Spatiotemporal Ultrafast-Plasmon Control Based on Response Functions of Nanostructures Measured by Interferometric Cross-Correlation Microscopy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kusaba Miyuki

2013-03-01

Full Text Available We demonstrate an electrical-field cross-correlation imaging technique to obtain a response function of localized plasmon generated by femtosecond laser pulses on gold nanostructures. Based on the measured response functions, we spatiotemporally control the plasmon by shaping the femtosecond excitation laser pulses.

Quantum Image Encryption Algorithm Based on Image Correlation Decomposition

Science.gov (United States)

Hua, Tianxiang; Chen, Jiamin; Pei, Dongju; Zhang, Wenquan; Zhou, Nanrun

2015-02-01

A novel quantum gray-level image encryption and decryption algorithm based on image correlation decomposition is proposed. The correlation among image pixels is established by utilizing the superposition and measurement principle of quantum states. And a whole quantum image is divided into a series of sub-images. These sub-images are stored into a complete binary tree array constructed previously and then randomly performed by one of the operations of quantum random-phase gate, quantum revolving gate and Hadamard transform. The encrypted image can be obtained by superimposing the resulting sub-images with the superposition principle of quantum states. For the encryption algorithm, the keys are the parameters of random phase gate, rotation angle, binary sequence and orthonormal basis states. The security and the computational complexity of the proposed algorithm are analyzed. The proposed encryption algorithm can resist brute force attack due to its very large key space and has lower computational complexity than its classical counterparts.

Graphical user interface for image acquisition and processing

Science.gov (United States)

Goldberg, Kenneth A.

2002-01-01

An event-driven GUI-based image acquisition interface for the IDL programming environment designed for CCD camera control and image acquisition directly into the IDL environment where image manipulation and data analysis can be performed, and a toolbox of real-time analysis applications. Running the image acquisition hardware directly from IDL removes the necessity of first saving images in one program and then importing the data into IDL for analysis in a second step. Bringing the data directly into IDL creates an opportunity for the implementation of IDL image processing and display functions in real-time. program allows control over the available charge coupled device (CCD) detector parameters, data acquisition, file saving and loading, and image manipulation and processing, all from within IDL. The program is built using IDL's widget libraries to control the on-screen display and user interface.

Comparison of prostate contours between conventional stepping transverse imaging and Twister-based sagittal imaging in permanent interstitial prostate brachytherapy.

Science.gov (United States)

Kawakami, Shogo; Ishiyama, Hiromichi; Satoh, Takefumi; Tsumura, Hideyasu; Sekiguchi, Akane; Takenaka, Kouji; Tabata, Ken-Ichi; Iwamura, Masatsugu; Hayakawa, Kazushige

2017-08-01

To compare prostate contours on conventional stepping transverse image acquisitions with those on twister-based sagittal image acquisitions. Twenty prostate cancer patients who were planned to have permanent interstitial prostate brachytherapy were prospectively accrued. A transrectal ultrasonography probe was inserted, with the patient in lithotomy position. Transverse images were obtained with stepping movement of the transverse transducer. In the same patient, sagittal images were also obtained through rotation of the sagittal transducer using the "Twister" mode. The differences of prostate size among the two types of image acquisitions were compared. The relationships among the difference of the two types of image acquisitions, dose-volume histogram (DVH) parameters on the post-implant computed tomography (CT) analysis, as well as other factors were analyzed. The sagittal image acquisitions showed a larger prostate size compared to the transverse image acquisitions especially in the anterior-posterior (AP) direction ( p transverse image acquisitions was correlated to DVH parameters such as D 90 ( R = 0.518, p = 0.019), and V 100 ( R = 0.598, p = 0.005). There were small but significant differences in the prostate contours between the transverse and the sagittal planning image acquisitions. Furthermore, our study suggested that the differences between the two types of image acquisitions might correlated to dosimetric results on CT analysis.

Self-calibrated correlation imaging with k-space variant correlation functions.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Yu; Edalati, Masoud; Du, Xingfu; Wang, Hui; Cao, Jie J

2018-03-01

Correlation imaging is a previously developed high-speed MRI framework that converts parallel imaging reconstruction into the estimate of correlation functions. The presented work aims to demonstrate this framework can provide a speed gain over parallel imaging by estimating k-space variant correlation functions. Because of Fourier encoding with gradients, outer k-space data contain higher spatial-frequency image components arising primarily from tissue boundaries. As a result of tissue-boundary sparsity in the human anatomy, neighboring k-space data correlation varies from the central to the outer k-space. By estimating k-space variant correlation functions with an iterative self-calibration method, correlation imaging can benefit from neighboring k-space data correlation associated with both coil sensitivity encoding and tissue-boundary sparsity, thereby providing a speed gain over parallel imaging that relies only on coil sensitivity encoding. This new approach is investigated in brain imaging and free-breathing neonatal cardiac imaging. Correlation imaging performs better than existing parallel imaging techniques in simulated brain imaging acceleration experiments. The higher speed enables real-time data acquisition for neonatal cardiac imaging in which physiological motion is fast and non-periodic. With k-space variant correlation functions, correlation imaging gives a higher speed than parallel imaging and offers the potential to image physiological motion in real-time. Magn Reson Med 79:1483-1494, 2018. © 2017 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine. © 2017 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.

Silhouette-based approach of 3D image reconstruction for automated image acquisition using robotic arm

Science.gov (United States)

Azhar, N.; Saad, W. H. M.; Manap, N. A.; Saad, N. M.; Syafeeza, A. R.

2017-06-01

This study presents the approach of 3D image reconstruction using an autonomous robotic arm for the image acquisition process. A low cost of the automated imaging platform is created using a pair of G15 servo motor connected in series to an Arduino UNO as a main microcontroller. Two sets of sequential images were obtained using different projection angle of the camera. The silhouette-based approach is used in this study for 3D reconstruction from the sequential images captured from several different angles of the object. Other than that, an analysis based on the effect of different number of sequential images on the accuracy of 3D model reconstruction was also carried out with a fixed projection angle of the camera. The effecting elements in the 3D reconstruction are discussed and the overall result of the analysis is concluded according to the prototype of imaging platform.

THE INFLUENCE OF HOME COUNTRY MACROECONOMIC FACTORS ON INWARD CROSS-BORDER MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS: THE CASE OF ROMANIA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sehleanu Mariana

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Expanding abroad and entering on foreign markets is a natural step in the process of growth and development of firms. Cross-border mergers and acquisitions represent, currently, an important tool in the competitive struggle, which is increasingly intense due to the globalization of economies, and also the driving force behind the growth of Foreign Direct Investments (FDI flows globally. In Romania, the share of cross-border mergers and acquisitions inflows in the total FDI inflows increased progressively, reaching 46,6% in 2006, when the highest value of these transactions was registered (5.308 million dollars, according to UNCTAD. The aim of this empirical research is to study the correlation between the number of inward cross-border mergers acquisitions and a series of other variables, considered factors of influence, over the period 1992-2013. Using simple regression models, the study reveals that economic factors such as Gross domestic product (GDP, stock market capitalization (as a percentage of GDP, interest rate, exchange rate, M2 monetary aggregate and inflation have an important role in explaining cross-border mergers and acquisitions inflows. Between the number of inward cross-border mergers and acquisitions and GDP, M2 monetary aggregate, market capitalization, respectively the exchange rate, there is a direct and linear correlation and between the number of inward mergers and acquisitions and the interest rate, respectively the inflation, there is an inverse linear correlation. The research conducted reveals the important role played by macroeconomic factors with regard to the cross-border mergers and acquisitions inflows, as an entry mode of FDI in Romania.

EUROPEAN CROSS-BORDER MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS- REALITIES AND PERSPECTIVES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vancea Mariana

2011-07-01

Full Text Available This paper analyses the impact of the economic and financial crisis on merger and acquisition activity in Europe and the latest trends manifested on the cross-border merger and acquisition market involving European companies. Thus, a first objective of this research is to reveal the evolution of the European cross-border merger and acquisition activity in terms of dynamics, volume and structure. Another objective of this research is to reveal the short and medium term perspectives on mergers and acquisitions in Europe. Thus, under the continuous economic recovery of the European countries and the other worldwide economies, the recovery of financial markets and the growth of corporate profits, we shall witness an intensive cross-border merger and acquisition activity in Europe. The expansion engine of these operations seems to be represented by the emerging economies. This research is based on a systematic, logical and comparative analysis of scientific literature and statistical data regarding the cross-border mergers and acquisitions that involve European companies in recent years. This paper is part of the doctoral thesis Mergers and acquisitions- strategies of growth and development of enterprises. European and national particularities, coordinated by professor Ph.D. Alina Bădulescu from University of Oradea, Faculty of Economics. The doctoral research is supported by The Sectorial Operational Program for Human Resources Development 2007-2013, Contract POSDRU 59/1.5/S/1- Romanian researchers through modern and efficient doctoral programs.

A 32-channel photon counting module with embedded auto/cross-correlators for real-time parallel fluorescence correlation spectroscopy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gong, S.; Labanca, I.; Rech, I.; Ghioni, M. [Dipartimento di Elettronica, Informazione e Bioingegneria, Politecnico di Milano, Piazza Leonardo da Vinci 32, 20133 Milano (Italy)

2014-10-15

Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) is a well-established technique to study binding interactions or the diffusion of fluorescently labeled biomolecules in vitro and in vivo. Fast FCS experiments require parallel data acquisition and analysis which can be achieved by exploiting a multi-channel Single Photon Avalanche Diode (SPAD) array and a corresponding multi-input correlator. This paper reports a 32-channel FPGA based correlator able to perform 32 auto/cross-correlations simultaneously over a lag-time ranging from 10 ns up to 150 ms. The correlator is included in a 32 × 1 SPAD array module, providing a compact and flexible instrument for high throughput FCS experiments. However, some inherent features of SPAD arrays, namely afterpulsing and optical crosstalk effects, may introduce distortions in the measurement of auto- and cross-correlation functions. We investigated these limitations to assess their impact on the module and evaluate possible workarounds.

A 32-channel photon counting module with embedded auto/cross-correlators for real-time parallel fluorescence correlation spectroscopy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gong, S.; Labanca, I.; Rech, I.; Ghioni, M.

2014-01-01

Fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) is a well-established technique to study binding interactions or the diffusion of fluorescently labeled biomolecules in vitro and in vivo. Fast FCS experiments require parallel data acquisition and analysis which can be achieved by exploiting a multi-channel Single Photon Avalanche Diode (SPAD) array and a corresponding multi-input correlator. This paper reports a 32-channel FPGA based correlator able to perform 32 auto/cross-correlations simultaneously over a lag-time ranging from 10 ns up to 150 ms. The correlator is included in a 32 × 1 SPAD array module, providing a compact and flexible instrument for high throughput FCS experiments. However, some inherent features of SPAD arrays, namely afterpulsing and optical crosstalk effects, may introduce distortions in the measurement of auto- and cross-correlation functions. We investigated these limitations to assess their impact on the module and evaluate possible workarounds

NOTE: A method for controlling image acquisition in electronic portal imaging devices

Science.gov (United States)

Glendinning, A. G.; Hunt, S. G.; Bonnett, D. E.

2001-02-01

Certain types of camera-based electronic portal imaging devices (EPIDs) which initiate image acquisition based on sensing a change in video level have been observed to trigger unreliably at the beginning of dynamic multileaf collimation sequences. A simple, novel means of controlling image acquisition with an Elekta linear accelerator (Elekta Oncology Systems, Crawley, UK) is proposed which is based on illumination of a photodetector (ORP-12, Silonex Inc., Plattsburgh, NY, USA) by the electron gun of the accelerator. By incorporating a simple trigger circuit it is possible to derive a beam on/off status signal which changes at least 100 ms before any dose is measured by the accelerator. The status signal does not return to the beam-off state until all dose has been delivered and is suitable for accelerator pulse repetition frequencies of 50-400 Hz. The status signal is thus a reliable means of indicating the initiation and termination of radiation exposure, and thus controlling image acquisition of such EPIDs for this application.

The Maximum Cross-Correlation approach to detecting translational motions from sequential remote-sensing images

Science.gov (United States)

Gao, J.; Lythe, M. B.

1996-06-01

This paper presents the principle of the Maximum Cross-Correlation (MCC) approach in detecting translational motions within dynamic fields from time-sequential remotely sensed images. A C program implementing the approach is presented and illustrated in a flowchart. The program is tested with a pair of sea-surface temperature images derived from Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) images near East Cape, New Zealand. Results show that the mean currents in the region have been detected satisfactorily with the approach.

Hardware Timestamping for an Image Acquisition System Based on FlexRIO and IEEE 1588 v2 Standard

Science.gov (United States)

Esquembri, S.; Sanz, D.; Barrera, E.; Ruiz, M.; Bustos, A.; Vega, J.; Castro, R.

2016-02-01

Current fusion devices usually implement distributed acquisition systems for the multiple diagnostics of their experiments. However, each diagnostic is composed by hundreds or even thousands of signals, including images from the vessel interior. These signals and images must be correctly timestamped, because all the information will be analyzed to identify plasma behavior using temporal correlations. For acquisition devices without synchronization mechanisms the timestamp is given by another device with timing capabilities when signaled by the first device. Later, each data should be related with its timestamp, usually via software. This critical action is unfeasible for software applications when sampling rates are high. In order to solve this problem this paper presents the implementation of an image acquisition system with real-time hardware timestamping mechanism. This is synchronized with a master clock using the IEEE 1588 v2 Precision Time Protocol (PTP). Synchronization, image acquisition and processing, and timestamping mechanisms are implemented using Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) and a timing card -PTP v2 synchronized. The system has been validated using a camera simulator streaming videos from fusion databases. The developed architecture is fully compatible with ITER Fast Controllers and has been integrated with EPICS to control and monitor the whole system.

High-speed technique based on a parallel projection correlation procedure for digital image correlation

Science.gov (United States)

Zaripov, D. I.; Renfu, Li

2018-05-01

The implementation of high-efficiency digital image correlation methods based on a zero-normalized cross-correlation (ZNCC) procedure for high-speed, time-resolved measurements using a high-resolution digital camera is associated with big data processing and is often time consuming. In order to speed-up ZNCC computation, a high-speed technique based on a parallel projection correlation procedure is proposed. The proposed technique involves the use of interrogation window projections instead of its two-dimensional field of luminous intensity. This simplification allows acceleration of ZNCC computation up to 28.8 times compared to ZNCC calculated directly, depending on the size of interrogation window and region of interest. The results of three synthetic test cases, such as a one-dimensional uniform flow, a linear shear flow and a turbulent boundary-layer flow, are discussed in terms of accuracy. In the latter case, the proposed technique is implemented together with an iterative window-deformation technique. On the basis of the results of the present work, the proposed technique is recommended to be used for initial velocity field calculation, with further correction using more accurate techniques.

Evaluation of Acquisition Strategies for Image-Based Construction Site Monitoring

Science.gov (United States)

Tuttas, S.; Braun, A.; Borrmann, A.; Stilla, U.

2016-06-01

Construction site monitoring is an essential task for keeping track of the ongoing construction work and providing up-to-date information for a Building Information Model (BIM). The BIM contains the as-planned states (geometry, schedule, costs, ...) of a construction project. For updating, the as-built state has to be acquired repeatedly and compared to the as-planned state. In the approach presented here, a 3D representation of the as-built state is calculated from photogrammetric images using multi-view stereo reconstruction. On construction sites one has to cope with several difficulties like security aspects, limited accessibility, occlusions or construction activity. Different acquisition strategies and techniques, namely (i) terrestrial acquisition with a hand-held camera, (ii) aerial acquisition using a Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) and (iii) acquisition using a fixed stereo camera pair at the boom of the crane, are tested on three test sites. They are assessed considering the special needs for the monitoring tasks and limitations on construction sites. The three scenarios are evaluated based on the ability of automation, the required effort for acquisition, the necessary equipment and its maintaining, disturbance of the construction works, and on the accuracy and completeness of the resulting point clouds. Based on the experiences during the test cases the following conclusions can be drawn: Terrestrial acquisition has the lowest requirements on the device setup but lacks on automation and coverage. The crane camera shows the lowest flexibility but the highest grade of automation. The UAV approach can provide the best coverage by combining nadir and oblique views, but can be limited by obstacles and security aspects. The accuracy of the point clouds is evaluated based on plane fitting of selected building parts. The RMS errors of the fitted parts range from 1 to a few cm for the UAV and the hand-held scenario. First results show that the crane camera

EVALUATION OF ACQUISITION STRATEGIES FOR IMAGE-BASED CONSTRUCTION SITE MONITORING

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. Tuttas

2016-06-01

Full Text Available Construction site monitoring is an essential task for keeping track of the ongoing construction work and providing up-to-date information for a Building Information Model (BIM. The BIM contains the as-planned states (geometry, schedule, costs, ... of a construction project. For updating, the as-built state has to be acquired repeatedly and compared to the as-planned state. In the approach presented here, a 3D representation of the as-built state is calculated from photogrammetric images using multi-view stereo reconstruction. On construction sites one has to cope with several difficulties like security aspects, limited accessibility, occlusions or construction activity. Different acquisition strategies and techniques, namely (i terrestrial acquisition with a hand-held camera, (ii aerial acquisition using a Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV and (iii acquisition using a fixed stereo camera pair at the boom of the crane, are tested on three test sites. They are assessed considering the special needs for the monitoring tasks and limitations on construction sites. The three scenarios are evaluated based on the ability of automation, the required effort for acquisition, the necessary equipment and its maintaining, disturbance of the construction works, and on the accuracy and completeness of the resulting point clouds. Based on the experiences during the test cases the following conclusions can be drawn: Terrestrial acquisition has the lowest requirements on the device setup but lacks on automation and coverage. The crane camera shows the lowest flexibility but the highest grade of automation. The UAV approach can provide the best coverage by combining nadir and oblique views, but can be limited by obstacles and security aspects. The accuracy of the point clouds is evaluated based on plane fitting of selected building parts. The RMS errors of the fitted parts range from 1 to a few cm for the UAV and the hand-held scenario. First results show that the crane

Model-based estimation of breast percent density in raw and processed full-field digital mammography images from image-acquisition physics and patient-image characteristics

Science.gov (United States)

Keller, Brad M.; Nathan, Diane L.; Conant, Emily F.; Kontos, Despina

2012-03-01

Breast percent density (PD%), as measured mammographically, is one of the strongest known risk factors for breast cancer. While the majority of studies to date have focused on PD% assessment from digitized film mammograms, digital mammography (DM) is becoming increasingly common, and allows for direct PD% assessment at the time of imaging. This work investigates the accuracy of a generalized linear model-based (GLM) estimation of PD% from raw and postprocessed digital mammograms, utilizing image acquisition physics, patient characteristics and gray-level intensity features of the specific image. The model is trained in a leave-one-woman-out fashion on a series of 81 cases for which bilateral, mediolateral-oblique DM images were available in both raw and post-processed format. Baseline continuous and categorical density estimates were provided by a trained breast-imaging radiologist. Regression analysis is performed and Pearson's correlation, r, and Cohen's kappa, κ, are computed. The GLM PD% estimation model performed well on both processed (r=0.89, p<0.001) and raw (r=0.75, p<0.001) images. Model agreement with radiologist assigned density categories was also high for processed (κ=0.79, p<0.001) and raw (κ=0.76, p<0.001) images. Model-based prediction of breast PD% could allow for a reproducible estimation of breast density, providing a rapid risk assessment tool for clinical practice.

Digital Correlation based on Wavelet Transform for Image Detection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barba, L; Vargas, L; Torres, C; Mattos, L

2011-01-01

In this work is presented a method for the optimization of digital correlators to improve the characteristic detection on images using wavelet transform as well as subband filtering. It is proposed an approach of wavelet-based image contrast enhancement in order to increase the performance of digital correlators. The multiresolution representation is employed to improve the high frequency content of images taken into account the input contrast measured for the original image. The energy of correlation peaks and discrimination level of several objects are improved with this technique. To demonstrate the potentiality in extracting characteristics using the wavelet transform, small objects inside reference images are detected successfully.

Accelerated dynamic EPR imaging using fast acquisition and compressive recovery.

Science.gov (United States)

Ahmad, Rizwan; Samouilov, Alexandre; Zweier, Jay L

2016-12-01

Electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) allows quantitative imaging of tissue redox status, which provides important information about ischemic syndromes, cancer and other pathologies. For continuous wave EPR imaging, however, poor signal-to-noise ratio and low acquisition efficiency limit its ability to image dynamic processes in vivo including tissue redox, where conditions can change rapidly. Here, we present a data acquisition and processing framework that couples fast acquisition with compressive sensing-inspired image recovery to enable EPR-based redox imaging with high spatial and temporal resolutions. The fast acquisition (FA) allows collecting more, albeit noisier, projections in a given scan time. The composite regularization based processing method, called spatio-temporal adaptive recovery (STAR), not only exploits sparsity in multiple representations of the spatio-temporal image but also adaptively adjusts the regularization strength for each representation based on its inherent level of the sparsity. As a result, STAR adjusts to the disparity in the level of sparsity across multiple representations, without introducing any tuning parameter. Our simulation and phantom imaging studies indicate that a combination of fast acquisition and STAR (FASTAR) enables high-fidelity recovery of volumetric image series, with each volumetric image employing less than 10 s of scan. In addition to image fidelity, the time constants derived from FASTAR also match closely to the ground truth even when a small number of projections are used for recovery. This development will enhance the capability of EPR to study fast dynamic processes that cannot be investigated using existing EPR imaging techniques. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

A camac based data acquisition system for flat-panel image array readout

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morton, E.J.; Antonuk, L.E.; Berry, J.E.; Huang, W.; Mody, P.; Yorkston, J.; Longo, M.J.

1993-01-01

A readout system has been developed to facilitate the digitization and subsequent display of image data from two-dimensional, pixellated, flat-panel, amorphous silicon imaging arrays. These arrays have been designed specifically for medical x-ray imaging applications. The readout system is based on hardware and software developed for various experiments at CERN and Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory. Additional analog signal processing and digital control electronics were constructed specifically for this application. The authors report on the form of the resulting data acquisition system, discuss aspects of its performance, and consider the compromises which were involved in its design

Simultaneous acquisition of physiological data and nuclear medicine images

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rosenthal, M.S.; Klein, H.A.; Orenstein, S.R.

1988-01-01

A technique has been developed that allows the simultaneous acquisition of both image and physiological data into a standard nuclear medicine computer system. The physiological data can be displayed along with the nuclear medicine images allowing temporal correlation between the two. This technique has been used to acquire images of gastroesophageal reflux simultaneously with the intraluminal esophageal pH. The resulting data are displayed either as a standard dynamic sequence with the physiological data appearing in a corner of the image or as condensed dynamic images

An Ibm PC/AT-Based Image Acquisition And Processing System For Quantitative Image Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Yongmin; Alexander, Thomas

1986-06-01

In recent years, a large number of applications have been developed for image processing systems in the area of biological imaging. We have already finished the development of a dedicated microcomputer-based image processing and analysis system for quantitative microscopy. The system's primary function has been to facilitate and ultimately automate quantitative image analysis tasks such as the measurement of cellular DNA contents. We have recognized from this development experience, and interaction with system users, biologists and technicians, that the increasingly widespread use of image processing systems, and the development and application of new techniques for utilizing the capabilities of such systems, would generate a need for some kind of inexpensive general purpose image acquisition and processing system specially tailored for the needs of the medical community. We are currently engaged in the development and testing of hardware and software for a fairly high-performance image processing computer system based on a popular personal computer. In this paper, we describe the design and development of this system. Biological image processing computer systems have now reached a level of hardware and software refinement where they could become convenient image analysis tools for biologists. The development of a general purpose image processing system for quantitative image analysis that is inexpensive, flexible, and easy-to-use represents a significant step towards making the microscopic digital image processing techniques more widely applicable not only in a research environment as a biologist's workstation, but also in clinical environments as a diagnostic tool.

Patient-adapted reconstruction and acquisition dynamic imaging method (PARADIGM) for MRI

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aggarwal, Nitin; Bresler, Yoram

2008-01-01

Dynamic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a challenging problem because the MR data acquisition is often not fast enough to meet the combined spatial and temporal Nyquist sampling rate requirements. Current approaches to this problem include hardware-based acceleration of the acquisition, and model-based image reconstruction techniques. In this paper we propose an alternative approach, called PARADIGM, which adapts both the acquisition and reconstruction to the spatio-temporal characteristics of the imaged object. The approach is based on time-sequential sampling theory, addressing the problem of acquiring a spatio-temporal signal under the constraint that only a limited amount of data can be acquired at a time instant. PARADIGM identifies a model class for the particular imaged object using a scout MR scan or auxiliary data. This object-adapted model is then used to optimize MR data acquisition, such that the imaging constraints are met, acquisition speed requirements are minimized, essentially perfect reconstruction of any object in the model class is guaranteed, and the inverse problem of reconstructing the dynamic object has a condition number of one. We describe spatio-temporal object models for various dynamic imaging applications including cardiac imaging. We present the theory underlying PARADIGM and analyze its performance theoretically and numerically. We also propose a practical MR imaging scheme for 2D dynamic cardiac imaging based on the theory. For this application, PARADIGM is predicted to provide a 10–25 × acceleration compared to the optimal non-adaptive scheme. Finally we present generalized optimality criteria and extend the scheme to dynamic imaging with three spatial dimensions

Cross-Correlation-Function-Based Multipath Mitigation Method for Sine-BOC Signals

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

H. H. Chen

2012-06-01

Full Text Available Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS positioning accuracy indoor and urban canyons environments are greatly affected by multipath due to distortions in its autocorrelation function. In this paper, a cross-correlation function between the received sine phased Binary Offset Carrier (sine-BOC modulation signal and the local signal is studied firstly, and a new multipath mitigation method based on cross-correlation function for sine-BOC signal is proposed. This method is implemented to create a cross-correlation function by designing the modulated symbols of the local signal. The theoretical analysis and simulation results indicate that the proposed method exhibits better multipath mitigation performance compared with the traditional Double Delta Correlator (DDC techniques, especially the medium/long delay multipath signals, and it is also convenient and flexible to implement by using only one correlator, which is the case of low-cost mass-market receivers.

Estimation of uncertainty bounds for individual particle image velocimetry measurements from cross-correlation peak ratio

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Charonko, John J; Vlachos, Pavlos P

2013-01-01

Numerous studies have established firmly that particle image velocimetry (PIV) is a robust method for non-invasive, quantitative measurements of fluid velocity, and that when carefully conducted, typical measurements can accurately detect displacements in digital images with a resolution well below a single pixel (in some cases well below a hundredth of a pixel). However, to date, these estimates have only been able to provide guidance on the expected error for an average measurement under specific image quality and flow conditions. This paper demonstrates a new method for estimating the uncertainty bounds to within a given confidence interval for a specific, individual measurement. Here, cross-correlation peak ratio, the ratio of primary to secondary peak height, is shown to correlate strongly with the range of observed error values for a given measurement, regardless of flow condition or image quality. This relationship is significantly stronger for phase-only generalized cross-correlation PIV processing, while the standard correlation approach showed weaker performance. Using an analytical model of the relationship derived from synthetic data sets, the uncertainty bounds at a 95% confidence interval are then computed for several artificial and experimental flow fields, and the resulting errors are shown to match closely to the predicted uncertainties. While this method stops short of being able to predict the true error for a given measurement, knowledge of the uncertainty level for a PIV experiment should provide great benefits when applying the results of PIV analysis to engineering design studies and computational fluid dynamics validation efforts. Moreover, this approach is exceptionally simple to implement and requires negligible additional computational cost. (paper)

Extracting flat-field images from scene-based image sequences using phase correlation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Caron, James N., E-mail: Caron@RSImd.com [Research Support Instruments, 4325-B Forbes Boulevard, Lanham, Maryland 20706 (United States); Montes, Marcos J. [Naval Research Laboratory, Code 7231, 4555 Overlook Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20375 (United States); Obermark, Jerome L. [Naval Research Laboratory, Code 8231, 4555 Overlook Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20375 (United States)

2016-06-15

Flat-field image processing is an essential step in producing high-quality and radiometrically calibrated images. Flat-fielding corrects for variations in the gain of focal plane array electronics and unequal illumination from the system optics. Typically, a flat-field image is captured by imaging a radiometrically uniform surface. The flat-field image is normalized and removed from the images. There are circumstances, such as with remote sensing, where a flat-field image cannot be acquired in this manner. For these cases, we developed a phase-correlation method that allows the extraction of an effective flat-field image from a sequence of scene-based displaced images. The method uses sub-pixel phase correlation image registration to align the sequence to estimate the static scene. The scene is removed from sequence producing a sequence of misaligned flat-field images. An average flat-field image is derived from the realigned flat-field sequence.

Time-of-flight camera via a single-pixel correlation image sensor

Science.gov (United States)

Mao, Tianyi; Chen, Qian; He, Weiji; Dai, Huidong; Ye, Ling; Gu, Guohua

2018-04-01

A time-of-flight imager based on single-pixel correlation image sensors is proposed for noise-free depth map acquisition in presence of ambient light. Digital micro-mirror device and time-modulated IR-laser provide spatial and temporal illumination on the unknown object. Compressed sensing and ‘four bucket principle’ method are combined to reconstruct the depth map from a sequence of measurements at a low sampling rate. Second-order correlation transform is also introduced to reduce the noise from the detector itself and direct ambient light. Computer simulations are presented to validate the computational models and improvement of reconstructions.

Field Strain Measurement on the Fiber Scale in Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymers Using Global Finite-Element Based Digital Image Correlation

KAUST Repository

Tao, Ran

2015-01-01

is aimed to accurately measure the displacement and strain fields at the fiber-matrix scale in a cross-ply composite. First, the theories of both local subset-based digital image correlation (DIC) and global finite-element based DIC are outlined. Second, in

High precision Cross-correlated imaging in Few-mode fibers

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Muliar, Olena; Usuga Castaneda, Mario A.; Kristensen, Torben

2017-01-01

us to distinguishing differential time delays between HOMs in the picosecond timescale. Broad wavelength scanning in combination with spectral shaping, allows us to estimate the modal behavior of FMF without prior knowledge of the fiber parameters. We performed our demonstration at wavelengths from...... existing approaches for modal content analysis, several methods as S2, C2 in time and frequency domain are available. In this contribution we will present an improved time-domain cross-correlated (C2) imaging technique for the experimental evaluation of modal properties in HOM fibers over a broad range......) in a few-mode fiber (FMF) are used as multiple spatial communication channels, comes in this context as a viable approach to enable the optimization of high-capacity links. From this perspective, it becomes highly necessary to possess a diagnostic tool for the precise modal characterization of FMFs. Among...

TH-E-17A-07: Improved Cine Four-Dimensional Computed Tomography (4D CT) Acquisition and Processing Method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Castillo, S; Castillo, R; Castillo, E; Pan, T; Ibbott, G; Balter, P; Hobbs, B; Dai, J; Guerrero, T

2014-01-01

Purpose: Artifacts arising from the 4D CT acquisition and post-processing methods add systematic uncertainty to the treatment planning process. We propose an alternate cine 4D CT acquisition and post-processing method to consistently reduce artifacts, and explore patient parameters indicative of image quality. Methods: In an IRB-approved protocol, 18 patients with primary thoracic malignancies received a standard cine 4D CT acquisition followed by an oversampling 4D CT that doubled the number of images acquired. A second cohort of 10 patients received the clinical 4D CT plus 3 oversampling scans for intra-fraction reproducibility. The clinical acquisitions were processed by the standard phase sorting method. The oversampling acquisitions were processed using Dijkstras algorithm to optimize an artifact metric over available image data. Image quality was evaluated with a one-way mixed ANOVA model using a correlation-based artifact metric calculated from the final 4D CT image sets. Spearman correlations and a linear mixed model tested the association between breathing parameters, patient characteristics, and image quality. Results: The oversampling 4D CT scans reduced artifact presence significantly by 27% and 28%, for the first cohort and second cohort respectively. From cohort 2, the inter-replicate deviation for the oversampling method was within approximately 13% of the cross scan average at the 0.05 significance level. Artifact presence for both clinical and oversampling methods was significantly correlated with breathing period (ρ=0.407, p-value<0.032 clinical, ρ=0.296, p-value<0.041 oversampling). Artifact presence in the oversampling method was significantly correlated with amount of data acquired, (ρ=-0.335, p-value<0.02) indicating decreased artifact presence with increased breathing cycles per scan location. Conclusion: The 4D CT oversampling acquisition with optimized sorting reduced artifact presence significantly and reproducibly compared to the phase

Image correlation spectroscopy: mapping correlations in space, time, and reciprocal space.

Science.gov (United States)

Wiseman, Paul W

2013-01-01

This chapter presents an overview of two recent implementations of image correlation spectroscopy (ICS). The background theory is presented for spatiotemporal image correlation spectroscopy and image cross-correlation spectroscopy (STICS and STICCS, respectively) as well as k-(reciprocal) space image correlation spectroscopy (kICS). An introduction to the background theory is followed by sections outlining procedural aspects for properly implementing STICS, STICCS, and kICS. These include microscopy image collection, sampling in space and time, sample and fluorescent probe requirements, signal to noise, and background considerations that are all required to properly implement the ICS methods. Finally, procedural steps for immobile population removal and actual implementation of the ICS analysis programs to fluorescence microscopy image time stacks are described. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Amplitudes, acquisition and imaging

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bloor, Robert

1998-12-31

Accurate seismic amplitude information is important for the successful evaluation of many prospects and the importance of such amplitude information is increasing with the advent of time lapse seismic techniques. It is now widely accepted that the proper treatment of amplitudes requires seismic imaging in the form of either time or depth migration. A key factor in seismic imaging is the spatial sampling of the data and its relationship to the imaging algorithms. This presentation demonstrates that acquisition caused spatial sampling irregularity can affect the seismic imaging and perturb amplitudes. Equalization helps to balance the amplitudes, and the dealing strategy improves the imaging further when there are azimuth variations. Equalization and dealiasing can also help with the acquisition irregularities caused by shot and receiver dislocation or missing traces. 2 refs., 2 figs.

Smartphone based scalable reverse engineering by digital image correlation

Science.gov (United States)

Vidvans, Amey; Basu, Saurabh

2018-03-01

There is a need for scalable open source 3D reconstruction systems for reverse engineering. This is because most commercially available reconstruction systems are capital and resource intensive. To address this, a novel reconstruction technique is proposed. The technique involves digital image correlation based characterization of surface speeds followed by normalization with respect to angular speed during rigid body rotational motion of the specimen. Proof of concept of the same is demonstrated and validated using simulation and empirical characterization. Towards this, smart-phone imaging and inexpensive off the shelf components along with those fabricated additively using poly-lactic acid polymer with a standard 3D printer are used. Some sources of error in this reconstruction methodology are discussed. It is seen that high curvatures on the surface suppress accuracy of reconstruction. Reasons behind this are delineated in the nature of the correlation function. Theoretically achievable resolution during smart-phone based 3D reconstruction by digital image correlation is derived.

Analyzing the Cross-Correlation Between Onshore and Offshore RMB Exchange Rates Based on Multifractal Detrended Cross-Correlation Analysis (MF-DCCA)

Science.gov (United States)

Xie, Chi; Zhou, Yingying; Wang, Gangjin; Yan, Xinguo

We use the multifractal detrended cross-correlation analysis (MF-DCCA) method to explore the multifractal behavior of the cross-correlation between exchange rates of onshore RMB (CNY) and offshore RMB (CNH) against US dollar (USD). The empirical data are daily prices of CNY/USD and CNH/USD from May 1, 2012 to February 29, 2016. The results demonstrate that: (i) the cross-correlation between CNY/USD and CNH/USD is persistent and its fluctuation is smaller when the order of fluctuation function is negative than that when the order is positive; (ii) the multifractal behavior of the cross-correlation between CNY/USD and CNH/USD is significant during the sample period; (iii) the dynamic Hurst exponents obtained by the rolling windows analysis show that the cross-correlation is stable when the global economic situation is good and volatile in bad situation; and (iv) the non-normal distribution of original data has a greater effect on the multifractality of the cross-correlation between CNY/USD and CNH/USD than the temporary correlation.

A Real-Time Image Acquisition And Processing System For A RISC-Based Microcomputer

Science.gov (United States)

Luckman, Adrian J.; Allinson, Nigel M.

1989-03-01

A low cost image acquisition and processing system has been developed for the Acorn Archimedes microcomputer. Using a Reduced Instruction Set Computer (RISC) architecture, the ARM (Acorn Risc Machine) processor provides instruction speeds suitable for image processing applications. The associated improvement in data transfer rate has allowed real-time video image acquisition without the need for frame-store memory external to the microcomputer. The system is comprised of real-time video digitising hardware which interfaces directly to the Archimedes memory, and software to provide an integrated image acquisition and processing environment. The hardware can digitise a video signal at up to 640 samples per video line with programmable parameters such as sampling rate and gain. Software support includes a work environment for image capture and processing with pixel, neighbourhood and global operators. A friendly user interface is provided with the help of the Archimedes Operating System WIMP (Windows, Icons, Mouse and Pointer) Manager. Windows provide a convenient way of handling images on the screen and program control is directed mostly by pop-up menus.

Cross correlations of quantum key distribution based on single-photon sources

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dong Shuangli; Wang Xiaobo; Zhang Guofeng; Sun Jianhu; Zhang Fang; Xiao Liantuan; Jia Suotang

2009-01-01

We theoretically analyze the second-order correlation function in a quantum key distribution system with real single-photon sources. Based on single-event photon statistics, the influence of the modification caused by an eavesdropper's intervention and the effects of background signals on the cross correlations between authorized partners are presented. On this basis, we have shown a secure range of correlation against the intercept-resend attacks.

Plant phenomics: an overview of image acquisition technologies and image data analysis algorithms.

Science.gov (United States)

Perez-Sanz, Fernando; Navarro, Pedro J; Egea-Cortines, Marcos

2017-11-01

The study of phenomes or phenomics has been a central part of biology. The field of automatic phenotype acquisition technologies based on images has seen an important advance in the last years. As with other high-throughput technologies, it addresses a common set of problems, including data acquisition and analysis. In this review, we give an overview of the main systems developed to acquire images. We give an in-depth analysis of image processing with its major issues and the algorithms that are being used or emerging as useful to obtain data out of images in an automatic fashion. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press.

Three-dimensional image acquisition and reconstruction system on a mobile device based on computer-generated integral imaging.

Science.gov (United States)

Erdenebat, Munkh-Uchral; Kim, Byeong-Jun; Piao, Yan-Ling; Park, Seo-Yeon; Kwon, Ki-Chul; Piao, Mei-Lan; Yoo, Kwan-Hee; Kim, Nam

2017-10-01

A mobile three-dimensional image acquisition and reconstruction system using a computer-generated integral imaging technique is proposed. A depth camera connected to the mobile device acquires the color and depth data of a real object simultaneously, and an elemental image array is generated based on the original three-dimensional information for the object, with lens array specifications input into the mobile device. The three-dimensional visualization of the real object is reconstructed on the mobile display through optical or digital reconstruction methods. The proposed system is implemented successfully and the experimental results certify that the system is an effective and interesting method of displaying real three-dimensional content on a mobile device.

A cross-correlation objective function for least-squares migration and visco-acoustic imaging

KAUST Repository

Dutta, Gaurav

2014-08-05

Conventional acoustic least-squares migration inverts for a reflectivity image that best matches the amplitudes of the observed data. However, for field data applications, it is not easy to match the recorded amplitudes because of the visco-elastic nature of the earth and inaccuracies in the estimation of source signature and strength at different shot locations. To relax the requirement for strong amplitude matching of least-squares migration, we use a normalized cross-correlation objective function that is only sensitive to the similarity between the predicted and the observed data. Such a normalized cross-correlation objective function is also equivalent to a time-domain phase inversion method where the main emphasis is only on matching the phase of the data rather than the amplitude. Numerical tests on synthetic and field data show that such an objective function can be used as an alternative to visco-acoustic least-squares reverse time migration (Qp-LSRTM) when there is strong attenuation in the subsurface and the estimation of the attenuation parameter Qp is insufficiently accurate.

A cross-correlation objective function for least-squares migration and visco-acoustic imaging

KAUST Repository

Dutta, Gaurav; Sinha, Mrinal; Schuster, Gerard T.

2014-01-01

Conventional acoustic least-squares migration inverts for a reflectivity image that best matches the amplitudes of the observed data. However, for field data applications, it is not easy to match the recorded amplitudes because of the visco-elastic nature of the earth and inaccuracies in the estimation of source signature and strength at different shot locations. To relax the requirement for strong amplitude matching of least-squares migration, we use a normalized cross-correlation objective function that is only sensitive to the similarity between the predicted and the observed data. Such a normalized cross-correlation objective function is also equivalent to a time-domain phase inversion method where the main emphasis is only on matching the phase of the data rather than the amplitude. Numerical tests on synthetic and field data show that such an objective function can be used as an alternative to visco-acoustic least-squares reverse time migration (Qp-LSRTM) when there is strong attenuation in the subsurface and the estimation of the attenuation parameter Qp is insufficiently accurate.

Intracellular dynamics and fate of polystyrene nanoparticles in A549 Lung epithelial cells monitored by image (cross-) correlation spectroscopy and single particle tracking.

Science.gov (United States)

Deville, Sarah; Penjweini, Rozhin; Smisdom, Nick; Notelaers, Kristof; Nelissen, Inge; Hooyberghs, Jef; Ameloot, Marcel

2015-10-01

Novel insights in nanoparticle (NP) uptake routes of cells, their intracellular trafficking and subcellular targeting can be obtained through the investigation of their temporal and spatial behavior. In this work, we present the application of image (cross-) correlation spectroscopy (IC(C)S) and single particle tracking (SPT) to monitor the intracellular dynamics of polystyrene (PS) NPs in the human lung carcinoma A549 cell line. The ensemble kinetic behavior of NPs inside the cell was characterized by temporal and spatiotemporal image correlation spectroscopy (TICS and STICS). Moreover, a more direct interpretation of the diffusion and flow detected in the NP motion was obtained by SPT by monitoring individual NPs. Both techniques demonstrate that the PS NP transport in A549 cells is mainly dependent on microtubule-assisted transport. By applying spatiotemporal image cross-correlation spectroscopy (STICCS), the correlated motions of NPs with the early endosomes, late endosomes and lysosomes are identified. PS NPs were equally distributed among the endolysosomal compartment during the time interval of the experiments. The cotransport of the NPs with the lysosomes is significantly larger compared to the other cell organelles. In the present study we show that the complementarity of ICS-based techniques and SPT enables a consistent elaborate model of the complex behavior of NPs inside biological systems. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The cross-correlation analysis of multi property of stock markets based on MM-DFA

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Yujun; Li, Jianping; Yang, Yimei

2017-09-01

In this paper, we propose a new method called DH-MXA based on distribution histograms of Hurst surface and multiscale multifractal detrended fluctuation analysis. The method allows us to investigate the cross-correlation characteristics among multiple properties of different stock time series. It may provide a new way of measuring the nonlinearity of several signals. It also can provide a more stable and faithful description of cross-correlation of multiple properties of stocks. The DH-MXA helps us to present much richer information than multifractal detrented cross-correlation analysis and allows us to assess many universal and subtle cross-correlation characteristics of stock markets. We show DH-MXA by selecting four artificial data sets and five properties of four stock time series from different countries. The results show that our proposed method can be adapted to investigate the cross-correlation of stock markets. In general, the American stock markets are more mature and less volatile than the Chinese stock markets.

A new methodology of spatial cross-correlation analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Yanguang

2015-01-01

Spatial correlation modeling comprises both spatial autocorrelation and spatial cross-correlation processes. The spatial autocorrelation theory has been well-developed. It is necessary to advance the method of spatial cross-correlation analysis to supplement the autocorrelation analysis. This paper presents a set of models and analytical procedures for spatial cross-correlation analysis. By analogy with Moran's index newly expressed in a spatial quadratic form, a theoretical framework is derived for geographical cross-correlation modeling. First, two sets of spatial cross-correlation coefficients are defined, including a global spatial cross-correlation coefficient and local spatial cross-correlation coefficients. Second, a pair of scatterplots of spatial cross-correlation is proposed, and the plots can be used to visually reveal the causality behind spatial systems. Based on the global cross-correlation coefficient, Pearson's correlation coefficient can be decomposed into two parts: direct correlation (partial correlation) and indirect correlation (spatial cross-correlation). As an example, the methodology is applied to the relationships between China's urbanization and economic development to illustrate how to model spatial cross-correlation phenomena. This study is an introduction to developing the theory of spatial cross-correlation, and future geographical spatial analysis might benefit from these models and indexes.

Efficient Lossy Compression for Compressive Sensing Acquisition of Images in Compressive Sensing Imaging Systems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiangwei Li

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Compressive Sensing Imaging (CSI is a new framework for image acquisition, which enables the simultaneous acquisition and compression of a scene. Since the characteristics of Compressive Sensing (CS acquisition are very different from traditional image acquisition, the general image compression solution may not work well. In this paper, we propose an efficient lossy compression solution for CS acquisition of images by considering the distinctive features of the CSI. First, we design an adaptive compressive sensing acquisition method for images according to the sampling rate, which could achieve better CS reconstruction quality for the acquired image. Second, we develop a universal quantization for the obtained CS measurements from CS acquisition without knowing any a priori information about the captured image. Finally, we apply these two methods in the CSI system for efficient lossy compression of CS acquisition. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed solution improves the rate-distortion performance by 0.4~2 dB comparing with current state-of-the-art, while maintaining a low computational complexity.

A New Method to Measure Crack Extension in Nuclear Graphite Based on Digital Image Correlation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shigang Lai

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Graphite components, used as moderators, reflectors, and core-support structures in a High-Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor, play an important role in the safety of the reactor. Specifically, they provide channels for the fuel elements, control rods, and coolant flow. Fracture is the main failure mode for graphite, and breaching of the above channels by crack extension will seriously threaten the safety of a reactor. In this paper, a new method based on digital image correlation (DIC is introduced for measuring crack extension in brittle materials. Cross-correlation of the displacements measured by DIC with a step function was employed to identify the advancing crack tip in a graphite beam specimen under three-point bending. The load-crack extension curve, which is required for analyzing the R-curve and tension softening behaviors, was obtained for this material. Furthermore, a sensitivity analysis of the threshold value employed for the cross-correlation parameter in the crack identification process was conducted. Finally, the results were verified using the finite element method.

A New Methodology of Spatial Cross-Correlation Analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Yanguang

2015-01-01

Spatial correlation modeling comprises both spatial autocorrelation and spatial cross-correlation processes. The spatial autocorrelation theory has been well-developed. It is necessary to advance the method of spatial cross-correlation analysis to supplement the autocorrelation analysis. This paper presents a set of models and analytical procedures for spatial cross-correlation analysis. By analogy with Moran’s index newly expressed in a spatial quadratic form, a theoretical framework is derived for geographical cross-correlation modeling. First, two sets of spatial cross-correlation coefficients are defined, including a global spatial cross-correlation coefficient and local spatial cross-correlation coefficients. Second, a pair of scatterplots of spatial cross-correlation is proposed, and the plots can be used to visually reveal the causality behind spatial systems. Based on the global cross-correlation coefficient, Pearson’s correlation coefficient can be decomposed into two parts: direct correlation (partial correlation) and indirect correlation (spatial cross-correlation). As an example, the methodology is applied to the relationships between China’s urbanization and economic development to illustrate how to model spatial cross-correlation phenomena. This study is an introduction to developing the theory of spatial cross-correlation, and future geographical spatial analysis might benefit from these models and indexes. PMID:25993120

Cross-border Mergers and Acquisitions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wang, Daojuan

This paper focuses on three topics in cross-border mergers and acquisitions (CBM&As) field: motivations for CBM&As, valuation techniques and CBM&A performance (assessment and the determinants). By taking an overview of what have been found so far in academic field and investigating...

