METHOD FOR DETERMINING A BORDER IN A COMPLEX SCENE WITH APPLICATIONS TO IMAGE MASKING

摘要

A method for identifying a border in a digital color image based on the estimated edge zone information. The method includes receiving for each pixel a gradient indicating a direction (Fig. 1. Vector 110) and magnitude of change in color. A user inputs an area of interest that includes at least a portion of the border to be identified. The method includes estimating a position, direction, and width of an edge zone that models the border portion (Step 415). The position and direction of the edge zone are estimated by calculating a weighted average value of pixel positions and pixel gradient directions of each pixel in the area of interest (Fig. 5). The method further includes calculating a measure of confidence in the edge zone information and estimating a width of the edge zone at which the calculated measure of confidence decreases appreciably if the estimated width increases.