University of Southern California

Google Inc.

Wan-Chun Ma

Paul E Debevec

Timothy S Hawkins

Konstantine Nicholas John Tsotsos

Chloe LeGendre

Christina Tong

Laurent Charbonnel

Systems, methods, and computer program products are described that implement obtaining, at an electronic computing device and for at least one image of a scene rendered in an Augmented Reality (AR) environment, a scene lighting estimation captured at a first time period. The scene lighting estimation may include at least a first image measurement associated with the scene. The implementations may include determining, at the electronic computing device, a second image measurement associated with the scene at a second time period, determining a function of the first image measurement and the second image measurement. Based on the determined function, the implementations may also include triggering calculation of a partial lighting estimation update or triggering calculation of a full lighting estimation update and rendering, on a screen of the electronic computing device and for the scene, the scene using the partial lighting estimation update or the full lighting estimation update.

Compute amortization heuristics for lighting estimation for augmented reality

Acquisition, modeling, compression, and synthesis of realistic facial deformations using polynomial displacement maps are described. An analysis phase can be included where the relationship between motion capture markers and detailed facial geometry is inferred. A synthesis phase can be included where detailed animated facial geometry is driven by a sparse set of motion capture markers. For analysis, an actor can be recorded wearing facial markers while performing a set of training expression clips. Real-time high-resolution facial deformations are captured, including dynamic wrinkle and pore detail, using interleaved structured light 3D scanning and photometric stereo. Next, displacements are calculated between a neutral mesh driven by the motion capture markers and the high-resolution captured expressions. These geometric displacements are stored in one or more polynomial displacement maps parameterized according to the local deformations of the motion capture dots. For synthesis, the polynomial displacement maps can be driven with new motion capture data.

Facial performance synthesis using deformation driven polynomial displacement maps

An apparatus for generating a surface normal map of an object may include a plurality of light sources having intensities that are controllable so as to generate one or more gradient illumination patterns. The light sources are configured and arranged to illuminate the surface of the object with the gradient illumination patterns. A camera may receive light reflected from the illuminated surface of the object, and generate data representative of the reflected light. A processing system may process the data so as to estimate the surface normal map of the surface of the object. A specular normal map and a diffuse normal map of the surface of the object may be generated separately, by placing polarizers on the light sources and in front of the camera so as to illuminate the surface of the object with polarized spherical gradient illumination patterns.

Acquisition of surface normal maps from spherical gradient illumination

Growing community of inventors

Taipei, Taiwan

Wan-Chun Ma