High step-up converter with coupled-inductor

In this study, a high step-up converter with a coupled-inductor is investigated. In the proposed strategy, a coupled inductor with a lower-voltage-rated switch is used for raising the voltage gain (whether the switch is turned on or turned off). Moreover, a passive regenerative snubber is utilized for absorbing the energy of stray inductance so that the switch duty cycle can be operated under a wide range, and the related voltage gain is higher than other coupled-inductor-based converters. In addition, all devices in this scheme also have voltage-clamped properties and their voltage stresses are relatively smaller than the output voltage. Thus, it can select low-voltage low-conduction-loss devices, and there are no reverse-recovery currents within the diodes in this circuit. Furthermore, the closed-loop control methodology is utilized in the proposed scheme to overcome the voltage drift problem of the power source under the load variations. As a result, the proposed converter topology can promote the voltage gain of a conventional boost converter with a single inductor, and deal with the problem of the leakage inductor and demagnetization of transformer for a coupled-inductor-based converter. Some experimental results via examples of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) power source and a traditional battery are given to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed power conversion strategy.     

Time-hopping and frequency-hopping multiple-access packetcommunications

Time-hopping and frequency-hopping multiple-access (TH/FHMA) packet communication systems are proposed and investigated. In TH/FHMA communication systems, a message packet is encoded into several subpackets via a Reed-Solomon error correcting code. The subpackets are transmitted over the channel using time-hopping and frequency-hopping patterns. It is assumed that the channel is noiseless and the side information is perfect so that all subpacket collisions can be correctly detected. Slot-synchronous and totally asynchronous TH/FHMA systems are analyzed in detail, and they are shown to have excellent throughputs at small packet erasure rates. Various time-hopping techniques which significantly reduce the multiple-access interference are developed     

Theoretical and computational aspects of 2-D inverse profiling

The authors discuss two techniques for solving two-dimensional (2D) inverse scattering problems by parameterizing the scattering configuration, and determining the optimum value of the parameters by minimizing a cost function involving the known scattered-field data. The computation of the fields in each estimated configuration is considered as an auxiliary problem. To improve the efficiency of these computations, the CGFFT iterative scheme is combined with a special extrapolation procedure that is valid for problems with a varying physical parameter such as frequency, angle of incidence, or contrast. Further, they analyze the dynamic range and the resolution of linearized schemes. To obtain an acceptable resolution for an object with a large contrast with respect to the surrounding medium, multiple-frequency information is used. Finally, the availability of a fast-forward solver was an incentive to consider nonlinear optimization. In particular, the authors use a quasi-Newton algorithm at only twice the computational cost of the distorted-wave Born iterative scheme     

Locating the eye in human face images using fractal dimensions

Facial feature extraction is an important step in many applications such as human face recognition, video conferencing, surveillance systems, human computer interfacing etc. The eye is the most important facial feature. A reliable and fast method for locating the eye pairs in an image is vital to many practical applications. A new method for locating eye pairs based on valley field detection and measurement of fractal dimensions is proposed. Possible eye candidates in an image with a complex background are identified by valley field detection. The eye candidates are then grouped to form eye pairs if their local properties for eyes are satisfied. Two eyes are matched if they have similar roughness and orientation as represented by fractal dimensions. A modified approach to estimating fractal dimensions that is less sensitive to lighting conditions and provides information about the orientation of an image under consideration is proposed. Possible eye pairs are further verified by comparing the fractal dimensions of the eye-pair window and the corresponding face region with the respective means of the fractal dimensions of the eye-pair windows and the face regions. The means of the fractal dimensions are obtained based on a number of facial images in a database. Experiments have shown that this approach is fast and reliable     

Improved Single‐Tone Frequency Estimation by Averaging and Weighted Linear Prediction

This paper addresses estimating the frequency of a cisoid in the presence of white Gaussian noise, which has numerous applications in communications, radar, sonar, and instrumentation and measurement. Due to the nonlinear nature of the frequency estimation problem, there is threshold effect, that is, large error estimates or outliers will occur at sufficiently low signal‐to‐noise ratio (SNR) conditions. Utilizing the ideas of averaging to increase SNR and weighted linear prediction, an optimal frequency estimator with smaller threshold SNR is developed. Computer simulations are included to compare its mean square error performance with that of the maximum likelihood (ML) estimator, improved weighted phase averager, generalized weighted linear predictor, and single weighted sample correlator as well as Cramér‐Rao lower bound. In particular, with smaller computational requirement, the proposed estimator can achieve the same threshold and estimation performance of the ML method.     

Smart Skin-Adhesive Patches: From Design to Biomedical Applications

With the advancement of medical and digital technologies, smart skin adhesive patches have emerged as a key player for complex medical purposes. In particular, skin adhesive patches with integrated electronics have created an excellent platform for monitoring health conditions and intelligent medication. However, the efficient design of the adhesive patches is still challenging as it requires a strong combination of network structure, adhesion, physical properties, and biocompatibility. To design an assimilated device, one must have a deep knowledge of various skin adhesive patches. This article provides a comprehensive review of the recent advances in skin-adhesive patches, including hydrogel-based adhesive patches, transdermal patches, and electronic skin (E-skin) patches, for various biomedical applications such as wound healing, drug delivery, biosensing, and health monitoring. Furthermore, the key challenges, implementable strategies, and future designs that can potentially provide researchers in designing innovative multipurpose smart skin patches are discussed. These advanced approaches are promising for managing the health and fitness of patients who require regular medical care.     

Multiwavelength fibre laser with wavelength selectable from 1590 to 1645 nm

A multiwavelength fibre laser with a semiconductor optical amplifier is reported. The lasing wavelength of the laser can be adjusted from 1590 to 1645 nm by adjusting the round-trip cavity loss. Simultaneous lasing of over 40 wavelengths with signal-to-noise ratio of over 40 dB was achieved from 1612 to 1645 nm.     

Performance enhancement in organic photovoltaic devices using plasma-polymerized fluorocarbon-modified Ag nanoparticles

In this work, Ag nanoparticles were modified by an ultra-thin plasma-polymerized fluorocarbon film (CF_X) to form a composite CF_X-modified Ag nanoparticles/indium tin oxide (ITO) anode for application in organic photovoltaic (OPV) devices. A CF_X-modified Ag nanoparticles/ITO anode exhibited a superior surface work function of 5.4 eV suited for application in OPV devices. The performance of zinc phthalocyanine:fullerene-based OPV devices showed a significant improvement when the structural identical cells are made with the CF_X-modified Ag nanoparticles/ITO. This work yielded a promising power conversion efficiency of 3.5 ± 0.1%, notably higher than that with a bare ITO anode (2.7 ± 0.1%).     

Network management in a fast packet environment

StrataCom specializes in Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) technology — a method of rapid wide-area distribution of all forms of traffic in cell format. This article will look at how StrataCom approaches network management for ATM switches.     

A mathematical analysis of the DCT coefficient distributions forimages

Over the past two decades, there have been various studies on the distributions of the DCT coefficients for images. However, they have concentrated only on fitting the empirical data from some standard pictures with a variety of well-known statistical distributions, and then comparing their goodness of fit. The Laplacian distribution is the dominant choice balancing simplicity of the model and fidelity to the empirical data. Yet, to the best of our knowledge, there has been no mathematical justification as to what gives rise to this distribution. We offer a rigorous mathematical analysis using a doubly stochastic model of the images, which not only provides the theoretical explanations necessary, but also leads to insights about various other observations from the literature. This model also allows us to investigate how certain changes in the image statistics could affect the DCT coefficient distributions.