Improved Visual Inspection through 3D Image Reconstruction of Defects Based on the Photometric Stereo Technique

Visual inspections of nuclear power plant (NPP) reactors are important for understanding current NPP conditions. Unfortunately, the existing visual inspection methods only provide limited two-dimensional (2D) information due to a loss of depth information, which can lead to errors identifying defects. However, the high cost of developing new equipment can be avoided by using advanced data processing technology with existing equipment. In this study, a three-dimensional (3D) photometric stereo (PS) reconstruction technique is introduced to recover the lost depth information in NPP images. The system uses conventional inspection equipment, equipped with a camera and four light-emitting diodes (LEDs). The 3D data of the object surface are obtained by capturing images under multiple light sources oriented in different directions. The proposed method estimates the light directions and intensities for various image pixels in order to reduce the limitation of light calibration, which results in improved performance. This novel technique is employed to test specimens with various defects under laboratory conditions, revealing promising results. This study provides a new visual inspection method for NPP reactors.