A Heterogeneous Modular Framework for Pre-Trained Image Dehazing Models Based on Haze Level Clustering

While pre-trained deep learning models have significantly advanced image dehazing, their restoration performance often fluctuates substantially across varying haze densities, leading to inconsistent performance across diverse atmospheric conditions. To address this limitation, this study introduces a performance analysis approach based on Haze Image Clustering (HIC) to systematically evaluate the specialized strengths of various state-of-the-art models within specific haze-level intervals. Building upon these evaluations, we propose a heterogeneous modular framework equipped with a dynamic switching mechanism that adaptively activates the optimal pre-trained module for each detected haze level. Extensive experiments conducted on the OTS and ODF benchmark datasets demonstrate that while individual models exhibit regional performance drops, the proposed framework consistently maintains superior performance across all haze intensities. Quantitative results indicate that the proposed modular network achieves a significant PSNR improvement of up to 6.946 dB compared to DehazeFlow. Furthermore, regarding the no-reference Dehazing Quality Index (DHQI), our framework attains a top score of 68.448, surpassing the best individual baseline. These findings validate that the proposed strategy effectively enhances both restoration fidelity and visual naturalness without the need for additional training or fine-tuning, offering a robust and computationally efficient solution for real-world image dehazing.