Osteoprogenitor cell therapy in an equine fracture model.

Science.gov (United States)

McDuffee, Laurie A; Pack, LeeAnn; Lores, Marcos; Wright, Glenda M; Esparza-Gonzalez, Blanca; Masaoud, Elmabrok

2012-10-01

To compare the efficacy of osteoprogenitors in fibrin glue to fibrin glue alone in bone healing of surgically induced ostectomies of the fourth metacarpal bones in an equine model. Experimental. Adult horses (n = 10). Segmental ostectomies of the 4th metacarpal bone (MC4) were performed bilaterally in 10 horses. There was 1 treatment and 1 control limb in each horse. Bone defects were randomly injected with either fibrin glue and osteoprogenitor cells or fibrin glue alone. Radiography was performed every week until the study endpoint at 12 weeks. After euthanasia, bone healing was evaluated using radiography and histology. Analysis of radiographic data was conducted using a linear-mixed model. Analysis of histologic data was conducted using a general linear model. Statistical significance was set at P bone healing revealed no significant difference between treatment and control limbs. Radiographic scoring results also showed that the treatment effect was not significant. Histologic analysis was consistent with radiographic analysis showing no significant difference between the area of bone present in treatment and control limbs. Injection of periosteal-derived osteoprogenitors in a fibrin glue carrier into surgically created ostectomies of MC4 does not accelerate bone healing when compared with fibrin glue alone. © Copyright 2012 by The American College of Veterinary Surgeons.

Mathematical model of mechanical testing of bone-implant (4.5 mm LCP construct

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lucie Urbanová

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The study deals with the possibility of substituting time- and material-demanding mechanical testing of a bone defect fixation by mathematical modelling. Based on the mechanical model, a mathematical model of bone-implant construct stabilizing experimental segmental femoral bone defect (segmental ostectomy in a miniature pig ex vivo model using 4.5 mm titanium LCP was created. It was subsequently computer-loaded by forces acting parallel to the long axis of the construct. By the effect of the acting forces the displacement vector sum of individual construct points occurred. The greatest displacement was noted in the end segments of the bone in close proximity to ostectomy and in the area of the empty central plate hole (without screw at the level of the segmental bone defect. By studying the equivalent von Mises stress σEQV on LCP as part of the tested construct we found that the greatest changes of stress occur in the place of the empty central plate hole. The distribution of this strain was relatively symmetrical along both sides of the hole. The exceeding of the yield stress value and irreversible plastic deformations in this segment of LCP occurred at the acting of the force of 360 N. These findings are in line with the character of damage of the same construct loaded during its mechanic testing. We succeeded in creating a mathematical model of the bone-implant construct which may be further used for computer modelling of real loading of similar constructs chosen for fixation of bone defects in both experimental and clinical practice.

Oral rehabilitation of patients with Chediak-Higashi syndrome using zygoma and root form implant-supported fixed prostheses: A report of two patients.

Science.gov (United States)

Alzoubi, Fawaz; Bedrossian, Edmond; Wong, Allen

2016-12-01

Chediak-Higashi syndrome (CH-S) is a rare genetic immunodeficiency disorder. Fewer than 500 individuals with CH-S have been reported worldwide in the past 20 years. The dental management of patients in whom CH-S has been diagnosed has been rarely reported and only in the form of a case report. All reports addressed the severe periodontal disease found in those patients, and most studies concluded that periodontal treatment had an unfavorable prognosis. As a result, complete edentulism at an early age because of severe periodontal disease is expected. The purpose of this report was to present 2 patients with CH-S seeking oral rehabilitation after early tooth loss and severe bone resorption as a manifestation of severe periodontal disease. The treatment used bilateral zygoma implants and an all-on-4 concept. The complications encountered and management with a 5-year post-surgery follow-up are also presented. Copyright © 2016 Editorial Council for the Journal of Prosthetic Dentistry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Use of clinical and computed tomography findings to assess long-term unsatisfactory outcome after femoral head and neck ostectomy in four large breed dogs.

Science.gov (United States)

Ober, Ciprian; Pestean, Cosmin; Bel, Lucia; Taulescu, Marian; Milgram, Joshua; Todor, Adrian; Ungur, Rodica; Leșu, Mirela; Oana, Liviu

2018-05-10

Femoral head and neck ostectomy (FHNO) is a salvage surgical procedure intended to eliminate hip joint laxity associated pain in the immature dog, or pain due to secondary osteoarthritis in the mature dog. The outcome of the procedure is associated with the size of the dog but the cause of a generally poorer outcome in larger breeds has not been determined. The objective of this study was to assess the long-term results of FHNO associated with unsatisfactory functional outcome by means of clinical examination and computed tomography (CT) scanning. Four large mixed breed dogs underwent FHNO in different veterinary clinics. Clinical and CT scanning evaluations were carried out long time after the procedures had been done. Hip pain, muscle atrophy, decreased range of motion and chronic lameness were observed at clinical examination. Extensive remodelling, unacceptable bone-on-bone contact with bony proliferation involving the femoral neck and acetabulum, but also excessive removal with bone lysis were observed by CT scanning. Revision osteotomy was performed in one dog. Deep gluteal muscle interposition was used, but no improvements were observed postoperatively. This is the first report on the evaluation of three-dimensional CT reconstructions of the late bone remodelling associated with poor clinical outcome in large dogs. The study shows that FHNO could lead to severe functional deficits in large breed dogs. An extensive follow-study is necessary to more accurately determine the frequency of such complications.

Histologic and immunohistochemical evaluation of biocompatibility of castor oil polyurethane polymer with calcium carbonate in equine bone tissue.

Science.gov (United States)

Nóbrega, Fernanda S; Selim, Mariana B; Arana-Chavez, Victor E; Correa, Luciana; Ferreira, Márcio P; Zoppa, André L V

2017-10-01

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the efficacy of castor oil polyurethane polymer with calcium carbonate for use in a unicortical ostectomy on the dorsal surface of the third metacarpal bone of horses. ANIMALS 6 adult horses. PROCEDURES A unicortical ostectomy was created on the dorsal surface of both third metacarpal bones of each horse. Castor bean (Ricinus communis) oil polyurethane polymer with calcium carbonate was implanted into the ostectomy on 1 limb, and the ostectomy of the contralateral limb was left unfilled and served as a control sample. Ostectomy sites were evaluated histologically 120 days later. Biopsy specimens were obtained from the interface of bone and polymer or the interface of bone and newly formed tissue; specimens were processed for histomorphometric evaluation by use of light microscopy, immunohistochemical analysis, histochemical analysis, and transmission electron microscopy. RESULTS Osteoconductive activity of the biomaterial was confirmed by the presence of osteoblasts in the biopsy specimens. Absence of a chronic inflammatory response or foreign body reaction indicated biocompatibility. Expression of osteoblast markers was detected in the newly formed tissue. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Results indicated that castor oil polyurethane polymer with calcium carbonate could be an acceptable compound for use as a bone substitute in horses with fractures in which bone filling is necessary.

Computer Simulation Surgery for Mandibular Reconstruction Using a Fibular Osteotomy Guide

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Woo Shik Jeong

2014-09-01

Full Text Available In the present study, a fibular osteotomy guide based on a computer simulation was applied to a patient who had undergone mandibular segmental ostectomy due to oncological complications. This patient was a 68-year-old woman who presented to our department with a biopsy-proven squamous cell carcinoma on her left gingival area. This lesion had destroyed the cortical bony structure, and the patient showed attenuation of her soft tissue along the inferior alveolar nerve, indicating perineural spread of the tumor. Prior to surgery, a three-dimensional computed tomography scan of the facial and fibular bones was performed. We then created a virtual computer simulation of the mandibular segmental defect through which we segmented the fibular to reconstruct the proper angulation in the original mandible. Approximately 2-cm segments were created on the basis of this simulation and applied to the virtually simulated mandibular segmental defect. Thus, we obtained a virtual model of the ideal mandibular reconstruction for this patient with a fibular free flap. We could then use this computer simulation for the subsequent surgery and minimize the bony gaps between the multiple fibular bony segments.

Segmentation: Identification of consumer segments

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Høg, Esben

2005-01-01

It is very common to categorise people, especially in the advertising business. Also traditional marketing theory has taken in consumer segments as a favorite topic. Segmentation is closely related to the broader concept of classification. From a historical point of view, classification has its...... origin in other sciences as for example biology, anthropology etc. From an economic point of view, it is called segmentation when specific scientific techniques are used to classify consumers to different characteristic groupings. What is the purpose of segmentation? For example, to be able to obtain...... a basic understanding of grouping people. Advertising agencies may use segmentation totarget advertisements, while food companies may usesegmentation to develop products to various groups of consumers. MAPP has for example investigated the positioning of fish in relation to other food products...

The boomerang osteotomy -- a new method of reduction malarplasty.

Science.gov (United States)

Nakanishi, Yuji; Nagasao, Tomohisa; Shimizu, Yusuke; Miyamoto, Junpei; Kishi, Kazuo; Fukuta, Keizo

2012-05-01

To achieve optimal outcomes in reduction malarplasty, it is important to preserve the natural curvature of the cheek while reducing the zygoma prominence and the width of the midface. The present article introduces an effective technique that aims to achieve these purposes. Through an intraoral approach, boomerang-shaped bone incision lines are marked on the anterior aspect of the zygomatico-maxillary junction. The lines are placed medial to the most prominent part of the zygoma. The zygomatic arch is divided at its posterior part through a small incision made in the pre-auricular region. By performing these manoeuvres, a unit of bone-composed of a part of the zygoma body and zygomatic arch - is mobilised. The mobilised bone is shifted medially, reducing the width of the midface and making the zygoma region less prominent. After performing reduction malarplasty for 89 patients (10 males and 79 females) using this technique, clinical outcomes were evaluated. Outcomes of the treatment was optimal, with over 80% of the patients evaluating the results as excellent in terms of effectiveness in malar prominence, facial width and symmetry. Because the continuity of the main part of the zygoma body and zygomatic arch is preserved in our technique, medial transfer of the zygoma is enabled while preserving the natural curvature of the malar region and the superior-inferior position of the zygomatic arch. Because of these advantages, we recommend our technique as an effective technique of reduction malarplasty. Copyright © 2012 British Association of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Status of the segment interconnect, cable segment ancillary logic, and the cable segment hybrid driver projects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Swoboda, C.; Barsotti, E.; Chappa, S.; Downing, R.; Goeransson, G.; Lensy, D.; Moore, G.; Rotolo, C.; Urish, J.

1985-01-01

The FASTBUS Segment Interconnect (SI) provides a communication path between two otherwise independent, asynchronous bus segments. In particular, the Segment Interconnect links a backplane crate segment to a cable segment. All standard FASTBUS address and data transactions can be passed through the SI or any number of SIs and segments in a path. Thus systems of arbitrary connection complexity can be formed, allowing simultaneous independent processing, yet still permitting devices associated with one segment to be accessed from others. The model S1 Segment Interconnect and the Cable Segment Ancillary Logic covered in this report comply with all the mandatory features stated in the FASTBUS specification document DOE/ER-0189. A block diagram of the SI is shown

Segmented block copolymers with monodisperse aramide end-segments

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Araichimani, A.; Gaymans, R.J.

2008-01-01

Segmented block copolymers were synthesized using monodisperse diaramide (TT) as hard segments and PTMO with a molecular weight of 2 900 g · mol-1 as soft segments. The aramide: PTMO segment ratio was increased from 1:1 to 2:1 thereby changing the structure from a high molecular weight multi-block

Segmentation of consumer's markets and evaluation of market's segments

OpenAIRE

ŠVECOVÁ, Iveta

2013-01-01

The goal of this bachelor thesis was to explain a possibly segmentation of consumer´s markets for a chosen company, and to present a suitable goods offer, so it would be suitable to the needs of selected segments. The work is divided into theoretical and practical part. First part describes marketing, segmentation, segmentation of consumer's markets, consumer's market, market's segments a other terms. Second part describes an evaluation of questionnaire survey, discovering of market's segment...

Brookhaven segment interconnect

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morse, W.M.; Benenson, G.; Leipuner, L.B.

1983-01-01

We have performed a high energy physics experiment using a multisegment Brookhaven FASTBUS system. The system was composed of three crate segments and two cable segments. We discuss the segment interconnect module which permits communication between the various segments

Active Segmentation.

Science.gov (United States)

Mishra, Ajay; Aloimonos, Yiannis

2009-01-01

The human visual system observes and understands a scene/image by making a series of fixations. Every fixation point lies inside a particular region of arbitrary shape and size in the scene which can either be an object or just a part of it. We define as a basic segmentation problem the task of segmenting that region containing the fixation point. Segmenting the region containing the fixation is equivalent to finding the enclosing contour- a connected set of boundary edge fragments in the edge map of the scene - around the fixation. This enclosing contour should be a depth boundary.We present here a novel algorithm that finds this bounding contour and achieves the segmentation of one object, given the fixation. The proposed segmentation framework combines monocular cues (color/intensity/texture) with stereo and/or motion, in a cue independent manner. The semantic robots of the immediate future will be able to use this algorithm to automatically find objects in any environment. The capability of automatically segmenting objects in their visual field can bring the visual processing to the next level. Our approach is different from current approaches. While existing work attempts to segment the whole scene at once into many areas, we segment only one image region, specifically the one containing the fixation point. Experiments with real imagery collected by our active robot and from the known databases 1 demonstrate the promise of the approach.

Reclassification and treatment of odontogenic keratocysts: A cohort study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ophir Ribeiro-Júnior

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract: The odontogenic keratocyst (OKC is a recurrent cyst that has been recently reclassified from an odontogenic tumor to an odontogenic cyst. The aim of the present study was to investigate its treatment and address issues related to its association with nevoid basal cell carcinoma syndrome (NBCCS. Lesions from the cohort of patients included in the present study consisted of 40 OKCs, of which 27 lesions were treated by enucleation (GE and 13 underwent decompression (GD. Complementary treatment occurred in 38 (95% lesions, of which 10 underwent isolated peripheral ostectomy (GO and 28 underwent peripheral ostectomy combined with Carnoy's solution (GC. Thirteen lesions were associated with NBCCS (GS, while the others (n=27 were non-syndromic lesions (GnS. The recurrence-free periods (RFP in the sample groups were compared using the Kaplan-Meier function and log-rank test at a significance level of 5% (p 0.05 or increased CRR for the decompression (15.4% over five years. Application of Carnoy's solution did not increase the efficacy of the peripheral ostectomy, but was related to a CRR of 0% for the syndromic lesions over five years. Therefore, 1 decompression did not increase the recurrence risk; 2 peripheral ostectomy demonstrated a similar efficacy as the combination with Carnoy's solution; 3 the association of NBCCS did not seem to significantly influence OKC recurrence; and 4 syndromic lesions seem to behave in the same manner as non-syndromic lesions when submitted to complementary treatments.

GeoSegmenter: A statistically learned Chinese word segmenter for the geoscience domain

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Lan; Du, Youfu; Chen, Gongyang

2015-03-01

Unlike English, the Chinese language has no space between words. Segmenting texts into words, known as the Chinese word segmentation (CWS) problem, thus becomes a fundamental issue for processing Chinese documents and the first step in many text mining applications, including information retrieval, machine translation and knowledge acquisition. However, for the geoscience subject domain, the CWS problem remains unsolved. Although a generic segmenter can be applied to process geoscience documents, they lack the domain specific knowledge and consequently their segmentation accuracy drops dramatically. This motivated us to develop a segmenter specifically for the geoscience subject domain: the GeoSegmenter. We first proposed a generic two-step framework for domain specific CWS. Following this framework, we built GeoSegmenter using conditional random fields, a principled statistical framework for sequence learning. Specifically, GeoSegmenter first identifies general terms by using a generic baseline segmenter. Then it recognises geoscience terms by learning and applying a model that can transform the initial segmentation into the goal segmentation. Empirical experimental results on geoscience documents and benchmark datasets showed that GeoSegmenter could effectively recognise both geoscience terms and general terms.

Single-segment and double-segment INTACS for post-LASIK ectasia.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hassan Hashemi

2014-09-01

Full Text Available The objective of the present study was to compare single segment and double segment INTACS rings in the treatment of post-LASIK ectasia. In this interventional study, 26 eyes with post-LASIK ectasia were assessed. Ectasia was defined as progressive myopia regardless of astigmatism, along with topographic evidence of inferior steepening of the cornea after LASIK. We excluded those with a history of intraocular surgery, certain eye conditions, and immune disorders, as well as monocular, pregnant and lactating patients. A total of 11 eyes had double ring and 15 eyes had single ring implantation. Visual and refractive outcomes were compared with preoperative values based on the number of implanted INTACS rings. Pre and postoperative spherical equivalent were -3.92 and -2.29 diopter (P=0.007. The spherical equivalent decreased by 1 ± 3.2 diopter in the single-segment group and 2.56 ± 1.58 diopter in the double-segment group (P=0.165. Mean preoperative astigmatism was 2.38 ± 1.93 diopter which decreased to 2.14 ± 1.1 diopter after surgery (P=0.508; 0.87 ± 1.98 diopter decrease in the single-segment group and 0.67 ± 1.2 diopter increase in the double-segment group (P=0.025. Nineteen patients (75% gained one or two lines, and only three, who were all in the double-segment group, lost one or two lines of best corrected visual acuity. The spherical equivalent and vision significantly decreased in all patients. In these post-LASIK ectasia patients, the spherical equivalent was corrected better with two segments compared to single segment implantation; nonetheless, the level of astigmatism in the single-segment group was significantly better than that in the double-segment group.

Accounting for segment correlations in segmented gamma-ray scans

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sheppard, G.A.; Prettyman, T.H.; Piquette, E.C.

1994-01-01

In a typical segmented gamma-ray scanner (SGS), the detector's field of view is collimated so that a complete horizontal slice or segment of the desired thickness is visible. Ordinarily, the collimator is not deep enough to exclude gamma rays emitted from sample volumes above and below the segment aligned with the collimator. This can lead to assay biases, particularly for certain radioactive-material distributions. Another consequence of the collimator's low aspect ratio is that segment assays at the top and bottom of the sample are biased low because the detector's field of view is not filled. This effect is ordinarily countered by placing the sample on a low-Z pedestal and scanning one or more segment thicknesses below and above the sample. This takes extra time, however, We have investigated a number of techniques that both account for correlated segments and correct for end effects in SGS assays. Also, we have developed an algorithm that facilitates estimates of assay precision. Six calculation methods have been compared by evaluating the results of thousands of simulated, assays for three types of gamma-ray source distribution and ten masses. We will report on these computational studies and their experimental verification

Hydrophilic segmented block copolymers based on poly(ethylene oxide) and monodisperse amide segments

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Husken, D.; Feijen, Jan; Gaymans, R.J.

2007-01-01

Segmented block copolymers based on poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO) flexible segments and monodisperse crystallizable bisester tetra-amide segments were made via a polycondensation reaction. The molecular weight of the PEO segments varied from 600 to 4600 g/mol and a bisester tetra-amide segment (T6T6T)

Spinal segmental dysgenesis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

N Mahomed

2009-06-01

Full Text Available Spinal segmental dysgenesis is a rare congenital spinal abnormality , seen in neonates and infants in which a segment of the spine and spinal cord fails to develop normally . The condition is segmental with normal vertebrae above and below the malformation. This condition is commonly associated with various abnormalities that affect the heart, genitourinary, gastrointestinal tract and skeletal system. We report two cases of spinal segmental dysgenesis and the associated abnormalities.

Automatic Melody Segmentation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Rodríguez López, Marcelo

2016-01-01

The work presented in this dissertation investigates music segmentation. In the field of Musicology, segmentation refers to a score analysis technique, whereby notated pieces or passages of these pieces are divided into “units” referred to as sections, periods, phrases, and so on. Segmentation

Segmented trapped vortex cavity

Science.gov (United States)

Grammel, Jr., Leonard Paul (Inventor); Pennekamp, David Lance (Inventor); Winslow, Jr., Ralph Henry (Inventor)

2010-01-01

An annular trapped vortex cavity assembly segment comprising includes a cavity forward wall, a cavity aft wall, and a cavity radially outer wall there between defining a cavity segment therein. A cavity opening extends between the forward and aft walls at a radially inner end of the assembly segment. Radially spaced apart pluralities of air injection first and second holes extend through the forward and aft walls respectively. The segment may include first and second expansion joint features at distal first and second ends respectively of the segment. The segment may include a forward subcomponent including the cavity forward wall attached to an aft subcomponent including the cavity aft wall. The forward and aft subcomponents include forward and aft portions of the cavity radially outer wall respectively. A ring of the segments may be circumferentially disposed about an axis to form an annular segmented vortex cavity assembly.

Performance Analysis of Segmentation of Hyperspectral Images Based on Color Image Segmentation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Praveen Agarwal

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Image segmentation is a fundamental approach in the field of image processing and based on user’s application .This paper propose an original and simple segmentation strategy based on the EM approach that resolves many informatics problems about hyperspectral images which are observed by airborne sensors. In a first step, to simplify the input color textured image into a color image without texture. The final segmentation is simply achieved by a spatially color segmentation using feature vector with the set of color values contained around the pixel to be classified with some mathematical equations. The spatial constraint allows taking into account the inherent spatial relationships of any image and its color. This approach provides effective PSNR for the segmented image. These results have the better performance as the segmented images are compared with Watershed & Region Growing Algorithm and provide effective segmentation for the Spectral Images & Medical Images.

Segmental Vitiligo.

Science.gov (United States)

van Geel, Nanja; Speeckaert, Reinhart

2017-04-01

Segmental vitiligo is characterized by its early onset, rapid stabilization, and unilateral distribution. Recent evidence suggests that segmental and nonsegmental vitiligo could represent variants of the same disease spectrum. Observational studies with respect to its distribution pattern point to a possible role of cutaneous mosaicism, whereas the original stated dermatomal distribution seems to be a misnomer. Although the exact pathogenic mechanism behind the melanocyte destruction is still unknown, increasing evidence has been published on the autoimmune/inflammatory theory of segmental vitiligo. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Segmental vitiligo with segmental morphea: An autoimmune link?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pravesh Yadav

2014-01-01

Full Text Available An 18-year old girl with segmental vitiligo involving the left side of the trunk and left upper limb with segmental morphea involving the right side of trunk and right upper limb without any deeper involvement is illustrated. There was no history of preceding drug intake, vaccination, trauma, radiation therapy, infection, or hormonal therapy. Family history of stable vitiligo in her brother and a history of type II diabetes mellitus in the father were elicited. Screening for autoimmune diseases and antithyroid antibody was negative. An autoimmune link explaining the co-occurrence has been proposed. Cutaneous mosiacism could explain the presence of both the pathologies in a segmental distribution.

Market Segmentation in Business Technology Base: The Case of Segmentation of Sparkling

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Valéria Riscarolli

2014-08-01

Full Text Available A common market segmentation premise for products and services rules consumer behavior as the segmentation center piece. Would this be the logic for segmentation used by small technology based companies? In this article we target at determining the principles of market segmentation used by a vitiwinery company, as research object. This company is recognized by its products excellence, either in domestic as well as in the foreign market, among 13 distinct countries. The research method used is a case study, through information from the company’s CEOs and crossed by primary information from observation and formal registries and documents of the company. In this research we look at sparkling wines market segmentation. Main results indicate that the winery studied considers only technological elements as the basis to build a market segment. One may conclude that a market segmentation for this company is based upon technological dominion of sparkling wines production, aligned with a premium-price policy. In the company, directorship believes that as sparkling wines market is still incipient in the country, sparkling wine market segments will form and consolidate after the evolution of consumers tasting preferences, depending on technologies that boost sparkling wines quality. 

Fluence map segmentation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rosenwald, J.-C.

2008-01-01

The lecture addressed the following topics: 'Interpreting' the fluence map; The sequencer; Reasons for difference between desired and actual fluence map; Principle of 'Step and Shoot' segmentation; Large number of solutions for given fluence map; Optimizing 'step and shoot' segmentation; The interdigitation constraint; Main algorithms; Conclusions on segmentation algorithms (static mode); Optimizing intensity levels and monitor units; Sliding window sequencing; Synchronization to avoid the tongue-and-groove effect; Accounting for physical characteristics of MLC; Importance of corrections for leaf transmission and offset; Accounting for MLC mechanical constraints; The 'complexity' factor; Incorporating the sequencing into optimization algorithm; Data transfer to the treatment machine; Interface between R and V and accelerator; and Conclusions on fluence map segmentation (Segmentation is part of the overall inverse planning procedure; 'Step and Shoot' and 'Dynamic' options are available for most TPS (depending on accelerator model; The segmentation phase tends to come into the optimization loop; The physical characteristics of the MLC have a large influence on final dose distribution; The IMRT plans (MU and relative dose distribution) must be carefully validated). (P.A.)

Strategic market segmentation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maričić Branko R.

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Strategic planning of marketing activities is the basis of business success in modern business environment. Customers are not homogenous in their preferences and expectations. Formulating an adequate marketing strategy, focused on realization of company's strategic objectives, requires segmented approach to the market that appreciates differences in expectations and preferences of customers. One of significant activities in strategic planning of marketing activities is market segmentation. Strategic planning imposes a need to plan marketing activities according to strategically important segments on the long term basis. At the same time, there is a need to revise and adapt marketing activities on the short term basis. There are number of criteria based on which market segmentation is performed. The paper will consider effectiveness and efficiency of different market segmentation criteria based on empirical research of customer expectations and preferences. The analysis will include traditional criteria and criteria based on behavioral model. The research implications will be analyzed from the perspective of selection of the most adequate market segmentation criteria in strategic planning of marketing activities.

Why segmentation matters: Experience-driven segmentation errors impair "morpheme" learning.

Science.gov (United States)

Finn, Amy S; Hudson Kam, Carla L

2015-09-01

We ask whether an adult learner's knowledge of their native language impedes statistical learning in a new language beyond just word segmentation (as previously shown). In particular, we examine the impact of native-language word-form phonotactics on learners' ability to segment words into their component morphemes and learn phonologically triggered variation of morphemes. We find that learning is impaired when words and component morphemes are structured to conflict with a learner's native-language phonotactic system, but not when native-language phonotactics do not conflict with morpheme boundaries in the artificial language. A learner's native-language knowledge can therefore have a cascading impact affecting word segmentation and the morphological variation that relies upon proper segmentation. These results show that getting word segmentation right early in learning is deeply important for learning other aspects of language, even those (morphology) that are known to pose a great difficulty for adult language learners. (c) 2015 APA, all rights reserved).

Deformable meshes for medical image segmentation accurate automatic segmentation of anatomical structures

CERN Document Server

Kainmueller, Dagmar

2014-01-01

? Segmentation of anatomical structures in medical image data is an essential task in clinical practice. Dagmar Kainmueller introduces methods for accurate fully automatic segmentation of anatomical structures in 3D medical image data. The author's core methodological contribution is a novel deformation model that overcomes limitations of state-of-the-art Deformable Surface approaches, hence allowing for accurate segmentation of tip- and ridge-shaped features of anatomical structures. As for practical contributions, she proposes application-specific segmentation pipelines for a range of anatom

Speaker segmentation and clustering

OpenAIRE

Kotti, M; Moschou, V; Kotropoulos, C

2008-01-01

07.08.13 KB. Ok to add the accepted version to Spiral, Elsevier says ok whlile mandate not enforced. This survey focuses on two challenging speech processing topics, namely: speaker segmentation and speaker clustering. Speaker segmentation aims at finding speaker change points in an audio stream, whereas speaker clustering aims at grouping speech segments based on speaker characteristics. Model-based, metric-based, and hybrid speaker segmentation algorithms are reviewed. Concerning speaker...

Segmentation of the Infant Food Market

OpenAIRE

Hrůzová, Daniela

2015-01-01

The theoretical part covers general market segmentation, namely the marketing importance of differences among consumers, the essence of market segmentation, its main conditions and the process of segmentation, which consists of four consecutive phases - defining the market, determining important criteria, uncovering segments and developing segment profiles. The segmentation criteria, segmentation approaches, methods and techniques for the process of market segmentation are also described in t...

Pancreas and cyst segmentation

Science.gov (United States)

Dmitriev, Konstantin; Gutenko, Ievgeniia; Nadeem, Saad; Kaufman, Arie

2016-03-01

Accurate segmentation of abdominal organs from medical images is an essential part of surgical planning and computer-aided disease diagnosis. Many existing algorithms are specialized for the segmentation of healthy organs. Cystic pancreas segmentation is especially challenging due to its low contrast boundaries, variability in shape, location and the stage of the pancreatic cancer. We present a semi-automatic segmentation algorithm for pancreata with cysts. In contrast to existing automatic segmentation approaches for healthy pancreas segmentation which are amenable to atlas/statistical shape approaches, a pancreas with cysts can have even higher variability with respect to the shape of the pancreas due to the size and shape of the cyst(s). Hence, fine results are better attained with semi-automatic steerable approaches. We use a novel combination of random walker and region growing approaches to delineate the boundaries of the pancreas and cysts with respective best Dice coefficients of 85.1% and 86.7%, and respective best volumetric overlap errors of 26.0% and 23.5%. Results show that the proposed algorithm for pancreas and pancreatic cyst segmentation is accurate and stable.

Phasing multi-segment undulators

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chavanne, J.; Elleaume, P.; Vaerenbergh, P. Van

1996-01-01

An important issue in the manufacture of multi-segment undulators as a source of synchrotron radiation or as a free-electron laser (FEL) is the phasing between successive segments. The state of the art is briefly reviewed, after which a novel pure permanent magnet phasing section that is passive and does not require any current is presented. The phasing section allows the introduction of a 6 mm longitudinal gap between each segment, resulting in complete mechanical independence and reduced magnetic interaction between segments. The tolerance of the longitudinal positioning of one segment with respect to the next is found to be 2.8 times lower than that of conventional phasing. The spectrum at all gaps and useful harmonics is almost unchanged when compared with a single-segment undulator of the same total length. (au) 3 refs

FRAMEWORK FOR COMPARING SEGMENTATION ALGORITHMS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

G. Sithole

2015-05-01

Full Text Available The notion of a ‘Best’ segmentation does not exist. A segmentation algorithm is chosen based on the features it yields, the properties of the segments (point sets it generates, and the complexity of its algorithm. The segmentation is then assessed based on a variety of metrics such as homogeneity, heterogeneity, fragmentation, etc. Even after an algorithm is chosen its performance is still uncertain because the landscape/scenarios represented in a point cloud have a strong influence on the eventual segmentation. Thus selecting an appropriate segmentation algorithm is a process of trial and error. Automating the selection of segmentation algorithms and their parameters first requires methods to evaluate segmentations. Three common approaches for evaluating segmentation algorithms are ‘goodness methods’, ‘discrepancy methods’ and ‘benchmarks’. Benchmarks are considered the most comprehensive method of evaluation. This paper shortcomings in current benchmark methods are identified and a framework is proposed that permits both a visual and numerical evaluation of segmentations for different algorithms, algorithm parameters and evaluation metrics. The concept of the framework is demonstrated on a real point cloud. Current results are promising and suggest that it can be used to predict the performance of segmentation algorithms.

Why segmentation matters: experience-driven segmentation errors impair “morpheme” learning

Science.gov (United States)

Finn, Amy S.; Hudson Kam, Carla L.

2015-01-01

We ask whether an adult learner’s knowledge of their native language impedes statistical learning in a new language beyond just word segmentation (as previously shown). In particular, we examine the impact of native-language word-form phonotactics on learners’ ability to segment words into their component morphemes and learn phonologically triggered variation of morphemes. We find that learning is impaired when words and component morphemes are structured to conflict with a learner’s native-language phonotactic system, but not when native-language phonotactics do not conflict with morpheme boundaries in the artificial language. A learner’s native-language knowledge can therefore have a cascading impact affecting word segmentation and the morphological variation that relies upon proper segmentation. These results show that getting word segmentation right early in learning is deeply important for learning other aspects of language, even those (morphology) that are known to pose a great difficulty for adult language learners. PMID:25730305

Segment-Tube: Spatio-Temporal Action Localization in Untrimmed Videos with Per-Frame Segmentation

OpenAIRE

Le Wang; Xuhuan Duan; Qilin Zhang; Zhenxing Niu; Gang Hua; Nanning Zheng

2018-01-01

Inspired by the recent spatio-temporal action localization efforts with tubelets (sequences of bounding boxes), we present a new spatio-temporal action localization detector Segment-tube, which consists of sequences of per-frame segmentation masks. The proposed Segment-tube detector can temporally pinpoint the starting/ending frame of each action category in the presence of preceding/subsequent interference actions in untrimmed videos. Simultaneously, the Segment-tube detector produces per-fr...

Joint shape segmentation with linear programming

KAUST Repository

Huang, Qixing

2011-01-01

We present an approach to segmenting shapes in a heterogenous shape database. Our approach segments the shapes jointly, utilizing features from multiple shapes to improve the segmentation of each. The approach is entirely unsupervised and is based on an integer quadratic programming formulation of the joint segmentation problem. The program optimizes over possible segmentations of individual shapes as well as over possible correspondences between segments from multiple shapes. The integer quadratic program is solved via a linear programming relaxation, using a block coordinate descent procedure that makes the optimization feasible for large databases. We evaluate the presented approach on the Princeton segmentation benchmark and show that joint shape segmentation significantly outperforms single-shape segmentation techniques. © 2011 ACM.

Segmentation-DrivenTomographic Reconstruction

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kongskov, Rasmus Dalgas

such that the segmentation subsequently can be carried out by use of a simple segmentation method, for instance just a thresholding method. We tested the advantages of going from a two-stage reconstruction method to a one stage segmentation-driven reconstruction method for the phase contrast tomography reconstruction......The tomographic reconstruction problem is concerned with creating a model of the interior of an object from some measured data, typically projections of the object. After reconstructing an object it is often desired to segment it, either automatically or manually. For computed tomography (CT...

Rediscovering market segmentation.

Science.gov (United States)

Yankelovich, Daniel; Meer, David

2006-02-01

In 1964, Daniel Yankelovich introduced in the pages of HBR the concept of nondemographic segmentation, by which he meant the classification of consumers according to criteria other than age, residence, income, and such. The predictive power of marketing studies based on demographics was no longer strong enough to serve as a basis for marketing strategy, he argued. Buying patterns had become far better guides to consumers' future purchases. In addition, properly constructed nondemographic segmentations could help companies determine which products to develop, which distribution channels to sell them in, how much to charge for them, and how to advertise them. But more than 40 years later, nondemographic segmentation has become just as unenlightening as demographic segmentation had been. Today, the technique is used almost exclusively to fulfill the needs of advertising, which it serves mainly by populating commercials with characters that viewers can identify with. It is true that psychographic types like "High-Tech Harry" and "Joe Six-Pack" may capture some truth about real people's lifestyles, attitudes, self-image, and aspirations. But they are no better than demographics at predicting purchase behavior. Thus they give corporate decision makers very little idea of how to keep customers or capture new ones. Now, Daniel Yankelovich returns to these pages, with consultant David Meer, to argue the case for a broad view of nondemographic segmentation. They describe the elements of a smart segmentation strategy, explaining how segmentations meant to strengthen brand identity differ from those capable of telling a company which markets it should enter and what goods to make. And they introduce their "gravity of decision spectrum", a tool that focuses on the form of consumer behavior that should be of the greatest interest to marketers--the importance that consumers place on a product or product category.

Reflection symmetry-integrated image segmentation.

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Yu; Bhanu, Bir

2012-09-01

This paper presents a new symmetry-integrated region-based image segmentation method. The method is developed to obtain improved image segmentation by exploiting image symmetry. It is realized by constructing a symmetry token that can be flexibly embedded into segmentation cues. Interesting points are initially extracted from an image by the SIFT operator and they are further refined for detecting the global bilateral symmetry. A symmetry affinity matrix is then computed using the symmetry axis and it is used explicitly as a constraint in a region growing algorithm in order to refine the symmetry of the segmented regions. A multi-objective genetic search finds the segmentation result with the highest performance for both segmentation and symmetry, which is close to the global optimum. The method has been investigated experimentally in challenging natural images and images containing man-made objects. It is shown that the proposed method outperforms current segmentation methods both with and without exploiting symmetry. A thorough experimental analysis indicates that symmetry plays an important role as a segmentation cue, in conjunction with other attributes like color and texture.

Lung segment geometry study: simulation of largest possible tumours that fit into bronchopulmonary segments.

Science.gov (United States)

Welter, S; Stöcker, C; Dicken, V; Kühl, H; Krass, S; Stamatis, G

2012-03-01

Segmental resection in stage I non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has been well described and is considered to have similar survival rates as lobectomy but with increased rates of local tumour recurrence due to inadequate parenchymal margins. In consequence, today segmentectomy is only performed when the tumour is smaller than 2 cm. Three-dimensional reconstructions from 11 thin-slice CT scans of bronchopulmonary segments were generated, and virtual spherical tumours were placed over the segments, respecting all segmental borders. As a next step, virtual parenchymal safety margins of 2 cm and 3 cm were subtracted and the size of the remaining tumour calculated. The maximum tumour diameters with a 30-mm parenchymal safety margin ranged from 26.1 mm in right-sided segments 7 + 8 to 59.8 mm in the left apical segments 1-3. Using a three-dimensional reconstruction of lung CT scans, we demonstrated that segmentectomy or resection of segmental groups should be feasible with adequate margins, even for larger tumours in selected cases. Thieme Medical Publishers 333 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10001, USA.

Sipunculans and segmentation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wanninger, Andreas; Kristof, Alen; Brinkmann, Nora

2009-01-01

mechanisms may act on the level of gene expression, cell proliferation, tissue differentiation and organ system formation in individual segments. Accordingly, in some polychaete annelids the first three pairs of segmental peripheral neurons arise synchronously, while the metameric commissures of the ventral...

Using Predictability for Lexical Segmentation.

Science.gov (United States)

Çöltekin, Çağrı

2017-09-01

This study investigates a strategy based on predictability of consecutive sub-lexical units in learning to segment a continuous speech stream into lexical units using computational modeling and simulations. Lexical segmentation is one of the early challenges during language acquisition, and it has been studied extensively through psycholinguistic experiments as well as computational methods. However, despite strong empirical evidence, the explicit use of predictability of basic sub-lexical units in models of segmentation is underexplored. This paper presents an incremental computational model of lexical segmentation for exploring the usefulness of predictability for lexical segmentation. We show that the predictability cue is a strong cue for segmentation. Contrary to earlier reports in the literature, the strategy yields state-of-the-art segmentation performance with an incremental computational model that uses only this particular cue in a cognitively plausible setting. The paper also reports an in-depth analysis of the model, investigating the conditions affecting the usefulness of the strategy. Copyright © 2016 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

Efficient graph-cut tattoo segmentation

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Joonsoo; Parra, Albert; Li, He; Delp, Edward J.

2015-03-01

Law enforcement is interested in exploiting tattoos as an information source to identify, track and prevent gang-related crimes. Many tattoo image retrieval systems have been described. In a retrieval system tattoo segmentation is an important step for retrieval accuracy since segmentation removes background information in a tattoo image. Existing segmentation methods do not extract the tattoo very well when the background includes textures and color similar to skin tones. In this paper we describe a tattoo segmentation approach by determining skin pixels in regions near the tattoo. In these regions graph-cut segmentation using a skin color model and a visual saliency map is used to find skin pixels. After segmentation we determine which set of skin pixels are connected with each other that form a closed contour including a tattoo. The regions surrounded by the closed contours are considered tattoo regions. Our method segments tattoos well when the background includes textures and color similar to skin.

Fold distributions at clover, crystal and segment levels for segmented clover detectors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kshetri, R; Bhattacharya, P

2014-01-01

Fold distributions at clover, crystal and segment levels have been extracted for an array of segmented clover detectors for various gamma energies. A simple analysis of the results based on a model independant approach has been presented. For the first time, the clover fold distribution of an array and associated array addback factor have been extracted. We have calculated the percentages of the number of crystals and segments that fire for a full energy peak event

Intercalary bone segment transport in treatment of segmental tibial defects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Iqbal, A.; Amin, M.S.

2002-01-01

Objective: To evaluate the results and complications of intercalary bone segment transport in the treatment of segmental tibial defects. Design: This is a retrospective analysis of patients with segmental tibial defects who were treated with intercalary bone segment transport method. Place and Duration of Study: The study was carried out at Combined Military Hospital, Rawalpindi from September 1997 to April 2001. Subjects and methods: Thirteen patients were included in the study who had developed tibial defects either due to open fractures with bone loss or subsequent to bone debridement of infected non unions. The mean bone defect was 6.4 cms and there were eight associated soft tissue defects. Locally made unilateral 'Naseer-Awais' (NA) fixator was used for bone segment transport. The distraction was done at the rate of 1mm/day after 7-10 days of osteotomy. The patients were followed-up fortnightly during distraction and monthly thereafter. The mean follow-up duration was 18 months. Results: The mean time in external fixation was 9.4 months. The m ean healing index' was 1.47 months/cm. Satisfactory union was achieved in all cases. Six cases (46.2%) required bone grafting at target site and in one of them grafting was required at the level of regeneration as well. All the wounds healed well with no residual infection. There was no residual leg length discrepancy of more than 20 mm nd one angular deformity of more than 5 degrees. The commonest complication encountered was pin track infection seen in 38% of Shanz Screws applied. Loosening occurred in 6.8% of Shanz screws, requiring re-adjustment. Ankle joint contracture with equinus deformity and peroneal nerve paresis occurred in one case each. The functional results were graded as 'good' in seven, 'fair' in four, and 'poor' in two patients. Overall, thirteen patients had 31 (minor/major) complications with a ratio of 2.38 complications per patient. To treat the bone defects and associated complications, a mean of

Market segmentation in behavioral perspective.

OpenAIRE

Wells, V.K.; Chang, S.W.; Oliveira-Castro, J.M.; Pallister, J.

2010-01-01

A segmentation approach is presented using both traditional demographic segmentation bases (age, social class/occupation, and working status) and a segmentation by benefits sought. The benefits sought in this case are utilitarian and informational reinforcement, variables developed from the Behavioral Perspective Model (BPM). Using data from 1,847 consumers and from a total of 76,682 individual purchases, brand choice and price and reinforcement responsiveness were assessed for each segment a...

Noise destroys feedback enhanced figure-ground segmentation but not feedforward figure-ground segmentation

Science.gov (United States)

Romeo, August; Arall, Marina; Supèr, Hans

2012-01-01

Figure-ground (FG) segmentation is the separation of visual information into background and foreground objects. In the visual cortex, FG responses are observed in the late stimulus response period, when neurons fire in tonic mode, and are accompanied by a switch in cortical state. When such a switch does not occur, FG segmentation fails. Currently, it is not known what happens in the brain on such occasions. A biologically plausible feedforward spiking neuron model was previously devised that performed FG segmentation successfully. After incorporating feedback the FG signal was enhanced, which was accompanied by a change in spiking regime. In a feedforward model neurons respond in a bursting mode whereas in the feedback model neurons fired in tonic mode. It is known that bursts can overcome noise, while tonic firing appears to be much more sensitive to noise. In the present study, we try to elucidate how the presence of noise can impair FG segmentation, and to what extent the feedforward and feedback pathways can overcome noise. We show that noise specifically destroys the feedback enhanced FG segmentation and leaves the feedforward FG segmentation largely intact. Our results predict that noise produces failure in FG perception. PMID:22934028

ADVANCED CLUSTER BASED IMAGE SEGMENTATION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

D. Kesavaraja

2011-11-01

Full Text Available This paper presents efficient and portable implementations of a useful image segmentation technique which makes use of the faster and a variant of the conventional connected components algorithm which we call parallel Components. In the Modern world majority of the doctors are need image segmentation as the service for various purposes and also they expect this system is run faster and secure. Usually Image segmentation Algorithms are not working faster. In spite of several ongoing researches in Conventional Segmentation and its Algorithms might not be able to run faster. So we propose a cluster computing environment for parallel image Segmentation to provide faster result. This paper is the real time implementation of Distributed Image Segmentation in Clustering of Nodes. We demonstrate the effectiveness and feasibility of our method on a set of Medical CT Scan Images. Our general framework is a single address space, distributed memory programming model. We use efficient techniques for distributing and coalescing data as well as efficient combinations of task and data parallelism. The image segmentation algorithm makes use of an efficient cluster process which uses a novel approach for parallel merging. Our experimental results are consistent with the theoretical analysis and practical results. It provides the faster execution time for segmentation, when compared with Conventional method. Our test data is different CT scan images from the Medical database. More efficient implementations of Image Segmentation will likely result in even faster execution times.

Liver segmentation in contrast enhanced CT data using graph cuts and interactive 3D segmentation refinement methods

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Beichel, Reinhard; Bornik, Alexander; Bauer, Christian; Sorantin, Erich [Departments of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Internal Medicine, Iowa Institute for Biomedical Imaging, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa 52242 (United States); Institute for Computer Graphics and Vision, Graz University of Technology, Inffeldgasse 16, A-8010 Graz (Austria); Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Iowa Institute for Biomedical Imaging, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa 52242 (United States); Department of Radiology, Medical University Graz, Auenbruggerplatz 34, A-8010 Graz (Austria)

2012-03-15

Purpose: Liver segmentation is an important prerequisite for the assessment of liver cancer treatment options like tumor resection, image-guided radiation therapy (IGRT), radiofrequency ablation, etc. The purpose of this work was to evaluate a new approach for liver segmentation. Methods: A graph cuts segmentation method was combined with a three-dimensional virtual reality based segmentation refinement approach. The developed interactive segmentation system allowed the user to manipulate volume chunks and/or surfaces instead of 2D contours in cross-sectional images (i.e, slice-by-slice). The method was evaluated on twenty routinely acquired portal-phase contrast enhanced multislice computed tomography (CT) data sets. An independent reference was generated by utilizing a currently clinically utilized slice-by-slice segmentation method. After 1 h of introduction to the developed segmentation system, three experts were asked to segment all twenty data sets with the proposed method. Results: Compared to the independent standard, the relative volumetric segmentation overlap error averaged over all three experts and all twenty data sets was 3.74%. Liver segmentation required on average 16 min of user interaction per case. The calculated relative volumetric overlap errors were not found to be significantly different [analysis of variance (ANOVA) test, p = 0.82] between experts who utilized the proposed 3D system. In contrast, the time required by each expert for segmentation was found to be significantly different (ANOVA test, p = 0.0009). Major differences between generated segmentations and independent references were observed in areas were vessels enter or leave the liver and no accepted criteria for defining liver boundaries exist. In comparison, slice-by-slice based generation of the independent standard utilizing a live wire tool took 70.1 min on average. A standard 2D segmentation refinement approach applied to all twenty data sets required on average 38.2 min of

Liver segmentation in contrast enhanced CT data using graph cuts and interactive 3D segmentation refinement methods

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beichel, Reinhard; Bornik, Alexander; Bauer, Christian; Sorantin, Erich

2012-01-01

Purpose: Liver segmentation is an important prerequisite for the assessment of liver cancer treatment options like tumor resection, image-guided radiation therapy (IGRT), radiofrequency ablation, etc. The purpose of this work was to evaluate a new approach for liver segmentation. Methods: A graph cuts segmentation method was combined with a three-dimensional virtual reality based segmentation refinement approach. The developed interactive segmentation system allowed the user to manipulate volume chunks and/or surfaces instead of 2D contours in cross-sectional images (i.e, slice-by-slice). The method was evaluated on twenty routinely acquired portal-phase contrast enhanced multislice computed tomography (CT) data sets. An independent reference was generated by utilizing a currently clinically utilized slice-by-slice segmentation method. After 1 h of introduction to the developed segmentation system, three experts were asked to segment all twenty data sets with the proposed method. Results: Compared to the independent standard, the relative volumetric segmentation overlap error averaged over all three experts and all twenty data sets was 3.74%. Liver segmentation required on average 16 min of user interaction per case. The calculated relative volumetric overlap errors were not found to be significantly different [analysis of variance (ANOVA) test, p = 0.82] between experts who utilized the proposed 3D system. In contrast, the time required by each expert for segmentation was found to be significantly different (ANOVA test, p = 0.0009). Major differences between generated segmentations and independent references were observed in areas were vessels enter or leave the liver and no accepted criteria for defining liver boundaries exist. In comparison, slice-by-slice based generation of the independent standard utilizing a live wire tool took 70.1 min on average. A standard 2D segmentation refinement approach applied to all twenty data sets required on average 38.2 min of

Liver segmentation in contrast enhanced CT data using graph cuts and interactive 3D segmentation refinement methods.

