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High-resolution three-dimensional (3D) shape reconstruction of objects has huge potential for applications in the field of design, security, entertainment, biomedicine, industrial quality control etc. Of the available techniques, optical methods have the distinctive advantage of facilitating non-contact and non-intrusive measurements. Of late, integration of optical measurement system with the computer based data processing has improved the quality of the results. Of the available techniques, structured-light illumination (Fringe Projection) is the most effective, owing its simplistic experimental architecture and analysis. Traditional Fringe Projection techniques function with the use of fringes generated using interferometric methods. With the advent of digital light projectors, digitally generated fringes have taken the place of interferometry based fringes. Despite the technological advances that this field has witnessed over last couple of decades, digital fringe projection technique still suffers from various shortcomings. This thesis presents a strategic solution to the challenges faced by the technique in its application to out-of-plane deformation measurement of objects under impact loading. First part of the thesis reports the developmental work on building an LED-Grating based optical projection system for implementation of linear-fringe projection profilometry. Successful use of the developed system in measuring out-of-plane deformation experienced by multiple targets under impact loading with a time sapling of 20,000 frames per second is re-ported. However, for performing ballistic impact measurements using the liner-fringe projection method, an order of magnitude higher time-sampling is needed. This is due to the disadvantages associated with linear fringe projection technique: (1) results in wrapped phase map (2p ambiguity) estimation, and (2) the deformation/shift of the recorded fringe pattern in the modulation direction sets a limit on unambiguously measurable whole-plane displacement. Typically, fringe pitch dictates the limit of maximum detectable displacement, and thus to be able to capture larger deformation from the earlier state, coarser fringe pitch is required to be projected; while this adversely affects the resolution of measurement system. Hence, there is a need to develop a fringe projection system which has capability for whole-plane displacement without affecting the resolution and/or necessitating higher temporal-sampling. Circular Fringe Projection (CFP) technique is proposed in the second part of the thesis as a novel solution to address the above issues. CFP technique offers additional advantage of relaxing the temporal resolution requirements of the imaging system by decoupling the maximum measurable deformation rate and the frame rate of camera. A new image analysis method is also developed to extract the underlying phase distribution of the recorded circular-fringe patterns, as the conventionally used single-frame linear-fringe analysis methods are incompetent at demodulating the circular fringes. Experimental results obtained in 3D shape measurement and whole-field out-of-plane displacement measurements of a deforming object reported in this thesis, not only confirms the ability of the proposed CFP technique in overcoming the shortcomings of the widely used linear-fringe projection technique, but also its suitability for deployment in ballistic-impact measurements.

Three-dimensional reconstruction of small objects has been one of the most challenging problems over the last decade. Computer graphics researchers and photography professionals have been working on improving 3D reconstruction algorithms to fit the high demands of various real life applications. In this thesis, we implemented a 3D scanner system based on fringe projection method. Two different methods have been implemented and used as the unwrapping solution in fringe projection method. A parameterization tool has been created in order to generate different fringe patterns for distinctive needs in the fringe projection method. Considering our first practical implementation (based on phase shifting and multi wavelength techniques) the number of pictures used in phase shifting method has been decreased and the effects of reducing the fringe patterns on the level of precision of the 3D model have been investigated. Optical arrangement and calibration of the system (fringe projection method) have been studied, and numerous suggestions have been proposed to improve the precision of the system. Also, an evaluation method has been implemented based on calibration techniques. The error rate on both surface and height of the 3D model compare with the object has been calculated.

Fringe projection is a commonly used optical technique for measuring the shapes of objects with dimensions of up to about 1 m across. There are however many instances in the aerospace and automotive industries where it would be desirable to extend the benefits of the technique (e.g., high temporal and spatial sampling rates, non-contacting measurements) to much larger measurement volumes. This thesis describes a process that has been developed to allow the creation of a large global measurement volume from two or more independent shape measurement systems. A new 3-D large volume calibration artefact, together with a hexapod positioning stage, have been designed and manufactured to allow calibration of volumes of up to 3 x 1 x 1 m3. The artefact was built from carbon fibre composite tubes, chrome steel spheres, and mild steel end caps with rare earth rod magnets. The major advantage over other commonly used artefacts is the dimensionally stable relationship between features spanning multiple individual measurement volumes, thereby allowing calibration of several scanners within a global coordinate system, even when they have non-overlapping fields of view. The calibration artefact is modular, providing the scalability needed to address still larger measurement volumes and volumes of different geometries. Both it and the translation stage are easy to transport and to assemble on site. The artefact also provides traceabitity for calibration through independent measurements on a mechanical CMM. The dimensions of the assembled artefact have been found to be consistent with those of the individual tube lengths, demonstrating that gravitational distortion corrections are not needed for the artefact size considered here. Deformations due to thermal and hygral effects have also been experimentally quantified. The thesis describes the complete calibration procedure: large volume calibration artefact design, manufacture and testing; initial estimation of the sensor geometry parameters; processing of the calibration data from manually selected regions-of-interest (ROI) of the artefact features; artefact pose estimation; automated control point selection, and finally bundle adjustment. An accuracy of one part in 17 000 of the global measurement volume diagonal was achieved and verified.

