Performance Analysis of the SIFT Operator for Automatic Feature Extraction and Matching in Photogrammetric Applications

In the photogrammetry field, interest in region detectors, which are widely used in Computer Vision, is quickly increasing due to the availability of new techniques. Images acquired by Mobile Mapping Technology, Oblique Photogrammetric Cameras or Unmanned Aerial Vehicles do not observe normal acquisition conditions. Feature extraction and matching techniques, which are traditionally used in photogrammetry, are usually inefficient for these applications as they are unable to provide reliable results under extreme geometrical conditions (convergent taking geometry, strong affine transformations, etc.) and for bad-textured images. A performance analysis of the SIFT technique in aerial and close-range photogrammetric applications is presented in this paper. The goal is to establish the suitability of the SIFT technique for automatic tie point extraction and approximate DSM (Digital Surface Model) generation. First, the performances of the SIFT operator have been compared with those provided by feature extraction and matching techniques used in photogrammetry. All these techniques have been implemented by the authors and validated on aerial and terrestrial images. Moreover, an auto-adaptive version of the SIFT operator has been developed, in order to improve the performances of the SIFT detector in relation to the texture of the images. The Auto-Adaptive SIFT operator (A2 SIFT) has been validated on several aerial images, with particular attention to large scale aerial images acquired using mini-UAV systems

AUTOMATED AND ACCURATE ORIENTATION OF COMPLEX IMAGE SEQUENCES

The paper illustrates an automated methodology capable of finding tie points in different categories of images for a successive orientation and camera pose estimation procedure. The algorithmic implementation is encapsulated into a software called ATiPE. The entire procedure combines several algorithms of both Computer Vision (CV) and Photogrammetry in order to obtain accurate results in an automated way. Although there exist numerous efficient solutions for images taken with the traditional aerial block geometry, the complexity and diversity of image network geometry in close-range applications makes the automatic identification of tie points a very complicated task. The reported examples were made available for the 3D-ARCH 2011 conference and include images featuring different characteristics in terms of resolution, network geometry, calibration information and external constraints (ground control points, known distances). In addition, some further examples are shown, that demonstrate the capability of the orientation procedure to cope with a large variety of block configurations

EVALUATION OF PHOTOGRAMMETRIC BLOCK ORIENTATION USING QUALITY DESCRIPTORS FROM STATISTICALLY FILTERED TIE POINTS

Due to the increasing number of low-cost sensors, widely accessible on the market, and because of the supposed granted correctness of the semi-automatic workflow for 3D reconstruction, highly implemented in the recent commercial software, more and more users operate nowadays without following the rigorousness of classical photogrammetric methods. This behaviour often naively leads to 3D products that lacks metric quality assessment. This paper proposes and analyses an approach that gives the users the possibility to preserve the trustworthiness of the metric information inherent in the 3D model, without sacrificing the automation offered by modern photogrammetry software. At the beginning, the importance of Data Quality Assessment is outlined, together with some recall of photogrammetry best practices. With the purpose of guiding the user through a correct pipeline for a certified 3D model reconstruction, an operative workflow is proposed, focusing on the first part of the object reconstruction steps (tie-points extraction, camera calibration, and relative orientation). A new GUI (Graphical User Interface) developed for the open source MicMac suite is then presented, and a sample dataset is used for the evaluation of the photogrammetric block orientation using statistically obtained quality descriptors. The results and the future directions are then presented and discussed

GRAPHOS – An open-source software for photogrammetric applications

19 p.This paper reports the latest developments for the photogrammetric open‐source tool called GRAPHOS (inteGRAted PHOtogrammetric Suite). GRAPHOS includes some recent innovations in the image‐based 3D reconstruction pipeline, from automatic feature detection/description and network orientation to dense image matching and quality control. GRAPHOS also has a strong educational component beyond its automated processing functions, reinforced with tutorials and didactic explanations about algorithms and performance. The paper highlights recent developments carried out at different levels: graphical user interface (GUI), didactic simulators for image processing, photogrammetric processing with weight parameters, dataset creation and system evaluationS

