scholarly journals 3D MODELS FOR ALL: LOW-COST ACQUISITION THROUGH MOBILE DEVICES IN COMPARISON WITH IMAGE BASED TECHNIQUES. POTENTIALITIES AND WEAKNESSES IN CULTURAL HERITAGE DOMAIN

Author(s):  
C. Santagati ◽  
M. Lo Turco ◽  
M. M. Bocconcino ◽  
V. Donato ◽  
M. Galizia

Nowadays, 3D digital imaging proposes effective solutions for preserving the expression of human creativity across the centuries, as well as is a great tool to guarantee global dissemination of knowledge and wide access to these invaluable resources of the past. Nevertheless, in several cases, a massive digitalisation of cultural heritage items (from the archaeological site up to the monument and museum collections) could be unworkable due to the still high costs in terms of equipment and human resources: 3D acquisition technologies and the need of skilled team within cultural institutions. Therefore, it is necessary to explore new possibilities offered by growing technologies: the lower costs of these technologies as well as their attractive visual quality constitute a challenge for researchers. Besides these possibilities, it is also important to consider how information is spread through graphic representation of knowledge. The focus of this study is to explore the potentialities and weaknesses of a newly released low cost device in the cultural heritage domain, trying to understand its effective usability in museum collections. The aim of the research is to test their usability, critically analysing the final outcomes of this entry level technology in relation to the other better assessed low cost technologies for 3D scanning, such as Structure from Motion (SfM) techniques (also produced by the same device) combined with dataset generated by a professional digital camera. The final outcomes were compared in terms of quality definition, time processing and file size. The specimens of the collections of the Civic Museum Castello Ursino in Catania have been chosen as the site of experimentation.

Author(s):  
Quentin Kevin Gautier ◽  
Thomas G. Garrison ◽  
Ferrill Rushton ◽  
Nicholas Bouck ◽  
Eric Lo ◽  
...  

PurposeDigital documentation techniques of tunneling excavations at archaeological sites are becoming more common. These methods, such as photogrammetry and LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), are able to create precise three-dimensional models of excavations to complement traditional forms of documentation with millimeter to centimeter accuracy. However, these techniques require either expensive pieces of equipment or a long processing time that can be prohibitive during short field seasons in remote areas. This article aims to determine the effectiveness of various low-cost sensors and real-time algorithms to create digital scans of archaeological excavations.Design/methodology/approachThe authors used a class of algorithms called SLAM (Simultaneous Localization and Mapping) along with depth-sensing cameras. While these algorithms have largely improved over recent years, the accuracy of the results still depends on the scanning conditions. The authors developed a prototype of a scanning device and collected 3D data at a Maya archaeological site and refined the instrument in a system of natural caves. This article presents an analysis of the resulting 3D models to determine the effectiveness of the various sensors and algorithms employed.FindingsWhile not as accurate as commercial LiDAR systems, the prototype presented, employing a time-of-flight depth sensor and using a feature-based SLAM algorithm, is a rapid and effective way to document archaeological contexts at a fraction of the cost.Practical implicationsThe proposed system is easy to deploy, provides real-time results and would be particularly useful in salvage operations as well as in high-risk areas where cultural heritage is threatened.Originality/valueThis article compares many different low-cost scanning solutions for underground excavations, along with presenting a prototype that can be easily replicated for documentation purposes.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. 5321
Author(s):  
Marcin Barszcz ◽  
Jerzy Montusiewicz ◽  
Magdalena Paśnikowska-Łukaszuk ◽  
Anna Sałamacha

In the era of the global pandemic caused by the COVID-19 virus, 3D digitisation of selected museum artefacts is becoming more and more frequent practice, but the vast majority is performed by specialised teams. The paper presents the results of comparative studies of 3D digital models of the same museum artefacts from the Silk Road area generated by two completely different technologies: Structure from Motion (SfM)—a method belonging to the so-called low-cost technologies—and by Structured-light 3D Scanning (3D SLS). Moreover, procedural differences in data acquisition and their processing to generate three-dimensional models are presented. Models built using a point cloud were created from data collected in the Afrasiyab museum in Samarkand (Uzbekistan) during “The 1st Scientific Expedition of the Lublin University of Technology to Central Asia” in 2017. Photos for creating 3D models in SfM technology were taken during a virtual expedition carried out under the “3D Digital Silk Road” program in 2021. The obtained results show that the quality of the 3D models generated with SfM differs from the models from the technology (3D SLS), but they may be placed in the galleries of the vitrual museum. The obtained models from SfM do not have information about their size, which means that they are not fully suitable for archiving purposes of cultural heritage, unlike the models from SLS.


