EURASIP Journal on Applied Signal Processing

  Special Issue on

  Super-Resolution Enhancement of Digital Video

  Call for Papers

When designing a system for image acquisition, there is generally a desire
for high spatial resolution and a wide field-of-view. To achieve this, a
camera system must typically employ small f-number optics. This produces
an image with very high spatial-frequency bandwidth at the focal plane.
To avoid aliasing caused by undersampling, the corresponding focal plane
array (FPA) must be sufficiently dense. However, cost and fabrication
complexities may make this impractical. More fundamentally, smaller
detectors capture fewer photons, which can lead to potentially severe
noise levels in the acquired imagery. Considering these factors, one
may choose to accept a certain level of undersampling or to sacrifice
some optical resolution and/or field-of-view.

In image super-resolution (SR), postprocessing is used to obtain images
with resolutions that go beyond the conventional limits of the uncompensated
imaging system. In some systems, the primary limiting factor is the optical
resolution of the image in the focal plane as defined by the cut-off frequency
of the optics. We use the term ^Óoptical SR^Ô to refer to SR methods that aim
to create an image with valid spatial-frequency content that goes beyond the
cut-off frequency of the optics. Such techniques typically must rely on extensive
a priori information. In other image acquisition systems, the limiting factor may
be the density of the FPA, subsequent postprocessing requirements, or transmission
bitrate constraints that require data compression. We refer to the process of
overcoming the limitations of the FPA in order to obtain the full resolution
afforded by the selected optics as ^Ódetector SR.^Ô Note that some methods may
seek to perform both optical and detector SR.

Detector SR algorithms generally process a set of low-resolution aliased frames
from a video sequence to produce a high-resolution frame. When subpixel relative
motion is present between the objects in the scene and the detector array, a unique
set of scene samples are acquired for each frame. This provides the mechanism for
effectively increasing the spatial sampling rate of the imaging system without
reducing the physical size of the detectors.

With increasing interest in surveillance and the proliferation of digital imaging
and video, SR has become a rapidly growing field. Recent advances in SR include
innovative algorithms, generalized methods, real-time implementations, and novel
applications. The purpose of this special issue is to present leading research
and development in the area of super-resolution for digital video. Topics
of interest for this special issue include but are not limited to:

 o Detector and optical SR algorithms for video
 o Real-time or near-real-time SR implementations
 o Innovative color SR processing
 o Novel SR applications such as improved object detection, recognition,
   and tracking
 o Super-resolution from compressed video
 o Subpixel image registration and optical flow

Authors should follow the EURASIP JASP manuscript format described
at the journal site http://www.hindawi.com/journals/asp/. Prospective
authors should submit an electronic copy of their complete manuscript
through the EURASIP JASP's manuscript tracking system at journal's web
site, according to the following timetable.

  Manuscript Due            September 1, 2006
  Acceptance Notification   February 1, 2006
  Final Manuscript Due      April 15, 2007
  Publication Date          3rd Quarter, 2007

Guest Editors:

 Russell C. Hardie, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering,
 University of Dayton, 300 College Park, Dayton, OH 45469-0026, USA;
 rhardie@udayton.edu

 Richard R. Schultz, Department of Electrical Engineering, University
 of North Dakota, Upson II Room 160, P.O. Box 7165, Grand Forks,
 ND 58202-7165, USA; RichardSchultz@mail.und.nodak.edu

 Kenneth E. Barner, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering,
 University of Delaware, 140 Evans Hall, Newark, DE 19716-3130, USA;
 barner@ee.udel.edu