Computer vision

Human vision involves our eyes, but it also involves all of our abstract understanding of concepts and
personal experiences through millions of interactions we have had with the outside world. Until
recently, computers had very limited abilities to think independently. Computer vision is a recent branch
of technology that focuses on replicating this human vision to help computers identify and process
things the same way humans do.

The field of computer vision has made significant progress toward becoming more pervasive in everyday
life as a result of recent developments in areas like artificial intelligence and computing capabilities. It is
anticipated that the market for computer vision will approach $41.11 billion by the year 2030, with a
compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 16.0% between the years 2020 and 2030.

What is Computer Vision?

Computer vision is one of the fields of artificial intelligence that trains and enables computers to
understand the visual world. Computers can use digital images and deep learning models to accurately
identify and classify objects and react to them.

Computer vision in AI is dedicated to the development of automated systems that can interpret visual
data (such as photographs or motion pictures) in the same manner as people do. The idea behind
computer vision is to instruct computers to interpret and comprehend images on a pixel-by-pixel basis.
This is the foundation of the computer vision field. Regarding the technical side of things, computers will
seek to extract visual data, manage it, and analyze the outcomes using sophisticated software programs.

The amount of data that we generate today is tremendous - 2.5 quintillion bytes of data every single
day. This growth in data has proven to be one of the driving factors behind the growth of computer
vision.
How Does Computer Vision Work?
Massive amounts of information are required for computer vision. Repeated data analyses are
performed until the system can differentiate between objects and identify visuals. Deep learning, a
specific kind of machine learning, and convolutional neural networks, an important form of a neural
network, are the two key techniques that are used to achieve this goal.

With the help of pre-programmed algorithmic frameworks, a machine learning system may
automatically learn about the interpretation of visual data. The model can learn to distinguish between
similar pictures if it is given a large enough dataset. Algorithms make it possible for the system to learn
on its own, so that it may replace human labor in tasks like image recognition.

Convolutional neural networks aid machine learning and deep learning models in understanding by
dividing visuals into smaller sections that may be tagged. With the help of the tags, it performs
convolutions and then leverages the tertiary function to make recommendations about the scene it is
observing. With each cycle, the neural network performs convolutions and evaluates the veracity of its
recommendations. And that's when it starts perceiving and identifying pictures like a human.

Computer vision is similar to solving a jigsaw puzzle in the real world. Imagine that you have all these
jigsaw pieces together and you need to assemble them in order to form a real image. That is exactly how
the neural networks inside a computer vision work. Through a series of filtering and actions, computers
can put all the parts of the image together and then think on their own. However, the computer is not
just given a puzzle of an image - rather, it is often fed with thousands of images that train it to recognize
certain objects.

For example, instead of training a computer to look for pointy ears, long tails, paws and whiskers that
make up a cat, software programmers upload and feed millions of images of cats to the computer. This
enables the computer to understand the different features that make up a cat and recognize it instantly.

History of computer vision

For almost 60 years, researchers and developers have sought to teach computers how to perceive and
make sense of visual information. In 1959, neurophysiologists started showing a cat a variety of sights in
an effort to correlate a reaction in the animal's brain. They found that it was particularly sensitive to
sharp corners and lines, which technically indicates that straight lines and other basic forms are the
foundation upon which image analysis is built.

Around the same period, the first image-scanning technology emerged that enabled computers to scan
images and obtain digital copies of them. This gave computers the ability to digitize and store images. In
the 1960s, artificial intelligence (AI) emerged as an area of research, and the effort to address AI's
inability to mimic human vision began.

Neuroscientists demonstrated in 1982 that vision operates hierarchically and presented techniques
enabling computers to recognize edges, vertices, arcs, and other fundamental structures. At the same
time, data scientists created a pattern-recognition network of cells. By the year 2000, researchers were
concentrating their efforts on object identification, and by the following year, the industry saw the first-
ever real-time face recognition solutions.

Computer Vision Applications

One field of Machine Learning where fundamental ideas are already included in mainstream products is
computer vision. The applications include:

Self-Driving Cars

With the use of computer vision, autonomous vehicles can understand their environment. Multiple
cameras record the environment surrounding the vehicle, which is then sent into computer vision
algorithms that analyzes the photos in perfect sync to locate road edges, decipher signposts, and see
other vehicles, obstacles, and people. Then, the autonomous vehicle can navigate streets and highways
on its own, swerve around obstructions, and get its passengers where they need to go safely.

