An Underwater Tomographic 3D Imaging Method and System Based on Binocular Range Gating

SHEN Lei; QIU Su; JIN Weiqi; ZHONG Xin; ZHU Shihao; YU Xiangzhi; PENG Guangyue

doi:10.3788/gzxb20265507.0711001

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An Underwater Tomographic 3D Imaging Method and System Based on Binocular Range Gating

更新时间：2026-06-12

- An Underwater Tomographic 3D Imaging Method and System Based on Binocular Range Gating
- Acta Photonica Sinica Pages: 1-16(2026)
- 作者机构：
  
  1.北京理工大学光电学院光电成像技术与系统教育部重点实验室，北京 100081
  2.中国科学院半导体研究所光电系统实验室，北京 100083
- 作者简介：
- 基金信息：
  
  Innovation and Entrepreneurship Ecosystem Optimization Support Fund of Zhongguancun National Innovation Demonstration Zone(20230481197);Science and Technology Innovation Special Fund of Zhuhai Municipality(2220004003077)
- DOI：10.3788/gzxb20265507.0711001
  CLC： TN29
- CSTR：32255.14.gzxb20265507.0711001
- Received：02 March 2026，
  
  Revised：2026-04-03，
  
  Accepted：07 April 2026，
- 稿件说明：
移动端阅览
沈磊，裘溯，金伟其，等. 一种基于双目距离选通的水下层析三维成像方法与系统［J］.光子学报，2026，55（7）：0711001

SHEN Lei， QIU Su， JIN Weiqi， et al. An Underwater Tomographic 3D Imaging Method and System Based on Binocular Range Gating［J］. Acta Photonica Sinica， 2026， 55（7）：0711001
沈磊，裘溯，金伟其，等. 一种基于双目距离选通的水下层析三维成像方法与系统［J］.光子学报，2026，55（7）：0711001 DOI： 10.3788/gzxb20265507.0711001. CSTR： 32255.14.gzxb20265507.0711001.

SHEN Lei， QIU Su， JIN Weiqi， et al. An Underwater Tomographic 3D Imaging Method and System Based on Binocular Range Gating［J］. Acta Photonica Sinica， 2026， 55（7）：0711001 DOI： 10.3788/gzxb20265507.0711001. CSTR： 32255.14.gzxb20265507.0711001.

摘要

针对现有水下光学成像系统探测距离有限、三维成像精度及其实时性较差的局限，提出了一种基于双目选通成像的水下层析三维成像方法，采用高性能三代双选通像增强型互补金属氧化物半导体+蓝绿脉冲激光器，将激光距离选通成像和双目立体视觉结合，研制了一种基于双目距离选通的水下层析三维成像系统。建立了水下相机成像模型及双目参数标定方法，采用基于颜色恒常性的图像增强算法对左、右图像进行增强，通过基于神经网络的快速立体匹配算法得出稠密视差图，结合视差图和双目参数计算得到深度图，获取图像目标的深度信息，实现水下场景的三维重建。实验表明：系统水下探测距离可达6个水体衰减长度以上，在3个衰减长度下的距离分辨率不低于50 mm，帧频不低于25帧；在水下4.9-5.9 m的探测距离下深度估计误差为10-20 mm，深度差测量误差为2-2.5 mm；在10.19 m，2.83 m，1.95 m三种水体衰减长度下约6.4 m成像距离处的深度估计误差为25-120 mm，深度差测量误差为2.5-6.0 mm。为水下光学成像系统实现远距离三维实时成像提供了一种可行的技术实现方式。

