We propose a novel method for image editing in which the primitive working unit is not a pixel but an edge. The feasibility of this proposal is suggested by the recent work of Elder et al. (1998) showing that a gray-scale image can be accurately represented by its edge map if a suitable edge model and scale selection method are employed. In particular, an efficient algorithm has been reported by Elder et al. (1996) and Elder (1999) to invert such an edge representation to yield a high-fidelity reconstruction of the original image. We combined these algorithms together with an efficient method for contour grouping and an intuitive user interface to allow users to perform image editing operations directly in the contour domain. Experimental results suggest that this novel combination of vision algorithms may increase the efficiency of certain classes of image editing operations.

Image editing systems are essentially pixel-based. In this paper we propose a novel method for image editing in which the primitive working unit is not a pixel but an edge. The feasibility of this proposal is suggested by recent work showing that a grey-scale image can be accurately represented by its edge map if a suitable edge model and scale selection method are employed. In particular, an efficient algorithm has been reported to invert such an edge representation to yield a high-fidelity reconstruction of the original image. We have combined these algorithms together with an efficient method for contour grouping and an intuitive user interface to allow users to perform image editing operations directly in the contour domain. Experimental results suggest that this novel combination of vision algorithms may lead to substantial improvements in the efficiency of certain classes of image editing operations.