Solid state NMR of proteins at high MAS frequencies: symmetry-based mixing and simultaneous acquisition of chemical shift correlation spectra

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bellstedt, Peter; Herbst, Christian; Häfner, Sabine; Leppert, Jörg; Görlach, Matthias; Ramachandran, Ramadurai

2012-01-01

We have carried out chemical shift correlation experiments with symmetry-based mixing sequences at high MAS frequencies and examined different strategies to simultaneously acquire 3D correlation spectra that are commonly required in the structural studies of proteins. The potential of numerically optimised symmetry-based mixing sequences and the simultaneous recording of chemical shift correlation spectra such as: 3D NCAC and 3D NHH with dual receivers, 3D NC′C and 3D C′NCA with sequential 13 C acquisitions, 3D NHH and 3D NC′H with sequential 1 H acquisitions and 3D CANH and 3D C’NH with broadband 13 C– 15 N mixing are demonstrated using microcrystalline samples of the β1 immunoglobulin binding domain of protein G (GB1) and the chicken α-spectrin SH3 domain.

Financial liberalization and stock market cross-correlation: MF-DCCA analysis based on Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect

Science.gov (United States)

Ruan, Qingsong; Zhang, Shuhua; Lv, Dayong; Lu, Xinsheng

2018-02-01

Based on the implementation of Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect in China, this paper examines the effects of financial liberalization on stock market comovement using both multifractal detrended fluctuation analysis (MF-DFA) and multifractal detrended cross-correlation analysis (MF-DCCA) methods. Results based on MF-DFA confirm the multifractality of Shanghai and Hong Kong stock markets, and the market efficiency of Shanghai stock market increased after the implementation of this connect program. Besides, analysis based on MF-DCCA has verified the existence of persistent cross-correlation between Shanghai and Hong Kong stock markets, and the cross-correlation gets stronger after the launch of this liberalization program. Finally, we find that fat-tail distribution is the main source of multifractality in the cross-correlations before the stock connect program, while long-range correlation contributes to the multifractality after this program.

Reliability-guided digital image correlation for image deformation measurement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pan Bing

2009-01-01

A universally applicable reliability-guided digital image correlation (DIC) method is proposed for reliable image deformation measurement. The zero-mean normalized cross correlation (ZNCC) coefficient is used to identify the reliability of the point computed. The correlation calculation begins with a seed point and is then guided by the ZNCC coefficient. That means the neighbors of the point with the highest ZNCC coefficient in a queue for computed points will be processed first. Thus the calculation path is always along the most reliable direction, and possible error propagation of the conventional DIC method can be avoided. The proposed novel DIC method is universally applicable to the images with shadows, discontinuous areas, and deformation discontinuity. Two image pairs were used to evaluate the performance of the proposed technique, and the successful results clearly demonstrate its robustness and effectiveness

Multifractal temporally weighted detrended cross-correlation analysis to quantify power-law cross-correlation and its application to stock markets

Science.gov (United States)

Wei, Yun-Lan; Yu, Zu-Guo; Zou, Hai-Long; Anh, Vo

2017-06-01

A new method—multifractal temporally weighted detrended cross-correlation analysis (MF-TWXDFA)—is proposed to investigate multifractal cross-correlations in this paper. This new method is based on multifractal temporally weighted detrended fluctuation analysis and multifractal cross-correlation analysis (MFCCA). An innovation of the method is applying geographically weighted regression to estimate local trends in the nonstationary time series. We also take into consideration the sign of the fluctuations in computing the corresponding detrended cross-covariance function. To test the performance of the MF-TWXDFA algorithm, we apply it and the MFCCA method on simulated and actual series. Numerical tests on artificially simulated series demonstrate that our method can accurately detect long-range cross-correlations for two simultaneously recorded series. To further show the utility of MF-TWXDFA, we apply it on time series from stock markets and find that power-law cross-correlation between stock returns is significantly multifractal. A new coefficient, MF-TWXDFA cross-correlation coefficient, is also defined to quantify the levels of cross-correlation between two time series.

Registration of FA and T1-weighted MRI data of healthy human brain based on template matching and normalized cross-correlation.

Science.gov (United States)

Malinsky, Milos; Peter, Roman; Hodneland, Erlend; Lundervold, Astri J; Lundervold, Arvid; Jan, Jiri

2013-08-01

In this work, we propose a new approach for three-dimensional registration of MR fractional anisotropy images with T1-weighted anatomy images of human brain. From the clinical point of view, this accurate coregistration allows precise detection of nerve fibers that is essential in neuroscience. A template matching algorithm combined with normalized cross-correlation was used for this registration task. To show the suitability of the proposed method, it was compared with the normalized mutual information-based B-spline registration provided by the Elastix software library, considered a reference method. We also propose a general framework for the evaluation of robustness and reliability of both registration methods. Both registration methods were tested by four evaluation criteria on a dataset consisting of 74 healthy subjects. The template matching algorithm has shown more reliable results than the reference method in registration of the MR fractional anisotropy and T1 anatomy image data. Significant differences were observed in the regions splenium of corpus callosum and genu of corpus callosum, considered very important areas of brain connectivity. We demonstrate that, in this registration task, the currently used mutual information-based parametric registration can be replaced by more accurate local template matching utilizing the normalized cross-correlation similarity measure.

Political rotations and cross-province acquisitions in China

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Muratova, Yulia; Arnoldi, Jakob; Chen, Xin

2018-01-01

The underdeveloped institutional framework and trade barriers between China’s provinces make cross-province acquisitions challenging. We explore how Chinese firms can mitigate this problem. Drawing on social network theory we propose that cross-province rotation of political leaders—a key element...... of the promotion system of political cadres in China—is a mechanism enabling growth through cross-province acquisitions. We conceptualize rotated leaders as brokers between two geographically dispersed networks. We contribute to the literature on the characteristics of Chinese social networks, the effect...... of political connections on firm strategy, and the impact of political rotations on firm growth in China’s provinces....

Solid state NMR of proteins at high MAS frequencies: symmetry-based mixing and simultaneous acquisition of chemical shift correlation spectra

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bellstedt, Peter [Fritz Lipmann Institute, Biomolecular NMR spectroscopy, Leibniz Institute for Age Research (Germany); Herbst, Christian [Ubon Ratchathani University, Department of Physics, Faculty of Science (Thailand); Haefner, Sabine; Leppert, Joerg; Goerlach, Matthias; Ramachandran, Ramadurai, E-mail: raman@fli-leibniz.de [Fritz Lipmann Institute, Biomolecular NMR spectroscopy, Leibniz Institute for Age Research (Germany)

2012-12-15

We have carried out chemical shift correlation experiments with symmetry-based mixing sequences at high MAS frequencies and examined different strategies to simultaneously acquire 3D correlation spectra that are commonly required in the structural studies of proteins. The potential of numerically optimised symmetry-based mixing sequences and the simultaneous recording of chemical shift correlation spectra such as: 3D NCAC and 3D NHH with dual receivers, 3D NC Prime C and 3D C Prime NCA with sequential {sup 13}C acquisitions, 3D NHH and 3D NC Prime H with sequential {sup 1}H acquisitions and 3D CANH and 3D C'NH with broadband {sup 13}C-{sup 15}N mixing are demonstrated using microcrystalline samples of the {beta}1 immunoglobulin binding domain of protein G (GB1) and the chicken {alpha}-spectrin SH3 domain.

Histogram-based normalization technique on human brain magnetic resonance images from different acquisitions.

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Xiaofei; Shi, Lin; Luo, Yishan; Yang, Wei; Li, Hongpeng; Liang, Peipeng; Li, Kuncheng; Mok, Vincent C T; Chu, Winnie C W; Wang, Defeng

2015-07-28

Intensity normalization is an important preprocessing step in brain magnetic resonance image (MRI) analysis. During MR image acquisition, different scanners or parameters would be used for scanning different subjects or the same subject at a different time, which may result in large intensity variations. This intensity variation will greatly undermine the performance of subsequent MRI processing and population analysis, such as image registration, segmentation, and tissue volume measurement. In this work, we proposed a new histogram normalization method to reduce the intensity variation between MRIs obtained from different acquisitions. In our experiment, we scanned each subject twice on two different scanners using different imaging parameters. With noise estimation, the image with lower noise level was determined and treated as the high-quality reference image. Then the histogram of the low-quality image was normalized to the histogram of the high-quality image. The normalization algorithm includes two main steps: (1) intensity scaling (IS), where, for the high-quality reference image, the intensities of the image are first rescaled to a range between the low intensity region (LIR) value and the high intensity region (HIR) value; and (2) histogram normalization (HN),where the histogram of low-quality image as input image is stretched to match the histogram of the reference image, so that the intensity range in the normalized image will also lie between LIR and HIR. We performed three sets of experiments to evaluate the proposed method, i.e., image registration, segmentation, and tissue volume measurement, and compared this with the existing intensity normalization method. It is then possible to validate that our histogram normalization framework can achieve better results in all the experiments. It is also demonstrated that the brain template with normalization preprocessing is of higher quality than the template with no normalization processing. We have proposed

A simple method to approximate liver size on cross-sectional images using living liver models

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Muggli, D.; Mueller, M.A.; Karlo, C.; Fornaro, J.; Marincek, B.; Frauenfelder, T.

2009-01-01

Aim: To assess whether a simple. diameter-based formula applicable to cross-sectional images can be used to calculate the total liver volume. Materials and methods: On 119 cross-sectional examinations (62 computed tomography and 57 magnetic resonance imaging) a simple, formula-based method to approximate the liver volume was evaluated. The total liver volume was approximated measuring the largest craniocaudal (cc), ventrodorsal (vd), and coronal (cor) diameters by two readers and implementing the equation: Vol estimated =ccxvdxcorx0.31. Inter-rater reliability, agreement, and correlation between liver volume calculation and virtual liver volumetry were analysed. Results: No significant disagreement between the two readers was found. The formula correlated significantly with the volumetric data (r > 0.85, p < 0.0001). In 81% of cases the error of the approximated volume was <10% and in 92% of cases <15% compared to the volumetric data. Conclusion: Total liver volume can be accurately estimated on cross-sectional images using a simple, diameter-based equation.

Validation of a raw data-based synchronization signal (kymogram) for phase-correlated cardiac image reconstruction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ertel, Dirk; Kachelriess, Marc; Kalender, Willi A.; Pflederer, Tobias; Achenbach, Stephan; Steffen, Peter

2008-01-01

Phase-correlated reconstruction is commonly used in computed tomography (CT)-based cardiac imaging. Alternatively to the commonly used ECG, the raw data-based kymogram function can be used as a synchronization signal. We used raw data of 100 consecutive patient exams to compare the performance of kymogram function to the ECG signal. For objective validation the correlation of the ECG and the kymogram was assessed. Additionally, we performed a double-blinded comparison of ECG-based and kymogram-based phase-correlated images. The two synchronization signals showed good correlation indicated by a mean difference in the detected heart rate of negligible 0.2 bpm. The mean image quality score was 2.0 points for kymogram-correlated images and 2.3 points for ECG-correlated images, respectively (3: best; 0: worst). The kymogram and the ECG provided images adequate for diagnosis for 93 and 97 patients, respectively. For 50% of the datasets the kymogram provided an equivalent or even higher image quality compared with the ECG signal. We conclude that an acceptable image quality can be assured in most cases by the kymogram. Improvements of image quality by the kymogram function were observed in a noticeable number of cases. The kymogram can serve as a backup solution when an ECG is not available or lacking in quality. (orig.)

Comprehensive quantification of signal-to-noise ratio and g-factor for image-based and k-space-based parallel imaging reconstructions.

Science.gov (United States)

Robson, Philip M; Grant, Aaron K; Madhuranthakam, Ananth J; Lattanzi, Riccardo; Sodickson, Daniel K; McKenzie, Charles A

2008-10-01

Parallel imaging reconstructions result in spatially varying noise amplification characterized by the g-factor, precluding conventional measurements of noise from the final image. A simple Monte Carlo based method is proposed for all linear image reconstruction algorithms, which allows measurement of signal-to-noise ratio and g-factor and is demonstrated for SENSE and GRAPPA reconstructions for accelerated acquisitions that have not previously been amenable to such assessment. Only a simple "prescan" measurement of noise amplitude and correlation in the phased-array receiver, and a single accelerated image acquisition are required, allowing robust assessment of signal-to-noise ratio and g-factor. The "pseudo multiple replica" method has been rigorously validated in phantoms and in vivo, showing excellent agreement with true multiple replica and analytical methods. This method is universally applicable to the parallel imaging reconstruction techniques used in clinical applications and will allow pixel-by-pixel image noise measurements for all parallel imaging strategies, allowing quantitative comparison between arbitrary k-space trajectories, image reconstruction, or noise conditioning techniques. (c) 2008 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Comparison of subset-based local and FE-based global digital image correlation: Theoretical error analysis and validation

KAUST Repository

Pan, B.; Wang, Bo; Lubineau, Gilles

2016-01-01

Subset-based local and finite-element-based (FE-based) global digital image correlation (DIC) approaches are the two primary image matching algorithms widely used for full-field displacement mapping. Very recently, the performances

Investigation of spatial correlation in MR images of human cerebral white matter using geostatistical methods

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Keil, Fabian

2014-01-01

Investigating the structure of human cerebral white matter is gaining interest in the neurological as well as in the neuroscientific community. It has been demonstrated in many studies that white matter is a very dynamic structure, rather than a static construct which does not change for a lifetime. That means, structural changes within white matter can be observed even on short timescales, e.g. in the course of normal ageing, neurodegenerative diseases or even during learning processes. To investigate these changes, one method of choice is the texture analysis of images obtained from white matter. In this regard, MRI plays a distinguished role as it provides a completely non-invasive way of acquiring in vivo images of human white matter. This thesis adapted a statistical texture analysis method, known as variography, to quantify the spatial correlation of human cerebral white matter based on MR images. This method, originally introduced in geoscience, relies on the idea of spatial correlation in geological phenomena: in naturally grown structures near things are correlated stronger to each other than distant things. This work reveals that the geological principle of spatial correlation can be applied to MR images of human cerebral white matter and proves that variography is an adequate method to quantify alterations therein. Since the process of MRI data acquisition is completely different to the measuring process used to quantify geological phenomena, the variographic analysis had to be adapted carefully to MR methods in order to provide a correctly working methodology. Therefore, theoretical considerations were evaluated with numerical samples in a first, and validated with real measurements in a second step. It was shown that MR variography facilitates to reduce the information stored in the texture of a white matter image to a few highly significant parameters, thereby quantifying heterogeneity and spatial correlation distance with an accuracy better than 5

Comparison of Subset-Based Local and Finite Element-Based Global Digital Image Correlation

KAUST Repository

Pan, Bing; Wang, B.; Lubineau, Gilles; Moussawi, Ali

2015-01-01

Digital image correlation (DIC) techniques require an image matching algorithm to register the same physical points represented in different images. Subset-based local DIC and finite element-based (FE-based) global DIC are the two primary image matching methods that have been extensively investigated and regularly used in the field of experimental mechanics. Due to its straightforward implementation and high efficiency, subset-based local DIC has been used in almost all commercial DIC packages. However, it is argued by some researchers that FE-based global DIC offers better accuracy because of the enforced continuity between element nodes. We propose a detailed performance comparison between these different DIC algorithms both in terms of measurement accuracy and computational efficiency. Then, by measuring displacements of the same calculation points using the same calculation algorithms (e.g., correlation criterion, initial guess estimation, subpixel interpolation, optimization algorithm and convergence conditions) and identical calculation parameters (e.g., subset or element size), the performances of subset-based local DIC and two FE-based global DIC approaches are carefully compared in terms of measurement error and computational efficiency using both numerical tests and real experiments. A detailed examination of the experimental results reveals that, when subset (element) size is not very small and the local deformation within a subset (element) can be well approximated by the shape function used, standard subset-based local DIC approach not only provides better results in measured displacements, but also demonstrates much higher computation efficiency. However, several special merits of FE-based global DIC approaches are indicated.

Comparison of Subset-Based Local and Finite Element-Based Global Digital Image Correlation

KAUST Repository

Pan, Bing

2015-02-12

Digital image correlation (DIC) techniques require an image matching algorithm to register the same physical points represented in different images. Subset-based local DIC and finite element-based (FE-based) global DIC are the two primary image matching methods that have been extensively investigated and regularly used in the field of experimental mechanics. Due to its straightforward implementation and high efficiency, subset-based local DIC has been used in almost all commercial DIC packages. However, it is argued by some researchers that FE-based global DIC offers better accuracy because of the enforced continuity between element nodes. We propose a detailed performance comparison between these different DIC algorithms both in terms of measurement accuracy and computational efficiency. Then, by measuring displacements of the same calculation points using the same calculation algorithms (e.g., correlation criterion, initial guess estimation, subpixel interpolation, optimization algorithm and convergence conditions) and identical calculation parameters (e.g., subset or element size), the performances of subset-based local DIC and two FE-based global DIC approaches are carefully compared in terms of measurement error and computational efficiency using both numerical tests and real experiments. A detailed examination of the experimental results reveals that, when subset (element) size is not very small and the local deformation within a subset (element) can be well approximated by the shape function used, standard subset-based local DIC approach not only provides better results in measured displacements, but also demonstrates much higher computation efficiency. However, several special merits of FE-based global DIC approaches are indicated.

Cross-Border Mergers and Acquisitions in China: A Test of the Free Cash Flow Hypothesis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yane Chandera

2014-08-01

Full Text Available This research investigates whether Chinese cross-border investments have positive impact onshareholders wealth and whether the amount of bidders’ free cash flow influences the shareholderreturns resulted from the acquisitions. The sample is based on 77 top Chinese cross-border investmentsduring the years 2005-2009 with each deal value of minimum US$100 million. The assessmentsof acquisition abnormal returns are based on the event study methodology (Brown & Warner, 1985.Cross-sectional regression analysis is used to determine the bidding firms factors which significantlyaffect the returns. Factors are examined using OLS with White’s heteroscedasticity-corrected standarderrors, since the assumption of homoscedasticity is likely to be violated. The study proves Chinesecross- border acquisitions result in positive abnormal returns which is consistent with synergyhypothesis. The amount of bidders’ free cash flow is also found to be marginally but positively associatedwith shareholders return which is consistent with Myers and Majluf’s pecking order hypothesisbut unsupportive of Jensen’s free cash flow hypothesis.

Cross-correlation analysis between Chinese TF contracts and treasury ETF based on high-frequency data

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Yu; Chen, Shi

2016-02-01

In this paper, we investigate the high-frequency cross-correlation relationship between Chinese treasury futures contracts and treasury ETF. We analyze the logarithmic return of these two price series, from which we can conclude that both return series are not normally distributed and the futures markets have greater volatility. We find significant cross-correlation between these two series. We further confirm the relationship using the DCCA coefficient and the DMCA coefficient. We quantify the long-range cross-correlation with DCCA method, and we further show that the relationship is multifractal. An arbitrage algorithm based on DFA regression with stable return is proposed in the last part.

Some practical considerations in finite element-based digital image correlation

KAUST Repository

Wang, Bo

2015-04-20

As an alternative to subset-based digital image correlation (DIC), finite element-based (FE-based) DIC method has gained increasing attention in the experimental mechanics community. However, the literature survey reveals that some important issues have not been well addressed in the published literatures. This work therefore aims to point out a few important considerations in the practical algorithm implementation of the FE-based DIC method, along with simple but effective solutions that can effectively tackle these issues. First, to better accommodate the possible intensity variations of the deformed images practically occurred in real experiments, a robust zero-mean normalized sum of squared difference criterion, instead of the commonly used sum of squared difference criterion, is introduced to quantify the similarity between reference and deformed elements in FE-based DIC. Second, to reduce the bias error induced by image noise and imperfect intensity interpolation, low-pass filtering of the speckle images with a 5×5 pixels Gaussian filter prior to correlation analysis, is presented. Third, to ensure the iterative calculation of FE-based DIC converges correctly and rapidly, an efficient subset-based DIC method, instead of simple integer-pixel displacement searching, is used to provide accurate initial guess of deformation for each calculation point. Also, the effects of various convergence criteria on the efficiency and accuracy of FE-based DIC are carefully examined, and a proper convergence criterion is recommended. The efficacy of these solutions is verified by numerical and real experiments. The results reveal that the improved FE-based DIC offers evident advantages over existing FE-based DIC method in terms of accuracy and efficiency. © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Implementation of an image acquisition and processing system based on FlexRIO, CameraLink and areaDetector

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Esquembri, S.; Ruiz, M. [Instrumentation and Applied Acoustic Research Group, Technical University of Madrid (UPM), Madrid (Spain); Barrera, E., E-mail: eduardo.barrera@upm.es [Instrumentation and Applied Acoustic Research Group, Technical University of Madrid (UPM), Madrid (Spain); Sanz, D.; Bustos, A. [Instrumentation and Applied Acoustic Research Group, Technical University of Madrid (UPM), Madrid (Spain); Castro, R.; Vega, J. [National Fusion Laboratory, CIEMAT, Madrid (Spain)

2016-11-15

Highlights: • The system presented acquires and process images from any CameraLink compliant camera. • The frame grabber implanted with FlexRIO technology have image time stamping and preprocessing capabilities. • The system is integrated into EPICS using areaDetector for a flexible configuration of image the acquisition and processing chain. • Is fully compatible with the architecture of the ITER Fast Controllers. - Abstract: Image processing systems are commonly used in current physics experiments, such as nuclear fusion experiments. These experiments usually require multiple cameras with different resolutions, framerates and, frequently, different software drivers. The integration of heterogeneous types of cameras without a unified hardware and software interface increases the complexity of the acquisition system. This paper presents the implementation of a distributed image acquisition and processing system for CameraLink cameras. This system implements a camera frame grabber using Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), a reconfigurable hardware platform that allows for image acquisition and real-time preprocessing. The frame grabber is integrated into Experimental Physics and Industrial Control System (EPICS) using the areaDetector EPICS software module, which offers a common interface shared among tens of cameras to configure the image acquisition and process these images in a distributed control system. The use of areaDetector also allows the image processing to be parallelized and concatenated using: multiple computers; areaDetector plugins; and the areaDetector standard type for data, NDArrays. The architecture developed is fully compatible with ITER Fast Controllers and the entire system has been validated using a camera hardware simulator that stream videos from fusion experiment databases.

An evaluation on CT image acquisition method for medical VR applications

Science.gov (United States)

Jang, Seong-wook; Ko, Junho; Yoo, Yon-sik; Kim, Yoonsang

2017-02-01

Recent medical virtual reality (VR) applications to minimize re-operations are being studied for improvements in surgical efficiency and reduction of operation error. The CT image acquisition method considering three-dimensional (3D) modeling for medical VR applications is important, because the realistic model is required for the actual human organ. However, the research for medical VR applications has focused on 3D modeling techniques and utilized 3D models. In addition, research on a CT image acquisition method considering 3D modeling has never been reported. The conventional CT image acquisition method involves scanning a limited area of the lesion for the diagnosis of doctors once or twice. However, the medical VR application is required to acquire the CT image considering patients' various postures and a wider area than the lesion. A wider area than the lesion is required because of the necessary process of comparing bilateral sides for dyskinesia diagnosis of the shoulder, pelvis, and leg. Moreover, patients' various postures are required due to the different effects on the musculoskeletal system. Therefore, in this paper, we perform a comparative experiment on the acquired CT images considering image area (unilateral/bilateral) and patients' postures (neutral/abducted). CT images are acquired from 10 patients for the experiments, and the acquired CT images are evaluated based on the length per pixel and the morphological deviation. Finally, by comparing the experiment results, we evaluate the CT image acquisition method for medical VR applications.

Antecedents of Cross-Border Acquisition Performance

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wang, Daojuan; Moini, Hamid; Kuada, John Ernest

2017-01-01

This study investigates the impacts of main implementation activities on the success of cross-border acquisitions (CBAs), using survey data from a sample of 103 CBAs conducted by the companies in Nordic countries. The results of OLS regression analysis indicate that due diligence, integration...

Implementation Issues of Cross-border Acquisitions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wang, Daojuan; Moini, Hamid; Kuada, John

This study investigates the impacts of main implementation activities on the success of cross-border acquisitions (CBAs) using the survey data from a sample of 103 CBAs conducted by the companies in Scandinavia. The results of regression analysis indicate that due diligence, integration extent...

Wear Detection of Drill Bit by Image-based Technique

Science.gov (United States)

Sukeri, Maziyah; Zulhilmi Paiz Ismadi, Mohd; Rahim Othman, Abdul; Kamaruddin, Shahrul

2018-03-01

Image processing for computer vision function plays an essential aspect in the manufacturing industries for the tool condition monitoring. This study proposes a dependable direct measurement method to measure the tool wear using image-based analysis. Segmentation and thresholding technique were used as the means to filter and convert the colour image to binary datasets. Then, the edge detection method was applied to characterize the edge of the drill bit. By using cross-correlation method, the edges of original and worn drill bits were correlated to each other. Cross-correlation graphs were able to detect the difference of the worn edge despite small difference between the graphs. Future development will focus on quantifying the worn profile as well as enhancing the sensitivity of the technique.

Quadrature Errors and DC Offsets Calibration of Analog Complex Cross-Correlator for Interferometric Passive Millimeter-Wave Imaging Applications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chao Wang

2018-02-01

Full Text Available The design and calibration of the cross-correlator are crucial issues for interferometric imaging systems. In this paper, an analog complex cross-correlator with output DC offsets and amplitudes calibration capability is proposed for interferometric passive millimeter-wave security sensing applications. By employing digital potentiometers in the low frequency amplification circuits of the correlator, the outputs characteristics of the correlator could be digitally controlled. A measurement system and a corresponding calibration scheme were developed in order to eliminate the output DC offsets and the quadrature amplitude error between the in-phase and the quadrature correlating subunits of the complex correlator. By using vector modulators to provide phase controllable correlated noise signals, the measurement system was capable of obtaining the output correlation circle of the correlator. When injected with −18 dBm correlated noise signals, the calibrated quadrature amplitude error was 0.041 dB and the calibrated DC offsets were under 26 mV, which was only 7.1% of the uncalibrated value. Furthermore, we also described a quadrature errors calibration algorithm in order to estimate the quadrature phase error and in order to improve the output phase accuracy of the correlator. After applying this calibration, we were able to reduce the output phase error of the correlator to 0.3°.

Investigation of a Cross-Correlation Based Optical Strain Measurement Technique for Detecting radial Growth on a Rotating Disk

Science.gov (United States)

Clem, Michelle M.; Woike, Mark R.

2013-01-01

and investigated in the controlled experiment. A range of known shifts are induced on the patterns; reference and data images are acquired before and after the induced shift, respectively, and the images are processed using the cross-correlation algorithms in order to determine the particle displacements. The effectiveness of each pattern at resolving the known shift is evaluated and discussed in order to choose the most suitable pattern to be implemented onto a rotating disk in the Rotordynamics Lab. Although testing on the rotating disk has not yet been performed, the driving principles behind the development of the present optical technique are based upon critical aspects of the future experiment, such as the amount of expected radial growth, disk analysis, and experimental design and are therefore addressed in the paper.

Multiscale Detrended Cross-Correlation Analysis of STOCK Markets

Science.gov (United States)

Yin, Yi; Shang, Pengjian

2014-06-01

In this paper, we employ the detrended cross-correlation analysis (DCCA) to investigate the cross-correlations between different stock markets. We report the results of cross-correlated behaviors in US, Chinese and European stock markets in period 1997-2012 by using DCCA method. The DCCA shows the cross-correlated behaviors of intra-regional and inter-regional stock markets in the short and long term which display the similarities and differences of cross-correlated behaviors simply and roughly and the persistence of cross-correlated behaviors of fluctuations. Then, because of the limitation and inapplicability of DCCA method, we propose multiscale detrended cross-correlation analysis (MSDCCA) method to avoid "a priori" selecting the ranges of scales over which two coefficients of the classical DCCA method are identified, and employ MSDCCA to reanalyze these cross-correlations to exhibit some important details such as the existence and position of minimum, maximum and bimodal distribution which are lost if the scale structure is described by two coefficients only and essential differences and similarities in the scale structures of cross-correlation of intra-regional and inter-regional markets. More statistical characteristics of cross-correlation obtained by MSDCCA method help us to understand how two different stock markets influence each other and to analyze the influence from thus two inter-regional markets on the cross-correlation in detail, thus we get a richer and more detailed knowledge of the complex evolutions of dynamics of the cross-correlations between stock markets. The application of MSDCCA is important to promote our understanding of the internal mechanisms and structures of financial markets and helps to forecast the stock indices based on our current results demonstrated the cross-correlations between stock indices. We also discuss the MSDCCA methods of secant rolling window with different sizes and, lastly, provide some relevant implications and

Effects of Resolution, Range, and Image Contrast on Target Acquisition Performance.

Science.gov (United States)

Hollands, Justin G; Terhaar, Phil; Pavlovic, Nada J

2018-05-01

We sought to determine the joint influence of resolution, target range, and image contrast on the detection and identification of targets in simulated naturalistic scenes. Resolution requirements for target acquisition have been developed based on threshold values obtained using imaging systems, when target range was fixed, and image characteristics were determined by the system. Subsequent work has examined the influence of factors like target range and image contrast on target acquisition. We varied the resolution and contrast of static images in two experiments. Participants (soldiers) decided whether a human target was located in the scene (detection task) or whether a target was friendly or hostile (identification task). Target range was also varied (50-400 m). In Experiment 1, 30 participants saw color images with a single target exemplar. In Experiment 2, another 30 participants saw monochrome images containing different target exemplars. The effects of target range and image contrast were qualitatively different above and below 6 pixels per meter of target for both tasks in both experiments. Target detection and identification performance were a joint function of image resolution, range, and contrast for both color and monochrome images. The beneficial effects of increasing resolution for target acquisition performance are greater for closer (larger) targets.

Computational nanometrology of line-edge roughness: noise effects, cross-line correlations and the role of etch transfer

Science.gov (United States)

Constantoudis, Vassilios; Papavieros, George; Lorusso, Gian; Rutigliani, Vito; Van Roey, Frieda; Gogolides, Evangelos

2018-03-01

The aim of this paper is to investigate the role of etch transfer in two challenges of LER metrology raised by recent evolutions in lithography: the effects of SEM noise and the cross-line and edge correlations. The first comes from the ongoing scaling down of linewidths, which dictates SEM imaging with less scanning frames to reduce specimen damage and hence with more noise. During the last decade, it has been shown that image noise can be an important budget of the measured LER while systematically affects and alter the PSD curve of LER at high frequencies. A recent method for unbiased LER measurement is based on the systematic Fourier or correlation analysis to decompose the effects of noise from true LER (Fourier-Correlation filtering method). The success of the method depends on the PSD and HHCF curve. Previous experimental and model works have revealed that etch transfer affects the PSD of LER reducing its high frequency values. In this work, we estimate the noise contribution to the biased LER through PSD flat floor at high frequencies and relate it with the differences between the PSDs of lithography and etched LER. Based on this comparison, we propose an improvement of the PSD/HHCF-based method for noise-free LER measurement to include the missed high frequency real LER. The second issue is related with the increased density of lithographic patterns and the special characteristics of DSA and MP lithography patterns exhibits. In a previous work, we presented an enlarged LER characterization methodology for such patterns, which includes updated versions of the old metrics along with new metrics defined and developed to capture cross-edge and cross-line correlations. The fundamental concept has been the Line Center Roughness (LCR), the edge c-factor and the line c-factor correlation function and length quantifying the line fluctuations and the extent of cross-edge and cross-line correlations. In this work, we focus on the role of etch steps on cross-edge and

Evidence-based recommendations for musculoskeletal kinematic 4D-CT studies using wide area-detector scanners: a phantom study with cadaveric correlation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gondim Teixeira, Pedro Augusto; Formery, Anne-Sophie; Blum, Alain [CHRU-Nancy Hopital Central, Service d' Imagerie Guilloz, Nancy (France); Hossu, Gabriela [Universite de Lorraine, IADI U947, Nancy (France); INSERM, CIC-IT 1433, Nancy (France); Winninger, Daniel [IDCmem, Nancy (France); Batch, Toufik [Hopital de Mercy, Service de Radiologie, Metz (France); Gervaise, Alban [Legouest Military Instruction Hospital, Medical Imaging Department, Metz (France)

2017-02-15

To establish evidence-based recommendations for musculoskeletal kinematic 4D-CT on wide area-detector CT. In order to assess factors influencing image quality in kinematic CT studies, a phantom consisting of a polymethylmethacrylate rotating disk with round wells of different sizes was imaged with various acquisition protocols. Cadaveric acquisitions were performed on the ankle joint during motion in two different axes and at different speeds to allow validation of phantom data. Images were acquired with a 320 detector-row CT scanner and were evaluated by two readers. Motion artefacts were significantly correlated with various parameters (movement axis, distance to centre, rotation speed and volume acquisition speed) (p < 0.0001). The relation between motion artefacts and distance to motion fulcrum was exponential (R{sup 2} 0.99). Half reconstruction led to a 23 % increase in image noise and a 40 % decrease in motion artefacts. Cadaveric acquisitions confirmed phantom data. Based on these findings, high tube rotation speed and half reconstruction are recommended for kinematic CT. The axis of motion significantly influences image artefacts and should be considered in patient training and evaluation of acquisition protocol suitability. This study provides evidence-based recommendations for musculoskeletal kinematic 4D-CT. (orig.)

Maximum-likelihood-based extended-source spatial acquisition and tracking for planetary optical communications

Science.gov (United States)

Tsou, Haiping; Yan, Tsun-Yee

1999-04-01

This paper describes an extended-source spatial acquisition and tracking scheme for planetary optical communications. This scheme uses the Sun-lit Earth image as the beacon signal, which can be computed according to the current Sun-Earth-Probe angle from a pre-stored Earth image or a received snapshot taken by other Earth-orbiting satellite. Onboard the spacecraft, the reference image is correlated in the transform domain with the received image obtained from a detector array, which is assumed to have each of its pixels corrupted by an independent additive white Gaussian noise. The coordinate of the ground station is acquired and tracked, respectively, by an open-loop acquisition algorithm and a closed-loop tracking algorithm derived from the maximum likelihood criterion. As shown in the paper, the optimal spatial acquisition requires solving two nonlinear equations, or iteratively solving their linearized variants, to estimate the coordinate when translation in the relative positions of onboard and ground transceivers is considered. Similar assumption of linearization leads to the closed-loop spatial tracking algorithm in which the loop feedback signals can be derived from the weighted transform-domain correlation. Numerical results using a sample Sun-lit Earth image demonstrate that sub-pixel resolutions can be achieved by this scheme in a high disturbance environment.

Froth Image Acquisition and Enhancement on Optical Correction and Retinex Compensation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Weixing Wang

2018-03-01

Full Text Available To well monitor and optimize the flotation production, a computer vision and image analysis system is used. In such a system, the first important step is to acquire the froth surface images in high quality. Froth imaging quality is hard to control, and the industrial field noise, froth 3D properties, complex textures, and mixed colors can also cause the flotation image to be difficult to segment and process. To acquire high quality images, a new system for image acquisition of the lead flotation is studied. The system constructs the free-form surface lens based on the non-imaging optics theory, which can improve the optical efficiency of the lens and the uniformity of light sources, and can reduce flare effects. For the compensation, an improved MSR (Multi-Scale Retinex adaptive image algorithm is proposed to increase the brightness and intensity contrast for small bubbles, and to enhance texture details and froth weak edges by analyzing the Retinex output characteristics of the shaded area and improving the gain function. Under the condition of the optimal parameters, the image acquisition system can obtain uniform illumination and reduce different noises. Experiments show that the new froth image acquisition system increases Signal/Noise by 14%, contrast by 21%, and image segmentation accuracy by 26% in an image.

Task-based data-acquisition optimization for sparse image reconstruction systems

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Yujia; Lou, Yang; Kupinski, Matthew A.; Anastasio, Mark A.

2017-03-01

Conventional wisdom dictates that imaging hardware should be optimized by use of an ideal observer (IO) that exploits full statistical knowledge of the class of objects to be imaged, without consideration of the reconstruction method to be employed. However, accurate and tractable models of the complete object statistics are often difficult to determine in practice. Moreover, in imaging systems that employ compressive sensing concepts, imaging hardware and (sparse) image reconstruction are innately coupled technologies. We have previously proposed a sparsity-driven ideal observer (SDIO) that can be employed to optimize hardware by use of a stochastic object model that describes object sparsity. The SDIO and sparse reconstruction method can therefore be "matched" in the sense that they both utilize the same statistical information regarding the class of objects to be imaged. To efficiently compute SDIO performance, the posterior distribution is estimated by use of computational tools developed recently for variational Bayesian inference. Subsequently, the SDIO test statistic can be computed semi-analytically. The advantages of employing the SDIO instead of a Hotelling observer are systematically demonstrated in case studies in which magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data acquisition schemes are optimized for signal detection tasks.

Multifractal detrended cross-correlation between the Chinese domestic and international gold markets based on DCCA and DMCA methods

Science.gov (United States)

Cao, Guangxi; Han, Yan; Chen, Yuemeng; Yang, Chunxia

2014-05-01

Based on the daily price data of Shanghai and London gold spot markets, we applied detrended cross-correlation analysis (DCCA) and detrended moving average cross-correlation analysis (DMCA) methods to quantify power-law cross-correlation between domestic and international gold markets. Results show that the cross-correlations between the Chinese domestic and international gold spot markets are multifractal. Furthermore, forward DMCA and backward DMCA seems to outperform DCCA and centered DMCA for short-range gold series, which confirms the comparison results of short-range artificial data in L. Y. He and S. P. Chen [Physica A 390 (2011) 3806-3814]. Finally, we analyzed the local multifractal characteristics of the cross-correlation between Chinese domestic and international gold markets. We show that multifractal characteristics of the cross-correlation between the Chinese domestic and international gold markets are time-varying and that multifractal characteristics were strengthened by the financial crisis in 2007-2008.

Gallium-67 imaging with low collimators and energy weighted acquisition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hamill, J.J.; DeVito, R.P.

1990-01-01

This paper reports that the medium and high energy collimators used in 67 Ga imaging have poorer resolution than low-energy collimators, such as the LEAP. The low energy collimators could be used for gallium imaging if the background under the 93 and 185 keV peaks could be reduced without degrading the signal-to-noise ratio unacceptably. energy weighted acquisition provides a means of accomplishing this background reduction. The authors have developed weighing functions for gallium imaging through LEAP and high resolution collimators. The resolution of the low energy collimators is realized while the background is comparable to, or better than, the background in normal, energy-window imaging with the medium energy collimator. The pixel noise is somewhat greater than the Poisson noise in normal gallium imaging, and some noise correlations, or noise texture, is introduced

High performance image acquisition and processing architecture for fast plant system controllers based on FPGA and GPU

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nieto, J.; Sanz, D.; Guillén, P.; Esquembri, S.; Arcas, G. de; Ruiz, M.; Vega, J.; Castro, R.

2016-01-01

Highlights: • To test an image acquisition and processing system for Camera Link devices based in a FPGA, compliant with ITER fast controllers. • To move data acquired from the set NI1483-NIPXIe7966R directly to a NVIDIA GPU using NVIDIA GPUDirect RDMA technology. • To obtain a methodology to include GPUs processing in ITER Fast Plant Controllers, using EPICS integration through Nominal Device Support (NDS). - Abstract: The two dominant technologies that are being used in real time image processing are Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) and Graphical Processor Unit (GPU) due to their algorithm parallelization capabilities. But not much work has been done to standardize how these technologies can be integrated in data acquisition systems, where control and supervisory requirements are in place, such as ITER (International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor). This work proposes an architecture, and a development methodology, to develop image acquisition and processing systems based on FPGAs and GPUs compliant with ITER fast controller solutions. A use case based on a Camera Link device connected to an FPGA DAQ device (National Instruments FlexRIO technology), and a NVIDIA Tesla GPU series card has been developed and tested. The architecture proposed has been designed to optimize system performance by minimizing data transfer operations and CPU intervention thanks to the use of NVIDIA GPUDirect RDMA and DMA technologies. This allows moving the data directly between the different hardware elements (FPGA DAQ-GPU-CPU) avoiding CPU intervention and therefore the use of intermediate CPU memory buffers. A special effort has been put to provide a development methodology that, maintaining the highest possible abstraction from the low level implementation details, allows obtaining solutions that conform to CODAC Core System standards by providing EPICS and Nominal Device Support.

High performance image acquisition and processing architecture for fast plant system controllers based on FPGA and GPU

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nieto, J., E-mail: jnieto@sec.upm.es [Grupo de Investigación en Instrumentación y Acústica Aplicada, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Crta. Valencia Km-7, Madrid 28031 (Spain); Sanz, D.; Guillén, P.; Esquembri, S.; Arcas, G. de; Ruiz, M. [Grupo de Investigación en Instrumentación y Acústica Aplicada, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Crta. Valencia Km-7, Madrid 28031 (Spain); Vega, J.; Castro, R. [Asociación EURATOM/CIEMAT para Fusión, Madrid (Spain)

2016-11-15

Highlights: • To test an image acquisition and processing system for Camera Link devices based in a FPGA, compliant with ITER fast controllers. • To move data acquired from the set NI1483-NIPXIe7966R directly to a NVIDIA GPU using NVIDIA GPUDirect RDMA technology. • To obtain a methodology to include GPUs processing in ITER Fast Plant Controllers, using EPICS integration through Nominal Device Support (NDS). - Abstract: The two dominant technologies that are being used in real time image processing are Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) and Graphical Processor Unit (GPU) due to their algorithm parallelization capabilities. But not much work has been done to standardize how these technologies can be integrated in data acquisition systems, where control and supervisory requirements are in place, such as ITER (International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor). This work proposes an architecture, and a development methodology, to develop image acquisition and processing systems based on FPGAs and GPUs compliant with ITER fast controller solutions. A use case based on a Camera Link device connected to an FPGA DAQ device (National Instruments FlexRIO technology), and a NVIDIA Tesla GPU series card has been developed and tested. The architecture proposed has been designed to optimize system performance by minimizing data transfer operations and CPU intervention thanks to the use of NVIDIA GPUDirect RDMA and DMA technologies. This allows moving the data directly between the different hardware elements (FPGA DAQ-GPU-CPU) avoiding CPU intervention and therefore the use of intermediate CPU memory buffers. A special effort has been put to provide a development methodology that, maintaining the highest possible abstraction from the low level implementation details, allows obtaining solutions that conform to CODAC Core System standards by providing EPICS and Nominal Device Support.

Investigation of spatial correlation in MR images of human cerebral white matter using geostatistical methods

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Keil, Fabian

2014-03-20

Investigating the structure of human cerebral white matter is gaining interest in the neurological as well as in the neuroscientific community. It has been demonstrated in many studies that white matter is a very dynamic structure, rather than a static construct which does not change for a lifetime. That means, structural changes within white matter can be observed even on short timescales, e.g. in the course of normal ageing, neurodegenerative diseases or even during learning processes. To investigate these changes, one method of choice is the texture analysis of images obtained from white matter. In this regard, MRI plays a distinguished role as it provides a completely non-invasive way of acquiring in vivo images of human white matter. This thesis adapted a statistical texture analysis method, known as variography, to quantify the spatial correlation of human cerebral white matter based on MR images. This method, originally introduced in geoscience, relies on the idea of spatial correlation in geological phenomena: in naturally grown structures near things are correlated stronger to each other than distant things. This work reveals that the geological principle of spatial correlation can be applied to MR images of human cerebral white matter and proves that variography is an adequate method to quantify alterations therein. Since the process of MRI data acquisition is completely different to the measuring process used to quantify geological phenomena, the variographic analysis had to be adapted carefully to MR methods in order to provide a correctly working methodology. Therefore, theoretical considerations were evaluated with numerical samples in a first, and validated with real measurements in a second step. It was shown that MR variography facilitates to reduce the information stored in the texture of a white matter image to a few highly significant parameters, thereby quantifying heterogeneity and spatial correlation distance with an accuracy better than 5

Characteristics of angular cross correlations studied by light scattering from two-dimensional microsphere films

Science.gov (United States)

Schroer, M. A.; Gutt, C.; Grübel, G.

2014-07-01

Recently the analysis of scattering patterns by angular cross-correlation analysis (CCA) was introduced to reveal the orientational order in disordered samples with special focus to future applications on x-ray free-electron laser facilities. We apply this CCA approach to ultra-small-angle light-scattering data obtained from two-dimensional monolayers of microspheres. The films were studied in addition by optical microscopy. This combined approach allows to calculate the cross-correlations of the scattering patterns, characterized by the orientational correlation function Ψl(q), as well as to obtain the real-space structure of the monolayers. We show that CCA is sensitive to the orientational order of monolayers formed by the microspheres which are not directly visible from the scattering patterns. By mixing microspheres of different radii the sizes of ordered monolayer domains is reduced. For these samples it is shown that Ψl(q) quantitatively describes the degree of hexagonal order of the two-dimensional films. The experimental CCA results are compared with calculations based on the microscopy images. Both techniques show qualitatively similar features. Differences can be attributed to the wave-front distortion of the laser beam in the experiment. This effect is discussed by investigating the effect of different wave fronts on the cross-correlation analysis results. The so-determined characteristics of the cross-correlation analysis will be also relevant for future x-ray-based studies.

Optimization of image quality and acquisition time for lab-based X-ray microtomography using an iterative reconstruction algorithm

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Qingyang; Andrew, Matthew; Thompson, William; Blunt, Martin J.; Bijeljic, Branko

2018-05-01

Non-invasive laboratory-based X-ray microtomography has been widely applied in many industrial and research disciplines. However, the main barrier to the use of laboratory systems compared to a synchrotron beamline is its much longer image acquisition time (hours per scan compared to seconds to minutes at a synchrotron), which results in limited application for dynamic in situ processes. Therefore, the majority of existing laboratory X-ray microtomography is limited to static imaging; relatively fast imaging (tens of minutes per scan) can only be achieved by sacrificing imaging quality, e.g. reducing exposure time or number of projections. To alleviate this barrier, we introduce an optimized implementation of a well-known iterative reconstruction algorithm that allows users to reconstruct tomographic images with reasonable image quality, but requires lower X-ray signal counts and fewer projections than conventional methods. Quantitative analysis and comparison between the iterative and the conventional filtered back-projection reconstruction algorithm was performed using a sandstone rock sample with and without liquid phases in the pore space. Overall, by implementing the iterative reconstruction algorithm, the required image acquisition time for samples such as this, with sparse object structure, can be reduced by a factor of up to 4 without measurable loss of sharpness or signal to noise ratio.

Remote Sensing Image Fusion Based on the Combination Grey Absolute Correlation Degree and IHS Transform

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hui LIN

2014-12-01

Full Text Available An improved fusion algorithm for multi-source remote sensing images with high spatial resolution and multi-spectral capacity is proposed based on traditional IHS fusion and grey correlation analysis. Firstly, grey absolute correlation degree is used to discriminate non-edge pixels and edge pixels in high-spatial resolution images, by which the weight of intensity component is identified in order to combine it with high-spatial resolution image. Therefore, image fusion is achieved using IHS inverse transform. The proposed method is applied to ETM+ multi-spectral images and panchromatic image, and Quickbird’s multi-spectral images and panchromatic image respectively. The experiments prove that the fusion method proposed in the paper can efficiently preserve spectral information of the original multi-spectral images while enhancing spatial resolution greatly. By comparison and analysis, the proposed fusion algorithm is better than traditional IHS fusion and fusion method based on grey correlation analysis and IHS transform.

Digital image correlation based on a fast convolution strategy

Science.gov (United States)

Yuan, Yuan; Zhan, Qin; Xiong, Chunyang; Huang, Jianyong

2017-10-01

In recent years, the efficiency of digital image correlation (DIC) methods has attracted increasing attention because of its increasing importance for many engineering applications. Based on the classical affine optical flow (AOF) algorithm and the well-established inverse compositional Gauss-Newton algorithm, which is essentially a natural extension of the AOF algorithm under a nonlinear iterative framework, this paper develops a set of fast convolution-based DIC algorithms for high-efficiency subpixel image registration. Using a well-developed fast convolution technique, the set of algorithms establishes a series of global data tables (GDTs) over the digital images, which allows the reduction of the computational complexity of DIC significantly. Using the pre-calculated GDTs, the subpixel registration calculations can be implemented efficiently in a look-up-table fashion. Both numerical simulation and experimental verification indicate that the set of algorithms significantly enhances the computational efficiency of DIC, especially in the case of a dense data sampling for the digital images. Because the GDTs need to be computed only once, the algorithms are also suitable for efficiently coping with image sequences that record the time-varying dynamics of specimen deformations.

