Real-time analogue gauge transcription on mobile phone

The objective of this paper is to automatically read any circular single pointer analogue gauge in real-time on mobile phone. We make the following contributions: (i) we show how to efficiently and accurately read gauges on mobile phones using a convolutional neural network (CNN) system which accepts both a high and low resolution gauge image; (ii) we introduce a large synthetic image dataset (far superior in size to prior works) with ground truth gauge readings, pointer layout and scale face homographies that is suitable for training a CNN for real world application; (iii) we also release a new real world analogue gauge dataset (larger meter variation than any previous) with annotation suitable for testing three different types of tasks and finally (iv) we beat state of the art performance for gauge reading on this dataset and an existing public dataset in multiple metrics by large margins, notably with pointer angle error less than 1 degree. Our method is fast and lightweight and runs up to 25fps on mobile devices

The design, construction and performance of the MICE scintillating fibre trackers

This is the Pre-print version of the Article. The official published version can be accessed from the link below - Copyright @ 2011 ElsevierCharged-particle tracking in the international Muon Ionisation Cooling Experiment (MICE) will be performed using two solenoidal spectrometers, each instrumented with a tracking detector based on diameter scintillating fibres. The design and construction of the trackers is described along with the quality-assurance procedures, photon-detection system, readout electronics, reconstruction and simulation software and the data-acquisition system. Finally, the performance of the MICE tracker, determined using cosmic rays, is presented.This work was supported by the Science and Technology Facilities Council under grant numbers PP/E003214/1, PP/E000479/1, PP/E000509/1, PP/E000444/1, and through SLAs with STFC-supported laboratories. This work was also supportedby the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, which is operated by the Fermi Research Alliance, under contract No. DE-AC02-76CH03000 with the U.S. Department of Energy, and by the U.S. National Science Foundation under grants PHY-0301737,PHY-0521313, PHY-0758173 and PHY-0630052. The authors also acknowledge the support of the World Premier International Research Center Initiative (WPI Initiative), MEXT, Japan

Automated Aircraft Instrument Reading Using Real Time Video Analysis

Automated Dial Reading (ADR) using image processing is a challenging task that has to deal with the dynamics of real time environment. Literature contains limited research work for ADR that is based on background subtraction, object tracking, and pattern recognition. These methods suffer from dynamic environment such as: varying light intensity, poor resolution, and vibrations in capturing device. A valuable contribution to the existing dial reading approaches is made in this paper by deploying convolution method which plays a significant role in needle/hand recognition within a dial. Proposed dial reading approach is successfully used and tested reading analogue aircraft instruments facilitated by the Flight Guardian (FG) project for automated reading of the cockpit devices in dynamic environments. Performance is evaluated by statistical analysis of the experimental results that proved the robustness of the proposed method

The camera of the fifth H.E.S.S. telescope. Part I: System description

In July 2012, as the four ground-based gamma-ray telescopes of the H.E.S.S. (High Energy Stereoscopic System) array reached their tenth year of operation in Khomas Highlands, Namibia, a fifth telescope took its first data as part of the system. This new Cherenkov detector, comprising a 614.5 m^2 reflector with a highly pixelized camera in its focal plane, improves the sensitivity of the current array by a factor two and extends its energy domain down to a few tens of GeV. The present part I of the paper gives a detailed description of the fifth H.E.S.S. telescope's camera, presenting the details of both the hardware and the software, emphasizing the main improvements as compared to previous H.E.S.S. camera technology.Comment: 16 pages, 13 figures, accepted for publication in NIM

Introducing instrumentation and data acquisition to mechanical engineering students using LabVIEW

For several years, LabVIEW has been used within the Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Strathclyde as the basis for introducing the basic concepts and practice of data acquisition, and more generally, instrumentation, to postgraduate engineering students and undergraduate project students. The objectives of introducing LabVIEW within the curriculum were to expose students to instrumentation and experimental analysis, and to create courseware that could be used flexibly for a range of students. It was also important that staff time for laboratory work be kept to manageable levels. A course module was developed which allows engineering students with very little or no previous knowledge of instrumentation or programming to become acquainted with the basics of programming, experimentation and data acquisition. The basic course structure has been used to teach both undergraduates and postgraduates as well as laboratory technical staff. The paper describes the objectives of the use of LabVIEW for teaching, the structure of the module developed, and the response of students who have been subjected to the course, and how it is intended to expand the delivery to greater student numbers

