Scene and motion reconstruction from defocused and motion-blurred images via anisotropic diffusion

Abstract. We propose a solution to the problem of inferring the depth map, radiance and motion of a scene from a collection of motion-blurred and defocused images. We model motion-blur and defocus as an anisotropic diffusion process, whose initial conditions depend on the radiance and whose diffusion tensor encodes the shape of the scene, the motion field and the optics parameters. We show that this model is well-posed and propose an efficient algorithm to infer the unknowns of the model. Inference is performed by minimizing the discrepancy between the measured blurred images and the ones synthesized via forward diffusion. Since the problem is ill-posed, we also introduce additional Tikhonov regularization terms. The resulting method is fast and robust to noise as shown by experiments with both synthetic and real data.

움직이는 단일 카메라를 이용한 3차원 복원과 디블러링, 초해상도 복원의 동시적 수행 기법

학위논문 (박사)-- 서울대학교 대학원 : 전기·컴퓨터공학부, 2013. 8. 이경무.영상 기반 3차원 복원은 컴퓨터 비전의 기본적인 연구 주제 가운데 하나로 최근 몇 년간 많은 발전이 있어왔다. 특히 자동 로봇을 위한 네비게이션 및 휴대 기기를 이용한 증강 현실 등에 널리 활용될 수 있는 단일 카메라를 이용한 3차원 복원 기법은 복원의 정확도, 복원 가능 범위 및 처리 속도 측면에서 많은 실용 가능성을 보여주고 있다. 그러나 그 성능은 여전히 조심스레 촬영된 높은 품질의 입력 영상에 대해서만 시험되고 있다. 움직이는 단일 카메라를 이용한 3차원 복원의 실제 동작 환경에서는 입력 영상이 화소 잡음이나 움직임에 의한 번짐 등에 의하여 손상될 수 있고, 영상의 해상도 또한 정확한 카메라 위치 인식 및 3차원 복원을 위해서는 충분히 높지 않을 수 있다. 많은 연구에서 고성능 영상 화질 향상 기법들이 제안되어 왔지만 이들은 일반적으로 높은 계산 비용을 필요로 하기 때문에 실시간 동작 능력이 중요한 단일 카메라 기반 3차원 복원에 사용되기에는 부적합하다. 본 논문에서는 보다 정확하고 안정된 복원을 위하여 영상 개선이 결합된 새로운 단일 카메라 기반 3차원 복원 기법을 다룬다. 이를 위하여 영상 품질이 저하되는 중요한 두 요인인 움직임에 의한 영상 번짐과 낮은 해상도 문제가 각각 점 기반 복원 및 조밀 복원 기법들과 결합된다. 영상 품질 저하를 포함한 영상 획득 과정은 카메라 및 장면의 3차원 기하 구조와 관측된 영상 사이의 관계를 이용하여 모델링 할 수 있고, 이러한 영상 품질 저하 과정을 고려함으로써 정확한 3차원 복원을 하는 것이 가능해진다. 또한, 영상 번짐 제거를 위한 번짐 커널 또는 영상의 초해상도 복원을 위한 화소 대응 정보 등이 3차원 복원 과정과 동시에 얻어지는것이 가능하여, 영상 개선이 보다 간편하고 빠르게 수행될 수 있다. 제안되는 기법은 3차원 복원과 영상 개선 문제를 동시에 해결함으로써 각각의 결과가 상호 보완적으로 향상된다는 점에서 그 장점을 가지고 있다. 본 논문에서는 실험적 평가를 통하여 제안되는 3차원 복원 및 영상 개선의 효과성을 입증하도록 한다.Vision-based 3D reconstruction is one of the fundamental problems in computer vision, and it has been researched intensively significantly in the last decades. In particular, 3D reconstruction using a single camera, which has a wide range of applications such as autonomous robot navigation and augmented reality, shows great possibilities in its reconstruction accuracy, scale of reconstruction coverage, and computational efficiency. However, until recently, the performances of most algorithms have been tested only with carefully recorded, high quality input sequences. In practical situations, input images for 3D reconstruction can be severely distorted due to various factors such as pixel noise and motion blur, and the resolution of images may not be high enough to achieve accurate camera localization and scene reconstruction results. Although various high-performance image enhancement methods have been proposed in many studies, the high computational costs of those methods prevent applying them to the 3D reconstruction systems where the real-time capability is an important issue. In this dissertation, novel single camera-based 3D reconstruction methods that are combined with image enhancement methods is studied to improve the accuracy and reliability of 3D reconstruction. To this end, two critical image degradations, motion blur and low image resolution, are addressed for both sparse reconstruction and dense 3D reconstruction systems, and novel integrated enhancement methods for those degradations are presented. Using the relationship between the observed images and 3D geometry of the camera and scenes, the image formation process including image degradations is modeled by the camera and scene geometry. Then, by taking the image degradation factors in consideration, accurate 3D reconstruction then is achieved. Furthermore, the information required for image enhancement, such as blur kernels for deblurring and pixel correspondences for super-resolution, is simultaneously obtained while reconstructing 3D scene, and this makes the image enhancement much simpler and faster. The proposed methods have an advantage that the results of 3D reconstruction and image enhancement are improved by each other with the simultaneous solution of these problems. Experimental evaluations demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed 3D reconstruction and image enhancement methods.1. Introduction 2. Sparse 3D Reconstruction and Image Deblurring 3. Sparse 3D Reconstruction and Image Super-Resolution 4. Dense 3D Reconstruction and Image Deblurring 5. Dense 3D Reconstruction and Image Super-Resolution 6. Dense 3D Reconstruction, Image Deblurring, and Super-Resolution 7. ConclusionDocto

