This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project will build upon the success of Phase I which demonstrated the feasibility of a high resolution three-dimensional (3D) imaging system, based on a new technology that allows simultaneous 3D coordinate measurement and high resolution imagery using commercial off-the-shelf Charge-Coupled Device (CCD) or Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS) sensors. Although stereoscopic 3D images and movies have existed for over 100 years, only recently have 3D laser scanners which can reach 1 mm accuracies for single points at ranges of tens of meters and triangulation systems which can achieve 0.1 mm accuracies at ranges up to 2 m been developed. These systems produce no images and must assemble a collection of single 3D points over time. Phase I demonstrated the ability to capture 3D images using a 6 megapixel focal plane array with sub-centimeter accuracy and identified areas where further improvement can be achieved. The Phase II effort will implement these improvements but will focus on the engineering, miniaturization and fabrication of a 3D camera prototype which has performance and a form-factor traceable to the alpha version of a commercial 3D survey-grade instrument.
The broader impact/commercial potential of this project will benefit multiple industries, from aerospace to industrial surveying to movie and game special effects, by providing the new capability to record and measure objects, motion and scenes in three dimensions with imagery and in real-time. Current technology, e.g. 3D laser scanners and motion capture systems, used to capture 3D coordinates of objects and surfaces is slow, difficult to use, and either can only be used on static objects or requires special suits and sound stages with limited resolution. Despite the difficulty and associated high cost, the value of 3D data is such that its use in 3D industrial survey has been growing at 40% per year, reaching $425M in 2008. The high resolution 3D camera technology subject of this SBIR has been demonstrated in Phase I to have the potential to increase the acquisition speed by 100X over current solutions while reducing total data collection and processing costs by 10X. While this speed and resolution improvement will have a large impact on current markets, the capability to have high resolution images of moving objects with 3D coordinate measurements at each pixel enables a large number of new markets such as 3D biometrics, security, cost-effective digital heritage preservation, real-time measurement of 3D trajectories and robotic vision.
TetraVue is developing a novel 3D imaging system that allows for simultaneous measurement of 3D coordinates and imagery using off-the-shelf CCD or CMOS sensors. Under a Phase I grant from the National Science Foundation, TetraVue demonstrated the capability of this system and acquired 3D images with range uncertainty of 5mm. This was achieved using two 6 MegaPixel consumer-grade digital SLR cameras and TetraVue’s patented light slicer, and effectively demonstrated that range and feature measurements of a few millimeters can be achieved using TetraVue’s 3D technology. The goal of Phase II grant was to build a 3D camera prototype that packages large laboratory-style systems into a single module and demonstrates a path towards product. To accomplish this, TetraVue has integrated the illumination, optical, electronics and data acquisition sub-systems into a single package demonstration prototype. Thus, TetraVue has performed first steps towards miniaturization and packaging within the Phase II and Phase IIB funding limits. In addition, Phase II resources were allocated to increase the accuracy of the system by refining and optimizing the calibration methods. For Phase II, the prototype system functioned as predicted in the laboratory and has been used to identify the improvements needed for a robust product that meets market needs. The prototype built was taken to various sites of potential partners to demonstrate performance and potential utility of 3D capture. These results resulted in interest across several markets and some initial funding of further work. Phase II supplements were used to enhance the capability of the prototype 3D camera. For all intended markets, the end-users strongly desire a 3D capture solution that is portable, low power, and relatively small. As part of its commercialization efforts for the 3D camera, TetraVue is in the process of improving all 3D camera subsystems. As part of its effort to demonstrate the scalability of its 3D capture technology, TetraVue proposed upgrading its data processing pipeline to a field programmable gate array (FPGA) architecture. The Phase IIB portion of the grant has addressed the miniaturization and increasing the speed of the data processing electronics. Since the data processing and power electronics currently occupy approximately 60% of the volume of the Phase II prototype, the demonstrations in Phase IIB has provided a path to achieving a significantly smaller system volume while improving the system performance. Significant progress has been made to TetraVue’s 3D camera technology under the NSF Phase I, Phase II, and Phase IIB grants. The Phase II 3D camera prototype has accomplished the goal of demonstrating the feasibility and practicality of a 3D camera product based on TetraVue’s 3D capture technology. It has also served to identify the requirements necessary for a 3D camera product and those elements that should be improved for an optimal product.. Based on customer feedback TetraVue believes this technology, once fully realized, will be a game changer in several different markets.
