A dynamic learning neural network for remote sensing applications

The neural network learning process is to adjust the network weights to adapt the selected training data. Based on the polynomial basis function (PBF) modeled neural network that is a modified multilayer perceptrons (MLP) network, a dynamic learning algorithm (DL) is proposed. The presented learning algorithm makes use of the Kalman filtering technique to update the network weights, in the sense that the stochastic characteristics of incoming data sets are implicitly incorporated into the network. The Kalman gains which represent the learning rates of the network weights updating are calculated by using the U-D factorization. By concatenating all of the network weights at each layer to form a long vector such that it can be updated without propagating back, the proposed algorithm improves the performance of convergence to which the backpropagation (BP) learning algorithm often suffers. Numerical illustrations are carried out using two categories of problems: multispectral imagery classification and surface parameters inversion. Results indicates the use of Kalman filtering algorithm not only substantially increases the convergence rate in the learning stage, but also enhances the separability for highly nonlinear boundaries problems, as compared to BP algorithm, suggesting that the proposed DL neural network provides a practical and potential tool for remote sensing applications