A comparison of stochastic optimization techniques for image segmentation

Image segmentation denotes a process by which a raw input image is partitioned into nonoverlapping regions such that each region is homogeneous and the union of any two adjacent regions is heterogenous. A segmented image is considered to be the highest domain‐independent abstraction of an input image. In this paper, the image segmentation problem is treated as one of combinatorial optimization. A cost function which incorporates both, edge information and region gray‐scale variances is defined. The cost function is shown to be multivariate with several local minima. Three stochastic optimization techniques, namely, simulated annealing (SA), microcanonical annealing (MCA), and the random cost algorithm (RCA) are investigated and compared in the context of minimization of the aforementioned cost function for image segmentation. Experimental results on gray‐scale images are presented. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Image segmentation with ratio cut

This paper proposes a new cost function, cut ratio, for segmenting images using graph-based methods. The cut ratio is defined as the ratio of the corresponding sums of two different weights of edges along the cut boundary and models the mean affinity between the segments separated by the boundary per unit boundary length. This new cost function allows the image perimeter to be segmented, guarantees that the segments produced by bipartitioning are connected, and does not introduce a size, shape, smoothness, or boundary-length bias. The latter allows it to produce segmentations where boundaries are aligned with image edges. Furthermore, the cut-ratio cost function allows efficient iterated region-based segmentation as well as pixel-based segmentation. These properties may be useful for some image-segmentation applications. While the problem of finding a minimum ratio cut in an arbitrary graph is NP-hard, one can find a minimum ratio cut in the connected planar graphs that arise during image segmentation in polynomial time. While the cut ratio, alone, is not sufficient as a baseline method for image segmentation, it forms a good basis for an extended method of image segmentation when combined with a small number of standard techniques. We present an implemented algorithm for finding a minimum ratio cut, prove its correctness, discuss its application to image segmentation, and present the results of segmenting a number of medical and natural images using our techniques.     

A method for combining complementary techniques for document image segmentation

Image segmentation is a major task of handwritten document image processing. Many of the proposed techniques for image segmentation are complementary in the sense that each of them using a different approach can solve different difficult problems such as overlapping, touching components, influence of author or font style etc. In this paper, a combination method of different segmentation techniques is presented. Our goal is to exploit the segmentation results of complementary techniques and specific features of the initial image so as to generate improved segmentation results. Experimental results on line segmentation methods for handwritten documents demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed combination method.     

Image segmentation with one shape prior — A template-based formulation

Image segmentation with one shape prior is an important problem in computer vision. Most algorithms not only share a similar energy definition, but also follow a similar optimization strategy. Therefore, they all suffer from the same drawbacks in practice such as slow convergence and difficult-to-tune parameters. In this paper, by reformulating the energy cost function, we establish an important connection between shape-prior based image segmentation with intensity-based image registration. This connection enables us to combine advanced shape and intensity modeling techniques from segmentation society with efficient optimization techniques from registration society. Compared with the traditional regularization-based approach, our framework is more systematic and more efficient, able to converge in a matter of seconds. We also show that user interaction (such as strokes and bounding boxes) can easily be incorporated into our algorithm if desired. Through challenging image segmentation experiments, we demonstrate the improved performance of our algorithm compared to other proposed approaches.     

A variational framework for multiregion pairwise-similarity-based image segmentation

Variational cost functions that are based on pairwise similarity between pixels can be minimized within level set framework resulting in a binary image segmentation. In this paper we extend such cost functions and address multi-region image segmentation problem by employing a multi-phase level set framework. For multi-modal images cost functions become more complicated and relatively difficult to minimize. We extend our previous work, proposed for background/foreground separation, to the segmentation of images in more than two regions. We also demonstrate an efficient implementation of the curve evolution, which reduces the computational time significantly. Finally, we validate the proposed method on the Berkeley Segmentation Data Set by comparing its performance with other segmentation techniques.     

医学图像分割技术中变形模型方法的研究综述*

医学图像分割是医学图像处理中的一个经典难题。医学图像分割技术的发展不仅影响到医学图像处理中其他相关技术的发展,如可视化、三维重建等,而且在生物医学图像的分析中也占有极其重要的地位。近年来,由于一些新兴学科在医学图像处理中的应用,医学图像分割技术取得了显著的进展。对近年来兴起的基于变形模型的医学图像分割技术进行研究,综述了其发展历程和基本原理,分析和比较了基于变形模型的图像分割的各种技术的优缺点,展望了该技术领域以后一段时间内的发展趋势。     

A top-down region dividing approach for image segmentation

Histogram-based and region-based segmentation approaches have been widely used in image segmentation. Difficulties arise when we use these techniques, such as the selection of a proper threshold value for the histogram-based technique and the over-segmentation followed by the time-consuming merge processing for the region-based technique. To provide efficient algorithms that not only produce better segmentation results but also maintain low computational complexity, a novel top-down region dividing based approach is developed for image segmentation, which combines the advantages of both histogram-based and region-based approaches. Experimental results show that our algorithm can efficiently perform image segmentation without distorting the spatial structure of an image. Furthermore, two potential applications in medical image analysis are presented to show the advantages of using the proposed algorithm.     

