iOS slow image pixel iterating - ios

Question

I am trying to implement RGB histogram computation for images in Swift (I am new to iOS).
However the computation time for 1500x1000 image is about 66 sec, which I consider to be too slow.
Are there any ways to speed up image traversal?
P.S. current code is the following:
func calcHistogram(image: UIImage) {
let bins: Int = 20;
let width = Int(image.size.width);
let height = Int(image.size.height);
let binStep: Double = Double(bins-1)/255.0
var hist = Array(count:bins, repeatedValue:Array(count:bins, repeatedValue:Array(count:bins, repeatedValue:Int())))
for i in 0..<bins {
for j in 0..<bins {
for k in 0..<bins {
hist[i][j][k] = 0;
}
}
}
var pixelData = CGDataProviderCopyData(CGImageGetDataProvider(image.CGImage))
var data: UnsafePointer<UInt8> = CFDataGetBytePtr(pixelData)
for x in 0..<width {
for y in 0..<height {
var pixelInfo: Int = ((width * y) + x) * 4
var r = Double(data[pixelInfo])
var g = Double(data[pixelInfo+1])
var b = Double(data[pixelInfo+2])
let r_bin: Int = Int(floor(r*binStep));
let g_bin: Int = Int(floor(g*binStep));
let b_bin: Int = Int(floor(b*binStep));
hist[r_bin][g_bin][b_bin] += 1;
}
}
}

Answer 1

As noted in my comment on the question, there are some things you might rethink before you even try to optimize this code.
But even if you do move to a better overall solution like GPU-based histogramming, a library, or both... There are some Swift pitfalls you're falling into here that are good to talk about so you don't run into them elsewhere.
First, this code:
var hist = Array(count:bins, repeatedValue:Array(count:bins, repeatedValue:Array(count:bins, repeatedValue:Int())))
for i in 0..<bins {
for j in 0..<bins {
for k in 0..<bins {
hist[i][j][k] = 0;
}
}
}
... is initializing every member of your 3D array twice, with the same result. Int() produces a value of zero, so you could leave out the triple for loop. (And possibly change Int() to 0 in your innermost repeatedValue: parameter to make it more readable.)
Second, arrays in Swift are copy-on-write, but this optimization can break down in multidimensional arrays: changing an element of a nested array can cause the entire nested array to be rewritten instead of just the one element. Multiply that by the depth of nested arrays and number of element writes you have going on in a double for loop and... it's not pretty.
Unless there's a reason your bins need to be organized this way, I'd recommend finding a different data structure for them. Three separate arrays? One Int array where index i is red, i + 1 is green, and i + 2 is blue? One array of a custom struct you define that has separate r, g, and b members? See what conceptually fits with your tastes or the rest of your app, and profile to make sure it works well.
Finally, some Swift style points:
pixelInfo, r, g, and b in your second loop don't change. Use let, not var, and the optimizer will thank you.
Declaring and initializing something like let foo: Int = Int(whatever) is redundant. Some people like having all their variables/constants explicitly typed, but it does make your code a tad less readable and harder to refactor.
Int(floor(x)) is redundant — conversion to integer always takes the floor.

Answer 2

If you have some issues about performance in your code, first of all, use Time Profiler from Instruments. You can start it via Xcode menu Build->Profile, then, Instruments app opened, where you can choose Time Profiler.
Start recording and do all interactions in the your app.
Stop recording and analyse where is the "tightest" place of your code.
Also check options "Invert call tree", "Hide missing symbols" and "Hide system libraries" for better viewing profile results.
You can also double click at any listed function to view it in code and seeing percents of usage