A multilevel method for image registration

In this paper we introduce a new framework for image registration. Our formulation is based on consistent discretization of the optimization problem coupled with a multigrid solution of the linear system which evolves in a Gauss--Newton iteration. We show that our discretization is $h$-elliptic independent of parameter choice, and therefore a simple multigrid implementation can be used. To overcome potential large nonlinearities and to further speed up computation, we use a multilevel continuation technique. We demonstrate the efficiency of our method on a realistic highly nonlinear registration problem.