Quaternion attention-based JND model for macrophotography image watermarking

Abstract

With the advancement of imaging technology, macrophotography images (MPIs) have become a popular research topic. Unlike natural images, MPIs often feature sharp foregrounds and blurred backgrounds, leading to distinct perceptual characteristics in estimation. As the number of MPIs grows rapidly, concerns over image quality and security increase. Robust watermarking techniques have been introduced to address these challenges. Just Noticeable Difference (JND) has been widely used in quantization-based watermarking frameworks. However, existing JND models handle each image area with a single-level perceptual attention. Visual attention in Quaternion Discrete Wavelet Transform (QDWT), which can reflect the Multi-level perceptual attention feature. Therefore, we propose a new method called Quaternion Attention-based Just Noticeable Difference model for MPIs Watemarking (QAJnd-MW) for watermarking MPIs. This method uses visual attention mechanisms, recognizing that the HVS is more sensitive to attention regions. We generate a masking effect in the JND field. The input image undergoes QDWT to explore multi-scale features. The multi-scale feature maps, with multi-directional luminance and multi-channel color, help create local and global attention maps, which are fused to form the final attention map. Specifically, considering both attention-based masking effects, the quaternion attention-guided JND model is designed for a robust MPI watermarking framework, aiming to further improve MPI security. Extensive experiments on the MP2020 and Blur Detection datasets show that the proposed model significantly improves robustness against JPEG compression attacks, reducing the bit error rate (BER) by up to 12%. Additionally, the model performs well against other attacks, such as those in online social networks, with lower BER than current state-of-the-art techniques.