Image segmentation using evolutionary computation

Image segmentation denotes a process by which a raw input image is partitioned into nonoverlapping regions such that each region is homogeneous and the union of any two adjacent regions is heterogeneous. A segmented image is considered to be the highest domain-independent abstraction of an input image. The image segmentation problem is treated as one of combinatorial optimization. A cost function which incorporates both edge information and region gray-scale uniformity is defined. The cost function is shown to be multivariate with several local minima. The genetic algorithm, a stochastic optimization technique based on evolutionary computation, is explored in the context of image segmentation. A class of hybrid evolutionary optimization algorithms based on a combination of the genetic algorithm and stochastic annealing algorithms such as simulated annealing, microcanonical annealing, and the random cost algorithm is shown to exhibit superior performance as compared with the canonical genetic algorithm. Experimental results on gray-scale images are presented     

基于Generalized Region Loss的代价函数及在图像分割中的应用

针对图像分割中的困难样本,提出了一种对像素区域细分计算的Generalized Region Loss的新的代价函数;首先通过引入一项参数,改变了以往代价函数主要通过设置权重或Focal等关注困难样本的方法,其次通过对标签图像和预测图像进行区域划分,并且对划分四区域的困难样本分类关注,最后分别计算其四区域绝对损失,进而进行加权组合;为验证算法性能,使用CamVid数据集作为实验数据,该代价函数在FCN和U-Net两种图像分割网络上得到验证,同当前图像分割领域常用的12种代价函相比,IoU指标分别提高1.93%和2.99%,由此证明此代价函数优于大多数图像分割代价函数;最终实验结果表明,提出的基于像素区域细分计算的代价函数能够有效提高图像分割精度,为图像分割的研究提供借鉴。     

基于特征加权的自适应FCM彩色图像分割算法

图像分割是模式识别、图像理解、计算机视觉等领域的重要研究内容.基于模糊C均值聚类(FCM)的图像分割是应用较为广泛的方法之一,但其存在需预先给出初始聚类数目,且要考虑各个特征对分类的不同影响等问题.通过引入ReliefF技术进行特征加权,结合聚类有效性指数自适应确定初始聚类数目、根据Laws纹理测度提取图像特征等措施,提出了一种新的FCM彩色图像分割算法.实验结果表明,该算法可以有效地提高图像分割效果,分割结果优于现有FCM图像分割方案.     

基于特征散度的自适应FCM图像分割算法

图像分割是模式识别、图像理解、计算机视觉等领域的重要研究内容。基于模糊C均值聚类(FCM)的图像分割是应用较为广泛的方法之一,但其存在距离测度鲁棒性差、需预先给出初始聚类数目、未考虑图像局部相关特性等问题。为克服上述缺点,通过引入特征散度进行距离测度,并结合聚类有效性指数自适应确定初始聚类数目和根据Laws纹理测度提取图像特征等措施,提出了一种新的FCM图像分割算法。实验结果表明,该新算法可以有效地提高图像的分割效果(特别是纹理图像),其分割结果优于现有FCM图像分割方案。     

一种快速均值漂移图像分割算法

图像分割是图像分析及图像理解的关键步骤。与其他图像分割算法相比,均值漂移(Mean Shift)算法具有原理简单、无需先验知识、可以处理灰度图像及复杂的自然彩色图像等优点。但该算法需要对图像中每个像素点进行迭代计算,因此分割所需要的时间较长。本文提出了一种快速Mean Shift图像分割算法(Fast mean shift,FMS),将少量像素点作为初始点进行迭代计算,而出现在高维球区域内的其他像素点根据其到已有类中心的距离进行归类,从而减少Mean Shift算法的迭代次数,缩短分割时间。实验结果表明,本文提出的快速Mean Shift图像分割算法可以获得良好的分割结果且具有较高的分割效率。     

模糊相关图割的非监督层次化彩色图像分割

目的 基于阈值的分割方法能根据像素的信息将图像划分为同类的区域,其中常用的最大模糊相关分割方法,因能利用模糊相关度量划分的适当性,得到较好的分割结果,而广受关注。然而该算法存在划分数需预先确定,阈值的分割结果存在孤立噪声,无法对彩色图像实施分割的问题。为此,提出基于模糊相关图割的非监督层次化分割策略来解决该问题。方法 算法首先将图像划分为若干超像素,以提高层次化图像分割的效率;随后将快速模糊相关算法与图割结合,构成模糊相关图割2-划分算子,在确保分割效率的基础上,解决单一阈值分割存在孤立噪声的问题;最后设计了自顶向下层次化分割策略,利用构建的2-划分算子选择合适的区域及通道,迭代地对超像素实施层次化分割,直到算法收敛,划分数自动确定。结果 对Berkeley分割数据库上300幅图像进行了测试,结果表明算法能有效分割彩色图像,分割精度优于Ncut、JSEG方法,运行时间较这两种方法也提高了近20%。结论 本文算法为最大模糊相关算法在非监督彩色图像分割领域的应用提供指导依据,能用于目标检测和识别领域。     

