The Application of Multi-View Three-Dimensional Reconstruction Technology in Paleolithic Archaeology

Three-dimensional reconstruction technology has been widely applied in various fields of archaeological excavation, research and demonstration. The multi-view three­dimensional reconstruction technology based on the principle of digital photogrammetry can quickly and accurately construct the three-dimensional models of the archaeological sites and artifacts. This technology do not require professional equipment and technique, all data collection could be finished by digital camera and computer. This technology has the characteristics of easy to operate, lower cost, and high precision.

In the application for the excavation of the sites of the Paleolithic Age, the images output by this technology can be precise to millimeter scale. The files output in various compatible formats can fetch the messages from the remains to the largest extent through the software such as Arc GIS, Global Mapper and so on; for analyses and researches, this technology can almost completely replace the traditional onsite surveys in the excavations of the sites of Paleolithic Age. By case study, this paper proved that the multi-view three-dimensional reconstruction technology can be used in the excavations of the sites of Paleolithic Age, the precision of which can be comparable to that of the survey results of total station.

Through the three-dimensional reconstruction of stone artifacts, we could obtain more accurate data information rather than estimates in the past, which inspire a lot of new research methods. We could obtain precise values of cortex area, flake scars, volume, knapping orientation, point angle and so on through the three-dimensional model generated by Multi-view three-dimensional reconstruction technology. The dense cloud file, model file, digital elevation model (DEM), orthophoto can also import into other software for the expanding research. Considering the advantages of this technology, we could take it a routine tool for the archaeological excavation and research.

Keywords: Paleolithic; Three-dimensional reconstruction; Multi-view 3D reconstruction technology; High Precision Data Acquisition and Measurement.

The Application of Multi-View Three-Dimensional Reconstruction Technology in Paleolithic Archaeology