SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR PROVIDING 3D IMAGING

• US 20120314037A1
• Filed: 02/22/2011
• Published: 12/13/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 02/23/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Ben Gurion University of The Negev
• Original Assignee: Ben Gurion University of The Negev
• Inventors: Nehmadi, Youval, Guterman, Hugo
• Granted Patent: US 9,303,989 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/48
• CPC Class Codes: G01C 11/06 by comparison of two or more pictures of the same area

Abstract

The present invention relates to a system and method for providing 3D imaging. The system comprises: a) two or more cameras for allowing to generate stereoscopic information only for selected regions in a common or coincident field of view captured simultaneously by both of said two cameras, in order to provide distance measurements information to object(s) located in said selected regions; b) at least one 3DLR module for providing 3D image, wherein said two cameras and said 3DLR module are positioned in such a way that, at least partially, they will be able to capture similar or coincident field of view information; and c) a processing unit for generating said 3D imaging according to said stereoscopic information and said 3D image by using image processing algorithm(s) in order to provide 3D imaging information in real-time.

Claims

1. A system for providing 3D imaging, comprising:

a. two or more cameras for allowing to generate stereoscopic information only for selected regions in a common or coincident field of view captured simultaneously by both of said two cameras, in order to provide distance measurements information to object(s) located in said selected regions;

b. at least one 3DLR module for providing 3D image, wherein said two cameras and said 3DLR module are positioned in such a way that, at least partially, they will be able to capture similar or coincident field of view information; and

c. a processing unit for generating said 3D imaging according to said stereoscopic information and said 3D image by using image processing algorithm(s) in order to provide 3D imaging information in real-time.

2. A system according to claim 1, further comprising an IR camera for allowing to correlate between the measurements of the 3DLR module with the images provided from the two cameras, wherein the correlation is based on a matching algorithm.

3. A system according to claim 1, in which the 3DLR module is a laser range finder unit configured to provide 3D range image using laser and a scanning system.

4. A system according to claim 1, in which the 3DLR module comprising a receiver, a light emitting unit and a processing unit.

5. A system according to claim 1, in which the 3DLR module further comprises a polarizer for avoiding crosstalk between vehicles coming from the opposite directions.

6. A system according to claim 4, in which the receiver comprises an array of receiving units each of which sensitive to light or to IR, a threshold circuit, a memory unit and at least one counter.

7. A system according to claim 1, in which the two cameras and the 3DLR module are located on the same imaginary plane facing the same direction.

8. A system according to claim 1, further comprising optic alignment means for allowing to match pixels between the images provided from the 3DLR module and from the two cameras, by allowing to separate the light into its different wavelengths, in such a way that the wavelengths required for distance measurements will be sent to said 3DLR module and the rest of the wavelengths will be sent to the CCD sensor of each of said two cameras.

9. A system according to claim 8, in which the optic alignment means is a beam splitter.

10. A TOF module provided with non-moving parts for providing the 3D image, comprising:

a. a receiver;

b. a light emitting unit; and

c. a processing unit.

11. A TOF module according to claim 10, further comprising polarizing means for avoiding crosstalk phenomena between vehicles coming from opposite directions, wherein said polarizing means are configured to work with structured light or any other device that emit light and have a sensor that measure the reflected light.

12. A TOF module according to claim 11, in which the polarizer means comprises two units, wherein the first unit is attached to the light emitting unit and the second unit is attached to the receiver.

13. A method for providing 3D imaging, comprising the steps of:

a. capturing images from at least two cameras for allowing to generate stereoscopic information only for selected regions in a common or coincident field of view which is captured simultaneously by both of said cameras, in order to provide distance measurements information to object(s) located in said selected regions;

b. generating low resolution 3D image data by a 3DLR module, wherein said two cameras and said 3DLR module are positioned in such a way that, at least partially, they will be able to capture similar or coincident field of view information; and

c. generating said 3D imaging according to said stereoscopic information and said 3D image by using image processing algorithm(s) in order to provide 3D imaging information in real-time.

14. A method according to claim 13, in which the selected regions are determined by correlating the 3D image data only with the corresponding image captured by one of the cameras, in order to identify regions in said 3D image that the 3DLR module is unable to properly distinguish in a given field of view.

15. A method according to claim 13, in which the stereoscopic information is generated by correlating between the images provided by the two cameras using a real-time matching algorithm.

16. A method according to claim 13, further comprising correlating between the data provided by the 3DLR module with the stereoscopic information is done by an optic alignment means.

17. A method according to claim 13 further comprising the steps of:

a. creating an array or matrix of TOF measurements using the 3DLR module;

b. performing real time stereoscopy by using a matching algorithm thereby providing stereoscopy data; and

c. combining said TOF measurements and said stereoscopy data for creating a high resolution 3D imaging.