Detection of elliptical shapes via cross-entropy clustering

The problem of finding elliptical shapes in an image will be considered. We discuss the solution which uses cross-entropy clustering. The proposed method allows the search for ellipses with predefined sizes and position in the space. Moreover, it works well for search of ellipsoids in higher dimensions

A local Gaussian filter and adaptive morphology as tools for completing partially discontinuous curves

This paper presents a method for extraction and analysis of curve--type structures which consist of disconnected components. Such structures are found in electron--microscopy (EM) images of metal nanograins, which are widely used in the field of nanosensor technology. The topography of metal nanograins in compound nanomaterials is crucial to nanosensor characteristics. The method of completing such templates consists of three steps. In the first step, a local Gaussian filter is used with different weights for each neighborhood. In the second step, an adaptive morphology operation is applied to detect the endpoints of curve segments and connect them. In the last step, pruning is employed to extract a curve which optimally fits the template

Cross-Entropy Clustering

We construct a cross-entropy clustering (CEC) theory which finds the optimal number of clusters by automatically removing groups which carry no information. Moreover, our theory gives simple and efficient criterion to verify cluster validity. Although CEC can be build on an arbitrary family of densities, in the most important case of Gaussian CEC: {\em -- the division into clusters is affine invariant; -- the clustering will have the tendency to divide the data into ellipsoid-type shapes; -- the approach is computationally efficient as we can apply Hartigan approach.} We study also with particular attention clustering based on the Spherical Gaussian densities and that of Gaussian densities with covariance s \I. In the letter case we show that with $s$ converging to zero we obtain the classical k-means clustering

Identifying Mixtures of Mixtures Using Bayesian Estimation

The use of a finite mixture of normal distributions in model-based clustering allows to capture non-Gaussian data clusters. However, identifying the clusters from the normal components is challenging and in general either achieved by imposing constraints on the model or by using post-processing procedures. Within the Bayesian framework we propose a different approach based on sparse finite mixtures to achieve identifiability. We specify a hierarchical prior where the hyperparameters are carefully selected such that they are reflective of the cluster structure aimed at. In addition this prior allows to estimate the model using standard MCMC sampling methods. In combination with a post-processing approach which resolves the label switching issue and results in an identified model, our approach allows to simultaneously (1) determine the number of clusters, (2) flexibly approximate the cluster distributions in a semi-parametric way using finite mixtures of normals and (3) identify cluster-specific parameters and classify observations. The proposed approach is illustrated in two simulation studies and on benchmark data sets.Comment: 49 page

Uniform Cross-entropy Clustering

Robust mixture models approaches, which use non-normal distributions have recently been upgraded to accommodate data with fixed bounds. In this article we propose a new method based on uniform distributions and Cross-Entropy Clustering (CEC). We combine a simple density model with a clustering method which allows to treat groups separately and estimate parameters in each cluster individually. Consequently, we introduce an effective clustering algorithm which deals with non-normal data

Ellipticity and circularity measuring via Kullback-Leibler divergence

Using the Kullback-Leibler divergence we provide a simple statistical measure which uses only the covariance matrix of a given set to verify whether the set is an ellipsoid. Similar measure is provided for verification of circles and balls. The new measure is easily computable, intuitive, and can be applied to higher dimensional data. Experiments have been performed to illustrate that the new measure behaves in natural way

Soft clustering analysis of galaxy morphologies: A worked example with SDSS

Context: The huge and still rapidly growing amount of galaxies in modern sky surveys raises the need of an automated and objective classification method. Unsupervised learning algorithms are of particular interest, since they discover classes automatically. Aims: We briefly discuss the pitfalls of oversimplified classification methods and outline an alternative approach called "clustering analysis". Methods: We categorise different classification methods according to their capabilities. Based on this categorisation, we present a probabilistic classification algorithm that automatically detects the optimal classes preferred by the data. We explore the reliability of this algorithm in systematic tests. Using a small sample of bright galaxies from the SDSS, we demonstrate the performance of this algorithm in practice. We are able to disentangle the problems of classification and parametrisation of galaxy morphologies in this case. Results: We give physical arguments that a probabilistic classification scheme is necessary. The algorithm we present produces reasonable morphological classes and object-to-class assignments without any prior assumptions. Conclusions: There are sophisticated automated classification algorithms that meet all necessary requirements, but a lot of work is still needed on the interpretation of the results.Comment: 18 pages, 19 figures, 2 tables, submitted to A