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In this paper, we introduce a novel method that can generate a sequence of physical transformations between 3D models with different shape and topology. Feasible transformations are realized on a chain structure with connected components that are 3D printed. Collision-free motions are computed to transform between different configurations of the 3D printed chain structure. To realize the transformation between different 3D models, we first voxelize these input models into similar number of voxels. The challenging part of our approach is to generate a simple path --- as a chain configuration to connect most voxels. A layer-based algorithm is developed with theoretical guarantee of the existence and the path length. We find that collision-free motion sequence can always be generated when using a straight line as the intermediate configuration of transformation. The effectiveness of our method is demonstrated by both the simulation and the experimental tests taken on 3D printed chains.

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The polygonal approximation problem is a primary problem in computer graphics, pattern recognition, CAD/CAM, etc. In $R^2$, the cone intersection method (CIM) is one of the most eÆcient algorithms for approximating polygonal curves. With CIM Eu and Toussaint, by imposing an additional constraint and changing the given error criteria, resolve the three-dimensional weighted minimum number polygonal approximation problem with the parallel-strip error criterion (PS-WMN) under $L_2$ norm. In this paper, without any additional constraint and change of the error criteria, a CIM solution to the same problem with the line segment error criterion (LS-WMN) is presented, which is more frequently encountered than the PS-WMN is. Its time complexity is $O(n^3)$, and the space complexity is $O(n^2)$. An approximation algorithm is also presented, which takes $O(n^2)$ time and $O(n)$ space. Results of some examples are given to illustrate the eÆciency of these algorithms.

We describe a high-resolution, real-time 3D absolute coordinate measurement system based on a phase-shifting method. It acquires 3D shape at 30 frames per second (fps), with 266K points per frame. A tiny marker is encoded in the projected fringe pattern, and detected by software from the texture image and the gamma map. Absolute 3D coordinates are obtained from the detected marker position and the calibrated system parameters. To demonstrate the performance of the system, we measure a hand moving over a depth distance of approximately 700 mm, and human faces with expressions. Applications of such a system include manufacturing, inspection, entertainment, security, medical imaging.

The medial axis transform (MAT) is an important shape representation for shape approximation, shape recognition, and shape retrieval. Despite years of research, there is still a lack of effective methods for efficient, robust and accurate computation of the MAT. We present an efficient method, called {\em Q-MAT}, that uses quadratic error minimization to compute a structurally simple, geometrically accurate, and compact representation of the MAT. We introduce a new error metric for approximation and a new quantitative characterization of unstable branches of the MAT, and integrate them in an extension of the well-known quadric error metric (QEM) framework for mesh decimation. Q-MAT is fast, removes insignificant unstable branches effectively, and produces a simple and accurate piecewise linear approximation of the MAT. The method is thoroughly validated and compared with existing methods for MAT computation.

Mesh parameterization is a fundamental technique in computer graphics. The major goals during mesh parameterization are to minimize both the angle distortion and the area distortion. Angle distortion can be eliminated by the use of conformal mapping, in principle. Our paper focuses on solving the problem of finding the best discrete conformal mapping that also minimizes area distortion. First, we deduce an exact analytical differential formula to represent area distortion by curvature change in the discrete conformal mapping, giving a dynamic Poisson equation. On a mesh, the vertex curvature is related to edge lengths by the curvature map. Our result shows the map is invertible, i.e., the edge lengths can be computed from the curvature (by integration). Furthermore, we give the explicit Jacobi matrix of the inverse curvature map. Second, we formulate the task of computing conformal parameterizations with least area distortions as a constrained nonlinear optimization problem in curvature space. We deduce explicit conditions for the optima. Third, we give an energy form to measure the area distortions, and show that it has a unique global minimum. We use this to design an efficient algorithm, called free boundary curvature diffusion, which is guaranteed to converge to the global minimum; it has a natural physical interpretation. This result proves the common belief that optimal parameterization with least area distortion has a unique solution and can be achieved by free boundary conformal mapping. Major theoretical results and practical algorithms are presented for optimal parameterization based on the inverse curvature map. Comparisons are conducted with existing methods and using different energies. Novel parameterization applications are also introduced. The theoretical framework of the inverse curvature map can be applied to further study discrete conformal mappings.

In geometric modeling and processing, computer graphics and computer vision, smooth surfaces are approximated by discrete triangular meshes reconstructed from sample points on the surfaces. A fundamental problem is to design rigorous algorithms to guarantee the geometric approximation accuracy by controlling the sampling density. This paper gives explicit formulae to the bounds of Hausdorff distance, normal distance and Riemannian metric distortion between the smooth surface and the discrete mesh in terms of principle curvature and the radii of geodesic circum-circle of the triangles. These formulae can be directly applied to design sampling density for data acquisitions and surface reconstructions. Furthermore, we prove that the meshes induced from the Delaunay triangulations of the dense samples on a smooth surface are convergent to the smooth surface under both Hausdorff distance and normal

Finding correspondences between two surfaces is a fundamental operation in various applications in computer graphics and related fields. Candidate correspondences can be found by matching local signatures, but as they only consider local geometry, many are globally inconsistent. We provide a novel algorithm to prune a set of candidate correspondences to those most likely to be globally consistent. Our approach can handle articulated surfaces, and ones related by a deformation which is globally non-isometric, provided that the deformation is locally approximately isometric. Our approach uses an efficient diffusion framework, and only requires geodesic distance calculations in small neighbourhoods, unlike many existing techniques which require computation of global geodesic distances. We demonstrate that, for typical examples, our approach provides significant improvements in accuracy, yet also reduces time and memory costs by a factor of several hundred compared to existing pruning techniques. Our method is furthermore insensitive to holes, unlike many other methods.

A time domain blind source separation algorithm of convolutive sound mixtures is studied based on a compact partial inversion formula in closed form. An L1-constrained minimization problem is formulated to find demixing filter coefficients for source separation while capturing scaling invariance and sparseness of solutions. The minimization aims to reduce (lagged) cross correlations of the mixture signals, which are modeled stochastically. The problem is non-convex, however it is put in a nonlinear least squares form where the robust and convergent Levenberg-Marquardt iterative method is applicable to compute local minimizers. Efficiency is achieved in recovering lower dimensional demixing filter solutions than the physical ones. Computations on recorded and synthetic mixtures show satisfactory performance, and are compared with other iterative methods.