Model-free method for intrinsic camera parameters calibration and lens distortion correction

Abstract

Although various camera calibration methods have been proposed, most of these methods cannot deliver accurate determination of the intrinsic camera parameters, because of the coupling errors existing between intrinsic and extrinsic camera parameters and the use of explicit distortion models. Here, we propose a model-free method for accurate camera calibration, which utilizes phase-shifted fringe patterns shown on a liquid crystal display (LCD) screen for estimating the intrinsic parameters of a camera and correcting lens distortion. Horizontal and vertical fringe patterns are consecutively displayed on the LCD screen, which is placed at two positions parallel to the camera sensor plane. These fringe patterns are captured by the camera from the front viewpoint for calculating the absolute phase maps. Then, the images with lens distortion can be transformed to the distortion-free images using an inverse mapping operation. Subsequently, the principal point coordinates are calculated according to the geometric imaging relationship between the positions of the two LCD screens. Finally, the focal length can be estimated using the similarity of triangles formed by the obtained principal point coordinates and the obtained phase maps at the two positions. Both simulated and real experiments are performed to verify the validity of the proposed method. The results demonstrate that this method not only successfully eliminates coupling errors but also perfectly corrects lens distortion.