GRAPHOS - open-source software for photogrammetric applications

open11siThis work has been supported by ISPRS through the 2016 Scientific Initiative entitled Advances in the Development of an Open-source Photogrammetric Tool.This paper reports the latest developments for the photogrammetric open-source tool called GRAPHOS (inteGRAted PHOtogrammetric Suite). GRAPHOS includes some recent innovations in the image-based 3D reconstruction pipeline, from automatic feature detection/description and network orientation to dense image matching and quality control. GRAPHOS also has a strong educational component beyond its automated processing functions, reinforced with tutorials and didactic explanations about algorithms and performance. The paper highlights recent developments carried out at different levels: graphical user interface (GUI), didactic simulators for image processing, photogrammetric processing with weight parameters, dataset creation and system evaluation.embargoed_20190221Gonzalez-Aguilera, D.*; López-Fernández, L.; Rodriguez-Gonzalvez, P.; Hernandez-Lopez, D.; Guerrero, D.; Remondino, F.; Menna, F.; Nocerino, E.; Toschi, I.; Ballabeni, A.; Gaiani, M.Gonzalez-Aguilera, D.*; López-Fernández, L.; Rodriguez-Gonzalvez, P.; Hernandez-Lopez, D.; Guerrero, D.; Remondino, F.; Menna, F.; Nocerino, E.; Toschi, I.; Ballabeni, A.; Gaiani, M

New instruments and technologies for Cultural Heritage survey: full integration between point clouds and digital photogrammetry

In the last years the Geomatic Research Group of the Politecnico di Torino faced some new research topics about new instruments for point cloud generation (e.g. Time of Flight cameras) and strong integration between multi-image matching techniques and 3D Point Cloud information in order to solve the ambiguities of the already known matching algorithms. ToF cameras can be a good low cost alternative to LiDAR instruments for the generation of precise and accurate point clouds: up to now the application range is still limited but in a near future they will be able to satisfy the most part of the Cultural Heritage metric survey requirements. On the other hand multi-image matching techniques with a correct and deep integration of the point cloud information can give the correct solution for an "intelligent" survey of the geometric object break-lines, which are the correct starting point for a complete survey. These two research topics are strictly connected to a modern Cultural Heritage 3D survey approach. In this paper after a short analysis of the achieved results, an alternative possible scenario for the development of the metric survey approach inside the wider topic of Cultural Heritage Documentation is reporte

Points clouds generation using TLS and dense-matching techniques. A test on approachable accuracies of different tools

3D detailed models derived from digital survey techniques has increasingly developed and focused in many field of application, ranging from the land and urban areas survey, using remote sensed data, to landscape assets and finally to Cultural Heritage items. The high detailed content and accuracy of such models makes them so attractive and usable for large sets of purposes. The present paper is focused on a test aimed to point clouds generation fulfilled by archaeological data; active and passive sensors techniques and related image matching systems have been used in order to evaluate and compare the accuracy of results, achievable using proper TLS and low cost image-matching software and techniques. After a short review of approachable methods some attained results will be discussed; the test area consists of a set of mosaic floorings in a late roman domus located in Aquileia (UD-Italy) requesting a very high level of details and high scale and precision. The experimental section provides the descriptions of the applied tests in order to compare the different software and the employed method

SfM for Orthophoto Generation: A Winning Approach for Cultural Heritage Knowledge

3D detailed models derived from digital survey techniques have increasingly developed and focused in many field of application. The high detailed content and accuracy of such models make them so attractive and usable for large sets of purposes in Cultural Heritage. The present paper focuses on one of the main techniques used nowadays for Cultural Heritage survey and documentation: the image matching approach or Structure from Motion (SfM) technique. According to the low cost nature and the rich content of derivable information, these techniques are extremely strategic in poor available resources sectors such as Cultural Heritage documentation. <br><br> After an overview of the employed algorithms and used approaches of SfM computer vision based techniques, the paper is focused in a critical analysis of the strategy used by two common employed software: the commercial suite Agisoft Photoscan and the open source tool MicMac realized by IGN France. The experimental section is focused on the description of applied tests (from RPAS data to terrestrial acquisitions), purposed to compare different solutions in various featured study cases. Finally, the accuracy assessment of the achieved products is compared and analyzed according to the strategy employed by the studied software