramas lie in between, as they offer the same 2D images accessibility while preserving 3D virtual environments surrounding representation. For this reason, panoramas are an attractive basis for videoconferencing and browsing tools as they can relate several videos temporally and spatially. This research explores methods to acquire, fuse, render and stream data coming from heterogeneous cameras, with the help of panoramic imagery. Three distinct but interrelated questions are addressed. First, the thesis considers how spatially localised video can be used to increase the spatial information transmitted during video mediated communication, and if this improves quality of communication. Second, the research asks whether videos in panoramic context can be used to convey spatial and temporal information of a remote place and the dynamics within, and if this improves users' performance in tasks that require spatio-temporal thinking. Finally, the thesis considers whether there is an impact of display type on reasoning about events within videos in panoramic context. These research questions were investigated over three experiments, covering scenarios common to computer-supported cooperative work and video browsing. To support the investigation, two distinct video+context systems were developed. The first telecommunication experiment compared our videos in context interface with fully-panoramic video and conventional webcam video conferencing in an object placement scenario. The second experiment investigated the impact of videos in panoramic context on quality of spatio-temporal thinking during localization tasks. To support the experiment, a novel interface to video-collection in panoramic context was developed and compared with common video-browsing tools. The final experimental study investigated the impact of display type on reasoning about events. The study explored three adaptations of our video-collection interface to three display types. The overall conclusion is that videos in panoramic context offer a valid solution to spatio-temporal exploration of remote locations. Our approach presents a richer visual representation in terms of space and time than standard tools, showing that providing panoramic contexts to video collections makes spatio-temporal tasks easier. To this end, videos in context are suitable alternative to more difficult, and often expensive solutions. These findings are beneficial to many applications, including teleconferencing, virtual tourism and remote assistance

Change blindness: eradication of gestalt strategies

Arrays of eight, texture-defined rectangles were used as stimuli in a one-shot change blindness (CB) task where there was a 50% chance that one rectangle would change orientation between two successive presentations separated by an interval. CB was eliminated by cueing the target rectangle in the first stimulus, reduced by cueing in the interval and unaffected by cueing in the second presentation. This supports the idea that a representation was formed that persisted through the interval before being 'overwritten' by the second presentation (Landman et al, 2003 Vision Research 43149–164]. Another possibility is that participants used some kind of grouping or Gestalt strategy. To test this we changed the spatial position of the rectangles in the second presentation by shifting them along imaginary spokes (by ±1 degree) emanating from the central fixation point. There was no significant difference seen in performance between this and the standard task [F(1,4)=2.565, p=0.185]. This may suggest two things: (i) Gestalt grouping is not used as a strategy in these tasks, and (ii) it gives further weight to the argument that objects may be stored and retrieved from a pre-attentional store during this task