Line-scan sensor: an alternative sensor modality for the extraction of three-dimensional coordinate information

We describe research carried out to investigate a stereoscopic line-scan system for the extraction of 3-D coordinate information from a scene of interest. Initial work involved analyzing the operating characteristics of a line-scan device for the production of 2-D images. Following this, a theoretical appraisal was undertaken of a sensor in a stereoscopic arrangement, and a mathematical model was derived for the calibration of a novel camera system. Algorithms to determine the 3-D relationship of points in the object space were developed using this model. To test the suitability of the model, a complete stereoscopic line-scan system was constructed. Experiments were conducted with the stereo camera to establish the accuracy that is achieved with such a system using the developed algorithms. The results indicate that the relative position of points in the object space could be determined to an accuracy of less than 1 mm at a range of 1.5 m.