Multi-view human movement recognition based on fuzzy distances and linear discriminant analysis

In this paper, a novel multi-view human movement recognition method is presented. A novel representation of multi-view human movement videos is proposed that is based on learning basic multi-view human movement primitives, called multi-view dynemes. The movement video is represented in a new feature space (called dyneme space) using these multi-view dynemes, thus producing a time invariant multi-view movement representation. Fuzzy distances from the multi-view dynemes are used to represent the human body postures in the dyneme space. Three variants of Linear Discriminant Analysis (LDA) are evaluated to achieve a discriminant movement representation in a low dimensionality space. The view identification problem is solved either by using a circular block shift procedure followed by the evaluation of the minimum Euclidean distance from any dyneme, or by exploiting the circular shift invariance property of the Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT). The discriminant movement representation combined with camera viewpoint identification and a nearest centroid classification step leads to a high human movement classification accuracy.     

An adaptive treadmill-style locomotion interface and its application in 3-D interactive virtual market system

The key issue in this paper is estimating speed of a human. Compared with previous researches on walking speed estimation, we predict the walking intention before gait action. Our proposed hypothesis is that a composite force index is linearly correlated with the intended walking speed. We did two experiments to test the hypothesis. One gives a regression test indicating the intended walking speed has strong linear correlation with the proposed force index; the other tests the linearity by statistical analysis, guaranteeing the tolerance of individual difference. According to the regression and statistics analyses, we built a treadmill-style locomotion interface. Compared with the normal cases of treadmill control, the tested subject does not have to follow the speed of treadmill, but can actively change the speed of treadmill by his/her feet. The designed locomotion interface is applied in a virtual market system. Here the subject walks in a virtual market street with the desired speed. The stereo display based on virtual reality and the ambient sounds of the environment make the subject to have an immersed sense. The layout of shops in the virtual market system is in Japanese style, making the subjects experience much more realistic.     

Effect of NiO-to-Ni Transformation on Conductivity and Structure of Yttria-Stabilized ZrO2

The conductivity and structure of 8-mol%-yttria-stabilized zirconia with additions of nickel oxide has been investigated, both in the as-prepared state and after reduction of NiO in hydrogen. During reduction at 1000°C, the conductivity decreases by 40%–50% and most of the NiO dissolved in the zirconia is exsolved in the form of nickel particles. This is accompanied by the formation of tetragonal zirconia precipitates of size 10–40 nm and by an increase in the lattice parameter. On reoxidation in air at 1000°C, the change in lattice parameter is partly reversed, but the conductivity shows no further changes.     

Optimal Placement of Phasor Measurement Units with Linear and Non-linear Models

Abstract—This article presents a non-linear programming-based model for the optimal placement of phasor measurement units. The optimal phasor measurement units placement is formulated to minimize the number of phasor measurement units required for full system observability and to maximize the measurement redundancy at all buses in a power system. A sequential quadratic programming algorithm is used for the solution of the proposed model. The existence of power flow and injection measurements, the limited phasor measurement units channel capacity, the lack of communication facilities in substations, and the single phasor measurement units loss are also incorporated into the initial proposed formulation. The non-linear programming model is applied to IEEE 14- and 118-bus test systems in MATLAB. The accuracy and the effectiveness of the proposed method is verified by comparing the simulation results to those obtained by a binary integer programming model also implemented in MATLAB. The comparative study shows that the proposed non-linear programming model yields the same number of phasor measurement units as the binary integer programming model. A remarkable advantage of the non-linear programming against binary integer linear programming is its capability to give more than one optimal solution, each one having the same minimum number of phasor measurement units (same minimum objective value), but at different locations.     

Polymeric Nanoparticle-Based Photodynamic Therapy for Chronic Periodontitis in Vivo