A medida precisa de dimensões de lesões crônicas e o acompanhamento do processo de cicatrização são essenciais durante o tratamento. Porém, os métodos utilizados atualmente para esse fim são invasivos e imprecisos. Por outro lado, as técnicas de análise de franjas são métodos óticos amplamente explorados para a obtenção de topografias de objetos, pela análise da deformação de um padrão periódico de franjas projetado sobre a superfície deles. Dessa forma, a utilização dessas técnicas surge como uma interessante alternativa para a obtenção da topografia e das dimensões das lesões. Com o intuito de desenvolver uma técnica de análise de franjas capaz de medir dimensões de lesões na pele de forma não invasiva, rápida, exata e de baixo custo, comparou-se a Técnica Moiré de Projeção e a Técnica de Projeção de Franjas, chegando-se a conclusão de que a segunda era a mais adequada para o propósito. Assim, projetaram-se quatro padrões de franjas, deslocados de ¼ do período entre si, sobre a superfície do objeto de estudo e, através da análise das imagens, obteve-se um mapa com as fases dos padrões moduladas pela presença do objeto. Em seguida, esse mapa foi desmodulado para a obtenção das fases reais. Para a calibração desse mapa e obtenção das dimensões do objeto, utilizou-se um objeto de calibração de dimensões conhecidas, cujas imagens foram obtidas e analisadas nas mesmas condições que as imagens do objeto de estudo. Para a validação da técnica, obteve-se a topografia de vários objetos, que simulavam diferentes características das lesões, e compararam-se os resultados obtidos com as dimensões conhecidas deles. As limitações encontradas para a técnica se referem à presença de sombra e brilho na imagem e a variações abruptas na topografia dos objetos. A incerteza obtida para a técnica com o arranjo experimental utilizado foi de 3 mm. Uma vez validada a técnica e estudadas suas limitações, foram feitas medidas das dimensões de lesões em pacientes e verificou-se que é possível a utilização da técnica de análise de franjas para esse fim. Assim, pôde-se estabelecer uma sugestão de protocolo para a medição de dimensões de lesões no ambiente clínico, utilizando a análise de franjas. / Measuring chronic wound dimensions and evaluating the healing process are very important procedures during the treatment; however, the methods currently used for this are invasive and inaccurate. On the other hand, the fringe analysis techniques are optical methods, widely explored to obtain the 3D topography of an object. It consists in analyzing the deformation of a periodic fringe pattern projected on an object surface. Thereby, the fringe analysis techniques are an interesting alternative to obtain wound dimensions and topography. In order to develop a fringe analysis technique that can measure wound dimensions using a non-invasive, fast, accurate and low-cost method, the Moiré Projection and the Fringe Projection Techniques were compared, with the conclusion that the second one was the most suitable for the proposal. This way, four fringe patterns are projected on the object surface, each one displaced of ¼ of the period. Through the images analysis, a wrapped phase map, with the phases modulated by the object topography, was obtained. This map is unwrapped to obtain the actual phases. To calibrate this map and obtain the object dimensions, a calibration object with known dimensions was used. Its images were obtained and analyzed in the same conditions as the studied object. To validate the technique, the topography of different objects, which simulated wound characteristics, were obtained, and the results were compared with the known dimensions. The limitations of this technique are due to the presence of shadow and bright light in the image and to abrupt variations in the object topographies. The uncertainty of the technique obtained with this experimental setup was of 3 mm. Once the technique was validated and its limitations were studied, measurements of patients wound dimensions were made and it was verified that the utilization of the fringe analysis technique for this application is feasible. Thus, it was possible to develop a suggestion of procedure protocol to use the technique for measuring wound dimensions in the clinic environment.

The thesis describes the design of a fringe projection system to study the dynamics of condensation with potential application in a reduced gravity environment. The concept is that an optical system for imaging the condensation layer enables extraction of valuable data from the image because of the ability of the optical system to image the perturbations in the condensation films. By acquiring a sequence of images of the deformed fringe pattern, the change in the surface topology can be observed over time, giving greater understanding of condensation dynamics in reduced gravity.

