Apero, an open source bundle adjusment software for automatic calibration and orientation of set of images

Abstract

IGN has developed a set of photogrammetric tools, APERO and MICMAC, for computing 3D models from set of images. This software, developed initially for its internal needs are now delivered as open source code. This paper focuses on the presentation of APERO the orientation software. Compared to some other free software initiatives, it is probably more complex but also more complete, its targeted user is rather professionals (architects, archaeologist, geomophologist) than people. APERO uses both computer vision approach for estimation of initial solution and photogrammetry for a rigorous compensation of the total error; it has a large library of parametric model of distortion allowing a precise modelization of all the kind of pinhole camera we know, including several model of fish-eye; there is also several tools for geo-referencing the result. The results are illustrated on various application, including the data-set of 3D-Arch workshop.