Advanced satellite workstation: An integrated workstation environment for operational support of satellite system planning and analysis

A prototype integrated environment, the Advanced Satellite Workstation (ASW), is described that has been developed and delivered for evaluation and operator feedback in an operational satellite control center. The current ASW hardware consists of a Sun Workstation and Macintosh II Workstation connected via an ethernet Network Hardware and Software, Laser Disk System, Optical Storage System, and Telemetry Data File Interface. The central mission of ASW is to provide an intelligent decision support and training environment for operator/analysts of complex systems such as satellites. There have been many workstation implementations recently which incorporate graphical telemetry displays and expert systems. ASW is a considerably broader look at intelligent, integrated environments for decision support, based upon the premise that the central features of such an environment are intelligent data access and integrated toolsets. A variety of tools have been constructed in support of this prototype environment including: an automated pass planner for scheduling vehicle support activities, architectural modeler for hierarchical simulation and analysis of satellite vehicle subsystems, multimedia-based information systems that provide an intuitive and easily accessible interface to Orbit Operations Handbook and other relevant support documentation, and a data analysis architecture that integrates user modifiable telemetry display systems, expert systems for background data analysis, and interfaces to the multimedia system via inter-process communication

An Architecture for distributed multimedia database systems

In the past few years considerable demand for user oriented multimedia information systems has developed. These systems must provide a rich set of functionality so that new, complex, and interesting applications can be addressed. This places considerable importance on the management of diverse data types including text, images, audio and video. These requirements generate the need for a new generation of distributed heterogeneous multimedia database systems. In this paper we identify a set of functional requirements for a multimedia server considering database management, object synchronization and integration, and multimedia query processing. A generalization of the requirements to a distributed system is presented, and some of our current research and developing activities are discussed

Content-based image retrieval and its benefits for the stock photography market

The development of powerful low-cost desktop computer systems has changed the pre-press business where tight deadlines must be met per sistently. An increasing number of newspapers and magazines are acquiring, handling, and storing images digitally while the use of hardcopies and slides decreases. Today\u27s computers and high capacity storage-media enable stock pho tography agencies to build digital image databases, giving users fast access to large numbers of images. However, the transition from analog to digital image archives imposes new problems: with thousands of images at hand, the search for a particular image may turn into the search for the needle in a haystack. The first image Database Management Systems (DBMSs) were extended text DBMSs, which stored the image data along with a set of manually entered descriptive keywords. The major problem with this approach is that there is no generally agreed-upon language to describe images. Even sophis ticated DBMSs are unable to detect synonyms; hence, an image described with certain properties such as curvy may not be found if a user enters wavy as a search criterion. Furthermore, some image properties are hard to describe with keywords. A search is likely to fail if properties were not described at the database population stage when images are added to the database. Finally, assigning a sufficient set of keywords to every image adds a tremendous amount of labor to the population stage. Research at many scientific institutions and companies is geared towards overcoming the shortcomings of image DBMSs with keyword-based search engines. Pattern recognition which allows for comparing images based on their visual content is being introduced to image DBMSs, improving the accuracy of search engines. Sketches, sample images, and other means of describing the visual content of images may be used as search criteria in addition to keywords. This thesis project summarizes the basics of pattern recognition and its applications in image database management for contentbased image retrieval. The purpose of this thesis project is to determine the impact of contentbased image retrieval on the stock photography market in the near future. In order to obtain the necessary information, two different questionnaires were sent out to a number of selected stock photography agencies, newspapers, and magazines. The evaluation of the replies was conducted for the three groups separately. The replies from stock photography agencies showed a high interest in digital image archives. They also showed concerns about increased overhead with digital archives. The estimated amount of work required for categoriz ing images and assigning keywords ranged from fifty to ninety percent as compared to ten to fifty percent for scanning. All survey participants agreed that pattern recognition can improve the accuracy of keyword-based search engines. However, they all denied that this approach would reduce the need for assigning keywords. Different needs could be determined for newspaper and magazines. Newspapers rely heavily on keywords since images are often chosen based upon the circumstances under which they were taken while their visual con tent may be secondary. Therefore, newspapers\u27 profits from content-based image retrieval are minute. For magazines, the visual content of images seemed to have a higher priority and the appreciation for corresponding search capabilities was accordingly higher. To summarize, users of digital image archives can profit from contentbased image retrieval if the visual content is an important issue. For image providers, there are a number of reasons that delay the transition to contentbased image retrieval. Currently, there is only one shrink-wrapped commer cial product available that meets the needs of stock photography agencies. This product requires additional work for fully exhausting its capabilities. Finally, many companies have already built their image database and the transition to another system is time-consuming, expensive, and risky

Signature Files: An Integrated Access Method for Formatted and Unformatted Databases

