A Fast Semi-Inverse Approach to Detect and Remove the Haze from a Single Image
Proceedings of the 10th Asian conference on Computer vision (ACCV 2010)
Codruta Orniana Ancuti
Cosmin Ancuti
Chris Hermans
Philippe Bekaert
Abstract

In this paper we introduce a novel approach to restore a single image degraded by atmospheric phenomena such as fog or haze. The presented algorithm allows for fast identification of hazy regions of an image, without making use of expensive optimization and refinement procedures. By applying a single per pixel operation on the original image, we produce a ’semi-inverse’ of the image. Based on the hue disparity between the original image and its semi-inverse, we are then able to identify hazy regions on a per pixel basis. This enables for a simple estimation of the airlight constant and the transmission map. Our approach is based on an extensive study on a large data set of images, and validated based on a metric that measures the contrast but also the structural changes. The algorithm is straightforward and performs faster than existing strategies while yielding comparative and even better results. We also provide a comparative evaluation against other recent single image dehazing methods, demonstrating the efficiency and utility of our approach.
Paper (pdf - 5.5MB)
Our Result
Bibtex

@inproceedings{Ancuti_ACCV2010
       author = {Ancuti, Codruta O. and Ancuti, Cosmin and Hermans, Chris and Bekaert, Philippe},
       title = {A fast semi-inverse approach to detect and remove the haze from a single image},
       booktitle = {Proceedings of the 10th Asian conference on Computer vision - Volume Part II},
       series = {ACCV'10},
       year = {2011},
       location = {Queenstown, New Zealand},
       pages = {501--514},
       publisher = {Springer-Verlag},
       address = {Berlin, Heidelberg},
}
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