Image Enhancement Techniques for Cockpit Displays

Abstract : The major objective of this research program was to develop and evaluate three techniques for the real-time enhancement of sensor displays in the airborne cockpit environment. Two enhancement techniques developed and optimized for contrast enhancement are Local Area Brightness and Gain Control (LABGC) and Local Area Histogram Equalization (LAHE). Haar Transform Crispening (HTC) is another technique that was developed and optimized during this program. HTC may be used to sharpen edges in an image which are blurred due to misfocused optics or MTF roll-off. An evaluation of the enhancement techniques includes subjective evaluations for specific operator tasks and a comparison of mechanization complexities. Photographs of original and enhanced images are included.