Science.gov (United States)

Beichel, Reinhard; Bornik, Alexander; Bauer, Christian; Sorantin, Erich

2012-03-01

Liver segmentation is an important prerequisite for the assessment of liver cancer treatment options like tumor resection, image-guided radiation therapy (IGRT), radiofrequency ablation, etc. The purpose of this work was to evaluate a new approach for liver segmentation. A graph cuts segmentation method was combined with a three-dimensional virtual reality based segmentation refinement approach. The developed interactive segmentation system allowed the user to manipulate volume chunks and∕or surfaces instead of 2D contours in cross-sectional images (i.e, slice-by-slice). The method was evaluated on twenty routinely acquired portal-phase contrast enhanced multislice computed tomography (CT) data sets. An independent reference was generated by utilizing a currently clinically utilized slice-by-slice segmentation method. After 1 h of introduction to the developed segmentation system, three experts were asked to segment all twenty data sets with the proposed method. Compared to the independent standard, the relative volumetric segmentation overlap error averaged over all three experts and all twenty data sets was 3.74%. Liver segmentation required on average 16 min of user interaction per case. The calculated relative volumetric overlap errors were not found to be significantly different [analysis of variance (ANOVA) test, p = 0.82] between experts who utilized the proposed 3D system. In contrast, the time required by each expert for segmentation was found to be significantly different (ANOVA test, p = 0.0009). Major differences between generated segmentations and independent references were observed in areas were vessels enter or leave the liver and no accepted criteria for defining liver boundaries exist. In comparison, slice-by-slice based generation of the independent standard utilizing a live wire tool took 70.1 min on average. A standard 2D segmentation refinement approach applied to all twenty data sets required on average 38.2 min of user interaction

Cluster Ensemble-Based Image Segmentation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiaoru Wang

2013-07-01

Full Text Available Image segmentation is the foundation of computer vision applications. In this paper, we propose a new cluster ensemble-based image segmentation algorithm, which overcomes several problems of traditional methods. We make two main contributions in this paper. First, we introduce the cluster ensemble concept to fuse the segmentation results from different types of visual features effectively, which can deliver a better final result and achieve a much more stable performance for broad categories of images. Second, we exploit the PageRank idea from Internet applications and apply it to the image segmentation task. This can improve the final segmentation results by combining the spatial information of the image and the semantic similarity of regions. Our experiments on four public image databases validate the superiority of our algorithm over conventional single type of feature or multiple types of features-based algorithms, since our algorithm can fuse multiple types of features effectively for better segmentation results. Moreover, our method is also proved to be very competitive in comparison with other state-of-the-art segmentation algorithms.

Albedo estimation for scene segmentation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, C H; Rosenfeld, A

1983-03-01

Standard methods of image segmentation do not take into account the three-dimensional nature of the underlying scene. For example, histogram-based segmentation tacitly assumes that the image intensity is piecewise constant, and this is not true when the scene contains curved surfaces. This paper introduces a method of taking 3d information into account in the segmentation process. The image intensities are adjusted to compensate for the effects of estimated surface orientation; the adjusted intensities can be regarded as reflectivity estimates. When histogram-based segmentation is applied to these new values, the image is segmented into parts corresponding to surfaces of constant reflectivity in the scene. 7 references.

Segmenting the Adult Education Market.

Science.gov (United States)

Aurand, Tim

1994-01-01

Describes market segmentation and how the principles of segmentation can be applied to the adult education market. Indicates that applying segmentation techniques to adult education programs results in programs that are educationally and financially satisfying and serve an appropriate population. (JOW)

Gamifying Video Object Segmentation.

Science.gov (United States)

Spampinato, Concetto; Palazzo, Simone; Giordano, Daniela

2017-10-01

Video object segmentation can be considered as one of the most challenging computer vision problems. Indeed, so far, no existing solution is able to effectively deal with the peculiarities of real-world videos, especially in cases of articulated motion and object occlusions; limitations that appear more evident when we compare the performance of automated methods with the human one. However, manually segmenting objects in videos is largely impractical as it requires a lot of time and concentration. To address this problem, in this paper we propose an interactive video object segmentation method, which exploits, on one hand, the capability of humans to identify correctly objects in visual scenes, and on the other hand, the collective human brainpower to solve challenging and large-scale tasks. In particular, our method relies on a game with a purpose to collect human inputs on object locations, followed by an accurate segmentation phase achieved by optimizing an energy function encoding spatial and temporal constraints between object regions as well as human-provided location priors. Performance analysis carried out on complex video benchmarks, and exploiting data provided by over 60 users, demonstrated that our method shows a better trade-off between annotation times and segmentation accuracy than interactive video annotation and automated video object segmentation approaches.

U.S. Army Custom Segmentation System

Science.gov (United States)

2007-06-01

segmentation is individual or intergroup differences in response to marketing - mix variables. Presumptions about segments: •different demands in a...product or service category, •respond differently to changes in the marketing mix Criteria for segments: •The segments must exist in the environment

Poly(ether amide) segmented block copolymers with adipicacid based tetra amide segments

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Biemond, G.J.E.; Feijen, Jan; Gaymans, R.J.

2007-01-01

Poly(tetramethylene oxide)-based poly(ether ester amide)s with monodisperse tetraamide segments were synthesized. The tetraamide segment was based on adipic acid, terephthalic acid, and hexamethylenediamine. The synthesis method of the copolymers and the influence of the tetraamide concentration,

Metric Learning for Hyperspectral Image Segmentation

Science.gov (United States)

Bue, Brian D.; Thompson, David R.; Gilmore, Martha S.; Castano, Rebecca

2011-01-01

We present a metric learning approach to improve the performance of unsupervised hyperspectral image segmentation. Unsupervised spatial segmentation can assist both user visualization and automatic recognition of surface features. Analysts can use spatially-continuous segments to decrease noise levels and/or localize feature boundaries. However, existing segmentation methods use tasks-agnostic measures of similarity. Here we learn task-specific similarity measures from training data, improving segment fidelity to classes of interest. Multiclass Linear Discriminate Analysis produces a linear transform that optimally separates a labeled set of training classes. The defines a distance metric that generalized to a new scenes, enabling graph-based segmentation that emphasizes key spectral features. We describe tests based on data from the Compact Reconnaissance Imaging Spectrometer (CRISM) in which learned metrics improve segment homogeneity with respect to mineralogical classes.

Market Segmentation for Information Services.

Science.gov (United States)

Halperin, Michael

1981-01-01

Discusses the advantages and limitations of market segmentation as strategy for the marketing of information services made available by nonprofit organizations, particularly libraries. Market segmentation is defined, a market grid for libraries is described, and the segmentation of information services is outlined. A 16-item reference list is…

Probabilistic Segmentation of Folk Music Recordings

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ciril Bohak

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The paper presents a novel method for automatic segmentation of folk music field recordings. The method is based on a distance measure that uses dynamic time warping to cope with tempo variations and a dynamic programming approach to handle pitch drifting for finding similarities and estimating the length of repeating segment. A probabilistic framework based on HMM is used to find segment boundaries, searching for optimal match between the expected segment length, between-segment similarities, and likely locations of segment beginnings. Evaluation of several current state-of-the-art approaches for segmentation of commercial music is presented and their weaknesses when dealing with folk music are exposed, such as intolerance to pitch drift and variable tempo. The proposed method is evaluated and its performance analyzed on a collection of 206 folk songs of different ensemble types: solo, two- and three-voiced, choir, instrumental, and instrumental with singing. It outperforms current commercial music segmentation methods for noninstrumental music and is on a par with the best for instrumental recordings. The method is also comparable to a more specialized method for segmentation of solo singing folk music recordings.

Automated medical image segmentation techniques

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sharma Neeraj

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Accurate segmentation of medical images is a key step in contouring during radiotherapy planning. Computed topography (CT and Magnetic resonance (MR imaging are the most widely used radiographic techniques in diagnosis, clinical studies and treatment planning. This review provides details of automated segmentation methods, specifically discussed in the context of CT and MR images. The motive is to discuss the problems encountered in segmentation of CT and MR images, and the relative merits and limitations of methods currently available for segmentation of medical images.

Prognostic validation of a 17-segment score derived from a 20-segment score for myocardial perfusion SPECT interpretation.

Science.gov (United States)

Berman, Daniel S; Abidov, Aiden; Kang, Xingping; Hayes, Sean W; Friedman, John D; Sciammarella, Maria G; Cohen, Ishac; Gerlach, James; Waechter, Parker B; Germano, Guido; Hachamovitch, Rory

2004-01-01

Recently, a 17-segment model of the left ventricle has been recommended as an optimally weighted approach for interpreting myocardial perfusion single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT). Methods to convert databases from previous 20- to new 17-segment data and criteria for abnormality for the 17-segment scores are needed. Initially, for derivation of the conversion algorithm, 65 patients were studied (algorithm population) (pilot group, n = 28; validation group, n = 37). Three conversion algorithms were derived: algorithm 1, which used mid, distal, and apical scores; algorithm 2, which used distal and apical scores alone; and algorithm 3, which used maximal scores of the distal septal, lateral, and apical segments in the 20-segment model for 3 corresponding segments of the 17-segment model. The prognosis population comprised 16,020 consecutive patients (mean age, 65 +/- 12 years; 41% women) who had exercise or vasodilator stress technetium 99m sestamibi myocardial perfusion SPECT and were followed up for 2.1 +/- 0.8 years. In this population, 17-segment scores were derived from 20-segment scores by use of algorithm 2, which demonstrated the best agreement with expert 17-segment reading in the algorithm population. The prognostic value of the 20- and 17-segment scores was compared by converting the respective summed scores into percent myocardium abnormal. Conversion algorithm 2 was found to be highly concordant with expert visual analysis by the 17-segment model (r = 0.982; kappa = 0.866) in the algorithm population. In the prognosis population, 456 cardiac deaths occurred during follow-up. When the conversion algorithm was applied, extent and severity of perfusion defects were nearly identical by 20- and derived 17-segment scores. The receiver operating characteristic curve areas by 20- and 17-segment perfusion scores were identical for predicting cardiac death (both 0.77 +/- 0.02, P = not significant). The optimal prognostic cutoff value for either 20

NUCLEAR SEGMENTATION IN MICROSCOPE CELL IMAGES: A HAND-SEGMENTED DATASET AND COMPARISON OF ALGORITHMS

OpenAIRE

Coelho, Luís Pedro; Shariff, Aabid; Murphy, Robert F.

2009-01-01

Image segmentation is an essential step in many image analysis pipelines and many algorithms have been proposed to solve this problem. However, they are often evaluated subjectively or based on a small number of examples. To fill this gap, we hand-segmented a set of 97 fluorescence microscopy images (a total of 4009 cells) and objectively evaluated some previously proposed segmentation algorithms.

Generalized pixel profiling and comparative segmentation with application to arteriovenous malformation segmentation.

Science.gov (United States)

Babin, D; Pižurica, A; Bellens, R; De Bock, J; Shang, Y; Goossens, B; Vansteenkiste, E; Philips, W

2012-07-01

Extraction of structural and geometric information from 3-D images of blood vessels is a well known and widely addressed segmentation problem. The segmentation of cerebral blood vessels is of great importance in diagnostic and clinical applications, with a special application in diagnostics and surgery on arteriovenous malformations (AVM). However, the techniques addressing the problem of the AVM inner structure segmentation are rare. In this work we present a novel method of pixel profiling with the application to segmentation of the 3-D angiography AVM images. Our algorithm stands out in situations with low resolution images and high variability of pixel intensity. Another advantage of our method is that the parameters are set automatically, which yields little manual user intervention. The results on phantoms and real data demonstrate its effectiveness and potentials for fine delineation of AVM structure. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Robust shape regression for supervised vessel segmentation and its application to coronary segmentation in CTA

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schaap, Michiel; van Walsum, Theo; Neefjes, Lisan

2011-01-01

This paper presents a vessel segmentation method which learns the geometry and appearance of vessels in medical images from annotated data and uses this knowledge to segment vessels in unseen images. Vessels are segmented in a coarse-to-fine fashion. First, the vessel boundaries are estimated...

Structure-properties relationships of novel poly(carbonate-co-amide) segmented copolymers with polyamide-6 as hard segments and polycarbonate as soft segments

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Yunyun; Kong, Weibo; Yuan, Ye; Zhou, Changlin; Cai, Xufu

2018-04-01

Novel poly(carbonate-co-amide) (PCA) block copolymers are prepared with polycarbonate diol (PCD) as soft segments, polyamide-6 (PA6) as hard segments and 4,4'-diphenylmethane diisocyanate (MDI) as coupling agent through reactive processing. The reactive processing strategy is eco-friendly and resolve the incompatibility between polyamide segments and PCD segments in preparation processing. The chemical structure, crystalline properties, thermal properties, mechanical properties and water resistance were extensively studied by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), Thermal gravity analysis (TGA), Dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), tensile testing, water contact angle and water absorption, respectively. The as-prepared PCAs exhibit obvious microphase separation between the crystalline hard PA6 phase and amorphous PCD soft segments. Meanwhile, PCAs showed outstanding mechanical with the maximum tensile strength of 46.3 MPa and elongation at break of 909%. The contact angle and water absorption results indicate that PCAs demonstrate outstanding water resistance even though possess the hydrophilic surfaces. The TGA measurements prove that the thermal stability of PCA can satisfy the requirement of multiple-processing without decomposition.

Segmentation and informality in Vietnam : a survey of the literature: country case study on labour market segmentation

OpenAIRE

Cling, Jean-Pierre; Razafindrakoto, Mireille; Roubaud, François

2014-01-01

Labour market segmentation is usually defined as the division of the labour markets into separate sub-markets or segments, distinguished by different characteristics and behavioural rules (incomes, contracts, etc.). The economic debate on the segmentation issue has been focusing in developed countries, and especially in Europe, on contractual segmentation and dualism.

Segmentation by Large Scale Hypothesis Testing - Segmentation as Outlier Detection

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Darkner, Sune; Dahl, Anders Lindbjerg; Larsen, Rasmus

2010-01-01

a microscope and we show how the method can handle transparent particles with significant glare point. The method generalizes to other problems. THis is illustrated by applying the method to camera calibration images and MRI of the midsagittal plane for gray and white matter separation and segmentation......We propose a novel and efficient way of performing local image segmentation. For many applications a threshold of pixel intensities is sufficient but determine the appropriate threshold value can be difficult. In cases with large global intensity variation the threshold value has to be adapted...... locally. We propose a method based on large scale hypothesis testing with a consistent method for selecting an appropriate threshold for the given data. By estimating the background distribution we characterize the segment of interest as a set of outliers with a certain probability based on the estimated...

Pavement management segment consolidation

Science.gov (United States)

1998-01-01

Dividing roads into "homogeneous" segments has been a major problem for all areas of highway engineering. SDDOT uses Deighton Associates Limited software, dTIMS, to analyze life-cycle costs for various rehabilitation strategies on each segment of roa...

Automatic segmentation of vertebrae from radiographs

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mysling, Peter; Petersen, Peter Kersten; Nielsen, Mads

2011-01-01

Segmentation of vertebral contours is an essential task in the design of automatic tools for vertebral fracture assessment. In this paper, we propose a novel segmentation technique which does not require operator interaction. The proposed technique solves the segmentation problem in a hierarchical...... is constrained by a conditional shape model, based on the variability of the coarse spine location estimates. The technique is evaluated on a data set of manually annotated lumbar radiographs. The results compare favorably to the previous work in automatic vertebra segmentation, in terms of both segmentation...

A combined segmenting and non-segmenting approach to signal quality estimation for ambulatory photoplethysmography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wander, J D; Morris, D

2014-01-01

Continuous cardiac monitoring of healthy and unhealthy patients can help us understand the progression of heart disease and enable early treatment. Optical pulse sensing is an excellent candidate for continuous mobile monitoring of cardiovascular health indicators, but optical pulse signals are susceptible to corruption from a number of noise sources, including motion artifact. Therefore, before higher-level health indicators can be reliably computed, corrupted data must be separated from valid data. This is an especially difficult task in the presence of artifact caused by ambulation (e.g. walking or jogging), which shares significant spectral energy with the true pulsatile signal. In this manuscript, we present a machine-learning-based system for automated estimation of signal quality of optical pulse signals that performs well in the presence of periodic artifact. We hypothesized that signal processing methods that identified individual heart beats (segmenting approaches) would be more error-prone than methods that did not (non-segmenting approaches) when applied to data contaminated by periodic artifact. We further hypothesized that a fusion of segmenting and non-segmenting approaches would outperform either approach alone. Therefore, we developed a novel non-segmenting approach to signal quality estimation that we then utilized in combination with a traditional segmenting approach. Using this system we were able to robustly detect differences in signal quality as labeled by expert human raters (Pearson’s r = 0.9263). We then validated our original hypotheses by demonstrating that our non-segmenting approach outperformed the segmenting approach in the presence of contaminated signal, and that the combined system outperformed either individually. Lastly, as an example, we demonstrated the utility of our signal quality estimation system in evaluating the trustworthiness of heart rate measurements derived from optical pulse signals. (paper)

Rhythm-based segmentation of Popular Chinese Music

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Karl Kristoffer

2005-01-01

We present a new method to segment popular music based on rhythm. By computing a shortest path based on the self-similarity matrix calculated from a model of rhythm, segmenting boundaries are found along the di- agonal of the matrix. The cost of a new segment is opti- mized by matching manual...... and automatic segment boundaries. We compile a small song database of 21 randomly selected popular Chinese songs which come from Chinese Mainland, Taiwan and Hong Kong. The segmenting results on the small corpus show that 78% manual segmentation points are detected and 74% auto- matic segmentation points...

Unsupervised Performance Evaluation of Image Segmentation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chabrier Sebastien

2006-01-01

Full Text Available We present in this paper a study of unsupervised evaluation criteria that enable the quantification of the quality of an image segmentation result. These evaluation criteria compute some statistics for each region or class in a segmentation result. Such an evaluation criterion can be useful for different applications: the comparison of segmentation results, the automatic choice of the best fitted parameters of a segmentation method for a given image, or the definition of new segmentation methods by optimization. We first present the state of art of unsupervised evaluation, and then, we compare six unsupervised evaluation criteria. For this comparative study, we use a database composed of 8400 synthetic gray-level images segmented in four different ways. Vinet's measure (correct classification rate is used as an objective criterion to compare the behavior of the different criteria. Finally, we present the experimental results on the segmentation evaluation of a few gray-level natural images.

Methods of evaluating segmentation characteristics and segmentation of major faults

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Kie Hwa; Chang, Tae Woo; Kyung, Jai Bok [Seoul National Univ., Seoul (Korea, Republic of)] (and others)

2000-03-15

Seismological, geological, and geophysical studies were made for reasonable segmentation of the Ulsan fault and the results are as follows. One- and two- dimensional electrical surveys revealed clearly the fault fracture zone enlarges systematically northward and southward from the vicinity of Mohwa-ri, indicating Mohwa-ri is at the seismic segment boundary. Field Geological survey and microscope observation of fault gouge indicates that the Quaternary faults in the area are reactivated products of the preexisting faults. Trench survey of the Chonbuk fault Galgok-ri revealed thrust faults and cumulative vertical displacement due to faulting during the late Quaternary with about 1.1-1.9 m displacement per event; the latest event occurred from 14000 to 25000 yrs. BP. The seismic survey showed the basement surface os cut by numerous reverse faults and indicated the possibility that the boundary between Kyeongsangbukdo and Kyeongsannamdo may be segment boundary.

Methods of evaluating segmentation characteristics and segmentation of major faults

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Kie Hwa; Chang, Tae Woo; Kyung, Jai Bok

2000-03-01

Seismological, geological, and geophysical studies were made for reasonable segmentation of the Ulsan fault and the results are as follows. One- and two- dimensional electrical surveys revealed clearly the fault fracture zone enlarges systematically northward and southward from the vicinity of Mohwa-ri, indicating Mohwa-ri is at the seismic segment boundary. Field Geological survey and microscope observation of fault gouge indicates that the Quaternary faults in the area are reactivated products of the preexisting faults. Trench survey of the Chonbuk fault Galgok-ri revealed thrust faults and cumulative vertical displacement due to faulting during the late Quaternary with about 1.1-1.9 m displacement per event; the latest event occurred from 14000 to 25000 yrs. BP. The seismic survey showed the basement surface os cut by numerous reverse faults and indicated the possibility that the boundary between Kyeongsangbukdo and Kyeongsannamdo may be segment boundary

A new framework for interactive images segmentation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ashraf, M.; Sarim, M.; Shaikh, A.B.

2017-01-01

Image segmentation has become a widely studied research problem in image processing. There exist different graph based solutions for interactive image segmentation but the domain of image segmentation still needs persistent improvements. The segmentation quality of existing techniques generally depends on the manual input provided in beginning, therefore, these algorithms may not produce quality segmentation with initial seed labels provided by a novice user. In this work we investigated the use of cellular automata in image segmentation and proposed a new algorithm that follows a cellular automaton in label propagation. It incorporates both the pixel's local and global information in the segmentation process. We introduced the novel global constraints in automata evolution rules; hence proposed scheme of automata evolution is more effective than the automata based earlier evolution schemes. Global constraints are also effective in deceasing the sensitivity towards small changes made in manual input; therefore proposed approach is less dependent on label seed marks. It can produce the quality segmentation with modest user efforts. Segmentation results indicate that the proposed algorithm performs better than the earlier segmentation techniques. (author)

International EUREKA: Initialization Segment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1982-02-01

The Initialization Segment creates the starting description of the uranium market. The starting description includes the international boundaries of trade, the geologic provinces, resources, reserves, production, uranium demand forecasts, and existing market transactions. The Initialization Segment is designed to accept information of various degrees of detail, depending on what is known about each region. It must transform this information into a specific data structure required by the Market Segment of the model, filling in gaps in the information through a predetermined sequence of defaults and built in assumptions. A principal function of the Initialization Segment is to create diagnostic messages indicating any inconsistencies in data and explaining which assumptions were used to organize the data base. This permits the user to manipulate the data base until such time the user is satisfied that all the assumptions used are reasonable and that any inconsistencies are resolved in a satisfactory manner

Image Segmentation Using Minimum Spanning Tree

Science.gov (United States)

Dewi, M. P.; Armiati, A.; Alvini, S.

2018-04-01

This research aim to segmented the digital image. The process of segmentation is to separate the object from the background. So the main object can be processed for the other purposes. Along with the development of technology in digital image processing application, the segmentation process becomes increasingly necessary. The segmented image which is the result of the segmentation process should accurate due to the next process need the interpretation of the information on the image. This article discussed the application of minimum spanning tree on graph in segmentation process of digital image. This method is able to separate an object from the background and the image will change to be the binary images. In this case, the object that being the focus is set in white, while the background is black or otherwise.

Mild toxic anterior segment syndrome mimicking delayed onset toxic anterior segment syndrome after cataract surgery

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Su-Na Lee

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Toxic anterior segment syndrome (TASS is an acute sterile postoperative anterior segment inflammation that may occur after anterior segment surgery. I report herein a case that developed mild TASS in one eye after bilateral uneventful cataract surgery, which was masked during early postoperative period under steroid eye drop and mimicking delayed onset TASS after switching to weaker steroid eye drop.

Scorpion image segmentation system

Science.gov (United States)

Joseph, E.; Aibinu, A. M.; Sadiq, B. A.; Bello Salau, H.; Salami, M. J. E.

2013-12-01

Death as a result of scorpion sting has been a major public health problem in developing countries. Despite the high rate of death as a result of scorpion sting, little report exists in literature of intelligent device and system for automatic detection of scorpion. This paper proposed a digital image processing approach based on the floresencing characteristics of Scorpion under Ultra-violet (UV) light for automatic detection and identification of scorpion. The acquired UV-based images undergo pre-processing to equalize uneven illumination and colour space channel separation. The extracted channels are then segmented into two non-overlapping classes. It has been observed that simple thresholding of the green channel of the acquired RGB UV-based image is sufficient for segmenting Scorpion from other background components in the acquired image. Two approaches to image segmentation have also been proposed in this work, namely, the simple average segmentation technique and K-means image segmentation. The proposed algorithm has been tested on over 40 UV scorpion images obtained from different part of the world and results obtained show an average accuracy of 97.7% in correctly classifying the pixel into two non-overlapping clusters. The proposed 1system will eliminate the problem associated with some of the existing manual approaches presently in use for scorpion detection.

Brain Tumor Image Segmentation in MRI Image

Science.gov (United States)

Peni Agustin Tjahyaningtijas, Hapsari

2018-04-01

Brain tumor segmentation plays an important role in medical image processing. Treatment of patients with brain tumors is highly dependent on early detection of these tumors. Early detection of brain tumors will improve the patient’s life chances. Diagnosis of brain tumors by experts usually use a manual segmentation that is difficult and time consuming because of the necessary automatic segmentation. Nowadays automatic segmentation is very populer and can be a solution to the problem of tumor brain segmentation with better performance. The purpose of this paper is to provide a review of MRI-based brain tumor segmentation methods. There are number of existing review papers, focusing on traditional methods for MRI-based brain tumor image segmentation. this paper, we focus on the recent trend of automatic segmentation in this field. First, an introduction to brain tumors and methods for brain tumor segmentation is given. Then, the state-of-the-art algorithms with a focus on recent trend of full automatic segmentaion are discussed. Finally, an assessment of the current state is presented and future developments to standardize MRI-based brain tumor segmentation methods into daily clinical routine are addressed.

Colour application on mammography image segmentation

Science.gov (United States)

Embong, R.; Aziz, N. M. Nik Ab.; Karim, A. H. Abd; Ibrahim, M. R.

2017-09-01

The segmentation process is one of the most important steps in image processing and computer vision since it is vital in the initial stage of image analysis. Segmentation of medical images involves complex structures and it requires precise segmentation result which is necessary for clinical diagnosis such as the detection of tumour, oedema, and necrotic tissues. Since mammography images are grayscale, researchers are looking at the effect of colour in the segmentation process of medical images. Colour is known to play a significant role in the perception of object boundaries in non-medical colour images. Processing colour images require handling more data, hence providing a richer description of objects in the scene. Colour images contain ten percent (10%) additional edge information as compared to their grayscale counterparts. Nevertheless, edge detection in colour image is more challenging than grayscale image as colour space is considered as a vector space. In this study, we implemented red, green, yellow, and blue colour maps to grayscale mammography images with the purpose of testing the effect of colours on the segmentation of abnormality regions in the mammography images. We applied the segmentation process using the Fuzzy C-means algorithm and evaluated the percentage of average relative error of area for each colour type. The results showed that all segmentation with the colour map can be done successfully even for blurred and noisy images. Also the size of the area of the abnormality region is reduced when compare to the segmentation area without the colour map. The green colour map segmentation produced the smallest percentage of average relative error (10.009%) while yellow colour map segmentation gave the largest percentage of relative error (11.367%).

What are Segments in Google Analytics

Science.gov (United States)

Segments find all sessions that meet a specific condition. You can then apply this segment to any report in Google Analytics (GA). Segments are a way of identifying sessions and users while filters identify specific events, like pageviews.

Segmentation-less Digital Rock Physics

Science.gov (United States)

Tisato, N.; Ikeda, K.; Goldfarb, E. J.; Spikes, K. T.

2017-12-01

In the last decade, Digital Rock Physics (DRP) has become an avenue to investigate physical and mechanical properties of geomaterials. DRP offers the advantage of simulating laboratory experiments on numerical samples that are obtained from analytical methods. Potentially, DRP could allow sparing part of the time and resources that are allocated to perform complicated laboratory tests. Like classic laboratory tests, the goal of DRP is to estimate accurately physical properties of rocks like hydraulic permeability or elastic moduli. Nevertheless, the physical properties of samples imaged using micro-computed tomography (μCT) are estimated through segmentation of the μCT dataset. Segmentation proves to be a challenging and arbitrary procedure that typically leads to inaccurate estimates of physical properties. Here we present a novel technique to extract physical properties from a μCT dataset without the use of segmentation. We show examples in which we use segmentation-less method to simulate elastic wave propagation and pressure wave diffusion to estimate elastic properties and permeability, respectively. The proposed method takes advantage of effective medium theories and uses the density and the porosity that are measured in the laboratory to constrain the results. We discuss the results and highlight that segmentation-less DRP is more accurate than segmentation based DRP approaches and theoretical modeling for the studied rock. In conclusion, the segmentation-less approach here presented seems to be a promising method to improve accuracy and to ease the overall workflow of DRP.

Effectiveness of Dual-Maneuver Using K-Wire and Dingman Elevator for the Reduction of Unstable Zygomatic Arch Fracture.

Science.gov (United States)

Yoon, Hyungwoo; Kim, Jiye; Chung, Seum; Chung, Yoon-Kyu

2014-08-01

The zygoma is the most prominent portion of the face. Almost all simple zygomatic arch fractures are treated in a closed fashion with a Dingman elevator. However, the open approach should be considered for unstable zygomatic arch fractures. The coronal approach for a zygomatic arch fracture has complications. In this study, we introduce our method to reduce a special type of unstable zygomatic fracture. We retrospectively reviewed zygomatic arch view and facial bone computed tomography scans of 424 patients who visited the Wonju Severance Christian Hospital from 2007 to 2010 with zygomaticomaxillary fractures, among whom 15 patients met the inclusion criteria. We used a Dingman elevator and K-wire simultaneously to manage this type of zygomatic arch fracture. Simple medial rotation force usually collapses the posterior fractured segment, and the fracture becomes unstable. Thus, the posterior fracture segment must be concurrently elevated with a Dingman elevator through Keen's approach with rotation force applied through the K-wire. All fractures were reduced without any instability using this method. We were able to reduce unstable and difficult zygomatic arch fractures without an open incision or any external fixation device.

Segmentation, advertising and prices

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Galeotti, Andrea; Moraga González, José

This paper explores the implications of market segmentation on firm competitiveness. In contrast to earlier work, here market segmentation is minimal in the sense that it is based on consumer attributes that are completely unrelated to tastes. We show that when the market is comprised by two

Chromosome condensation and segmentation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Viegas-Pequignot, E.M.

1981-01-01

Some aspects of chromosome condensation in mammalians -humans especially- were studied by means of cytogenetic techniques of chromosome banding. Two further approaches were adopted: a study of normal condensation as early as prophase, and an analysis of chromosome segmentation induced by physical (temperature and γ-rays) or chemical agents (base analogues, antibiotics, ...) in order to show out the factors liable to affect condensation. Here 'segmentation' means an abnormal chromosome condensation appearing systematically and being reproducible. The study of normal condensation was made possible by the development of a technique based on cell synchronization by thymidine and giving prophasic and prometaphasic cells. Besides, the possibility of inducing R-banding segmentations on these cells by BrdU (5-bromodeoxyuridine) allowed a much finer analysis of karyotypes. Another technique was developed using 5-ACR (5-azacytidine), it allowed to induce a segmentation similar to the one obtained using BrdU and identify heterochromatic areas rich in G-C bases pairs [fr

Track segment synthesis method for NTA film

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kumazawa, Shigeru

1980-03-01

A method is presented for synthesizing track segments extracted from a gray-level digital picture of NTA film in automatic counting system. In order to detect each track in an arbitrary direction, even if it has some gaps, as a set of the track segments, the method links extracted segments along the track, in succession, to the linked track segments, according to whether each extracted segment bears a similarity of direction to the track or not and whether it is connected with the linked track segments or not. In the case of a large digital picture, the method is applied to each subpicture, which is a strip of the picture, and then concatenates subsets of track segments linked at each subpicture as a set of track segments belonging to a track. The method was applied to detecting tracks in various directions over the eight 364 x 40-pixel subpictures with the gray scale of 127/pixel (picture element) of the microphotograph of NTA film. It was proved to be able to synthesize track segments correctly for every track in the picture. (author)

LIFE-STYLE SEGMENTATION WITH TAILORED INTERVIEWING

NARCIS (Netherlands)

KAMAKURA, WA; WEDEL, M

The authors present a tailored interviewing procedure for life-style segmentation. The procedure assumes that a life-style measurement instrument has been designed. A classification of a sample of consumers into life-style segments is obtained using a latent-class model. With these segments, the

Segmented rail linear induction motor

Science.gov (United States)

Cowan, Jr., Maynard; Marder, Barry M.

1996-01-01

A segmented rail linear induction motor has a segmented rail consisting of a plurality of nonferrous electrically conductive segments aligned along a guideway. The motor further includes a carriage including at least one pair of opposed coils fastened to the carriage for moving the carriage. A power source applies an electric current to the coils to induce currents in the conductive surfaces to repel the coils from adjacent edges of the conductive surfaces.

Deformable segmentation via sparse shape representation.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Shaoting; Zhan, Yiqiang; Dewan, Maneesh; Huang, Junzhou; Metaxas, Dimitris N; Zhou, Xiang Sean

2011-01-01

Appearance and shape are two key elements exploited in medical image segmentation. However, in some medical image analysis tasks, appearance cues are weak/misleading due to disease/artifacts and often lead to erroneous segmentation. In this paper, a novel deformable model is proposed for robust segmentation in the presence of weak/misleading appearance cues. Owing to the less trustable appearance information, this method focuses on the effective shape modeling with two contributions. First, a shape composition method is designed to incorporate shape prior on-the-fly. Based on two sparsity observations, this method is robust to false appearance information and adaptive to statistically insignificant shape modes. Second, shape priors are modeled and used in a hierarchical fashion. More specifically, by using affinity propagation method, our deformable surface is divided into multiple partitions, on which local shape models are built independently. This scheme facilitates a more compact shape prior modeling and hence a more robust and efficient segmentation. Our deformable model is applied on two very diverse segmentation problems, liver segmentation in PET-CT images and rodent brain segmentation in MR images. Compared to state-of-art methods, our method achieves better performance in both studies.

Segmenting hospitals for improved management strategy.

Science.gov (United States)

Malhotra, N K

1989-09-01

The author presents a conceptual framework for the a priori and clustering-based approaches to segmentation and evaluates them in the context of segmenting institutional health care markets. An empirical study is reported in which the hospital market is segmented on three state-of-being variables. The segmentation approach also takes into account important organizational decision-making variables. The sophisticated Thurstone Case V procedure is employed. Several marketing implications for hospitals, other health care organizations, hospital suppliers, and donor publics are identified.

Review of segmentation process in consumer markets

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Veronika Jadczaková

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Although there has been a considerable debate on market segmentation over five decades, attention was merely devoted to single stages of the segmentation process. In doing so, stages as segmentation base selection or segments profiling have been heavily covered in the extant literature, whereas stages as implementation of the marketing strategy or market definition were of a comparably lower interest. Capitalizing on this shortcoming, this paper strives to close the gap and provide each step of the segmentation process with equal treatment. Hence, the objective of this paper is two-fold. First, a snapshot of the segmentation process in a step-by-step fashion will be provided. Second, each step (where possible will be evaluated on chosen criteria by means of description, comparison, analysis and synthesis of 32 academic papers and 13 commercial typology systems. Ultimately, the segmentation stages will be discussed with empirical findings prevalent in the segmentation studies and last but not least suggestions calling for further investigation will be presented. This seven-step-framework may assist when segmenting in practice allowing for more confidential targeting which in turn might prepare grounds for creating of a differential advantage.

Polyether based segmented copolymers with uniform aramid units

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Niesten, M.C.E.J.

2000-01-01

Segmented copolymers with short, glassy or crystalline hard segments and long, amorphous soft segments (multi-block copolymers) are thermoplastic elastomers (TPE’s). The hard segments form physical crosslinks for the amorphous (rubbery) soft segments. As a result, this type of materials combines

Unsupervised motion-based object segmentation refined by color

Science.gov (United States)

Piek, Matthijs C.; Braspenning, Ralph; Varekamp, Chris

2003-06-01

For various applications, such as data compression, structure from motion, medical imaging and video enhancement, there is a need for an algorithm that divides video sequences into independently moving objects. Because our focus is on video enhancement and structure from motion for consumer electronics, we strive for a low complexity solution. For still images, several approaches exist based on colour, but these lack in both speed and segmentation quality. For instance, colour-based watershed algorithms produce a so-called oversegmentation with many segments covering each single physical object. Other colour segmentation approaches exist which somehow limit the number of segments to reduce this oversegmentation problem. However, this often results in inaccurate edges or even missed objects. Most likely, colour is an inherently insufficient cue for real world object segmentation, because real world objects can display complex combinations of colours. For video sequences, however, an additional cue is available, namely the motion of objects. When different objects in a scene have different motion, the motion cue alone is often enough to reliably distinguish objects from one another and the background. However, because of the lack of sufficient resolution of efficient motion estimators, like the 3DRS block matcher, the resulting segmentation is not at pixel resolution, but at block resolution. Existing pixel resolution motion estimators are more sensitive to noise, suffer more from aperture problems or have less correspondence to the true motion of objects when compared to block-based approaches or are too computationally expensive. From its tendency to oversegmentation it is apparent that colour segmentation is particularly effective near edges of homogeneously coloured areas. On the other hand, block-based true motion estimation is particularly effective in heterogeneous areas, because heterogeneous areas improve the chance a block is unique and thus decrease the

Market Segmentation from a Behavioral Perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Wells, Victoria K.; Chang, Shing Wan; Oliveira-Castro, Jorge; Pallister, John

2010-01-01

A segmentation approach is presented using both traditional demographic segmentation bases (age, social class/occupation, and working status) and a segmentation by benefits sought. The benefits sought in this case are utilitarian and informational reinforcement, variables developed from the Behavioral Perspective Model (BPM). Using data from 1,847…

Skip segment Hirschsprung disease and Waardenburg syndrome

OpenAIRE

Gross, Erica R.; Geddes, Gabrielle C.; McCarrier, Julie A.; Jarzembowski, Jason A.; Arca, Marjorie J.

2015-01-01

Skip segment Hirschsprung disease describes a segment of ganglionated bowel between two segments of aganglionated bowel. It is a rare phenomenon that is difficult to diagnose. We describe a recent case of skip segment Hirschsprung disease in a neonate with a family history of Waardenburg syndrome and the genetic profile that was identified.

Spinal cord grey matter segmentation challenge.

Science.gov (United States)

Prados, Ferran; Ashburner, John; Blaiotta, Claudia; Brosch, Tom; Carballido-Gamio, Julio; Cardoso, Manuel Jorge; Conrad, Benjamin N; Datta, Esha; Dávid, Gergely; Leener, Benjamin De; Dupont, Sara M; Freund, Patrick; Wheeler-Kingshott, Claudia A M Gandini; Grussu, Francesco; Henry, Roland; Landman, Bennett A; Ljungberg, Emil; Lyttle, Bailey; Ourselin, Sebastien; Papinutto, Nico; Saporito, Salvatore; Schlaeger, Regina; Smith, Seth A; Summers, Paul; Tam, Roger; Yiannakas, Marios C; Zhu, Alyssa; Cohen-Adad, Julien

2017-05-15

An important image processing step in spinal cord magnetic resonance imaging is the ability to reliably and accurately segment grey and white matter for tissue specific analysis. There are several semi- or fully-automated segmentation methods for cervical cord cross-sectional area measurement with an excellent performance close or equal to the manual segmentation. However, grey matter segmentation is still challenging due to small cross-sectional size and shape, and active research is being conducted by several groups around the world in this field. Therefore a grey matter spinal cord segmentation challenge was organised to test different capabilities of various methods using the same multi-centre and multi-vendor dataset acquired with distinct 3D gradient-echo sequences. This challenge aimed to characterize the state-of-the-art in the field as well as identifying new opportunities for future improvements. Six different spinal cord grey matter segmentation methods developed independently by various research groups across the world and their performance were compared to manual segmentation outcomes, the present gold-standard. All algorithms provided good overall results for detecting the grey matter butterfly, albeit with variable performance in certain quality-of-segmentation metrics. The data have been made publicly available and the challenge web site remains open to new submissions. No modifications were introduced to any of the presented methods as a result of this challenge for the purposes of this publication. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Multi-scale Modelling of Segmentation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hartmann, Martin; Lartillot, Olivier; Toiviainen, Petri

2016-01-01

pieces. In a second experiment on non-real-time segmentation, musicians indicated boundaries and their strength for six examples. Kernel density estimation was used to develop multi-scale segmentation models. Contrary to previous research, no relationship was found between boundary strength and boundary......While listening to music, people often unwittingly break down musical pieces into constituent chunks such as verses and choruses. Music segmentation studies have suggested that some consensus regarding boundary perception exists, despite individual differences. However, neither the effects...

Skip segment Hirschsprung disease and Waardenburg syndrome

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Erica R. Gross

2015-04-01

Full Text Available Skip segment Hirschsprung disease describes a segment of ganglionated bowel between two segments of aganglionated bowel. It is a rare phenomenon that is difficult to diagnose. We describe a recent case of skip segment Hirschsprung disease in a neonate with a family history of Waardenburg syndrome and the genetic profile that was identified.

Segmentation-Based And Segmentation-Free Methods for Spotting Handwritten Arabic Words

OpenAIRE

Ball , Gregory R.; Srihari , Sargur N.; Srinivasan , Harish

2006-01-01

http://www.suvisoft.com; Given a set of handwritten documents, a common goal is to search for a relevant subset. Attempting to find a query word or image in such a set of documents is called word spotting. Spotting handwritten words in documents written in the Latin alphabet, and more recently in Arabic, has received considerable attention. One issue is generating candidate word regions on a page. Attempting to definitely segment the document into such regions (automatic segmentation) can mee...

Monitoring fish distributions along electrofishing segments

Science.gov (United States)

Miranda, Leandro E.

2014-01-01

Electrofishing is widely used to monitor fish species composition and relative abundance in streams and lakes. According to standard protocols, multiple segments are selected in a body of water to monitor population relative abundance as the ratio of total catch to total sampling effort. The standard protocol provides an assessment of fish distribution at a macrohabitat scale among segments, but not within segments. An ancillary protocol was developed for assessing fish distribution at a finer scale within electrofishing segments. The ancillary protocol was used to estimate spacing, dispersion, and association of two species along shore segments in two local reservoirs. The added information provided by the ancillary protocol may be useful for assessing fish distribution relative to fish of the same species, to fish of different species, and to environmental or habitat characteristics.

Color image Segmentation using automatic thresholding techniques

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Harrabi, R.; Ben Braiek, E.

2011-01-01

In this paper, entropy and between-class variance based thresholding methods for color images segmentation are studied. The maximization of the between-class variance (MVI) and the entropy (ME) have been used as a criterion functions to determine an optimal threshold to segment images into nearly homogenous regions. Segmentation results from the two methods are validated and the segmentation sensitivity for the test data available is evaluated, and a comparative study between these methods in different color spaces is presented. The experimental results demonstrate the superiority of the MVI method for color image segmentation.

Process Segmentation Typology in Czech Companies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tucek David

2016-03-01

Full Text Available This article describes process segmentation typology during business process management implementation in Czech companies. Process typology is important for a manager’s overview of process orientation as well as for a manager’s general understanding of business process management. This article provides insight into a process-oriented organizational structure. The first part analyzes process segmentation typology itself as well as some original results of quantitative research evaluating process segmentation typology in the specific context of Czech company strategies. Widespread data collection was carried out in 2006 and 2013. The analysis of this data showed that managers have more options regarding process segmentation and its selection. In terms of practicality and ease of use, the most frequently used method of process segmentation (managerial, main, and supportive stems directly from the requirements of ISO 9001. Because of ISO 9001:2015, managers must now apply risk planning in relation to the selection of processes that are subjected to process management activities. It is for this fundamental reason that this article focuses on process segmentation typology.

Algorithms for Cytoplasm Segmentation of Fluorescence Labelled Cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carolina Wählby

2002-01-01

Full Text Available Automatic cell segmentation has various applications in cytometry, and while the nucleus is often very distinct and easy to identify, the cytoplasm provides a lot more challenge. A new combination of image analysis algorithms for segmentation of cells imaged by fluorescence microscopy is presented. The algorithm consists of an image pre‐processing step, a general segmentation and merging step followed by a segmentation quality measurement. The quality measurement consists of a statistical analysis of a number of shape descriptive features. Objects that have features that differ to that of correctly segmented single cells can be further processed by a splitting step. By statistical analysis we therefore get a feedback system for separation of clustered cells. After the segmentation is completed, the quality of the final segmentation is evaluated. By training the algorithm on a representative set of training images, the algorithm is made fully automatic for subsequent images created under similar conditions. Automatic cytoplasm segmentation was tested on CHO‐cells stained with calcein. The fully automatic method showed between 89% and 97% correct segmentation as compared to manual segmentation.

Benchmarking of Remote Sensing Segmentation Methods

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Mikeš, Stanislav; Haindl, Michal; Scarpa, G.; Gaetano, R.

2015-01-01

Roč. 8, č. 5 (2015), s. 2240-2248 ISSN 1939-1404 R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GA14-10911S Institutional support: RVO:67985556 Keywords : benchmark * remote sensing segmentation * unsupervised segmentation * supervised segmentation Subject RIV: BD - Theory of Information Impact factor: 2.145, year: 2015 http://library.utia.cas.cz/separaty/2015/RO/haindl-0445995.pdf

Unsupervised Retinal Vessel Segmentation Using Combined Filters.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wendeson S Oliveira

Full Text Available Image segmentation of retinal blood vessels is a process that can help to predict and diagnose cardiovascular related diseases, such as hypertension and diabetes, which are known to affect the retinal blood vessels' appearance. This work proposes an unsupervised method for the segmentation of retinal vessels images using a combined matched filter, Frangi's filter and Gabor Wavelet filter to enhance the images. The combination of these three filters in order to improve the segmentation is the main motivation of this work. We investigate two approaches to perform the filter combination: weighted mean and median ranking. Segmentation methods are tested after the vessel enhancement. Enhanced images with median ranking are segmented using a simple threshold criterion. Two segmentation procedures are applied when considering enhanced retinal images using the weighted mean approach. The first method is based on deformable models and the second uses fuzzy C-means for the image segmentation. The procedure is evaluated using two public image databases, Drive and Stare. The experimental results demonstrate that the proposed methods perform well for vessel segmentation in comparison with state-of-the-art methods.

Automatic segmentation of psoriasis lesions

Science.gov (United States)

Ning, Yang; Shi, Chenbo; Wang, Li; Shu, Chang

2014-10-01

The automatic segmentation of psoriatic lesions is widely researched these years. It is an important step in Computer-aid methods of calculating PASI for estimation of lesions. Currently those algorithms can only handle single erythema or only deal with scaling segmentation. In practice, scaling and erythema are often mixed together. In order to get the segmentation of lesions area - this paper proposes an algorithm based on Random forests with color and texture features. The algorithm has three steps. The first step, the polarized light is applied based on the skin's Tyndall-effect in the imaging to eliminate the reflection and Lab color space are used for fitting the human perception. The second step, sliding window and its sub windows are used to get textural feature and color feature. In this step, a feature of image roughness has been defined, so that scaling can be easily separated from normal skin. In the end, Random forests will be used to ensure the generalization ability of the algorithm. This algorithm can give reliable segmentation results even the image has different lighting conditions, skin types. In the data set offered by Union Hospital, more than 90% images can be segmented accurately.

Simultaneous minimizing monitor units and number of segments without leaf end abutment for segmental intensity modulated radiation therapy delivery

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Kaile; Dai Jianrong; Ma Lijun

2004-01-01

Leaf end abutment is seldom studied when delivering segmental intensity modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) fields. We developed an efficient leaf sequencing method to eliminate leaf end abutment for segmental IMRT delivery. Our method uses simple matrix and sorting operations to obtain a solution that simultaneously minimizes total monitor units and number of segments without leaf end abutment between segments. We implemented and demonstrated our method for multiple clinical cases. We compared the results of our method with the results from exhaustive search method. We found that our solution without leaf end abutment produced equivalent results to the unconstrained solutions in terms of minimum total monitor units and minimum number of leaf segments. We conclude that the leaf end abutment fields can be avoided without affecting the efficiency of segmental IMRT delivery. The major strength of our method is its simplicity and high computing speed. This potentially provides a useful means for generating segmental IMRT fields that require high spatial resolution or complex intensity distributions

Hierarchical image segmentation for learning object priors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Prasad, Lakshman [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Yang, Xingwei [TEMPLE UNIV.; Latecki, Longin J [TEMPLE UNIV.; Li, Nan [TEMPLE UNIV.

2010-11-10

The proposed segmentation approach naturally combines experience based and image based information. The experience based information is obtained by training a classifier for each object class. For a given test image, the result of each classifier is represented as a probability map. The final segmentation is obtained with a hierarchial image segmentation algorithm that considers both the probability maps and the image features such as color and edge strength. We also utilize image region hierarchy to obtain not only local but also semi-global features as input to the classifiers. Moreover, to get robust probability maps, we take into account the region context information by averaging the probability maps over different levels of the hierarchical segmentation algorithm. The obtained segmentation results are superior to the state-of-the-art supervised image segmentation algorithms.

Effect of the average soft-segment length on the morphology and properties of segmented polyurethane nanocomposites

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Finnigan, Bradley; Halley, Peter; Jack, Kevin; McDowell, Alasdair; Truss, Rowan; Casey, Phil; Knott, Robert; Martin, Darren

2006-01-01

Two organically modified layered silicates (with small and large diameters) were incorporated into three segmented polyurethanes with various degrees of microphase separation. Microphase separation increased with the molecular weight of the poly(hexamethylene oxide) soft segment. The molecular weight of the soft segment did not influence the amount of polyurethane intercalating the interlayer spacing. Small-angle neutron scattering and differential scanning calorimetry data indicated that the layered silicates did not affect the microphase morphology of any host polymer, regardless of the particle diameter. The stiffness enhancement on filler addition increased as the microphase separation of the polyurethane decreased, presumably because a greater number of urethane linkages were available to interact with the filler. For comparison, the small nanofiller was introduced into a polyurethane with a poly(tetramethylene oxide) soft segment, and a significant increase in the tensile strength and a sharper upturn in the stress-strain curve resulted. No such improvement occurred in the host polymers with poly(hexamethylene oxide) soft segments. It is proposed that the nanocomposite containing the more hydrophilic and mobile poly(tetramethylene oxide) soft segment is capable of greater secondary bonding between the polyurethane chains and the organosilicate surface, resulting in improved stress transfer to the filler and reduced molecular slippage.

