diff --git a/modules/rapid/doc/rapid.bib b/modules/rapid/doc/rapid.bib
index abb4ec87a..7176fe323 100644
--- a/modules/rapid/doc/rapid.bib
+++ b/modules/rapid/doc/rapid.bib
@@ -16,3 +16,14 @@
   year={2002},
   publisher={IEEE}
 }
+
+@article{seo2013optimal,
+  title={Optimal local searching for fast and robust textureless 3D object tracking in highly cluttered backgrounds},
+  author={Seo, Byung-Kuk and Park, Hanhoon and Park, Jong-Il and Hinterstoisser, Stefan and Ilic, Slobodan},
+  journal={IEEE transactions on visualization and computer graphics},
+  volume={20},
+  number={1},
+  pages={99--110},
+  year={2013},
+  publisher={IEEE}
+}
diff --git a/modules/rapid/include/opencv2/rapid.hpp b/modules/rapid/include/opencv2/rapid.hpp
index 5c045adca..3e2007a4b 100644
--- a/modules/rapid/include/opencv2/rapid.hpp
+++ b/modules/rapid/include/opencv2/rapid.hpp
@@ -122,6 +122,33 @@ CV_EXPORTS_W void convertCorrespondencies(InputArray cols, InputArray srcLocatio
  */
 CV_EXPORTS_W float rapid(InputArray img, int num, int len, InputArray pts3d, InputArray tris, InputArray K,
                          InputOutputArray rvec, InputOutputArray tvec, CV_OUT double* rmsd = 0);
+
+/// Abstract base class for stateful silhouette trackers
+class CV_EXPORTS_W Tracker : public Algorithm
+{
+public:
+    virtual ~Tracker();
+    CV_WRAP virtual float
+    compute(InputArray img, int num, int len, InputArray K, InputOutputArray rvec, InputOutputArray tvec,
+            const TermCriteria& termcrit = TermCriteria(TermCriteria::MAX_ITER | TermCriteria::EPS, 5, 1.5)) = 0;
+    CV_WRAP virtual void clearState() = 0;
+};
+
+/// wrapper around @ref rapid function for uniform access
+class CV_EXPORTS_W Rapid : public Tracker
+{
+public:
+    CV_WRAP static Ptr<Rapid> create(InputArray pts3d, InputArray tris);
+};
+
+/** implements "Optimal local searching for fast and robust textureless 3D object tracking in highly
+ * cluttered backgrounds" @cite seo2013optimal
+ */
+class CV_EXPORTS_W OLSTracker : public Tracker
+{
+public:
+    CV_WRAP static Ptr<OLSTracker> create(InputArray pts3d, InputArray tris, int histBins = 8, uchar sobelThesh = 10);
+};
 //! @}
 } /* namespace rapid */
 } /* namespace cv */
diff --git a/modules/rapid/src/histogram.cpp b/modules/rapid/src/histogram.cpp
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..f47c99bfc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/modules/rapid/src/histogram.cpp
@@ -0,0 +1,231 @@
+// This file is part of OpenCV project.
+// It is subject to the license terms in the LICENSE file found in the top-level directory
+// of this distribution and at http://opencv.org/license.html.
+
+#include "precomp.hpp"
+
+namespace cv
+{
+namespace rapid
+{
+static void compute1DCanny(const cv::Mat& src, cv::Mat& dst, uchar threshold)
+{
+    compute1DSobel(src, dst);
+
+    // step2: compute 1D non-maximum suppression + threshold
+    for (int i = 0; i < dst.rows; i++)
+    {
+        for (int j = 1; j < dst.cols - 1; j++)
+        {
+            if (dst.at<uchar>(i, j) <= dst.at<uchar>(i, j - 1) || dst.at<uchar>(i, j) <= dst.at<uchar>(i, j + 1))
+                dst.at<uchar>(i, j) = 0;
+
+            // threshold
+            if(dst.at<uchar>(i, j) < threshold)
+                dst.at<uchar>(i, j) = 0;
+        }
+    }
+}
+
+static void calcHueSatHist(const Mat_<Vec3b>& hsv, Mat_<float>& hist)
+{
+    for (int i = 0; i < hsv.rows; i++)
+    {
+        for (int j = 0; j < hsv.cols; j++)
+        {
+            const Vec3b& c = hsv(i, j);
+            // thresholds as in sec. 4.1
+            if (c[1] > 25 && c[2] > 50)
+            {
+                hist(c[0] * hist.rows / 256, c[1] * hist.cols / 256)++;
+            }
+        }
+    }
+}
+
+static float sum(const Mat_<float>& hist)
+{
+    CV_DbgAssert(hist.isContinuous());
+    float ret = 0;
+    int N = int(hist.total());
+    const float* ptr = hist.ptr<float>();
+    for (int i = 0; i < N; i++)
+        ret += ptr[i];
+    return ret;
+}
+
+static double bhattacharyyaCoeff(const Mat& a, const Mat& b)
+{
+    CV_DbgAssert(a.isContinuous() && b.isContinuous());
+    int N = int(a.total());
+    double ret = 0;
+    const float* aptr = a.ptr<float>();
+    const float* bptr = b.ptr<float>();
+    for (int i = 0; i < N; i++)
+        ret += std::sqrt(aptr[i] * bptr[i]);
+    return ret;
+}
+
+static void findCorrespondenciesOLS(const cv::Mat_<float>& scores, cv::Mat_<int>& cols)
+{
+    cols.resize(scores.rows);
+    for (int i = 0; i < scores.rows; i++)
+    {
+        int pos = -1;
+        for (int j = scores.cols - 1; j >= 0; j--)
+        {
+            if (scores(i, j) >= 0.35)
+            {
+                pos = j;
+                break;
+            }
+        }
+
