Multifocus noisy image fusion using contourlet transform

Abstract

Image fusion is a challenging area of research with a variety of applications. The process of image fusion collects information from different sources and combines them in a single composite image. The composite fused image can better describe the scene than any of the source images. In this paper, we have proposed a method for noisy image fusion in contourlet domain. The proposed method works equally well for fusion of noise free images. Contourlet transform is a multiscale, multidirectional transform with various aspect ratios. These properties make it more suitable for image fusion than other conventional transforms. In the proposed work, the fusion algorithm is combined with a denoising algorithm to reverse the effect of noise. In the proposed method, we have used a level dependent threshold that is based on standard deviation of contourlet coefficients, mean and median of the absolute contourlet coefficients. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method performs well in the presence of different types of noise. Performance of the proposed method is compared with principal components analysis and sharp fusion based methods as well as other fusion methods based on variants of wavelet transform like dual tree complex wavelet transform, discrete wavelet transform, lifting wavelet transform, multiwavelet transform, stationary wavelet transform and pyramid transform using six standard quantitative quality metrics (entropy, standard deviation, edge strength, fusion factor, sharpness and peak signal to noise ratio). The combined qualitative and quantitative evaluation of the experimental results shows that the proposed method performs better than other methods.     

Attenuating noise from computed tomography medical images using a coefficients‐driven total variation denoising algorithm

The aim of image denoising is to recover a visually accepted image from its noisy observation with as much detail as possible. The noise exists in computed tomography images due to hardware errors, software faults and/or low radiation dose. Because of noise, the analysis and extraction of accurate medical information is a challenging task for specialists. Therefore, a novel modification on the total variational denoising algorithm is proposed in this article to attenuate the noise from CT images and provide a better visual quality. The newly developed algorithm can properly detect noise from the other image components using four new noise distinguishing coefficients and reduce it using a novel minimization function. Moreover, the proposed algorithm has a fast computation speed, a simple structure, a relatively low computational cost and preserves the small image details while reducing the noise efficiently. Evaluating the performance of the proposed algorithm is achieved through the use of synthetic and real noisy images. Likewise, the synthetic images are appraised by three advanced accuracy methods –Gradient Magnitude Similarity Deviation (GMSD), Structural Similarity (SSIM) and Weighted Signal‐to‐Noise Ratio (WSNR). The empirical results exhibited significant improvement not only in noise reduction but also in preserving the minor image details. Finally, the proposed algorithm provided satisfying results that outperformed all the comparative methods.     

采用离散余弦变换的小波图像去噪方法

提出一种通过对小波域中噪声能量的估计来进行去噪的新方法。算法采用离散余弦变换(DCT)提取小波系数的主要特征,无需对噪声方差进行估计。对图像进行小波分解,利用 DCT对高频子带进行局部特征提取;利用部分 DCT 系数对小波系数进行重建,并以重建系数的平均能量作为局部噪声能量的估计;去除原小波系数中的噪声分量后,进行小波逆变换,得到去噪后的图像。实验证明,其峰值信噪比(PSNR)比通常的阈值萎缩法提高了 2-4dB。     

基于四元数小波混合统计模型的图像去噪

图像的去噪和压缩一直是图像处理的经典问题,传统的方法中很难将二者同时兼顾。四元数小波变换是实小波、四元数理论及二维希尔伯特变换相结合的产物,是一种新的多尺度分析图像处理工具。图像经四元数小波变换后,其小波系数不仅在尺度内具有相关性,而且在尺度间也具有一定的相关性。文中提出一种混合统计模型,该模型包括尺度间的二元非高斯分布模型和尺度内的广义高斯分布模型,然后运用最小均方误差（MMSE）估计从噪声图中的小波系数恢复原图的系数,从而达到去除图像的噪声的目的。仿真实验表明,论文方法不仅可以获得信噪比上的提高、视觉上达到明显的去噪效果,而且取得了较高的压缩比。     

采用零树结构分类小波系数的红外图像降噪

红外图像易受噪声污染,为了改善红外图像的质量,提出了一种基于零树结构分类小波系数的红外图像降噪算法.该算法利用小波零树结构表达尺度间的相关性,通过空间自适应阈值将小波系数进行分类,并根据不同类系数的统计特性采用不同的先验分布模型,在贝叶斯框架下实现降噪.实验结果表明,本文算法在峰值信噪比(PSNR)指标上优于传统算法;从视觉效果来看,该算法在有效去除图像噪声的同时能较好地保持空间细节,可以满足当前红外图像降噪的需求.     

