A novel approach to image recoloring for color vision deficiency

Abstract

In this paper, a novel method to modify color images for the protanopia and deuteranopia color vision deficiencies is proposed. The method admits certain criteria, such as preserving image naturalness and color contrast enhancement. Four modules are employed in the process. First, fuzzy clustering‐based color segmentation extracts key colors (which are the cluster centers) of the input image. Second, the key colors are mapped onto the CIE 1931 chromaticity diagram. Then, using the concept of confusion line (i.e., loci of colors confused by the color‐blind), a sophisticated mechanism translates (i.e., removes) key colors lying on the same confusion line to different confusion lines so that they can be discriminated by the color‐blind. In the third module, the key colors are further adapted by optimizing a regularized objective function that combines the aforementioned criteria. Fourth, the recolored image is obtained by color transfer that involves the adapted key colors and the associated fuzzy clusters. Three related methods are compared with the proposed one, using two performance indices, and evaluated by several experiments over 195 natural images and six digitized art paintings. The main outcomes of the comparative analysis are as follows. (a) Quantitative evaluation based on nonparametric statistical analysis is conducted by comparing the proposed method to each one of the other three methods for protanopia and deuteranopia, and for each index. In most of the comparisons, the Bonferroni adjusted p‐values are <0.015, favoring the superiority of the proposed method. (b) Qualitative evaluation verifies the aesthetic appearance of the recolored images. (c) Subjective evaluation supports the above results.