Image Seg Final Report

OBJECT DETECTION USING IMAGE SEGMENTATION AND BIOMETRIC INSPIRED
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CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
1.1 GENERAL
The term digital image refers to processing of a two dimensional picture by a digital
computer. In a broader context, it implies digital processing of any two dimensional data. A
digital image is an array of real or complex numbers represented by a finite number of bits.
An image given in the form of a transparency, slide, photograph or an X-ray is first digitized
and stored as a matrix of binary digits in computer memory. This digitized image can then
be processed and/or displayed on a high-resolution television monitor. For display, the
image is stored in a rapid-access buffer memory, which refreshes the monitor at a rate of 25
frames per second to produce a visually continuous display.
1.1.1 THE IMAGE PROCESSING SYSTEM
Digitizer Mass Storage
Image Digital Operator

Processor Computer Console
Hard Copy
Device
Display
FIG 1.1 BLOCK DIAGRAM FOR IMAGE PROCESSING

SYSTEM
DEPT OF ELECTRONICS AND COMMUNICATION, MSRIT Page 1

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 DIGITIZER
A digitizer converts an image into a numerical representation suitable for

input into a digital computer. Some common digitizers are
1. Microdensitometer
2. Flying spot scanner
3. Image dissector
4. Videocon camera
5. Photosensitive solid- state arrays.
 IMAGE PROCESSOR
An image processor does the functions of image acquisition, storage,

preprocessing, segmentation, representation, recognition and interpretation and finally
displays or records the resulting image. The following block diagram gives the
fundamental sequence involved in an image processing system.
Problem Image Representation &

Segmentation
Domain Acquisition Description
Knowledge Recognition & Result

Preprocessing
interpretation
Base
FIG 1.2 BLOCK DIAGRAM OF FUNDAMENTAL SEQUENCE

INVOLVED IN AN IMAGE PROCESSING SYSTEM

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As detailed in the diagram, the first step in the process is image acquisition by an
imaging sensor in conjunction with a digitizer to digitize the image. The next step is the
preprocessing step where the image is improved being fed as an input to the other
processes. Preprocessing typically deals with enhancing, removing noise, isolating
regions, etc. Segmentation partitions an image into its constituent parts or objects. The
output of segmentation is usually raw pixel data, which consists of either the boundary of
the region or the pixels in the region themselves. Representation is the process of
transforming the raw pixel data into a form useful for subsequent processing by the
computer. Description deals with extracting features that are basic in differentiating one
class of objects from another. Recognition assigns a label to an object based on the
information provided by its descriptors. Interpretation involves assigning meaning to an
ensemble of recognized objects. The knowledge about a problem domain is incorporated
into the knowledge base. The knowledge base guides the operation of each processing
module and also controls the interaction between the modules. Not all modules need be
necessarily present for a specific function. The composition of the image processing
system depends on its application. The frame rate of the image processor is normally
around 25 frames per second.
 DIGITAL COMPUTER
Mathematical processing of the digitized image such as convolution, averaging,

addition, subtraction, etc. are done by the computer.
 MASS STORAGE
The secondary storage devices normally used are floppy disks, CD ROMs etc.
 HARD COPY DEVICE
The hard copy device is used to produce a permanent copy of the image and for
the storage of the software involved.

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 OPERATOR CONSOLE
The operator console consists of equipment and arrangements for verification of

intermediate results and for alterations in the software as and when require. The operator
is also capable of checking for any resulting errors and for the entry of requisite data.
1.1.2 IMAGE PROCESSING FUNDAMENTALS
Digital image processing refers processing of the image in digital form.

Modern cameras may directly take the image in digital form but generally images are
originated in optical form. They are captured by video cameras and digitalized. The
digitalization process includes sampling, quantization. Then these images are
processed by the five fundamental processes, at least any one of them, not necessarily
all of them.
 IMAGE PROCESSING TECHNIQUES
This section gives various image processing techniques
Image Enhancement
Image Restoration
IP
Image Analysis
Image Compression
Image Synthesis
FIG1.3 IMAGE PROCESSING TECHNIQUES

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 IMAGE ENHANCEMENT
Image enhancement operations improve the qualities of an image like
improving the image‟s contrast and brightness characteristics, reducing its noise content,
or sharpen the details. This just enhances the image and reveals the same information in
more understandable image. It does not add any information to it.
 IMAGE RESTORATION
Image restoration like enhancement improves the qualities of image but all
the operations are mainly based on known, measured, or degradations of the original
image. Image restorations are used to restore images with problems such as geometric
distortion, improper focus, repetitive noise, and camera motion. It is used to correct
images for known degradations.
 IMAGE ANALYSIS
Image analysis operations produce numerical or graphical information based
on characteristics of the original image. They break into objects and then classify
them. They depend on the image statistics. Common operations are extraction and
description of scene and image features, automated measurements, and object
classification. Image analyze are mainly used in machine vision applications.
 IMAGE COMPRESSION
Image compression and decompression reduce the data content necessary to
describe the image. Most of the images contain lot of redundant information,
compression removes all the redundancies. Because of the compression the size is
reduced, so efficiently stored or transported. The compressed image is decompressed
when displayed. Lossless compression preserves the exact data in the original image,
but Lossy compression does not represent the original image but provide excellent
compression.

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 IMAGE SYNTHESIS
Image synthesis operations create images from other images or non-image
data. Image synthesis operations generally create images that are either physically
impossible or impractical to acquire.
 APPLICATIONS OF DIGITAL IMAGE PROCESSING

Digital image processing has a broad spectrum of applications, such as remote
sensing via satellites and other spacecrafts, image transmission and storage for business
applications, medical processing, radar, sonar and acoustic image processing, robotics
and automated inspection of industrial parts.
 MEDICAL APPLICATIONS
In medical applications, one is concerned with processing of chest X-rays,
cineangiograms, projection images of transaxial tomography and other medical
images that occur in radiology, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and ultrasonic
scanning. These images may be used for patient screening and monitoring or for
detection of tumors‟ or other disease in patients.
 SATELLITE IMAGING
Images acquired by satellites are useful in tracking of earth resources;
geographical mapping; prediction of agricultural crops, urban growth and weather;
flood and fire control; and many other environmental applications. Space image
applications include recognition and analysis of objects contained in image obtained
from deep space-probe missions.
 COMMUNICATION
Image transmission and storage applications occur in broadcast television,
teleconferencing, and transmission of facsimile images for office automation,
communication of computer networks, closed-circuit television based security
monitoring systems and in military communications.

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 RADAR IMAGING SYSTEMS

Radar and sonar images are used for detection and recognition of various
types of targets or in guidance and maneuvering of aircraft or missile systems.
 DOCUMENT PROCESSING
It is used in scanning, and transmission for converting paper documents to a
digital image form, compressing the image, and storing it on magnetic tape. It is also
used in document reading for automatically detecting and recognizing printed
characteristics.
 DEFENSE/INTELLIGENCE
It is used in reconnaissance photo-interpretation for automatic interpretation
of earth satellite imagery to look for sensitive targets or military threats and target
acquisition and guidance for recognizing and tracking targets in real-time smart-bomb
and missile-guidance systems.
1.2 OBJECTIVE
The main discussions and comparisons focus on spatial domain methods, frequency domain
methods and also adaptive methods. It will be shown that all of the Steganographic algorithms
discussed have been detected by Steganalysis and thus a robust algorithm with high embedding
capacity needs to be investigated. Simple edge embedding is robust to many attacks and it will
be shown that this adaptive method is also an excellent means of hiding data while maintaining a
good quality carrier. We intend to use human skin tone detection in a proposed edge embedding
Adaptive Steganographic method.
1.3 EXISTING SYSTEM
The existing systems hold the steganographed data in the known region of the image. The
usual steganography methods are prone to attacks and noise which may lead to perceptual
retrieval of the secret image or even the loss of data.

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1.3.1 DISADVANTAGES OF EXISTING SYSTEM

 Such images are highly prone to noise
 There is a chance of losing the data itself.
1.3.2 LITERATURE SURVEY
1. Johnson, N. F. and Jajodia, S.: Exploring Steganography: Seeing the Unseen. IEEE
Computer, 31 (2): 26-34, Feb 1998.
In this paper the author says,

Residual carrier, balance, and quadrature error imperfections that are normally present in
phase/quadrature modulators limit the use of direct modulation techniques in some applications.
The classical precompensation techniques are revised and an adaptive solution proposed that
improves performance by some order of magnitude.
2. Jakubowski, J., Kwiatos, K., Chwaleba, A. and Osowski, S.: Higher Order Statistics and
Neural Network for Tremor Recognition. IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering,
49 (2): February 2002.

