Bildacquisition

Bildacquisition, sometimes written as bildacquisition, refers to the process of capturing digital images from a physical scene using an imaging device and converting the optical signal into digital data for storage, display, or analysis. The term is closely aligned with image acquisition and is commonly used in German-language literature to describe the same stage in imaging pipelines.

In a typical bildacquisition workflow, hardware components include a sensor (such as CCD or CMOS), optics (lens and filters), and illumination. Exposure time, sensor gain, and readout mode control the amount of light collected and the dynamic range. Sensors produce raw data that may undergo debayering, demosaicing, and color management. Calibration ensures measurement accuracy: radiometric calibration links digital counts to scene radiance; geometric calibration aligns images to a reference coordinate system; white balance and color calibration address color fidelity.

Bildacquisition covers multiple modalities, including visible-light photography, infrared imaging, multispectral and hyperspectral imaging, and fluorescence or biomedical imaging. It underpins applications in photography, surveillance, industrial inspection, robotics and autonomous systems, medical imaging, and scientific research.

Performance considerations include frame rate, resolution, latency, noise, and compression. Real-time acquisition demands synchronization with lighting or triggering; computational imaging techniques combine multiple acquisitions to enhance resolution or reduce noise. The field continues to evolve with advances in sensor technology, on-sensor processing, and standardized data formats and metadata to support interoperability.