A review of recent range image registration methods with accuracy evaluation

The three-dimensional reconstruction of real objects is an important topic in computer vision. Most of the acquisition systems are limited to reconstruct a partial view of the object obtaining in blind areas and occlusions, while in most applications a full reconstruction is required. Many authors have proposed techniques to fuse 3D surfaces by determining the motion between the different views. The first problem is related to obtaining a rough registration when such motion is not available. The second one is focused on obtaining a fine registration from an initial approximation. In this paper, a survey of the most common techniques is presented. Furthermore, a sample of the techniques has been programmed and experimental results are reported to determine the best method in the presence of noise and outliers, providing a useful guide for an interested reader including a Matlab toolbox available at the webpage of the authors.