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Image Segmentation Using Soft Computing

Sukhmanpreet Singh, Deepa Verma, Arun Kumar, Rekha

AbstractDigital image enhancement techniques provide a


multitude of choices for improving the visual quality of images.
Image segmentation is an important process and are used in in many
image processing applications. Color images can increase the quality
of segmentation but also increases the complexity of the problem. To
reduce this complexity soft computing tools played promising role.
This paper discussed the segmentation of image using soft computing
approaches i.e. fuzzy logic, neural network and genetic algorithms.
Soft Computing techniques are greatly influenced by the imaging
modality, task at hand and viewing conditions. The segmentation
techniques used are Fuzzy C means algorithm, Possibilistic Fuzzy C
means and Competitive neural network. This paper will provide an
overview of underlying concepts, along with algorithms commonly
used for image enhancement.

Keywords Image segmentation, Fuzzy C means, Competitive


neural network, Genetic algorithms.

researched in the last decade. Color images can increase the


quality of segmentation.
Most image segmentation has been performed on
monochrome images. For processing color images much more
computation is required than processing grey scale images, but
now with the increasing speed and decreasing costs of
Computation, color image processing has been much
researched in the last decade. Color images can increase the
quality of segmentation.
There are many models to represent the colors such as RGB,
CMY, HSV and many others. RGB color model is chosen for
image segmentation due to its simplicity and the fast
processing speed. Color images contain more information than
monochrome images. Each pixel in a color image has
information about brightness, hue, and saturation. Color
creates more complete representation of an image which leads
to more reliable segmentation.

I. INTRODUCTION

HE image segmentation refers to the process of


partitioning an image into multiple segments based on
selected image features (sets of pixels). The goal of
segmentation is to simplify and change the representation of an
image into something that is more meaningful and easier to
analyze. Image segmentation is typically used to locate objects
and boundaries in images. The result of the image
segmentation is a set of regions that collectively cover the
entire image. All of the pixels in a region are similar with
respect to some characteristics such as color, intensity, or
texture. Adjacent regions are significantly different with
respect to the same characteristics. Image segmentation is a
vital field in image analysis, coding , and understanding .It has
wide diversity of applications ranging from car assembly,
airport security, object recognition, face recognition, image
processing ,medical imaging , image and video retrieval ,
through to criminal investigative analysis[5].
Most image segmentation has been performed on
monochrome images. For processing color images much more
computation is required than processing grey scale images, but
now with the increasing speed and decreasing costs of
Computation, color image processing has been much

Sukhmanpreet Singh is working as Faculty with the Department of


Electronics at GGSCMT, Punjab, INDIA.
Deepa Verma is working as Faculty with the Department of Electronics at
GGSCMT, Punjab, INDIA.
Arun Kumar is working as Faculty with the Department of Electronics at
GGSCMT, Punjab, INDIA.
Rekha is working as Faculty with the Department of Electronics at
GGSCMT, Punjab, INDIA.

II. IMAGE SEGMENTATION


Image segmentation is an essential preliminary step in most
automatic pictorial pattern recognition and scene analysis
problems. It is one of the most difficult task in image
processing. Image segmentation is the process of partitioning a
digital image into multiple regions or clusters [6].
Segmentation subdivides an image into its constituent
regions or objects. The level to which the subdivision is
carried depends on the problem being solved. This means that
segmentation should stop when an object of interest in an
application have been isolated.
Each region is made up of sets of pixels. Image
segmentation simplifies and changes the representation of an
image. i.e. the image is transferred into something that is more
meaningful and easier to analyze. Image segmentation is
typically used to locate objects of interest and boundaries like
lines, curves in an image. The pixels of a colour image are
represented as vectors. Each pixel is represented a triplet
containing red, green, blue spectral values at that position. The
RGB colour model is shown in figure.1 This is based on
Cartesian coordinate system A colour expressed by an RGB
vector is said to be a colour represented in RGB space.
Edge detection includes the detection of boundaries between
different regions of the image. Due to these boundaries
discontinuities occurs between the pixels of the chosen feature
such as color, texture and intensity.