This paper is concerned with the tremor characterization for the purpose of recognition.
Three different types of tremor are considered in this paper: the parkinsonian, essential, and
physiological. It has been proven that standard second-order statistical description of tremor is
not sufficient to distinguish between these three types. Higher order polyspectra based on third-
and fourth-order cumulants have been proposed as the additional characterization of the tremor
time series. The set of 30 quantities based on the polyspectra has been proposed and investigated
as the features for the recognition of tremor. The neural network of the multilayer perceptron
structure has been used as a classifier. The results of numerical experiments have proven high

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efficiency of the proposed approach. The average error of recognition of three types of tremor
did not exceed 3%.
3. Areepongsa, S. Kaewkamnerd, N. Syed, Y. F. and Rao. K. R.: Exploring On

Steganography For Low Bit Rate Wavelet Based Coder In Image Retrieval System. IEEE
Proceedings of TENCON 2000. (3): 250-255. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 2000.

An image retrieval system that provides an efficient retrieval, management and
transmission of selected image(s) from the database is proposed. The key point of research is
utilizing a steganographic technique to achieve the efficient use of resources by embedding
attributes into the image contents. To avoid the degradation of image quality, the attributes are
invisibly embedded in the edge representations of the compressed domain of the ZTE (zerotree
entropy)/modified SPIHT (set partitioning in hierarchical trees) wavelet based coder. The
evaluations of the proposed algorithm have shown several significant advantages. For example,
(1) fast transmission of the retrieved image to the receiver, (2) it allows searching based on the
retrieval images, (3) no reprocessing of the attributes for other applications, (4) no extra bits
required for the conventional thumbnail and (5) no extra bits for the attributes.
4. Kermani, Z. Z. and Jamzad, M.: A Robust Steganography Algorithm Based on Texture

Similarity using Gabor Filter. Proceedings of IEEE 5th International Symposium on Signal
Processing and Information Technology, 18-21 Dec. 2005, 578-582.

The main concern of steganography (image hiding) methods is to embed a secret image
into a host image in such a way that the host should remain as similar as possible to its original
version. In addition the host image should remain robust with respect to usual attacks. In this
paper we present a method that tries to cover all above mentioned concerns. The secret and host
images are divided into blocks of size 4 times 4. Each block in secret image is taken as a texture
pattern for which the most similar block is found among the blocks of the host image. The
embedding procedure is carried on by replacing these small blocks of the secret image with

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blocks in host image in such a way that least distortion would be imposed on it. We have used
Gabor filter to measure the similarity between texture patterns. The location addresses of blocks
in host image which are replaced by blocks of secret image are saved. This data is converted to a
bit string and then modified by Hamming code. This bit string is embedded in DCT coefficients
of the modified host image using a key which is the seed of a random number generator. Our
experimental results showed a high level of capacity, robustness and minimum distortion on
standard images.
5. Marvel, L. M. and Retter, C. T.: A Methodology for Data Hiding Using Images.
Proceedings of IEEE Military Communications Conference (MILCOM98) Proceedings,
Boston, MA, USA, 18-21 Oct 1998,1044-1047.

We present a method of embedding information within digital images, called spread
spectrum image steganography (SSIS) along with its payload capacity. Steganography is the
science of communicating in a hidden manner. SSIS conceals a message of substantial length
within digital imagery while maintaining the original image size and dynamic range. The hidden
message can be recovered using the appropriate keys without any knowledge of the original
image. The capacity of the steganographic channel is described and the performance of the
technique is illustrated. Applications for such a data hiding scheme include in-band captioning,
hidden communication, image tamper proofing, authentication, invisible map overlays,
embedded control, and revision tracking.
1.4 PROPOSED METHOD
In the proposed system the steganography is done in the wavelet domain and hence the
low frequency domain is used for secure transmission.

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1.4.1 ADVANTAGES:
 The embedding is done in low frequency region and hence embedding is highly
secured
 Scaling, Rotation, and RBA‟s are less prone to the low frequency region and hence
there will not be any loss of data.

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CHAPTER2
PROJECT DESCRIPTION
2.1 INTRODUCTION
The science of hiding or embedding “data” in a transmission medium is known as

Steganography. It is actually a comprehension of two Greek words which mean “Covered
Writing”. Steganalysis is the science of attacking Steganography. It mimics the already
established science of Cryptanalysis. Note that a Steganography can create a Steganalysis merely
to test the strength of her algorithm. Its ultimate objectives, which are indefectibility, robustness
(i.e., against image processing and other attacks) and capacity of the hidden data (i.e., how much
data we can hide in the carrier file), are the main factors that distinguish it from other “sisters - in
science” techniques, namely watermarking and Cryptography. This paper provides an overview
of well-known Steganography methods. It identifies current research problems in this area and
discusses how our current research approach could solve some of these problems. We propose
using human skin tone detection in color images to form an adaptive context for an edge operator
which will provide an excellent secure location for data hiding. The simulation is done in
MATLAB and the Steganography process is shown.
.
2.2 BLOCK DIAGRAM
Skin tone Edge

Input image Embedding
detection detection
Output image DWT
Fig 1.4 Block diagram of system

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2.2.1 SKIN TONE DETECTION
Computer graphics and video signal transmission standards have givenbirth too many
color spaces with different properties. A wide variety of them have been applied to the problem
of skin color modeling. We will briefly review the most popular color spaces and their
properties.
2.2.2 RGB
RGB is a color space originated from CRT (or similar) display applications, when it was
convenient to describe color as a combination of three colored rays (red, green and blue). It is
one of the most widely used color spaces for processing and storing of digital image data.
However, high correlation between channels, significant perceptual non-uniformity mixing of
chrominance and luminance data make RGB not a very favorable choice for color analysis and
color based recognition algorithms.
2.2.3 NORMALIZED RGB
Normalized RGB is a representation that is easily obtained from the RGB values by a
simple normalization procedure:
(3.1)

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As the sum of the three normalized components is known (r+g+b = 1), the third
component does not hold any significant information and can be omitted, reducing the space
dimensionality. The remaining components are often called ”pure colors”, for the dependence of
r and g on the brightness of the source RGB color is diminished by the normalization.
2.2.4 HSI, HSV, HSL - HUE SATURATION INTENSITY (VALUE,

LIGHTNESS)
Hue-saturation based color spaces were introduced when there was a need for the user to
specify color properties numerically. They describe color with intuitive values, based on the
artist‟s idea of tint, saturation and tone. Hue defines the dominant color (such as red, green,
purple and yellow) of an area; saturation measures the colorfulness of an area in proportion to its
brightness. The”intensity”,”lightness” or”value” is related to the color luminance. The
intuitiveness of the color space components and explicit discrimination between luminance and
chrominance properties made these color spaces popular in the works on skin color
segmentation. Several interesting properties of Hue were noted: it is invariant to highlights at
white light sources, and also, for matte surfaces, to ambient light and surface orientation relative
to the light source.
(3.2)
2.2.5 YCBCR
YCrCb is an encoded nonlinear RGB signal, commonly used by European television

studios and for image compression work. Color is represented by luma (which is luminance,

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computed from nonlinear RGB, constructed as a weighted sum of the RGB values, and two color
difference values Cr and Cb that are formed by subtracting luma from RGB red and blue
components
Y
(3.3)
2.2.6 SKIN MODELING
The final goal of skin color detection is to build a decision rule that will discriminate
between skin and non-skin pixels. This is usually accomplished by introducing a metric, which
measures distance (in general sense) of the pixel color to skin tone. The type of this metric is
defined by the skin color modeling method.
2.3 PROBLEM DEFINITION
The main discussions and comparisons focus on spatial domain methods, frequency
domain methods and also adaptive methods. It will be shown that all of the Steganographic
algorithms discussed have been detected by Steganalysis and thus a robust algorithm with high
embedding capacity needs to be investigated. Simple edge embedding is robust to many attacks
and it will be shown that this adaptive method is also an excellent means of hiding data while
maintaining a good quality carrier. We intend to use human skin tone detection in a proposed
edge embedding adaptive Steganographic method.

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2.4 METHODOLOGIES
2.4.1 MODULE NAMES

1. Skin tone separation.
2. Discrete Wavelet transform(DWT).
3. Performance measurement.
2.4.2 MODULE DESCRIPTION
 Skin tone separation.

