Improved radial basis function based parameterization for facial expression animation

This paper presents an improved method for facial expression animation based on the radial basis functions. The existing facial action coding system is adopted for expression parameterization. A set of parameters that are able to generate proper expressions is carefully selected through a series of analyses and comparisons. A deformation algorithm combining compactly supported radial basis functions with a geodesic distance metric is employed to address the difficulties in generating facial expressions, such as localized deformation and hole handling. In this work, the complex manipulation of a 3D face mesh is transformed into simple linear parameter adjustments, which is intuitive and efficient. Implementation results have demonstrated that real-time interactive mesh modification for facial expression animation is achieved.