Last Saturday, the halls of Ho Chi Minh City University of Industry and Trade (HUIT) buzzed with excitement as Associate Professor Quan Thanh Tho presented a fascinating report on the latest advancements in virtual try-on technology. The presentation, which captivated students and faculty alike for a full hour, shed light on groundbreaking research being conducted by the URA research group.
Assoc. Prof. Tho began by exploring the current landscape of virtual try-on applications, which are revolutionizing how consumers shop for clothing online. He explained how these technologies are eliminating the uncertainty of online shopping by allowing customers to visualize products on themselves before making a purchase.
The audience was particularly intrigued by his detailed explanation of state-of-the-art models like Cat-vton, which have set new standards in the field. However, the highlight of the presentation was undoubtedly the introduction of the URA group’s own innovation: Auto-ARM.
Auto-ARM represents a significant advancement over traditional U-Net architectures. Assoc. Prof. Tho explained how this improved model incorporates Attention Gates to intelligently filter and prioritize information flowing through the decoder, resulting in more realistic and accurate virtual try-on experiences.
What makes this research particularly exciting is that it’s not just theoretical—it’s already working in practice!
The presentation shifted from theory to practice when Huynh Nga, a talented third-year student from the research group, took the stage for a live demonstration. The atmosphere in the auditorium grew electric as a brave volunteer from the audience stepped forward to test the technology firsthand.
The volunteer had her photo taken and then selected a luxurious Louis Vuitton shirt to virtually “try on.” The gasps and applause that followed spoke volumes – the result was remarkably realistic, superimposing the selected garment onto the volunteer’s image with impressive accuracy. The volunteer herself couldn’t hide her amazement at seeing her digital twin sporting the designer shirt!
The presentation concluded with an open discussion where attendees offered valuable suggestions for further enhancements. Assoc. Prof. Tho and his team expressed their commitment to incorporating this feedback as they continue refining their innovative technology.