Improved Cranial Fracture Metrics For Assessing The Protective Benefits Of Helmet Systems

During defeat of high velocity bullets and fragmentation, large deformations have been shown to occur on the inside of non-metallic helmet shells. If these deformations contact the underlying head there is the potential to cause injury, termed as Behind Helmet Blunt Trauma (BHBT). A method of assessing BHBT is required to fully understand the protective capability of a helmet system. Existing methods using synthetic head models are limited in their ability to predict injury outcome as a result of a lack of available injury criteria. The aim of this study was to improve the prediction of cranial fracture outcomes associated with BHBT, focusing on the effect of impact curvature and flat face diameter. Representative impact curvatures and flat face diameters were derived from helmet back face deformation measurements in free-air. An instrumented projectile was used to deliver a repeatable impact to a Bovine Scapula Model (BSM); the BSM being a fracture analogue for the cranium. Cranial fracture risk curves were developed using BSM fracture outcomes. These were developed for the different curvatures and flat face diameters tested, using the parameters of peak impact force, impact velocity, bone thickness considered in conjunction with impact velocity, and the Blunt Criterion (BC). It was concluded that flat impact diameter and radius of curvature should be measured within BHBT assessment to improve the accuracy of cranial fracture prediction. To support application of the risk curves to BHBT assessment methods, it was recommended that fracture outcome should be investigated in terms of the effect of using a rigid projectile when compared to helmet deformation. BHBT assessment methods should consider how to achieve consistent and representative stand-off. Testing should also be completed on full helmet systems as opposed to flat material samples

Tactile sensors for robot handling

First and second generation robots have been used cost effectively in high‐volume ‘fixed’ or ‘hard’ automated manufacturing/assembly systems. They are ‘limited‐ability’ devices using simple logic elements or primitive sensory feedback. However, in the unstructured environment of most manufacturing plants it is often necessary to locate, identify, orientate and position randomly presented components. Visual systems have been researched and developed to provide a coarse resolution outline of objects. More detailed and precise definition of parts is usually obtained by high resolution tactile sensing arrays. This paper reviews and discusses the current state of the art in tactile sensing

