Exploring fusion domain: Advancing infrared and visible image fusion via IDFFN-GAN
Juan Li, Xiaoqian Shi, Yanan Li, Huabing Zhou
Abstract
Infrared (IR) and visible (VI) images are crucial in applications such as surveillance and night vision, where each modality provides complementary information—IR captures thermal details, while VI captures textures. Fusing these images is essential to combine their strengths , resulting in a more comprehensive and informative image. In this work, we introduce the “fusion domain” concept, a unique distribution that optimally blends IR and VI features. Our primary contribution is developing the Intermediate Domain Feature Fusion Network (IDFFN), which employs an MLP to learn the optimal domain factor for this fusion. Integrated with the IDFFN-GAN’s dual discriminators , our approach refines the fusion process to produce images that better preserve thermal and texture details from the proposed fusion and gradient domains. Experimental results demonstrate that our method achieves a 5% boost in Entropy (EN), a 50% rise in Spatial Frequency (SF), a 58% improvement in Average Gradient (AG), a 10% enhancement in Standard Deviation (SD), and a remarkable 198% increase in N A B / F compared to state-of-the-art techniques, ensuring superior retention of specific features from both modalities.