User:Mullimia/Facial composite 2

Lead
A facial composite is a graphical representation of one or more eyewitnesses' memories of a face, as recorded by a composite artist. Facial composites are used mainly in forensic science and archeology. These images are used to reconstruct the suspect's face in hope of identifying them. In archeology, faces of ancient people found as mummies or skeletal remains can be reconstructed to get a visualization of what these ancient people looked like.

Article body
Methods Hand-drawing

Construction of the composite was originally only performed by a trained artist, through drawing, sketching, or painting, in consultation with a witness or crime victim. FBI claims that hand-drawing is its preferred method for constructing a facial composite. [citation needed]

Feature-based selection

Feature-based systems essentially rely on the selection of individual features in isolation. Individual facial features (eyes, nose, mouth, eyebrows, etc.) are selected one at a time from a large database and then electronically 'overlaid' to make the composite image. This allows images to be created when suitable artistic talent is not available.

Such systems were originally mechanical, using drawings or photographs printed on transparent acetate sheets that could be superimposed on one another to produce the composite image. The first such system was the drawing-based "Identikit" which was introduced in the U.S. in 1959. A photograph-based system, "Photofit", was introduced in the UK in 1970. Modern systems are software-based; common systems include SketchCop FACETTE Face Design System Software, Identi-Kit 2000, FACES, E-FIT and PortraitPad.

Welker Facial Reconstruction Technique

This technique was developed to determine the depth and thickness of human face tissue. In order to retrieve these results, a surgical blade was inserted into a cadavers face and then measured for the depth. A man named Wilheim, perfected and advanced this technique in the 1880's to 1890's. Wilheim used thinner needles to insert into the tissues resulting in a more targeted precise measurement of depth.