Fast automated mosaic synthesis method for 2-D/3-D image analysis of specimens much wider than the field of view

Abstract

We present an efficient, robust, and widely-applicable technique for computational synthesis of wide-area images from a series of overlapping partial views. The synthesized image is the set union of the areas covered by the partial views, and is called the “mosaic”. One application is the laser-scanning confocal microscopy of specimens that are much wider than the field of view of the microscope. Another is imaging of the retinal periphery using a standard fundus imager. This technique can also be used to combine the results of various forms of image analysis, such as cell counting and neuron tracing, to generate large representations that are equivalent to processing the total mosaic, rather than the individual partial views.The synthesis begins by computing a concise set of landmark points for each partial view. The type of landmarks used can vary greatly depending on the application. For instance, in the retinal imaging application, the vascular branching and crossover points are a natural choice. Likewise, the locations of cells in Figs. 1 and 2 provide a natural set of landmarks for joining these images.