A novel hierarchical technique for range segmentation of large building exteriors

Complex multiple structures, high uncertainty due to the existence of moving objects, and significant disparity in the size of features are the main issues associated with processing range data of outdoor scenes. The existing range segmentation techniques have been commonly developed for laboratory sized objects or simple architectural building features. In this paper, main problems related to the geometrical segmentation of large and significant buildings are studied. A robust and accurate range segmentation approach is also devised to extract very fine geometric details of building exteriors. It uses a hierarchical model-base range segmentation strategy and employs a high breakdown point robust estimator to deal with the existing discrepancies in size and sampling rates of various features of large outdoor objects.