A Stereo-Based Approach to Face Modeling for the ATR Virtual Space Conferencing System
Gang Xu, Hiroshi Agawa, Yoshio Nagashima, Yukio Kobayashi · Proceedings of SPIE, the International Society for Optical Engineering/Proceedings of SPIE · 1989
The goal of this research is to generate three-dimensional facial models from facial images and to synthesize images of the models virtually viewed from different angles, which is an integral component of the ATR virtual space conferencing system project. We take a stereo-based approach. Since there is a great gap between the images and a 3D model, we argue that it is necessary to have a base face model to provide a framework. The base model is built by carefully selecting and measuring a set of points on the extremal boundaries that can be readily identified from the stereo output and another set of points inside the boundaries that can be easily determined given the boundary points. A front view and a side view of a face are employed. First the extremal boundaries are extracted or interpolated, and features such as eyes, nose and mouth are extracted. The extracted features are then matched between the two images, and their 3D positions calculated. Using these 3D data, the prepared base face model is modified to approximate the face. Finally the points on the modified 3D model are assigned intensity values derived from the original stereo images, and images are synthesized assuming new virtual viewing angles. The originality and significance of this work lies in that the system can generate a face model without a human operator's interaction with the system as in other conventional face modeling techniques.