Colour transformations are of paramount importance in computer vision. There
exist several colour spaces and here we list some of them3: RGB, CMY, XYZ, xyY,
UVW, LSLM, L*a*b*, L*u*v*, LHC, LHS, HSV, HSI, YUV, YIQ, YCbCr. Mainly two
kinds of spaces are exploited in the literature of biometrics which are the HSV and
YCbCr spaces. It is experimentally found and theoretically proven that the distribution of
human skin colour constantly resides in a certain range within those two spaces as
different people differ in their skin colour (e. g., African, European, Middle Eastern,
Asian, etc). A colour transformation map called HSV (Hue, Saturation and Value) can be
obtained from the RGB bases. Sobottka and Pitas defined a face localization based on
HSV.
 Discrete Wavelet transform(DWT).

The experiments on the Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT) coefficients showed
promising results and redirected researchers‟ attention towards this type of image. In fact
acting at the level of DCT makes Steganography more robust and not as prone to many
statistical attacks. Spatial Steganography generates unusual patterns such as sorting of
colour palettes, relationships between indexed colours, exaggerated “noise”, etc, all of
which leave traces to be picked up by Steganalysis tools. This method is very fragile .

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There is a serious conclusion drawn in the literature. “LSB encoding is extremely sensitive
to any kind of filtering or manipulation of the stego-image. Scaling, rotation, cropping,
addition of noise, or lossy compression to the stego-image is very likely to destroy the
message. Furthermore an attacker can easily remove the message by removing (zeroing)
the entire LSB plane with very little change in the perceptual quality of the modified
stego-image”
.
 Performance measurement.
As a performance measurement for image distortion, the well-known Peak-
Signal-to-Noise Ratio (PSNR) which is classified under the difference distortion metrics
is applied on the stego images.
Advantages:
 Preserves the quality of the original image.
 A strong algorithm.
 Improved quality.
 Reduced implementation constraint.

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CHAPTER 3
SOFTWARE SPECIFICATION
3.1 GENERAL
MATLAB (matrix laboratory) is a numerical computing environment and fourth-

generation programming language. Developed by Math Works, MATLAB
allows matrix manipulations, plotting of functions and data, implementation of algorithms, creation
of user interfaces, and interfacing with programs written in other languages,
including C, C++, Java, and Fortran.
Although MATLAB is intended primarily for numerical computing, an optional

toolbox uses the MuPAD symbolic engine, allowing access to symbolic computing capabilities. An
additional package, Simulink, adds graphical multi-domain simulation and Model-Based
Design for dynamic and embedded systems.
In 2004, MATLAB had around one million users across industry and
academia. MATLAB users come from various backgrounds of engineering, science,
and economics. MATLAB is widely used in academic and research institutions as well as
industrial enterprises.
MATLAB was first adopted by researchers and practitioners in control engineering,

Little's specialty, but quickly spread to many other domains. It is now also used in education, in
particular the teaching of linear algebra and numerical analysis, and is popular amongst scientists
involved in image processing. The MATLAB application is built around the MATLAB language.
The simplest way to execute MATLAB code is to type it in the Command Window, which is one
of the elements of the MATLAB Desktop. When code is entered in the Command Window,
MATLAB can be used as an interactive mathematical shell. Sequences of commands can be
saved in a text file, typically using the MATLAB Editor, as a script or encapsulated into
a function, extending the commands available.

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MATLAB provides a number of features for documenting and sharing your work. You
can integrate your MATLAB code with other languages and applications, and distribute your
MATLAB algorithms and applications.
3.2 FEATURES OF MATLAB
 High-level language for technical computing.

 Development environment for managing code, files, and data.
 Interactive tools for iterative exploration, design, and problem solving.
 Mathematical functions for linear algebra, statistics, Fourier analysis,
filtering, optimization, and numerical integration.
 2-D and 3-D graphics functions for visualizing data.
 Tools for building custom graphical user interfaces.
 Functions for integrating MATLAB based algorithms with external applications and
languages, such as C, C++, Fortran, Java™, COM, and Microsoft Excel.
MATLAB is used in vast area, including signal and image processing, communications,
control design, test and measurement, financial modeling and analysis, and computational. Add-on
toolboxes (collections of special-purpose MATLAB functions) extend the MATLAB
environment to solve particular classes of problems in these application areas.
MATLAB can be used on personal computers and powerful server systems, including
the Cheaha compute cluster. With the addition of the Parallel Computing Toolbox, the language
can be extended with parallel implementations for common computational functions, including
for-loop unrolling. Additionally this toolbox supports offloading computationally intensive
workloads to Cheaha the campus compute cluster. MATLAB is one of a few languages in which
each variable is a matrix (broadly construed) and "knows" how big it is. Moreover, the
fundamental operators (e.g. addition, multiplication) are programmed to deal with matrices when
required. And the MATLAB environment handles much of the bothersome housekeeping that
makes all this possible. Since so many of the procedures required for Macro-Investment Analysis
involves matrices, MATLAB proves to be an extremely efficient language for both
communication and implementation.

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3.2.1 INTERFACING WITH OTHER LANGUAGES
MATLAB can call functions and subroutines written in the C programming

language or FORTRAN. A wrapper function is created allowing MATLAB data types to be passed
and returned. The dynamically loadable object files created by compiling such functions are
termed "MEX-files" (for MATLAB executable).
Libraries written in Java, ActiveX or .NET can be directly called from MATLAB and
many MATLAB libraries (for example XML or SQL support) are implemented as wrappers
around Java or ActiveX libraries. Calling MATLAB from Java is more complicated, but can be
done with MATLAB extension, which is sold separately by Math Works, or using an
undocumented mechanism called JMI (Java-to-Mat lab Interface), which should not be confused
with the unrelated Java that is also called JMI.
As alternatives to the MuPAD based Symbolic Math Toolbox available from Math Works,
MATLAB can be connected to Maple or Mathematica.
Libraries also exist to import and export MathML.
Development Environment
 Startup Accelerator for faster MATLAB startup on Windows, especially on

Windows XP, and for network installations.
 Spreadsheet Import Tool that provides more options for selecting and loading mixed
textual and numeric data.
 Readability and navigation improvements to warning and error messages in the
MATLAB command window.
 Automatic variable and function renaming in the MATLAB Editor.
Developing Algorithms and Applications
MATLAB provides a high-level language and development tools that let you quickly
develop and analyze your algorithms and applications.

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The MATLAB Language
The MATLAB language supports the vector and matrix operations that are fundamental to
engineering and scientific problems. It enables fast development and execution. With the
MATLAB language, you can program and develop algorithms faster than with traditional
languages because you do not need to perform low-level administrative tasks, such as declaring
variables, specifying data types, and allocating memory. In many cases, MATLAB eliminates the
need for „for‟ loops. As a result, one line of MATLAB code can often replace several lines of C
or C++ code.
At the same time, MATLAB provides all the features of a traditional programming language,
including arithmetic operators, flow control, data structures, data types, object-oriented
programming (OOP), and debugging features.
MATLAB lets you execute commands or groups of commands one at a time, without compiling
and linking, enabling you to quickly iterate to the optimal solution. For fast execution of heavy
matrix and vector computations, MATLAB uses processor-optimized libraries. For general-
purpose scalar computations, MATLAB generates machine-code instructions using its JIT (Just-
In-Time) compilation technology.
This technology, which is available on most platforms, provides execution speeds that rival those
of traditional programming languages.
Development Tools
MATLAB includes development tools that help you implement your algorithm
efficiently. These include the following:
MATLAB Editor
Provides standard editing and debugging features, such as setting breakpoints and single
stepping

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Code Analyzer
Checks your code for problems and recommends modifications to maximize performance
and maintainability
MATLAB Profiler
Records the time spent executing each line of code
Directory Reports
Scan all the files in a directory and report on code efficiency, file differences, file
dependencies, and code coverage
Designing Graphical User Interfaces
By using the interactive tool GUIDE (Graphical User Interface Development

Environment) to layout, design, and edit user interfaces. GUIDE lets you include list boxes, pull-
down menus, push buttons, radio buttons, and sliders, as well as MATLAB plots and Microsoft
ActiveX® controls. Alternatively, you can create GUIs programmatically using MATLAB
functions.
3.2.2 ANALYZING AND ACCESSING DATA
MATLAB supports the entire data analysis process, from acquiring data from external
devices and databases, through preprocessing, visualization, and numerical analysis, to
producing presentation-quality output.
Data Analysis
MATLAB provides interactive tools and command-line functions for data analysis
operations, including:
 Interpolating and decimating

 Extracting sections of data, scaling, and averaging
 Thresholding and smoothing
 Correlation, Fourier analysis, and filtering

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 1-D peak, valley, and zero finding

 Basic statistics and curve fitting
 Matrix analysis
Data Access
MATLAB is an efficient platform for accessing data from files, other applications,
databases, and external devices. You can read data from popular file formats, such as Microsoft
Excel; ASCII text or binary files; image, sound, and video files; and scientific files, such as HDF
and HDF5. Low-level binary file I/O functions let you work with data files in any format.
Additional functions let you read data from Web pages and XML.
Visualizing Data
All the graphics features that are required to visualize engineering and scientific data are
available in MATLAB. These include 2-D and 3-D plotting functions, 3-D volume visualization
functions, tools for interactively creating plots, and the ability to export results to all popular
graphics formats. You can customize plots by adding multiple axes; changing line colors and
markers; adding annotation, Latex equations, and legends; and drawing shapes.
2-D Plotting
Visualizing vectors of data with 2-D plotting functions that create:
 Line, area, bar, and pie charts.