VOLUME STUDY WITH HIGH DENSITY OF PARTICLES BASED ON CONTOUR AND CORRELATION IMAGE ANALYSIS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tatyana Yu. Nikolaeva

2014-11-01

Full Text Available The subject of study is the techniques of particle statistics evaluation, in particular, processing methods of particle images obtained by coherent illumination. This paper considers the problem of recognition and statistical accounting for individual images of small scattering particles in an arbitrary section of the volume in case of high concentrations. For automatic recognition of focused particles images, a special algorithm for statistical analysis based on contouring and thresholding was used. By means of the mathematical formalism of the scalar diffraction theory, coherent images of the particles formed by the optical system with high numerical aperture were simulated. Numerical testing of the method proposed for the cases of different concentrations and distributions of particles in the volume was performed. As a result, distributions of density and mass fraction of the particles were obtained, and the efficiency of the method in case of different concentrations of particles was evaluated. At high concentrations, the effect of coherent superposition of the particles from the adjacent planes strengthens, which makes it difficult to recognize images of particles using the algorithm considered in the paper. In this case, we propose to supplement the method with calculating the cross-correlation function of particle images from adjacent segments of the volume, and evaluating the ratio between the height of the correlation peak and the height of the function pedestal in the case of different distribution characters. The method of statistical accounting of particles considered in this paper is of practical importance in the study of volume with particles of different nature, for example, in problems of biology and oceanography. Effective work in the regime of high concentrations expands the limits of applicability of these methods for practically important cases and helps to optimize determination time of the distribution character and

Mechanical shape correlation : a novel integrated digital image correlation approach

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kleinendorst, S.M.; Hoefnagels, J.P.M.; Geers, M.G.D.; Lamberti, L.; Lin, M.-T.; Furlong, C.; Sciammarella, C.

2018-01-01

Mechanical Shape Correlation (MSC) is a novel integrated digital image correlation technique, used to determine the optimal set of constitutive parameters to describe the experimentally observed mechanical behavior of a test specimen, based on digital images taken during the experiment. In contrast

General image acquisition parameters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Teissier, J.M.; Lopez, F.M.; Langevin, J.F.

1993-01-01

The general parameters are of primordial importance to achieve image quality in terms of spatial resolution and contrast. They also play a role in the acquisition time for each sequence. We describe them separately, before associating them in a decision tree gathering the various options that are possible for diagnosis

A prototype of on-line digital flow rate meter based on cross-correlation principle

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sun Xiaodong; Dai Zhenxi; Xu Jijun

1997-01-01

An on-line, digital prototype of flow rate measurement system based on cross-correlation principle is developed. Laboratory measurements using the prototype show that sufficiently large temperature fluctuations exist naturally and that measurements are possible. Temperature fluctuations are detected by two identical thermocouples spaced along the flow direction and are pre-processed by a thermocouple signal amplifier. The pre-processed temperature fluctuations are analyzed by a cross-correlator which measures the transit time of temperature fluctuations between two thermocouples directly. Thus, the so-called correlation velocity can be determined by a chip microprocessor 8031. Experimental results with single-phase under steady conditions also show that the distance between two thermocouples and the Reynolds number of fluid are the most important parameters to the measurement

Optimized image acquisition for breast tomosynthesis in projection and reconstruction space

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chawla, Amarpreet S.; Lo, Joseph Y.; Baker, Jay A.; Samei, Ehsan

2009-01-01

Breast tomosynthesis has been an exciting new development in the field of breast imaging. While the diagnostic improvement via tomosynthesis is notable, the full potential of tomosynthesis has not yet been realized. This may be attributed to the dependency of the diagnostic quality of tomosynthesis on multiple variables, each of which needs to be optimized. Those include dose, number of angular projections, and the total angular span of those projections. In this study, the authors investigated the effects of these acquisition parameters on the overall diagnostic image quality of breast tomosynthesis in both the projection and reconstruction space. Five mastectomy specimens were imaged using a prototype tomosynthesis system. 25 angular projections of each specimen were acquired at 6.2 times typical single-view clinical dose level. Images at lower dose levels were then simulated using a noise modification routine. Each projection image was supplemented with 84 simulated 3 mm 3D lesions embedded at the center of 84 nonoverlapping ROIs. The projection images were then reconstructed using a filtered backprojection algorithm at different combinations of acquisition parameters to investigate which of the many possible combinations maximizes the performance. Performance was evaluated in terms of a Laguerre-Gauss channelized Hotelling observer model-based measure of lesion detectability. The analysis was also performed without reconstruction by combining the model results from projection images using Bayesian decision fusion algorithm. The effect of acquisition parameters on projection images and reconstructed slices were then compared to derive an optimization rule for tomosynthesis. The results indicated that projection images yield comparable but higher performance than reconstructed images. Both modes, however, offered similar trends: Performance improved with an increase in the total acquisition dose level and the angular span. Using a constant dose level and angular

Image correlation method for DNA sequence alignment.

Science.gov (United States)

Curilem Saldías, Millaray; Villarroel Sassarini, Felipe; Muñoz Poblete, Carlos; Vargas Vásquez, Asticio; Maureira Butler, Iván

2012-01-01

The complexity of searches and the volume of genomic data make sequence alignment one of bioinformatics most active research areas. New alignment approaches have incorporated digital signal processing techniques. Among these, correlation methods are highly sensitive. This paper proposes a novel sequence alignment method based on 2-dimensional images, where each nucleic acid base is represented as a fixed gray intensity pixel. Query and known database sequences are coded to their pixel representation and sequence alignment is handled as object recognition in a scene problem. Query and database become object and scene, respectively. An image correlation process is carried out in order to search for the best match between them. Given that this procedure can be implemented in an optical correlator, the correlation could eventually be accomplished at light speed. This paper shows an initial research stage where results were "digitally" obtained by simulating an optical correlation of DNA sequences represented as images. A total of 303 queries (variable lengths from 50 to 4500 base pairs) and 100 scenes represented by 100 x 100 images each (in total, one million base pair database) were considered for the image correlation analysis. The results showed that correlations reached very high sensitivity (99.01%), specificity (98.99%) and outperformed BLAST when mutation numbers increased. However, digital correlation processes were hundred times slower than BLAST. We are currently starting an initiative to evaluate the correlation speed process of a real experimental optical correlator. By doing this, we expect to fully exploit optical correlation light properties. As the optical correlator works jointly with the computer, digital algorithms should also be optimized. The results presented in this paper are encouraging and support the study of image correlation methods on sequence alignment.

The impact of cine EPID image acquisition frame rate on markerless soft-tissue tracking

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yip, Stephen, E-mail: syip@lroc.harvard.edu; Rottmann, Joerg; Berbeco, Ross [Department of Radiation Oncology, Brigham and Women' s Hospital, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115 (United States)

2014-06-15

Purpose: Although reduction of the cine electronic portal imaging device (EPID) acquisition frame rate through multiple frame averaging may reduce hardware memory burden and decrease image noise, it can hinder the continuity of soft-tissue motion leading to poor autotracking results. The impact of motion blurring and image noise on the tracking performance was investigated. Methods: Phantom and patient images were acquired at a frame rate of 12.87 Hz with an amorphous silicon portal imager (AS1000, Varian Medical Systems, Palo Alto, CA). The maximum frame rate of 12.87 Hz is imposed by the EPID. Low frame rate images were obtained by continuous frame averaging. A previously validated tracking algorithm was employed for autotracking. The difference between the programmed and autotracked positions of a Las Vegas phantom moving in the superior-inferior direction defined the tracking error (δ). Motion blurring was assessed by measuring the area change of the circle with the greatest depth. Additionally, lung tumors on 1747 frames acquired at 11 field angles from four radiotherapy patients are manually and automatically tracked with varying frame averaging. δ was defined by the position difference of the two tracking methods. Image noise was defined as the standard deviation of the background intensity. Motion blurring and image noise are correlated with δ using Pearson correlation coefficient (R). Results: For both phantom and patient studies, the autotracking errors increased at frame rates lower than 4.29 Hz. Above 4.29 Hz, changes in errors were negligible withδ < 1.60 mm. Motion blurring and image noise were observed to increase and decrease with frame averaging, respectively. Motion blurring and tracking errors were significantly correlated for the phantom (R = 0.94) and patient studies (R = 0.72). Moderate to poor correlation was found between image noise and tracking error with R −0.58 and −0.19 for both studies, respectively. Conclusions: Cine EPID

The impact of cine EPID image acquisition frame rate on markerless soft-tissue tracking

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yip, Stephen; Rottmann, Joerg; Berbeco, Ross

2014-01-01

Purpose: Although reduction of the cine electronic portal imaging device (EPID) acquisition frame rate through multiple frame averaging may reduce hardware memory burden and decrease image noise, it can hinder the continuity of soft-tissue motion leading to poor autotracking results. The impact of motion blurring and image noise on the tracking performance was investigated. Methods: Phantom and patient images were acquired at a frame rate of 12.87 Hz with an amorphous silicon portal imager (AS1000, Varian Medical Systems, Palo Alto, CA). The maximum frame rate of 12.87 Hz is imposed by the EPID. Low frame rate images were obtained by continuous frame averaging. A previously validated tracking algorithm was employed for autotracking. The difference between the programmed and autotracked positions of a Las Vegas phantom moving in the superior-inferior direction defined the tracking error (δ). Motion blurring was assessed by measuring the area change of the circle with the greatest depth. Additionally, lung tumors on 1747 frames acquired at 11 field angles from four radiotherapy patients are manually and automatically tracked with varying frame averaging. δ was defined by the position difference of the two tracking methods. Image noise was defined as the standard deviation of the background intensity. Motion blurring and image noise are correlated with δ using Pearson correlation coefficient (R). Results: For both phantom and patient studies, the autotracking errors increased at frame rates lower than 4.29 Hz. Above 4.29 Hz, changes in errors were negligible withδ < 1.60 mm. Motion blurring and image noise were observed to increase and decrease with frame averaging, respectively. Motion blurring and tracking errors were significantly correlated for the phantom (R = 0.94) and patient studies (R = 0.72). Moderate to poor correlation was found between image noise and tracking error with R −0.58 and −0.19 for both studies, respectively. Conclusions: Cine EPID

A new imaging riometer based on Mills Cross technique

OpenAIRE

Grill, M.; Honary, F.; Nielsen, E.; Hagfors, T.; Dekoulis, G.; Chapman, P.; Yamagishi, H.

2003-01-01

A new type of imaging riometer system based on a Mills Cross antenna array is currently under construction by the Ionosphere and Radio Propagation Group, Department of Communication Systems, Lancaster in collaboration with the Max-Planck-Institut für Aeronomie, Germany. The system will have an unprecedented spatial resolution in a viewing area of 300x300km. It is located at Ramfjordmoen, near Tromsø, Norway. The riometer (relative ionospheric opacity meter) determines the radio-wave absorptio...

Influence of retrospective sorting on image quality in respiratory correlated computed tomography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guckenberger, Matthias; Weininger, Markus; Wilbert, Juergen; Richter, Anne; Baier, Kurt; Krieger, Thomas; Polat, Buelent; Flentje, Michael

2007-01-01

Purpose: To evaluate the influence of retrospective sorting on image quality in four-dimensional respiratory correlated CT. Materials and methods: Twelve patients with intrapulmonary tumors were examined using a 24-slice CT-scanner in helical mode. Images were reconstructed after retrospective sorting based on five algorithms: amplitude-based sorting with definition of peak-exhalation and peak-inhalation separately/locally for all breathing cycles (LAS) and globally for the time of image acquisition (GAS). Drifts of the breathing signal were corrected in dc-GAS. In phase-based (PS) and cycle-based (CS) algorithm the projections were sorted relative to time. Motion artifacts were scored by a radiologist. The tumor volumes were measured using automatic image segmentation. Results: Averaged over all breathing phases, LAS and PS achieved significantly improved image quality and lowest tumor volume variability compared to GAS, dc-GAS and CS. Imaging redundancy of 5 s was not sufficient for GAS and dc-GAS: missing corresponding amplitude positions in one or several breathing cycles resulted in incomplete reconstruction of peak-ventilation images in 11/12 and 10/12 patients with GAS and dc-GAS, respectively. Limiting the analysis to mid-ventilation phases showed GAS and dc-GAS as the most reliable algorithms. Conclusions: LAS and PS are suggested as a compromise between image quality and radiation dose

New partially parallel acquisition technique in cerebral imaging: preliminary findings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tintera, Jaroslav; Gawehn, Joachim; Bauermann, Thomas; Vucurevic, Goran; Stoeter, Peter

2004-01-01

In MRI applications where short acquisition time is necessary, the increase of acquisition speed is often at the expense of image resolution and SNR. In such cases, the newly developed parallel acquisition techniques could provide images without mentioned limitations and in reasonably shortened measurement time. A newly designed eight-channel head coil array (i-PAT coil) allowing for parallel acquisition of independently reconstructed images (GRAPPA mode) has been tested for its applicability in neuroradiology. Image homogeneity was tested in standard phantom and healthy volunteers. BOLD signal changes were studied in a group of six volunteers using finger tapping stimulation. Phantom studies revealed an important drop of signal even after the use of a normalization filter in the center of the image and an important increase of artifact power with reduction of measurement time strongly depending on the combination of acceleration parameters. The additional application of a parallel acquisition technique such as GRAPPA decreases measurement time in the range of about 30%, but further reduction is often possible only at the expense of SNR. This technique performs best in conditions in which imaging speed is important, such as CE MRA, but time resolution still does not allow the acquisition of angiograms separating the arterial and venous phase. Significantly larger areas of BOLD activation were found using the i-PAT coil compared to the standard head coil. Being an eight-channel surface coil array, peripheral cortical structures profit from high SNR as high-resolution imaging of small cortical dysplasias and functional activation of cortical areas imaged by BOLD contrast. In BOLD contrast imaging, susceptibility artifacts are reduced, but only if an appropriate combination of acceleration parameters is used. (orig.)

New partially parallel acquisition technique in cerebral imaging: preliminary findings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tintera, Jaroslav [Institute for Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Prague (Czech Republic); Gawehn, Joachim; Bauermann, Thomas; Vucurevic, Goran; Stoeter, Peter [University Clinic Mainz, Institute of Neuroradiology, Mainz (Germany)

2004-12-01

In MRI applications where short acquisition time is necessary, the increase of acquisition speed is often at the expense of image resolution and SNR. In such cases, the newly developed parallel acquisition techniques could provide images without mentioned limitations and in reasonably shortened measurement time. A newly designed eight-channel head coil array (i-PAT coil) allowing for parallel acquisition of independently reconstructed images (GRAPPA mode) has been tested for its applicability in neuroradiology. Image homogeneity was tested in standard phantom and healthy volunteers. BOLD signal changes were studied in a group of six volunteers using finger tapping stimulation. Phantom studies revealed an important drop of signal even after the use of a normalization filter in the center of the image and an important increase of artifact power with reduction of measurement time strongly depending on the combination of acceleration parameters. The additional application of a parallel acquisition technique such as GRAPPA decreases measurement time in the range of about 30%, but further reduction is often possible only at the expense of SNR. This technique performs best in conditions in which imaging speed is important, such as CE MRA, but time resolution still does not allow the acquisition of angiograms separating the arterial and venous phase. Significantly larger areas of BOLD activation were found using the i-PAT coil compared to the standard head coil. Being an eight-channel surface coil array, peripheral cortical structures profit from high SNR as high-resolution imaging of small cortical dysplasias and functional activation of cortical areas imaged by BOLD contrast. In BOLD contrast imaging, susceptibility artifacts are reduced, but only if an appropriate combination of acceleration parameters is used. (orig.)

Gating based on internal/external signals with dynamic correlation updates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wu Huanmei; Zhao Qingya; Berbeco, Ross I; Nishioka, Seiko; Shirato, Hiroki; Jiang, Steve B

2008-01-01

Precise localization of mobile tumor positions in real time is critical to the success of gated radiotherapy. Tumor positions are usually derived from either internal or external surrogates. Fluoroscopic gating based on internal surrogates, such as implanted fiducial markers, is accurate however requiring a large amount of imaging dose. Gating based on external surrogates, such as patient abdominal surface motion, is non-invasive however less accurate due to the uncertainty in the correlation between tumor location and external surrogates. To address these complications, we propose to investigate an approach based on hybrid gating with dynamic internal/external correlation updates. In this approach, the external signal is acquired at high frequency (such as 30 Hz) while the internal signal is sparsely acquired (such as 0.5 Hz or less). The internal signal is used to validate and update the internal/external correlation during treatment. Tumor positions are derived from the external signal based on the newly updated correlation. Two dynamic correlation updating algorithms are introduced. One is based on the motion amplitude and the other is based on the motion phase. Nine patients with synchronized internal/external motion signals are simulated retrospectively to evaluate the effectiveness of hybrid gating. The influences of different clinical conditions on hybrid gating, such as the size of gating windows, the optimal timing for internal signal acquisition and the acquisition frequency are investigated. The results demonstrate that dynamically updating the internal/external correlation in or around the gating window will reduce false positive with relatively diminished treatment efficiency. This improvement will benefit patients with mobile tumors, especially greater for early stage lung cancers, for which the tumors are less attached or freely floating in the lung.

Gating based on internal/external signals with dynamic correlation updates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wu Huanmei [Purdue School of Engineering and Technology, Indiana University School of Informatics, IUPUI, Indianapolis, IN (United States); Zhao Qingya [School of Health Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN (United States); Berbeco, Ross I [Department of Radiation Oncology, Dana-Farber/Brigham and Womens Cancer Center and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA (United States); Nishioka, Seiko [NTT East-Japan Sapporo Hospital, Sapporo (Japan); Shirato, Hiroki [Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine, Sapporo (Japan); Jiang, Steve B [Department of Radiation Oncology, School of Medicine, University of California, San Diego, CA (United States)], E-mail: hw9@iupui.edu, E-mail: sbjiang@ucsd.edu

2008-12-21

Precise localization of mobile tumor positions in real time is critical to the success of gated radiotherapy. Tumor positions are usually derived from either internal or external surrogates. Fluoroscopic gating based on internal surrogates, such as implanted fiducial markers, is accurate however requiring a large amount of imaging dose. Gating based on external surrogates, such as patient abdominal surface motion, is non-invasive however less accurate due to the uncertainty in the correlation between tumor location and external surrogates. To address these complications, we propose to investigate an approach based on hybrid gating with dynamic internal/external correlation updates. In this approach, the external signal is acquired at high frequency (such as 30 Hz) while the internal signal is sparsely acquired (such as 0.5 Hz or less). The internal signal is used to validate and update the internal/external correlation during treatment. Tumor positions are derived from the external signal based on the newly updated correlation. Two dynamic correlation updating algorithms are introduced. One is based on the motion amplitude and the other is based on the motion phase. Nine patients with synchronized internal/external motion signals are simulated retrospectively to evaluate the effectiveness of hybrid gating. The influences of different clinical conditions on hybrid gating, such as the size of gating windows, the optimal timing for internal signal acquisition and the acquisition frequency are investigated. The results demonstrate that dynamically updating the internal/external correlation in or around the gating window will reduce false positive with relatively diminished treatment efficiency. This improvement will benefit patients with mobile tumors, especially greater for early stage lung cancers, for which the tumors are less attached or freely floating in the lung.

Variability of textural features in FDG PET images due to different acquisition modes and reconstruction parameters.

Science.gov (United States)

Galavis, Paulina E; Hollensen, Christian; Jallow, Ngoneh; Paliwal, Bhudatt; Jeraj, Robert

2010-10-01

Characterization of textural features (spatial distributions of image intensity levels) has been considered as a tool for automatic tumor segmentation. The purpose of this work is to study the variability of the textural features in PET images due to different acquisition modes and reconstruction parameters. Twenty patients with solid tumors underwent PET/CT scans on a GE Discovery VCT scanner, 45-60 minutes post-injection of 10 mCi of [(18)F]FDG. Scans were acquired in both 2D and 3D modes. For each acquisition the raw PET data was reconstructed using five different reconstruction parameters. Lesions were segmented on a default image using the threshold of 40% of maximum SUV. Fifty different texture features were calculated inside the tumors. The range of variations of the features were calculated with respect to the average value. Fifty textural features were classified based on the range of variation in three categories: small, intermediate and large variability. Features with small variability (range ≤ 5%) were entropy-first order, energy, maximal correlation coefficient (second order feature) and low-gray level run emphasis (high-order feature). The features with intermediate variability (10% ≤ range ≤ 25%) were entropy-GLCM, sum entropy, high gray level run emphsis, gray level non-uniformity, small number emphasis, and entropy-NGL. Forty remaining features presented large variations (range > 30%). Textural features such as entropy-first order, energy, maximal correlation coefficient, and low-gray level run emphasis exhibited small variations due to different acquisition modes and reconstruction parameters. Features with low level of variations are better candidates for reproducible tumor segmentation. Even though features such as contrast-NGTD, coarseness, homogeneity, and busyness have been previously used, our data indicated that these features presented large variations, therefore they could not be considered as a good candidates for tumor

Variability of textural features in FDG PET images due to different acquisition modes and reconstruction parameters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Galavis, Paulina E.; Jallow, Ngoneh; Paliwal, Bhudatt; Jeraj, Robert; Hollensen, Christian

2010-01-01

Background. Characterization of textural features (spatial distributions of image intensity levels) has been considered as a tool for automatic tumor segmentation. The purpose of this work is to study the variability of the textural features in PET images due to different acquisition modes and reconstruction parameters. Material and methods. Twenty patients with solid tumors underwent PET/CT scans on a GE Discovery VCT scanner, 45-60 minutes post-injection of 10 mCi of [ 18 F]FDG. Scans were acquired in both 2D and 3D modes. For each acquisition the raw PET data was reconstructed using five different reconstruction parameters. Lesions were segmented on a default image using the threshold of 40% of maximum SUV. Fifty different texture features were calculated inside the tumors. The range of variations of the features were calculated with respect to the average value. Results. Fifty textural features were classified based on the range of variation in three categories: small, intermediate and large variability. Features with small variability (range = 5%) were entropy-first order, energy, maximal correlation coefficient (second order feature) and low-gray level run emphasis (high-order feature). The features with intermediate variability (10% = range = 25%) were entropy-GLCM, sum entropy, high gray level run emphasis, gray level non-uniformity, small number emphasis, and entropy-NGL. Forty remaining features presented large variations (range > 30%). Conclusion. Textural features such as entropy-first order, energy, maximal correlation coefficient, and low-gray level run emphasis exhibited small variations due to different acquisition modes and reconstruction parameters. Features with low level of variations are better candidates for reproducible tumor segmentation. Even though features such as contrast-NGTD, coarseness, homogeneity, and busyness have been previously used, our data indicated that these features presented large variations, therefore they could not be

Variability of textural features in FDG PET images due to different acquisition modes and reconstruction parameters

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Galavis, P.E.; Hollensen, Christian; Jallow, N.

2010-01-01

Background. Characterization of textural features (spatial distributions of image intensity levels) has been considered as a tool for automatic tumor segmentation. The purpose of this work is to study the variability of the textural features in PET images due to different acquisition modes...... reconstruction parameters. Lesions were segmented on a default image using the threshold of 40% of maximum SUV. Fifty different texture features were calculated inside the tumors. The range of variations of the features were calculated with respect to the average value. Results. Fifty textural features were...... classified based on the range of variation in three categories: small, intermediate and large variability. Features with small variability (range 30%). Conclusion. Textural features such as entropy-first order, energy, maximal correlation coefficient, and low-gray level run emphasis exhibited small...

Semi-Supervised Multi-View Ensemble Learning Based On Extracting Cross-View Correlation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

ZALL, R.

2016-05-01

Full Text Available Correlated information between different views incorporate useful for learning in multi view data. Canonical correlation analysis (CCA plays important role to extract these information. However, CCA only extracts the correlated information between paired data and cannot preserve correlated information between within-class samples. In this paper, we propose a two-view semi-supervised learning method called semi-supervised random correlation ensemble base on spectral clustering (SS_RCE. SS_RCE uses a multi-view method based on spectral clustering which takes advantage of discriminative information in multiple views to estimate labeling information of unlabeled samples. In order to enhance discriminative power of CCA features, we incorporate the labeling information of both unlabeled and labeled samples into CCA. Then, we use random correlation between within-class samples from cross view to extract diverse correlated features for training component classifiers. Furthermore, we extend a general model namely SSMV_RCE to construct ensemble method to tackle semi-supervised learning in the presence of multiple views. Finally, we compare the proposed methods with existing multi-view feature extraction methods using multi-view semi-supervised ensembles. Experimental results on various multi-view data sets are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed methods.

Bone surface enhancement in ultrasound images using a new Doppler-based acquisition/processing method

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Xu; Tang, Songyuan; Tasciotti, Ennio; Righetti, Raffaella

2018-01-01

Ultrasound (US) imaging has long been considered as a potential aid in orthopedic surgeries. US technologies are safe, portable and do not use radiations. This would make them a desirable tool for real-time assessment of fractures and to monitor fracture healing. However, image quality of US imaging methods in bone applications is limited by speckle, attenuation, shadow, multiple reflections and other imaging artifacts. While bone surfaces typically appear in US images as somewhat ‘brighter’ than soft tissue, they are often not easily distinguishable from the surrounding tissue. Therefore, US imaging methods aimed at segmenting bone surfaces need enhancement in image contrast prior to segmentation to improve the quality of the detected bone surface. In this paper, we present a novel acquisition/processing technique for bone surface enhancement in US images. Inspired by elastography and Doppler imaging methods, this technique takes advantage of the difference between the mechanical and acoustic properties of bones and those of soft tissues to make the bone surface more easily distinguishable in US images. The objective of this technique is to facilitate US-based bone segmentation methods and improve the accuracy of their outcomes. The newly proposed technique is tested both in in vitro and in vivo experiments. The results of these preliminary experiments suggest that the use of the proposed technique has the potential to significantly enhance the detectability of bone surfaces in noisy ultrasound images.

Bone surface enhancement in ultrasound images using a new Doppler-based acquisition/processing method.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Xu; Tang, Songyuan; Tasciotti, Ennio; Righetti, Raffaella

2018-01-17

Ultrasound (US) imaging has long been considered as a potential aid in orthopedic surgeries. US technologies are safe, portable and do not use radiations. This would make them a desirable tool for real-time assessment of fractures and to monitor fracture healing. However, image quality of US imaging methods in bone applications is limited by speckle, attenuation, shadow, multiple reflections and other imaging artifacts. While bone surfaces typically appear in US images as somewhat 'brighter' than soft tissue, they are often not easily distinguishable from the surrounding tissue. Therefore, US imaging methods aimed at segmenting bone surfaces need enhancement in image contrast prior to segmentation to improve the quality of the detected bone surface. In this paper, we present a novel acquisition/processing technique for bone surface enhancement in US images. Inspired by elastography and Doppler imaging methods, this technique takes advantage of the difference between the mechanical and acoustic properties of bones and those of soft tissues to make the bone surface more easily distinguishable in US images. The objective of this technique is to facilitate US-based bone segmentation methods and improve the accuracy of their outcomes. The newly proposed technique is tested both in in vitro and in vivo experiments. The results of these preliminary experiments suggest that the use of the proposed technique has the potential to significantly enhance the detectability of bone surfaces in noisy ultrasound images.

Sparse-sampling with time-encoded (TICO) stimulated Raman scattering for fast image acquisition

Science.gov (United States)

Hakert, Hubertus; Eibl, Matthias; Karpf, Sebastian; Huber, Robert

2017-07-01

Modern biomedical imaging modalities aim to provide researchers a multimodal contrast for a deeper insight into a specimen under investigation. A very promising technique is stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) microscopy, which can unveil the chemical composition of a sample with a very high specificity. Although the signal intensities are enhanced manifold to achieve a faster acquisition of images if compared to standard Raman microscopy, there is a trade-off between specificity and acquisition speed. Commonly used SRS concepts either probe only very few Raman transitions as the tuning of the applied laser sources is complicated or record whole spectra with a spectrometer based setup. While the first approach is fast, it reduces the specificity and the spectrometer approach records whole spectra -with energy differences where no Raman information is present-, which limits the acquisition speed. Therefore, we present a new approach based on the TICO-Raman concept, which we call sparse-sampling. The TICO-sparse-sampling setup is fully electronically controllable and allows probing of only the characteristic peaks of a Raman spectrum instead of always acquiring a whole spectrum. By reducing the spectral points to the relevant peaks, the acquisition time can be greatly reduced compared to a uniformly, equidistantly sampled Raman spectrum while the specificity and the signal to noise ratio (SNR) are maintained. Furthermore, all laser sources are completely fiber based. The synchronized detection enables a full resolution of the Raman signal, whereas the analogue and digital balancing allows shot noise limited detection. First imaging results with polystyrene (PS) and polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) beads confirm the advantages of TICO sparse-sampling. We achieved a pixel dwell time as low as 35 μs for an image differentiating both species. The mechanical properties of the applied voice coil stage for scanning the sample currently limits even faster acquisition.

Cross-correlation time-of-flight analysis of molecular beam scattering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nowikow, C.V.; Grice, R.

1979-01-01

The theory of the cross-correlation method of time-of-flight analysis is presented in a form which highlights its formal similarity to the conventional method. A time-of-flight system for the analysis of crossed molecular beam scattering is described, which is based on a minicomputer interface and can operate in both the cross-correlation and conventional modes. The interface maintains the synchronisation of chopper disc rotation and channel advance indefinitely in the cross-correlation method and can acquire data in phase with the beam modulation in both methods. The shutter function of the cross-correlation method is determined and the deconvolution analysis of the data is discussed. (author)

An image based information system - Architecture for correlating satellite and topological data bases

Science.gov (United States)

Bryant, N. A.; Zobrist, A. L.

1978-01-01

The paper describes the development of an image based information system and its use to process a Landsat thematic map showing land use or land cover in conjunction with a census tract polygon file to produce a tabulation of land use acreages per census tract. The system permits the efficient cross-tabulation of two or more geo-coded data sets, thereby setting the stage for the practical implementation of models of diffusion processes or cellular transformation. Characteristics of geographic information systems are considered, and functional requirements, such as data management, geocoding, image data management, and data analysis are discussed. The system is described, and the potentialities of its use are examined.

Cross-correlation enhanced stability in a tumor cell growth model with immune surveillance driven by cross-correlated noises

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zeng Chunhua; Zhou Xiaofeng; Tao Shufen

2009-01-01

The transient properties of a tumor cell growth model with immune surveillance driven by cross-correlated multiplicative and additive noises are investigated. The explicit expression of extinction rate from the state of a stable tumor to the state of extinction is obtained. Based on the numerical computations, we find the following: (i) the intensity of multiplicative noise D and the intensity of additive noise α enhance the extinction rate for the case of λ ≤ 0 (i.e. λ denotes cross-correlation intensity between two noises), but for the case of λ > 0, a critical noise intensity D or α exists at which the extinction rate is the smallest; D and α at first weaken the extinction rate and then enhance it. (ii) The immune rate β and the cross-correlation intensity λ play opposite roles on the extinction rate, i.e. β enhances the extinction rate of the tumor cell, while λ weakens the extinction rate of the tumor cell. Namely, the immune rate can enhance the extinction of the tumor cell and the cross-correlation between two noises can enhance stability of the cancer state.

Dynamic autofocus for continuous-scanning time-delay-and-integration image acquisition in automated microscopy.

Science.gov (United States)

Bravo-Zanoguera, Miguel E; Laris, Casey A; Nguyen, Lam K; Oliva, Mike; Price, Jeffrey H

2007-01-01

Efficient image cytometry of a conventional microscope slide means rapid acquisition and analysis of 20 gigapixels of image data (at 0.3-microm sampling). The voluminous data motivate increased acquisition speed to enable many biomedical applications. Continuous-motion time-delay-and-integrate (TDI) scanning has the potential to speed image acquisition while retaining sensitivity, but the challenge of implementing high-resolution autofocus operating simultaneously with acquisition has limited its adoption. We develop a dynamic autofocus system for this need using: 1. a "volume camera," consisting of nine fiber optic imaging conduits to charge-coupled device (CCD) sensors, that acquires images in parallel from different focal planes, 2. an array of mixed analog-digital processing circuits that measure the high spatial frequencies of the multiple image streams to create focus indices, and 3. a software system that reads and analyzes the focus data streams and calculates best focus for closed feedback loop control. Our system updates autofocus at 56 Hz (or once every 21 microm of stage travel) to collect sharply focused images sampled at 0.3x0.3 microm(2)/pixel at a stage speed of 2.3 mms. The system, tested by focusing in phase contrast and imaging long fluorescence strips, achieves high-performance closed-loop image-content-based autofocus in continuous scanning for the first time.

Image acquisition in general radiography: The utilisation of DDR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hayre, C.M.; Eyden, A.; Blackman, S.; Carlton, K.

2017-01-01

Objective: This article explores image acquisition with DDR. General radiographic technology continues to advance therefore it remains paramount to continually reflect on DDR hardware and software amongst radiographers in an imaging modality that constitutes approximately 90% of all radiological examinations. Method: This article reports findings from a wider ethnographic study of two general radiography environments in the United Kingdom (UK). Participant observation and semi-structured interviews were the methods used to uncover original data. Results: Two key themes are discussed. Firstly, ‘the extent of DDR knowledge’ amongst radiographers is examined. The findings uncover that not all radiographers have an adequate knowledge base with DDR technology. Secondly, ‘pitfalls and near misses with DDR’ is discussed. This theme highlights the potential danger of radiographers ‘over-repeating’ X-ray examinations, coincided with the occurrence of radiological incidents whereby a patient is exposed to ionising radiation with no added benefit. Conclusion: This paper concludes by challenging the current ‘skill base’ to operate DDR equipment. In addition, new pitfalls and near misses are highlighted, which may help forestall radiation incidents in the future. Dose and image optimisation remain central tenets to the role of the radiographer. Advances in knowledge: Few studies have challenged image acquisition with DDR. This study adds to existing knowledge by uncovering original phenomena that may initiate discussions within the radiography community and continually enhance healthcare delivery. - Highlights: • Radiographers may not have appropriate knowledge of DDR technology. • Suggests DDR may facilitate a ‘hit and miss’ approach to image acquisition. • Identifies radiographic errors with DDR, leading to radiological incidents.

Cross-linguistic patterns in the acquisition of quantifiers

Science.gov (United States)

Cummins, Chris; Gavarró, Anna; Kuvač Kraljević, Jelena; Hrzica, Gordana; Grohmann, Kleanthes K.; Skordi, Athina; Jensen de López, Kristine; Sundahl, Lone; van Hout, Angeliek; Hollebrandse, Bart; Overweg, Jessica; Faber, Myrthe; van Koert, Margreet; Smith, Nafsika; Vija, Maigi; Zupping, Sirli; Kunnari, Sari; Morisseau, Tiffany; Rusieshvili, Manana; Yatsushiro, Kazuko; Fengler, Anja; Varlokosta, Spyridoula; Konstantzou, Katerina; Farby, Shira; Guasti, Maria Teresa; Vernice, Mirta; Okabe, Reiko; Isobe, Miwa; Crosthwaite, Peter; Hong, Yoonjee; Balčiūnienė, Ingrida; Ahmad Nizar, Yanti Marina; Grech, Helen; Gatt, Daniela; Cheong, Win Nee; Asbjørnsen, Arve; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Haman, Ewa; Miękisz, Aneta; Gagarina, Natalia; Puzanova, Julia; Anđelković, Darinka; Savić, Maja; Jošić, Smiljana; Slančová, Daniela; Kapalková, Svetlana; Barberán, Tania; Özge, Duygu; Hassan, Saima; Chan, Cecilia Yuet Hung; Okubo, Tomoya; van der Lely, Heather; Sauerland, Uli; Noveck, Ira

2016-01-01

Learners of most languages are faced with the task of acquiring words to talk about number and quantity. Much is known about the order of acquisition of number words as well as the cognitive and perceptual systems and cultural practices that shape it. Substantially less is known about the acquisition of quantifiers. Here, we consider the extent to which systems and practices that support number word acquisition can be applied to quantifier acquisition and conclude that the two domains are largely distinct in this respect. Consequently, we hypothesize that the acquisition of quantifiers is constrained by a set of factors related to each quantifier’s specific meaning. We investigate competence with the expressions for “all,” “none,” “some,” “some…not,” and “most” in 31 languages, representing 11 language types, by testing 768 5-y-old children and 536 adults. We found a cross-linguistically similar order of acquisition of quantifiers, explicable in terms of four factors relating to their meaning and use. In addition, exploratory analyses reveal that language- and learner-specific factors, such as negative concord and gender, are significant predictors of variation. PMID:27482119

METHODS OF DISTANCE MEASUREMENT’S ACCURACY INCREASING BASED ON THE CORRELATION ANALYSIS OF STEREO IMAGES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V. L. Kozlov

2018-01-01

Full Text Available To solve the problem of increasing the accuracy of restoring a three-dimensional picture of space using two-dimensional digital images, it is necessary to use new effective techniques and algorithms for processing and correlation analysis of digital images. Actively developed tools that allow you to reduce the time costs for processing stereo images, improve the quality of the depth maps construction and automate their construction. The aim of the work is to investigate the possibilities of using various techniques for processing digital images to improve the measurements accuracy of the rangefinder based on the correlation analysis of the stereo image. The results of studies of the influence of color channel mixing techniques on the distance measurements accuracy for various functions realizing correlation processing of images are presented. Studies on the analysis of the possibility of using integral representation of images to reduce the time cost in constructing a depth map areproposed. The results of studies of the possibility of using images prefiltration before correlation processing when distance measuring by stereo imaging areproposed.It is obtained that using of uniform mixing of channels leads to minimization of the total number of measurement errors, and using of brightness extraction according to the sRGB standard leads to an increase of errors number for all of the considered correlation processing techniques. Integral representation of the image makes it possible to accelerate the correlation processing, but this method is useful for depth map calculating in images no more than 0.5 megapixels. Using of image filtration before correlation processing can provide, depending on the filter parameters, either an increasing of the correlation function value, which is useful for analyzing noisy images, or compression of the correlation function.

A Parallel Distributed-Memory Particle Method Enables Acquisition-Rate Segmentation of Large Fluorescence Microscopy Images.

Science.gov (United States)

Afshar, Yaser; Sbalzarini, Ivo F

2016-01-01

Modern fluorescence microscopy modalities, such as light-sheet microscopy, are capable of acquiring large three-dimensional images at high data rate. This creates a bottleneck in computational processing and analysis of the acquired images, as the rate of acquisition outpaces the speed of processing. Moreover, images can be so large that they do not fit the main memory of a single computer. We address both issues by developing a distributed parallel algorithm for segmentation of large fluorescence microscopy images. The method is based on the versatile Discrete Region Competition algorithm, which has previously proven useful in microscopy image segmentation. The present distributed implementation decomposes the input image into smaller sub-images that are distributed across multiple computers. Using network communication, the computers orchestrate the collectively solving of the global segmentation problem. This not only enables segmentation of large images (we test images of up to 10(10) pixels), but also accelerates segmentation to match the time scale of image acquisition. Such acquisition-rate image segmentation is a prerequisite for the smart microscopes of the future and enables online data compression and interactive experiments.

Patient positioning method based on binary image correlation between two edge images for proton-beam radiation therapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sawada, Akira; Yoda, Kiyoshi; Numano, Masumi; Futami, Yasuyuki; Yamashita, Haruo; Murayama, Shigeyuki; Tsugami, Hironobu

2005-01-01

A new technique based on normalized binary image correlation between two edge images has been proposed for positioning proton-beam radiotherapy patients. A Canny edge detector was used to extract two edge images from a reference x-ray image and a test x-ray image of a patient before positioning. While translating and rotating the edged test image, the absolute value of the normalized binary image correlation between the two edge images is iteratively maximized. Each time before rotation, dilation is applied to the edged test image to avoid a steep reduction of the image correlation. To evaluate robustness of the proposed method, a simulation has been carried out using 240 simulated edged head front-view images extracted from a reference image by varying parameters of the Canny algorithm with a given range of rotation angles and translation amounts in x and y directions. It was shown that resulting registration errors have an accuracy of one pixel in x and y directions and zero degrees in rotation, even when the number of edge pixels significantly differs between the edged reference image and the edged simulation image. Subsequently, positioning experiments using several sets of head, lung, and hip data have been performed. We have observed that the differences of translation and rotation between manual positioning and the proposed method were within one pixel in translation and one degree in rotation. From the results of the validation study, it can be concluded that a significant reduction in workload for the physicians and technicians can be achieved with this method

UTOFIA: an underwater time-of-flight image acquisition system

Science.gov (United States)

Driewer, Adrian; Abrosimov, Igor; Alexander, Jonathan; Benger, Marc; O'Farrell, Marion; Haugholt, Karl Henrik; Softley, Chris; Thielemann, Jens T.; Thorstensen, Jostein; Yates, Chris

2017-10-01

In this article the development of a newly designed Time-of-Flight (ToF) image sensor for underwater applications is described. The sensor is developed as part of the project UTOFIA (underwater time-of-flight image acquisition) funded by the EU within the Horizon 2020 framework. This project aims to develop a camera based on range gating that extends the visible range compared to conventional cameras by a factor of 2 to 3 and delivers real-time range information by means of a 3D video stream. The principle of underwater range gating as well as the concept of the image sensor are presented. Based on measurements on a test image sensor a pixel structure that suits best to the requirements has been selected. Within an extensive characterization underwater the capability of distance measurements in turbid environments is demonstrated.

Conjugate gradient and cross-correlation based least-square reverse time migration and its application

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Xiao-Dong; Ge, Zhong-Hui; Li, Zhen-Chun

2017-09-01

Although conventional reverse time migration can be perfectly applied to structural imaging it lacks the capability of enabling detailed delineation of a lithological reservoir due to irregular illumination. To obtain reliable reflectivity of the subsurface it is necessary to solve the imaging problem using inversion. The least-square reverse time migration (LSRTM) (also known as linearized reflectivity inversion) aims to obtain relatively high-resolution amplitude preserving imaging by including the inverse of the Hessian matrix. In practice, the conjugate gradient algorithm is proven to be an efficient iterative method for enabling use of LSRTM. The velocity gradient can be derived from a cross-correlation between observed data and simulated data, making LSRTM independent of wavelet signature and thus more robust in practice. Tests on synthetic and marine data show that LSRTM has good potential for use in reservoir description and four-dimensional (4D) seismic images compared to traditional RTM and Fourier finite difference (FFD) migration. This paper investigates the first order approximation of LSRTM, which is also known as the linear Born approximation. However, for more complex geological structures a higher order approximation should be considered to improve imaging quality.

SNR-optimized phase-sensitive dual-acquisition turbo spin echo imaging: a fast alternative to FLAIR.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Hyunyeol; Park, Jaeseok

2013-07-01

Phase-sensitive dual-acquisition single-slab three-dimensional turbo spin echo imaging was recently introduced, producing high-resolution isotropic cerebrospinal fluid attenuated brain images without long inversion recovery preparation. Despite the advantages, the weighted-averaging-based technique suffers from noise amplification resulting from different levels of cerebrospinal fluid signal modulations over the two acquisitions. The purpose of this work is to develop a signal-to-noise ratio-optimized version of the phase-sensitive dual-acquisition single-slab three-dimensional turbo spin echo. Variable refocusing flip angles in the first acquisition are calculated using a three-step prescribed signal evolution while those in the second acquisition are calculated using a two-step pseudo-steady state signal transition with a high flip-angle pseudo-steady state at a later portion of the echo train, balancing the levels of cerebrospinal fluid signals in both the acquisitions. Low spatial frequency signals are sampled during the high flip-angle pseudo-steady state to further suppress noise. Numerical simulations of the Bloch equations were performed to evaluate signal evolutions of brain tissues along the echo train and optimize imaging parameters. In vivo studies demonstrate that compared with conventional phase-sensitive dual-acquisition single-slab three-dimensional turbo spin echo, the proposed optimization yields 74% increase in apparent signal-to-noise ratio for gray matter and 32% decrease in imaging time. The proposed method can be a potential alternative to conventional fluid-attenuated imaging. Copyright © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Hidden cross-correlation patterns in stock markets based on permutation cross-sample entropy and PCA

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Aijing; Shang, Pengjian; Zhong, Bo

2014-12-01

In this article, we investigate the hidden cross-correlation structures in Chinese stock markets and US stock markets by performing PCSE combined with PCA approach. It is suggested that PCSE can provide a more faithful and more interpretable description of the dynamic mechanism between time series than cross-correlation matrix. We show that this new technique can be adapted to observe stock markets especially during financial crisis. In order to identify and compare the interactions and structures of stock markets during financial crisis, as well as in normal periods, all the samples are divided into four sub-periods. The results imply that the cross-correlations between Chinese group are stronger than the US group in the most sub-periods. In particular, it is likely that the US stock markets are more integrated with each other during global financial crisis than during Asian financial crisis. However, our results illustrate that Chinese stock markets are not immune from the global financial crisis, although less integrated with other markets if they are compared with US stock markets.

Mammogram synthesis using a 3D simulation. I. Breast tissue model and image acquisition simulation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bakic, Predrag R.; Albert, Michael; Brzakovic, Dragana; Maidment, Andrew D. A.

2002-01-01

A method is proposed for generating synthetic mammograms based upon simulations of breast tissue and the mammographic imaging process. A computer breast model has been designed with a realistic distribution of large and medium scale tissue structures. Parameters controlling the size and placement of simulated structures (adipose compartments and ducts) provide a method for consistently modeling images of the same simulated breast with modified position or acquisition parameters. The mammographic imaging process is simulated using a compression model and a model of the x-ray image acquisition process. The compression model estimates breast deformation using tissue elasticity parameters found in the literature and clinical force values. The synthetic mammograms were generated by a mammogram acquisition model using a monoenergetic parallel beam approximation applied to the synthetically compressed breast phantom

Ghost imaging based on Pearson correlation coefficients

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yu Wen-Kai; Yao Xu-Ri; Liu Xue-Feng; Li Long-Zhen; Zhai Guang-Jie

2015-01-01

Correspondence imaging is a new modality of ghost imaging, which can retrieve a positive/negative image by simple conditional averaging of the reference frames that correspond to relatively large/small values of the total intensity measured at the bucket detector. Here we propose and experimentally demonstrate a more rigorous and general approach in which a ghost image is retrieved by calculating a Pearson correlation coefficient between the bucket detector intensity and the brightness at a given pixel of the reference frames, and at the next pixel, and so on. Furthermore, we theoretically provide a statistical interpretation of these two imaging phenomena, and explain how the error depends on the sample size and what kind of distribution the error obeys. According to our analysis, the image signal-to-noise ratio can be greatly improved and the sampling number reduced by means of our new method. (paper)

Acquisition performance of LAPAN-A3/IPB multispectral imager in real-time mode of operation

Science.gov (United States)

Hakim, P. R.; Permala, R.; Jayani, A. P. S.

2018-05-01

LAPAN-A3/IPB satellite was launched in June 2016 and its multispectral imager has been producing Indonesian coverage images. In order to improve its support for remote sensing application, the imager should produce images with high quality and quantity. To improve the quantity of LAPAN-A3/IPB multispectral image captured, image acquisition could be executed in real-time mode from LAPAN ground station in Bogor when the satellite passes west Indonesia region. This research analyses the performance of LAPAN-A3/IPB multispectral imager acquisition in real-time mode, in terms of image quality and quantity, under assumption of several on-board and ground segment limitations. Results show that with real-time operation mode, LAPAN-A3/IPB multispectral imager could produce twice as much as image coverage compare to recorded mode. However, the images produced in real-time mode will have slightly degraded quality due to image compression process involved. Based on several analyses that have been done in this research, it is recommended to use real-time acquisition mode whenever it possible, unless for some circumstances that strictly not allow any quality degradation of the images produced.

A Method for Vibration-Based Structural Interrogation and Health Monitoring Based on Signal Cross-Correlation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Trendafilova, I

2011-01-01

Vibration-based structural interrogation and health monitoring is a field which is concerned with the estimation of the current state of a structure or a component from its vibration response with regards to its ability to perform its intended function appropriately. One way to approach this problem is through damage features extracted from the measured structural vibration response. This paper suggests to use a new concept for the purposes of vibration-based health monitoring. The correlation between two signals, an input and an output, measured on the structure is used to develop a damage indicator. The paper investigates the applicability of the signal cross-correlation and a nonlinear alternative, the average mutual information between the two signals, for the purposes of structural health monitoring and damage assessment. The suggested methodology is applied and demonstrated for delamination detection in a composite beam.

