A Fast Region Growing Based Superpixel Segmentation for Hyperspectral Image Classification

In recent studies, superpixel segmentation has been integrated into hyperspectral (HS) image classification methods. However, the existing superpixel-based classification methods usually suffer from two serious problems. First, the accuracy and efficiency of current superpixel segmentation approaches cannot meet the demands of practical applications for HS images; second, conventional superpixel-based classification methods generally consider each generated superpixel as a unit for the image classification, which may help to reduce the computing time but result in a significant decrease of the classification accuracy. To solve the problems, we propose a fast region growing based superpixel segmentation (FRGSS) algorithm and a novel texture-adaptive superpixel integration strategy (TASIS) for the HS image classification. Experimental results on real Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) HS images demonstrate that the proposed FRGSS outperforms the state-of-the-art superpixel algorithm. In addition, the superiority of the TASIS is verified compared to the pixel-wise and the conventional superpixel-based classification methods.