ABSTRACT
The Retinex is a general-purpose image enhancement algorithm that is used to produce good visual represen-
tations of scenes. It performs a non-linear spatial/spectral transform that synthesizes strong local contrast
enhancement and color constancy. A real-time, video frame rate implementation of the Retinex is required to
meet the needs of various potential users. Retinex processing contains a relatively large number of complex
computations, thus to achieve real-time performance using current technologies requires specialized hardware
and software. In this paper we discuss the design and development of a digital signal processor (DSP) im-
plementation of the Retinex. The target processor is a Texas Instruments TMS320C6711 ?oating point DSP.
NTSC video is captured using a dedicated frame-grabber card, Retinex processed, and displayed on a standard
monitor. We discuss the optimizations used to achieve real-time performance of the Retinex and also describe
our future plans on using alternative architectures.
Keywords: image enhancement, digital signal processing, retinex