The hierarchical cluster model for image region segmentation

Abstract

The hierarchical cluster model (HCM), a neural network inspired by the human brain (see Sutton, J., Harvard Medical School, MIT, Neural Systems Group, Technical Report, 1995), is demonstrated for the purpose of region segmentation in digital images. Starting with an over segmented image, regions are merged based on evidence of a valid edge between the two regions. Unlike Sutton's work, in which the HCM is used to recall a set of pre-trained memory patterns, the HCM in our work demonstrates unsupervised decision making capabilities.