Distributed collaborative camera actuation for redundant data elimination in wireless multimedia sensor networks

Given the high cost of processing and communicating the multimedia data in wireless multimedia sensor networks (WMSNs), it is important to reduce possible data redundancy. Therefore, camera sensors should only be actuated when an event is detected within their vicinity. In the meantime, the coverage of the event should not be compromised. In this paper, we propose a low-cost distributed actuation scheme which strives to turn on the least number of cameras to avoid possible redundancy in the multimedia data while still providing the necessary event coverage. The basic idea of this scheme is the collaboration of camera sensors that have heard from scalar sensors about an occurring event to minimize the possible coverage overlaps. This is done by either counting the number of scalar sensors or determining the event boundaries with scalar sensors. Through simulation, we show how the distributed scheme performs in terms of coverage under several centralized and random deployment schemes. We also compare the performance with the case when all the cameras in the vicinity are actuated and when blockages in the region exist.     

Effect of Ice Sheet on Stochastic Response of Offshore Wind Turbine–Seawater–Soil Interaction Systems Subjected to Random Seismic Excitation

To investigate the effect of the presence of surrounding ice sheet on the stochastic response of offshore wind turbines subjected to random seismic excitation, this research uses a three-dimensional, numerical, finite-element model that includes viscous boundaries. The model of the ice–seawater–offshore wind turbine–soil interaction system uses the Lagrangian fluid (displacement-based) and solid-quadrilateral-isoparametric finite elements. Random seismic excitation from a filtered white-noise model and applied to each support point of the three-dimensional finite-element model of the coupled interaction system provides the experimental environment. A parametric study examines the effects of both the presence of and variation in mechanical and geometric properties of the surrounding ice sheet on the stochastic response of offshore wind turbines. The investigation also includes the effect of the wind turbine’s wall thickness in relation to the ice sheet on the stochastic seismic response of the coupled interaction system.     

Modification of ITO surface using aromatic small molecules with carboxylic acid groups for OLED applications

4-[(3-Methylphenyl)(phenyl)amino]benzoic acid (MPPBA) was synthesized in order to facilitate the hole-injection in Organic Light Emitting Diodes (OLED). MPPBA was applied to form self-assembled monolayer (SAM) on indium tin oxide (ITO) anode to align energy-level at the interface between organic semiconductor material (TPD) and inorganic anode (ITO) in OLED devices. The modified surface was characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM). KPFM was used to measure the surface potential and work function between the tip and the ITO surface modified by SAM technique using MPPBA. The OLED devices (ITO/MPPBA/TPD/Alq₃/Al) fabricated with SAM-modified ITO substrates showed lower turn-on voltages and enhanced diode current compare to the OLED devices fabricated with bare ITO substrates.     

Ferrimagnetic Skyrmions in Topological Insulator/Ferrimagnet Heterostructures

Magnetic skyrmions are topologically nontrivial chiral spin textures that have potential applications in next-generation energy-efficient and high-density spintronic devices. In general, the chiral spins of skyrmions are stabilized by the noncollinear Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction (DMI), originating from the inversion symmetry breaking combined with the strong spin–orbit coupling (SOC). Here, the strong SOC from topological insulators (TIs) is utilized to provide a large interfacial DMI in TI/ferrimagnet heterostructures at room temperature, resulting in small-size (radius ≈ 100 nm) skyrmions in the adjacent ferrimagnet. Antiferromagnetically coupled skyrmion sublattices are observed in the ferrimagnet by element-resolved scanning transmission X-ray microscopy, showing the potential of a vanishing skyrmion Hall effect and ultrafast skyrmion dynamics. The line-scan spin profile of the single skyrmion shows a Néel-type domain wall structure and a 120 nm size of the 180° domain wall. This work demonstrates the sizable DMI and small skyrmions in TI-based heterostructures with great promise for low-energy spintronic devices.     

A survey of visual sensor network platforms

Recent developments in low-cost CMOS cameras have created the opportunity of bringing imaging capabilities to sensor networks. Various visual sensor platforms have been developed with the aim of integrating visual data to wireless sensor applications. The objective of this article is to survey current visual sensor platforms according to in-network processing and compression/coding techniques together with their targeted applications. Characteristics of these platforms such as level of integration, data processing hardware, energy dissipation, radios and operating systems are also explored and discussed.     

Determining Rainwater Harvesting Storage Capacity with Particle Swarm Optimization

Water Resources Management - A reduction in the amount of available clean water is a universal problem, and the harvest of rainwater is one of the methods that can solve this issue. In this study,...     

Multimodal soft biometrics: combining ear and face biometrics for age and gender classification

Multimedia Tools and Applications - In this paper, we present a multimodal, multitask deep convolutional neural network framework for age and gender classification. In the developed framework, we...     

Covering-based rough set classification system

Medical data classification is applied in intelligent medical decision support system to classify diseases into different categories. Several classification methods are commonly used in various healthcare settings. These techniques are fit for enhancing the nature of prediction, initial identification of sicknesses and disease classification. The categorization complexities in healthcare area are focused around the consequence of healthcare data investigation or depiction of medicine by the healthcare professions. This study concentrates on applying uncertainty (i.e. rough set)-based pattern classification techniques for UCI healthcare data for the diagnosis of diseases from different patients. In this study, covering-based rough set classification (i.e. proposed pattern classification approach) is applied for UCI healthcare data. Proposed CRS gives effective results than delicate pattern classifier model. The results of applying the CRS classification method to UCI healthcare data analysis are based upon a variety of disease diagnoses. The execution of the proposed covering-based rough set classification is contrasted with other approaches, such as rough set (RS)-based classification methods, Kth nearest neighbour, improved bijective soft set, support vector machine, modified soft rough set and back propagation neural network methodologies using different evaluating measures.

     

Processes and apparatus developments in industrial waterjet applications

This paper is based on an abrasive waterjet cutting process that helps solve problems in processing of modern hard-to-cut materials, enabling wider industrial application. A detailed explanation of the recent developments in the main components of abrasive waterjet systems are given. Factors such as water pressure, grain diameters of abrasive feed rate, and traverse speed influencing surface roughness and depth of cut are studied using experimental data. Taking account of industrial applications, advantages–disadvantages, and limitations of the process are assessed.     

Boron effect on decay resistance of some fire-retardant coatings applied on plywood surface

Boron effect on decay resistance of some fire-retardant coatings applied on plywood surface was studied. Boric acid (B) was mixed into aqueous trimethylol melamine (TM) solution to increase the fixation in wood. To reveal the decay resistance of boric acid-added formulations, coatings were applied over radiata pine plywood surface as 100 g/m² amounts. Phosphoric acid (P) and dicyandiamide (D) were also used alone or in mixtures as reference coatings for comparison. Coated specimens were exposed to weathering according to Japanese Industrial Standard JIS A 9201 (1991) as severe leaching for 10 cycles, prior to decay-test. Non-leached and leached specimens, then, were inoculated with a brown-rot fungus Tyromyces palustris and a white-rot fungus Coriolus versicolor. Extent of the fungal attack was determined by mass loss of the specimens after 12 weeks incubation and microscopic examinations by 6 × magnification. Results indicated that TMB and TMDB coatings imparted the panels complete decay resistance despite severe weathering conditions and were proved superior over all other alone and mixture coatings. Although other combinations and alone treatments used in the study were also effective to inhibit the fungal damage before weathering, leaching greatly reduced their protective efficacy. Surface characteristics of decayed specimens were consistent with the determined values of mass losses caused by fungal attack. TMB and TMDB coatings were remarkably effective in maintaining sound surface properties after exposure to weathering and decay fungi.