 Direction and velocity plots.
 Histograms.
 Polygons and surfaces.
 Scatter/bubble plots.
 Animations.

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3-D Plotting and Volume Visualization
MATLAB provides functions for visualizing 2-D matrices, 3-D scalar, and 3-D
vector data. You can use these functions to visualize and understand large, often complex,
multidimensional data. Specifying plot characteristics, such as camera viewing angle,
perspective, lighting effect, light source locations, and transparency.
3-D plotting functions include:
 Surface, contour, and mesh.

 Image plots.
 Cone, slice, stream, and isosurface.
3.2.3 PERFORMING NUMERIC COMPUTATION
MATLAB contains mathematical, statistical, and engineering functions to support all

common engineering and science operations. These functions, developed by experts in
mathematics, are the foundation of the MATLAB language. The core math functions use the
LAPACK and BLAS linear algebra subroutine libraries and the FFTW Discrete Fourier
Transform library. Because these processor-dependent libraries are optimized to the different
platforms that MATLAB supports, they execute faster than the equivalent C or C++ code.
MATLAB provides the following types of functions for performing mathematical

operations and analyzing data:
 Matrix manipulation and linear algebra.

 Polynomials and interpolation.
 Fourier analysis and filtering.
 Data analysis and statistics.
 Optimization and numerical integration.
 Ordinary differential equations (ODEs).
 Partial differential equations (PDEs).

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 Sparse matrix operations.

MATLAB can perform arithmetic on a wide range of data types, including doubles,
singles, and integers.

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CHAPTER 4
STEGANOGRAPHY METHODS
4.1 STEGANOGRAPHY EXPLOITING IMAGE FORMAT

Steganography can be accomplished by simply feeding into a Microsoft XP command window
the following half line of code:
C:\> Copy Cover.jpg /b + Message.txt /b Stego.jpg
This code appends the secret message found in the text file „Message.txt‟ into the JPEG image
file „Cover.jpg‟ and produces the stego-image „Stego.jpg‟. The idea behind this is to abuse the
recognition of EOF (End of file). In other words, the message is packed and inserted after the
EOF tag. When Stego.jpg is viewed using any photo editing application, the latter will just
display the picture and will ignore any data coming after the EOF tag. However, when opened in
Notepad for example, our message reveals itself after displaying some data. The embedded
message does not impair the image quality. Neither the image histograms nor the visual
perception can detect any difference between the two images due to the secret message being
hidden after the EOF tag. Whilst this method is simple, a range of Steganography software
distributed online applies it (e.g., Camouflage, JpegX, Hider, etc). Unfortunately, this simple
technique would not resist any kind of editing to the Stego image nor any attacks by Steganalysis
experts.
Another naïve implementation of Steganography is to append hidden data into the
image‟s Extended File Information (EXIF- a standard used by digital camera manufacturers to
store information in the image file, such as, the make and model of a camera, the time the picture
was taken and digitized, the resolution of the image, exposure time, and focal length). This is
metadata information about the image and its source located at the header of the file. Special
agent Paul Alvarez discussed the possibility of using such headers in digital evidence analysis to
combat child pornography. This method is not a reliable one as it suffers from the same
drawback as the EOF method. Note that it is not always the case to hide text directly without
encrypting it as we did here.

STEGANOGRAPHY
4.2 STEGANOGRAPHY IN THE SPATIAL DOMAIN

In spatial domain methods a Steganographer modifies the secret data and the cover
medium in the spatial domain, which is the encoding at the level of the LSBs. This method has
the largest impact compared to the other two methods even though it is known for its simplicity .
Embedding in the 4th LSB generates more visual distortion to the cover image as the hidden
information is seen as “non-natural”.
Potdar et al. used this technique in producing fingerprinted secret sharing Steganography
for robustness against image cropping attacks. Their paper addressed the issue of image cropping
effects rather than proposing an embedding technique. The logic behind their proposed work is
to divide the cover image into sub-images and compress and encrypt the secret data. The
resulting data is then sub-divided and embedded into those images portions. To recover the data
a Lagrange Interpolating Polynomial was applied along with an encryption algorithm. The
computational load was high, but their algorithm parameters, namely the number of sub-images
(n) and the threshold value (k) were not set to optimal values leaving the reader to guess the
values. Bear in mind also that if n is set, for instance, to 32 that means we are in need of 32
public keys, 32 persons and 32 sub-images, which turns out to be unpractical. Moreover, data
redundancy that they intended to eliminate does occur in their stego-image. Shirali-Shahreza
exploited Arabic and Persian alphabet punctuations to hide messages. While their method is not
related to the LSB approach, it falls under the spatial domain. Unlike English which has only two
letters with dots in their lower case format, namely “i” and “j”, Persian language is rich in that 18
out of 32 alphabet letters have points. The secret message is binarized and those 18 letters‟ points
are modified according to the values in the binary file. Colour palette based Steganography
exploits the smooth ramp transition in colours as indicated in the colour palette. The LSBs here
are modified based on their positions in the said palette index. Johnson and Jajodia were in
favour of using BMP (24-bit) instead of JPEG images. Their next-best choice was GIF files
(256-color). BMP as well as GIF based Steganography apply LSB techniques, while their
resistance to statistical counter attack and compression are reported to be weak . BMP files are
bigger in size than other formats which render them improper for network transmissions. JPEG
images however, were at the beginning avoided because of their compression algorithm which
does not support a direct LSB embedding into the spatial domain (Fridrich et al., claimed that
changes as small as flipping the LSB of one pixel in a JPEG image can be reliably detected).

STEGANOGRAPHY
The experiments on the Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT) coefficients showed promising
results and redirected researchers‟ attention towards this type of image. In fact acting at the level
of DCT makes Steganography more robust and not as prone to many statistical attacks. Spatial
Steganography generates unusual patterns such as sorting of colour palettes, relationships
between indexed colours, exaggerated “noise”, etc, all of which leave traces to be picked up by
Steganalysis tools. This method is very fragile. There is a serious conclusion drawn in the
literature. “LSB encoding is extremely sensitive to any kind of filtering or manipulation of the
stego-image. Scaling, rotation, cropping, addition of noise, or lossy compression to the stego-
image is very likely to destroy the message. Furthermore an attacker can easily remove the
message by removing (zeroing) the entire LSB plane with very little change in the perceptual
quality of the modified stego-image”. Almost any filtering process will alter the values of many
of the LSBs. By inspecting the inner structure of the LSB, Fridrich et al., claimed to be able to
extract hidden messages as short as 0.03bpp (bit per pixel). Xiangwei et al., stated that the LSB
methods can result in the “pair effect” in the image histograms. This “pair effect” phenomenon is
empirically observed in Steganography based on the modulus operator. This operator acts as a
means to generate random (i.e., not sequential) locations to embed data. It can be a complicated
process or a simple one like testing in a raster scan if a pixel value is even then embed, otherwise
do nothing. Avcibas et al., applied binary similarity measures and multivariate regression to
detect what they call “telltale” marks generated by the 7th and 8th bit planes of a stego image.
4.3 STEGANOGRAPHY IN THE FREQUENCY DOMAIN

