Strictly Conservative Neural Implicits

Abstract

We describe a method to convert 3D shapes into neural implicit form such that the shape is approximated in a guaranteed conservative manner. This means the input shape is strictly contained inside the neural implicit or, alternatively, vice versa. Such conservative approximations are of interest in a variety of applications, including collision detection, occlusion culling, or intersection testing. Our approach is the first to guarantee conservativeness in this context of neural implicits. We support input given as mesh, voxel set, or implicit function. Adaptive affine arithmetic is employed in the neural network fitting process, enabling the reasoning over infinite sets of points despite using a finite set of training data. Combined with an interior point style optimization approach this yields the desired guarantee.