Three-dimensional planar object tracking with sub-pixel accuracy

Subpixel techniques are commonly used to increase the spatial resolution in tracking tasks. Object tracking with targets of known shape permits obtaining information about object position and orientation in the three-dimensional space. A proper selection of the target shape allows us to determine its position inside a plane and its angular and azimuthal orientation under certain limits. Our proposal is demonstrated both numerical and experimentally and provides an increase the accuracy of more than one order of magnitude compared to the nominal resolution of the sensor. The experiment has been performed with a high-speed camera, which simultaneously provides high spatial and temporal resolution, so it may be interesting for some applications where this kind of targets can be attached, such as vibration monitoring and structural analysis.

The authors acknowledge the support of the Spanish Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad through the project BIA2011-22704 and the Generalitat Valenciana through the projects GV/2013/009 and PROMETEO/ 2011/021. A. B. Roig acknowledges a grant from Cajamurcia.