New algorithms keep emerging prompted by the performance of their ancestors (Spatial
domain methods), by the rapid development of information technology and by the need for an
enhanced security system. The discovery of the LSB embedding mechanism is actually a big
achievement. Although it is perfect in not deceiving the HVS, its weak resistance to attacks left
researchers wondering where to apply it next until they successfully applied it within the
frequency domain. DCT is used extensively in Video and image (i.e., JPEG) lossy compression.
Each block DCT coefficients obtained is quantized using a specific Quantization Table (QT).
This matrix shown in Figure 1 is suggested in the Annex of the JPEG standard. The logic behind
choosing such a table with such values is based on extensive experiments that tried to balance the

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tradeoff between image compression and quality factors. The HVS dictates the ratios between
values in the QT.
FIGURE 1.5 JPEG suggested Luminance

Quantization Table used in DCT lossy compression. The value 16 (in bold-face) represents the
DC coefficient and the other values represent AC coefficients.
The aim of quantization is to loosen up the tightened precision produced by DCT while
retaining the valuable information descriptors. Most of the redundant data and noise are lost at
this stage hence the name lossy compression.
The quantization step is specified by:
where x and y are the image coordinates, f �(� x ,� y ) denotes the result function, f (W x ,W y )
is an 8x8 non overlapping intensity image block and is a floor rounding operator. T (Wx,Wy)
represents a quantization step which, in relationship to JPEG quality, is given by:

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where, � � QT � x ,� y is the quantization table depicted in (Figure 1) and Q is a quality factor.
JPEG compression then applies entropy coding such as the Huffman algorithm to compress the
resulted T(W x ,W y ) . The above scenario is a discrete theory independent of Steganography.
Xiaoxia and Jianjun presented a Steganographic method that modifies the QT and inserts the
hidden bits in the middle frequency coefficients. Their modified QT is shown in Figure 2. The
new version of QT gives them 36 coefficients in each 8x8 block to embed their secret data into,
which yields a reasonable payload. Their work was motivated by a prior published work by
Chang et al., Steganography based on DCT JPEG compression goes through different steps as
shown in Figure 3.
FIGURE 1.6 The modified Quantization Table .
FIGURE 1.7 Data Flow Diagram showing a general process of embedding in the frequency domain.

STEGANOGRAPHY
Most of the techniques here use a JPEG image as a vehicle to embed their data. JPEG
compression uses DCT to transform successive sub-image blocks (8x8 pixels) into 64 DCT
coefficients. Data is inserted into these coefficients‟ insignificant bits. However, altering any
single coefficient would affect the entire 64 block pixels. Since the change is operating on the
frequency domain instead of the spatial domain there will be no visible changes in the cover
image.
According to Raja et al., Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) introduces round off errors, thus it
is not suitable for hidden communication. Johnson and Jajodia included it among the used
transformations in Steganography. Choosing which values in the 8x8 DCT coefficients block to
alter is very important as changing one value will affect the whole 8x8 block in the image. The
JSteg algorithm was among the first algorithms to use JPEG images. Although the algorithm
stood strongly against visual attacks, it was found that examining the statistical distribution of
the DCT coefficients yields a proof for existence of hidden data. JSteg is easily detected using
the X2-test, which is a non-parametric (a rough estimate of confidence) statistical algorithm used
in order to detect whether the intensity levels scatter in a uniform distribution throughout the
image surface or not. If one intensity level has been detected as such, then the pixels associated
with this intensity level are considered as corrupted pixels or in our case have a higher
probability of having embedded data. Moreover, since the DCT coefficients need to be treated
with sensitive care and intelligence, the JSteg algorithm leaves a serious statistical signature.
Wayner stated that the coefficients in JPEG compression normally fall along a bell curve and the
hidden information embedded by JSteg distorts this.
Manikopoulos et al., discussed an algorithm that utilizes the Probability Density Function
(PDF) used to generate discriminator features fed into a neural network system to detect hidden
data in this domain. OutGuess, developed by Provos and Honeyman, was a better alternative as it
uses a pseudo-random-number generator to select DCT coefficients. The X2-test does not detect
data that is randomly distributed. Strangely enough the developer of OutGuess himself suggests a
counter attack against his algorithm. Provos and Honeyman, suggest applying an extended
version of X2-test to select Pseudo-randomly embedded messages in JPEG images. Andreas
Westfeld based his “F5” algorithm on subtraction and matrix encoding. Neither X2-test nor its
extended versions could break this solid algorithm. Unfortunately, F5 did not survive attacks for

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too long. Fridrich et al., proposed Steganalysis that does detect F5 contents, disrupting F5‟s
survival.
For the Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT), the reader is directed to Chen‟s work.
Abdul-Aziz, and Pang , use vector quantization called Linde-Buzo-Gray (LBG) coupled with
Block codes known as BCH code and 1-Stage discrete Haar Wavelet transforms. They reaffirm
that modifying data using a wavelet transformation preserves good quality with little perceptual
artifacts.
The DWT based embedding technique is still in its infancy, Paulson reports that a group
of scientists at Iowa State University are focusing on the development of an innovative
application which they called “Artificial Neural Network Technology for Steganography
(ANNTS)” aimed at detecting all present Steganography techniques including DCT, DWT and
DFT. The Inverse Discrete Fourier Transform (IDFT) encompasses round-off error which
renders DFT improper for Steganography applications.
4.4 PERFORMANCE MEASURE

As a performance measurement for image distortion, the well known Peak-Signal-to-
Noise Ratio (PSNR) which is classified under the difference distortion metrics can be applied on
the stego images. It is defined as:
where MSE denotes the Mean Square Error which is given as:
and holds the maximum value in the image, for example:

STEGANOGRAPHY
x and y are the image coordinates, M and N are the dimensions of the image, Sxy is the
generated stego image and Cxyis the cover image.
Many authors in the literature consider Cmax =255 as a default value for 8-bit images. It
can be the case, for instance, that the examined image has only up to 253 or fewer
representations of gray colours. Knowing that Cmax is raised to the power of 2 results in a severe
change to the PSNR value. Thus we define Cmax as the actual maximum value rather than the
largest possible value. PSNR is often expressed on logarithmic scale in decibels (dB). PSNR
values falling below 30dB indicate a fairly low quality (i.e., distortion caused by embedding can
be obvious); however, a high quality stego should strive for 40dB or higher.

STEGANOGRAPHY
CHAPTER 5
EDGE DETECTION
5.1 INTRODUCTION
Edges characterize boundaries and are therefore a problem of fundamental importance in

image processing. Edges in images are areas with strong intensity contrasts a jump in intensity
from one pixel to the next. Edge detecting an image significantly reduces the amount of data and
filters out useless information, while preserving the important structural properties in an image.
There are many ways to perform edge detection. However, the majority of different methods
may be grouped into two categories, gradient and Laplacian. The gradient method detects the
edges by looking for the maximum and minimum in the first derivative of the image. The
Laplacian method searches for zero crossings in the second derivative of the image to find edges.
An edge has the one-dimensional shape of a ramp and calculating the derivative of the image can
highlight its location.
5.2 VARIOUS METHODS
 Sobel
 Canny
 Perewitt
 Laplacian
SOBEL
Based on this one-dimensional analysis, the theory can be carried over to two-dimensions
as long as there is an accurate approximation to calculate the derivative of a two-dimensional
image. The Sobel operator performs a 2-D spatial gradient measurement on an image. Typically

STEGANOGRAPHY
it is used to find the approximate absolute gradient magnitude at each point in an input grayscale
image. The Sobel edge detector uses a pair of 3x3 convolution masks, one estimating the
gradient in the x-direction (columns) and the other estimating the gradient in the y-direction
(rows). A convolution mask is usually much smaller than the actual image.
CANNY
Edges characterize boundaries and are therefore a problem of fundamental importance in

image processing. Edges in images are areas with strong intensity contrasts – a jump in intensity
from one pixel to the next. Edge detecting an image significantly reduces the amount of data and
filters out useless information, while preserving the important structural properties in an image.
This was also stated in my Sobel and Laplace edge detection tutorial, but I just wanted
reemphasize the point of why you would want to detect edges.
 INTRODUCTION
The Canny edge detection algorithm is known to many as the optimal edge detector.
Canny's intentions were to enhance the many edge detectors already out at the time he started his
work. He was very successful in achieving his goal and his ideas and methods can be found in
his paper, "A Computational Approach to Edge Detection". In his paper, he followed a list of
criteria to improve current methods of edge detection. The first and most obvious is low error
rate. It is important that edges occurring in images should not be missed and that there be NO
responses to non-edges. The second criterion is that the edge points be well localized. In other
words, the distance between the edge pixels as found by the detector and the actual edge is to be
at a minimum. A third criterion is to have only one response to a single edge. This was
implemented because the first 2 were not substantial enough to completely eliminate the
possibility of multiple responses to an edge.
Based on these criteria, the canny edge detector first smoothes the image to eliminate and
noise. It then finds the image gradient to highlight regions with high spatial derivatives. The

