Apparatus and method for synthesizing multi-dimensional texture

Abstract

A multi-dimensional texture synthesis apparatus includes a generator to generate a reference multi-dimensional texture including a codebook and a reference index image, the codebook including a set of color information of the same-position pixels of the reference texture images, and the reference index image including a set of indexes for addressing the codebook, a quantizater to quantize the reference multi-dimensional texture at one or more quantization levels to generate a quantized codebook and a quantized reference index image, a synthesizer to synthesize a new index image having a specified size from the quantized reference index image using a hierarchical structure of the reference multi-dimensional texture corresponding to the one or more quantization levels, and a generator to generate the new multi-dimensional texture by combining the new index image with the quantized codebook.

1 . A multi-dimensional texture synthesis apparatus to synthesize a new multi-dimensional texture using one or more texture images, comprising: 
 a reference multi-dimensional texture generator receiving, as one or more reference texture images, one or more texture images captured or created with a plurality of different conditions to generate a reference multi-dimensional texture including a codebook and a reference index image, the codebook including a set of color information of same-position pixels of one or more reference texture images, and the reference index image including a set of indexes for addressing the codebook;    a reference multi-dimensional texture quantizer to quantize the reference multi-dimensional texture at one or more quantization levels and generate a quantized codebook and a quantized reference index image;    an index image synthesizer to synthesize a new index image having a specified size from the quantized reference index image using a hierarchical structure of the reference multi-dimensional texture corresponding to one of the quantization levels; and    a new multi-dimensional texture generator to generate a new multi-dimensional texture by combining the new index image with the quantized codebook.    
   
   
       2 . The multi-dimensional texture synthesis apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the reference multi-dimensional texture generator generates the reference index image by extracting the color information items of the same-position pixels from all the reference texture images, arranging the color information in a given format to generate multi-dimensional pixel data, storing the multi-dimensional pixel data in the codebook, and assigning indexes to the pixels.  
   
   
       3 . The multi-dimensional texture synthesis apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the reference multi-dimensional texture quantizer quantizes the reference high dimensional multi-dimensional texture corresponding to the one or more quantization level by subjecting the reference multi-dimensional texture to vector quantization at the quantization level determined dependent upon a size of the codebook.  
   
   
       4 . The multi-dimensional texture synthesis apparatus according to  claim 3 , wherein the vector quantization is a full search vector quantization including a process for fixing a cluster of error to 0.  
   
   
       5 . The multi-dimensional texture synthesis apparatus according to  claim 3 , wherein the vector quantization is a tree-structured vector quantization including a process for searching for similarity of the multi-dimensional pixel data according to a tree structure configuring the codebook.  
   
   
       6 . The multi-dimensional texture synthesis apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the index image includes a Plurality of blocks each having a specified size, and the index image synthesizer inputs the reference multi-dimensional texture quantized at one of the quantization levels, and includes means for synthesizing a new index image by scanning a noise image randomly including the indexes contained in the reference index image to rewrite the indexes of the noise image for each of the blocks by using a similar pixel search searching the reference index image for a block having a highest similarity with respect to a rewritten block adjacent to a to-be-rewritten block of the noise image.  
   
   
       7 . The multi-dimensional texture synthesis apparatus according to  claim 6 , wherein the index image synthesizer uses one of SAD (Sum of Absolute Difference), a correlation value and an inner product to obtain an evaluation value of the similarity of the multi-dimensional pixel data in the similar pixel search.  
   
   
       8 . The multi-dimensional texture synthesis apparatus according to  claim 6 , wherein the index image synthesizer includes means for evaluating the similarity of the multi-dimensional pixel data in the similar pixel search by using output data of the multi-dimensional texture quantizer carrying out a tree structure vector quantization and tracing a tree of the codebook of a tree-structure, and the means for evaluating the similarity includes means for evaluating the similarity by means of the same tree-structure for the index image synthesis of each of a plurality of hierarchies.  
   
   
       9 . The multi-dimensional texture synthesis apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the index image synthesizer evaluates, in the similar pixel search, the similarity of the block of the reference index image with respect to the rewritten block between the new index image generated at a hierarchy one before one from the hierarchy of the reference multi-dimensional texture and the reference index image to obtain a last evaluation value.  
   
   
       10 . The multi-dimensional texture synthesis apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the index image synthesizer carries out a similar pixel search using a reference index image of a lower hierarchy than the reference index image, and determining as an approximate evaluation value a quantization error in the hierarchy where the index of the neighborhood block coincides with that of the reference index image of the lower hierarchy for a first time.  
   
   
       11 . The multi-dimensional texture synthesis apparatus according to  claim 1 , which includes a target multi-dimensional texture generator to generate a target multi-dimensional texture including a set of color information of the same-position pixels by receiving one or more texture images as one or more target texture images, and a target index image generator to generate a target index image by quantizing the target multi-dimensional texture using the codebook, and wherein the index image synthesizer uses the target index image.  
   