Fig. 1 RGB Color Model

Region splitting is an image segmentation method in which


pixels are classified into regions. Each region has a range of
feature values, with thresholds being delimiters. It is very
important to choose these thresholds, as it greatly affects the
quality of the segmentation. This tends to excessively split
regions, resulting in over segmentation.
Region growing joins neighboring pixels with same
characteristics to form large regions. This continuous until the
termination conditions are met. Most of the region growing
algorithms focus on local information, so it is very difficult to
get good results. This method tends to excessively merge
regions, which results in under segmentation.
Region splitting and merging tries to overcome the
problems which are faced by region splitting and region
growing, by combining the two techniques. Initially the image
is divided into arbitrary regions. Region splitting and region
merging occurs until the termination conditions are met.
The phoenix image segmentation algorithm is a region
splitting method which is widely used for segmentation and
tested on color images. It uses histogram analysis, thresholding
and connected component analysis to segment the image
partially[1].
III. COMPARISON OF TRADITIONAL TECHNIQUES
The traditional methods based on edge detection only
depend on the contrast of the points located near the object
boundaries, which cannot be used for the accurate result.
Another well-known image segmentation technique is
morphological watershed transform. It is based on
mathematical morphology to divide an image due to
discontinuities. In contrast to classical area based
segmentation, the watershed transform is executed on the
gradient image and not on the original image. A digital
watershed is defined as a small region that cannot assigned
unique to an influence zones of a local minima in the gradient
image. These methods were successful in segmenting certain
classes of images only. Due to the image noise and the discrete
character of colour image, watershed algorithm requires
interactive user guidance and accurate prior knowledge on the
image structure. Colour image segmentation using clustering
algorithms is done by mapping of a pixel into a point in an ndimensional feature space, defined by the vector of its feature

values. The problem is then reduced to partitioning the feature


space into separate clusters[1], which is a general pattern
recognition problem. The traditional hard c means can be used
for colour image segmentation. Its disadvantage is that it does
not yield the same result with each run, since the resulting
clusters depend on the initial random assignments. It
minimizes intra-cluster variance, but does not ensure that the
result has a global minimum of variance. Soft computing
techniques overcome these disadvantages. Soft computing
differs from conventional hard computing in that, unlike the
later, it is tolerant of imprecision, uncertainty, partial truth, and
approximation. The role model for soft computing is the
human mind. The guiding principle of soft computing is that it
exploit the tolerance for imprecision, uncertainty, partial truth,
and approximation to achieve tractability, robustness and low
solution cost. As soft computing techniques resemble human
brain, the results are fast and accurate[6].
IV. COMPARISON OF SOFT COMPUTING TECHNIQUES
Fuzzy Clustering
Clustering involves the task of dividing data points into
homogeneous classes or clusters so that items in the same class
are as similar as possible and items in different classes are as
dissimilar as possible. Clustering can also be thought of as a
form of data, compression, where a large number of samples
are converted into a small number of representative prototypes
or clusters. Depending on the data and the application,
different types of similarity measures may be used to identify
classes, where the similarity measure controls how the clusters
are formed. Some examples of values that can be used as
similarity measures include distance, connectivity, and
intensity. In non-fuzzy or hard clustering, data is divided into
crisp clusters, where each data point belongs to exactly one
cluster. In fuzzy clustering, the data points can belong to more
than one cluster, and associated with each of the points are
membership grades which indicate the degree to which the
data points belong to the different clusters. The main idea
behind fuzzy clustering is that an object can belong to more
than one class and does so to varying degrees called
memberships. The membership created by fuzzy clustering
algorithm has several advantages.
Clustering can be thought of as a form of data compression,
where a large number of samples are converted into a small
number of representative prototypes or clusters. The goal of a
clustering is to divide a given set of data or objects into
clusters, which represents subsets or a group. The partition
should have two properties: Homogeneity inside clusters (the
data which belong to one cluster should be as similar as
possible) and Heterogeneity between the clusters (the data
which belong to different clusters should be as different as
possible) [7]. To use over specifies the number of clusters, the
algorithm will replicate one class. This means the correct
number of clusters will still appear in the segmentation. The
fuzzy nature of the clustering makes it possible to overcome
the clear cut nature of pattern descriptions, even if the hosen

