Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Thermal cameras and applications: a survey

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Machine Vision and Applications Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Thermal cameras are passive sensors that capture the infrared radiation emitted by all objects with a temperature above absolute zero. This type of camera was originally developed as a surveillance and night vision tool for the military, but recently the price has dropped, significantly opening up a broader field of applications. Deploying this type of sensor in vision systems eliminates the illumination problems of normal greyscale and RGB cameras. This survey provides an overview of the current applications of thermal cameras. Applications include animals, agriculture, buildings, gas detection, industrial, and military applications, as well as detection, tracking, and recognition of humans. Moreover, this survey describes the nature of thermal radiation and the technology of thermal cameras.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
Fig. 8
Fig. 9
Fig. 10
Fig. 11
Fig. 12

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. Thermal images are also used in other biometrics such as hand veins, neck veins and arm veins [58], and palm-dorsa vein patterns [41, 115, 183].

References

  1. Airouche, M., Bentabet, L., Zelmat, M., Gao, G.: Pedestrian tracking using color, thermal and location cue measurements: a DSmT-based framework. Mach. Vis. Appl. 23, 999–1010 (2012)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Akhloufi, M., Bendada, A.: Thermal faceprint: a new thermal face signature extraction for infrared face recognition. In: Canadian Conference on Computer and Robot Vision (2008)

  3. Al-Kassir, A.R., Fernandez, J., Tinaut, F., Castro, F.: Thermographic study of energetic installations. Appl. Thermal Eng. 25(23), 183–190 (2005)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Angaitkar, P., Saxena, K., Gupta, N., Sinhal, A.: Enhancement of infrared image for roof leakage detection. In: International Conference on Emerging Trends in Computing, Communication and Nanotechnology (2013)

  5. Arenas, A.J., Gómez, F., Salas, R., Carrasco, P., Borge, C., Maldonado, A., OBrien, D.J., Martínez-Moreno, F.: An evaluation of the application of infrared thermal imaging to the tele-diagnosis of sarcoptic mange in the spanish ibex (capra pyrenaica). Vet. Parasitol. 109(1G2), 111–117 (2002)

    Google Scholar 

  6. Arrue, B.C., Ollero, A.: Matinez de Dios, J.R.: An intelligent system for false alarm reduction in infrared forest-fire detection. IEEE Intell. Syst. Appl. 15(3), 64–73 (2000)

    Google Scholar 

  7. AXIS Communications: AXIS Network Cameras (2012). http://www.axis.com/products/video/camera/index.htm

  8. AXIS Communications: Q1922 datasheet (2012). http://www.axis.com/files/datasheet/ds_q1922_q1922-e_46221_en_1207_lo.pdf

  9. Aziz, M.Z., Mertsching, B.: Survivor search with autonomous UGVs using multimodal overt attention. In: IEEE International Workshop on Safety Security and Rescue Robotics (2010)

  10. Bebis, G., Gyaourova, A., Singh, S., Pavlidis, I.: Face recognition by fusing thermal infrared and visible imagery. Image Vis. Comput. 24(7), 727–742 (2006)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Benezeth, Y., Emile, B., Laurent, H., Rosenberger, C.: A real time human detection system based on far infrared vision. In: Image and Signal Processing, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol. 5099, pp. 76–84. Springer, Berlin (2008)

  12. Bertozzi, M., Broggi, A., Caraffi, C., Rose, M.D., Felisa, M., Vezzoni, G.: Pedestrian detection by means of far-infrared stereo vision. Comput. Vis. Image Underst. 106(23), 194–204 (2007)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Bertozzi, M., Broggi, A., Fascioli, A., Graf, T., Meinecke, M.M.: Pedestrian detection for driver assistance using multiresolution infrared vision. IEEE Trans. Veh. Technol. 53(6), 1666–1678 (2004)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Bertozzi, M., Broggi, A., Felisa, M., Vezzoni, G., Del Rose, M.: Low-level pedestrian detection by means of visible and far infra-red tetra-vision. In: IEEE Intelligent Vehicles Symposium (2006)

  15. Bertozzi, M., Broggi, A., Gomez, C.H., Fedriga, R.I., Vezzoni, G., Del Rose, M.: Pedestrian detection in far infrared images based on the use of probabilistic templates. In: IEEE Intelligent Vehicles Symposium (2007)

  16. Bertozzi, M., Broggi, A., Grisleri, P., Graf, T., Meinecke, M.: Pedestrian detection in infrared images. In: IEEE Intelligent Vehicles Symposium (2003)

  17. Bertozzi, M., Broggi, A., Lasagni, A., Rose, M.D.: Infrared stereo vision-based pedestrian detection. In: IEEE Intelligent Vehicles Symposium (2005)

  18. Bhanu, B., Han, J.: Kinematic-based human motion analysis in infrared sequences. In: Sixth IEEE Workshop on Applications of Computer Vision (2002)

  19. Bhowmik, M., De, B., Bhattacharjee, D., Basu, D., Nasipuri, M.: Multisensor fusion of visual and thermal images for human face identification using different SVM kernels. In: IEEE Long Island Systems, Applications and Technology Conference (2012)

  20. Bhowmik, M.K., Bhattacharjee, D., Nasipuri, M., Basu, D.K., Kundu, M.: Classification of polar-thermal eigenfaces using multilayer perceptron for human face recognition. In: IEEE Region 10 and the Third international Conference on Industrial and, Information Systems (2008)