Author(s):  
M. Abdelaziz ◽  
M. Elsayed

<p><strong>Abstract.</strong> Underwater photogrammetry in archaeology in Egypt is a completely new experience applied for the first time on the submerged archaeological site of the lighthouse of Alexandria situated on the eastern extremity of the ancient island of Pharos at the foot of Qaitbay Fort at a depth of 2 to 9 metres. In 2009/2010, the CEAlex launched a 3D photogrammetry data-gathering programme for the virtual reassembly of broken artefacts. In 2013 and the beginning of 2014, with the support of the Honor Frost Foundation, methods were developed and refined to acquire manual photographic data of the entire underwater site of Qaitbay using a DSLR camera, simple and low cost materials to obtain a digital surface model (DSM) of the submerged site of the lighthouse, and also to create 3D models of the objects themselves, such as statues, bases of statues and architectural elements. In this paper we present the methodology used for underwater data acquisition, data processing and modelling in order to generate a DSM of the submerged site of Alexandria’s ancient lighthouse. Until 2016, only about 7200&amp;thinsp;m<sup>2</sup> of the submerged site, which exceeds more than 13000&amp;thinsp;m<sup>2</sup>, was covered. One of our main objectives in this project is to georeference the site since this would allow for a very precise 3D model and for correcting the orientation of the site as regards the real-world space.</p>


2011 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 314-322 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paolo Salonia ◽  
Tommaso Leti Messina ◽  
Andrea Marcolongo ◽  
Lorenzo Appolonia

Accessibility to cultural heritage is one of the most important factors in cultural heritage preservation, as it assures knowledge, monitoring, Public Administration management and a wide interest on cultural heritage sites. Nowdays 3D surveys give the geometric basis for an effective artefact reconstruction but most of the times 3D data are not completely and deeply investigated to extract other useful information on historical monuments for their conservation and safeguard. The Cultural Heritage Superintendence of Aosta decided to run a time continual project of monitoring of the Praetorian Roman Gate with the collaboration of the ITABC, CNR of Italy. The Praetorian Roman Gate in Aosta, Italy, of Augustus ages, is one of the most well-known roman monumental gates, it is a double gate with three arches each side, 12 meters high, 20 meters wide, made of pudding stone ashlars, Badoglio, travertine, marble blocks and other stone insertion due to restorations between 1600 and 1950. In years 2000 a final restoration intervention brought the gate at the present state of art, within the frame of a restoration and conservation building site with the purpose of treat the different decay pathologies and conditions. A complete 3D geometric survey campaign has been the first step for the monitoring of the gate morphologic changes and decay progress in time. The main purpose is to collect both quantitative data, related to the geometry of the gate, and the qualitative data, related to the chromatic change on the surface due to the stone decay. The geometric data with colour information permits to associate materials and stone pathologies to chemical or mechanical actions and to understand and analyse superficial decay kinetics. The colours survey will also permit to directly locate on the 3D model areas of different stratigraphic units. The project aims to build a rigorous quantitative-qualitative database so to be uploaded into a GIS. The GIS will become the monitoring main means. Considering the huge dimension of the gate and its urban location a multi-scale approach has been considered. Controlled and free images have been taken from the ground and the top of the gate so to reconstruct all the walls and the upper cover. A topographic survey has been done so to be able to control and relate all the different acquisitions. It has been chosen a Photo Scanner 3D system. It is a photogrammetry-based survey technology for point clouds acquisition and 3D models configuration, from digital images processing. This technology allows to obtain point clouds (xyz coordinates) with RGB information and geometries at different levels of complexity by processing a number of images taken with a limited set of constraints, with the use of a simple acquisition equipment and through an image matching algorithm (ZScan, by Menci Software). Due to the high walls of the arch gates, the higher part has been surveyed with a remote controlled drone (UAV Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) with a digital camera on it, so to take pictures up to the maximum altitude and with different shooting angles ( 90 and 45 degree). This is a new technology which permits to survey inaccessible parts of a high monument with ease and accuracy, by collecting redundant pictures later bound together by an image block algorithm. This paper aims to present the survey experience architectural monuments trough the application of a trifocal quick photogrammetric system, in surveying at different scales and for different purposes.


