Query by Virtual Example: Video Retrieval Using Example Shots Created by Virtual Reality Techniques

In this paper, we extend the traditional `Query-By-Example' (QBE) approach where example shots are provided to represent a query, and then shots similar to them are retrieved. One crucial problem of QBE is that when example shots for the query are unavailable, the retrieval cannot be performed. To overcome this, we propose an innovative approach, named `Query-By-Virtual-Example' (QBVE), where example shots for any arbitrary query can be created by using virtual reality techniques. We call such example shots `virtual example shots'. In our system, virtual example shots are created by synthesizing user's gesture in front of a video camera, 3D object models (3DCGs) and background images. Experimental results on TRECVID 2009 video data show the validity of substituting virtual example shots with real example shots used in QBE.