基于改进粒子群算法的二维阈值图像分割*

二维Otsu方法同时考虑了图像的灰度信息和像素间的空间邻域信息,是一种有效的图像分割方法。针对二维Otsu方法计算量大的特点,采用量子粒子群算法来搜索最优二维阈值向量, 每个粒子代表一个可行的二维阈值向量,通过各个粒子的飞行来获得最优阈值。结果表明,所提出的方法不仅能得到理想的分割结果,而且计算量大大减少,达到了快速分割的目的,便于二维Otsu方法的实时应用。     

Images thresholding using ISODATA technique with gamma distribution

Image segmentation is a fundamental step in many applications of image processing. Many image segmentation techniques exist based on different methods such as classification-based methods, edge-based methods, region-based methods, and hybrid methods. The principal approach of segmentation is based on thresholding (classification) that is related to thresholds estimation problem. The ISODATA (Iterative Self-Organizing Data Analysis Technique) method is one of the classification-based methods in image segmentation. We assumed that the data in images is modeled by Gamma distribution. The objective of this paper is to explain a new method that combines Gamma distribution with the technique of ISODATA. The algorithm has two phases: splitting using Gamma distribution then merging which are done based on some predefined parameters. Experimental results showed good segmentation for artificial and real images.     

A Review of Statistical Approaches to Level Set Segmentation: Integrating Color,Texture, Motion and Shape

Since their introduction as a means of front propagation and their first application to edge-based segmentation in the early 90’s, level set methods have become increasingly popular as a general framework for image segmentation. In this paper, we present a survey of a specific class of region-based level set segmentation methods and clarify how they can all be derived from a common statistical framework. Region-based segmentation schemes aim at partitioning the image domain by progressively fitting statistical models to the intensity, color, texture or motion in each of a set of regions. In contrast to edge-based schemes such as the classical Snakes, region-based methods tend to be less sensitive to noise. For typical images, the respective cost functionals tend to have less local minima which makes them particularly well-suited for local optimization methods such as the level set method. We detail a general statistical formulation for level set segmentation. Subsequently, we clarify how the integration of various low level criteria leads to a set of cost functionals. We point out relations between the different segmentation schemes. In experimental results, we demonstrate how the level set function is driven to partition the image plane into domains of coherent color, texture, dynamic texture or motion. Moreover, the Bayesian formulation allows to introduce prior shape knowledge into the level set method. We briefly review a number of advances in this domain.     

基于对象的高精度土地遥感影像分割技术

针对面向对象分割技术进行土地分割时出现精度缺陷及主观性因素参与过多等不足,提出一种基于对象的高精度土地遥感影像分割技术.该方法将全色波段影像的边缘图像与全色波段影像及多光谱影像第一主成分图像进行融合,得到一幅假彩色图像代替原始图像进行面向对象分割,运用基于光谱信息和空间信息的合并算法将过分割的对象合并完成分割.实验结果...     

基于区域特征的交互式图像分割方法及其应用

交互式图像分割方法因其能够处理复杂的图像而得到了广泛的研究.文章提出了一种基于代理机模型的交互式图像分割方法.代理机是完成特定功能的模块,它通过控制界面和汇报界面实现与操作者的交互.该代理机以欲分割区域的特征作为其组成部分之一.该方法在医学图像分割问题中的应用取得了较好的结果.     

Statistical Shape Features for Content-Based Image Retrieval

In this article the use of statistical, low-level shape features in content-based image retrieval is studied. The emphasis is on such techniques which do not demand object segmentation. PicSOM, the image retrieval system used in the experiments, requires that features are represented by constant-sized feature vectors for which the Euclidean distance can be used as a similarity measure. The shape features suggested here are edge histograms and Fourier-transform-based features computed from the image after edge detection in Cartesian or polar coordinate planes. The results show that both local and global shape features are important clues of shapes in an image.     

Unsupervised statistical segmentation of nonstationary images using triplet Markov fields

Recent developments in statistical theory and associated computational techniques have opened new avenues for image modeling as well as for image segmentation techniques. Thus, a host of models have been proposed and the ones which have probably received considerable attention are the hidden Markov fields (HMF) models. This is due to their simplicity of handling and their potential for providing improved image quality. Although these models provide satisfying results in the stationary case, they can fail in the nonstationary one. In this paper, we tackle the problem of modeling a nonstationary hidden random field and its effect on the unsupervised statistical image segmentation. We propose an original approach, based on the recent triplet Markov field (TMF) model, which enables one to deal with nonstationary class fields. Moreover, the noise can be correlated and possibly non-Gaussian. An original parameter estimation method which uses the Pearson system to find the natures of the noise margins, which can vary with the class, is also proposed and used to perform unsupervised segmentation of such images. Experiments indicate that the new model and related processing algorithm can improve the results obtained with the classical ones.