Essays in international market segmentation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hofstede, ter F.

1999-01-01

The primary objective of this thesis is to develop and validate new methodologies to improve the effectiveness of international segmentation strategies. The current status of international market segmentation research is reviewed in an introductory chapter, which provided a number of

Roentgenological diagnoss of central segmental lung cancer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gurevich, L.A.; Fedchenko, G.G.

1984-01-01

Basing on an analysis of the results of clinicoroentgenological examination of 268 patments roentgenological semiotics of segmental lung cancer is presented. Some peculiarities of the X-ray picture of cancer of different segments of the lungs were revealed depending on tumor site and growth type. For the syndrome of segmental darkening the comprehensive X-ray methods where the chief method is tomography of the segmental bronchi are proposed

Method of manufacturing a large-area segmented photovoltaic module

Science.gov (United States)

Lenox, Carl

2013-11-05

One embodiment of the invention relates to a segmented photovoltaic (PV) module which is manufactured from laminate segments. The segmented PV module includes rectangular-shaped laminate segments formed from rectangular-shaped PV laminates and further includes non-rectangular-shaped laminate segments formed from rectangular-shaped and approximately-triangular-shaped PV laminates. The laminate segments are mechanically joined and electrically interconnected to form the segmented module. Another embodiment relates to a method of manufacturing a large-area segmented photovoltaic module from laminate segments of various shapes. Other embodiments relate to processes for providing a photovoltaic array for installation at a site. Other embodiments and features are also disclosed.

Study of the morphology exhibited by linear segmented polyurethanes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pereira, I.M.; Orefice, R.L.

2009-01-01

Five series of segmented polyurethanes with different hard segment content were prepared by the prepolymer mixing method. The nano-morphology of the obtained polyurethanes and their microphase separation were investigated by infrared spectroscopy, modulated differential scanning calorimetry and small-angle X-ray scattering. Although highly hydrogen bonded hard segments were formed, high hard segment contents promoted phase mixture and decreased the chain mobility, decreasing the hard segment domain precipitation and the soft segments crystallization. The applied techniques were able to show that the hard-segment content and the hard-segment interactions were the two controlling factors for determining the structure of segmented polyurethanes. (author)

Prototype implementation of segment assembling software

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pešić Đorđe

2018-01-01

Full Text Available IT education is very important and a lot of effort is put into the development of tools for helping students to acquire programming knowledge and for helping teachers in automating the examination process. This paper describes a prototype of the program segment assembling software used in the context of making tests in the field of algorithmic complexity. The proposed new program segment assembling model uses rules and templates. A template is a simple program segment. A rule defines combining method and data dependencies if they exist. One example of program segment assembling by the proposed system is given. Graphical user interface is also described.

Smart markers for watershed-based cell segmentation.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Can Fahrettin Koyuncu

Full Text Available Automated cell imaging systems facilitate fast and reliable analysis of biological events at the cellular level. In these systems, the first step is usually cell segmentation that greatly affects the success of the subsequent system steps. On the other hand, similar to other image segmentation problems, cell segmentation is an ill-posed problem that typically necessitates the use of domain-specific knowledge to obtain successful segmentations even by human subjects. The approaches that can incorporate this knowledge into their segmentation algorithms have potential to greatly improve segmentation results. In this work, we propose a new approach for the effective segmentation of live cells from phase contrast microscopy. This approach introduces a new set of "smart markers" for a marker-controlled watershed algorithm, for which the identification of its markers is critical. The proposed approach relies on using domain-specific knowledge, in the form of visual characteristics of the cells, to define the markers. We evaluate our approach on a total of 1,954 cells. The experimental results demonstrate that this approach, which uses the proposed definition of smart markers, is quite effective in identifying better markers compared to its counterparts. This will, in turn, be effective in improving the segmentation performance of a marker-controlled watershed algorithm.

Smart markers for watershed-based cell segmentation.

Science.gov (United States)

Koyuncu, Can Fahrettin; Arslan, Salim; Durmaz, Irem; Cetin-Atalay, Rengul; Gunduz-Demir, Cigdem

2012-01-01

Automated cell imaging systems facilitate fast and reliable analysis of biological events at the cellular level. In these systems, the first step is usually cell segmentation that greatly affects the success of the subsequent system steps. On the other hand, similar to other image segmentation problems, cell segmentation is an ill-posed problem that typically necessitates the use of domain-specific knowledge to obtain successful segmentations even by human subjects. The approaches that can incorporate this knowledge into their segmentation algorithms have potential to greatly improve segmentation results. In this work, we propose a new approach for the effective segmentation of live cells from phase contrast microscopy. This approach introduces a new set of "smart markers" for a marker-controlled watershed algorithm, for which the identification of its markers is critical. The proposed approach relies on using domain-specific knowledge, in the form of visual characteristics of the cells, to define the markers. We evaluate our approach on a total of 1,954 cells. The experimental results demonstrate that this approach, which uses the proposed definition of smart markers, is quite effective in identifying better markers compared to its counterparts. This will, in turn, be effective in improving the segmentation performance of a marker-controlled watershed algorithm.

An unsupervised strategy for biomedical image segmentation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Roberto Rodríguez

2010-09-01

Full Text Available Roberto Rodríguez1, Rubén Hernández21Digital Signal Processing Group, Institute of Cybernetics, Mathematics, and Physics, Havana, Cuba; 2Interdisciplinary Professional Unit of Engineering and Advanced Technology, IPN, MexicoAbstract: Many segmentation techniques have been published, and some of them have been widely used in different application problems. Most of these segmentation techniques have been motivated by specific application purposes. Unsupervised methods, which do not assume any prior scene knowledge can be learned to help the segmentation process, and are obviously more challenging than the supervised ones. In this paper, we present an unsupervised strategy for biomedical image segmentation using an algorithm based on recursively applying mean shift filtering, where entropy is used as a stopping criterion. This strategy is proven with many real images, and a comparison is carried out with manual segmentation. With the proposed strategy, errors less than 20% for false positives and 0% for false negatives are obtained.Keywords: segmentation, mean shift, unsupervised segmentation, entropy

MOVING WINDOW SEGMENTATION FRAMEWORK FOR POINT CLOUDS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

G. Sithole

2012-07-01

Full Text Available As lidar point clouds become larger streamed processing becomes more attractive. This paper presents a framework for the streamed segmentation of point clouds with the intention of segmenting unstructured point clouds in real-time. The framework is composed of two main components. The first component segments points within a window shifting over the point cloud. The second component stitches the segments within the windows together. In this fashion a point cloud can be streamed through these two components in sequence, thus producing a segmentation. The algorithm has been tested on airborne lidar point cloud and some results of the performance of the framework are presented.

Review of segmentation process in consumer markets

OpenAIRE

Veronika Jadczaková

2013-01-01

Although there has been a considerable debate on market segmentation over five decades, attention was merely devoted to single stages of the segmentation process. In doing so, stages as segmentation base selection or segments profiling have been heavily covered in the extant literature, whereas stages as implementation of the marketing strategy or market definition were of a comparably lower interest. Capitalizing on this shortcoming, this paper strives to close the gap and provide each step...

IFRS 8 – OPERATING SEGMENTS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

BOCHIS LEONICA

2009-05-01

Full Text Available Segment reporting in accordance with IFRS 8 will be mandatory for annual financial statements covering periods beginning on or after 1 January 2009. The standards replaces IAS 14, Segment Reporting, from that date. The objective of IFRS 8 is to require

The Hierarchy of Segment Reports

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Danilo Dorović

2015-05-01

Full Text Available The article presents an attempt to find the connection between reports created for managers responsible for different business segments. With this purpose, the hierarchy of the business reporting segments is proposed. This can lead to better understanding of the expenses under common responsibility of more than one manager since these expenses should be in more than one report. The structure of cost defined per business segment hierarchy with the aim of new, unusual but relevant cost structure for management can be established. Both could potentially bring new information benefits for management in the context of profit reporting.

Segmental dilatation of the ileum

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tune-Yie Shih

2017-01-01

Full Text Available A 2-year-old boy was sent to the emergency department with the chief problem of abdominal pain for 1 day. He was just discharged from the pediatric ward with the diagnosis of mycoplasmal pneumonia and paralytic ileus. After initial examinations and radiographic investigations, midgut volvulus was impressed. An emergency laparotomy was performed. Segmental dilatation of the ileum with volvulus was found. The operative procedure was resection of the dilated ileal segment with anastomosis. The postoperative recovery was uneventful. The unique abnormality of gastrointestinal tract – segmental dilatation of the ileum, is described in details and the literature is reviewed.

Techniques on semiautomatic segmentation using the Adobe Photoshop

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Jin Seo; Chung, Min Suk; Hwang, Sung Bae

2005-04-01

The purpose of this research is to enable anybody to semiautomatically segment the anatomical structures in the MRIs, CTs, and other medical images on the personal computer. The segmented images are used for making three-dimensional images, which are helpful in medical education and research. To achieve this purpose, the following trials were performed. The entire body of a volunteer was MR scanned to make 557 MRIs, which were transferred to a personal computer. On Adobe Photoshop, contours of 19 anatomical structures in the MRIs were semiautomatically drawn using MAGNETIC LASSO TOOL; successively, manually corrected using either LASSO TOOL or DIRECT SELECTION TOOL to make 557 segmented images. In a likewise manner, 11 anatomical structures in the 8,500 anatomcial images were segmented. Also, 12 brain and 10 heart anatomical structures in anatomical images were segmented. Proper segmentation was verified by making and examining the coronal, sagittal, and three-dimensional images from the segmented images. During semiautomatic segmentation on Adobe Photoshop, suitable algorithm could be used, the extent of automatization could be regulated, convenient user interface could be used, and software bugs rarely occurred. The techniques of semiautomatic segmentation using Adobe Photoshop are expected to be widely used for segmentation of the anatomical structures in various medical images.

CT identification of bronchopulmonary segments: 50 normal subjects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Osbourne, D.; Vock, P.; Godwin, J.D.; Silverman, P.M.

1984-01-01

A systematic evaluation of the fissures, segmental bronchi and arteries, bronchopulmonary segments, and peripheral pulmonary parenchyma was made from computed tomographic (CT) scans of 50 patients with normal chest radiographs. Seventy percent of the segmental bronchi and 76% of the segmental arteries were identified. Arteries could be traced to their sixth- and seventh-order branches; their orientation to the plane of the CT section allowed gross identification and localization of bronchopulmonary segments

Segmentation of liver tumors on CT images

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pescia, D.

2011-01-01

This thesis is dedicated to 3D segmentation of liver tumors in CT images. This is a task of great clinical interest since it allows physicians benefiting from reproducible and reliable methods for segmenting such lesions. Accurate segmentation would indeed help them during the evaluation of the lesions, the choice of treatment and treatment planning. Such a complex segmentation task should cope with three main scientific challenges: (i) the highly variable shape of the structures being sought, (ii) their similarity of appearance compared with their surrounding medium and finally (iii) the low signal to noise ratio being observed in these images. This problem is addressed in a clinical context through a two step approach, consisting of the segmentation of the entire liver envelope, before segmenting the tumors which are present within the envelope. We begin by proposing an atlas-based approach for computing pathological liver envelopes. Initially images are pre-processed to compute the envelopes that wrap around binary masks in an attempt to obtain liver envelopes from estimated segmentation of healthy liver parenchyma. A new statistical atlas is then introduced and used to segmentation through its diffeomorphic registration to the new image. This segmentation is achieved through the combination of image matching costs as well as spatial and appearance prior using a multi-scale approach with MRF. The second step of our approach is dedicated to lesions segmentation contained within the envelopes using a combination of machine learning techniques and graph based methods. First, an appropriate feature space is considered that involves texture descriptors being determined through filtering using various scales and orientations. Then, state of the art machine learning techniques are used to determine the most relevant features, as well as the hyper plane that separates the feature space of tumoral voxels to the ones corresponding to healthy tissues. Segmentation is then

Efficient Algorithms for Segmentation of Item-Set Time Series

Science.gov (United States)

Chundi, Parvathi; Rosenkrantz, Daniel J.

We propose a special type of time series, which we call an item-set time series, to facilitate the temporal analysis of software version histories, email logs, stock market data, etc. In an item-set time series, each observed data value is a set of discrete items. We formalize the concept of an item-set time series and present efficient algorithms for segmenting a given item-set time series. Segmentation of a time series partitions the time series into a sequence of segments where each segment is constructed by combining consecutive time points of the time series. Each segment is associated with an item set that is computed from the item sets of the time points in that segment, using a function which we call a measure function. We then define a concept called the segment difference, which measures the difference between the item set of a segment and the item sets of the time points in that segment. The segment difference values are required to construct an optimal segmentation of the time series. We describe novel and efficient algorithms to compute segment difference values for each of the measure functions described in the paper. We outline a dynamic programming based scheme to construct an optimal segmentation of the given item-set time series. We use the item-set time series segmentation techniques to analyze the temporal content of three different data sets—Enron email, stock market data, and a synthetic data set. The experimental results show that an optimal segmentation of item-set time series data captures much more temporal content than a segmentation constructed based on the number of time points in each segment, without examining the item set data at the time points, and can be used to analyze different types of temporal data.

Segmentation of knee injury swelling on infrared images

Science.gov (United States)

Puentes, John; Langet, Hélène; Herry, Christophe; Frize, Monique

2011-03-01

Interpretation of medical infrared images is complex due to thermal noise, absence of texture, and small temperature differences in pathological zones. Acute inflammatory response is a characteristic symptom of some knee injuries like anterior cruciate ligament sprains, muscle or tendons strains, and meniscus tear. Whereas artificial coloring of the original grey level images may allow to visually assess the extent inflammation in the area, their automated segmentation remains a challenging problem. This paper presents a hybrid segmentation algorithm to evaluate the extent of inflammation after knee injury, in terms of temperature variations and surface shape. It is based on the intersection of rapid color segmentation and homogeneous region segmentation, to which a Laplacian of a Gaussian filter is applied. While rapid color segmentation enables to properly detect the observed core of swollen area, homogeneous region segmentation identifies possible inflammation zones, combining homogeneous grey level and hue area segmentation. The hybrid segmentation algorithm compares the potential inflammation regions partially detected by each method to identify overlapping areas. Noise filtering and edge segmentation are then applied to common zones in order to segment the swelling surfaces of the injury. Experimental results on images of a patient with anterior cruciate ligament sprain show the improved performance of the hybrid algorithm with respect to its separated components. The main contribution of this work is a meaningful automatic segmentation of abnormal skin temperature variations on infrared thermography images of knee injury swelling.

Reliability of a Seven-Segment Foot Model with Medial and Lateral Midfoot and Forefoot Segments During Walking Gait.

Science.gov (United States)

Cobb, Stephen C; Joshi, Mukta N; Pomeroy, Robin L

2016-12-01

In-vitro and invasive in-vivo studies have reported relatively independent motion in the medial and lateral forefoot segments during gait. However, most current surface-based models have not defined medial and lateral forefoot or midfoot segments. The purpose of the current study was to determine the reliability of a 7-segment foot model that includes medial and lateral midfoot and forefoot segments during walking gait. Three-dimensional positions of marker clusters located on the leg and 6 foot segments were tracked as 10 participants completed 5 walking trials. To examine the reliability of the foot model, coefficients of multiple correlation (CMC) were calculated across the trials for each participant. Three-dimensional stance time series and range of motion (ROM) during stance were also calculated for each functional articulation. CMCs for all of the functional articulations were ≥ 0.80. Overall, the rearfoot complex (leg-calcaneus segments) was the most reliable articulation and the medial midfoot complex (calcaneus-navicular segments) was the least reliable. With respect to ROM, reliability was greatest for plantarflexion/dorsiflexion and least for abduction/adduction. Further, the stance ROM and time-series patterns results between the current study and previous invasive in-vivo studies that have assessed actual bone motion were generally consistent.

Market Segmentation: An Instructional Module.

Science.gov (United States)

Wright, Peter H.

A concept-based introduction to market segmentation is provided in this instructional module for undergraduate and graduate transportation-related courses. The material can be used in many disciplines including engineering, business, marketing, and technology. The concept of market segmentation is primarily a transportation planning technique by…

Medical image segmentation using genetic algorithms.

Science.gov (United States)

Maulik, Ujjwal

2009-03-01

Genetic algorithms (GAs) have been found to be effective in the domain of medical image segmentation, since the problem can often be mapped to one of search in a complex and multimodal landscape. The challenges in medical image segmentation arise due to poor image contrast and artifacts that result in missing or diffuse organ/tissue boundaries. The resulting search space is therefore often noisy with a multitude of local optima. Not only does the genetic algorithmic framework prove to be effective in coming out of local optima, it also brings considerable flexibility into the segmentation procedure. In this paper, an attempt has been made to review the major applications of GAs to the domain of medical image segmentation.

Remote sensing image segmentation based on Hadoop cloud platform

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Jie; Zhu, Lingling; Cao, Fubin

2018-01-01

To solve the problem that the remote sensing image segmentation speed is slow and the real-time performance is poor, this paper studies the method of remote sensing image segmentation based on Hadoop platform. On the basis of analyzing the structural characteristics of Hadoop cloud platform and its component MapReduce programming, this paper proposes a method of image segmentation based on the combination of OpenCV and Hadoop cloud platform. Firstly, the MapReduce image processing model of Hadoop cloud platform is designed, the input and output of image are customized and the segmentation method of the data file is rewritten. Then the Mean Shift image segmentation algorithm is implemented. Finally, this paper makes a segmentation experiment on remote sensing image, and uses MATLAB to realize the Mean Shift image segmentation algorithm to compare the same image segmentation experiment. The experimental results show that under the premise of ensuring good effect, the segmentation rate of remote sensing image segmentation based on Hadoop cloud Platform has been greatly improved compared with the single MATLAB image segmentation, and there is a great improvement in the effectiveness of image segmentation.

Metrics for image segmentation

Science.gov (United States)

Rees, Gareth; Greenway, Phil; Morray, Denise

1998-07-01

An important challenge in mapping image-processing techniques onto applications is the lack of quantitative performance measures. From a systems engineering perspective these are essential if system level requirements are to be decomposed into sub-system requirements which can be understood in terms of algorithm selection and performance optimization. Nowhere in computer vision is this more evident than in the area of image segmentation. This is a vigorous and innovative research activity, but even after nearly two decades of progress, it remains almost impossible to answer the question 'what would the performance of this segmentation algorithm be under these new conditions?' To begin to address this shortcoming, we have devised a well-principled metric for assessing the relative performance of two segmentation algorithms. This allows meaningful objective comparisons to be made between their outputs. It also estimates the absolute performance of an algorithm given ground truth. Our approach is an information theoretic one. In this paper, we describe the theory and motivation of our method, and present practical results obtained from a range of state of the art segmentation methods. We demonstrate that it is possible to measure the objective performance of these algorithms, and to use the information so gained to provide clues about how their performance might be improved.

Incorporation of squalene into rod outer segments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Keller, R.K.; Fliesler, S.J.

1990-01-01

We have reported previously that squalene is the major radiolabeled nonsaponifiable lipid product derived from [ 3 H]acetate in short term incubations of frog retinas. In the present study, we demonstrate that newly synthesized squalene is incorporated into rod outer segments under similar in vitro conditions. We show further that squalene is an endogenous constituent of frog rod outer segment membranes; its concentration is approximately 9.5 nmol/mumol of phospholipid or about 9% of the level of cholesterol. Pulse-chase experiments with radiolabeled precursors revealed no metabolism of outer segment squalene to sterols in up to 20 h of chase. Taken together with our previous absolute rate studies, these results suggest that most, if not all, of the squalene synthesized by the frog retina is transported to rod outer segments. Synthesis of protein is not required for squalene transport since puromycin had no effect on squalene incorporation into outer segments. Conversely, inhibition of isoprenoid synthesis with mevinolin had no effect on the incorporation of opsin into the outer segment. These latter results support the conclusion that the de novo synthesis and subsequent intracellular trafficking of opsin and isoprenoid lipids destined for the outer segment occur via independent mechanisms

Interactive segmentation techniques algorithms and performance evaluation

CERN Document Server

He, Jia; Kuo, C-C Jay

2013-01-01

This book focuses on interactive segmentation techniques, which have been extensively studied in recent decades. Interactive segmentation emphasizes clear extraction of objects of interest, whose locations are roughly indicated by human interactions based on high level perception. This book will first introduce classic graph-cut segmentation algorithms and then discuss state-of-the-art techniques, including graph matching methods, region merging and label propagation, clustering methods, and segmentation methods based on edge detection. A comparative analysis of these methods will be provided

Market segmentation using perceived constraints

Science.gov (United States)

Jinhee Jun; Gerard Kyle; Andrew Mowen

2008-01-01

We examined the practical utility of segmenting potential visitors to Cleveland Metroparks using their constraint profiles. Our analysis identified three segments based on their scores on the dimensions of constraints: Other priorities--visitors who scored the highest on 'other priorities' dimension; Highly Constrained--visitors who scored relatively high on...

Reduplication Facilitates Early Word Segmentation

Science.gov (United States)

Ota, Mitsuhiko; Skarabela, Barbora

2018-01-01

This study explores the possibility that early word segmentation is aided by infants' tendency to segment words with repeated syllables ("reduplication"). Twenty-four nine-month-olds were familiarized with passages containing one novel reduplicated word and one novel non-reduplicated word. Their central fixation times in response to…

Recognition Using Classification and Segmentation Scoring

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Kimball, Owen; Ostendorf, Mari; Rohlicek, Robin

1992-01-01

.... We describe an approach to connected word recognition that allows the use of segmental information through an explicit decomposition of the recognition criterion into classification and segmentation scoring...

Multifractal-based nuclei segmentation in fish images.

Science.gov (United States)

Reljin, Nikola; Slavkovic-Ilic, Marijeta; Tapia, Coya; Cihoric, Nikola; Stankovic, Srdjan

2017-09-01

The method for nuclei segmentation in fluorescence in-situ hybridization (FISH) images, based on the inverse multifractal analysis (IMFA) is proposed. From the blue channel of the FISH image in RGB format, the matrix of Holder exponents, with one-by-one correspondence with the image pixels, is determined first. The following semi-automatic procedure is proposed: initial nuclei segmentation is performed automatically from the matrix of Holder exponents by applying predefined hard thresholding; then the user evaluates the result and is able to refine the segmentation by changing the threshold, if necessary. After successful nuclei segmentation, the HER2 (human epidermal growth factor receptor 2) scoring can be determined in usual way: by counting red and green dots within segmented nuclei, and finding their ratio. The IMFA segmentation method is tested over 100 clinical cases, evaluated by skilled pathologist. Testing results show that the new method has advantages compared to already reported methods.

The Importance of Marketing Segmentation

Science.gov (United States)

Martin, Gillian

2011-01-01

The rationale behind marketing segmentation is to allow businesses to focus on their consumers' behaviors and purchasing patterns. If done effectively, marketing segmentation allows an organization to achieve its highest return on investment (ROI) in turn for its marketing and sales expenses. If an organization markets its products or services to…

Boundary segmentation for fluorescence microscopy using steerable filters

Science.gov (United States)

Ho, David Joon; Salama, Paul; Dunn, Kenneth W.; Delp, Edward J.

2017-02-01

Fluorescence microscopy is used to image multiple subcellular structures in living cells which are not readily observed using conventional optical microscopy. Moreover, two-photon microscopy is widely used to image structures deeper in tissue. Recent advancement in fluorescence microscopy has enabled the generation of large data sets of images at different depths, times, and spectral channels. Thus, automatic object segmentation is necessary since manual segmentation would be inefficient and biased. However, automatic segmentation is still a challenging problem as regions of interest may not have well defined boundaries as well as non-uniform pixel intensities. This paper describes a method for segmenting tubular structures in fluorescence microscopy images of rat kidney and liver samples using adaptive histogram equalization, foreground/background segmentation, steerable filters to capture directional tendencies, and connected-component analysis. The results from several data sets demonstrate that our method can segment tubular boundaries successfully. Moreover, our method has better performance when compared to other popular image segmentation methods when using ground truth data obtained via manual segmentation.

Connecting textual segments

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Brügger, Niels

2017-01-01

history than just the years of the emergence of the web, the chapter traces the history of how segments of text have deliberately been connected to each other by the use of specific textual and media features, from clay tablets, manuscripts on parchment, and print, among others, to hyperlinks on stand......In “Connecting textual segments: A brief history of the web hyperlink” Niels Brügger investigates the history of one of the most fundamental features of the web: the hyperlink. Based on the argument that the web hyperlink is best understood if it is seen as another step in a much longer and broader...

A comparative study on medical image segmentation methods

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Praylin Selva Blessy SELVARAJ ASSLEY

2014-03-01

Full Text Available Image segmentation plays an important role in medical images. It has been a relevant research area in computer vision and image analysis. Many segmentation algorithms have been proposed for medical images. This paper makes a review on segmentation methods for medical images. In this survey, segmentation methods are divided into five categories: region based, boundary based, model based, hybrid based and atlas based. The five different categories with their principle ideas, advantages and disadvantages in segmenting different medical images are discussed.

Distance measures for image segmentation evaluation

OpenAIRE

Monteiro, Fernando C.; Campilho, Aurélio

2012-01-01

In this paper we present a study of evaluation measures that enable the quantification of the quality of an image segmentation result. Despite significant advances in image segmentation techniques, evaluation of these techniques thus far has been largely subjective. Typically, the effectiveness of a new algorithm is demonstrated only by the presentation of a few segmented images and is otherwise left to subjective evaluation by the reader. Such an evaluation criterion can be useful for differ...

Segmentation of complex document

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Souad Oudjemia

2014-06-01

Full Text Available In this paper we present a method for segmentation of documents image with complex structure. This technique based on GLCM (Grey Level Co-occurrence Matrix used to segment this type of document in three regions namely, 'graphics', 'background' and 'text'. Very briefly, this method is to divide the document image, in block size chosen after a series of tests and then applying the co-occurrence matrix to each block in order to extract five textural parameters which are energy, entropy, the sum entropy, difference entropy and standard deviation. These parameters are then used to classify the image into three regions using the k-means algorithm; the last step of segmentation is obtained by grouping connected pixels. Two performance measurements are performed for both graphics and text zones; we have obtained a classification rate of 98.3% and a Misclassification rate of 1.79%.

Hemorrhage Detection and Segmentation in Traumatic Pelvic Injuries

Science.gov (United States)

Davuluri, Pavani; Wu, Jie; Tang, Yang; Cockrell, Charles H.; Ward, Kevin R.; Najarian, Kayvan; Hargraves, Rosalyn H.

2012-01-01

Automated hemorrhage detection and segmentation in traumatic pelvic injuries is vital for fast and accurate treatment decision making. Hemorrhage is the main cause of deaths in patients within first 24 hours after the injury. It is very time consuming for physicians to analyze all Computed Tomography (CT) images manually. As time is crucial in emergence medicine, analyzing medical images manually delays the decision-making process. Automated hemorrhage detection and segmentation can significantly help physicians to analyze these images and make fast and accurate decisions. Hemorrhage segmentation is a crucial step in the accurate diagnosis and treatment decision-making process. This paper presents a novel rule-based hemorrhage segmentation technique that utilizes pelvic anatomical information to segment hemorrhage accurately. An evaluation measure is used to quantify the accuracy of hemorrhage segmentation. The results show that the proposed method is able to segment hemorrhage very well, and the results are promising. PMID:22919433

SALIENCY BASED SEGMENTATION OF SATELLITE IMAGES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. Sharma

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Saliency gives the way as humans see any image and saliency based segmentation can be eventually helpful in Psychovisual image interpretation. Keeping this in view few saliency models are used along with segmentation algorithm and only the salient segments from image have been extracted. The work is carried out for terrestrial images as well as for satellite images. The methodology used in this work extracts those segments from segmented image which are having higher or equal saliency value than a threshold value. Salient and non salient regions of image become foreground and background respectively and thus image gets separated. For carrying out this work a dataset of terrestrial images and Worldview 2 satellite images (sample data are used. Results show that those saliency models which works better for terrestrial images are not good enough for satellite image in terms of foreground and background separation. Foreground and background separation in terrestrial images is based on salient objects visible on the images whereas in satellite images this separation is based on salient area rather than salient objects.

Segmentation precedes face categorization under suboptimal conditions

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carlijn eVan Den Boomen

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Both categorization and segmentation processes play a crucial role in face perception. However, the functional relation between these subprocesses is currently unclear. The present study investigates the temporal relation between segmentation-related and category-selective responses in the brain, using electroencephalography (EEG. Surface segmentation and category content were both manipulated using texture-defined objects, including faces. This allowed us to study brain activity related to segmentation and to categorization. In the main experiment, participants viewed texture-defined objects for a duration of 800 ms. EEG results revealed that segmentation-related responses precede category-selective responses. Three additional experiments revealed that the presence and timing of categorization depends on stimulus properties and presentation duration. Photographic objects were presented for a long and short (92 ms duration and evoked fast category-selective responses in both cases. On the other hand, presentation of texture-defined objects for a short duration only evoked segmentation-related but no category-selective responses. Category-selective responses were much slower when evoked by texture-defined than by photographic objects. We suggest that in case of categorization of objects under suboptimal conditions, such as when low-level stimulus properties are not sufficient for fast object categorization, segmentation facilitates the slower categorization process.

A Kalman Filtering Perspective for Multiatlas Segmentation*

Science.gov (United States)

Gao, Yi; Zhu, Liangjia; Cates, Joshua; MacLeod, Rob S.; Bouix, Sylvain; Tannenbaum, Allen

2016-01-01

In multiatlas segmentation, one typically registers several atlases to the novel image, and their respective segmented label images are transformed and fused to form the final segmentation. In this work, we provide a new dynamical system perspective for multiatlas segmentation, inspired by the following fact: The transformation that aligns the current atlas to the novel image can be not only computed by direct registration but also inferred from the transformation that aligns the previous atlas to the image together with the transformation between the two atlases. This process is similar to the global positioning system on a vehicle, which gets position by inquiring from the satellite and by employing the previous location and velocity—neither answer in isolation being perfect. To solve this problem, a dynamical system scheme is crucial to combine the two pieces of information; for example, a Kalman filtering scheme is used. Accordingly, in this work, a Kalman multiatlas segmentation is proposed to stabilize the global/affine registration step. The contributions of this work are twofold. First, it provides a new dynamical systematic perspective for standard independent multiatlas registrations, and it is solved by Kalman filtering. Second, with very little extra computation, it can be combined with most existing multiatlas segmentation schemes for better registration/segmentation accuracy. PMID:26807162

Segmentation precedes face categorization under suboptimal conditions.

Science.gov (United States)

Van Den Boomen, Carlijn; Fahrenfort, Johannes J; Snijders, Tineke M; Kemner, Chantal

2015-01-01

Both categorization and segmentation processes play a crucial role in face perception. However, the functional relation between these subprocesses is currently unclear. The present study investigates the temporal relation between segmentation-related and category-selective responses in the brain, using electroencephalography (EEG). Surface segmentation and category content were both manipulated using texture-defined objects, including faces. This allowed us to study brain activity related to segmentation and to categorization. In the main experiment, participants viewed texture-defined objects for a duration of 800 ms. EEG results revealed that segmentation-related responses precede category-selective responses. Three additional experiments revealed that the presence and timing of categorization depends on stimulus properties and presentation duration. Photographic objects were presented for a long and short (92 ms) duration and evoked fast category-selective responses in both cases. On the other hand, presentation of texture-defined objects for a short duration only evoked segmentation-related but no category-selective responses. Category-selective responses were much slower when evoked by texture-defined than by photographic objects. We suggest that in case of categorization of objects under suboptimal conditions, such as when low-level stimulus properties are not sufficient for fast object categorization, segmentation facilitates the slower categorization process.

Improved document image segmentation algorithm using multiresolution morphology

Science.gov (United States)

Bukhari, Syed Saqib; Shafait, Faisal; Breuel, Thomas M.

2011-01-01

Page segmentation into text and non-text elements is an essential preprocessing step before optical character recognition (OCR) operation. In case of poor segmentation, an OCR classification engine produces garbage characters due to the presence of non-text elements. This paper describes modifications to the text/non-text segmentation algorithm presented by Bloomberg,1 which is also available in his open-source Leptonica library.2The modifications result in significant improvements and achieved better segmentation accuracy than the original algorithm for UW-III, UNLV, ICDAR 2009 page segmentation competition test images and circuit diagram datasets.

Apparatus For Laminating Segmented Core For Electric Machine

Science.gov (United States)

Lawrence, Robert Anthony; Stabel, Gerald R

2003-06-17

A segmented core for an electric machine includes segments stamped from coated electric steel. The segments each have a first end, a second end, and winding openings. A predetermined number of segments are placed end-to-end to form layers. The layers are stacked such that each of the layers is staggered from adjacent layers by a predetermined rotation angle. The winding openings of each of the layers are in vertical alignment with the winding openings of the adjacent layers. The stack of layers is secured to form the segmented core.

SEGMENTATION OF SME PORTFOLIO IN BANKING SYSTEM

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Namolosu Simona Mihaela

2013-07-01

Full Text Available The Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs represent an important target market for commercial Banks. In this respect, finding the best methods for designing and implementing the optimal marketing strategies (for this target are a continuous concern for the marketing specialists and researchers from the banking system; the purpose is to find the most suitable service model for these companies. SME portfolio of a bank is not homogeneous, different characteristics and behaviours being identified. The current paper reveals empirical evidence about SME portfolio characteristics and segmentation methods used in banking system. Its purpose is to identify if segmentation has an impact in finding the optimal marketing strategies and service model and if this hypothesis might be applicable for any commercial bank, irrespective of country/ region. Some banks are segmenting the SME portfolio by a single criterion: the annual company (official turnover; others are considering also profitability and other financial indicators of the company. In some cases, even the banking behaviour becomes a criterion. For all cases, creating scenarios with different thresholds and estimating the impact in profitability and volumes are two mandatory steps in establishing the final segmentation (criteria matrix. Details about each of these segmentation methods may be found in the paper. Testing the final matrix of criteria is also detailed, with the purpose of making realistic estimations. Example for lending products is provided; the product offer is presented as responding to needs of targeted sub segment and therefore being correlated with the sub segment characteristics. Identifying key issues and trends leads to further action plan proposal. Depending on overall strategy and commercial target of the bank, the focus may shift, one or more sub segments becoming high priority (for acquisition/ activation/ retention/ cross sell/ up sell/ increase profitability etc., while

Event segmentation ability uniquely predicts event memory.

Science.gov (United States)

Sargent, Jesse Q; Zacks, Jeffrey M; Hambrick, David Z; Zacks, Rose T; Kurby, Christopher A; Bailey, Heather R; Eisenberg, Michelle L; Beck, Taylor M

2013-11-01

Memory for everyday events plays a central role in tasks of daily living, autobiographical memory, and planning. Event memory depends in part on segmenting ongoing activity into meaningful units. This study examined the relationship between event segmentation and memory in a lifespan sample to answer the following question: Is the ability to segment activity into meaningful events a unique predictor of subsequent memory, or is the relationship between event perception and memory accounted for by general cognitive abilities? Two hundred and eight adults ranging from 20 to 79years old segmented movies of everyday events and attempted to remember the events afterwards. They also completed psychometric ability tests and tests measuring script knowledge for everyday events. Event segmentation and script knowledge both explained unique variance in event memory above and beyond the psychometric measures, and did so as strongly in older as in younger adults. These results suggest that event segmentation is a basic cognitive mechanism, important for memory across the lifespan. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Retina image–based optic disc segmentation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ching-Lin Wang

2016-05-01

Full Text Available The change of optic disc can be used to diagnose many eye diseases, such as glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy and macular degeneration. Moreover, retinal blood vessel pattern is unique for human beings even for identical twins. It is a highly stable pattern in biometric identification. Since optic disc is the beginning of the optic nerve and main blood vessels in retina, it can be used as a reference point of identification. Therefore, optic disc segmentation is an important technique for developing a human identity recognition system and eye disease diagnostic system. This article hence presents an optic disc segmentation method to extract the optic disc from a retina image. The experimental results show that the optic disc segmentation method can give impressive results in segmenting the optic disc from a retina image.

The Process of Marketing Segmentation Strategy Selection

OpenAIRE

Ionel Dumitru

2007-01-01

The process of marketing segmentation strategy selection represents the essence of strategical marketing. We present hereinafter the main forms of the marketing statategy segmentation: undifferentiated marketing, differentiated marketing, concentrated marketing and personalized marketing. In practice, the companies use a mix of these marketing segmentation methods in order to maximize the proffit and to satisfy the consumers’ needs.

Possibilities of segmentation variables in relation with advertising

OpenAIRE

Erbanová, Nela

2011-01-01

The aim of this thesis is to capture significant segmentation variables that shape marketing communication with an emphasis on advertising. The theoretical part deals with the concepts of market segmentation, segmentation variables, marketing communication, advertising and research. The practical part is focused on the realization of the actual research using a questionnaire survey and the evaluation of questions from Market Media Lifestyle. Only traditional descriptive segmentation variables...

Open-source software platform for medical image segmentation applications

Science.gov (United States)

Namías, R.; D'Amato, J. P.; del Fresno, M.

2017-11-01

Segmenting 2D and 3D images is a crucial and challenging problem in medical image analysis. Although several image segmentation algorithms have been proposed for different applications, no universal method currently exists. Moreover, their use is usually limited when detection of complex and multiple adjacent objects of interest is needed. In addition, the continually increasing volumes of medical imaging scans require more efficient segmentation software design and highly usable applications. In this context, we present an extension of our previous segmentation framework which allows the combination of existing explicit deformable models in an efficient and transparent way, handling simultaneously different segmentation strategies and interacting with a graphic user interface (GUI). We present the object-oriented design and the general architecture which consist of two layers: the GUI at the top layer, and the processing core filters at the bottom layer. We apply the framework for segmenting different real-case medical image scenarios on public available datasets including bladder and prostate segmentation from 2D MRI, and heart segmentation in 3D CT. Our experiments on these concrete problems show that this framework facilitates complex and multi-object segmentation goals while providing a fast prototyping open-source segmentation tool.

Bayesian automated cortical segmentation for neonatal MRI

Science.gov (United States)

Chou, Zane; Paquette, Natacha; Ganesh, Bhavana; Wang, Yalin; Ceschin, Rafael; Nelson, Marvin D.; Macyszyn, Luke; Gaonkar, Bilwaj; Panigrahy, Ashok; Lepore, Natasha

2017-11-01

Several attempts have been made in the past few years to develop and implement an automated segmentation of neonatal brain structural MRI. However, accurate automated MRI segmentation remains challenging in this population because of the low signal-to-noise ratio, large partial volume effects and inter-individual anatomical variability of the neonatal brain. In this paper, we propose a learning method for segmenting the whole brain cortical grey matter on neonatal T2-weighted images. We trained our algorithm using a neonatal dataset composed of 3 fullterm and 4 preterm infants scanned at term equivalent age. Our segmentation pipeline combines the FAST algorithm from the FSL library software and a Bayesian segmentation approach to create a threshold matrix that minimizes the error of mislabeling brain tissue types. Our method shows promising results with our pilot training set. In both preterm and full-term neonates, automated Bayesian segmentation generates a smoother and more consistent parcellation compared to FAST, while successfully removing the subcortical structure and cleaning the edges of the cortical grey matter. This method show promising refinement of the FAST segmentation by considerably reducing manual input and editing required from the user, and further improving reliability and processing time of neonatal MR images. Further improvement will include a larger dataset of training images acquired from different manufacturers.

Moving Segmentation Up the Supply-Chain: Supply Chain Segmentation and Artificial Neural Networks

OpenAIRE

Erevelles, Sunil; Fukawa, Nobuyuki

2008-01-01

This paper explained the concept of supply-side segmentation and transvectional alignment, and applies these concepts in the artificial neural network (ANN). To the best of our knowledge, no research has applied ANN in explaining the heterogeneity of both the supply-side and demand-side of a market in forming relational entity that consists of firms at all levels of the supply chain and the demand chain. The ANN offers a way of operationalizing the concept of supply-side segmentation. In toda...

Segmentation in reading and film comprehension.

Science.gov (United States)

Zacks, Jeffrey M; Speer, Nicole K; Reynolds, Jeremy R

2009-05-01

When reading a story or watching a film, comprehenders construct a series of representations in order to understand the events depicted. Discourse comprehension theories and a recent theory of perceptual event segmentation both suggest that comprehenders monitor situational features such as characters' goals, to update these representations at natural boundaries in activity. However, the converging predictions of these theories had previously not been tested directly. Two studies provided evidence that changes in situational features such as characters, their locations, their interactions with objects, and their goals are related to the segmentation of events in both narrative texts and films. A 3rd study indicated that clauses with event boundaries are read more slowly than are other clauses and that changes in situational features partially mediate this relation. A final study suggested that the predictability of incoming information influences reading rate and possibly event segmentation. Taken together, these results suggest that processing situational changes during comprehension is an important determinant of how one segments ongoing activity into events and that this segmentation is related to the control of processing during reading. (c) 2009 APA, all rights reserved.

CT-based manual segmentation and evaluation of paranasal sinuses.

Science.gov (United States)

Pirner, S; Tingelhoff, K; Wagner, I; Westphal, R; Rilk, M; Wahl, F M; Bootz, F; Eichhorn, Klaus W G

2009-04-01

Manual segmentation of computed tomography (CT) datasets was performed for robot-assisted endoscope movement during functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS). Segmented 3D models are needed for the robots' workspace definition. A total of 50 preselected CT datasets were each segmented in 150-200 coronal slices with 24 landmarks being set. Three different colors for segmentation represent diverse risk areas. Extension and volumetric measurements were performed. Three-dimensional reconstruction was generated after segmentation. Manual segmentation took 8-10 h for each CT dataset. The mean volumes were: right maxillary sinus 17.4 cm(3), left side 17.9 cm(3), right frontal sinus 4.2 cm(3), left side 4.0 cm(3), total frontal sinuses 7.9 cm(3), sphenoid sinus right side 5.3 cm(3), left side 5.5 cm(3), total sphenoid sinus volume 11.2 cm(3). Our manually segmented 3D-models present the patient's individual anatomy with a special focus on structures in danger according to the diverse colored risk areas. For safe robot assistance, the high-accuracy models represent an average of the population for anatomical variations, extension and volumetric measurements. They can be used as a database for automatic model-based segmentation. None of the segmentation methods so far described provide risk segmentation. The robot's maximum distance to the segmented border can be adjusted according to the differently colored areas.

Modeling of market segmentation for new IT product development

Science.gov (United States)

Nasiopoulos, Dimitrios K.; Sakas, Damianos P.; Vlachos, D. S.; Mavrogianni, Amanda

2015-02-01

Businesses from all Information Technology sectors use market segmentation[1] in their product development[2] and strategic planning[3]. Many studies have concluded that market segmentation is considered as the norm of modern marketing. With the rapid development of technology, customer needs are becoming increasingly diverse. These needs can no longer be satisfied by a mass marketing approach and follow one rule. IT Businesses can face with this diversity by pooling customers[4] with similar requirements and buying behavior and strength into segments. The result of the best choices about which segments are the most appropriate to serve can then be made, thus making the best of finite resources. Despite the attention which segmentation gathers and the resources that are invested in it, growing evidence suggests that businesses have problems operationalizing segmentation[5]. These problems take various forms. There may have been a rule that the segmentation process necessarily results in homogeneous groups of customers for whom appropriate marketing programs and procedures for dealing with them can be developed. Then the segmentation process, that a company follows, can fail. This increases concerns about what causes segmentation failure and how it might be overcome. To prevent the failure, we created a dynamic simulation model of market segmentation[6] based on the basic factors leading to this segmentation.

Skin Segmentation Based on Graph Cuts

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

HU Zhilan; WANG Guijin; LIN Xinggang; YAN Hong

2009-01-01

Skin segmentation is widely used in many computer vision tasks to improve automated visualiza-tion. This paper presents a graph cuts algorithm to segment arbitrary skin regions from images. The detected face is used to determine the foreground skin seeds and the background non-skin seeds with the color probability distributions for the foreground represented by a single Gaussian model and for the background by a Gaussian mixture model. The probability distribution of the image is used for noise suppression to alle-viate the influence of the background regions having skin-like colors. Finally, the skin is segmented by graph cuts, with the regional parameter y optimally selected to adapt to different images. Tests of the algorithm on many real wodd photographs show that the scheme accurately segments skin regions and is robust against illumination variations, individual skin variations, and cluttered backgrounds.

Mixed segmentation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Allan Grutt; Bonde, Anders; Aagaard, Morten

content analysis and audience segmentation in a single-source perspective. The aim is to explain and understand target groups in relation to, on the one hand, emotional response to commercials or other forms of audio-visual communication and, on the other hand, living preferences and personality traits...

Review methods for image segmentation from computed tomography images

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mamat, Nurwahidah; Rahman, Wan Eny Zarina Wan Abdul; Soh, Shaharuddin Cik; Mahmud, Rozi

2014-01-01

Image segmentation is a challenging process in order to get the accuracy of segmentation, automation and robustness especially in medical images. There exist many segmentation methods that can be implemented to medical images but not all methods are suitable. For the medical purposes, the aims of image segmentation are to study the anatomical structure, identify the region of interest, measure tissue volume to measure growth of tumor and help in treatment planning prior to radiation therapy. In this paper, we present a review method for segmentation purposes using Computed Tomography (CT) images. CT images has their own characteristics that affect the ability to visualize anatomic structures and pathologic features such as blurring of the image and visual noise. The details about the methods, the goodness and the problem incurred in the methods will be defined and explained. It is necessary to know the suitable segmentation method in order to get accurate segmentation. This paper can be a guide to researcher to choose the suitable segmentation method especially in segmenting the images from CT scan

Dynamics in international market segmentation of new product growth

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lemmens, A.; Croux, C.; Stremersch, S.

2012-01-01

Prior international segmentation studies have been static in that they have identified segments that remain stable over time. This paper shows that country segments in new product growth are intrinsically dynamic. We propose a semiparametric hidden Markov model to dynamically segment countries based

Region segmentation along image sequence

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Monchal, L.; Aubry, P.

1995-01-01

A method to extract regions in sequence of images is proposed. Regions are not matched from one image to the following one. The result of a region segmentation is used as an initialization to segment the following and image to track the region along the sequence. The image sequence is exploited as a spatio-temporal event. (authors). 12 refs., 8 figs

Unsupervised Segmentation Methods of TV Contents

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elie El-Khoury

2010-01-01

Full Text Available We present a generic algorithm to address various temporal segmentation topics of audiovisual contents such as speaker diarization, shot, or program segmentation. Based on a GLR approach, involving the ΔBIC criterion, this algorithm requires the value of only a few parameters to produce segmentation results at a desired scale and on most typical low-level features used in the field of content-based indexing. Results obtained on various corpora are of the same quality level than the ones obtained by other dedicated and state-of-the-art methods.

Polarimetric Segmentation Using Wishart Test Statistic

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Skriver, Henning; Schou, Jesper; Nielsen, Allan Aasbjerg

2002-01-01

A newly developed test statistic for equality of two complex covariance matrices following the complex Wishart distribution and an associated asymptotic probability for the test statistic has been used in a segmentation algorithm. The segmentation algorithm is based on the MUM (merge using moments......) approach, which is a merging algorithm for single channel SAR images. The polarimetric version described in this paper uses the above-mentioned test statistic for merging. The segmentation algorithm has been applied to polarimetric SAR data from the Danish dual-frequency, airborne polarimetric SAR, EMISAR...

Technical report on semiautomatic segmentation using the Adobe Photoshop.

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Jin Seo; Chung, Min Suk; Hwang, Sung Bae; Lee, Yong Sook; Har, Dong-Hwan

2005-12-01

The purpose of this research is to enable users to semiautomatically segment the anatomical structures in magnetic resonance images (MRIs), computerized tomographs (CTs), and other medical images on a personal computer. The segmented images are used for making 3D images, which are helpful to medical education and research. To achieve this purpose, the following trials were performed. The entire body of a volunteer was scanned to make 557 MRIs. On Adobe Photoshop, contours of 19 anatomical structures in the MRIs were semiautomatically drawn using MAGNETIC LASSO TOOL and manually corrected using either LASSO TOOL or DIRECT SELECTION TOOL to make 557 segmented images. In a similar manner, 13 anatomical structures in 8,590 anatomical images were segmented. Proper segmentation was verified by making 3D images from the segmented images. Semiautomatic segmentation using Adobe Photoshop is expected to be widely used for segmentation of anatomical structures in various medical images.

Graph run-length matrices for histopathological image segmentation.

