Shape Segmentation Using Local Slippage Analysis

Abstract

We propose a method for segmentation of 3D scanned shapes into simple geometric parts. Given an input point cloud, our method computes a set of components which possess one or more slippable motions: rigid motions which, when applied to a shape, slide the transformed version against the stationary version without forming any gaps. Slippable shapes include rotationally and translationally symmetrical shapes such as planes, spheres, and cylinders, which are often found as components of scanned mechanical parts. We show how to determine the slippable motions of a given shape by computing eigenvalues of a certain symmetric matrix derived from the points and normals of the shape. Our algorithm then discovers slippable components in the input data by computing local slippage signatures at a set of points of the input and iteratively aggregating regions with matching slippable motions. We demonstrate the performance of our algorithm for reverse engineering surfaces of mechanical parts.