ControlNet SDXL Open Pose

ControlNet SDXL Open Pose is a specialized model within the ControlNet family designed for Stable Diffusion XL (SDXL) image generation. It builds upon the ControlNet neural network architecture, which adds conditional control to text-to-image diffusion models. The model's primary function is precise pose replication, taking an input image and extracting human pose information to guide SDXL's image generation process.

The architecture maintains consistency with ControlNet 1.1, with developers indicating no planned structural changes before version 1.5. A significant advancement came with the introduction of Low-Rank Adaptation (LoRA) versions by Stability AI, which dramatically reduced the model size from 4.7GB to approximately 738MB (Rank 256) and 377MB (Rank 128) while maintaining functionality.

Features and Capabilities

The model excels at subject pose replication, processing input images to extract pose information at various levels of detail. Several variants exist within the ecosystem, including OpenPose (body only) and OpenPose Full (body, hand, and face), offering different levels of pose detection granularity. The model incorporates a smart resampling algorithm that ensures pixel-perfect control image integration regardless of resolution differences between the control and generated images.

Key improvements in the latest versions include:

• Enhanced robustness and result quality compared to previous iterations
• Improved OpenPose implementation with increased accuracy, especially for hand keypoint detection
• Refined training dataset addressing issues like duplicated images and incorrect prompt pairings
• Comparable performance to the ControlNet Depth model, with consistent results requiring minimal cherry-picking

Implementation and Usage

The model is primarily implemented through the Automatic1111 WebUI ControlNet extension, which provides a comprehensive interface for model control. Users can adjust several key parameters:

• Control Weight: Determines the pose information's influence on the generated image
• Starting/Ending Control Step: Controls when pose information is applied during diffusion
• Control Mode: Allows prioritization between text prompts and pose information
• Resize modes: Handles aspect ratio differences between input and output images

The model supports various preprocessors (annotators) that convert input images into "detectmaps" for ControlNet processing. For optimal results, users are advised to focus on prompt engineering and seed selection before adjusting Control Mode settings.

Integration and Compatibility

ControlNet SDXL Open Pose is compatible with multiple interfaces, including ComfyUI and StableSwarmUI. The model can be installed in either stable-diffusion-webui\extensions\sd-webui-controlnet\models or stable-diffusion-webui\models\ControlNet. Version 1.1.400 of the sd-webui-controlnet extension significantly expanded support for SDXL models, including various community contributions.

References

• ControlNet Research Paper - Original research introducing the ControlNet architecture
• ControlNet GitHub Repository - Main source code and documentation
• Automatic1111 WebUI Extension - Primary implementation interface
• ControlNet 1.1 Repository - Latest version documentation and updates
• Hugging Face Model Collection - Model downloads and additional resources
• Stability AI Control-LoRA - Efficient LoRA implementations
• ComfyUI Integration - Alternative interface implementation
• StableSwarmUI - Additional interface option
• Stability AI ComfyUI Nodes - Custom implementation nodes