Engineers Present Breakthrough Technology in Creating Cameras that Can “Penetrate” Obstacles
Engineers from the University of Rice and the University of Maryland presented a full-fledged video technology that may become the basis for creating cameras capable of “penetrating” through fog, rain, and other obstacles that scatter light.
“Passing through the scattering media is the ‘Holy Grail’ in optical vision,” said Ashok Viraraghavan from the University of Rice. The problem of scattering light makes it unsuitable for use in many scenarios. If you eliminate scattering effects, visualization capabilities become much larger.
The technology, known as Neuws (acronym for “Neural Wavefront Shaping”), has been developed based on the principle of the wavefront. It allows quick measurement of phase information using neural networks, enabling real-time adjustment of light scattering.
The concept of Neuws is based on the understanding that light waves are complex mathematical values. This technology enables engineers to measure “wave fronts” and decipher the phase information rapidly.
To illustrate, imagine attempting to observe the Northern Star through clouds. If the expected appearance of the star is known, and it is observed to be blurred in a certain way, this can provide information about how other objects may appear blurred as well.
In their experiments, the researchers demonstrated the capabilities of Neuws by removing objects obscured by scattering materials such as onion skin or light-scattering films. The results revealed that Neuws can effectively adjust light scattering and produce clear video footage.
“We have developed algorithms that continuously evaluate both scattering and the scene,” says Metzler. Neuws rapidly manipulates light