+        cols(i) = pos;
+    }
+}
+
+struct OLSTrackerImpl : public OLSTracker
+{
+    Mat vtx;
+    Mat tris;
+
+    Mat_<float> fgHist;
+    Mat_<float> bgHist;
+    double tau;
+    uchar sobelThresh;
+
+    OLSTrackerImpl(InputArray _pts3d, InputArray _tris, int histBins, uchar _sobelThesh)
+    {
+        CV_Assert(_tris.getMat().checkVector(3, CV_32S) > 0);
+        CV_Assert(_pts3d.getMat().checkVector(3, CV_32F) > 0);
+        vtx = _pts3d.getMat();
+        tris = _tris.getMat();
+
+        tau = 1.0; // currently does not work as intended. effectively disable
+        sobelThresh = _sobelThesh;
+
+        bgHist.create(histBins, histBins);
+    }
+
+    void computeAppearanceScores(const Mat& bundleHSV, const Mat& bundleGrad, Mat_<float>& scores) const
+    {
+        scores.resize(bundleHSV.rows);
+        scores = 0;
+        Mat_<float> hist(fgHist.size());
+
+        for (int i = 0; i < bundleHSV.rows; i++)
+        {
+            int start = 0;
+            for (int j = 0; j < bundleHSV.cols; j++)
+            {
+                if (bundleGrad.at<uchar>(i, j))
+                {
+                    // compute the histogram between last candidate point to current candidate point
+                    // as in eq. (4)
+                    hist = 0;
+                    calcHueSatHist(bundleHSV({i, i + 1}, {start, j}), hist);
+                    hist /= std::max(sum(hist), 1.0f);
+
+                    double s = bhattacharyyaCoeff(fgHist, hist);
+                    // handle object clutter as in eq. (5)
+                    if((1.0 - s) > tau)
+                        s = 1.0 - bhattacharyyaCoeff(bgHist, hist);
+                    scores(i, j) = float(s);
+                    start = j;
+                }
+            }
+        }
+    }
+
+    void updateFgBgHist(const Mat_<Vec3b>& hsv, const Mat_<int>& cols)
+    {
+        fgHist = 0;
+        bgHist = 0;
+
+        for (int i = 0; i < hsv.rows; i++)
+        {
+            int col = cols(i) < 0 ? hsv.cols / 2 + 1 : cols(i);
+            calcHueSatHist(hsv({i, i + 1}, {0, col}), fgHist);
+            calcHueSatHist(hsv({i, i + 1}, {col + 1, hsv.cols}), bgHist);
+        }
+
+        fgHist /= sum(fgHist);
+        bgHist /= sum(bgHist);
+    }
+
+    float compute(InputArray img, int num, int len, InputArray K, InputOutputArray rvec,
+                  InputOutputArray tvec, const TermCriteria& termcrit) CV_OVERRIDE
+    {
+        CV_Assert(num >= 3);
+        Mat pts2d, pts3d;
+
+        float ret = 0;
+
+        int niter = std::max(1, termcrit.maxCount);
+        for(int i = 0; i < niter; i++)
+        {
+            extractControlPoints(num, len, vtx, rvec, tvec, K, img.size(), tris, pts2d, pts3d);
+            if (pts2d.empty())
+                return 0;
+
+            Mat lineBundle, imgLoc;
+            extractLineBundle(len, pts2d, img, lineBundle, imgLoc);
+
+            Mat bundleHSV;
+            cvtColor(lineBundle, bundleHSV, COLOR_BGR2HSV_FULL);
+
+            Mat_<int> cols(num, 1);
+            if(fgHist.empty())
+            {
+                cols = len + 1;
+
+                fgHist.create(bgHist.size());
+                updateFgBgHist(bundleHSV, cols);
+            }
+
+            Mat bundleGrad;
+            compute1DCanny(lineBundle, bundleGrad, sobelThresh);
+
+            Mat_<float> scores(lineBundle.size());
+            computeAppearanceScores(bundleHSV, bundleGrad, scores);
+            findCorrespondenciesOLS(scores, cols);
+
+            convertCorrespondencies(cols, imgLoc, pts2d, pts3d, cols > -1);
+
+            if (pts2d.rows < 3)
+                return 0;
+
+            solvePnPRefineLM(pts3d, pts2d, K, cv::noArray(), rvec, tvec);
+
+            updateFgBgHist(bundleHSV, cols);
+
+            ret = float(pts2d.rows) / num;
+
+            if(termcrit.type & TermCriteria::EPS)
+            {
+                Mat tmp;
+                cols.copyTo(tmp, cols > 0);
+                tmp -= len + 1;
+                double rmsd = std::sqrt(norm(tmp, NORM_L2SQR) / tmp.rows);
+                if(rmsd < termcrit.epsilon)
+                    break;
+            }
+        }
+
+        return ret;
+    }
+
+    void clearState() CV_OVERRIDE
+    {
+        fgHist.release();
+    }
+};
+
+Ptr<OLSTracker> OLSTracker::create(InputArray pts3d, InputArray tris, int histBins, uchar sobelThesh)
+{
+    return makePtr<OLSTrackerImpl>(pts3d, tris, histBins, sobelThesh);
+}
+
+} // namespace rapid
+} // namespace cv
diff --git a/modules/rapid/src/precomp.hpp b/modules/rapid/src/precomp.hpp
index b92639fb3..27ad52db5 100644
--- a/modules/rapid/src/precomp.hpp
+++ b/modules/rapid/src/precomp.hpp
@@ -8,4 +8,12 @@
 #include <vector>
 #include <opencv2/calib3d.hpp>
 
