System and method for classifying follicular units

A method of determining at least one of a head or a tail of a follicular unit (FU), comprising:

• processing an image of a body surface containing a FU to produce a segmented image of the FU, the image obtained from an image acquisition device;
• using a processor, determining a contour of the segmented image of the FU;
• generating a skeleton of the segmented image of the FU based on the segmented image of the FU and on the contour of the segmented image of the FU;
• and
• determining from the skeleton at least one of a head or a tail of the FU.

A system for classifying and determining at least one end point of a follicular unit (FU), comprising:

• an image acquisition device;
• and
• an image processor comprising one or more modules for executing operations on an image, the one or more modules including instructions for:
• processing an image obtained by the image acquisition device to produce a segmented image of the FU,
• calculating a contour of the segmented image of the FU;
• calculating an outline profile of the segmented image which disregards concavities in the contour of the segmented image of the FU;
• determining a number of defects in the outline profile;
• classifying the FU at least partially based on the number of determined defects;
• generating a skeleton of the segmented image of the FU, and
• determining from the skeleton at least one end point of the FU.

A system for classifying a follicular unit (FU), comprising:

• an interface adapted to receive an image data containing a FU;
• and
• an image processor comprising one or more modules for executing operations on the image data, the one or more modules including instructions for:
• processing the image data to produce a segmented image of the FU;
• calculating a contour of the segmented image of the FU;
• calculating an outline profile of the segmented image which disregards concavities in the contour of the segmented image of the FU;
• determining a number of defects in the outline profile;
• and
• classifying the FU at least partially based on the number of determined defects.