Poster: Automatic reconstruction of 3D geometry from photographs

Photogrammetry is the name given to a range of techniques by which 3D properties of an object are derived from 2D images. It is most often associated with the derivation of topology from aerial photographs, this is now more commonly referred to as a 2.5D reconstruction since the surfaces are generally convex. The automated creation of full 3D models from a series of photographs has been an active area of research for many years in computer science and vision research, often referred to as SfM (Structure from Motion) [1]. The techniques would appear to be maturing, this is reflected in a number of stable software tools being released from research laboratories both as commercial products but also in the public domain.

This poster presents some recent exploration in this area. A number of applications at UWA for automatic 3D reconstruction from photographs have been identified, these include the population of game engines with accurate models (as opposed to manually created models involving artistic interpretation), creation of virtual worlds with realistic models [2] without the need for time consuming manual modelling, and generating databases of 3D models for research and documentation in archaeology [3] and virtual heritage.