Improvement of registration accuracy of a handheld augmented reality system for urban landscape simulation

The need for visual landscape assessment in large-scale projects for the evaluation of the effects of a particular project on the surrounding landscape has grown in recent years. Augmented reality (AR) has been considered for use as a landscape simulation system in which a landscape assessment object created by 3D models is included in the present surroundings. With the use of this system, the time and the cost needed to perform a 3DCG modeling of present surroundings, which is a major issue in virtual reality, are drastically reduced. This research presents the development of a 3D map-oriented handheld AR system that achieves geometric consistency using a 3D map to obtain position data instead of GPS, which has low position information accuracy, particularly in urban areas. The new system also features a gyroscope sensor to obtain posture data and a video camera to capture live video of the present surroundings. All these components are mounted in a smartphone and can be used for urban landscape assessment. Registration accuracy is evaluated to simulate an urban landscape from a short- to a long-range scale. The latter involves a distance of approximately 2000 m. The developed AR system enables users to simulate a landscape from multiple and long-distance viewpoints simultaneously and to walk around the viewpoint fields using only a smartphone. This result is the tolerance level of landscape assessment. In conclusion, the proposed method is evaluated as feasible and effective.     

New methodology to obtain a calibration model for noninvasive near-infrared blood glucose monitoring

This paper reports new methodology to obtain a calibration model for noninvasive blood glucose monitoring using diffuse reflectance near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy. Conventional studies of noninvasive blood glucose monitoring with NIR spectroscopy use a calibration model developed by in vivo experimental data sets. In order to create a calibration model, we have used a numerical simulation of light propagation in skin tissue to obtain simulated NIR diffuse reflectance spectra. The numerical simulation method enables us to design parameters affecting the prediction of blood glucose levels and their variation ranges for a data set to create a calibration model using multivariate analysis without any in vivo experiments in advance. By designing the parameters and their variation ranges appropriately, we can prevent a calibration model from chance temporal correlations that are often observed in conventional studies using NIR spectroscopy. The calibration model (regression coefficient vector) obtained by the numerical simulation has a characteristic positive peak at the wavelength around 1600 nm. This characteristic feature of the regression coefficient vector is very similar to those obtained by our previous in vitro and in vivo experimental studies. This positive peak at around 1600 nm also corresponds to the characteristic absorption band of glucose. The present study has reinforced that the characteristic absorbance of glucose at around 1600 nm is useful to predict the blood glucose level by diffuse reflectance NIR spectroscopy. We have validated this new calibration methodology using in vivo experiments. As a result, we obtained a coefficient of determination, r2, of 0.87 and a standard error of prediction (SEP) of 12.3 mg/dL between the predicted blood glucose levels and the reference blood glucose levels for all the experiments we have conducted. These results of in vivo experiments indicate that if the parameters and their vibration ranges are appropriately taken into account in a numerical simulation, the new calibration methodology provides us with a very good calibration model that can predict blood glucose levels with small errors without conducting any experiments in advance to create a calibration model for each individual patient. This new calibration methodology using numerical simulation has promising potential for NIR spectroscopy, especially for noninvasive blood glucose monitoring.     

Noninvasive near-infrared blood glucose monitoring using a calibration model built by a numerical simulation method: Trial application to patients in an intensive care unit

We have applied a new methodology for noninvasive continuous blood glucose monitoring, proposed in our previous paper, to patients in ICU (intensive care unit), where strict controls of blood glucose levels are required. The new methodology can build calibration models essentially from numerical simulation, while the conventional methodology requires pre-experiments such as sugar tolerance tests, which are impossible to perform on ICU patients in most cases. The in vivo experiments in this study consisted of two stages, the first stage conducted on healthy subjects as preliminary experiments, and the second stage on ICU patients. The prediction performance of the first stage was obtained as a correlation coefficient (r) of 0.71 and standard error of prediction (SEP) of 28.7 mg/dL. Of the 323 total data, 71.5% were in the A zone, 28.5% were in the B zone, and none were in the C, D, and E zones for the Clarke error-grid analysis. The prediction performance of the second stage was obtained as an r of 0.97 and SEP of 27.2 mg/dL. Of the 304 total data, 80.3% were in the A zone, 19.7% were in the B zone, and none were in the C, D, and E zones. These prediction results suggest that the new methodology has the potential to realize a noninvasive blood glucose monitoring system using near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) in ICUs. Although the total performance of the present monitoring system has not yet reached a satisfactory level as a stand-alone system, it can be developed as a complementary system to the conventional one used in ICUs for routine blood glucose management, which checks the blood glucose levels of patients every few hours.     