Contributions to aerostructures morphing with piezoelectric actuators

Since the first models developed in the late 19th century, the applications of piezoelectric materials have been progressively growing in number. The capacity of these materials to couple electric and mechanic fields makes them perfect candidates in the study of geometrical morphing. Their application in aeronautical products has been traditionally seen from two different perspectives: their use as sensors and as actuators. Both functions present potential benefits and improvements with promising applications. While the investigations in the past years focused mainly in the analysis and integration of piezoelectric materials in structures as means of implementing what is known as structural health monitoring systems, the application of this type of materials as actuators in the geometrical control of structures also awakes interest in the scientific community. In its present state of development, the technology for morphing of structures using piezoelectric actuators is not yet advanced enough as to integrate such systems in commercial products. However, the field is in continuous development and the evolution of the materials and the integration solutions bring the technology closer to industrial application. This thesis aims at studying the feasibility of application of piezoelectric-actuated morphing aeronautical structures in current aircraft concepts. The analysis is performed at theoretical and experimental levels analyzing the static and dynamic performance of currently available actuators and motion amplification technologies. The research presented in this thesis is directed in two different applications of utilization of the actuators: as static actuators producing deformation of the aerodynamic surface and as dynamic actuators controlling a classic aerodynamic control surface. In each of the applications a different type of piezoelectric actuator architecture has been used: a piezoelectric patch has been selected for static morphing applications and a piezoelectric stack-based actuation system for the dynamic control of the conventional control surface. The static experiments performed aimed at demonstrating the suitability of piezoelectric actuators as morphing devices. This analysis was performed analyzing the deflections produced in the trailing edge of an aerodynamic profile. The analysis of the obtained experimental results showed promising results as the actuating configurations managed to perform as designed. The static experiments showed substantial deformation of the trailing edge of the wing profile making this configuration mature enough for further experimentation such as wind tunnel testing. The deflections produced were, however, not significant enough for the direct application of the solution into larger scale configurations. Scalability of the technological solutions remains one of the major challenges of the technology in the morphing applications. The dynamic results showed good performance of the actuators in an anti-flutter demonstrator application during wind tunnel testing. The experiments showed that the system remained stable well passed the flutter velocity; this allows for further experimentation in structures presenting higher flutter speeds. With the development of the next generation of advanced piezoelectric ceramics, with piezoelectric coefficients twice as large in comparison to PZT-based ceramics, the application of the deforming structure concept is very promising for application in larger demonstrators in both static and dynamic applications. The next generation of piezoelectric materials presents itself as a first step into a solution to the scalability of the technology for application into full-scale demonstrators.Des dels primers models desenvolupats durant el segle XIX, les aplicacions per a materials piezoelèctrics han anat creixent progressivament. La relació que presenten aquests materials entre el comportament mecànic i el comportament elèctric els converteix en candidats ideals en l'estudi d'estructures deformables. L'aplicació de piezoelèctrics en aeronàutica es concep tradicionalment des de dues perspectives: com a sensors o com a actuadors. Ambdues presenten potencials beneficis i aplicacions. Tot i que en els últims anys la recerca s'ha concentrat en l'estudi d'integració dels materials en sistemes que permeten controlar la salut de l'estructura (Structural Health Monitoring), l'aplicació de piezoelèctrics com a actuadors d'estructures deformables desperta l'interès de la comunitat científica. En l'estadi actual, la tecnologia necessària per deformar estructures de forma controlada utilitzant materials piezoelèctrics no està suficientment desenvolupada. No obstant, la recerca en aquest camp està en continu desenvolupament i s'apropa a solucions que permetran integrar-la en aplicacions industrials. L'objectiu de la tesi és estudiar la possibilitat d'utilitzar deformacions produïdes mitjançant actuadors piezoelèctrics en estructures aeronàutiques actuals. L'anàlisi està orientat des de punts de vista teòric i experimental i es centra en el comportament estàtic i dinàmic de solucions tecnològiques amb actuadors i tecnologies d'amplificació disponibles comercialment. La recerca que es presenta en la tesi estudia dues aplicacions diferents en l'ús d'aquest tipus d'actuadors: com a actuadors en regim estàtic, produint deformacions de la superfície aerodinàmica, i com a actuadors dinàmics, que controlin una superfície de control convencional. L'arquitectura de la solució tecnològica emprada ha estat diferent en cada aplicació: en la deformació estàtica de la superfície aerodinàmica l'actuador és de tipus "patch" mentre que en el cas dinàmic és de tipus "stack". Els experiments estàtics desenvolupats tenen com a objectiu demostrar la capacitat dels piezoelèctrics com a elements que produeixin deformacions en l'estructura (morphing). Aquest objectiu es demostra analitzant les deflexions produïdes en el caire de fuga d'un perfil aerodinàmic. Els resultats experimentals obtinguts són optimistes ja que les diferents configuracions d'actuadors es comporten tal i com prediuen els models. En règim estàtic, les deformacions produïdes en el caire de fuga son substancials. Això permet assegurar que la configuració utilitzada en els experiments és prou madura com per seguir investigant, per exemple, en túnel de vent. Malgrat això, les deformacions produïdes encara no són suficientment significatives com per integrar l'experiment en un model més gran. L'escalabilitat és un dels reptes més importants que presenta la tecnologia en aplicacions de "morphing". Els resultats dinàmics demostren una bona actuació de l'actuador integrat en un sistema anti-flameig en els experiments en túnel de vent. Els experiments demostren la capacitat del sistema de mantenir-se estable a velocitats mes enllà de l'aparició del flameig. El següent pas en aquesta línia de recerca es l'investigació en models més complexos en quant a aparició de flameig. Amb el desenvolupament d'una nova generació de materials piezoelèctrics ceràmics avançats, que promet coeficients piezoelectrics el doble d'alts en comparació amb els materials basats en PZT disponibles actualment, l'arquitectura experimentada en règim estàtic és un molt bon candidat en aplicacions a escala més gran. Aquesta propera generació de materials es presenta com un primer pas en solucionar els problemes d'escalabilitat que presenta la tecnologia actualment