Learning Neural Parametric 3D Breast Shape Models for Metrical Surface Reconstruction From Monocular RGB Videos

Maximilian Weiherer1,2, Antonia von Riedheim3, Vanessa Brébant3, Bernhard Egger1, Christoph Palm2
1: Visual Computing Erlangen, Friedrich-Alexander-Universtität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Erlangen, Germany, 2: Regensburg Medical Image Computing (ReMIC), OTH Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany, 3: Department for Plastic, Hand and Reconstructive Surgery, University Hospital Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany
Publication date: 2026/02/17
https://doi.org/10.59275/j.melba.2026-8b23
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Abstract

We present a neural parametric 3D breast shape model and, based on this model, introduce a low-cost and accessible 3D surface reconstruction pipeline capable of recovering accurate breast geometry from a monocular RGB video. In contrast to widely used, commercially available yet expensive 3D breast scanning solutions and existing low-cost alternatives, our method requires neither specialized hardware nor proprietary software and can be used with any device that is able to record RGB videos. The key building blocks of our pipeline are a state-of-the-art, off-the-shelf Structure-from- Motion pipeline, paired with a parametric breast model for robust surface reconstruction. Our model, similarly to the recently proposed implicit Regensburg Breast Shape Model (iRBSM), leverages implicit neural representations to model breast shapes. However, unlike the iRBSM, which employs a single global neural Signed Distance Function (SDF), our approach—inspired by recent state-of-the-art face models—decomposes the implicit breast domain into multiple smaller regions, each represented by a local neural SDF anchored at anatomical landmark positions. When incorporated into our surface reconstruction pipeline, the proposed model, dubbed liRBSM (short for localized iRBSM), significantly outperforms the iRBSM in terms of reconstruction quality, yielding more detailed surface reconstruction than its global counterpart. Overall, we find that the introduced pipeline is able to recover high-quality and metrically correct 3D breast geometry within an error margin of less than 2 mm. Our method is fast (requires less than six minutes), fully transparent and open-source, and together with the model publicly available at https://rbsm.re-mic.de/local-implicit.

Keywords

3D Reconstruction · Shape Modeling

Bibtex @article{melba:2026:005:weiherer, title = "Learning Neural Parametric 3D Breast Shape Models for Metrical Surface Reconstruction From Monocular RGB Videos", author = "Weiherer, Maximilian and von Riedheim, Antonia and Brébant, Vanessa and Egger, Bernhard and Palm, Christoph", journal = "Machine Learning for Biomedical Imaging", volume = "2026", issue = "MELBA–BVM 2025 Special Issue", year = "2026", pages = "95--114", issn = "2766-905X", doi = "https://doi.org/10.59275/j.melba.2026-8b23", url = "https://melba-journal.org/2026:005" }
RISTY - JOUR AU - Weiherer, Maximilian AU - von Riedheim, Antonia AU - Brébant, Vanessa AU - Egger, Bernhard AU - Palm, Christoph PY - 2026 TI - Learning Neural Parametric 3D Breast Shape Models for Metrical Surface Reconstruction From Monocular RGB Videos T2 - Machine Learning for Biomedical Imaging VL - 2026 IS - MELBA–BVM 2025 Special Issue SP - 95 EP - 114 SN - 2766-905X DO - https://doi.org/10.59275/j.melba.2026-8b23 UR - https://melba-journal.org/2026:005 ER -

2026:005 cover