Atsushi Nomura
Department of Cultural and International Studies, Yamaguchi Prefectural University, Sakurabatake 3-2-1, Yamaguchi 753-8502, Japan
(Received December 4, 1998; Accepted March 3, 1999)
Keywords: Motion Vector Field, Gradient Based Method, Non-Uniform Illumination, Extended Conservation Equation, Temporal Optimization Method
Abstract. Abstract. An approach determining motion vector fields from image sequences is developed. In conventional gradient based approaches incorrect motion vector fields are determined under non-uniform illumination. In this paper, a method to determine correct motion vector fields under non-uniform illumination is proposed. The method is based on the equation of an extended conservation law of image brightness, which includes motion vector components, an image brightness distribution function and a rate of image brightness generation. The rate represents a brightness change of a moving pattern under non-uniform illumination. By the introduction of a simple optical model and the temporal optimization method, which assumes a temporal constancy of a motion vector field, a reliable method determining a motion vector field is established. Furthermore, differences among the proposed method and conventional ones are confirmed through analysis of artificially synthesized image sequences and real ones.