3D Vision Blog

Hey Guys,

I'm pretty new to this topic, but Im working on a 3D-Vision system for a robot, which helps the robot to navigate.
Now I'm looking for some 2D-Webcams, which I can set up on a rig for 3D-Vision.
I was wondering, if you can share some experience with this.
My cams don't have to be the best on the market, but haveing an autofocus and a wide sightangle would be an advantage.
I thought about a Logitech C930. Can anyone tell me something about it?
I would appreciate it, if someone can give me some advices.

Cheers
Tobias

Edit: The price shouldn't be more than 500$ per cam.

sorry, but automatic features are a no-go for stereoscopic use.
you will never be sure that both camera will focuse at the same time the same way.
if you take a cheap webcam, the lens usually give you a large depth of field, so you do not have to bother for focus.
there is already the minoru web cam that is a sterescopic usb camera.
If you need video output (probably hdmi) the sony TD10 is very cheap, but low light is a concern.
If you need 2 video outputs , a pair of cheap gopro (or another brand ) should be easy to find.
and if you can be happy with SD, ebay has tons of "bullet cam" for less than 50$
if you really need full feature for robot, i would advise a kinect or asus Xtion, because you will not be dependent of
light (these cameras give you a depth map from an infrared cam), and there are many develpement kit that let you reproduce
the environment in 3D from these cameras.

Yeah I was already concerning about this autofocus thingi (espacially for camera calibration)
but I have to "share" this equipment
The cams will be mainly used for navigation, the 3D Vision will only be used to evaluate specific situation (can the robo drive throught this hole? How far is this point away, can I reach it with my arm)
Are there any cams where I can set my focus via software (override the autofocus and after this start the autofocus again) ?
I haven't thought a lot about the kinect, but I will look if this system meets my requirements. Can I access the two videostreams independently by OpenCV??

But thanks so far for the info

cheers

tobias

edit: well I need the video stream "real time", so at least 20fps

http://www.stephenhobley.com/blog/2010/ ... ally-does/

yes 3D sensor like the kinect are far better, because they deliver distance, so a lot of calculation are avoided.
And they use infrared, so you do not depend from light.
with multiple kinect you can even reconstruct environment in realtime.