Detection and modification of confusing color combinations for red‐green dichromats to achieve a color universal design

Color‐vision deficiency is a relatively common genetic condition, which often leads to the obstruction of necessary information in colored images. It is important to minimize such inconvenient effects in communication using colored images from a universal design perspective. The universal design principle stipulates that all environments and products should be usable by all people, regardless of age, physical attributes, and ability. This article proposes a method to detect color combinations in a given image that would confuse color dichromats, and suggests a way in which to modify them to make the image easily distinguishable for both normal and dichromatic observers. Confusing color combinations were detected based on a color‐difference calculation using simulations of how the color would appear to dichromats. The confusing colors were then modified based on the minimization of an evaluation function, which was defined as the sum of the degree of confusion and the degree of color change from the original image. Several colored images obtained by the proposed method were compared with the originals by red–green dichromatic observers who judged them to be clearer, thereby confirming that the proposed method was effective for color rendering for universal design. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 33, 203–211, 2008     

Multiphoton fluorescent images with a spatially varying background signal: a ML deconvolution method

By means of multiphoton laser scanning microscopy, neuroscientists can look inside the brain deeper than has ever been possible before. Multiphoton fluorescent images, as all optical images, suffer from degradation caused by a variety of sources (e.g. light dispersion and absorption in the tissue, laser fluctuations, spurious photodetection and staining deficiency). From a modelling perspective, such degradations can be considered the sum of stochastic noise and a background signal. Among the methods proposed in the literature to perform image deconvolution in either confocal or multiphoton fluorescent microscopy, Vicidomini et al. (2009) were the first to incorporate models for noise (a Poisson process) and background signal (spatially constant) in the context of regularized inverse problems. Unfortunately, the so-called split-gradient deconvolution method (SGM) they used did not consider possible spatial variations in the background signal. In this paper, we extend the SGM by adding a maximum-likelihood estimation step for the determination of a spatially varying background signal. We demonstrate that the assumption of a constant background is not always valid in multiphoton laser microscopy and by using synthetic and actual multiphoton fluorescent images, we evaluate the face of validity of the proposed method, and compare its accuracy with the previously introduced SGM algorithm.     

A Social Robot that Stands in Line

Recent research in mobile robot navigation make it feasible to utilize autonomous robots in service fields. But, such applications require more than just navigation. To operate in a peopled environment, robots should recognize and act according to human social behavior. In this paper, we present the design and implementation of one such social behavior: a robot that stands in line much as people do. The system employs stereo vision to recognize lines of people, and uses the concept of personal space for modeling the social behavior. Personal space is used both to detect the end of a line and to determine how much space to leave between the robot and the person in front of it. Our model of personal space is based on measurements from people forming lines. We demonstrate our ideas with a mobile robot navigation system that can purchase a cup of coffee, even if people are waiting in line for service.     

Low-power logic circuit and SRAM cell applications with silicon on depletion Layer CMOS (SODEL CMOS) technology

In this paper, the switching performance of Silicon on Depletion Layer CMOS (SODEL CMOS) is investigated with a view to realizing high-speed and low-power CMOS applications. Thanks to smaller parasitic capacitance, the propagation delay time (/spl tau//sub pd/) in SODEL CMOS has been improved by up to 25% compared to that of conventional bulk CMOS in five stacked nFET inverters at the same V/sub dd/. It is also confirmed that about 30% better power-delay product can be realized at the same /spl tau//sub pd/ with reduced V/sub dd/ in SODEL CMOS. In SRAM cell applications, SODEL CMOS shows high Static Noise Margin (SNM) of /spl sim/95 mV at V/sub dd/=0.6 V. Smaller bitline delay is expected and confirmed in SODEL CMOS SRAM by SPICE simulations. Latch-up immunity for /spl alpha/-particle irradiation in SODEL CMOS was also found to be comparable to that of conventional bulk CMOS. Therefore, SODEL CMOS device and circuit technology is expected to provide a better solution for low-power system-on-a-chip (SoC).     

Human immunodeficiency virus type 2 envelope glycoprotein binds to CD8 as well as to CD4 molecules on human T cells

We report here that human immunodeficiency virus type 2 (HIV-2) envelope glycoprotein (gp105), but not HIV-1 gp120, can bind to CD8 molecules as well as to CD4 molecules on human T cells. This phenomenon may lead to differences in the life cycles of HIV-1 and HIV-2, and it may be related to the differences in disease manifestations of HIV-1 and HIV-2 infection, including longer survival of HIV-2-infected patients.     

