Disparity-based space-variant image deblurring

Obtaining a good-quality image requires exposure to light for an appropriate amount of time. If there is camera or object motion during the exposure time, the image is blurred. To remove the blur, some recent image deblurring methods effectively estimate a point spread function (PSF) by acquiring a noisy image additionally, and restore a clear latent image with the PSF. Since the groundtruth PSF varies with the location, a blockwise approach for PSF estimation has been proposed. However, the block to estimate a PSF is a straightly demarcated rectangle which is generally different from the shape of an actual region where the PSF can be properly assumed constant. We utilize the fact that a PSF is substantially related to the local disparity between two views. This paper presents a disparity-based method of space-variant image deblurring which employs disparity information in image segmentation, and estimates a PSF, and restores a latent image for each region. The segmentation method firstly over-segments a blurred image into sufficiently many regions based on color, and then merges adjacent regions with similar disparities. Experimental results show the effectiveness of the proposed method.     

Hybrid Sensor Calibration Scheme for Mobile Crowdsensing–Based City‐Scale Environmental Measurements

In this paper, we propose a hybrid sensor calibration scheme for mobile crowdsensing applications. As the number of newly produced mobile devices containing embedded sensors continues to rise, the potential to use mobile devices as a sensor data source increases. However, because mobile device sensors are generally of a lower performance and cost than dedicated sensors, sensor calibration is crucial. To enable more accurate measurements of natural phenomena through the use of mobile device sensors, we propose a hybrid sensor calibration scheme for such sensors; the scheme makes use of mobile device sensors and existing sensing infrastructure, such as weather stations, to obtain dense data. Simulation results show that the proposed scheme supports low mean square errors. As a practical application of our proposed scheme, we built a temperature map of a city using six mobile phone sensors and six reference sensors. Thanks to the mobility of the sensors and the proposed scheme, our map presents more detailed information than infrastructure‐based measurements.     

Curing Kinetics and Chemorheological Behavior of No‐flow Underfill for Sn/In/Bi Solder in Flexible Packaging Applications

A chemorheological analysis of a no‐flow underfill was conducted using curing kinetics through isothermal and dynamic differential scanning calorimetry, viscosity measurement, and solder (Sn/27In/54Bi, melting temperature of 86 °C) wetting observations. The analysis used an epoxy system with an anhydride curing agent and carboxyl fluxing capability to remove oxide on the surface of a metal filler. A curing kinetic of the no‐flow underfill with a processing temperature of 130 °C was successfully completed using phenomenological models such as autocatalytic and nth‐order models. Temperature‐dependent kinetic parameters were identified within a temperature range of 125 °C to 135 °C. The phenomenon of solder wetting was visually observed using an optical microscope, and the conversion and viscosity at the moment of solder wetting were quantitatively investigated. It is expected that the curing kinetics and rheological property of a no‐flow underfill can be adopted in arbitrary processing applications.     

Synthesis of polymers for hole and electron transport materials inorganic electroluminescent devices

Styrene-type polymers having tetraphenylbenzidine (TPD) or tetraphenylphenyldiaminobenzene unit (PDA) and a oxadiazole unit (PBD) on the side chain were prepared as hole and electron transport materials, respectively, of an electroluminescent (EL) device. The device structures employed were [indium-tin-oxide (ITO)/hole transport layer (HTL)/Al] (type I), or [ITO/hole transport layer (HTL)/electron transport layer (ETL)/Al] (type II). Type I devices provided current density higher than 100 mA/cm² but no luminescence was observed. Type II devices emitted luminescence of about 10 cd/m² at the current density of about 170 mA/cm². The emission maximums of these devices were 460 and 530 nm for the device using TPD and PDA, respectively     

Impact of modelling approximations in supply chain analysis – an experimental study

This paper presents a study of the comparison of the quality of results obtained at different levels of detail using a supply chain simulation. Analysis of supply chain is typically carried out using aggregated information to maintain the level of complexity of the simulation model at a manageable level. Advances in simulation have provided the ability to build comprehensive (detailed), modular models. The quantitative effect of detailed modelling on the corresponding analysis is investigated in this paper. A three-echelon supply chain is analysed using simulation models of varying levels of detail. Using each of these models, four sets of intensive experiments are performed. The first experiment intends to test whether the supply chain dynamics themselves depend on the modelling accuracy that represents the supply chain. The second and third experiments are conducted to test whether the effectiveness of the strategies employed to reduce the supply chain dynamics vary depending on the type (different detail) of model representing the supply chain. In the fourth experiment, statistical techniques are employed to identify which modelling aspect has the most influence on the supply chain dynamics. It is found that the approximations used in modelling, such as delays and capacity, have more impact on the outcome of supply chain analysis than end customer demand. Evidence that both the basic problem (supply chain dynamics) and the solution (strategy to reduce the dynamics) are greatly influenced by the modelling accuracy are presented.     

Product data quality validation system for product development processes in high-tech industry

Among various product data, 3D CAD data plays a key role in current product design and manufacturing processes including industrial design, detail design, CAE, inspection, mould-making, production, and so on. If 3D CAD data has geometrical or topological errors by user mistakes or modelling software bugs and those errors are not cleaned by the data creator in an early stage, the data will be transferred to the downstream operators and they have to fix the errors before starting their own work. Because 3D data is quite complex, it is very difficult to recognise the data errors manually in a modelling system before a big problem is encountered which blocks the next operation. In this case, it generally causes time delay and high cost for data correction and the effect will be bigger when the process is close to the back-end. In this research, we develop a fully automated product data quality validation and management system to support the product development processes of high-tech products like televisions, camcorders, mobile telephones, home appliances, etc. The system automatically validates the 3D data in real time and gives 3D error reports to the creator to correct modelling failures in their steps. Also, project managers can check or control the data delivery based on the data quality for each step.     

Electromechanically driven variable-focus lens based on transparent dielectric elastomer

Dielectric elastomers with low elastic stiffness and high dielectric constant are smart materials that produce large strains (up to 300%) and belong to the group of electroactive polymers. Dielectric elastomer actuators are made from films of dielectric elastomers coated on both sides with compliant electrode material. Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT), which is known as a transparent conducting polymer, has been widely used as an interfacial layer or polymer electrode in polymer electronic devices. In this study, we propose the transparent dielectric elastomer as a material of actuator driving variable-focus lens system using PEDOT as a transparent electrode. The variable-focus lens module has light transmittance up to 70% and maximum displacement up to 450. When voltage is applied to the fabricated lens module, optical focal length is changed. We anticipate our research to be a starting point for new model of variable-focus lens system. This system could find applications in portable devices, such as digital cameras, camcorder, and cell phones.     

Formation and Morphology of Anodic Oxide Films of Ti

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