Diverse inverse problems in imaging can be cast as variational problems composed of a task-specific data fidelity term and a regularization term. In this paper, we propose a novel learnable general-purpose regularizer exploiting recent architectural design patterns from deep learning. We cast the learning problem as a discrete sampled optimal control problem, for which we derive the adjoint state equations and an optimality condition. By exploiting the variational structure of our approach, we perform a sensitivity analysis with respect to the learned parameters obtained from different training datasets. Moreover, we carry out a nonlinear eigenfunction analysis, which reveals interesting properties of the learned regularizer. We show state-of-the-art performance for classical image restoration and medical image reconstruction problems.
Various problems in computer vision and medical imaging can be cast as inverse problems. A frequent method for solving inverse problems is the variational approach, which amounts to minimizing an energy composed of a data fidelity term and a regularizer. Classically, handcrafted regularizers are used, which are commonly outperformed by state-of-the-art deep learning approaches. In this work, we combine the variational formulation of inverse problems with deep learning by introducing the data-driven general-purpose total deep variation regularizer. In its core, a convolutional neural network ex…
We study the existence and uniqueness of solutions to the inverse quasi-variational inequality problem. Motivated by the neural network approach to solving optimization problems such as variational inequality, monotone inclusion, and inverse variational problems, we consider a neural network associated with the inverse quasi-variational inequality problem, and establish the existence and uniqueness of a solution to the proposed network. We prove that every trajectory of the proposed neural network converges to the unique solution of the inverse quasi-variational inequality problem and that the…
Friedrich-Alexander Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg（埃尔朗根-纽伦堡大学）
This paper discusses basic results and recent developments on variational regularization methods, as developed for inverse problems. In a typical setup we review basic properties needed to obtain a convergent regularization scheme and further discuss the derivation of quantitative estimates respectively needed ingredients such as Bregman distances for convex functionals. In addition to the approach developed for inverse problems we will also discuss variational regularization in machine learning and work out some connections to the classical regularization theory. In particular we will discuss…
In a recent paper by A. Chambolle et al. [Geometric properties of solutions to the total variation denoising problem. Inverse Problems 33, 2017] it was proven that if the subgradient of the total variation at the noise free data is not empty, the level-sets of the total variation denoised solutions converge to the level-sets of the noise free data with respect to the Hausdorff distance. The condition on the subgradient corresponds to the source condition introduced by Burger and Osher [Convergence rates of convex variational regularization. Inverse Problems 20, 2004], who proved convergence ra…
In this work, we introduce a function space setting for a wide class of structural/weighted total variation (TV) regularization methods motivated by their applications in inverse problems. In particular, we consider a regularizer that is the appropriate lower semi-continuous envelope (relaxation) of a suitable total variation type functional initially defined for sufficiently smooth functions. We study examples where this relaxation can be expressed explicitly, and we also provide refinements for weighted total variation for a wide range of weights. Since an integral characterization of the re…
We consider an inverse extremal problem for variational functionals on arbitrary time scales. Using the Euler-Lagrange equation and the strengthened Legendre condition, we derive a general form for a variational functional that attains a local minimum at a given point of the vector space.
We apply methods of the so-called `inverse problem of the calculus of variations' to the stabilization of an equilibrium of a class of two-dimensional controlled mechanical systems. The class is general enough to include, among others, the inverted pendulum on a cart and the inertia wheel pendulum. By making use of a condition that follows from Douglas' classification, we derive feedback controls for which the control system is variational. We then use the energy of a suitable controlled Lagrangian to provide a stability criterion for the equilibrium.
We study inverse problems for the Poisson equation with source term the divergence of an $\mathbf{R}^3$-valued measure, that is, the potential $Φ$ satisfies $$ ΔΦ= \text{div} \boldsymbolμ, $$ and $\boldsymbolμ$ is to be reconstructed knowing (a component of) the field grad $Φ$ on a set disjoint from the support of $\boldsymbolμ$. Such problems arise in several electro-magnetic contexts in the quasi-static regime, for instance when recovering a remanent magnetization from measurements of its magnetic field. We develop methods for recovering $\boldsymbolμ$ based on total variation regularization…
We study variational regularisation methods for inverse problems with imperfect forward operators whose errors can be modelled by order intervals in a partial order of a Banach lattice. We carry out analysis with respect to existence and convex duality for general data fidelity terms and regularisation functionals. Both for a-priori and a-posteriori parameter choice rules, we obtain convergence rates of the regularized solutions in terms of Bregman distances. Our results apply to fidelity terms such as Wasserstein distances, f-divergences, norms, as well as sums and infimal convolutions of tho…
This paper is concerned with the development, analysis and numerical realization of a novel variational model for the regularization of inverse problems in imaging. The proposed model is inspired by the architecture of generative convolutional neural networks; it aims to generate the unknown from variables in a latent space via multi-layer convolutions and non-linear penalties, and penalizes an associated cost. In contrast to conventional neural-network-based approaches, however, the convolution kernels are learned directly from the measured data such that no training is required. The present …
In the present note, we give two examples of bilinear quantum systems showing good agreement between the total variation of the control and the variation of the energy of solutions, with bounded or unbounded coupling term. The corresponding estimates in terms of the total variation of the control appear to be optimal.
