In this paper, we present an object-based approach for urban land cover classification from high-resolution multispectral image data that builds upon a pixel-based fuzzy classification approach. This combined pixel/object approach is demonstrated using pan-sharpened multispectral IKONOS imagery from dense urban areas. The fuzzy pixel-based classifier utilizes both spectral and spatial information to discriminate between spectrally similar road and building urban land cover classes. After the pixel-based classification, a technique that utilizes both spectral and spatial heterogeneity is used to segment the image to facilitate further object-based classification. An object-based fuzzy logic classifier is then implemented to improve upon the pixel-based classification by identifying one additional class in dense urban areas: nonroad, nonbuilding impervious surface. With the fuzzy pixel-based classification as input, the object-based classifier then uses shape, spectral, and neighborhood features to determine the final classification of the segmented image. Using these techniques, the object-based classifier is able to identify buildings, impervious surface, and roads in dense urban areas with 76%, 81%, and 99% classification accuracies, respectively.

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A combined fuzzy pixel-based and object-based approach for classification of high-resolution multispectral data over urban areas

This paper presents an object-oriented approach for analysing and characterizing the urban landscape structure at the parcel level using high-resolution digital aerial imagery and LIght Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) data. Additional spatial datasets including property parcel boundaries and building footprints were used to both facilitate object segmentation and obtain greater classification accuracy. The study area is the Gwynns Falls watershed, which includes portions of Baltimore City and Baltimore County, MD. A three-level hierarchical network of image objects was generated, and objects were classified. At the two lower levels, objects were classified into five classes, building, pavement, bare soil, fine textured vegetation and coarse textured vegetation, respectively. The object-oriented classification approach proved to be effective for urban land cover classification. The overall accuracy of the classification was 92.3%, and the overall Kappa statistic was 0.899. Land cover proportions as well as vegetation characteristics were then summarized by property parcel. This exercise resulted in a knowledge base of rules for urban land cover classification, which could potentially be applied to other urban areas.

An object-oriented approach for analysing and characterizing urban landscape at the parcel level

Super-resolution land cover mapping using a Markov random field based approach

With the growing research on image segmentation, it has become important to categorise the research outcomes and provide readers with an overview of the existing segmentation techniques in each category. In this paper, different image segmentation techniques applied on optical remote sensing images are reviewed. The selection of papers include sources from image processing journals, conferences, books, dissertations and thesis out of more than 3000 journals, books and online research databases available at UNB. The conceptual details of the techniques are explained and mathematical details are avoided for simplicity. Both broad and detailed categorisations of reviewed segmentation techniques are provided. The state of art research on each category is provided with emphasis on developed technologies and image properties used by them. The categories defined are not always mutually independent. Hence, their interrelationships are also stated. Finally, conclusions are drawn summarizing commonly used techniques and their complexities in application

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A review on image segmentation techniques with remote sensing perspective

We present a new image segmentation algorithm based on a tree-structured binary MRF model. The image is recursively segmented in smaller and smaller regions until a stopping condition, local to each region, is met. Each elementary binary segmentation is obtained as the solution of a MAP estimation problem, with the region prior modeled as an MRF. Since only binary fields are used, and thanks to the tree structure, the algorithm is quite fast, and allows one to address the cluster validation problem in a seamless way. In addition, all field parameters are estimated locally, allowing for some spatial adaptivity. To improve segmentation accuracy, a split-and-merge procedure is also developed and a spatially adaptive MRF model is used. Numerical experiments on multispectral images show that the proposed algorithm is much faster than a similar reference algorithm based on "flat" MRF models, and its performance, in terms of segmentation accuracy and map smoothness, is comparable or even superior.

A tree-structured Markov random field model for Bayesian image segmentation

An unsupervised segmentation approach to classification of multispectral image is suggested here in Markov random field (MRF) frame work. This work generalizes the work of Sarkar et al. (2000) on gray value images for multispectral images and is extended for landuse classification. The essence of this approach is based on capturing intrinsic characters of tonal and textural regions of any multispectral image. The approach takes an initially oversegmented image and the original. multispectral image as the input and defines a MRF over region adjacency graph (RAG) of the initially segmented regions. Energy function minimization associated with the MRF is carried out by applying a multivariate statistical test. A cluster validation scheme is outlined after obtaining optimal segmentation. Quantitative evaluation of classification accuracy of test data for three illustrations are shown and compared with conventional maximum likelihood procedure. Comparison of the proposed methodology with a recent work of texture segmentation in the literature has also been provided. The findings of the proposed method are found to be encouraging.

D.K. Pal

Papers

A MRF model-based segmentation approach to classification for multispectral imagery