Color gamut mapping based on a perceptual image difference measure

Gamut mapping is a color transformation technique to solve a problem caused by mismatch of gamuts among imaging devices. One plausible goal of gamut mapping is to find a reproduction that is perceptually closest to the corresponding original image when an exact color matching is not possible. Several measures to quantify the perceptual difference between images have been proposed and applied to the gamut mapping problem. However most of the measures, such as average color difference, are applied on a pixel‐wise basis and show poor correlation with human visual perception. This article describes a model of the perceptual image difference for a given pair of images, which takes the human's contrast sensitivity into account and applies the model to a gamut mapping for generating a reproduction with minimum perceptual image difference. The model has a multispatial‐frequency channel structure with tunable peak gains for each channel, which are determined by psychophysical experiments, so that the model output fits the observer's sensitivity to the image difference. A gamut‐mapped image with minimum perceptual image difference is obtained by an iterative minimization process. To evaluate the proposed method, subjective evaluation experiments are performed to construct ratio scales that measure perceptual image difference of gamut‐mapped reproductions generated by the proposed and pixel‐wise methods. Results show that the reproductions by the proposed method are perceived as perceptually closest to the original, and the model's estimate of perceptual difference correlates better with the experimentally measured perceived image difference than other pixel‐wise measures. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Col Res Appl, 24, 280–291, 1999     

Identification of a novel cDNA clone encoding protein tyrosine kinase in murine skin

Tyrosine phosphorylation is widely recognized as playing important roles in cell differentiation, proliferation, and carcinogenesis. We have used the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method to identify protein tyrosine kinases that are expressed in the skin. Mixed oligonucleotide probes were used to amplify and screen a neonatal murine skin cDNA pool for clones encoding amino acid contiguities whose conservation is characteristic of the protein tyrosine kinase family. When the PCR products were sequenced, 13 distinct clones were found, of which one is novel to date and has provisionally been named tks (for tyrosine kinase identified from skin). Sequence homology comparison showed that the tks gene is homologous to the src and fes/fps families. Northern blotting using PCR products of tks as a probe revealed that the mRNA of tks is detected ubiquitously and weakly in other tissues such as brain, lung, liver, thymus and kidney. This fact suggests that the tks gene is expressed in widely distributed cell types.     

Potential based routing as a secondary best-effort routing for Information Centric Networking (ICN)

One challenge to the retrieval process of ICN is to take advantage of largely distributed copies in in-network caches. This paper proposes Potential Based Routing (PBR) as a secondary best-effort routing mechanism to boost availability of copies in ICN architectures. The control overhead issue of the PBR is evaluated through both theoretical analysis and numerical simulation. In addition, the paper provides the PBR with a recovery mechanism from a failure, which can reduce the control overhead traffic by at least 40% in the simulation environment. Lastly, it is demonstrated how an ICN architecture can benefit from this PBR in terms of cache hit and delay reduction ratios.     

Michromatic scope for enhancement of color difference

A michromatic (microscope plus chromatic) scope is a device that enhances the color discrimination between two spectral color datasets. Three spectral filters are required, instead of the conventional red, green, and blue filters, for the implementation of a michromatic camera. In this study, we describe two approaches to the design of these filters: in the first case, the design is based on the direct optimization of the filter characteristics (transmittance), whereas in the second case, the design is based on the nonnegative tensor factorization (NTF) of the spectral datasets. A michromatic camera can be implemented using these filters along with compatible postprocessing in‐camera firmware. Here, we performed experiments with two color datasets: one comprising skin and vein colors, and one comprising skin and cosmetics colors. These were further divided into a training set and a test set. The filters were defined using the training set, and the operation of the filters was tested and magnified using the test set. Our experiments demonstrated that the proposed approaches are suitable for color discrimination. For the first color dataset, the enhancement produced using the optimized filters was up to 252% of the original value, and the average color difference ΔE was increased from 2.82 to 9.93. NTF and preprocessing further enhanced the ΔE up to 21.84. For the second color dataset, NTF and postprocessing enhanced the ΔE from 4.33 to 29.19. The proposed discrimination enhancement could be physically implemented in a designated digital charge‐coupled device camera with proper filter installation and compatible postprocessing. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 2010     

Removal of salt and organic acids from solution used to season salted Japanese apricots (ume) by electrodialysis, precipitation and adsorption

With the aim of repeatedly reusing the solution used to season salted ume (Japanese apricot), we investigated its desalting and deacidification by electrodialysis, precipitation, and adsorption. Although NaCl and acids could be easily removed from used seasoning solution by electrodialysis, useful substances such as amino acids were removed at the same time. Precipitation using Ca(OH)2 could remove only organic acids, but the treated solution became bitter. Two weakly basic commercial resins, DIAION WA30 and Chitopearl CCS, adsorbed organic acids selectively. Chitopearl CCS in particular selectively adsorbed citric acid in the used seasoning solution without also adsorbing useful substances. The equilibrium data of a citric acid, which was a main organic acid, were correlated by the Langmuir equation. The saturation capacity decreased with increasing concentrations of NaCl in the solution but the equilibrium constant did not change. By combining electrodialysis and adsorption, NaCl and organic acids could be removed while amino acids largely remained. The resultant solution was considered to be suitable for repeated reuse.