   
       12 . The multi-dimensional texture synthesis apparatus according to  claim 11 , wherein the target multi-dimensional texture generator includes: 
 means for generating the target multi-dimensional texture image by extracting the color information of the same-position pixels from all of the one or more target texture images,    means for arranging the color information in a format to generate multi-dimensional pixel data,    means for storing the generated multi-dimensional pixel data in the codebook,    means for providing an address of the codebook as an index information item of a pixel, and    means for assigning a set of index information to the pixels to generate the target multi-dimensional texture image.    
   
   
       13 . (canceled)  
   
   
       14 . The multi-dimensional texture synthesis apparatus according to  claim 11 , which includes means for determining an evaluation value of similarity between a first block and a second block, the first block being a block of the target index image that is at the same position as that of a block that fails to be rewritten in blocks adjacent to a block to be written, and the second block being a block having the same shape as the first block in the reference index image.  
   
   
       15 . The multi-dimensional texture synthesis apparatus according to  claim 11 , wherein the index image synthesizer includes: 
 means for receiving reference multi-dimensional textures quantized at two or more quantization levels from the reference multi-dimensional texture quantizer,    means for generating new index images of plural sizes using hierarchies according to the quantization levels, and    means for using a reference index image of lower hierarchy than the reference index image used for synthesis of the new index images in a similar pixel search to determine as an approximation evaluation value a quantization error of the hierarchy where an index of the neighborhood block coincides with that of the lower hierarchy reference index image for the first time.    
   
   
       16 . The multi-dimensional texture synthesis apparatus according to  claim 1 , wherein the new multi-dimensional texture generator includes means for rewriting the new index image in conformity with the quantization level of the codebook when combining the new index image synthesized at a quantization level with the codebook of the quantization level.  
   
   
       17 . (canceled)  
   
   
       18 . The multi-dimensional texture synthesis apparatus according to  claim 1 , which further comprises a new texture image converter to convert the new multi-dimensional texture to one or more new texture images corresponding to a specific acquisition condition or a generation condition.  
   
   
       19 . The multi-dimensional texture synthesis apparatus according to  claim 18 , wherein the new texture image converter includes means for reading multi-dimensional pixel data from the codebook based on an index stored in each pixel of the new index image, and means for extracting color information corresponding to the specific acquisition condition or the generation condition from the multi-dimensional pixel data.  
   
   
       20 . A multi-dimensional texture synthesis method of synthesizing a new multi-dimensional texture using one or more texture images, comprising: 
 inputting, as one or more reference texture images, one or more texture images captured or drawn with a plurality of different conditions;    generating a reference multi-dimensional texture including a codebook and a reference index image, the codebook including a set of color information of the same-position pixels of the one or more reference texture images, and the reference index image including a set of indexes for addressing the codebook;    quantizing the reference multi-dimensional texture at one or more quantization levels to generate a quantized codebook and a quantized reference index image;    synthesizing a new index image having a specified size from the quantized reference index image using a hierarchical structure of the reference multi-dimensional texture corresponding to the one or more quantization levels; and    generating the new multi-dimensional texture by combining the new index image with the quantized codebook.    
   
   
       21 . A multi-dimensional texture synthesis program stored in a computer readable medium for synthesizing a new multi-dimensional texture using one or more texture images, comprising: 
 means for instructing a computer to input, as one or more reference texture images, one or more texture images acquired or created with a plurality of different conditions;    means for instructing the computer to generate a reference multi-dimensional texture including a codebook and a reference index image, the codebook including a set of color information of the same-position pixels of the reference texture images, and the reference index image including a set of indexes for addressing the codebook;    means for instructing the computer to quantize the reference multi-dimensional texture at one or more quantization levels to generate a quantized codebook and a quantized reference index image:    means for instructing the computer to synthesize a new index image having a specified size from the quantized reference index image using a hierarchical structure of the reference multi-dimensional texture corresponding to the one or more quantization levels; and    means for instructing the computer to generate the new multi-dimensional texture by combining the new index image with the quantized codebook.    
   
   
       22 . A multi-dimensional texture synthesis apparatus to generate a texture image of a specified size and a specified design using a texture image set on one or more kinds of material, the apparatus comprising: 
 a multi-dimensional texture generator receiving one or more texture images captured or created with a Plurality of different conditions as a texture image set to generate a multi-dimensional texture including a codebook formed of multi-dimensional pixel data generated by collecting image information of pixels in the same position from the one or more texture images of the texture image set and an index image formed of index information to address the codebook;    a multi-dimensional texture data storage unit configured to store the multi-dimensional texture;    an index image synthesis unit configured to derive the multi-dimensional texture of one or more kinds of material from the multi-dimensional texture data storage unit, synthesize an index image of a specific size based on an index image of one or more kinds of material and according to control data provided by a user or a control image into which the control data is converted, and store a synthesis index image in the multi-dimensional texture data storage unit;    a texture image generator configured to derive the multi-dimensional texture from the multi-dimensional texture data storage unit, and convert it into one or more texture images corresponding to a specific capturing condition or a specific generation condition, wherein the texture image of the specific design is generated by combination of a plurality of materials.    
   
   
       23 . The multi-dimensional texture synthesis apparatus according to  claim 1 , which further comprises a database to store the multi-dimensional texture data publicly on a network.