INTEGRA-an integrated approach to range image understanding

The design and implementation of INTEGRA is described. INTEGRA is a range image understanding system that attempts to exploit the synergy between the various stages in the image understanding process i.e. segmentation, feature extraction, recognition and localization. Two prominent features of INTEGRA are: a synergetic combination of edge- and surface-based segmentation processes that results in more accurate segmentation than would have been possible with either of them alone; and the ability to correct errors made during segmentation in the matching and localization stages. At present, INTEGRA is capable of recognition and localization of polyhedral objects and objects that can be treated as piecewise combinations of curved surfaces of quadratic order, typically spherical, ellipsoidal, cylindrical and conical surfaces