Wavelet domain-based video noise reduction using temporal discrete cosine transform and hierarchically adapted thresholding

A novel spatio-temporal filter for video denoising, which operates entirely in the wavelet domain, is proposed. For effective noise reduction, the spatial and temporal redundancies that exist in the wavelet domain representation of a video signal are exploited. First, a 2D discrete wavelet transform is applied to the input noisy frames. This is followed by a discrete cosine transform (DCT), which is applied to the temporal subband coefficients to minimise the redundancy among the consecutive frames. The DCT transformed, noise-free coefficients in the different wavelet domain subbands for the original image sequence are modelled using a prior having a generalised Gaussian distribution. On the basis of this prior, filtering of the noisy wavelet coefficients in each subband is carried out using a new, low-complexity wavelet shrinkage method, which utilises the correlation that exists between subsequent resolution levels. Experimental results show that the proposed scheme outperforms several state-of-the-art spatio-temporal filters in terms of both the peak signal-to-noise ratio and the visual quality     

Singular Tetrahedral Finite Elements for Vector Electromagnetics

The electromagnetic fields at reentrant edges made of conductor are generally singular and the polynomial basis functions used in traditional finite elements do not model the fields well in these regions. Two new tetrahedral elements are introduced with basis functions that incorporate the known asymptotic variation of the fields with distance from the edge. The basis is split into gradient and rotational parts. Additional vertex functions can be added to improve the conditioning of the global matrix system that arises in the time-harmonic case. Results are presented for the scattering parameters of a number of waveguide discontinuities. The new elements reduce the error considerably compared to the Whitney element, and generally outperform the second-order edge element, even though that has more degrees of freedom     

Educational experiments in machine vision

We present a set of four educational experiments in machine vision. These were designed to run on low-cost hardware which is yet powerful enough to serve in genuine industrial applications of machine vision. The experiments introduce students to thresholding, connected component analysis, Hough transforms, stereo vision, and color coordinate systems. The programming involved is close enough to the hardware to expose students to real-time processing techniques and prepares them to tackle the type of problems they will face in field applications of machine vision. The experiments are: locate coins in an image, identify their denominations, and count the amount of money present; extract the straight edges of a cube by the Hough transform technique; extract three-dimensional (3-D) information from left and right images of the same cube; and transform color images from RGB to HSI coordinates and visually assess the results     

Modeling lossy anisotropic dielectric waveguides with the method oflines

This paper presents a new formulation useful for modeling waveguides constructed from lossy inhomogeneous anisotropic media. Our approach is based on a pair of Sturm-Liouville type wave equations that have been derived to handle inhomogeneous, diagonalized complex permittivity and permeability tensors. The method of lines is then applied to these wave equations, and related field equations, creating an indirect eigenvalue problem that correctly models this class of structure. Some refinements to the method of lines are also proposed, particularly, regarding the construction of the modal matrices found in the eigenvalue problem. Using our approach, modal dispersion curves have been computed for millimeter-wave and optical structures. Comparisons made with results available from the literature validate our approach     

Performance analysis of a COFDM/FM in-band digital audiobroadcasting system

In this paper, we present a performance analysis of a coded orthogonal frequency division multiplexing DAB system that is power multiplexed over a commercial FM station. We model the mobile channel with a time-frequency scattering function. Results show that the performance of the FM demodulator is crucial, since the level of the residual FM signal has a strong influence on the BER performance of the COFDM system. As with other mobile communication systems, the use of interleaving greatly enhances the performances     

Maximizing SNR in improper complex noise and applications to CDMA

The optimum linear time-invariant (LTI) filter that maximizes the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is, in general, the solution to an integral equation. This is the well-known matched filter. With regards to the detection of bandpass signals, we present the full form of the integral equation using the complex baseband representation of signals. The correct form of the complex integral equation includes, in addition to the autocorrelation function, a pseudoautocorrelation function which vanishes for most applications. However, in the presence of improper complex noise, overlooking the pseudoautocorrelation leads to a “nonoptimal” filter. To illustrate the concept, we apply the theory to a direct-sequence code-division multi-access (DS-CDMA) system in which improper complex noise arises. In the application, we derive the SNR maximizing filter and the nonoptimal filter and compare their near-far resistances     

Optimal phases for a family of quadriphase CDMA sequences

Signature sequences with good even even and odd (or polyphase) correlations are crucial for asynchronous code-division multiple access (CDMA). When the data sequence is random, the even and odd (or polyphase) correlations are equally important. However, for most known signature sequences, only their even correlations were analyzed. It appears that determining the odd (or the polyphase) correlations is generally a very hard problem since the odd (or the polyphase) correlations depend on the phases of the signature sequences. Sole (1989), Boztas, Hammons, and Kumar (1992) found a family of quadriphase sequences that are asymptotically optimal. These sequences gain a factor √2 in terms of their maximum periodic even correlations when compared with the best possible binary phase-shift keying (BPSK) sequences. We find the optimal phases of these sequences. The optimality is in the sense that at these phases, the mean square values of the even, odd, and the polyphase correlations are minimal, and achieve the Welch (1974) bound-equality simultaneously. Furthermore, we show that at these phases, the average user interference of these sequences is always smaller than that of the ideal random signature sequences. Comprehensive analytical and numerical results show that good phase sequences can offer a nonnegligible amount of gain over bad phase sequences at modest and high signal-to-noise ratios     

In vivo surface analysis of titanium and stainless steel miniplates and screws

OBJECTIVE: To determine the results peranal excision for rectal carcinoma. DESIGN: Retrospective case series. SETTING: A university-affiliated hospital. PATIENTS: Of 178 patients who presented for curative resection of rectal carcinoma between 1975 and 1993, 19 (10.7%) were deemed suitable for local excision. There were 10 men and 9 women with a mean age of 71.2 years. The follow-up ranged from 13 to 184 months. INTERVENTION: Peranal excision. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Histologic differentiation, gross morphology, depth of invasion and size of the carcinoma, adequacy of margins of excision, complications of operation, rates of recurrence, results of salvage therapy and 5-year survival. RESULTS: There were no intraoperative complications. Postoperative complications included urinary retention (one patient) and bleeding (one patient). There were five local recurrences (26%). Salvage operations were performed in three (60%) patients and were successful in two of them. The 5-year cancer-specific survival rate was 82%. The recurrence rate was higher in patients with inadequate margins of excision and ulcerative lesions. Neither size nor grade of the carcinoma correlated with recurrence. CONCLUSIONS: Local excision of rectal carcinoma can be performed successfully in selected patients. Diligent follow-up is required, because up to 60% of local recurrences can be treated successfully.     

High-finesse large band Fabry-Perot fibre filter with superimposedchirped Bragg gratings

Filters with 100 GHz free spectral range (FSR) and finesse up to 16 are demonstrated over the 1525 to 1583 nm band. The photoinduced birefringence results in a polarisation-dependent spectral response. Finesse and FSR uniformity are addressed     

Performance degradation of the coherent averaging technique by amolding effect

In coherent averaging, we show that when temporal alignment is performed by matched filtering, the SNR improvement may reach a stable limit after a certain number of averaged events. The source of this degradation lies in the noise that can be contained in the template of the matched filter. This effect depends on the SNR and the morphology of the signal and it can be reduced by a multipass averaging procedure or by a template updating technique.