  21. Binelli, E., Broggi, A., Fascioli, A., Ghidoni, S., Grisleri, P., Graf, T., Meinecke, M.: A modular tracking system for far infrared pedestrian recognition. In: IEEE Intelligent Vehicles Symposium (2005)

  22. Buddharaju, P., Pavlidis, I.T., Tsiamyrtzis, P.: Pose-invariant physiological face recognition in the thermal infrared spectrum. In: Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition Workshop (2006)

  23. Buddharaju, P., Pavlidis, I.T., Tsiamyrtzis, P., Bazakos, M.: Physiology-based face recognition in the thermal infrared spectrum. IEEE Trans. Pattern Anal. Mach. Intell. 29(4), 613–626 (2007)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. Byrnes, J.: Unexploded Ordnance Detection and Mitigation. Springer, Berlin (2009)

    Book  Google Scholar 

  25. Castillo, J.C., Serrano-Cuerda, J., Fernández-Caballero, A., López, M.T.: Segmenting humans from mobile thermal infrared imagery. In: Proceedings of the 3rd International Work-Conference on The Interplay Between Natural and Artificial Computation: Part II: Bioinspired Applications in Artificial and Natural Computation. Springer, Berlin (2009)

  26. Chekmenev, S.Y., Farag, A.A., Essock, E.A.: Thermal imaging of the superficial temporal artery: an arterial pulse recovery model. In: IEEE Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition (2007)

  27. Chelladurai, V., Jayas, D.S., White, N.D.G.: Thermal imaging for detecting fungal infection in stored wheat. J. Stored Prod. Res. 46(3), 174–179 (2010)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. Chen, S., Leung, H.: An EM-CI based approach to fusion of IR and visual images. In: 12th International Conference on Information Fusion (2009)

  29. Chen, X., Flynn, P.J., Bowyer, K.W.: IR and visible light face recognition. Comput. Vis. Image Underst. 99(3), 332–358 (2005)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. Cheng, S.Y., Park, S., Trivedi, M.: Multiperspective thermal ir and video arrays for 3d body tracking and driver activity analysis. In: IEEE Computer Society Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition Workshops (2005)

  31. Cilulko, J., Janiszewski, P., Bogdaszewski, M., Szczygielska, E.: Infrared thermal imaging in studies of wild animals. Eur. J. Wildl. Res. 59(1), 17–23 (2013)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  32. Correa, M., Hermosilla, G., Verschae, R.: Ruiz-del Solar, J.: Human detection and identification by robots using thermal and visual information in domestic environments. J. Intell. Robot. Syst. 66, 223–243 (2012)

    Google Scholar 

  33. Dai, C., Zheng, Y., Li, X.: Layered representation for pedestrian detection and tracking in infrared imagery. In: IEEE Computer Society Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition Workshop (2005)

  34. Dai, C., Zheng, Y., Li, X.: Pedestrian detection and tracking in infrared imagery using shape and appearance. Comput. Vis. Image Underst. 106(2–3), 288–299 (2007)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  35. Danese, G., Giachero, M., Leporati, F., Nazzicari, N., Nobis, M.: An embedded acquisition system for remote monitoring of tire status in F1 race cars through thermal images. In: 11th EUROMICRO Conference on Digital System Design Architectures, Methods and Tools (2008)

  36. Davis, J.W., Keck, M.A.: A two-stage template approach to person detection in thermal imagery. In: Seventh IEEE Workshops on Application of Computer Vision (2005)

  37. Davis, J.W., Sharma, V.: Robust detection of people in thermal imagery. In: Proceedings of the 17th International Conference on Pattern Recognition (2004)

  38. Davis, J.W., Sharma, V.: Background-subtraction using contour-based fusion of thermal and visible imagery. Comput. Vis. Image Underst. 106(23), 162–182 (2007)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  39. Dikic, D., Kolaric, D., Lisicic, D., Benkovic, V., Horvat-Knezevic, A., Tadic, Z., Skolnik-Gadanac, K., Orsolic, N.: Use of thermography in studies of thermodynamics in frogs exposed to different ambiental temperatures. In: ELMAR (2011)

  40. Dunbar, M.R., MacCarthy, K.A.: Use of infrared thermography to detect signs of rabies infection in raccoons (procyon lotor). J. Zoo Wildl. Med. 37(4), 518–523 (2006)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  41. Fan, K.C., Lin, C.L.: The use of thermal images of palm-dorsa vein-patterns for biometric verification. In: 17th International Conference on Pattern Recognition (2004)

  42. Fang, Y., Yamada, K., Ninomiya, Y., Horn, B.K.P., Masaki, I.: A shape-independent method for pedestrian detection with far-infrared images. IEEE Trans. Veh. Technol. 53(6), 1679–1697 (2004)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  43. Fardi, B., Schuenert, U., Wanielik, G.: Shape and motion-based pedestrian detection in infrared images: a multi sensor approach. In: IEEE Intelligent Vehicles Symposium (2005)

  44. Fehlman, W.L., Hinders, M.K.: Mobile Robot Navigation with Intelligent Infrared Image. Springer, Berlin (2010)

    Google Scholar 

  45. Fernández-Caballero, A., Castillo, J.C., Martínez-Cantos, J., Martínez-Tomás, R.: Optical flow or image subtraction in human detection from infrared camera on mobile robot. Robot. Auton. Syst. 58(12), 1273–1281 (2010)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  46. Fernández-Caballero, A., Castillo, J.C., Serrano-Cuerda, J., Maldonado-Bascón, S.: Real-time human segmentation in infrared videos. Expert Syst. Appl. 38(3), 2577–2584 (2011)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  47. FLIR: BMW incorporates thermal imaging cameras in its cars. Application story (2011). FLIR Commercial Vision Systems B.V.

