Web-based on-line computational stereo vision

A design of an on-line Java applet that allows the user to upload images being close to a stereo pair and reconstruct a depth map of a depicted 3D scene is described. It is accessible to a wide range of users and can serve as a tool that allows the Internet users to learn and explore the research domain of computational stereo vision. The images are automatically rectified into an epipolar stereo pair after several corresponding points were interactively specified. The rectified pair is converted into an anaglyphic image of the scene, or a dense depth map is reconstructed from this pair using available or even user-submitted stereo algorithms. After the depth map is computed, the user can display arbitrary 3D views of the scene based on the depth and textural information. The implemented Web-community sharing port allows the users to upload and share their own solutions. The current version of this applet is temporarily stored at http://www.cs.auckland.ac.nz/~mngu012.