Edge-Aware Unidirectional Total Variation Model for Stripe Non-Uniformity Correction

The problem of stripe non-uniformity in array-based infrared imaging systems has been the focus of many research studies. Among the proposed correction techniques, total variation models have been proven to significantly reduce the effect of this type of noise on the captured image. However, they also cause the loss of some image details and textures due to over-smoothing effect. In this paper, a correction scheme is proposed based on unidirectional variation model to exploit the direction characteristic of the stripe noise, in which an edge-aware weighting is incorporated to convey image structure retaining ability to the overall algorithm. Moreover, a statistical-based regularization is also introduced to further enhance correction performance around strong edges. The proposed approach is thoroughly scrutinized and compared to the state-of-the-art de-striping techniques using real stripe non-uniform images. Results demonstrate a significant improvement in edge preservation with better correction performance.