
Citation |
Rigoberto Juarez-Salazar, “Flat mirrors, virtual rear-view cameras, and camera-mirror calibration” Optik, Vol. 317, pp. 172067 (November 2024).
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijleo.2024.172067 |
Full Article BibTeX More Papers |

What is it about? Español
It is incorrect to assume that seeing through a mirror is equivalent to seeing from another position using front-view. The correct explanation requires the adoption of the virtual rear-view camera concept. The conception of virtual cameras operating in rear-view mode is counterintuitive, which may be why textbooks and specialized literature employ the erroneous front-view idea.
Why is it important?
Mirrors are useful as 'generators' of virtual cameras. They enable us to observe an object from multiple viewpoints. However, the characterization of optical systems with mirrors fails if the rear-view operation of the induced virtual camera is ignored.
Perspectives
We provide a methodology to calibrate properly a camera-mirror pair (two elements) as a unique virtual camera (a single element). This method substantially simplifies the complexity of calibrating more sophisticated systems like mirror-aided structured-light profilometers for the 360-degree reconstruction of 3D objects.