Single image dehazing using a new color channel

Images with hazy scene suffer from low-contrast, which reduces the visible quality of the scene, thus making object detection a more challenging task. Low-contrast can result from foggy weather conditions during image acquisition. Dehazing is a process of removal of haze from the photography of a hazy scene. Single-image dehazing based on dark channel priors are well-known techniques in this field. However, the performance of such techniques is limited to priors or constraints. Moreover, this type of method fails when images have sky-region. So, a method is proposed, which can restore the visibility of hazy images. First, a hazy image is divided into blocks of size 32 × 32, then the score of each block is calculated to select a block having the highest score. Atmospheric light is calculated from the selected block. A new color channel is considered to remove atmospheric scattering, obtained channel value and atmospheric light are then used to calculate the transmission map in the second step. Third, radiance is computed using a transmission map and atmospheric light. The illumination scaling factor is adopted to enhance the quality of a dehazed image in the final step. Experiments are performed on six datasets namely, I-HAZE, O-HAZE, BSDS500, FRIDA, RESIDE dataset and natural images from Google. The proposed method is compared against 11 state-of-the-art methods. The performance is analyzed using fourteen quantitative evaluation metrics. All the results demonstrate that the proposed method outperforms 11 state-of-the-art methods in most of the cases.     

基于时空的弱点状运动目标检测技术

如何在复杂背景下持续有效地检测目标位置,一直是研究者们需要面对的主要挑战。本文在研究红外点状移动目标特征的基础上,根据目标无纹理,无形状的特性,提出一种改进的形态学目标增强算法,并利用目标连续时空不变性检测目标。首先,建立多尺度的图像金字塔,在每层上采用改进的形态学算法快速、粗糙定位小目标。然后进一步的根据目标在时空上的位置相关性,提出基于目标运动特征分析的精确检测方法。得到精确稳定的检测结果。最后实验结果表明与经典的形态学检测算法及其他算法相比,该技术能更有效地检测弱小目标,具有更高的鲁棒性。     

Torsional statics of two-dimensionally functionally graded microtubes

A size-dependent governing equation is derived to investigate the torsional static behaviors of two-dimensionally functionally graded microtubes based on the modified couple stress theory. The shear modulus is assumed to vary along the tube’s length direction according to an exponential distribute function, and varies along the tube’s radius direction according to a power-law function. A generalized differential quadrature method is developed to determine the rotational angle and shear stresses. Some illustrative examples are given to investigate the effects of applied torques, the length scale parameter and various material compositions on the torsional angle and shear stresses.     

Excitonic Properties of Chemically Synthesized 2D Organic–Inorganic Hybrid Perovskite Nanosheets

2D organic–inorganic hybrid perovskites (OIHPs) represent a unique class of materials with a natural quantum‐well structure and quasi‐2D electronic properties. Here, a versatile direct solution‐based synthesis of mono‐ and few‐layer OIHP nanosheets and a systematic study of their electronic structure as a function of the number of monolayers by photoluminescence and absorption spectroscopy are reported. The monolayers of various OIHPs are found to exhibit high electronic quality as evidenced by high quantum yield and negligible Stokes shift. It is shown that the ground exciton peak blueshifts by ≈40 meV when the layer thickness reduces from bulk to monolayer. It is also shown that the exciton binding energy remains effectively unchanged for (C₆H₅(CH₂)₂NH₃)₂PbI₄ with the number of layers. Similar trends are observed for (C₄H₉NH₃)₂PbI₄ in contrast to the previous report. Further, the photoluminescence lifetime is found to decrease with the number of monolayers, indicating the dominant role of surface trap states in nonradiative recombination of the electron–hole pairs.     

考虑变幂数的畸变动力学相似试验模型设计方法及试验研究

动力学相似理论广泛应用于大型结构的振动试验，其中畸变相似用于解决结构的设计参数不满足等比例缩放时的相似问题，针对畸变相似关系中幂数为定值导致预测精度低的问题，提出考虑变幂数的畸变动力学相似试验模型设计方法。首先，在敏感性分析与中心差分理论推导的幂数表达式的基础上，将中心差分的范围不断扩大得到一组随相似比变化的幂数。采用最小二乘法将这组幂数拟合为关于相似比的函数并建立相似关系。然后，在多盘转子系统的数值算例中将变幂数法与文献中的两种方法进行对比，结果表明，变幂数法的预测精度较文献中的方法有很大提高。最后，通过试验研究验证了数值算例中动力学模型及临界转速求解的正确有效性。相似关系的建立是以模型的临界转速为基础，因此也验证了数值算例中的相似预测结果。     

Output feedback tracking control for rigid body attitude via immersion and invariance angular velocity observers