Multilatinas and Value Creation from Cross-Border Acquisitions: An Event Study Approach

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Paulo Roberto Feldmann

2013-10-01

Full Text Available The central proposition of this paper is to assess the performance of cross-border acquisitions made by Multilatinas. Applying the event study method to a sample of 607 announcements of acquisitions during the period 1989-2011 by 182 Multilatinas from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Peru and Venezuela, we conclude that: (a on average, these announcements have a neutral impact on the short-term returns to acquiring companies’ shareholders; (b cross-sectional analysis reveals that relative size of the deals have anegative and significant effect on investors’ reactions and; (c unlike the institutional distance between home and host countries, cultural distance matters, since it has a negative and significant effect on the perceptions that investors have regarding the expected economic impact of acquirers’ cross-border merger and acquisition(M&A decisions. Inasmuch as the market rationality assumption that underlies the event study method has been questioned, future research lines are proposed in order to search for alternative long-term performance constructs concerning M&A processes in general that can: (a shed light on the reality of value creation (and destruction from cross-border acquisitions made by Multilatinas; and (b contribute to strategy, international business and M&A theories and practice.

Reproducible high-resolution multispectral image acquisition in dermatology

Science.gov (United States)

Duliu, Alexandru; Gardiazabal, José; Lasser, Tobias; Navab, Nassir

2015-07-01

Multispectral image acquisitions are increasingly popular in dermatology, due to their improved spectral resolution which enables better tissue discrimination. Most applications however focus on restricted regions of interest, imaging only small lesions. In this work we present and discuss an imaging framework for high-resolution multispectral imaging on large regions of interest.

Model-based respiratory motion compensation for emission tomography image reconstruction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Reyes, M; Malandain, G; Koulibaly, P M; Gonzalez-Ballester, M A; Darcourt, J

2007-01-01

In emission tomography imaging, respiratory motion causes artifacts in lungs and cardiac reconstructed images, which lead to misinterpretations, imprecise diagnosis, impairing of fusion with other modalities, etc. Solutions like respiratory gating, correlated dynamic PET techniques, list-mode data based techniques and others have been tested, which lead to improvements over the spatial activity distribution in lungs lesions, but which have the disadvantages of requiring additional instrumentation or the need of discarding part of the projection data used for reconstruction. The objective of this study is to incorporate respiratory motion compensation directly into the image reconstruction process, without any additional acquisition protocol consideration. To this end, we propose an extension to the maximum likelihood expectation maximization (MLEM) algorithm that includes a respiratory motion model, which takes into account the displacements and volume deformations produced by the respiratory motion during the data acquisition process. We present results from synthetic simulations incorporating real respiratory motion as well as from phantom and patient data

Improvement of Sidestream Dark Field Imaging with an Image Acquisition Stabilizer

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Balestra, Gianmarco M.; Bezemer, Rick; Boerma, E. Christiaan; Yong, Ze-Yie; Sjauw, Krishan D.; Engstrom, Annemarie E.; Koopmans, Matty; Ince, Can

2010-01-01

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND: In the present study we developed, evaluated in volunteers, and clinically validated an image acquisition stabilizer (IAS) for Sidestream Dark Field (SDF) imaging. METHODS: The IAS is a stainless steel sterilizable ring which fits around the SDF probe tip. The IAS creates

Improvement of Sidestream Dark Field Imaging with an Image Acquisition Stabilizer

NARCIS (Netherlands)

G. Balestra (Gianmarco); R. Bezemer (Rick); E.C. Boerma (Christiaan); Z-Y. Yong (Ze-Yie); K.D. Sjauw (Krishan); A.E. Engstrom (Annemarie); M. Koopmans (Matty); C. Ince (Can)

2010-01-01

textabstractBackground: In the present study we developed, evaluated in volunteers, and clinically validated an image acquisition stabilizer (IAS) for Sidestream Dark Field (SDF) imaging.Methods: The IAS is a stainless steel sterilizable ring which fits around the SDF probe tip. The IAS creates

Correlated diffusion imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wong, Alexander; Glaister, Jeffrey; Cameron, Andrew; Haider, Masoom

2013-01-01

Prostate cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer death in the male population. Fortunately, the prognosis is excellent if detected at an early stage. Hence, the detection and localization of prostate cancer is crucial for diagnosis, as well as treatment via targeted focal therapy. New imaging techniques can potentially be invaluable tools for improving prostate cancer detection and localization. In this study, we introduce a new form of diffusion magnetic resonance imaging called correlated diffusion imaging, where the tissue being imaged is characterized by the joint correlation of diffusion signal attenuation across multiple gradient pulse strengths and timings. By taking into account signal attenuation at different water diffusion motion sensitivities, correlated diffusion imaging can provide improved delineation between cancerous tissue and healthy tissue when compared to existing diffusion imaging modalities. Quantitative evaluation using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis, tissue class separability analysis, and visual assessment by an expert radiologist were performed to study correlated diffusion imaging for the task of prostate cancer diagnosis. These results are compared with that obtained using T2-weighted imaging and standard diffusion imaging (via the apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC)). Experimental results suggest that correlated diffusion imaging provide improved delineation between healthy and cancerous tissue and may have potential as a diagnostic tool for cancer detection and localization in the prostate gland. A new form of diffusion magnetic resonance imaging called correlated diffusion imaging (CDI) was developed for the purpose of aiding radiologists in cancer detection and localization in the prostate gland. Preliminary results show CDI shows considerable promise as a diagnostic aid for radiologists in the detection and localization of prostate cancer

A Parallel Distributed-Memory Particle Method Enables Acquisition-Rate Segmentation of Large Fluorescence Microscopy Images

Science.gov (United States)

Afshar, Yaser; Sbalzarini, Ivo F.

2016-01-01

Modern fluorescence microscopy modalities, such as light-sheet microscopy, are capable of acquiring large three-dimensional images at high data rate. This creates a bottleneck in computational processing and analysis of the acquired images, as the rate of acquisition outpaces the speed of processing. Moreover, images can be so large that they do not fit the main memory of a single computer. We address both issues by developing a distributed parallel algorithm for segmentation of large fluorescence microscopy images. The method is based on the versatile Discrete Region Competition algorithm, which has previously proven useful in microscopy image segmentation. The present distributed implementation decomposes the input image into smaller sub-images that are distributed across multiple computers. Using network communication, the computers orchestrate the collectively solving of the global segmentation problem. This not only enables segmentation of large images (we test images of up to 1010 pixels), but also accelerates segmentation to match the time scale of image acquisition. Such acquisition-rate image segmentation is a prerequisite for the smart microscopes of the future and enables online data compression and interactive experiments. PMID:27046144

A Parallel Distributed-Memory Particle Method Enables Acquisition-Rate Segmentation of Large Fluorescence Microscopy Images.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yaser Afshar

Full Text Available Modern fluorescence microscopy modalities, such as light-sheet microscopy, are capable of acquiring large three-dimensional images at high data rate. This creates a bottleneck in computational processing and analysis of the acquired images, as the rate of acquisition outpaces the speed of processing. Moreover, images can be so large that they do not fit the main memory of a single computer. We address both issues by developing a distributed parallel algorithm for segmentation of large fluorescence microscopy images. The method is based on the versatile Discrete Region Competition algorithm, which has previously proven useful in microscopy image segmentation. The present distributed implementation decomposes the input image into smaller sub-images that are distributed across multiple computers. Using network communication, the computers orchestrate the collectively solving of the global segmentation problem. This not only enables segmentation of large images (we test images of up to 10(10 pixels, but also accelerates segmentation to match the time scale of image acquisition. Such acquisition-rate image segmentation is a prerequisite for the smart microscopes of the future and enables online data compression and interactive experiments.

Cross-border mergers and acquisitions and European integration

OpenAIRE

Coeurdacier, Nicolas; de Santis, Roberto A.; Aviat, Antonin

2009-01-01

Cross-border mergers and acquisitions activities (M&As) sharply increased over the last two decades, partly as a result of financial liberalization policies, government policies and regional agreements. In this paper, we identify some of the main forces driving M&As, using a unique database on bilateral cross-border M&As at the sectoral level (in manufacturing and services) over the period 1985-2004. The key empirical findings are: (1) EMU helped the restructuring of capital within the same s...

Hardware and software for image acquisition in nuclear medicine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fideles, E.L.; Vilar, G.; Silva, H.S.

1992-01-01

A system for image acquisition and processing in nuclear medicine is presented, including the hardware and software referring to acquisition. The hardware is consisted of an analog-digital conversion card, developed in wire-wape. Its function is digitate the analogic signs provided by gamma camera. The acquisitions are made in list or frame mode. (C.G.C.)

MSCT versus CBCT: evaluation of high-resolution acquisition modes for dento-maxillary and skull-base imaging

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dillenseger, Jean-Philippe; Goetz, Christian [Hopitaux Universitaires de Strasbourg, Imagerie Preclinique-UF6237, Pole d' imagerie, Strasbourg (France); Universite de Strasbourg, Icube, equipe MMB, CNRS, Strasbourg (France); Universite de Strasbourg, Federation de Medecine Translationnelle de Strasbourg, Faculte de Medecine, Strasbourg (France); Matern, Jean-Francois [Hopitaux Universitaires de Strasbourg, Imagerie Preclinique-UF6237, Pole d' imagerie, Strasbourg (France); Universite de Strasbourg, Federation de Medecine Translationnelle de Strasbourg, Faculte de Medecine, Strasbourg (France); Gros, Catherine-Isabelle; Bornert, Fabien [Universite de Strasbourg, Federation de Medecine Translationnelle de Strasbourg, Faculte de Medecine, Strasbourg (France); Universite de Strasbourg, Faculte de Chirurgie Dentaire, Strasbourg (France); Le Minor, Jean-Marie [Universite de Strasbourg, Icube, equipe MMB, CNRS, Strasbourg (France); Universite de Strasbourg, Federation de Medecine Translationnelle de Strasbourg, Faculte de Medecine, Strasbourg (France); Universite de Strasbourg, Institut d' Anatomie Normale, Strasbourg (France); Constantinesco, Andre [Hopitaux Universitaires de Strasbourg, Imagerie Preclinique-UF6237, Pole d' imagerie, Strasbourg (France); Choquet, Philippe [Hopitaux Universitaires de Strasbourg, Imagerie Preclinique-UF6237, Pole d' imagerie, Strasbourg (France); Universite de Strasbourg, Icube, equipe MMB, CNRS, Strasbourg (France); Universite de Strasbourg, Federation de Medecine Translationnelle de Strasbourg, Faculte de Medecine, Strasbourg (France); Hopital de Hautepierre, Imagerie Preclinique, Biophysique et Medecine Nucleaire, Strasbourg Cedex (France)

2014-09-24

Our aim was to conduct a quantitative and qualitative evaluation of high-resolution skull-bone imaging for dentistry and otolaryngology using different architectures of recent X-ray computed tomography systems. Three multi-slice computed tomography (MSCT) systems and one Cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) system were used in this study. All apparatuses were tested with installed acquisition modes and proprietary reconstruction software enabling high-resolution bone imaging. Quantitative analyses were performed with small fields of view with the preclinical vmCT phantom, which permits to measure spatial resolution, geometrical accuracy, linearity and homogeneity. Ten operators performed visual qualitative analyses on the vmCT phantom images, and on dry human skull images. Quantitative analysis showed no significant differences between protocols in terms of linearity and geometric accuracy. All MSCT systems present a better homogeneity than the CBCT. Both quantitative and visual analyses demonstrate that CBCT acquisitions are not better than the collimated helical MSCT mode. Our results demonstrate that current high-resolution MSCT protocols could exceed the performance of a previous generation CBCT system for spatial resolution and image homogeneity. (orig.)

MSCT versus CBCT: evaluation of high-resolution acquisition modes for dento-maxillary and skull-base imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dillenseger, Jean-Philippe; Goetz, Christian; Matern, Jean-Francois; Gros, Catherine-Isabelle; Bornert, Fabien; Le Minor, Jean-Marie; Constantinesco, Andre; Choquet, Philippe

2015-01-01

Our aim was to conduct a quantitative and qualitative evaluation of high-resolution skull-bone imaging for dentistry and otolaryngology using different architectures of recent X-ray computed tomography systems. Three multi-slice computed tomography (MSCT) systems and one Cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) system were used in this study. All apparatuses were tested with installed acquisition modes and proprietary reconstruction software enabling high-resolution bone imaging. Quantitative analyses were performed with small fields of view with the preclinical vmCT phantom, which permits to measure spatial resolution, geometrical accuracy, linearity and homogeneity. Ten operators performed visual qualitative analyses on the vmCT phantom images, and on dry human skull images. Quantitative analysis showed no significant differences between protocols in terms of linearity and geometric accuracy. All MSCT systems present a better homogeneity than the CBCT. Both quantitative and visual analyses demonstrate that CBCT acquisitions are not better than the collimated helical MSCT mode. Our results demonstrate that current high-resolution MSCT protocols could exceed the performance of a previous generation CBCT system for spatial resolution and image homogeneity. (orig.)

Finite element formulation for a digital image correlation method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sun Yaofeng; Pang, John H. L.; Wong, Chee Khuen; Su Fei

2005-01-01

A finite element formulation for a digital image correlation method is presented that will determine directly the complete, two-dimensional displacement field during the image correlation process on digital images. The entire interested image area is discretized into finite elements that are involved in the common image correlation process by use of our algorithms. This image correlation method with finite element formulation has an advantage over subset-based image correlation methods because it satisfies the requirements of displacement continuity and derivative continuity among elements on images. Numerical studies and a real experiment are used to verify the proposed formulation. Results have shown that the image correlation with the finite element formulation is computationally efficient, accurate, and robust

Optimization of a shorter variable-acquisition time for legs to achieve true whole-body PET/CT images.

Science.gov (United States)

Umeda, Takuro; Miwa, Kenta; Murata, Taisuke; Miyaji, Noriaki; Wagatsuma, Kei; Motegi, Kazuki; Terauchi, Takashi; Koizumi, Mitsuru

2017-12-01

The present study aimed to qualitatively and quantitatively evaluate PET images as a function of acquisition time for various leg sizes, and to optimize a shorter variable-acquisition time protocol for legs to achieve better qualitative and quantitative accuracy of true whole-body PET/CT images. The diameters of legs to be modeled as phantoms were defined based on data derived from 53 patients. This study analyzed PET images of a NEMA phantom and three plastic bottle phantoms (diameter, 5.68, 8.54 and 10.7 cm) that simulated the human body and legs, respectively. The phantoms comprised two spheres (diameters, 10 and 17 mm) containing fluorine-18 fluorodeoxyglucose solution with sphere-to-background ratios of 4 at a background radioactivity level of 2.65 kBq/mL. All PET data were reconstructed with acquisition times ranging from 10 to 180, and 1200 s. We visually evaluated image quality and determined the coefficient of variance (CV) of the background, contrast and the quantitative %error of the hot spheres, and then determined two shorter variable-acquisition protocols for legs. Lesion detectability and quantitative accuracy determined based on maximum standardized uptake values (SUV max ) in PET images of a patient using the proposed protocols were also evaluated. A larger phantom and a shorter acquisition time resulted in increased background noise on images and decreased the contrast in hot spheres. A visual score of ≥ 1.5 was obtained when the acquisition time was ≥ 30 s for three leg phantoms, and ≥ 120 s for the NEMA phantom. The quantitative %errors of the 10- and 17-mm spheres in the leg phantoms were ± 15 and ± 10%, respectively, in PET images with a high CV (scan mean SUV max of three lesions using the current fixed-acquisition and two proposed variable-acquisition time protocols in the clinical study were 3.1, 3.1 and 3.2, respectively, which did not significantly differ. Leg acquisition time per bed position of even 30-90�

Limitations of correlation-based redatuming methods

Science.gov (United States)

Barrera P, D. F.; Schleicher, J.; van der Neut, J.

2017-12-01

Redatuming aims to correct seismic data for the consequences of an acquisition far from the target. That includes the effects of an irregular acquisition surface and of complex geological structures in the overburden such as strong lateral heterogeneities or layers with low or very high velocity. Interferometric techniques can be used to relocate sources to positions where only receivers are available and have been used to move acquisition geometries to the ocean bottom or transform data between surface-seismic and vertical seismic profiles. Even if no receivers are available at the new datum, the acquisition system can be relocated to any datum in the subsurface to which the propagation of waves can be modeled with sufficient accuracy. By correlating the modeled wavefield with seismic surface data, one can carry the seismic acquisition geometry from the surface closer to geologic horizons of interest. Specifically, we show the derivation and approximation of the one-sided seismic interferometry equation for surface-data redatuming, conveniently using Green’s theorem for the Helmholtz equation with density variation. Our numerical examples demonstrate that correlation-based single-boundary redatuming works perfectly in a homogeneous overburden. If the overburden is inhomogeneous, primary reflections from deeper interfaces are still repositioned with satisfactory accuracy. However, in this case artifacts are generated as a consequence of incorrectly redatumed overburden multiples. These artifacts get even worse if the complete wavefield is used instead of the direct wavefield. Therefore, we conclude that correlation-based interferometric redatuming of surface-seismic data should always be applied using direct waves only, which can be approximated with sufficient quality if a smooth velocity model for the overburden is available.

Cross-correlation analysis of pulse wave propagation in arteries: in vitro validation and in vivo feasibility.

Science.gov (United States)

Nauleau, Pierre; Apostolakis, Iason; McGarry, Matthew; Konofagou, Elisa

2018-05-29

The stiffness of the arteries is known to be an indicator of the progression of various cardiovascular diseases. Clinically, the pulse wave velocity (PWV) is used as a surrogate for arterial stiffness. Pulse wave imaging (PWI) is a non-invasive, ultrasound-based imaging technique capable of mapping the motion of the vessel walls, allowing the local assessment of arterial properties. Conventionally, a distinctive feature of the displacement wave (e.g. the 50% upstroke) is tracked across the map to estimate the PWV. However, the presence of reflections, such as those generated at the carotid bifurcation, can bias the PWV estimation. In this paper, we propose a two-step cross-correlation based method to characterize arteries using the information available in the PWI spatio-temporal map. First, the area under the cross-correlation curve is proposed as an index for locating the regions of different properties. Second, a local peak of the cross-correlation function is tracked to obtain a less biased estimate of the PWV. Three series of experiments were conducted in phantoms to evaluate the capabilities of the proposed method compared with the conventional method. In the ideal case of a homogeneous phantom, the two methods performed similarly and correctly estimated the PWV. In the presence of reflections, the proposed method provided a more accurate estimate than conventional processing: e.g. for the soft phantom, biases of  -0.27 and -0.71 m · s -1 were observed. In a third series of experiments, the correlation-based method was able to locate two regions of different properties with an error smaller than 1 mm. It also provided more accurate PWV estimates than conventional processing (biases:  -0.12 versus -0.26 m · s -1 ). Finally, the in vivo feasibility of the proposed method was demonstrated in eleven healthy subjects. The results indicate that the correlation-based method might be less precise in vivo but more accurate than the conventional method.

Global correlation imaging of magnetic total field gradients

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guo, Lianghui; Meng, Xiaohong; Shi, Lei

2012-01-01

Firstly we introduce the correlation imaging approach for the x-, y- and z-gradients of a magnetic total field anomaly for deriving the distribution of equivalent magnetic sources of the subsurface. In this approach, the subsurface space is divided into a regular grid, and then a correlation coefficient function is computed at each grid node, based on the cross-correlation between the x-gradient (or y-gradient or z-gradient) of the observed magnetic total field anomaly and the x-gradient (or y-gradient or z-gradient) of the theoretical magnetic total field anomaly due to a magnetic dipole. The resultant correlation coefficient is used to describe the probability of a magnetic dipole occurring at the node. We then define a global correlation coefficient function for comprehensively delineating the probability of an occurrence of a magnetic dipole, which takes, at each node, the maximum positive value of the corresponding correlation coefficient function of the three gradients. We finally test the approach both on synthetic data and real data from a metallic deposit area in the middle-lower reaches of the Yangtze River, China. (paper)

Mixed-correlated ARFIMA processes for power-law cross-correlations

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Krištoufek, Ladislav

2013-01-01

Roč. 392, č. 24 (2013), s. 6484-6493 ISSN 0378-4371 R&D Projects: GA ČR GA402/09/0965 Institutional support: RVO:67985556 Keywords : power-law cross-correlations * long - term memory * econophysics Subject RIV: AH - Economics Impact factor: 1.722, year: 2013 http://library.utia.cas.cz/separaty/2013/E/kristoufek-mixed-correlated arfima processes for power-law cross-correlations.pdf

An image correlation procedure for digitally reconstructed radiographs and electronic portal images

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dong, Lei; Boyer, Arthur L.

1995-01-01

Purpose: To study a procedure that uses megavoltage digitally reconstructed radiographs (DRRs) calculated from patient's three-dimensional (3D) computed tomography (CT) data as a reference image for correlation with on-line electronic portal images (EPIs) to detect patient setup errors. Methods and Materials: Megavoltage DRRs were generated by ray tracing through a modified volumetric CT data set in which CT numbers were converted into linear attenuation coefficients for the therapeutic beam energy. The DRR transmission image was transformed to the grayscale window of the EPI by a histogram-matching technique. An alternative approach was to calibrate the transmission DRR using a measured response curve of the electronic portal imaging device (EPID). This forces the calculated transmission fluence values to be distributed in the same range as that of the EPID image. A cross-correlation technique was used to determine the degree of alignment of the patient anatomy found in the EPID image relative to the reference DRR. Results: Phantom studies demonstrated that the correlation procedure had a standard deviation of 0.5 mm and 0.5 deg. in aligning translational shifts and in-plane rotations. Systematic errors were found between a reference DRR and a reference EPID image. The automated grayscale image-correlation process was completed within 3 s on a workstation computer or 12 s on a PC. Conclusion: The alignment procedure allows the direct comparison of a patient's treatment portal designed with a 3D planning computer with a patient's on-line portal image acquired at the treatment unit. The image registration process is automated to the extent that it requires minimal user intervention, and it is fast and accurate enough for on-line clinical applications

A novel coefficient for detecting and quantifying asymmetry of California electricity market based on asymmetric detrended cross-correlation analysis.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Fang

2016-06-01

In order to detect and quantify asymmetry of two time series, a novel cross-correlation coefficient is proposed based on recent asymmetric detrended cross-correlation analysis (A-DXA), which we called A-DXA coefficient. The A-DXA coefficient, as an important extension of DXA coefficient ρDXA, contains two directional asymmetric cross-correlated indexes, describing upwards and downwards asymmetric cross-correlations, respectively. By using the information of directional covariance function of two time series and directional variance function of each series itself instead of power-law between the covariance function and time scale, the proposed A-DXA coefficient can well detect asymmetry between the two series no matter whether the cross-correlation is significant or not. By means of the proposed A-DXA coefficient conducted over the asymmetry for California electricity market, we found that the asymmetry between the prices and loads is not significant for daily average data in 1999 yr market (before electricity crisis) but extremely significant for those in 2000 yr market (during the crisis). To further uncover the difference of asymmetry between the years 1999 and 2000, a modified H statistic (MH) and ΔMH statistic are proposed. One of the present contributions is that the high MH values calculated for hourly data exist in majority months in 2000 market. Another important conclusion is that the cross-correlation with downwards dominates over the whole 1999 yr in contrast to the cross-correlation with upwards dominates over the 2000 yr.

A novel coefficient for detecting and quantifying asymmetry of California electricity market based on asymmetric detrended cross-correlation analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Fang

2016-06-01

In order to detect and quantify asymmetry of two time series, a novel cross-correlation coefficient is proposed based on recent asymmetric detrended cross-correlation analysis (A-DXA), which we called A-DXA coefficient. The A-DXA coefficient, as an important extension of DXA coefficient ρ D X A , contains two directional asymmetric cross-correlated indexes, describing upwards and downwards asymmetric cross-correlations, respectively. By using the information of directional covariance function of two time series and directional variance function of each series itself instead of power-law between the covariance function and time scale, the proposed A-DXA coefficient can well detect asymmetry between the two series no matter whether the cross-correlation is significant or not. By means of the proposed A-DXA coefficient conducted over the asymmetry for California electricity market, we found that the asymmetry between the prices and loads is not significant for daily average data in 1999 yr market (before electricity crisis) but extremely significant for those in 2000 yr market (during the crisis). To further uncover the difference of asymmetry between the years 1999 and 2000, a modified H statistic (MH) and ΔMH statistic are proposed. One of the present contributions is that the high MH values calculated for hourly data exist in majority months in 2000 market. Another important conclusion is that the cross-correlation with downwards dominates over the whole 1999 yr in contrast to the cross-correlation with upwards dominates over the 2000 yr.

Growth Effects of Cross-border Mergers and Acquisitions in European Transition Countries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zvezdanović Lobanova Jelena

2016-12-01

Full Text Available This paper deals with the economic effect of cross-border mergers and acquisitions on GDP per capita in European transition countries for the 2000- 2014 period. Our analysis shows that cross-border mergers and acquisitions have a negative effect on GDP per capita in the current period, whereas their lagged level positively impacts output performance. We found that transition countries characterized by a higher quality of institutional setting have achieved a positive impact on GDP per capita.

Cross-border merger & acquisition activity and revealed comparative advantage in manufacturing industries

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Brakman, Steven; Garretsen, Harry; van Marrewijk, Charles; van Witteloostuijn, Arjen

2013-01-01

We estimate an important implication of oligopolistic international trade modeling for the predicted pattern of cross-border mergers and acquisitions (M&As). Our core argument is that cross-border M&As are, among other factors, driven by cross-country differences in comparative advantage. We find

The design of a new model circuit for image acquisition from nuclear medicine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Nan; Jin Yongjie

1995-01-01

A new practical model of image acquisition circuit is given. It can be applied to data acquisition system of γ camera from nuclear medicine directly. Its idea also can be applied to some image acquisition system of nuclear event

Field Strain Measurement on the Fiber Scale in Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymers Using Global Finite-Element Based Digital Image Correlation

KAUST Repository

Tao, Ran

2015-05-01

Laminated composites are materials with complex architecture made of continuous fibers embedded within a polymeric resin. The properties of the raw materials can vary from one point to another due to different local processing conditions or complex geometrical features for example. A first step towards the identification of these spatially varying material parameters is to image with precision the displacement fields in this complex microstructure when subjected to mechanical loading. This thesis is aimed to accurately measure the displacement and strain fields at the fiber-matrix scale in a cross-ply composite. First, the theories of both local subset-based digital image correlation (DIC) and global finite-element based DIC are outlined. Second, in-situ secondary electron tensile images obtained by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) are post-processed by both DIC techniques. Finally, it is shown that when global DIC is applied with a conformal mesh, it can capture more accurately sharp local variations in the strain fields as it takes into account the underlying microstructure. In comparison to subset-based local DIC, finite-element based global DIC is better suited for capturing gradients across the fiber-matrix interfaces.

A digital correlator upgrade for the Arcminute MicroKelvin Imager

Science.gov (United States)

Hickish, Jack; Razavi-Ghods, Nima; Perrott, Yvette C.; Titterington, David J.; Carey, Steve H.; Scott, Paul F.; Grainge, Keith J. B.; Scaife, Anna M. M.; Alexander, Paul; Saunders, Richard D. E.; Crofts, Mike; Javid, Kamran; Rumsey, Clare; Jin, Terry Z.; Ely, John A.; Shaw, Clive; Northrop, Ian G.; Pooley, Guy; D'Alessandro, Robert; Doherty, Peter; Willatt, Greg P.

2018-04-01

The Arcminute Microkelvin Imager (AMI) telescopes located at the Mullard Radio Astronomy Observatory near Cambridge have been significantly enhanced by the implementation of a new digital correlator with 1.2 MHz spectral resolution. This system has replaced a 750-MHz resolution analogue lag-based correlator, and was designed to mitigate the effects of radio frequency interference, particularly that from geostationary satellites which are visible from the AMI site when observing at low declinations. The upgraded instrument consists of 18 ROACH2 Field Programmable Gate Array platforms used to implement a pair of real-time FX correlators - one for each of AMI's two arrays. The new system separates the down-converted RF baseband signal from each AMI receiver into two sub-bands, each of which are filtered to a width of 2.3 GHz and digitized at 5-Gsps with 8 bits of precision. These digital data streams are filtered into 2048 frequency channels and cross-correlated using FPGA hardware, with a commercial 10 Gb Ethernet switch providing high-speed data interconnect. Images formed using data from the new digital correlator show over an order of magnitude improvement in dynamic range over the previous system. The ability to observe at low declinations has also been significantly improved.

A time-efficient acquisition protocol for multipurpose diffusion-weighted microstructural imaging at 7 Tesla.

Science.gov (United States)

Sepehrband, Farshid; O'Brien, Kieran; Barth, Markus

2017-12-01

Several diffusion-weighted MRI techniques have been developed and validated during the past 2 decades. While offering various neuroanatomical inferences, these techniques differ in their proposed optimal acquisition design, preventing clinicians and researchers benefiting from all potential inference methods, particularly when limited time is available. This study reports an optimal design that enables for a time-efficient diffusion-weighted MRI acquisition scheme at 7 Tesla. The primary audience of this article is the typical end user, interested in diffusion-weighted microstructural imaging at 7 Tesla. We tested b-values in the range of 700 to 3000 s/mm 2 with different number of angular diffusion-encoding samples, against a data-driven "gold standard." The suggested design is a protocol with b-values of 1000 and 2500 s/mm 2 , with 25 and 50 samples, uniformly distributed over two shells. We also report a range of protocols in which the results of fitting microstructural models to the diffusion-weighted data had high correlation with the gold standard. We estimated minimum acquisition requirements that enable diffusion tensor imaging, higher angular resolution diffusion-weighted imaging, neurite orientation dispersion, and density imaging and white matter tract integrity across whole brain with isotropic resolution of 1.8 mm in less than 11 min. Magn Reson Med 78:2170-2184, 2017. © 2017 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine. © 2017 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.

Magnetic resonance imaging acquisition techniques intended to decrease movement artefact in paediatric brain imaging: a systematic review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Woodfield, Julie; Kealey, Susan

2015-01-01

Attaining paediatric brain images of diagnostic quality can be difficult because of young age or neurological impairment. The use of anaesthesia to reduce movement in MRI increases clinical risk and cost, while CT, though faster, exposes children to potentially harmful ionising radiation. MRI acquisition techniques that aim to decrease movement artefact may allow diagnostic paediatric brain imaging without sedation or anaesthesia. We conducted a systematic review to establish the evidence base for ultra-fast sequences and sequences using oversampling of k-space in paediatric brain MR imaging. Techniques were assessed for imaging time, occurrence of movement artefact, the need for sedation, and either image quality or diagnostic accuracy. We identified 24 relevant studies. We found that ultra-fast techniques had shorter imaging acquisition times compared to standard MRI. Techniques using oversampling of k-space required equal or longer imaging times than standard MRI. Both ultra-fast sequences and those using oversampling of k-space reduced movement artefact compared with standard MRI in unsedated children. Assessment of overall diagnostic accuracy was difficult because of the heterogeneous patient populations, imaging indications, and reporting methods of the studies. In children with shunt-treated hydrocephalus there is evidence that ultra-fast MRI is sufficient for the assessment of ventricular size. (orig.)

Magnetic resonance imaging acquisition techniques intended to decrease movement artefact in paediatric brain imaging: a systematic review

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Woodfield, Julie [University of Edinburgh, Child Life and Health, Edinburgh (United Kingdom); Kealey, Susan [Western General Hospital, Department of Neuroradiology, Edinburgh (United Kingdom)

2015-08-15

Attaining paediatric brain images of diagnostic quality can be difficult because of young age or neurological impairment. The use of anaesthesia to reduce movement in MRI increases clinical risk and cost, while CT, though faster, exposes children to potentially harmful ionising radiation. MRI acquisition techniques that aim to decrease movement artefact may allow diagnostic paediatric brain imaging without sedation or anaesthesia. We conducted a systematic review to establish the evidence base for ultra-fast sequences and sequences using oversampling of k-space in paediatric brain MR imaging. Techniques were assessed for imaging time, occurrence of movement artefact, the need for sedation, and either image quality or diagnostic accuracy. We identified 24 relevant studies. We found that ultra-fast techniques had shorter imaging acquisition times compared to standard MRI. Techniques using oversampling of k-space required equal or longer imaging times than standard MRI. Both ultra-fast sequences and those using oversampling of k-space reduced movement artefact compared with standard MRI in unsedated children. Assessment of overall diagnostic accuracy was difficult because of the heterogeneous patient populations, imaging indications, and reporting methods of the studies. In children with shunt-treated hydrocephalus there is evidence that ultra-fast MRI is sufficient for the assessment of ventricular size. (orig.)

Digital breast tomosynthesis: studies of the effects of acquisition geometry on contrast-to-noise ratio and observer preference of low-contrast objects in breast phantom images

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Goodsitt, Mitchell M; Chan, Heang-Ping; Telang, Santosh; Hadjiiski, Lubomir; Helvie, Mark A; Paramagul, Chintana; Neal, Colleen; Christodoulou, Emmanuel; Larson, Sandra C; Carson, Paul L; Schmitz, Andrea; Zelakiewicz, Scott; Watcharotone, Kuanwong

2014-01-01

The effect of acquisition geometry in digital breast tomosynthesis was evaluated with studies of contrast-to-noise ratios (CNRs) and observer preference. Contrast-detail (CD) test objects in 5 cm thick phantoms with breast-like backgrounds were imaged. Twelve different angular acquisitions (average glandular dose for each ∼1.1 mGy) were performed ranging from narrow angle 16° with 17 projection views (16d17p) to wide angle 64d17p. Focal slices of SART-reconstructed images of the CD arrays were selected for CNR computations and the reader preference study. For the latter, pairs of images obtained with different acquisition geometries were randomized and scored by 7 trained readers. The total scores for all images and readings for each acquisition geometry were compared as were the CNRs. In general, readers preferred images acquired with wide angle as opposed to narrow angle geometries. The mean percent preferred was highly correlated with tomosynthesis angle (R = 0.91). The highest scoring geometries were 60d21p (95%), 64d17p (80%), and 48d17p (72%); the lowest scoring were 16d17p (4%), 24d9p (17%) and 24d13p (33%). The measured CNRs for the various acquisitions showed much overlap but were overall highest for wide-angle acquisitions. Finally, the mean reader scores were well correlated with the mean CNRs (R = 0.83). (paper)

Digital breast tomosynthesis: Studies of the effects of acquisition geometry on contrast-to-noise ratio and observer preference of low-contrast objects in breast phantom images

Science.gov (United States)

Goodsitt, Mitchell M.; Chan, Heang-Ping; Schmitz, Andrea; Zelakiewicz, Scott; Telang, Santosh; Hadjiiski, Lubomir; Watcharotone, Kuanwong; Helvie, Mark A.; Paramagul, Chintana; Neal, Colleen; Christodoulou, Emmanuel; Larson, Sandra C.; Carson, Paul L.

2014-01-01

The effect of acquisition geometry in digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) was evaluated with studies of contrast-to-noise ratios (CNRs) and observer preference. Contrast-detail (CD) test objects in 5 cm thick phantoms with breast-like backgrounds were imaged. Twelve different angular acquisitions (average glandular dose for each ~1.1 mGy) were performed ranging from narrow angle 16° with 17 projection views (16d17p) to wide angle 64d17p. Focal slices of SART-reconstructed images of the CD arrays were selected for CNR computations and the reader preference study. For the latter, pairs of images obtained with different acquisition geometries were randomized and scored by 7 trained readers. The total scores for all images and readings for each acquisition geometry were compared as were the CNRs. In general, readers preferred images acquired with wide angle as opposed to narrow angle geometries. The mean percent preferred was highly correlated with tomosynthesis angle (R=0.91). The highest scoring geometries were 60d21p (95%), 64d17p (80%), and 48d17p (72%); the lowest scoring were 16d17p (4%), 24d9p (17%) and 24d13p (33%). The measured CNRs for the various acquisitions showed much overlap but were overall highest for wide-angle acquisitions. Finally, the mean reader scores were well correlated with the mean CNRs (R=0.83). PMID:25211509

SU-E-J-112: The Impact of Cine EPID Image Acquisition Frame Rate On Markerless Soft-Tissue Tracking

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yip, S; Rottmann, J; Berbeco, R [Brigham and Women' s Hospital, Boston, MA (United States)

2014-06-01

Purpose: Although reduction of the cine EPID acquisition frame rate through multiple frame averaging may reduce hardware memory burden and decrease image noise, it can hinder the continuity of soft-tissue motion leading to poor auto-tracking results. The impact of motion blurring and image noise on the tracking performance was investigated. Methods: Phantom and patient images were acquired at a frame rate of 12.87Hz on an AS1000 portal imager. Low frame rate images were obtained by continuous frame averaging. A previously validated tracking algorithm was employed for auto-tracking. The difference between the programmed and auto-tracked positions of a Las Vegas phantom moving in the superior-inferior direction defined the tracking error (δ). Motion blurring was assessed by measuring the area change of the circle with the greatest depth. Additionally, lung tumors on 1747 frames acquired at eleven field angles from four radiotherapy patients are manually and automatically tracked with varying frame averaging. δ was defined by the position difference of the two tracking methods. Image noise was defined as the standard deviation of the background intensity. Motion blurring and image noise were correlated with δ using Pearson correlation coefficient (R). Results: For both phantom and patient studies, the auto-tracking errors increased at frame rates lower than 4.29Hz. Above 4.29Hz, changes in errors were negligible with δ<1.60mm. Motion blurring and image noise were observed to increase and decrease with frame averaging, respectively. Motion blurring and tracking errors were significantly correlated for the phantom (R=0.94) and patient studies (R=0.72). Moderate to poor correlation was found between image noise and tracking error with R -0.58 and -0.19 for both studies, respectively. Conclusion: An image acquisition frame rate of at least 4.29Hz is recommended for cine EPID tracking. Motion blurring in images with frame rates below 4.39Hz can substantially reduce the

SU-E-J-112: The Impact of Cine EPID Image Acquisition Frame Rate On Markerless Soft-Tissue Tracking

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yip, S; Rottmann, J; Berbeco, R

2014-01-01

Purpose: Although reduction of the cine EPID acquisition frame rate through multiple frame averaging may reduce hardware memory burden and decrease image noise, it can hinder the continuity of soft-tissue motion leading to poor auto-tracking results. The impact of motion blurring and image noise on the tracking performance was investigated. Methods: Phantom and patient images were acquired at a frame rate of 12.87Hz on an AS1000 portal imager. Low frame rate images were obtained by continuous frame averaging. A previously validated tracking algorithm was employed for auto-tracking. The difference between the programmed and auto-tracked positions of a Las Vegas phantom moving in the superior-inferior direction defined the tracking error (δ). Motion blurring was assessed by measuring the area change of the circle with the greatest depth. Additionally, lung tumors on 1747 frames acquired at eleven field angles from four radiotherapy patients are manually and automatically tracked with varying frame averaging. δ was defined by the position difference of the two tracking methods. Image noise was defined as the standard deviation of the background intensity. Motion blurring and image noise were correlated with δ using Pearson correlation coefficient (R). Results: For both phantom and patient studies, the auto-tracking errors increased at frame rates lower than 4.29Hz. Above 4.29Hz, changes in errors were negligible with δ<1.60mm. Motion blurring and image noise were observed to increase and decrease with frame averaging, respectively. Motion blurring and tracking errors were significantly correlated for the phantom (R=0.94) and patient studies (R=0.72). Moderate to poor correlation was found between image noise and tracking error with R -0.58 and -0.19 for both studies, respectively. Conclusion: An image acquisition frame rate of at least 4.29Hz is recommended for cine EPID tracking. Motion blurring in images with frame rates below 4.39Hz can substantially reduce the

Image Correlation Pattern Optimization for Micro-Scale In-Situ Strain Measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Bomarito, G. F.; Hochhalter, J. D.; Cannon, A. H.

2016-01-01

The accuracy and precision of digital image correlation (DIC) is a function of three primary ingredients: image acquisition, image analysis, and the subject of the image. Development of the first two (i.e. image acquisition techniques and image correlation algorithms) has led to widespread use of DIC; however, fewer developments have been focused on the third ingredient. Typically, subjects of DIC images are mechanical specimens with either a natural surface pattern or a pattern applied to the surface. Research in the area of DIC patterns has primarily been aimed at identifying which surface patterns are best suited for DIC, by comparing patterns to each other. Because the easiest and most widespread methods of applying patterns have a high degree of randomness associated with them (e.g., airbrush, spray paint, particle decoration, etc.), less effort has been spent on exact construction of ideal patterns. With the development of patterning techniques such as microstamping and lithography, patterns can be applied to a specimen pixel by pixel from a patterned image. In these cases, especially because the patterns are reused many times, an optimal pattern is sought such that error introduced into DIC from the pattern is minimized. DIC consists of tracking the motion of an array of nodes from a reference image to a deformed image. Every pixel in the images has an associated intensity (grayscale) value, with discretization depending on the bit depth of the image. Because individual pixel matching by intensity value yields a non-unique scale-dependent problem, subsets around each node are used for identification. A correlation criteria is used to find the best match of a particular subset of a reference image within a deformed image. The reader is referred to references for enumerations of typical correlation criteria. As illustrated by Schreier and Sutton and Lu and Cary systematic errors can be introduced by representing the underlying deformation with under

A study of decisive factors in cross-national acquisitions - An example of BenQ and Foxconn cooperation

Science.gov (United States)

Tu, Kai-Jan

2012-09-01

As a result of globalization, the number of multinational mergers and acquisitions across the globe has grown steadily over the years. In this article I have conducted research based on two key studies: the failure and success of two companies, BenQ and Foxconn, through the mergers and acquisitions. I gain the conclusion that effective cross-border culture communication is an absolute, decisive factor in building successful relationships among companies; enterprises must develop a "cross-border culture communication motivation function" from both the acquiring and the acquired parts of the partnership. It is only then, that enterprises can exert their market and financial synergy influence to the fullest extents.

Image scale measurement with correlation filters in a volume holographic optical correlator

Science.gov (United States)

Zheng, Tianxiang; Cao, Liangcai; He, Qingsheng; Jin, Guofan

2013-08-01

A search engine containing various target images or different part of a large scene area is of great use for many applications, including object detection, biometric recognition, and image registration. The input image captured in realtime is compared with all the template images in the search engine. A volume holographic correlator is one type of these search engines. It performs thousands of comparisons among the images at a super high speed, with the correlation task accomplishing mainly in optics. However, the inputted target image always contains scale variation to the filtering template images. At the time, the correlation values cannot properly reflect the similarity of the images. It is essential to estimate and eliminate the scale variation of the inputted target image. There are three domains for performing the scale measurement, as spatial, spectral and time domains. Most methods dealing with the scale factor are based on the spatial or the spectral domains. In this paper, a method with the time domain is proposed to measure the scale factor of the input image. It is called a time-sequential scaled method. The method utilizes the relationship between the scale variation and the correlation value of two images. It sends a few artificially scaled input images to compare with the template images. The correlation value increases and decreases with the increasing of the scale factor at the intervals of 0.8~1 and 1~1.2, respectively. The original scale of the input image can be measured by estimating the largest correlation value through correlating the artificially scaled input image with the template images. The measurement range for the scale can be 0.8~4.8. Scale factor beyond 1.2 is measured by scaling the input image at the factor of 1/2, 1/3 and 1/4, correlating the artificially scaled input image with the template images, and estimating the new corresponding scale factor inside 0.8~1.2.

Visualization of synchronization of the uterine contraction signals: running cross-correlation and wavelet running cross-correlation methods.

Science.gov (United States)

Oczeretko, Edward; Swiatecka, Jolanta; Kitlas, Agnieszka; Laudanski, Tadeusz; Pierzynski, Piotr

2006-01-01

In physiological research, we often study multivariate data sets, containing two or more simultaneously recorded time series. The aim of this paper is to present the cross-correlation and the wavelet cross-correlation methods to assess synchronization between contractions in different topographic regions of the uterus. From a medical point of view, it is important to identify time delays between contractions, which may be of potential diagnostic significance in various pathologies. The cross-correlation was computed in a moving window with a width corresponding to approximately two or three contractions. As a result, the running cross-correlation function was obtained. The propagation% parameter assessed from this function allows quantitative description of synchronization in bivariate time series. In general, the uterine contraction signals are very complicated. Wavelet transforms provide insight into the structure of the time series at various frequencies (scales). To show the changes of the propagation% parameter along scales, a wavelet running cross-correlation was used. At first, the continuous wavelet transforms as the uterine contraction signals were received and afterwards, a running cross-correlation analysis was conducted for each pair of transformed time series. The findings show that running functions are very useful in the analysis of uterine contractions.

Clinical evaluation of PET image quality as a function of acquisition time in a new TOF-PET/MR compared to TOF-PET/CT - initial results

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zeimpekis, Konstantinos; Huellner, Martin; De Galiza Barbosa, Felipe; Ter Voert, Edwin; Davison, Helen; Delso, Gaspar; Veit-Haibach, Patrick

2015-01-01

The recently available integrated PET/MR imaging can offer significant additional advances in clinical imaging. The purpose of this study was to compare the PET performance between a PET/CT scanner and an integrated TOF-PET/MR scanner concerning image quality parameters and quantification in terms of SUV as a function of acquisition time (a surrogate of dose). Five brain and five whole body patients were included in the study. The PET/CT scan was used as a reference and the PET/MR acquisition time was consecutively adjusted, taking into account the decay between the scans in order to expose both systems to the same amount of emitted signal. The acquisition times were then retrospectively reduced to assess the performance of the PET/MRI for lower count rates. Image quality, image sharpness, artifacts and noise were evaluated. SUV measurements were taken in the liver and in white matter to compare quantification. Quantitative evaluation showed good correlation between PET/CT and PET/MR brain SUVs. Liver correlation was lower, with uptake underestimation in PET/MR, partially justified by bio-redistribution. The clinical evaluation showed that PET/MR offers higher image quality and sharpness with lower levels of noise and artefacts compared to PET/CT with reduced acquisition times for whole body scans, while for brain scans there is no significant difference. The PET-component of the TOF-PET/MR showed higher image quality compared to PET/CT as tested with reduced imaging times. However, these results account mainly for body imaging, while no significant difference were found in brain imaging. This overall higher image quality suggests that the acquisition time or injected activity can be reduced by at least 37% on the PET/MR scanner.

Clinical evaluation of PET image quality as a function of acquisition time in a new TOF-PET/MR compared to TOF-PET/CT - initial results

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zeimpekis, Konstantinos; Huellner, Martin; De Galiza Barbosa, Felipe; Ter Voert, Edwin; Davison, Helen; Delso, Gaspar; Veit-Haibach, Patrick [Nuclear Medicine, University Hospital Zurich (Switzerland)

2015-05-18

The recently available integrated PET/MR imaging can offer significant additional advances in clinical imaging. The purpose of this study was to compare the PET performance between a PET/CT scanner and an integrated TOF-PET/MR scanner concerning image quality parameters and quantification in terms of SUV as a function of acquisition time (a surrogate of dose). Five brain and five whole body patients were included in the study. The PET/CT scan was used as a reference and the PET/MR acquisition time was consecutively adjusted, taking into account the decay between the scans in order to expose both systems to the same amount of emitted signal. The acquisition times were then retrospectively reduced to assess the performance of the PET/MRI for lower count rates. Image quality, image sharpness, artifacts and noise were evaluated. SUV measurements were taken in the liver and in white matter to compare quantification. Quantitative evaluation showed good correlation between PET/CT and PET/MR brain SUVs. Liver correlation was lower, with uptake underestimation in PET/MR, partially justified by bio-redistribution. The clinical evaluation showed that PET/MR offers higher image quality and sharpness with lower levels of noise and artefacts compared to PET/CT with reduced acquisition times for whole body scans, while for brain scans there is no significant difference. The PET-component of the TOF-PET/MR showed higher image quality compared to PET/CT as tested with reduced imaging times. However, these results account mainly for body imaging, while no significant difference were found in brain imaging. This overall higher image quality suggests that the acquisition time or injected activity can be reduced by at least 37% on the PET/MR scanner.