非下采样Contourlet变换域统计模型红外图像去噪

对红外图像进行非下采样Contourlet变换,分析其系数的统计特征,采用广义高斯分布来模拟系数的概率分布。根据非下采样Contourlet变换的带通子带各方向能量不同的特点,提出修正的贝叶斯阈值公式,为了克服软、硬阈值函数的缺点,又提出一种具有可调节自适应性的新阈值函数,最后利用新阈值函数估计出不含噪声的变换系数,并通过非下采样Contourlet逆变换得到去噪后的红外图像。仿真实验表明,文中方法在峰值信噪比及视觉效果上均优于经典的小波阈值去噪算法。     

一种采用多个小波基的图像融合去噪方法

提出了一种新的基于多个小波基的图像融合去噪方法.首先利用多个不同的小波基对含噪图像进行阈值去噪,得到多幅恢复图像.然后对这些图像采用小波融合方法进行融合.对于低频系数采用基于边缘的融合算法,在多幅恢复图像中选择最有可能是边缘的点加以保留;对于高频系数,采用了平均的融合算法.最后得到一幅去噪图像.实验结果表明,无论是在视觉效果上还是在峰值信噪比定量指标上该方法去噪效果均明显优于单一小波基去噪.     

应用轮廓波和稀疏编码收缩法消噪毫米波图像

结合以峭度为稀疏标准的稀疏编码算法的高阶统计特性以及轮廓波分解的方向性和能量变化特性,提出了一种新的基于轮廓波和稀疏编码收缩技术的毫米波图像消噪方法。稀疏编码是一种有效的模拟视觉系统的图像特征提取方法,根据提出的特征系数的稀疏先验分布知识,能够自适应地确定收缩阈值。把该收缩技术应用到轮廓波变换域,能够很好地减弱毫米波图像中的未知噪声。采用相对信噪比评判消噪图像的质量,仿真实验表明,与标准稀疏编码收缩方法、轮廓波变换域降噪方法以及小波软阈值收缩方法相比,该降噪方法能够获得较好的图像恢复质量。     

基于Contourlet变换尺度间相关的图像去噪

Contourlet域数据分析表明,信号的变换域系数在尺度间相关性高,而白噪声则呈弱相关或不相关。通过相关性强弱区分噪声与信号系数,并结合阈值函数,提出了基于Contourlet变换尺度间相关的图像去噪新算法。实验结果表明,新方法去噪后的图像比小波相关去噪算法的PSNR值更高,视觉效果更好,尤其适用于纹理轮廓丰富的图像去噪。     

基于凸包优化的盲源分离在图像去噪中的研究

目的针对高斯-脉冲混合噪声图像中难以有效去除大量奇异点或离群数据的问题,提出一种基于凸包优化的盲源分离方法来去除图像中的混合噪声。方法该方法把混合噪声和原图均看作未知的源信号,依据噪声图像中混合噪声与原图内容的加性关系建立盲源分离的模型,并利用凸包优化的方法构建源信号(凸包极点)的仿射包,然后通过最小化仿射包到凸包(噪声图像)上的投影误差,求解混合噪声和原图2个源信号,实现去噪混合噪声、复原原图的目的。结果实验结果发现,无论高斯-脉冲混合噪声强弱,该方法去噪复原后的峰值信噪比和平均结构相似性分别在39.9129 d B和0.9以上。结论由实验数据证实该方法可有效地从盲源分离的角度去除图像中高斯-脉冲混合噪声、复原原始图像。     

基于小波系数邻域特征的CT与MR图像融合方法

提出一种基于小波变换的像素级CT,MR医学图像融合方法,利用离散小波变换分别将两幅源图像进行多尺度分解,再用不同的小波系数邻域特征指导高频分量和低频分量的小波系数的融合,低频分量采用邻域方差指导,高频分量采用邻域能量指导,最后根据融合图像的各小波系数重构融合图像.实验表明:不论从主观感受,还是采用信息熵和平均梯度两项指标作为客观定量评价标准,该方法都优于传统的融合方法,获得的融合图像有效地综合了CT与MR图像信息,能够同时清晰地显示脑部骨组织和软组织.     

A curvelet transform approach for the fusion of MR and CT images

There are several medical imaging techniques such as the magnetic resonance (MR) and the computed tomography (CT) techniques. Both techniques give sophisticated characteristics of the region to be imaged. This paper proposes a curvelet based approach for fusing MR and CT images to obtain images with as much detail as possible, for the sake of medical diagnosis. This approach is based on the application of the additive wavelet transform (AWT) on both images and the segmentation of their detail planes into small overlapping tiles. The ridgelet transform is then applied on each of these tiles, and the fusion process is performed on the ridgelet transforms of the tiles. Simulation results show the superiority of the proposed curvelet fusion approach to the traditional fusion techniques like the multiresolution discrete wavelet transform (DWT) technique and the principal component analysis (PCA) technique. The fusion of MR and CT images in the presence of noise is also studied and the results reveal that unlike the DWT fusion technique, the proposed curvelet fusion approach doesn't require denoising.     

