Falcon: A Wide-and-Deep Onboard Active Vision System

The tradeoff between the field-of-view and resolution of conventional onboard vision systems primarily results from their fixed optical components. We propose a novel active vision system, Falcon, as an optimal solution. This system comprises an electric zoom lens connected to a high-speed camera with a pair of galvanometer mirrors, enabling high-resolution imaging of a moving object across a wide range, from near to far. To ensure accurate calibration of the Falcon system, we introduce a novel mapping-based calibration method using external cameras. We also present a robust and lightweight visual feedback method that utilizes this mapping-based calibration for effective object tracking. The effectiveness of the Falcon system is verified by constructing a prototype and conducting tracking experiments in an indoor setting, which demonstrated the superior performance of our method. Additionally, we successfully achieved continuous and high-resolution imaging of a curved mirror on public roads while the vehicle was moving.

I. Introduction

Sensing the surrounding environment is a fundamental function of robots, including autonomous vehicles. While recent advances in electronics have facilitated the development of various sensors such as LiDAR and millimeter radar, vision sensors play an indispensable role due to their high capability in environmental recognition, which is widely appreciated in many vehicle applications.