US Patent 7570805 Creating 3D images of objects by illuminating with infrared patterns

According to a general aspect, processing images includes projecting an infra-red pattern onto a three-dimensional object and producing a first image, a second image, and a third image of the three-dimensional object while the pattern is projected on the three-dimensional object. The first image and the second image include the three-dimensional object and the pattern. The first image and the second image are produced by capturing at a first camera and a second camera, respectively, light filtered through an infra-red filter. The third image includes the three-dimensional object but not the pattern. Processing the images also includes establishing a first-pair correspondence between a portion of pixels in the first image and a portion of pixels in the second image. Processing the images further includes constructing, based on the first-pair correspondence and the third image, a two-dimensional image that depicts a three-dimensional construction of the three-dimensional object.