Limitations of k-means K-means and its variations have a number of limitations with respect to finding different types of clusters In particular, K-means has difficulty detecting clusters with non spherical shapes or widely different sizes or densities This is because k-means is designed to look for globular clusters of similar sizes and densities or clusters that are well separated This is illustrated in the following examples 8/20/2016 PATTERN RECOGNITIONLimitations of K-means K-means and its variations have a number of limitations with respect to finding different types of clusters. In particular, K-means has difficulty detecting clusters with non￾spherical shapes or widely different sizes or densities. This is because K-means is designed to look for globular clusters of similar sizes and densities, or clusters that are well separated. This is illustrated in the following examples. 8/20/2016 PATTERN RECOGNITION 36