Developing an accurate close-range photogrammetric technique for extracting 3D information from spherical panoramic images

Panoramic images (panoramas) are wide-angle images that provide fields of view of up to 360°. They are acquired with a specialised panoramic camera or by stitching a series of images captured with a conventional digital camera. Panoramas have widely been used to texture 3D models generated from laser scanning, for creating virtual reality tour applications, documenting landscape and cultural heritage sites, advertising real estates and recording crime scenes. The goal of this research was to develop an accurate close-range photogrammetric technique for the semi-automatic extraction of 3D information from spherical panoramas. This was achieved by developing a non-parametric method for the removal of distortions from images acquired from fisheye lenses as well as an algorithm, here referred to as the Minimum Ray Distance (MRD), for the fully automated approximate relative orientation of spherical panoramic images. The bundle adjustment algorithm was then applied to refine the orientation parameters of the panoramas; thus enabling accurate 3D point measurement. Finally, epipolar geometry theory was applied to the oriented panoramas to guide the interactive extraction of additional conjugate points. The MRD algorithm has been extended to laser scanning technology for the first approximations of laser scan setup positions and scan orientation prior to a leastsquares based registration. The determination of approximate scanner orientation and position parameters were accomplished using panoramic intensity images derived from full dome laser scans. Thus, a technique for the semi-automatic extraction of 3D measurements from panoramic images has been developed in this research. The technique is most appropriate for applications which do not require dense point clouds and in situations with limited access to funds or as a quick field method to document many features in a short time. This is because a single image orientation is required for several overlapping images as compared to the normal stereo or multi-image photogrammetric approach. It is not suggested that 3D reconstruction from spherical panoramic images should replace traditional close-range photogrammetry or laser scanning; rather, that the user of panoramic images will be offered supplementary information to the conventional and modern cultural heritage documentation approaches.

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

School of Architecture, Planning and Geomatics

Year dc:date.issued

2017

Author dc:creator

• Tagoe, Naa Dedei

Advisors dc:contributor.advisor

• Rüther, Heinz
• Smit, Julian

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/11427/24932

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/24932