Science.gov (United States)

Tosun, Akif Burak; Gunduz-Demir, Cigdem

2011-03-01

The histopathological examination of tissue specimens is essential for cancer diagnosis and grading. However, this examination is subject to a considerable amount of observer variability as it mainly relies on visual interpretation of pathologists. To alleviate this problem, it is very important to develop computational quantitative tools, for which image segmentation constitutes the core step. In this paper, we introduce an effective and robust algorithm for the segmentation of histopathological tissue images. This algorithm incorporates the background knowledge of the tissue organization into segmentation. For this purpose, it quantifies spatial relations of cytological tissue components by constructing a graph and uses this graph to define new texture features for image segmentation. This new texture definition makes use of the idea of gray-level run-length matrices. However, it considers the runs of cytological components on a graph to form a matrix, instead of considering the runs of pixel intensities. Working with colon tissue images, our experiments demonstrate that the texture features extracted from "graph run-length matrices" lead to high segmentation accuracies, also providing a reasonable number of segmented regions. Compared with four other segmentation algorithms, the results show that the proposed algorithm is more effective in histopathological image segmentation.

Segmentation of sows in farrowing pens

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Tu, Gang Jun; Karstoft, Henrik; Pedersen, Lene Juul

2014-01-01

The correct segmentation of a foreground object in video recordings is an important task for many surveillance systems. The development of an effective and practical algorithm to segment sows in grayscale video recordings captured under commercial production conditions is described...

Osmotic and Heat Stress Effects on Segmentation.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Julian Weiss

Full Text Available During vertebrate embryonic development, early skin, muscle, and bone progenitor populations organize into segments known as somites. Defects in this conserved process of segmentation lead to skeletal and muscular deformities, such as congenital scoliosis, a curvature of the spine caused by vertebral defects. Environmental stresses such as hypoxia or heat shock produce segmentation defects, and significantly increase the penetrance and severity of vertebral defects in genetically susceptible individuals. Here we show that a brief exposure to a high osmolarity solution causes reproducible segmentation defects in developing zebrafish (Danio rerio embryos. Both osmotic shock and heat shock produce border defects in a dose-dependent manner, with an increase in both frequency and severity of defects. We also show that osmotic treatment has a delayed effect on somite development, similar to that observed in heat shocked embryos. Our results establish osmotic shock as an alternate experimental model for stress, affecting segmentation in a manner comparable to other known environmental stressors. The similar effects of these two distinct environmental stressors support a model in which a variety of cellular stresses act through a related response pathway that leads to disturbances in the segmentation process.

Image segmentation evaluation for very-large datasets

Science.gov (United States)

Reeves, Anthony P.; Liu, Shuang; Xie, Yiting

2016-03-01

With the advent of modern machine learning methods and fully automated image analysis there is a need for very large image datasets having documented segmentations for both computer algorithm training and evaluation. Current approaches of visual inspection and manual markings do not scale well to big data. We present a new approach that depends on fully automated algorithm outcomes for segmentation documentation, requires no manual marking, and provides quantitative evaluation for computer algorithms. The documentation of new image segmentations and new algorithm outcomes are achieved by visual inspection. The burden of visual inspection on large datasets is minimized by (a) customized visualizations for rapid review and (b) reducing the number of cases to be reviewed through analysis of quantitative segmentation evaluation. This method has been applied to a dataset of 7,440 whole-lung CT images for 6 different segmentation algorithms designed to fully automatically facilitate the measurement of a number of very important quantitative image biomarkers. The results indicate that we could achieve 93% to 99% successful segmentation for these algorithms on this relatively large image database. The presented evaluation method may be scaled to much larger image databases.

Automated 3D closed surface segmentation: application to vertebral body segmentation in CT images.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Shuang; Xie, Yiting; Reeves, Anthony P

2016-05-01

A fully automated segmentation algorithm, progressive surface resolution (PSR), is presented in this paper to determine the closed surface of approximately convex blob-like structures that are common in biomedical imaging. The PSR algorithm was applied to the cortical surface segmentation of 460 vertebral bodies on 46 low-dose chest CT images, which can be potentially used for automated bone mineral density measurement and compression fracture detection. The target surface is realized by a closed triangular mesh, which thereby guarantees the enclosure. The surface vertices of the triangular mesh representation are constrained along radial trajectories that are uniformly distributed in 3D angle space. The segmentation is accomplished by determining for each radial trajectory the location of its intersection with the target surface. The surface is first initialized based on an input high confidence boundary image and then resolved progressively based on a dynamic attraction map in an order of decreasing degree of evidence regarding the target surface location. For the visual evaluation, the algorithm achieved acceptable segmentation for 99.35 % vertebral bodies. Quantitative evaluation was performed on 46 vertebral bodies and achieved overall mean Dice coefficient of 0.939 (with max [Formula: see text] 0.957, min [Formula: see text] 0.906 and standard deviation [Formula: see text] 0.011) using manual annotations as the ground truth. Both visual and quantitative evaluations demonstrate encouraging performance of the PSR algorithm. This novel surface resolution strategy provides uniform angular resolution for the segmented surface with computation complexity and runtime that are linearly constrained by the total number of vertices of the triangular mesh representation.

Market segmentation by motivation: The case of Switzerland

OpenAIRE

Bieger, Thomas; Laesser, Christian

2002-01-01

This contribution is about the segmentation of mature travel markets, as exemplified by Switzerland. Based on an extensive and representative travel survey covering 2,000 households and more than 11,000 trips, a situational, motivation-based travel market segmentation is proposed. The clustering of motivations proves to be a valuable means to segment markets. The results reveal a diminishing role of socio-demographic segment descriptors. It is more the (anticipated) travel profile and the att...

Algorithms for Cytoplasm Segmentation of Fluorescence Labelled Cells

OpenAIRE

Carolina Wählby; Joakim Lindblad; Mikael Vondrus; Ewert Bengtsson; Lennart Björkesten

2002-01-01

Automatic cell segmentation has various applications in cytometry, and while the nucleus is often very distinct and easy to identify, the cytoplasm provides a lot more challenge. A new combination of image analysis algorithms for segmentation of cells imaged by fluorescence microscopy is presented. The algorithm consists of an image pre?processing step, a general segmentation and merging step followed by a segmentation quality measurement. The quality measurement consists of a statistical ana...

Interactive segmentation: a scalable superpixel-based method

Science.gov (United States)

Mathieu, Bérengère; Crouzil, Alain; Puel, Jean-Baptiste

2017-11-01

This paper addresses the problem of interactive multiclass segmentation of images. We propose a fast and efficient new interactive segmentation method called superpixel α fusion (SαF). From a few strokes drawn by a user over an image, this method extracts relevant semantic objects. To get a fast calculation and an accurate segmentation, SαF uses superpixel oversegmentation and support vector machine classification. We compare SαF with competing algorithms by evaluating its performances on reference benchmarks. We also suggest four new datasets to evaluate the scalability of interactive segmentation methods, using images from some thousand to several million pixels. We conclude with two applications of SαF.

Parallel fuzzy connected image segmentation on GPU

OpenAIRE

Zhuge, Ying; Cao, Yong; Udupa, Jayaram K.; Miller, Robert W.

2011-01-01

Purpose: Image segmentation techniques using fuzzy connectedness (FC) principles have shown their effectiveness in segmenting a variety of objects in several large applications. However, one challenge in these algorithms has been their excessive computational requirements when processing large image datasets. Nowadays, commodity graphics hardware provides a highly parallel computing environment. In this paper, the authors present a parallel fuzzy connected image segmentation algorithm impleme...

IFRS 8 Operating Segments - A Closer Look

OpenAIRE

Muthupandian, K S

2008-01-01

The International Accounting Standards Board issued the International Financial Reporting Standard 8 Operating Segments. Segment information is one of the most vital aspects of financial reporting for investors and other users. The IFRS 8 requires an entity to adopt the ‘management approach’ to reporting on the financial performance of its operating segments. This article presents a closer look of the standard (objective, scope, and disclosures).

An interactive medical image segmentation framework using iterative refinement.

Science.gov (United States)

Kalshetti, Pratik; Bundele, Manas; Rahangdale, Parag; Jangra, Dinesh; Chattopadhyay, Chiranjoy; Harit, Gaurav; Elhence, Abhay

2017-04-01

Segmentation is often performed on medical images for identifying diseases in clinical evaluation. Hence it has become one of the major research areas. Conventional image segmentation techniques are unable to provide satisfactory segmentation results for medical images as they contain irregularities. They need to be pre-processed before segmentation. In order to obtain the most suitable method for medical image segmentation, we propose MIST (Medical Image Segmentation Tool), a two stage algorithm. The first stage automatically generates a binary marker image of the region of interest using mathematical morphology. This marker serves as the mask image for the second stage which uses GrabCut to yield an efficient segmented result. The obtained result can be further refined by user interaction, which can be done using the proposed Graphical User Interface (GUI). Experimental results show that the proposed method is accurate and provides satisfactory segmentation results with minimum user interaction on medical as well as natural images. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Automatic lung segmentation in the presence of alveolar collapse

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Noshadi Areg

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Lung ventilation and perfusion analyses using chest imaging methods require a correct segmentation of the lung to offer anatomical landmarks for the physiological data. An automatic segmentation approach simplifies and accelerates the analysis. However, the segmentation of the lungs has shown to be difficult if collapsed areas are present that tend to share similar gray values with surrounding non-pulmonary tissue. Our goal was to develop an automatic segmentation algorithm that is able to approximate dorsal lung boundaries even if alveolar collapse is present in the dependent lung areas adjacent to the pleura. Computed tomography data acquired in five supine pigs with injured lungs were used for this purpose. First, healthy lung tissue was segmented using a standard 3D region growing algorithm. Further, the bones in the chest wall surrounding the lungs were segmented to find the contact points of ribs and pleura. Artificial boundaries of the dorsal lung were set by spline interpolation through these contact points. Segmentation masks of the entire lung including the collapsed regions were created by combining the splines with the segmentation masks of the healthy lung tissue through multiple morphological operations. The automatically segmented images were then evaluated by comparing them to manual segmentations and determining the Dice similarity coefficients (DSC as a similarity measure. The developed method was able to accurately segment the lungs including the collapsed regions (DSCs over 0.96.

OASIS is Automated Statistical Inference for Segmentation, with applications to multiple sclerosis lesion segmentation in MRI.

Science.gov (United States)

Sweeney, Elizabeth M; Shinohara, Russell T; Shiee, Navid; Mateen, Farrah J; Chudgar, Avni A; Cuzzocreo, Jennifer L; Calabresi, Peter A; Pham, Dzung L; Reich, Daniel S; Crainiceanu, Ciprian M

2013-01-01

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can be used to detect lesions in the brains of multiple sclerosis (MS) patients and is essential for diagnosing the disease and monitoring its progression. In practice, lesion load is often quantified by either manual or semi-automated segmentation of MRI, which is time-consuming, costly, and associated with large inter- and intra-observer variability. We propose OASIS is Automated Statistical Inference for Segmentation (OASIS), an automated statistical method for segmenting MS lesions in MRI studies. We use logistic regression models incorporating multiple MRI modalities to estimate voxel-level probabilities of lesion presence. Intensity-normalized T1-weighted, T2-weighted, fluid-attenuated inversion recovery and proton density volumes from 131 MRI studies (98 MS subjects, 33 healthy subjects) with manual lesion segmentations were used to train and validate our model. Within this set, OASIS detected lesions with a partial area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for clinically relevant false positive rates of 1% and below of 0.59% (95% CI; [0.50%, 0.67%]) at the voxel level. An experienced MS neuroradiologist compared these segmentations to those produced by LesionTOADS, an image segmentation software that provides segmentation of both lesions and normal brain structures. For lesions, OASIS out-performed LesionTOADS in 74% (95% CI: [65%, 82%]) of cases for the 98 MS subjects. To further validate the method, we applied OASIS to 169 MRI studies acquired at a separate center. The neuroradiologist again compared the OASIS segmentations to those from LesionTOADS. For lesions, OASIS ranked higher than LesionTOADS in 77% (95% CI: [71%, 83%]) of cases. For a randomly selected subset of 50 of these studies, one additional radiologist and one neurologist also scored the images. Within this set, the neuroradiologist ranked OASIS higher than LesionTOADS in 76% (95% CI: [64%, 88%]) of cases, the neurologist 66% (95% CI: [52%, 78

Marketing ambulatory care to women: a segmentation approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Harrell, G D; Fors, M F

1985-01-01

Although significant changes are occurring in health care delivery, in many instances the new offerings are not based on a clear understanding of market segments being served. This exploratory study suggests that important differences may exist among women with regard to health care selection. Five major women's segments are identified for consideration by health care executives in developing marketing strategies. Additional research is suggested to confirm this segmentation hypothesis, validate segmental differences and quantify the findings.

Brain MR image segmentation using NAMS in pseudo-color.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Hua; Chen, Chuanbo; Fang, Shaohong; Zhao, Shengrong

2017-12-01

Image segmentation plays a crucial role in various biomedical applications. In general, the segmentation of brain Magnetic Resonance (MR) images is mainly used to represent the image with several homogeneous regions instead of pixels for surgical analyzing and planning. This paper proposes a new approach for segmenting MR brain images by using pseudo-color based segmentation with Non-symmetry and Anti-packing Model with Squares (NAMS). First of all, the NAMS model is presented. The model can represent the image with sub-patterns to keep the image content and largely reduce the data redundancy. Second, the key idea is proposed that convert the original gray-scale brain MR image into a pseudo-colored image and then segment the pseudo-colored image with NAMS model. The pseudo-colored image can enhance the color contrast in different tissues in brain MR images, which can improve the precision of segmentation as well as directly visual perceptional distinction. Experimental results indicate that compared with other brain MR image segmentation methods, the proposed NAMS based pseudo-color segmentation method performs more excellent in not only segmenting precisely but also saving storage.

A safe and accurate method to perform esthetic mandibular contouring surgery for Far Eastern Asians.

Science.gov (United States)

Hsieh, A M-C; Huon, L-K; Jiang, H-R; Liu, S Y-C

2017-05-01

A tapered mandibular contour is popular with Far Eastern Asians. This study describes a safe and accurate method of using preoperative virtual surgical planning (VSP) and an intraoperative ostectomy guide to maximize the esthetic outcomes of mandibular symmetry and tapering while mitigating injury to the inferior alveolar nerve (IAN). Twelve subjects with chief complaints of a wide and square lower face underwent this protocol from January to June 2015. VSP was used to confirm symmetry and preserve the IAN while maximizing the surgeon's ability to taper the lower face via mandibular inferior border ostectomy. The accuracy of this method was confirmed by superimposition of the perioperative computed tomography scans in all subjects. No subjects complained of prolonged paresthesia after 3 months. A safe and accurate protocol for achieving an esthetic lower face in indicated Far Eastern individuals is described. Copyright © 2016 International Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Improving image segmentation by learning region affinities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Prasad, Lakshman [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Yang, Xingwei [TEMPLE UNIV.; Latecki, Longin J [TEMPLE UNIV.

2010-11-03

We utilize the context information of other regions in hierarchical image segmentation to learn new regions affinities. It is well known that a single choice of quantization of an image space is highly unlikely to be a common optimal quantization level for all categories. Each level of quantization has its own benefits. Therefore, we utilize the hierarchical information among different quantizations as well as spatial proximity of their regions. The proposed affinity learning takes into account higher order relations among image regions, both local and long range relations, making it robust to instabilities and errors of the original, pairwise region affinities. Once the learnt affinities are obtained, we use a standard image segmentation algorithm to get the final segmentation. Moreover, the learnt affinities can be naturally unutilized in interactive segmentation. Experimental results on Berkeley Segmentation Dataset and MSRC Object Recognition Dataset are comparable and in some aspects better than the state-of-art methods.

Aging and the segmentation of narrative film.

Science.gov (United States)

Kurby, Christopher A; Asiala, Lillian K E; Mills, Steven R

2014-01-01

The perception of event structure in continuous activity is important for everyday comprehension. Although the segmentation of experience into events is a normal concomitant of perceptual processing, previous research has shown age differences in the ability to perceive structure in naturalistic activity, such as a movie of someone washing a car. However, past research has also shown that older adults have a preserved ability to comprehend events in narrative text, which suggests that narrative may improve the event processing of older adults. This study tested whether there are age differences in event segmentation at the intersection of continuous activity and narrative: narrative film. Younger and older adults watched and segmented a narrative film, The Red Balloon, into coarse and fine events. Changes in situational features, such as changes in characters, goals, and objects predicted segmentation. Analyses revealed little age-difference in segmentation behavior. This suggests the possibility that narrative structure supports event understanding for older adults.

A Hybrid Technique for Medical Image Segmentation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alamgir Nyma

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Medical image segmentation is an essential and challenging aspect in computer-aided diagnosis and also in pattern recognition research. This paper proposes a hybrid method for magnetic resonance (MR image segmentation. We first remove impulsive noise inherent in MR images by utilizing a vector median filter. Subsequently, Otsu thresholding is used as an initial coarse segmentation method that finds the homogeneous regions of the input image. Finally, an enhanced suppressed fuzzy c-means is used to partition brain MR images into multiple segments, which employs an optimal suppression factor for the perfect clustering in the given data set. To evaluate the robustness of the proposed approach in noisy environment, we add different types of noise and different amount of noise to T1-weighted brain MR images. Experimental results show that the proposed algorithm outperforms other FCM based algorithms in terms of segmentation accuracy for both noise-free and noise-inserted MR images.

Storing tooth segments for optimal esthetics

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Tuzuner, T.; Turgut, S.; Özen, B.; Kılınç, H.; Bagis, B.

2016-01-01

Objective: A fractured whole crown segment can be reattached to its remnant; crowns from extracted teeth may be used as pontics in splinting techniques. We aimed to evaluate the effect of different storage solutions on tooth segment optical properties after different durations. Study design: Sixty

Communication with market segments - travel agencies' perspective

OpenAIRE

Lorena Bašan; Jasmina Dlačić; Željko Trezner

2013-01-01

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to research the travel agencies’ communication with market segments. Communication with market segments takes into account marketing communication means as well as the implementation of different business orientations. Design – Special emphasis is placed on the use of different marketing communication means and their efficiency. Research also explores business orientation adaptation when approaching different market segments. Methodology – In explo...

Speaker Segmentation and Clustering Using Gender Information

Science.gov (United States)

2006-02-01

used in the first stages of segmentation forder information in the clustering of the opposite-gender speaker diarization of news broadcasts. files, the...AFRL-HE-WP-TP-2006-0026 AIR FORCE RESEARCH LABORATORY Speaker Segmentation and Clustering Using Gender Information Brian M. Ore General Dynamics...COVERED (From - To) February 2006 ProceedinLgs 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE 5a. CONTRACT NUMBER Speaker Segmentation and Clustering Using Gender Information 5b

Segmentation and Quantification for Angle-Closure Glaucoma Assessment in Anterior Segment OCT.

Science.gov (United States)

Fu, Huazhu; Xu, Yanwu; Lin, Stephen; Zhang, Xiaoqin; Wong, Damon Wing Kee; Liu, Jiang; Frangi, Alejandro F; Baskaran, Mani; Aung, Tin

2017-09-01

Angle-closure glaucoma is a major cause of irreversible visual impairment and can be identified by measuring the anterior chamber angle (ACA) of the eye. The ACA can be viewed clearly through anterior segment optical coherence tomography (AS-OCT), but the imaging characteristics and the shapes and locations of major ocular structures can vary significantly among different AS-OCT modalities, thus complicating image analysis. To address this problem, we propose a data-driven approach for automatic AS-OCT structure segmentation, measurement, and screening. Our technique first estimates initial markers in the eye through label transfer from a hand-labeled exemplar data set, whose images are collected over different patients and AS-OCT modalities. These initial markers are then refined by using a graph-based smoothing method that is guided by AS-OCT structural information. These markers facilitate segmentation of major clinical structures, which are used to recover standard clinical parameters. These parameters can be used not only to support clinicians in making anatomical assessments, but also to serve as features for detecting anterior angle closure in automatic glaucoma screening algorithms. Experiments on Visante AS-OCT and Cirrus high-definition-OCT data sets demonstrate the effectiveness of our approach.

New developments in segment ancillary logic for FASTBUS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Walz, H.V.; Bertolucci, B.

1983-01-01

Segment Ancillary Logic hardware for FASTBUS systems provides logical functions required in common by all devices attached to a segment. It controls the execution of arbitration cycles, and geographical address cycles, and generates the system handshake responses for broadcast operations. The mandatory requirements for Segment Ancillary Logic in the FASTBUS specifications are reviewed. A detailed implementation based on ECL logic is described, and the hardware to be used on an ECL cable segment for an experimental FASTBUS system at SLAC is shown

(A new application in segment reporting: IFRS 8)

OpenAIRE

Arsoy, Aylin Poroy

2008-01-01

IFRS 8 Operating Segments issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) on December 30th, 2006, changes the requirements of segment reporting. IAS 14 will cease to be effective when IFRS 8 will become effective from the beginning of 2009. After then, companies will be required to follow IFRS 8 for their segment reporting purposes. The main difference between IFRS 8 and IAS 14 is the approach that is adopted while determining the reportable segments. Also, it should be mentione...

Video segmentation using keywords

Science.gov (United States)

Ton-That, Vinh; Vong, Chi-Tai; Nguyen-Dao, Xuan-Truong; Tran, Minh-Triet

2018-04-01

At DAVIS-2016 Challenge, many state-of-art video segmentation methods achieve potential results, but they still much depend on annotated frames to distinguish between background and foreground. It takes a lot of time and efforts to create these frames exactly. In this paper, we introduce a method to segment objects from video based on keywords given by user. First, we use a real-time object detection system - YOLOv2 to identify regions containing objects that have labels match with the given keywords in the first frame. Then, for each region identified from the previous step, we use Pyramid Scene Parsing Network to assign each pixel as foreground or background. These frames can be used as input frames for Object Flow algorithm to perform segmentation on entire video. We conduct experiments on a subset of DAVIS-2016 dataset in half the size of its original size, which shows that our method can handle many popular classes in PASCAL VOC 2012 dataset with acceptable accuracy, about 75.03%. We suggest widely testing by combining other methods to improve this result in the future.

Segmenting patients and physicians using preferences from discrete choice experiments.

Science.gov (United States)

Deal, Ken

2014-01-01

People often form groups or segments that have similar interests and needs and seek similar benefits from health providers. Health organizations need to understand whether the same health treatments, prevention programs, services, and products should be applied to everyone in the relevant population or whether different treatments need to be provided to each of several segments that are relatively homogeneous internally but heterogeneous among segments. Our objective was to explain the purposes, benefits, and methods of segmentation for health organizations, and to illustrate the process of segmenting health populations based on preference coefficients from a discrete choice conjoint experiment (DCE) using an example study of prevention of cyberbullying among university students. We followed a two-level procedure for investigating segmentation incorporating several methods for forming segments in Level 1 using DCE preference coefficients and testing their quality, reproducibility, and usability by health decision makers. Covariates (demographic, behavioral, lifestyle, and health state variables) were included in Level 2 to further evaluate quality and to support the scoring of large databases and developing typing tools for assigning those in the relevant population, but not in the sample, to the segments. Several segmentation solution candidates were found during the Level 1 analysis, and the relationship of the preference coefficients to the segments was investigated using predictive methods. Those segmentations were tested for their quality and reproducibility and three were found to be very close in quality. While one seemed better than others in the Level 1 analysis, another was very similar in quality and proved ultimately better in predicting segment membership using covariates in Level 2. The two segments in the final solution were profiled for attributes that would support the development and acceptance of cyberbullying prevention programs among university

Short segment search method for phylogenetic analysis using nested sliding windows

Science.gov (United States)

Iskandar, A. A.; Bustamam, A.; Trimarsanto, H.

2017-10-01

To analyze phylogenetics in Bioinformatics, coding DNA sequences (CDS) segment is needed for maximal accuracy. However, analysis by CDS cost a lot of time and money, so a short representative segment by CDS, which is envelope protein segment or non-structural 3 (NS3) segment is necessary. After sliding window is implemented, a better short segment than envelope protein segment and NS3 is found. This paper will discuss a mathematical method to analyze sequences using nested sliding window to find a short segment which is representative for the whole genome. The result shows that our method can find a short segment which more representative about 6.57% in topological view to CDS segment than an Envelope segment or NS3 segment.

Simultaneous tomographic reconstruction and segmentation with class priors

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Romanov, Mikhail; Dahl, Anders Bjorholm; Dong, Yiqiu

2015-01-01

are combined to produce a reconstruction that is identical to the segmentation. We consider instead a hybrid approach that simultaneously produces both a reconstructed image and segmentation. We incorporate priors about the desired classes of the segmentation through a Hidden Markov Measure Field Model, and we...

SVM Pixel Classification on Colour Image Segmentation

Science.gov (United States)

Barui, Subhrajit; Latha, S.; Samiappan, Dhanalakshmi; Muthu, P.

2018-04-01

The aim of image segmentation is to simplify the representation of an image with the help of cluster pixels into something meaningful to analyze. Segmentation is typically used to locate boundaries and curves in an image, precisely to label every pixel in an image to give each pixel an independent identity. SVM pixel classification on colour image segmentation is the topic highlighted in this paper. It holds useful application in the field of concept based image retrieval, machine vision, medical imaging and object detection. The process is accomplished step by step. At first we need to recognize the type of colour and the texture used as an input to the SVM classifier. These inputs are extracted via local spatial similarity measure model and Steerable filter also known as Gabon Filter. It is then trained by using FCM (Fuzzy C-Means). Both the pixel level information of the image and the ability of the SVM Classifier undergoes some sophisticated algorithm to form the final image. The method has a well developed segmented image and efficiency with respect to increased quality and faster processing of the segmented image compared with the other segmentation methods proposed earlier. One of the latest application result is the Light L16 camera.

Classifier Directed Data Hybridization for Geographic Sample Supervised Segment Generation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christoff Fourie

2014-11-01

Full Text Available Quality segment generation is a well-known challenge and research objective within Geographic Object-based Image Analysis (GEOBIA. Although methodological avenues within GEOBIA are diverse, segmentation commonly plays a central role in most approaches, influencing and being influenced by surrounding processes. A general approach using supervised quality measures, specifically user provided reference segments, suggest casting the parameters of a given segmentation algorithm as a multidimensional search problem. In such a sample supervised segment generation approach, spatial metrics observing the user provided reference segments may drive the search process. The search is commonly performed by metaheuristics. A novel sample supervised segment generation approach is presented in this work, where the spectral content of provided reference segments is queried. A one-class classification process using spectral information from inside the provided reference segments is used to generate a probability image, which in turn is employed to direct a hybridization of the original input imagery. Segmentation is performed on such a hybrid image. These processes are adjustable, interdependent and form a part of the search problem. Results are presented detailing the performances of four method variants compared to the generic sample supervised segment generation approach, under various conditions in terms of resultant segment quality, required computing time and search process characteristics. Multiple metrics, metaheuristics and segmentation algorithms are tested with this approach. Using the spectral data contained within user provided reference segments to tailor the output generally improves the results in the investigated problem contexts, but at the expense of additional required computing time.

Methods for recognition and segmentation of active fault

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hyun, Chang Hun; Noh, Myung Hyun; Lee, Kieh Hwa; Chang, Tae Woo; Kyung, Jai Bok; Kim, Ki Young

2000-03-01

In order to identify and segment the active faults, the literatures of structural geology, paleoseismology, and geophysical explorations were investigated. The existing structural geological criteria for segmenting active faults were examined. These are mostly based on normal fault systems, thus, the additional criteria are demanded for application to different types of fault systems. Definition of the seismogenic fault, characteristics of fault activity, criteria and study results of fault segmentation, relationship between segmented fault length and maximum displacement, and estimation of seismic risk of segmented faults were examined in paleoseismic study. The history of earthquake such as dynamic pattern of faults, return period, and magnitude of the maximum earthquake originated by fault activity can be revealed by the study. It is confirmed through various case studies that numerous geophysical explorations including electrical resistivity, land seismic, marine seismic, ground-penetrating radar, magnetic, and gravity surveys have been efficiently applied to the recognition and segmentation of active faults

Limb-segment selection in drawing behaviour

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Meulenbroek, R G; Rosenbaum, D A; Thomassen, A.J.W.M.; Schomaker, L R

How do we select combinations of limb segments to carry out physical tasks? Three possible determinants of limb-segment selection are hypothesized here: (1) optimal amplitudes and frequencies of motion for the effectors; (2) preferred movement axes for the effectors; and (3) a tendency to continue

LIMB-SEGMENT SELECTION IN DRAWING BEHAVIOR

NARCIS (Netherlands)

MEULENBROEK, RGJ; ROSENBAUM, DA; THOMASSEN, AJWM; SCHOMAKER, LRB; Schomaker, Lambertus

How do we select combinations of limb segments to carry out physical tasks? Three possible determinants of limb-segment selection are hypothesized here: (1) optimal amplitudes and frequencies of motion for the effectors; (2) preferred movement axes for the effectors; and (3) a tendency to continue

Scale selection for supervised image segmentation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Li, Yan; Tax, David M J; Loog, Marco

2012-01-01

schemes are usually unsupervised, as they do not take into account the actual segmentation problem at hand. In this paper, we consider the problem of selecting scales, which aims at an optimal discrimination between user-defined classes in the segmentation. We show the deficiency of the classical...

Multilevel segmentation of intracranial aneurysms in CT angiography images

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Yan [Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California 94122 and University of Lyon, CREATIS, CNRS UMR 5220, INSERM U1206, UCB Lyon1, INSA Lyon, Lyon 69100 (France); Zhang, Yue, E-mail: y.zhang525@gmail.com [Veterans Affairs Medical Center, San Francisco, California 94121 and University of Lyon, CREATIS, CNRS UMR 5220, INSERM U1206, UCB Lyon1, INSA Lyon, Lyon 69100 (France); Navarro, Laurent [Ecole Nationale Superieure des Mines de Saint-Etienne, Saint-Etienne 42015 (France); Eker, Omer Faruk [CHU Montpellier, Neuroradiologie, Montpellier 34000 (France); Corredor Jerez, Ricardo A. [Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne, Lausanne 1015 (Switzerland); Chen, Yu; Zhu, Yuemin; Courbebaisse, Guy [University of Lyon, CREATIS, CNRS UMR 5220, INSERM U1206, UCB Lyon1, INSA Lyon, Lyon 69100 (France)

2016-04-15

Purpose: Segmentation of aneurysms plays an important role in interventional planning. Yet, the segmentation of both the lumen and the thrombus of an intracranial aneurysm in computed tomography angiography (CTA) remains a challenge. This paper proposes a multilevel segmentation methodology for efficiently segmenting intracranial aneurysms in CTA images. Methods: The proposed methodology first uses the lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) to extract the lumen part directly from the original image. Then, the LBM is applied again on an intermediate image whose lumen part is filled by the mean gray-level value outside the lumen, to yield an image region containing part of the aneurysm boundary. After that, an expanding disk is introduced to estimate the complete contour of the aneurysm. Finally, the contour detected is used as the initial contour of the level set with ellipse to refine the aneurysm. Results: The results obtained on 11 patients from different hospitals showed that the proposed segmentation was comparable with manual segmentation, and that quantitatively, the average segmentation matching factor (SMF) reached 86.99%, demonstrating good segmentation accuracy. Chan–Vese method, Sen’s model, and Luca’s model were used to compare the proposed method and their average SMF values were 39.98%, 40.76%, and 77.11%, respectively. Conclusions: The authors have presented a multilevel segmentation method based on the LBM and level set with ellipse for accurate segmentation of intracranial aneurysms. Compared to three existing methods, for all eleven patients, the proposed method can successfully segment the lumen with the highest SMF values for nine patients and second highest SMF values for the two. It also segments the entire aneurysm with the highest SMF values for ten patients and second highest SMF value for the one. This makes it potential for clinical assessment of the volume and aspect ratio of the intracranial aneurysms.

Mixed raster content segmentation, compression, transmission

CERN Document Server

Pavlidis, George

2017-01-01

This book presents the main concepts in handling digital images of mixed content, traditionally referenced as mixed raster content (MRC), in two main parts. The first includes introductory chapters covering the scientific and technical background aspects, whereas the second presents a set of research and development approaches to tackle key issues in MRC segmentation, compression and transmission. The book starts with a review of color theory and the mechanism of color vision in humans. In turn, the second chapter reviews data coding and compression methods so as to set the background and demonstrate the complexity involved in dealing with MRC. Chapter three addresses the segmentation of images through an extensive literature review, which highlights the various approaches used to tackle MRC segmentation. The second part of the book focuses on the segmentation of color images for optimized compression, including multi-layered decomposition and representation of MRC and the processes that can be employed to op...

Segmentation and packaging reactor vessels internals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boucau, Joseph

2014-01-01

Document available in abstract form only, full text follows: With more than 25 years of experience in the development of reactor vessel internals and reactor vessel segmentation and packaging technology, Westinghouse has accumulated significant know-how in the reactor dismantling market. The primary challenges of a segmentation and packaging project are to separate the highly activated materials from the less-activated materials and package them into appropriate containers for disposal. Since disposal cost is a key factor, it is important to plan and optimize waste segmentation and packaging. The choice of the optimum cutting technology is also important for a successful project implementation and depends on some specific constraints. Detailed 3-D modeling is the basis for tooling design and provides invaluable support in determining the optimum strategy for component cutting and disposal in waste containers, taking account of the radiological and packaging constraints. The usual method is to start at the end of the process, by evaluating handling of the containers, the waste disposal requirements, what type and size of containers are available for the different disposal options, and working backwards to select a cutting method and finally the cut geometry required. The 3-D models can include intelligent data such as weight, center of gravity, curie content, etc, for each segmented piece, which is very useful when comparing various cutting, handling and packaging options. The detailed 3-D analyses and thorough characterization assessment can draw the attention to material potentially subject to clearance, either directly or after certain period of decay, to allow recycling and further disposal cost reduction. Westinghouse has developed a variety of special cutting and handling tools, support fixtures, service bridges, water filtration systems, video-monitoring systems and customized rigging, all of which are required for a successful reactor vessel internals

Clusterwise regression and market segmentation : developments and applications

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wedel, M.

1990-01-01

The present work consists of two major parts. In the first part the literature on market segmentation is reviewed, in the second part a set of new methods for market segmentation are developed and applied.

Part 1 starts with a discussion of the segmentation concept, and proceeds

The Teaching Evaluation Process: Segmentation of Marketing Students.

Science.gov (United States)

Yau, Oliver H. M.; Kwan, Wayne

1993-01-01

A study applied the concept of market segmentation to student evaluation of college teaching, by assessing whether there exist several segments of students and how this relates to their evaluation of faculty. Subjects were 156 Australian undergraduate business administration students. Results suggest segments do exist, with different expectations…

Segment-segment interactions of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) in aqueous methanol solutions by using small-angle scattering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shimizu, S.; Kurita, K.; Furusaka, M.

2002-01-01

Small-angle neutron and X-ray scattering from semidilute solutions of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) in D 2 O, methanol and methanol-water mixtures has been measured in the poor solvent regime. The binary and the ternary cluster integrals of polymer segments were determined from the concentration dependence of the correlation length at several temperatures just below the lower critical solution temperature. Then, contributions of segment-segment interactions to the entropy and the enthalpy have been calculated from the temperature dependence of interaction parameters and it has been found that both values are positive in the D 2 O and the methanol-water systems at a small content of methanol, while both values are negative in the other system. (orig.)

Segmentation of medical images using explicit anatomical knowledge

Science.gov (United States)

Wilson, Laurie S.; Brown, Stephen; Brown, Matthew S.; Young, Jeanne; Li, Rongxin; Luo, Suhuai; Brandt, Lee

1999-07-01

Knowledge-based image segmentation is defined in terms of the separation of image analysis procedures and representation of knowledge. Such architecture is particularly suitable for medical image segmentation, because of the large amount of structured domain knowledge. A general methodology for the application of knowledge-based methods to medical image segmentation is described. This includes frames for knowledge representation, fuzzy logic for anatomical variations, and a strategy for determining the order of segmentation from the modal specification. This method has been applied to three separate problems, 3D thoracic CT, chest X-rays and CT angiography. The application of the same methodology to such a range of applications suggests a major role in medical imaging for segmentation methods incorporating representation of anatomical knowledge.

Fully convolutional network with cluster for semantic segmentation

Science.gov (United States)

Ma, Xiao; Chen, Zhongbi; Zhang, Jianlin

2018-04-01

At present, image semantic segmentation technology has been an active research topic for scientists in the field of computer vision and artificial intelligence. Especially, the extensive research of deep neural network in image recognition greatly promotes the development of semantic segmentation. This paper puts forward a method based on fully convolutional network, by cluster algorithm k-means. The cluster algorithm using the image's low-level features and initializing the cluster centers by the super-pixel segmentation is proposed to correct the set of points with low reliability, which are mistakenly classified in great probability, by the set of points with high reliability in each clustering regions. This method refines the segmentation of the target contour and improves the accuracy of the image segmentation.

User-guided segmentation for volumetric retinal optical coherence tomography images

Science.gov (United States)

Yin, Xin; Chao, Jennifer R.; Wang, Ruikang K.

2014-01-01

Abstract. Despite the existence of automatic segmentation techniques, trained graders still rely on manual segmentation to provide retinal layers and features from clinical optical coherence tomography (OCT) images for accurate measurements. To bridge the gap between this time-consuming need of manual segmentation and currently available automatic segmentation techniques, this paper proposes a user-guided segmentation method to perform the segmentation of retinal layers and features in OCT images. With this method, by interactively navigating three-dimensional (3-D) OCT images, the user first manually defines user-defined (or sketched) lines at regions where the retinal layers appear very irregular for which the automatic segmentation method often fails to provide satisfactory results. The algorithm is then guided by these sketched lines to trace the entire 3-D retinal layer and anatomical features by the use of novel layer and edge detectors that are based on robust likelihood estimation. The layer and edge boundaries are finally obtained to achieve segmentation. Segmentation of retinal layers in mouse and human OCT images demonstrates the reliability and efficiency of the proposed user-guided segmentation method. PMID:25147962

Characterizing and reaching high-risk drinkers using audience segmentation.

Science.gov (United States)

Moss, Howard B; Kirby, Susan D; Donodeo, Fred

2009-08-01

Market or audience segmentation is widely used in social marketing efforts to help planners identify segments of a population to target for tailored program interventions. Market-based segments are typically defined by behaviors, attitudes, knowledge, opinions, or lifestyles. They are more helpful to health communication and marketing planning than epidemiologically defined groups because market-based segments are similar in respect to how they behave or might react to marketing and communication efforts. However, market segmentation has rarely been used in alcohol research. As an illustration of its utility, we employed commercial data that describes the sociodemographic characteristics of high-risk drinkers as an audience segment, including where they tend to live, lifestyles, interests, consumer behaviors, alcohol consumption behaviors, other health-related behaviors, and cultural values. Such information can be extremely valuable in targeting and planning public health campaigns, targeted mailings, prevention interventions, and research efforts. We described the results of a segmentation analysis of those individuals who self-reported to consume 5 or more drinks per drinking episode at least twice in the last 30 days. The study used the proprietary PRIZM (Claritas, Inc., San Diego, CA) audience segmentation database merged with the Center for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) database. The top 10 of the 66 PRIZM audience segments for this risky drinking pattern are described. For five of these segments we provided additional in-depth details about consumer behavior and the estimates of the market areas where these risky drinkers resided. The top 10 audience segments (PRIZM clusters) most likely to engage in high-risk drinking are described. The cluster with the highest concentration of binge-drinking behavior is referred to as the "Cyber Millenials." This cluster is characterized as "the nation's tech

Brain tumor segmentation based on a hybrid clustering technique

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eman Abdel-Maksoud

2015-03-01

This paper presents an efficient image segmentation approach using K-means clustering technique integrated with Fuzzy C-means algorithm. It is followed by thresholding and level set segmentation stages to provide an accurate brain tumor detection. The proposed technique can get benefits of the K-means clustering for image segmentation in the aspects of minimal computation time. In addition, it can get advantages of the Fuzzy C-means in the aspects of accuracy. The performance of the proposed image segmentation approach was evaluated by comparing it with some state of the art segmentation algorithms in case of accuracy, processing time, and performance. The accuracy was evaluated by comparing the results with the ground truth of each processed image. The experimental results clarify the effectiveness of our proposed approach to deal with a higher number of segmentation problems via improving the segmentation quality and accuracy in minimal execution time.

Congenital segmental dilatation of the colon

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Congenital segmental dilatation of the colon is a rare cause of intestinal obstruction in neonates. We report a case of congenital segmental dilatation of the colon and highlight the clinical, radiological, and histopathological features of this entity. Proper surgical treatment was initiated on the basis of preoperative radiological ...

Handwriting segmentation of unconstrained Oriya text

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Based on vertical projection profiles and structural features of Oriya characters, text lines are segmented into words. For character segmentation, at first, the isolated and connected (touching) characters in a word are detected. Using structural, topological and water reservoir concept-based features, characters of the word ...

47 CFR 101.1505 - Segmentation plan.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-10-01

... 47 Telecommunication 5 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Segmentation plan. 101.1505 Section 101.1505 Telecommunication FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (CONTINUED) SAFETY AND SPECIAL RADIO SERVICES FIXED MICROWAVE SERVICES Service and Technical Rules for the 70/80/90 GHz Bands § 101.1505 Segmentation plan. (a) An entity...

Spinal segmental dysgenesis | Mahomed | SA Journal of Radiology

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Spinal segmental dysgenesis is a rare congenital spinal abnormality seen in neonates and infants, in which a segment of the spine and spinal cord fails to develop normally. The condition is segmental in nature, with vertebrae above and below the malformation. It is commonly associated with various abnormalities that ...

Variational mesh segmentation via quadric surface fitting

KAUST Repository

Yan, Dongming; Wang, Wen Ping; Liu, Yang; Yang, Zhouwang

2012-01-01

We present a new variational method for mesh segmentation by fitting quadric surfaces. Each component of the resulting segmentation is represented by a general quadric surface (including plane as a special case). A novel energy function is defined to evaluate the quality of the segmentation, which combines both L2 and L2 ,1 metrics from a triangle to a quadric surface. The Lloyd iteration is used to minimize the energy function, which repeatedly interleaves between mesh partition and quadric surface fitting. We also integrate feature-based and simplification-based techniques in the segmentation framework, which greatly improve the performance. The advantages of our algorithm are demonstrated by comparing with the state-of-the-art methods. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Variational mesh segmentation via quadric surface fitting

KAUST Repository

Yan, Dongming

2012-11-01

We present a new variational method for mesh segmentation by fitting quadric surfaces. Each component of the resulting segmentation is represented by a general quadric surface (including plane as a special case). A novel energy function is defined to evaluate the quality of the segmentation, which combines both L2 and L2 ,1 metrics from a triangle to a quadric surface. The Lloyd iteration is used to minimize the energy function, which repeatedly interleaves between mesh partition and quadric surface fitting. We also integrate feature-based and simplification-based techniques in the segmentation framework, which greatly improve the performance. The advantages of our algorithm are demonstrated by comparing with the state-of-the-art methods. © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Adapting Mask-RCNN for Automatic Nucleus Segmentation

OpenAIRE

Johnson, Jeremiah W.

2018-01-01

Automatic segmentation of microscopy images is an important task in medical image processing and analysis. Nucleus detection is an important example of this task. Mask-RCNN is a recently proposed state-of-the-art algorithm for object detection, object localization, and object instance segmentation of natural images. In this paper we demonstrate that Mask-RCNN can be used to perform highly effective and efficient automatic segmentations of a wide range of microscopy images of cell nuclei, for ...

MRI Brain Tumor Segmentation Methods- A Review

OpenAIRE

Gursangeet, Kaur; Jyoti, Rani

2016-01-01

Medical image processing and its segmentation is an active and interesting area for researchers. It has reached at the tremendous place in diagnosing tumors after the discovery of CT and MRI. MRI is an useful tool to detect the brain tumor and segmentation is performed to carry out the useful portion from an image. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of different image segmentation methods like watershed algorithm, morphological operations, neutrosophic sets, thresholding, K-...

Current segmented gamma-ray scanner technology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bjork, C.W.

1987-01-01

A new generation of segmented gamma-ray scanners has been developed at Los Alamos for scrap and waste measurements at the Savannah River Plant and the Los Alamos Plutonium Facility. The new designs are highly automated and exhibit special features such as good segmentation and thorough shielding to improve performance

Malignant pleural mesothelioma segmentation for photodynamic therapy planning.

Science.gov (United States)

Brahim, Wael; Mestiri, Makram; Betrouni, Nacim; Hamrouni, Kamel

2018-04-01

Medical imaging modalities such as computed tomography (CT) combined with computer-aided diagnostic processing have already become important part of clinical routine specially for pleural diseases. The segmentation of the thoracic cavity represents an extremely important task in medical imaging for different reasons. Multiple features can be extracted by analyzing the thoracic cavity space and these features are signs of pleural diseases including the malignant pleural mesothelioma (MPM) which is the main focus of our research. This paper presents a method that detects the MPM in the thoracic cavity and plans the photodynamic therapy in the preoperative phase. This is achieved by using a texture analysis of the MPM region combined with a thoracic cavity segmentation method. The algorithm to segment the thoracic cavity consists of multiple stages. First, the rib cage structure is segmented using various image processing techniques. We used the segmented rib cage to detect feature points which represent the thoracic cavity boundaries. Next, the proposed method segments the structures of the inner thoracic cage and fits 2D closed curves to the detected pleural cavity features in each slice. The missing bone structures are interpolated using a prior knowledge from manual segmentation performed by an expert. Next, the tumor region is segmented inside the thoracic cavity using a texture analysis approach. Finally, the contact surface between the tumor region and the thoracic cavity curves is reconstructed in order to plan the photodynamic therapy. Using the adjusted output of the thoracic cavity segmentation method and the MPM segmentation method, we evaluated the contact surface generated from these two steps by comparing it to the ground truth. For this evaluation, we used 10 CT scans with pathologically confirmed MPM at stages 1 and 2. We obtained a high similarity rate between the manually planned surface and our proposed method. The average value of Jaccard index

Loading effects of anterior cervical spine fusion on adjacent segments

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chien-Shiung Wang

2012-11-01

Full Text Available Adjacent segment degeneration typically follows anterior cervical spine fusion. However, the primary cause of adjacent segment degeneration remains unknown. Therefore, in order to identify the loading effects that cause adjacent segment degeneration, this study examined the loading effects to superior segments adjacent to fused bone following anterior cervical spine fusion. The C3–C6 cervical spine segments of 12 sheep were examined. Specimens were divided into the following groups: intact spine (group 1; and C5–C6 segments that were fused via cage-instrumented plate fixation (group 2. Specimens were cycled between 20° flexion and 15° extension with a displacement control of 1°/second. The tested parameters included the range of motion (ROM of each segment, torque and strain on both the body and inferior articular process at the superior segments (C3–C4 adjacent to the fused bone, and the position of the neutral axis of stress at under 20° flexion and 15° extension. Under flexion and Group 2, torque, ROM, and strain on both the bodies and facets of superior segments adjacent to the fused bone were higher than those of Group 1. Under extension and Group 2, ROM for the fused segment was less than that of Group 1; torque, ROM, and stress on both the bodies and facets of superior segments adjacent to the fused bone were higher than those of Group 1. These analytical results indicate that the muscles and ligaments require greater force to achieve cervical motion than the intact spine following anterior cervical spine fusion. In addition, ROM and stress on the bodies and facets of the joint segments adjacent to the fused bone were significantly increased. Under flexion, the neutral axis of the stress on the adjacent segment moved backward, and the stress on the bodies of the segments adjacent to the fused bone increased. These comparative results indicate that increased stress on the adjacent segments is caused by stress-shielding effects

Multidimensional Brain MRI segmentation using graph cuts

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lecoeur, Jeremy

2010-01-01

This thesis deals with the segmentation of multimodal brain MRIs by graph cuts method. First, we propose a method that utilizes three MRI modalities by merging them. The border information given by the spectral gradient is then challenged by a region information, given by the seeds selected by the user, using a graph cut algorithm. Then, we propose three enhancements of this method. The first consists in finding an optimal spectral space because the spectral gradient is based on natural images and then inadequate for multimodal medical images. This results in a learning based segmentation method. We then explore the automation of the graph cut method. Here, the various pieces of information usually given by the user are inferred from a robust expectation-maximization algorithm. We show the performance of these two enhanced versions on multiple sclerosis lesions. Finally, we integrate atlases for the automatic segmentation of deep brain structures. These three new techniques show the adaptability of our method to various problems. Our different segmentation methods are better than most of nowadays techniques, speaking of computation time or segmentation accuracy. (authors)

Compound image segmentation of published biomedical figures.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Pengyuan; Jiang, Xiangying; Kambhamettu, Chandra; Shatkay, Hagit

2018-04-01

Images convey essential information in biomedical publications. As such, there is a growing interest within the bio-curation and the bio-databases communities, to store images within publications as evidence for biomedical processes and for experimental results. However, many of the images in biomedical publications are compound images consisting of multiple panels, where each individual panel potentially conveys a different type of information. Segmenting such images into constituent panels is an essential first step toward utilizing images. In this article, we develop a new compound image segmentation system, FigSplit, which is based on Connected Component Analysis. To overcome shortcomings typically manifested by existing methods, we develop a quality assessment step for evaluating and modifying segmentations. Two methods are proposed to re-segment the images if the initial segmentation is inaccurate. Experimental results show the effectiveness of our method compared with other methods. The system is publicly available for use at: https://www.eecis.udel.edu/~compbio/FigSplit. The code is available upon request. shatkay@udel.edu. Supplementary data are available online at Bioinformatics.

