A method for 3D scene recognition using shadow information and a single fixed viewpoint

David C. Bamber; Jeremy D. Rogers; Scott F. Page

doi:10.1117/12.920118

7 May 2012 A method for 3D scene recognition using shadow information and a single fixed viewpoint

David C. Bamber, Jeremy D. Rogers, Scott F. Page

Proceedings Volume 8399, Visual Information Processing XXI; 83990P (2012) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.920118
Event: SPIE Defense, Security, and Sensing, 2012, Baltimore, Maryland, United States

Abstract

The ability to passively reconstruct a scene in 3D provides significant benefit to Situational Awareness systems employed in security and surveillance applications. Traditionally, passive 3D scene modelling techniques, such as Shape from Silhouette, require images from multiple sensor viewpoints, acquired either through the motion of a single sensor or from multiple sensors. As a result, the application of these techniques often attracts high costs, and presents numerous practical challenges. This paper presents a 3D scene reconstruction approach based on exploiting scene shadows, which only requires information from a single static sensor. This paper demonstrates that a large amount of 3D information about a scene can be interpreted from shadows; shadows reveal the shape of objects as viewed from a solar perspective and additional perspectives are gained as the sun arcs across the sky. The approach has been tested on synthetic and real data and is shown to be capable of reconstructing 3D scene objects where traditional 3D imaging methods fail. Providing the shadows within a scene are discernible, the proposed technique is able to reconstruct 3D objects that are camouflaged, obscured or even outside of the sensor's Field of View. The proposed approach can be applied in a range of applications, for example urban surveillance, checkpoint and border control, critical infrastructure protection and for identifying concealed or suspicious objects or persons which would normally be hidden from the sensor viewpoint.

Citation Download Citation

David C. Bamber, Jeremy D. Rogers, and Scott F. Page "A method for 3D scene recognition using shadow information and a single fixed viewpoint", Proc. SPIE 8399, Visual Information Processing XXI, 83990P (7 May 2012); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.920118

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