Topographic Feature Identification Based on Triangular Meshes

摘要

A new method for extracting topographic features from images approximated by triangular meshes is presented. Peaks, pits, passes, ridges, valleys, and flat regions are defined by considering the topological and geometric relationship between the triangular elements. The approach is suitable for several computer-based recognition tasks, such as navigation of autonomous vehicles, planetary exploration, and reverse engineering. The method has been applied to a wide range of images, producing very promising results.