APPARATUS AND METHOD FOR MOVING OBJECT DETECTION

• US 20110142283A1
• Filed: 02/09/2010
• Published: 06/16/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/10/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Industrial Technology Research Institute
• Original Assignee: Industrial Technology Research Institute
• Inventors: Chou, Cheng-Chuan, Shih, Ming-Yu, Wu, Yi-Ta, Kao, Chao-Hung, Huang, Chung-Hsien
• Granted Patent: US 8,447,069 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 382/103
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/20221 Image fusion; Image merging
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/20224 Image subtraction
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30232 Surveillance
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/215 Motion-based segmentation
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/254 involving subtraction of images

Abstract

An apparatus and method for moving object detection computes a corresponding frame difference for every two successive image frames of a moving object, and segments a current image frame of the two successive image frames into a plurality of homogeneous regions. At least a candidate region is further detected from the plurality of homogeneous regions. The system gradually merges the computed frame differences via a morphing-based technology and interests with the at least a candidate region, thereby obtains the location and a complete outline of the moving object.

Claims

1. An apparatus for moving object detection, comprising:

a frame difference module, for each two successive images of a moving object, computing a frame difference corresponding to said two successive images, said two successive images being a current image and a previous image respectively;

a candidate search module, segmenting inputted said current image into a plurality of homogeneous regions, determining a plurality of uniform blocks from said segmented plurality of regions, and then detecting at least a candidate region from said plurality of uniform blocks; and

a moving object fusion module, fusing a plurality of said frame differences with said at least a candidate region, aided by a gradual morphing-based technology to obtain a location and a complete outline of said moving object.

2. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said moving object fusion module further includes:

a morphing module, said morphing module selecting a candidate region difference image mask of said at least a candidate region of said moving object, and merging into a single object through a gradual morphing technique; and

a fusing module, said fusing module fusing said at least a candidate region and said single object generated by said morphing module, thereby obtaining said complete outline of said moving object.

3. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein two types of regions are selected from said plurality of uniform blocks;

one type is regions included inside said plurality of uniform blocks, and the other type is regions in surrounding area of said plurality of uniform blocks connecting to image edge.

4. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said moving object fusion module generates a plurality of successive and smooth intermediate images between a source image and a destination image through said gradual morphing technique.

5. The apparatus as claimed in claim 4, wherein said complete outline of said moving object is a union result of said source image and all intermediate images of said morphing process.

6. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein said frame difference generated by said frame difference module is an accumulated difference image accumulated by a plurality of difference images.

7. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, said apparatus further includes a moving object tracking module to predict, compensate and update said location of said moving object.

8. The apparatus as claimed in claim 7, wherein said moving object tracking module continuously predicts and updates state of said moving object to achieve moving object tracking, through a motion model and an observation model of said moving object to.

9. The apparatus as claimed in claim 7, wherein said moving object tracking module maintains a tracker, said tracker has a moving object list at current time and a moving object hypothesis list having been tracked at previous time.

10. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, said apparatus further includes an image alignment module, when said two successive images are captured from said moving object in motion, said image alignment module first aligns said previous image to said current image, and then said frame difference module computes said frame difference of aligned said previous image and said current image.

11. A method for moving object detection, applicable to an apparatus for moving object detection, said method comprising:

for each two successive images of a moving object, computing a frame difference corresponding to said two successive images, two said successive imaged being a current image and a previous image respectively;

segmenting said current frame into a plurality of homogeneous regions, determining a plurality of uniform blocks from said plurality of segmented regions, and then detecting at least a candidate region from said plurality of uniform blocks; and

fusing a plurality of said frame differences with said at least a candidate region through a moving object fusion module, and, aided by a gradual morphing-based technology to obtain a location and a complete outline of said moving object.

12. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein said fusing plurality of frame differences with said at least a candidate region, and aided by a gradual morphing-based technology further includes:

based on inputted at least an accumulated difference image information and at least a segmentation label information, finding a corresponding difference image set falling inside a candidate region in where an inputted segmentation label belonging;

if number of said difference images in said difference image set being greater than 1, selecting two most neighboring difference images from said difference image set and using a morphing technique to merge said at least two difference images into another difference image, adding said another difference image to said difference image set, and obtaining intersection of said difference image set and said candidate region; and

repeating above steps until all inputted segmentation labels corresponding to all of said plurality of segmented regions being processed.

13. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein said detecting at least a candidate region from said plurality of uniform blocks further includes:

checking each of said plurality of uniform blocks, observing whether different regions existing inside said uniform block, or regions in surrounding of said uniform block connecting image edge to find said at least a candidate region.

14. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein said frame difference is an accumulated difference image accumulated by a plurality of difference images in a weighted manner.

15. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein said morphing technique generates a plurality of successive and smooth intermediate images between a source image and a destination image by using an interpolation method.

16. The method as claimed in claim 13, wherein ratio of contour distance and real distance of said region in said surrounding of said uniform block connecting image edge is higher than a threshold.

17. The method as claimed in claim 11, said method further including:

through a motion model and an observation model, continuously predicting and updating state of said moving object for further tracking said moving object.

18. The method as claimed in claim 17, wherein said moving object tracking further includes:

inputting a moving object hypothesis list tracked at a plurality of previous times, and predicting a state at current time via a filter;

for an inputted image at current time, obtaining a moving object list at current time by said location and said complete outline of said moving object;

constructing a correlation matrix to describe spatial correlation between elements of said two lists;

performing summation on rows and columns of said correlation matrix, and performing corresponding event processing according to value of summation; and

based on corresponding event processing, updating said moving object hypothesis list.

19. The method as claimed in claim 18, wherein said moving object hypothesis list records a plurality of moving object hypotheses tracked at said plurality of previous times, and said moving object list records a plurality of foreground object rectangles at current time.

20. The method as claimed in claim 18, wherein said value of summation of rows and columns of correlation matrix reflects one of events at least including addition, disappearing, steady tracking of a corresponding moving object, and merging and splitting among a plurality of moving objects.

21. A computer program product, comprising:

at least a program storage, readable by a digital processing apparatus; and

a program of a plurality of instructions, tangibly embodied in said at least a program storage and executable by said digital processing apparatus to perform a moving object detection method, said method comprising;

for each two successive images of a moving object, computing a frame difference corresponding to said two successive images, two said successive imaged being a current image and a previous image respectively;

segmenting said current frame into a plurality of homogeneous regions, determining a plurality of uniform blocks from said plurality of segmented regions, and then detecting at least a candidate region from said plurality of uniform blocks; and

fusing a plurality of said frame differences with said at least a candidate region through a moving object fusion module, and, aided by a gradual morphing-based technology to obtain a location and a complete outline of said moving object.

22. The computer program product as claimed in claim 21, wherein said computer program product is further connected to a moving object tracking module for predicting, compensating and updating location of said moving object.

23. The computer program product as claimed in claim 21, wherein said at least a program storage is a computer readable media.

24. The computer program product as claimed in claim 21, wherein said moving object detection method further includes:

through a motion model and an observation model, continuously predicting and updating state of said moving object for further tracking said moving object.