Facial Recognition

Facial recognition programs, which use computer vision to recognize individuals in photographs, rely
heavily on this field of study. Facial traits in photos are identified by computer vision algorithms, which
then match those aspects to stored face profiles. In order to verify the identity of the people using
consumer electronics, face recognition is increasingly being used. Facial recognition is used in social
networking applications for both user detection and user tagging. For the same reason, law enforcement
uses face recognition software to track down criminals using surveillance footage.
Augmented & Mixed Reality

Augmented reality, which allows computers like smartphones and wearable technology to superimpose
or embed digital content onto real-world environments, also relies heavily on computer vision. Virtual
items may be placed in the actual environment through computer vision in augmented reality
equipment. In order to properly generate depth and proportions and position virtual items in the real
environment, augmented reality apps rely on computer vision techniques to recognize surfaces like
tabletops, ceilings, and floors.

Healthcare

Computer vision has contributed significantly to the development of health tech. Automating the
process of looking for malignant moles on a person's skin or locating indicators in an x-ray or MRI scan is
only one of the many applications of computer vision algorithms.

Computer vision tasks

Examples

The following are some examples of well-established activities using computer vision:

Categorization of Images

A computer program that uses image categorization can determine what an image is of (a dog, a
banana, a human face, etc.). In particular, it may confidently assert that an input picture matches a
specific category. It might be used by a social networking platform, for instance, to filter out offensive
photos that people post.

Object Detection

By first classifying images into categories, object detection may then utilize this information to search for
and catalog instances of the desired class of images. In the manufacturing industry, this can include
finding defects on the production line or locating broken equipment.

Observation of Moving Objects

If an item is discovered, object tracking will continue to move in the same location. A common method
for doing this is by using a live video stream or a series of sequentially taken photos. For example,
driverless cars must not only identify and categorize moving things like people, other motorists, and
road systems in order to prevent crashes and adhere to traffic regulations.

Retrieval of Images Based on Their Contents

In contrast to traditional visual retrieval methods, which rely on metadata labels, a content-based
recognition system employs computer vision to search, explore, and retrieve pictures from huge data
warehouses based on the actual image content. Automatic picture annotations, which can replace
traditional visual tagging, may be used for this work.

Computer Vision Algorithms

Computer vision algorithms include the different methods used to understand the objects in digital
images and extract high-dimensional data from the real world to produce numerical or symbolic
information. There are many other computer vision algorithms involved in recognizing things in
photographs. Some common ones are:

Object Classification - What is the main category of the object present in this photograph?

Object Identification - What is the type of object present in this photograph?

Object Detection - Where is the object in the photograph?

Object Segmentation - What pixels belong to the object in the image?

Object Verification - Is the object in the photograph?

Object Recognition - What are the objects present in this photograph and where are they located?

Object Landmark Detection - What are the key points for the object in this photograph?

Challenges of Computer Vision

Creating a machine with human-level vision is surprisingly challenging, and not only because of the
technical challenges involved in doing so with computers. We still have a lot to learn about the nature of
human vision.
To fully grasp biological vision, one must learn not just how various receptors like the eye work, but also
how the brain processes what it sees. The process has been mapped out, and its tricks and shortcuts
have been discovered, but, as with any study of the brain, there is still a considerable distance to cover.

Computer Vision Benefits

Computer vision can automate several tasks without the need for human intervention. As a result, it
provides organizations with a number of benefits:

Faster and simpler process - Computer vision systems can carry out repetitive and monotonous tasks at
a faster rate, which simplifies the work for humans.

Better products and services - Computer vision systems that have been trained very well will commit
zero mistakes. This will result in faster delivery of high-quality products and services.

Cost-reduction - Companies do not have to spend money on fixing their flawed processes because
computer vision will leave no room for faulty products and services.

Computer Vision Disadvantages

There is no technology that is free from flaws, which is true for computer vision systems. Here are a few
limitations of computer vision:

Lack of specialists - Companies need to have a team of highly trained professionals with deep knowledge
of the differences between AI vs. Machine Learning vs. Deep Learning technologies to train computer
vision systems. There is a need for more specialists that can help shape this future of technology.

Need for regular monitoring - If a computer vision system faces a technical glitch or breaks down, this
can cause immense loss to companies. Hence, companies need to have a dedicated team on board to
monitor and evaluate these systems.