Author(s):  
M. Canciani ◽  
E. Conigliaro ◽  
M. Del Grasso ◽  
P. Papalini ◽  
M. Saccone

The development of close-range photogrammetry has produced a lot of new possibility to study cultural heritage. 3D data acquired with conventional and low cost cameras can be used to document, investigate the full appearance, materials and conservation status, to help the restoration process and identify intervention priorities. At the same time, with 3D survey a lot of three-dimensional data are collected and analyzed by researchers, but there are a very few possibility of 3D output. The augmented reality is one of this possible output with a very low cost technology but a very interesting result. Using simple mobile technology (for iPad and Android Tablets) and shareware software (in the case presented “Augment”) it is possible to share and visualize a large number of 3D models with your own device. The case study presented is a part of an architecture graduate thesis, made in Rome at Department of Architecture of Roma Tre University. We have developed a photogrammetric survey to study the Aurelian Wall at Castra Praetoria in Rome. The surveys of 8000 square meters of surface have allowed to identify stratigraphy and construction phases of a complex portion of Aurelian Wall, specially about the Northern door of Castra. During this study, the data coming out of 3D survey (photogrammetric and topographic), are stored and used to create a reverse 3D model, or virtual reconstruction, of the Northern door of Castra. This virtual reconstruction shows the door in the Tiberian period, nowadays it's totally hidden by a curtain wall but, little and significative architectural details allow to know its original feature. The 3D model of the ancient walls has been mapped with the exact type of bricks and mortar, oriented and scaled according to the existing one to use augmented reality. Finally, two kind of application have been developed, one on site, were you can see superimposed the virtual reconstruction on the existing walls using the image recognition. On the other hand, to show the results also during the graduation day, the same application has been created in off-site condition using a poster.


Electronics ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (12) ◽  
pp. 1441 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tim Collins ◽  
Sandra I. Woolley ◽  
Erlend Gehlken ◽  
Eugene Ch’ng

The photogrammetric acquisition of 3D object models can be achieved by Structure from Motion (SfM) computation of photographs taken from multiple viewpoints. All-around 3D models of small artefacts with complex geometry can be difficult to acquire photogrammetrically and the precision of the acquired models can be diminished by the generic application of automated photogrammetric workflows. In this paper, we present two versions of a complete rotary photogrammetric system and an automated workflow for all-around, precise, reliable and low-cost acquisitions of large numbers of small artefacts, together with consideration of the visual quality of the model textures. The acquisition systems comprise a turntable and (i) a computer and digital camera or (ii) a smartphone designed to be ultra-low cost (less than $150). Experimental results are presented which demonstrate an acquisition precision of less than 40 μ m using a 12.2 Megapixel digital camera and less than 80 μ m using an 8 Megapixel smartphone. The novel contribution of this work centres on the design of an automated solution that achieves high-precision, photographically textured 3D acquisitions at a fraction of the cost of currently available systems. This could significantly benefit the digitisation efforts of collectors, curators and archaeologists as well as the wider population.