STEGANOGRAPHY
algorithm then tracks along these regions and suppresses any pixel that is not at the maximum
(non maximum suppression). The gradient array is now further reduced by hysteresis. Hysteresis
is used to track along the remaining pixels that have not been suppressed. Hysteresis uses two
thresholds and if the magnitude is below the first threshold, it is set to zero (made a non edge). If
the magnitude is above the high threshold, it is made an edge. And if the magnitude is between
the 2 thresholds, then it is set to zero unless there is a path from this pixel to a pixel with a
gradient above T2.
STEP 1
In order to implement the canny edge detector algorithm, a series of steps must be
followed. The first step is to filter out any noise in the original image before trying to locate and
detect any edges. And because the Gaussian filter can be computed using a simple mask, it is
used exclusively in the Canny algorithm. Once a suitable mask has been calculated, the Gaussian
smoothing can be performed using standard convolution methods. A convolution mask is usually
much smaller than the actual image. As a result, the mask is slid over the image, manipulating a
square of pixels at a time. The larger the width of the Gaussian mask, the lower is the detector's
sensitivity to noise. The localization error in the detected edges also increases slightly as the
Gaussian width is increased. The Gaussian mask used in my implementation is shown below.

STEGANOGRAPHY
STEP 2
After smoothing the image and eliminating the noise, the next step is to find the edge
strength by taking the gradient of the image. The Sobel operator performs a 2-D spatial gradient
measurement on an image. Then, the approximate absolute gradient magnitude (edge strength) at
each point can be found. The Sobel operator uses a pair of 3x3 convolution masks, one
estimating the gradient in the x-direction (columns) and the other estimating the gradient in the
y-direction (rows). They are shown below:
The magnitude, or EDGE STRENGTH, of the gradient is then approximated using the
formula:
|G| = |Gx| + |Gy|
STEP 3
Finding the edge direction is trivial once the gradient in the x and y directions are known.
However, you will generate an error whenever sumX is equal to zero. So in the code there has to
be a restriction set whenever this takes place. Whenever the gradient in the x direction is equal to
zero, the edge direction has to be equal to 90 degrees or 0 degrees, depending on what the value
of the gradient in the y-direction is equal to. If GY has a value of zero, the edge direction will
equal 0 degrees. Otherwise the edge direction will equal 90 degrees. The formula for finding the
edge direction is just:
Theta = invtan (Gy / Gx)

STEGANOGRAPHY
STEP 4
Once the edge direction is known, the next step is to relate the edge direction to a
direction that can be traced in an image. So if the pixels of a 5x5 image are aligned as follows:
x x x x x
x x x x x
x x a x x
x x x x x
x x x x x
Then, it can be seen by looking at pixel "a", there are only four possible directions when
describing the surrounding pixels - 0 degrees (in the horizontal direction), 45 degrees (along the
positive diagonal), 90 degrees (in the vertical direction), or 135 degrees (along the negative
diagonal). So now the edge orientation has to be resolved into one of these four directions
depending on which direction it is closest to (e.g. if the orientation angle is found to be 3
degrees, make it zero degrees). Think of this as taking a semicircle and dividing it into 5 regions.
Therefore, any edge direction falling within the yellow range (0 to 22.5 & 157.5 to 180 degrees)
is set to 0 degrees. Any edge direction falling in the green range (22.5 to 67.5 degrees) is set to
45 degrees. Any edge direction falling in the blue range (67.5 to 112.5 degrees) is set to 90
degrees. And finally, any edge direction falling within the red range (112.5 to 157.5 degrees) is
set to 135 degrees.

STEGANOGRAPHY
STEP 5
After the edge directions are known, non maximum suppression now has to be applied.
Non maximum suppression is used to trace along the edge in the edge direction and suppress any
pixel value (sets it equal to 0) that is not considered to be an edge. This will give a thin line in the
output image.
STEP 6
Finally, hysteresis is used as a means of eliminating streaking. Streaking is the breaking up of an

edge contour caused by the operator output fluctuating above and below the threshold. If a single
threshold, T1 is applied to an image, and an edge has an average strength equal to T1, then due to
noise, there will be instances where the edge dips below the threshold. Equally it will also extend
above the threshold making an edge look like a dashed line. To avoid this, hysteresis uses 2
thresholds, a high and a low. Any pixel in the image that has a value greater than T1 is presumed
to be an edge pixel, and is marked as such immediately. Then, any pixels that are connected to
this edge pixel and that have a value greater than T2 are also selected as edge pixels. If you think
of following an edge, you need a gradient of T2 to start but you don't stop till you hit a gradient
below T1.

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CHAPTER 6
EMBEDDING IN THE SKIN TONE COLOURSPACE
6.1 GENERAL
For adaptive image content retrieval in sequences of images (e.g., GIF, Video) we can
use color space transformations to detect and track any presence of human skin tone. The latter
emerged from the field of Biometrics, where the threefold RGB matrix of a given image is
converted into different colour spaces to yield distinguishable regions of skin or near skin tone.
Colour transformations are of paramount importance in computer vision. There exist several
colour spaces and here we list some of them3: RGB, CMY, XYZ, xyY, UVW, LSLM, L*a*b*,
L*u*v*, LHC, LHS, HSV, HSI, YUV, YIQ, YCbCr. Mainly two kinds of spaces are exploited in
the literature of biometrics which is the HSV and YCbCr spaces. It is experimentally found and
theoretically proven that the distribution of human skin colour constantly resides in a certain
range within those two spaces as different people differ in their skin colour (e. g., African,
European, Middle Eastern, Asian, etc). A colour transformation map called HSV (Hue,
Saturation and Value) can be obtained from the RGB bases. Sobottka and Pitas defined a face
localization based on HSV. They found that human flesh can be an approximation from a sector
out of a hexagon with the constraints: S min =0.23, S Max =0.68, H min =0 and H max =50.
6.2 COLOUR MAPPING
The other utilized colour mapping, YCbCr (Yellow, Chromatic blue and Chromatic red),
is another transformation that belongs to the family of television transmission color spaces. Hsu
et al., introduced a skin detection algorithm which starts with lighting compensation, they detect
faces based on the cluster in the (Cb/Y)-(Cr/Y) subspace. Lee et al., showed that the skin-tone has
a center point at (Cb, Cr) = (-24, 30) and demonstrated more precise model.
Based on the literature, highlighted earlier in sections 2.1, 2.2, 2.3 and 2.5, we can
conclude and point to the following facts:

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 Algorithms F5 and Outguess are the most reliable methods although they violate the
second order statistics as mentioned previously. Both utilize DCT embedding.
 Embedding in the DWT domain shows promising results and outperforms the DCT
domain especially in surviving compression. A Steganographer should be cautious when
embedding in the transformation domains in general. However, DWT tends to be more
tolerant to embedding than DCT. Unlike JPEG the newly introduced image coding
system JPEG20004 allows for wavelets to be employed for compression in lieu of the
DCT. This makes DWT based Steganography the future central method.
 Without loss of generality, edge embedding maintains an excellent distortion free output
whether it is applied in the spatial, DCT or DWT domain. However, the limited payload
is its downfall.
 Most Steganographic methods do not use the actual elements of the image when hiding a
message. These elements (e.g., faces in a crowd) can be adjusted in perfectly
undetectable ways.
6.3 STEGANOFLAGE
As of now the investigation and evaluation of the ideas of the earlier techniques are going
on. We aim to embed within the edge directions in the 2D wavelet decomposition. In this way
we are guaranteed a high quality stego image. To tackle the problem of edge limited payload we
choose video files. Spreading the hidden data along the frames of the video will compensate for
the drawback of the edge embedding technique.
6.4 PROPOSED FRAMEWORK
We anticipate that Computer Vision can play a role here. Successful face localization
algorithms for colour images exploit the fact that human skin tone can be localized within a
certain range in the transform colour domain (i.e., RGB to YCbCr, HSV or Log-opponent).
Steganography can benefit from this in such a way that permits us to track and embed into the
edge of sequential appearances of human skin in the frames (e.g., faces in crowd, an athlete

