Image Matching with Scale Adjustment

TL;DR

This paper presents a novel method for matching images with different resolutions by utilizing scale-space representations, invariant descriptors, and geometric modeling, effectively handling scale differences up to a factor of 6.

Contribution

The paper introduces a new approach for matching images at different resolutions using scale-space analysis and invariant feature descriptors, addressing unknown resolution differences.

Findings

Effective for scale changes up to a factor of 6

Uses scale-space representation for interest point detection

Employs robust geometric model estimation

Abstract

In this paper we address the problem of matching two images with two different resolutions: a high-resolution image and a low-resolution one. The difference in resolution between the two images is not known and without loss of generality one of the images is assumed to be the high-resolution one. On the premise that changes in resolution act as a smoothing equivalent to changes in scale, a scale-space representation of the high-resolution image is produced. Hence the one-to-one classical image matching paradigm becomes one-to-many because the low-resolution image is compared with all the scale-space representations of the high-resolution one. Key to the success of such a process is the proper representation of the features to be matched in scale-space. We show how to represent and extract interest points at variable scales and we devise a method allowing the comparison of two images at two different resolutions. The method comprises the use of photometric- and rotation-invariant descriptors, a geometric model mapping the high-resolution image onto a low-resolution image region, and an image matching strategy based on local constraints and on the robust estimation of this geometric model. Extensive experiments show that our matching method can be used for scale changes up to a factor of 6.