  48. FLIR: Cooled versus uncooled cameras for long range surveillance. Tehnical note (2011). FLIR Commercial Vision Systems B.V.

  49. FLIR: Uncooled detectors for thermal imaging cameras. Tehnical note (2011). FLIR Commercial Vision Systems B.V.

  50. FLIR Systems Inc.: FLIR product overview (2012). http://www.flir.com/cs/emea/en/view/?id=42100

  51. FLIR Systems Inc.: FLIR SR-series (2012). http://www.flir.com/cs/emea/en/view/?id=41864

  52. Fluke Corporation: Infrared cameras and thermal cameras by fluke (2012).http://www.fluke.com/Fluke/usen/products/category.htm?category=THG-BST&parent=THG

  53. Gade, R., Jørgensen, A., Moeslund, T.B.: Occupancy analysis of sports arenas using thermal imaging. In: Proceedings of the International Conference on Computer Vision and Applications (2012)

  54. Gade, R., Jørgensen, A., Moeslund, T.B.: Long-term occupancy analysis using graph-based optimisation in thermal imagery. In: IEEE Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition (2013)

  55. Gade, R., Moeslund, T.B.: Sports type classification using signature heatmaps. In: IEEE Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition Workshops (2013)

  56. Gault, T., Mostafa, E., Farag, A., Farag, A.: Less is more: cropping to improve facial recognition with thermal images. In: International Conference on Multimedia Technology (2011)

  57. Gault, T.R., Farag, A.A.: A fully automatic method to extract the heart rate from thermal video. In: IEEE Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition Workshops (2013)

  58. Gnee, N.S.: A study of hand vein, neck vein and arm vein extraction for authentication. In: 7th International Conference on Information, Communications and Signal Processing (2009)

  59. Gowen, A.A., Tiwari, B.K., Cullen, P.J., McDonnell, K., O’Donnell, C.P.: Applications of thermal imaging in food quality and safety assessment. Trends Food Sci. Technol. 21(4), 190–200 (2010)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  60. Grinzato, E., Bison, P., Marinetti, S.: Monitoring of ancient buildings by the thermal method. J. Cult. Heritage 3(1), 21–29 (2002)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  61. Guzman, A., Goryawala, M., Adjouadi, M.: Generating thermal facial signatures using thermal infrared images. In: IEEE International Conference on Emerging Signal Processing Applications (2012)

  62. Guzman, A.M., Goryawala, M., Wang, J., Barreto, A., Andrian, J., Rishe, N., Adjouadi, M.: Thermal imaging as a biometrics approach to facial signature authentication. IEEE J. Biomed. Health Inf. 17(1), 214–222 (2013)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  63. Han, J., Bhanu, B.: Human activity recognition in thermal infrared imagery. In: IEEE Computer Society Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition Workshops (2005)

  64. Harangi, B., Csordás, T., Hajdu, A.: Detecting the excessive activation of the ciliaris muscle on thermal images. In: IEEE 9th International Symposium on Applied Machine Intelligence and Informatics (2011)

  65. Hardy, J.D.: The radiation of heat from the human body. III. the human skin as a black-body radiator. J. Clin. Investig. 13(4), 615–620 (1934) (American Society for Clinical Investigation)

    Google Scholar 

  66. Harmer, K., Yue, S., Guo, K., Adams, K., Hunter, A.: Automatic blush detection in “concealed information” test using visual stimuli. In: International Conference of Soft Computing and Pattern Recognition (2010)

  67. Heo, J., Kong, S.G., Abidi, B.R., Abidi, M.A.: Fusion of visual and thermal signatures with eyeglass removal for robust face recognition. In: Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition Workshops (2004)

  68. Hilsenstein, V.: Surface reconstruction of water waves using thermographic stereo imaging. In: Proceedings of Image and Vision Computing New Zealand (2005)

  69. Hoegner, L., Stilla, U.: Thermal leakage detection on building facades using infrared textures generated by mobile mapping. In: Joint Urban Remote Sensing Event (2009)

  70. Hu, Z., Xie, Z., Ci, Y., Wei, W.: Lecture Notes in Electrical Engineering, pp. 361–367. Molten steel level measuring method by thermal image analysis in tundish. In: Recent Advances in Computer Science and Information Engineering. Springer, Berlin (2012)

  71. Hurnik, J.F., Boer, S.D., Webster, A.B.: Detection of health disorders in dairy cattle utilizing a thermal infrared scanning technique. Can. J. Anim. Sci. 64(4), 1071–1073 (1984)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  72. Hwang, J.H., Jun, S., Kim, S.H., Cha, D., Jeon, K., Lee, J.: Novel fire detection device for robotic fire fighting. In: International Conference on Control Automation and Systems (2010)

  73. Infrared Integrated Systems Ltd: Thermal imaging cameras by Irisys (2012). http://www.irisys.co.uk/thermal-imaging/

  74. Irani, M., Anandan, P.: Robust multi-sensor image alignment. In: Sixth International Conference on Computer Vision (1998)

  75. Istenic, R., Heric, D., Ribaric, S., Zazula, D.: Thermal and visual image registration in hough parameter space. In: 14th International Workshop on Systems, Signals and Image Processing and 6th EURASIP Conference focused on Speech and Image Processing, Multimedia Communications and Services (2007)