Contour tracing for segmentation of mammographic masses

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Elter, Matthias; Held, Christian; Wittenberg, Thomas

2010-01-01

CADx systems have the potential to support radiologists in the difficult task of discriminating benign and malignant mammographic lesions. The segmentation of mammographic masses from the background tissue is an important module of CADx systems designed for the characterization of mass lesions. In this work, a novel approach to this task is presented. The segmentation is performed by automatically tracing the mass' contour in-between manually provided landmark points defined on the mass' margin. The performance of the proposed approach is compared to the performance of implementations of three state-of-the-art approaches based on region growing and dynamic programming. For an unbiased comparison of the different segmentation approaches, optimal parameters are selected for each approach by means of tenfold cross-validation and a genetic algorithm. Furthermore, segmentation performance is evaluated on a dataset of ROI and ground-truth pairs. The proposed method outperforms the three state-of-the-art methods. The benchmark dataset will be made available with publication of this paper and will be the first publicly available benchmark dataset for mass segmentation.

Radiation between segments of the seated human body

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sørensen, Dan Nørtoft

2002-01-01

Detailed radiation properties for a thermal manikin were predicted numerically. The view factors between individual body-segments and between the body-segments and the outer surfaces were tabulated. On an integral basis, the findings compared well to other studies and the results showed...... that situations exist for which radiation between individual body segments is important....

Small-angle neutron scattering of short-segment block polymers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cooper, S.L.; Miller, J.A.; Homan, J.G.

1988-01-01

Small-angle neutron scattering has been used to investigate the chain conformation of the hard and soft segments in short-segment polyether-polyester and polyether-polyurethane materials. The method of phase-contrast matching was used to eliminate the coherent neutron scattering due to the two-phase microstructure in these materials. The partial deutero-labelling necessary for this technique also provides a neutron scattering contrast between labelled and unlabelled segments. The structure factor for each segment type is determined from the coherent scattering from such deuterolabelled materials. In all of the materials examined, the poly(tetramethylene oxide) (PTMO) soft segment was found to be in a slightly extended conformation relative to bulk PTMO at room temperature. Upon heating, the PTMO segments contracted to a more relaxed conformation. In one polyether-polyurethane sample, the radius of gyration of the PTMO segment increased again at high temperatures, indicating phase mixing. The hardsegment radii of gyration in the polyether-polyester materials were found to increase with temperature, indicating a transition from a chain-folded conformation at room temperature to a more extended conformation at higher temperatures. The radius of gyration of the whole polyether-polyester chain first decreased then increased with temperature, indicative of the combined effects of the component hard- and soft-segment chain conformation changes. The hard-segment radius of gyration in a polyether-polyurethane was observed to decrease with temperature. (orig.)

Crosstalk properties of 36-fold segmented symmetric hexagonal HPGe detectors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bruyneel, Bart; Reiter, Peter; Wiens, Andreas; Eberth, Juergen; Hess, Herbert; Pascovici, Gheorghe; Warr, Nigel; Weisshaar, Dirk

2009-01-01

Crosstalk properties of three 36-fold segmented, symmetric, large volume, HPGe detectors from the AGATA Collaboration were deduced from coincidence measurements performed with digitized segment and core signals after interaction of γ rays with energies of 1.33 MeV. The mean energy values measured by the core signal fluctuate for γ-ray interactions with energy deposited in two segments. A regular pattern is observed depending on the hit segment combinations. The core energy shifts deviate 0.03-0.06% from the average energy calibration. The segment-sum energy is reduced with respect to the core energy as a function of the decoupling capacitance and the segment multiplicity. The deviation of the segment-sum energies from multiplicity two events fluctuates within an interval of less than 0.1% depending on the different segment combinations. The energy shifts caused by crosstalk for the core and segment signals are comparable for all three detectors. A linear electronic model of the detector and preamplifier assembly was developed to evaluate the results. The fold-dependent energy shifts of the segment-sum energies are reproduced. The model yields a constant shift in all segments, proportional to the core signal. The measured crosstalk pattern and its intensity variation in the segments agree well with the calculated values. The regular variation observed in the core energies cannot be directly related to crosstalk and may be caused by other effects like electron trapping.

Coupled dictionary learning for joint MR image restoration and segmentation

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Xuesong; Fan, Yong

2018-03-01

To achieve better segmentation of MR images, image restoration is typically used as a preprocessing step, especially for low-quality MR images. Recent studies have demonstrated that dictionary learning methods could achieve promising performance for both image restoration and image segmentation. These methods typically learn paired dictionaries of image patches from different sources and use a common sparse representation to characterize paired image patches, such as low-quality image patches and their corresponding high quality counterparts for the image restoration, and image patches and their corresponding segmentation labels for the image segmentation. Since learning these dictionaries jointly in a unified framework may improve the image restoration and segmentation simultaneously, we propose a coupled dictionary learning method to concurrently learn dictionaries for joint image restoration and image segmentation based on sparse representations in a multi-atlas image segmentation framework. Particularly, three dictionaries, including a dictionary of low quality image patches, a dictionary of high quality image patches, and a dictionary of segmentation label patches, are learned in a unified framework so that the learned dictionaries of image restoration and segmentation can benefit each other. Our method has been evaluated for segmenting the hippocampus in MR T1 images collected with scanners of different magnetic field strengths. The experimental results have demonstrated that our method achieved better image restoration and segmentation performance than state of the art dictionary learning and sparse representation based image restoration and image segmentation methods.

Automatic segmentation of colon glands using object-graphs.

Science.gov (United States)

Gunduz-Demir, Cigdem; Kandemir, Melih; Tosun, Akif Burak; Sokmensuer, Cenk

2010-02-01

Gland segmentation is an important step to automate the analysis of biopsies that contain glandular structures. However, this remains a challenging problem as the variation in staining, fixation, and sectioning procedures lead to a considerable amount of artifacts and variances in tissue sections, which may result in huge variances in gland appearances. In this work, we report a new approach for gland segmentation. This approach decomposes the tissue image into a set of primitive objects and segments glands making use of the organizational properties of these objects, which are quantified with the definition of object-graphs. As opposed to the previous literature, the proposed approach employs the object-based information for the gland segmentation problem, instead of using the pixel-based information alone. Working with the images of colon tissues, our experiments demonstrate that the proposed object-graph approach yields high segmentation accuracies for the training and test sets and significantly improves the segmentation performance of its pixel-based counterparts. The experiments also show that the object-based structure of the proposed approach provides more tolerance to artifacts and variances in tissues.

WATERSHED ALGORITHM BASED SEGMENTATION FOR HANDWRITTEN TEXT IDENTIFICATION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

P. Mathivanan

2014-02-01

Full Text Available In this paper we develop a system for writer identification which involves four processing steps like preprocessing, segmentation, feature extraction and writer identification using neural network. In the preprocessing phase the handwritten text is subjected to slant removal process for segmentation and feature extraction. After this step the text image enters into the process of noise removal and gray level conversion. The preprocessed image is further segmented by using morphological watershed algorithm, where the text lines are segmented into single words and then into single letters. The segmented image is feature extracted by Daubechies’5/3 integer wavelet transform to reduce training complexity [1, 6]. This process is lossless and reversible [10], [14]. These extracted features are given as input to our neural network for writer identification process and a target image is selected for each training process in the 2-layer neural network. With the several trained output data obtained from different target help in text identification. It is a multilingual text analysis which provides simple and efficient text segmentation.

Segment-segment interactions of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) in aqueous methanol solutions by using small-angle scattering

CERN Document Server

Shimizu, S; Furusaka, M

2002-01-01

Small-angle neutron and X-ray scattering from semidilute solutions of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) in D sub 2 O, methanol and methanol-water mixtures has been measured in the poor solvent regime. The binary and the ternary cluster integrals of polymer segments were determined from the concentration dependence of the correlation length at several temperatures just below the lower critical solution temperature. Then, contributions of segment-segment interactions to the entropy and the enthalpy have been calculated from the temperature dependence of interaction parameters and it has been found that both values are positive in the D sub 2 O and the methanol-water systems at a small content of methanol, while both values are negative in the other system. (orig.)

Proposal of a segmentation procedure for skid resistance data

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tejeda, S. V.; Tampier, Hernan de Solominihac; Navarro, T.E.

2008-01-01

Skin resistance of pavements presents a high spatial variability along a road. This pavement characteristic is directly related to wet weather accidents; therefore, it is important to identify and characterize the skid resistance of homogeneous segments along a road in order to implement proper road safety management. Several data segmentation methods have been applied to other pavement characteristics (e.g. roughness). However, no application to skin resistance data was found during the literature review for this study. Typical segmentation methods are rather too general or too specific to ensure a detailed segmentation of skid resistance data, which can be used for managing pavement performance. The main objective of this paper is to propose a procedure for segmenting skid resistance data, based on existing data segmentation methods. The procedure needs to be efficient and to fulfill road management requirements. The proposed procedure considers the Leverage method to identify outlier data, the CUSUM method to accomplish initial data segmentation and a statistical method to group consecutive segments that are statistically similar. The statistical method applies the Student's t-test of mean equities, along with analysis of variance and the Tuckey test for the multiple comparison of means. The proposed procedure was applied to a sample of skid resistance data measured with SCRIM (Side Force Coefficient Routine Investigatory Machine) on a 4.2 km section of Chilean road and was compared to conventional segmentation methods. Results showed that the proposed procedure is more efficient than the conventional segmentation procedures, achieving the minimum weighted sum of square errors (SSEp) with all the identified segments statistically different. Due to its mathematical basis, proposed procedure can be easily adapted and programmed for use in road safety management. (author)

A comprehensive segmentation analysis of crude oil market based on time irreversibility

Science.gov (United States)

Xia, Jianan; Shang, Pengjian; Lu, Dan; Yin, Yi

2016-05-01

In this paper, we perform a comprehensive entropic segmentation analysis of crude oil future prices from 1983 to 2014 which used the Jensen-Shannon divergence as the statistical distance between segments, and analyze the results from original series S and series begin at 1986 (marked as S∗) to find common segments which have same boundaries. Then we apply time irreversibility analysis of each segment to divide all segments into two groups according to their asymmetry degree. Based on the temporal distribution of the common segments and high asymmetry segments, we figure out that these two types of segments appear alternately and do not overlap basically in daily group, while the common portions are also high asymmetry segments in weekly group. In addition, the temporal distribution of the common segments is fairly close to the time of crises, wars or other events, because the hit from severe events to oil price makes these common segments quite different from their adjacent segments. The common segments can be confirmed in daily group series, or weekly group series due to the large divergence between common segments and their neighbors. While the identification of high asymmetry segments is helpful to know the segments which are not affected badly by the events and can recover to steady states automatically. Finally, we rearrange the segments by merging the connected common segments or high asymmetry segments into a segment, and conjoin the connected segments which are neither common nor high asymmetric.

Cache-Oblivious Red-Blue Line Segment Intersection

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Arge, Lars; Mølhave, Thomas; Zeh, Norbert

2008-01-01

We present an optimal cache-oblivious algorithm for finding all intersections between a set of non-intersecting red segments and a set of non-intersecting blue segments in the plane. Our algorithm uses $O(\\frac{N}{B}\\log_{M/B}\\frac{N}{B}+T/B)$ memory transfers, where N is the total number...... of segments, M and B are the memory and block transfer sizes of any two consecutive levels of any multilevel memory hierarchy, and T is the number of intersections....

Characterizing and Reaching High-Risk Drinkers Using Audience Segmentation

Science.gov (United States)

Moss, Howard B.; Kirby, Susan D.; Donodeo, Fred

2010-01-01

Background Market or audience segmentation is widely used in social marketing efforts to help planners identify segments of a population to target for tailored program interventions. Market-based segments are typically defined by behaviors, attitudes, knowledge, opinions, or lifestyles. They are more helpful to health communication and marketing planning than epidemiologically-defined groups because market-based segments are similar in respect to how they behave or might react to marketing and communication efforts. However, market segmentation has rarely been used in alcohol research. As an illustration of its utility, we employed commercial data that describes the sociodemographic characteristics of high-risk drinkers as an audience segment; where they tend to live, lifestyles, interests, consumer behaviors, alcohol consumption behaviors, other health-related behaviors, and cultural values. Such information can be extremely valuable in targeting and planning public health campaigns, targeted mailings, prevention interventions and research efforts. Methods We describe the results of a segmentation analysis of those individuals who self-report consuming five or more drinks per drinking episode at least twice in the last 30-days. The study used the proprietary PRIZM™ audience segmentation database merged with Center for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) database. The top ten of the 66 PRIZM™ audience segments for this risky drinking pattern are described. For five of these segments we provide additional in-depth details about consumer behavior and the estimates of the market areas where these risky drinkers reside. Results The top ten audience segments (PRIZM clusters) most likely to engage in high-risk drinking are described. The cluster with the highest concentration of binge drinking behavior is referred to as the “Cyber Millenials.” This cluster is characterized as “the nation's tech-savvy singles

Open segmental fracture of both bone forearm and dislocation of ipsilateral elbow with extruded middle segment radius

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pawan Kumar

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Extruded middle segment of radius with open segmental fracture both bone forearm and dislocation of ipsilateral elbow is a rare injury. A 12-year-old child presented to us within 4 hours following fall from tree. The child′s mother was carrying a 12-cm-long extruded soiled segment of radius. The extruded bone was thoroughly washed. The medullary cavity was properly syringed with antiseptic solution. The bone was autoclaved and put in the muscle plane of the distal forearm after debridement of the wound. After 5 days, a 2.5-mm K-wire was introduced by retrograde method into the proximal radius by passing through the extruded segment. Another 2.5-mm K-wire was passed in ulna. The limb was evaluated clinicoradiologically every 2 weeks. The wound was healed by primary intention. At 4 months, the reposed bone appeared less dense radiologically and K-wire seemed to be out of the bone. In the subsequent months, the roentgenograms show remodeling of the extruded fragment. After 20 weeks, the K-wires were removed (first ulnar and then radial. Complete union was achieved with full range of movement except loss of few degrees of extension of elbow and thumb. This case is reported to show a good outcome following successful incorporation of an extruded segment of radius in an open fracture.

Market segmentation, targeting and positioning

OpenAIRE

Camilleri, Mark Anthony

2017-01-01

Businesses may not be in a position to satisfy all of their customers, every time. It may prove difficult to meet the exact requirements of each individual customer. People do not have identical preferences, so rarely does one product completely satisfy everyone. Many companies may usually adopt a strategy that is known as target marketing. This strategy involves dividing the market into segments and developing products or services to these segments. A target marketing strategy is focused on ...

A Novel Iris Segmentation Scheme

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chen-Chung Liu

2014-01-01

Full Text Available One of the key steps in the iris recognition system is the accurate iris segmentation from its surrounding noises including pupil, sclera, eyelashes, and eyebrows of a captured eye-image. This paper presents a novel iris segmentation scheme which utilizes the orientation matching transform to outline the outer and inner iris boundaries initially. It then employs Delogne-Kåsa circle fitting (instead of the traditional Hough transform to further eliminate the outlier points to extract a more precise iris area from an eye-image. In the extracted iris region, the proposed scheme further utilizes the differences in the intensity and positional characteristics of the iris, eyelid, and eyelashes to detect and delete these noises. The scheme is then applied on iris image database, UBIRIS.v1. The experimental results show that the presented scheme provides a more effective and efficient iris segmentation than other conventional methods.

Fully-automated approach to hippocampus segmentation using a graph-cuts algorithm combined with atlas-based segmentation and morphological opening.

Science.gov (United States)

Kwak, Kichang; Yoon, Uicheul; Lee, Dong-Kyun; Kim, Geon Ha; Seo, Sang Won; Na, Duk L; Shim, Hack-Joon; Lee, Jong-Min

2013-09-01

The hippocampus has been known to be an important structure as a biomarker for Alzheimer's disease (AD) and other neurological and psychiatric diseases. However, it requires accurate, robust and reproducible delineation of hippocampal structures. In this study, an automated hippocampal segmentation method based on a graph-cuts algorithm combined with atlas-based segmentation and morphological opening was proposed. First of all, the atlas-based segmentation was applied to define initial hippocampal region for a priori information on graph-cuts. The definition of initial seeds was further elaborated by incorporating estimation of partial volume probabilities at each voxel. Finally, morphological opening was applied to reduce false positive of the result processed by graph-cuts. In the experiments with twenty-seven healthy normal subjects, the proposed method showed more reliable results (similarity index=0.81±0.03) than the conventional atlas-based segmentation method (0.72±0.04). Also as for segmentation accuracy which is measured in terms of the ratios of false positive and false negative, the proposed method (precision=0.76±0.04, recall=0.86±0.05) produced lower ratios than the conventional methods (0.73±0.05, 0.72±0.06) demonstrating its plausibility for accurate, robust and reliable segmentation of hippocampus. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Automated ventricular systems segmentation in brain CT images by combining low-level segmentation and high-level template matching

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ward Kevin R

2009-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Accurate analysis of CT brain scans is vital for diagnosis and treatment of Traumatic Brain Injuries (TBI. Automatic processing of these CT brain scans could speed up the decision making process, lower the cost of healthcare, and reduce the chance of human error. In this paper, we focus on automatic processing of CT brain images to segment and identify the ventricular systems. The segmentation of ventricles provides quantitative measures on the changes of ventricles in the brain that form vital diagnosis information. Methods First all CT slices are aligned by detecting the ideal midlines in all images. The initial estimation of the ideal midline of the brain is found based on skull symmetry and then the initial estimate is further refined using detected anatomical features. Then a two-step method is used for ventricle segmentation. First a low-level segmentation on each pixel is applied on the CT images. For this step, both Iterated Conditional Mode (ICM and Maximum A Posteriori Spatial Probability (MASP are evaluated and compared. The second step applies template matching algorithm to identify objects in the initial low-level segmentation as ventricles. Experiments for ventricle segmentation are conducted using a relatively large CT dataset containing mild and severe TBI cases. Results Experiments show that the acceptable rate of the ideal midline detection is over 95%. Two measurements are defined to evaluate ventricle recognition results. The first measure is a sensitivity-like measure and the second is a false positive-like measure. For the first measurement, the rate is 100% indicating that all ventricles are identified in all slices. The false positives-like measurement is 8.59%. We also point out the similarities and differences between ICM and MASP algorithms through both mathematically relationships and segmentation results on CT images. Conclusion The experiments show the reliability of the proposed algorithms. The

AUTOMATIC MULTILEVEL IMAGE SEGMENTATION BASED ON FUZZY REASONING

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Liang Tang

2011-05-01

Full Text Available An automatic multilevel image segmentation method based on sup-star fuzzy reasoning (SSFR is presented. Using the well-known sup-star fuzzy reasoning technique, the proposed algorithm combines the global statistical information implied in the histogram with the local information represented by the fuzzy sets of gray-levels, and aggregates all the gray-levels into several classes characterized by the local maximum values of the histogram. The presented method has the merits of determining the number of the segmentation classes automatically, and avoiding to calculating thresholds of segmentation. Emulating and real image segmentation experiments demonstrate that the SSFR is effective.

Segmented bimorph mirrors for adaptive optics: morphing strategy.

Science.gov (United States)

Bastaits, Renaud; Alaluf, David; Belloni, Edoardo; Rodrigues, Gonçalo; Preumont, André

2014-08-01

This paper discusses the concept of a light weight segmented bimorph mirror for adaptive optics. It focuses on the morphing strategy and addresses the ill-conditioning of the Jacobian of the segments, which are partly outside the optical pupil. Two options are discussed, one based on truncating the singular values and one called damped least squares, which minimizes a combined measure of the sensor error and the voltage vector. A comparison of various configurations of segmented mirrors was conducted; it is shown that segmentation sharply increases the natural frequency of the system with limited deterioration of the image quality.

The semiotics of medical image Segmentation.

Science.gov (United States)

Baxter, John S H; Gibson, Eli; Eagleson, Roy; Peters, Terry M

2018-02-01

As the interaction between clinicians and computational processes increases in complexity, more nuanced mechanisms are required to describe how their communication is mediated. Medical image segmentation in particular affords a large number of distinct loci for interaction which can act on a deep, knowledge-driven level which complicates the naive interpretation of the computer as a symbol processing machine. Using the perspective of the computer as dialogue partner, we can motivate the semiotic understanding of medical image segmentation. Taking advantage of Peircean semiotic traditions and new philosophical inquiry into the structure and quality of metaphors, we can construct a unified framework for the interpretation of medical image segmentation as a sign exchange in which each sign acts as an interface metaphor. This allows for a notion of finite semiosis, described through a schematic medium, that can rigorously describe how clinicians and computers interpret the signs mediating their interaction. Altogether, this framework provides a unified approach to the understanding and development of medical image segmentation interfaces. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Analysis of prestressed concrete wall segments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koziak, B.D.P.; Murray, D.W.

1979-06-01

An iterative numerical technique for analysing the biaxial response of reinforced and prestressed concrete wall segments subject to combinations of prestressing, creep, temperature and live loads is presented. Two concrete constitutive relations are available for this analysis. The first is a uniaxially bilinear model with a tension cut-off. The second is a nonlinear biaxial relation incorporating equivalent uniaxial strains to remove the Poissons's ratio effect under biaxial loading. Predictions from both the bilinear and nonlinear model are compared with observations from experimental wall segments tested in tension. The nonlinear model results are shown to be close to those of the test segments, while the bilinear results are good up to cracking. Further comparisons are made between the nonlinear analysis using constant membrane force-moment ratios, constant membrane force-curvature ratios, and a nonlinear finite difference analysis of a test containment structure. Neither nonlinear analysis could predict the reponse of every wall segment within the structure, but the constant membrane force-moment analysis provided lower bound results. (author)

Utilising Tree-Based Ensemble Learning for Speaker Segmentation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Abou-Zleikha, Mohamed; Tan, Zheng-Hua; Christensen, Mads Græsbøll

2014-01-01

In audio and speech processing, accurate detection of the changing points between multiple speakers in speech segments is an important stage for several applications such as speaker identification and tracking. Bayesian Information Criteria (BIC)-based approaches are the most traditionally used...... for a certain condition, the model becomes biased to the data used for training limiting the model’s generalisation ability. In this paper, we propose a BIC-based tuning-free approach for speaker segmentation through the use of ensemble-based learning. A forest of segmentation trees is constructed in which each...... tree is trained using a sampled version of the speech segment. During the tree construction process, a set of randomly selected points in the input sequence is examined as potential segmentation points. The point that yields the highest ΔBIC is chosen and the same process is repeated for the resultant...

COMPARISON AND EVALUATION OF CLUSTER BASED IMAGE SEGMENTATION TECHNIQUES

OpenAIRE

Hetangi D. Mehta*, Daxa Vekariya, Pratixa Badelia

2017-01-01

Image segmentation is the classification of an image into different groups. Numerous algorithms using different approaches have been proposed for image segmentation. A major challenge in segmentation evaluation comes from the fundamental conflict between generality and objectivity. A review is done on different types of clustering methods used for image segmentation. Also a methodology is proposed to classify and quantify different clustering algorithms based on their consistency in different...

Video-based noncooperative iris image segmentation.

Science.gov (United States)

Du, Yingzi; Arslanturk, Emrah; Zhou, Zhi; Belcher, Craig

2011-02-01

In this paper, we propose a video-based noncooperative iris image segmentation scheme that incorporates a quality filter to quickly eliminate images without an eye, employs a coarse-to-fine segmentation scheme to improve the overall efficiency, uses a direct least squares fitting of ellipses method to model the deformed pupil and limbic boundaries, and develops a window gradient-based method to remove noise in the iris region. A remote iris acquisition system is set up to collect noncooperative iris video images. An objective method is used to quantitatively evaluate the accuracy of the segmentation results. The experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of this method. The proposed method would make noncooperative iris recognition or iris surveillance possible.

Multi-granularity synthesis segmentation for high spatial resolution Remote sensing images

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yi, Lina; Liu, Pengfei; Qiao, Xiaojun; Zhang, Xiaoning; Gao, Yuan; Feng, Boyan

2014-01-01

Traditional segmentation method can only partition an image in a single granularity space, with segmentation accuracy limited to the single granularity space. This paper proposes a multi-granularity synthesis segmentation method for high spatial resolution remote sensing images based on a quotient space model. Firstly, we divide the whole image area into multiple granules (regions), each region is consisted of ground objects that have similar optimal segmentation scale, and then select and synthesize the sub-optimal segmentations of each region to get the final segmentation result. To validate this method, the land cover category map is used to guide the scale synthesis of multi-scale image segmentations for Quickbird image land use classification. Firstly, the image is coarsely divided into multiple regions, each region belongs to a certain land cover category. Then multi-scale segmentation results are generated by the Mumford-Shah function based region merging method. For each land cover category, the optimal segmentation scale is selected by the supervised segmentation accuracy assessment method. Finally, the optimal scales of segmentation results are synthesized under the guide of land cover category. Experiments show that the multi-granularity synthesis segmentation can produce more accurate segmentation than that of a single granularity space and benefit the classification

Contractual Incompleteness, Unemployment, and Labour Market Segmentation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Altmann, Steffen; Falk, Armin; Grunewald, Andreas

2014-01-01

This article provides evidence that involuntary unemployment, and the segmentation of labour markets into firms offering "good" and "bad" jobs, may both arise as a consequence of contractual incompleteness.We provide a simple model that illustrates how unemployment and market segmentation may...... jointly emerge as part of a market equilibrium in environments where work effort is not third-party verifiable. Using experimental labour markets that differ only in the verifiability of effort, we demonstrate empirically that contractual incompleteness can cause unemployment and segmentation. Our data...

Segmental volvulus in the neonate: A particular clinical entity.

Science.gov (United States)

Khen-Dunlop, Naziha; Beaudoin, Sylvie; Marion, Blandine; Rousseau, Véronique; Giuseppi, Agnes; Nicloux, Muriel; Grevent, David; Salomon, Laurent J; Aigrain, Yves; Lapillonne, Alexandre; Sarnacki, Sabine

2017-03-01

Complete intestinal volvulus is mainly related to congenital anomalies of the so-called intestinal malrotation, whereas segmental volvulus appears as a distinct entity, mostly observed during the perinatal period. Because these two situations are still lumped together, the aim of this study was to describe the particular condition of neonatal segmental volvulus. We analyzed the circumstances of diagnosis and management of 17 consecutives neonates operated for segmental volvulus more than a 10-year period in a single institution. During the same period, 19 cases of neonatal complete midgut volvulus were operated. Prenatal US exam anomalies were observed in 16/17 (94%) of segmental volvulus, significantly more frequently than in complete volvulus (p=0.003). Intestinal malposition was described peroperatively in all cases of complete volvulus, but also in 4/17 segmental volvulus (23%). Intestinal resection was performed in 88% of segmental volvulus when only one extensive intestinal necrosis was observed in complete volvulus. Parenteral nutrition was required in all patients with segmental volvulus with a median duration of 50days (range 5-251). Segmental volvulus occurs mainly prenatally and leads to fetal ultrasound anomalies. This situation, despite a limited length of intestinal loss, is associated to significant postnatal morbidity. Treatment study. Level IV. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Rehabilitation of Posterior Maxilla with Zygomatic and Dental Implant after Tumor Resection: A Case Report

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Faysal Ugurlu

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Zygomatic implants have been used for dental rehabilitation in patients with insufficient bone in the posterior upper jaw, due to, for example, tumor resection, trauma, or atrophy. Zygomatic implants are an alternative to complex free or vascularized bone grafting and distraction osteogenesis. A 42-year-old male patient with a severe defect in the right posterior maxilla, starting from the first canine region, which had occurred after tumor resection 3 years earlier, was referred to our department. One zygomatic implant (Brenemark System, Nobel Biocare, Goteborg, Sweden to the zygoma and one dental implant to the canine region were placed. After a 5-month osseointegration period, a fixed denture was fabricated and adapted to the implants. Although the surgical and prosthetic procedures for zygoma implants are not easy, the final outcomes can be successful with appropriate planning.

An LG-graph-based early evaluation of segmented images

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tsitsoulis, Athanasios; Bourbakis, Nikolaos

2012-01-01

Image segmentation is one of the first important parts of image analysis and understanding. Evaluation of image segmentation, however, is a very difficult task, mainly because it requires human intervention and interpretation. In this work, we propose a blind reference evaluation scheme based on regional local–global (RLG) graphs, which aims at measuring the amount and distribution of detail in images produced by segmentation algorithms. The main idea derives from the field of image understanding, where image segmentation is often used as a tool for scene interpretation and object recognition. Evaluation here derives from summarization of the structural information content and not from the assessment of performance after comparisons with a golden standard. Results show measurements for segmented images acquired from three segmentation algorithms, applied on different types of images (human faces/bodies, natural environments and structures (buildings)). (paper)

[Segment analysis of the target market of physiotherapeutic services].

Science.gov (United States)

Babaskin, D V

2010-01-01

The objective of the present study was to demonstrate the possibilities to analyse selected segments of the target market of physiotherapeutic services provided by medical and preventive-facilities of two major types. The main features of a target segment, such as provision of therapeutic massage, are illustrated in terms of two characteristics, namely attractiveness to the users and the ability of a given medical facility to satisfy their requirements. Based on the analysis of portfolio of the available target segments the most promising ones (winner segments) were selected for further marketing studies. This choice does not exclude the possibility of involvement of other segments of medical services in marketing activities.

CLG for Automatic Image Segmentation

OpenAIRE

Christo Ananth; S.Santhana Priya; S.Manisha; T.Ezhil Jothi; M.S.Ramasubhaeswari

2017-01-01

This paper proposes an automatic segmentation method which effectively combines Active Contour Model, Live Wire method and Graph Cut approach (CLG). The aim of Live wire method is to provide control to the user on segmentation process during execution. Active Contour Model provides a statistical model of object shape and appearance to a new image which are built during a training phase. In the graph cut technique, each pixel is represented as a node and the distance between those nodes is rep...

Multiple Scale Music Segmentation Using Rhythm, Timbre, and Harmony

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kristoffer Jensen

2007-01-01

Full Text Available The segmentation of music into intro-chorus-verse-outro, and similar segments, is a difficult topic. A method for performing automatic segmentation based on features related to rhythm, timbre, and harmony is presented, and compared, between the features and between the features and manual segmentation of a database of 48 songs. Standard information retrieval performance measures are used in the comparison, and it is shown that the timbre-related feature performs best.

The small angle neutron scattering study on the segmented polyurethane

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sudirman; Gunawan; Prasetyo, S.M.; Karo Karo, A.; Lahagu, I.M.; Darwinto, Tri

1999-01-01

The distance between hard segment (HS) and soft segment (SS) of segmented polyurethane have been determined using the Small Angle Neutron Scattering (SANS) technique. The segmented Polyurethanes (SPU) are linear multiblock copolymers, which include elastomer thermoplastic. SPU consist of hard segment and soft segment, each has tendency to make a group with similar type to form a domain. The soft segments used were polypropylene glycol (PPG) and 4,4 diphenylmethane diisocyanate (MDI), while l,4 butanediol (BD) was used as hard segment. The characteristic of SPU depends on its phase structure which is affected by several factors, such as type of chemical formula and the composition of the HS and SS, solvent as well as the synthesizing process. The samples used in this study were SPU56 and SPU68. Based on the appearance of SANS profile, it was obtained that domain distances are 12.32 nm for the SPU56 and 19 nm for the SPU68. (author)

Exploratory analysis of genomic segmentations with Segtools

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Buske Orion J

2011-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background As genome-wide experiments and annotations become more prevalent, researchers increasingly require tools to help interpret data at this scale. Many functional genomics experiments involve partitioning the genome into labeled segments, such that segments sharing the same label exhibit one or more biochemical or functional traits. For example, a collection of ChlP-seq experiments yields a compendium of peaks, each labeled with one or more associated DNA-binding proteins. Similarly, manually or automatically generated annotations of functional genomic elements, including cis-regulatory modules and protein-coding or RNA genes, can also be summarized as genomic segmentations. Results We present a software toolkit called Segtools that simplifies and automates the exploration of genomic segmentations. The software operates as a series of interacting tools, each of which provides one mode of summarization. These various tools can be pipelined and summarized in a single HTML page. We describe the Segtools toolkit and demonstrate its use in interpreting a collection of human histone modification data sets and Plasmodium falciparum local chromatin structure data sets. Conclusions Segtools provides a convenient, powerful means of interpreting a genomic segmentation.

Crosstalk corrections for improved energy resolution with highly segmented HPGe-detectors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bruyneel, Bart; Reiter, Peter; Wiens, Andreas; Eberth, Juergen; Hess, Herbert; Pascovici, Gheorghe; Warr, Nigel; Aydin, Sezgin; Bazzacco, Dino; Recchia, Francesco

2009-01-01

Crosstalk effects of 36-fold segmented, large volume AGATA HPGe detectors cause shifts in the γ-ray energy measured by the inner core and outer segments as function of segment multiplicity. The positions of the segment sum energy peaks vary approximately linearly with increasing segment multiplicity. The resolution of these peaks deteriorates also linearly as a function of segment multiplicity. Based on single event treatment, two methods were developed in the AGATA Collaboration to correct for the crosstalk induced effects by employing a linear transformation. The matrix elements are deduced from coincidence measurements of γ-rays of various energies as recorded with digital electronics. A very efficient way to determine the matrix elements is obtained by measuring the base line shifts of untriggered segments using γ-ray detection events in which energy is deposited in a single segment. A second approach is based on measuring segment energy values for γ-ray interaction events in which energy is deposited in only two segments. After performing crosstalk corrections, the investigated detector shows a good fit between the core energy and the segment sum energy at all multiplicities and an improved energy resolution of the segment sum energy peaks. The corrected core energy resolution equals the segment sum energy resolution which is superior at all folds compared to the individual uncorrected energy resolutions. This is achieved by combining the two independent energy measurements with the core contact on the one hand and the segment contacts on the other hand.

Adolescent audience segmentation on alcohol attitudes : A further exploration

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Janssen, M.M.; Mathijssen, J.J.P.; van Bon, M.J.H.; van Oers, J.A.M.; Garretsen, H.F.L.

2015-01-01

Introduction: In an earlier audience segmentation study, Dutch adolescents aged 12–18 years were segmented into five alcohol attitudes segments: ordinaries, high spirits, consciously sobers, ordinary sobers and socials. The current study explores several aspects of alcohol consumption and leisure

Leisure market segmentation : an integrated preferences/constraints-based approach

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Stemerding, M.P.; Oppewal, H.; Beckers, T.A.M.; Timmermans, H.J.P.

1996-01-01

Traditional segmentation schemes are often based on a grouping of consumers with similar preference functions. The research steps, ultimately leading to such segmentation schemes, are typically independent. In the present article, a new integrated approach to segmentation is introduced, which

Objectness Supervised Merging Algorithm for Color Image Segmentation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Haifeng Sima

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Ideal color image segmentation needs both low-level cues and high-level semantic features. This paper proposes a two-hierarchy segmentation model based on merging homogeneous superpixels. First, a region growing strategy is designed for producing homogenous and compact superpixels in different partitions. Total variation smoothing features are adopted in the growing procedure for locating real boundaries. Before merging, we define a combined color-texture histogram feature for superpixels description and, meanwhile, a novel objectness feature is proposed to supervise the region merging procedure for reliable segmentation. Both color-texture histograms and objectness are computed to measure regional similarities between region pairs, and the mixed standard deviation of the union features is exploited to make stop criteria for merging process. Experimental results on the popular benchmark dataset demonstrate the better segmentation performance of the proposed model compared to other well-known segmentation algorithms.

An Algorithm to Automate Yeast Segmentation and Tracking

Science.gov (United States)

Doncic, Andreas; Eser, Umut; Atay, Oguzhan; Skotheim, Jan M.

2013-01-01

Our understanding of dynamic cellular processes has been greatly enhanced by rapid advances in quantitative fluorescence microscopy. Imaging single cells has emphasized the prevalence of phenomena that can be difficult to infer from population measurements, such as all-or-none cellular decisions, cell-to-cell variability, and oscillations. Examination of these phenomena requires segmenting and tracking individual cells over long periods of time. However, accurate segmentation and tracking of cells is difficult and is often the rate-limiting step in an experimental pipeline. Here, we present an algorithm that accomplishes fully automated segmentation and tracking of budding yeast cells within growing colonies. The algorithm incorporates prior information of yeast-specific traits, such as immobility and growth rate, to segment an image using a set of threshold values rather than one specific optimized threshold. Results from the entire set of thresholds are then used to perform a robust final segmentation. PMID:23520484

Segmentation precedes face categorization under suboptimal conditions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Van Den Boomen, Carlijn; Fahrenfort, Johannes J; Snijders, Tineke M; Kemner, Chantal

2015-01-01

Both categorization and segmentation processes play a crucial role in face perception. However, the functional relation between these subprocesses is currently unclear. The present study investigates the temporal relation between segmentation-related and category-selective responses in the brain,

Timing Embryo Segmentation: Dynamics and Regulatory Mechanisms of the Vertebrate Segmentation Clock

Science.gov (United States)

Resende, Tatiana P.; Andrade, Raquel P.; Palmeirim, Isabel

2014-01-01

All vertebrate species present a segmented body, easily observed in the vertebrate column and its associated components, which provides a high degree of motility to the adult body and efficient protection of the internal organs. The sequential formation of the segmented precursors of the vertebral column during embryonic development, the somites, is governed by an oscillating genetic network, the somitogenesis molecular clock. Herein, we provide an overview of the molecular clock operating during somite formation and its underlying molecular regulatory mechanisms. Human congenital vertebral malformations have been associated with perturbations in these oscillatory mechanisms. Thus, a better comprehension of the molecular mechanisms regulating somite formation is required in order to fully understand the origin of human skeletal malformations. PMID:24895605

An innovation model of alumni relationship management: Alumni segmentation analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Natthawat Rattanamethawong

2018-01-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this study was to cluster alumni into segments to better understand the alumni's characteristics, lifestyles, types of behavior, and interests. A sample of 300 university alumni records was used to obtain their respective attribute values consisting of demographics, preferred communication channels, lifestyle, activities/interests, and expectation from university, needed information, donation willingness, and frequency of contact. The researcher used logistic regression and the k-mean clustering technique to analyze the data from the survey. Five segments could be derived from the analysis. Segment 3, the so-called “Mid Age Religious” contained the highest portion while segment 5, the so-called “Elaborate Cohort” had the least portion. Most of the population under these two segments was female. Differences were identified in age, marital status, education, occupation, position, income, experience, and field of work. The Elaborate Cohort segment represented young females having a bachelor degree, with low experience and low income, working for their first employer, and still enjoying being single. Another segment with similar values of attributes as the Elaborate Cohort was segment 1, the so-called “Activist Mainstreamer” whose field of work was computer technology. The segment called “Senior League” consisted of members older than 41 years like the Mid Age Religious segment, however all members were male. The last segment, the so-called “Passionate Learner” had members aged between 31 and 40 years. In conclusion, the results of this study can assist in formulating strategic marketing by alumni associations to satisfy and engage their alumni. Keywords: cluster, data mining, segmentation analysis, university alumni

Image segmentation algorithm based on T-junctions cues

Science.gov (United States)

Qian, Yanyu; Cao, Fengyun; Wang, Lu; Yang, Xuejie

2016-03-01

To improve the over-segmentation and over-merge phenomenon of single image segmentation algorithm,a novel approach of combing Graph-Based algorithm and T-junctions cues is proposed in this paper. First, a method by L0 gradient minimization is applied to the smoothing of the target image eliminate artifacts caused by noise and texture detail; Then, the initial over-segmentation result of the smoothing image using the graph-based algorithm; Finally, the final results via a region fusion strategy by t-junction cues. Experimental results on a variety of images verify the new approach's efficiency in eliminating artifacts caused by noise,segmentation accuracy and time complexity has been significantly improved.

White blood cell segmentation by color-space-based k-means clustering.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Congcong; Xiao, Xiaoyan; Li, Xiaomei; Chen, Ying-Jie; Zhen, Wu; Chang, Jun; Zheng, Chengyun; Liu, Zhi

2014-09-01

White blood cell (WBC) segmentation, which is important for cytometry, is a challenging issue because of the morphological diversity of WBCs and the complex and uncertain background of blood smear images. This paper proposes a novel method for the nucleus and cytoplasm segmentation of WBCs for cytometry. A color adjustment step was also introduced before segmentation. Color space decomposition and k-means clustering were combined for segmentation. A database including 300 microscopic blood smear images were used to evaluate the performance of our method. The proposed segmentation method achieves 95.7% and 91.3% overall accuracy for nucleus segmentation and cytoplasm segmentation, respectively. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method can segment WBCs effectively with high accuracy.

International Good Market Segmentation and Financial Market Structure

OpenAIRE

Basak, Suleyman; Croitoru, Benjamin

2003-01-01

While financial markets have recently become more complete and international capital flows well liberalized, markets for goods remain segmented. To investigate how more complete security markets may relieve the effects of this segmentation, we examine a series of two-country economies with internationally segmented good markets, distinguished by the available financial securities. We show that, under heterogeneity within countries, the financial structure matters: even with internationally co...

Radiographic Results of Single Level Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody Fusion in Degenerative Lumbar Spine Disease: Focusing on Changes of Segmental Lordosis in Fusion Segment

OpenAIRE

Kim, Sang-Bum; Jeon, Taek-Soo; Heo, Youn-Moo; Lee, Woo-Suk; Yi, Jin-Woong; Kim, Tae-Kyun; Hwang, Cheol-Mog

2009-01-01

Background To assess the radiographic results in patients who underwent transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (TLIF), particularly the changes in segmental lordosis in the fusion segment, whole lumbar lordosis and disc height. Methods Twenty six cases of single-level TLIF in degenerative lumbar diseases were analyzed. The changes in segmental lordosis, whole lumbar lordosis, and disc height were evaluated before surgery, after surgery and at the final follow-up. Results The segmental lordosi...

Unsupervised tattoo segmentation combining bottom-up and top-down cues

Science.gov (United States)

Allen, Josef D.; Zhao, Nan; Yuan, Jiangbo; Liu, Xiuwen

2011-06-01

Tattoo segmentation is challenging due to the complexity and large variance in tattoo structures. We have developed a segmentation algorithm for finding tattoos in an image. Our basic idea is split-merge: split each tattoo image into clusters through a bottom-up process, learn to merge the clusters containing skin and then distinguish tattoo from the other skin via top-down prior in the image itself. Tattoo segmentation with unknown number of clusters is transferred to a figureground segmentation. We have applied our segmentation algorithm on a tattoo dataset and the results have shown that our tattoo segmentation system is efficient and suitable for further tattoo classification and retrieval purpose.

Balancing the fit and logistics costs of market segmentations

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Turkensteen, M.; Sierksma, G.; Wieringa, J.E.

2011-01-01

Segments are typically formed to serve distinct groups of consumers with differentiated marketing mixes, that better fit their specific needs and wants. However, buyers in a segment are not necessarily geographically closely located. Serving a geographically dispersed segment with one marketing mix

Symbolic Segmentation: A Corpus-Based Analysis of Melodic Phrases

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Rodríguez López, M.E.; Volk, Anja

2014-01-01

Gestalt-based segmentation models constitute the current state of the art in automatic segmentation of melodies. These models commonly assume that segment boundary perception is mainly triggered by local discontinuities, i.e. by abrupt changes in pitch and/or duration between neighbouring notes.

Electrocardiogram ST-Segment Morphology Delineation Method Using Orthogonal Transformations.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Miha Amon

Full Text Available Differentiation between ischaemic and non-ischaemic transient ST segment events of long term ambulatory electrocardiograms is a persisting weakness in present ischaemia detection systems. Traditional ST segment level measuring is not a sufficiently precise technique due to the single point of measurement and severe noise which is often present. We developed a robust noise resistant orthogonal-transformation based delineation method, which allows tracing the shape of transient ST segment morphology changes from the entire ST segment in terms of diagnostic and morphologic feature-vector time series, and also allows further analysis. For these purposes, we developed a new Legendre Polynomials based Transformation (LPT of ST segment. Its basis functions have similar shapes to typical transient changes of ST segment morphology categories during myocardial ischaemia (level, slope and scooping, thus providing direct insight into the types of time domain morphology changes through the LPT feature-vector space. We also generated new Karhunen and Lo ève Transformation (KLT ST segment basis functions using a robust covariance matrix constructed from the ST segment pattern vectors derived from the Long Term ST Database (LTST DB. As for the delineation of significant transient ischaemic and non-ischaemic ST segment episodes, we present a study on the representation of transient ST segment morphology categories, and an evaluation study on the classification power of the KLT- and LPT-based feature vectors to classify between ischaemic and non-ischaemic ST segment episodes of the LTST DB. Classification accuracy using the KLT and LPT feature vectors was 90% and 82%, respectively, when using the k-Nearest Neighbors (k = 3 classifier and 10-fold cross-validation. New sets of feature-vector time series for both transformations were derived for the records of the LTST DB which is freely available on the PhysioNet website and were contributed to the LTST DB. The

CONSUMER SEGMENTATION OF REFILLED DRINKING WATER IN PADANG

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Awisal Fasyni

2015-05-01

Full Text Available The purposes of this study were to analyze consumer segmentation of refilled drinking water based on their behavior and to recommend strategies for increased sales of Salju depot. The study was conducted using a survey of family and non-family consumers in Nanggalo, North Padang, West and East Padang. The respondent selection technique is using a convenience sampling, which is based on the availability of elements and easiness of obtaining these samples. The analysis used for segmentation is cluster analysis and CHAID. The results showed that there were five segments in family consumer and four segments in non-family consumer. Each family segment was different in terms of usage and consumption level, while non-family segments differ in terms of consumption duration and consumption level. Salju depot could aim market segments that provide benefits, specifically segments with high consumption levels both in family and nonfamily consumers, maintain the price and quality of the product and show the best performance in serving customers, set the open hours and optimize the messaging services.Keywords: refilled drinking water, segmentation, Padang, CHAIDABSTRAKPenelitian ini bertujuan menganalisis segmentasi konsumen air minum isi ulang berdasarkan perilakunya dan merekomendasikan strategi peningkatan penjualan bagi depot Salju. Penelitian dilakukan dengan metode survei terhadap konsumen keluarga dan konsumen nonkeluarga di Kecamatan Nanggalo, Kecamatan Padang Utara, Kecamatan Padang Barat dan Kecamatan Padang Timur Kota Padang. Teknik pemilihan responden menggunakan convenience sampling, yaitu berdasarkan ketersediaan elemen dan kemudahan mendapatkan sampel tersebut. Analisis yang digunakan untuk segmentasi adalah analisis cluster dan CHAID Hasil penelitian menunjukkan terdapat lima segmen konsumen keluarga dan empat segmen konsumen nonkeluarga. Masing-masing segmen keluarga berbeda dalam hal penggunaan dan tingkat konsumsi, sedangkan segmen

A level set method for multiple sclerosis lesion segmentation.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Yue; Guo, Shuxu; Luo, Min; Shi, Xue; Bilello, Michel; Zhang, Shaoxiang; Li, Chunming

2018-06-01

In this paper, we present a level set method for multiple sclerosis (MS) lesion segmentation from FLAIR images in the presence of intensity inhomogeneities. We use a three-phase level set formulation of segmentation and bias field estimation to segment MS lesions and normal tissue region (including GM and WM) and CSF and the background from FLAIR images. To save computational load, we derive a two-phase formulation from the original multi-phase level set formulation to segment the MS lesions and normal tissue regions. The derived method inherits the desirable ability to precisely locate object boundaries of the original level set method, which simultaneously performs segmentation and estimation of the bias field to deal with intensity inhomogeneity. Experimental results demonstrate the advantages of our method over other state-of-the-art methods in terms of segmentation accuracy. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Trajectory Based Optimal Segment Computation in Road Network Databases

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Li, Xiaohui; Ceikute, Vaida; Jensen, Christian S.

2013-01-01

Finding a location for a new facility such that the facility attracts the maximal number of customers is a challenging problem. Existing studies either model customers as static sites and thus do not consider customer movement, or they focus on theoretical aspects and do not provide solutions...... that are shown empirically to be scalable. Given a road network, a set of existing facilities, and a collection of customer route traversals, an optimal segment query returns the optimal road network segment(s) for a new facility. We propose a practical framework for computing this query, where each route...... traversal is assigned a score that is distributed among the road segments covered by the route according to a score distribution model. The query returns the road segment(s) with the highest score. To achieve low latency, it is essential to prune the very large search space. We propose two algorithms...

