Terms and Concepts

Point clouds are used to describe the geometric structure and surface characteristics of objects in three-dimensional space. A point cloud consists of many discrete points, each of which containing position information in a three-dimensional coordinate system (usually XYZ coordinates), as well as possible other attributes such as color, normal vectors, curvature, etc.

A depth map is a two-dimensional image where each pixel value represents the distance from the camera to the corresponding point, used to describe the depth information of points in a scene.

Texture refers to an image or pattern applied to the surface of a three-dimensional model to add detail and realism, making the model surface more complex and lifelike.

False color is a technique used to enhance the contrast and details of an image by mapping grayscale values from a grayscale image to color values. It is commonly used to highlight features in depth maps or other monochrome images.

Exposure refers to the length of time that the light-sensitive element (such as CMOS or CCD) of a camera is exposed to light when capturing an image. Exposure time determines the duration of exposure to light when capturing an image, affecting the brightness and clarity of the image. It is typically measured in milliseconds (ms).

Camera gain refers to the multiple applied to the signal on the image sensor. Higher gain results in brighter images, but can also increase image noise. Gain is often used to increase the brightness of an image in low light conditions.

Camera intrinsics parameters are parameters that describe the internal optical characteristics and geometric structure of a camera, including focal length, principal point, pixel size, etc. Camera intrinsic parameters are typically obtained through camera calibration and are used for image distortion correction and camera pose calculation, among other things.

Camera firmware is the software program inside the camera that controls the camera’s functions and operations. It includes camera drivers, operating systems, and other necessary software modules to implement various camera functions, such as image capture, parameter adjustment, data transmission, etc.