Study on optimal velocity selection using velocity obstacle (OVVO) in dynamic and crowded environment

The velocity obstacle (VO) method is one of local path generation method considering a velocity of obstacles. By dividing an available velocity region into collision and collision-free area, a robot can avoid collisions using the VO. However, if there are numerous obstacles near a robot, the robot will have very few velocity candidates. In this paper, a method to choose an optimal velocity by introducing a cost function about safety of the velocity, and the cost function consists of a pass-time and a clearance. By latticizing available velocity map of a robot, each velocity can be evaluated from the cost function and a robot can select better velocity among collision-free velocity candidates. A performance of introduced method is compared to other VO method using simulation, and experiments are conducted to verify the results of simulation.     

A small‐area and low‐power data driver IC using two‐stage DAC with a capacitor array for active matrix flat‐panel displays

A small‐area and low‐power data driver integrated circuit (IC) using a two‐stage digital‐to‐analog converter (DAC) with a capacitor array is proposed for active matrix flat‐panel displays. The proposed data driver IC employs a capacitor array in the two‐stage DAC so as to reduce the DAC area and eliminate the need for a resistor string, which has high‐power consumption. To verify the proposed two‐stage DAC, a 20‐channel data driver IC with the proposed 10‐bit two‐stage DAC was fabricated using a 0.18‐μm complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor process with 1.8 and 6 V complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor devices. The proposed 10‐bit two‐stage DAC occupies only 43.8% of the area of a conventional 10‐bit two‐stage DAC. The measurement results show that the differential nonlinearity and integral nonlinearity are +0.58/?0.52 least significant bit and +0.62/?0.59 least significant bit, respectively. The measured interchannel deviation of the voltage outputs is 8.8 mV, and the measured power consumption of the 20‐channel data driver IC is reduced to 7.1 mW, which is less than half of the power consumed by the conventional one.     

Mobile-cloud assisted framework for selective encryption of medical images with steganography for resource-constrained devices

In this paper, the problem of outsourcing the selective encryption of a medical image to cloud by resource-constrained devices such as smart phone is addressed, without revealing the cover image to cloud using steganography. In the proposed framework, the region of interest of the medical image is first detected using a visual saliency model. The detected important data is then embedded in a host image, producing a stego image which is outsourced to cloud for encryption. The cloud which has powerful resources, encrypts the image and sent back the encrypted marked image to the client. The client can then extract the selectively encrypted region of interest and can combine it with the region of non-interest to form a selectively encrypted image, which can be sent to medical specialists and healthcare centers. Experimental results and analysis validate the effectiveness of the proposed framework in terms of security, image quality, and computational complexity and verify its applicability in remote patient monitoring centers.     

Current manufacturing technologies for TFT‐LCDs

Abstract— TFT‐LCD panels for notebook‐PC applications requires a thin and light form factor, low power consumption, and good display quality, whereas the desktop monitor has different requirements such as large panel size, wide viewing angle, high resolution, brightness, etc. However, for the fifth‐generation of mass production, current panel technologies have to improve in order to cope with these requirements. In this article, various approaches to the manufacturing technologies of next‐generation TFT‐LCDs are discussed.     

Audioptimization: goal-based acoustic design

The authors present a new inverse, interactive approach to acoustic design that applies optimization techniques to an acoustic simulation system. For a new building, the system may suggest optimal configurations that would not otherwise be considered; for a hall with modifiable components or for a renovation project, it may assist in optimizing an existing configuration. Our system allows the designer to constrain changes to the environment and specify acoustic performance goals as a function of time. The constraints include the specification of a range of allowable materials as well as geometric modifications for surfaces in the hall. The designer also specifies goals for acoustic performance in space and time via high-level acoustic qualities such as decay time and sound level. Using this information, the system performs a constrained optimization of surface material and geometric parameters for a subset of elements in the environment. The system operates at varying accuracy levels, offering trade-offs between time and quality. Visualization tools facilitate an intuitive assessment of the complex time-dependent nature of sound, and they provide a means to express desired performance. By using optimization routines within an interactive application, our system reveals complex acoustic properties and steers the design process toward the designer's goals     

A 2‐in. a‐Si:H TFT‐LCD with embedded backlight control TFT sensors with various channel widths

Abstract— A 2.0‐in. a‐Si:H TFT‐LCD with embedded TFT sensors for the control of the backlight intensity according to the ambient light intensity has been developed. Two types of a‐Si:H TFT sensors with various channel widths were embedded into a TFT backplane with bottom‐ and top‐gate structures for measuring the ambient light and backlight illumination, respectively. The output signal, measured by a readout IC, increased with backlight intensity until 20,000 lux.     

