Resolving Multipath Interference in Kinect: An Inverse Problem Approach

Multi-path interference is an inherent unsolved problem in amplitude modulated continuous wave (AMCW) Time-of-Flight imaging that results in erroneous depth and amplitude measurements. This kind of interference is the result of light which travels along different optical paths and reaches the same pixel. Important scenarios with strong interference include scenes with highly reflective surfaces, imaging through translucent material, subsurface scattering and imaging a corner. In this work, we demonstrate that multiple frequency measurements made with a non-customized Kinect for the XBox One (the new Kinect) camera can be used to resolve the interfering paths. By formulating our problem as a spectral estimation problem, we provide a closed-form, non-iterative technique.