Total variation based 3D reconstruction from monocular laparoscopic sequences

Abstract

3D reconstruction from monocular laparoscopic sequences is a significant challenge since illumination changes and specular reflections are present in the majority of the images. In this paper we present a total variation based approach to dense reconstruction from monocular laparoscopic sequences. The method deals with specular reflections and makes use of photometric invariants to gain robustness to illumination changes. The method achieves a median reconstruction accuracy of 0.89mm in an evaluation of 277 reconstructions of cirrhotic liver phantoms. The nodular structure of the liver is of interest for macroscopic analysis of liver cirrhosis and clinical diagnosis.