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Components of An Image Processing System

An image processing system has several key components: 1) Sensors and digitizers that acquire digital images from the physical world. 2) Specialized image processing hardware like an ALU that performs operations in parallel on entire images. 3) A general-purpose computer ranging from a PC to a supercomputer to run software and process images offline. 4) Software with specialized modules to perform tasks and allow integration and coding. 5) Mass storage in several forms for short-term, online, and archival storage of images.

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Krishanu Modak
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2K views

Components of An Image Processing System

An image processing system has several key components: 1) Sensors and digitizers that acquire digital images from the physical world. 2) Specialized image processing hardware like an ALU that performs operations in parallel on entire images. 3) A general-purpose computer ranging from a PC to a supercomputer to run software and process images offline. 4) Software with specialized modules to perform tasks and allow integration and coding. 5) Mass storage in several forms for short-term, online, and archival storage of images.

Uploaded by

Krishanu Modak
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Components of an image processing system

Figure below shows the basic components comprising a typical general-purpose


system used for digital image processing.

1. With reference to sensing, two elements are required to acquire digital images.
The first is a physical device that is sensitive to the energy radiated by the object
we wish to image. The second, called a digitizer, is a device for converting the
output of the physical sensing device into digital form. For instance, in a digital
video camera, the sensors produce an electrical output proportional to light
intensity. The digitizer converts these outputs to digital data.

2. Specialized image processing hardware usually consists of the digitizer, plus


hardware that performs other primitive operations, such as an arithmetic logic unit
(ALU), that performs arithmetic and logical operations in parallel on entire
images. One example of how an ALU is used is in averaging images as quickly as
they are digitized, for the purpose of noise reduction.
3. The computer in an image processing system is a general-purpose computer and
can range from a PC to a supercomputer. In dedicated applications, sometimes
custom computers are used to achieve a required level of performance. In these
systems, almost any well-equipped PC-type machine is suitable for off-line image
processing tasks.

4. Software for image processing consists of specialized modules that perform


specific tasks. A well-designed package also includes the capability for the user to
write code that, as a minimum, utilizes the specialized modules. More
sophisticated software packages allow the integration of those modules and
general-purpose software commands from at least one computer language.

5. Mass storage capability is a must in image processing applications. Digital


storage for image processing applications falls into three principal categories:
(1) short-term storage for use during processing,
(2) on-line storage for relatively fast recall, and
(3) archival storage, characterized by infrequent access.

One method of providing short-term storage is computer memory. Another is by


specialized boards, called frame buffers, that store one or more images and can be
accessed rapidly, usually at video rates (e.g., at 30 complete images per second).
Online storage generally takes the form of magnetic disks or optical-media
storage. Finally, archival storage is characterized by massive storage requirements
but infrequent need for access. Magnetic tapes and optical disks housed in
“jukeboxes” are the usual media for archival applications.

6. Image displays in use today are mainly color (preferably flat screen) TV
monitors. Monitors are driven by the outputs of image and graphics display cards
that are an integral part of the computer system. In some cases, it is necessary to
have stereo displays, and these are implemented in the form of headgear
containing two small displays embedded in goggles worn by the user.

7. Hardcopy devices for recording images include laser printers, film cameras, heat-
sensitive devices, inkjet units, and digital units, such as optical and CD-ROM
disks. For presentations, images are displayed on film transparencies or in a
digital medium if image projection equipment is used. The latter approach is
gaining acceptance as the standard for image presentations.
8. Networking is almost a default function in any computer system in use today.
Because of the large amount of data inherent in image processing applications, the
key consideration in image transmission is bandwidth. In dedicated networks, this
typically is not a problem, but communications with remote sites via the Internet
are not always as efficient. Fortunately, this situation is improving quickly as a
result of optical fiber and other broadband technologies.

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