Related Concepts
Definition
Omnidirectional vision consists of the theoretical and practical computer vision approaches devised for images acquired by omnidirectional cameras, that is, cameras with a very large field of view, typically hemispherical or larger.
Background
Most regular cameras have a restricted field of view, typically up to several tens of degrees. Omnidirectional cameras, on the contrary, have hemispheric or even larger, up to complete spherical, fields of view. Computer vision theories and algorithms dedicated to omnidirectional images are subsumed under the expression omnidirectional vision. Researchers working on omnidirectional vision have also proposed novel designs of omnidirectional cameras.
The interest of building omnidirectional cameras arose rather soon after the invention of photography, with the first known panoramic camera built in 1843 [1]. To be precise, this and other early panoramic cameras had a restricted vertical field...