Control Camera and Light Source Positions using Image Gradient Information

In this paper, we propose an original approach to control camera position and/or lighting conditions in an environment using image gradient information. Our goal is to ensure a good viewing condition and good illumination of an object to perform vision-based task (recognition, tracking, etc.). Within the visual servoing framework, we propose solutions to two different issues: maximizing the brightness of the scene and maximizing the contrast in the image. Solutions are proposed to consider either a static light and a moving camera, either or a moving light and a static/moving camera. The proposed method is independent of the structure, color and aspect of the objects. Experimental results on both synthetic and real images are finally presented.