Kibur College

Computer Vision and Image

Processing

By:
Girmay G.
girmay_2008@yahoo.com
 Chapter 1:
Introduction to Computer Vision and Image Processing
 What is a Digital Image?
•A digital image is a representation of a two-
dimensional image as a finite set of digital values, called
picture elements or pixels
 Cont..

•Pixel values typically represent gray levels, colours,

heights, opacities etc
•Remember digitization implies that a digital image is
an approximation of a real scene

1 pixel
 Cont..
Common image formats include:
1 sample per point (B&W or Grayscale)
3 samples per point (Red, Green, and Blue)
4 samples per point (Red, Green, Blue, and
“Alpha”, a.k.a. Opacity)

For most of this course we will focus on grey-

scale images
 What is Digital Image Processing?

•Digital image processing focuses on two major tasks

–Improvement of pictorial information for
human interpretation
–Processing of image data for storage,
transmission and representation for autonomous
machine perception
•Some argument about where image processing ends
and fields such as image analysis and computer vision
start
Overview: Digital Imaging

Definition of computer imaging:

—Acquisition and processing of visual information
by computer.
• Why is it important?
—Human primary sense is visual sense.
—Information can be conveyed well through images
(one picture worth a thousand words).
—Computer is required because the amount of data
to be processed is huge.
Overview: Digital Imaging
• Computer imaging can be divided into two
main categories:
—Computer Vision: applications of the output are
for use by a computer.
—Image Processing: applications of the output are
for use by human.
• These two categories are not totally separate
and distinct.
 Overview: Computer Imaging

• They overlap each other in certain areas.

COMPUTER IMAGING

Computer Image
Vision Processing
Computer Vision

Does not involve human in the visual loop.

• One of the major topic within this field is
image analysis next Chapter.
Image analysis involves the examination of
image data to facilitate in solving a vision
problem.
 Computer Vision…

Image analysis process involves two other

topics:
— Feature extraction: acquiring higher level
image info (shape and color)
— Pattern classification: using higher level
image information to identify objects within
image.
 Computer Vision…

Most computer vision applications involve

tasks that:
—Are tedious for people to perform.
—Require work in a hostile environment.
—Require a high processing rate.
Require access and use of a large database of
information.
 Computer Vision…

• Examples of applications of computer vision:

—Quality control (inspect circuit board).
—Hand-written character recognition.
— Biometrics verification (fingerprint, retina, DNA,
signature, etc).
—Satellite image processing.
—Skin tumor diagnosis.
—And many, many others.
 Image Processing

• Processed images are to be used by human.

—Therefore, it requires some understanding on how
the human visual system operates.
Image Processing Fields

Input / Image Description

Output
Image Image Computer
Processing Vision
Description Computer AI
Graphics
Sometimes, Image Processing is defined as “a
discipline in which both the input and output of a
process are images

But, according to this classification, trivial tasks

of computing the average intensity of an image
would not be considered an image processing
operation
 Image Processing…

• Image restoration:
— The process of taking an image with some
know, or estimated degradation, and
restoring it to its original appearance.
— Done by performing the reverse of
the degradation process to the
image.
— Examples: correcting distortion in the
optical system of a telescope.
 Image Processing

An Example of Image
Restoration
 Image Processing…

I•
Image enhancement:
—Improve an image visually by taking an
advantage
of human visual system's response.
—Example: improve contrast, image
sharpening, and image smoothing.
 Image Processing

An Example of Image Enhancement

 Image Processing

• Image compression:
—Remove the amount of data required to
represent an image by:
• Removing unnecessary data that are
visually unnecessary.
• Taking advantage of the redundancy that is
inherent in most images.
—Example: JPEG, MPEG, etc.
 Computer Imaging Systems

• Computer imaging systems comprises of

both hardware and software.
• The hardware components can be
divided into three subsystems:
—The computer
- Image acquisition: camera, scanner, video
recorder.
Image display: monitor, printer, film,
video player.
 Computer Imaging Systems

• The software is used for the following tasks:

— Manipulate the image and perform any
desired processing on the image data.
— Control the image acquisition and storage
process.
s The computer system may be a general-
purpose computer with a frame grabber
or image digitizer board in it.
 Computer Imaging Systems

Frame grabber is a special purpose

piece of hardware that digitizes
standard analog video signal.
Digitization of analog video
signal is important because
computers can only process digital
data.
 Computer Imaging Systems

• Digitization is done by sampling the

analog signal or instantaneously
measuring the voltage of the signal at
fixed interval in time.
• The value of the voltage at each
instant is converted into a number
and stored.
• The number represents the brightness of
the
image at that point.
Computer Imaging Systems
• The “grabbed” image is now a digital
image and can be accessed as a two
dimensional array of data.
—Each data point is called a pixel (picture
element).
• The following notation is used to
express a
digital image:
—I(r,c) = the brightness of the image at
point (r,c) where r = row and c =
column.
 Human Visual Perception

Human perception encompasses both the

physiological and psychological
aspects.
• We will focus more on physiological
aspects, which are more easily
quantifiable and
hence, analyzed.
 Human Visual Perception

• Why study visual perception?

—Image processing algorithms are designed
based
on how our visual system works.
- In image compression, we need to know what
information is not perceptually important
and can be ignored.
—In image enhancement, we need to know what
types of operations that are likely to
improve an image visually.
 The Human Visual System
• The human visual system consists of two primary
components —the eye and the brain, which are
connected by the optic nerve.
—Eye —receiving sensor (camera, scanner).
—Brain —information processing unit (computer
• system).
—Optic nerve — connection cable (physical wire).
The Human Visual System
 The Human Visual System

• This is how human visual system works:

—Light energy is focused by the lens of the
eye into sensors and retina.
—The sensors respond to the light by an
electrochemical reaction that sends an
electrical signal to the brain (through
the optic nerve).
—The brain uses the signals to create
neurological
patterns that we perceive as images.
 The Human Visual System

• The visible light is an

electromagnetic wave with
wavelength range of about 380 to 825
nanometers.
—However, response above 700 nanometers
is minimal.
• We cannot “see” many parts
of the electromagnetic
spectrum.
The Human Visual System
 The Human Visual System

• The visible spectrum can be divided

into
three bands:
—Blue (400 to 500 nm).
—›?r=rn (500 to 600 nm).
—Red (600 to 700 nm).
e The sensors are distributed across
retina.
The Human Visual System
 The Human Visual System

• There are two types of sensors: rods

and
cones.
• Rods:
—For night vision.
—See only brightness (gray level) and not
color.
—Distributed across retina.
—Medium and low level resolution.
 The Human Visual System

• Cones:
—For daylight vision.
—Sensitive to color.
—Concentrated in the central region of
eye.
— High resolution capability
(diflerentiate small changes).
 The Human Visual System
• Blind spot:
—No sensors.
—Place for optic nerve.
— We do not perceive it as a blind spot because the
brain fills in the missing visual information.
• s Why does an object should be in center field of
vision in order to perceive it in fine detail?
—This is where the cones are concentrated.
 The Human Visual System

• Cones have higher resolution than rods

because they have individual nerves
tied to each sensor.
• Rods have multiple sensors tied to each
nerve.
• Rods react even in low light but see
only a single spectral band. They cannot
distinguish color.
The Human Visual System
 The Human Visual System

• There are three types of cones. Each

responding to diñerent wavelengths of
light energy.
• The colors that we perceive are the
combined result of the response of the three
cones.
 The Human Visual System

Relative
response

Bins Ormn Re‹I

700
Wavelan6ih, nanometers
b. Cones raact only to high lighl intensities; the three types enable us fa see cobrs.