Image-based method and system for building spherical panoramas
First Claim
1. A method of stitching together a two dimensional array of photographic images to build a spherical panorama, the method comprising:
- computing sight directions for each of the photographic images based on vertical registration of contiguous photographic images for each column of the two dimensional array;
adjusting the intensity of the photographic images to an intensity related to an average of the intensities of the photographic images; and
stitching together contiguous ones of the photographic images based on the sight directions to build the spherical panorama.
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Abstract
The invention relates to building spherical panoramas for image-based virtual reality systems. The image-based spherical panoramas can be navigated in any desired view direction (360-degrees) by suitable three-dimensional image browsers or viewers. The method and system also includes computing the number of photographs required to be taken and the azimuth angle of the center point of each photograph for building a spherical environment map representative of the spherical panorama. The method and system also includes an algorithm for computing the accurate azimuth angles of these taken photographs and seaming them together to build the spherical environment map.
34 Citations
37 Claims
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1. A method of stitching together a two dimensional array of photographic images to build a spherical panorama, the method comprising:
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computing sight directions for each of the photographic images based on vertical registration of contiguous photographic images for each column of the two dimensional array; adjusting the intensity of the photographic images to an intensity related to an average of the intensities of the photographic images; and stitching together contiguous ones of the photographic images based on the sight directions to build the spherical panorama. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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11. A system for stitching together a two dimensional array of photographic images to build a spherical panorama, the system comprising at least one computer-readable storage medium including:
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computer instructions for computing sight directions for each of the photographic images based on vertical registration of contiguous photographic images for each column of the two dimensional array; computer instructions for adjusting the intensity of the photographic images to an intensity related to an average of the intensities of the photographic images; and computer instructions for stitching together contiguous ones of the photographic images based on the sight directions to build the spherical panorama. - View Dependent Claims (12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. One or more computer readable storage media having computer instructions stored thereon that when executed by a processor cause the stitching together of a two dimensional array of photographic images to build a spherical panorama, the computer instructions when executed performing a method comprising:
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computing sight directions for each of the photographic images based on vertical registration of contiguous photographic images for each column of the two dimensional array; adjusting the intensity of the photographic images to an intensity related to an average of the intensities of the photographic images; and stitching together contiguous ones of the photographic images based on the sight directions to build the spherical panorama. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28)
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29. A system for stitching together a two dimensional array of photographic images to build a spherical panorama, the system comprising:
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a datastore having computer instructions stored thereon; and a processor that executes the computer instructions to compute sight directions for each of the photographic images based on vertical registration of contiguous photographic images for each column of the two dimensional array, to adjust the intensity of the photographic images to an intensity related to an average of the intensities of the photographic images, and to stitch together contiguous ones of the photographic images based on the sight directions to build the spherical panorama. - View Dependent Claims (36, 37)
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- 30. The system of 29 wherein the processor computes sight based on horizontal registration of contiguous photographic images for each row of the two dimensional array.
Specification