Scanning ophthalmoscope retinal image registration using one-dimensional deformation fields

We present a new, robust and automated method for registering sequences of images acquired from scanning ophthalmoscopes. The method uses a multi-scale B-spline representation of the deformation field to map images to each other and an hierarchical optimization method. We applied the method to video sequences acquired from different parts of the retina. In all cases, the registration was successful, even in the presence of large distortions from microsaccades, and the resulting deformation fields describe the fixational motion of the eye. The registration reveals examples of dynamic photoreceptor behaviour in the sequences.