The signature file approach is one of the most powerful information storage and retrieval techniques which is used for finding the data objects that are relevant to the user queries. The main idea of all signature based schemes is to reflect the essence of the data items into bit pattern (descriptors or signatures) and store them in a separate file which acts as a filter to eliminate the non aualifvine data items for an information reauest. It provides an integrated access method for both formattid and formatted databases. A complative overview and discussion of the proposed signatnre generation methods and the major signature file organization schemes are presented. Applications of the signature techniques to formatted and unformatted databases, single and multiterm query cases, serial and paratlei architecture. static and dynamic environments are provided with a special emphasis on the multimedia databases where the pioneering prototype systems using signatnres yield highly encouraging results

STRG-QL: Spatio-Temporal Region Graph Query Language for Video Databases

Copyright 2008 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers. One print or electronic copy may be made for personal use only. Systematic reproduction and distribution, duplication of any material in this paper for a fee or for commercial purposes, or modification of the content of the paper are prohibited.In this paper, we present a new graph-based query language and its query processing for a Graph-based Video Database Management System (GVDBMS). Although extensive researches have proposed various query languages for video databases, most of them have the limitation in handling general-purpose video queries. Each method can handle specific data model, query type or application. In order to develop a general-purpose video query language, we first produce Spatio-Temporal Region Graph (STRG) for each video, which represents spatial and temporal information of video objects. An STRG data model is generated from the STRG by exploiting object-oriented model. Based on the STRG data model, we propose a new graph-based query language named STRG-QL, which supports various types of video query. To process the proposed STRG-QL, we introduce a rule-based query optimization that considers the characteristics of video data, i.e., the hierarchical correlations among video segments. The results of our extensive experimental study show that the proposed STRG-QL is promising in terms of accuracy and cost.http://dx.doi.org/10.1117/12.76553

Quo vadimus? The 21st Century and multimedia

The concept is related of computer driven multimedia to the NASA Scientific and Technical Information Program (STIP). Multimedia is defined here as computer integration and output of text, animation, audio, video, and graphics. Multimedia is the stage of computer based information that allows access to experience. The concepts are also drawn in of hypermedia, intermedia, interactive multimedia, hypertext, imaging, cyberspace, and virtual reality. Examples of these technology developments are given for NASA, private industry, and academia. Examples of concurrent technology developments and implementations are given to show how these technologies, along with multimedia, have put us at the threshold of the 21st century. The STI Program sees multimedia as an opportunity for revolutionizing the way STI is managed

Distributed multimedia systems

A distributed multimedia system (DMS) is an integrated communication, computing, and information system that enables the processing, management, delivery, and presentation of synchronized multimedia information with quality-of-service guarantees. Multimedia information may include discrete media data, such as text, data, and images, and continuous media data, such as video and audio. Such a system enhances human communications by exploiting both visual and aural senses and provides the ultimate flexibility in work and entertainment, allowing one to collaborate with remote participants, view movies on demand, access on-line digital libraries from the desktop, and so forth. In this paper, we present a technical survey of a DMS. We give an overview of distributed multimedia systems, examine the fundamental concept of digital media, identify the applications, and survey the important enabling technologies.published_or_final_versio

Практичний курс з перекладу термінології комп'ютерних систем з англійської на українську мову

Посібник побудовано таким чином, що кожний розділ містить у собі матеріал та вправи, в ході виконання яких студенти мають набути вказаних вище перекладацьких умінь і навичок, а саме: ознайомлення з текстами, що сприяють отриманню фонових знань (тексти і міни-тексти, що містять відповідну термінологію і опис якогось явища, наприклад, особливостей функціонування веб-сайтів); вправи для перевірки знання термінологічних еквівалентів, зокрема, переклад міні-текстів з англійської на українську і навпаки; аудіовправи, які закріплюють знання термінології і готують перекладача до усного перекладу у зазначеній галузі

Sixth Goddard Conference on Mass Storage Systems and Technologies Held in Cooperation with the Fifteenth IEEE Symposium on Mass Storage Systems

This document contains copies of those technical papers received in time for publication prior to the Sixth Goddard Conference on Mass Storage Systems and Technologies which is being held in cooperation with the Fifteenth IEEE Symposium on Mass Storage Systems at the University of Maryland-University College Inn and Conference Center March 23-26, 1998. As one of an ongoing series, this Conference continues to provide a forum for discussion of issues relevant to the management of large volumes of data. The Conference encourages all interested organizations to discuss long term mass storage requirements and experiences in fielding solutions. Emphasis is on current and future practical solutions addressing issues in data management, storage systems and media, data acquisition, long term retention of data, and data distribution. This year's discussion topics include architecture, tape optimization, new technology, performance, standards, site reports, vendor solutions. Tutorials will be available on shared file systems, file system backups, data mining, and the dynamics of obsolescence