An all adder systolic structure for fast computation of moments

Moment invariants play an important role in pattern recognition and computer vision. They have the nice properties of being invariant under translation, rotation and scaling. In this paper, we propose a new systolic array for computing ordinary moments from which moment invariants can be derived. The array exploits parallelism of the computation maximally and has an ideal time complexity ofO(n). Each computation step involves a single addition only and is thus far superior to most existing solutions that require multiplication. The systolic array can be directly implemented in VLSI and we also provide an estimate of the realizability of the array in a 0.8 micron BiCMOS technology. To achieve effective tradeoff between area and time requirement, we also propose a scalable array that allows us to fold the computation into a much smaller area. Our solution is suitable for both binary images and gray level images and is thus superior to an earlier work that has similar characteristics.     

Wavelet-based image coding using nonlinear interpolative vectorquantization

We propose a reduced complexity wavelet-based image coding technique. Here, 64-D (for three stages of decomposition) vectors are formed by combining appropriate coefficients from the wavelet subimages, 16-D feature vectors are then extracted from the 64-D vectors on which vector quantization (VQ) is performed. At the decoder, 64-D vectors are reconstructed using a nonlinear interpolative technique. The proposed technique has a reduced complexity and has the potential to provide a superior coding performance when the codebook is generated using the training vectors drawn from similar images.     

Experimental studies of bistatic scattering from two-dimensionalconducting random rough surfaces

Despite the recent development of analytical and numerical techniques for problems of scattering from two-dimensional rough surfaces, very few experimental studies were available for verification. The authors present the results of millimeter-wave experiments on scattering from two-dimensional conducting random rough surfaces with Gaussian surface roughness statistics. Machine-fabricated rough surfaces with controlled roughness statistics were examined. Special attention was paid to surfaces with large rms slopes (ranging from 0.35 to 1.00) for which enhanced backscattering is expected to take place. Experimentally, such enhancement was indeed observed in both the copolarized and cross-polarized returns. In addition, it was noticed that at moderate angles of incidence, the scattering profile as a function of observation angle is fairly independent of the incident polarization and operating frequency. This independence justifies the use of the geometric optics approximation embodied in the Kirchhoff formulation for surfaces with large surface radius of curvature. When compared with the experimental data, this analytical technique demonstrates good agreement with the experimental data     

Thermodynamic-behaviour model for air-cooled screw chillers with a variable set-point condensing temperature

This paper presents a thermodynamic model to evaluate the coefficient of performance (COP) of an air-cooled screw chiller under various operating conditions. The model accounts for the real process phenomena, including the capacity control of screw compressors and variations in the heat-transfer coefficients of an evaporator and a condenser at part load. It also contains an algorithm to determine how the condenser fans are staged in response to a set-point condensing temperature. The model parameters are identified, based on the performance data of chiller specifications. The chiller model is validated using a wide range of operating data of an air-cooled screw chiller. The difference between the measured and modelled COPs is within ±10% for 86% of the data points. The chiller’s COP can increase by up to 115% when the set-point condensing temperature is adjusted, based on any given outdoor temperature. Having identified the variation in the chiller’s COP, a suitable strategy is proposed for air-cooled screw chillers to operate at maximum efficiency as much as possible when they have to satisfy a building’s cooling-load.     

Shape optimization of inclined ribs as heat transfer augmentation device

This work presents numerical optimization techniques for the design of a rectangular channel with inclined ribs toenhance turbulent heat transfer.The response surface method with Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes analysis isused for optimization.Shear stress transport turbulence model is used as a turbulence closure.Computational re-sults for local heat transfer rate show a reasonable agreement with the experimental data.Width-to-rib height ratioand attack angle of the rib are chosen as design variables.The objective function is defined as a linear combina-tion of heat-transfer and friction-loss related terms with the weighting factor.Full-factorial experimental designmethod is used to determine the data points.Optimum shapes of the channel have been obtained in a range of theweighting factor.     

