An improved fast scanning algorithm based on distance measure and threshold function in region image segmentation

Segmentation is an essential and important process that separates an image into regions that have similar characteristics or features. This will transform the image for a better image analysis and evaluation. An important benefit of segmentation is the identification of region of interest in a particular image. Various algorithms have been proposed for image segmentation and this includes the Fast Scanning algorithm which has been employed on food, sport and medical image segmentation. The clustering process in Fast Scanning algorithm is performed by merging pixels with similar neighbor based on an identified threshold and the use of Euclidean Distance as distance measure. Such an approach leads to a weak reliability and shape matching of the produced segments. Hence, this study proposes an Improved Fast Scanning algorithm that is based on Sorensen distance measure and adaptive threshold function. The proposed adaptive threshold function is based on the grey value in an image’s pixels and variance. The proposed Improved Fast Scanning algorithm is realized on two datasets which contains images of cars and nature. Evaluation is made by calculating the Peak Signal to Noise Ratio (PSNR) for the Improved Fast Scanning and standard Fast Scanning algorithm. Experimental results showed that proposed algorithm produced higher PSNR compared to the standard Fast Scanning. Such a result indicate that the proposed Improved Fast Scanning algorithm is useful in image segmentation and later contribute in identifying region of interesting in pattern recognition

Developing an Intelligent Table Tennis Umpiring System: Identifying the ball from the scene

This paper reports further development of an intelligent table tennis umpiring system, of which the idea and plan was previously published at this conference in 2007. Briefly, table tennis is a fast sport. A service usually takes a few seconds to complete but an umpire needs to make many observations and makes a judgment before or soon after the service is complete. This is a complex task and the author believes the employment of videography, image processing and artificial intelligence (AI) technologies could help evaluating the service. The aim of this research is to develop an intelligent system which is able to identify and track the location of the ball from live video images and evaluate the service according to the service rules. In this paper, the techniques of identifying a table tennis ball from the scene is described and discussed. A number of image processing techniques have been employed to identify and measure the characteristics of the ball. Artificial neural networks have been applied as a classifier. It classifies whether the detected object is not-a- ball, a ball on the palm or a ball in mid air. The system has been tested on 21 still images which contain pictures of ball-like objects, balls on the palm and in mid air. The preliminary results are very promising. Out of 83 objects, 82 have been correctly classified. The system will be further tested on video images once the video is captured and processed. This paper also discusses the idea of implementing the final system as a multi-agent system, which the author believes it is appropriate for this application because multiple cameras will have to be employed to obtain accurate results

The tsunami history of southwest Thailand - Recurrence, magnitude and impact of palaeotsunamis inferred from onshore deposits