Antimicrobial photodynamic therapy (aPDT) is increasingly being explored for treatment of periodontitis. Here, we investigated the effect of aPDT on human dental plaque bacteria in suspensions and biofilms in vitro using methylene blue (MB)-loaded poly(lactic-co-glycolic) (PLGA) nanoparticles (MB-NP) and red light at 660 nm. The effect of MB-NP-based aPDT was also evaluated in a clinical pilot study with 10 adult human subjects with chronic periodontitis. Dental plaque samples from human subjects were exposed to aPDT—in planktonic and biofilm phases—with MB or MB-NP (25 µg/mL) at 20 J/cm² in vitro. Patients were treated either with ultrasonic scaling and scaling and root planing (US + SRP) or ultrasonic scaling + SRP + aPDT with MB-NP (25 µg/mL and 20 J/cm²) in a split-mouth design. In biofilms, MB-NP eliminated approximately 25% more bacteria than free MB. The clinical study demonstrated the safety of aPDT. Both groups showed similar improvements of clinical parameters one month following treatments. However, at three months ultrasonic SRP + aPDT showed a greater effect (28.82%) on gingival bleeding index (GBI) compared to ultrasonic SRP. The utilization of PLGA nanoparticles encapsulated with MB may be a promising adjunct in antimicrobial periodontal treatment.     

Equilibrium and dynamic swelling of polyacrylates

Polyacrylates were prepared by solution polymerization of partially neutralized acrylic acid at 37°C. The swelling behavior of the polyacrylates was examined using equilibrium and dynamic swelling studies. Equilibrium swelling studies in deionized water were used to determine the molecular weight between crosslinks using the Flory-Rehner theory. The amount of crosslinking agent incorporated into the network was a function of the nominal crosslinking ratio. Dynamic swelling studies in saline solutions were used to investigate the initial swelling rate for the polyacrylates. Swelling studies of the polyacrylates in saline solutions under load were used to elucidate the degree of swelling under load, the compliance, and sample elasticity.     

Probiotic and Technological Properties of Facultatively Heterofermentative Lactobacilli from Greek Traditional Cheeses

Nineteen isolates of facultatively heterofermentative lactobacilli from Feta, Graviera, and Kasseri cheeses were identified by SDS-PAGE of whole-cell proteins as L. paracasei subsp. paracasei (12 strains) and L. plantarum (7 strains) and differentiated at strain level by RAPD-PCR. Properties of technological interest, such as acidification ability, proteolytic activity, and enzyme activities, were also studied. The test strains exhibited a low acidification activity, with significant interstrain differences after growth in milk for 24 h. They were also characterized by different casein breakdown ability, with around 50% of them accumulating amino acids at low amounts in the milk. Lactobacilli isolates differed in respect of enzyme activities, with β-galactosidase being the strongest activity found. Their probiotic potential was evaluated with in vitro studies on the resistance to low pH, bile salts, and pancreatin. The isolates from Feta showed a better survival than those from Kasseri and Graviera at low pH and viable cells were detected even after 3 h at pH 2.0. All strains tolerated bile salts at 0.3% and retained viability in the presence of pancreatin at 0.1%. Different patterns of antibacterial activities were recorded. The strains inhibited preferentially LAB species and some of them clostridia, E. coli O44 and B. cereus. Distinguished strains are promising probiotic candidates as adjuncts and deserve further studies.     

Quality attributes of farmed eel (Anguilla anguilla) stored under air, vacuum and modified atmosphere packaging at 0 degrees C

The shelf life of fresh eel in various packaging conditions of atmospheric air, vacuum and modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) (40% CO(2), 30% N(2) and 30% O(2)) at 0 degrees C was investigated. All raw eel samples received acceptable sensory scores during the first 11+/-1 days of storage in atmospheric air, 11+/-1 days of storage in vacuum and finally 18+/-1 days of storage in MAP conditions. Using the microbial quality indicators the shelf life of eel packed in air, vacuum and MAP was estimated to be more than 18, 28 and 34 days, respectively. The main spoilage microorganisms under MAP conditions were lactic acid producing bacteria followed by Shewanella spp., pseudomonads, Enterobacteriaceae and yeasts. Chemical data revealed that pH, ammonia, glucose and lactate examinations might not be useful for monitoring eel quality differences.     

THE EFFECT OF TEMPERATURE TREATMENT ON PENETRANT TRANSPORT IN COAL

The macromolecular structure of coals thermally treated at 35^°C, 100^°C and 150^°C was investigated by dynamic penetrant transport in thin coal sections. The effects of temperature, carbon content in coal, and penetrant type on the transport mechanism were investigated. Dynamic swelling studies showed that penetrant transport into coal is a function of the average molecular weight between crosslinks, M_c. The penetrant transport mechanism at low activity is Fickian diffusion. The transport mechanism deviates from Fickian diffusion to anomalous transport, when the carbon content in coal and penetrant activity increase. Variations of the diffusion coefficients and relaxation constants were determined using a diffusion/relaxation coupled model.