In recent years, remote sensing images has become one of the most popular directions in image processing. A small feature gap exists between satellite and natural images. Therefore, deep learning algorithms could be applied to recognize remote sensing images. We propose an improved Mask R-CNN model, called SCMask R-CNN, to enhance the detection effect in the high-resolution remote sensing images which contain the dense targets and complex background. Our model can perform object recognition and segmentation in parallel. This model uses a modified SC-conv based on the ResNet101 backbone network to obtain more discriminative feature information and adds a set of dilated convolutions with a specific size to improve the instance segmentation effect. We construct WFA-1400 based on the DOTA dataset because of the shortage of remote sensing mask datasets. We compare the improved algorithm with other state-of-the-art algorithms. The object detection AP₅₀ and AP increased by 1–2% and 1%, respectively, objectively proving the effectiveness and the feasibility of the improved model.

The wide range, complex background, and small target size of aerial remote sensing images results in the low detection accuracy of remote sensing target detection algorithms. Traditional detection algorithms have low accuracy and slow speed, making it difficult to achieve the precise positioning of small targets. This paper proposes an improved algorithm based on You Only Look Once (YOLO)-v3 for target detection of remote sensing images. Due to the difficulty in obtaining the datasets, research on small targets for complex images, such as airplanes and ships, is the focus of research. To make up for the problem of insufficient data, we screen specific types of training samples from the DOTA (Dataset of Object Detection in Aerial Images) dataset and select small targets in two different complex backgrounds of airplanes and ships to jointly evaluate the optimization degree of the improved network. We compare the improved algorithm with other state-of-the-art target detection algorithms. The results show that the performance indexes of both datasets are ameliorated by 1–3%, effectively verifying the superiority of the improved algorithm.