  76. Iwasawa, S., Ebihara, K., Ohya, J., Morishima, S.: Real-time estimation of human body posture from monocular thermal images. In: IEEE Computer Society Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition (1997)

  77. Iwaszczuk, D., Hoegner, L., Stilla, U.: Matching of 3D building models with IR images for texture extraction. In: Joint Urban Remote Sensing Event (2011)

  78. Jadin, M.S., Ghazali, K.H., Taib, S.: Thermal condition monitoring of electrical installations based on infrared image analysis. In: Saudi International Electronics, Communications and Photonics Conference (2013)

  79. James, K., Rice, D.: Finding termites with thermal imaging. In: InfraMation (2002)

  80. Jiang, G., Kang, L.: Character analysis of facial expression thermal image. In: IEEE/ICME International Conference on Complex Medical Engineering (2007)

  81. Jiang, L., Tian, F., Shen, L.E., Wu, S., Yao, S., Lu, Z., Xu, L.: Perceptual-based fusion of IR and visual images for human detection. In: International Symposium on Intelligent Multimedia, Video and Speech Processing (2004)

  82. Jo, A., Jang, G.J., Seo, Y., Park, J.S.: Performance improvement of human detection using thermal imaging cameras based on mahalanobis distance and edge orientation histogram. In: Information Technology Convergence, Lecture Notes in Electrical Engineering, vol. 253, pp. 817–825 (2013)

  83. Johnson, M.J., Bajcsy, P.: Integration of thermal and visible imagery for robust foreground detection in tele-immersive spaces. In: 11th International Conference on Information Fusion (2008)

  84. Jones, B.F., Plassmann, P.: Digital infrared thermal imaging of human skin. IEEE Eng. Med. Biol. Mag. 21(6), 41–48 (2002)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  85. Jones, G., Harding, C., Leung, V.: Fusion of data from visual and low-resolution thermal cameras for surveillance. IEE Seminar Digests 10062, 17–17 (2003)

    Google Scholar 

  86. Jones, G.D., Hodgetts, M.A., Allsop, R.E., Sumpter, N., Vicencio-Silva, M.A.: A novel approach for surveillance using visual and thermal images. In: A DERA/IEE Workshop on Intelligent Sensor Processing, 9/1–9/19 (2001)

  87. Jüngling, K., Arens, M.: Feature based person detection beyond the visible spectrum. In: IEEE Computer Society Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition Workshops (2009)

  88. Jüngling, K., Arens, M.: Local feature based person detection and tracking beyond the visible spectrum. In: Machine Vision Beyond Visible Spectrum, Augmented Vision and Reality, pp. 3–32. Springer, Berlin (2011)

  89. Kallhammer, J.E., Eriksson, D., Granlund, G., Felsberg, M., Moe, A., Johansson, B., Wiklund, J., Forssen, P.E.: Near zone pedestrian detection using a low-resolution FIR sensor. In: IEEE Intelligent Vehicles Symposium (2007)

  90. Kaplan, H.: Practical Applications of Infrared Thermal Sensing and Imaging Equipment, 3rd edn. SPIE Press (2007)

  91. Kastek, M., Dulski, R., Trzaskawka, P., Sosnowski, T., Madura, H.: Concept of infrared sensor module for sniper detection system. In: 35th International Conference on Infrared Millimeter and Terahertz Waves (2010)

  92. Kato, T., Fujii, T., Tanimoto, M.: Detection of driver’s posture in the car by using far infrared camera. In: IEEE Intelligent Vehicles Symposium (2004)

  93. Kheiralipour, K., Ahmadi, H., Rajabipour, A., Rafiee, S., Javan-Nikkhah, M., Jayas, D.: Development of a new threshold based classification model for analyzing thermal imaging data to detect fungal infection of pistachio kernel. Agric. Res. 2(2), 127–131 (2013)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  94. Kido, S., Miyasaka, T., Tanaka, T., Shimizu, T., Saga, T.: Fall detection in toilet rooms using thermal imaging sensors. In: IEEE/SICE International Symposium on System Integration (2009)

  95. Kolli, A., Fasih, A., Al Machot, F., Kyamakya, K.: Non-intrusive car driver’s emotion recognition using thermal camera. In: Joint 3rd International Workshop on Nonlinear Dynamics and Synchronization and 16th International Symposium on Theoretical, Electrical Engineering (2011)

  96. Kondo, K., Kakuta, N., Chinzei, T., Nasu, Y., Suzuki, T., Saito, T., Wagatsuma, A., Ishigaki, H., Mabuchi, K.: Thermal rhythmography–topograms of the spectral analysis of fluctuations in skin temperature. In: 23rd Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society (2001)

  97. Kong, S., Heo, J., Boughorbel, F., Zheng, Y., Abidi, B., Koschan, A., Yi, M., Abidi, M.: Multiscale fusion of visible and thermal IR images for illumination-invariant face recognition. Int. J. Comput. Vis. 71, 215–233 (2007)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  98. Krotosky, S., Cheng, S., Trivedi, M.: Face detection and head tracking using stereo and thermal infrared cameras for “smart” airbags: a comparative analysis. In: The 7th International IEEE Conference on Intelligent Transportation Systems (2004)

