Abstract

This paper initially proves mathematically that the solution of the relative orientation of the push broom stereo images leads to a set of ill-posed system of observation equations which means no relative orientation for this kind of imageries is possible. It is then demonstrated that the only way to bypass the inherent rank deficiency in the system of the relative orientation equations, is to incorporate fictitious data as known values into the equations. The proposed solutions given so far for the relative orientation of the push-broom images use a physical collinearity model and incorporate the so-called Virtual Ground Control points (VCPs) to bypass the ill-conditioning problem. The main objective of this paper is to replace the physical collinearity model with the 3D-affine transformation and use fictitious height information for the solution of the relative orientation of the push-broom images. The main advantage gained by this replacement model is its independence with respect to the sensor’s interior orientation parameters and also the simplicity of its functional model. Cartosat-1 P5 stereo images over a highly mountainous terrain are used to evaluate the potential of the 3D-affine for the solution of the aforementioned problem. The tests conducted in this research work indicate that the 3D-affine model with fictitious information can eliminate the ill-posed problem associated with the relative orientation of the push-broom images. However, the main disadvantage of the 3D-affine model is the fact that it imposes certain level of model deformation into the generated relative DEM. This paper also demonstrates the influence of the inclusion of the perspective-to-parallel transformation coefficient into the 3D-affine resection-intersection equations. The main contribution of this paper is, therefore, the solution of the relative orientation of the push-broom images with the 3D-affine model using fictitious information. The superimposed height deformation on the generated relative DEM is also analyzed.