Sketch-based 3D model retrieval using keyshapes for global and local representation

Since 3D models are becoming more popular, the need for effective methods capable of retrieving 3D models is becoming crucial. Current methods require an example 3D model as query. However, in many cases, such a query is not easy to get. An alternative is using a hand-drawn sketch as query. In this work, we present a new keyshape based approach named HKO-KASD for retrieving 3D models using rough sketches as queries. Our approach comprises two general steps. First, a global descriptor is used to determine the appropriate viewpoint for each model. Second, we apply a local matching process to determine the final ranking for an input sketch. To this end, we present a local descriptor capable of working with sketch representations. The global descriptors as well as the local descriptors rely on a set of keyshapes precomputed from 2D representations of 3D models and from the query sketch as well. We evaluate our method using the first-tier precision and compare it with current approaches (HELO, STELA). Our results show a significant increase in precision for many classes of 3D models.