Base class for statistical models in ML.
class CvStatModel
{
public:
/* CvStatModel(); */
/* CvStatModel( const Mat& train_data ... ); */
virtual ~CvStatModel();
virtual void clear()=0;
/* virtual bool train( const Mat& train_data, [int tflag,] ..., const
Mat& responses, ...,
[const Mat& var_idx,] ..., [const Mat& sample_idx,] ...
[const Mat& var_type,] ..., [const Mat& missing_mask,]
<misc_training_alg_params> ... )=0;
*/
/* virtual float predict( const Mat& sample ... ) const=0; */
virtual void save( const char* filename, const char* name=0 )=0;
virtual void load( const char* filename, const char* name=0 )=0;
virtual void write( CvFileStorage* storage, const char* name )=0;
virtual void read( CvFileStorage* storage, CvFileNode* node )=0;
};
In this declaration, some methods are commented off. These are methods for which there is no unified API (with the exception of the default constructor). However, there are many similarities in the syntax and semantics that are briefly described below in this section, as if they are part of the base class.
The default constuctor.
Each statistical model class in ML has a default constructor without parameters. This constructor is useful for a two-stage model construction, when the default constructor is followed by CvStatModel::train() or CvStatModel::load().
The training constructor.
Most ML classes provide a single-step constructor and train constructors. This constructor is equivalent to the default constructor, followed by the CvStatModel::train() method with the parameters that are passed to the constructor.
The virtual destructor.
The destructor of the base class is declared as virtual. So, it is safe to write the following code:
CvStatModel* model;
if( use_svm )
model = new CvSVM(... /* SVM params */);
else
model = new CvDTree(... /* Decision tree params */);
...
delete model;
Normally, the destructor of each derived class does nothing. But in this instance, it calls the overridden method CvStatModel::clear() that deallocates all the memory.
Deallocates memory and resets the model state.
The method clear does the same job as the destructor: it deallocates all the memory occupied by the class members. But the object itself is not destructed and can be reused further. This method is called from the destructor, from the CvStatModel::train() methods of the derived classes, from the methods CvStatModel::load(), CvStatModel::read(), or even explicitly by the user.
Saves the model to a file.
The method save saves the complete model state to the specified XML or YAML file with the specified name or default name (which depends on a particular class). Data persistence functionality from CxCore is used.
Loads the model from a file.
The method load loads the complete model state with the specified name (or default model-dependent name) from the specified XML or YAML file. The previous model state is cleared by CvStatModel::clear().
Writes the model to the file storage.
The method write stores the complete model state in the file storage with the specified name or default name (which depends on the particular class). The method is called by CvStatModel::save().
Reads the model from the file storage.
The method read restores the complete model state from the specified node of the file storage. Use the function GetFileNodeByName() to locate the node.
The previous model state is cleared by CvStatModel::clear().
Trains the model.
The method trains the statistical model using a set of input feature vectors and the corresponding output values (responses). Both input and output vectors/values are passed as matrices. By default, the input feature vectors are stored as train_data rows, that is, all the components (features) of a training vector are stored continuously. However, some algorithms can handle the transposed representation when all values of each particular feature (component/input variable) over the whole input set are stored continuously. If both layouts are supported, the method includes the tflag parameter that specifies the orientation as follows:
The train_data must have the CV_32FC1 (32-bit floating-point, single-channel) format. Responses are usually stored in a 1D vector (a row or a column) of CV_32SC1 (only in the classification problem) or CV_32FC1 format, one value per input vector. Although, some algorithms, like various flavors of neural nets, take vector responses.
For classification problems, the responses are discrete class labels. For regression problems, the responses are values of the function to be approximated. Some algorithms can deal only with classification problems, some - only with regression problems, and some can deal with both problems. In the latter case, the type of output variable is either passed as a separate parameter or as the last element of the var_type vector:
Types of input variables can be also specified using var_type. Most algorithms can handle only ordered input variables.
Many ML models may be trained on a selected feature subset, and/or on a selected sample subset of the training set. To make it easier for you, the method train usually includes the var_idx and sample_idx parameters. The former parameter identifies variables (features) of interest, and the latter one identifies samples of interest. Both vectors are either integer (CV_32SC1) vectors (lists of 0-based indices) or 8-bit (CV_8UC1) masks of active variables/samples. You may pass NULL pointers instead of either of the arguments, meaning that all of the variables/samples are used for training.
Additionally, some algorithms can handle missing measurements, that is, when certain features of certain training samples have unknown values (for example, they forgot to measure a temperature of patient A on Monday). The parameter missing_mask, an 8-bit matrix of the same size as train_data, is used to mark the missed values (non-zero elements of the mask).
Usually, the previous model state is cleared by CvStatModel::clear() before running the training procedure. However, some algorithms may optionally update the model state with the new training data, instead of resetting it.
Predicts the response for a sample.
The method is used to predict the response for a new sample. In case of a classification, the method returns the class label. In case of a regression, the method returns the output function value. The input sample must have as many components as the train_data passed to train contains. If the var_idx parameter is passed to train, it is remembered and then is used to extract only the necessary components from the input sample in the method predict.
The suffix const means that prediction does not affect the internal model state, so the method can be safely called from within different threads.