Image-based motion stabilization for maritime surveillance

Robust image-based motion stabilization is developed to enable visual surveillance in the maritime domain. The algorithm developed is neither a dense registration method nor a traditional feature-based method, but rather it captures the best aspects of each of these approaches. It avoids feature tracking and so can handle large intra-frame motions, and at the same time it is robust to large lighting variations and moving clutter. It is thus well-suited for challenges in the maritime domain. Advantage is taken of the maritime environment including use of the horizon and shoreline, and fused data from an inexpensive inertial measurement unit. Results of real-time operation on an in-water buoy are presented.