The Indian Ocean tsunami (IOT) of December 2004 has uncovered a till then widely unacquainted tsunami risk for the west coast of southern Thailand. To limit loss of life and damage due to potential future events, data about the frequency and magnitude of tsunamis in Thailand over a longer time period is needed. Since modern and historical tsunami recording in the Bay of Bengal is limited to the last 300 years, details about the long-term hazard have to be drawn from geological evidence of prehistoric tsunami flooding by (i) identifying new palaeotsunamis, (ii) dating and (iii) correlating spatially distinct evidence, and (iv) establishing the magnitude and the intensity of these events. For this, sediments from near-shore geoarchives in the coastal areas of Phang-nga province and Phuket (Thailand) have been sampled and analysed sedimentologically (granulometry, geochemistry, mineralogy, fauna, sedimentation modelling) and chronologically (optically stimulated luminescence and radiocarbon dating). Evidence of multiple prehistoric coastal flooding events in the form of allochthonous sand beds was identified in the coastal plain of Ban Bang Sak. The layers are assigned to high-energy events of marine origin, either tsunamis or tropical storms, by means of the sediment characteristics. The distinction between tsunamites and tempestites is mainly based on comparison of the palaeoevent beds with the local deposit of the IOT 2004, which revealed similarities regarding spatial extent and sediment properties. Furthermore, the radiocarbon age of the youngest palaeoevent correlates with contemporaneous tsunami evidence from India and Sumatra. Hence, the youngest event, dated to 500-700 cal BP, is related to a basin-wide tsunami, while several older events that took place between 2000 and 1180 cal BP preliminary are treated as tsunami candidates. Since the application of radiocarbon for dating tsunamites on Phra Thong Island is limited by the scarcity of datable macro-remains and the contamination by young roots, here, the potential of optical dating (OSL) is evaluated by applying the method to a suite of tsunamigenic and littoral deposits for which independent age control is available. Small aliquots of coarse-grained quartz were used for measurements, and processed statistically by means of appropriate age models. Cross-checking with independent radiocarbon data showed good agreement for littoral deposits and only insignificant residuals of less than 40 years for the poorly bleached deposits of the IOT 2004. These results legitimate the use of OSL to determine ages of palaeotsunamis in the same setting. Therefore, the established luminescence procedure was applied as a tool to correlate the spatially distinct sand sheets of prehistoric tsunamis that are preserved in the swales of Phra Thong’s beach-ridge plain. At least three palaeoevents – being 490–550, 925–1035 and 1740–2000 years old – are distinguished and correlated between the swales of Phra Thong (as an indicator for inundation distances), as well as within the Bay of Bengal (as an indicator for the impact areas). For the interpretation of onshore tsunami deposits in terms of magnitude and impact on coastal systems, the boundary conditions at the time of prehistoric tsunami events have to be taken into account. Pre-existing sea-level curves for the Malay-Thai Peninsula postulate a mid-Holocene maximum of 1-5 m above present sea level, whereas the exact timing and magnitude of the Holocene highstand in Thailand remained to be defined. By the use of fixed biological and geomorphological sea-level indicators a Holocene maximum of +2.6 m in the south and +1.5-2.0 m in the north of the study area is assessed for c. 5500 years ago. In addition, Holocene changes of palaeogeography and their influence on local tsunami records are studied. While the patterns of palaeotsunamis recorded on Phra Thong and at Ban Bang Sak can be explained by the onset of back-barrier swamp formation, the existence of only one prehistoric tsunami deposit at Pakarang Cape is in conflict with the persistence of a back-reef lagoon, which provided favourable conditions for preservation over millennia. Although the IOT 2004 had a strong short-term impact on infrastructure, housing, ecosystems and coastal morphology in Thailand, the damaged systems have almost completely recovered after less than 10 years. For prehistoric tsunamis, the long-term impact is assessed based on variations of the sedimentary environments before and after the events. It can be shown that all recorded palaeotsunamis had only insignificant impact on the ecosystems and the geomorphology of Phra Thong Island, Ban Bang Sak and Pakarang Cape. To deduce transport processes and hydrodynamic parameters of tsunami events from the onshore deposits found at Ban Bang Sak, as an estimate of palaeotsunami magnitude, two different ap-proaches are applied. (i) The maximum offshore sediment source is determined using granulometry, geochemistry, mineralogy, and foraminifera of tsunamites and reference samples from various marine and terrestrial environments. (ii) By means of sedimentation modelling, onshore flow velocities and flow depths of the associated tsunami waves are estimated. The approach is evaluated by means of the IOT 2004, for which modelled flow velocities and onshore flow depths, as well as the deduced sediment source are in good agreement with quotations based on survivor videos and post-tsunami field surveys. For the 500-700 year old predecessor with modelled flow velocities and flow depths of 4.1-5.9 m/s and 7.0 m, respectively, a magnitude similar to the IOT 2004 is reconstructed. The deposits of the three tsunami candidates dated to 1180-2000 cal BP partly indicate source areas equal to the IOT 2004, suggesting events of comparable size, and partly indicate a much shallower sediment source, pointing to a storm origin or tsunamis of a lesser magnitude. In conclusion, a recurrence interval of 500-600 years for tsunamis in southwest Thailand is estimated on the basis of sedimentary evidence. Since all tsunamis recorded in Thailand are triggered by mega-ruptures of the Sunda Arc with similar magnitude and geometry as the 2004 earthquake, which have not only local but basin-wide impact, the data from Thailand provide valuable information for the assessment of future tsunami risk in other countries around the northern Indian Ocean, as well

