Hierarchical interactive image segmentation using irregular pyramids

In this paper we describe modifications of irregular image segmentation pyramids based on user-interaction. We first build a hierarchy of segmentations by the minimum spanning tree based method, then regions from different (granularity) levels are combined to a final (better) segmentation with user-specified operations guiding the segmentation process. Based on these operations the users can produce a final image segmentation that best suits their applications. This work can be used for applications where we need accuracy in image segmentation, in annotating images or creating ground truth among others. © 2011 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.