3D multiwavelet based block coding algorithm for compression of volumetric medical images

Three dimensional (3D) medical images possess some specific characteristics that should be utilized by an efficient compression scheme. In this article, one such compression scheme for volumetric 3D medical image data is presented. Two processes involved in this scheme are decorrelation and encoding. Decorrelation of the 3D data is realized through 3D multiwavelet transform with apt prefiltering so as to give good representation of the image which could be exploited by the encoder. Encoding is done through proposed Block Coding Algorithm, which is embedded, block based, and wavelet transform coding algorithm without maintaining any list structures. The idea behind this algorithm is to sort the 3D transform coefficients in to a 1D array with respect to declining thresholds and to use state table to keep track of the blocks and coefficients that has been coded. In the experiment conducted on various 3D magnetic resonance and computed tomography images of human brain with multiwavelets such as Geronimo–Hardin–Massopust, Chui‐Lian, and orthogonal symmetric/antisymmetric (SA4), efficiency of the proposed scheme was weighed against the state of art encoders such as 3D Set Partitioning in Hierarchical Trees, 2D Set Partitioned Embedded BloCK Coder, and No List SPIHT. Attributes used for performance measurements are peak signal to noise ratio, bit rate, and structural similarity index of reconstructed image with respect to original image. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Imaging Syst Technol, 24, 182–192, 2014     

Efficient fringe image enhancement based on dual-tree complex wavelet transform

In optical phase shift profilometry (PSP), parallel fringe patterns are projected onto an object and the deformed fringes are captured using a digital camera. It is of particular interest in real time three-dimensional (3D) modeling applications because it enables 3D reconstruction using just a few image captures. When using this approach in a real life environment, however, the noise in the captured images can greatly affect the quality of the reconstructed 3D model. In this paper, a new image enhancement algorithm based on the oriented two-dimenional dual-tree complex wavelet transform (DT-CWT) is proposed for denoising the captured fringe images. The proposed algorithm makes use of the special analytic property of DT-CWT to obtain a sparse representation of the fringe image. Based on the sparse representation, a new iterative regularization procedure is applied for enhancing the noisy fringe image. The new approach introduces an additional preprocessing step to improve the initial guess of the iterative algorithm. Compared with the traditional image enhancement techniques, the proposed algorithm achieves a further improvement of 7.2 dB on average in the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). When applying the proposed algorithm to optical PSP, the new approach enables the reconstruction of 3D models with improved accuracy from 6 to 20 dB in the SNR over the traditional approaches if the fringe images are noisy.     

Mammographic Images Enhancement and Denoising for Breast Cancer Detection Using Dyadic Wavelet Processing

Mammography is the most effective method for the early detection of breast diseases. However, the typical diagnostic signs such as microcalcifications and masses are difficult to detect because mammograms are low-contrast and noisy images. In this paper, a novel algorithm for image denoising and enhancement based on dyadic wavelet processing is proposed. The denoising phase is based on a local iterative noise variance estimation. Moreover, in the case of microcalcifications, we propose an adaptive tuning of enhancement degree at different wavelet scales, whereas in the case of mass detection, we developed a new segmentation method combining dyadic wavelet information with mathematical morphology. The innovative approach consists of using the same algorithmic core for processing images to detect both microcalcifications and masses. The proposed algorithm has been tested on a large number of clinical images, comparing the results with those obtained by several other algorithms proposed in the literature through both analytical indexes and the opinions of radiologists. Through preliminary tests, the method seems to meaningfully improve the diagnosis in the early breast cancer detection with respect to other approaches.     