Hyperbranched Acrylate Copolymer via Initiator‐Fragment Incorporation Radical Copolymerization of Divinylbenzene and Ethyl Acrylate: Synthesis,Characterization, Hydrolysis,Dye‐Solubilization,Ag Particle‐Stabilization,and Porous Film Formation

Summary: Soluble hyperbranched acrylate copolymers were prepared by the copolymerization of divinylbenzene (0.10 mol · L^?1) and ethyl acrylate (0.50 mol · L^?1) using dimethyl 2,2′‐azoisobutyrate of high concentrations (0.30–0.50 mol · L^?1) as initiator at 70 and 80 °C in benzene. The copolymer formed at 80 °C for 1 h showed the weight‐average molecular weight of 2.5 × 10⁵, the small radius of gyration of 10 nm, the low second virial coefficient of 5.7 × l0^?7 mL · g^?2 as shown by the MALLS measurements at 25 °C in tetrahydrofuran, and also the very low intrinsic viscosity of 0.10 dL · g^?1 at 30 °C in benzene. The hyperbranched copolymer exhibited an upper critical solution temperature (35 °C on cooling) in an acetone‐water (60:11 v/v). The copolymer showed an ability to encapsulate and transfer Rhodamine 6G as a dye probe and could stabilize Ag nanoparticles. The porous film was prepared by simply casting an acetone solution of the hyperbranched copolymer on a cover glass. The copolymer molecules radially arranged on the surface layer of the spherical pores as observed by the polarized optical microscope. The hyperbranched acrylate copolymer was hydrolyzed by KOH to yield poly(carboxylic acid).

Optical microscope image (crossed polarizers) of a porous film from copolymer solution in acetone.     

All-solid-state Z-scheme in CdS-Au-TiO2 three-component nanojunction system

Natural photosynthesis, which achieves efficient solar energy conversion through the combined actions of many types of molecules ingeniously arranged in a nanospace, highlights the importance of a technique for site-selective coupling of different materials to realize artificial high-efficiency devices. In view of increasingly serious energy and environmental problems, semiconductor-based artificial photosynthetic systems consisting of isolated photochemical system 1 (PS1), PS2 and the electron-transfer system have recently been developed. However, the direct coupling of the components is crucial for retarding back reactions to increase the reaction efficiency. Here, we report a simple technique for forming an anisotropic CdS-Au-TiO2 nanojunction, in which PS1(CdS), PS2(TiO2) and the electron-transfer system (Au) are spatially fixed. This three-component system exhibits a high photocatalytic activity, far exceeding those of the single- and two-component systems, as a result of vectorial electron transfer driven by the two-step excitation of TiO2 and CdS.     

Phenotypic abnormalities observed in aged cloned mice from embryonic stem cells after long-term maintenance

Somatic/embryonic stem cell cloning has made it possible to produce an individual genomically identical to another individual. However, the cloned animals have a variety of abnormalities caused by the aberrant gene modification, with insufficient reprogramming in cloning. We previously reported abnormalities in cloned mice at birth. In this study, we examined what abnormalities could be seen in cloned mice after long-term maintenance. The aged cloned mice showed multiple abnormalities: increase of body weight, some phenotypic abnormalities in the kidneys, testes and thymus, and lower urea nitrogen in their serum biochemical values. The kidneys of all cloned mice were hypertrophied, with a metamorphic or whitish appearance. The multiple lesions, including the enlarged renal pelvis and distension of the renal veins in histology, might be the result of urine accumulation by urinary tract obstruction. The testes of the cloned mice were atrophied, and showed no sperm formation in histology. In contrast, the thymus was rather hypertrophied, and a comparably increased number of lymphocytes were observed in the medulla, consisting mainly of T cells. By conducting a progeny test between the cloned mice, it was confirmed that these abnormalities in the aged cloned mice were not transmitted to their offspring, indicating that the incomplete reprogramming in clones might be in part responsible for the abnormalities detected in aged clones. These results indicate that the postnatal abnormalities observed in aged cloned mice are varied and can be restored through the germ line.     