  99. Krotosky, S.J., Trivedi, M.M.: On color-, infrared-, and multimodal-stereo approaches to pedestrian detection. IEEE Trans. Intell. Transp. Syst. 8(4), 619–629 (2007)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  100. Krotosky, S.J., Trivedi, M.M.: Person surveillance using visual and infrared imagery. IEEE Trans. Circuits Syst. Video Technol. 18(8), 1096–1105 (2008)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  101. Kumar, P., Mittal, A., Kumar, P.: Fusion of thermal infrared and visible spectrum video for robust surveillance. In: Computer Vision, Graphics and Image Processing, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, pp. 528–539. Springer, Berlin (2006)

  102. Lahiri, B., Bagavathiappan, S., Jayakumar, T., Philip, J.: Medical applications of infrared thermography: a review. Infrared Phys. Technol. 55(4), 221–235 (2012)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  103. Lallier, E., Farooq, M.: A real time pixel-level based image fusion via adaptive weight averaging. In: Third International Conference on Information Fusion (2000)

  104. Lee, S., Shah, G., Bhattacharya, A., Motai, Y.: Human tracking with an infrared camera using a curve matching framework. EURASIP J. Adv. Signal Process. 2012, 1–15 (2012)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  105. Lee, S.K., McHenry, K., Kooper, R., Bajcsy, P.: Characterizing human subjects in real-time and three-dimensional spaces by integrating thermal-infrared and visible spectrum cameras. In: IEEE International Conference on Multimedia and Expo (2009)

  106. Lerma, J.L., Mileto, C., Vegas, F., Cabrelles, M.: Visible and thermal IR documentation of a masonry brickwork building. In: CIPA XXI International Symposium, vol. XXXVI-5/C53, 456–459. International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences (2007)

  107. Lewis, A.W., Yuen, S.T.S., Smith, A.J.R.: Detection of gas leakage from landfills using infrared thermography—applicability and limitations. Waste Manage. Res. 21(5), 436–447 (2003)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  108. Leykin, A., Hammoud, R.: Robust multi-pedestrian tracking in thermal-visible surveillance videos. In: Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition Workshops (2006)

  109. Leykin, A., Hammoud, R.: Real-time estimation of human attention field in LWIR and color surveillance videos. In: IEEE Computer Society Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition Workshops (2008)

  110. Leykin, A., Hammoud, R.: Pedestrian tracking by fusion of thermal-visible surveillance videos. Mach. Vis. Appl. 21, 587–595 (2010)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  111. Leykin, A., Ran, Y., Hammoud, R.: Thermal-visible video fusion for moving target tracking and pedestrian classification. In: IEEE Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition (2007)

  112. Li, W., Zheng, D., Zhao, T., Yang, M.: An effective approach to pedestrian detection in thermal imagery. In: Eighth International Conference on Natural Computation (2012)

  113. Li, Z., Yao, W., Lee, S., Lee, C., Yang, Z.: Application of infrared thermography technique in building finish evaluation. J. Nondestruct. Eval. 19, 11–19 (2000)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  114. Li, Z., Zhang, J., Wu, Q., Geers, G.: Feature enhancement using gradient salience on thermal image. In: International Conference on Digital Image Computing: Techniques and Applications (2010)

  115. Lin, C.L., Fan, K.C.: Biometric verification using thermal images of palm-dorsa vein patterns. IEEE Trans. Circuits Syst. Video Technol. 14(2), 199–213 (2004)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  116. Mahlisch, M., Oberlander, M., Lohlein, O., Gavrila, D., Ritter, W.: A multiple detector approach to low-resolution FIR pedestrian recognition. In: IEEE Intelligent Vehicles Symposium (2005)

  117. Mahmoud, A., EL-Barkouky, A., Farag, H., Graham, J., Farag, A.: A non-invasive method for measuring blood flow rate in superficial veins from a single thermal image. In: IEEE Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition Workshops (2013)

  118. Mano, H., Kon, K., Sato, N., Ito, M., Mizumoto, H., Goto, K., Chatterjee, R., Matsuno, F.: Treaded control system for rescue robots in indoor environment. In: IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Biomimetics (2009)

  119. Martinez-De Dios, J.R., Ollero, A.: Automatic detection of windows thermal heat losses in buildings using UAVs. In: World Automation Congress (2006)

  120. Meis, U., Oberlander, M., Ritter, W.: Reinforcing the reliability of pedestrian detection in far-infrared sensing. In: IEEE Intelligent Vehicles Symposium (2004)

  121. Mekyska, J., Espinosa-Duro and, V., Faundez-Zanuy, M.: Face segmentation: a comparison between visible and thermal images. In: IEEE International Carnahan Conference on Security Technology (2010)

  122. Memarian, N., Chau, T., Venetsanopoulos, A.N.: Application of infrared thermal imaging in rehabilitation engineering: Preliminary results. In: IEEE Toronto International Conference Science and Technology for Humanity (2009)

  123. Meneses, J., Briz, S., de Castro, A.J., Melendez, J., Lopez, F.: A new method for imaging of carbon monoxide in combustion environments. Rev. Sci. Instrum. 68(6), 2568–2573 (1997)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  124. MESA Imaging AG: MESA Imaging SwissRanger (2012). http://www.mesa-imaging.ch/index.php

  125. Meyer, L.H., Jayaram, S.H., Cherney, E.A.: A novel technique to evaluate the erosion resistance of silicone rubber composites for high voltage outdoor insulation using infrared laser erosion. IEEE Trans. Dielectrics Electr. Insulation 12(6), 1201–1208 (2005)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  126. Microsoft: Kinect (2012). http://www.xbox.com/en-US/KINECT

