Discrete-Time Dynamic Image Segmentation Using Oscillators with Adaptive Coupling

In this study, we propose a novel discrete-time coupled model to generate oscillatory responses via periodic points with a high periodic order. Our coupled system comprises one-dimensional oscillators based on the Rulkov map and a single globally coupled oscillator. Because the waveform of a one-dimensional oscillator has sharply defined peaks, the coupled system can be applied to dynamic image segmentation. Our proposed system iteratively transforms the coupling of each oscillator based on an input value that corresponds to the pixel value of an input image. This approach enables our system to segment image regions in which pixel values gradually change with respect to a connected region. We conducted a bifurcation analysis of a single oscillator and a three-coupled model. Through simulations, we demonstrated that our system works well for gray-level images with three isolated image regions.