Selective stabilization of images acquired by unmanned ground vehicles

This paper studies the problem of selective stabilization of images acquired by a camera mounted on a vehicle navigating a rough terrain. Selective stabilization is defined here as the separation of rotation components into smooth rotation and residual oscillatory rotation. We consider both kinematic and kinetic models suitable for capturing these phenomena and achieve their separation. A scheme for detecting the occurrence and disappearance of smooth rotation is devised, and appropriate dynamic laws are employed to achieve selective stabilization. 3-D locations of close feature points are subsequently estimated in a stabilized frame of reference, thus providing more useful structural information.