Noname manuscript No. (will be inserted by the editor) Rapid and accurate face depth estimation in passive stereo systems Amel AISSAOUI · Jean MARTINET · Chaabane DJERABA Received: date / Accepted: date Abstract In this paper, we introduce a novel approach for face depth es- timation in a passive stereo vision system. Our approach is based on rapid generation of facial disparity map, requiring neither expensive devices nor generic face models. It consists of incorporating face properties into the dis- parity estimation process to enhance the 3D face reconstruction. We propose a model-based method which is independent from the specific stereo algorithm used. Our method is a two-step process. First, an algorithm based on the Ac- tive Shape Model (ASM) is proposed to acquire a disparity model specific to the concerned face. Second, using this model as guidance, the dense disparity is calculated and the depth map is estimated. Besides, an original algorithm of post processing is proposed in order to detect holes and spikes in the gen- erated depth maps caused by false matching and uncertainties. It is based on smoothness proprieties of the face and a local and global analysis of the image. Experimental results are presented to demonstrate the reconstruction accuracy and the rapidity of the proposed method. Amel AISSAOUI Laboratoire d’Informatique Fondamentale de Lille 50 Halley avenue, 59650 Villeneuve d’Ascq, France. Tel.: +33-3-62531581 E-mail: amel.aissaoui@lifl.fr Jean MARTINET Laboratoire d’Informatique Fondamentale de Lille 50 Halley avenue, 59650 Villeneuve d’Ascq, France. Tel.: +33-3-62531615 E-mail: jean.martinet@lifl.fr Chaabane DJERABA Laboratoire d’Informatique Fondamentale de Lille 50 Halley avenue, 59650 Villeneuve d’Ascq, France. Tel.: +33-3-62531552 E-mail: Chabane.djeraba@lifl.fr