External calibration for synchronized camera setups

Ivo Ihrke
Max-Planck-Institut für Informatik

66 123 & Saarbrücken
Germany

e-mail: ihrke@mpi-sb.mpg.de

http://www.grovis.de

Abstract

We present a method for external camera calibration that is simple to use and offers generality in the positioning of the cameras. This makes it very suitable for the calibration of mobile, synchronized camera setups. We use a {\em camera graph} to perform global registration which helps lifting restrictions on the camera setup imposed by other calibration methods. A further advantage is that all information is taken into account simultaneously. The method is based on a virtual calibration object which is constructed over time by tracking an easily identifiable object through three-dimensional space. This implies that no calibration object must be visible simultaneously in all cameras.

Keywords: External Camera Calibration, Registration, Multi-Video System, Graphs