3D head model retrieval in kernel feature space using HSOM

In this paper, we propose a novel 3D head model retrieval framework. Specifically, to facilitate better classification and retrieval, the original 3D head model representations are embedded into another kernel feature space in which kernel principal component analysis (kernel PCA) is then performed to search for the optimal basis representation. Based on the extracted nonlinear features, a hierarchical indexing structure for 3D model retrieval is constructed using the hierarchical self organizing map (HSOM). The proposed indexing structure clusters the database into a hierarchy so that head models are partitioned by coarse features initially and then by finer scale features at lower levels. The main motivation of adopting this approach is that subspace technique like kernel PCA provides an elegant mechanism to describe the 3D head models on multiple resolutions based on the choices for reconstruction error and the orthogonal property of the produced eigenvectors. To further enhance the performance, a fuzzy metric between the query and the feature vector associated with each node on the SOMs is adopted instead of the usual Euclidean metric. Only nodes that possess high fuzzy measure values will be considered further for retrieval. In this way, the fuzzy measure approach is able to pick up potential relevant models even though they may be distributed across a number of neighbouring nodes. In addition to model categorization, the topology-preserving property of HSOM also facilitates the exploration of the model database with the possibility for further knowledge discovery. The effectiveness of the proposed approach is verified by a set of simulation examples on a 3D head model database.