Joint segmentation of multiple images with shared classes: a Bayesian nonparametrics approach

A combination of the hierarchical Dirichlet process (HDP) and the Potts model is proposed for the joint segmentation/classification of a set of images with shared classes. Images are first divided into homogeneous regions that are assumed to belong to the same class when sharing common characteristics. Simultaneously, the Potts model favors configurations defined by neighboring pixels belonging to the same class. This HDP-Potts model is elected as a prior for the images, which allows the best number of classes to be selected automatically. A Gibbs sampler is then designed to approximate the Bayesian estimators, under a maximum a posteriori (MAP) paradigm. Preliminary experimental results are finally reported using a set of synthetic images