Flexible Mirror Imaging

Abstract

The field of view of a traditional camera has a fixed shape. This severely restricts how scene elements can be composed into an image. We present a novel imaging system that uses a flexible mirror in conjunction with a camera to overcome this limitation. By deforming the mirror, our system can produce fields of view with a wide range of shapes and sizes. A captured image is typically a multi-perspective view of the scene with spatially varying resolution. As a result, scene objects appear distorted. To minimize these distortions, we have developed an efficient algorithm that maps a captured image to one with almost uniform resolution. To determine this mapping we need to know the shape of the mirror. For this, we have developed a simple calibration method that automatically estimates the mirror shape from its boundary, which is visible in the captured image. We present a number of examples that demonstrate that a flexible field of view imaging system can be used to compose scenes in ways that have not been possible before. This flexibility can be exploited in applications such as video surveillance and monitoring.