Abstract: A system and method for improved detection of objects of interest in image data using adaptive stepwise classification and hierarchical decision diagrams to manage false positives is provided. The present invention uses an adaptive stepwise classification approach, preferably based on a hierarchical binary decision diagram (BDD), to enable the efficient management of false positive objects to improve detection performance. The present invention is particularly suited for the reduction of false positives during the detection of acid fast bacilli associated with tuberculosis.

Abstract: A system and method for identifying objects of interest in image data is provided. The present invention utilizes principles of Iterative Transformational Divergence in which objects in images, when subjected to special transformations, will exhibit radically different responses based on the physical, chemical, or numerical properties of the object or its representation (such as images), combined with machine learning capabilities. Using the system and methods of the present invention, certain objects that appear indistinguishable from other objects to the eye or computer recognition systems, or are otherwise almost identical, generate radically different and statistically significant differences in the image describers (metrics) that can be easily measured.