Trajectory Based Optimal Segment Computation in Road Network Databases

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Li, Xiaohui; Ceikute, Vaida; Jensen, Christian S.

Finding a location for a new facility such that the facility attracts the maximal number of customers is a challenging problem. Existing studies either model customers as static sites and thus do not consider customer movement, or they focus on theoretical aspects and do not provide solutions...... that are shown empirically to be scalable. Given a road network, a set of existing facilities, and a collection of customer route traversals, an optimal segment query returns the optimal road network segment(s) for a new facility. We propose a practical framework for computing this query, where each route...... traversal is assigned a score that is distributed among the road segments covered by the route according to a score distribution model. The query returns the road segment(s) with the highest score. To achieve low latency, it is essential to prune the very large search space. We propose two algorithms...

Benefit segmentation of the fitness market.

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, J D

1992-01-01

While considerate attention is being paid to the fitness and wellness needs of people by healthcare and related marketing organizations, little research attention has been directed to identifying the market segments for fitness based upon consumers' perceived benefits of fitness. This article describes three distinct segments of fitness consumers comprising an estimated 50 percent of households. Implications for marketing strategies are also presented.

An Ensemble of 2D Convolutional Neural Networks for Tumor Segmentation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lyksborg, Mark; Puonti, Oula; Agn, Mikael

2015-01-01

Accurate tumor segmentation plays an important role in radiosurgery planning and the assessment of radiotherapy treatment efficacy. In this paper we propose a method combining an ensemble of 2D convolutional neural networks for doing a volumetric segmentation of magnetic resonance images....... The segmentation is done in three steps; first the full tumor region, is segmented from the background by a voxel-wise merging of the decisions of three networks learned from three orthogonal planes, next the segmentation is refined using a cellular automaton-based seed growing method known as growcut. Finally......, within-tumor sub-regions are segmented using an additional ensemble of networks trained for the task. We demonstrate the method on the MICCAI Brain Tumor Segmentation Challenge dataset of 2014, and show improved segmentation accuracy compared to an axially trained 2D network and an ensemble segmentation...

Influence of nuclei segmentation on breast cancer malignancy classification

Science.gov (United States)

Jelen, Lukasz; Fevens, Thomas; Krzyzak, Adam

2009-02-01

Breast Cancer is one of the most deadly cancers affecting middle-aged women. Accurate diagnosis and prognosis are crucial to reduce the high death rate. Nowadays there are numerous diagnostic tools for breast cancer diagnosis. In this paper we discuss a role of nuclear segmentation from fine needle aspiration biopsy (FNA) slides and its influence on malignancy classification. Classification of malignancy plays a very important role during the diagnosis process of breast cancer. Out of all cancer diagnostic tools, FNA slides provide the most valuable information about the cancer malignancy grade which helps to choose an appropriate treatment. This process involves assessing numerous nuclear features and therefore precise segmentation of nuclei is very important. In this work we compare three powerful segmentation approaches and test their impact on the classification of breast cancer malignancy. The studied approaches involve level set segmentation, fuzzy c-means segmentation and textural segmentation based on co-occurrence matrix. Segmented nuclei were used to extract nuclear features for malignancy classification. For classification purposes four different classifiers were trained and tested with previously extracted features. The compared classifiers are Multilayer Perceptron (MLP), Self-Organizing Maps (SOM), Principal Component-based Neural Network (PCA) and Support Vector Machines (SVM). The presented results show that level set segmentation yields the best results over the three compared approaches and leads to a good feature extraction with a lowest average error rate of 6.51% over four different classifiers. The best performance was recorded for multilayer perceptron with an error rate of 3.07% using fuzzy c-means segmentation.

DETECTION OF CANCEROUS LESION BY UTERINE CERVIX IMAGE SEGMENTATION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

P. Priya

2014-02-01

Full Text Available This paper works at segmentation of lesion observed in cervical cancer, which is the second most common cancer among women worldwide. The purpose of segmentation is to determine the location for a biopsy to be taken for diagnosis. Cervix cancer is a disease in which cancer cells are found in the tissues of the cervix. The acetowhite region is a major indicator of abnormality in the cervix image. This project addresses the problem of segmenting uterine cervix image into different regions. We analyze two algorithms namely Watershed, K-means clustering algorithm, Expectation Maximization (EM Image Segmentation algorithm. These segmentations methods are carried over for the colposcopic uterine cervix image.

Optimally segmented permanent magnet structures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Insinga, Andrea Roberto; Bjørk, Rasmus; Smith, Anders

2016-01-01

We present an optimization approach which can be employed to calculate the globally optimal segmentation of a two-dimensional magnetic system into uniformly magnetized pieces. For each segment the algorithm calculates the optimal shape and the optimal direction of the remanent flux density vector......, with respect to a linear objective functional. We illustrate the approach with results for magnet design problems from different areas, such as a permanent magnet electric motor, a beam focusing quadrupole magnet for particle accelerators and a rotary device for magnetic refrigeration....

Model-based segmentation of short-axis MR cardiac images

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Spreeuwers, Lieuwe Jan; Breeuwer, M.

Reliable automatic segmentation of MR cardiac images is still an important problem in medical image processing. Although image data quality has improved considerably during the last years, this segmentation is still considered a difficult problem. Manual segmentation is hardly an option as this is

MIA-Clustering: a novel method for segmentation of paleontological material

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christopher J. Dunmore

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Paleontological research increasingly uses high-resolution micro-computed tomography (μCT to study the inner architecture of modern and fossil bone material to answer important questions regarding vertebrate evolution. This non-destructive method allows for the measurement of otherwise inaccessible morphology. Digital measurement is predicated on the accurate segmentation of modern or fossilized bone from other structures imaged in μCT scans, as errors in segmentation can result in inaccurate calculations of structural parameters. Several approaches to image segmentation have been proposed with varying degrees of automation, ranging from completely manual segmentation, to the selection of input parameters required for computational algorithms. Many of these segmentation algorithms provide speed and reproducibility at the cost of flexibility that manual segmentation provides. In particular, the segmentation of modern and fossil bone in the presence of materials such as desiccated soft tissue, soil matrix or precipitated crystalline material can be difficult. Here we present a free open-source segmentation algorithm application capable of segmenting modern and fossil bone, which also reduces subjective user decisions to a minimum. We compare the effectiveness of this algorithm with another leading method by using both to measure the parameters of a known dimension reference object, as well as to segment an example problematic fossil scan. The results demonstrate that the medical image analysis-clustering method produces accurate segmentations and offers more flexibility than those of equivalent precision. Its free availability, flexibility to deal with non-bone inclusions and limited need for user input give it broad applicability in anthropological, anatomical, and paleontological contexts.

MIA-Clustering: a novel method for segmentation of paleontological material.

Science.gov (United States)

Dunmore, Christopher J; Wollny, Gert; Skinner, Matthew M

2018-01-01

Paleontological research increasingly uses high-resolution micro-computed tomography (μCT) to study the inner architecture of modern and fossil bone material to answer important questions regarding vertebrate evolution. This non-destructive method allows for the measurement of otherwise inaccessible morphology. Digital measurement is predicated on the accurate segmentation of modern or fossilized bone from other structures imaged in μCT scans, as errors in segmentation can result in inaccurate calculations of structural parameters. Several approaches to image segmentation have been proposed with varying degrees of automation, ranging from completely manual segmentation, to the selection of input parameters required for computational algorithms. Many of these segmentation algorithms provide speed and reproducibility at the cost of flexibility that manual segmentation provides. In particular, the segmentation of modern and fossil bone in the presence of materials such as desiccated soft tissue, soil matrix or precipitated crystalline material can be difficult. Here we present a free open-source segmentation algorithm application capable of segmenting modern and fossil bone, which also reduces subjective user decisions to a minimum. We compare the effectiveness of this algorithm with another leading method by using both to measure the parameters of a known dimension reference object, as well as to segment an example problematic fossil scan. The results demonstrate that the medical image analysis-clustering method produces accurate segmentations and offers more flexibility than those of equivalent precision. Its free availability, flexibility to deal with non-bone inclusions and limited need for user input give it broad applicability in anthropological, anatomical, and paleontological contexts.

Scintillation counter, segmented shield

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Olson, R.E.; Thumim, A.D.

1975-01-01

A scintillation counter, particularly for counting gamma ray photons, includes a massive lead radiation shield surrounding a sample-receiving zone. The shield is disassembleable into a plurality of segments to allow facile installation and removal of a photomultiplier tube assembly, the segments being so constructed as to prevent straight-line access of external radiation through the shield into radiation-responsive areas. Provisions are made for accurately aligning the photomultiplier tube with respect to one or more sample-transmitting bores extending through the shield to the sample receiving zone. A sample elevator, used in transporting samples into the zone, is designed to provide a maximum gamma-receiving aspect to maximize the gamma detecting efficiency. (U.S.)

Linked statistical shape models for multi-modal segmentation: application to prostate CT-MR segmentation in radiotherapy planning

Science.gov (United States)

Chowdhury, Najeeb; Chappelow, Jonathan; Toth, Robert; Kim, Sung; Hahn, Stephen; Vapiwala, Neha; Lin, Haibo; Both, Stefan; Madabhushi, Anant

2011-03-01

We present a novel framework for building a linked statistical shape model (LSSM), a statistical shape model (SSM) that links the shape variation of a structure of interest (SOI) across multiple imaging modalities. This framework is particularly relevant in scenarios where accurate delineations of a SOI's boundary on one of the modalities may not be readily available, or difficult to obtain, for training a SSM. We apply the LSSM in the context of multi-modal prostate segmentation for radiotherapy planning, where we segment the prostate on MRI and CT simultaneously. Prostate capsule segmentation is a critical step in prostate radiotherapy planning, where dose plans have to be formulated on CT. Since accurate delineations of the prostate boundary are very difficult to obtain on CT, pre-treatment MRI is now beginning to be acquired at several medical centers. Delineation of the prostate on MRI is acknowledged as being significantly simpler to do compared to CT. Hence, our framework incorporates multi-modal registration of MRI and CT to map 2D boundary delineations of prostate (obtained from an expert radiation oncologist) on MR training images onto corresponding CT images. The delineations of the prostate capsule on MRI and CT allows for 3D reconstruction of the prostate shape which facilitates the building of the LSSM. We acquired 7 MRI-CT patient studies and used the leave-one-out strategy to train and evaluate our LSSM (fLSSM), built using expert ground truth delineations on MRI and MRI-CT fusion derived capsule delineations on CT. A unique attribute of our fLSSM is that it does not require expert delineations of the capsule on CT. In order to perform prostate MRI segmentation using the fLSSM, we employed a regionbased approach where we deformed the evolving prostate boundary to optimize a mutual information based cost criterion, which took into account region-based intensity statistics of the image being segmented. The final prostate segmentation was then

Creating Web Area Segments with Google Analytics

Science.gov (United States)

Segments allow you to quickly access data for a predefined set of Sessions or Users, such as government or education users, or sessions in a particular state. You can then apply this segment to any report within the Google Analytics (GA) interface.

Differential segmentation responses to an alcohol social marketing program.

Science.gov (United States)

Dietrich, Timo; Rundle-Thiele, Sharyn; Schuster, Lisa; Drennan, Judy; Russell-Bennett, Rebekah; Leo, Cheryl; Gullo, Matthew J; Connor, Jason P

2015-10-01

This study seeks to establish whether meaningful subgroups exist within a 14-16 year old adolescent population and if these segments respond differently to the Game On: Know Alcohol (GOKA) intervention, a school-based alcohol social marketing program. This study is part of a larger cluster randomized controlled evaluation of the GOKA program implemented in 14 schools in 2013/2014. TwoStep cluster analysis was conducted to segment 2,114 high school adolescents (14-16 years old) on the basis of 22 demographic, behavioral, and psychographic variables. Program effects on knowledge, attitudes, behavioral intentions, social norms, alcohol expectancies, and drinking refusal self-efficacy of identified segments were subsequently examined. Three segments were identified: (1) Abstainers, (2) Bingers, and (3) Moderate Drinkers. Program effects varied significantly across segments. The strongest positive change effects post-participation were observed for Bingers, while mixed effects were evident for Moderate Drinkers and Abstainers. These findings provide preliminary empirical evidence supporting the application of social marketing segmentation in alcohol education programs. Development of targeted programs that meet the unique needs of each of the three identified segments will extend the social marketing footprint in alcohol education. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

An algorithm to automate yeast segmentation and tracking.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andreas Doncic

Full Text Available Our understanding of dynamic cellular processes has been greatly enhanced by rapid advances in quantitative fluorescence microscopy. Imaging single cells has emphasized the prevalence of phenomena that can be difficult to infer from population measurements, such as all-or-none cellular decisions, cell-to-cell variability, and oscillations. Examination of these phenomena requires segmenting and tracking individual cells over long periods of time. However, accurate segmentation and tracking of cells is difficult and is often the rate-limiting step in an experimental pipeline. Here, we present an algorithm that accomplishes fully automated segmentation and tracking of budding yeast cells within growing colonies. The algorithm incorporates prior information of yeast-specific traits, such as immobility and growth rate, to segment an image using a set of threshold values rather than one specific optimized threshold. Results from the entire set of thresholds are then used to perform a robust final segmentation.

Human body segmentation via data-driven graph cut.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Shifeng; Lu, Huchuan; Shao, Xingqing

2014-11-01

Human body segmentation is a challenging and important problem in computer vision. Existing methods usually entail a time-consuming training phase for prior knowledge learning with complex shape matching for body segmentation. In this paper, we propose a data-driven method that integrates top-down body pose information and bottom-up low-level visual cues for segmenting humans in static images within the graph cut framework. The key idea of our approach is first to exploit human kinematics to search for body part candidates via dynamic programming for high-level evidence. Then, by using the body parts classifiers, obtaining bottom-up cues of human body distribution for low-level evidence. All the evidence collected from top-down and bottom-up procedures are integrated in a graph cut framework for human body segmentation. Qualitative and quantitative experiment results demonstrate the merits of the proposed method in segmenting human bodies with arbitrary poses from cluttered backgrounds.

Joint Rendering and Segmentation of Free-Viewpoint Video

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ishii Masato

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract This paper presents a method that jointly performs synthesis and object segmentation of free-viewpoint video using multiview video as the input. This method is designed to achieve robust segmentation from online video input without per-frame user interaction and precomputations. This method shares a calculation process between the synthesis and segmentation steps; the matching costs calculated through the synthesis step are adaptively fused with other cues depending on the reliability in the segmentation step. Since the segmentation is performed for arbitrary viewpoints directly, the extracted object can be superimposed onto another 3D scene with geometric consistency. We can observe that the object and new background move naturally along with the viewpoint change as if they existed together in the same space. In the experiments, our method can process online video input captured by a 25-camera array and show the result image at 4.55 fps.

Measurements on a prototype segmented Clover detector

CERN Document Server

Shepherd, S L; Cullen, D M; Appelbe, D E; Simpson, J; Gerl, J; Kaspar, M; Kleinböhl, A; Peter, I; Rejmund, M; Schaffner, H; Schlegel, C; France, G D

1999-01-01

The performance of a segmented Clover germanium detector has been measured. The segmented Clover detector is a composite germanium detector, consisting of four individual germanium crystals in the configuration of a four-leaf Clover, housed in a single cryostat. Each crystal is electrically segmented on its outer surface into four quadrants, with separate energy read-outs from nine crystal zones. Signals are also taken from the inner contact of each crystal. This effectively produces a detector with 16 active elements. One of the purposes of this segmentation is to improve the overall spectral resolution when detecting gamma radiation emitted following a nuclear reaction, by minimising Doppler broadening caused by the opening angle subtended by each detector element. Results of the tests with sources and in beam will be presented. The improved granularity of the detector also leads to an improved isolated hit probability compared with an unsegmented Clover detector. (author)

Radiology trainer. Surgical ambulance. Revision 2. rev. and enl. ed.

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ackermann, Ole; Barkhausen, Joerg

2013-01-01

The radiology trainer for surgical ambulance includes informative X-ray imaging examples for the following issues: zygoma, nasal bone, spinal cord, clavicle, shoulder, upper arms, elbow, forearms, wrist, hand, phalanx, thorax, sternum, pelvis, abdomen, hips, femur, knee, lower leg, ankle, feet.

Document flow segmentation for business applications

Science.gov (United States)

Daher, Hani; Belaïd, Abdel

2013-12-01

The aim of this paper is to propose a document flow supervised segmentation approach applied to real world heterogeneous documents. Our algorithm treats the flow of documents as couples of consecutive pages and studies the relationship that exists between them. At first, sets of features are extracted from the pages where we propose an approach to model the couple of pages into a single feature vector representation. This representation will be provided to a binary classifier which classifies the relationship as either segmentation or continuity. In case of segmentation, we consider that we have a complete document and the analysis of the flow continues by starting a new document. In case of continuity, the couple of pages are assimilated to the same document and the analysis continues on the flow. If there is an uncertainty on whether the relationship between the couple of pages should be classified as a continuity or segmentation, a rejection is decided and the pages analyzed until this point are considered as a "fragment". The first classification already provides good results approaching 90% on certain documents, which is high at this level of the system.

Beyond Dualism: Multi-Segmented Labor Markets in Ghana

OpenAIRE

James Heintz; Fabián Slonimczy

2007-01-01

Using estimates of earnings functions in Ghana, this paper examines patterns of labor market segmentation with regard to formal and informal employment. Persistent earnings differentials are used as indicators of limited mobility across segments of the employed labor force. We find evidence of labor market segmentation between formal and informal employment and between different categories of informal employment which cannot be fully explained by human capital, physical asset, or credit marke...

Scan-rescan reproducibility of segmental aortic wall shear stress as assessed by phase-specific segmentation with 4D flow MRI in healthy volunteers.

Science.gov (United States)

van der Palen, Roel L F; Roest, Arno A W; van den Boogaard, Pieter J; de Roos, Albert; Blom, Nico A; Westenberg, Jos J M

2018-05-26

The aim was to investigate scan-rescan reproducibility and observer variability of segmental aortic 3D systolic wall shear stress (WSS) by phase-specific segmentation with 4D flow MRI in healthy volunteers. Ten healthy volunteers (age 26.5 ± 2.6 years) underwent aortic 4D flow MRI twice. Maximum 3D systolic WSS (WSSmax) and mean 3D systolic WSS (WSSmean) for five thoracic aortic segments over five systolic cardiac phases by phase-specific segmentations were calculated. Scan-rescan analysis and observer reproducibility analysis were performed. Scan-rescan data showed overall good reproducibility for WSSmean (coefficient of variation, COV 10-15%) with moderate-to-strong intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC 0.63-0.89). The variability in WSSmax was high (COV 16-31%) with moderate-to-good ICC (0.55-0.79) for different aortic segments. Intra- and interobserver reproducibility was good-to-excellent for regional aortic WSSmax (ICC ≥ 0.78; COV ≤ 17%) and strong-to-excellent for WSSmean (ICC ≥ 0.86; COV ≤ 11%). In general, ascending aortic segments showed more WSSmax/WSSmean variability compared to aortic arch or descending aortic segments for scan-rescan, intraobserver and interobserver comparison. Scan-rescan reproducibility was good for WSSmean and moderate for WSSmax for all thoracic aortic segments over multiple systolic phases in healthy volunteers. Intra/interobserver reproducibility for segmental WSS assessment was good-to-excellent. Variability of WSSmax is higher and should be taken into account in case of individual follow-up or in comparative rest-stress studies to avoid misinterpretation.

Automatic segmentation of blood vessels from retinal fundus images ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

The retinal blood vessels were segmented through color space conversion and color channel .... Retinal blood vessel segmentation was also attempted through multi-scale operators. A few works in this ... fundus camera at 35 degrees field of view. The image ... vessel segmentation is available from two human observers.

Unsupervised Image Segmentation

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Haindl, Michal; Mikeš, Stanislav

2014-01-01

Roč. 36, č. 4 (2014), s. 23-23 R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GA14-10911S Institutional support: RVO:67985556 Keywords : unsupervised image segmentation Subject RIV: BD - Theory of Information http://library.utia.cas.cz/separaty/2014/RO/haindl-0434412.pdf

A novel line segment detection algorithm based on graph search

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Hong-dan; Liu, Guo-ying; Song, Xu

2018-02-01

To overcome the problem of extracting line segment from an image, a method of line segment detection was proposed based on the graph search algorithm. After obtaining the edge detection result of the image, the candidate straight line segments are obtained in four directions. For the candidate straight line segments, their adjacency relationships are depicted by a graph model, based on which the depth-first search algorithm is employed to determine how many adjacent line segments need to be merged. Finally we use the least squares method to fit the detected straight lines. The comparative experimental results verify that the proposed algorithm has achieved better results than the line segment detector (LSD).

Unsupervised Tattoo Segmentation Combining Bottom-Up and Top-Down Cues

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Allen, Josef D [ORNL

2011-01-01

Tattoo segmentation is challenging due to the complexity and large variance in tattoo structures. We have developed a segmentation algorithm for nding tattoos in an image. Our basic idea is split-merge: split each tattoo image into clusters through a bottom-up process, learn to merge the clusters containing skin and then distinguish tattoo from the other skin via top-down prior in the image itself. Tattoo segmentation with unknown number of clusters is transferred to a gure-ground segmentation. We have applied our segmentation algorithm on a tattoo dataset and the results have shown that our tattoo segmentation system is e cient and suitable for further tattoo classi cation and retrieval purpose.

Parallel fuzzy connected image segmentation on GPU.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhuge, Ying; Cao, Yong; Udupa, Jayaram K; Miller, Robert W

2011-07-01

Image segmentation techniques using fuzzy connectedness (FC) principles have shown their effectiveness in segmenting a variety of objects in several large applications. However, one challenge in these algorithms has been their excessive computational requirements when processing large image datasets. Nowadays, commodity graphics hardware provides a highly parallel computing environment. In this paper, the authors present a parallel fuzzy connected image segmentation algorithm implementation on NVIDIA's compute unified device Architecture (CUDA) platform for segmenting medical image data sets. In the FC algorithm, there are two major computational tasks: (i) computing the fuzzy affinity relations and (ii) computing the fuzzy connectedness relations. These two tasks are implemented as CUDA kernels and executed on GPU. A dramatic improvement in speed for both tasks is achieved as a result. Our experiments based on three data sets of small, medium, and large data size demonstrate the efficiency of the parallel algorithm, which achieves a speed-up factor of 24.4x, 18.1x, and 10.3x, correspondingly, for the three data sets on the NVIDIA Tesla C1060 over the implementation of the algorithm on CPU, and takes 0.25, 0.72, and 15.04 s, correspondingly, for the three data sets. The authors developed a parallel algorithm of the widely used fuzzy connected image segmentation method on the NVIDIA GPUs, which are far more cost- and speed-effective than both cluster of workstations and multiprocessing systems. A near-interactive speed of segmentation has been achieved, even for the large data set.

Potential for La Crosse virus segment reassortment in nature

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Geske Dave

2008-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract The evolutionary success of La Crosse virus (LACV, family Bunyaviridae is due to its ability to adapt to changing conditions through intramolecular genetic changes and segment reassortment. Vertical transmission of LACV in mosquitoes increases the potential for segment reassortment. Studies were conducted to determine if segment reassortment was occurring in naturally infected Aedes triseriatus from Wisconsin and Minnesota in 2000, 2004, 2006 and 2007. Mosquito eggs were collected from various sites in Wisconsin and Minnesota. They were reared in the laboratory and adults were tested for LACV antigen by immunofluorescence assay. RNA was isolated from the abdomen of infected mosquitoes and portions of the small (S, medium (M and large (L viral genome segments were amplified by RT-PCR and sequenced. Overall, the viral sequences from 40 infected mosquitoes and 5 virus isolates were analyzed. Phylogenetic and linkage disequilibrium analyses revealed that approximately 25% of infected mosquitoes and viruses contained reassorted genome segments, suggesting that LACV segment reassortment is frequent in nature.

Automatic labeling and segmentation of vertebrae in CT images

Science.gov (United States)

Rasoulian, Abtin; Rohling, Robert N.; Abolmaesumi, Purang

2014-03-01

Labeling and segmentation of the spinal column from CT images is a pre-processing step for a range of image- guided interventions. State-of-the art techniques have focused either on image feature extraction or template matching for labeling of the vertebrae followed by segmentation of each vertebra. Recently, statistical multi- object models have been introduced to extract common statistical characteristics among several anatomies. In particular, we have created models for segmentation of the lumbar spine which are robust, accurate, and computationally tractable. In this paper, we reconstruct a statistical multi-vertebrae pose+shape model and utilize it in a novel framework for labeling and segmentation of the vertebra in a CT image. We validate our technique in terms of accuracy of the labeling and segmentation of CT images acquired from 56 subjects. The method correctly labels all vertebrae in 70% of patients and is only one level off for the remaining 30%. The mean distance error achieved for the segmentation is 2.1 +/- 0.7 mm.

Social discourses of healthy eating. A market segmentation approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Chrysochou, Polymeros; Askegaard, Søren; Grunert, Klaus G; Kristensen, Dorthe Brogård

2010-10-01

This paper proposes a framework of discourses regarding consumers' healthy eating as a useful conceptual scheme for market segmentation purposes. The objectives are: (a) to identify the appropriate number of health-related segments based on the underlying discursive subject positions of the framework, (b) to validate and further describe the segments based on their socio-demographic characteristics and attitudes towards healthy eating, and (c) to explore differences across segments in types of associations with food and health, as well as perceptions of food healthfulness.316 Danish consumers participated in a survey that included measures of the underlying subject positions of the proposed framework, followed by a word association task that aimed to explore types of associations with food and health, and perceptions of food healthfulness. A latent class clustering approach revealed three consumer segments: the Common, the Idealists and the Pragmatists. Based on the addressed objectives, differences across the segments are described and implications of findings are discussed.

Applications of magnetic resonance image segmentation in neurology

Science.gov (United States)

Heinonen, Tomi; Lahtinen, Antti J.; Dastidar, Prasun; Ryymin, Pertti; Laarne, Paeivi; Malmivuo, Jaakko; Laasonen, Erkki; Frey, Harry; Eskola, Hannu

1999-05-01

After the introduction of digital imagin devices in medicine computerized tissue recognition and classification have become important in research and clinical applications. Segmented data can be applied among numerous research fields including volumetric analysis of particular tissues and structures, construction of anatomical modes, 3D visualization, and multimodal visualization, hence making segmentation essential in modern image analysis. In this research project several PC based software were developed in order to segment medical images, to visualize raw and segmented images in 3D, and to produce EEG brain maps in which MR images and EEG signals were integrated. The software package was tested and validated in numerous clinical research projects in hospital environment.

Optimized Audio Classification and Segmentation Algorithm by Using Ensemble Methods

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Saadia Zahid

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Audio segmentation is a basis for multimedia content analysis which is the most important and widely used application nowadays. An optimized audio classification and segmentation algorithm is presented in this paper that segments a superimposed audio stream on the basis of its content into four main audio types: pure-speech, music, environment sound, and silence. An algorithm is proposed that preserves important audio content and reduces the misclassification rate without using large amount of training data, which handles noise and is suitable for use for real-time applications. Noise in an audio stream is segmented out as environment sound. A hybrid classification approach is used, bagged support vector machines (SVMs with artificial neural networks (ANNs. Audio stream is classified, firstly, into speech and nonspeech segment by using bagged support vector machines; nonspeech segment is further classified into music and environment sound by using artificial neural networks and lastly, speech segment is classified into silence and pure-speech segments on the basis of rule-based classifier. Minimum data is used for training classifier; ensemble methods are used for minimizing misclassification rate and approximately 98% accurate segments are obtained. A fast and efficient algorithm is designed that can be used with real-time multimedia applications.

Correction tool for Active Shape Model based lumbar muscle segmentation.

Science.gov (United States)

Valenzuela, Waldo; Ferguson, Stephen J; Ignasiak, Dominika; Diserens, Gaelle; Vermathen, Peter; Boesch, Chris; Reyes, Mauricio

2015-08-01

In the clinical environment, accuracy and speed of the image segmentation process plays a key role in the analysis of pathological regions. Despite advances in anatomic image segmentation, time-effective correction tools are commonly needed to improve segmentation results. Therefore, these tools must provide faster corrections with a low number of interactions, and a user-independent solution. In this work we present a new interactive correction method for correcting the image segmentation. Given an initial segmentation and the original image, our tool provides a 2D/3D environment, that enables 3D shape correction through simple 2D interactions. Our scheme is based on direct manipulation of free form deformation adapted to a 2D environment. This approach enables an intuitive and natural correction of 3D segmentation results. The developed method has been implemented into a software tool and has been evaluated for the task of lumbar muscle segmentation from Magnetic Resonance Images. Experimental results show that full segmentation correction could be performed within an average correction time of 6±4 minutes and an average of 68±37 number of interactions, while maintaining the quality of the final segmentation result within an average Dice coefficient of 0.92±0.03.

40 CFR 761.247 - Sample site selection for pipe segment removal.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-07-01

... end of the pipe segment. (3) If the pipe segment is cut with a saw or other mechanical device, take..., take samples from a total of seven segments. (A) Sample the first and last segments removed. (B) Select... total length for purposes of disposal, take samples of each segment that is 1/2 mile distant from the...

Moving window segmentation framework for point clouds

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Sithole, G.; Gorte, B.G.H.

2012-01-01

As lidar point clouds become larger streamed processing becomes more attractive. This paper presents a framework for the streamed segmentation of point clouds with the intention of segmenting unstructured point clouds in real-time. The framework is composed of two main components. The first

A NEW APPROACH TO SEGMENT HANDWRITTEN DIGITS

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Oliveira, L.S.; Lethelier, E.; Bortolozzi, F.; Sabourin, R.

2004-01-01

This article presents a new segmentation approach applied to unconstrained handwritten digits. The novelty of the proposed algorithm is based on the combination of two types of structural features in order to provide the best segmentation path between connected entities. In this article, we first

Unfolding Implementation in Industrial Market Segmentation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bøjgaard, John; Ellegaard, Chris

2011-01-01

to pave the way towards closing this gap. The extent of implementation coverage is assessed and various notions of implementation are identified. Implementation as the task of converting segmentation plans into action (referred to as execution) is identified as a particularly beneficial focus area...... for marketing management. Three key elements and challenges connected to execution of market segmentation are identified — organization, motivation, and adaptation....

Improvements in analysis techniques for segmented mirror arrays

Science.gov (United States)

Michels, Gregory J.; Genberg, Victor L.; Bisson, Gary R.

2016-08-01

The employment of actively controlled segmented mirror architectures has become increasingly common in the development of current astronomical telescopes. Optomechanical analysis of such hardware presents unique issues compared to that of monolithic mirror designs. The work presented here is a review of current capabilities and improvements in the methodology of the analysis of mechanically induced surface deformation of such systems. The recent improvements include capability to differentiate surface deformation at the array and segment level. This differentiation allowing surface deformation analysis at each individual segment level offers useful insight into the mechanical behavior of the segments that is unavailable by analysis solely at the parent array level. In addition, capability to characterize the full displacement vector deformation of collections of points allows analysis of mechanical disturbance predictions of assembly interfaces relative to other assembly interfaces. This capability, called racking analysis, allows engineers to develop designs for segment-to-segment phasing performance in assembly integration, 0g release, and thermal stability of operation. The performance predicted by racking has the advantage of being comparable to the measurements used in assembly of hardware. Approaches to all of the above issues are presented and demonstrated by example with SigFit, a commercially available tool integrating mechanical analysis with optical analysis.

The role of the notochord in amniote vertebral column segmentation.

Science.gov (United States)

Ward, Lizzy; Pang, Angel S W; Evans, Susan E; Stern, Claudio D

2018-07-01

The vertebral column is segmented, comprising an alternating series of vertebrae and intervertebral discs along the head-tail axis. The vertebrae and outer portion (annulus fibrosus) of the disc are derived from the sclerotome part of the somites, whereas the inner nucleus pulposus of the disc is derived from the notochord. Here we investigate the role of the notochord in vertebral patterning through a series of microsurgical experiments in chick embryos. Ablation of the notochord causes loss of segmentation of vertebral bodies and discs. However, the notochord cannot segment in the absence of the surrounding sclerotome. To test whether the notochord dictates sclerotome segmentation, we grafted an ectopic notochord. We find that the intrinsic segmentation of the sclerotome is dominant over any segmental information the notochord may possess, and no evidence that the chick notochord is intrinsically segmented. We propose that the segmental pattern of vertebral bodies and discs in chick is dictated by the sclerotome, which first signals to the notochord to ensure that the nucleus pulposus develops in register with the somite-derived annulus fibrosus. Later, the notochord is required for maintenance of sclerotome segmentation as the mature vertebral bodies and intervertebral discs form. These results highlight differences in vertebral development between amniotes and teleosts including zebrafish, where the notochord dictates the segmental pattern. The relative importance of the sclerotome and notochord in vertebral patterning has changed significantly during evolution. Copyright © 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Event segmentation improves event memory up to one month later.

Science.gov (United States)

Flores, Shaney; Bailey, Heather R; Eisenberg, Michelle L; Zacks, Jeffrey M

2017-08-01

When people observe everyday activity, they spontaneously parse it into discrete meaningful events. Individuals who segment activity in a more normative fashion show better subsequent memory for the events. If segmenting events effectively leads to better memory, does asking people to attend to segmentation improve subsequent memory? To answer this question, participants viewed movies of naturalistic activity with instructions to remember the activity for a later test, and in some conditions additionally pressed a button to segment the movies into meaningful events or performed a control condition that required button-pressing but not attending to segmentation. In 5 experiments, memory for the movies was assessed at intervals ranging from immediately following viewing to 1 month later. Performing the event segmentation task led to superior memory at delays ranging from 10 min to 1 month. Further, individual differences in segmentation ability predicted individual differences in memory performance for up to a month following encoding. This study provides the first evidence that manipulating event segmentation affects memory over long delays and that individual differences in event segmentation are related to differences in memory over long delays. These effects suggest that attending to how an activity breaks down into meaningful events contributes to memory formation. Instructing people to more effectively segment events may serve as a potential intervention to alleviate everyday memory complaints in aging and clinical populations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

Compatibility of Segments of Thermoelectric Generators

Science.gov (United States)

Snyder, G. Jeffrey; Ursell, Tristan

2009-01-01

A method of calculating (usually for the purpose of maximizing) the power-conversion efficiency of a segmented thermoelectric generator is based on equations derived from the fundamental equations of thermoelectricity. Because it is directly traceable to first principles, the method provides physical explanations in addition to predictions of phenomena involved in segmentation. In comparison with the finite-element method used heretofore to predict (without being able to explain) the behavior of a segmented thermoelectric generator, this method is much simpler to implement in practice: in particular, the efficiency of a segmented thermoelectric generator can be estimated by evaluating equations using only hand-held calculator with this method. In addition, the method provides for determination of cascading ratios. The concept of cascading is illustrated in the figure and the definition of the cascading ratio is defined in the figure caption. An important aspect of the method is its approach to the issue of compatibility among segments, in combination with introduction of the concept of compatibility within a segment. Prior approaches involved the use of only averaged material properties. Two materials in direct contact could be examined for compatibility with each other, but there was no general framework for analysis of compatibility. The present method establishes such a framework. The mathematical derivation of the method begins with the definition of reduced efficiency of a thermoelectric generator as the ratio between (1) its thermal-to-electric power-conversion efficiency and (2) its Carnot efficiency (the maximum efficiency theoretically attainable, given its hot- and cold-side temperatures). The derivation involves calculation of the reduced efficiency of a model thermoelectric generator for which the hot-side temperature is only infinitesimally greater than the cold-side temperature. The derivation includes consideration of the ratio (u) between the

Document segmentation via oblique cuts

Science.gov (United States)

Svendsen, Jeremy; Branzan-Albu, Alexandra

2013-01-01

This paper presents a novel solution for the layout segmentation of graphical elements in Business Intelligence documents. We propose a generalization of the recursive X-Y cut algorithm, which allows for cutting along arbitrary oblique directions. An intermediate processing step consisting of line and solid region removal is also necessary due to presence of decorative elements. The output of the proposed segmentation is a hierarchical structure which allows for the identification of primitives in pie and bar charts. The algorithm was tested on a database composed of charts from business documents. Results are very promising.

The speech signal segmentation algorithm using pitch synchronous analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Amirgaliyev Yedilkhan

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Parameterization of the speech signal using the algorithms of analysis synchronized with the pitch frequency is discussed. Speech parameterization is performed by the average number of zero transitions function and the signal energy function. Parameterization results are used to segment the speech signal and to isolate the segments with stable spectral characteristics. Segmentation results can be used to generate a digital voice pattern of a person or be applied in the automatic speech recognition. Stages needed for continuous speech segmentation are described.

Figure-ground segmentation based on class-independent shape priors

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Yang; Liu, Yang; Liu, Guojun; Guo, Maozu

2018-01-01

We propose a method to generate figure-ground segmentation by incorporating shape priors into the graph-cuts algorithm. Given an image, we first obtain a linear representation of an image and then apply directional chamfer matching to generate class-independent, nonparametric shape priors, which provide shape clues for the graph-cuts algorithm. We then enforce shape priors in a graph-cuts energy function to produce object segmentation. In contrast to previous segmentation methods, the proposed method shares shape knowledge for different semantic classes and does not require class-specific model training. Therefore, the approach obtains high-quality segmentation for objects. We experimentally validate that the proposed method outperforms previous approaches using the challenging PASCAL VOC 2010/2012 and Berkeley (BSD300) segmentation datasets.

Transfer learning improves supervised image segmentation across imaging protocols

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

van Opbroek, Annegreet; Ikram, M. Arfan; Vernooij, Meike W.

2015-01-01

with slightly different characteristics. The performance of the four transfer classifiers was compared to that of standard supervised classification on two MRI brain-segmentation tasks with multi-site data: white matter, gray matter, and CSF segmentation; and white-matter- /MS-lesion segmentation......The variation between images obtained with different scanners or different imaging protocols presents a major challenge in automatic segmentation of biomedical images. This variation especially hampers the application of otherwise successful supervised-learning techniques which, in order to perform...... well, often require a large amount of labeled training data that is exactly representative of the target data. We therefore propose to use transfer learning for image segmentation. Transfer-learning techniques can cope with differences in distributions between training and target data, and therefore...

AN ITERATIVE SEGMENTATION METHOD FOR REGION OF INTEREST EXTRACTION

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Volkan CETIN

2013-01-01

Full Text Available In this paper, a method is presented for applications which include mammographic image segmentation and region of interest extraction. Segmentation is a very critical and difficult stage to accomplish in computer aided detection systems. Although the presented segmentation method is developed for mammographic images, it can be used for any medical image which resembles the same statistical characteristics with mammograms. Fundamentally, the method contains iterative automatic thresholding and masking operations which is applied to the original or enhanced mammograms. Also the effect of image enhancement to the segmentation process was observed. A version of histogram equalization was applied to the images for enhancement. Finally, the results show that enhanced version of the proposed segmentation method is preferable because of its better success rate.

Influence of Seismic Loading on Segment Opening of a Shield Tunnel

Science.gov (United States)

Chun-shan, Yang; Hai-hong, Mo; Jun-sheng, Chen; Yi-zhao, Wang

2014-01-01

The influence of seismic loading on segment opening of a shield tunnel was explored using the dynamic finite element method to analyze the distribution of segment opening under multidirectional seismic loading, combined with a typical engineering installation. The calculation of segment opening was deduced from equivalent continuous theory and segment opening was obtained through calculations. The results show that the scope of influence of the foundation excavation on segment opening is mainly resigned to within 5 segment rings next to the diaphragm wall and 4 joints nearest the working well when the tunnel is first excavated followed by the working well in the excavation order. The effect of seismic loading on segment opening is significant, and the minimum increase of the maximal segment opening owing to seismic loading is 16%, while that of the average opening is 27%. Segment opening under bidirectional coupled seismic loading is significantly greater than that under one-dimensional seismic loading. On the basis of the numerical calculations, the seismic acceleration and segment opening caused by seismic action were normalized, and a new calculation method was proposed for predicting the maximal segment opening of a shield tunnel at different depths under conditions of seismic loading. PMID:24955398

Soft segmented inchworm robot with dielectric elastomer muscles

Science.gov (United States)

Conn, Andrew T.; Hinitt, Andrew D.; Wang, Pengchuan

2014-03-01

Robotic devices typically utilize rigid components in order to produce precise and robust operation. Rigidity becomes a significant impediment, however, when navigating confined or constricted environments e.g. search-and-rescue, industrial pipe inspection. In such cases adaptively conformable soft structures become optimal. Dielectric elastomers (DEs) are well suited for developing such soft robots since they are inherently compliant and can produce large musclelike actuation strains. In this paper, a soft segmented inchworm robot is presented that utilizes pneumatically-coupled DE membranes to produce inchworm-like locomotion. The robot is constructed from repeated body segments, each with a simple control architecture, so that the total length can be readily adapted by adding or removing segments. Each segment consists of a soft inflatable shell (internal pressure in range of 1.0-15.9 mBar) and a pair of antagonistic DE membranes (VHB 4905). Experimental testing of a single body segment is presented and the relationship between drive voltage, pneumatic pressure and active displacement is characterized. This demonstrates that pneumatic coupling of DE membranes induces complex non-linear electro-mechanical behaviour as drive voltage and pneumatic pressure are altered. Locomotion of a two-segment inchworm robot prototype with a passive length of 80 mm is presented. Artificial setae are included on the body shell to generate anisotropic friction for locomotion. A maximum locomotion speed of 4.1 mm/s was recorded at a drive frequency of 1.5 Hz, which compares favourably to biological counterparts. Future development of the soft inchworm robot are discussed including reflexive low-level control of individual segments.

Best practices for preparing vessel internals segmentation projects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boucau, Joseph; Segerud, Per; Sanchez, Moises

2016-01-01

Westinghouse has been involved in reactor internals segmentation activities in the U.S. and Europe for 30 years. Westinghouse completed in 2015 the segmentation of the reactor vessel and reactor vessel internals at the Jose Cabrera nuclear power plant in Spain and a similar project is on-going at Chooz A in France. For all reactor dismantling projects, it is essential that all activities are thoroughly planned and discussed up-front together with the customer. Detailed planning is crucial for achieving a successful project. One key activity in the preparation phase is the 'Segmentation and Packaging Plan' that documents the sequential steps required to segment, separate, and package each individual component, based on an activation analysis and component characterization study. Detailed procedures and specialized rigging equipment have to be developed to provide safeguards for preventing certain identified risks. The preparatory work can include some plant civil structure modifications for making the segmentation work easier and safer. Some original plant equipment is sometimes not suitable enough and need to be replaced. Before going to the site, testing and qualification are performed on full scale mock-ups in a specially designed pool for segmentation purposes. The mockup testing is an important step in order to verify the function of the equipment and minimize risk on site. This paper is describing the typical activities needed for preparing the reactor internals segmentation activities using under water mechanical cutting techniques. It provides experiences and lessons learned that Westinghouse has collected from its recent projects and that will be applied for the new awarded projects. (authors)

Segmentation of DTI based on tensorial morphological gradient

Science.gov (United States)

Rittner, Leticia; de Alencar Lotufo, Roberto

2009-02-01

This paper presents a segmentation technique for diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). This technique is based on a tensorial morphological gradient (TMG), defined as the maximum dissimilarity over the neighborhood. Once this gradient is computed, the tensorial segmentation problem becomes an scalar one, which can be solved by conventional techniques, such as watershed transform and thresholding. Similarity functions, namely the dot product, the tensorial dot product, the J-divergence and the Frobenius norm, were compared, in order to understand their differences regarding the measurement of tensor dissimilarities. The study showed that the dot product and the tensorial dot product turned out to be inappropriate for computation of the TMG, while the Frobenius norm and the J-divergence were both capable of measuring tensor dissimilarities, despite the distortion of Frobenius norm, since it is not an affine invariant measure. In order to validate the TMG as a solution for DTI segmentation, its computation was performed using distinct similarity measures and structuring elements. TMG results were also compared to fractional anisotropy. Finally, synthetic and real DTI were used in the method validation. Experiments showed that the TMG enables the segmentation of DTI by watershed transform or by a simple choice of a threshold. The strength of the proposed segmentation method is its simplicity and robustness, consequences of TMG computation. It enables the use, not only of well-known algorithms and tools from the mathematical morphology, but also of any other segmentation method to segment DTI, since TMG computation transforms tensorial images in scalar ones.

Market Segmentation Using Bayesian Model Based Clustering

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Van Hattum, P.

2009-01-01

This dissertation deals with two basic problems in marketing, that are market segmentation, which is the grouping of persons who share common aspects, and market targeting, which is focusing your marketing efforts on one or more attractive market segments. For the grouping of persons who share

Pnrc2 regulates 3'UTR-mediated decay of segmentation clock-associated transcripts during zebrafish segmentation.

Science.gov (United States)

Gallagher, Thomas L; Tietz, Kiel T; Morrow, Zachary T; McCammon, Jasmine M; Goldrich, Michael L; Derr, Nicolas L; Amacher, Sharon L

2017-09-01

Vertebrate segmentation is controlled by the segmentation clock, a molecular oscillator that regulates gene expression and cycles rapidly. The expression of many genes oscillates during segmentation, including hairy/Enhancer of split-related (her or Hes) genes, which encode transcriptional repressors that auto-inhibit their own expression, and deltaC (dlc), which encodes a Notch ligand. We previously identified the tortuga (tor) locus in a zebrafish forward genetic screen for genes involved in cyclic transcript regulation and showed that cyclic transcripts accumulate post-splicing in tor mutants. Here we show that cyclic mRNA accumulation in tor mutants is due to loss of pnrc2, which encodes a proline-rich nuclear receptor co-activator implicated in mRNA decay. Using an inducible in vivo reporter system to analyze transcript stability, we find that the her1 3'UTR confers Pnrc2-dependent instability to a heterologous transcript. her1 mRNA decay is Dicer-independent and likely employs a Pnrc2-Upf1-containing mRNA decay complex. Surprisingly, despite accumulation of cyclic transcripts in pnrc2-deficient embryos, we find that cyclic protein is expressed normally. Overall, we show that Pnrc2 promotes 3'UTR-mediated decay of developmentally-regulated segmentation clock transcripts and we uncover an additional post-transcriptional regulatory layer that ensures oscillatory protein expression in the absence of cyclic mRNA decay. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Stereovision-Based Object Segmentation for Automotive Applications

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fu Shan

2005-01-01

Full Text Available Obstacle detection and classification in a complex urban area are highly demanding, but desirable for pedestrian protection, stop & go, and enhanced parking aids. The most difficult task for the system is to segment objects from varied and complicated background. In this paper, a novel position-based object segmentation method has been proposed to solve this problem. According to the method proposed, object segmentation is performed in two steps: in depth map ( - plane and in layered images ( - planes. The stereovision technique is used to reconstruct image points and generate the depth map. Objects are detected in the depth map. Afterwards, the original edge image is separated into different layers based on the distance of detected objects. Segmentation performed in these layered images can be easier and more reliable. It has been proved that the proposed method offers robust detection of potential obstacles and accurate measurement of their location and size.

Modified GrabCut for human face segmentation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dina Khattab

2014-12-01

Full Text Available GrabCut is a segmentation technique for 2D still color images, which is mainly based on an iterative energy minimization. The energy function of the GrabCut optimization algorithm is based mainly on a probabilistic model for pixel color distribution. Therefore, GrabCut may introduce unacceptable results in the cases of low contrast between foreground and background colors. In this manner, this paper presents a modified GrabCut technique for the segmentation of human faces from images of full humans. The modified technique introduces a new face location model for the energy minimization function of the GrabCut, in addition to the existing color one. This location model considers the distance distribution of the pixels from the silhouette boundary of a fitted head, of a 3D morphable model, to the image. The experimental results of the modified GrabCut have demonstrated better segmentation robustness and accuracy compared to the original GrabCut for human face segmentation.

Encapsulation of nodal segments of lobelia chinensis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Weng Hing Thong

2015-04-01

Full Text Available Lobelia chinensis served as an important herb in traditional chinese medicine. It is rare in the field and infected by some pathogens. Therefore, encapsulation of axillary buds has been developed for in vitro propagation of L. chinensis. Nodal explants of L. chinensis were used as inclusion materials for encapsulation. Various combinations of calcium chloride and sodium alginate were tested. Encapsulation beads produced by mixing 50 mM calcium chloride and 3.5% sodium alginate supported the optimal in vitro conversion potential. The number of multiple shoots formed by encapsulated nodal segments was not significantly different from the average of shoots produced by non-encapsulated nodal segments. The encapsulated nodal segments regenerated in vitro on different medium. The optimal germination and regeneration medium was Murashige-Skoog medium. Plantlets regenerated from the encapsulated nodal segments were hardened, acclimatized and established well in the field, showing similar morphology with parent plants. This encapsulation technology would serve as an alternative in vitro regeneration system for L. chinensis.

