12,870 research outputs found
Shape from periodic texture using the eigenvectors of local affine distortion
This paper shows how the local slant and tilt angles of regularly textured curved surfaces can be estimated directly, without the need for iterative numerical optimization, We work in the frequency domain and measure texture distortion using the affine distortion of the pattern of spectral peaks. The key theoretical contribution is to show that the directions of the eigenvectors of the affine distortion matrices can be used to estimate local slant and tilt angles of tangent planes to curved surfaces. In particular, the leading eigenvector points in the tilt direction. Although not as geometrically transparent, the direction of the second eigenvector can be used to estimate the slant direction. The required affine distortion matrices are computed using the correspondences between spectral peaks, established on the basis of their energy ordering. We apply the method to a variety of real-world and synthetic imagery
A Robust Localization System for Inspection Robots in Sewer Networks â
Sewers represent a very important infrastructure of cities whose state should be monitored
periodically. However, the length of such infrastructure prevents sensor networks from being
applicable. In this paper, we present a mobile platform (SIAR) designed to inspect the sewer network.
It is capable of sensing gas concentrations and detecting failures in the network such as cracks and
holes in the floor and walls or zones were the water is not flowing. These alarms should be precisely
geo-localized to allow the operators performing the required correcting measures. To this end, this
paper presents a robust localization system for global pose estimation on sewers. It makes use of prior
information of the sewer network, including its topology, the different cross sections traversed and
the position of some elements such as manholes. The system is based on a Monte Carlo Localization
system that fuses wheel and RGB-D odometry for the prediction stage. The update step takes into
account the sewer network topology for discarding wrong hypotheses. Additionally, the localization
is further refined with novel updating steps proposed in this paper which are activated whenever
a discrete element in the sewer network is detected or the relative orientation of the robot over the
sewer gallery could be estimated. Each part of the system has been validated with real data obtained
from the sewers of Barcelona. The whole system is able to obtain median localization errors in the
order of one meter in all cases. Finally, the paper also includes comparisons with state-of-the-art
Simultaneous Localization and Mapping (SLAM) systems that demonstrate the convenience of the
approach.Unión Europea ECHORD ++ 601116Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades de España RTI2018-100847-B-C2
Flagellar Synchronization Through Direct Hydrodynamic Interactions
Microscale fluid flows generated by ensembles of beating eukaryotic flagella
are crucial to fundamental processes such as development, motility and sensing.
Despite significant experimental and theoretical progress, the underlying
physical mechanisms behind this striking coordination remain unclear. Here, we
present a novel series of experiments in which the flagellar dynamics of two
micropipette-held somatic cells of Volvox carteri, with measurably different
intrinsic beating frequencies, are studied by high-speed imaging as a function
of their mutual separation and orientation. From analysis of beating time
series we find that the interflagellar coupling, which is constrained by the
lack of chemical and mechanical connections between the cells to be purely
hydrodynamical, exhibits a spatial dependence that is consistent with
theoretical predictions. At close spacings it produces robust synchrony which
can prevail for thousands of flagellar beats, while at increasing separations
this synchrony is systematically degraded by stochastic processes. Manipulation
of the relative flagellar orientation reveals the existence of both in-phase
and antiphase synchronized states, which is consistent with dynamical theories.
Through dynamic flagellar tracking with exquisite spatio-temporal precision, we
quantify changes in beating waveforms that result from altered coupling
configuration and distance of separation. The experimental results of this
study prove unequivocally that flagella coupled solely through a fluid medium
can achieve robust synchrony despite significant differences in their intrinsic
properties.Comment: 23 pages, 13 figure
The wake dynamics and flight forces of the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster
We have used flow visualizations and instantaneous force measurements of tethered fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster) to study the dynamics of force generation during flight. During each complete stroke cycle, the flies generate one single vortex loop consisting of vorticity shed during the downstroke and ventral flip. This gross pattern of wake structure in Drosophila is similar to those described for hovering birds and some other insects. The wake structure differed from those previously described, however, in that the vortex filaments shed during ventral stroke reversal did not fuse to complete a circular ring, but rather attached temporarily to the body to complete an inverted heart-shaped vortex loop. The attached ventral filaments of the loop subsequently slide along the length of the body and eventually fuse at the tip of the abdomen. We found no evidence for the shedding of wing-tip vorticity during the upstroke, and argue that this is due to an extreme form of the Wagner effect acting at that time. The flow visualizations predicted that maximum flight forces would be generated during the downstroke and ventral reversal, with little or no force generated during the upstroke. The instantaneous force measurements using laser-interferometry verified the periodic nature of force generation. Within each stroke cycle, there was one plateau of high force generation followed by a period of low force, which roughly correlated with the upstroke and downstroke periods. However, the fluctuations in force lagged behind their expected occurrence within the wing-stroke cycle by approximately 1 ms or one-fifth of the complete stroke cycle. This temporal discrepancy exceeds the range of expected inaccuracies and artifacts in the measurements, and we tentatively discuss the potential retarding effects within the underlying fluid mechanics
PlaceRaider: Virtual Theft in Physical Spaces with Smartphones
As smartphones become more pervasive, they are increasingly targeted by
malware. At the same time, each new generation of smartphone features
increasingly powerful onboard sensor suites. A new strain of sensor malware has
been developing that leverages these sensors to steal information from the
physical environment (e.g., researchers have recently demonstrated how malware
can listen for spoken credit card numbers through the microphone, or feel
keystroke vibrations using the accelerometer). Yet the possibilities of what
malware can see through a camera have been understudied. This paper introduces
a novel visual malware called PlaceRaider, which allows remote attackers to
engage in remote reconnaissance and what we call virtual theft. Through
completely opportunistic use of the camera on the phone and other sensors,
PlaceRaider constructs rich, three dimensional models of indoor environments.
Remote burglars can thus download the physical space, study the environment
carefully, and steal virtual objects from the environment (such as financial
documents, information on computer monitors, and personally identifiable
information). Through two human subject studies we demonstrate the
effectiveness of using mobile devices as powerful surveillance and virtual
theft platforms, and we suggest several possible defenses against visual
malware
Self-Calibration of Multi-Camera Systems for Vehicle Surround Sensing
Multi-camera systems are being deployed in a variety of vehicles and mobile robots today. To eliminate the need for cost and labor intensive maintenance and calibration, continuous self-calibration is highly desirable. In this book we present such an approach for self-calibration of multi-Camera systems for vehicle surround sensing. In an extensive evaluation we assess our algorithm quantitatively using real-world data
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