Having established how images are represented digitally and how to extract basic features like edges and corners, we now shift focus to interpreting the content within an image. This chapter introduces the fundamental task of object recognition: identifying specific items or patterns in digital visuals.

You will learn:

• The basic goal and concept behind object recognition systems.
• A straightforward technique called template matching, including how it operates by searching for a known pattern within a larger image.
• The practical application of template matching using common tools.
• The inherent limitations of simple template matching when dealing with variations in appearance, such as changes in scale or orientation.
• An overview of common difficulties encountered in general object recognition tasks.
• A brief mention of how machine learning approaches are commonly used to address these challenges, preparing you for more advanced studies.

We will start with template matching as an intuitive first step into recognizing objects, implementing a simple example to solidify the concept.