"3D shape measurements are critical in a range of fields, from manufacturing for quality measurements to art conservation for the everlasting archival of ancient sculptures. The most important factor is to gather quantitative 3D information from measurement devices. Currently, there are limitations of existing systems. Many of the techniques are contact methods, proving to be time consuming and invasive to materials. While non-contact methods provide opportunities, many of the current systems are limited in versatility. This project focuses on the development of a fringe projection based system for 3D shape measurements. The critical advantage of the fringe projection optical technique is the ability to provide full field-of-view (FOV) information on the order from several square millimeters to several square meters. In the past, limitations in speed and difficulties achieving sinusoidal projection patterns have restricted the development of this particular type of system and limited its potential applications. For this reason, direct coding techniques have been incorporated to the developed system that modulate the intensity of each pixel to form a sinusoidal pattern using a 624 nm wavelength MEMS based spatial light modulator. Recovered phase data containing shape information is obtained using varying algorithms that range from a single image FFT analysis to a sixteen image, phase stepping algorithm. Reconstruction of 3D information is achievable through several image unwrapping techniques. The first is a spatial unwrapping technique for high speed applications. Additionally, the system uses an optimized Temporal Phase Unwrapping (TPU) algorithm that utilizes varying fringe frequencies ranging from 4 to 512 pixels per fringe to recover shape information in the time domain. This algorithm was chosen based on its robustness and accuracy for high resolution applications [Burke et al., 2002]. Also, unwrapping errors are minimized by approximately 90% as the number of images used is increased from the minimum to maximum fringe density. Cxoontrary to other systems, the 3D shape measurement system developed in the CHSLT laboratories has unprecedented versatility to accommodate a variety of applications with the z-depth resolution of up to 25.4 µm (0.001 inches) and speeds close to 200 frames per second. Hardware systems are integrated into user-friendly software that has been customized for fringe projection. The system has been tested in two extreme environments. The first is for quantification of cracks and potholes in the surface of roads under dynamic conditions. The second application was digitization of an art sculpture under static conditions. The system shows promising results and the potential for high quality images via algorithm optimization. Most importantly, there is potential to present real time 3D information at video speeds."

A medida precisa de dimensões de lesões crônicas e o acompanhamento do processo de cicatrização são essenciais durante o tratamento. Porém, os métodos utilizados atualmente para esse fim são invasivos e imprecisos. Por outro lado, as técnicas de análise de franjas são métodos óticos amplamente explorados para a obtenção de topografias de objetos, pela análise da deformação de um padrão periódico de franjas projetado sobre a superfície deles. Dessa forma, a utilização dessas técnicas surge como uma interessante alternativa para a obtenção da topografia e das dimensões das lesões. Com o intuito de desenvolver uma técnica de análise de franjas capaz de medir dimensões de lesões na pele de forma não invasiva, rápida, exata e de baixo custo, comparou-se a Técnica Moiré de Projeção e a Técnica de Projeção de Franjas, chegando-se a conclusão de que a segunda era a mais adequada para o propósito. Assim, projetaram-se quatro padrões de franjas, deslocados de ¼ do período entre si, sobre a superfície do objeto de estudo e, através da análise das imagens, obteve-se um mapa com as fases dos padrões moduladas pela presença do objeto. Em seguida, esse mapa foi desmodulado para a obtenção das fases reais. Para a calibração desse mapa e obtenção das dimensões do objeto, utilizou-se um objeto de calibração de dimensões conhecidas, cujas imagens foram obtidas e analisadas nas mesmas condições que as imagens do objeto de estudo. Para a validação da técnica, obteve-se a topografia de vários objetos, que simulavam diferentes características das lesões, e compararam-se os resultados obtidos com as dimensões conhecidas deles. As limitações encontradas para a técnica se referem à presença de sombra e brilho na imagem e a variações abruptas na topografia dos objetos. A incerteza obtida para a técnica com o arranjo experimental utilizado foi de 3 mm. Uma vez validada a técnica e estudadas suas limitações, foram feitas medidas das dimensões de lesões em pacientes e verificou-se que é possível a utilização da técnica de análise de franjas para esse fim. Assim, pôde-se estabelecer uma sugestão de protocolo para a medição de dimensões de lesões no ambiente clínico, utilizando a análise de franjas. / Measuring chronic wound dimensions and evaluating the healing process are very important procedures during the treatment; however, the methods currently used for this are invasive and inaccurate. On the other hand, the fringe analysis techniques are optical methods, widely explored to obtain the 3D topography of an object. It consists in analyzing the deformation of a periodic fringe pattern projected on an object surface. Thereby, the fringe analysis techniques are an interesting alternative to obtain wound dimensions and topography. In order to develop a fringe analysis technique that can measure wound dimensions using a non-invasive, fast, accurate and low-cost method, the Moiré Projection and the Fringe Projection Techniques were compared, with the conclusion that the second one was the most suitable for the proposal. This way, four fringe patterns are projected on the object surface, each one displaced of ¼ of the period. Through the images analysis, a wrapped phase map, with the phases modulated by the object topography, was obtained. This map is unwrapped to obtain the actual phases. To calibrate this map and obtain the object dimensions, a calibration object with known dimensions was used. Its images were obtained and analyzed in the same conditions as the studied object. To validate the technique, the topography of different objects, which simulated wound characteristics, were obtained, and the results were compared with the known dimensions. The limitations of this technique are due to the presence of shadow and bright light in the image and to abrupt variations in the object topographies. The uncertainty of the technique obtained with this experimental setup was of 3 mm. Once the technique was validated and its limitations were studied, measurements of patients wound dimensions were made and it was verified that the utilization of the fringe analysis technique for this application is feasible. Thus, it was possible to develop a suggestion of procedure protocol to use the technique for measuring wound dimensions in the clinic environment.

