Robust segmentation method for noisy images based on an unsupervised denosing filter

Abstract

Level-set-based image segmentation has been widely used in unsupervised segmentation tasks. Researchers have recently alleviated the influence of image noise on segmentation results by introducing global or local statistics into existing models. Most existing methods are based on the assumption that the distribution of image noise is known or observable. However, real-time images do not meet this assumption. To bridge this gap, we propose a novel level-set-based segmentation method with an unsupervised denoising mechanism. First, a denoising filter is acquired under the unsupervised learning paradigm. Second, the denoising filter is integrated into the level-set framework to separate noise from the noisy image input. Finally, the level-set energy function is minimized to acquire segmentation contours. Extensive experiments demonstrate the robustness and effectiveness of the proposed method when applied to noisy images.