Energy-efficient adaptive sensor scheduling for target tracking in wireless sensor networks

Sensor scheduling is essential to collaborative target tracking in wireless sensor networks (WSNs). In the existing works for target tracking in WSNs, such as the information-driven sensor query (IDSQ), the tasking sensors are scheduled to maximize the information gain while minimizing the resource cost based on the uniform sampling intervals, ignoring the changing of the target dynamics and the specific desirable tracking goals. This paper proposes a novel energyefficient adaptive sensor scheduling approach that jointly selects tasking sensors and determines their associated sampling intervals according to the predicted tracking accuracy and tracking energy cost. At each time step, the sensors are scheduled in alternative tracking mode, namely, the fast tracking mode with smallest sampling interval or the tracking maintenance mode with larger sampling interval, according to a specified tracking error threshold. The approach employs an extended Kalman filter (EKF)-based estimation technique to predict the tracking accuracy and adopts an energy consumption model to predict the energy cost. Simulation results demonstrate that, compared to a non-adaptive sensor scheduling approach, the proposed approach can save energy cost significantly without degrading the tracking accuracy.     

The production of pork with garlic flavour notes using garlic essential oil

Garlic essential oil (GEO) added directly to pork mince or to the diet of pigs was evaluated for its effectiveness in masking undesirable mutton flavour. Pork was from 31 female pigs (Duroc × (Large White × Landrace)) grown on diets containing either animal-plus-plant products (AP diet) or plant products only (P diet) with four levels of GEO: 0, 0.55, 1.44 and 1.84 g/kg feed and 0, 0.55, 1.44 and 2.15 g/kg feed in the AP and P diet, respectively. Garlic flavour increased and mutton flavour decreased in pork from pigs that consumed more than about 150 g and 220 g of GEO in P and AP diets, respectively over the 57-day feeding period. The garlic flavour was stronger and the mutton flavour less intense for pork from pigs on the P diet. When GEO was added to pork mince at 125 ppm, it significantly reduced mutton flavour.     

Seeing Human Weight from a Single RGB-D Image

Human weight estimation is useful in a variety of potential applications, e.g., targeted advertisement, entertainment scenarios and forensic science. However, estimating weight only from color cues is particularly challenging since these cues are quite sensitive to lighting and imaging conditions. In this article, we propose a novel weight estimator based on a single RGB-D image, which utilizes the visual color cues and depth information. Our main contributions are three-fold.First, we construct the W8-RGBD dataset including RGB-D images of different people with ground truth weight. Second,the novel sideview shape feature and the feature fusion model are proposed to facilitate weight estimation. Additionally, we consider gender as another important factor for human weight estimation. Third, we conduct comprehensive experiments using various regression models and feature fusion models on the new weight dataset, and encouraging results are obtained based on the proposed features and models.     

Spatial concentration variation of cooking-emitted particles in a residential kitchen

Residential kitchen cooking generates significant amount of gases and particulate pollutants and is regarded as a major pollutant source in residential microenvironments. Existing risk assessments always assume well-mixed condition. We used a portable nephelometer to measure PM3.5 oil particle concentration in a kitchen under low air exchange rate condition. Two sampling locations were chosen: one near (0.3 m) and another far (2.8 m) from the cooking stove. Numerical simulation was also used to model the particle transport in a model kitchen. Particles passing through the pre-defined sampling areas were tracked and counted. The simulated results agree reasonably well with the measured concentration. It shows that concentration at the near-field is almost three times as high as that at the far-field. Exposure assessment results based on well-mixed assumption should be applied with caution.     

环境友好型AZ31B镁合金交流微弧氧化的表征(英文)

研究了一种新的AZ31B镁合金交流电微弧氧化(MAO)工艺,采用了对环境更加友好的含硅酸盐的稀碱溶液作为电解质。结果发现氧化过程分为2个阶段,膜厚与微弧氧化时间呈抛物线关系。形貌观察表明,微弧氧化膜由一个致密层和一个多孔层组成。致密层的厚度约占整个膜厚的40%,膜表面的20%均匀分布着直径1~3μm的孔。动电位极化测量显示,该新型微弧氧化膜的耐蚀性有明显提高,腐蚀电流降低了2个数量级,而自腐蚀电位正移了0.07V。盐雾试验结果同样证实微弧氧化膜的耐蚀性有大幅度提高。     

Enhancing efficiency of dye-sensitized solar cells by combining use of TiO2 nanotubes and nanoparticles

Titanium dioxide nanotubes (TiNTs) were fabricated from commercial P25 TiO₂ powders via alkali hydrothermal transformation. Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs) were constructed by application of TiNTs and P25 nanoparticles with various weight percentages. The influence of the TiNT concentration on the performance of DSCs was investigated systematically. The electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) technique was employed to quantify the recombination resistance, electron lifetime and time constant in DSCs both under illumination and in the dark. The DSC based on TiNT/P25 hybrids showed a better photovoltaic performance than the cell purely made of TiO₂ nanoparticles. The open-voltage (V_oc), fill factor (FF) and efficiency (η) continuously increased with the TiO₂ nanotube concentration from 0 to 50 wt%, which was correlated with the suppression of the electron recombination as found out from EIS studies. Respectable photovoltaic performance of ca. 7.41% under the light intensity of 100 mW cm⁻² (AM 1.5G) was achieved for DSCs using 90 wt% TiO₂ nanotubes incorporated in TiO₂ electrodes.     