2018 ◽  
pp. 1338-1380
Author(s):  
Marco Gaiani

This chapter presents a framework and some solutions for color acquisition, management, rendering and assessment in Architectural Heritage (AH) 3D models construction from reality-based data. The aim is to illustrate easy, low-cost and rapid procedures that produce high visual accuracy of the image/model while being accessible to non-specialized users and unskilled operators, typically Heritage architects. The presented processing is developed in order to render reflectance properties with perceptual fidelity on many type of display and presents two main features: is based on an accurate color management system from acquisition to visualization and more accurate reflectance modeling; the color pipeline could be used inside well established 3D acquisition pipeline from laser scanner and/or photogrammetry. Besides it could be completely integrated in a Structure From Motion pipeline allowing simultaneous processing of color/shape data.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (16) ◽  
pp. 2644 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susana Del Pozo ◽  
Pablo Rodríguez-Gonzálvez ◽  
David Hernández-López ◽  
Jorge Onrubia-Pintado ◽  
Diego Guerrero-Sevilla ◽  
...  

Close-range photogrammetry is a powerful and widely used technique for 3D reconstruction of archaeological environments, specifically when a high-level detail is required. This paper presents an innovative low-cost system that allows high quality and detailed reconstructions of indoor complex scenarios with unfavorable lighting conditions by means of close-range nadir and oblique images as an alternative to drone acquisitions for those places where the use of drones is limited or discouraged: (i) indoor scenarios in which both loss of GNSS signal and need of long exposure times occur, (ii) scenarios with risk of raising dust in suspension due to the proximity to the ground and (iii) complex scenarios with variability in the presence of nooks and vertical elements of different heights. The low-altitude aerial view reached with this system allows high-quality 3D documentation of complex scenarios helped by its ergonomic design, self-stability, lightness, and flexibility of handling. In addition, its interchangeable and remote-control support allows to board different sensors and perform both acquisitions that follow the ideal photogrammetric epipolar geometry but also acquisitions with geometry variations that favor a more complete and reliable reconstruction by avoiding occlusions. This versatile pole photogrammetry system has been successfully used to 3D reconstruct and document the “Cueva Pintada” archaeological site located in Gran Canaria (Spain), of approximately 5400 m2 with a Canon EOS 5D MARK II SLR digital camera. As final products: (i) a great quality photorealistic 3D model of 1.47 mm resolution and ±8.4 mm accuracy, (ii) detailed orthophotos of the main assets of the archaeological remains and (iii) a visor 3D with associated information on the structures, materials and plans of the site were obtained.


Author(s):  
A. Meschini ◽  
E. Petrucci ◽  
D. Rossi ◽  
F. Sicuranza

The paper aims at presenting some results of a point cloud-based survey carried out through integrated methodologies based on active and passive 3D acquisition techniques for processing 3D models. This experiment is part of a research project still in progress conducted by an interdisciplinary team from the School of Architecture and Design of Ascoli Piceno and funded by the University of Camerino. We describe an experimentation conducted on the convent of San Francesco located in Monterubbiano town center (Marche, Italy). The whole complex has undergone a number of substantial changes since the year of its foundation in 1247. The survey was based on an approach blending range-based 3D data acquired by a TOF laser scanner and image-based 3D acquired using an UAV equipped with digital camera in order to survey some external parts difficult to reach with TLS. The integration of two acquisition methods aimed to define a workflow suitable to process dense 3D models from which to generate high poly and low poly 3D models useful to describe complex architectures for different purposes such as photorealistic representations, historical documentation, risk assessment analyses based on Finite Element Methods (FEM).


Author(s):  
M. Zacharek ◽  
P. Delis ◽  
M. Kedzierski ◽  
A. Fryskowska

These studies have been conductedusing non-metric digital camera and dense image matching algorithms, as non-contact methods of creating monuments documentation.In order toprocess the imagery, few open-source software and algorithms of generating adense point cloud from images have been executed. In the research, the OSM Bundler, VisualSFM software, and web application ARC3D were used. Images obtained for each of the investigated objects were processed using those applications, and then dense point clouds and textured 3D models were created. As a result of post-processing, obtained models were filtered and scaled.The research showedthat even using the open-source software it is possible toobtain accurate 3D models of structures (with an accuracy of a few centimeters), but for the purpose of documentation and conservation of cultural and historical heritage, such accuracy can be insufficient.


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