<p>Digital fringe projection (DFP) methods are commonly used to obtain high-accuracy shape measurements of opaque, diffusely-reflective objects. While some objects may have constant texture across its surface, this is not true for all; many measured objects may have high-contrast texture caused by edges of dark- and light-colored sections of the object. In these high-contrast areas, a phase artifact has been consistently observed, which in turn creates a specific measurement error that is sometimes referred to as ``discontinuity-induced measurement artifacts" (DMA). Our study indicated that this error is most likely caused by camera defocusing, which produces a Gaussian point spread function (PSF) that is convoluted across every captured image, thus creating an phase artifact shaped like a Gaussian function. Based on this finding, this thesis outlines a method for removing this error via Gaussian curve fitting on the affected regions. These regions can be found by locating large spikes in the image intensity gradient, which directly correspond to the edge of the phase artifact, and then using a weighted least squared method to fit a Gaussian function to the affected area. We propose to use this error removal method in two ways: first, to remove errors on a checkerboard calibration target in order to increase calibration accuracy; and second, to directly remove errors in high-contrast areas in order to decrease shape measurement error. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method succeeds in decreasing calibration error for a checkerboard calibration target by as much as 12\%. Shape measurement experiments were not only conducted across simple, flat boards, but also more complex surfaces, such as that of a coffee mug. This thesis will show that this measurement error can be significantly decreased for both simple and complex surfaces.</p>

A multiple-sensor optical shape measurement system (SMS) based on the principle of white-light fringe projection has been developed and commercialised by Loughborough University and Phase Vision Ltd for over 10 years. The use of the temporal phase unwrapping technique allows precise and dense shape measurements of complex surfaces; and the photogrammetry-based calibration technique offers the ability to calibrate multiple sensors simultaneously in order to achieve 360° measurement coverage. Nevertheless, to enhance the applicability of the SMS in industrial environments, further developments are needed (i) to improve the calibration speed for quicker deployment, (ii) to broaden the application range from shape measurement to deformation field measurement, and (iii) to tackle practically-challenging surfaces of which specular components may disrupt the acquired data and result in spurious measurements. The calibration process typically requires manual positioning of an artefact (i.e., reference object) at many locations within the view of the sensors. This is not only timeconsuming but also complicated for an operator with average knowledge of metrology. This thesis introduces an automated artefact positioning system which enables automatic and optimised distribution of the artefacts, automatic prediction of their whereabouts to increase the artefact detection speed and robustness, and thereby greater overall calibration performance. This thesis also describes a novel technique that integrates the digital image correlation (DIC) technique into the present fringe projection SMS for the purpose of simultaneous shape and deformation field measurement. This combined technique offers three key advantages: (a) the ability to deal with geometrical discontinuities which are commonly present on mechanical surfaces and currently challenging to most deformation measurement methods, (b) the ability to measure 3D displacement fields with a basic single-camera single-projector SMS with no additional hardware components, and (c) the simple implementation on a multiple-sensor hardware platform to achieve complete coverage of large-scale and complex samples, with the resulting displacement fields automatically lying in a single global coordinate system. A displacement measurement accuracy of ≃ 1/12,000 of the measurement volume, which is comparable to that of an industry-standard DIC system, has been achieved. The applications of this novel technique to several structural tests of aircraft wing panels on-site at the research centre of Airbus UK in Filton are also presented. Mechanical components with shiny surface finish and complex geometry may introduce another challenge to present fringe projection techniques. In certain circumstances, multiple reflections of the projected fringes on an object surface may cause ambiguity in the phase estimation process and result in incorrect coordinate measurements. This thesis presents a new technique which adopts a Fourier domain ranging (FDR) method to correctly identifying multiple phase signals and enables unambiguous triangulation for a measured coordinate. Experiments of the new FDR technique on various types of surfaces have shown promising results as compared to the traditional phase unwrapping techniques.