A cellular algorithm for straight line extraction

Straight-line-edge extraction can be carried out in two successive phases: identifying the pixels that belong to edges and conducting straight-line segments from these edge pixels. A parallel approach based on a cellular algorithm is proposed for the second phase. Each cell sends a message that compiles distances between a pattern segment and the real segment on the image. The value of the message identifies a segment and codifies its length and endpoints. If the parameters of the algorithm are properly chosen, it can be adjusted to different kinds of contours: noised or blurred edges and disconnected segments. The algorithm takes computation time proportional to the linear dimension of the image (for an image of N*N pixels the linear dimension is N) and the number of generalized directions.<>