Arthemis: annotation software in an integrated capturing and analysis system for colonoscopy

Colonoscopy is an endoscopic technique that allows physicians to inspect the inside of the human colon. During a colonoscopic procedure, a tiny video camera at the tip of the endoscope generates a video signal of the internal mucosa of the colon. In current practice, the entire colonoscopic procedure is not routinely captured. Software tools providing easy access to important contents of videos that are digitally captured during colonoscopy are not available. Hence, it is very time consuming to review an entire video, locate important contents, annotate them, and extract the annotated contents for research, teaching, and training purposes. Arthemis, a software application, was developed to facilitate this process. For convenient data sharing, Arthemis allows annotation according to the European Gastrointestinal Society for Endoscopy (ESGE) Minimal Standard Terminology (MST), an internationally accepted standard for digestive endoscopy. Arthemis is part of our integrated capturing and content analysis system for colonoscopy called Endoscopic Multimedia Information System (EMIS). This paper presents Arthemis as a component of EMIS, the design and implementation of Arthemis, and key lessons learned from the development process.     

Interfacial oxide growth and filling-up behaviour of the micro-gap in silicon fusion bonding processes

Abstracct In the silicon fusion bonding (SFB) process, the influence of post-annealing atmospheres on the micro-gap existing at the Si-Si bonding interface was investigated with the observation of ultrasonic images, angle lap-stained junctions and cross section SEM morphologies. Additionally, the bonding strength and the electrical properties of diodes were compared after annealing processes at 100/dg fo 10 s to 10 h in wet O₂, dry O₂ and N₂ atmospheres. Our results show that a significant saving of annealing time necessary to eliminate the non-contact micro-gap region having a width of 0.1 m can be obtained if the hydrogenbonded wafer pair is pre-stabilized and post-annealed in wet O₂ (95°C water bubbling) rather than in a dry O₂ or N₂ atmosphere. Based on the above result, we propose that the stabilizing and annealing step in highlt oxidizing atmosphere has an important role in the oxide filling-up phenomenon between wafer and wafer gap, in addition to the well-known mechanism of wafer plastic deformation at high temperature followed by solid-state diffusion of Si and O atoms.     

A comprehensive framework for the evaluation of ontology modularization

The Semantic Web and ontologies have received increased attention in recent years. The delivery of well-designed ontologies enhances the effect of Semantic Web services, but building ontologies from scratch requires considerable time and effort. Modularizing ontologies and integrating ontology modules to a given context help users effectively develop ontologies and revitalize ontology dissemination. Therefore, various tools for modularizing ontologies have been developed. However, selecting an appropriate tool to fit a given context is difficult because the assumptions for the approaches greatly vary. Therefore, a suitable framework is required to compare and help screen the most suitable modularization tool.In this research, we propose a new evaluation framework for selecting an appropriate ontology modularization tool. We present three aspects of tool evaluation as the main dimensions for the assessment of modularization tools: tool performance, data performance, and usability.This study provides an implicit evaluation and an empirical analysis of three modularization tools. It also provides an evaluation method for ontology modularization, enabling ontology engineers to compare different modularization tools and easily choose an appropriate one for the production of qualifying ontology modules.The experimental results indicate that the proposed evaluation criteria for ontology modularization tools are valid and effective. This research provides a useful method for assessing and selecting ontology modularization tools. Modularization performance, data performance, and usability are the three modularization aspects designed and applied to the context of ontology. We provide a new focus on the comprehensive framework to evaluate the performance and usability of ontology modularization tools. The proposed framework should be of value to both ontology engineers, who are interested in ontology modularization, and to practitioners, who need information on how to evaluate and select a specific type of ontology tool in accordance with the requirements of the individual environment.