3-D Shape detection from triangulation mesh

Question

I'm looking for any algorithm or source code which can find whole or partial simple 3-D shapes (sphere, cylinder, cone, etc) in a 3-D triangulation mesh.

I've found several papers on algorithms (for example see this PDF) which can find shapes in point clouds. A triangulation can easily be converted to a point cloud, but it seems to me that it should be easier to find shapes if you already have a triangulation, as you have more information about the surface to be matched--connectivity is lost for example in the conversion to a point cloud.

Any pointers would be appreciated.

Answer 1

The Princeton Shape Retreival and Analysis Group are the guru's in this area. You can trace the feild using their publications.