digital image processing, medical image processing, shape representation, skeletonization, digital topology
Kálmán Palágyi (Ph.D. 2000, University of Szeged) is Associate Professor at the Department of Image Processing and Computer Graphics, Faculty of Science and Informatics, University of Szeged. His research interests include thinning and skeletonization algorithms in 3D, and their medical applications.
Skeleton-like shape features (i.e., centerlines, medial surfaces, and topological kernels) are frequently used region-based shape features which summarize the general form of objects and represent their topological structures. They play important role in various applications in image processing, pattern recognition, and visualization. I shall define skeletons and present their properties. Then the three major skeletonization techniques will be presented. Finally, some applications will be outlined.
Keywords: shape representation, skeleton, distance transform, voronoi diagram, thinning