Automated camera network design for 3D modeling of cultural heritage objects

Image-based modeling is an appropriate technique to create 3D models of cultural heritage objects, which starts with the basic task of designing the camera network. This task is, however, quite crucial in practical applications because it needs a thorough planning and a certain level of experience. The optimal camera network is designed when certain accuracy demands are fulfilled with a reasonable effort, namely keeping the number of camera shots at a minimum. In this study, we report on the development of an automated method for designing the optimal camera network for a given cultural heritage building or statue. Starting from a rough point cloud derived from a video image stream, the initial configuration of the camera network is designed, assuming a high-resolution HR state-of-the-art non-metric camera. To improve the image coverage and accuracy, we use a mathematical non-linear optimization with constraints. Furthermore, synthetic images are created to guide the camera operator to the designed images. From the first experimental test, we found that a target accuracy of 10 mm could be maintained although the initial number of more than 300 high-resolution images got reduced to less than 90 for the final, optimized network.