In this paper we propose a Group-Sparse Representation based method with applications to Face Recognition (GSR-FR). The novel sparse representation variational model includes a non-convex sparsity-inducing penalty and a robust non-convex loss function. The penalty encourages group sparsity by using approximation of the ℓ0-quasinorm, and the loss function is chosen to make the algorithm robust to noise, occlusions and disguises. The solution of the non-trivial non-convex optimization problem is efficiently obtained by a majorization-minimization strategy combined with forward-backward splitting, which in particular reduces the solution to a sequence of easier convex optimization sub-problems. Extensive experiments on widely used face databases show the potentiality of the proposed model and demonstrate that the GSR-FR algorithm is competitive with state-of-the-art methods based on sparse representation, especially for very low dimensional feature spaces.

Regularization methods for the solution of ill-posed inverse problems can be successfully applied if a right estimation of the regularization parameter is known. In this paper, we consider the L(1)-regularized image deblurring problem and evaluate its solution using the iterative forward-backward splitting method. Based on this approach, we propose a new adaptive rule for the estimation of the regularization parameter that, at each iteration, dynamically updates the parameter value, following the evolution of the objective functional. The iterative algorithm automatically stops, without requiring any assumption about the perturbation process, when the parameter has reached a seemingly near optimal value. In spite of the fact that the optimality of this value has not yet been theoretically proved, a large number of numerical experiments confirm that the proposed rule yields restoration results competitive with those of the best state-of-the-art algorithms.

Compressed sensing is a new paradigm for signal recovery and sampling. It states that a relatively small number of linear measurements of a sparse signal can contain most of its salient information and that the signal can be exactly reconstructed from these highly incomplete observations. The major challenge in practical applications of compressed sensing consists in providing efficient, stable and fast recovery algorithms which, in a few seconds, evaluate a good approximation of a compressible image from highly incomplete and noisy samples. In this paper, we propose to approach the compressed sensing image recovery problem using adaptive nonlinear filtering strategies in an iterative framework, and we prove the convergence of the resulting two-steps iterative scheme. The results of several numerical experiments confirm that the corresponding algorithm possesses the required properties of efficiency, stability and low computational cost and that its performance is competitive with those of the state of the art algorithms.

The problem of high-resolution image volume reconstruction from reduced frequency acquisition sequences has drawn significant attention from the scientific community because of its practical importance in medical diagnosis. To address this issue, several reconstruction strategies have been recently proposed, which aim to recover the missing information either by exploiting the spatio-temporal correlations of the image series, or by imposing suitable constraints on the reconstructed image volume. The main contribution of this paper is to combine both these strategies in a compressed sensing framework by exploiting the gradient sparsity of the image volume. The resulting constrained 3D minimization problem is then solved using a penalized forward-backward splitting approach that leads to a convergent iterative two-step procedure. In the first step, the updating rule accords with the sequential nature of the data acquisitions, in the second step a truly 3D filtering strategy exploits the spatio-temporal correlations of the image sequences. The resulting NFCS-3D algorithm is very general and suitable for several kinds of medical image reconstruction problems. Moreover, it is fast, stable and yields very good reconstructions, even in the case of highly undersampled image sequences. The results of several numerical experiments highlight the optimal performance of the proposed algorithm and confirm that it is competitive with state of the art algorithms.

In this paper, multiwavelets are considered in the context of image compression and two orthonormal multiwavelet bases are experimented, each used in connection with its proper prefilter. For evaluating the effectiveness of multiwavelet transform for coding images at low bit-rates, an efficient embedded coding of multiwavelet coefficients has been realized. The performance of this multiwavelet-based coder is compared with the results obtained for scalar wavelets.