Asymptotic properties of the Nitzberg-Mumford variational model for segmentation with depth

We consider the Nitzberg-Mumford variational formulation of the segmentation with depth problem. This is an image segmentation model that allows regions to overlap in order to take into account occlusions between different objects. The model gives rise to a variational problem with free boundaries. We discuss some qualitative properties of the Nitzberg-Mumford functional within the framework of the relaxation methods of the Calculus of Variations. We try to characterize minimizing segmentations of images made up of smooth overlapping regions, when the weight of the fidelity term in the functional becomes large. This should give some theoretical information about the capability of the model to reconstruct both occluded boundaries and depth order. © Birkhäuser Verlag Basel/Switzerland 2006.