An efficient omnidirectional vision system for soccer robots: From calibration to object detection

Robotic soccer is nowadays a popular research domain in the area of multi-robot systems. In the context of RoboCup, the Middle Size League is one of the most challenging. This paper presents an efficient omnidirectional vision system for real-time object detection, developed for the robotic soccer team of the University of Aveiro, CAMBADA. The vision system is used to find the ball and white lines, which are used for self-localization, as well as to find the presence of obstacles. Algorithms for detecting these objects and also for calibrating most of the parameters of the vision system are presented in this paper. We also propose an efficient approach for detecting arbitrary FIFA balls, which is an important topic of research in the Middle Size League. The experimental results that we present show the effectiveness of our algorithms, both in terms of accuracy and processing time, as well as the results that the team has been achieving: 1st place in RoboCup 2008, 3rd place in 2009 and 1st place in the mandatory technical challenge in RoboCup 2009, where the robots have to play with an arbitrary standard FIFA ball.     

水利水电清污现状和对应措施

在很多湖泊、航道、江河入海口、近海海面、水电站的水面都集聚了以水葫芦、竹子、航运废弃物、生活垃圾等漂浮物,形成了集结,污染了环境,并影响航运,使水电站直接减小水头出力,减少了效益.根据对国内污染较严重的水电站以及清污难度较大的水电站的清污经历和对中国清污状况的调查了解,分析了中国目前的清污状况,对应采取的措施和应采用的清污机械,提出了行之有效的解决方案.     

熔态塑料水下切粒机挤出模具

为了保护生态环境，国家加大了对废品回收再利用的力度，塑料制品回收机械不断涌现，直切式水下切粒机就是塑料在熔体状态下直接切粒的一种新型塑料回收机械。挤出模具是其关键零件之一。它的工作性能直接影响塑料切粒的质量、效果和生产率。因此根据实际工作条件和工作要求，通过查阅相关资料、计算分析和实验论证等方法。对挤出模具的出粒孔大小、数量、分布形状、模具材料选择和外形等作了全面设计，其技术指标达到生产厂家提出的设计要求。     

浅谈面向21世纪的电力电子技术

探讨了21世纪中电力电子技术的研究课题，该课题有的是现有电力电子技术的深化，有的则是新开辟的研究领域。     

Consideration of multi‐coil type magnetization system for magnetic particle testing of omnidirectional crack in all surfaces of 3D shape test object

Mechanical parts, plants, and cross‐linkages inspected with magnetic‐particle testing (MT) are typically complex 3D shapes. In complex 3D shape portions, because a magnetizer often cannot be configured to inspection portions and the test object cannot be appropriately magnetized, there is a possibility of overlooking a crack in such an instance. Thus, MT system development that was successfully able to detect omnidirectional cracks in 3D shape portions was considered in this study's trials. Two multi‐coil type magnetizers were hence arranged face‐to‐face, and the magnetization of omnidirectional scenarios for all surfaces of 3D shape test object was evaluated.     

Probabilistic enhancement of approximate indexing in metric spaces

Some approximate indexing schemes have been recently proposed in metric spaces which sort the objects in the database according to pseudo-scores. It is known that (1) some of them provide a very good trade-off between response time and accuracy, and (2) probability-based pseudo-scores can provide an optimal trade-off in range queries if the probabilities are correctly estimated. Based on these facts, we propose a probabilistic enhancement scheme which can be applied to any pseudo-score based scheme. Our scheme computes probability-based pseudo-scores using pseudo-scores obtained from a pseudo-score based scheme. In order to estimate the probability-based pseudo-scores, we use the object-specific parameters in logistic regression and learn the parameters using MAP (Maximum a Posteriori) estimation and the empirical Bayes method. We also propose a technique which speeds up learning the parameters using pseudo-scores. We applied our scheme to the two state-of-the-art schemes: the standard pivot-based scheme and the permutation-based scheme, and evaluated them using various kinds of datasets from the Metric Space Library. The results showed that our scheme outperformed the conventional schemes, with regard to both the number of distance computations and the CPU time, in all the datasets.     

Competing for consciousness: Prolonged mask exposure reduces object substitution masking.

In object substitution masking (OSM) a sparse, temporally trailing 4-dot mask impairs target identification, even though it has different contours from, and does not spatially overlap with the target. Here, we demonstrate a previously unknown characteristic of OSM: Observers show reduced masking at prolonged (e.g., 640 ms) relative to intermediate mask durations (e.g., 240 ms). We propose that with prolonged exposure, the mask's visual representation is consolidated, which allows processing of the lingering target icon to be reinitiated, thereby improving performance. Our findings suggest that when the visual system is confronted with 2 temporally contiguous stimuli, although one may initially gain access to consciousness above the other, the “losing” stimulus is not irreversibly lost to awareness. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Measurement of linear dimensions of pattern elements of micro- and nano-structures under high- and low-voltage scanning electron microscopes

Measurements of the line width of one and the same test object under high- and low-voltage scanning electron microscopes are performed. Translated from Izmeritel’naya Tekhnika, No. 1, pp. 15–17, January, 2009.     

机器鱼控制及水球比赛中的若干问题探索

本文以机器鱼和机器鱼控制系统的基本理论研究为基础,结合对机器鱼的实际操作控制和策略研究中遇到的实际问题,通过对水球比赛的经验教训的总结,提出对机器鱼和协作控制系统等相关问题的一些认识和解决办法。     

Culture and ideology in Ian Suttie's theory of mind.

The author discusses the comprehensive outlook that shaped Ian Suttie's psychology. Suttie is seen as a background influence behind the British school of psychoanalysis, and his ideas pervade that school and therefore late-modern notions of the mind. The author describes the formation of Suttie's independent theory, and argues that his project was expressly ideological, as he tried to counter what he saw as the reactionary and disruptive influence of Freud's classical theory. Suttie offered an optimistic perception of the mind, which could serve as the basis for a progressive social policy. This perception was rooted in the outlook of early 20th-century reforming liberalism, whose preferences and prejudices it shares. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)