An Effective Orientation-based Method and Parameter Space Discretization for Defined Object Segmentation

While non-predefined object segmentation (NDOS) distinguishes an arbitrary self-assumed object from its background, predefined object segmentation (DOS) pre-specifies the target object. In this paper, a new and novel method to segment predefined objects is presented, by globally optimizing an orientation-based objective function that measures the fitness of the object boundary, in a discretized parameter space. A specific object is explicitly described by normalized discrete sets of boundary points and corresponding normal vectors with respect to its plane shape. The orientation factor provides robust distinctness for target objects. By considering the order of transformation elements, and their dependency on the derived over-segmentation outcome, the domain of translations and scales is efficiently discretized. A branch and bound algorithm is used to determine the transformation parameters of a shape model corresponding to a target object in an image. The results tested on the PASCAL dataset show a considerable achievement in solving complex backgrounds and unclear boundary images.