20. A method as set forth in claim 17 wherein the step of applying includes a step of identifying a first set of primitive features based on contour direction and a second set of feature vectors based on convexity and concavity.
17. A method as set forth in claim 13 wherein the step of counting occurrences includes the steps of: partitioning the N.times.M bit-mapped image into a plurality of slices; applying an ixj mask over the N.times.M bit-mapped image to locate instances of primitive features; and counting the located instances within each of the plurality of slices.