+namespace cv
+{
+namespace rapid
+{
+void compute1DSobel(const Mat& src, Mat& dst);
+}
+} // namespace cv
+
 #endif
diff --git a/modules/rapid/src/rapid.cpp b/modules/rapid/src/rapid.cpp
index d05707227..9a4cb5017 100644
--- a/modules/rapid/src/rapid.cpp
+++ b/modules/rapid/src/rapid.cpp
@@ -199,7 +199,7 @@ void extractLineBundle(int len, InputArray ctl2d, InputArray img, OutputArray bu
           INTER_NEAREST); // inter_nearest as we use integer locations
 }
 
-static void compute1DSobel(const Mat& src, Mat& dst)
+void compute1DSobel(const Mat& src, Mat& dst)
 {
     CV_CheckDepthEQ(src.depth(), CV_8U, "only uchar images supported");
     int channels = src.channels();
@@ -359,5 +359,50 @@ float rapid(InputArray img, int num, int len, InputArray vtx, InputArray tris, I
     return float(pts2d.rows) / num;
 }
 
+Tracker::~Tracker() {}
+
+struct RapidImpl : public Rapid
+{
+    Mat pts3d;
+    Mat tris;
+    RapidImpl(InputArray _pts3d, InputArray _tris)
+    {
+        CV_Assert(_tris.getMat().checkVector(3, CV_32S) > 0);
+        CV_Assert(_pts3d.getMat().checkVector(3, CV_32F) > 0);
+        pts3d = _pts3d.getMat();
+        tris = _tris.getMat();
+    }
+    float compute(InputArray img, int num, int len, InputArray K, InputOutputArray rvec,
+                  InputOutputArray tvec, const TermCriteria& termcrit) CV_OVERRIDE
+    {
+        float ret = 0;
+        int niter = std::max(1, termcrit.maxCount);
+
+        double rmsd;
+        Mat cols;
+        for(int i = 0; i < niter; i++)
+        {
+            ret = rapid(img, num, len, pts3d, tris, K, rvec, tvec,
+                        termcrit.type & TermCriteria::EPS ? &rmsd : NULL);
+
+            if((termcrit.type & TermCriteria::EPS) && rmsd < termcrit.epsilon)
+            {
+                break;
+            }
+        }
+        return ret;
+    }
+
+    void clearState() CV_OVERRIDE
+    {
+        // nothing to do
+    }
+};
+
+Ptr<Rapid> Rapid::create(InputArray pts3d, InputArray tris)
+{
+    return makePtr<RapidImpl>(pts3d, tris);
+}
+
 } /* namespace rapid */
 } /* namespace cv */
diff --git a/modules/rapid/test/test_main.cpp b/modules/rapid/test/test_main.cpp
index 1fc6e501e..b3050adc8 100644
--- a/modules/rapid/test/test_main.cpp
+++ b/modules/rapid/test/test_main.cpp
@@ -35,8 +35,10 @@ TEST(CV_Rapid, rapid)
 
     // recover pose form different position
     Vec3f t_init = Vec3f(0.1f, 0, 5);
-    for(int i = 0; i < 2; i++) // do two iteration
-        rapid::rapid(img, 100, 20, vtx, tris, K, rot, t_init);
+    auto tracker = rapid::Rapid::create(vtx, tris);
+    // do two iterations
+    TermCriteria term(TermCriteria::MAX_ITER, 2, 0);
+    tracker->compute(img, 100, 20, K, rot, t_init, term);
 
     // assert that it improved from init
     ASSERT_LT(cv::norm(trans - t_init), 0.075);