3-D modelling of buildings using high-level knowledge

A scene analysis system for automated 3-D modeling of buildings is presented. It combines surface reconstruction techniques with object recognition to generate 3-D models for computer graphics applications. The system permits the insertion of high level constraints, like a specific angle between two house walls, in an explicit knowledge base as a semantic net. The applicability of those constraints is proved by asserting and testing hypotheses in an interpretation phase. In the case of rejection, a more general constraint or model is selected. The capabilities of the system were shown for the modeling of buildings using depth from stereo and contour information. The system reconstructs the surface of scene objects using constraints selected in the prior interpretation.