Infrared Visible-Light Image Registration Parallax Reduction
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Thermal imaging cameras face challenges in accurately aligning infrared and visible-light images due to parallax errors, making it difficult for users to identify features of interest, especially in low-contrast infrared scenes.
Innovation Solution
A method and system for registering visible-light and infrared images by detecting feature sets, calculating similarity figures for overlapping alignments, and aligning the images based on the desired similarity, which can include manual adjustments to reduce parallax error.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If infrared and visible-light images are overlaid and blended together, then the ease of identifying temperature spots is improved, but the accuracy of image alignment deteriorates due to parallax error
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary alignment of infrared and visible-light images by detecting corresponding features in both images and calculating transformation parameters before overlaying and blending them. This preliminary registration ensures that the images are properly aligned to reduce parallax error, allowing users to easily identify temperature spots while maintaining alignment accuracy.
2Measurement precision
If feature detection and alignment algorithms are implemented, then the image registration accuracy is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses self-service by automatically detecting features in both infrared and visible-light images and computing alignment transformations without requiring manual intervention. The processor autonomously performs feature detection, calculates transformation parameters, and applies the alignment, thereby improving registration accuracy while avoiding the complexity of manual alignment mechanisms.
3Manufacturing precision
If multiple overlapping alignments are generated and compared, then the registration precision is improved, but the processing time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system generates multiple overlapping alignments with different transformation parameters and calculates a similarity figure for each, but selects only the alignment with the desired similarity figure (the best match). This partial action approach ensures high registration precision by evaluating multiple options while avoiding excessive processing time by stopping at the first satisfactory alignment rather than evaluating all possible alignments.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods and thermal imaging cameras are provided for registering visible-light and infrared images within a thermal imaging camera to reduce a parallax error in the images. Registration generally includes detecting a first feature set in the visible-light image data, detecting a second feature set in the infrared image data and generating a plurality of overlapping alignments of the infrared image data and the visible-light image data. A similarity figure is calculated as a function of the relative alignment of the first feature set and the second feature set for each alignment and the alignment with the desired similarity figure is selected. The images are aligned and the camera displays at least a portion of the visible-light image data and/or at least a portion of the infrared image data.