Automatic Description of the Venation of Mosquito Wings from Digitized Images

摘要: -Methods are described for the automatic measurement of morphological features mosquito wings (wing outline and venation) from TV images specimens mounted on microscope slides. The digitized were preprocessed to locate "ridge points" in gray-scale image surface thinned so that veins could be represented by curves only a single pixel wide. was then segmented into wing 10 longitudinal veins. Polynomial functions fitted each vein. coordinates end points vein coefficients polynomials used as descriptors subsequent multivariate analyses. Comparisons made with other algorithms results shown. [Feature extraction; orthogonal polynomials; analysis; tracing.] Now inexpensive hardware is available attachment cameras imaging devices computers (even microcomputers), there an immediate interest practical applications analysis. Most biology have been related field medicine, but many potential systematics areas population biology. While methods present paper developed specifically outlines wings, general approach has applicability types which consist set lines. Mosquito especially challenging because vary density partly obscured scales, seen against cluttered background. In this we describe method locating (using image-segmentation techniques) fitting may difficult interpret biologically, they convenient They also permit one reconstruct (the importance discussed Rohlf Archie, 1984). Our procedures are: (1) digitizing (mounted slide) using camera digitizer; (2) enhancing original reduce effects imperfections image; (3) tracing lines corresponding order obtain sets coordinates; (4) computing polynomial serve final descriptive wings. report describes detail steps 2 3 (preprocessing image) step 4 (feature extraction). Many exist objects (Pratt, 1978; Ferson, 1983). Methods include Fourier (Kuhl, 1982; Chellappa Bajdajian, 1984; 1984), moments (Gonzalez Wintz, 1977), topological 1977). This study extension Archie (1984), who considered shape produced manually coordinate digitizer. Ferson et al. (1985) reported automatically obtaining trace mussel shells (which distinct edges).