Abstract: In this article, we focus on the problem of large-scale instance-level image retrieval. For efficiency reasons, it is common to represent an image by a fixed-length descriptor which is subsequently encoded into a small number of bits. We note that most encoding techniques include an unsupervised dimensionality reduction step. Our goal in this work is to learn a better subspace in a supervised manner. We especially raise the following question: “can category-level labels be used to learn such a subspace?” To answer this question, we experiment with four learning techniques: the first one is based on a metric learning framework, the second one on attribute representations, the third one on Canonical Correlation Analysis (CCA) and the fourth one on Joint Subspace and Classifier Learning (JSCL). While the first three approaches have been applied in the past to the image retrieval problem, we believe we are the first to show the usefulness of JSCL in this context. In our experiments, we use ImageNet as a source of category-level labels and report retrieval results on two standard dataseis: INRIA Holidays and the University of Kentucky benchmark. Our experimental study shows that metric learning and attributes do not lead to any significant improvement in retrieval accuracy, as opposed to CCA and JSCL. As an example, we report on Holidays an increase in accuracy from 39.3% to 48.6% with 32-dimensional representations. Overall JSCL is shown to yield the best results.

Abstract: Co-segmentation is defined as jointly partitioning multiple images depicting the same or similar object, into foreground and background. Our method consists of a multiple-scale multiple-image generative model, which jointly estimates the foreground and background appearance distributions from several images, in a non-supervised manner. In contrast to other co-segmentation methods, our approach does not require the images to have similar foregrounds and different backgrounds to function properly. Region matching is applied to exploit inter-image information by establishing correspondences between the common objects that appear in the scene. Moreover, computing many-to-many associations of regions allow further applications, like recognition of object parts across images. We report results on iCoseg, a challenging dataset that presents extreme variability in camera viewpoint, illumination and object deformations and poses. We also show that our method is robust against large intra-class variability in the MSRC database.

Abstract: In large-scale query-by-example retrieval, embedding image signatures in a binary space offers two benefits: data compression and search efficiency. While most embedding algorithms binarize both query and database signatures, it has been noted that this is not strictly a requirement. Indeed, asymmetric schemes which binarize the database signatures but not the query still enjoy the same two benefits but may provide superior accuracy. In this work, we propose two general asymmetric distances which are applicable to a wide variety of embedding techniques including Locality Sensitive Hashing (LSH), Locality Sensitive Binary Codes (LSBC), Spectral Hashing (SH) and Semi-Supervised Hashing (SSH). We experiment on four public benchmarks containing up to 1M images and show that the proposed asymmetric distances consistently lead to large improvements over the symmetric Hamming distance for all binary embedding techniques. We also propose a novel simple binary embedding technique – PCA Embedding (PCAE) – which is shown to yield competitive results with respect to more complex algorithms such as SH and SSH.

Abstract: Detecting pedestrians in images is a key functionality to avoid vehicle-to-pedestrian collisions. The most promising detectors rely on appearance-based pedestrian classifiers trained with labelled samples. This paper addresses the following question: can a pedestrian appearance model learnt in virtual scenarios work successfully for pedestrian detection in real images? (Fig. 1). Our experiments suggest a positive answer, which is a new and relevant conclusion for research in pedestrian detection. More specifically, we record training sequences in virtual scenarios and then appearance-based pedestrian classifiers are learnt using HOG and linear SVM. We test such classifiers in a publicly available dataset provided by Daimler AG for pedestrian detection benchmarking. This dataset contains real world images acquired from a moving car. The obtained result is compared with the one given by a classifier learnt using samples coming from real images. The comparison reveals that, although virtual samples were not specially selected, both virtual and real based training give rise to classifiers of similar performance.

Abstract: This paper presents a novel method to increase the accuracy of linear fitting of implicit polynomials. The proposed method is based on the 3L algorithm philosophy. The novelty lies on the relaxation of the additional constraints, already imposed by the 3L algorithm. Hence, the accuracy of the final solution is increased due to the proper adjustment of the expected values in the aforementioned additional constraints. Although iterative, the proposed approach solves the fitting problem within a linear framework, which is independent of the threshold tuning. Experimental results, both in 2D and 3D, showing improvements in the accuracy of the fitting are presented. Comparisons with both state of the art algorithms and a geometric based one (non-linear fitting), which is used as a ground truth, are provided.

Abstract: Color is a powerful visual cue for many computer vision applications such as image segmentation and object recognition. However, most of the existing color models depend on the imaging conditions affecting negatively the performance of the task at hand. Often, a reflection model (e.g., Lambertian or dichromatic reflectance) is used to derive color invariant models. However, those reflection models might be too restricted to model real-world scenes in which different reflectance mechanisms may hold simultaneously. Therefore, in this paper, we aim to derive color invariance by learning from color models to obtain diversified color invariant ensembles. First, a photometrical orthogonal and non-redundant color model set is taken on input composed of both color variants and invariants. Then, the proposed method combines and weights these color models to arrive at a diversified color ensemble yielding a proper balance between invariance (repeatability) and discriminative power (distinctiveness). To achieve this, the fusion method uses a multi-view approach to minimize the estimation error. In this way, the method is robust to data uncertainty and produces properly diversified color invariant ensembles. Experiments are conducted on three different image datasets to validate the method. From the theoretical and experimental results, it is concluded that the method is robust against severe variations in imaging conditions. The method is not restricted to a certain reflection model or parameter tuning. Further, the method outperforms state-of- the-art detection techniques in the field of object, skin and road recognition.

Abstract: The increase in the use of parallel distributed architectures in order to solve large-scale scientific problems has generated the need for performance prediction for both deterministic applications and non-deterministic applications. In particular, the performance prediction of data dependent programs is an extremely challenging problem because for a specific issue the input datasets may cause different execution times. Generally, a parallel application is characterized as a collection of tasks and their interrelations. If the application is time-critical it is not enough to work with only one value per task, and consequently knowledge of the distribution of task execution times is crucial. The development of a new prediction methodology to estimate the performance of data-dependent parallel applications is the primary target of this study. This approach makes it possible to evaluate the parallel performance of an application without the need of implementation. A real data-dependent arterial structure detection application model is used to apply the methodology proposed. The predicted times obtained using the new methodology for genuine datasets are compared with predicted times that arise from using only one execution value per task. Finally, the experimental study shows that the new methodology generates more precise predictions.