We deal with direct and inverse problems of the calculus of variations on arbitrary time scales. Firstly, using the Euler-Lagrange equation and the strengthened Legendre condition, we give a general form for a variational functional to attain a local minimum at a given point of the vector space. Furthermore, we provide a necessary condition for a dynamic integro-differential equation to be an Euler-Lagrange equation (Helmholtz's problem of the calculus of variations on time scales). New and interesting results for the discrete and quantum settings are obtained as particular cases. Finally, we …
In the context of the Calculus of Variations for non-convex, vector variational problems, the natural process of going from a function $ϕ$ to its quasiconvexification $Qϕ$ is quite involved, and, most of the time, an impossible task. We propose to look at the reverse process, what might be called inverse quasiconvexification: start from a function $ϕ_0$, and find functions $ϕ$ for which $ϕ_0=Qϕ$. In addition to establishing a few general principles, we show several explicit examples motivated by their application to inverse problems in conductivity.
We propose a prototypical Split Inverse Problem (SIP) and a new variational problem, called the Split Variational Inequality Problem (SVIP), which is a SIP. It entails finding a solution of one inverse problem (e.g., a Variational Inequality Problem (VIP)), the image of which under a given bounded linear transformation is a solution of another inverse problem such as a VIP. We construct iterative algorithms that solve such problems, under reasonable conditions, in Hilbert space and then discuss special cases, some of which are new even in Euclidean space.
In this paper we characterize sparse solutions for variational problems of the form $\min_{u\in X} ϕ(u) + F(\mathcal{A} u)$, where $X$ is a locally convex space, $\mathcal{A}$ is a linear continuous operator that maps into a finite dimensional Hilbert space and $ϕ$ is a seminorm. More precisely, we prove that there exists a minimizer that is `sparse' in the sense that it is represented as a linear combination of the extremal points of the unit ball associated with the regularizer $ϕ$ (possibly translated by an element in the null space of $ϕ$). We apply this result to relevant regularizers suc…
The goal of this paper is to present a novel approach for total variation regularization and Sobolev minimization, which are prominent tools for variational imaging. Thereby we use derivative free characterizations of the total variation semi-norm and Sobolev semi-norms of functions recently derived by Bourgain, Brézis, Mironescu and Dávila. Their analysis is to approximate the semi-norms of a function by singular integral operators. With this characterization we derive a series of novel regularization methods for total variation minimization which have as a novel feature a non-local double in…
A Proximal Decomposition Method for Solving Convex Variational Inverse Problems
UPMC Université Paris 06（巴黎第六大学）；Laboratoire Jacques-Louis Lions – UMR 7598（雅克-路易·利翁斯实验室）；Université Paris-Est（巴黎东大学）；Institut Gaspard Monge and UMR CNRS 8049（加斯帕尔·蒙日研究所）
We propose an adaptive version of the total variation algorithm proposed in [3] for computing the balanced cut of a graph. The algorithm from [3] used a sequence of inner total variation minimizations to guarantee descent of the balanced cut energy as well as convergence of the algorithm. In practice the total variation minimization step is never solved exactly. Instead, an accuracy parameter is specified and the total variation minimization terminates once this level of accuracy is reached. The choice of this parameter can vastly impact both the computational time of the overall algorithm as …
We consider a family of variational regularization functionals for a generic inverse problem, where the data fidelity and regularization term are given by powers of a Hilbert norm and an absolutely one-homogeneous functional, respectively, and the regularization parameter is interpreted as artificial time. We investigate the small and large time behavior of the associated solution paths and, in particular, prove finite extinction time for a large class of functionals. Depending on the powers, we also show that the solution paths are of bounded variation or even Lipschitz continuous. In additio…
We introduce and study a mathematical framework for a broad class of regularization functionals for ill-posed inverse problems: Regularization Graphs. Regularization graphs allow to construct functionals using as building blocks linear operators and convex functionals, assembled by means of operators that can be seen as generalizations of classical infimal convolution operators. This class of functionals exhaustively covers existing regularization approaches and it is flexible enough to craft new ones in a simple and constructive way. We provide well-posedness and convergence results with the …
The paper surveys variational approaches for image reconstruction in dynamic inverse problems. Emphasis is on methods that rely on parametrised temporal models. These are here encoded as diffeomorphic deformations with time dependent parameters, or as motion constrained reconstruction where the motion model is given by a partial differential equation. The survey also includes recent development in integrating deep learning for solving these computationally demanding variational methods. Examples are given for 2D dynamic tomography, but methods apply to general inverse problems.
