Image smoothing based on neighbor linking

The described method for image smoothing uses an iterated weighted local averaging scheme in which the weights are associated with links between neighboring pairs of points. It differs, however, from previous weighted averaging schemes in that the link weights do not remain constant, but are themselves adjusted at each iteration. A description is presented of the link strength computation and adjustment processes, experimental results are presented, and the capabilities and limitations of the approach are discussed. It is shown that the proposed method preserves edges. Furthermore it preserves the average gray level within regions. The method operates at two levels. It iteratively adjusts both the pixel gray levels and the link strengths.