Fringe-follower regularized phase tracker for demodulation of closed-fringe interferograms

An algorithm for phase demodulation of a single interferogram that may cont ain closed fringes is presented. This algorithm uses the regularized phase- tracker system as a robust phase estimator, together with a new scanning te chnique that estimates the phase that initially follows the bright zones of the interferogram. The combination of these two elements constitutes a pow erful new method, the fringe-follower regularized phase tracker, that makes it possible to correctly demodulate complex, single-image interferograms f or which traditional methods fail. (C) 2001 Optical Society of America.