Fluid Flow Measurement in Thermographic Video Sequences by Wavelet-Multiresolution Optical Flow Estimation

Variational Optical Flow estimation models have proven to be highly useful tools for both tracking (rigid) object paths and for calculating motion fields registered in digital video sequences. Specific acquisition techniques, such as infrared thermographic video, allow to carry out further studies of the fluid dynamics for several kind of phenomena. This paper presents a methodological approach to obtain a reliable estimation of the temporal evolution of thermal structures in fluid surfaces using a multiresolution scheme based on the Galerkin-Wavelet Analysis. An appropriate regularizer, adapted for the specific problem herein presented, is also introduced.