<s>
In	O
shape	B-Algorithm
analysis	I-Algorithm
,	O
skeleton	O
(	O
or	O
topological	B-Algorithm
skeleton	I-Algorithm
)	O
of	O
a	O
shape	O
is	O
a	O
thin	B-Algorithm
version	I-Algorithm
of	O
that	O
shape	O
that	O
is	O
equidistant	O
to	O
its	O
boundaries	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
skeleton	O
usually	O
emphasizes	O
geometrical	O
and	O
topological	O
properties	O
of	O
the	O
shape	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
its	O
connectivity	O
,	O
topology	B-Architecture
,	O
length	O
,	O
direction	O
,	O
and	O
width	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Various	O
different	O
variants	O
of	O
skeleton	O
can	O
also	O
be	O
found	O
,	O
including	O
straight	O
skeletons	O
,	O
morphological	B-Algorithm
skeletons	I-Algorithm
,	O
etc	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Similarly	O
,	O
the	O
concepts	O
of	O
skeletonization	O
and	O
thinning	B-Algorithm
are	O
also	O
regarded	O
as	O
identical	O
by	O
some	O
,	O
and	O
not	O
by	O
others	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Skeletons	O
are	O
widely	O
used	O
in	O
computer	B-Application
vision	I-Application
,	O
image	B-General_Concept
analysis	I-General_Concept
,	O
pattern	O
recognition	O
and	O
digital	B-Algorithm
image	I-Algorithm
processing	I-Algorithm
for	O
purposes	O
such	O
as	O
optical	B-Application
character	I-Application
recognition	I-Application
,	O
fingerprint	O
recognition	O
,	O
visual	O
inspection	O
or	O
compression	B-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
are	O
many	O
different	O
algorithms	O
for	O
computing	O
skeletons	O
for	O
shapes	O
in	O
digital	B-Algorithm
images	I-Algorithm
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
continuous	O
sets	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Pruning	B-Algorithm
algorithms	I-Algorithm
are	O
often	O
used	O
to	O
remove	O
these	O
branches	O
.	O
</s>