Review of Extraskeletal Activity on Tc-99m Methylene Diphosphonate Bone Scintigraphy and Value of Cross-Sectional and SPECT-CT Imaging Correlation.

Science.gov (United States)

Bermo, Mohammed; Behnia, Sanaz; Fair, Joanna; Miyaoka, Robert S; Elojeimy, Saeed

2017-07-31

Recognizing the different mechanisms and imaging appearance of extraskeletal Tc-99m methylene diphosphonate uptake enhances the diagnostic value of bone scan interpretation. In this article, we present a pictorial review of the different mechanisms of extraskeletal Tc-99m methylene diphosphonate uptake on bone scintigraphy including neoplastic, inflammatory, ischemic, traumatic, excretory, and iatrogenic. We also illustrate through case examples the added value of correlation with cross-sectional and single photon emission computed tomography and computed tomography imaging in localizing and characterizing challenging cases of extraskeletal uptake. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Cross-correlations and influence in world gold markets

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Min; Wang, Gang-Jin; Xie, Chi; Stanley, H. Eugene

2018-01-01

Using the detrended cross-correlation analysis (DCCA) coefficient and the detrended partial cross-correlation analysis (DPCCA) coefficient, we investigate cross-correlations and net cross-correlations among five major world gold markets (London, New York, Shanghai, Tokyo, and Mumbai) at different time scales. We propose multiscale influence measures for examining the influence of individual markets on other markets and on the entire system. We find (i) that the cross-correlations, net cross-correlations, and net influences among the five gold markets vary across time scales, (ii) that the cross-market correlation between London and New York at each time scale is intense and inherent, meaning that the influence of other gold markets on the London-New York market is negligible, (iii) that the remaining cross-market correlations (i.e., those other than London-New York) are greatly affected by other gold markets, and (iv) that the London gold market significantly affects the other four gold markets and dominates the world-wide gold market. Our multiscale findings give market participants and market regulators new information on cross-market linkages in the world-wide gold market.

Improvement of Sidestream Dark Field Imaging with an Image Acquisition Stabilizer

OpenAIRE

Balestra, Gianmarco M; Bezemer, Rick; Boerma, E Christiaan; Yong, Ze-Yie; Sjauw, Krishan D; Engstrom, Annemarie E; Koopmans, Matty; Ince, Can

2010-01-01

Abstract Background In the present study we developed, evaluated in volunteers, and clinically validated an image acquisition stabilizer (IAS) for Sidestream Dark Field (SDF) imaging. Methods The IAS is a stainless steel sterilizable ring which fits around the SDF probe tip. The IAS creates adhesion to the imaged tissue by application of negative pressure. The effects of the IAS on the sublingual microcirculatory flow velocities, the force required to induce pressure artifacts (PA), the time ...

Sensor-Based Auto-Focusing System Using Multi-Scale Feature Extraction and Phase Correlation Matching

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jinbeum Jang

2015-03-01

Full Text Available This paper presents a novel auto-focusing system based on a CMOS sensor containing pixels with different phases. Robust extraction of features in a severely defocused image is the fundamental problem of a phase-difference auto-focusing system. In order to solve this problem, a multi-resolution feature extraction algorithm is proposed. Given the extracted features, the proposed auto-focusing system can provide the ideal focusing position using phase correlation matching. The proposed auto-focusing (AF algorithm consists of four steps: (i acquisition of left and right images using AF points in the region-of-interest; (ii feature extraction in the left image under low illumination and out-of-focus blur; (iii the generation of two feature images using the phase difference between the left and right images; and (iv estimation of the phase shifting vector using phase correlation matching. Since the proposed system accurately estimates the phase difference in the out-of-focus blurred image under low illumination, it can provide faster, more robust auto focusing than existing systems.

Test bed for real-time image acquisition and processing systems based on FlexRIO, CameraLink, and EPICS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barrera, E.; Ruiz, M.; Sanz, D.; Vega, J.; Castro, R.; Juárez, E.; Salvador, R.

2014-01-01

Highlights: • The test bed allows for the validation of real-time image processing techniques. • Offers FPGA (FlexRIO) image processing that does not require CPU intervention. • Is fully compatible with the architecture of the ITER Fast Controllers. • Provides flexibility and easy integration in distributed experiments based on EPICS. - Abstract: Image diagnostics are becoming standard ones in nuclear fusion. At present, images are typically analyzed off-line. However, real-time processing is occasionally required (for instance, hot-spot detection or pattern recognition tasks), which will be the objective for the next generation of fusion devices. In this paper, a test bed for image generation, acquisition, and real-time processing is presented. The proposed solution is built using a Camera Link simulator, a Camera Link frame-grabber, a PXIe chassis, and offers software interface with EPICS. The Camera Link simulator (PCIe card PCIe8 DVa C-Link from Engineering Design Team) generates simulated image data (for example, from video-movies stored in fusion databases) using a Camera Link interface to mimic the frame sequences produced with diagnostic cameras. The Camera Link frame-grabber (FlexRIO Solution from National Instruments) includes a field programmable gate array (FPGA) for image acquisition using a Camera Link interface; the FPGA allows for the codification of ad-hoc image processing algorithms using LabVIEW/FPGA software. The frame grabber is integrated in a PXIe chassis with system architecture similar to that of the ITER Fast Controllers, and the frame grabber provides a software interface with EPICS to program all of its functionalities, capture the images, and perform the required image processing. The use of these four elements allows for the implementation of a test bed system that permits the development and validation of real-time image processing techniques in an architecture that is fully compatible with that of the ITER Fast Controllers

Tailoring four-dimensional cone-beam CT acquisition settings for fiducial marker-based image guidance in radiation therapy.

Science.gov (United States)

Jin, Peng; van Wieringen, Niek; Hulshof, Maarten C C M; Bel, Arjan; Alderliesten, Tanja

2018-04-01

Use of four-dimensional cone-beam CT (4D-CBCT) and fiducial markers for image guidance during radiation therapy (RT) of mobile tumors is challenging due to the trade-off among image quality, imaging dose, and scanning time. This study aimed to investigate different 4D-CBCT acquisition settings for good visibility of fiducial markers in 4D-CBCT. Using these 4D-CBCTs, the feasibility of marker-based 4D registration for RT setup verification and manual respiration-induced motion quantification was investigated. For this, we applied a dynamic phantom with three different breathing motion amplitudes and included two patients with implanted markers. Irrespective of the motion amplitude, for a medium field of view (FOV), marker visibility was improved by reducing the imaging dose per projection and increasing the number of projection images; however, the scanning time was 4 to 8 min. For a small FOV, the total imaging dose and the scanning time were reduced (62.5% of the dose using a medium FOV, 2.5 min) without losing marker visibility. However, the body contour could be missing for a small FOV, which is not preferred in RT. The marker-based 4D setup verification was feasible for both the phantom and patient data. Moreover, manual marker motion quantification can achieve a high accuracy with a mean error of [Formula: see text].

An asynchronous, pipelined, electronic acquisition system for Active Matrix Flat-Panel Imagers (AMFPIs)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Huang, W.; Antonuk, L.E. E-mail: antonuk@umich.edu; Berry, J.; Maolinbay, M.; Martelli, C.; Mody, P.; Nassif, S.; Yeakey, M

1999-07-11

The development of a full-custom electronic acquisition system designed for readout of large-area active matrix flat-panel imaging arrays is reported. The arrays, which comprise two-dimensional matrices of pixels utilizing amorphous silicon thin-film transistors, are themselves under development for a wide variety of X-ray imaging applications. The acquisition system was specifically designed to facilitate detailed, quantitative investigations of the properties of these novel imaging arrays and contains significant enhancements compared to a previously developed acquisition system. These enhancements include pipelined preamplifier circuits to allow faster readout speed, expanded addressing capabilities allowing a maximum of 4096 array data lines, and on-board summing of image frames. The values of many acquisition system parameters, including timings and voltages, may be specified and downloaded from a host computer. Once acquisition is enabled, the system operates asynchronously of its host computer. The system allows image capture in both radiographic mode (corresponding to the capture of individual X-ray images), and fluoroscopic mode (corresponding to the capture of a continual series of X-ray images). A detailed description of the system architecture and the underlying motivations for the design is reported in this paper. (author)

Detrended cross-correlation analysis of electroencephalogram

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Jun; Zhao Da-Qing

2012-01-01

In the paper we use detrended cross-correlation analysis (DCCA) to study the electroencephalograms of healthy young subjects and healthy old subjects. It is found that the cross-correlation between different leads of a healthy young subject is larger than that of a healthy old subject. It was shown that the cross-correlation relationship decreases with the aging process and the phenomenon can help to diagnose whether the subject's brain function is healthy or not. (interdisciplinary physics and related areas of science and technology)

Iris recognition and what is next? Iris diagnosis: a new challenging topic for machine vision from image acquisition to image interpretation

Science.gov (United States)

Perner, Petra

2017-03-01

Molecular image-based techniques are widely used in medicine to detect specific diseases. Look diagnosis is an important issue but also the analysis of the eye plays an important role in order to detect specific diseases. These topics are important topics in medicine and the standardization of these topics by an automatic system can be a new challenging field for machine vision. Compared to iris recognition has the iris diagnosis much more higher demands for the image acquisition and interpretation of the iris. One understands by iris diagnosis (Iridology) the investigation and analysis of the colored part of the eye, the iris, to discover factors, which play an important role for the prevention and treatment of illnesses, but also for the preservation of an optimum health. An automatic system would pave the way for a much wider use of the iris diagnosis for the diagnosis of illnesses and for the purpose of individual health protection. With this paper, we describe our work towards an automatic iris diagnosis system. We describe the image acquisition and the problems with it. Different ways are explained for image acquisition and image preprocessing. We describe the image analysis method for the detection of the iris. The meta-model for image interpretation is given. Based on this model we show the many tasks for image analysis that range from different image-object feature analysis, spatial image analysis to color image analysis. Our first results for the recognition of the iris are given. We describe how detecting the pupil and not wanted lamp spots. We explain how to recognize orange blue spots in the iris and match them against the topological map of the iris. Finally, we give an outlook for further work.

Image features dependant correlation-weighting function for efficient PRNU based source camera identification.

Science.gov (United States)

Tiwari, Mayank; Gupta, Bhupendra

2018-04-01

For source camera identification (SCI), photo response non-uniformity (PRNU) has been widely used as the fingerprint of the camera. The PRNU is extracted from the image by applying a de-noising filter then taking the difference between the original image and the de-noised image. However, it is observed that intensity-based features and high-frequency details (edges and texture) of the image, effect quality of the extracted PRNU. This effects correlation calculation and creates problems in SCI. For solving this problem, we propose a weighting function based on image features. We have experimentally identified image features (intensity and high-frequency contents) effect on the estimated PRNU, and then develop a weighting function which gives higher weights to image regions which give reliable PRNU and at the same point it gives comparatively less weights to the image regions which do not give reliable PRNU. Experimental results show that the proposed weighting function is able to improve the accuracy of SCI up to a great extent. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

DOA Estimation Based on Real-Valued Cross Correlation Matrix of Coprime Arrays.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Jianfeng; Wang, Feng; Jiang, Defu

2017-03-20

A fast direction of arrival (DOA) estimation method using a real-valued cross-correlation matrix (CCM) of coprime subarrays is proposed. Firstly, real-valued CCM with extended aperture is constructed to obtain the signal subspaces corresponding to the two subarrays. By analysing the relationship between the two subspaces, DOA estimations from the two subarrays are simultaneously obtained with automatic pairing. Finally, unique DOA is determined based on the common results from the two subarrays. Compared to partial spectral search (PSS) method and estimation of signal parameter via rotational invariance (ESPRIT) based method for coprime arrays, the proposed algorithm has lower complexity but achieves better DOA estimation performance and handles more sources. Simulation results verify the effectiveness of the approach.

Experimental single-chip color HDTV image acquisition system with 8M-pixel CMOS image sensor

Science.gov (United States)

Shimamoto, Hiroshi; Yamashita, Takayuki; Funatsu, Ryohei; Mitani, Kohji; Nojiri, Yuji

2006-02-01

We have developed an experimental single-chip color HDTV image acquisition system using 8M-pixel CMOS image sensor. The sensor has 3840 × 2160 effective pixels and is progressively scanned at 60 frames per second. We describe the color filter array and interpolation method to improve image quality with a high-pixel-count single-chip sensor. We also describe an experimental image acquisition system we used to measured spatial frequency characteristics in the horizontal direction. The results indicate good prospects for achieving a high quality single chip HDTV camera that reduces pseudo signals and maintains high spatial frequency characteristics within the frequency band for HDTV.

Factors affecting the Long-Term Post-Acquisition Performance of BRICS Firms Engaging in Cross-Border Mergers and Acquisitions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Damilola Oyetade

2017-04-01

Full Text Available The purpose of the paper is to examine factors that affect the long-term performance of listed firms from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS that engage in cross-border mergers and acquisitions. This paper adds to the existing literature on the performance of mergers and acquisitions from emerging economies by examining the performance of mergers and acquisitions activities on acquirers from individual BRICS countries and examining whether intra-BRICS acquisitions are more beneficial than non-BRICS acquisitions. The system generalised method of moments estimation technique was employed in order to control for unobservable heterogeneity and potential endogeneity problems using accounting data and merger deal information collected from the Bloomberg online database for the period January 2000 to December 2012.The results obtained indicate that there is persistence in the profits, suggesting that BRICS acquirers continue to profit as they engage in mergers and acquisitions, and firm size significantly impacts the profits of acquirers.

Technical Note: Detection of gas bubble leakage via correlation of water column multibeam images

Science.gov (United States)

Schneider von Deimling, J.; Papenberg, C.

2012-03-01

Hydroacoustic detection of natural gas release from the seafloor has been conducted in the past by using singlebeam echosounders. In contrast, modern multibeam swath mapping systems allow much wider coverage, higher resolution, and offer 3-D spatial correlation. Up to the present, the extremely high data rate hampers water column backscatter investigations and more sophisticated visualization and processing techniques are needed. Here, we present water column backscatter data acquired with a 50 kHz prototype multibeam system over a period of 75 seconds. Display types are of swath-images as well as of a "re-sorted" singlebeam presentation. Thus, individual and/or groups of gas bubbles rising from the 24 m deep seafloor clearly emerge in the acoustic images, making it possible to estimate rise velocities. A sophisticated processing scheme is introduced to identify those rising gas bubbles in the hydroacoustic data. We apply a cross-correlation technique adapted from particle imaging velocimetry (PIV) to the acoustic backscatter images. Temporal and spatial drift patterns of the bubbles are assessed and are shown to match very well to measured and theoretical rise patterns. The application of this processing to our field data gives clear results with respect to unambiguous bubble detection and remote bubble rise velocimetry. The method can identify and exclude the main source of misinterpretations, i.e. fish-mediated echoes. Although image-based cross-correlation techniques are well known in the field of fluid mechanics for high resolution and non-inversive current flow field analysis, we present the first application of this technique as an acoustic bubble detector.

Technical Note: Detection of gas bubble leakage via correlation of water column multibeam images

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. Schneider von Deimling

2012-03-01

Full Text Available Hydroacoustic detection of natural gas release from the seafloor has been conducted in the past by using singlebeam echosounders. In contrast, modern multibeam swath mapping systems allow much wider coverage, higher resolution, and offer 3-D spatial correlation. Up to the present, the extremely high data rate hampers water column backscatter investigations and more sophisticated visualization and processing techniques are needed. Here, we present water column backscatter data acquired with a 50 kHz prototype multibeam system over a period of 75 seconds. Display types are of swath-images as well as of a "re-sorted" singlebeam presentation. Thus, individual and/or groups of gas bubbles rising from the 24 m deep seafloor clearly emerge in the acoustic images, making it possible to estimate rise velocities. A sophisticated processing scheme is introduced to identify those rising gas bubbles in the hydroacoustic data. We apply a cross-correlation technique adapted from particle imaging velocimetry (PIV to the acoustic backscatter images. Temporal and spatial drift patterns of the bubbles are assessed and are shown to match very well to measured and theoretical rise patterns. The application of this processing to our field data gives clear results with respect to unambiguous bubble detection and remote bubble rise velocimetry. The method can identify and exclude the main source of misinterpretations, i.e. fish-mediated echoes. Although image-based cross-correlation techniques are well known in the field of fluid mechanics for high resolution and non-inversive current flow field analysis, we present the first application of this technique as an acoustic bubble detector.

Random matrix theory analysis of cross-correlations in the US stock market: Evidence from Pearson’s correlation coefficient and detrended cross-correlation coefficient

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Gang-Jin; Xie, Chi; Chen, Shou; Yang, Jiao-Jiao; Yang, Ming-Yan

2013-09-01

In this study, we first build two empirical cross-correlation matrices in the US stock market by two different methods, namely the Pearson’s correlation coefficient and the detrended cross-correlation coefficient (DCCA coefficient). Then, combining the two matrices with the method of random matrix theory (RMT), we mainly investigate the statistical properties of cross-correlations in the US stock market. We choose the daily closing prices of 462 constituent stocks of S&P 500 index as the research objects and select the sample data from January 3, 2005 to August 31, 2012. In the empirical analysis, we examine the statistical properties of cross-correlation coefficients, the distribution of eigenvalues, the distribution of eigenvector components, and the inverse participation ratio. From the two methods, we find some new results of the cross-correlations in the US stock market in our study, which are different from the conclusions reached by previous studies. The empirical cross-correlation matrices constructed by the DCCA coefficient show several interesting properties at different time scales in the US stock market, which are useful to the risk management and optimal portfolio selection, especially to the diversity of the asset portfolio. It will be an interesting and meaningful work to find the theoretical eigenvalue distribution of a completely random matrix R for the DCCA coefficient because it does not obey the Marčenko-Pastur distribution.

Correlation of contrast-detail analysis and clinical image quality assessment in chest radiography with a human cadaver study.

Science.gov (United States)

De Crop, An; Bacher, Klaus; Van Hoof, Tom; Smeets, Peter V; Smet, Barbara S; Vergauwen, Merel; Kiendys, Urszula; Duyck, Philippe; Verstraete, Koenraad; D'Herde, Katharina; Thierens, Hubert

2012-01-01

To determine the correlation between the clinical and physical image quality of chest images by using cadavers embalmed with the Thiel technique and a contrast-detail phantom. The use of human cadavers fulfilled the requirements of the institutional ethics committee. Clinical image quality was assessed by using three human cadavers embalmed with the Thiel technique, which results in excellent preservation of the flexibility and plasticity of organs and tissues. As a result, lungs can be inflated during image acquisition to simulate the pulmonary anatomy seen on a chest radiograph. Both contrast-detail phantom images and chest images of the Thiel-embalmed bodies were acquired with an amorphous silicon flat-panel detector. Tube voltage (70, 81, 90, 100, 113, 125 kVp), copper filtration (0.1, 0.2, 0.3 mm Cu), and exposure settings (200, 280, 400, 560, 800 speed class) were altered to simulate different quality levels. Four experienced radiologists assessed the image quality by using a visual grading analysis (VGA) technique based on European Quality Criteria for Chest Radiology. The phantom images were scored manually and automatically with use of dedicated software, both resulting in an inverse image quality figure (IQF). Spearman rank correlations between inverse IQFs and VGA scores were calculated. A statistically significant correlation (r = 0.80, P chest radiography. © RSNA, 2011.

Cross-Correlations between Energy and Emissions Markets: New Evidence from Fractal and Multifractal Analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gang-Jin Wang

2014-01-01

Full Text Available We supply a new perspective to describe and understand the behavior of cross-correlations between energy and emissions markets. Namely, we investigate cross-correlations between oil and gas (Oil-Gas, oil and CO2 (Oil-CO2, and gas and CO2 (Gas-CO2 based on fractal and multifractal analysis. We focus our study on returns of the oil, gas, and CO2 during the period of April 22, 2005–April 30, 2013. In the empirical analysis, by using the detrended cross-correlation analysis (DCCA method, we find that cross-correlations for Oil-Gas, Oil-CO2, and Gas-CO2 obey a power-law and are weakly persistent. Then, we adopt the method of DCCA cross-correlation coefficient to quantify cross-correlations between energy and emissions markets. The results show that their cross-correlations are diverse at different time scales. Next, based on the multifractal DCCA method, we find that cross-correlated markets have the nonlinear and multifractal nature and that the multifractality strength for three cross-correlated markets is arranged in the order of Gas-CO2 > Oil-Gas > Oil-CO2. Finally, by employing the rolling windows method, which can be used to investigate time-varying cross-correlation scaling exponents, we analyze short-term and long-term market dynamics and find that the recent global financial crisis has a notable influence on short-term and long-term market dynamics.

An asynchronous, pipelined, electronic acquisition system for Active Matrix Flat-Panel Imagers (AMFPIs)

CERN Document Server

Huang, W; Berry, J; Maolinbay, M; Martelli, C; Mody, P; Nassif, S; Yeakey, M

1999-01-01

The development of a full-custom electronic acquisition system designed for readout of large-area active matrix flat-panel imaging arrays is reported. The arrays, which comprise two-dimensional matrices of pixels utilizing amorphous silicon thin-film transistors, are themselves under development for a wide variety of X-ray imaging applications. The acquisition system was specifically designed to facilitate detailed, quantitative investigations of the properties of these novel imaging arrays and contains significant enhancements compared to a previously developed acquisition system. These enhancements include pipelined preamplifier circuits to allow faster readout speed, expanded addressing capabilities allowing a maximum of 4096 array data lines, and on-board summing of image frames. The values of many acquisition system parameters, including timings and voltages, may be specified and downloaded from a host computer. Once acquisition is enabled, the system operates asynchronously of its host computer. The sys...

Quantifying the range of cross-correlated fluctuations using a q- L dependent AHXA coefficient

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Fang; Wang, Lin; Chen, Yuming

2018-03-01

Recently, based on analogous height cross-correlation analysis (AHXA), a cross-correlation coefficient ρ×(L) has been proposed to quantify the levels of cross-correlation on different temporal scales for bivariate series. A limitation of this coefficient is that it cannot capture the full information of cross-correlations on amplitude of fluctuations. In fact, it only detects the cross-correlation at a specific order fluctuation, which might neglect some important information inherited from other order fluctuations. To overcome this disadvantage, in this work, based on the scaling of the qth order covariance and time delay L, we define a two-parameter dependent cross-correlation coefficient ρq(L) to detect and quantify the range and level of cross-correlations. This new version of ρq(L) coefficient leads to the formation of a ρq(L) surface, which not only is able to quantify the level of cross-correlations, but also allows us to identify the range of fluctuation amplitudes that are correlated in two given signals. Applications to the classical ARFIMA models and the binomial multifractal series illustrate the feasibility of this new coefficient ρq(L) . In addition, a statistical test is proposed to quantify the existence of cross-correlations between two given series. Applying our method to the real life empirical data from the 1999-2000 California electricity market, we find that the California power crisis in 2000 destroys the cross-correlation between the price and the load series but does not affect the correlation of the load series during and before the crisis.

Task-driven image acquisition and reconstruction in cone-beam CT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gang, Grace J; Stayman, J Webster; Siewerdsen, Jeffrey H; Ehtiati, Tina

2015-01-01

This work introduces a task-driven imaging framework that incorporates a mathematical definition of the imaging task, a model of the imaging system, and a patient-specific anatomical model to prospectively design image acquisition and reconstruction techniques to optimize task performance. The framework is applied to joint optimization of tube current modulation, view-dependent reconstruction kernel, and orbital tilt in cone-beam CT. The system model considers a cone-beam CT system incorporating a flat-panel detector and 3D filtered backprojection and accurately describes the spatially varying noise and resolution over a wide range of imaging parameters in the presence of a realistic anatomical model. Task-based detectability index (d′) is incorporated as the objective function in a task-driven optimization of image acquisition and reconstruction techniques. The orbital tilt was optimized through an exhaustive search across tilt angles ranging ±30°. For each tilt angle, the view-dependent tube current and reconstruction kernel (i.e. the modulation profiles) that maximized detectability were identified via an alternating optimization. The task-driven approach was compared with conventional unmodulated and automatic exposure control (AEC) strategies for a variety of imaging tasks and anthropomorphic phantoms. The task-driven strategy outperformed the unmodulated and AEC cases for all tasks. For example, d′ for a sphere detection task in a head phantom was improved by 30% compared to the unmodulated case by using smoother kernels for noisy views and distributing mAs across less noisy views (at fixed total mAs) in a manner that was beneficial to task performance. Similarly for detection of a line-pair pattern, the task-driven approach increased d′ by 80% compared to no modulation by means of view-dependent mA and kernel selection that yields modulation transfer function and noise-power spectrum optimal to the task. Optimization of orbital tilt identified the

Noise analysis of the measurement of group delay in Fourier white-light interferometric cross correlation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Laude, Vincent

2002-01-01

The problem of noise analysis in measuring the group delay introduced by a dispersive optical element by use of white-light interferometric cross correlation is investigated. Two noise types, detection noise and position noise, are specifically analyzed. Detection noise is shown to be highly sensitive to the spectral content of the white-light source at the frequency considered and to the temporal acquisition window. Position noise, which arises from the finite accuracy of the measurement of the scanning mirror's position, can severely damage the estimation of the group delay. Such is shown to be the case for fast Fourier transform-based estimation algorithms. A new algorithm that is insensitive to scanning delay errors is proposed, and subfemtosecond accuracy is obtained without any postprocessing

Self-adaptive isogeometric global digital image correlation and digital height correlation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hoefnagels, J. P M; Kleinendorst, S. M.; Ruybalid, A. P.; Verhoosel, C. V.; Geers, M. G D; Yoshida, S.; Lamberti, L.; Sciammarella, C.

2017-01-01

This work explores the full potential of isogeometric shape functions for global digital image correlation. To this end, a novel DIC and DHC (digital height correlation) methodology have been developed based on adaptive refinement of isogeometric shape functions. Non-Uniform Rational B-Spline

Robust stereo matching with trinary cross color census and triple image-based refinements

Science.gov (United States)

Chang, Ting-An; Lu, Xiao; Yang, Jar-Ferr

2017-12-01

For future 3D TV broadcasting systems and navigation applications, it is necessary to have accurate stereo matching which could precisely estimate depth map from two distanced cameras. In this paper, we first suggest a trinary cross color (TCC) census transform, which can help to achieve accurate disparity raw matching cost with low computational cost. The two-pass cost aggregation (TPCA) is formed to compute the aggregation cost, then the disparity map can be obtained by a range winner-take-all (RWTA) process and a white hole filling procedure. To further enhance the accuracy performance, a range left-right checking (RLRC) method is proposed to classify the results as correct, mismatched, or occluded pixels. Then, the image-based refinements for the mismatched and occluded pixels are proposed to refine the classified errors. Finally, the image-based cross voting and a median filter are employed to complete the fine depth estimation. Experimental results show that the proposed semi-global stereo matching system achieves considerably accurate disparity maps with reasonable computation cost.

Correlated statistical uncertainties in coded-aperture imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fleenor, Matthew C.; Blackston, Matthew A.; Ziock, Klaus P.

2015-01-01

In nuclear security applications, coded-aperture imagers can provide a wealth of information regarding the attributes of both the radioactive and nonradioactive components of the objects being imaged. However, for optimum benefit to the community, spatial attributes need to be determined in a quantitative and statistically meaningful manner. To address a deficiency of quantifiable errors in coded-aperture imaging, we present uncertainty matrices containing covariance terms between image pixels for MURA mask patterns. We calculated these correlated uncertainties as functions of variation in mask rank, mask pattern over-sampling, and whether or not anti-mask data are included. Utilizing simulated point source data, we found that correlations arose when two or more image pixels were summed. Furthermore, we found that the presence of correlations was heightened by the process of over-sampling, while correlations were suppressed by the inclusion of anti-mask data and with increased mask rank. As an application of this result, we explored how statistics-based alarming is impacted in a radiological search scenario

AcquisitionFootprintAttenuationDrivenbySeismicAttributes

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Cuellar-Urbano Mayra

2014-04-01

Full Text Available Acquisition footprint, one of the major problems that PEMEX faces in seismic imaging, is noise highly correlated to the geometric array of sources and receivers used for onshore and offshore seismic acquisitions. It prevails in spite of measures taken during acquisition and data processing. This pattern, throughout the image, is easily confused with geological features and misguides seismic attribute computation. In this work, we use seismic data from PEMEX Exploración y Producción to show the conditioning process for removing random and coherent noise using linear filters. Geometric attributes used in a workflow were computed for obtaining an acquisition footprint noise model and adaptively subtract it from the seismic data.

Acquisition Pattern Analyses for Recognising Cross-Sell Opportunities in the Financial Services Sector

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Paas, L.; Kuijlen, A.A.A.

2001-01-01

In previously published papers it was shown that consumers often acquire financial products in the same order. Knowledge on such acquisition patterns is useful for marketing purposes. This study aims to define optimal utilisation of the acquisition pattern approach for cross-sell purposes. The

MR imaging of ore for heap bioleaching studies using pure phase encode acquisition methods

Science.gov (United States)

Fagan, Marijke A.; Sederman, Andrew J.; Johns, Michael L.

2012-03-01

Various MRI techniques were considered with respect to imaging of aqueous flow fields in low grade copper ore. Spin echo frequency encoded techniques were shown to produce unacceptable image distortions which led to pure phase encoded techniques being considered. Single point imaging multiple point acquisition (SPI-MPA) and spin echo single point imaging (SESPI) techniques were applied. By direct comparison with X-ray tomographic images, both techniques were found to be able to produce distortion-free images of the ore packings at 2 T. The signal to noise ratios (SNRs) of the SESPI images were found to be superior to SPI-MPA for equal total acquisition times; this was explained based on NMR relaxation measurements. SESPI was also found to produce suitable images for a range of particles sizes, whereas SPI-MPA SNR deteriorated markedly as particles size was reduced. Comparisons on a 4.7 T magnet showed significant signal loss from the SPI-MPA images, the effect of which was accentuated in the case of unsaturated flowing systems. Hence it was concluded that SESPI was the most robust imaging method for the study of copper ore heap leaching hydrology.

An Image Registration Based Technique for Noninvasive Vascular Elastography

OpenAIRE

Valizadeh, Sina; Makkiabadi, Bahador; Mirbagheri, Alireza; Soozande, Mehdi; Manwar, Rayyan; Mozaffarzadeh, Moein; Nasiriavanaki, Mohammadreza

2018-01-01

Non-invasive vascular elastography is an emerging technique in vascular tissue imaging. During the past decades, several techniques have been suggested to estimate the tissue elasticity by measuring the displacement of the Carotid vessel wall. Cross correlation-based methods are the most prevalent approaches to measure the strain exerted in the wall vessel by the blood pressure. In the case of a low pressure, the displacement is too small to be apparent in ultrasound imaging, especially in th...

Computed tomography: acquisition process, technology and current state

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Óscar Javier Espitia Mendoza

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Computed tomography is a noninvasive scan technique widely applied in areas such as medicine, industry, and geology. This technique allows the three-dimensional reconstruction of the internal structure of an object which is lighted with an X-rays source. The reconstruction is formed with two-dimensional cross-sectional images of the object. Each cross-sectional is obtained from measurements of physical phenomena, such as attenuation, dispersion, and diffraction of X-rays, as result of their interaction with the object. In general, measurements acquisition is performed with methods based on any of these phenomena and according to various architectures classified in generations. Furthermore, in response to the need to simulate acquisition systems for CT, software dedicated to this task has been developed. The objective of this research is to determine the current state of CT techniques, for this, a review of methods, different architectures used for the acquisition and some of its applications is presented. Additionally, results of simulations are presented. The main contributions of this work are the detailed description of acquisition methods and the presentation of the possible trends of the technique.

Point-and-stare operation and high-speed image acquisition in real-time hyperspectral imaging

Science.gov (United States)

Driver, Richard D.; Bannon, David P.; Ciccone, Domenic; Hill, Sam L.

2010-04-01

The design and optical performance of a small-footprint, low-power, turnkey, Point-And-Stare hyperspectral analyzer, capable of fully automated field deployment in remote and harsh environments, is described. The unit is packaged for outdoor operation in an IP56 protected air-conditioned enclosure and includes a mechanically ruggedized fully reflective, aberration-corrected hyperspectral VNIR (400-1000 nm) spectrometer with a board-level detector optimized for point and stare operation, an on-board computer capable of full system data-acquisition and control, and a fully functioning internal hyperspectral calibration system for in-situ system spectral calibration and verification. Performance data on the unit under extremes of real-time survey operation and high spatial and high spectral resolution will be discussed. Hyperspectral acquisition including full parameter tracking is achieved by the addition of a fiber-optic based downwelling spectral channel for solar illumination tracking during hyperspectral acquisition and the use of other sensors for spatial and directional tracking to pinpoint view location. The system is mounted on a Pan-And-Tilt device, automatically controlled from the analyzer's on-board computer, making the HyperspecTM particularly adaptable for base security, border protection and remote deployments. A hyperspectral macro library has been developed to control hyperspectral image acquisition, system calibration and scene location control. The software allows the system to be operated in a fully automatic mode or under direct operator control through a GigE interface.

Flow velocity measurement by using zero-crossing polarity cross correlation method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xu Chengji; Lu Jinming; Xia Hong

1993-01-01

Using the designed correlation metering system and a high accurate hot-wire anemometer as a calibration device, the experimental study of correlation method in a tunnel was carried out. The velocity measurement of gas flow by using zero-crossing polarity cross correlation method was realized and the experimental results has been analysed

DOA Estimation Based on Real-Valued Cross Correlation Matrix of Coprime Arrays

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jianfeng Li

2017-03-01

Full Text Available A fast direction of arrival (DOA estimation method using a real-valued cross-correlation matrix (CCM of coprime subarrays is proposed. Firstly, real-valued CCM with extended aperture is constructed to obtain the signal subspaces corresponding to the two subarrays. By analysing the relationship between the two subspaces, DOA estimations from the two subarrays are simultaneously obtained with automatic pairing. Finally, unique DOA is determined based on the common results from the two subarrays. Compared to partial spectral search (PSS method and estimation of signal parameter via rotational invariance (ESPRIT based method for coprime arrays, the proposed algorithm has lower complexity but achieves better DOA estimation performance and handles more sources. Simulation results verify the effectiveness of the approach.

Applying an animal model to quantify the uncertainties of an image-based 4D-CT algorithm

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pierce, Greg; Battista, Jerry; Wang, Kevin; Lee, Ting-Yim

2012-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to use an animal model to quantify the spatial displacement uncertainties and test the fundamental assumptions of an image-based 4D-CT algorithm in vivo. Six female Landrace cross pigs were ventilated and imaged using a 64-slice CT scanner (GE Healthcare) operating in axial cine mode. The breathing amplitude pattern of the pigs was varied by periodically crimping the ventilator gas return tube during the image acquisition. The image data were used to determine the displacement uncertainties that result from matching CT images at the same respiratory phase using normalized cross correlation (NCC) as the matching criteria. Additionally, the ability to match the respiratory phase of a 4.0 cm subvolume of the thorax to a reference subvolume using only a single overlapping 2D slice from the two subvolumes was tested by varying the location of the overlapping matching image within the subvolume and examining the effect this had on the displacement relative to the reference volume. The displacement uncertainty resulting from matching two respiratory images using NCC ranged from 0.54 ± 0.10 mm per match to 0.32 ± 0.16 mm per match in the lung of the animal. The uncertainty was found to propagate in quadrature, increasing with number of NCC matches performed. In comparison, the minimum displacement achievable if two respiratory images were matched perfectly in phase ranged from 0.77 ± 0.06 to 0.93 ± 0.06 mm in the lung. The assumption that subvolumes from separate cine scan could be matched by matching a single overlapping 2D image between to subvolumes was validated. An in vivo animal model was developed to test an image-based 4D-CT algorithm. The uncertainties associated with using NCC to match the respiratory phase of two images were quantified and the assumption that a 4.0 cm 3D subvolume can by matched in respiratory phase by matching a single 2D image from the 3D subvolume was validated. The work in this paper shows the image-based 4D

Low Computational Signal Acquisition for GNSS Receivers Using a Resampling Strategy and Variable Circular Correlation Time

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yeqing Zhang

2018-02-01

Full Text Available For the objective of essentially decreasing computational complexity and time consumption of signal acquisition, this paper explores a resampling strategy and variable circular correlation time strategy specific to broadband multi-frequency GNSS receivers. In broadband GNSS receivers, the resampling strategy is established to work on conventional acquisition algorithms by resampling the main lobe of received broadband signals with a much lower frequency. Variable circular correlation time is designed to adapt to different signal strength conditions and thereby increase the operation flexibility of GNSS signal acquisition. The acquisition threshold is defined as the ratio of the highest and second highest correlation results in the search space of carrier frequency and code phase. Moreover, computational complexity of signal acquisition is formulated by amounts of multiplication and summation operations in the acquisition process. Comparative experiments and performance analysis are conducted on four sets of real GPS L2C signals with different sampling frequencies. The results indicate that the resampling strategy can effectively decrease computation and time cost by nearly 90–94% with just slight loss of acquisition sensitivity. With circular correlation time varying from 10 ms to 20 ms, the time cost of signal acquisition has increased by about 2.7–5.6% per millisecond, with most satellites acquired successfully.

Low Computational Signal Acquisition for GNSS Receivers Using a Resampling Strategy and Variable Circular Correlation Time

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Yeqing; Wang, Meiling; Li, Yafeng

2018-01-01

For the objective of essentially decreasing computational complexity and time consumption of signal acquisition, this paper explores a resampling strategy and variable circular correlation time strategy specific to broadband multi-frequency GNSS receivers. In broadband GNSS receivers, the resampling strategy is established to work on conventional acquisition algorithms by resampling the main lobe of received broadband signals with a much lower frequency. Variable circular correlation time is designed to adapt to different signal strength conditions and thereby increase the operation flexibility of GNSS signal acquisition. The acquisition threshold is defined as the ratio of the highest and second highest correlation results in the search space of carrier frequency and code phase. Moreover, computational complexity of signal acquisition is formulated by amounts of multiplication and summation operations in the acquisition process. Comparative experiments and performance analysis are conducted on four sets of real GPS L2C signals with different sampling frequencies. The results indicate that the resampling strategy can effectively decrease computation and time cost by nearly 90–94% with just slight loss of acquisition sensitivity. With circular correlation time varying from 10 ms to 20 ms, the time cost of signal acquisition has increased by about 2.7–5.6% per millisecond, with most satellites acquired successfully. PMID:29495301

Verbal Working Memory Is Related to the Acquisition of Cross-Linguistic Phonological Regularities.

Science.gov (United States)

Bosma, Evelyn; Heeringa, Wilbert; Hoekstra, Eric; Versloot, Arjen; Blom, Elma

2017-01-01

Closely related languages share cross-linguistic phonological regularities, such as Frisian -âld [ͻ:t] and Dutch -oud [ʱut], as in the cognate pairs kâld [kͻ:t] - koud [kʱut] 'cold' and wâld [wͻ:t] - woud [wʱut] 'forest'. Within Bybee's (1995, 2001, 2008, 2010) network model, these regularities are, just like grammatical rules within a language, generalizations that emerge from schemas of phonologically and semantically related words. Previous research has shown that verbal working memory is related to the acquisition of grammar, but not vocabulary. This suggests that verbal working memory supports the acquisition of linguistic regularities. In order to test this hypothesis we investigated whether verbal working memory is also related to the acquisition of cross-linguistic phonological regularities. For three consecutive years, 5- to 8-year-old Frisian-Dutch bilingual children ( n = 120) were tested annually on verbal working memory and a Frisian receptive vocabulary task that comprised four cognate categories: (1) identical cognates, (2) non-identical cognates that either do or (3) do not exhibit a phonological regularity between Frisian and Dutch, and (4) non-cognates. The results showed that verbal working memory had a significantly stronger effect on cognate category (2) than on the other three cognate categories. This suggests that verbal working memory is related to the acquisition of cross-linguistic phonological regularities. More generally, it confirms the hypothesis that verbal working memory plays a role in the acquisition of linguistic regularities.

Detrended cross-correlation analysis on RMB exchange rate and Hang Seng China Enterprises Index

Science.gov (United States)

Ruan, Qingsong; Yang, Bingchan; Ma, Guofeng

2017-02-01

In this paper, we investigate the cross-correlations between the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index and RMB exchange markets on the basis of a cross-correlation statistic test and multifractal detrended cross-correlation analysis (MF-DCCA). MF-DCCA has, at best, serious limitations for most of the signals describing complex natural processes and often indicates multifractal cross-correlations when there are none. In order to prevent these false multifractal cross-correlations, we apply MFCCA to verify the cross-correlations. Qualitatively, we find that the return series of the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index and RMB exchange markets were, overall, significantly cross-correlated based on the statistical analysis. Quantitatively, we find that the cross-correlations between the stock index and RMB exchange markets were strongly multifractal, and the multifractal degree of the onshore RMB exchange markets was somewhat larger than the offshore RMB exchange markets. Moreover, we use the absolute return series to investigate and confirm the fact of multifractality. The results from the rolling windows show that the short-term cross-correlations between volatility series remain high.

The study on acquisition mode and reconstruction parameters of brain FDG PET images

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zuo Chuantao; Liu Yongchang; Guan Yihui; Zhao Jun; Lin Xiangtong

2001-01-01

Objective: To evaluate the effect of acquisition mode on the brain PET images. Methods: After changing conditions and parameters, the authors got brain PET images of different acquisition modes, different emission counts, different transmission times; and compared with the reference images the impacts of different acquisition modes, different acquisition conditions were assessed. Results: Compared with 2D mode, much higher background and noise were observed on the reconstruction images of 3D mode, and the bottoms of the brain structure were not well displayed. But the middle part of brain structure displayed well in 2D and 3D mode without difference; the gray/white radioactivity ratios were 2.108 +- 0.183 and 2.286 +- 0.232 under 2D and 3D mode, respectively. The gray/white radioactivity ratios with different emission counts were 2.108 +- 0.183, 2.215 +- 0.158, 2.161 +- 0.176, respectively, there was no evident difference among them. With transmission counts increasing, the segmented image outline of Hoffman phantom and brain structure became clear and integral. Conclusions: Different acquisition modes, different emission counts and different transmission times are of certain impacts on brain FDG PET images, and it should be paid more attention in clinical practice

Wavelet-Based Visible and Infrared Image Fusion: A Comparative Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Angel D. Sappa

2016-06-01

Full Text Available This paper evaluates different wavelet-based cross-spectral image fusion strategies adopted to merge visible and infrared images. The objective is to find the best setup independently of the evaluation metric used to measure the performance. Quantitative performance results are obtained with state of the art approaches together with adaptations proposed in the current work. The options evaluated in the current work result from the combination of different setups in the wavelet image decomposition stage together with different fusion strategies for the final merging stage that generates the resulting representation. Most of the approaches evaluate results according to the application for which they are intended for. Sometimes a human observer is selected to judge the quality of the obtained results. In the current work, quantitative values are considered in order to find correlations between setups and performance of obtained results; these correlations can be used to define a criteria for selecting the best fusion strategy for a given pair of cross-spectral images. The whole procedure is evaluated with a large set of correctly registered visible and infrared image pairs, including both Near InfraRed (NIR and Long Wave InfraRed (LWIR.

The effects of common risk factors on stock returns: A detrended cross-correlation analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Ruan, Qingsong; Yang, Bingchan

2017-10-01

In this paper, we investigate the cross-correlations between Fama and French three factors and the return of American industries on the basis of cross-correlation statistic test and multifractal detrended cross-correlation analysis (MF-DCCA). Qualitatively, we find that the return series of Fama and French three factors and American industries were overall significantly cross-correlated based on the analysis of a statistic. Quantitatively, we find that the cross-correlations between three factors and the return of American industries were strongly multifractal, and applying MF-DCCA we also investigate the cross-correlation of industry returns and residuals. We find that there exists multifractality of industry returns and residuals. The result of correlation coefficients we can verify that there exist other factors which influence the industry returns except Fama three factors.

Multifractal detrended cross-correlation analysis in the MENA area

Science.gov (United States)

El Alaoui, Marwane; Benbachir, Saâd

2013-12-01

In this paper, we investigated multifractal cross-correlations qualitatively and quantitatively using a cross-correlation test and the Multifractal detrended cross-correlation analysis method (MF-DCCA) for markets in the MENA area. We used cross-correlation coefficients to measure the level of this correlation. The analysis concerns four stock market indices of Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt and Jordan. The countries chosen are signatory of the Agadir agreement concerning the establishment of a free trade area comprising Arab Mediterranean countries. We computed the bivariate generalized Hurst exponent, Rényi exponent and spectrum of singularity for each pair of indices to measure quantitatively the cross-correlations. By analyzing the results, we found the existence of multifractal cross-correlations between all of these markets. We compared the spectrum width of these indices; we also found which pair of indices has a strong multifractal cross-correlation.

Testing Cross-Sectional Correlation in Large Panel Data Models with Serial Correlation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Badi H. Baltagi

2016-11-01

Full Text Available This paper considers the problem of testing cross-sectional correlation in large panel data models with serially-correlated errors. It finds that existing tests for cross-sectional correlation encounter size distortions with serial correlation in the errors. To control the size, this paper proposes a modification of Pesaran’s Cross-sectional Dependence (CD test to account for serial correlation of an unknown form in the error term. We derive the limiting distribution of this test as N , T → ∞ . The test is distribution free and allows for unknown forms of serial correlation in the errors. Monte Carlo simulations show that the test has good size and power for large panels when serial correlation in the errors is present.

Improvement of sidestream dark field imaging with an image acquisition stabilizer.

Science.gov (United States)

Balestra, Gianmarco M; Bezemer, Rick; Boerma, E Christiaan; Yong, Ze-Yie; Sjauw, Krishan D; Engstrom, Annemarie E; Koopmans, Matty; Ince, Can

2010-07-13

In the present study we developed, evaluated in volunteers, and clinically validated an image acquisition stabilizer (IAS) for Sidestream Dark Field (SDF) imaging. The IAS is a stainless steel sterilizable ring which fits around the SDF probe tip. The IAS creates adhesion to the imaged tissue by application of negative pressure. The effects of the IAS on the sublingual microcirculatory flow velocities, the force required to induce pressure artifacts (PA), the time to acquire a stable image, and the duration of stable imaging were assessed in healthy volunteers. To demonstrate the clinical applicability of the SDF setup in combination with the IAS, simultaneous bilateral sublingual imaging of the microcirculation were performed during a lung recruitment maneuver (LRM) in mechanically ventilated critically ill patients. One SDF device was operated handheld; the second was fitted with the IAS and held in position by a mechanic arm. Lateral drift, number of losses of image stability and duration of stable imaging of the two methods were compared. Five healthy volunteers were studied. The IAS did not affect microcirculatory flow velocities. A significantly greater force had to applied onto the tissue to induced PA with compared to without IAS (0.25 +/- 0.15 N without vs. 0.62 +/- 0.05 N with the IAS, p IAS ensured an increased duration of a stable image sequence (8 +/- 2 s without vs. 42 +/- 8 s with the IAS, p IAS. In eight mechanically ventilated patients undergoing a LRM the use of the IAS resulted in a significantly reduced image drifting and enabled the acquisition of significantly longer stable image sequences (24 +/- 5 s without vs. 67 +/- 14 s with the IAS, p = 0.006). The present study has validated the use of an IAS for improvement of SDF imaging by demonstrating that the IAS did not affect microcirculatory perfusion in the microscopic field of view. The IAS improved both axial and lateral SDF image stability and thereby increased the critical force required

Real-time data acquisition and control system for the 349-pixel TACTIC atmospheric Cherenkov imaging telescope

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yadav, K.K.; Koul, R.; Kanda, A.; Kaul, S.R.; Tickoo, A.K. E-mail: aktickoo@apsara.barc.ernet.in; Rannot, R.C.; Chandra, P.; Bhatt, N.; Chouhan, N.; Venugopal, K.; Kothari, M.; Goyal, H.C.; Dhar, V.K.; Kaul, S.K

2004-07-21

An interrupt-based multinode data acquisition and control system has been developed for the imaging element of the TACTIC {gamma}-ray telescope. The system which has been designed around a 3-node network of PCs running the QNX real-time operating system, provides single-point control with elaborate GUI facilities for operating the multi-pixel camera of the telescope. In addition to acquiring data from the 349-pixel photomultiplier tube based imaging camera in real time, the system also provides continuous monitoring and control of several vital parameters of the telescope for ensuring the quality of the data. The paper describes the salient features of the hardware and software of the data acquisition and control system of the telescope.

