Shape Reconstruction and Camera Self-Calibration Using Cast Shadows and Scene Geometries

Recently, various techniques of shape reconstruction using cast shadows have been proposed. These techniques have the advantage that they can be applied to various scenes, including outdoor scenes, without using special devices. Previously proposed techniques usually require calibration of camera parameters and light source positions, and such calibration processes limit the range of application of these techniques. In this paper, we propose a method to reconstruct 3D scenes even when the camera parameters or light source positions are unknown. The technique first recovers the shape with 4-DOF indeterminacy using coplanarities obtained by cast shadows of straight edges or visible planes in a scene, and then upgrades the shape using metric constraints obtained from the geometrical constraints in the scene. In order to circumvent the need for calibrations and special devices, we propose both linear and nonlinear methods in this paper. Experiments using simulated and real images verified the effectiveness of this technique.     

Damage to seagrass and seaweed beds in Matsushima Bay,Japan, caused by the huge tsunami of the Great East Japan Earthquake on 11 March 2011

Damage to seagrass and seaweed beds caused by the huge tsunami of the Great East Japan Earthquake on 11 March 2011 was investigated in Matsushima Bay, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan, by comparing satellite images taken before the tsunami in November 2009 and after the tsunami in May 2011. The results showed that the tsunami destroyed 220 ha of seagrass and seaweed beds, from 320 ha in 2009 to 100 ha just after the tsunami. Zostera marina beds on the sandy and muddy bottom were rather severely damaged compared with brown seaweed beds of Sargassum horneri on the rocky substrate. Substrates of the beds and directions of the tsunami seem to be responsible for the magnitude of the damage to the beds. Maps of the spatial distributions of the beds before and after the tsunami can provide information for the restoration of seagrass and seaweed beds as natural infrastructures of coastal fisheries resources.     

A new representation of systems with frictional unilateral constraints and its Baumgarte-like relaxation

This paper proposes a new representation of multibody mechanical systems involving three-dimensional frictional unilateral constraints. The new representation is of the form of a differential algebraic inclusion (DAI) employing a normal cone with a non-Euclidean, singular norm metric. It can be seen as a generalization of a differential algebraic equation (DAE) using Lagrange multipliers, which has been used to represent mechanical systems with equality constraints. The paper also presents an approach to approximate the aforementioned DAI by another form of DAI, which can be equivalently converted into an ordinary differential equation (ODE). The approach can be seen as a generalization of the Baumgarte stabilization, which was originally developed for DAEs. The new DAI representation and its ODE approximation are illustrated with some simple examples.     

Efficient learning of multiple context-free languages with multidimensional substitutability from positive data

Recently Clark and Eyraud (2007) [10] have shown that substitutable context-free languages, which capture an aspect of natural language phenomena, are efficiently identifiable in the limit from positive data. Generalizing their work, this paper presents a polynomial-time learning algorithm for new subclasses of multiple context-free languages with variants of substitutability.     

A pilot survey of 39 Victorian WWTP effluents using a high speed luminescent umu test in conjunction with a novel GC-MS-database technique for automatic identification of micropollutants

In 2007, samples of treated effluent were collected at point of discharge to the environment from 39 wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) located across Victoria, Australia grouped by treatment type. Sample genotoxicity was assessed with a high-throughput luminescent umu test method using Salmonella typhimurium TL210 strain, with and without addition of a commercially available metabolic activation system. Samples were also screened using a gas chromatographic-mass spectrometric mass-structure database recognition method. A genotoxic response was observed in half of the samples tested without metabolic activation system (相似文献   

Adaptive Control For Robotic Manipulators Executing Multilateral Constrained Task

This paper presents a model‐based adaptive control in task coordinates for robotic manipulators executing multilateral constrained tasks The controller works based on the concept of orthogonality between force and motion in the subspaces derived from the constraints. The control gains are independently adjustable in each subspace. The friction force, depending on the contact force, is compensated adaptively. Asymptotic convergence for both force and motion tracking errors is guaranteed by the Lyapunov‐Like Lemma. Experimental results obtained using a 3 D.O.F. robot are given.     

General structure and characteristics of quick response production system

The diversification and shorter production cycles urge manufacturers to shift their production systems from “make to stock” to “make to order” or an intermediate production system between them. The present paper deals with a production system developed by some manufacturers to meet requirements in the last decade. The system, which we call “Quick response to orders production system” or in brief “quick response production system (QRPS)”, is characterized by two key factors, i.e., “acceptable response time” and “semifinished product.” An acceptable response time is decided through the explicit or implicit approval of customers beforehand and manufacturers guarantee to ship products within an acceptable response time in a stochastic sense by processing the semifinished product according to customer order. As a result, manufacturers are able to reduce the inventory of finished products, while customers are able to enjoy the diversification of products and a stable supply from manufacturers. The general structure and characteristics of QRPS are discussed primarily from a quantitative point of view and a numerical example is shown to assist in understanding the design and operation of QRPS.     

V830R/AV: embedded multimedia superscalar RISC processor

The V830R/AV's real-time decoding of MPEG-2 video and audio data enables practical embedded-processor-based multimedia systems     

Mutagenicity and DNA-damaging activity of decomposed products of food colours under UV irradiation

Five synthetic food colours Food Red Nos 3, 40 and 102 and Food Blue Nos 1 and 2, and their UV irradiated products were tested for mutagenic activity by means of the Ames test using Salmonella typhimurium strains TA98 and TA100. Food colours were irradiated with UV light for 14 days. Food Red Nos 3, 40 and 102 and Food Blue No. 1 were non-mutagenic before and after irradiation. UV irradiated products of Food Blue No. 2 were mutagenic in TA98 with or without S-9 mix. The mutagenic activity increased with increasing irradiation period, reached maximum potency on day 6, and then decreased. Moreover, Food Blue No. 2 showed DNA-damaging activity after 14 days of irradiation in rec-assay using Bacillus subtilis strains H17 and M45. The capillary electrophoresis was applied for the analysis of UV irradiated products of Food Blue No. 2. The original peak of Food Blue No. 2 was decomposed into seven peaks after UV irradiation.     

Clinically applicable bulk isolation of blood CD34+ cells for autografting in children

The quality of population-based cancer registries has been measured by the indices of the proportion of total incident cases (DCO%) registered by death certificate only (DCO), and the ratio of incidence to mortality (I/D ratio). Recently it has been recommended that DCO% should be used as an index for the reliability of diagnosing cancers and that the proportion of cases first notified via death certificate (DCN, DCN%) be used as an index for the completeness of registration. Parkin introduced a method to estimate the registration rate, the estimated proportion of the "true incidence" that are registered in population-based registries. We recommend a modified method for estimating the registration rate for cancer registries where DCN% is relatively high, as it is in Japan, as Parkin's method may overestimate the registration rate. The method is as follows: the registration rate = (1-DCN% x 1/D ratio)/(1-DCN%). The registration rates at the Osaka Cancer Registry between 1966 and 1992 were estimated using our method. During this period, the yearly registration rate was 74.6-78.4% for males and 69.1-73.3% for females. When the cancer cases were looked at according to site, the yearly registration rate was 74.2-81.6% for stomach cancer, 81.2-89.3% for lung cancer, and 71.3-76.9% for uterine cancer. These results show that the registration rate is high for cancers that have an unfavorable prognosis and low for cancers that have a favorable prognosis. We recommend that all cancer registries in Japan calculate the completeness of registration by utilizing DCN defined as the sum of DCO plus cases not reported as cancer but with supportive clinical information of such obtained through survey of the registry for DCN.