Numerical simulation of rime ice accretion process on an airfoil

To simulate the ice accretion on an airfoil, a boundary moving technique is proposed to deal with the distortion of the airfoil surface due to ice accretion on the leading edge. Incorporating the two‐phase model of air‐supercooled droplets in the Eulerian coordinate system, this technique is applied to simulate the process of the rime ice accretion (the droplets freeze at the instant impinging on the airfoil) on the NACA 0012 airfoil, and the ice profile after ice accretion is achieved successfully. A brief comparison between the results of this paper and the experiment data indicates that the current method is applicable and effective. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Heat Trans Asian Res, 34(4): 226–234, 2005; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/htj.20064     

Continuity wave in the elongated bubble region of horizontal slug flow

Visualized observation on the wave feature in a horizontal slug flow was made with a high‐speed digital camera. It was found that the liquid film flow in the elongated bubble region of slug flow behaves as a continuity wave. Theoretical analysis was carried out and it reveals that the liquid film flow is a continuity wave with celerity the same as the translational velocity of the elongated bubble. The control equation for the liquid film height in the elongated bubble region was derived. The results predicted by the equation fit well with the observed data. A new conclusion was obtained that slug flow has continuity wave in it, explaining the stable slug flow wave characterization. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Heat Trans Asian Res, 34(8): 547–554, 2005; Published online in Wiley InterScience ( www.interscience.wiley.com ). DOI 10.1002/htj.20092     

Effect of structure on porous gas-diffusion electrodes for phosphoric acid fuel cells

This investigation is concerned with the variation of structure in the catalyst layer for porous gas-diffusion electrodes. The pore-size distribution and the total pore volume of the electrode are measured by a mercury penetration method. A model that accounts for this incomplete wetting electrode is solved by an orthogonal collocation method and matched with experimental observations. The numerical solution indicates that the effectiveness factor drops noticeably under high current density when the agglomerate radius is greater than 40 μm. When the agglomerate radius is smaller than 1.2 μm, however, the effect of ionic transport becomes important. The maximum reaction rate occurs at carbon-paper/ catalyst-layer interface when the effective conductivity of the electrolyte is larger than that of the solid phase. If the effective conductivity of the electrolyte is smaller, then the maximum reaction rate occurs at the electrode/electrolyte interface.     

Sol-gel processed silica/titania/ÿ-Glycidoxypropyltrimethoxysilane composite materials for photonic applications

Silica/titania/?-Glycidoxypropyltrimethoxysilane composite materials processed by the sol-gel technique were studied for photonic applications. Waveguide thin films with thickness more than 1.7 μm were prepared by the sol-gel spin coating technique and low temperature heat treatment from this high titanium content composite materials. The films were analyzed by atomic force microscopy (AFM), ellipsometry, differential thermal analysis (DTA), thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), UV-visible spectroscopy (UV-VIS), and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy. It was observed that the film becomes thinner as the titanium contents increase. A change of the refractive index through the range 1.52–1.61 at the optical wavelength of 633 nm was achieved by varying the molar ratio between silica and titanium. A dense, low absorption, and high transparency in the visible range waveguide films could be obtained at a low temperature. It was also noted that organic compounds in the film would decompose in the temperature range from 200°C to 480°C. Accordingly, purely inorganic silica-titania films with a thickness of about 0.7 μm could also be obtained by a single-coating process, when the film was baked at a temperature of 500°C or higher. The waveguides properties and photonic applications of the composite material solgel films were also investigated.     

Passive alignment optical subassemblies for military/aerospacefiber-optic transmitter/receiver modules

Under the DARPA sponsored Avionics Optoelectronic Module Technology program, new passive alignment carrier (PAC) optical subassemblies (LED-PAC and PIN-PAC) ruggedized for military/aerospace avionics fiber-optic transmitter and receiver applications have been developed, LED-PAC and PIN-PAC silicon micro-optical bench substrates were fabricated together on a 5 in diameter silicon wafer via multistage photolithography, thin-film, and substrate processing. Alignment v-grooves designed for passive optical alignment of 100/140 μm multimode optical fiber to the optoelectronic devices were terminated by solder locking the fiber to the silicon PAC substrates. The LED-PAC comprising a surface emitting LED die-bonded onto a novel precision molded AM submount passively mounted onto the silicon microbench achieves the required high coupling efficiency to 100/140 μm multimode optical fiber to meet stringent avionics transmitter output power requirements. The 100/130 μm multimode optical fiber-pigtailed PIN-PAC with a refractive lens etched into the p-i-n photodiode backside surface exhibited responsivities greater than 0.8 A/W at 1.3 μm wavelength. The LED-PAC and PIN-PAC optical subassemblies integrated with Boeing ARINC 636 (FDDI) transmitter and receiver thick film multichip (MCM-C) circuitry are capable of meeting both ARINC 636 and FDDI physical layer requirements