Vivekananda

College of Engineering & Technology

Question and Answers on

10CS762 /10IS762
Digital Image Processing

UNIT- 8 : MATHEMATICAL MORPHOLOGY

Prepared by

Harivinod N
Assistant Professor,
Dept. of Computer Science and Engineering,
VCET Puttur

2016-17
 Question and Answers || Unit 8: Mathematical Morphology

Question and Answers

Mathematical Morphology
Q1. Define morphology and its basics.
Q2. List the Applications of morphology
Q3. Explain in detail, the four basic principles of morphology

Basic Operations of morphology

Q4. Explain binary dilation and erosion.
Q5. Explain Hit and Miss Transformation
Q6. Discuss the concept of opening and closing
Q7. Describe the role of structuring element in mathematical morphology.

Applications of morphology
Q8. Explain the procedure for boundary extraction using morphological operators.
Q9. What do you mean by skeletanization? Explain thinning by structural elements.
Q10. How Region/Hole filling is achieved through morphology?

Gray-scale
scale dilation and erosion
Q11. Describe Umbra, Top surface.
Q12. Explain how erosion and dilation can be applied to a grayscale image?

Segmentation
Q13. Describe top hat transformation with a diagram.
Q14. Explain morphological segmentation and watershed.

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 Question and Answers || Unit 8: Mathematical Morphology

Q1. Define morphology and its basics.

Definition
Mathematical Morphology is a tool for extracting image components that are useful for
representation and description. It is a set-theoretic
theoretic method of image analysis providing a
quantitative description of geometrical structures.
General Properties
Morphological operations are based on simple expanding and shrinking operations. It
simplifies images, and quantifies and preserves the main shape characteristics of objects. The
primary application of morphology occurs in binary images, though it is also used on grey
level images.
How it works?
A morphological transformation Ψ is given by the relation of the image (point set X) with
another small point set B called a structuring element. B is expressed with respect to a local
origin O (called the representative point).
To apply the morphological transformation Ψ(X) to the image X, move structuring element B
systematically across the entire image.
Assume that B is positioned at some point in the image; the pixel in the image corresponding
to the representative point O of the structuring clement is called the current pixel.
The result of the relation (which call be either zero or one) between the image X and the
structuring element B in the current position is stored in the output image in the current image
pixel position.

Q2. List the applications

pplications of morphology
Morphological operations are used predominantly for the following purposes:
1. Image pre-processing
processing (noise filtering, shape simplification).
2. Enhancing
ing object structure (skeletonising,
(skeletonising, thinning, thickening, convex hull, object
marking) .
3. Segmenting objects from the background.
4. Quantitative description of objects (area, perimeter, projections, Euler-Poincare
characteristic).

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 Question and Answers || Unit 8: Mathematical Morphology

Q3. Explain in detail, the four basic principles of morphology

A morphological transformation Ψ is called quantitative if and only if it satisfies four basic
principles: Compatibility with translation,
translation Compatibility with change of scale, scale Local
knowledge and Upper semi-continuity
continuity
1. Compatibility with translation
Let the transformation Ψ depend on the position of the origin O of the co-ordinate
co system.
Transformation is denoted byy Ψo
Ψ . If all points are translated by the vector -h, it is expressed
Ψ-h. The compatibility with translation principle is given
gi by

If Ψ does not depend on the position of the origin O , then the compatibility with translation:
principle reduces to invariance under translation

2. Compatibility with change of scale

Let λX represent the homothetic scaling of a point set X (i.e., the co-ordinates
co ordinates of each point
of the set are multiplied by some positive constant λ ). This is equivalent to change of scale
with respect to origin.
Let Ψλ denote a transformation that depends on the
the positive parameter λ (change of scale).
Compatibility with change of scale is given by

If Ψ does not depend on the scale λ,, then compatibility with change of scale reduces to
invariance to change of scale

3. Local knowledge
The morphological transformation Ψ satisfies the local know ledge principle if for any
bounded point set Z' in the transformation Ψ (X) there exists a bounded set Z, knowledge of
which is sufficient to provide Ψ.
Ψ
The local knowledge principle may be written
writt symbolically as

4. Upper semi-continuity
The upper semi-continuity
continuity principle says that the morphological transformation does not
exhibit any abrupt changes.

