Human Visual System Based Image Enhancement

This paper presents a method of image enhancement using an adaptive thresholding method based on the human visual system. We utilize a number of different enhancement algorithms applied selectively to the different regions of an image to achieve a better overall enhancement than applying a single technique globally. The presented method is useful for images that contain various regions of improper illumination. It is also practical for correcting shadows. This thresholding system allows various enhancement algorithms to be used on different sections of the image based on the local visual characteristics. It further allows the parameters to be tuned differently for the specific regions, giving a more visually pleasing output image. We demonstrate the algorithm and present results for several high quality images as well as lower quality images such as those captured using a cell phone camera. We then compare and contrast our method to other state-of-the-art enhancement algorithms.