Shape reconstruction by integrating ancillary information and shape from shading

This work presents a new framework for integrating supplementary information (sparse stereo data or reference image) and shape from shading modules, in order to solve the ambiguity of the shading patterns and to get a complete 3D structural solution. The framework is composed of several functional modules and processes three kinds of surfaces: curved surface, planar surface and self-shadowed region, separately. In determination of curved surface orientations, four basic styles of surface patches such as dome, cup, horizontal saddle and vertical saddle could be selected to approximate the current local surface patch according to its directional curvature features which are derived from the supplementary information. It is demonstrated that the ancillary information compensates the inadequacies of the shape from shading approach and produces a reconstructed surface, which is an improvement over that surface produced by shape from shading alone.