This book presents theories and techniques for perception of textures by computer. Texture is a homogeneous visual pattern that we perceive in surfaces of objects such as textiles, tree barks or stones. Texture analysis is one of the first important steps in computer vision since texture provides important cues to recognize real-world objects. A major part of the book is devoted to two-dimensional analysis of texture patterns by extracting statistical and structural features. It also deals with the shape-from-texture problem which addresses recovery of the three-dimensional surface shapes based on the geometry of projection of the surface texture to the image plane. Perception is still largely mysterious. Realizing a computer vision system that can work in the real world requires more research and ex periment. Capability of textural perception is a key component. We hope this book will contribute to the advancement of computer vision toward robust, useful systems. vVe would like to express our appreciation to Professor Takeo Kanade at Carnegie Mellon University for his encouragement and help in writing this book; to the members of Computer Vision Section at Electrotechni cal Laboratory for providing an excellent research environment; and to Carl W. Harris at Kluwer Academic Publishers for his help in preparing the manuscript.

The visual perception of texture is introduced as a research problem important, in itself, but important also as an entrance into the broader and little understood area of complex pattern perception. Definitions of texture, both from a substantive and an abstract standpoint, are presented and followed by discussions of: (1) the information carried in textures and (2) the possible functions of texture perception in visually controlled behavior. Then a review of laboratory and field studies is presented, followed by a discussion of directions for future research. A functional theory of pattern perception is assumed, in which the processing of substantive information in optical patterns is emphasized. The application of man's natural visual capacities is proposed for scientific imagery analysis. Techniques are suggested for presenting the imagery in an ecologically relevant context of substantive analysis and description. (Author).

This book surveys the state of the art in multidimensional, physically-correct visual texture modeling. Features: reviews the entire process of texture synthesis, including material appearance representation, measurement, analysis, compression, modeling, editing, visualization, and perceptual evaluation; explains the derivation of the most common representations of visual texture, discussing their properties, advantages, and limitations; describes a range of techniques for the measurement of visual texture, including BRDF, SVBRDF, BTF and BSSRDF; investigates the visualization of textural information, from texture mapping and mip-mapping to illumination- and view-dependent data interpolation; examines techniques for perceptual validation and analysis, covering both standard pixel-wise similarity measures and also methods of visual psychophysics; reviews the applications of visual textures, from visual scene analysis in medical applications, to high-quality visualizations in the automotive industry.

Perceptual organization comprises a wide range of processes such as perceptual grouping, figure-ground organization, filling-in, completion, perceptual switching, etc. Such processes are most notable in the context of shape perception but they also play a role in texture perception, lightness perception, color perception, motion perception, depth perception, etc. Perceptual organization deals with a variety of perceptual phenomena of central interest, studied from many different perspectives, including psychophysics, experimental psychology, neuropsychology, neuroimaging, neurophysiology, and computational modeling. Given its central importance in phenomenal experience, perceptual organization has also figured prominently in classic Gestalt writings on the topic, touching upon deep philosophical issues regarding mind-brain relationships and consciousness. In addition, it attracts a great deal of interest from people working in applied areas like visual art, design, architecture, music, and so forth. The Oxford Handbook of Perceptual Organization provides a broad and extensive review of the current literature, written in an accessible form for scholars and students. With chapter written by leading researchers in the field, this is the state-of-the-art reference work on this topic, and will be so for many years to come.

First published in 1978. Since World War II the field of perception has developed in two major directions. The first evolved out of the traditional psychophysical approach and is manifest today in the new psychophysics. The second direction is in the increasing bond between the fields of perception and cognition. This volume grew out of the context of this second direction, a particular product of two workshops (held in the Spring of 1974 and 1975), organized by the Committee on Cognitive Research of the Social Science Research Council. The Committee on Cognition was organized in 1971 to encourage communication and interaction on specific problems in the area of cognition among the various social sciences.

Research is suggesting that rather than our senses being independent, perception is fundamentally a multisensory experience. This handbook reviews the evidence and explores the theory of broad underlying principles that govern sensory interactions, regardless of the specific senses involved.