Effect of ZnO buffer layer on AZO film properties and photovoltaic applications

Aluminum-doped ZnO (AZO) transparent conducting films were deposited on glass substrates with and without intrinsic ZnO (i-ZnO) buffer layers by a home made and low cost radio-frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering system at room temperature in pure argon ambient and under a low vacuum level. The films were examined and characterized for electrical, optical, and structural properties for the application of CIGS solar cells. The influence of sputter power, deposition pressure, film thickness and residual pressure on electrical and optical properties of layered films of AZO, i-ZnO and AZO/i-ZnO was investigated. The optimization of coating process parameters (RF power, sputtering pressure, thickness) was carried out. The effects of i-ZnO buffer layer on AZO films were investigated. By inserting thin i-ZnO layers with a thickness not greater than 125 nm under the AZO layers, both the carrier concentration and Hall mobility were increased. The resistivity of these layered films was lower than that of single layered AZO films. The related mechanisms and plasma physics were discussed. Copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) thin film solar cells were fabricated by incorporating bi-layer ZnO films on CdS/CIGS/Mo/glass substrates. Efficiencies of the order of 7–8% were achieved for the manufactured CIGS solar cells (4–5 cm² in size) without antireflective films. The results demonstrated that RF sputtered layered AZO/i-ZnO films are suitable for application in low cost CIGS solar cells as transparent conductive electrodes.     

Robust adaptive fuzzy VSS control for a class of uncertain nonlinear systems using small gain design

In this paper, a novel robust adaptive fuzzy variable structure control (RAFVSC) scheme is proposed for a class of uncertain nonlinear systems. The uncertain nonlinear system and gain functions originating from modeling errors and external disturbances are all unstructured (or non-repeatable), state-dependent and completely unknown. The Takagi–Sugeno type fuzzy logic systems are used to approximate uncertain functions in the systems and the RAFVSC is designed by use of the input-to-state stability (ISS) approach and small gain theorem. In the algorithm, there are three advantages which are that the asymptotic stability of adaptive control in the presence of unstructured uncertainties can be guaranteed, the possible controller singularity problem in some of existing adaptive control schemes using feedback linearization techniques can be removed and the adaptive mechanism with minimal learning parameterizations can be achieved. The performance and effectiveness of the proposed methods are discussed and illustrated with two simulation examples.     

Treatment of ampicillin‐loaded wastewater by combined adsorption and biodegradation

BACKGROUND: This study investigated the treatment of ampicillin (AMP)‐loaded wastewater in airlift reactors where biofilms were developed on granular activated carbon (GAC). A series of batch experiments were thus carried out in order to differentiate potentials of adsorption and biodegradation which would jointly contribute to the AMP removal. RESULTS: Results showed that almost all influent AMP was removed in two reactors supplemented with 4 and 8 mg L^?1 AMP, respectively. Batch experiments revealed that the percentage of the AMP removed through biodegradation increased along with the development of biofilms on GAC. For the mature biofilm‐covered GAC, adsorption accounted for about 60% of the observed AMP removal, whereas the other 40% could be attributed to biodegradation. Possible degraders of AMP were also identified, such as Acinetobacter sp., Flavobacterium sp., Pseudoxanthomonas sp., Delftia sp. and Sphingobium sp. CONCLUSION: The airlift biofilm reactor with GAC as carrier would be a feasible technology for treating AMP‐loaded wastewater due to the joint action of adsorption and biodegradation of AMP by the biofilm‐covered GAC. Copyright © 2010 Society of Chemical Industry     

Analysis of patenting trends of antifungal drugs in the product patent regime in India

The present study attempts to analyze the patenting activity of antifungal drugs in the pre and post TRIPS period in India. There is a general increase in patent filing in antifungals both by Indian as well as by multinational companies, with greater filing by the latter in the post-TRIPS era. The major filings in the transition and post-TRIPS period have been due to increased product than process patent filings, wherein 75% of the total patent applications in this sector is directed towards product patents and remaining 25% is directed towards process patents. It is observed that Indian academic institutions have been more active than foreign institutions with respect to patent filings in this field.