PseudoCal: Towards Initialisation-Free Deep Learning-Based Camera-LiDAR Self-Calibration
This addresses the labor-intensive and error-prone calibration process for autonomous vehicles and robots, though it appears incremental as it builds on existing deep learning-based methods.
The paper tackles the problem of camera-LiDAR extrinsic calibration for autonomous systems by introducing PseudoCal, a method that performs one-shot calibration quasi-independently of initial estimates, addressing extreme cases unsolved by prior approaches.
Camera-LiDAR extrinsic calibration is a critical task for multi-sensor fusion in autonomous systems, such as self-driving vehicles and mobile robots. Traditional techniques often require manual intervention or specific environments, making them labour-intensive and error-prone. Existing deep learning-based self-calibration methods focus on small realignments and still rely on initial estimates, limiting their practicality. In this paper, we present PseudoCal, a novel self-calibration method that overcomes these limitations by leveraging the pseudo-LiDAR concept and working directly in the 3D space instead of limiting itself to the camera field of view. In typical autonomous vehicle and robotics contexts and conventions, PseudoCal is able to perform one-shot calibration quasi-independently of initial parameter estimates, addressing extreme cases that remain unsolved by existing approaches.