descriptors are not best ones, the algorithm may still be robust
to this choice, sometimes problems in determining the borders
of the different structures. Thus it is convenient to define
memberships, for which a large value shows increased
confidence that a pixel belongs to a particular structure.
Finally, it is possible to include some human expertise
knowledge in the method, in order to decrease the confusion
near the edges of coronal structures [8].
Fuzzy c means
Fuzzy c-means (FCM) is a method of clustering which
allows one piece of data to belong to two or more clusters [7].
It is based on minimization of the following objective
function:

,
where m is any real number greater than 1, uij is the degree
of membership of xi in the cluster j, xi is the ith of ddimensional measured data, cj is the d-dimension center of the
cluster, and ||*|| is any norm expressing the similarity between
any measured data and the center. Fuzzy partitioning is
carried out through an iterative optimization of the objective
function shown above, with the update of membership uij and
the cluster centers cj by:

,
,
This iteration will stop when
where is a termination criterion between 0 and 1, whereas k is
the number of iteration steps. This procedure converges to a
local minimum or a saddle point of Jm.
The algorithm is composed of the following steps:
1. Initialize U=[uij] matrix, U(0)
2. At k-step: calculate the centers vectors C(k)=[cj] with
U(k)

3. Update U(k) , U(k+1)

4. If || U(k+1) - U(k)||< then STOP; otherwise return to step

2
Possibilistic Fuzzy C Means
In the possibilistic approach to clustering the membership
function or the degree of typicality of a point in a fuzzy set (or
cluster) is assumed to be absolute depend on the membership
values of the same point in other clusters contained in the
problem domain. By contrast, many clustering approaches
impose a probabilistic constraint, according to which the sum
of the membership values of a point in all the clusters must be
equal to one. PCM algorithm avoids the assumption of the
probabilistic constraint. The PCM is based on the relaxation of
the probabilistic constraint in order to interpret in a
possibilistic sense the membership function or degree of
typicality. The Possibilistic C-Means algorithm I (PCM-I) is
based on a modification of the objective function of FCM. In
this case, one must supply the values of some parameters such
as the fuzzifier parameter, and others regulating the weight of
the spread of membership functions. The Possibilistic CMeans algorithm II (PCM-II) is based on modification of the
cost function of the HCM (instead of the FCM) in order to
avoid, in this way, the determination of the fuzzifier
parameter[3].
Artificial Neural Networks
An Artificial Neural Network (ANN) is an information
processing paradigm that is inspired by the way biological
nervous systems, such as the brain, process information. The
key element of this paradigm is the novel structure of the
information processing system. It is composed of a large
number of highly interconnected processing elements
(neurones) working in unison to solve specific problems.
ANNs, like people, learn by example. An ANN is configured
for a specific application, such as pattern recognition or data
classification, through a learning process. Learning in
biological systems involves adjustments to the synaptic
connections that exist between the neurones.
Neural networks take a different approach to problem
solving than that of conventional techniques. Conventional
techniques use an algorithmic approach i.e. the computer
follows a set of instructions in order to solve a problem.
Unless the specific steps that the computer needs to follow are
known the computer cannot solve the problem. That restricts
the problem solving capability of conventional to problems
that we already understand and know how to solve. But
computers would be so much more useful if they could do
things that we don't exactly know how to do.
Neural networks process information in a similar way the
human brain does. The network is composed of a large number
of highly interconnected processing elements (neurones)
working in parallel to solve a specific problem. Neural
networks learn by example. They cannot be programmed to
perform a specific task. The examples must be selected
carefully otherwise useful time is wasted or even worse the
network might be functioning incorrectly. The disadvantage is
that because the network finds out how to solve the problem

by itself, its operation can be unpredictable.