Joint methods in imaging based on diffuse image representations

This thesis deals with the application and the analysis of different variants of the Mumford-Shah model in the context of image processing. In this kind of models, a given function is approximated in a piecewise smooth or piecewise constant manner. Especially the numerical treatment of the discontinuities requires additional models that are also outlined in this work. The main part of this thesis is concerned with four different topics. Simultaneous edge detection and registration of two images: The image edges are detected with the Ambrosio-Tortorelli model, an approximation of the Mumford-Shah model that approximates the discontinuity set with a phase field, and the registration is based on these edges. The registration obtained by this model is fully symmetric in the sense that the same matching is obtained if the roles of the two input images are swapped. Detection of grain boundaries from atomic scale images of metals or metal alloys: This is an image processing problem from materials science where atomic scale images are obtained either experimentally for instance by transmission electron microscopy or by numerical simulation tools. Grains are homogenous material regions whose atomic lattice orientation differs from their surroundings. Based on a Mumford-Shah type functional, the grain boundaries are modeled as the discontinuity set of the lattice orientation. In addition to the grain boundaries, the model incorporates the extraction of a global elastic deformation of the atomic lattice. Numerically, the discontinuity set is modeled by a level set function following the approach by Chan and Vese. Joint motion estimation and restoration of motion-blurred video: A variational model for joint object detection, motion estimation and deblurring of consecutive video frames is proposed. For this purpose, a new motion blur model is developed that accurately describes the blur also close to the boundary of a moving object. Here, the video is assumed to consist of an object moving in front of a static background. The segmentation into object and background is handled by a Mumford-Shah type aspect of the proposed model. Convexification of the binary Mumford-Shah segmentation model: After considering the application of Mumford-Shah type models to tackle specific image processing problems in the previous topics, the Mumford-Shah model itself is studied more closely. Inspired by the work of Nikolova, Esedoglu and Chan, a method is developed that allows global minimization of the binary Mumford-Shah segmentation model by solving a convex, unconstrained optimization problem. In an outlook, segmentation of flowfields into piecewise affine regions using this convexification method is briefly discussed

Modeling and applications of the focus cue in conventional digital cameras

El enfoque en cámaras digitales juega un papel fundamental tanto en la calidad de la imagen como en la percepción del entorno. Esta tesis estudia el enfoque en cámaras digitales convencionales, tales como cámaras de móviles, fotográficas, webcams y similares. Una revisión rigurosa de los conceptos teóricos detras del enfoque en cámaras convencionales muestra que, a pasar de su utilidad, el modelo clásico del thin lens presenta muchas limitaciones para aplicación en diferentes problemas relacionados con el foco. En esta tesis, el focus profile es propuesto como una alternativa a conceptos clásicos como la profundidad de campo. Los nuevos conceptos introducidos en esta tesis son aplicados a diferentes problemas relacionados con el foco, tales como la adquisición eficiente de imágenes, estimación de profundidad, integración de elementos perceptuales y fusión de imágenes. Los resultados experimentales muestran la aplicación exitosa de los modelos propuestos.The focus of digital cameras plays a fundamental role in both the quality of the acquired images and the perception of the imaged scene. This thesis studies the focus cue in conventional cameras with focus control, such as cellphone cameras, photography cameras, webcams and the like. A deep review of the theoretical concepts behind focus in conventional cameras reveals that, despite its usefulness, the widely known thin lens model has several limitations for solving different focus-related problems in computer vision. In order to overcome these limitations, the focus profile model is introduced as an alternative to classic concepts, such as the near and far limits of the depth-of-field. The new concepts introduced in this dissertation are exploited for solving diverse focus-related problems, such as efficient image capture, depth estimation, visual cue integration and image fusion. The results obtained through an exhaustive experimental validation demonstrate the applicability of the proposed models