Browsing Texture Image Databases

The MPEG-7 standard defines two types of texture features: texture retrieval descriptor (TRD) for retrieval and texture browsing descriptor (TBD)for browsing. The retrieval process is straightforward but it is unclear how one could use TBD for browsing. This paper describes two methods of generating layouts for browsing a texture image database. The layouts are then subject to quantitative and qualitative evaluations. The experiments showed that: (1) only some features of TBD are appropriate for browsing, (2) once the inappropriate features are removed TBD is good for browsing only if the textures are structured, (3) the layouts generated usingTRDare more suitable for browsing.