On the other hand, conventional computers use a cognitive
approach to problem solving; the way the problem is to solved
must be known and stated in small unambiguous instructions.
These instructions are then converted to a high level language
program and then into machine code that the computer can
understand. These machines are totally predictable; if anything
goes wrong is due to a software or hardware fault.
A supervised neural network architecture of the multilayer
feed forward type (MLPs), trained with the online back
propagation error algorithm is used, having as goal to decide
whether a region belongs to a defective part or not. Also, a
Kohonens SOFM model is utilized aimed at clustering and
labeling the pixels of an original image as belonging to
defective areas or not [2].
Supervised method requires expert human input for
segmentation. Supervised techniques are based on human or
operator knowledge to select training images and manually
segment them into k regions. Each region assigns a
label
and the proposed architecture is trained using the selected
images as training images. Labels are assigned to the regions
according to the knowledge stored in the neural network
architecture used.
Unsupervised methods are semi or fully automatic. Human
intervention is required in the process to improve the
performance of the method, but the results should be more or
less human independent. An unsupervised method
automatically partitions the images without operator
intervention.
Competitive Neural Networks
Competitive Networks learn to classify input vectors
according to how they are grouped in the input space. They
differ from another network in that neighboring neurons learn
to recognize neighboring sections of the input space. Thus,
competitive layers learn both the distributions and topology of
the input vectors which they are trained on. A neural network
in which a group of neurons compete for the right to become
active is called competitive neural network [8]. When more
than one neuron is about to get fired, the activation of the node
with the largest net input is set equal to 1 and the activation of
all other nodes are set equal to 0.
Genetic Algorithms
Color images can increase the quality of segmentation, but
also increase the complexity of the problem. A way of
handling this complexity is to use genetic algorithms. Genetic
algorithms are an optimization technique used in image
segmentation [4]. It mimics natural selection, allowing an
algorithm to adapt. Solutions are represented by a population
of individual chromosomes, usually represented as binary
strings. A chromosome is made up of genes, each of which can
represent a particular characteristic. Each individual in the
population is given a fitness score based on how well they
solve the particular problem. The higher the individuals
fitness score, the greater is their probability of breeding.
Breeding creates the next generation through crossover and

mutation. Crossover combines the chromosomes of two


individuals, creating a new individual which is unlike either of
the parents. Mutation which occurs only a small percent of the
time randomly alters a new individuals chromosomes. In
image processing, genetic algorithms have successfully been
used for feature extraction, object recognition, knowledge
based segmentation and image classification. Many images,
particularly natural scenes, are complex and noisy. A
characteristic of genetic algorithms is their effectiveness and
robustness in dealing with uncertainty, insufficient information
and noise. If the conception of a computer algorithms being
based on the evolutionary of organism is surprising, the
extensiveness with which this algorithms is applied in so many
areas is no less than astonishing. Its usefulness and
gracefulness of solving problems has made it the more favorite
choice among the traditional methods. GAs are very helpful
when the developer does not have precise domain expertise,
because GAs possess the ability to explore and learn from their
domain..
V. CONCLUSION
The image segmentation using various algorithms such as
fuzzy, competitive neural network and genetic algorithms have
been discussed in comparison to the traditional techniques. By
comparing fuzzy and competitive neural network, image
segmentation using competitive neural network is better
approach as compared to fuzzy clustering methods. The
genetic algorithms in image segmentation also considered to
be alternate approach. Genetic algorithms are used to reduce
the complexity of the problem. Genetic algorithms in image
segmentation are used for the modification of the parameters
in existing segmentation algorithms and are viewed as function
optimizers. GAs are tools on probabilistic and casualty, not
necessarily they will have the same type of evolution when
applied to the same problem. ANN and fuzzy logic techniques
required more information regarding system and more
mathematics as compare to GAs.
Image segmentation has several applications in various
scientific fields like Satellite imaging, Map determination,
Medical imaging, etc. Soft Computing technique shows more
consistency and its reliability over traditional techniques.
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