Proposed Image Segmentation Method Research Articles

Automatic Image Segmentation Using Active Contours with Univariate Marginal Distribution

This paper presents a novel automatic image segmentation method based on the theory of active contour models and estimation of distribution algorithms. The proposed method uses the univariate marginal distribution model to infer statistical dependencies between the control points on different active contours. These contours have been generated through an alignment process of reference shape priors, in order to increase the exploration and exploitation capabilities regarding different interactive segmentation techniques. This proposed method is applied in the segmentation of the hollow core in microscopic images of photonic crystal fibers and it is also used to segment the human heart and ventricular areas from datasets of computed tomography and magnetic resonance images, respectively. Moreover, to evaluate the performance of the medical image segmentations compared to regions outlined by experts, a set of similarity measures has been adopted. The experimental results suggest that the proposed image segmentation method outperforms the traditional active contour model and the interactive Tseng method in terms of segmentation accuracy and stability.

An Improved Image Segmentation Method Based Onmulti-Resolution Analysis and Watershed Transformation

This paper presents an improved image segmentation method based on multi-resolution analysis of wavelet transform and watershed transformation. In the marked-controlled watershed segmentation, we not only enhance the contours of low-resolution input image to acquire segmentation function image, but also use minima imposition technology to apply filters to input image to acquire marked function image. In order to improve segmentation accuracy, we use regional fusion and coarse-fine segmentation in wavelet inverse transform. The experimental results show that the proposed image segmentation method can efficiently reduce over-segmentation, as well as improve the effect of image segmentation. In addition, the proposed method is robust.

An Improved Image Segmentation Method Based Onmulti-Resolution Analysis and Watershed Transformation

This paper presents an improved image segmentation method based on multi-resolution analysis of wavelet transform and watershed transformation. In the marked-controlled watershed segmentation, we not only enhance the contours of low-resolution input image to acquire segmentation function image, but also use minima imposition technology to apply filters to input image to acquire marked function image. In order to improve segmentation accuracy, we use regional fusion and coarse-fine segmentation in wavelet inverse transform. The experimental results show that the proposed image segmentation method can efficiently reduce over-segmentation, as well as improve the effect of image segmentation. In addition, the proposed method is robust.

Extended dot product representations of graphs with application to radar image segmentation

Graph-based dimensionality reduction methods are popular in pattern recognition and machine learning. In contrast to the manifold learning approaches, the dot product representation of graphs (DPRG) seeks a solution to dimensionality reduction by assigning vectors to each node of a graph such that the dot product of every pair of nodes approximates the similarity between them. The DPRG has many potential applications, for the reason that there is no prior assumption of the data distribution. It has been found, however, that the DPRG tends to reduce the distances of the graph nodes represented in a low-dimensional space, which in turn degrades the performance of data clustering. Motivated by this observation, we propose an extended DPRG (EDPRG) model by simply employing negative similarity values. The theoretical analysis and experiments on synthetic data show that the modification is effective in increasing between-class distances. We demonstrate the effectiveness of the EDPRG model by experiments on synthetic aperture radar (SAR) image segmentation. The proposed image segmentation method has two steps. The first one presegments the image by the mean shift algorithm. The second merges the resulting regions by means of the EDPRG model.

The relative potential field as a novel physics-inspired method for image analysis

In this paper, the relative potential field is proposed as a novel image transform inspired by the physical electro-static field. A general form of image potential field is presented, based on which the relative potential is defined by introducing the factor of gray-scale difference into the potential field. The properties of the relative potential are investigated experimentally and analyzed, based on which an image segmentation method is proposed by region division and merging in the relative potential field. Experimental results prove the effectiveness of the proposed image segmentation method, and also indicate the promising application of the relative potential in image processing tasks.

Neuron tracing in perspective

The study of the structure and function of neuronal cells and networks is of crucial importance in the endeavor to understand how the brain works. A key component in this process is the extraction of neuronal morphology from microscopic imaging data. In the past four decades, many computational methods and tools have been developed for digital reconstruction of neurons from images, with limited success. As witnessed by the growing body of literature on the subject, as well as the organization of challenging competitions in the field, the quest for a robust and fully automated system of more general applicability still continues. The aim of this work, is to contribute by surveying recent developments in the field for anyone interested in taking up the challenge. Relevant aspects discussed in the article include proposed image segmentation methods, quantitative measures of neuronal morphology, currently available software tools for various related purposes, and morphology databases. (c) 2010 International Society for Advancement of Cytometry.

Iterative PSF Estimation and Its Application to Shift Invariant and Variant Blur Reduction

Among image restoration approaches, image deconvolution has been considered a powerful solution. In image deconvolution, a point spread function (PSF), which describes the blur of the image, needs to be determined. Therefore, in this paper, we propose an iterative PSF estimation algorithm which is able to estimate an accurate PSF. In real-world motion-blurred images, a simple parametric model of the PSF fails when a camera moves in an arbitrary direction with an inconsistent speed during an exposure time. Moreover, the PSF normally changes with spatial location. In order to accurately estimate the complex PSF of a real motion blurred image, we iteratively update the PSF by using a directional spreading operator. The directional spreading is applied to the PSF when it reduces the amount of the blur and the restoration artifacts. Then, to generalize the proposed technique to the linear shift variant (LSV) model, a piecewise invariant approach is adopted by the proposed image segmentation method. Experimental results show that the proposed method effectively estimates the PSF and restores the degraded images.

Symmetric region growing

Of the many proposed image segmentation methods, region growing has been one of the most popular. Research on region growing, however, has focused primarily on the design of feature measures and on growing and merging criteria. Most of these methods have an inherent dependence on the order in which the points and regions are examined. This weakness implies that a desired segmented result is sensitive to the selection of the initial growing points. We define a set of theoretical criteria for a subclass of region-growing algorithms that are insensitive to the selection of the initial growing points. This class of algorithms, referred to as symmetric region growing algorithms, leads to a single-pass region-growing algorithm applicable to any dimensionality of images. Furthermore, they lead to region-growing algorithms that are both memory- and computation-efficient. Results illustrate the method's efficiency and its application to 3D medical image segmentation.

Automated segmentation of multispectral brain MR images

This work presents a robust and comprehensive approach for the in vivo automated segmentation and quantitative tissue volume measurement of normal brain composition from multispectral magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data. Statistical pattern recognition methods based on a finite mixture model are used to partition the intracranial volume into gray matter (GM), white matter (WM), and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) spaces. A masking algorithm initially extracts the brain volume from surrounding extrameningeal tissue. Radio frequency (RF) field inhomogeneity effects in the images are then removed using a recursive method that adapts to the intrinsic local tissue contrast. Our technique supports heterogeneous data with multispectral MR images of different contrast and intensity weighting acquired at varying spatial resolution and orientation. The proposed image segmentation methods have been tested using multispectral T1-, proton density-, and T2-weighted MRI data from young and aged non-human primates as well as from human subjects.