In fringe projection profilometry, an object shape is evaluated through phase distribution extracted from a projected fringe pattern. For parallel illumination geometry, the carrier phase component introduced by the fringes is spatially linear, whereas nonparallel illumination would lead to a nonlinear carrier. In this study, a general approach for the removal of a nonlinear-carrier phase component is proposed. A series expansion technique is used to approximate the carrier phase function, and a least-squares method is developed to estimate the unknown coefficients of the series. The theoretical analysis is given on the basis of a divergent illumination geometry with carrier fringes in the x direction. The method is also extended to include a curved surface-fitting approach, which is applicable to various measurement system geometries. (c) 2006 Optical Society of America.