Abstract

With the proposal of China’s maritime strategy， the demand for underwater observation technologies and equipment has become increasingly urgent. Existing underwater optical imaging methods often focus on improving a single aspect， such as imaging range， clarity， 3D reconstruction accuracy， or real-time performance， yet face limitations in achieving a balanced integration of these factors. The three-dimensional detection range remains insufficient， and there are challenges in balancing real-time operation， accuracy， and system control complexity. To address these issues， this study proposes an underwater 3D imaging method that combines range-gated imaging with binocular stereo vision. The aim is to integrate the advantages of range-gated imaging in long-distance tomographic imaging and the efficiency of binocular stereo vision in 3D reconstruction， enabling high-resolution， real-time 3D imaging in complex underwater environments. In particular， the proposed method seeks to simultaneously improve imaging distance， reconstruction accuracy， and computational efficiency within a unified framework.To conduct underwater three-dimensional imaging， we design and develop a binocular range-gated underwater tomographic 3D imaging system. This system primarily consists of a blue-green pulsed laser emission module， a gated imaging module， a power supply and communication transmission module， an optical-electrical composite cable， a pressure-resistant housing， and an upper computer. Each module is integrated to ensure stable operation under underwater pressure conditions and to support underwater communication and real-time data processing. The system achieves gated imaging through the synchronized control of pulsed laser illumination and gated camera exposure， thereby suppressing backscatter and enhancing image contrast. To address the issue of refractive effects at water interfaces during underwater imaging， an underwater camera model that considers the refraction effects at the water-glass-air interface is established. Combined with Zhang Zhengyou's calibration method， underwater camera calibration and correction are implemented. This calibration process ensures accurate estimation of intrinsic and extrinsic parameters， which is essential for reliable depth recovery. For the preprocessed and corrected left and right original underwater images， a Retinex-based adaptive histogram equalization algorithm is applied to enhance contrast. This enhancement step effectively improves the visibility of low-contrast regions and increases the robustness of subsequent stereo matching. A fast neural network-based stereo matching algorithm （BGNet） is then employed to generate dense disparity maps. Finally， using calibrated parameters （reprojection matrix Q）， the disparity maps are converted into depth maps to obtain depth information of the target objects， thereby achieving three-dimensional reconstruction of the underwater scene. The entire processing pipeline is optimized and accelerated to ensure that image enhancement， disparity estimation， and depth reconstruction can be executed efficiently in real time.We conduct underwater two-dimensional imaging experiments and depth reconstruction experiments in both laboratory water tanks and outdoor pools. In the two-dimensional imaging experiments， combined with image enhancement algorithms， the system achieves high-resolution imaging detection of various targets such as USAF 1951 resolution target， fish models， and coral models in the water tank environment. Compared with the original gated images， the enhanced results exhibit significantly improved contrast and clearer structural details. In highly turbid water （with an attenuation length of 1.95 m）， the imaging distance exceeds 6 attenuation lengths. This demonstrates the effectiveness of range-gated imaging in suppressing backscatter and extending the imaging range under severe scattering conditions. In the depth reconstruction experiments， the system performs real-time three-dimensional imaging of different targets in the water tank environment， achieving a frame rate of 25 fps. Within the distance range of 4.9 to 5.9 meters underwater， the depth estimation error is 10-20 mm， and the depth difference measurement error is 2-2.5 mm. In pools with varying turbidity levels （attenuation lengths of 10.19 m， 2.83 m， and 1.95 m）， the system achieves a range resolution better than 5 cm at 3 attenuation lengths， with depth estimation errors of 25-120 mm and depth difference errors of 2.5-6.0 mm. Although the reconstruction accuracy decreases with increasing turbidity， the system still maintains stable depth estimation capability. The experiments demonstrate that even under low illumination and high scattering conditions， the system can effectively reconstruct three-dimensional scenes while maintaining good texture and edge information preservation.The proposed binocular range-gated underwater tomographic 3D imaging system successfully integrates the advantages of range-gated technology for long-distance underwater tomographic imaging with the efficiency and effectiveness of binocular stereo vision in 3D reconstruction. It demonstrates robust performance across various water quality conditions and distance ranges， providing a new research approach and practical solution for long-distance， high-resolution， real-time 3D underwater imaging. The system shows promising application potential in underwater engineering exploration， marine scientific surveys， and dam safety inspections. Future work may focus on optimizing laser beam emission through specialized coupling lenses to homogenize the laser spot， thereby improving underwater illumination uniformity and reducing the impact of lighting variations on accuracy. Additionally， leveraging underwater binocular datasets for training or integrating other stereo matching algorithms will enhance the stereo network’s matching precision， further improving the system’s 3D imaging accuracy in dynamic and turbid underwater environments. Further improvements in hardware integration and algorithm optimization are expected to enhance system stability and broaden its practical application scope.

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references

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