VLSI Design of a Depth Map Estimation Circuit Based on Structured Light Algorithm

In this paper, depth map estimation circuit design based on structured light is proposed, wherein a projection light source and an image sensor are utilized in combination to achieve a depth map estimation chip, an accurate, low complex circuit is presented to measure the depth value of an object, and it is applied to 3-D television through depth image-based rendering technology to implement a multiview image display system. The chip that integrates image preprocessing, object segmentation, edge detection, and depth map quantization algorithms performs depth map estimation of objects accurately and quickly. Besides, the effect of human visual sensing effect is taken into consideration and the presented chip achieves a depth map quantified according to the nonlinear depth value in compliance with human visual system. Measurement results show that the chip that is verified using a Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company 0.18-μm 1P6M CMOS process operates at 83.3 MHz with 19 845 gate counts and performs real time depth map estimation.