Acquisition of 3-D data by focus sensing

Abstract

A range sensing technique is demonstrated that finds the 3-D shape of diffusely reflecting objects. The technique works sequentially in depth direction and is based on structured illumination and focus sensing. A TV camera and analog electronics are used to find the locations in focus of each step of a focus series in TV real time. The depth resolution is not very high, however, the technique is simple, rapid, and well suited to get an overview of a scene in robot vision.