# 3D Imaging of Complex Specular Surfaces by Fusing Polarimetric and Deflectometric Information

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2406.01994 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2406.01994/

## Key facts

- Cited by 3 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 5 of its 29 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 4 Jun 2024.

## Builds on (most cited first, 5 of 5)

- [NeRFReN: Neural Radiance Fields with Reflections](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2111.15234/) (2021)
- [ORCa: Glossy Objects as Radiance Field Cameras](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2212.04531/) (2022)
- [Event-based Shape from Polarization](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2301.06855/) (2023)
- [Fringe pattern analysis using deep learning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1807.02757/) (2018)
- [Accurate Eye Tracking from Dense 3D Surface Reconstructions using Single-Shot Deflectometry](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2308.07298/) (2023)

## Built on by (most cited first, 3 of 3)

- [Physics-informed Active Polarimetric 3D Imaging for Specular Surfaces](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2602.19470/) (2026)
- [Structure-Aware Consistency Priors for Shape from Polarization in Complex Media](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2606.00509/) (2026)
- [Automatic weld seam segmentation for industrial quality control: a comparison of RGB and polarimetric imaging with CNN and transformer architectures](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2608.25465/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Accurate and fast 3D imaging of specular surfaces still poses major challenges for state-of-the-art optical measurement principles. Frequently used methods, such as phase-measuring deflectometry (PMD) or shape-from-polarization (SfP), rely on strong assumptions about the measured objects, limiting their generalizability in broader application areas like medical imaging, industrial inspection, virtual reality, or cultural heritage analysis. In this paper, we introduce a measurement principle that utilizes a novel technique to effectively encode and decode the information contained in a light field reflected off a specular surface. We combine polarization cues from SfP with geometric information obtained from PMD to resolve all arising ambiguities in the 3D measurement. Moreover, our approach removes the unrealistic orthographic imaging assumption for SfP, which significantly improves the respective results. We showcase our new technique by demonstrating single-shot and multi-shot measurements on complex-shaped specular surfaces, displaying an evaluated accuracy of surface normals below 0.6^circ.