IT-based Value Creation in Serial Acquisitions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Henningsson, Stefan; Yetton, Philip

2013-01-01

serial acquirers realize IT-based value, we integrate and model the findings on individual acquisitions from the extant literature, and extend that model to explain the effects of sequential acquisitions in a growth-by-acquisition strategy. This extended model, drawing on the Resource-Based Theory......The extant research on post-acquisition IT integration analyzes how acquirers realize IT-based value in individual acquisitions. However, serial acquirers make 60% of acquisitions. These acquisitions are not isolated events, but are components in growth-by-acquisition programs. To explain how...

Parallel image-acquisition in continuous-wave electron paramagnetic resonance imaging with a surface coil array: Proof-of-concept experiments

Science.gov (United States)

Enomoto, Ayano; Hirata, Hiroshi

2014-02-01

This article describes a feasibility study of parallel image-acquisition using a two-channel surface coil array in continuous-wave electron paramagnetic resonance (CW-EPR) imaging. Parallel EPR imaging was performed by multiplexing of EPR detection in the frequency domain. The parallel acquisition system consists of two surface coil resonators and radiofrequency (RF) bridges for EPR detection. To demonstrate the feasibility of this method of parallel image-acquisition with a surface coil array, three-dimensional EPR imaging was carried out using a tube phantom. Technical issues in the multiplexing method of EPR detection were also clarified. We found that degradation in the signal-to-noise ratio due to the interference of RF carriers is a key problem to be solved.

Determinants of cross-border bank acquisitions in transition economies1

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Poghosyan, Tigran; de Haan, Jakob

2010-01-01

We analyse the microeconomic determinants of cross-border bank acquisitions in 11 transition economies over the period 1992-2006. We find that foreign banks target relatively large and efficient banks when they enter transition economies with weak institutions. This evidence provides support for the

Multifractal Detrended Cross-Correlation Analysis of agricultural futures markets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

He Lingyun; Chen Shupeng

2011-01-01

Highlights: → We investigated cross-correlations between China's and US agricultural futures markets. → Power-law cross-correlations are found between the geographically far but correlated markets. → Multifractal features are significant in all the markets. → Cross-correlation exponent is less than averaged GHE when q 0. - Abstract: We investigated geographically far but temporally correlated China's and US agricultural futures markets. We found that there exists a power-law cross-correlation between them, and that multifractal features are significant in all the markets. It is very interesting that the geographically far markets show strong cross-correlations and share much of their multifractal structure. Furthermore, we found that for all the agricultural futures markets in our studies, the cross-correlation exponent is less than the averaged generalized Hurst exponents (GHE) when q 0.

Polarization information processing and software system design for simultaneously imaging polarimetry

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Yahui; Liu, Jing; Jin, Weiqi; Wen, Renjie

2015-08-01

Simultaneous imaging polarimetry can realize real-time polarization imaging of the dynamic scene, which has wide application prospect. This paper first briefly illustrates the design of the double separate Wollaston Prism simultaneous imaging polarimetry, and then emphases are put on the polarization information processing methods and software system design for the designed polarimetry. Polarization information processing methods consist of adaptive image segmentation, high-accuracy image registration, instrument matrix calibration. Morphological image processing was used for image segmentation by taking dilation of an image; The accuracy of image registration can reach 0.1 pixel based on the spatial and frequency domain cross-correlation; Instrument matrix calibration adopted four-point calibration method. The software system was implemented under Windows environment based on C++ programming language, which realized synchronous polarization images acquisition and preservation, image processing and polarization information extraction and display. Polarization data obtained with the designed polarimetry shows that: the polarization information processing methods and its software system effectively performs live realize polarization measurement of the four Stokes parameters of a scene. The polarization information processing methods effectively improved the polarization detection accuracy.

Research on Radar Cross Section Measurement Based on Near-field Imaging of Cylindrical Scanning

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xing Shu-guang

2015-04-01

Full Text Available A new method of Radar Cross Section (RCS measurement based on near-field imaging of cylindrical scanning surface is proposed. The method is based on the core assumption that the target consists of ideal isotropic scattered centers. Three-dimensional radar scattered images are obtained by using the proposed method, and then to obtain the RCS of the target, the scattered far field is calculated by summing the fields generated by the equivalent scattered centers. Not only three dimensional radar reflectivity images but also the RCS of targets in certain three dimensional angle areas can be obtained. Compared with circular scanning that can only obtain twodimensional radar reflectivity images and RCS results in two-dimensional angle areas, cylindrical scanning can provide more information about the scattering properties of the targets. The method has strong practicability and its validity is verified by simulations.

Parallelised photoacoustic signal acquisition using a Fabry-Perot sensor and a camera-based interrogation scheme

Science.gov (United States)

Saeb Gilani, T.; Villringer, C.; Zhang, E.; Gundlach, H.; Buchmann, J.; Schrader, S.; Laufer, J.

2018-02-01

Tomographic photoacoustic (PA) images acquired using a Fabry-Perot (FP) based scanner offer high resolution and image fidelity but can result in long acquisition times due to the need for raster scanning. To reduce the acquisition times, a parallelised camera-based PA signal detection scheme is developed. The scheme is based on using a sCMOScamera and FPI sensors with high homogeneity of optical thickness. PA signals were acquired using the camera-based setup and the signal to noise ratio (SNR) was measured. A comparison of the SNR of PA signal detected using 1) a photodiode in a conventional raster scanning detection scheme and 2) a sCMOS camera in parallelised detection scheme is made. The results show that the parallelised interrogation scheme has the potential to provide high speed PA imaging.

Real-time particle image velocimetry based on FPGA technology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Iriarte Munoz, Jose Miguel

2008-01-01

Particle image velocimetry (PIV), based on laser sheet, is a method for image processing and calculation of distributed velocity fields.It is well established as a fluid dynamics measurement tool, being applied to liquid, gases and multiphase flows.Images of particles are processed by means of computationally demanding algorithms, what makes its real-time implementation difficult.The most probable displacements are found applying two dimensional cross-correlation function. In this work, we detail how it is possible to achieve real-time visualization of PIV method by designing an adaptive embedded architecture based on FPGA technology.We show first results of a physical field of velocity calculated by this platform system in a real-time approach. [es

Cross-Modality Image Synthesis via Weakly Coupled and Geometry Co-Regularized Joint Dictionary Learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Yawen; Shao, Ling; Frangi, Alejandro F

2018-03-01

Multi-modality medical imaging is increasingly used for comprehensive assessment of complex diseases in either diagnostic examinations or as part of medical research trials. Different imaging modalities provide complementary information about living tissues. However, multi-modal examinations are not always possible due to adversary factors, such as patient discomfort, increased cost, prolonged scanning time, and scanner unavailability. In additionally, in large imaging studies, incomplete records are not uncommon owing to image artifacts, data corruption or data loss, which compromise the potential of multi-modal acquisitions. In this paper, we propose a weakly coupled and geometry co-regularized joint dictionary learning method to address the problem of cross-modality synthesis while considering the fact that collecting the large amounts of training data is often impractical. Our learning stage requires only a few registered multi-modality image pairs as training data. To employ both paired images and a large set of unpaired data, a cross-modality image matching criterion is proposed. Then, we propose a unified model by integrating such a criterion into the joint dictionary learning and the observed common feature space for associating cross-modality data for the purpose of synthesis. Furthermore, two regularization terms are added to construct robust sparse representations. Our experimental results demonstrate superior performance of the proposed model over state-of-the-art methods.

Imaging and Data Acquisition in Clinical Trials for Radiation Therapy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

FitzGerald, Thomas J., E-mail: Thomas.Fitzgerald@umassmed.edu [Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core Rhode Island, University of Massachusetts Memorial Medical Center, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts (United States); Bishop-Jodoin, Maryann [Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core Rhode Island, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts (United States); Followill, David S. [Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core Houston, University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (United States); Galvin, James [Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core Philadelphia, Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (United States); Knopp, Michael V. [Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core Ohio, Wexner Medical Center, Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio (United States); Michalski, Jeff M. [Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core St. Louis, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri (United States); Rosen, Mark A. [Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core Philadelphia, University of Pennsylvania Health System, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (United States); Bradley, Jeffrey D. [Washington University School of Medicine–Radiation Oncology, St. Louis, Missouri (United States); Shankar, Lalitha K. [National Cancer Institute, Clinical Radiation Oncology Branch, Rockville, Maryland (United States); Laurie, Fran [Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core Rhode Island, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts (United States); Cicchetti, M. Giulia; Moni, Janaki [Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core Rhode Island, University of Massachusetts Memorial Medical Center, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, Massachusetts (United States); Coleman, C. Norman; Deye, James A.; Capala, Jacek; Vikram, Bhadrasain [National Cancer Institute, Clinical Radiation Oncology Branch, Rockville, Maryland (United States)

2016-02-01

Cancer treatment evolves through oncology clinical trials. Cancer trials are multimodal and complex. Assuring high-quality data are available to answer not only study objectives but also questions not anticipated at study initiation is the role of quality assurance. The National Cancer Institute reorganized its cancer clinical trials program in 2014. The National Clinical Trials Network (NCTN) was formed and within it was established a Diagnostic Imaging and Radiation Therapy Quality Assurance Organization. This organization is Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core, the Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core Group, consisting of 6 quality assurance centers that provide imaging and radiation therapy quality assurance for the NCTN. Sophisticated imaging is used for cancer diagnosis, treatment, and management as well as for image-driven technologies to plan and execute radiation treatment. Integration of imaging and radiation oncology data acquisition, review, management, and archive strategies are essential for trial compliance and future research. Lessons learned from previous trials are and provide evidence to support diagnostic imaging and radiation therapy data acquisition in NCTN trials.

Imaging and Data Acquisition in Clinical Trials for Radiation Therapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

FitzGerald, Thomas J.; Bishop-Jodoin, Maryann; Followill, David S.; Galvin, James; Knopp, Michael V.; Michalski, Jeff M.; Rosen, Mark A.; Bradley, Jeffrey D.; Shankar, Lalitha K.; Laurie, Fran; Cicchetti, M. Giulia; Moni, Janaki; Coleman, C. Norman; Deye, James A.; Capala, Jacek; Vikram, Bhadrasain

2016-01-01

Cancer treatment evolves through oncology clinical trials. Cancer trials are multimodal and complex. Assuring high-quality data are available to answer not only study objectives but also questions not anticipated at study initiation is the role of quality assurance. The National Cancer Institute reorganized its cancer clinical trials program in 2014. The National Clinical Trials Network (NCTN) was formed and within it was established a Diagnostic Imaging and Radiation Therapy Quality Assurance Organization. This organization is Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core, the Imaging and Radiation Oncology Core Group, consisting of 6 quality assurance centers that provide imaging and radiation therapy quality assurance for the NCTN. Sophisticated imaging is used for cancer diagnosis, treatment, and management as well as for image-driven technologies to plan and execute radiation treatment. Integration of imaging and radiation oncology data acquisition, review, management, and archive strategies are essential for trial compliance and future research. Lessons learned from previous trials are and provide evidence to support diagnostic imaging and radiation therapy data acquisition in NCTN trials.

An acquisition system for CMOS imagers with a genuine 10 Gbit/s bandwidth

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guérin, C.; Mahroug, J.; Tromeur, W.; Houles, J.; Calabria, P.; Barbier, R.

2012-01-01

This paper presents a high data throughput acquisition system for pixel detector readout such as CMOS imagers. This CMOS acquisition board offers a genuine 10 Gbit/s bandwidth to the workstation and can provide an on-line and continuous high frame rate imaging capability. On-line processing can be implemented either on the Data Acquisition Board or on the multi-cores workstation depending on the complexity of the algorithms. The different parts composing the acquisition board have been designed to be used first with a single-photon detector called LUSIPHER (800×800 pixels), developed in our laboratory for scientific applications ranging from nano-photonics to adaptive optics. The architecture of the acquisition board is presented and the performances achieved by the produced boards are described. The future developments (hardware and software) concerning the on-line implementation of algorithms dedicated to single-photon imaging are tackled.

Motives for Cross-border Mergers and Acquisitions: Some Evidence from Danish Firms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wang, Daojuan; Moini, Hamid

2012-01-01

from Danish firms, Synergy Theory, Resource Dependence Theory, and Resource-based View are supported for explaining the motives for CBM&As. Besides, overconfidence and imitation sometimes play a role in the firms’ decision-making process. However, agency problems cannot be identified. It seems, CBM......This study addresses two questions based on Danish firms’ practices: first, what are motives for cross-border mergers and acquisitions (CBM&As)? Second, how the external and internal factors influence the firms’ decisions? According to the results of survey questionnaire and multiple-case study....... In addition, we found the nature of the firms’ core businesses mainly determines their motives for conducting CBM&As....

Payload Configurations for Efficient Image Acquisition - Indian Perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Samudraiah, D. R. M.; Saxena, M.; Paul, S.; Narayanababu, P.; Kuriakose, S.; Kiran Kumar, A. S.

2014-11-01

sounder for providing vertical profile of water vapour, temperature, etc. The same system has data relay transponders for acquiring data from weather stations. The payload configurations have gone through significant changes over the years to increase data rate per kilogram of payload. Future Indian remote sensing systems are planned with very high efficient ways of image acquisition. This paper analyses the strides taken by ISRO (Indian Space research Organisation) in achieving high efficiency in remote sensing image data acquisition. Parameters related to efficiency of image data acquisition are defined and a methodology is worked out to compute the same. Some of the Indian payloads are analysed with respect to some of the system/ subsystem parameters that decide the configuration of payload. Based on the analysis, possible configuration approaches that can provide high efficiency are identified. A case study is carried out with improved configuration and the results of efficiency improvements are reported. This methodology may be used for assessing other electro-optical payloads or missions and can be extended to other types of payloads and missions.

Ultrasonic Detection Using Correlation Images (Preprint)

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Cepel, Raini; Ho, K. C; Rinker, Brett A; Palmer, Donald D; Neal, Steven P

2006-01-01

.... In this paper, we describe an amplitude independent approach for imaging and detection based on the similarity of adjacent signals, quantified by the correlation coefficient calculated between A-scans...

Image acquisition and analysis for beam diagnostics, applications of the Taiwan photon source

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liao, C.Y.; Chen, J.; Cheng, Y.S.; Hsu, K.T.; Hu, K.H.; Kuo, C.H.; Wu, C.Y.

2012-01-01

Design and implementation of image acquisition and analysis is in proceeding for the Taiwan Photon Source (TPS) diagnostic applications. The optical system contains screen, lens, and lighting system. A CCD camera with Gigabit Ethernet interface (GigE Vision) will be a standard image acquisition device. Image acquisition will be done on EPICS IOC via PV channel and analysis the properties by using Matlab tool to evaluate the beam profile (sigma), beam size position and tilt angle et al. The EPICS IOC integrated with Matlab as a data processing system is not only could be used in image analysis but also in many types of equipment data processing applications. Progress of the project will be summarized in this report. (authors)

Statistical tests for power-law cross-correlated processes

Science.gov (United States)

Podobnik, Boris; Jiang, Zhi-Qiang; Zhou, Wei-Xing; Stanley, H. Eugene

2011-12-01

For stationary time series, the cross-covariance and the cross-correlation as functions of time lag n serve to quantify the similarity of two time series. The latter measure is also used to assess whether the cross-correlations are statistically significant. For nonstationary time series, the analogous measures are detrended cross-correlations analysis (DCCA) and the recently proposed detrended cross-correlation coefficient, ρDCCA(T,n), where T is the total length of the time series and n the window size. For ρDCCA(T,n), we numerically calculated the Cauchy inequality -1≤ρDCCA(T,n)≤1. Here we derive -1≤ρDCCA(T,n)≤1 for a standard variance-covariance approach and for a detrending approach. For overlapping windows, we find the range of ρDCCA within which the cross-correlations become statistically significant. For overlapping windows we numerically determine—and for nonoverlapping windows we derive—that the standard deviation of ρDCCA(T,n) tends with increasing T to 1/T. Using ρDCCA(T,n) we show that the Chinese financial market's tendency to follow the U.S. market is extremely weak. We also propose an additional statistical test that can be used to quantify the existence of cross-correlations between two power-law correlated time series.

Data acquisition system for radiographic imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lanza, R.C.; Votano, J.R.; Russ, T.

1992-01-01

This patent describes a continuous data acquisition system for radiographic imaging without interrupting acquisition activity the acquisition system. It comprises at least two memory means for storing radiographic data from a radiation detector wherein each of the memory means having a plurality of addressable memory locations and each of the memory means are such that the locations of the memory means correspond to spatial locations in the radiation detector; logic control means for sensing radiographic data transmitted by the radiation detector, for selecting one of the memory means for storage of the data, for transferring data to the selected memory means, and for switching form one memory means to another memory means according to a predefined schedule and according to memory capacity level, the logic control means further comprising a logic device which receives data and increments the contents of locations in a memory means in response to such data; and interface control means for reading data from one or the other memory means when such memory means is not actively acquiring data such that data can be acquired continuously by the system

Verbal Working Memory Is Related to the Acquisition of Cross-Linguistic Phonological Regularities

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Evelyn Bosma

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Closely related languages share cross-linguistic phonological regularities, such as Frisian -âld [ͻ:t] and Dutch -oud [ʱut], as in the cognate pairs kâld [kͻ:t] – koud [kʱut] ‘cold’ and wâld [wͻ:t] – woud [wʱut] ‘forest’. Within Bybee’s (1995, 2001, 2008, 2010 network model, these regularities are, just like grammatical rules within a language, generalizations that emerge from schemas of phonologically and semantically related words. Previous research has shown that verbal working memory is related to the acquisition of grammar, but not vocabulary. This suggests that verbal working memory supports the acquisition of linguistic regularities. In order to test this hypothesis we investigated whether verbal working memory is also related to the acquisition of cross-linguistic phonological regularities. For three consecutive years, 5- to 8-year-old Frisian-Dutch bilingual children (n = 120 were tested annually on verbal working memory and a Frisian receptive vocabulary task that comprised four cognate categories: (1 identical cognates, (2 non-identical cognates that either do or (3 do not exhibit a phonological regularity between Frisian and Dutch, and (4 non-cognates. The results showed that verbal working memory had a significantly stronger effect on cognate category (2 than on the other three cognate categories. This suggests that verbal working memory is related to the acquisition of cross-linguistic phonological regularities. More generally, it confirms the hypothesis that verbal working memory plays a role in the acquisition of linguistic regularities.

Clinical Evaluation of PET Image Quality as a Function of Acquisition Time in a New TOF-PET/MRI Compared to TOF-PET/CT--Initial Results.

Science.gov (United States)

Zeimpekis, Konstantinos G; Barbosa, Felipe; Hüllner, Martin; ter Voert, Edwin; Davison, Helen; Veit-Haibach, Patrick; Delso, Gaspar

2015-10-01

The purpose of this study was to compare only the performance of the PET component between a TOF-PET/CT (henceforth noted as PET/CT) scanner and an integrated TOF-PET/MRI (henceforth noted as PET/MRI) scanner concerning image quality parameters and quantification in terms of standardized uptake value (SUV) as a function of acquisition time (a surrogate of dose). The CT and MR image quality were not assessed, and that is beyond the scope of this study. Five brain and five whole-body patients were included in the study. The PET/CT scan was used as a reference and the PET/MRI acquisition time was consecutively adjusted, taking into account the decay between the scans in order to expose both systems to the same amount of the emitted signal. The acquisition times were then retrospectively reduced to assess the performance of the PET/MRI for lower count rates. Image quality, image sharpness, artifacts, and noise were evaluated. SUV measurements were taken in the liver and in the white matter to compare quantification. Quantitative evaluation showed strong correlation between PET/CT and PET/MRI brain SUVs. Liver correlation was good, however, with lower uptake estimation in PET/MRI, partially justified by bio-redistribution. The clinical evaluation showed that PET/MRI offers higher image quality and sharpness with lower levels of noise and artifacts compared to PET/CT with reduced acquisition times for whole-body scans while for brain scans there is no significant difference. The TOF-PET/MRI showed higher image quality compared to TOF-PET/CT as tested with reduced imaging times. However, this result accounts mainly for body imaging, while no significant differences were found in brain imaging.

Bunches of random cross-correlated sequences

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Maystrenko, A A; Melnik, S S; Pritula, G M; Usatenko, O V

2013-01-01

The statistical properties of random cross-correlated sequences constructed by the convolution method (likewise referred to as the Rice or the inverse Fourier transformation) are examined. We clarify the meaning of the filtering function—the kernel of the convolution operator—and show that it is the value of the cross-correlation function which describes correlations between the initial white noise and constructed correlated sequences. The matrix generalization of this method for constructing a bunch of N cross-correlated sequences is presented. Algorithms for their generation are reduced to solving the problem of decomposition of the Fourier transform of the correlation matrix into a product of two mutually conjugate matrices. Different decompositions are considered. The limits of weak and strong correlations for the one-point probability and pair correlation functions of sequences generated by the method under consideration are studied. Special cases of heavy-tailed distributions of the generated sequences are analyzed. We show that, if the filtering function is rather smooth, the distribution function of generated variables has the Gaussian or Lévy form depending on the analytical properties of the distribution (or characteristic) functions of the initial white noise. Anisotropic properties of statistically homogeneous random sequences related to the asymmetry of a filtering function are revealed and studied. These asymmetry properties are expressed in terms of the third- or fourth-order correlation functions. Several examples of the construction of correlated chains with a predefined correlation matrix are given. (paper)

Computed Tomography Image Origin Identification Based on Original Sensor Pattern Noise and 3-D Image Reconstruction Algorithm Footprints.

Science.gov (United States)

Duan, Yuping; Bouslimi, Dalel; Yang, Guanyu; Shu, Huazhong; Coatrieux, Gouenou

2017-07-01

In this paper, we focus on the "blind" identification of the computed tomography (CT) scanner that has produced a CT image. To do so, we propose a set of noise features derived from the image chain acquisition and which can be used as CT-scanner footprint. Basically, we propose two approaches. The first one aims at identifying a CT scanner based on an original sensor pattern noise (OSPN) that is intrinsic to the X-ray detectors. The second one identifies an acquisition system based on the way this noise is modified by its three-dimensional (3-D) image reconstruction algorithm. As these reconstruction algorithms are manufacturer dependent and kept secret, our features are used as input to train a support vector machine (SVM) based classifier to discriminate acquisition systems. Experiments conducted on images issued from 15 different CT-scanner models of 4 distinct manufacturers demonstrate that our system identifies the origin of one CT image with a detection rate of at least 94% and that it achieves better performance than sensor pattern noise (SPN) based strategy proposed for general public camera devices.

Image velocimetry for clouds with relaxation labeling based on deformation consistency

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Horinouchi, Takeshi; Murakami, Shin-ya; Yamazaki, Atsushi; Kouyama, Toru; Ogohara, Kazunori; Yamada, Manabu; Watanabe, Shigeto

2017-01-01

Correlation-based cloud tracking has been extensively used to measure atmospheric winds, but still difficulty remains. In this study, aiming at developing a cloud tracking system for Akatsuki, an artificial satellite orbiting Venus, a formulation is developed for improving the relaxation labeling technique to select appropriate peaks of cross-correlation surfaces which tend to have multiple peaks. The formulation makes an explicit use of consistency inherent in the type of cross-correlation method where template sub-images are slid without deformation; if the resultant motion vectors indicate a too-large deformation, it is contradictory to the assumption of the method. The deformation consistency is exploited further to develop two post processes; one clusters the motion vectors into groups within each of which the consistency is perfect, and the other extends the groups using the original candidate lists. These processes are useful to eliminate erroneous vectors, distinguish motion vectors at different altitudes, and detect phase velocities of waves in fluids such as atmospheric gravity waves. As a basis of the relaxation labeling and the post processes as well as uncertainty estimation, the necessity to find isolated (well-separated) peaks of cross-correlation surfaces is argued, and an algorithm to realize it is presented. All the methods are implemented, and their effectiveness is demonstrated with initial images obtained by the ultraviolet imager onboard Akatsuki. Since the deformation consistency regards the logical consistency inherent in template matching methods, it should have broad application beyond cloud tracking. (paper)

Image velocimetry for clouds with relaxation labeling based on deformation consistency

Science.gov (United States)

Horinouchi, Takeshi; Murakami, Shin-ya; Kouyama, Toru; Ogohara, Kazunori; Yamazaki, Atsushi; Yamada, Manabu; Watanabe, Shigeto

2017-08-01

Correlation-based cloud tracking has been extensively used to measure atmospheric winds, but still difficulty remains. In this study, aiming at developing a cloud tracking system for Akatsuki, an artificial satellite orbiting Venus, a formulation is developed for improving the relaxation labeling technique to select appropriate peaks of cross-correlation surfaces which tend to have multiple peaks. The formulation makes an explicit use of consistency inherent in the type of cross-correlation method where template sub-images are slid without deformation; if the resultant motion vectors indicate a too-large deformation, it is contradictory to the assumption of the method. The deformation consistency is exploited further to develop two post processes; one clusters the motion vectors into groups within each of which the consistency is perfect, and the other extends the groups using the original candidate lists. These processes are useful to eliminate erroneous vectors, distinguish motion vectors at different altitudes, and detect phase velocities of waves in fluids such as atmospheric gravity waves. As a basis of the relaxation labeling and the post processes as well as uncertainty estimation, the necessity to find isolated (well-separated) peaks of cross-correlation surfaces is argued, and an algorithm to realize it is presented. All the methods are implemented, and their effectiveness is demonstrated with initial images obtained by the ultraviolet imager onboard Akatsuki. Since the deformation consistency regards the logical consistency inherent in template matching methods, it should have broad application beyond cloud tracking.

Acquisition and visualization techniques for narrow spectral color imaging.

Science.gov (United States)

Neumann, László; García, Rafael; Basa, János; Hegedüs, Ramón

2013-06-01

This paper introduces a new approach in narrow-band imaging (NBI). Existing NBI techniques generate images by selecting discrete bands over the full visible spectrum or an even wider spectral range. In contrast, here we perform the sampling with filters covering a tight spectral window. This image acquisition method, named narrow spectral imaging, can be particularly useful when optical information is only available within a narrow spectral window, such as in the case of deep-water transmittance, which constitutes the principal motivation of this work. In this study we demonstrate the potential of the proposed photographic technique on nonunderwater scenes recorded under controlled conditions. To this end three multilayer narrow bandpass filters were employed, which transmit at 440, 456, and 470 nm bluish wavelengths, respectively. Since the differences among the images captured in such a narrow spectral window can be extremely small, both image acquisition and visualization require a novel approach. First, high-bit-depth images were acquired with multilayer narrow-band filters either placed in front of the illumination or mounted on the camera lens. Second, a color-mapping method is proposed, using which the input data can be transformed onto the entire display color gamut with a continuous and perceptually nearly uniform mapping, while ensuring optimally high information content for human perception.

Nonintrusive iris image acquisition system based on a pan-tilt-zoom camera and light stripe projection

Science.gov (United States)

Yoon, Soweon; Jung, Ho Gi; Park, Kang Ryoung; Kim, Jaihie

2009-03-01

Although iris recognition is one of the most accurate biometric technologies, it has not yet been widely used in practical applications. This is mainly due to user inconvenience during the image acquisition phase. Specifically, users try to adjust their eye position within small capture volume at a close distance from the system. To overcome these problems, we propose a novel iris image acquisition system that provides users with unconstrained environments: a large operating range, enabling movement from standing posture, and capturing good-quality iris images in an acceptable time. The proposed system has the following three contributions compared with previous works: (1) the capture volume is significantly increased by using a pan-tilt-zoom (PTZ) camera guided by a light stripe projection, (2) the iris location in the large capture volume is found fast due to 1-D vertical face searching from the user's horizontal position obtained by the light stripe projection, and (3) zooming and focusing on the user's irises at a distance are accurate and fast using the estimated 3-D position of a face by the light stripe projection and the PTZ camera. Experimental results show that the proposed system can capture good-quality iris images in 2.479 s on average at a distance of 1.5 to 3 m, while allowing a limited amount of movement by the user.

Variable flip angle excitation for reduced acquisition time magnetic resonance imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mills, T.C.; Ortendahl, D.A.; Hylton, N.M.; Carlson, J.W.; Crooks, L.E.; Kaufman, L.

1987-01-01

This paper describes an MRI technique which can be used to acquire images at short TR values while maintaining the sensitivity to disease found in longer TR images. For spin echo imaging there are three acquisition parameters that can be set in the imaging protocol; TR, the repetition interval; TE, the time of echo and Θ, the excitation flip angle. Standard imaging techniques set Θ to 90 degrees regardless of the TR value. With Θ fixed, imaging systems have been optimized by varying the value for TE and TR with the results in general indicating the need for long TR values. However, if the flip angle is included as a variable acquisition parameter the optimal operating point can be changed. The solution to the Bloch equation shows a functional relationship between the flip angle and the ratio TR/T1. This functionality was first observed by Ernst and Anderson as a method to increase the signal generated in fourier transform magnetic resonance spectroscopy. When TR/T1<1 the optimum flip angle for producing maximum magnetization in the transverse plane is less then 90 degrees. Therefore, by reducing both TR and flip angle it is possible to maintain signal intensity while reducing the time of data acquisition

Development of OCDMA system based on Flexible Cross Correlation (FCC) code with OFDM modulation

Science.gov (United States)

Aldhaibani, A. O.; Aljunid, S. A.; Anuar, M. S.; Arief, A. R.; Rashidi, C. B. M.

2015-03-01

The performance of the OCDMA systems is governed by numerous quantitative parameters such as the data rate, simultaneous number of users, the powers of transmitter and receiver, and the type of codes. This paper analyzes the performance of the OCDMA system using OFDM technique to enhance the channel data rate, to save power and increase the number of user of OSCDMA systems compared with previous hybrid subcarrier multiplexing/optical spectrum code division multiplexing (SCM/OSCDM) system. The average received signal to noise ratio (SNR) with the nonlinearity of subcarriers is derived. The theoretical results have been evaluated based on BER and number of users as well as amount of power saved. The proposed system gave better performance and save around -6 dBm of the power as well as increase the number of users twice compare to SCM/OCDMA system. In addition it is robust against interference and much more spectrally efficient than SCM/OCDMA system. The system was designed based on Flexible Cross Correlation (FCC) code which is easier construction, less complexity of encoder/decoder design and flexible in-phase cross-correlation for uncomplicated to implement using Fiber Bragg Gratings (FBGs) for the OCDMA systems for any number of users and weights. The OCDMA-FCC_OFDM improves the number of users (cardinality) 108% compare to SCM/ODCMA-FCC system.

Clinical application of Half Fourier Acquisition Single Shot Turbo Spin Echo (HASTE) imaging accelerated by simultaneous multi-slice acquisition.

Science.gov (United States)

Schulz, Jenni; P Marques, José; Ter Telgte, Annemieke; van Dorst, Anouk; de Leeuw, Frank-Erik; Meijer, Frederick J A; Norris, David G

2018-01-01

As a single-shot sequence with a long train of refocusing pulses, Half-Fourier Acquisition Single-Shot Turbo-Spin-Echo (HASTE) suffers from high power deposition limiting use at high resolutions and high field strengths, particularly if combined with acceleration techniques such as simultaneous multi-slice (SMS) imaging. Using a combination of multiband (MB)-excitation and PINS-refocusing pulses will effectively accelerate the acquisition time while staying within the SAR limitations. In particular, uncooperative and young patients will profit from the speed of the MB-PINS HASTE sequence, as clinical diagnosis can be possible without sedation. Materials and MethodsMB-excitation and PINS-refocusing pulses were incorporated into a HASTE-sequence with blipped CAIPIRINHA and TRAPS including an internal FLASH reference scan for online reconstruction. Whole brain MB-PINS HASTE data were acquired on a Siemens 3T-Prisma system from 10 individuals and compared to a clinical HASTE protocol. ResultsThe proposed MB-PINS HASTE protocol accelerates the acquisition by about a factor 2 compared to the clinical HASTE. The diagnostic image quality proved to be comparable for both sequences for the evaluation of the overall aspect of the brain, the detection of white matter changes and areas of tissue loss, and for the evaluation of the CSF spaces although artifacts were more frequently encountered with MB-PINS HASTE. ConclusionsMB-PINS HASTE enables acquisition of slice accelerated highly T2-weighted images and provides good diagnostic image quality while reducing acquisition time. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Improvement of Sidestream Dark Field Imaging with an Image Acquisition Stabilizer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Balestra, Gianmarco M; Bezemer, Rick; Boerma, E Christiaan; Yong, Ze-Yie; Sjauw, Krishan D; Engstrom, Annemarie E; Koopmans, Matty; Ince, Can

2010-01-01

In the present study we developed, evaluated in volunteers, and clinically validated an image acquisition stabilizer (IAS) for Sidestream Dark Field (SDF) imaging. The IAS is a stainless steel sterilizable ring which fits around the SDF probe tip. The IAS creates adhesion to the imaged tissue by application of negative pressure. The effects of the IAS on the sublingual microcirculatory flow velocities, the force required to induce pressure artifacts (PA), the time to acquire a stable image, and the duration of stable imaging were assessed in healthy volunteers. To demonstrate the clinical applicability of the SDF setup in combination with the IAS, simultaneous bilateral sublingual imaging of the microcirculation were performed during a lung recruitment maneuver (LRM) in mechanically ventilated critically ill patients. One SDF device was operated handheld; the second was fitted with the IAS and held in position by a mechanic arm. Lateral drift, number of losses of image stability and duration of stable imaging of the two methods were compared. Five healthy volunteers were studied. The IAS did not affect microcirculatory flow velocities. A significantly greater force had to applied onto the tissue to induced PA with compared to without IAS (0.25 ± 0.15 N without vs. 0.62 ± 0.05 N with the IAS, p < 0.001). The IAS ensured an increased duration of a stable image sequence (8 ± 2 s without vs. 42 ± 8 s with the IAS, p < 0.001). The time required to obtain a stable image sequence was similar with and without the IAS. In eight mechanically ventilated patients undergoing a LRM the use of the IAS resulted in a significantly reduced image drifting and enabled the acquisition of significantly longer stable image sequences (24 ± 5 s without vs. 67 ± 14 s with the IAS, p = 0.006). The present study has validated the use of an IAS for improvement of SDF imaging by demonstrating that the IAS did not affect microcirculatory perfusion in the microscopic field of view. The IAS

3D visualisation of the middle ear and adjacent structures using reconstructed multi-slice CT datasets, correlating 3D images and virtual endoscopy to the 2D cross-sectional images

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rodt, T.; Ratiu, P.; Kacher, D.F.; Anderson, M.; Jolesz, F.A.; Kikinis, R.; Becker, H.; Bartling, S.

2002-01-01

The 3D imaging of the middle ear facilitates better understanding of the patient's anatomy. Cross-sectional slices, however, often allow a more accurate evaluation of anatomical structures, as some detail may be lost through post-processing. In order to demonstrate the advantages of combining both approaches, we performed computed tomography (CT) imaging in two normal and 15 different pathological cases, and the 3D models were correlated to the cross-sectional CT slices. Reconstructed CT datasets were acquired by multi-slice CT. Post-processing was performed using the in-house software ''3D Slicer'', applying thresholding and manual segmentation. 3D models of the individual anatomical structures were generated and displayed in different colours. The display of relevant anatomical and pathological structures was evaluated in the greyscale 2D slices, 3D images, and the 2D slices showing the segmented 2D anatomy in different colours for each structure. Correlating 2D slices to the 3D models and virtual endoscopy helps to combine the advantages of each method. As generating 3D models can be extremely time-consuming, this approach can be a clinically applicable way of gaining a 3D understanding of the patient's anatomy by using models as a reference. Furthermore, it can help radiologists and otolaryngologists evaluating the 2D slices by adding the correct 3D information that would otherwise have to be mentally integrated. The method can be applied to radiological diagnosis, surgical planning, and especially, to teaching. (orig.)

Fluoroscopic dose reduction by acquisition frame rate reduction and image processing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fritz, S.L.; Mirvis, S.E.; Pals, S.O.

1986-01-01

A new design for fluoroscopic exposure reduction incorporates pulsed x-ray exposure, progressive scan video acquisition at frame rates below 30 Hz, interlaced video display at 30 Hz, and a video rate image processing. To evaluate this design, a variety of phantom systems have been developed to measure the impact of low frame rate pulsed digital fluoroscopy on the performance of several clinical tasks (e.g., catheter placement). The authors are currently using these phantoms with a digital fluoroscopy system using continuous x-ray, interlaced video acquisition and variable acquisition frame rate. The design of their target digital fluoroscopic system, sample image sequences, and the results of some preliminary phantom studies are reported

Stochastic systems with cross-correlated Gaussian white noises

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Cheng-Yu; Song Yu-Min; Zhou Peng; Yang Hai; Gao Yun

2010-01-01

This paper theoretically investigates three stochastic systems with cross-correlation Gaussian white noises. Both steady state properties of the stochastic nonlinear systems and the nonequilibrium transitions induced by the cross-correlated noises are studied. The stationary solutions of the Fokker—Planck equation for three specific examples are analysed. It is shown explicitly that the cross-correlation of white noises can induce nonequilibrium transitions

Color-Based Image Retrieval from High-Similarity Image Databases

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Michael Adsetts Edberg; Carstensen, Jens Michael

2003-01-01

Many image classification problems can fruitfully be thought of as image retrieval in a "high similarity image database" (HSID) characterized by being tuned towards a specific application and having a high degree of visual similarity between entries that should be distinguished. We introduce...... a method for HSID retrieval using a similarity measure based on a linear combination of Jeffreys-Matusita (JM) distances between distributions of color (and color derivatives) estimated from a set of automatically extracted image regions. The weight coefficients are estimated based on optimal retrieval...... performance. Experimental results on the difficult task of visually identifying clones of fungal colonies grown in a petri dish and categorization of pelts show a high retrieval accuracy of the method when combined with standardized sample preparation and image acquisition....

Cross-correlation of long-range correlated series

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arianos, Sergio; Carbone, Anna

2009-01-01

A method for estimating the cross-correlation C xy (τ) of long-range correlated series x(t) and y(t), at varying lags τ and scales n, is proposed. For fractional Brownian motions with Hurst exponents H 1 and H 2 , the asymptotic expression for C xy (τ) depends only on the lag τ (wide-sense stationarity) and scales as a power of n with exponent H 1 +H 2 for τ→0. The method is illustrated on: (i) financial series, to show the leverage effect; (ii) genomic sequences, to estimate the correlations between structural parameters along the chromosomes

Noninvasive Vascular Displacement Estimation for Relative Elastic Modulus Reconstruction in Transversal Imaging Planes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chris L. de Korte

2013-03-01

Full Text Available Atherosclerotic plaque rupture can initiate stroke or myocardial infarction. Lipid-rich plaques with thin fibrous caps have a higher risk to rupture than fibrotic plaques. Elastic moduli differ for lipid-rich and fibrous tissue and can be reconstructed using tissue displacements estimated from intravascular ultrasound radiofrequency (RF data acquisitions. This study investigated if modulus reconstruction is possible for noninvasive RF acquisitions of vessels in transverse imaging planes using an iterative 2D cross-correlation based displacement estimation algorithm. Furthermore, since it is known that displacements can be improved by compounding of displacements estimated at various beam steering angles, we compared the performance of the modulus reconstruction with and without compounding. For the comparison, simulated and experimental RF data were generated of various vessel-mimicking phantoms. Reconstruction errors were less than 10%, which seems adequate for distinguishing lipid-rich from fibrous tissue. Compounding outperformed single-angle reconstruction: the interquartile range of the reconstructed moduli for the various homogeneous phantom layers was approximately two times smaller. Additionally, the estimated lateral displacements were a factor of 2–3 better matched to the displacements corresponding to the reconstructed modulus distribution. Thus, noninvasive elastic modulus reconstruction is possible for transverse vessel cross sections using this cross-correlation method and is more accurate with compounding.

Acoustic window planning for ultrasound acquisition.

Science.gov (United States)

Göbl, Rüdiger; Virga, Salvatore; Rackerseder, Julia; Frisch, Benjamin; Navab, Nassir; Hennersperger, Christoph

2017-06-01

Autonomous robotic ultrasound has recently gained considerable interest, especially for collaborative applications. Existing methods for acquisition trajectory planning are solely based on geometrical considerations, such as the pose of the transducer with respect to the patient surface. This work aims at establishing acoustic window planning to enable autonomous ultrasound acquisitions of anatomies with restricted acoustic windows, such as the liver or the heart. We propose a fully automatic approach for the planning of acquisition trajectories, which only requires information about the target region as well as existing tomographic imaging data, such as X-ray computed tomography. The framework integrates both geometrical and physics-based constraints to estimate the best ultrasound acquisition trajectories with respect to the available acoustic windows. We evaluate the developed method using virtual planning scenarios based on real patient data as well as for real robotic ultrasound acquisitions on a tissue-mimicking phantom. The proposed method yields superior image quality in comparison with a naive planning approach, while maintaining the necessary coverage of the target. We demonstrate that by taking image formation properties into account acquisition planning methods can outperform naive plannings. Furthermore, we show the need for such planning techniques, since naive approaches are not sufficient as they do not take the expected image quality into account.

Kalman/Map Filtering-Aided Fast Normalized Cross Correlation-Based Wi-Fi Fingerprinting Location Sensing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yongliang Sun

2013-11-01

Full Text Available A Kalman/map filtering (KMF-aided fast normalized cross correlation (FNCC-based Wi-Fi fingerprinting location sensing system is proposed in this paper. Compared with conventional neighbor selection algorithms that calculate localization results with received signal strength (RSS mean samples, the proposed FNCC algorithm makes use of all the on-line RSS samples and reference point RSS variations to achieve higher fingerprinting accuracy. The FNCC computes efficiently while maintaining the same accuracy as the basic normalized cross correlation. Additionally, a KMF is also proposed to process fingerprinting localization results. It employs a new map matching algorithm to nonlinearize the linear location prediction process of Kalman filtering (KF that takes advantage of spatial proximities of consecutive localization results. With a calibration model integrated into an indoor map, the map matching algorithm corrects unreasonable prediction locations of the KF according to the building interior structure. Thus, more accurate prediction locations are obtained. Using these locations, the KMF considerably improves fingerprinting algorithm performance. Experimental results demonstrate that the FNCC algorithm with reduced computational complexity outperforms other neighbor selection algorithms and the KMF effectively improves location sensing accuracy by using indoor map information and spatial proximities of consecutive localization results.

Kalman/Map filtering-aided fast normalized cross correlation-based Wi-Fi fingerprinting location sensing.

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Yongliang; Xu, Yubin; Li, Cheng; Ma, Lin

2013-11-13

A Kalman/map filtering (KMF)-aided fast normalized cross correlation (FNCC)-based Wi-Fi fingerprinting location sensing system is proposed in this paper. Compared with conventional neighbor selection algorithms that calculate localization results with received signal strength (RSS) mean samples, the proposed FNCC algorithm makes use of all the on-line RSS samples and reference point RSS variations to achieve higher fingerprinting accuracy. The FNCC computes efficiently while maintaining the same accuracy as the basic normalized cross correlation. Additionally, a KMF is also proposed to process fingerprinting localization results. It employs a new map matching algorithm to nonlinearize the linear location prediction process of Kalman filtering (KF) that takes advantage of spatial proximities of consecutive localization results. With a calibration model integrated into an indoor map, the map matching algorithm corrects unreasonable prediction locations of the KF according to the building interior structure. Thus, more accurate prediction locations are obtained. Using these locations, the KMF considerably improves fingerprinting algorithm performance. Experimental results demonstrate that the FNCC algorithm with reduced computational complexity outperforms other neighbor selection algorithms and the KMF effectively improves location sensing accuracy by using indoor map information and spatial proximities of consecutive localization results.

Signal Digitizer and Cross-Correlation Application Specific Integrated Circuit

Science.gov (United States)

Baranauskas, Dalius (Inventor); Baranauskas, Gytis (Inventor); Zelenin, Denis (Inventor); Kangaslahti, Pekka (Inventor); Tanner, Alan B. (Inventor); Lim, Boon H. (Inventor)

2017-01-01

According to one embodiment, a cross-correlator comprises a plurality of analog front ends (AFEs), a cross-correlation circuit and a data serializer. Each of the AFEs comprises a variable gain amplifier (VGA) and a corresponding analog-to-digital converter (ADC) in which the VGA receives and modifies a unique analog signal associates with a measured analog radio frequency (RF) signal and the ADC produces digital data associated with the modified analog signal. Communicatively coupled to the AFEs, the cross-correlation circuit performs a cross-correlation operation on the digital data produced from different measured analog RF signals. The data serializer is communicatively coupled to the summing and cross-correlating matrix and continuously outputs a prescribed amount of the correlated digital data.

Image acquisition system for traffic monitoring applications

Science.gov (United States)

Auty, Glen; Corke, Peter I.; Dunn, Paul; Jensen, Murray; Macintyre, Ian B.; Mills, Dennis C.; Nguyen, Hao; Simons, Ben

1995-03-01

An imaging system for monitoring traffic on multilane highways is discussed. The system, named Safe-T-Cam, is capable of operating 24 hours per day in all but extreme weather conditions and can capture still images of vehicles traveling up to 160 km/hr. Systems operating at different remote locations are networked to allow transmission of images and data to a control center. A remote site facility comprises a vehicle detection and classification module (VCDM), an image acquisition module (IAM) and a license plate recognition module (LPRM). The remote site is connected to the central site by an ISDN communications network. The remote site system is discussed in this paper. The VCDM consists of a video camera, a specialized exposure control unit to maintain consistent image characteristics, and a 'real-time' image processing system that processes 50 images per second. The VCDM can detect and classify vehicles (e.g. cars from trucks). The vehicle class is used to determine what data should be recorded. The VCDM uses a vehicle tracking technique to allow optimum triggering of the high resolution camera of the IAM. The IAM camera combines the features necessary to operate consistently in the harsh environment encountered when imaging a vehicle 'head-on' in both day and night conditions. The image clarity obtained is ideally suited for automatic location and recognition of the vehicle license plate. This paper discusses the camera geometry, sensor characteristics and the image processing methods which permit consistent vehicle segmentation from a cluttered background allowing object oriented pattern recognition to be used for vehicle classification. The image capture of high resolution images and the image characteristics required for the LPRMs automatic reading of vehicle license plates, is also discussed. The results of field tests presented demonstrate that the vision based Safe-T-Cam system, currently installed on open highways, is capable of producing automatic

Multi-Rate Acquisition for Dead Time Reduction in Magnetic Resonance Receivers: Application to Imaging With Zero Echo Time.

Science.gov (United States)

Marjanovic, Josip; Weiger, Markus; Reber, Jonas; Brunner, David O; Dietrich, Benjamin E; Wilm, Bertram J; Froidevaux, Romain; Pruessmann, Klaas P

2018-02-01

For magnetic resonance imaging of tissues with very short transverse relaxation times, radio-frequency excitation must be immediately followed by data acquisition with fast spatial encoding. In zero-echo-time (ZTE) imaging, excitation is performed while the readout gradient is already on, causing data loss due to an initial dead time. One major dead time contribution is the settling time of the filters involved in signal down-conversion. In this paper, a multi-rate acquisition scheme is proposed to minimize dead time due to filtering. Short filters and high output bandwidth are used initially to minimize settling time. With increasing time since the signal onset, longer filters with better frequency selectivity enable stronger signal decimation. In this way, significant dead time reduction is accomplished at only a slight increase in the overall amount of output data. Multi-rate acquisition was implemented with a two-stage filter cascade in a digital receiver based on a field-programmable gate array. In ZTE imaging in a phantom and in vivo, dead time reduction by multi-rate acquisition is shown to improve image quality and expand the feasible bandwidth while increasing the amount of data collected by only a few percent.

Multivariate statistical analysis for x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy spectral imaging: Effect of image acquisition time

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Peebles, D.E.; Ohlhausen, J.A.; Kotula, P.G.; Hutton, S.; Blomfield, C.