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exercising, etc). We can also adjust the human skin tone values, within the permissible value
ranges, to embed secret data without introducing artifacts on the carrier image.
6.5 RETRIEVAL APPLICATION
Video files indexing and content based retrieval applications have attracted a lot of
attention during the last few years and they still are areas of active research. The core of our
proposal is to find salient spatial features in image frames. We perform skin tone detection to
embed secret data in videos for the following reasons:
1) When the embedding is spread on the entire image (or frame), scaling, rotation or cropping
will result in the destruction of the embedded data because any reference point that can
reconstruct the image will be lost. However, skin tone detection in the transformed colour space
ensures immunity to geometric transforms.
2) Our suggested scheme modifies only the regions of the skin tone in the colour transformed
channel, this is done for imperceptibility reasons.
3) The skin-tone has a centre point at Cb, Cr components, it can be modelled and its range is
known statistically, therefore, we can embed safely while preserving these facts. Moreover, no
statistical breach occurs whether it is of first order or second order type.
4) If the image (or frame) is tampered with by a cropping process, it is more likely that our
selected region will be in the safe zone, because the human faces generally demonstrate the core
elements in any given image and thus protected areas (e.g., portraits).
5) Our Steganographic proposal is consistent with the object based coding approach followed in
MPEG4 and MPEG7 standards (the concept of Video Objects (VOs) and their temporal
instances, Video Object Planes (VOPs) is central to MPEG video).
6) Intra-frame and Inter-frame properties in videos provide a unique environment to deploy a

secure mechanism for image based Steganography. We could embed in any frame (e.g., 100) an

STEGANOGRAPHY
encrypted password and a link to the next frame holding the next portion of the hidden data in
the video. Note this link does not necessarily need to be in a linear fashion (e.g., frames
100�12�3...�n).
7) Videos are one of the main multimedia files available to public on the net thanks to the giant
free web-hosting companies (e.g., YouTube, Google Videos, etc). Every day a mass of these files
is uploaded online and human factors are usually present.
6.6 UNALTERED QUALITY OF THE IMAGE
Figure 4 shows how the proposed method preserves the quality of the original image.
Table 2 shows the in comparison of our approach to F5 and S-Tools which are known as strong
algorithms. The table was generated using the images shown in Figure 5. F5 and S-Tools are
available online6. S-Tools performance was discussed in our work.

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FIGURE 1.8 Our proposal in action. Set A, B&C: (left) Original test images and (right) Stego
images hiding UU template. Bottom: data to hide (University of Ulster‟s logo - 47x48).
TABLE 1: Comparisons of Stego images‟ quality
Method PSNR (dB)

Set A
Steganoflage 76.917
S-Tools 68.7949
F5 53.4609
Set B
Steganoflage 71.449
S-Tools 68.144
F5 53.221
Set C
Steganoflage 70.1268
S-Tools 68.9370
F5 48.7112

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CHAPTER 7
IMPLEMENTATION
7.1 GENERAL
Matlab is a program that was originally designed to simplify the implementation of
numerical linear algebra routines. It has since grown into something much bigger, and it is used
to implement numerical algorithms for a wide range of applications. The basic language used is
very similar to standard linear algebra notation, but there are a few extensions that will likely
cause you some problems at first.
7.2 CODE IMPLEMENTATION
%%%%%%%%%%%%% Biometric Inspired Digital Image Steganography %%%%%%%%%%%%%%
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% spatial domain %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
warning off;
% clear all;
% close all;
clc;
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% start %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
inputimage=imread('01.jpg');
hideimage=imread('Template.bmp');
sizeofhideimage=size(hideimage)
sizeinputimage = size(inputimage);
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% skin tone detection %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
[skinpixels noskinpixels] = skintone_detection(inputimage);
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% edge detection %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
[skinedges noedgepixels] = edge_detection(skinpixels);
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% template preparation %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
template = image_template(hideimage);

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%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% verification %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
notemplatepixels = size(template,1) * size(template,2);
if noedgepixels < notemplatepixels
msgbox('No of pixels in template is more than no of pixels in skin

edges','HEAVY DATA','error')
break
end
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% stegnography %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
embededimage02 =
stegno_graphy(inputimage,skinedges,notemplatepixels,template);
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% performance measure %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
MSE1 = 0;
inputimage00 = im2double(inputimage);
embededimage03 = im2double(embededimage02);
for i = 1:size(inputimage00,1)
for j = 1:size(inputimage00,2)
MSE(i,j) = (embededimage03(i,j) - inputimage00(i,j))^2;
MSE1 = MSE1 + MSE(i,j);
end
end
MSE2 = MSE1 / (size(inputimage00,1) * size(inputimage00,2));
inputimage_max = max(max(inputimage00));
inputimage_max = (inputimage_max(1))^2;
PSNR = 10*(log10((inputimage_max / MSE2)));
disp('Peak Signal to Noise Ratio in Spatial Domain is...');
disp(ceil(PSNR));
% pause(5);
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% end %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

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EDGE DETECTION
function [inputimage03 count] = edge_detection(inputimage02)
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% start %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
inputimage03 = edge(inputimage02,'canny');
subplot(222),imshow(inputimage03),title('\color{blue}SKIN EDGES')
count = 0;
for i = 1:(size(inputimage03,1) * size(inputimage03,2))
if inputimage03(i) == 1
count = count + 1;
end
end
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% end %%%%%%%%%%%%

STEGANOGRAPHY
OUTPUT

STEGANOGRAPHY
SKINTONE DETECTION
function [inputimage02 count] = skintone_detection(inputimage00)
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% start %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
figure('name','1. SKIN TONE DETECTION','numbertitle','off')
subplot(221),imshow(inputimage00),title('\color{blue}INPUT IMAGE')
inputimage01 = rgb2ycbcr(inputimage00);
inputimage_y = inputimage01(:,:,1);
inputimage_cb = inputimage01(:,:,2);
inputimage_cr = inputimage01(:,:,3);
subplot(222),imshow(inputimage_y),title('\color{blue}LUMINANCE "Y"')
subplot(223),imshow(inputimage_cb),title('\color{blue}CROMINANCE "Cb"')
subplot(224),imshow(inputimage_cr),title('\color{blue}CROMINANCE "Cr"')
count = 0;
for i =1:size(inputimage_cr,1)
for j = 1:size(inputimage_cr,2)
if inputimage_cr(i,j) >= 140
inputimage02(i,j) = 255;
count = count + 1;
else
inputimage02(i,j) = 0;
end
end
end
figure('name','2. SKIN EDGE DETECTION','numbertitle','off')
subplot(221),imshow(inputimage02),title('\color{blue}SKIN PIXELS')
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% end %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

STEGANOGRAPHY
OUTPUT

STEGANOGRAPHY
EMBEDDING PROCESS
function embededimage02 =
stegno_graphy(inputimage,edge1,notemplatepixels,template)
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% start %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
[inputimage05,property] = rgb2ind(inputimage,255);
embededimage = [];
k = 1;
for i = 1:size(edge1,1)
for j = 1:size(edge1,2)
if edge1(i,j) == 255 && k >= notemplatepixels
embededimage(i,j) = inputimage05(i,j) + template(k);
k = k + 1;
else
embededimage(i,j) = inputimage05(i,j);
end
end
end
embededimage01 = uint8(embededimage);
embededimage02=ind2rgb(embededimage01,property);
figure('name','3. STEGNOGRAPHY','numbertitle','off')
imshow(embededimage02),title('\color{blue}STEGO IMAGE')
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% end %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%

STEGANOGRAPHY

STEGANOGRAPHY

STEGANOGRAPHY
OUTPUT
THE PSNR IN SPATIAL DOMAIN - 38
THE PSNR IN FRQUENCY DOMAIN - 27

STEGANOGRAPHY
CHAPTER 8
APPLICATIONS
Applications:
 Digital Imaging.
 Adaptive steganography.
 Digital steganography.

STEGANOGRAPHY
CHAPTER 9
CONCLUSION AND REFERENCES
9.1 CONCLUSION
Digital Steganography is a fascinating scientific area which falls under the umbrella of
security systems. We have presented in this work some background discussions on algorithms of
Steganography deployed in digital imaging. The emerging techniques such as DCT, DWT and
Adaptive Steganography are not an easy target for attacks, especially when the hidden message
is small. That is because they alter bits in the transform domain, thus image distortion is kept to a
minimum. Generally these methods tend to have a lower payload compared to spatial domain
algorithms. In short there has always been a trade off between robustness and payload. Our
proposed framework, Steganoflage, is based on edge embedding in the DWT domain using skin
tone detection in RGB sequential image files. We chose to use the latter to compensate for the
limited capacity that edge embedding techniques demonstrate. We use the actual elements of the
image when hiding a message. This leads to many exciting and challenging future research
problems.
9.2 REFERENCES
1. Johnson, N. F. and Jajodia, S.: Exploring Steganography: Seeing the Unseen. IEEE Computer,
31 (2): 26-34, Feb 1998.
2. Judge, J.C.: Steganography: Past, Present, Future. SANS Institute publication, December 1,
2001.Retrieved from: http://www.sans.org/reading_room/whitepapers
/stenganography/552.php
3. Provos, N. and Honeyman, P.: Hide and Seek: An Introduction to Steganography. IEEE
Security and Privacy, 01 (3): 32-44, May-June 2003.