A novel immersion and invariance (I&I) angular velocity observer is presented for the attitude tracking control of a rigid body with the lack of angular rate. Global exponential convergence of angular velocity estimate errors are guaranteed by an innovative filter design for the estimates' Euclidean norm. The proposed method requires fewer filter states compared with existing I&I angular velocity observer designs, which achieves a simpler closed-loop structure (dynamic reduction). The observer synthesis and convergence are independent of the control torque, which leads to much convenience in establishing “separation property” when combining a proportional-derivative attitude tracking controller driven by angular velocity estimates. A rigorous stability analysis is provided to ensure the (almost) global asymptotic convergence of the overall closed-loop tracking errors, and several numerical simulations are carried out to demonstrate the effectiveness of the combined implementation of proposed angular velocity observer and full-state feedback attitude tracking controller.     

某带钢连续热浸镀机组卧式连续退火炉水冷炉辊的开裂原因

采用宏观和微观形貌观察、化学成分分析、显微组织观察、硬度测试等方法,对某带钢连续热浸镀机组卧式连续退火炉水冷炉辊的开裂原因进行了分析。结果表明:水冷炉辊辊套成分中不含铌元素,镍元素含量偏低,导致组织中形成网状富铬碳化物析出相;辊套内腔结垢、水冷不畅使水冷炉辊产生局部过热,导致工作侧辊套基体中粒状合金碳化物的析出和网状富铬碳化物的长大,使工作侧辊套的脆性增加;随着结垢的沉积,水冷炉辊出现轴承转动不畅,甚至堵转现象;在热应力、扭力作用下,裂纹在网状富铬碳化物析出相中形成并沿网状碳化物逐渐向基体内扩展,最终导致水冷炉辊的开裂。     

Input variable scaling for statistical modeling

Input variable scaling is one of the most important steps in statistical modeling. However, it has not been actively investigated, and autoscaling is mostly used. This paper proposes two input variable scaling methods for improving the accuracy of soft sensors. One method statistically derives the input variable scaling factors; the other one uses spectroscopic data of a material whose content is estimated by the soft sensor. The proposed methods can determine the scales of the input variables based on their importance in output estimation. Thus, it can reduce the negative effects of input variables which are not related to an output variable. The effectiveness of the proposed methods was confirmed through a numerical example and industrial applications to a pharmaceutical and a distillation processes. In the industrial applications, the proposed methods improved the estimation accuracy by up to 63% compared to conventional methods such as autoscaling with input variable selection.     

Effects of ultrasonic scaling on the optical properties and surface characteristics of highly translucent CAD/CAM ceramic restorative materials: An in vitro study

Esthetic restorations using highly translucent ceramics powered by chairside digital dentistry are becoming popular. The purpose of this in vitro study was to investigate the impact of ultrasonic scaling on the optical and surface properties of highly translucent ceramic materials for digital dentistry. A resin nanoceramic (Lava Ultimate; LU), dual-network ceramic (Vita Enamic; VE), feldspathic ceramic (Vitablocs Mark II; VM), lithium disilicate ceramic (IPS e.max CAD; EX), and high-translucency monolithic zirconia (Rainbow Shine-T; MZ) were evaluated. All specimens were subjected to ultrasonic scaling, and the following data were obtained before and after scaling: color change (ΔE₀₀), translucency parameter, surface gloss, surface roughness, and superficial topography. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), repeated-measures ANOVA, and two-way ANOVA were used for intergroup comparisons (all α = 0.05). The mean ΔE₀₀ values were 0.243, 0.48, 1.591, 0.143, and 4.466 for LU, VE, VM, EX, and MZ, respectively, with statistically significant differences among the materials. With regard to Commission Internationale de l'Éclairage (CIE) L*, a*, and b* values, VE, VM, and MZ showed significantly decreased L* values relative to the baseline values. Moreover, MZ showed a significantly increased a* value and a significantly decreased b* value after scaling. Ultrasonic scaling also resulted in significant changes in the surface gloss of the LU, VE, VM, and MZ specimens. Micrographs showed scrapes and surface deterioration after scaling. For all materials, the translucency parameter and the surface roughness showed no significant differences between specimens that were subjected to scaling and those that were not. These findings suggest that ultrasonic scaling MARKEDLY affects the optical properties and surface characteristics of highly translucent computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) ceramics. The findings can aid restorative dentists in the selection of appropriate materials and motivate periodontists for performing scaling procedures with due consideration of restorations in esthetically demanding areas.     

Using a spectral scaling structured BFGS method for constrained nonlinear least squares

In this paper, we use a spectral scaled structured BFGS formula for approximating projected Hessian matrices in an exact penalty approach for solving constrained nonlinear least-squares problems. We show this spectral scaling formula has a good self-correcting property. The reported numerical results show that the use of the spectral scaling structured BFGS method outperforms the standard structured BFGS method.