  127. Moon, S., Kong, S.G., Yoo, J.H., Chung, K.: Face recognition with multiscale data fusion of visible and thermal images. In: IEEE International Conference on Computational Intelligence for Homeland Security and Personal Safety (2006)

  128. Nanda, H., Davis, L.: Probabilistic template based pedestrian detection in infrared videos. In: IEEE Intelligent Vehicle Symposium (2002)

  129. Neagoe, V.E., Ropot, A.D., Mugioiu, A.C.: Real time face recognition using decision fusion of neural classifiers in the visible and thermal infrared spectrum. In: IEEE Conference on Advanced Video and Signal Based Surveillance (2007)

  130. Ng, Y.M.H., Yu, M., Huang, Y., Du, R.: Diagnosis of sheet metal stamping processes based on 3-D thermal energy distribution. IEEE Trans. Autom. Sci. Eng. 4(1), 22–30 (2007)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  131. Ó Conaire, C., Cooke, E., O’Connor, N., Murphy, N., Smeaton, A.: Background modelling in infrared and visible spectrum video for people tracking. In: IEEE Computer Society Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition Workshops, p. 20 (2005)

  132. Ó Conaire, C., Cooke, E., O’Connor, N.E., Murphy, N., Smeaton, A.F.: Fusion of infrared and visible spectrum video for indoor surveillance. In: 6th International Workshop on Image Analysis for Multimedia Interactive Services (2005)

  133. Ó Conaire, C., O’Connor, N., Cooke, E., Smeaton, A.: Comparison of fusion methods for thermo-visual surveillance tracking. In: 9th International Conference on Information Fusion (2006)

  134. Ohel, E., Rotman, S.R., Blumberg, D.G., Sagiv, L.: Anomaly gas remote sensing and tracking using a field-portable imaging thermal radiometric spectrometer. In: IEEE 24th Convention of Electrical and Electronics Engineers in Israel (2006)

  135. Olmeda, D., de la Escalera, A., Armingol, J.: Contrast invariant features for human detection in far infrared images. In: IEEE Intelligent Vehicles Symposium (2012)

  136. Olmeda, D., de la Escalera, A., Armingol, J.M.: Detection and tracking of pedestrians in infrared images. In: 3rd International Conference on Signals, Circuits and Systems (2009)

  137. Padole, C.N., Alexandre, L.A.: Motion based particle filter for human tracking with thermal imaging. In: 3rd International Conference on Emerging Trends in, Engineering and Technology (2010)

  138. Padole, C.N., Alexandre, L.A.: Wigner distribution based motion tracking of human beings using thermal imaging. In: IEEE Computer Society Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition Workshops (2010)

  139. Panasonic: Infrared array sonsor: Grid-eye (2013). http://pewa.panasonic.com/components/built-in-sensors/infrared-array-sensors/grid-eye/

  140. Paugam, R., Wooster, M., Roberts, G.: Use of handheld thermal imager data for airborne mapping of fire radiative power and energy and flame front rate of spread. IEEE Trans. Geosci. Remote Sensing 51(6), 3385–3399 (2013)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  141. Pavlidis, I., Levine, J., Baukol, P.: Thermal image analysis for anxiety detection. In: International Conference on Image Processing (2001)

  142. Peregrina-Barreto, H., Morales-Hernandez, L., Rangel-Magdaleno, J., Vazquez-Rodriguez, P.: Thermal image processing for quantitative determination of temperature variations in plantar angiosomes. In: IEEE International Instrumentation and Measurement Technology Conference (2013)

  143. Pham, Q.C., Gond, L., Begard, J., Allezard, N., Sayd, P.: Real-time posture analysis in a crowd using thermal imaging. In: IEEE Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition (2007)

  144. Point Grey Research: Stereo vision products (2012). http://www.ptgrey.com/products/stereo.asp

  145. Pop, F.M., Gordan, M., Florea, C., Vlaicu, A.: Fusion based approach for thermal and visible face recognition under pose and expresivity variation. In: 9th Roedunet International Conference (2010)

  146. Prakash, S., Lee, P.Y., Caelli, T., Raupach, T.: Robust thermal camera calibration and 3D mapping of object surface temperatures (2006)

  147. Prata, A.J., Bernardo, C.: Retrieval of volcanic ash particle size, mass and optical depth from a ground-based thermal infrared camera. J. Volcanol. Geothermal Res. 186(12), 91–107 (2009)

    Google Scholar 

  148. Price, J., Maraviglia, C., Seisler, W., Williams, E., Pauli, M.: System capabilities, requirements and design of the GDL gunfire detection and location system. In: International Symposium on Information Theory (2004)

  149. Public Laboratory: Thermal photography (2012). http://publiclaboratory.org/tool/thermal-photography

  150. Qi, H., Diakides, N.A.: Thermal infrared imaging in early breast cancer detection—a survey of recent research. In: 25th Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society (2003).

