Edges, Curvature, and Primal Sketches

Abstract

Marr described two versions of the primal sketch: the basic image-processing level in human vision. In line with his broader view of how one should construct explanatory theories in vision, he provided some details of the computational theory for this stage, the algorithms used, and how they might be implemented in neural systems. In this paper I consider how Marr ideas have continued over the past 30 years. In this regard, I pay particular attention to three stages: locating edges; describing edge curvature; linking local edge segments into elongated contours.