3D Models Retrieval Using Earth Mover’s Distance

Abstract

Thanks to the recent and advanced development in threedimensional (3D) computer imaging technology, 3D objects begin to compete with traditional media (2D images, sounds, videos). These objects are usually represented by triangular meshes and are used in various fields. Thus, 3D object databases with size increasingly important become available. To effectively manage and manipulate this database, an indexing and retrieval system for 3D models is required. In this work, we present a method for 3D models retrieval based on the similarity measure between 2D slices. The main idea is to represent the 3D triangular mesh model, as a series of slices along a direction so that the similarity between 3D models is transformed into a measure of similarity between the 2D slices. In this process, three problems are involved: preprocessing of 3D models, the method of getting slices and the similarity measure between slices.