We present a fast and accurate method for dense depth reconstruction from
sparsely sampled light fields obtained using a synchronized camera array. In
our method, the source images are over-segmented into non-overlapping compact
superpixels that are used as basic data units for depth estimation and
refinement. Superpixel representation provides a desirable reduction in the
computational cost while preserving the image geometry with respect to the
object contours. Each superpixel is modeled as a plane in the image space,
allowing depth values to vary smoothly within the superpixel area. Initial
depth maps, which are obtained by plane sweeping, are iteratively refined by
propagating good correspondences within an image. To ensure the fast
convergence of the iterative optimization process, we employ a highly parallel
propagation scheme that operates on all the superpixels of all the images at
once, making full use of the parallel graphics hardware. A few optimization
iterations of the energy function incorporating superpixel-wise smoothness and
geometric consistency constraints allows to recover depth with high accuracy in
textured and textureless regions as well as areas with occlusions, producing
dense globally consistent depth maps. We demonstrate that while the depth
reconstruction takes about a second per full high-definition view, the accuracy
of the obtained depth maps is comparable with the state-of-the-art results.Comment: 15 pages, 15 figure
