High resolution volumetric light field particle image velocimetry with dual plenoptic cameras

Light field particle image velocimetry (LF-PIV) was recently introduced to measure the three-dimension three-component (3D-3C) velocity field with just single camera. The main drawback of this configuration is the decreased measurement accuracy in the out-of-plane dimension due to limited spatial resolution. This work presents a solution with dual-camera arrangement to broaden the viewing angle. Based on multiplicative algebraic reconstruction technique (MART), a novel particle reconstruction algorithm is developed for dual or multiple light field camera PIV system. In addition, the synthetic images of DNS jet data and experimental images of a vortex-ring are utilized to draw a comparison between the velocity measurement results of a single light field camera and dual light field cameras. It is determined that the accuracy of dual-camera configuration in the depth direction has been significantly improved when compared to single light-field camera system.