Camera calibration method with checkerboard pattern under complicated illumination.

Camera calibration is a key step in three-dimensional (3-D) reconstruction; however, the calibration accuracy and stability often suffer from complicated illumination in real applications. The camera calibration method using the checkerboard pattern is improved for high-precision calibration under complicated illumination. First, an improved Harris corner detector based on color constancy, as well as a subpixel optimization method based on prior knowledge of the checkerboard, are proposed to overcome the influence of bad lighting. Second, a checkerboard pattern with a central circle point is designed for better reference point location for uneven illumination. The checkerboard identification by Delaunay triangulation is also improved for the situation of discontinuity caused by over-saturation. Finally, the camera parameter optimization process is improved to reduce the calibration error produced by complicated illumination. Experimental results show that the improvements achieve more accurate and stable calibration results in complicated lighting conditions compared with traditional methods. ©2018 SPIE and IS&T[DOI: 10.1117/1.JEI.27.4.043038] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]