2004-01-01

The acquisition of spectral images for x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) is a relatively new approach, although it has been used with other analytical spectroscopy tools for some time. This technique provides full spectral information at every pixel of an image, in order to provide a complete chemical mapping of the imaged surface area. Multivariate statistical analysis techniques applied to the spectral image data allow the determination of chemical component species, and their distribution and concentrations, with minimal data acquisition and processing times. Some of these statistical techniques have proven to be very robust and efficient methods for deriving physically realistic chemical components without input by the user other than the spectral matrix itself. The benefits of multivariate analysis of the spectral image data include significantly improved signal to noise, improved image contrast and intensity uniformity, and improved spatial resolution - which are achieved due to the effective statistical aggregation of the large number of often noisy data points in the image. This work demonstrates the improvements in chemical component determination and contrast, signal-to-noise level, and spatial resolution that can be obtained by the application of multivariate statistical analysis to XPS spectral images

Vaginal Masses: Magnetic Resonance Imaging Features with Pathologic Correlation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Elsayes, K.M.; Narra, V.R.; Dillman, J.R.; Velcheti, V.; Hameed, O.; Tongdee, R.; Menias, C.O.

2007-01-01

The detection of vaginal lesions has increased with the expanding use of cross-sectional imaging. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) - with its high-contrast resolution and multiplanar capabilities - is often useful for characterizing vaginal masses. Vaginal masses can be classified as congenital, inflammatory, cystic (benign), and neoplastic (benign or malignant) in etiology. Recognition of the typical MR imaging features of such lesions is important because it often determines the treatment approach and may obviate surgery. Finally, vaginal MR imaging can be used to evaluate post-treatment changes related to previous surgery and radiation therapy. In this article, we will review pertinent vaginal anatomy, vaginal and pelvic MRI technique, and the MRI features of a variety of vaginal lesions with pathological correlation

Quantitative outcome measures for systemic sclerosis-related Microangiopathy - Reliability of image acquisition in Nailfold Capillaroscopy.

Science.gov (United States)

Dinsdale, Graham; Moore, Tonia; O'Leary, Neil; Berks, Michael; Roberts, Christopher; Manning, Joanne; Allen, John; Anderson, Marina; Cutolo, Maurizio; Hesselstrand, Roger; Howell, Kevin; Pizzorni, Carmen; Smith, Vanessa; Sulli, Alberto; Wildt, Marie; Taylor, Christopher; Murray, Andrea; Herrick, Ariane L

2017-09-01

Nailfold capillaroscopic parameters hold increasing promise as outcome measures for clinical trials in systemic sclerosis (SSc). Their inclusion as outcomes would often naturally require capillaroscopy images to be captured at several time points during any one study. Our objective was to assess repeatability of image acquisition (which has been little studied), as well as of measurement. 41 patients (26 with SSc, 15 with primary Raynaud's phenomenon) and 10 healthy controls returned for repeat high-magnification (300×) videocapillaroscopy mosaic imaging of 10 digits one week after initial imaging (as part of a larger study of reliability). Images were assessed in a random order by an expert blinded observer and 4 outcome measures extracted: (1) overall image grade and then (where possible) distal vessel locations were marked, allowing (2) vessel density (across the whole nailfold) to be calculated (3) apex width measurement and (4) giant vessel count. Intra-rater, intra-visit and intra-rater inter-visit (baseline vs. 1week) reliability were examined in 475 and 392 images respectively. A linear, mixed-effects model was used to estimate variance components, from which intra-class correlation coefficients (ICCs) were determined. Intra-visit and inter-visit reliability estimates (ICCs) were (respectively): overall image grade, 0.97 and 0.90; vessel density, 0.92 and 0.65; mean vessel width, 0.91 and 0.79; presence of giant capillary, 0.68 and 0.56. These estimates were conditional on each parameter being measurable. Within-operator image analysis and acquisition are reproducible. Quantitative nailfold capillaroscopy, at least with a single observer, provides reliable outcome measures for clinical studies including randomised controlled trials. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Spillover of Corporate Governance Standards in Cross-Border Mergers and Acquisitions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Martynova, M.; Renneboog, L.D.R.

2008-01-01

In cross-border acquisitions, the differences between the bidder and target corporate governance have an important impact on the takeover returns. Our country-level corporate governance indices capture the changes in the quality of the national corporate governance regulations over the past 15

Imaging system design and image interpolation based on CMOS image sensor

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Yu-feng; Liang, Fei; Guo, Rui

2009-11-01

An image acquisition system is introduced, which consists of a color CMOS image sensor (OV9620), SRAM (CY62148), CPLD (EPM7128AE) and DSP (TMS320VC5509A). The CPLD implements the logic and timing control to the system. SRAM stores the image data, and DSP controls the image acquisition system through the SCCB (Omni Vision Serial Camera Control Bus). The timing sequence of the CMOS image sensor OV9620 is analyzed. The imaging part and the high speed image data memory unit are designed. The hardware and software design of the image acquisition and processing system is given. CMOS digital cameras use color filter arrays to sample different spectral components, such as red, green, and blue. At the location of each pixel only one color sample is taken, and the other colors must be interpolated from neighboring samples. We use the edge-oriented adaptive interpolation algorithm for the edge pixels and bilinear interpolation algorithm for the non-edge pixels to improve the visual quality of the interpolated images. This method can get high processing speed, decrease the computational complexity, and effectively preserve the image edges.

Motivations, Valuation, and Performance Assessment in Cross-border Mergers and Acquisitions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wang, Daojuan; Moini, Hamid

2016-01-01

This chapter focuses on three topics in cross-border mergers and acquisitions (CBM&As) field: motivations for CBM&As, valuation techniques and CBM&A performance (assessment and the determinants). By taking an overview of what have been found so far in academic field and investigating...

MRI reconstruction of multi-image acquisitions using a rank regularizer with data reordering

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Adluru, Ganesh, E-mail: gadluru@gmail.com; Anderson, Jeffrey [UCAIR, Department of Radiology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah 84108 (United States); Gur, Yaniv [IBM Almaden Research Center, San Jose, California 95120 (United States); Chen, Liyong; Feinberg, David [Advanced MRI Technologies, Sebastpool, California, 95472 (United States); DiBella, Edward V. R. [UCAIR, Department of Radiology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah 84108 and Department of Bioengineering, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah 84112 (United States)

2015-08-15

Purpose: To improve rank constrained reconstructions for undersampled multi-image MRI acquisitions. Methods: Motivated by the recent developments in low-rank matrix completion theory and its applicability to rapid dynamic MRI, a new reordering-based rank constrained reconstruction of undersampled multi-image data that uses prior image information is proposed. Instead of directly minimizing the nuclear norm of a matrix of estimated images, the nuclear norm of reordered matrix values is minimized. The reordering is based on the prior image estimates. The method is tested on brain diffusion imaging data and dynamic contrast enhanced myocardial perfusion data. Results: Good quality images from data undersampled by a factor of three for diffusion imaging and by a factor of 3.5 for dynamic cardiac perfusion imaging with respiratory motion were obtained. Reordering gave visually improved image quality over standard nuclear norm minimization reconstructions. Root mean squared errors with respect to ground truth images were improved by ∼18% and ∼16% with reordering for diffusion and perfusion applications, respectively. Conclusions: The reordered low-rank constraint is a way to inject prior image information that offers improvements over a standard low-rank constraint for undersampled multi-image MRI reconstructions.

MRI reconstruction of multi-image acquisitions using a rank regularizer with data reordering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Adluru, Ganesh; Anderson, Jeffrey; Gur, Yaniv; Chen, Liyong; Feinberg, David; DiBella, Edward V. R.

2015-01-01

Purpose: To improve rank constrained reconstructions for undersampled multi-image MRI acquisitions. Methods: Motivated by the recent developments in low-rank matrix completion theory and its applicability to rapid dynamic MRI, a new reordering-based rank constrained reconstruction of undersampled multi-image data that uses prior image information is proposed. Instead of directly minimizing the nuclear norm of a matrix of estimated images, the nuclear norm of reordered matrix values is minimized. The reordering is based on the prior image estimates. The method is tested on brain diffusion imaging data and dynamic contrast enhanced myocardial perfusion data. Results: Good quality images from data undersampled by a factor of three for diffusion imaging and by a factor of 3.5 for dynamic cardiac perfusion imaging with respiratory motion were obtained. Reordering gave visually improved image quality over standard nuclear norm minimization reconstructions. Root mean squared errors with respect to ground truth images were improved by ∼18% and ∼16% with reordering for diffusion and perfusion applications, respectively. Conclusions: The reordered low-rank constraint is a way to inject prior image information that offers improvements over a standard low-rank constraint for undersampled multi-image MRI reconstructions

The first joint ESGAR/ ESPR consensus statement on the technical performance of cross-sectional small bowel and colonic imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Taylor, S.A.; Torkzad, M.R.; Bhatnagar, G.; Avni, F.; Cronin, C.G.; Hoeffel, C.; Kim, S.H.; Laghi, A.; Napolitano, M.; Petit, P.; Rimola, J.; Tolan, D.J.; Zappa, M.; Puylaert, C.A.J.; Stoker, J.

2017-01-01

To develop guidelines describing a standardised approach to patient preparation and acquisition protocols for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT) and ultrasound (US) of the small bowel and colon, with an emphasis on imaging inflammatory bowel disease. An expert consensus committee of 13 members from the European Society of Gastrointestinal and Abdominal Radiology (ESGAR) and European Society of Paediatric Radiology (ESPR) undertook a six-stage modified Delphi process, including a detailed literature review, to create a series of consensus statements concerning patient preparation, imaging hardware and image acquisition protocols. One hundred and fifty-seven statements were scored for agreement by the panel of which 129 statements (82 %) achieved immediate consensus with a further 19 (12 %) achieving consensus after appropriate modification. Nine (6 %) statements were rejected as consensus could not be reached. These expert consensus recommendations can be used to help guide cross-sectional radiological practice for imaging the small bowel and colon. (orig.)

The first joint ESGAR/ ESPR consensus statement on the technical performance of cross-sectional small bowel and colonic imaging

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Taylor, S.A.; Torkzad, M.R.; Bhatnagar, G. [University College London, Centre for Medical Imaging, London (United Kingdom); Avni, F. [Lille University Hospitals, Department of Paediatric Imaging, Jeanne de Flandre Hospital, Lille (France); Cronin, C.G. [Mater Misericordiae University Hospital, Department of Radiology, Dublin (Ireland); Hoeffel, C. [Hopital Robert Debre, Department of Radiology, Reims (France); Kim, S.H. [Inje University College of Medicine, Haeundae Paik Hospital, Department of Radiology, Busan (Korea, Republic of); Laghi, A. [Sapienza University of Rome, I.C.O.T. Hospital, Department of Radiological Sciences, Oncology and Pathology, Latina (Italy); Napolitano, M. [V. Buzzi Children' s Hospital, Department of Radiology and Neuroradiology, Milan (Italy); Petit, P. [Timone Enfant Hospital, Department of Paediatric Radiology, Marseille (France); Rimola, J. [University of Barcelona, Radiology Department, Hospital Clinic Barcelona, Catalonia (Spain); Tolan, D.J. [St James' s University Hospital, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust (United Kingdom); Zappa, M. [Hopital Beaujon, AP-HP, Universite Paris 7, INSERM CRI U1149, Department of Radiology, Clichy (France); Puylaert, C.A.J.; Stoker, J. [University of Amsterdam, Department of Radiology, Academic Medical Centre, Amsterdam (Netherlands)

2017-06-15

To develop guidelines describing a standardised approach to patient preparation and acquisition protocols for magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT) and ultrasound (US) of the small bowel and colon, with an emphasis on imaging inflammatory bowel disease. An expert consensus committee of 13 members from the European Society of Gastrointestinal and Abdominal Radiology (ESGAR) and European Society of Paediatric Radiology (ESPR) undertook a six-stage modified Delphi process, including a detailed literature review, to create a series of consensus statements concerning patient preparation, imaging hardware and image acquisition protocols. One hundred and fifty-seven statements were scored for agreement by the panel of which 129 statements (82 %) achieved immediate consensus with a further 19 (12 %) achieving consensus after appropriate modification. Nine (6 %) statements were rejected as consensus could not be reached. These expert consensus recommendations can be used to help guide cross-sectional radiological practice for imaging the small bowel and colon. (orig.)

Clinical evaluation of reducing acquisition time on single-photon emission computed tomography image quality using proprietary resolution recovery software.

Science.gov (United States)

Aldridge, Matthew D; Waddington, Wendy W; Dickson, John C; Prakash, Vineet; Ell, Peter J; Bomanji, Jamshed B

2013-11-01

A three-dimensional model-based resolution recovery (RR) reconstruction algorithm that compensates for collimator-detector response, resulting in an improvement in reconstructed spatial resolution and signal-to-noise ratio of single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) images, was tested. The software is said to retain image quality even with reduced acquisition time. Clinically, any improvement in patient throughput without loss of quality is to be welcomed. Furthermore, future restrictions in radiotracer supplies may add value to this type of data analysis. The aims of this study were to assess improvement in image quality using the software and to evaluate the potential of performing reduced time acquisitions for bone and parathyroid SPECT applications. Data acquisition was performed using the local standard SPECT/CT protocols for 99mTc-hydroxymethylene diphosphonate bone and 99mTc-methoxyisobutylisonitrile parathyroid SPECT imaging. The principal modification applied was the acquisition of an eight-frame gated data set acquired using an ECG simulator with a fixed signal as the trigger. This had the effect of partitioning the data such that the effect of reduced time acquisitions could be assessed without conferring additional scanning time on the patient. The set of summed data sets was then independently reconstructed using the RR software to permit a blinded assessment of the effect of acquired counts upon reconstructed image quality as adjudged by three experienced observers. Data sets reconstructed with the RR software were compared with the local standard processing protocols; filtered back-projection and ordered-subset expectation-maximization. Thirty SPECT studies were assessed (20 bone and 10 parathyroid). The images reconstructed with the RR algorithm showed improved image quality for both full-time and half-time acquisitions over local current processing protocols (Pimproved image quality compared with local processing protocols and has been

Gamma camera image acquisition, display, and processing with the personal microcomputer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lear, J.L.; Pratt, J.P.; Roberts, D.R.; Johnson, T.; Feyerabend, A.

1990-01-01

The authors evaluated the potential of a microcomputer for direct acquisition, display, and processing of gamma camera images. Boards for analog-to-digital conversion and image zooming were designed, constructed, and interfaced to the Macintosh II (Apple Computer, Cupertino, Calif). Software was written for processing of single, gated, and time series images. The system was connected to gamma cameras, and its performance was compared with that of dedicated nuclear medicine computers. Data could be acquired from gamma cameras at rates exceeding 200,000 counts per second, with spatial resolution exceeding intrinsic camera resolution. Clinical analysis could be rapidly performed. This system performed better than most dedicated nuclear medicine computers with respect to speed of data acquisition and spatial resolution of images while maintaining full compatibility with the standard image display, hard-copy, and networking formats. It could replace such dedicated systems in the near future as software is refined

Needlet estimation of cross-correlation between CMB lensing maps and LSS

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bianchini, Federico [Astrophysics Sector, SISSA, Via Bonomea 265, I-34136 Trieste (Italy); Renzi, Alessandro; Marinucci, Domenico, E-mail: fbianchini@sissa.it, E-mail: renzi@mat.uniroma2.it, E-mail: marinucc@mat.uniroma2.it [Dipartimento di Matematica, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1, 00133 Roma (Italy)

2016-11-01

In this paper we develop a novel needlet-based estimator to investigate the cross-correlation between cosmic microwave background (CMB) lensing maps and large-scale structure (LSS) data. We compare this estimator with its harmonic counterpart and, in particular, we analyze the bias effects of different forms of masking. In order to address this bias, we also implement a MASTER-like technique in the needlet case. The resulting estimator turns out to have an extremely good signal-to-noise performance. Our analysis aims at expanding and optimizing the operating domains in CMB-LSS cross-correlation studies, similarly to CMB needlet data analysis. It is motivated especially by next generation experiments (such as Euclid) which will allow us to derive much tighter constraints on cosmological and astrophysical parameters through cross-correlation measurements between CMB and LSS.

Parallel imaging: is GRAPPA a useful acquisition tool for MR imaging intended for volumetric brain analysis?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Frank Anders

2009-08-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The work presented here investigates parallel imaging applied to T1-weighted high resolution imaging for use in longitudinal volumetric clinical studies involving Alzheimer's disease (AD and Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI patients. This was in an effort to shorten acquisition times to minimise the risk of motion artefacts caused by patient discomfort and disorientation. The principle question is, "Can parallel imaging be used to acquire images at 1.5 T of sufficient quality to allow volumetric analysis of patient brains?" Methods Optimisation studies were performed on a young healthy volunteer and the selected protocol (including the use of two different parallel imaging acceleration factors was then tested on a cohort of 15 elderly volunteers including MCI and AD patients. In addition to automatic brain segmentation, hippocampus volumes were manually outlined and measured in all patients. The 15 patients were scanned on a second occasion approximately one week later using the same protocol and evaluated in the same manner to test repeatability of measurement using images acquired with the GRAPPA parallel imaging technique applied to the MPRAGE sequence. Results Intraclass correlation tests show that almost perfect agreement between repeated measurements of both segmented brain parenchyma fraction and regional measurement of hippocampi. The protocol is suitable for both global and regional volumetric measurement dementia patients. Conclusion In summary, these results indicate that parallel imaging can be used without detrimental effect to brain tissue segmentation and volumetric measurement and should be considered for both clinical and research studies where longitudinal measurements of brain tissue volumes are of interest.

Task-based assessment of breast tomosynthesis: Effect of acquisition parameters and quantum noise1

OpenAIRE

Reiser, I.; Nishikawa, R. M.

2010-01-01

Purpose: Tomosynthesis is a promising modality for breast imaging. The appearance of the tomosynthesis reconstructed image is greatly affected by the choice of acquisition and reconstruction parameters. The purpose of this study was to investigate the limitations of tomosynthesis breast imaging due to scan parameters and quantum noise. Tomosynthesis image quality was assessed based on performance of a mathematical observer model in a signal-known exactly (SKE) detection task.

Analysis of Filter-Bank-Based Methods for Fast Serial Acquisition of BOC-Modulated Signals

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elena Simona Lohan

2007-09-01

Full Text Available Binary-offset-carrier (BOC signals, selected for Galileo and modernized GPS systems, pose significant challenges for the code acquisition, due to the ambiguities (deep fades which are present in the envelope of the correlation function (CF. This is different from the BPSK-modulated CDMA signals, where the main correlation lobe spans over 2-chip interval, without any ambiguities or deep fades. To deal with the ambiguities due to BOC modulation, one solution is to use lower steps of scanning the code phases (i.e., lower than the traditional step of 0.5 chips used for BPSK-modulated CDMA signals. Lowering the time-bin steps entails an increase in the number of timing hypotheses, and, thus, in the acquisition times. An alternative solution is to transform the ambiguous CF into an “unambiguous” CF, via adequate filtering of the signal. A generalized class of frequency-based unambiguous acquisition methods is proposed here, namely the filter-bank-based (FBB approaches. The detailed theoretical analysis of FBB methods is given for serial-search single-dwell acquisition in single path static channels and a comparison is made with other ambiguous and unambiguous BOC acquisition methods existing in the literature.

Sidescan Sonar Image Matching Using Cross Correlation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thisen, Erik; Sørensen, Helge Bjarup Dissing; Stage, Bjarne

2003-01-01

When surveying an area for sea mines with a sidescan sonar, the ability to find the same object in two different sonar images is helpful to determine the nature of the object. The main problem with matching two sidescan sonar images is that a scene changes appearance when viewed from different vi...

SU-E-J-11: Measurement of Eye Lens Dose for Varian On-Board Imaging with Different CBCT Acquisition Techniques

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Deshpande, S; Dhote, D; Kumar, R; Thakur, K

2015-01-01

Purpose: To measure actual patient eye lens dose for different cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) acquisition protocol of Varian’s On Board Imagining (OBI) system using Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) dosimeter and study the eye lens dose with patient geometry and distance of isocenter to the eye lens Methods: OSL dosimeter was used to measure eye lens dose of patient. OSL dosimeter was placed on patient forehead center during CBCT image acquisition to measure eye lens dose. For three different cone beam acquisition protocol (standard dose head, low dose head and high quality head) of Varian On-Board Imaging, eye lens doses were measured. Measured doses were correlated with patient geometry and distance between isocenter to eye lens. Results: Measured eye lens dose for standard dose head was in the range of 1.8 mGy to 3.2 mGy, for high quality head protocol dose was in range of 4.5mGy to 9.9 mGy whereas for low dose head was in the range of 0.3mGy to 0.7mGy. Dose to eye lens is depends upon position of isocenter. For posterioraly located tumor eye lens dose is less. Conclusion: From measured doses it can be concluded that by proper selection of imagining protocol and frequency of imaging, it is possible to restrict the eye lens dose below the new limit set by ICRP. However, undoubted advantages of imaging system should be counter balanced by careful consideration of imaging protocol especially for very intense imaging sequences for Adoptive Radiotherapy or IMRT

Fluorescence imaging of tryptophan and collagen cross-links to evaluate wound closure ex vivo

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Ying; Ortega-Martinez, Antonio; Farinelli, Bill; Anderson, R. R.; Franco, Walfre

2016-02-01

Wound size is a key parameter in monitoring healing. Current methods to measure wound size are often subjective, time-consuming and marginally invasive. Recently, we developed a non-invasive, non-contact, fast and simple but robust fluorescence imaging (u-FEI) method to monitor the healing of skin wounds. This method exploits the fluorescence of native molecules to tissue as functional and structural markers. The objective of the present study is to demonstrate the feasibility of using variations in the fluorescence intensity of tryptophan and cross-links of collagen to evaluate proliferation of keratinocyte cells and quantitate size of wound during healing, respectively. Circular dermal wounds were created in ex vivo human skin and cultured in different media. Two serial fluorescence images of tryptophan and collagen cross-links were acquired every two days. Histology and immunohistology were used to validate correlation between fluorescence and epithelialization. Images of collagen cross-links show fluorescence of the exposed dermis and, hence, are a measure of wound area. Images of tryptophan show higher fluorescence intensity of proliferating keratinocytes forming new epithelium, as compared to surrounding keratinocytes not involved in epithelialization. These images are complementary since collagen cross-links report on structure while tryptophan reports on function. HE and immunohistology show that tryptophan fluorescence correlates with newly formed epidermis. We have established a fluorescence imaging method for studying epithelialization processes during wound healing in a skin organ culture model, our approach has the potential to provide a non-invasive, non-contact, quick, objective and direct method for quantitative measurements in wound healing in vivo.

Region-based multifocus image fusion for the precise acquisition of Pap smear images.

Science.gov (United States)

Tello-Mijares, Santiago; Bescós, Jesús

2018-05-01

A multifocus image fusion method to obtain a single focused image from a sequence of microscopic high-magnification Papanicolau source (Pap smear) images is presented. These images, captured each in a different position of the microscope lens, frequently show partially focused cells or parts of cells, which makes them unpractical for the direct application of image analysis techniques. The proposed method obtains a focused image with a high preservation of original pixels information while achieving a negligible visibility of the fusion artifacts. The method starts by identifying the best-focused image of the sequence; then, it performs a mean-shift segmentation over this image; the focus level of the segmented regions is evaluated in all the images of the sequence, and best-focused regions are merged in a single combined image; finally, this image is processed with an adaptive artifact removal process. The combination of a region-oriented approach, instead of block-based approaches, and a minimum modification of the value of focused pixels in the original images achieve a highly contrasted image with no visible artifacts, which makes this method especially convenient for the medical imaging domain. The proposed method is compared with several state-of-the-art alternatives over a representative dataset. The experimental results show that our proposal obtains the best and more stable quality indicators. (2018) COPYRIGHT Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE).

A system for the acquisition and segmentation of plane static images in nuclear medicine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fideles, Ederson Lacerda.

1994-09-01

In nuclear medicine an image is obtained by employing a radioactive compound that is selectively fixed by the organ or tissue under study. In the traditional exams a radiation detector and a oscilloscope are used to obtain analog images of the organs that can be visualized directly or printed in film. In the modern approach, computers are used in the processing of the images obtained. In the present work an A/D board was developed to be used with an IBM compatible PC (XT or AT) for the acquisition of planar static images generated by the gamma camera. Pre-processing routines were developed to prepare the images for the image processing routines developed for the image segmentation. For this segmentation task thresholding methods were used based on the optimization of a certain criterion based on the histogram in such a way that the object can be separated from the background. (author). 25 refs., 26 figs

Comparison of an adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system and an artificial neural network in the cross-talk correction of simultaneous 99 m Tc / 201Tl SPECT imaging using a GATE Monte-Carlo simulation

Science.gov (United States)

Heidary, Saeed; Setayeshi, Saeed; Ghannadi-Maragheh, Mohammad

2014-09-01

The aim of this study is to compare the adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) and the artificial neural network (ANN) to estimate the cross-talk contamination of 99 m Tc / 201 Tl image acquisition in the 201 Tl energy window (77 ± 15% keV). GATE (Geant4 Application in Emission and Tomography) is employed due to its ability to simulate multiple radioactive sources concurrently. Two kinds of phantoms, including two digital and one physical phantom, are used. In the real and the simulation studies, data acquisition is carried out using eight energy windows. The ANN and the ANFIS are prepared in MATLAB, and the GATE results are used as a training data set. Three indications are evaluated and compared. The ANFIS method yields better outcomes for two indications (Spearman's rank correlation coefficient and contrast) and the two phantom results in each category. The maximum image biasing, which is the third indication, is found to be 6% more than that for the ANN.

Dynamic whole body PET parametric imaging: I. Concept, acquisition protocol optimization and clinical application

Science.gov (United States)

Karakatsanis, Nicolas A.; Lodge, Martin A.; Tahari, Abdel K.; Zhou, Y.; Wahl, Richard L.; Rahmim, Arman

2013-01-01

acceptable sampling schedules examined. The framework was also applied to six FDG PET patient studies, demonstrating clinical feasibility. Both simulated and clinical results indicated enhanced contrast-to-noise ratios (CNRs) for Ki images in tumor regions with notable background FDG concentration, such as the liver, where SUV performed relatively poorly. Overall, the proposed framework enables enhanced quantification of physiological parameters across the whole-body. In addition, the total acquisition length can be reduced from 45min to ~35min and still achieve improved or equivalent CNR compared to SUV, provided the true Ki contrast is sufficiently high. In the follow-up companion paper, a set of advanced linear regression schemes is presented to particularly address the presence of noise, and attempt to achieve a better trade-off between the mean-squared error (MSE) and the CNR metrics, resulting in enhanced task-based imaging. PMID:24080962

Dynamic whole-body PET parametric imaging: I. Concept, acquisition protocol optimization and clinical application.

Science.gov (United States)

Karakatsanis, Nicolas A; Lodge, Martin A; Tahari, Abdel K; Zhou, Y; Wahl, Richard L; Rahmim, Arman

2013-10-21

acceptable sampling schedules examined. The framework was also applied to six FDG PET patient studies, demonstrating clinical feasibility. Both simulated and clinical results indicated enhanced contrast-to-noise ratios (CNRs) for Ki images in tumor regions with notable background FDG concentration, such as the liver, where SUV performed relatively poorly. Overall, the proposed framework enables enhanced quantification of physiological parameters across the whole body. In addition, the total acquisition length can be reduced from 45 to ~35 min and still achieve improved or equivalent CNR compared to SUV, provided the true Ki contrast is sufficiently high. In the follow-up companion paper, a set of advanced linear regression schemes is presented to particularly address the presence of noise, and attempt to achieve a better trade-off between the mean-squared error and the CNR metrics, resulting in enhanced task-based imaging.

Dynamic whole-body PET parametric imaging: I. Concept, acquisition protocol optimization and clinical application

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Karakatsanis, Nicolas A; Lodge, Martin A; Tahari, Abdel K; Zhou, Y; Wahl, Richard L; Rahmim, Arman

2013-01-01

clinically acceptable sampling schedules examined. The framework was also applied to six FDG PET patient studies, demonstrating clinical feasibility. Both simulated and clinical results indicated enhanced contrast-to-noise ratios (CNRs) for K i images in tumor regions with notable background FDG concentration, such as the liver, where SUV performed relatively poorly. Overall, the proposed framework enables enhanced quantification of physiological parameters across the whole body. In addition, the total acquisition length can be reduced from 45 to ∼35 min and still achieve improved or equivalent CNR compared to SUV, provided the true K i contrast is sufficiently high. In the follow-up companion paper, a set of advanced linear regression schemes is presented to particularly address the presence of noise, and attempt to achieve a better trade-off between the mean-squared error and the CNR metrics, resulting in enhanced task-based imaging. (paper)

Dynamic whole-body PET parametric imaging: I. Concept, acquisition protocol optimization and clinical application

Science.gov (United States)

Karakatsanis, Nicolas A.; Lodge, Martin A.; Tahari, Abdel K.; Zhou, Y.; Wahl, Richard L.; Rahmim, Arman

2013-10-01

acceptable sampling schedules examined. The framework was also applied to six FDG PET patient studies, demonstrating clinical feasibility. Both simulated and clinical results indicated enhanced contrast-to-noise ratios (CNRs) for Ki images in tumor regions with notable background FDG concentration, such as the liver, where SUV performed relatively poorly. Overall, the proposed framework enables enhanced quantification of physiological parameters across the whole body. In addition, the total acquisition length can be reduced from 45 to ˜35 min and still achieve improved or equivalent CNR compared to SUV, provided the true Ki contrast is sufficiently high. In the follow-up companion paper, a set of advanced linear regression schemes is presented to particularly address the presence of noise, and attempt to achieve a better trade-off between the mean-squared error and the CNR metrics, resulting in enhanced task-based imaging.

The use of a measure with a strong correlation with the visual system to analyze the influence of the acquisition conditions over image quality in panoramic dental images; Implementacion de una medida objetiva de fuerte correlacion con el sistema visual humano para analizar la influencia de las condiciones de adquisicion sobre la calidad de las imagenes panoramicas dentales

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Perez Diaz, M.; Miranda Castaneda, I.; Borges Garcia, T.

2012-07-01

The High Dynamic Range Visible Difference Predictor (HDR-VDP) was created to overcome the poor correlation between objective and subjective digital image quality criteria. This metric has been successfully tested to analyze the effect of medical images compression over image quality. A study using 13 dental panoramic images of an anthropomorphic phantom was carried out. Images were acquired with a digital Kodak equipment. Tube current and beam energy were changed among studies in order to analyze how the image quality was affected by the acquisition parameters variation. The criterion about image quality of two expert observers was taken into account. Furthermore, HDR-VDP was fitted to the problem under analysis. Correlation between the metric and the subjective criterion was also analyzed. HDR-VDP had a correlation of r 0.683 (p = 0. 013) with respect to the subjective criterion. The metric calculated over 9 x 9 pixel windows in regions of interest was able to detect differences in image quality for a typical range of kVp and mA in this type of study. (Author) 17 refs.

Cross-correlation interference effects in multiaccess optical communications

Science.gov (United States)

Peterson, G. D.; Gardner, C. S.

1981-03-01

An analysis is presented of the cross correlation between user codes in an optical code-division multiple-access communication system. The system model is a multiaccess satellite repeater, where the uplink and downlink channels are direct-detection optical-polarization modulation links. The error probability is obtained in terms of the cross correlation between the intended and interfering user codes. It is demonstrated that the system error rate can be minimized by the use of code sequences in which the normalized second moment of the cross correlation between codes is small.

Geometrical optics in correlated imaging systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cao Dezhong; Xiong Jun; Wang Kaige

2005-01-01

We discuss the geometrical optics of correlated imaging for two kinds of spatial correlations corresponding, respectively, to a classical thermal light source and a quantum two-photon entangled source. Due to the different features in the second-order spatial correlation, the two sources obey different imaging equations. The quantum entangled source behaves as a mirror, whereas the classical thermal source looks like a phase-conjugate mirror in the correlated imaging

Data acquisition system for a proton imaging apparatus

CERN Document Server

Sipala, V; Bruzzi, M; Bucciolini, M; Candiano, G; Capineri, L; Cirrone, G A P; Civinini, C; Cuttone, G; Lo Presti, D; Marrazzo, L; Mazzaglia, E; Menichelli, D; Randazzo, N; Talamonti, C; Tesi, M; Valentini, S

2009-01-01

New developments in the proton-therapy field for cancer treatments, leaded Italian physics researchers to realize a proton imaging apparatus consisting of a silicon microstrip tracker to reconstruct the proton trajectories and a calorimeter to measure their residual energy. For clinical requirements, the detectors used and the data acquisition system should be able to sustain about 1 MHz proton rate. The tracker read-out, using an ASICs developed by the collaboration, acquires the signals detector and sends data in parallel to an FPGA. The YAG:Ce calorimeter generates also the global trigger. The data acquisition system and the results obtained in the calibration phase are presented and discussed.

Dural attachment of intracranial meningiomas: evaluation with contrast-enhanced three-dimensional fast imaging with steady-state acquisition (FIESTA) at 3 T

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yamamoto, Junkoh; Takahashi, Mayu; Aoyama, Yuichi; Soejima, Yoshiteru; Saito, Takeshi; Akiba, Daisuke; Nishizawa, Shigeru [University of Occupational and Environmental Health, Department of Neurosurgery, Kitakyusyu (Japan); Kakeda, Shingo; Korogi, Yukunori [University of Occupational and Environmental Health, Department of Radiology, Kitakyusyu (Japan)

2011-06-15

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the role of contrast-enhanced fast imaging with steady-state acquisition (CE-FIESTA) for assessing whether dural attachment in intracranial meningiomas is adhesive or not by correlation with intraoperative findings. Fourteen consecutive patients who were candidates for surgical treatment of meningiomas were prospectively analyzed with preoperative magnetic resonance imaging, including CE-FIESTA at 3 T. First, two neuroradiologists assessed several characteristics of the attachment of the meningioma to the dura mater or skull base on CE-FIESTA images. Second, the surgical findings of adhesion at the dural attachment of meningiomas were evaluated by two neurosurgeons. Finally, the CE-FIESTA findings were correlated with the surgical findings by one neurosurgeon and one neuroradiologist by consensus. CE-FIESTA clearly depicted a hypointense marginal line at the attachment site of the meningioma. When CE-FIESTA revealed smooth marginal lines or hyperintense zones along the marginal lines, tumors were detached easily from the dura mater. On the contrary, when CE-FIESTA showed an irregularity, such as partial disruption of the marginal lines, vessels, or bony hyperostosis, the tumors tended to adhere firmly to the dura mater, which was found to contain small vessels and fine fibrous tissues. There seems to be an excellent correlation between the characteristics of dural attachment of meningiomas on CE-FIESTA images and intraoperative findings. Therefore, for operative planning, CE-FIESTA may provide useful information regarding the adhesiveness of dural attachment. (orig.)

Dural attachment of intracranial meningiomas: evaluation with contrast-enhanced three-dimensional fast imaging with steady-state acquisition (FIESTA) at 3 T

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamamoto, Junkoh; Takahashi, Mayu; Aoyama, Yuichi; Soejima, Yoshiteru; Saito, Takeshi; Akiba, Daisuke; Nishizawa, Shigeru; Kakeda, Shingo; Korogi, Yukunori

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the role of contrast-enhanced fast imaging with steady-state acquisition (CE-FIESTA) for assessing whether dural attachment in intracranial meningiomas is adhesive or not by correlation with intraoperative findings. Fourteen consecutive patients who were candidates for surgical treatment of meningiomas were prospectively analyzed with preoperative magnetic resonance imaging, including CE-FIESTA at 3 T. First, two neuroradiologists assessed several characteristics of the attachment of the meningioma to the dura mater or skull base on CE-FIESTA images. Second, the surgical findings of adhesion at the dural attachment of meningiomas were evaluated by two neurosurgeons. Finally, the CE-FIESTA findings were correlated with the surgical findings by one neurosurgeon and one neuroradiologist by consensus. CE-FIESTA clearly depicted a hypointense marginal line at the attachment site of the meningioma. When CE-FIESTA revealed smooth marginal lines or hyperintense zones along the marginal lines, tumors were detached easily from the dura mater. On the contrary, when CE-FIESTA showed an irregularity, such as partial disruption of the marginal lines, vessels, or bony hyperostosis, the tumors tended to adhere firmly to the dura mater, which was found to contain small vessels and fine fibrous tissues. There seems to be an excellent correlation between the characteristics of dural attachment of meningiomas on CE-FIESTA images and intraoperative findings. Therefore, for operative planning, CE-FIESTA may provide useful information regarding the adhesiveness of dural attachment. (orig.)

Reliable Dual Tensor Model Estimation in Single and Crossing Fibers Based on Jeffreys Prior

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Jianfei; Poot, Dirk H. J.; Caan, Matthan W. A.; Su, Tanja; Majoie, Charles B. L. M.; van Vliet, Lucas J.; Vos, Frans M.

2016-01-01

Purpose This paper presents and studies a framework for reliable modeling of diffusion MRI using a data-acquisition adaptive prior. Methods Automated relevance determination estimates the mean of the posterior distribution of a rank-2 dual tensor model exploiting Jeffreys prior (JARD). This data-acquisition prior is based on the Fisher information matrix and enables the assessment whether two tensors are mandatory to describe the data. The method is compared to Maximum Likelihood Estimation (MLE) of the dual tensor model and to FSL’s ball-and-stick approach. Results Monte Carlo experiments demonstrated that JARD’s volume fractions correlated well with the ground truth for single and crossing fiber configurations. In single fiber configurations JARD automatically reduced the volume fraction of one compartment to (almost) zero. The variance in fractional anisotropy (FA) of the main tensor component was thereby reduced compared to MLE. JARD and MLE gave a comparable outcome in data simulating crossing fibers. On brain data, JARD yielded a smaller spread in FA along the corpus callosum compared to MLE. Tract-based spatial statistics demonstrated a higher sensitivity in detecting age-related white matter atrophy using JARD compared to both MLE and the ball-and-stick approach. Conclusions The proposed framework offers accurate and precise estimation of diffusion properties in single and dual fiber regions. PMID:27760166

PyCCF: Python Cross Correlation Function for reverberation mapping studies

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Mouyuan; Grier, C. J.; Peterson, B. M.

2018-05-01

PyCCF emulates a Fortran program written by B. Peterson for use with reverberation mapping. The code cross correlates two light curves that are unevenly sampled using linear interpolation and measures the peak and centroid of the cross-correlation function. In addition, it is possible to run Monto Carlo iterations using flux randomization and random subset selection (RSS) to produce cross-correlation centroid distributions to estimate the uncertainties in the cross correlation results.

Cross-correlations between RMB exchange rate and international commodity markets

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Xinsheng; Li, Jianfeng; Zhou, Ying; Qian, Yubo

2017-11-01

This paper employs multifractal detrended analysis (MF-DFA) and multifractal detrended cross-correlation analysis (MF-DCCA) to study cross-correlation behaviors between China's RMB exchange rate market and four international commodity markets, using a comprehensive set of data covering the period from 22 July 2005 to 15 March 2016. Our empirical results from MF-DFA indicate that the RMB exchange rate is the most inefficient among the 4 selected markets. The results from quantitative analysis have testified the existence of cross-correlations and the result from MF-DCCA have further confirmed a strong multifractal behavior between RMB exchange rate and international commodity markets. We also demonstrate that the recent financial crisis has significant impact on the cross-correlated behavior. Through the rolling window analysis, we find that the RMB exchange rates and international commodity prices are anti-persistent cross-correlated. The main sources of multifractality in the cross-correlations are long-range correlations between RMB exchange rate and the aggregate commodity, energy and metals index.

The q-dependent detrended cross-correlation analysis of stock market

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Longfeng; Li, Wei; Fenu, Andrea; Podobnik, Boris; Wang, Yougui; Stanley, H. Eugene

2018-02-01

Properties of the q-dependent cross-correlation matrices of the stock market have been analyzed by using random matrix theory and complex networks. The correlation structures of the fluctuations at different magnitudes have unique properties. The cross-correlations among small fluctuations are much stronger than those among large fluctuations. The large and small fluctuations are dominated by different groups of stocks. We use complex network representation to study these q-dependent matrices and discover some new identities. By utilizing those q-dependent correlation-based networks, we are able to construct some portfolios of those more independent stocks which consistently perform better. The optimal multifractal order for portfolio optimization is around q  =  2 under the mean-variance portfolio framework, and q\\in[2, 6] under the expected shortfall criterion. These results have deepened our understanding regarding the collective behavior of the complex financial system.

Quantifying the impact of respiratory-gated 4D CT acquisition on thoracic image quality: A digital phantom study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bernatowicz, K.; Knopf, A.; Lomax, A.; Keall, P.; Kipritidis, J.; Mishra, P.

2015-01-01

Purpose: Prospective respiratory-gated 4D CT has been shown to reduce tumor image artifacts by up to 50% compared to conventional 4D CT. However, to date no studies have quantified the impact of gated 4D CT on normal lung tissue imaging, which is important in performing dose calculations based on accurate estimates of lung volume and structure. To determine the impact of gated 4D CT on thoracic image quality, the authors developed a novel simulation framework incorporating a realistic deformable digital phantom driven by patient tumor motion patterns. Based on this framework, the authors test the hypothesis that respiratory-gated 4D CT can significantly reduce lung imaging artifacts. Methods: Our simulation framework synchronizes the 4D extended cardiac torso (XCAT) phantom with tumor motion data in a quasi real-time fashion, allowing simulation of three 4D CT acquisition modes featuring different levels of respiratory feedback: (i) “conventional” 4D CT that uses a constant imaging and couch-shift frequency, (ii) “beam paused” 4D CT that interrupts imaging to avoid oversampling at a given couch position and respiratory phase, and (iii) “respiratory-gated” 4D CT that triggers acquisition only when the respiratory motion fulfills phase-specific displacement gating windows based on prescan breathing data. Our framework generates a set of ground truth comparators, representing the average XCAT anatomy during beam-on for each of ten respiratory phase bins. Based on this framework, the authors simulated conventional, beam-paused, and respiratory-gated 4D CT images using tumor motion patterns from seven lung cancer patients across 13 treatment fractions, with a simulated 5.5 cm 3 spherical lesion. Normal lung tissue image quality was quantified by comparing simulated and ground truth images in terms of overall mean square error (MSE) intensity difference, threshold-based lung volume error, and fractional false positive/false negative rates. Results: Averaged

Quantifying the impact of respiratory-gated 4D CT acquisition on thoracic image quality: A digital phantom study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bernatowicz, K., E-mail: kingab@student.ethz.ch; Knopf, A.; Lomax, A. [Center for Proton Therapy, Paul Scherrer Institute, Villigen PSI 5232, Switzerland and Department of Physics, ETH Zürich, Zürich 8092 (Switzerland); Keall, P.; Kipritidis, J., E-mail: john.kipritidis@sydney.edu.au [Radiation Physics Laboratory, Sydney Medical School, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 (Australia); Mishra, P. [Brigham and Womens Hospital, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115 (United States)

2015-01-15

Purpose: Prospective respiratory-gated 4D CT has been shown to reduce tumor image artifacts by up to 50% compared to conventional 4D CT. However, to date no studies have quantified the impact of gated 4D CT on normal lung tissue imaging, which is important in performing dose calculations based on accurate estimates of lung volume and structure. To determine the impact of gated 4D CT on thoracic image quality, the authors developed a novel simulation framework incorporating a realistic deformable digital phantom driven by patient tumor motion patterns. Based on this framework, the authors test the hypothesis that respiratory-gated 4D CT can significantly reduce lung imaging artifacts. Methods: Our simulation framework synchronizes the 4D extended cardiac torso (XCAT) phantom with tumor motion data in a quasi real-time fashion, allowing simulation of three 4D CT acquisition modes featuring different levels of respiratory feedback: (i) “conventional” 4D CT that uses a constant imaging and couch-shift frequency, (ii) “beam paused” 4D CT that interrupts imaging to avoid oversampling at a given couch position and respiratory phase, and (iii) “respiratory-gated” 4D CT that triggers acquisition only when the respiratory motion fulfills phase-specific displacement gating windows based on prescan breathing data. Our framework generates a set of ground truth comparators, representing the average XCAT anatomy during beam-on for each of ten respiratory phase bins. Based on this framework, the authors simulated conventional, beam-paused, and respiratory-gated 4D CT images using tumor motion patterns from seven lung cancer patients across 13 treatment fractions, with a simulated 5.5 cm{sup 3} spherical lesion. Normal lung tissue image quality was quantified by comparing simulated and ground truth images in terms of overall mean square error (MSE) intensity difference, threshold-based lung volume error, and fractional false positive/false negative rates. Results

LINE-BASED MULTI-IMAGE MATCHING FOR FAÇADE RECONSTRUCTION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

T. A. Teo

2012-07-01

Full Text Available This research integrates existing LOD 2 building models and multiple close-range images for façade structural lines extraction. The major works are orientation determination and multiple image matching. In the orientation determination, Speeded Up Robust Features (SURF is applied to extract tie points automatically. Then, tie points and control points are combined for block adjustment. An object-based multi-images matching is proposed to extract the façade structural lines. The 2D lines in image space are extracted by Canny operator followed by Hough transform. The role of LOD 2 building models is to correct the tilt displacement of image from different views. The wall of LOD 2 model is also used to generate hypothesis planes for similarity measurement. Finally, average normalized cross correlation is calculated to obtain the best location in object space. The test images are acquired by a nonmetric camera Nikon D2X. The total number of image is 33. The experimental results indicate that the accuracy of orientation determination is about 1 pixel from 2515 tie points and 4 control points. It also indicates that line-based matching is more flexible than point-based matching.

Nuclear material enrichment identification method based on cross-correlation and high order spectra

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang Fan; Wei Biao; Feng Peng; Mi Deling; Ren Yong

2013-01-01

In order to enhance the sensitivity of nuclear material identification system (NMIS) against the change of nuclear material enrichment, the principle of high order statistic feature is introduced and applied to traditional NMIS. We present a new enrichment identification method based on cross-correlation and high order spectrum algorithm. By applying the identification method to NMIS, the 3D graphs with nuclear material character are presented and can be used as new signatures to identify the enrichment of nuclear materials. The simulation result shows that the identification method could suppress the background noises, electronic system noises, and improve the sensitivity against enrichment change to exponential order with no system structure modification. (authors)

Speckle pattern processing by digital image correlation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gubarev Fedor

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Testing the method of speckle pattern processing based on the digital image correlation is carried out in the current work. Three the most widely used formulas of the correlation coefficient are tested. To determine the accuracy of the speckle pattern processing, test speckle patterns with known displacement are used. The optimal size of a speckle pattern template used for determination of correlation and corresponding the speckle pattern displacement is also considered in the work.

Detrended fluctuation analysis made flexible to detect range of cross-correlated fluctuations

Science.gov (United States)

Kwapień, Jarosław; Oświecimka, Paweł; DroŻdŻ, Stanisław

2015-11-01

The detrended cross-correlation coefficient ρDCCA has recently been proposed to quantify the strength of cross-correlations on different temporal scales in bivariate, nonstationary time series. It is based on the detrended cross-correlation and detrended fluctuation analyses (DCCA and DFA, respectively) and can be viewed as an analog of the Pearson coefficient in the case of the fluctuation analysis. The coefficient ρDCCA works well in many practical situations but by construction its applicability is limited to detection of whether two signals are generally cross-correlated, without the possibility to obtain information on the amplitude of fluctuations that are responsible for those cross-correlations. In order to introduce some related flexibility, here we propose an extension of ρDCCA that exploits the multifractal versions of DFA and DCCA: multifractal detrended fluctuation analysis and multifractal detrended cross-correlation analysis, respectively. The resulting new coefficient ρq not only is able to quantify the strength of correlations but also allows one to identify the range of detrended fluctuation amplitudes that are correlated in two signals under study. We show how the coefficient ρq works in practical situations by applying it to stochastic time series representing processes with long memory: autoregressive and multiplicative ones. Such processes are often used to model signals recorded from complex systems and complex physical phenomena like turbulence, so we are convinced that this new measure can successfully be applied in time-series analysis. In particular, we present an example of such application to highly complex empirical data from financial markets. The present formulation can straightforwardly be extended to multivariate data in terms of the q -dependent counterpart of the correlation matrices and then to the network representation.