Technical Safety Requirements for the B695 Segment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Laycak, D

2008-09-11

This document contains Technical Safety Requirements (TSRs) for the Radioactive and Hazardous Waste Management (RHWM) Division's B695 Segment of the Decontamination and Waste Treatment Facility (DWTF) at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL). The TSRs constitute requirements regarding the safe operation of the B695 Segment. The TSRs are derived from the Documented Safety Analysis (DSA) for the B695 Segment (LLNL 2007). The analysis presented there determined that the B695 Segment is a low-chemical hazard, Hazard Category 3, nonreactor nuclear facility. The TSRs consist primarily of inventory limits as well as controls to preserve the underlying assumptions in the hazard analyses. Furthermore, appropriate commitments to safety programs are presented in the administrative controls section of the TSRs. The B695 Segment (B695 and the west portion of B696) is a waste treatment and storage facility located in the northeast quadrant of the LLNL main site. The approximate area and boundary of the B695 Segment are shown in the B695 Segment DSA. Activities typically conducted in the B695 Segment include container storage, lab-packing, repacking, overpacking, bulking, sampling, waste transfer, and waste treatment. B695 is used to store and treat radioactive, mixed, and hazardous waste, and it also contains equipment used in conjunction with waste processing operations to treat various liquid and solid wastes. The portion of the building called Building 696 Solid Waste Processing Area (SWPA), also referred to as B696S in this report, is used primarily to manage solid radioactive, mixed, and hazardous waste. Operations specific to the SWPA include sorting and segregating waste, lab-packing, sampling, and crushing empty drums that previously contained waste. Furthermore, a Waste Packaging Unit will be permitted to treat hazardous and mixed waste. RHWM generally processes LLW with no, or extremely low, concentrations of transuranics (i.e., much less than 100 n

Technical Safety Requirements for the B695 Segment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Laycak, D.

2008-01-01

This document contains Technical Safety Requirements (TSRs) for the Radioactive and Hazardous Waste Management (RHWM) Division's B695 Segment of the Decontamination and Waste Treatment Facility (DWTF) at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL). The TSRs constitute requirements regarding the safe operation of the B695 Segment. The TSRs are derived from the Documented Safety Analysis (DSA) for the B695 Segment (LLNL 2007). The analysis presented there determined that the B695 Segment is a low-chemical hazard, Hazard Category 3, nonreactor nuclear facility. The TSRs consist primarily of inventory limits as well as controls to preserve the underlying assumptions in the hazard analyses. Furthermore, appropriate commitments to safety programs are presented in the administrative controls section of the TSRs. The B695 Segment (B695 and the west portion of B696) is a waste treatment and storage facility located in the northeast quadrant of the LLNL main site. The approximate area and boundary of the B695 Segment are shown in the B695 Segment DSA. Activities typically conducted in the B695 Segment include container storage, lab-packing, repacking, overpacking, bulking, sampling, waste transfer, and waste treatment. B695 is used to store and treat radioactive, mixed, and hazardous waste, and it also contains equipment used in conjunction with waste processing operations to treat various liquid and solid wastes. The portion of the building called Building 696 Solid Waste Processing Area (SWPA), also referred to as B696S in this report, is used primarily to manage solid radioactive, mixed, and hazardous waste. Operations specific to the SWPA include sorting and segregating waste, lab-packing, sampling, and crushing empty drums that previously contained waste. Furthermore, a Waste Packaging Unit will be permitted to treat hazardous and mixed waste. RHWM generally processes LLW with no, or extremely low, concentrations of transuranics (i.e., much less than 100 n

A NDVI assisted remote sensing image adaptive scale segmentation method

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Hong; Shen, Jinxiang; Ma, Yanmei

2018-03-01

Multiscale segmentation of images can effectively form boundaries of different objects with different scales. However, for the remote sensing image which widely coverage with complicated ground objects, the number of suitable segmentation scales, and each of the scale size is still difficult to be accurately determined, which severely restricts the rapid information extraction of the remote sensing image. A great deal of experiments showed that the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) can effectively express the spectral characteristics of a variety of ground objects in remote sensing images. This paper presents a method using NDVI assisted adaptive segmentation of remote sensing images, which segment the local area by using NDVI similarity threshold to iteratively select segmentation scales. According to the different regions which consist of different targets, different segmentation scale boundaries could be created. The experimental results showed that the adaptive segmentation method based on NDVI can effectively create the objects boundaries for different ground objects of remote sensing images.

Automatic Image Segmentation Using Active Contours with Univariate Marginal Distribution

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

I. Cruz-Aceves

2013-01-01

Full Text Available This paper presents a novel automatic image segmentation method based on the theory of active contour models and estimation of distribution algorithms. The proposed method uses the univariate marginal distribution model to infer statistical dependencies between the control points on different active contours. These contours have been generated through an alignment process of reference shape priors, in order to increase the exploration and exploitation capabilities regarding different interactive segmentation techniques. This proposed method is applied in the segmentation of the hollow core in microscopic images of photonic crystal fibers and it is also used to segment the human heart and ventricular areas from datasets of computed tomography and magnetic resonance images, respectively. Moreover, to evaluate the performance of the medical image segmentations compared to regions outlined by experts, a set of similarity measures has been adopted. The experimental results suggest that the proposed image segmentation method outperforms the traditional active contour model and the interactive Tseng method in terms of segmentation accuracy and stability.

Relations between segmental and motor variability in prosodically complex nonword sequences.

Science.gov (United States)

Goffman, Lisa; Gerken, Louann; Lucchesi, Julie

2007-04-01

To assess how prosodic prominence and hierarchical foot structure influence segmental and articulatory aspects of speech production, specifically segmental accuracy and variability, and oral movement trajectory variability. Thirty individuals participated: 10 young adults, 10 children who are normally developing, and 10 children diagnosed with specific language impairment. Segmental error and segmental variability and movement trajectory variability were compared in low and high prosodic prominence conditions (i.e., strong and weak syllables) and in different prosodic foot structures. Between-participants findings were that both groups of children showed more segmental error and segmental variability and more movement trajectory variability than did adults. A similar within-participant pattern of results was observed for all 3 groups. Prosodic prominence influenced both segmental and motor levels of analysis, with weak syllables produced less accurately and with more lip and jaw movement trajectory variability than strong syllables. However, hierarchical foot structure affected segmental but not motor measures of speech production accuracy and variability. Motor and segmental variables were not consistently aligned. This pattern of results has clinical implications because inferences about motor variability may not directly follow from observations of segmental variability.

Segmentation of radiologic images with self-organizing maps: the segmentation problem transformed into a classification task

Science.gov (United States)

Pelikan, Erich; Vogelsang, Frank; Tolxdorff, Thomas

1996-04-01

The texture-based segmentation of x-ray images of focal bone lesions using topological maps is introduced. Texture characteristics are described by image-point correlation of feature images to feature vectors. For the segmentation, the topological map is labeled using an improved labeling strategy. Results of the technique are demonstrated on original and synthetic x-ray images and quantified with the aid of quality measures. In addition, a classifier-specific contribution analysis is applied for assessing the feature space.

Segmentation of time series with long-range fractal correlations

Science.gov (United States)

Bernaola-Galván, P.; Oliver, J.L.; Hackenberg, M.; Coronado, A.V.; Ivanov, P.Ch.; Carpena, P.

2012-01-01

Segmentation is a standard method of data analysis to identify change-points dividing a nonstationary time series into homogeneous segments. However, for long-range fractal correlated series, most of the segmentation techniques detect spurious change-points which are simply due to the heterogeneities induced by the correlations and not to real nonstationarities. To avoid this oversegmentation, we present a segmentation algorithm which takes as a reference for homogeneity, instead of a random i.i.d. series, a correlated series modeled by a fractional noise with the same degree of correlations as the series to be segmented. We apply our algorithm to artificial series with long-range correlations and show that it systematically detects only the change-points produced by real nonstationarities and not those created by the correlations of the signal. Further, we apply the method to the sequence of the long arm of human chromosome 21, which is known to have long-range fractal correlations. We obtain only three segments that clearly correspond to the three regions of different G + C composition revealed by means of a multi-scale wavelet plot. Similar results have been obtained when segmenting all human chromosome sequences, showing the existence of previously unknown huge compositional superstructures in the human genome. PMID:23645997

Segmentation of time series with long-range fractal correlations.

Science.gov (United States)

Bernaola-Galván, P; Oliver, J L; Hackenberg, M; Coronado, A V; Ivanov, P Ch; Carpena, P

2012-06-01

Segmentation is a standard method of data analysis to identify change-points dividing a nonstationary time series into homogeneous segments. However, for long-range fractal correlated series, most of the segmentation techniques detect spurious change-points which are simply due to the heterogeneities induced by the correlations and not to real nonstationarities. To avoid this oversegmentation, we present a segmentation algorithm which takes as a reference for homogeneity, instead of a random i.i.d. series, a correlated series modeled by a fractional noise with the same degree of correlations as the series to be segmented. We apply our algorithm to artificial series with long-range correlations and show that it systematically detects only the change-points produced by real nonstationarities and not those created by the correlations of the signal. Further, we apply the method to the sequence of the long arm of human chromosome 21, which is known to have long-range fractal correlations. We obtain only three segments that clearly correspond to the three regions of different G + C composition revealed by means of a multi-scale wavelet plot. Similar results have been obtained when segmenting all human chromosome sequences, showing the existence of previously unknown huge compositional superstructures in the human genome.

Segmental stiff skin syndrome (SSS): A distinct clinical entity.

Science.gov (United States)

Myers, Kathryn L; Mir, Adnan; Schaffer, Julie V; Meehan, Shane A; Orlow, Seth J; Brinster, Nooshin K

2016-07-01

Stiff skin syndrome (SSS) is a noninflammatory, fibrosing condition of the skin, often affecting the limb girdles. We present 4 new patients with SSS with largely unilateral, segmental distribution. To date, reported cases of SSS have been grouped based on generally accepted clinical and histopathologic findings. The purpose of this study was to analyze differences in clinical and histopathologic findings between previously reported SSS cases. This is a retrospective review of 4 new cases and 48 previously published cases of SSS obtained from PubMed search. Of 52 total cases, 18 (35%) were segmentally distributed and 34 (65%) were widespread. The average age of onset was 4.1 years versus 1.6 years for segmental versus widespread SSS, respectively. Limitation in joint mobility affected 44% of patients with segmental SSS and 97% of patients with widespread SSS. Histopathologic findings were common between the 2 groups. This was a retrospective study of previously published cases limited by the completeness and accuracy of the reviewed cases. We propose a distinct clinical entity, segmental SSS, characterized by a segmental distribution, later age of onset, and less severe functional limitation. Both segmental SSS and widespread SSS share common diagnostic histopathologic features. Copyright © 2016 American Academy of Dermatology, Inc. All rights reserved.

Adjustable Two-Tier Cache for IPTV Based on Segmented Streaming

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kai-Chun Liang

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Internet protocol TV (IPTV is a promising Internet killer application, which integrates video, voice, and data onto a single IP network, and offers viewers an innovative set of choices and control over their TV content. To provide high-quality IPTV services, an effective strategy is based on caching. This work proposes a segment-based two-tier caching approach, which divides each video into multiple segments to be cached. This approach also partitions the cache space into two layers, where the first layer mainly caches to-be-played segments and the second layer saves possibly played segments. As the segment access becomes frequent, the proposed approach enlarges the first layer and reduces the second layer, and vice versa. Because requested segments may not be accessed frequently, this work further designs an admission control mechanism to determine whether an incoming segment should be cached or not. The cache architecture takes forward/stop playback into account and may replace the unused segments under the interrupted playback. Finally, we conduct comprehensive simulation experiments to evaluate the performance of the proposed approach. The results show that our approach can yield higher hit ratio than previous work under various environmental parameters.

Superpixel-based segmentation of muscle fibers in multi-channel microscopy.

Science.gov (United States)

Nguyen, Binh P; Heemskerk, Hans; So, Peter T C; Tucker-Kellogg, Lisa

2016-12-05

Confetti fluorescence and other multi-color genetic labelling strategies are useful for observing stem cell regeneration and for other problems of cell lineage tracing. One difficulty of such strategies is segmenting the cell boundaries, which is a very different problem from segmenting color images from the real world. This paper addresses the difficulties and presents a superpixel-based framework for segmentation of regenerated muscle fibers in mice. We propose to integrate an edge detector into a superpixel algorithm and customize the method for multi-channel images. The enhanced superpixel method outperforms the original and another advanced superpixel algorithm in terms of both boundary recall and under-segmentation error. Our framework was applied to cross-section and lateral section images of regenerated muscle fibers from confetti-fluorescent mice. Compared with "ground-truth" segmentations, our framework yielded median Dice similarity coefficients of 0.92 and higher. Our segmentation framework is flexible and provides very good segmentations of multi-color muscle fibers. We anticipate our methods will be useful for segmenting a variety of tissues in confetti fluorecent mice and in mice with similar multi-color labels.

Quantitative Comparison of SPM, FSL, and Brainsuite for Brain MR Image Segmentation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kazemi K

2014-03-01

Full Text Available Background: Accurate brain tissue segmentation from magnetic resonance (MR images is an important step in analysis of cerebral images. There are software packages which are used for brain segmentation. These packages usually contain a set of skull stripping, intensity non-uniformity (bias correction and segmentation routines. Thus, assessment of the quality of the segmented gray matter (GM, white matter (WM and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF is needed for the neuroimaging applications. Methods: In this paper, performance evaluation of three widely used brain segmentation software packages SPM8, FSL and Brainsuite is presented. Segmentation with SPM8 has been performed in three frameworks: i default segmentation, ii SPM8 New-segmentation and iii modified version using hidden Markov random field as implemented in SPM8-VBM toolbox. Results: The accuracy of the segmented GM, WM and CSF and the robustness of the tools against changes of image quality has been assessed using Brainweb simulated MR images and IBSR real MR images. The calculated similarity between the segmented tissues using different tools and corresponding ground truth shows variations in segmentation results. Conclusion: A few studies has investigated GM, WM and CSF segmentation. In these studies, the skull stripping and bias correction are performed separately and they just evaluated the segmentation. Thus, in this study, assessment of complete segmentation framework consisting of pre-processing and segmentation of these packages is performed. The obtained results can assist the users in choosing an appropriate segmentation software package for the neuroimaging application of interest.

Primary Segmental Volvulus Mimicking Ileal Atresia

Science.gov (United States)

Rao, Sadashiva; B Shetty, Kishan

2013-01-01

Neonatal intestinal volvulus in the absence of malrotation is a rare occurrence and rarer still is the intestinal volvulus in absence of any other predisposing factors. Primary segmental volvulus in neonates is very rare entity, which can have catastrophic outcome if not intervened at appropriate time. We report two such cases, which were preoperatively diagnosed as ileal atresia and intraoperatively revealed to be primary segmental volvulus of the ileum. PMID:26023426

Convolutional Neural Networks for SAR Image Segmentation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Malmgren-Hansen, David; Nobel-Jørgensen, Morten

2015-01-01

Segmentation of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images has several uses, but it is a difficult task due to a number of properties related to SAR images. In this article we show how Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) can easily be trained for SAR image segmentation with good results. Besides...

Segmentation in local hospital markets.

Science.gov (United States)

Dranove, D; White, W D; Wu, L

1993-01-01

This study examines evidence of market segmentation on the basis of patients' insurance status, demographic characteristics, and medical condition in selected local markets in California in the years 1983 and 1989. Substantial differences exist in the probability patients may be admitted to particular hospitals based on insurance coverage, particularly Medicaid, and race. Segmentation based on insurance and race is related to hospital characteristics, but not the characteristics of the hospital's community. Medicaid patients are more likely to go to hospitals with lower costs and fewer service offerings. Privately insured patients go to hospitals offering more services, although cost concerns are increasing. Hispanic patients also go to low-cost hospitals, ceteris paribus. Results indicate little evidence of segmentation based on medical condition in either 1983 or 1989, suggesting that "centers of excellence" have yet to play an important role in patient choice of hospital. The authors found that distance matters, and that patients prefer nearby hospitals, moreso for some medical conditions than others, in ways consistent with economic theories of consumer choice.

Segmented Thermoelectric Oxide-based Module

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Le, Thanh Hung; Linderoth, Søren

for a more stable high temperature material. In this study, thermoelectric properties from 300 to 1200 K of Ca0.9Y0.1Mn1-xFexO3 for 0 ≤ x ≤ 0.25 were systematically investigated in term of Y and Fe co-doping at the Ca- and Mn-sites, respectively. It was found that with increasing the content of Fe doping......-performance segmented oxide-based module comprising of 4-unicouples using segmentation of the half-Heusler Ti0.3Zr0.35Hf0.35CoSb0.8Sn0.2 and the misfit-layered cobaltite Ca3Co4O9+δ as the p-leg and 2% Al-doped ZnO as the n-leg was successfully fabricated and characterized. The results (presented in Chapter 5) show...... result, although a slight degradation tendency could be observed after 48 hours of operating in air. Nevertheless, the total conversion efficiency of this segmented module is still low less than 2%, and needs to be further improved. A degradation mechanism was observed, which attributed to the increase...

Superiority Of Graph-Based Visual Saliency GVS Over Other Image Segmentation Methods

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Umu Lamboi

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Although inherently tedious the segmentation of images and the evaluation of segmented images are critical in computer vision processes. One of the main challenges in image segmentation evaluation arises from the basic conflict between generality and objectivity. For general segmentation purposes the lack of well-defined ground-truth and segmentation accuracy limits the evaluation of specific applications. Subjectivity is the most common method of evaluation of segmentation quality where segmented images are visually compared. This is daunting task however limits the scope of segmentation evaluation to a few predetermined sets of images. As an alternative supervised evaluation compares segmented images against manually-segmented or pre-processed benchmark images. Not only good evaluation methods allow for different comparisons but also for integration with target recognition systems for adaptive selection of appropriate segmentation granularity with improved recognition accuracy. Most of the current segmentation methods still lack satisfactory measures of effectiveness. Thus this study proposed a supervised framework which uses visual saliency detection to quantitatively evaluate image segmentation quality. The new benchmark evaluator uses Graph-based Visual Saliency GVS to compare boundary outputs for manually segmented images. Using the Berkeley Segmentation Database the proposed algorithm was tested against 4 other quantitative evaluation methods Probabilistic Rand Index PRI Variation of Information VOI Global Consistency Error GSE and Boundary Detection Error BDE. Based on the results the GVS approach outperformed any of the other 4 independent standard methods in terms of visual saliency detection of images.

COMPARISON OF DIFFERENT SEGMENTATION ALGORITHMS FOR DERMOSCOPIC IMAGES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A.A. Haseena Thasneem

2015-05-01

Full Text Available This paper compares different algorithms for the segmentation of skin lesions in dermoscopic images. The basic segmentation algorithms compared are Thresholding techniques (Global and Adaptive, Region based techniques (K-means, Fuzzy C means, Expectation Maximization and Statistical Region Merging, Contour models (Active Contour Model and Chan - Vese Model and Spectral Clustering. Accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, Border error, Hammoude distance, Hausdorff distance, MSE, PSNR and elapsed time metrices were used to evaluate various segmentation techniques.

Color Segmentation of Homogeneous Areas on Colposcopical Images

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kosteley Yana

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The article provides an analysis of image processing and color segmentation applied to the problem of selection of homogeneous regions in the parameters of the color model. Methods of image processing such as Gaussian filter, median filter, histogram equalization and mathematical morphology are considered. The segmentation algorithm with the parameters of color components is presented, followed by isolation of the resulting connected component of a binary segmentation mask. Analysis of methods performed on images colposcopic research.

Optimization of Segmentation Quality of Integrated Circuit Images

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gintautas Mušketas

2012-04-01

Full Text Available The paper presents investigation into the application of genetic algorithms for the segmentation of the active regions of integrated circuit images. This article is dedicated to a theoretical examination of the applied methods (morphological dilation, erosion, hit-and-miss, threshold and describes genetic algorithms, image segmentation as optimization problem. The genetic optimization of the predefined filter sequence parameters is carried out. Improvement to segmentation accuracy using a non optimized filter sequence makes 6%.Artcile in Lithuanian

GPU accelerated fuzzy connected image segmentation by using CUDA.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhuge, Ying; Cao, Yong; Miller, Robert W

2009-01-01

Image segmentation techniques using fuzzy connectedness principles have shown their effectiveness in segmenting a variety of objects in several large applications in recent years. However, one problem of these algorithms has been their excessive computational requirements when processing large image datasets. Nowadays commodity graphics hardware provides high parallel computing power. In this paper, we present a parallel fuzzy connected image segmentation algorithm on Nvidia's Compute Unified Device Architecture (CUDA) platform for segmenting large medical image data sets. Our experiments based on three data sets with small, medium, and large data size demonstrate the efficiency of the parallel algorithm, which achieves a speed-up factor of 7.2x, 7.3x, and 14.4x, correspondingly, for the three data sets over the sequential implementation of fuzzy connected image segmentation algorithm on CPU.

Segmentation of isolated MR images: development and comparison of neuronal networks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Paredes, R.; Robles, M.; Marti-Bonmati, L.; Masia, L.

1998-01-01

Segmentation defines the capacity to differentiate among types of tissues. In MR. it is frequently applied to volumetric determinations. Digital images can be segmented in a number of ways; neuronal networks (NN) can be employed for this purpose. Our objective was to develop algorithms for automatic segmentation using NN and apply them to central nervous system MR images. The segmentation obtained with NN was compared with that resulting from other procedures (region-growing and K means). Each NN consisted of two layers: one based on unsupervised training, which was utilized for image segmentation in sets of K, and a second layer associating each set obtained by the preceding layer with the real set corresponding to the previously segmented objective image. This NN was trained with previously segmented images with supervised regions-growing algorithms and automatic K means. Thus, 4 different segmentation were obtained: region-growing, K means, NN with region-growing and NN with K means. The tissue volumes corresponding to cerebrospinal fluid, gray matter and white matter obtained with the 4 techniques were compared and the most representative segmented image was selected qualitatively by averaging the visual perception of 3 radiologists. The segmentation that best corresponded to the visual perception of the radiologists was that consisting of trained NN with region-growing. In comparison, the other 3 algorithms presented low percentage differences (mean, 3.44%). The mean percentage error for the 3 tissues from these algorithms was lower for region-growing segmentation (2.34%) than for trained NN with K means (3.31%) and for automatic K-means segmentation (4.66%). Thus, NN are reliable in the automation of isolated MR image segmentation. (Author) 12 refs

Therapeutic outcome of various treatment modalities for the management of 34 cases of mandibular unicystic ameloblastoma

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rajib Khadka

2018-03-01

Full Text Available Background & Objectives: Unicystic ameloblastoma is a challenge, as conservative modalities have high recurrence chances whereas radical modalities have high morbidity for defects and deformity. Enucleation with peripheral ostectomy and Carnoy’s solution is an intermediate treatment with less risk of recurrence and good outcome. The objectives of the study was to determine the therapeutic outcome for various treatment modalities for the management of mandibular unicystic ameloblastoma.Materials & Methods:Retrospective analysis of 34 cases from 2005 to 2014 was done and were analysed in terms of demographic profiles, treatment modalities and its efficacy (recurrence in 6 years’ follow up time.Results: The total number of patients was 34. The age ranged from 12 years to 28 years with a mean age of 18.82 years. Gender distribution was 21 males (61.8% and 13 females (38.2%. The location found was 26 (76.5% cases in posterior mandibular region and 8 (23.5% cases in the anterior mandibular region. Size of the lesions was small in 10 (29.4% cases, medium in 18 (52.9% cases and large in 6 (17.6% cases. Perforation of buccal or lingual cortex was present in 6 (17.6% and no preforation in 28 (82.4%. Treatment modalities done was marsupilisation in 6 (17.6% cases, enucleation with peripheral ostectomy with caroney solution in 22 (64.7% cases and resection with safe margin in 6 (17.6% cases. Recurrence occurred in 8 (23.5% cases and no recurrence in 26 (76.5% cases.Conclusion:Enucleation with peripheral ostectomy and Carnoy’s solution is one of the good treatment modality for unicystic ameloblastoma of the mandible whereas complete resection of the mandible with safe margin has low risk of recurrence in long term follow up.

Physical basis for river segmentation from water surface observables

Science.gov (United States)

Samine Montazem, A.; Garambois, P. A.; Calmant, S.; Moreira, D. M.; Monnier, J.; Biancamaria, S.

2017-12-01

With the advent of satellite missions such as SWOT we will have access to high resolution estimates of the elevation, slope and width of the free surface. A segmentation strategy is required in order to sub-sample the data set into reach master points for further hydraulic analyzes and inverse modelling. The question that arises is : what will be the best node repartition strategy that preserves hydraulic properties of river flow? The concept of hydraulic visibility introduced by Garambois et al. (2016) is investigated in order to highlight and characterize the spatio-temporal variations of water surface slope and curvature for different flow regimes and reach geometries. We show that free surface curvature is a powerful proxy for characterizing the hydraulic behavior of a reach since concavity of water surface is driven by variations in channel geometry that impacts the hydraulic properties of the flow. We evaluated the performance of three segmentation strategies by means of a well documented case, that of the Garonne river in France. We conclude that local extrema of free surface curvature appear as the best candidate for locating the segment boundaries for an optimal hydraulic representation of the segmented river. We show that for a given river different segmentation scales are possible: a fine-scale segmentation which is driven by fine-scale hydraulic to large-scale segmentation driven by large-scale geomorphology. The segmentation technique is then applied to high resolution GPS profiles of free surface elevation collected on the Negro river basin, a major contributor of the Amazon river. We propose two segmentations: a low-resolution one that can be used for basin hydrology and a higher resolution one better suited for local hydrodynamic studies.

Segmenting Continuous Motions with Hidden Semi-markov Models and Gaussian Processes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tomoaki Nakamura

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Humans divide perceived continuous information into segments to facilitate recognition. For example, humans can segment speech waves into recognizable morphemes. Analogously, continuous motions are segmented into recognizable unit actions. People can divide continuous information into segments without using explicit segment points. This capacity for unsupervised segmentation is also useful for robots, because it enables them to flexibly learn languages, gestures, and actions. In this paper, we propose a Gaussian process-hidden semi-Markov model (GP-HSMM that can divide continuous time series data into segments in an unsupervised manner. Our proposed method consists of a generative model based on the hidden semi-Markov model (HSMM, the emission distributions of which are Gaussian processes (GPs. Continuous time series data is generated by connecting segments generated by the GP. Segmentation can be achieved by using forward filtering-backward sampling to estimate the model's parameters, including the lengths and classes of the segments. In an experiment using the CMU motion capture dataset, we tested GP-HSMM with motion capture data containing simple exercise motions; the results of this experiment showed that the proposed GP-HSMM was comparable with other methods. We also conducted an experiment using karate motion capture data, which is more complex than exercise motion capture data; in this experiment, the segmentation accuracy of GP-HSMM was 0.92, which outperformed other methods.

Automated Segmentability Index for Layer Segmentation of Macular SD-OCT Images

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lee, K.; Buitendijk, G.H.; Bogunovic, H.; Springelkamp, H.; Hofman, A.; Wahle, A.; Sonka, M.; Vingerling, J.R.; Klaver, C.C.W.; Abramoff, M.D.

2016-01-01

PURPOSE: To automatically identify which spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) scans will provide reliable automated layer segmentations for more accurate layer thickness analyses in population studies. METHODS: Six hundred ninety macular SD-OCT image volumes (6.0 x 6.0 x 2.3 mm3)

The deformation behavior of the cervical spine segment

Science.gov (United States)

Kolmakova, T. V.; Rikun, Yu. A.

2017-09-01

The paper describes the model of the cervical spine segment (C3-C4) and the calculation results of its deformation behavior at flexion. The segment model was built based on the experimental literature data taking into account the presence of the cortical and cancellous bone tissue of vertebral bodies. Degenerative changes of the intervertebral disk (IVD) were simulated through a reduction of the disc height and an increase of Young's modulus. The construction of the geometric model of the cervical spine segment and the calculations of the stress-strain state were carried out in the ANSYS software complex. The calculation results show that the biggest protrusion of the IVD in bending direction of segment is observed when IVD height is reduced. The disc protrusion is reduced with an increase of Young's modulus. The largest protrusion in the direction of flexion of the segment is the intervertebral disk with height of 4.3 mm and elastic modulus of 2.5 MPa. The results of the study can be useful to specialists in the field of biomechanics, medical materials science and prosthetics.

Lung tumor segmentation in PET images using graph cuts.

Science.gov (United States)

Ballangan, Cherry; Wang, Xiuying; Fulham, Michael; Eberl, Stefan; Feng, David Dagan

2013-03-01

The aim of segmentation of tumor regions in positron emission tomography (PET) is to provide more accurate measurements of tumor size and extension into adjacent structures, than is possible with visual assessment alone and hence improve patient management decisions. We propose a segmentation energy function for the graph cuts technique to improve lung tumor segmentation with PET. Our segmentation energy is based on an analysis of the tumor voxels in PET images combined with a standardized uptake value (SUV) cost function and a monotonic downhill SUV feature. The monotonic downhill feature avoids segmentation leakage into surrounding tissues with similar or higher PET tracer uptake than the tumor and the SUV cost function improves the boundary definition and also addresses situations where the lung tumor is heterogeneous. We evaluated the method in 42 clinical PET volumes from patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Our method improves segmentation and performs better than region growing approaches, the watershed technique, fuzzy-c-means, region-based active contour and tumor customized downhill. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Evaluating the impact of image preprocessing on iris segmentation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

José F. Valencia-Murillo

2014-08-01

Full Text Available Segmentation is one of the most important stages in iris recognition systems. In this paper, image preprocessing algorithms are applied in order to evaluate their impact on successful iris segmentation. The preprocessing algorithms are based on histogram adjustment, Gaussian filters and suppression of specular reflections in human eye images. The segmentation method introduced by Masek is applied on 199 images acquired under unconstrained conditions, belonging to the CASIA-irisV3 database, before and after applying the preprocessing algorithms. Then, the impact of image preprocessing algorithms on the percentage of successful iris segmentation is evaluated by means of a visual inspection of images in order to determine if circumferences of iris and pupil were detected correctly. An increase from 59% to 73% in percentage of successful iris segmentation is obtained with an algorithm that combine elimination of specular reflections, followed by the implementation of a Gaussian filter having a 5x5 kernel. The results highlight the importance of a preprocessing stage as a previous step in order to improve the performance during the edge detection and iris segmentation processes.

Bayesian segmentation of brainstem structures in MRI

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Iglesias, Juan Eugenio; Van Leemput, Koen; Bhatt, Priyanka

2015-01-01

the brainstem structures in novel scans. Thanks to the generative nature of the scheme, the segmentation method is robust to changes in MRI contrast or acquisition hardware. Using cross validation, we show that the algorithm can segment the structures in previously unseen T1 and FLAIR scans with great accuracy...

Muscles of mastication model-based MR image segmentation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ng, H.P. [NUS Graduate School for Integrative Sciences and Engineering, Singapore (Singapore); Agency for Science Technology and Research, Singapore (Singapore). Biomedical Imaging Lab.; Ong, S.H. [National Univ. of Singapore (Singapore). Dept. of Electrical and Computer Engineering; National Univ. of Singapore (Singapore). Div. of Bioengineering; Hu, Q.; Nowinski, W.L. [Agency for Science Technology and Research, Singapore (Singapore). Biomedical Imaging Lab.; Foong, K.W.C. [NUS Graduate School for Integrative Sciences and Engineering, Singapore (Singapore); National Univ. of Singapore (Singapore). Dept. of Preventive Dentistry; Goh, P.S. [National Univ. of Singapore (Singapore). Dept. of Diagnostic Radiology

2006-11-15

Objective: The muscles of mastication play a major role in the orodigestive system as the principal motive force for the mandible. An algorithm for segmenting these muscles from magnetic resonance (MR) images was developed and tested. Materials and methods: Anatomical information about the muscles of mastication in MR images is used to obtain the spatial relationships relating the muscle region of interest (ROI) and head ROI. A model-based technique that involves the spatial relationships between head and muscle ROIs as well as muscle templates is developed. In the segmentation stage, the muscle ROI is derived from the model. Within the muscle ROI, anisotropic diffusion is applied to smooth the texture, followed by thresholding to exclude bone and fat. The muscle template and morphological operators are employed to obtain an initial estimate of the muscle boundary, which then serves as the input contour to the gradient vector flow snake that iterates to the final segmentation. Results: The method was applied to segmentation of the masseter, lateral pterygoid and medial pterygoid in 75 images. The overlap indices (K) achieved are 91.4, 92.1 and 91.2%, respectively. Conclusion: A model-based method for segmenting the muscles of mastication from MR images was developed and tested. The results show good agreement between manual and automatic segmentations. (orig.)

Muscles of mastication model-based MR image segmentation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ng, H.P.; Agency for Science Technology and Research, Singapore; Ong, S.H.; National Univ. of Singapore; Hu, Q.; Nowinski, W.L.; Foong, K.W.C.; National Univ. of Singapore; Goh, P.S.

2006-01-01

Objective: The muscles of mastication play a major role in the orodigestive system as the principal motive force for the mandible. An algorithm for segmenting these muscles from magnetic resonance (MR) images was developed and tested. Materials and methods: Anatomical information about the muscles of mastication in MR images is used to obtain the spatial relationships relating the muscle region of interest (ROI) and head ROI. A model-based technique that involves the spatial relationships between head and muscle ROIs as well as muscle templates is developed. In the segmentation stage, the muscle ROI is derived from the model. Within the muscle ROI, anisotropic diffusion is applied to smooth the texture, followed by thresholding to exclude bone and fat. The muscle template and morphological operators are employed to obtain an initial estimate of the muscle boundary, which then serves as the input contour to the gradient vector flow snake that iterates to the final segmentation. Results: The method was applied to segmentation of the masseter, lateral pterygoid and medial pterygoid in 75 images. The overlap indices (K) achieved are 91.4, 92.1 and 91.2%, respectively. Conclusion: A model-based method for segmenting the muscles of mastication from MR images was developed and tested. The results show good agreement between manual and automatic segmentations. (orig.)

Cellular image segmentation using n-agent cooperative game theory

Science.gov (United States)

Dimock, Ian B.; Wan, Justin W. L.

2016-03-01

Image segmentation is an important problem in computer vision and has significant applications in the segmentation of cellular images. Many different imaging techniques exist and produce a variety of image properties which pose difficulties to image segmentation routines. Bright-field images are particularly challenging because of the non-uniform shape of the cells, the low contrast between cells and background, and imaging artifacts such as halos and broken edges. Classical segmentation techniques often produce poor results on these challenging images. Previous attempts at bright-field imaging are often limited in scope to the images that they segment. In this paper, we introduce a new algorithm for automatically segmenting cellular images. The algorithm incorporates two game theoretic models which allow each pixel to act as an independent agent with the goal of selecting their best labelling strategy. In the non-cooperative model, the pixels choose strategies greedily based only on local information. In the cooperative model, the pixels can form coalitions, which select labelling strategies that benefit the entire group. Combining these two models produces a method which allows the pixels to balance both local and global information when selecting their label. With the addition of k-means and active contour techniques for initialization and post-processing purposes, we achieve a robust segmentation routine. The algorithm is applied to several cell image datasets including bright-field images, fluorescent images and simulated images. Experiments show that the algorithm produces good segmentation results across the variety of datasets which differ in cell density, cell shape, contrast, and noise levels.

Segmentation and Visualisation of Human Brain Structures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hult, Roger

2003-10-01

In this thesis the focus is mainly on the development of segmentation techniques for human brain structures and of the visualisation of such structures. The images of the brain are both anatomical images (magnet resonance imaging (MRI) and autoradiography) and functional images that show blood flow (functional magnetic imaging (fMRI), positron emission tomography (PET), and single photon emission tomography (SPECT)). When working with anatomical images, the structures segmented are visible as different parts of the brain, e.g. the brain cortex, the hippocampus, or the amygdala. In functional images, the activity or the blood flow that be seen. Grey-level morphology methods are used in the segmentations to make tissue types in the images more homogenous and minimise difficulties with connections to outside tissue. A method for automatic histogram thresholding is also used. Furthermore, there are binary operations such as logic operation between masks and binary morphology operations. The visualisation of the segmented structures uses either surface rendering or volume rendering. For the visualisation of thin structures, surface rendering is the better choice since otherwise some voxels might be missed. It is possible to display activation from a functional image on the surface of a segmented cortex. A new method for autoradiographic images has been developed, which integrates registration, background compensation, and automatic thresholding to get faster and more reliable results than the standard techniques give.

Segmentation and Visualisation of Human Brain Structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hult, Roger

2003-01-01

In this thesis the focus is mainly on the development of segmentation techniques for human brain structures and of the visualisation of such structures. The images of the brain are both anatomical images (magnet resonance imaging (MRI) and autoradiography) and functional images that show blood flow (functional magnetic imaging (fMRI), positron emission tomography (PET), and single photon emission tomography (SPECT)). When working with anatomical images, the structures segmented are visible as different parts of the brain, e.g. the brain cortex, the hippocampus, or the amygdala. In functional images, the activity or the blood flow that be seen. Grey-level morphology methods are used in the segmentations to make tissue types in the images more homogenous and minimise difficulties with connections to outside tissue. A method for automatic histogram thresholding is also used. Furthermore, there are binary operations such as logic operation between masks and binary morphology operations. The visualisation of the segmented structures uses either surface rendering or volume rendering. For the visualisation of thin structures, surface rendering is the better choice since otherwise some voxels might be missed. It is possible to display activation from a functional image on the surface of a segmented cortex. A new method for autoradiographic images has been developed, which integrates registration, background compensation, and automatic thresholding to get faster and more reliable results than the standard techniques give

An Efficient Evolutionary Based Method For Image Segmentation

OpenAIRE

Aslanzadeh, Roohollah; Qazanfari, Kazem; Rahmati, Mohammad

2017-01-01

The goal of this paper is to present a new efficient image segmentation method based on evolutionary computation which is a model inspired from human behavior. Based on this model, a four layer process for image segmentation is proposed using the split/merge approach. In the first layer, an image is split into numerous regions using the watershed algorithm. In the second layer, a co-evolutionary process is applied to form centers of finals segments by merging similar primary regions. In the t...

Self-assembling segmented coiled tubing

Science.gov (United States)

Raymond, David W.

2016-09-27

Self-assembling segmented coiled tubing is a concept that allows the strength of thick-wall rigid pipe, and the flexibility of thin-wall tubing, to be realized in a single design. The primary use is for a drillstring tubular, but it has potential for other applications requiring transmission of mechanical loads (forces and torques) through an initially coiled tubular. The concept uses a spring-loaded spherical `ball-and-socket` type joint to interconnect two or more short, rigid segments of pipe. Use of an optional snap ring allows the joint to be permanently made, in a `self-assembling` manner.

Learning Semantic Segmentation with Diverse Supervision

OpenAIRE

Ye, Linwei; Liu, Zhi; Wang, Yang

2018-01-01

Models based on deep convolutional neural networks (CNN) have significantly improved the performance of semantic segmentation. However, learning these models requires a large amount of training images with pixel-level labels, which are very costly and time-consuming to collect. In this paper, we propose a method for learning CNN-based semantic segmentation models from images with several types of annotations that are available for various computer vision tasks, including image-level labels fo...

Automatic Segmentation of Vessels in In-Vivo Ultrasound Scans

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Tamimi-Sarnikowski, Philip; Brink-Kjær, Andreas; Moshavegh, Ramin

2017-01-01

presents a fully automatic segmentation algorithm, for robustly segmenting the vessel lumen in longitudinal B-mode ultrasound images. The automatic segmentation is performed using a combination of B-mode and power Doppler images. The proposed algorithm includes a series of preprocessing steps, and performs......Ultrasound has become highly popular to monitor atherosclerosis, by scanning the carotid artery. The screening involves measuring the thickness of the vessel wall and diameter of the lumen. An automatic segmentation of the vessel lumen, can enable the determination of lumen diameter. This paper...... a vessel segmentation by use of the marker-controlled watershed transform. The ultrasound images used in the study were acquired using the bk3000 ultrasound scanner (BK Ultrasound, Herlev, Denmark) with two transducers ”8L2 Linear” and ”10L2w Wide Linear” (BK Ultrasound, Herlev, Denmark). The algorithm...

The relevance of segments reports – measurement methodology

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tomasz Zimnicki

2017-09-01

Full Text Available The segment report is one of the areas of financial statements, and it obliges a company to provide infor-mation about the economic situation in each of its activity areas. The article evaluates the change of segment reporting standards from IAS14R to IFRS8 in the context of feature relevance. It presents the construction of a measure which allows the relevance of segment disclosures to be determined. The created measure was used to study periodical reports published by companies listed on the main market of the Warsaw Stock Exchange from three reporting periods – 2008, 2009 and 2013. Based on the re-search results, it was found that the change of segment reporting standards from IAS14R to IFRS8 in the context of relevance was legitimate.

Contextually guided very-high-resolution imagery classification with semantic segments

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Wenzhi; Du, Shihong; Wang, Qiao; Emery, William J.

2017-10-01

Contextual information, revealing relationships and dependencies between image objects, is one of the most important information for the successful interpretation of very-high-resolution (VHR) remote sensing imagery. Over the last decade, geographic object-based image analysis (GEOBIA) technique has been widely used to first divide images into homogeneous parts, and then to assign semantic labels according to the properties of image segments. However, due to the complexity and heterogeneity of VHR images, segments without semantic labels (i.e., semantic-free segments) generated with low-level features often fail to represent geographic entities (such as building roofs usually be partitioned into chimney/antenna/shadow parts). As a result, it is hard to capture contextual information across geographic entities when using semantic-free segments. In contrast to low-level features, "deep" features can be used to build robust segments with accurate labels (i.e., semantic segments) in order to represent geographic entities at higher levels. Based on these semantic segments, semantic graphs can be constructed to capture contextual information in VHR images. In this paper, semantic segments were first explored with convolutional neural networks (CNN) and a conditional random field (CRF) model was then applied to model the contextual information between semantic segments. Experimental results on two challenging VHR datasets (i.e., the Vaihingen and Beijing scenes) indicate that the proposed method is an improvement over existing image classification techniques in classification performance (overall accuracy ranges from 82% to 96%).

Graph-based surface reconstruction from stereo pairs using image segmentation

Science.gov (United States)

Bleyer, Michael; Gelautz, Margrit

2005-01-01

This paper describes a novel stereo matching algorithm for epipolar rectified images. The method applies colour segmentation on the reference image. The use of segmentation makes the algorithm capable of handling large untextured regions, estimating precise depth boundaries and propagating disparity information to occluded regions, which are challenging tasks for conventional stereo methods. We model disparity inside a segment by a planar equation. Initial disparity segments are clustered to form a set of disparity layers, which are planar surfaces that are likely to occur in the scene. Assignments of segments to disparity layers are then derived by minimization of a global cost function via a robust optimization technique that employs graph cuts. The cost function is defined on the pixel level, as well as on the segment level. While the pixel level measures the data similarity based on the current disparity map and detects occlusions symmetrically in both views, the segment level propagates the segmentation information and incorporates a smoothness term. New planar models are then generated based on the disparity layers' spatial extents. Results obtained for benchmark and self-recorded image pairs indicate that the proposed method is able to compete with the best-performing state-of-the-art algorithms.

Familiar units prevail over statistical cues in word segmentation.

Science.gov (United States)

Poulin-Charronnat, Bénédicte; Perruchet, Pierre; Tillmann, Barbara; Peereman, Ronald

2017-09-01

In language acquisition research, the prevailing position is that listeners exploit statistical cues, in particular transitional probabilities between syllables, to discover words of a language. However, other cues are also involved in word discovery. Assessing the weight learners give to these different cues leads to a better understanding of the processes underlying speech segmentation. The present study evaluated whether adult learners preferentially used known units or statistical cues for segmenting continuous speech. Before the exposure phase, participants were familiarized with part-words of a three-word artificial language. This design allowed the dissociation of the influence of statistical cues and familiar units, with statistical cues favoring word segmentation and familiar units favoring (nonoptimal) part-word segmentation. In Experiment 1, performance in a two-alternative forced choice (2AFC) task between words and part-words revealed part-word segmentation (even though part-words were less cohesive in terms of transitional probabilities and less frequent than words). By contrast, an unfamiliarized group exhibited word segmentation, as usually observed in standard conditions. Experiment 2 used a syllable-detection task to remove the likely contamination of performance by memory and strategy effects in the 2AFC task. Overall, the results suggest that familiar units overrode statistical cues, ultimately questioning the need for computation mechanisms of transitional probabilities (TPs) in natural language speech segmentation.

Shape-Tailored Features and their Application to Texture Segmentation

KAUST Repository

Khan, Naeemullah

2014-04-01

Texture Segmentation is one of the most challenging areas of computer vision. One reason for this difficulty is the huge variety and variability of textures occurring in real world, making it very difficult to quantitatively study textures. One of the key tools used for texture segmentation is local invariant descriptors. Texture consists of textons, the basic building block of textures, that may vary by small nuisances like illumination variation, deformations, and noise. Local invariant descriptors are robust to these nuisances making them beneficial for texture segmentation. However, grouping dense descriptors directly for segmentation presents a problem: existing descriptors aggregate data from neighborhoods that may contain different textured regions, making descriptors from these neighborhoods difficult to group, leading to significant errors in segmentation. This work addresses this issue by proposing dense local descriptors, called Shape-Tailored Features, which are tailored to an arbitrarily shaped region, aggregating data only within the region of interest. Since the segmentation, i.e., the regions, are not known a-priori, we propose a joint problem for Shape-Tailored Features and the regions. We present a framework based on variational methods. Extensive experiments on a new large texture dataset, which we introduce, show that the joint approach with Shape-Tailored Features leads to better segmentations over the non-joint non Shape-Tailored approach, and the method out-performs existing state-of-the-art.

Comparison of parameter-adapted segmentation methods for fluorescence micrographs.

Science.gov (United States)

Held, Christian; Palmisano, Ralf; Häberle, Lothar; Hensel, Michael; Wittenberg, Thomas

2011-11-01

Interpreting images from fluorescence microscopy is often a time-consuming task with poor reproducibility. Various image processing routines that can help investigators evaluate the images are therefore useful. The critical aspect for a reliable automatic image analysis system is a robust segmentation algorithm that can perform accurate segmentation for different cell types. In this study, several image segmentation methods were therefore compared and evaluated in order to identify the most appropriate segmentation schemes that are usable with little new parameterization and robustly with different types of fluorescence-stained cells for various biological and biomedical tasks. The study investigated, compared, and enhanced four different methods for segmentation of cultured epithelial cells. The maximum-intensity linking (MIL) method, an improved MIL, a watershed method, and an improved watershed method based on morphological reconstruction were used. Three manually annotated datasets consisting of 261, 817, and 1,333 HeLa or L929 cells were used to compare the different algorithms. The comparisons and evaluations showed that the segmentation performance of methods based on the watershed transform was significantly superior to the performance of the MIL method. The results also indicate that using morphological opening by reconstruction can improve the segmentation of cells stained with a marker that exhibits the dotted surface of cells. Copyright © 2011 International Society for Advancement of Cytometry.

Automatic blood vessel based-liver segmentation using the portal phase abdominal CT

Science.gov (United States)

Maklad, Ahmed S.; Matsuhiro, Mikio; Suzuki, Hidenobu; Kawata, Yoshiki; Niki, Noboru; Shimada, Mitsuo; Iinuma, Gen

2018-02-01

Liver segmentation is the basis for computer-based planning of hepatic surgical interventions. In diagnosis and analysis of hepatic diseases and surgery planning, automatic segmentation of liver has high importance. Blood vessel (BV) has showed high performance at liver segmentation. In our previous work, we developed a semi-automatic method that segments the liver through the portal phase abdominal CT images in two stages. First stage was interactive segmentation of abdominal blood vessels (ABVs) and subsequent classification into hepatic (HBVs) and non-hepatic (non-HBVs). This stage had 5 interactions that include selective threshold for bone segmentation, selecting two seed points for kidneys segmentation, selection of inferior vena cava (IVC) entrance for starting ABVs segmentation, identification of the portal vein (PV) entrance to the liver and the IVC-exit for classifying HBVs from other ABVs (non-HBVs). Second stage is automatic segmentation of the liver based on segmented ABVs as described in [4]. For full automation of our method we developed a method [5] that segments ABVs automatically tackling the first three interactions. In this paper, we propose full automation of classifying ABVs into HBVs and non- HBVs and consequently full automation of liver segmentation that we proposed in [4]. Results illustrate that the method is effective at segmentation of the liver through the portal abdominal CT images.