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 Question and Answers || Unit 8: Mathematical Morphology

Q4. Explain binary dilation and erosion.

Dilation: The dilation is the point set of all possiblee vector additions of pairs of
ements, one from each of the sets A and B
elements,

Example:

Note: In the above example in a point p(x,y), x denotes column number starting with 0 and y
denotes row number starting with 0
Erosion: Erosion combines two sets using vector subtraction of set elements and is the dual
operator of dilation.

This formula says that every point p from the image is tested.
tested The result of the erosion is
given by those points p for which all possible p + b are in X.
Example:

Note: Neither erosion nor dilation is an invertible transformation

Q5. Explain Hit and Miss Transformation

The hit-or-miss
miss transformation is the morphological operator for finding local patterns of
pixels, where local means the size of the structuring element. It is a variant of template
matching that finds collections of pixels with certain shape properties (such as corners or
border points).
The transform involves looking for pixel positions where one component lies within the set of
black pixels, and the other lies completely without.
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 Question and Answers || Unit 8: Mathematical Morphology

An operation may be denoted

denote by a pair of disjoint sets B=(B1,B2),, called a composite
structuring element.

where B1 – set of foreground

oreground pixels(1’s), B2 – set of background
ackground pixels (0’s)
(0’s
It may be expressed using erosions and dilations as well

Application: Corner Detection

Special types of structuring elements are used to detect four types of corners.
corners The original
image and the result is shown below.

Q6. Discuss the concept of opening and closing

Erosion followed by dilation is called opening. Opening removes thinn connections, small
protrusion in the image.

Dilation followed by erosion is called closing. Closing removes holes in the image.

If an image X is unchanged by opening with the structuring element B, it is called open with
respect to B. Similarly, if an image X is unchanged by closing with B,, it is called closed with
respect to B.
Illustration:
Result of opening by 3x3
square structuring element

Result of closing by 3x3 square

Structuring element

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 Question and Answers || Unit 8: Mathematical Morphology

Properties

Another significant fact is that iteratively used openings and closings are idempotent,
Reapplication of these transformations does not change the previous result.

Application
1. Preprocessing fingerprint images.
2. Closing connects objects that are close to each other, fills up small holes, and
smoothes the object outline by filling up narrow gulfs
3. Opening and closing with an isotropic structuring element is used to eliminate specific
image details smaller than the structuring element the global shape of the objects is
not distorted.

Q7. Describe the role of structuring element in mathematical

morphology.
The result of mathematical morphology is determined by size/shape of the structuring
element.
In dilation the image is expanded as per the size and shape of the structuring element. As size
increases, dilation results in filling bigger gaps and holes.
In erosion the image is shrinked relative to the size and shape of the structuring
structuring element. As
size increases, erosion results in removing larger protrusion.
When used by a hit-or-miss
miss transform, usually the structuring element is a composite of two
disjoint sets (two simple structuring elements), one associated to the foreground,
foregroun and one
associated to the background of the image to be probed.

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 Question and Answers || Unit 8: Mathematical Morphology

Q8. Explain boundary extraction using morphological operators.

The boundary of a set A, denoted by β(A),
(A), can be obtained by first eroding A by B and then
performing the set differences between A and its erosion. That is,
β(A)=A – (AΘB), where B is a suitable structuring element(usually
element usually 3x3 matrix),
Illustration

AΘB β(A)

Q9. What do you mean by skeletanization?