  151. Ran, Y., Leykin, A., Hammoud, R.: Thermal-visible video fusion for moving target tracking and pedestrian motion analysis and classification. In: Augmented Vision Perception in Infrared, Advances in Pattern Recognition, pp. 349–369. Springer, Berlin (2009)

  152. Rasmussen, N.D., Morse, B.S., Goodrich, M.A., Eggett, D.: Fused visible and infrared video for use in wilderness search and rescue. In: Workshop on Applications of Computer Vision (2009)

  153. Ring, E.F.J., Ammer, K.: Infrared thermal imaging in medicine. Physiol. Meas. 33(3), R33 (2012)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  154. Rogler, R.D., Lobl, H., Schmidt, J.: A diagnostic system for live electrical joints in power transmission systems. In: Forty-Second IEEE Holm Conference on Electrical Contacts. Joint with the 18th International Conference on Electrical Contacts (1996)

  155. Rudol, P., Doherty, P.: Human body detection and geolocalization for UAV search and rescue missions using color and thermal imagery. In: IEEE Aerospace Conference (2008)

  156. San-Biagio, M., Crocco, M., Cristani, M., Martelli, S., Murino, V.: Low-level multimodal integration on riemannian manifolds for automatic pedestrian detection. In: 15th International Conference on, Information Fusion (2012)

  157. Sandsten, J., Weibring, P., Edner, H., Svanberg, S.: Real-time gas-correlation imaging employing thermal background radiation. Opt. Express 6(4), 92–103 (2000)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  158. Schweiger, R., Franz, S., Lohlein, O., Ritter, W., Kallhammer, J.E., Franks, J., Krekels, T.: Sensor fusion to enable next generation low cost night vision systems. Opt. Sensing Detect. 7726(1), 772610–772620 (2010)

    Google Scholar 

  159. Serway, R.A., Jewett, J.W.: Physics for Scientists and Engineers with Modern Physics, 6th edn. Brooks/Cole–Thomson Learning (2004)

  160. Shah, P., Merchant, S.N., Desai, U.B.: Fusion of surveillance images in infrared and visible band using curvelet, wavelet and wavelet packet transform. Int. J. Wavelets Multiresolut. Inf. Process. 08(02), 271–292 (2010)

    Article  MathSciNet  Google Scholar 

  161. Siegel, R.: Land mine detection. IEEE Instrum. Meas. Mag. 5(4), 22–28 (2002)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  162. Sirmacek, B., Hoegner, L., Stilla, U.: Detection of windows and doors from thermal images by grouping geometrical features. In: Joint Urban Remote Sensing Event (2011)

  163. Sissinto, P., Ladeji-Osias, J.: Fusion of infrared and visible images using empirical mode decomposition and spatial opponent processing. In: IEEE Applied Imagery Pattern Recognition Workshop (2011)

  164. Sixsmith, A., Johnson, N.: A smart sensor to detect the falls of the elderly. IEEE Pervasive Comput. 3(2), 42–47 (2004)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  165. Skoglar, P., Orguner, U., Törnqvist, D., Gustafsson, F.: Pedestrian tracking with an infrared sensor using road network information. EURASIP J. Adv. Signal Process. 2012, 1–18 (2012)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  166. Socolinsky, D.A., Selinger, A.: Thermal face recognition over time. In: 17th International Conference on Pattern Recognition (2004)

  167. Socolinsky, D.A., Selinger, A., Neuheisel, J.D.: Face recognition with visible and thermal infrared imagery. Comput. Vis. Image Underst. 91(12), 72–114 (2003)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  168. Socolinsky, D.A., Wolff, L.B., Neuheisel, J.D., Eveland, C.K.: Illumination invariant face recognition using thermal infrared imagery. In: IEEE Computer Society Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition (2001)

  169. Sonn, S., Bilodeau, G.A., Galinier, P.: Fast and accurate registration of visible and infrared videos. In: IEEE Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition Workshops (2013)

  170. Sony Electronics Inc.: XC-E150 Near Infrared camera (2012). http://pro.sony.com/bbsc/ssr/cat-recmedia/cat-recmediadtwo/product-XCEI50/

  171. St-Laurent, L., Maldague, X., Prevost, D.: Combination of colour and thermal sensors for enhanced object detection. In: 10th International Conference on Information Fusion (2007)

  172. Steen, K.A., Villa-Henriksen, A., Therkildsen, O.R., Karstoft, H., Green, O.: Automatic detection of animals using thermal imaging. In: International Conference on Agricultural Engineering (2012)

  173. Suard, F., Rakotomamonjy, A., Bensrhair, A., Broggi, A.: Pedestrian detection using infrared images and histograms of oriented gradients. In: IEEE Intelligent Vehicles Symposium (2006)

  174. Szwoch, G., Szczodrak, M.: Detection of moving objects in images combined from video and thermal cameras. In: Multimedia Communications, Services and Security, Communications in Computer and Information Science, vol. 368, pp. 262–272 (2013)

  175. Toet, A., Hogervorst, M.A.: Towards an optimal color representation for multiband nightvision systems. In: 12th International Conference on Information Fusion (2009)

  176. Torabi, A., Mass, G., Bilodeau, G.A.: An iterative integrated framework for thermalvisible image registration, sensor fusion, and people tracking for video surveillance applications. Comput. Vis. Image Underst. 116(2), 210–221 (2012)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  177. Torresan, H., Turgeon, B., Ibarra-castanedo, C., Hébert, P., Maldague, X.: Advanced surveillance systems: combining video and thermal imagery for pedestrian detection. In. In Proceedings of SPIE, Thermosense XXVI, volume 5405 of SPIE, pp. 506–515 (2004)

  178. Treptow, A., Cielniak, G., Duckett, T.: Real-time people tracking for mobile robots using thermal vision. Robot. Auton. Syst. 54(9), 729–739 (2006)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  179. Vadivambal, R., Jayas, D.: Applications of thermal imaging in agriculture and food industry—a review. Food Bioprocess Technol. 4, 186–199 (2011)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  180. Vidas, S., Lakemond, R., Denman, S., Fookes, C., Sridharan, S., Wark, T.: A mask-based approach for the geometric calibration of thermal-infrared cameras. IEEE Trans. Instrum. Meas. 61(6), 1625–1635 (2012)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  181. Vollmer, M., Möllmann, K.P.: Infrared Thermal Imaging—Fundamentals, Research and Applications. Wiley-VCH, Weinheim (2010)

