LOCAL IDENTITY-AWARE FACIAL RIG GENERATION

Number: 20250037341
Published: 2025-01-30
Filed: 2024-07-26
Assignee: DISNEY ENTERPRISES, INC.
Inventors: CHANDRAN; Prashanth et al.
CPC: G06T17/20; G06T13/40
Verdict: Low Notable software
Source: Google Patents · FreePatentsOnline

The keeper's note

Identity-aware facial-rig generation technique.

Abstract

The present invention sets forth a technique for performing facial rig generation. The technique includes generating a blendshape model including a plurality of vertices, a plurality of meshes, and a plurality of patches. The technique also includes modifying one or more blendweight values associated with each of the plurality of patches based on a plurality of facial depictions included in a facial database and one or more sample depictions of a target character and generating an output facial rig model based on the blendshape model and the one or more modified blendweight values. The technique further includes generating one or more expressive depictions of the target character based at least on the output facial rig.

Background

BACKGROUND Field of the Various Embodiments

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate generally to computer animation and, more specifically, to techniques for performing facial rig generation. Description of the Related Art

Facial rig generation is a critical component of virtual production platforms, games, augmented reality, virtual reality, and other interactive applications. While a static representation of an animatable character (e.g. a static mesh representation) may be sufficient to portray the character exhibiting a single facial expression, a static representation is not suitable to accurately describe complex deformations of the character's face over time. In facial rig generation, an animator creates an adaptable model that represents a target character's head and/or face. The animator adjusts the facial rig to produce realistic movements and deformations in the model to mimic time-varying expressions in the target actor. The animator may adjust the facial rig manually, or the adjustments may be driven by collected data, such as facial scans, still images, or video recordings of the human actor.

Existing techniques for generating facial rigs may rely on blendshape models that include dozens or hundreds of blendshapes, where each blendshape may include, e.g., a three-dimensional (3D) scan or a digitally-sculpted 3D depiction of the character exhibiting a different facial expression. To generate a depiction of the character with a desired fa

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for performing local facial rig generation, the method comprising: generating a blendshape model including a plurality of vertices, a plurality of meshes, and a plurality of patches; modifying one or more blendweight values associated with each of the plurality of patches based on a plurality of facial depictions included in a facial database and one or more sample depictions of a target character; generating an output facial rig model based on the blendshape model and the one or more modified blendweight values; and generating one or more expressive depictions of the target character based at least on the output facial rig. || 11. One or more non-transitory computer-readable media containing instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform the steps of: generating a blendshape model including a plurality of vertices, a plurality of meshes, and a plurality of patches; modifying one or more blendweight values associated with each of the plurality of patches based on a plurality of facial depictions included in a facial database and one or more sample depictions of a target character; generating an output facial rig model based on the blendshape model and the one or more modified blendweight values; and generating one or more expressive depictions of the target character based at least on the output facial rig. || 19. A system comprising: one or more memories for storing instructions; and one or more processors for executing the instructions to: generate a blendshape model including a plurality of vertices, a plurality of meshes, and a plurality of patches; modify one or more blendweight values associated with each of the plurality of patches based on a plurality of facial depictions included in a facial database and one or more sample depictions of a target character; generate an output facial rig model based on the blendshape model and the one or more modified blendweight values; and generate one or more expressive depictions of the target character based at least on the output facial rig.