Association fields via cuspless sub-Riemannian geodesics in SE(2) (Q2251277)

Curve optimization plays a major role both in imaging and visual perception. The problem \({\mathbf P}_{\text{curve}}\) of minimizing \(\int\limits_0^\ell\sqrt{\xi^2+\kappa^2(s)}ds\) for a planar curve having fixed initial and final positions and directions, where \(\kappa(s)\) is the curvature of the curve with free total length \(\ell\), allows to model association fields that underly perceptional organization in psychophysics. In this paper, the authors consider the origin of the problem of finding cuspless sub-Riemannian geodesics in \((SE(2),\Delta,{\mathcal G}_\beta)\), which includes cortical modeling of the primary visual cortex and association fields. They show that the set \(\mathcal R\subset SE(2)\) consisting of admissible end-conditions equals the range of the exponential map of \({\mathbf P}_{\text{curve}}\). Some properties of this set are presented, for example, that the boundary \(\partial{\mathcal R}\) consists of the union of endpoints of minimizers either starting or ending in a cusp and a vertical line \(\ell\) above \((0,0,0)\). Also, they give some applications by showing a similarity of cuspless sub-Riemannian geodesics and the association field lines from psychophysics and neurophysiology.