Metal-induced negative oxide charge detected by an alternating current surface photovoltage in thermally oxidized Fe-contaminated n-type Si (001) wafers

The atomic-bridging type negative oxide charge in SiO₂ is investigated using the Fe-contaminated (001) surface of n-type Si wafers. The investigation is done on the basis of a chemical analysis and a method in which the frequency-dependent alternating current (AC) surface photovoltage (SPV) is measured. At room temperature, an AC SPV appears and gradually increases, saturating after approximately one day (with an Fe concentration on the Si surface of 4.0 × 10¹³ atoms/cm²). The AC SPV eventually becomes inversely proportional to frequency except at very low frequencies (< 10 Hz) corresponding to weak or strong inversion, indicating that the negative Fe induced oxide charge appears in the form of a (FeOSi)⁻ network. Also, in Fe-contaminated n-type Si(001) surfaces thermally oxidized at between 550 and 650 °C for 60 min, strong inversion is unquestionably observed, proving that the (FeOSi)⁻ network survives and that most of the added Fe has segregated into the region closest to the surface of the thin SiO₂ film. At 850 °C and/or for long oxidation times, the AC SPV decreases and ultimately disappears, implying that the (FeOSi)⁻ network has collapsed and may have changed into Fe₂O₃. A model for the metal-induced negative oxide charge in the conventional oxide charge diagram is proposed.     

Pharmaceutical production of tableting granules in an ultra-small-scale high-shear granulator as a pre-formulation study

Objective: In some of drug developments, the amount of bulk drug powder to use in early stages is limited and it is not easy to supply a sufficient drug amount for conventional preparation methods. Therefore, an ultra-small-scale high-shear granulator (less than 5?g) (USG) was developed and applied to small-scale granulation as a pre-formulation. Method: The sample powder consisted of 66.5% lactose, 28.5% microcrystalline cellulose and 5.0% hydroxypropylcellulose. The granules were obtained to agitate 5?g of the sample powder with 1.0?mL of water at 300?rpm for 5?min after pre-powder mixing for 3?min by the USG and the manual hand (HM) methods. Results: The granules were evaluated by the 10% and 90% accumulated particle size and the recoveries of the granules and the powder solid. Median particle size for the USG and the HM methods was 159.2?±?2.3 and 270.9?±?14.9 μm, respectively. The USG method had a narrower particle size distribution than those by the HM method. The recovery of the granules by USG was significantly larger than that by the HM method. Conclusion: Characteristics of all of the granules indicated that the USG method could produce higher quality granules within a shorter time than the HM methods.     

Structural and electronic properties of extremely long perylene bisimide nanofibers formed through a stoichiometrically mismatched, hydrogen-bonded complexation

Extremely long nanofibers, whose lengths reach the millimeter regime, are generated via co-aggregation of a melamine-appended perylene bisimide semiconductor and a substituted cyanurate, both of which are ditopic triple-hydrogen-bonding building blocks; they co-aggregate in an unexpected stoichiometrically mismatched 1:2 ratio. Various microscopic and X-ray diffraction studies suggest that hydrogen-bonded polymeric chains are formed along the long axis of the nanofibers by the 1:2 complexation of the two components, which further stack along the short axis of the nanofibers. The photocarrier generation mechanism in the nanofibers is investigated by time-of-flight (TOF) experiments under electric and magnetic fields, revealing the birth and efficient recombination of singlet geminate electron-hole pairs. Flash-photolysis time-resolved microwave conductivity (FP-TRMC) measurements revealed intrinsic 1D electron mobilities up to 0.6 cm(2) V(-1) s(-1) within nanofibers.     

T-Stress solutions for a semi-elliptical axial surface crack in a cylinder subjected to mode-I non-uniform stress distributions

This paper presents the T-stress solutions (T₁₁ and T₃₃) for semi-elliptical axial surface cracks in a cylinder subjected to mode-I non-uniform stress on the crack surface. Two cylindrical geometries with inner radius (R_i) to wall thickness (t) ratios R_i/t = 5 and 10 were considered. The T-stresses were applied along the crack front for normalized crack depth values a/t of 0.2, 0.4 and 0.5 and aspect ratios a/c of 0.2, 0.4, 0.6 and 1.0. Three stress distribution; uniform, linear and parabolic were applied to the crack face. In addition to these solutions, concrete formulation of the superposition principle is given for the T₃₃-stress, which is known as an elastic parameter that describes the out-of-plane crack tip constraint effect. Then, the validity of the formulation was shown through application of our T-stress solutions to the problem of an axial semi-elliptical surface crack in a cylinder subjected to internal pressure, and checking that the principle of superposition holds for the problem.