DeepFV 0.2.2

Fisher Vectors based on Gaussian Mixture Model with TensorFlow deep learning support

DeepFV - Fisher Vectors with Deep Learning

A TensorFlow-based implementation of Improved Fisher Vectors as described in [1]. This package provides a modern, scalable approach to computing Fisher Vectors using deep learning techniques. For a concise description of Fisher Vectors see [2].

Features

• Full & Diagonal Covariance Support: Model complex elliptical clusters with full covariance matrices, or use diagonal covariance for faster training
• Mini-batch Training: Scalable to large datasets with mini-batch gradient descent
• BIC-based Model Selection: Automatically determine optimal number of GMM components
• GPU Acceleration: Built on TensorFlow 2.x for fast training on GPUs
• MiniBatchKMeans Initialization: Smart initialization using scikit-learn's MiniBatchKMeans
• Save/Load Models: Persist trained models for reuse
• Normalized Fisher Vectors: Implements improved Fisher Vector normalization

Installation

Install from PyPI:

pip install DeepFV

Or install from source:

git clone https://github.com/sidhomj/DeepFV.git
cd DeepFV
pip install -r requirements.txt
pip install -e .

Quick Start

1. Prepare your data

import numpy as np

# Example: SIFT image features
shape = [300, 20, 32]  # (n_images, n_features_per_image, feature_dim)
image_data = np.concatenate([
    np.random.normal(-np.ones(30), size=shape),
    np.random.normal(np.ones(30), size=shape)
], axis=0)

2. Train with mini-batch gradient descent

from DeepFV import FisherVectorDL

# Create model with FULL covariance support
fv_dl = FisherVectorDL(
    n_kernels=10,
    feature_dim=32,
    covariance_type='full'  # or 'diag' for diagonal covariance
)

# Fit with mini-batch training
fv_dl.fit_minibatch(
    image_data,
    epochs=100,
    batch_size=1024*6,
    learning_rate=0.001,
    verbose=True
)

3. BIC-based model selection

# Automatically select optimal number of components
fv_dl = FisherVectorDL(feature_dim=32, covariance_type='full')
fv_dl.fit_by_bic(
    image_data,
    choices_n_kernels=[2, 5, 10, 20],
    epochs=80,
    batch_size=1024,
    verbose=True
)

print(f"Selected {fv_dl.n_kernels} components")

4. Compute Fisher Vectors

# Compute normalized Fisher Vectors
image_data_test = image_data[:20]
fisher_vectors = fv_dl.predict_fisher_vector(image_data_test, normalized=True)

# Output shape: (n_images, 2*n_kernels, feature_dim)
print(f"Fisher vector shape: {fisher_vectors.shape}")

5. Save and load models

# Save trained model
fv_dl.save_model('my_model.pkl')

# Load model later
from DeepFV import FisherVectorDL
fv_dl_loaded = FisherVectorDL.load_model('my_model.pkl')

Why FisherVectorDL?

Advantages over traditional GMM implementations:

1. Full Covariance Support: Model rotated/tilted elliptical clusters, not just axis-aligned ones
2. Scalability: Mini-batch training handles datasets too large to fit in memory
3. Speed: GPU acceleration via TensorFlow for faster training
4. Flexibility: Customizable learning rate, batch size, and number of epochs
5. Modern Stack: Built on TensorFlow 2.x with eager execution
6. Smart Initialization: Uses MiniBatchKMeans for better starting parameters

Testing

Run the test script to see a 2D visualization:

python test_fishervector_dl.py

This will:

• Generate 3 elliptical Gaussian clusters
• Train a GMM with full covariance
• Use BIC to select optimal number of components
• Compute and visualize Fisher Vectors
• Save visualizations as PNG files

Example Results

GMM Clustering with BIC Selection:

The plot shows how full covariance GMMs can model rotated elliptical clusters. The BIC criterion automatically selects the optimal number of components.

Fisher Vector Visualization:

Left: Original 2D data colored by true cluster labels. Right: Fisher Vectors projected back to 2D using PCA, showing how the representation captures cluster structure.

Contributors

• John-William Sidhom (https://github.com/sidhomj/) - Main contributor, TensorFlow implementation with full covariance support

Original Contributors:

• Jonas Rothfuss (https://github.com/jonasrothfuss/) - Original implementation
• Fabio Ferreira (https://github.com/ferreirafabio/) - Original implementation

References

• [1] Perronnin, F., Sánchez, J., & Mensink, T. (2010). Improving the fisher kernel for large-scale image classification. In European conference on computer vision (pp. 143-156). Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://www.robots.ox.ac.uk/~vgg/rg/papers/peronnin_etal_ECCV10.pdf
• [2] Fisher Vector Fundamentals - VLFeat Documentation: http://www.vlfeat.org/api/fisher-fundamentals.html

License

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details