A self-consistency technique for fusing 3D information

Abstract

This paper describes a robust method for recovering an optimal DEM and its variance from multiple, randomly orientated views of a surface. The method generates a set of DEM tiles in a common coordinate system from multiple overlapping images, and then employs the concept of self-consistency to detect and remove errors from the tiles. The clean tiles are averaged together to form a low noise composite DEM. The method is tested on real and photo realistic simulated data. Results show that the method is capable of producing a virtually error free composite DEM.