A New Application of Camera Reverse Projection in Reconstructing Old Accidents

Engineers frequently are faced with reconstructing vehicular accidents based on limited information, i.e. vehicles have been destroyed, witnesses are lost, etc. Accident scene photographs are often the key independent record of what occurred in an accident. One photogrammetry method engineers use to reconstruct accidents is camera reverse projection. This paper presents an extension of camera reverse projection that can be used for accidents where neither the accident scene nor the vehicles are accessible. The technique involves creating models of the vehicles and the scene which can then be used to obtain measurements for reconstructing an accident. The technique is described in detail and a case study is used to illustrate the method. The primary benefits of the method include flexibility in use, intuitive approach, and assistance in sorting out complex vehicular dynamics.