Data acquisition and view planning for 3-D modeling tasks

In this paper we address the joint problems of automated data acquisition and view planning for large-scale indoor and outdoor sites. Our method proceeds in two distinct stages. In the initial stage, the system is given a 2-D map with which it plans a minimal set of sufficient covering views. We then use a 3-D laser scanner to take scans at each of these views. When this planning system is combined with our mobile robot, it automatically computes and executes a tour of these viewing locations and acquires the views with the robot's onboard laser scanner. These initial scans serve as an approximate 3-D model of the site. The planning software then enters a second stage in which it updates this model by using a voxel-based occupancy procedure to plan the next best view. This next best view is acquired, and further next best views are sequentially computed and acquired until a complete 3-D model is obtained. Results are shown for Fort Jay on Governors Island in the City of New York and for the church of Saint Menoux in the Bourbonnais region of France.