一种结合小波变换和维纳滤波的图像去噪算法

目的为了有效消除噪声图像中的椒盐噪声、高斯噪声甚至混合噪声,结合维纳滤波的优势和小波分解各分量的特点,提出一种新的图像去噪算法。方法该算法先将含噪声图像进行小波变换,分离出1个低频分量和3个中高频分量,然后对低频分量进行自适应维纳滤波,对3个中高频分量用Canny算子提取边缘,最后将处理后的4个分量进行重构得到去噪后的图像。结果仿真结果表明,该算法对扫描仪引入的常见噪声均表现出较好的去噪效果,PSNR值均大于20 d B。尤其是对于高斯噪声和混合噪声,新算法去噪后的PSNR结果高于维纳滤波、软阈值小波滤波和文献[9]算法1~8 d B,效果较好。结论结合小波变换和维纳滤波的图像去噪算法,能够较好去除噪声图像的多种类型噪声,是一种较为优秀的去噪算法。     

Four‐neighborhood clique kernel: A general framework for Bayesian and variational techniques of noise reduction in magnetic resonance images of the brain

Several algorithms have been proposed in the literature for image denoising but none exhibit optimal performance for all range and types of noise and for all image acquisition modes. We describe a new general framework, built from four‐neighborhood clique system, for denoising medical images. The kernel quantifies smoothness energy of spatially continuous anatomical structures. Scalar and vector valued quantification of smoothness energy configures images for Bayesian and variational denoising modes, respectively. Within variational mode, the choice of norm adapts images for either total variation or Tikhonov technique. Our proposal has three significant contributions. First, it demonstrates that the four‐neighborhood clique kernel is a basic filter, in same class as Gaussian and wavelet filters, from which state‐of‐the‐art denoising algorithms are derived. Second, we formulate theoretical analysis, which connects and integrates Bayesian and variational techniques into a two‐layer structured denoising system. Third, our proposal reveals that the first layer of the new denoising system is a hitherto unknown form of Markov random field model referred to as single‐layer Markov random field (SLMRF). The new model denoises a specific type of medical image by minimizing energy subject to knowledge of mathematical model that describes relationship between the image smoothness energy and noise level but without reference to a classical prior model. SLMRF was applied to and evaluated on two real brain magnetic resonance imaging datasets acquired with different protocols. Comparative performance evaluation shows that our proposal is comparable to state‐of‐the‐art algorithms. SLMRF is simple and computationally efficient because it does not incorporate a regularization parameter. Furthermore, it preserves edges and its output is devoid of blurring and ringing artifacts associated with Gaussian‐based and wavelet‐based algorithms. The denoising system is potentially applicable to speckle reduction in ultrasound images and extendable to three‐layer structure that account for texture features in medical images. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Imaging Syst Technol, 24, 224–238, 2014     

一种结合时间轴滤波的视频消噪新方法

为了提高含噪视频图像的质量,提出了一种二维小波域自适应滤波与时域时间轴滤波相结合的视频图像消噪新方法。首先,对视频序列的各帧在二维小波域中进行自适应滤波,之后在时域中进行时间轴滤波。对于二维小波域滤波算法,提出了一种高效的自适应阈值选取方案;时间轴滤波器则是结合了运动检测和递归平均。实验结果表明,其消噪效果要优于单纯的二维小波域滤波方法。     

An extended non‐local means algorithm: Application to brain MRI

Improved adaptive nonlocal means (IANLM) is a variant of classical nonlocal means (NLM) denoising method based on adaptation of its search window size. In this article, an extended nonlocal means (XNLM) algorithm is proposed by adapting IANLM to Rician noise in images obtained by magnetic resonance (MR) imaging modality. Moreover, for improved denoising, a wavelet coefficient mixing procedure is used in XNLM to mix wavelet sub‐bands of two IANLM‐filtered images, which are obtained using different parameters of IANLM. Finally, XNLM includes a novel parameter‐free pixel preselection procedure for improving computational efficiency of the algorithm. The proposed algorithm is validated on T1‐weighted, T2‐weighted and Proton Density (PD) weighted simulated brain MR images (MRI) at several noise levels. Optimal values of different parameters of XNLM are obtained for each type of MRI sequence, and different variants are investigated to reveal the benefits of different extensions presented in this work. The proposed XNLM algorithm outperforms several contemporary denoising algorithms on all the tested MRI sequences, and preserves important pathological information more effectively. Quantitative and visual results show that XNLM outperforms several existing denoising techniques, preserves important pathological information more effectively, and is computationallyefficient.     

基于边缘检测的邻域加窗图像去噪算法

针对目前图像去噪算法中,消除噪声的同时又破坏边缘细节信息的问题,本文提出了结合边缘检测及邻域加窗的新算法.该算法采取平稳小波基以保持相位不变性,对低频和高频子带进行边缘检测,并将检测后的边缘信息选择后融合,即可得到原图像近似的边缘信息.依据小波方向性特点和层内相关性原理,对不同的子带在非边缘信息处采用不同的模板进行加窗处理.实验结果表明,该方法在降低了图像噪声的同时又尽可能地保留了图像的细节,较好地复原了图像.