skeletanization? Explain thinning by structural
elements.
Skeletonization is a process for reducing foreground regions in a binary image to a skeletal
residue that largely preserves the extent and connectivity of the original region while
throwing away most of the original foreground pixels.
pixels
The skeleton can be produced by successive morphological thinning.
Thinning is a morphological operation that is used to remove selected foreground pixels
from binary images. The thinning operation is related
relate to the hit-and-miss
miss transform.
transform The
thinning of an image I by a structuring element J is:
thin(I,J) = I – hit-and-miss(I,J)
where the subtraction is a logical subtraction defined by .
Repeated morphological thinning operation continuously erodes away pixels from the
boundary (while preserving the end points of line segments) until no more thinning is
possible, at which point what is left approximates the skeleton.
skeleton
Illustration
Consider the Structuring elements.
The origin of the structuring element is at the center.
At each iteration, the image is thinned by the left structuring element, and then by the right
one, and then with the remaining six 90° rotations of the two elements. The process is
repeated in cyclic fashion until none of the thinnings produces any further change. As usual,
Binary Image Image after skeletanization

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 Question and Answers || Unit 8: Mathematical Morphology

Q10. How Region/Hole

/Hole filling is achieved through morphology?
A hole may be defined as the background region surrounded by a connected border of
foreground pixels. Hole filling is achieved by dilation, complementation and intersection.

Illustration

Q11. Describe Umbra,, Top surface

Top Surface

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 Question and Answers || Unit 8: Mathematical Morphology

Example

Umbra

Example

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Q12. Explain how erosion and dilation can be applied to a grayscale

image?
GRAY SCALE DILATION

Illustration ( f is 1-dimentional
dimentional function)

GRAY SCALE EROSION

Illustration ( f is 1-dimentional
dimentional function)

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 Question and Answers || Unit 8: Mathematical Morphology

Illustration of Dilation and Erosion on Gray scale images

Dilation is the maximum of all pixels of f that are ‘hit’ by S. Erosion is the minimum of all
pixels of f that are ‘hit’ by S.

Image Structuring element Result of Erosion Result of Dilation

Dila

Q13. Describe top hat transformation with a diagram.

Top hat transformation is the difference of the original image and the opened image.
It is used as a simple tool for segmenting objects in gray-scale
scale images that differ in brightness
from background, even when the background is of uneven gray-scale.
gray
Assume a gray-level
level image X and a structuring element K. The residue of opening as
compared to original image X \ (X o K) constitutess a new useful operation called a top hat

transformation.
The top hat transformation is a good tool for extracting light objects (or dark ones) on a dark
(or light) but slowly changing background. Those parts of the image that cannot fit into
structuring element K are removed by opening. Subtracting the opened image from the
original provides an image where removed objects stand out clearly. The actual segmentation
can be performed by simple thresholding.
thresh

Q14. Explain in morphological segmentation and watershed.

General Procedure
Mathematical morphology helps mainly to segment images of texture or images of particles.
particles
Morphological particle segmentation is performed in two basic steps: Location of particle
markers and watersheds for particle reconstruction.

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 Question and Answers || Unit 8: Mathematical Morphology

Marker extraction resembles human behavior when one is asked to indicate objects; the
person just points to objects and does not outline boundaries.
The marker of an object or set X is a set
et M that is included in X. Marker M can computed
manually or semi-automatic
automatic marking methods. When the objects are marked, they can be
grown from the markers, using the watershed transformation which is motivated by the
topographic view of images.
Binary Morphological Segmentation using watersheds
Morphological segmentation in binary images aims to find regions corresponding to
individual overlappingg objects (typically particles).
Each particle is marked first.. Ultimate
U erosion may be used for this purposee or markers may
be placed manually.
The next task is to grow objects from the markers; provided they are kept within the limits of
the original set and parts of objects are not joined when they come close to each other. The
oldest technique for this purpose
ose is called conditional dilation.

Gray-scale
scale segmentation using watersheds
The markers and watersheds method can also be applied to gray-scale
gray scale segmentation.
The contour of a region in a gray-level
gray level image corresponds to points in the image where gray-
gray
levels change most quickly i.e. gradient
g magnitude is high.
Gradient can be approximated as “Beucher's gradient”
The main problem with segmentation via gradient images
without markers is over segmentation, i.e the image is
partitioned into too many regions.
regions
The watershed segmentation methods with markers do
not suffer from over segmentation.

*****

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