Research Article

A PDE-Driven Laplacian Multi-Exposure Fusion for Structure-Preserving Image

Volume: 9 Number: 4 September 30, 2026

A PDE-Driven Laplacian Multi-Exposure Fusion for Structure-Preserving Image

Abstract

Multi-Exposure Image Fusion (MEF) aims to fuse a single visually symmetrical image, which combines the luminosity and preserves the structural data of a scene at different exposure levels. Traditionally, Laplacian Pyramid (LP) fusion methods rely on Gaussian smoothing, which diffuses intensity isotropically, resulting in blurred edges, halo artifacts, and loss of fine detail. To overcome these limitations, the paper proposes a method comprising Mean Curvature and Laplacian Pyramid that combines curvature-based edge preservation with multiscale structural decomposition. Mean Curvature Filtering (MCF), formulated on curvature flow principles, acts as an anisotropic smoothing operator that preserves edges and geometric discontinuities while suppressing low-frequency noise. The MCF is integrated into the pyramid construction to ensure structure-aware decomposition, producing curvature-sensitive base and detail layers. A covariance-based adaptive weighting strategy is employed for detail layer fusion, enhancing locally salient textures, while the base layer is averaged to maintain consistent illumination. The fused image is reconstructed through recursive MCF-based expansion to achieve seamless integration of global brightness and multiscale structural details. Experimental evaluation indicates that the proposed framework achieves enhanced sharpness, natural contrast, and reduced artifacts by effectively balancing noise suppression with edge fidelity. The approach thus provides a mathematically consistent and perceptually coherent formulation for multi-exposure fusion using curvature-driven multiscale representation.

Keywords

Ethical Statement

It is declared that during the preparation process of this study, scientific and ethical principles were followed, and all the studies benefited from are stated in the bibliography.

References

  1. R. Kalamkar, N. Khobragade, and A. Pal, “Multimodal image fusion: A systematic review,” Inf. Fusion, vol. 92, pp. 164–192, 2023.
  2. F. Xu, J. Liu, Y. Song, H. Sun, and X. Wang, “Multi-exposure image fusion techniques: A comprehensive review,” Remote Sens., vol. 14, no. 3, Art. no. 771, 2022, doi: 10.3390/rs14030771. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.3390/rs14030771
  3. X. Zhang, P. Ye, and G. Xiao, “Details-preserving multi-exposure image fusion based on dual-pyramid using improved exposure evaluation,” Vis. Informat., vol. 4, no. 4, pp. 319–330, Dec. 2020, doi: 10.1016/j.visinf.2020.10.004. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.visinf.2020.10.004
  4. N. Shukla, M. Sood, A. Kumar, and G. Choudhary, “Adaptive decomposition with guided filtering and Laplacian pyramid-based image fusion method for medical applications,” Discover Appl. Sci., vol. 6, Art. no. 423, Aug. 2024, doi: 10.1007/s42452-024-06111-w. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42452-024-06111-w
  5. J. Zhang, Y. Luo, J. Huang, Y. Liu, and J. Ma, “Multi-exposure image fusion via perception enhanced structural patch decomposition,” J. Vis. Commun. Image Represent., vol. 91, Art. no. 103847, 2023, doi: 10.1016/j.jvcir.2023.103847. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvcir.2023.103847
  6. A. Safari, A. Alizadehsani, S. Nahavandi, and S. Nahavandi, “MedFusionGAN: Multimodal medical image fusion using unsupervised GANs,” BMC Med. Imaging, vol. 23, Art. no. 87, pp. 1–14, 2023.
  7. S. Li, X. Kang, and J. Hu, “Image fusion with guided filtering,” IEEE Trans. Image Process., vol. 22, no. 7, pp. 2864–2875, Jul. 2013, doi: 10.1109/TIP.2013.2244222. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.1109/TIP.2013.2244222
  8. J. Chen and J. Chen, “Multimodal image feature fusion for improving medical ultrasound image segmentation,” Biomed. Signal Process. Control, vol. 89, 2024, doi: 10.1016/j.bspc.2023.105705. [Online]. Available: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bspc.2023.105705

Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Applied Computing (Other)

Journal Section

Research Article

Publication Date

September 30, 2026

Submission Date

January 13, 2026

Acceptance Date

June 22, 2026

Published in Issue

Year 2026 Volume: 9 Number: 4

APA
Jain, D., Dogra, A., Kukreja, V., & Goyal, B. (2026). A PDE-Driven Laplacian Multi-Exposure Fusion for Structure-Preserving Image. Sakarya University Journal of Computer and Information Sciences, 9(4), 1179-1208. https://doi.org/10.35377/saucis...1860558
AMA
1.Jain D, Dogra A, Kukreja V, Goyal B. A PDE-Driven Laplacian Multi-Exposure Fusion for Structure-Preserving Image. SAUCIS. 2026;9(4):1179-1208. doi:10.35377/saucis.1860558
Chicago
Jain, Dhruv, Ayush Dogra, Vinay Kukreja, and Bhawna Goyal. 2026. “A PDE-Driven Laplacian Multi-Exposure Fusion for Structure-Preserving Image”. Sakarya University Journal of Computer and Information Sciences 9 (4): 1179-1208. https://doi.org/10.35377/saucis. 1860558.
EndNote
Jain D, Dogra A, Kukreja V, Goyal B (September 1, 2026) A PDE-Driven Laplacian Multi-Exposure Fusion for Structure-Preserving Image. Sakarya University Journal of Computer and Information Sciences 9 4 1179–1208.
IEEE
[1]D. Jain, A. Dogra, V. Kukreja, and B. Goyal, “A PDE-Driven Laplacian Multi-Exposure Fusion for Structure-Preserving Image”, SAUCIS, vol. 9, no. 4, pp. 1179–1208, Sept. 2026, doi: 10.35377/saucis...1860558.
ISNAD
Jain, Dhruv - Dogra, Ayush - Kukreja, Vinay - Goyal, Bhawna. “A PDE-Driven Laplacian Multi-Exposure Fusion for Structure-Preserving Image”. Sakarya University Journal of Computer and Information Sciences 9/4 (September 1, 2026): 1179-1208. https://doi.org/10.35377/saucis. 1860558.
JAMA
1.Jain D, Dogra A, Kukreja V, Goyal B. A PDE-Driven Laplacian Multi-Exposure Fusion for Structure-Preserving Image. SAUCIS. 2026;9:1179–1208.
MLA
Jain, Dhruv, et al. “A PDE-Driven Laplacian Multi-Exposure Fusion for Structure-Preserving Image”. Sakarya University Journal of Computer and Information Sciences, vol. 9, no. 4, Sept. 2026, pp. 1179-08, doi:10.35377/saucis. 1860558.
Vancouver
1.Dhruv Jain, Ayush Dogra, Vinay Kukreja, Bhawna Goyal. A PDE-Driven Laplacian Multi-Exposure Fusion for Structure-Preserving Image. SAUCIS. 2026 Sep. 1;9(4):1179-208. doi:10.35377/saucis. 1860558

 

INDEXING & ABSTRACTING & ARCHIVING

 

31045 31044   Anadolu Türk Eğitim Dergisi  31047 

31043 28939 28938 34240
 

 

29070    The papers in this journal are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License