1988 Reports

IMPROC: An Interactive Image Processing Software Package

Wolberg, George

IMPROC is a general-purpose interactive image processing software package. The system includes a collection of library routines and a menu-driven environment in which to invoke all supported image operators. A wide range of image operations are available, including point, neighborhood, arithmetic, logic, and geometric processes. In addition, there are utilities for image transforms, compositing, colorization, look-up tables, and graphic display of images. Key features of IMPROC include its emphasis on simplicity, generality, and device independence. Flexibility and software utility is augmented by the simple, and general, canonical representation of internal images. Unlike most systems that place strict restrictions on the pixel data type, IMPROC accomodates images having pixels of variable precision and arbitrary dimensions. A consequence of this feature is that all supported image operations are equally useful for general-format data. This uniform treatment of data that vary in size and type is critical to advanced processing techniques. Finally, device independence protects IMPROC from the inevitable obsolesence of the supporting hardware. This paper is a complete guide to IMPROC. It includes a user's guide, programmer's manual, numerous examples, and an extensive bibligraphy. In addition, a discussion of the design philosophy is given to supply insight that maximizes user productivity and promotes uniform practices for code integration.