Abstract :
Monty Python´s Flying Circus had a “cat detector van” so, in this tutorial, we use Python and OpenCV to make our very own cat detector and recognizer. We also cover examples of human face detection and recognition. More generally, we cover a methodology that applies to training a detector (based on Haar cascades) for any class of object and a recognizer (based on LBPH, Fisherfaces, or Eigenfaces) for any unique objects. We build a small GUI app that enables an LBPH-based recognizer to learn new objects interactively in real time. Although this tutorial uses Python, the project could be ported to Android and iOS using OpenCV´s Java and C++ bindings. Attendees will gain experience in using OpenCV to detect and recognize visual subjects, especially human and animal faces. GUI development will also be emphasized. Attendees will be guided toward additional information in books and online. There is no formal evaluation of attendees´ work but attendees are invited to demonstrate their work and discuss the results they have achieved during the session by using different detectors and recognizers and different parameters.