image processing (picture processing) Processing of the information contained in a digital image. Image processing operations include contrast distortion, expansion of a specified range of brightness, bright outlining of objects, correction of over- or underexposure of portions of the image, recognition (and perhaps counting) of predefined objects, and comparison of one image with another. The last two of these operations are examples of pattern recognition. Some of the more advanced operations make use of the concepts of artificial intelligence. The development of image processing has been prompted by applications such as satellite and unmanned spaceprobe observations, undersea exploration, medical physics, and industrial robotics.

picture processing Another name for image processing.