Publications by Costantino Grana

In this paper we present transcoding techniques for a video server architecture that enables the user to access live video streams by using different devices with different capabilities. For live videos, annotation methods cannot be exploited. Instead we propose methods of on-the-fly transcoding that adapt the video content with respect to the user resources and the video semantic. Thus we propose an object-based transcoding with "classes of relevance"(for instance People, Face and Background). To compare the different strategies we propose a metric based on the Weighted Mean Square Error that allows the analysis of different application scenarios by means of a class-wise distortion measure. The obtained results show that the use of semantic can improve the bandwidth to distortion ratio significantly.

In this work we describe the Topological Tree (TT) as a knowledge representation method that relates some important visual and spatial features of image regions, namely the color similarity, the inclusion and the spatial adjacency. Starting from color-based region segmentation of an image into disjoint regions, their spatial relationships can be devised and described with graph-based methods. We are interested in the region’s propriety “to be included into” (in the sense of “surrounded by”) another region. This property could be very useful in biomedical imaging and in particular in the diagnosis of skin melanoma. The TT can be constructed after segmentation, by computing the spatial relationships of regions or can be generated directly during the segmentation: to this aim we present a novel recursive fuzzy c-means (FCM) clustering algorithm based on the PCA of the color space. In the paper, in addition to the TT definition and the construction algorithm description, some results are presented and discussed.

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Many approaches to moving object detection for traffic monitoring and video surveillance proposed in the literature are based on background suppression methods. How to correctly and efficiently update the background model and how to deal with shadows are two of the more distinguishing and challenging features of such approaches. This work presents a general-purpose method for segmentation of moving visual objects (MVOs) based on an object-level classification in MVOs, ghosts and shadows. Background suppression needs a background model to be estimated and updated: we use motion and shadow information to selectively exclude from the background model MVOs and their shadows, while retaining ghosts. The color information (in the HSV color space) is exploited to shadow suppression and, consequently, to enhance both MVOs segmentation and background update.

Video-surveillance and traffic analysis systems can be heavily improved using vision-based techniques able to extract, manage and track objects in the scene. However, problems arise due to shadows. In particular, moving shadows can affect the correct localization, measurements and detection of moving objects. This work aims to present a technique for shadow detection and suppression used in a system for moving visual object detection and tracking. The major novelty of the shadow detection technique is the analysis carried out in the HSV color space to improve the accuracy in detecting shadows. Signal processing and optic motivations of the approach proposed are described. The integration and exploitation of the shadow detection module into the system are outlined and experimental results are shown and evaluated

Image analysis tools are spreading in dermatology since the introduction of dermoscopy (epiluminescence microscopy), in the effort of algorithmically reproducing clinical evaluations. Color-based region segmentation of skin lesions is one of the key steps for correctly collecting statistics that can help clinicians in their diagnosis. Nevertheless, an efficient and accurate region segmentation algorithm has not been proposed in the literature yet. This work proposes an iterative fuzzy c-means clustering algorithm based on PCA with the Karhunen-Loève transform of the color space. A topological tree is provided to store the mutual inclusions of the regions and then used to summarize the structural properties of the skin lesion. Preliminary experimental results are presented and discussed.

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Shadow detection is critical for robust and reliable vision-based systems for traffic flow analysis. In this paper we discuss various shadow detection approaches and compare two critically. The goal of these algorithms is toprevent moving shadows being misclassified as moving objects (or parts of them), thus avoiding the merging of twoor more objects into one and improving the accuracy of object localization. The environment considered is an outdoorhighway scene with multiple lanes observed by a single fixedcamera. The important features of shadow detection algorithms and the parameter set-up are analyzed and discussed. A critical evaluation of the results both in terms of accuracy and in terms of computational complexity are outlined. Finally, possible integration of the two approaches into a robust shadow detector is presented as future direction of our research.

This paper presents Sakbot, a system for moving object detection and tracking in traffic monitoring and video surveillance applications. The system is endowed with robust and efficient detection techniques, which main features are the statistical and knowledge-based background update and the use of HSV color information for shadow suppression. Tracking is performed by means of a flexible tracking module based on symbolic reasoning, which can be tuned to several different applications.

This paper presents Sakbot, a system for moving object detection in traffic monitoring and video surveillance applications. The system is endowed with robust and efficient detection techniques, which main features are the statistical and knowledge-based background update and the use of HSV color information for shadow suppression. Tracking is provided by a symbolic reasoning module allowing flexible object tracking over a variety of different applications. This system proves effective on many different situations, both from the point of view of the scene appearance and the purpose of the application.