Optimal contrast for color image fusion using ICA bases

Image fusion is the procedure of combining useful features from multiple sensor image inputs to a single composite image. In this work, the authors revise the previously proposed image fusion framework, based on self-trained independent component analysis (ICA) bases. In the original framework, equal importance was given to all input images in the reconstruction of the ldquofusedrdquo imagepsilas intensity. Even though this assumption holds for applications involving sensors of the same modality, it might not be valid in the case of multiple modality inputs of different intensity range. The authors propose a method of estimating the optimal intensity range (contrast) of the fused image via optimization of an image fusion index. The proposed approach is extended in the case of color visual inputs, in order to produce a color fused image.