  182. Walczyk, R., Armitage, A., Binnie, T.D.: An embedded real-time pedestrian detection system using an infrared camera. In: IET Irish Signals and Systems Conference (2009)

  183. Wang, R., Wang, G., Chen, Z., Liu, J., Shi, Y.: An improved method of identification based on thermal palm vein image. In: Neural Information Processing, Lecture Notes in Computer Science, pp. 18–24. Springer, Berlin (2012)

  184. Wang, W., Zhang, J., Shen, C.: Improved human detection and classification in thermal images. In: 17th IEEE International Conference on Image Processing (2010)

  185. Warriss, P.D., Pope, S.J., Brown, S.N., Wilkins, L.J., Knowles, T.G.: Estimating the body temperature of groups of pigs by thermal imaging. Vet. Record 158, 331–334 (2006)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  186. Wasaki, K., Shimoi, N., Takita, Y., Kawamoto, P.N.: A smart sensing method for mine detection using time difference IR images. In: International Conference on Multisensor Fusion and Integration for Intelligent Systems (2001)

  187. Wikipedia: Atmospheric transmittance (2006). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Atmosfaerisk_spredning.gif

  188. Wolff, L., Socolinsky, D., Eveland, C.: Face recognition in the thermal infrared. In: Computer Vision Beyond the Visible Spectrum, Advances in Pattern Recognition, pp. 167–191. Springer, Berlin (2005)

  189. Wong, W.K., Chew, Z.Y., Loo, C.K., Lim, W.S.: An effective trespasser detection system using thermal camera. In: Second International Conference on Computer Research and Development (2010)

  190. Wong, W.K., Lim, H.L., Loo, C.K., Lim, W.S.: Home alone faint detection surveillance system using thermal camera. In: Second International Conference on Computer Research and Development (2010)

  191. Wong, W.K., Tan, P.N., Loo, C.K., Lim, W.S.: An effective surveillance system using thermal camera. In: International Conference on Signal Acquisition and Processing (2009)

  192. Wu, S., Jiang, L., Xie, S., Yeo, A.C.B.: A robust method for detecting facial orientation in infrared images. Pattern Recognit. 39(2), 303–309 (2006)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  193. Xu, F., Liu, X., Fujimura, K.: Pedestrian detection and tracking with night vision. IEEE Trans. Intell. Transp. Syst. 6(1), 63–71 (2005)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  194. Yanmaz, L.E., Okumus, Z., Dogan, E.: Instrumentation of thermography and its applications in horses. J. Anim. Vet. Adv. 6(7), 858–862 (2007)

    Google Scholar 

  195. Ng, Y.-M.H., Du, R.: Acquisition of 3d surface temperature distribution of a car body. In: IEEE International Conference on Information Acquisition (2005)

  196. Yoshitomi, Y., Miyaura, T., Tomita, S., Kimura, S.: Face identification using thermal image processing. In: 6th IEEE International Workshop on Robot and Human Communication (1997)

  197. Yoshitomi, Y., Miyawaki, N., Tomita, S., Kimura, S.: Facial expression recognition using thermal image processing and neural network. In: 6th IEEE International Workshop on Robot and Human Communication (1997)

  198. Yu, X., Chua, W.K., Dong, L., Hoe, K.E., Li, L.: Head pose estimation in thermal images for human and robot interaction. In: 2nd International Conference on Industrial Mechatronics and Automation (2010)

  199. Zhang, L., Wu, B., Nevatia, R.: Pedestrian detection in infrared images based on local shape features. In: IEEE Conference on Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition (2007)

  200. Zhao, J., Cheung, S.c.S.: Human segmentation by fusing visible-light and thermal imaginary. In: IEEE 12th International Conference on Computer Vision Workshops (2009)

  201. Zhou, D., Dillon, M., Kwon, E.: Tracking-based deer vehicle collision detection using thermal imaging. In: IEEE International Conference on Robotics and Biomimetics (2009)

  202. Zhou, Y., Tsiamyrtzis, P., Lindner, P., Timofeyev, I., Pavlidis, I.: Spatiotemporal smoothing as a basis for facial tissue tracking in thermal imaging. IEEE Trans. Biomed. Eng. 60(5), 1280–1289 (2013)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  203. Zin, T.T., Takahashi, H., Hama, H.: Robust person detection using far infrared camera for image fusion. In: Second International Conference on Innovative Computing, Information and Control (2007)

  204. Zin, T.T., Takahashi, H., Toriu, T., Hama, H.: Fusion of infrared and visible images for robust person detection. In: Image Fusion, pp. 239–264. InTech (2011)

  205. Zou, X., Kittler, J., Messer, K.: Illumination invariant face recognition: a survey. In: First IEEE International Conference on Biometrics: Theory, Applications, and Systems (2007)

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Visual Analysis of People Lab, Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark

    Rikke Gade & Thomas B. Moeslund

Authors
  1. Rikke Gade
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Thomas B. Moeslund
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Rikke Gade.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Gade, R., Moeslund, T.B. Thermal cameras and applications: a survey. Machine Vision and Applications 25, 245–262 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00138-013-0570-5

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00138-013-0570-5

Keywords

Search

Navigation