In vivo bone strain and finite-element modeling of the craniofacial haft in catarrhine primates

Science.gov (United States)

Ross, Callum F; Berthaume, Michael A; Dechow, Paul C; Iriarte-Diaz, Jose; Porro, Laura B; Richmond, Brian G; Spencer, Mark; Strait, David

2011-01-01

Hypotheses regarding patterns of stress, strain and deformation in the craniofacial skeleton are central to adaptive explanations for the evolution of primate craniofacial form. The complexity of craniofacial skeletal morphology makes it difficult to evaluate these hypotheses with in vivo bone strain data. In this paper, new in vivo bone strain data from the intraorbital surfaces of the supraorbital torus, postorbital bar and postorbital septum, the anterior surface of the postorbital bar, and the anterior root of the zygoma are combined with published data from the supraorbital region and zygomatic arch to evaluate the validity of a finite-element model (FEM) of a macaque cranium during mastication. The behavior of this model is then used to test hypotheses regarding the overall deformation regime in the craniofacial haft of macaques. This FEM constitutes a hypothesis regarding deformation of the facial skeleton during mastication. A simplified verbal description of the deformation regime in the macaque FEM is as follows. Inferior bending and twisting of the zygomatic arches about a rostrocaudal axis exerts inferolaterally directed tensile forces on the lateral orbital wall, bending the wall and the supraorbital torus in frontal planes and bending and shearing the infraorbital region and anterior zygoma root in frontal planes. Similar deformation regimes also characterize the crania of Homo and Gorilla under in vitro loading conditions and may be shared among extant catarrhines. Relatively high strain magnitudes in the anterior root of the zygoma suggest that the morphology of this region may be important for resisting forces generated during feeding. PMID:21105871

Segmentation of Handwritten Chinese Character Strings Based on improved Algorithm Liu

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhihua Cai

2014-09-01

Full Text Available Algorithm Liu attracts high attention because of its high accuracy in segmentation of Japanese postal address. But the disadvantages, such as complexity and difficult implementation of algorithm, etc. have an adverse effect on its popularization and application. In this paper, the author applies the principles of algorithm Liu to handwritten Chinese character segmentation according to the characteristics of the handwritten Chinese characters, based on deeply study on algorithm Liu.In the same time, the author put forward the judgment criterion of Segmentation block classification and adhering mode of the handwritten Chinese characters.In the process of segmentation, text images are seen as the sequence made up of Connected Components (CCs, while the connected components are made up of several horizontal itinerary set of black pixels in image. The author determines whether these parts will be merged into segmentation through analyzing connected components. And then the author does image segmentation through adhering mode based on the analysis of outline edges. Finally cut the text images into character segmentation. Experimental results show that the improved Algorithm Liu obtains high segmentation accuracy and produces a satisfactory segmentation result.

Optical Character Recognition Using Active Contour Segmentation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nabeel Oudah

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Document analysis of images snapped by camera is a growing challenge. These photos are often poor-quality compound images, composed of various objects and text; this makes automatic analysis complicated. OCR is one of the image processing techniques which is used to perform automatic identification of texts. Existing image processing techniques need to manage many parameters in order to clearly recognize the text in such pictures. Segmentation is regarded one of these essential parameters. This paper discusses the accuracy of segmentation process and its effect over the recognition process. According to the proposed method, the images were firstly filtered using the wiener filter then the active contour algorithm could be applied in the segmentation process. The Tesseract OCR Engine was selected in order to evaluate the performance and identification accuracy of the proposed method. The results showed that a more accurate segmentation process shall lead to a more accurate recognition results. The rate of recognition accuracy was 0.95 for the proposed algorithm compared with 0.85 for the Tesseract OCR Engine.

A toolbox for multiple sclerosis lesion segmentation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roura, Eloy; Oliver, Arnau; Valverde, Sergi; Llado, Xavier; Cabezas, Mariano; Pareto, Deborah; Rovira, Alex; Vilanova, Joan C.; Ramio-Torrenta, Lluis

2015-01-01

Lesion segmentation plays an important role in the diagnosis and follow-up of multiple sclerosis (MS). This task is very time-consuming and subject to intra- and inter-rater variability. In this paper, we present a new tool for automated MS lesion segmentation using T1w and fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) images. Our approach is based on two main steps, initial brain tissue segmentation according to the gray matter (GM), white matter (WM), and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) performed in T1w images, followed by a second step where the lesions are segmented as outliers to the normal apparent GM brain tissue on the FLAIR image. The tool has been validated using data from more than 100 MS patients acquired with different scanners and at different magnetic field strengths. Quantitative evaluation provided a better performance in terms of precision while maintaining similar results on sensitivity and Dice similarity measures compared with those of other approaches. Our tool is implemented as a publicly available SPM8/12 extension that can be used by both the medical and research communities. (orig.)

Automatic liver volume segmentation and fibrosis classification

Science.gov (United States)

Bal, Evgeny; Klang, Eyal; Amitai, Michal; Greenspan, Hayit

2018-02-01

In this work, we present an automatic method for liver segmentation and fibrosis classification in liver computed-tomography (CT) portal phase scans. The input is a full abdomen CT scan with an unknown number of slices, and the output is a liver volume segmentation mask and a fibrosis grade. A multi-stage analysis scheme is applied to each scan, including: volume segmentation, texture features extraction and SVM based classification. Data contains portal phase CT examinations from 80 patients, taken with different scanners. Each examination has a matching Fibroscan grade. The dataset was subdivided into two groups: first group contains healthy cases and mild fibrosis, second group contains moderate fibrosis, severe fibrosis and cirrhosis. Using our automated algorithm, we achieved an average dice index of 0.93 ± 0.05 for segmentation and a sensitivity of 0.92 and specificity of 0.81for classification. To the best of our knowledge, this is a first end to end automatic framework for liver fibrosis classification; an approach that, once validated, can have a great potential value in the clinic.

A toolbox for multiple sclerosis lesion segmentation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Roura, Eloy; Oliver, Arnau; Valverde, Sergi; Llado, Xavier [University of Girona, Computer Vision and Robotics Group, Girona (Spain); Cabezas, Mariano; Pareto, Deborah; Rovira, Alex [Vall d' Hebron University Hospital, Magnetic Resonance Unit, Dept. of Radiology, Barcelona (Spain); Vilanova, Joan C. [Girona Magnetic Resonance Center, Girona (Spain); Ramio-Torrenta, Lluis [Dr. Josep Trueta University Hospital, Institut d' Investigacio Biomedica de Girona, Multiple Sclerosis and Neuroimmunology Unit, Girona (Spain)

2015-10-15

Lesion segmentation plays an important role in the diagnosis and follow-up of multiple sclerosis (MS). This task is very time-consuming and subject to intra- and inter-rater variability. In this paper, we present a new tool for automated MS lesion segmentation using T1w and fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) images. Our approach is based on two main steps, initial brain tissue segmentation according to the gray matter (GM), white matter (WM), and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) performed in T1w images, followed by a second step where the lesions are segmented as outliers to the normal apparent GM brain tissue on the FLAIR image. The tool has been validated using data from more than 100 MS patients acquired with different scanners and at different magnetic field strengths. Quantitative evaluation provided a better performance in terms of precision while maintaining similar results on sensitivity and Dice similarity measures compared with those of other approaches. Our tool is implemented as a publicly available SPM8/12 extension that can be used by both the medical and research communities. (orig.)

Proposal of a novel ensemble learning based segmentation with a shape prior and its application to spleen segmentation from a 3D abdominal CT volume

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shindo, Kiyo; Shimizu, Akinobu; Kobatake, Hidefumi; Nawano, Shigeru; Shinozaki, Kenji

2010-01-01

An organ segmentation learned by a conventional ensemble learning algorithm suffers from unnatural errors because each voxel is classified independently in the segmentation process. This paper proposes a novel ensemble learning algorithm that can take into account global shape and location of organs. It estimates the shape and location of an organ from a given image by combining an intermediate segmentation result with a statistical shape model. Once an ensemble learning algorithm could not improve the segmentation performance in the iterative learning process, it estimates the shape and location by finding an optimal model parameter set with maximum degree of correspondence between a statistical shape model and the intermediate segmentation result. Novel weak classifiers are generated based on a signed distance from a boundary of the estimated shape and a distance from a barycenter of the intermediate segmentation result. Subsequently it continues the learning process with the novel weak classifiers. This paper presents experimental results where the proposed ensemble learning algorithm generates a segmentation process that can extract a spleen from a 3D CT image more precisely than a conventional one. (author)

Nuclear propulsion apparatus with alternate reactor segments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Szekely, T.

1979-01-01

Nuclear propulsion apparatus comprising: (a) means for compressing incoming air; (b) nuclear fission reactor means for heating said air; (c) means for expanding a portion of the heated air to drive said compressing means; (d) said nuclear fission reactor means being divided into a plurality of radially extending segments; (e) means for directing a portion of the compressed air for heating through alternate segments of said reactor means and another portion of the compressed air for heating through the remaining segments of said reactor means; and (f) means for further expanding the heated air from said drive means and the remaining heated air from said reactor means through nozzle means to effect reactive thrust on said apparatus. 12 claims

BlobContours: adapting Blobworld for supervised color- and texture-based image segmentation

Science.gov (United States)

Vogel, Thomas; Nguyen, Dinh Quyen; Dittmann, Jana

2006-01-01

Extracting features is the first and one of the most crucial steps in recent image retrieval process. While the color features and the texture features of digital images can be extracted rather easily, the shape features and the layout features depend on reliable image segmentation. Unsupervised image segmentation, often used in image analysis, works on merely syntactical basis. That is, what an unsupervised segmentation algorithm can segment is only regions, but not objects. To obtain high-level objects, which is desirable in image retrieval, human assistance is needed. Supervised image segmentations schemes can improve the reliability of segmentation and segmentation refinement. In this paper we propose a novel interactive image segmentation technique that combines the reliability of a human expert with the precision of automated image segmentation. The iterative procedure can be considered a variation on the Blobworld algorithm introduced by Carson et al. from EECS Department, University of California, Berkeley. Starting with an initial segmentation as provided by the Blobworld framework, our algorithm, namely BlobContours, gradually updates it by recalculating every blob, based on the original features and the updated number of Gaussians. Since the original algorithm has hardly been designed for interactive processing we had to consider additional requirements for realizing a supervised segmentation scheme on the basis of Blobworld. Increasing transparency of the algorithm by applying usercontrolled iterative segmentation, providing different types of visualization for displaying the segmented image and decreasing computational time of segmentation are three major requirements which are discussed in detail.

Medical image segmentation using improved FCM

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

ZHANG XiaoFeng; ZHANG CaiMing; TANG WenJing; WEI ZhenWen

2012-01-01

Image segmentation is one of the most important problems in medical image processing,and the existence of partial volume effect and other phenomena makes the problem much more complex. Fuzzy Cmeans,as an effective tool to deal with PVE,however,is faced with great challenges in efficiency.Aiming at this,this paper proposes one improved FCM algorithm based on the histogram of the given image,which will be denoted as HisFCM and divided into two phases.The first phase will retrieve several intervals on which to compute cluster centroids,and the second one will perform image segmentation based on improved FCM algorithm.Compared with FCM and other improved algorithms,HisFCM is of much higher efficiency with satisfying results.Experiments on medical images show that HisFCM can achieve good segmentation results in less than 0.1 second,and can satisfy real-time requirements of medical image processing.

Market Segmentation Based on the Consumers' Impulsive Buying Behaviour

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mirela Mihić

2010-12-01

Full Text Available The major purpose of this research is to determine the sufficiently different segments of consumers based on their impulsivity in the buying behaviour. The research was conducted in Splitsko-Dalmatinska county on the sample of 180 respondents. Based on the subject matter and research goals, the basic as well as four additional hypotheses were set. The used methodology comprised of the cluster analysis, which helped to divide three segments that were named as: ‘’rational’’, ‘’somewhat rational and somewhat impulsive’’ and ‘’impulsive’’ consumers. The variance analysis was used in order to describe the segments properly and to determine whether they are different enough with respect to demographic, socio-economic characteristics and individual differences variables. The findings confirmed the hypothesis based on the possibility of dividing different consumer segments according to the analysed variables. Correlating the demographics and individual differences factors with the impulse buy, the expected results were gained. When analyzing demographics the results indicate the segment differentiation solely in the case of age and working status. However, from the aspect of majority of individual differences variables the distinction among the segments is significant.

Segmentation in sport services: a typology of fitness customers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Josef Voráček

2016-02-01

Full Text Available This article considers customer typology in fitness centres. The main aim of our survey is to state the basic segments of fitness customers and create their typology. A survey was conducted on a sample of 1004 respondents from 48 fitness centres. We used questionnaires and latent class analysis for the assessment and interpretation of data. The results of our research are as follows: we identified 6 segments of typical customers, of which three are male (we called them student, shark, mature and three are female (manager, hunter, and student. Each segment is influenced primarily by the age of customers, from which we can develop further characteristics, such as education, income, marital status, etc. Male segments use the main workout area above all, whilst female segments use a much wider range of services offered, for example group exercises, personal training, and cardio theatres.

Learning to Segment Human by Watching YouTube.

Science.gov (United States)

Liang, Xiaodan; Wei, Yunchao; Chen, Yunpeng; Shen, Xiaohui; Yang, Jianchao; Lin, Liang; Yan, Shuicheng

2016-08-05

An intuition on human segmentation is that when a human is moving in a video, the video-context (e.g., appearance and motion clues) may potentially infer reasonable mask information for the whole human body. Inspired by this, based on popular deep convolutional neural networks (CNN), we explore a very-weakly supervised learning framework for human segmentation task, where only an imperfect human detector is available along with massive weakly-labeled YouTube videos. In our solution, the video-context guided human mask inference and CNN based segmentation network learning iterate to mutually enhance each other until no further improvement gains. In the first step, each video is decomposed into supervoxels by the unsupervised video segmentation. The superpixels within the supervoxels are then classified as human or non-human by graph optimization with unary energies from the imperfect human detection results and the predicted confidence maps by the CNN trained in the previous iteration. In the second step, the video-context derived human masks are used as direct labels to train CNN. Extensive experiments on the challenging PASCAL VOC 2012 semantic segmentation benchmark demonstrate that the proposed framework has already achieved superior results than all previous weakly-supervised methods with object class or bounding box annotations. In addition, by augmenting with the annotated masks from PASCAL VOC 2012, our method reaches a new stateof- the-art performance on the human segmentation task.

A competition in unsupervised color image segmentation

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Haindl, Michal; Mikeš, Stanislav

2016-01-01

Roč. 57, č. 9 (2016), s. 136-151 ISSN 0031-3203 R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GA14-10911S Institutional support: RVO:67985556 Keywords : Unsupervised image segmentation * Segmentation contest * Texture analysis Subject RIV: BD - Theory of Information Impact factor: 4.582, year: 2016 http://library.utia.cas.cz/separaty/2016/RO/haindl-0459179.pdf

Semantic segmentation of bioimages using convolutional neural networks

CSIR Research Space (South Africa)

Wiehman, S

2016-07-01

Full Text Available Convolutional neural networks have shown great promise in both general image segmentation problems as well as bioimage segmentation. In this paper, the application of different convolutional network architectures is explored on the C. elegans live...

An Improved FCM Medical Image Segmentation Algorithm Based on MMTD

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ningning Zhou

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Image segmentation plays an important role in medical image processing. Fuzzy c-means (FCM is one of the popular clustering algorithms for medical image segmentation. But FCM is highly vulnerable to noise due to not considering the spatial information in image segmentation. This paper introduces medium mathematics system which is employed to process fuzzy information for image segmentation. It establishes the medium similarity measure based on the measure of medium truth degree (MMTD and uses the correlation of the pixel and its neighbors to define the medium membership function. An improved FCM medical image segmentation algorithm based on MMTD which takes some spatial features into account is proposed in this paper. The experimental results show that the proposed algorithm is more antinoise than the standard FCM, with more certainty and less fuzziness. This will lead to its practicable and effective applications in medical image segmentation.

Improving vertebra segmentation through joint vertebra-rib atlases

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Yinong; Yao, Jianhua; Roth, Holger R.; Burns, Joseph E.; Summers, Ronald M.

2016-03-01

Accurate spine segmentation allows for improved identification and quantitative characterization of abnormalities of the vertebra, such as vertebral fractures. However, in existing automated vertebra segmentation methods on computed tomography (CT) images, leakage into nearby bones such as ribs occurs due to the close proximity of these visibly intense structures in a 3D CT volume. To reduce this error, we propose the use of joint vertebra-rib atlases to improve the segmentation of vertebrae via multi-atlas joint label fusion. Segmentation was performed and evaluated on CTs containing 106 thoracic and lumbar vertebrae from 10 pathological and traumatic spine patients on an individual vertebra level basis. Vertebra atlases produced errors where the segmentation leaked into the ribs. The use of joint vertebra-rib atlases produced a statistically significant increase in the Dice coefficient from 92.5 +/- 3.1% to 93.8 +/- 2.1% for the left and right transverse processes and a decrease in the mean and max surface distance from 0.75 +/- 0.60mm and 8.63 +/- 4.44mm to 0.30 +/- 0.27mm and 3.65 +/- 2.87mm, respectively.

An Adaptive Motion Segmentation for Automated Video Surveillance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hossain MJulius

2008-01-01

Full Text Available This paper presents an adaptive motion segmentation algorithm utilizing spatiotemporal information of three most recent frames. The algorithm initially extracts the moving edges applying a novel flexible edge matching technique which makes use of a combined distance transformation image. Then watershed-based iterative algorithm is employed to segment the moving object region from the extracted moving edges. The challenges of existing three-frame-based methods include slow movement, edge localization error, minor movement of camera, and homogeneity of background and foreground region. The proposed method represents edges as segments and uses a flexible edge matching algorithm to deal with edge localization error and minor movement of camera. The combined distance transformation image works in favor of accumulating gradient information of overlapping region which effectively improves the sensitivity to slow movement. The segmentation algorithm uses watershed, gradient information of difference image, and extracted moving edges. It helps to segment moving object region with more accurate boundary even some part of the moving edges cannot be detected due to region homogeneity or other reasons during the detection step. Experimental results using different types of video sequences are presented to demonstrate the efficiency and accuracy of the proposed method.

Deficit in figure-ground segmentation following closed head injury.

Science.gov (United States)

Baylis, G C; Baylis, L L

1997-08-01

Patient CB showed a severe impairment in figure-ground segmentation following a closed head injury. Unlike normal subjects, CB was unable to parse smaller and brighter parts of stimuli as figure. Moreover, she did not show the normal effect that symmetrical regions are seen as figure, although she was able to make overt judgments of symmetry. Since she was able to attend normally to isolated objects, CB demonstrates a dissociation between figure ground segmentation and subsequent processes of attention. Despite her severe impairment in figure-ground segmentation, CB showed normal 'parallel' single feature visual search. This suggests that figure-ground segmentation is dissociable from 'preattentive' processes such as visual search.

Market segmentation of mobile communications in SEE region

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Domazet Anto

2006-01-01

Full Text Available In the focus of all activities are customers of mobile services on mobile communications market. As the basis of telecommunication network and services development, as also for creating an optimal marketing-mix from mobile operators' side, we have investigated the needs, motivations and customer behavior and have made analysis mobile communication customers on the SEE Region market. The aim of this analysis is identification of the regional segments and following their growth, size and profitability. At the end, we have contributed the suggestions for creating the marketing-mix using a strategy of marketing differentiation, which implicit optimal combination of all marketing-mix elements for each regional segment separately. For identified segments we have set up an estimation model of significant key factors on the particular segments, because of more efficient creation of marketing instruments.

Segmentation of Extrapulmonary Tuberculosis Infection Using Modified Automatic Seeded Region Growing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nordin Abdul

2009-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract In the image segmentation process of positron emission tomography combined with computed tomography (PET/CT imaging, previous works used information in CT only for segmenting the image without utilizing the information that can be provided by PET. This paper proposes to utilize the hot spot values in PET to guide the segmentation in CT, in automatic image segmentation using seeded region growing (SRG technique. This automatic segmentation routine can be used as part of automatic diagnostic tools. In addition to the original initial seed selection using hot spot values in PET, this paper also introduces a new SRG growing criterion, the sliding windows. Fourteen images of patients having extrapulmonary tuberculosis have been examined using the above-mentioned method. To evaluate the performance of the modified SRG, three fidelity criteria are measured: percentage of under-segmentation area, percentage of over-segmentation area, and average time consumption. In terms of the under-segmentation percentage, SRG with average of the region growing criterion shows the least error percentage (51.85%. Meanwhile, SRG with local averaging and variance yielded the best results (2.67% for the over-segmentation percentage. In terms of the time complexity, the modified SRG with local averaging and variance growing criterion shows the best performance with 5.273 s average execution time. The results indicate that the proposed methods yield fairly good performance in terms of the over- and under-segmentation area. The results also demonstrated that the hot spot values in PET can be used to guide the automatic segmentation in CT image.

Fault segmentation: New concepts from the Wasatch Fault Zone, Utah, USA

Science.gov (United States)

Duross, Christopher; Personius, Stephen F.; Crone, Anthony J.; Olig, Susan S.; Hylland, Michael D.; Lund, William R.; Schwartz, David P.

2016-01-01

The question of whether structural segment boundaries along multisegment normal faults such as the Wasatch fault zone (WFZ) act as persistent barriers to rupture is critical to seismic hazard analyses. We synthesized late Holocene paleoseismic data from 20 trench sites along the central WFZ to evaluate earthquake rupture length and fault segmentation. For the youngest (segment boundaries, especially for the most recent earthquakes on the north-central WFZ, are consistent with segment-controlled ruptures. However, broadly constrained earthquake times, dissimilar event times along the segments, the presence of smaller-scale (subsegment) boundaries, and areas of complex faulting permit partial-segment and multisegment (e.g., spillover) ruptures that are shorter (~20–40 km) or longer (~60–100 km) than the primary segment lengths (35–59 km). We report a segmented WFZ model that includes 24 earthquakes since ~7 ka and yields mean estimates of recurrence (1.1–1.3 kyr) and vertical slip rate (1.3–2.0 mm/yr) for the segments. However, additional rupture scenarios that include segment boundary spatial uncertainties, floating earthquakes, and multisegment ruptures are necessary to fully address epistemic uncertainties in rupture length. We compare the central WFZ to paleoseismic and historical surface ruptures in the Basin and Range Province and central Italian Apennines and conclude that displacement profiles have limited value for assessing the persistence of segment boundaries but can aid in interpreting prehistoric spillover ruptures. Our comparison also suggests that the probabilities of shorter and longer ruptures on the WFZ need to be investigated.

Name segmentation using hidden Markov models and its application in record linkage

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rita de Cassia Braga Gonçalves

2014-10-01

Full Text Available This study aimed to evaluate the use of hidden Markov models (HMM for the segmentation of person names and its influence on record linkage. A HMM was applied to the segmentation of patient’s and mother’s names in the databases of the Mortality Information System (SIM, Information Subsystem for High Complexity Procedures (APAC, and Hospital Information System (AIH. A sample of 200 patients from each database was segmented via HMM, and the results were compared to those from segmentation by the authors. The APAC-SIM and APAC-AIH databases were linked using three different segmentation strategies, one of which used HMM. Conformity of segmentation via HMM varied from 90.5% to 92.5%. The different segmentation strategies yielded similar results in the record linkage process. This study suggests that segmentation of Brazilian names via HMM is no more effective than traditional segmentation approaches in the linkage process.

Extended-Maxima Transform Watershed Segmentation Algorithm for Touching Corn Kernels

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yibo Qin

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Touching corn kernels are usually oversegmented by the traditional watershed algorithm. This paper proposes a modified watershed segmentation algorithm based on the extended-maxima transform. Firstly, a distance-transformed image is processed by the extended-maxima transform in the range of the optimized threshold value. Secondly, the binary image obtained by the preceding process is run through the watershed segmentation algorithm, and watershed ridge lines are superimposed on the original image, so that touching corn kernels are separated into segments. Fifty images which all contain 400 corn kernels were tested. Experimental results showed that the effect of segmentation is satisfactory by the improved algorithm, and the accuracy of segmentation is as high as 99.87%.

PREPAID TELECOM CUSTOMERS SEGMENTATION USING THE K-MEAN ALGORITHM

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marar Liviu Ioan

2012-07-01

Full Text Available The scope of relationship marketing is to retain customers and win their loyalty. This can be achieved if the companies’ products and services are developed and sold considering customers’ demands. Fulfilling customers’ demands, taken as the starting point of relationship marketing, can be obtained by acknowledging that the customers’ needs and wishes are heterogeneous. The segmentation of the customers’ base allows operators to overcome this because it illustrates the whole heterogeneous market as the sum of smaller homogeneous markets. The concept of segmentation relies on the high probability of persons grouped into segments based on common demands and behaviours to have a similar response to marketing strategies. This article focuses on the segmentation of a telecom customer base according to specific and noticeable criteria of a certain service. Although the segmentation concept is widely approached in professional literature, articles on the segmentation of a telecom customer base are very scarce, due to the strategic nature of this information. Market segmentation is carried out based on how customers spent their money on credit recharging, on making calls, on sending SMS and on Internet navigation. The method used for customer segmentation is the K-mean cluster analysis. To assess the internal cohesion of the clusters we employed the average sum of squares error indicator, and to determine the differences among the clusters we used the ANOVA and the post-hoc Tukey tests. The analyses revealed seven customer segments with different features and behaviours. The results enable the telecom company to conceive marketing strategies and planning which lead to better understanding of its customers’ needs and ultimately to a more efficient relationship with the subscribers and enhanced customer satisfaction. At the same time, the results enable the description and characterization of expenditure patterns

Deformable M-Reps for 3D Medical Image Segmentation

Science.gov (United States)

Pizer, Stephen M.; Fletcher, P. Thomas; Joshi, Sarang; Thall, Andrew; Chen, James Z.; Fridman, Yonatan; Fritsch, Daniel S.; Gash, Graham; Glotzer, John M.; Jiroutek, Michael R.; Lu, Conglin; Muller, Keith E.; Tracton, Gregg; Yushkevich, Paul; Chaney, Edward L.

2013-01-01

M-reps (formerly called DSLs) are a multiscale medial means for modeling and rendering 3D solid geometry. They are particularly well suited to model anatomic objects and in particular to capture prior geometric information effectively in deformable models segmentation approaches. The representation is based on figural models, which define objects at coarse scale by a hierarchy of figures – each figure generally a slab representing a solid region and its boundary simultaneously. This paper focuses on the use of single figure models to segment objects of relatively simple structure. A single figure is a sheet of medial atoms, which is interpolated from the model formed by a net, i.e., a mesh or chain, of medial atoms (hence the name m-reps), each atom modeling a solid region via not only a position and a width but also a local figural frame giving figural directions and an object angle between opposing, corresponding positions on the boundary implied by the m-rep. The special capability of an m-rep is to provide spatial and orientational correspondence between an object in two different states of deformation. This ability is central to effective measurement of both geometric typicality and geometry to image match, the two terms of the objective function optimized in segmentation by deformable models. The other ability of m-reps central to effective segmentation is their ability to support segmentation at multiple levels of scale, with successively finer precision. Objects modeled by single figures are segmented first by a similarity transform augmented by object elongation, then by adjustment of each medial atom, and finally by displacing a dense sampling of the m-rep implied boundary. While these models and approaches also exist in 2D, we focus on 3D objects. The segmentation of the kidney from CT and the hippocampus from MRI serve as the major examples in this paper. The accuracy of segmentation as compared to manual, slice-by-slice segmentation is reported. PMID

Experience with mechanical segmentation of reactor internals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carlson, R.; Hedin, G.

2003-01-01

Operating experience from BWE:s world-wide has shown that many plants experience initial cracking of the reactor internals after approximately 20 to 25 years of service life. This ''mid-life crisis'', considering a plant design life of 40 years, is now being addressed by many utilities. Successful resolution of these issues should give many more years of trouble-free operation. Replacement of reactor internals could be, in many cases, the most favourable option to achieve this. The proactive strategy of many utilities to replace internals in a planned way is a market-driven effort to minimize the overall costs for power generation, including time spent for handling contingencies and unplanned outages. Based on technical analyses, knowledge about component market prices and in-house costs, a cost-effective, optimized strategy for inspection, mitigation and replacements can be implemented. Also decommissioning of nuclear plants has become a reality for many utilities as numerous plants worldwide are closed due to age and/or other reasons. These facts address a need for safe, fast and cost-effective methods for segmentation of internals. Westinghouse has over the last years developed methods for segmentation of internals and has also carried out successful segmentation projects. Our experience from the segmentation business for Nordic BWR:s is that the most important parameters to consider when choosing a method and equipment for a segmentation project are: - Safety, - Cost-effectiveness, - Cleanliness, - Reliability. (orig.)

Infants generalize representations of statistically segmented words

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Katharine eGraf Estes

2012-10-01

Full Text Available The acoustic variation in language presents learners with a substantial challenge. To learn by tracking statistical regularities in speech, infants must recognize words across tokens that differ based on characteristics such as the speaker’s voice, affect, or the sentence context. Previous statistical learning studies have not investigated how these types of surface form variation affect learning. The present experiments used tasks tailored to two distinct developmental levels to investigate the robustness of statistical learning to variation. Experiment 1 examined statistical word segmentation in 11-month-olds and found that infants can recognize statistically segmented words across a change in the speaker’s voice from segmentation to testing. The direction of infants’ preferences suggests that recognizing words across a voice change is more difficult than recognizing them in a consistent voice. Experiment 2 tested whether 17-month-olds can generalize the output of statistical learning across variation to support word learning. The infants were successful in their generalization; they associated referents with statistically defined words despite a change in voice from segmentation to label learning. Infants’ learning patterns also indicate that they formed representations of across-word syllable sequences during segmentation. Thus, low probability sequences can act as object labels in some conditions. The findings of these experiments suggest that the units that emerge during statistical learning are not perceptually constrained, but rather are robust to naturalistic acoustic variation.

Automatic segmentation and disease classification using cardiac cine MR images

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Wolterink, Jelmer M.; Leiner, Tim; Viergever, Max A.; Išgum, Ivana

2018-01-01

Segmentation of the heart in cardiac cine MR is clinically used to quantify cardiac function. We propose a fully automatic method for segmentation and disease classification using cardiac cine MR images. A convolutional neural network (CNN) was designed to simultaneously segment the left ventricle

Improving cerebellar segmentation with statistical fusion

Science.gov (United States)

Plassard, Andrew J.; Yang, Zhen; Prince, Jerry L.; Claassen, Daniel O.; Landman, Bennett A.

2016-03-01

The cerebellum is a somatotopically organized central component of the central nervous system well known to be involved with motor coordination and increasingly recognized roles in cognition and planning. Recent work in multiatlas labeling has created methods that offer the potential for fully automated 3-D parcellation of the cerebellar lobules and vermis (which are organizationally equivalent to cortical gray matter areas). This work explores the trade offs of using different statistical fusion techniques and post hoc optimizations in two datasets with distinct imaging protocols. We offer a novel fusion technique by extending the ideas of the Selective and Iterative Method for Performance Level Estimation (SIMPLE) to a patch-based performance model. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our algorithm, Non- Local SIMPLE, for segmentation of a mixed population of healthy subjects and patients with severe cerebellar anatomy. Under the first imaging protocol, we show that Non-Local SIMPLE outperforms previous gold-standard segmentation techniques. In the second imaging protocol, we show that Non-Local SIMPLE outperforms previous gold standard techniques but is outperformed by a non-locally weighted vote with the deeper population of atlases available. This work advances the state of the art in open source cerebellar segmentation algorithms and offers the opportunity for routinely including cerebellar segmentation in magnetic resonance imaging studies that acquire whole brain T1-weighted volumes with approximately 1 mm isotropic resolution.

Conflation of Short Identity-by-Descent Segments Bias Their Inferred Length Distribution

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Charleston W. K. Chiang

2016-05-01

Full Text Available Identity-by-descent (IBD is a fundamental concept in genetics with many applications. In a common definition, two haplotypes are said to share an IBD segment if that segment is inherited from a recent shared common ancestor without intervening recombination. Segments several cM long can be efficiently detected by a number of algorithms using high-density SNP array data from a population sample, and there are currently efforts to detect shorter segments from sequencing. Here, we study a problem of identifiability: because existing approaches detect IBD based on contiguous segments of identity-by-state, inferred long segments of IBD may arise from the conflation of smaller, nearby IBD segments. We quantified this effect using coalescent simulations, finding that significant proportions of inferred segments 1–2 cM long are results of conflations of two or more shorter segments, each at least 0.2 cM or longer, under demographic scenarios typical for modern humans for all programs tested. The impact of such conflation is much smaller for longer (> 2 cM segments. This biases the inferred IBD segment length distribution, and so can affect downstream inferences that depend on the assumption that each segment of IBD derives from a single common ancestor. As an example, we present and analyze an estimator of the de novo mutation rate using IBD segments, and demonstrate that unmodeled conflation leads to underestimates of the ages of the common ancestors on these segments, and hence a significant overestimate of the mutation rate. Understanding the conflation effect in detail will make its correction in future methods more tractable.

International market segmentation based on consumer-product relations

NARCIS (Netherlands)

ter Hofstede, F; Steenkamp, JBEM; Wedel, M

With increasing competition in the global marketplace, international segmentation has become an ever more important issue in developing, positioning, and selling products across national borders. The authors propose a methodology to identify cross-national market segments, based on means-end chain

Proportional crosstalk correction for the segmented clover at iThemba LABS

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bucher, T D; Noncolela, S P; Lawrie, E A; Dinoko, T R S; Easton, J L; Erasmus, N; Lawrie, J J; Mthembu, S H; Mtshali, W X; Shirinda, O; Orce, J N

2017-01-01

Reaching new depths in nuclear structure investigations requires new experimental equipment and new techniques of data analysis. The modern γ -ray spectrometers, like AGATA and GRETINA are now built of new-generation segmented germanium detectors. These most advanced detectors are able to reconstruct the trajectory of a γ -ray inside the detector. These are powerful detectors, but they need careful characterization, since their output signals are more complex. For instance for each γ -ray interaction that occurs in a segment of such a detector additional output signals (called proportional crosstalk), falsely appearing as an independent (often negative) energy depositions, are registered on the non-interacting segments. A failure to implement crosstalk correction results in incorrectly measured energies on the segments for two- and higher-fold events. It affects all experiments which rely on the recorded segment energies. Furthermore incorrectly recorded energies on the segments cause a failure to reconstruct the γ -ray trajectories using Compton scattering analysis. The proportional crosstalk for the iThemba LABS segmented clover was measured and a crosstalk correction was successfully implemented. The measured crosstalk-corrected energies show good agreement with the true γ -ray energies independent on the number of hit segments and an improved energy resolution for the segment sum energy was obtained. (paper)

Angular Magnetoresistance of Nanowires with Alternating Cobalt and Nickel Segments

KAUST Repository

Mohammed, Hanan

2017-06-22

Magnetization reversal in segmented Co/Ni nanowires with varying number of segments was studied using angular Magnetoresistance (MR) measurements on isolated nanowires. The MR measurements offer an insight into the pinning of domain walls within the nanowires. Angular MR measurements were performed on nanowires with two and multiple segments by varying the angle between the applied magnetic field and nanowire (−90° ≤θ≤90°). The angular MR measurements reveal that at lower values of θ the switching fields are nearly identical for the multisegmented and two-segmented nanowires, whereas at higher values of θ, a decrease in the switching field is observed in the case of two segmented nanowires. The two segmented nanowires generally exhibit a single domain wall pinning event, whereas an increased number of pinning events are characteristic of the multisegmented nanowires at higher values of θ. In-situ magnetic force microscopy substantiates reversal by domain wall nucleation and propagation in multisegmented nanowires.

FUSION SEGMENTATION METHOD BASED ON FUZZY THEORY FOR COLOR IMAGES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. Zhao

2017-09-01

Full Text Available The image segmentation method based on two-dimensional histogram segments the image according to the thresholds of the intensity of the target pixel and the average intensity of its neighborhood. This method is essentially a hard-decision method. Due to the uncertainties when labeling the pixels around the threshold, the hard-decision method can easily get the wrong segmentation result. Therefore, a fusion segmentation method based on fuzzy theory is proposed in this paper. We use membership function to model the uncertainties on each color channel of the color image. Then, we segment the color image according to the fuzzy reasoning. The experiment results show that our proposed method can get better segmentation results both on the natural scene images and optical remote sensing images compared with the traditional thresholding method. The fusion method in this paper can provide new ideas for the information extraction of optical remote sensing images and polarization SAR images.

Angular Magnetoresistance of Nanowires with Alternating Cobalt and Nickel Segments

KAUST Repository

Mohammed, Hanan; Corte-Leon, H.; Ivanov, Yurii P.; Moreno, J. A.; Kazakova, O.; Kosel, Jü rgen

2017-01-01

Magnetization reversal in segmented Co/Ni nanowires with varying number of segments was studied using angular Magnetoresistance (MR) measurements on isolated nanowires. The MR measurements offer an insight into the pinning of domain walls within the nanowires. Angular MR measurements were performed on nanowires with two and multiple segments by varying the angle between the applied magnetic field and nanowire (−90° ≤θ≤90°). The angular MR measurements reveal that at lower values of θ the switching fields are nearly identical for the multisegmented and two-segmented nanowires, whereas at higher values of θ, a decrease in the switching field is observed in the case of two segmented nanowires. The two segmented nanowires generally exhibit a single domain wall pinning event, whereas an increased number of pinning events are characteristic of the multisegmented nanowires at higher values of θ. In-situ magnetic force microscopy substantiates reversal by domain wall nucleation and propagation in multisegmented nanowires.

Fast Appearance Modeling for Automatic Primary Video Object Segmentation.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Jiong; Price, Brian; Shen, Xiaohui; Lin, Zhe; Yuan, Junsong

2016-02-01

Automatic segmentation of the primary object in a video clip is a challenging problem as there is no prior knowledge of the primary object. Most existing techniques thus adapt an iterative approach for foreground and background appearance modeling, i.e., fix the appearance model while optimizing the segmentation and fix the segmentation while optimizing the appearance model. However, these approaches may rely on good initialization and can be easily trapped in local optimal. In addition, they are usually time consuming for analyzing videos. To address these limitations, we propose a novel and efficient appearance modeling technique for automatic primary video object segmentation in the Markov random field (MRF) framework. It embeds the appearance constraint as auxiliary nodes and edges in the MRF structure, and can optimize both the segmentation and appearance model parameters simultaneously in one graph cut. The extensive experimental evaluations validate the superiority of the proposed approach over the state-of-the-art methods, in both efficiency and effectiveness.

The Brain's Cutting-Room Floor: Segmentation of Narrative Cinema

Science.gov (United States)

Zacks, Jeffrey M.; Speer, Nicole K.; Swallow, Khena M.; Maley, Corey J.

2010-01-01

Observers segment ongoing activity into meaningful events. Segmentation is a core component of perception that helps determine memory and guide planning. The current study tested the hypotheses that event segmentation is an automatic component of the perception of extended naturalistic activity, and that the identification of event boundaries in such activities results in part from processing changes in the perceived situation. Observers may identify boundaries between events as a result of processing changes in the observed situation. To test this hypothesis and study this potential mechanism, we measured brain activity while participants viewed an extended narrative film. Large transient responses were observed when the activity was segmented, and these responses were mediated by changes in the observed activity, including characters and their interactions, interactions with objects, spatial location, goals, and causes. These results support accounts that propose event segmentation is automatic and depends on processing meaningful changes in the perceived situation; they are the first to show such effects for extended naturalistic human activity. PMID:20953234

Energy functionals for medical image segmentation: choices and consequences

OpenAIRE

McIntosh, Christopher

2011-01-01

Medical imaging continues to permeate the practice of medicine, but automated yet accurate segmentation and labeling of anatomical structures continues to be a major obstacle to computerized medical image analysis. Though there exists numerous approaches for medical image segmentation, one in particular has gained increasing popularity: energy minimization-based techniques, and the large set of methods encompassed therein. With these techniques an energy function must be chosen, segmentations...

Documented Safety Analysis for the B695 Segment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Laycak, D

2008-09-11

This Documented Safety Analysis (DSA) was prepared for the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) Building 695 (B695) Segment of the Decontamination and Waste Treatment Facility (DWTF). The report provides comprehensive information on design and operations, including safety programs and safety structures, systems and components to address the potential process-related hazards, natural phenomena, and external hazards that can affect the public, facility workers, and the environment. Consideration is given to all modes of operation, including the potential for both equipment failure and human error. The facilities known collectively as the DWTF are used by LLNL's Radioactive and Hazardous Waste Management (RHWM) Division to store and treat regulated wastes generated at LLNL. RHWM generally processes low-level radioactive waste with no, or extremely low, concentrations of transuranics (e.g., much less than 100 nCi/g). Wastes processed often contain only depleted uranium and beta- and gamma-emitting nuclides, e.g., {sup 90}Sr, {sup 137}Cs, or {sup 3}H. The mission of the B695 Segment centers on container storage, lab-packing, repacking, overpacking, bulking, sampling, waste transfer, and waste treatment. The B695 Segment is used for storage of radioactive waste (including transuranic and low-level), hazardous, nonhazardous, mixed, and other waste. Storage of hazardous and mixed waste in B695 Segment facilities is in compliance with the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). LLNL is operated by the Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC, for the Department of Energy (DOE). The B695 Segment is operated by the RHWM Division of LLNL. Many operations in the B695 Segment are performed under a Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) operation plan, similar to commercial treatment operations with best demonstrated available technologies. The buildings of the B695 Segment were designed and built considering such operations, using proven building

Documented Safety Analysis for the B695 Segment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Laycak, D.

2008-01-01

This Documented Safety Analysis (DSA) was prepared for the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) Building 695 (B695) Segment of the Decontamination and Waste Treatment Facility (DWTF). The report provides comprehensive information on design and operations, including safety programs and safety structures, systems and components to address the potential process-related hazards, natural phenomena, and external hazards that can affect the public, facility workers, and the environment. Consideration is given to all modes of operation, including the potential for both equipment failure and human error. The facilities known collectively as the DWTF are used by LLNL's Radioactive and Hazardous Waste Management (RHWM) Division to store and treat regulated wastes generated at LLNL. RHWM generally processes low-level radioactive waste with no, or extremely low, concentrations of transuranics (e.g., much less than 100 nCi/g). Wastes processed often contain only depleted uranium and beta- and gamma-emitting nuclides, e.g., 90 Sr, 137 Cs, or 3 H. The mission of the B695 Segment centers on container storage, lab-packing, repacking, overpacking, bulking, sampling, waste transfer, and waste treatment. The B695 Segment is used for storage of radioactive waste (including transuranic and low-level), hazardous, nonhazardous, mixed, and other waste. Storage of hazardous and mixed waste in B695 Segment facilities is in compliance with the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). LLNL is operated by the Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC, for the Department of Energy (DOE). The B695 Segment is operated by the RHWM Division of LLNL. Many operations in the B695 Segment are performed under a Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) operation plan, similar to commercial treatment operations with best demonstrated available technologies. The buildings of the B695 Segment were designed and built considering such operations, using proven building systems, and keeping

Precision segmented reflectors for space applications

Science.gov (United States)

Lehman, David H.; Pawlik, Eugene V.; Meinel, Aden B.; Fichter, W. B.

1990-08-01

A project to develop precision segmented reflectors (PSRs) which operate at submillimeter wavelengths is described. The development of a light efficient means for the construction of large-aperture segmented reflecting space-based telescopes is the primary aim of the project. The 20-m Large Deployable Reflector (LDR) telescope is being developed for a survey mission, and it will make use of the reflector panels and materials, structures, and figure control being elaborated for the PSR. The surface accuracy of a 0.9-m PSR panel is shown to be 1.74-micron RMS, the goal of 100-micron RMS positioning accuracy has been achieved for a 4-m erectable structure. A voice-coil actuator for the figure control system architecture demonstrated 1-micron panel control accuracy in a 3-axis evaluation. The PSR technology is demonstrated to be of value for several NASA projects involving optical communications and interferometers as well as missions which make use of large-diameter segmented reflectors.

SIDES - Segment Interconnect Diagnostic Expert System

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Booth, A.W.; Forster, R.; Gustafsson, L.; Ho, N.

1989-01-01

It is well known that the FASTBUS Segment Interconnect (SI) provides a communication path between two otherwise independent, asynchronous bus segments. The SI is probably the most important module in any FASTBUS data acquisition network since it's failure to function can cause whole segments of the network to be inaccessible and sometimes inoperable. This paper describes SIDES, an intelligent program designed to diagnose SI's both in situ as they operate in a data acquisition network, and in the laboratory in an acceptance/repair environment. The paper discusses important issues such as knowledge acquisition; extracting knowledge from human experts and other knowledge sources. SIDES can benefit high energy physics experiments, where SI problems can be diagnosed and solved more quickly. Equipment pool technicians can also benefit from SIDES, first by decreasing the number of SI's erroneously turned in for repair, and secondly as SIDES acts as an intelligent assistant to the technician in the diagnosis and repair process

Does syntax help discourse segmentation? Not so much

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Braud, Chloé Elodie; Lacroix, Ophélie; Søgaard, Anders

2017-01-01

Discourse segmentation is the first step in building discourse parsers. Most work on discourse segmentation does not scale to real-world discourse parsing across languages, for two reasons: (i) models rely on constituent trees, and (ii) experiments have relied on gold standard identification...

Event Segmentation Improves Event Memory up to One Month Later

Science.gov (United States)

Flores, Shaney; Bailey, Heather R.; Eisenberg, Michelle L.; Zacks, Jeffrey M.

2017-01-01

When people observe everyday activity, they spontaneously parse it into discrete meaningful events. Individuals who segment activity in a more normative fashion show better subsequent memory for the events. If segmenting events effectively leads to better memory, does asking people to attend to segmentation improve subsequent memory? To answer…

Computer Aided Segmentation Analysis: New Software for College Admissions Marketing.

Science.gov (United States)

Lay, Robert S.; Maguire, John J.

1983-01-01

Compares segmentation solutions obtained using a binary segmentation algorithm (THAID) and a new chi-square-based procedure (CHAID) that segments the prospective pool of college applicants using application and matriculation as criteria. Results showed a higher number of estimated qualified inquiries and more accurate estimates with CHAID. (JAC)

Motion based segmentation for robot vision using adapted EM algorithm

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Zhao, Wei; Roos, Nico

2016-01-01

Robots operate in a dynamic world in which objects are often moving. The movement of objects may help the robot to segment the objects from the background. The result of the segmentation can subsequently be used to identify the objects. This paper investigates the possibility of segmenting objects

Production of linear polarization by segmentation of helical undulator

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tanaka, T.; Kitamura, H.

2002-01-01

A simple scheme to obtain linearly polarized radiation (LPR) with a segmented undulator is proposed. The undulator is composed of several segments each of which forms a helical undulator and has helicity opposite to those of adjacent segments. Due to coherent sum of radiation, the circularly polarized component is canceled out resulting in production of LPR without any higher harmonics. The radiation from the proposed device is investigated analytically, which shows that a high degree of linear polarization is obtained in spite of a finite beam emittance and angular acceptance of optics, if a sufficiently large number of segments and an adequate photon energy are chosen. Results of calculation to investigate practical performances of the proposed device are presented

Segmental dilatation of the ileum in a healthy adolescent

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shah, Akash D.; Kovanlikaya, Arzu; Brill, Paula W.; Beneck, Debra; Spigland, Nitsana

2009-01-01

Segmental intestinal dilatation is a rare entity presenting overwhelmingly in infants and young children with congenital malformations, anemia, or history of gastrointestinal pathology, characterized by a focally distended segment of bowel with abrupt transition points without an obstructing barrier. We present a 16-year-old girl with no significant medical history who presented with bowel obstruction clinically. Segmental dilatation of the ileum was evident on a CT scan and small bowel series. Following surgical resection, pathologic examination of the segment revealed the presence of heterotopic gastric mucosa. The girl's symptoms resolved after surgery. Awareness of the imaging presentation of this entity can inform the evaluation of older children with nonspecific symptoms mimicking bowel obstruction. (orig.)

Fluorecence modulated radiotherapy with integrated segmentation to optimization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baer, W.; Alber, M.; Nuesslin, F.

2003-01-01

On the basis of two clinical cases, we present fluence-modulated radiotherapy with a sequencer integrated into the optimization of our treatment-planning software HYPERION. In each case, we achieved simple relations for the dependence of the total number of segments on the complexity of the sequencing, as well as for the dependence of the dose-distribution quality on the number of segments. For both clinical cases, it was possible to obtain treatment plans that complied with the clinical demands on dose distribution and number of segments. Also, compared to the widespread concept of equidistant steps, our method of sequencing with fluence steps of variable size led to a significant reduction of the number of segments, while maintaining the quality of the dose distribution. Our findings substantiate the value of the integration of the sequencer into the optimization for the clinical efficiency of IMRT [de

User-assisted video segmentation system for visual communication

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Zhengping; Chen, Chun

2002-01-01

Video segmentation plays an important role for efficient storage and transmission in visual communication. In this paper, we introduce a novel video segmentation system using point tracking and contour formation techniques. Inspired by the results from the study of the human visual system, we intend to solve the video segmentation problem into three separate phases: user-assisted feature points selection, feature points' automatic tracking, and contour formation. This splitting relieves the computer of ill-posed automatic segmentation problems, and allows a higher level of flexibility of the method. First, the precise feature points can be found using a combination of user assistance and an eigenvalue-based adjustment. Second, the feature points in the remaining frames are obtained using motion estimation and point refinement. At last, contour formation is used to extract the object, and plus a point insertion process to provide the feature points for next frame's tracking.

SEGMENTATION AND QUALITY ANALYSIS OF LONG RANGE CAPTURED IRIS IMAGE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)