Mid-Holocene marine faunas from the Bangkok Clay deposits in Nakhon Nayok, the Central Plain of Thailand

Based on several field investigations, many molluscan shells and chondrichthyan teeth, together with other invertebrate and actinopterygian remains were found from the marine Bangkok Clay deposits in Ongkharak, Nakhon Nayok, at a depth of ~ 5–7 m below the topsoil surface. Animal macrofossils recovered from these Holocene marine deposits were identified and their chronological context was investigated in order to reconstruct the paleoenvironments of the area at that time. The majority of marine fossils recovered from the site consist of molluscs, with a total of 63 species identified. Other invertebrate species include a stony coral, a mud lobster, barnacles, and a sea urchin. The vertebrates are represented by fish remains, including carcharhinid shark teeth from at least nine species, stingray and trichiurid teeth, and one sciaenid otolith. The molluscan fauna indicates that the paleoenvironments of the area corresponded to intertidal to sublittoral zones, where some areas were mangrove forests and intertidal mudflats. The fish fauna is dominated by the river shark Glyphis, indicating freshwater influences and possibly occasional brackish conditions. The carbon-14 analysis of mollusc and charcoal remains shows that deposition of the marine sediment sequence began during the mid-Holocene, spanning approximately from 8,800 to 5,300 cal yr BP. This study provides in-depth insights into the diversity of fishes, marine molluscs, and other invertebrates from the Bangkok Clay deposits, supporting the existence of a marine transgression onto the Lower Central Plain of Thailand during the mid-Holocene

Report of the Workshop on Regional Cooperation for Implementation of Port State Measures to Improve Fisheries Management and Reduce IUU Fishing in Southeast Asia

The Workshop on Regional Cooperation for Implementation of Port State Measures to Improve Fisheries Management and Reduce IUU Fishing in Southeast Asia was convened by the SEAFDEC in collaboration with ASEAN and the Department of Fisheries, Thailand from 7 to 10 November 2016 in Bangkok, Thailand which supported by the Japanese Trust Fund and Government of Sweden through the SEAFDEC-Sweden Project and other partners such as as the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), USAID, and Marino-forum 21. The Workshop was attended by ASEAN-SEAFDEC Member Countries from Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Viet Nam, Representatives from International Collaborating Organizations and Agencies such as the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Regional Office for Asia and Pacific (FAO/RAP), USAID Regional Development Mission of Asia (USAID/RDMA), Australia Embassies, and Marino-Forum21, Fish Marketing Organization (FMO), USAID Oceans and Fisheries Partnership, and Senior officers and researchers of the SEAFDEC Secretariat, Training Department (TD), and Marine Fishery Resources Development and Management Department (MFRDMD), as well as Regional Fisheries Policy Network Members

European aviation liberalization: A view from afar

This paper traces the development of Australia’s aviation relationship with European countries and shows how new European air carriers have entered and exited the market. The traffic rights available and the emergence of codes-shares as a marketing presence and network substitute for own aircraft operations is demonstrated. Negotiations between Australia and the European Union for a so-called ‘horizontal’ agreement to replace the 16 existing air service agreements are discussed and the obstacles to such an agreement identified. Similarly, a review of air service arrangements and operations arising there from both ASEAN states and New Zealand with Europe is conducted. The paper concludes by noting New Zealand’s very limited physical operations with Europe whereas ASEAN carriers have extensive physical operations but ASEAN has a very limited capacity to negotiate a horizontal agreement with the European Union. The rise of the Gulf State carriers through geo-political optimization of traffic rights and location has led to the replacement of European service by European carriers with service by carriers from Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Doha