Evaluation of Parallel and Fan-Beam Data Acquisition Geometries and Strategies for Myocardial SPECT Imaging

Science.gov (United States)

Qi, Yujin; Tsui, B. M. W.; Gilland, K. L.; Frey, E. C.; Gullberg, G. T.

2004-06-01

This study evaluates myocardial SPECT images obtained from parallel-hole (PH) and fan-beam (FB) collimator geometries using both circular-orbit (CO) and noncircular-orbit (NCO) acquisitions. A newly developed 4-D NURBS-based cardiac-torso (NCAT) phantom was used to simulate the /sup 99m/Tc-sestamibi uptakes in human torso with myocardial defects in the left ventricular (LV) wall. Two phantoms were generated to simulate patients with thick and thin body builds. Projection data including the effects of attenuation, collimator-detector response and scatter were generated using SIMSET Monte Carlo simulations. A large number of photon histories were generated such that the projection data were close to noise free. Poisson noise fluctuations were then added to simulate the count densities found in clinical data. Noise-free and noisy projection data were reconstructed using the iterative OS-EM reconstruction algorithm with attenuation compensation. The reconstructed images from noisy projection data show that the noise levels are lower for the FB as compared to the PH collimator due to increase in detected counts. The NCO acquisition method provides slightly better resolution and small improvement in defect contrast as compared to the CO acquisition method in noise-free reconstructed images. Despite lower projection counts the NCO shows the same noise level as the CO in the attenuation corrected reconstruction images. The results from the channelized Hotelling observer (CHO) study show that FB collimator is superior to PH collimator in myocardial defect detection, but the NCO shows no statistical significant difference from the CO for either PH or FB collimator. In conclusion, our results indicate that data acquisition using NCO makes a very small improvement in the resolution over CO for myocardial SPECT imaging. This small improvement does not make a significant difference on myocardial defect detection. However, an FB collimator provides better defect detection than a

Hyperspectral image compressing using wavelet-based method

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Hui; Zhang, Zhi-jie; Lei, Bo; Wang, Chen-sheng

2017-10-01

Hyperspectral imaging sensors can acquire images in hundreds of continuous narrow spectral bands. Therefore each object presented in the image can be identified from their spectral response. However, such kind of imaging brings a huge amount of data, which requires transmission, processing, and storage resources for both airborne and space borne imaging. Due to the high volume of hyperspectral image data, the exploration of compression strategies has received a lot of attention in recent years. Compression of hyperspectral data cubes is an effective solution for these problems. Lossless compression of the hyperspectral data usually results in low compression ratio, which may not meet the available resources; on the other hand, lossy compression may give the desired ratio, but with a significant degradation effect on object identification performance of the hyperspectral data. Moreover, most hyperspectral data compression techniques exploits the similarities in spectral dimensions; which requires bands reordering or regrouping, to make use of the spectral redundancy. In this paper, we explored the spectral cross correlation between different bands, and proposed an adaptive band selection method to obtain the spectral bands which contain most of the information of the acquired hyperspectral data cube. The proposed method mainly consist three steps: First, the algorithm decomposes the original hyperspectral imagery into a series of subspaces based on the hyper correlation matrix of the hyperspectral images between different bands. And then the Wavelet-based algorithm is applied to the each subspaces. At last the PCA method is applied to the wavelet coefficients to produce the chosen number of components. The performance of the proposed method was tested by using ISODATA classification method.

Organization and visualization of medical images in radiotherapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lorang, T.

2001-05-01

In modern radiotherapy, various imaging equipment is used to acquire views from inside human bodies. Tomographic imaging equipment is acquiring stacks of cross-sectional images, software implementations derive three-dimensional volumes from planar images to allow for visualization of reconstructed cross-sections at any orientation and location and higher-level visualization systems allow for transparent views and surface rendering. Of upcoming interest in radiotherapy is mutual information, the integration of information from multiple imaging equipment res. from the same imaging equipment at different time stamps and varying acquisition parameters. Huge amounts of images are acquired nowadays at radiotherapy centers, requiring organization of images with respect to patient, acquisition and equipment to allow for visualization of images in a comparative and integrative manner. Especially for integration of image information from different equipment, geometrical information is required to allow for registration of images res. volumes. DICOM 3.0 has been introduced as a standard for information interchange with respect to medical imaging. Geometric information of cross-sections, demographic information of patients and medical information of acquisitions and equipment are covered by this standard, allowing for a high-level automation with respect to organization and visualization of medical images. Reconstructing cross-sectional images from volumes at any orientation and location is required for the purpose of registration and multi-planar views. Resampling and addressing of discrete volume data need be implemented efficiently to allow for simultaneous visualization of multiple cross-sectional images, especially with respect to multiple, non-isotropy volume data sets. (author)

New diffusion imaging method with a single acquisition sequence

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Melki, Ph.S.; Bittoun, J.; Lefevre, J.E.

1987-01-01

The apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) is related to the molecular diffusion coefficient and to physiologic information: microcirculation in the capillary network, incoherent slow flow, and restricted diffusion. The authors present a new MR imaging sequence that yields computed ADC images in only one acquisition of 9-minutes with a 1.5-T imager (GE Signa). Compared to the previous method, this sequence is at least two times faster and thus can be used as a routine examination to supplement T1-, T2-, and density-weighted images. The method was assessed by measurement of the molecular diffusion in liquids, and the first clinical images obtained in neurologic diseases demonstrate its efficiency for clinical investigation. The possibility of separately imaging diffusion and perfusion is supported by an algorithm

Study on highly efficient seismic data acquisition and processing methods based on sparsity constraint

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, H.; Chen, S.; Tao, C.; Qiu, L.

2017-12-01

High-density, high-fold and wide-azimuth seismic data acquisition methods are widely used to overcome the increasingly sophisticated exploration targets. The acquisition period is longer and longer and the acquisition cost is higher and higher. We carry out the study of highly efficient seismic data acquisition and processing methods based on sparse representation theory (or compressed sensing theory), and achieve some innovative results. The theoretical principles of highly efficient acquisition and processing is studied. We firstly reveal sparse representation theory based on wave equation. Then we study the highly efficient seismic sampling methods and present an optimized piecewise-random sampling method based on sparsity prior information. At last, a reconstruction strategy with the sparsity constraint is developed; A two-step recovery approach by combining sparsity-promoting method and hyperbolic Radon transform is also put forward. The above three aspects constitute the enhanced theory of highly efficient seismic data acquisition. The specific implementation strategies of highly efficient acquisition and processing are studied according to the highly efficient acquisition theory expounded in paragraph 2. Firstly, we propose the highly efficient acquisition network designing method by the help of optimized piecewise-random sampling method. Secondly, we propose two types of highly efficient seismic data acquisition methods based on (1) single sources and (2) blended (or simultaneous) sources. Thirdly, the reconstruction procedures corresponding to the above two types of highly efficient seismic data acquisition methods are proposed to obtain the seismic data on the regular acquisition network. A discussion of the impact on the imaging result of blended shooting is discussed. In the end, we implement the numerical tests based on Marmousi model. The achieved results show: (1) the theoretical framework of highly efficient seismic data acquisition and processing

Motion-robust diffusion tensor acquisition at routine 3T magnetic resonance imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yasmin, Hasina; Abe, Osamu; Masutani, Yoshitaka; Hayashi, Naoto; Ohtomo, Kuni; Kabasawa, Hiroyuki; Aoki, Shigeki

2010-01-01

We compared different acquisition and reconstruction methods in phantom and human studies in the clinical setting to validate our hypothesis that optimizing the k-space acquisition and reconstruction method could decrease motion artifacts. Diffusion tensor images of a water phantom were obtained with three table displacement magnitudes: 1 mm, 2 mm, and 3 mm. Images were reconstructed using homodyne and zero-fill reconstruction. Overscanning in 8- and 16-k y lines was tested. We performed visual assessment of the artifacts using reconstructed coronal images and analyzed them with Wilcoxon signed-ranks test both for phantom and human studies. Also, fractional anisotropy (FA) changes between acquisition methods were compared. Artifacts due to smaller displacement (1 and 2 mm) were significantly reduced in 16-k y overscan with zero filling. The Wilcoxon signed-ranks test showed significant differences (P<0.031 for reconstruction methods and P<0.016 for overscanning methods). FA changes were statistically significant (P<0.037; Student's t-test). The Wilcoxon signed-ranks test showed significant reductions (P<0.005) in the human study. Motion-induced artifacts can be reduced by optimizing acquisition and reconstruction methods. The techniques described in this study offer an effective method for robust estimation of diffusion tensor in the presence of motion-related artifactual data points. (author)

Acquisition-based Dynamic Reconfiguration Capabilities

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Amiryany Araghy, N.; Huysman, M.H.; de Man, A.P.; Cloodt, M.; Demetriss, V.; Weber, Y.; Kaufmann, R.; Tarba, S.

2009-01-01

The success of knowledge acquisitions is dependent upon firm’s ability to integrate knowledge-based resources and thus share knowledge, in order to innovate. Regardless of the increasing number of knowledge acquisitions, however, an understanding of how successful firms direct their knowledge

Volume and planar gated cardiac magnetic resonance imaging: a correlative study of normal anatomy with Thallium-201 SPECT and cadaver sections

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Go, R.T.; MacIntyre, W.J.; Yeung, H.N.

1984-01-01

Magnetic resonance (MR) gated cardiac imaging was performed in ten subjects using a prototype 0.15-T resistive magnet imaging system. Volume and planar imaging techniques utilizing saturation recovery, proton TI-weighted relaxation time pulse sequences produced images of the heart and great vessels with exquisite anatomic detail that showed excellent correlation with cadaver sections of the heart. The left ventricular myocardial segments also showed excellent correlation with cadaver sections of the heart. The left ventricular myocardial segments also showed excellent correlation with the thallium-201 cardiac single photon emission computed tomography images. Volume acquisition allowed postprocessing selection of tomographic sections in various orientations to optimize visualization of a particular structure of interest. The excellent spatial and contrast resolution afforded by MR volume imaging, which does not involve the use of ionizing radiation and iodinated contrast material, should assure it a significant role in the diagnostic assessment of the cardiovascular system

Acquisition and manipulation of computed tomography images of the maxillofacial region for biomedical prototyping

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Meurer, Maria Ines; Silva, Jorge Vicente Lopes da; Santa Barbara, Ailton; Nobre, Luiz Felipe; Oliveira, Marilia Gerhardt de; Silva, Daniela Nascimento

2008-01-01

Biomedical prototyping has resulted from a merger of rapid prototyping and imaging diagnosis technologies. However, this process is complex, considering the necessity of interaction between biomedical sciences and engineering. Good results are highly dependent on the acquisition of computed tomography images and their subsequent manipulation by means of specific software. The present study describes the experience of a multidisciplinary group of researchers in the acquisition and manipulation of computed tomography images of the maxillofacial region aiming at biomedical prototyping for surgical purposes. (author)

Gait Correlation Analysis Based Human Identification

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jinyan Chen

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Human gait identification aims to identify people by a sequence of walking images. Comparing with fingerprint or iris based identification, the most important advantage of gait identification is that it can be done at a distance. In this paper, silhouette correlation analysis based human identification approach is proposed. By background subtracting algorithm, the moving silhouette figure can be extracted from the walking images sequence. Every pixel in the silhouette has three dimensions: horizontal axis (x, vertical axis (y, and temporal axis (t. By moving every pixel in the silhouette image along these three dimensions, we can get a new silhouette. The correlation result between the original silhouette and the new one can be used as the raw feature of human gait. Discrete Fourier transform is used to extract features from this correlation result. Then, these features are normalized to minimize the affection of noise. Primary component analysis method is used to reduce the features’ dimensions. Experiment based on CASIA database shows that this method has an encouraging recognition performance.

Is the key of the ghost imaging mystery given by the electromagnetic crossing symmetric photon reactions?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rusu, L; Rusu, A

2013-01-01

In the ghost imaging system, the object and image are separately illuminated by a pair of correlated beams and the image is obtained through coincidence detection of the two beams. When the correlated beams are obtained by a spontaneous parametric down-conversion phenomenon, the image formation is attributed to either quantum entanglement or wave vector correlation. The physicist D B Ion has published a different point of view: the ghost imaging can be explained by electromagnetic crossing symmetric photon reactions. We report on an experimental setup to verify that a change of the object reflection coefficient modifies the idler single count rate. The obtained results are a confirmation proof and suggest the existence of a stimulated spontaneous parametric down-conversion effect. A possible application is mentioned. (paper)

A novel fractal image compression scheme with block classification and sorting based on Pearson's correlation coefficient.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Jianji; Zheng, Nanning

2013-09-01

Fractal image compression (FIC) is an image coding technology based on the local similarity of image structure. It is widely used in many fields such as image retrieval, image denoising, image authentication, and encryption. FIC, however, suffers from the high computational complexity in encoding. Although many schemes are published to speed up encoding, they do not easily satisfy the encoding time or the reconstructed image quality requirements. In this paper, a new FIC scheme is proposed based on the fact that the affine similarity between two blocks in FIC is equivalent to the absolute value of Pearson's correlation coefficient (APCC) between them. First, all blocks in the range and domain pools are chosen and classified using an APCC-based block classification method to increase the matching probability. Second, by sorting the domain blocks with respect to APCCs between these domain blocks and a preset block in each class, the matching domain block for a range block can be searched in the selected domain set in which these APCCs are closer to APCC between the range block and the preset block. Experimental results show that the proposed scheme can significantly speed up the encoding process in FIC while preserving the reconstructed image quality well.

Strong anticipation and long-range cross-correlation: Application of detrended cross-correlation analysis to human behavioral data

Science.gov (United States)

Delignières, Didier; Marmelat, Vivien

2014-01-01

In this paper, we analyze empirical data, accounting for coordination processes between complex systems (bimanual coordination, interpersonal coordination, and synchronization with a fractal metronome), by using a recently proposed method: detrended cross-correlation analysis (DCCA). This work is motivated by the strong anticipation hypothesis, which supposes that coordination between complex systems is not achieved on the basis of local adaptations (i.e., correction, predictions), but results from a more global matching of complexity properties. Indeed, recent experiments have evidenced a very close correlation between the scaling properties of the series produced by two coordinated systems, despite a quite weak local synchronization. We hypothesized that strong anticipation should result in the presence of long-range cross-correlations between the series produced by the two systems. Results allow a detailed analysis of the effects of coordination on the fluctuations of the series produced by the two systems. In the long term, series tend to present similar scaling properties, with clear evidence of long-range cross-correlation. Short-term results strongly depend on the nature of the task. Simulation studies allow disentangling the respective effects of noise and short-term coupling processes on DCCA results, and suggest that the matching of long-term fluctuations could be the result of short-term coupling processes.

Correlation between ultrasound imaging, cross-sectional anatomy, and histology of the brachial plexus: a review.

Science.gov (United States)

van Geffen, Geert J; Moayeri, Nizar; Bruhn, Jörgen; Scheffer, Gert J; Chan, Vincent W; Groen, Gerbrand J

2009-01-01

The anatomy of the brachial plexus is complex. To facilitate the understanding of the ultrasound appearance of the brachial plexus, we present a review of important anatomic considerations. A detailed correlation of reconstructed, cross-sectional gross anatomy and histology with ultrasound sonoanatomy is provided.

A High-Performance VME-Based Acquisition System for Positron Emission Mammography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abbott, D.J.; Weisenberger, A.; Majewski, S.; Kieper, D.; Kross, B.; Popov, V.; Wojcik, R.; Raylman, R.R.

2001-01-01

A prototype for a practical and economical breast imaging system for cancer detection is currently under development at Jefferson Lab. The latest advances in bright, fast, crystal scintillators, compact position-sensitive photomultipliers (PSPMT), and high-performance digitizing and readout electronics are being used to develop a compact imager based on Positron Emission Tomography (PET). To facilitate the performance demands of the detector as well as the high number of readout channels, the data acquisition system is built around an intelligent, self-contained, VME form-factor

CROSS-CORRELATIONS AS A COSMOLOGICAL CARBON MONOXIDE DETECTOR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pullen, Anthony R.; Doré, Olivier; Chang, Tzu-Ching; Lidz, Adam

2013-01-01

We present a new procedure to measure the large-scale carbon monoxide (CO) emissions across cosmic history. As a tracer of large-scale structure (LSS), the CO gas content as a function of redshift can be quantified by its three-dimensional fluctuation power spectra. Furthermore, cross-correlating CO emission with other LSS tracers offers a way to measure the emission as a function of scale and redshift. Here we introduce the model relevant for such a cross-correlation measurement between CO and other LSS tracers, and between different CO rotational lines. We propose a novel use of cosmic microwave background (CMB) data and attempt to extract redshifted CO emissions embedded in the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) data set. We cross-correlate the all-sky WMAP7 data with LSS data sets, namely, the photometric quasar sample and the luminous red galaxy sample from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Releases 6 and 7, respectively. We are unable to detect a cross-correlation signal with either CO(1-0) or CO(2-1) lines, mainly due to the instrumental noise in the WMAP data. However, we are able to rule out models more than three times greater than our more optimistic model. We discuss the cross-correlation signal from the thermal Sunyaev-Zeldovich effect and dust as potential contaminants, and quantify their impact for our CO measurements. We discuss forecasts for current CMB experiments and a hypothetical future CO-focused experiment, and propose to cross-correlate CO temperature data with the Hobby-Eberly Telescope Dark Energy Experiment Lyα-emitter sample, for which a signal-to-noise ratio of 58 is possible.

TU-AB-BRA-04: Quantitative Radiomics: Sensitivity of PET Textural Features to Image Acquisition and Reconstruction Parameters Implies the Need for Standards

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nyflot, MJ; Yang, F; Byrd, D; Bowen, SR; Sandison, GA; Kinahan, PE

2015-01-01

Purpose: Despite increased use of heterogeneity metrics for PET imaging, standards for metrics such as textural features have yet to be developed. We evaluated the quantitative variability caused by image acquisition and reconstruction parameters on PET textural features. Methods: PET images of the NEMA IQ phantom were simulated with realistic image acquisition noise. 35 features based on intensity histograms (IH), co-occurrence matrices (COM), neighborhood-difference matrices (NDM), and zone-size matrices (ZSM) were evaluated within lesions (13, 17, 22, 28, 33 mm diameter). Variability in metrics across 50 independent images was evaluated as percent difference from mean for three phantom girths (850, 1030, 1200 mm) and two OSEM reconstructions (2 iterations, 28 subsets, 5 mm FWHM filtration vs 6 iterations, 28 subsets, 8.6 mm FWHM filtration). Also, patient sample size to detect a clinical effect of 30% with Bonferroni-corrected α=0.001 and 95% power was estimated. Results: As a class, NDM features demonstrated greatest sensitivity in means (5–50% difference for medium girth and reconstruction comparisons and 10–100% for large girth comparisons). Some IH features (standard deviation, energy, entropy) had variability below 10% for all sensitivity studies, while others (kurtosis, skewness) had variability above 30%. COM and ZSM features had complex sensitivities; correlation, energy, entropy (COM) and zone percentage, short-zone emphasis, zone-size non-uniformity (ZSM) had variability less than 5% while other metrics had differences up to 30%. Trends were similar for sample size estimation; for example, coarseness, contrast, and strength required 12, 38, and 52 patients to detect a 30% effect for the small girth case but 38, 88, and 128 patients in the large girth case. Conclusion: The sensitivity of PET textural features to image acquisition and reconstruction parameters is large and feature-dependent. Standards are needed to ensure that prospective trials

TU-AB-BRA-04: Quantitative Radiomics: Sensitivity of PET Textural Features to Image Acquisition and Reconstruction Parameters Implies the Need for Standards

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nyflot, MJ; Yang, F; Byrd, D; Bowen, SR; Sandison, GA; Kinahan, PE [University of Washington, Seattle, WA (United States)

2015-06-15

Purpose: Despite increased use of heterogeneity metrics for PET imaging, standards for metrics such as textural features have yet to be developed. We evaluated the quantitative variability caused by image acquisition and reconstruction parameters on PET textural features. Methods: PET images of the NEMA IQ phantom were simulated with realistic image acquisition noise. 35 features based on intensity histograms (IH), co-occurrence matrices (COM), neighborhood-difference matrices (NDM), and zone-size matrices (ZSM) were evaluated within lesions (13, 17, 22, 28, 33 mm diameter). Variability in metrics across 50 independent images was evaluated as percent difference from mean for three phantom girths (850, 1030, 1200 mm) and two OSEM reconstructions (2 iterations, 28 subsets, 5 mm FWHM filtration vs 6 iterations, 28 subsets, 8.6 mm FWHM filtration). Also, patient sample size to detect a clinical effect of 30% with Bonferroni-corrected α=0.001 and 95% power was estimated. Results: As a class, NDM features demonstrated greatest sensitivity in means (5–50% difference for medium girth and reconstruction comparisons and 10–100% for large girth comparisons). Some IH features (standard deviation, energy, entropy) had variability below 10% for all sensitivity studies, while others (kurtosis, skewness) had variability above 30%. COM and ZSM features had complex sensitivities; correlation, energy, entropy (COM) and zone percentage, short-zone emphasis, zone-size non-uniformity (ZSM) had variability less than 5% while other metrics had differences up to 30%. Trends were similar for sample size estimation; for example, coarseness, contrast, and strength required 12, 38, and 52 patients to detect a 30% effect for the small girth case but 38, 88, and 128 patients in the large girth case. Conclusion: The sensitivity of PET textural features to image acquisition and reconstruction parameters is large and feature-dependent. Standards are needed to ensure that prospective trials

A Cross-linguistic Perspective on Questions in German and French Adult Second Language Acquisition

OpenAIRE

Matthias Bonnesen; Solveig Chilla

2012-01-01

Several studies have been conducted to try and understand and explain the morphological and syntactic aspects of adult second language acquisition (SLA). Two prominent hypotheses that have been put forward concerning late L2 speakers' knowledge of inflectional morphology and of related functional categories and their feature values are the Impaired Representation Hypothesis (IRH) and the Missing Surface Inflection Hypothesis (MSIH).The cross-linguistic comparison of the acquisition of questio...

Gated listmode acquisition with the QuadHIDAC animal PET to image mouse hearts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schaefers, K.P.; Lang, N.; Stegger, L.; Schober, O.; Schaefers, M.

2006-01-01

Purpose: the aim of this study was to develop ECG and respiratory gating in combination with listmode acquisition for the quadHIDAC small-animal PET scanner. Methods: ECG and respiratory gating was realized with the help of an external trigger device (BioVET) synchronized with the listmode acquisition. Listmode data of a mouse acquisition (injected with 6.5 MBq of 18 F-FDG) were sorted according to three different gating definitions: 12 cardiac gates, 8 respiratory gates and a combination of 8 cardiac and 8 respiratory gates. Images were reconstructed with filtered back-projection (ramp filter), and parameters like left ventricular wall thickness (WT), wall-to-wall separation (WS) and blood to myocardium activity ratios (BMR) were calculated. Results: cardiac gated images show improvement of all parameters (WT 2.6 mm, WS 4.1 mm, BRM 2.3) in diastole compared to ungated images (WT 3.0 mm, WS 3.4 mm, BMR 1.3). Respiratory gating had little effect on calculated parameters. Conclusion: ECG gating with the quadHIDAC can improve myocardial image quality in mice. This could have a major impact on the calculation of an image-derived input function for kinetic modelling. (orig.)

Dependence of image quality on acquisition time for the PET/CT Biograph mCT

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Molina-Duran, Flavia; Glatting, Gerhard [Heidelberg Univ., Mannheim (Germany). Medical Radiation Physics/Radiation Protection; Dinter, Dietmar; Schoenberg, Stefan O. [Heidelberg Univ., Mannheim (Germany). Inst. of Clinical Radiology and Nuclear Medicine; Schoenahl, Frederic [Siemens Healthcare Molecular Imaging, Erlangen (Germany)

2014-03-01

The impact of acquisition time on reconstructed PET image quality is analyzed for different acquisition times (1, 2, 3 and 4 min). Image quality was tested according to the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) NU 2-2007, the evaluation for the signal to noise ratio (SNR) and the reconstructed activity ratio (RAR) for three algorithms, i.e. OSEM, TrueX and TOF applying different effective iteration numbers. The present work shows that the image quality of 3 and 4 min acquisition time for spherical lesions of 10 mm diameter are not significantly different between TrueX, TOF and OSEM. The 2 min acquisition time should be used carefully for the TrueX and OSEM algorithms in small lesions, because the levels of background noise are high compared to 3 or 4 min measurements. Also, the reconstructed activity ratio is underestimated to be approximately half of the expected value. For large lesions the three algorithms perform similarly for all acquisition durations, however, OSEM has the advantage of a more accurately reconstructed activity ratio compared to TrueX and TOF, which are more strongly influenced by noise. (orig.)

Assessment of resectability of pancreatic cancer with dynamic contrast-enhanced MR imaging: technique, surgical correlation and patient outcome

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Spencer, J.A.; Ward, J.; Guthrie, J.A.; Robinson, P.J.A.; Guillou, P.J.

1998-01-01

The aim of our work was to investigate the use of a dynamic contrast-enhanced MR (DCEMR) technique for staging apparently localised pancreatic cancer, and to determine the patterns of tumour and vascular enhancement with this technique. Thirty-five consecutive patients were examined. The MR findings were correlated with surgical findings in 13 patients and with clinical outcome in 22 patients. Breath-hold gradient-echo fast low angle shot (TR = 100, TE = 4, flip angle 80 ) acquisitions were obtained at 10 and 40 s (right anterior coronal oblique plane) and at 90 s (axial plane) following intravenous gadolinium. Mean contrast-to-noise ratio was higher on the first than the second acquisition (p < 0.001) and higher on the second acquisition than the third (p < 0.005). Tumour conspicuity was greatest and arterial anatomy was best demonstrated on the first acquisition and the portal venous anatomy on the second. Small tumours were isointense by the third acquisition. Maximal intensity projections were helpful. The MR findings correctly predicted the surgical findings in 11 of 13 cases (85 %) and the clinical course in the other 22 patients. The DCEMR imaging technique is valuable in the staging of patients with pancreatic cancer. Capillary and portal venous phase images are both required for complete local staging. (orig.)

Highly efficient router-based readout algorithm for single-photon-avalanche-diode imagers for time-correlated experiments

Science.gov (United States)

Cominelli, A.; Acconcia, G.; Caldi, F.; Peronio, P.; Ghioni, M.; Rech, I.

2018-02-01

Time-Correlated Single Photon Counting (TCSPC) is a powerful tool that permits to record extremely fast optical signals with a precision down to few picoseconds. On the other hand, it is recognized as a relatively slow technique, especially when a large time-resolved image is acquired exploiting a single acquisition channel and a scanning system. During the last years, much effort has been made towards the parallelization of many acquisition and conversion chains. In particular, the exploitation of Single-Photon Avalanche Diodes in standard CMOS technology has paved the way to the integration of thousands of independent channels on the same chip. Unfortunately, the presence of a large number of detectors can give rise to a huge rate of events, which can easily lead to the saturation of the transfer rate toward the elaboration unit. As a result, a smart readout approach is needed to guarantee an efficient exploitation of the limited transfer bandwidth. We recently introduced a novel readout architecture, aimed at maximizing the counting efficiency of the system in typical TCSPC measurements. It features a limited number of high-performance converters, which are shared with a much larger array, while a smart routing logic provides a dynamic multiplexing between the two parts. Here we propose a novel routing algorithm, which exploits standard digital gates distributed among a large 32x32 array to ensure a dynamic connection between detectors and external time-measurement circuits.

World currency exchange rate cross-correlations

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Droå¼dż, S.; Górski, A. Z.; Kwapień, J.

2007-08-01

World currency network constitutes one of the most complex structures that is associated with the contemporary civilization. On a way towards quantifying its characteristics we study the cross correlations in changes of the daily foreign exchange rates within the basket of 60 currencies in the period December 1998 May 2005. Such a dynamics turns out to predominantly involve one outstanding eigenvalue of the correlation matrix. The magnitude of this eigenvalue depends however crucially on which currency is used as a base currency for the remaining ones. Most prominent it looks from the perspective of a peripheral currency. This largest eigenvalue is seen to systematically decrease and thus the structure of correlations becomes more heterogeneous, when more significant currencies are used as reference. An extreme case in this later respect is the USD in the period considered. Besides providing further insight into subtle nature of complexity, these observations point to a formal procedure that in general can be used for practical purposes of measuring the relative currencies significance on various time horizons.

Speckle reduction in optical coherence tomography images based on wave atoms

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Du, Yongzhao; Liu, Gangjun; Feng, Guoying; Chen, Zhongping

2014-01-01

Abstract. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is an emerging noninvasive imaging technique, which is based on low-coherence interferometry. OCT images suffer from speckle noise, which reduces image contrast. A shrinkage filter based on wave atoms transform is proposed for speckle reduction in OCT images. Wave atoms transform is a new multiscale geometric analysis tool that offers sparser expansion and better representation for images containing oscillatory patterns and textures than other traditional transforms, such as wavelet and curvelet transforms. Cycle spinning-based technology is introduced to avoid visual artifacts, such as Gibbs-like phenomenon, and to develop a translation invariant wave atoms denoising scheme. The speckle suppression degree in the denoised images is controlled by an adjustable parameter that determines the threshold in the wave atoms domain. The experimental results show that the proposed method can effectively remove the speckle noise and improve the OCT image quality. The signal-to-noise ratio, contrast-to-noise ratio, average equivalent number of looks, and cross-correlation (XCOR) values are obtained, and the results are also compared with the wavelet and curvelet thresholding techniques. PMID:24825507

Correlation coefficient based supervised locally linear embedding for pulmonary nodule recognition.

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Wu, Panpan; Xia, Kewen; Yu, Hengyong

2016-11-01

Dimensionality reduction techniques are developed to suppress the negative effects of high dimensional feature space of lung CT images on classification performance in computer aided detection (CAD) systems for pulmonary nodule detection. An improved supervised locally linear embedding (SLLE) algorithm is proposed based on the concept of correlation coefficient. The Spearman's rank correlation coefficient is introduced to adjust the distance metric in the SLLE algorithm to ensure that more suitable neighborhood points could be identified, and thus to enhance the discriminating power of embedded data. The proposed Spearman's rank correlation coefficient based SLLE (SC(2)SLLE) is implemented and validated in our pilot CAD system using a clinical dataset collected from the publicly available lung image database consortium and image database resource initiative (LICD-IDRI). Particularly, a representative CAD system for solitary pulmonary nodule detection is designed and implemented. After a sequential medical image processing steps, 64 nodules and 140 non-nodules are extracted, and 34 representative features are calculated. The SC(2)SLLE, as well as SLLE and LLE algorithm, are applied to reduce the dimensionality. Several quantitative measurements are also used to evaluate and compare the performances. Using a 5-fold cross-validation methodology, the proposed algorithm achieves 87.65% accuracy, 79.23% sensitivity, 91.43% specificity, and 8.57% false positive rate, on average. Experimental results indicate that the proposed algorithm outperforms the original locally linear embedding and SLLE coupled with the support vector machine (SVM) classifier. Based on the preliminary results from a limited number of nodules in our dataset, this study demonstrates the great potential to improve the performance of a CAD system for nodule detection using the proposed SC(2)SLLE. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

PERFORMANCE IN CROSS-BORDER MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS: AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS OF THE BRAZILIAN CASE

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Adriana Bruscato Bortoluzzo

2014-10-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this article is to investigate whether the cross-border acquisitions made by Brazilian companies over the past 15 years have improved their financial performance. Drawing on institutional, sociocultural, and organizational learning theories, this study develops and empirically tests several hypotheses on the determinants of M&A performance. The results demonstrate that the cross-border acquisition moves by Brazilian companies actually improve their financial performance. Financial performance tends to be positive when the cultural distance between the countries of the acquiring and acquired companies is low to medium and when the institutional context of the acquired company is a developed one. We also found an inverted-U shape relationship between acquiring companies’ previous international M&A experience and the performance of a new cross-border operation. These findings suggest that research on international M&As should include acquirers’ M&A experience as well as the institutional characteristics of their target countries.

Detecting PM2.5's Correlations between Neighboring Cities Using a Time-Lagged Cross-Correlation Coefficient.

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Wang, Fang; Wang, Lin; Chen, Yuming

2017-08-31

In order to investigate the time-dependent cross-correlations of fine particulate (PM2.5) series among neighboring cities in Northern China, in this paper, we propose a new cross-correlation coefficient, the time-lagged q-L dependent height crosscorrelation coefficient (denoted by p q (τ, L)), which incorporates the time-lag factor and the fluctuation amplitude information into the analogous height cross-correlation analysis coefficient. Numerical tests are performed to illustrate that the newly proposed coefficient ρ q (τ, L) can be used to detect cross-correlations between two series with time lags and to identify different range of fluctuations at which two series possess cross-correlations. Applying the new coefficient to analyze the time-dependent cross-correlations of PM2.5 series between Beijing and the three neighboring cities of Tianjin, Zhangjiakou, and Baoding, we find that time lags between the PM2.5 series with larger fluctuations are longer than those between PM2.5 series withsmaller fluctuations. Our analysis also shows that cross-correlations between the PM2.5 series of two neighboring cities are significant and the time lags between two PM2.5 series of neighboring cities are significantly non-zero. These findings providenew scientific support on the view that air pollution in neighboring cities can affect one another not simultaneously but with a time lag.

Preliminary study on X-ray fluorescence computed tomography imaging of gold nanoparticles: Acceleration of data acquisition by multiple pinholes scheme

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Sasaya, Tenta; Sunaguchi, Naoki; Seo, Seung-Jum; Hyodo, Kazuyuki; Zeniya, Tsutomu; Kim, Jong-Ki; Yuasa, Tetsuya

2018-04-01

Gold nanoparticles (GNPs) have recently attracted attention in nanomedicine as novel contrast agents for cancer imaging. A decisive tomographic imaging technique has not yet been established to depict the 3-D distribution of GNPs in an object. An imaging technique known as pinhole-based X-ray fluorescence computed tomography (XFCT) is a promising method that can be used to reconstruct the distribution of GNPs from the X-ray fluorescence emitted by GNPs. We address the acceleration of data acquisition in pinhole-based XFCT for preclinical use using a multiple pinhole scheme. In this scheme, multiple projections are simultaneously acquired through a multi-pinhole collimator with a 2-D detector and full-field volumetric beam to enhance the signal-to-noise ratio of the projections; this enables fast data acquisition. To demonstrate the efficacy of this method, we performed an imaging experiment using a physical phantom with an actual multi-pinhole XFCT system that was constructed using the beamline AR-NE7A at KEK. The preliminary study showed that the multi-pinhole XFCT achieved a data acquisition time of 20 min at a theoretical detection limit of approximately 0.1 Au mg/ml and at a spatial resolution of 0.4 mm.

A data acquisition system for measuring ionization cross section in laser multi-step resonant ionization experiment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Qian Dongbin; Guo Yuhui; Zhang Dacheng; Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing; Ma Xinwen; Zhao Zhizheng; Wang Yanyu; Zu Kailing

2006-01-01

A CAMAC data acquisition system for measuring ionization cross section in laser multi-step resonant ionization experiment is described. The number of scalers in the front-end CAMAC can be adjusted by changing the data read-out table files. Both continuous and manual acquisition models are available, and there is a wide adjustable range from 1 ms to 800 s with the acquisition time unit. The long-term stability, Δt/t, for the data acquisition system with an acquisition time unit of 100 s was measured to be better than ±0.01%, thus validating its reliability in long-term online experimental data acquisition. The time response curves for three electrothermal power-meters were also measured by this DAQ system. (authors)

Application of digital image correlation for long-distance bridge deflection measurement

Science.gov (United States)

Tian, Long; Pan, Bing; Cai, Youfa; Liang, Hui; Zhao, Yan

2013-06-01

Due to its advantages of non-contact, full-field and high-resolution measurement, digital image correlation (DIC) method has gained wide acceptance and found numerous applications in the field of experimental mechanics. In this paper, the application of DIC for real-time long-distance bridge deflection detection in outdoor environments is studied. Bridge deflection measurement using DIC in outdoor environments is more challenging than regular DIC measurements performed under laboratory conditions. First, much more image noise due to variations in ambient light will be presented in the images recorded in outdoor environments. Second, how to select the target area becomes a key factor because long-distance imaging results in a large field of view of the test object. Finally, the image acquisition speed of the camera must be high enough (larger than 100 fps) to capture the real-time dynamic motion of a bridge. In this work, the above challenging issues are addressed and several improvements were made to DIC method. The applicability was demonstrated by real experiments. Experimental results indicate that the DIC method has great potentials in motion measurement in various large building structures.

Rate of multilingual phonological acquisition: Evidence from a cross-sectional study of English-Mandarin-Malay.

Science.gov (United States)

Lim, Hui W; Wells, Bill; Howard, Sara

2015-01-01

Early child multilingual acquisition is under-explored. Using a cross-sectional study approach, the present research investigates the rate of multilingual phonological acquisition of English-Mandarin-Malay by 64 ethnic Chinese children aged 2;06-4;05 in Malaysia--a multiracial-multilingual country of Asia. The aims of the study are to provide clinical norms for speech development in the multilingual children and to compare multilingual acquisition with monolingual and bilingual acquisition. An innovative multilingual phonological test which adopts well-defined scoring criteria drawing upon local accents of English, Mandarin and Malay is proposed and described in this article. This procedure has been neglected in the few existing Chinese bilingual phonological acquisition studies resulting in peculiar findings. The multilingual children show comparable phonological acquisition milestones to that of monolingual and bilingual peers acquiring the same languages. The implications of the present results are discussed. The present findings contribute to the development of models and theories of child multilingual acquisition.

Apparent change in cardiac geometry during single-photon emission tomography thallium-201 acquisition: a complex phenomenon

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eisner, R.L.; Aaron, A.M.; Worthy, M.R.; Boyers, A.S.; Leon, A.R.; Fajman, W.A.; Patterson, R.E.; Emory Univ., Atlanta, GA

1993-01-01

We investigated the frequency and extent of changes in heart positon and geometry independent of body motion during stress single-photon emission tomography (SPET) thallium-201 myocardial perfusion imaging. Following an exercise treadmill test, patients had a 22.1-min SPET acquisition which was followed immediately by a static image acquisition for 1 min with the camera position identical to the first fiew of the SPET study. Point sources were placed on the body to monitor patient motion. Cardiac motion was assessed by an approach which mimicked a cross-correlation technique applied to cardia count profiles along the horizontal and vertical directions from the first view of the SPET study and the static image. A large percentage (87.5%) of cases had some degree of horizontal or vertical motion. Pixel shifts in caridac position of ≥2 pixels (12 mm) occurred in 60% of patients. In 37% of patients who moved the caridac motion was consistent with simple translation of the heart and thus amenable to correction using proposed SPET motion-correction programs. The peak heart rate achieved during stress and the ratio of the heart rate immediately before SPET acquisition to the resting heart rate were determined to be independent predictors of patient motion during SPET acquisition. Cardiac motion changes were minimal at (13.3±2.2) min after cessation of exercise. The implications of these findings for the accuracy of SPET 201 TI require further investigation. (orig.)

A digital data acquisition scheme for SPECT and PET small animal imaging detectors for Theranostic applications

Science.gov (United States)

Georgiou, M.; Fysikopoulos, E.; Loudos, G.

2017-11-01

Nanoparticle based drug delivery is considered as a new, promising technology for the efficient treatment of various diseases. When nanoparticles are radiolabelled it is possible to image them, using molecular imaging techniques. The use of magnetic nanoparticles in hyperthermia is one of the most promising nanomedicine directions and requires the accurate, non-invasive, monitoring of temperature increase and drug release. The combination of imaging and therapy has opened the very promising Theranostics domain. In this work, we present a digital data acquisition scheme for nuclear medicine dedicated detectors for Theranostic applications.

Structure of a financial cross-correlation matrix under attack

Science.gov (United States)

Lim, Gyuchang; Kim, SooYong; Kim, Junghwan; Kim, Pyungsoo; Kang, Yoonjong; Park, Sanghoon; Park, Inho; Park, Sang-Bum; Kim, Kyungsik

2009-09-01

We investigate the structure of a perturbed stock market in terms of correlation matrices. For the purpose of perturbing a stock market, two distinct methods are used, namely local and global perturbation. The former involves replacing a correlation coefficient of the cross-correlation matrix with one calculated from two Gaussian-distributed time series while the latter reconstructs the cross-correlation matrix just after replacing the original return series with Gaussian-distributed time series. Concerning the local case, it is a technical study only and there is no attempt to model reality. The term ‘global’ means the overall effect of the replacement on other untouched returns. Through statistical analyses such as random matrix theory (RMT), network theory, and the correlation coefficient distributions, we show that the global structure of a stock market is vulnerable to perturbation. However, apart from in the analysis of inverse participation ratios (IPRs), the vulnerability becomes dull under a small-scale perturbation. This means that these analysis tools are inappropriate for monitoring the whole stock market due to the low sensitivity of a stock market to a small-scale perturbation. In contrast, when going down to the structure of business sectors, we confirm that correlation-based business sectors are regrouped in terms of IPRs. This result gives a clue about monitoring the effect of hidden intentions, which are revealed via portfolios taken mostly by large investors.

Cross-correlations between agricultural commodity futures markets in the US and China

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Zhihui; Lu, Xinsheng

2012-08-01

This paper examines the cross-correlation properties of agricultural futures markets between the US and China using a cross-correlation statistic test and multifractal detrended cross-correlation analysis (MF-DCCA). The results show that the cross-correlations between the two geographically distant markets for four pairs of important agricultural commodities futures are significantly multifractal. By introducing the concept of a “crossover”, we find that the multifractality of cross-correlations between the two markets is not long lasting. The cross-correlations in the short term are more strongly multifractal, but they are weakly so in the long term. Moreover, cross-correlations of small fluctuations are persistent and those of large fluctuations are anti-persistent in the short term while cross-correlations of all kinds of fluctuations for soy bean and soy meal futures are persistent and for corn and wheat futures are anti-persistent in the long term. We also find that cross-correlation exponents are less than the averaged generalized Hurst exponent when q0 in the short term, while in the long term they are almost the same.

Neuropsychological Correlates of Diffusion Tensor Imaging in Schizophrenia

Science.gov (United States)

Nestor, Paul G.; Kubicki, Marek; Gurrera, Ronald J.; Niznikiewicz, Margaret; Frumin, Melissa; McCarley, Robert W.; Shenton, Martha E.

2009-01-01

Patients with schizophrenia (n = 41) and healthy comparison participants (n = 46) completed neuropsychological measures of intelligence, memory, and executive function. A subset of each group also completed magnetic resonance diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) studies (fractional anisotropy and cross-sectional area) of the uncinate fasciculus (UF) and cingulate bundle (CB). Patients with schizophrenia showed reduced levels of functioning across all neuropsychological measures. In addition, selective neuropsychological–DTI relationships emerged. Among patients but not controls, lower levels of declarative–episodic verbal memory correlated with reduced left UF, whereas executive function errors related to performance monitoring correlated with reduced left CB. The data suggested abnormal DTI patterns linking declarative–episodic verbal memory deficits to the left UF and executive function deficits to the left CB among patients with schizophrenia. PMID:15506830

Ghost imaging with third-order correlated thermal light

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ou, L-H; Kuang, L-M

2007-01-01

In this paper, we propose a ghost imaging scheme with third-order correlated thermal light. We show that it is possible to produce the spatial information of an object at two different places in a nonlocal fashion by means of a third-order correlated imaging process with a third-order correlated thermal source and third-order correlation measurement. Concretely, we propose a protocol to create two ghost images at two different places from one object. This protocol involves two optical configurations. We derive the Gaussian thin lens equations and plot the geometrical optics of the ghost imaging processes for the two configurations. It is indicated that third-order correlated ghost imaging with thermal light exhibits richer correlated imaging effects than second-order correlated ghost imaging with thermal light

Domestic banking sector development and cross border mergers and acquisitions in Africa

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elikplimi K. Agbloyor

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Recently, economists have started taking a closer look at cross border mergers and acquisitions (M&As due to its phenomenal rise in the past two decades. This study investigates the relation between banking sector development and cross M&As in Africa. Our sample consists of 11 African countries with data covering the period, 1993–2008. We use a Baltagi panel instrumental variable Error Component Two Stage Least Squares (EC2SLS estimator with the Baltagi-Chang estimators of the variance components to deal with endogeneity. The results of the study indicate that banking sector development promotes cross border M&A activity in Africa. We also document evidence suggesting that cross border M&A activity drives banking sector development in Africa. Overall, our evidence suggests a two-way causation between banking sector development and cross border M&As.

Registration of synthetic tomographic projection data sets using cross-correlation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fitchard, E.E.; Aldridge, J.S.; Reckwerdt, P.J.; Mackie, T.R.

1998-01-01

Tomographic registration, a method that makes possible accurate patient registration directly from projection data, consists of three processing steps: (i) manual coarse positioning, (ii) tomographic projection set acquisition, and (iii) computer mediated refined positioning. In the coarse positioning stage, the degree of patient alignment is comparable with that achieved with the standard radiotherapy set-up. However, the accuracy requirements are somewhat more relaxed in that meticulous alignment of the patient using external laser indicators is not necessary. Instead, tomographic projection sets are compared with planning CTs in order to achieve improved patient set-up. The projection sets are cross-correlated to obtain the best-fit translation and rotation offsets. The algorithm has been tested on synthetic data with the incorporation of varying amounts of Gaussian pseudo-random noise. These tests demonstrate the algorithm's stability and also confirm that alignment can be achieved with an accuracy of less than one projection pixel. (author)

Invariant Feature Matching for Image Registration Application Based on New Dissimilarity of Spatial Features

Science.gov (United States)

Mousavi Kahaki, Seyed Mostafa; Nordin, Md Jan; Ashtari, Amir H.; J. Zahra, Sophia

2016-01-01

An invariant feature matching method is proposed as a spatially invariant feature matching approach. Deformation effects, such as affine and homography, change the local information within the image and can result in ambiguous local information pertaining to image points. New method based on dissimilarity values, which measures the dissimilarity of the features through the path based on Eigenvector properties, is proposed. Evidence shows that existing matching techniques using similarity metrics—such as normalized cross-correlation, squared sum of intensity differences and correlation coefficient—are insufficient for achieving adequate results under different image deformations. Thus, new descriptor’s similarity metrics based on normalized Eigenvector correlation and signal directional differences, which are robust under local variation of the image information, are proposed to establish an efficient feature matching technique. The method proposed in this study measures the dissimilarity in the signal frequency along the path between two features. Moreover, these dissimilarity values are accumulated in a 2D dissimilarity space, allowing accurate corresponding features to be extracted based on the cumulative space using a voting strategy. This method can be used in image registration applications, as it overcomes the limitations of the existing approaches. The output results demonstrate that the proposed technique outperforms the other methods when evaluated using a standard dataset, in terms of precision-recall and corner correspondence. PMID:26985996

Invariant Feature Matching for Image Registration Application Based on New Dissimilarity of Spatial Features.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Seyed Mostafa Mousavi Kahaki

Full Text Available An invariant feature matching method is proposed as a spatially invariant feature matching approach. Deformation effects, such as affine and homography, change the local information within the image and can result in ambiguous local information pertaining to image points. New method based on dissimilarity values, which measures the dissimilarity of the features through the path based on Eigenvector properties, is proposed. Evidence shows that existing matching techniques using similarity metrics--such as normalized cross-correlation, squared sum of intensity differences and correlation coefficient--are insufficient for achieving adequate results under different image deformations. Thus, new descriptor's similarity metrics based on normalized Eigenvector correlation and signal directional differences, which are robust under local variation of the image information, are proposed to establish an efficient feature matching technique. The method proposed in this study measures the dissimilarity in the signal frequency along the path between two features. Moreover, these dissimilarity values are accumulated in a 2D dissimilarity space, allowing accurate corresponding features to be extracted based on the cumulative space using a voting strategy. This method can be used in image registration applications, as it overcomes the limitations of the existing approaches. The output results demonstrate that the proposed technique outperforms the other methods when evaluated using a standard dataset, in terms of precision-recall and corner correspondence.