Fλ/d as a predictor of image classification algorithm performance

This research studied the effect of variations in a sensor's Fλ/d metric value (FLD) on the performance of machine learning algorithms such as the YOLO (You Only Look Once) algorithm for object classification. The YOLO_v3 and YOLO_v10 algorithms were trained using static imagery provided in the commonly available training dataset provided by Teledyne FLIR Systems. Image processing techniques were used to degrade image quality of the test dataset also provided by Teledyne FLIR Systems, simulating detector-limited to optics-limited performance, which results in a variation of the FLD metric between 0.339 and 7.98. The degraded test set was used to evaluate the performance of YOLO_v3 and YOLO_v10 for object classification and relate the FLD metric to the probability of detection. Results of YOLO_v3 and YOLO_v10 are presented for the varying levels of image degradation. A summary of the results is discussed along with recommendations for evaluating an algorithm's performance using a sensor's FLD metric value.