STEGANOGRAPHY
4. Moulin, P. and Koetter, R.: Data-hiding codes. Proceedings of the IEEE, 93 (12): 2083- 2126,
Dec. 2005.
5. Sadkhan, S. B.: Cryptography: Current Status and Future Trends. IEEE International
Conference on Information & Communication Technologies: From Theory to Applications.
Damascus. Syria: April 19 - 23, 2004.
6. Simmons, G. J.: The Prisoners‟ Problem and the Subliminal Channel. Proceedings of
CRYPTO83- Advances in Cryptology, August 22-24. 1984. pp. 51.67.
7. Kurak, C. and McHugh, J.: A cautionary note on image downgrading. Proceedings of the
Eighth Annual Computer Security Applications Conference. 30 Nov-4 Dec 1992 pp. 153-159.
8. Thomas, T. L.: Al Qaeda and the Internet: The Danger of “Cyberplanning”. Parameters, US
Army War College Quarterly - Spring 2003. Retrieved from:
http://www.carlisle.army.mil/usawc/Parameters /03spring/thomas.pdf on 22-Nov-2006.
9 Petitcolas, F.A.P.: “Introduction to Information Hiding”. In: Katzenbeisser, S and Petitcolas,

F.A.P (ed.) (2000) Information hiding Techniques for Steganography and Digital Watermarking.
Norwood: Artech House, INC.
10. Bender, W., Butera, W., Gruhl, D., Hwang, R., Paiz, F.J. and Pogreb, S.: Applications for
Data Hiding. IBM Systems Journal, 39 (3&4): 547-568. 2000
11. Hernandez-Castro, J. C., Blasco-Lopez, I. and Estevez-Tapiador, J. M.: Steganography in

Games: A general methodology and its application to the game of Go. Computers & Security,
25(2006): 64- 71.
12. Jakubowski, J., Kwiatos, K., Chwaleba, A. and Osowski, S.: Higher Order Statistics and
Neural Network for Tremor Recognition. IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, 49 (2):
February 2002.

STEGANOGRAPHY
13. Areepongsa, S. Kaewkamnerd, N. Syed, Y. F. and Rao. K. R.: Exploring On Steganography

For Low Bit Rate Wavelet Based Coder In Image Retrieval System. IEEE Proceedings of
TENCON 2000. (3):250-255. Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 2000.
14. Kruus, P., Scace, C., Heyman, M. and Mundy, M.: A survey of Steganographic Techniques
for Image Files. Advanced Security Research Journal. V(I): 41- 51, Winter 2003.
15. Alvarez, P.: Using Extended File Information (EXIF) File Headers in Digital Evidence
Analysis. International Journal of Digital Evidence, 2 (3). Winter 2004.
16. Lin, E. T. and Delp, E. J.: A Review of Data Hiding in Digital Images. Retrieved on
1.Dec.2006 from Computer Forensics, Cyber crime and Steganography Resources, Digital
Watermarking Links and Whitepapers, Apr 1999.
17. Kermani, Z. Z. and Jamzad, M.: A Robust Steganography Algorithm Based on Texture
Similarity using Gabor Filter. Proceedings of IEEE 5th International Symposium on Signal
Processing and Information Technology, 18-21 Dec. 2005, 578- 582.
18. Potdar, V. M., Han, S. and Chang, E.: Fingerprinted Secret Sharing Steganography for
Robustness against Image Cropping Attacks. Proceedings of IEEE's 3 rd International Conference
on Industrial Informatics (INDIN), Perth, Australia, 10-12 August 2005.
19. Shirali-Shahreza, M. H. and Shirali-Shahreza, M.: A New Approach to Persian/Arabic Text

Steganography. Proceedings of 5th IEEE/ACIS International Conference on Computer and
Information Science (ICIS-COMSAR 2006), 10-12 July 2006, 310- 315.
20. Marvel, L. M. and Retter, C. T.: A Methodology for Data Hiding Using Images. Proceedings
of IEEE Military Communications Conference (MILCOM98) Proceedings, Boston, MA, USA,
18-21 Oct 1998, 1044-1047.

Image Seg Final Report

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OBJECT DETECTION USING IMAGE SEGMENTATION AND BIOMETRIC INSPIRED

1.1.1 THE IMAGE PROCESSING SYSTEM

Digitizer Mass Storage

Image Digital Operator

FIG 1.1 BLOCK DIAGRAM FOR IMAGE PROCESSING

DEPT OF ELECTRONICS AND COMMUNICATION, MSRIT Page 1

A digitizer converts an image into a numerical representation suitable for

An image processor does the functions of image acquisition, storage,

Problem Image Representation &

Knowledge Recognition & Result

FIG 1.2 BLOCK DIAGRAM OF FUNDAMENTAL SEQUENCE

DEPT OF ELECTRONICS AND COMMUNICATION, MSRIT Page 2

Mathematical processing of the digitized image such as convolution, averaging,

 HARD COPY DEVICE

DEPT OF ELECTRONICS AND COMMUNICATION, MSRIT Page 3

The operator console consists of equipment and arrangements for verification of

1.1.2 IMAGE PROCESSING FUNDAMENTALS

Digital image processing refers processing of the image in digital form.

 IMAGE PROCESSING TECHNIQUES

This section gives various image processing techniques

FIG1.3 IMAGE PROCESSING TECHNIQUES

DEPT OF ELECTRONICS AND COMMUNICATION, MSRIT Page 4

DEPT OF ELECTRONICS AND COMMUNICATION, MSRIT Page 5

 APPLICATIONS OF DIGITAL IMAGE PROCESSING

DEPT OF ELECTRONICS AND COMMUNICATION, MSRIT Page 6

 RADAR IMAGING SYSTEMS

1.3 EXISTING SYSTEM

DEPT OF ELECTRONICS AND COMMUNICATION, MSRIT Page 7

1.3.1 DISADVANTAGES OF EXISTING SYSTEM

 There is a chance of losing the data itself.

1.3.2 LITERATURE SURVEY

In this paper the author says,

In this paper the author says,

DEPT OF ELECTRONICS AND COMMUNICATION, MSRIT Page 8

3. Areepongsa, S. Kaewkamnerd, N. Syed, Y. F. and Rao. K. R.: Exploring On

In this paper the author says,

4. Kermani, Z. Z. and Jamzad, M.: A Robust Steganography Algorithm Based on Texture

In this paper the author says,

DEPT OF ELECTRONICS AND COMMUNICATION, MSRIT Page 9

In this paper the author says,

1.4 PROPOSED METHOD

DEPT OF ELECTRONICS AND COMMUNICATION, MSRIT Page 10

DEPT OF ELECTRONICS AND COMMUNICATION, MSRIT Page 11

The science of hiding or embedding “data” in a transmission medium is known as

Skin tone Edge

Output image DWT

Fig 1.4 Block diagram of system

DEPT OF ELECTRONICS AND COMMUNICATION, MSRIT Page 12

2.2.1 SKIN TONE DETECTION

2.2.3 NORMALIZED RGB

DEPT OF ELECTRONICS AND COMMUNICATION, MSRIT Page 13

2.2.4 HSI, HSV, HSL - HUE SATURATION INTENSITY (VALUE,

YCrCb is an encoded nonlinear RGB signal, commonly used by European television

DEPT OF ELECTRONICS AND COMMUNICATION, MSRIT Page 14

2.2.6 SKIN MODELING

2.3 PROBLEM DEFINITION

DEPT OF ELECTRONICS AND COMMUNICATION, MSRIT Page 15

2.4.1 MODULE NAMES

2. Discrete Wavelet transform(DWT).

2.4.2 MODULE DESCRIPTION

 Skin tone separation.

 Discrete Wavelet transform(DWT).

DEPT OF ELECTRONICS AND COMMUNICATION, MSRIT Page 16

 Preserves the quality of the original image.