Curvature estimation using shape-from-texture

Abstract

This paper shows how the apparatus of robust statistics can be used to extract consistent estimates of surface orientation using shape-from-texture. We make initial estimates of surface orientation by measuring the affine distortion of neighbouring spectral peaks. We show how the initial orientation estimates can be refined using a process of robust smoothing and subsequently used for reliable curvature estimation. We apply the method to a variety of real-world and synthetic imagery. Here it is demonstrated to provide useful estimates of curvature. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2000.