Active 3-D Thermography Based on Feature-Free Registration of Thermogram Sequence and 3-D Shape Via a Single Thermal Camera

Active three-dimensional(3-D) thermography combines 3-D shape and active thermography. Thus, it enables the provision of the intuitive thermographic inspection results for composite parts with a complex geometry. However, conventional 3-D thermography acquires thermographic information and 3-D shape through at least two independent sensors and requires complex cross-modal image registration algorithm based on the keypoint detection and matching. In this article, an active 3-D thermography system is proposed using only one thermal camera for moving objects. This system does not require an independent 3-D sensor while the thermal camera acts as the 3-D sensor. Nature behind that is that a mathematical model is proposed to unify the line scanning thermography and laser triangulation in the dynamic scanning process, taking a line laser as both heat excitation for active thermography and spatial coding for 3-D reconstruction. Furthermore, the model enables the feature-free registration of thermogram sequence and 3-D shape, so that the registration is fast and robust without keypoint features. The experiments on standard height specimens, 3-D printing glass fiber composites, and carbon fiber intake tube have shown the error is calibrated within 0.25 mm in the range of 1 to 150 mm and evidenced the capability for subsurface defects detection. The ease and robustness of the proposed active 3-D thermography have a bright future for 3-D measurement, defects detection, and quality control in the production line.

Automated summary

This article proposes an active 3-D thermography system that utilizes a thermal camera for moving objects. The system eliminates the need for an independent 3-D sensor by using a mathematical model to integrate line scanning thermography and laser triangulation. The system's feature-free registration enables fast and robust registration of thermogram sequence and 3-D shape. The experiments demonstrate the system's accuracy and capability for subsurface defects detection, making it an ideal tool for 3-D measurement, defects detection, and quality control in production lines.