Infrared Small Target Detection via Multidirectional Local Gravitational Force and Level-Line Connectivity
Infrared small target detection is significantly challenged by residual high-intensity background edges and a low signal-to-noise ratio. These issues hinder accurate target differentiation from the background and heighten the risk of false alarms. To address these challenges, we propose a method tha...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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IEEE
2025-01-01
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| Series: | IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing |
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| Online Access: | https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10964054/ |
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| author | Xuying Hao Xianyuan Liu Yujia Liu Yijuan Qiu Yunjing Zhang Yi Cui Tao Lei |
| author_facet | Xuying Hao Xianyuan Liu Yujia Liu Yijuan Qiu Yunjing Zhang Yi Cui Tao Lei |
| author_sort | Xuying Hao |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Infrared small target detection is significantly challenged by residual high-intensity background edges and a low signal-to-noise ratio. These issues hinder accurate target differentiation from the background and heighten the risk of false alarms. To address these challenges, we propose a method that employs multidirectional local gravitational force (LGF) contrast combined with level-line connectivity (LLC) contrast. The LGF model integrates information from each pixel within the local region and introduces a new sigmoid function to reduce noise, enabling fine-grained gradient detection. The magnitude and orientation in this gradient can then be used to differentiate the target from the background. Considering that the target exhibits different gradient features in different directions, we further propose a multidirectional LGF contrast. This contrast utilizes the distribution characteristics of LGF magnitude to enhance the target and effectively suppress strong edges. In addition, to fully utilize the orientation information in the LGF, we designed the LLC contrast based on the spatial consistency of the target, increasing the difference between the target and the background. Finally, we propose a regional fusion technique to weight the two contrasts, improving background suppression while preserving target intensity. Experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of our method in detecting targets within high-intensity edge backgrounds, complex textures, and noisy environments. Compared to other state-of-the-art methods, our method significantly improves detection accuracy. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-a0599cdf500a44ef9f7b094261c1ed34 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 1939-1404 2151-1535 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | IEEE |
| record_format | Article |
| series | IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing |
| spelling | doaj-art-a0599cdf500a44ef9f7b094261c1ed342025-08-20T03:11:06ZengIEEEIEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing1939-14042151-15352025-01-0118111111112710.1109/JSTARS.2025.356030610964054Infrared Small Target Detection via Multidirectional Local Gravitational Force and Level-Line ConnectivityXuying Hao0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4957-6364Xianyuan Liu1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3084-519XYujia Liu2Yijuan Qiu3Yunjing Zhang4Yi Cui5https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0773-9153Tao Lei6https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0900-1582National Laboratory on Adaptive Optics, Chengdu, ChinaCentre for Machine Intelligence, The University of Sheffield, Sheffield, U.K.National Laboratory on Adaptive Optics, Chengdu, ChinaNational Laboratory on Adaptive Optics, Chengdu, ChinaNational Laboratory on Adaptive Optics, Chengdu, ChinaNational Laboratory on Adaptive Optics, Chengdu, ChinaNational Laboratory on Adaptive Optics, Chengdu, ChinaInfrared small target detection is significantly challenged by residual high-intensity background edges and a low signal-to-noise ratio. These issues hinder accurate target differentiation from the background and heighten the risk of false alarms. To address these challenges, we propose a method that employs multidirectional local gravitational force (LGF) contrast combined with level-line connectivity (LLC) contrast. The LGF model integrates information from each pixel within the local region and introduces a new sigmoid function to reduce noise, enabling fine-grained gradient detection. The magnitude and orientation in this gradient can then be used to differentiate the target from the background. Considering that the target exhibits different gradient features in different directions, we further propose a multidirectional LGF contrast. This contrast utilizes the distribution characteristics of LGF magnitude to enhance the target and effectively suppress strong edges. In addition, to fully utilize the orientation information in the LGF, we designed the LLC contrast based on the spatial consistency of the target, increasing the difference between the target and the background. Finally, we propose a regional fusion technique to weight the two contrasts, improving background suppression while preserving target intensity. Experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of our method in detecting targets within high-intensity edge backgrounds, complex textures, and noisy environments. Compared to other state-of-the-art methods, our method significantly improves detection accuracy.https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10964054/Infrared small target detection (IRSTD)level-linelocal gravitational force (LGF) |
| spellingShingle | Xuying Hao Xianyuan Liu Yujia Liu Yijuan Qiu Yunjing Zhang Yi Cui Tao Lei Infrared Small Target Detection via Multidirectional Local Gravitational Force and Level-Line Connectivity IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Applied Earth Observations and Remote Sensing Infrared small target detection (IRSTD) level-line local gravitational force (LGF) |
| title | Infrared Small Target Detection via Multidirectional Local Gravitational Force and Level-Line Connectivity |
| title_full | Infrared Small Target Detection via Multidirectional Local Gravitational Force and Level-Line Connectivity |
| title_fullStr | Infrared Small Target Detection via Multidirectional Local Gravitational Force and Level-Line Connectivity |
| title_full_unstemmed | Infrared Small Target Detection via Multidirectional Local Gravitational Force and Level-Line Connectivity |
| title_short | Infrared Small Target Detection via Multidirectional Local Gravitational Force and Level-Line Connectivity |
| title_sort | infrared small target detection via multidirectional local gravitational force and level line connectivity |
| topic | Infrared small target detection (IRSTD) level-line local gravitational force (LGF) |
| url | https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10964054/ |
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