Investigation related to multispectral imaging systems

A summary of technical progress made during a five year research program directed toward the development of operational information systems based on multispectral sensing and the use of these systems in earth-resource survey applications is presented. Efforts were undertaken during this program to: (1) improve the basic understanding of the many facets of multispectral remote sensing, (2) develop methods for improving the accuracy of information generated by remote sensing systems, (3) improve the efficiency of data processing and information extraction techniques to enhance the cost-effectiveness of remote sensing systems, (4) investigate additional problems having potential remote sensing solutions, and (5) apply the existing and developing technology for specific users and document and transfer that technology to the remote sensing community

Rehabilitation Engineering

Population ageing has major consequences and implications in all areas of our daily life as well as other important aspects, such as economic growth, savings, investment and consumption, labour markets, pensions, property and care from one generation to another. Additionally, health and related care, family composition and life-style, housing and migration are also affected. Given the rapid increase in the aging of the population and the further increase that is expected in the coming years, an important problem that has to be faced is the corresponding increase in chronic illness, disabilities, and loss of functional independence endemic to the elderly (WHO 2008). For this reason, novel methods of rehabilitation and care management are urgently needed. This book covers many rehabilitation support systems and robots developed for upper limbs, lower limbs as well as visually impaired condition. Other than upper limbs, the lower limb research works are also discussed like motorized foot rest for electric powered wheelchair and standing assistance device

Air Force Institute of Technology Research Report 2020

This Research Report presents the FY20 research statistics and contributions of the Graduate School of Engineering and Management (EN) at AFIT. AFIT research interests and faculty expertise cover a broad spectrum of technical areas related to USAF needs, as reflected by the range of topics addressed in the faculty and student publications listed in this report. In most cases, the research work reported herein is directly sponsored by one or more USAF or DOD agencies. AFIT welcomes the opportunity to conduct research on additional topics of interest to the USAF, DOD, and other federal organizations when adequate manpower and financial resources are available and/or provided by a sponsor. In addition, AFIT provides research collaboration and technology transfer benefits to the public through Cooperative Research and Development Agreements (CRADAs). Interested individuals may discuss ideas for new research collaborations, potential CRADAs, or research proposals with individual faculty using the contact information in this document

Wood-adhesive bondline analyses with micro x-ray computed tomography

There is no doubt that adhesive penetration plays an important role in wood bondline joint performance and durability; yet, to date there is no direct experimental evidence linking penetration depth with bond performance. This is, in part, because adhesive penetration is commonly assessed with various 2D microscopy techniques that are destructive to the specimen, and are incapable of detecting the 3D penetration path followed during bond formation. Micro x-ray computed tomography (XCT) is a non-destructive imaging technique, capable of providing 3D bondline data. A significant challenge, however, has been generating sufficient x-ray attenuation contrast between cured adhesive polymers and wood cell walls for quantitative material segmentation. In this work, three separate wood-adhesive types, phenol formaldehyde, polymeric diphenylmethane diisocyanate, and a hybrid polyvinyl acetate, were uniformly tagged with iodine to overcome these challenges. Laminate bondlines, prepared with these adhesives and three different wood species, Douglas-fir, loblolly pine, and hybrid poplar, were analyzed with synchrotron-based, micro XCT. Resulting bondline reconstructions had approximately 1.5 μm voxel dimensions, and were segmented into wood and adhesive material phases with simple gray-scale image histogram threshold operations. Elemental analyses and fluorescence microscopy were used to confirm iodine tags remained associated with adhesive polymers in the liquid resins, and throughout the bonding process. Both iodine concentration and cured adhesive density were demonstrated to significantly impact x-ray attenuation behavior. Furthermore, XCT acquisition parameters were compared and optimized for the highest absorption contrast in these wood-bondline specimens. However, phase-contrast edge enhancement artifacts were also discussed, and the use of a quantitative phase retrieval reconstruction method was demonstrated with one wood-bondline specimen. Volumetric penetration behavior was quantified and compared between six XCT replicates from nine different adhesive/species treatment combinations, using two different calculations. Results showed penetration variability between different treatment combinations, between individual replicates within a particular treatment, along the length of a single specimen, and from one side of the bondline to the other. Penetration behavior appears to be correlated with adhesive viscosity, but is also strongly dependent on the wood anatomy in the vicinity of the bondline. Cell wall penetration behavior was also observed around adhesive-filled lumens for some of the treatment types; though, distinguishing between the pure material signals inside the wood cell walls was below the resolution limits in this study. XCT penetration results showed good agreement with results from fluorescence micrographs of specimens excised from the same laminates. However, the 3D adhesive-phase sub-volumes provided novel views of the cured adhesive networks and morphology, previously indistinguishable with conventional 2D surface microscopy techniques. Undamaged XCT specimens, 3D penetration results, and digital, segmented bondline data from this work are being used in a broader, ongoing project to develop a micro-mechanics numerical model to assess wood-bondline joint performance, while quantitatively accounting for the role of adhesive penetration.Keywords: bondline, contrast, attenuation, non-destructive, elemental analysis, wood-adhesives, X-ray computed tomography, penetratio

Aeronautical Engineering. A continuing bibliography with indexes, supplement 156

This bibliography lists 288 reports, articles and other documents introduced into the NASA scientific and technical information system in December 1982

Excellentia Eminentia Effectio

"In these pages you will learn about the fascinating research endeavors that each of our faculty members is undertaking. We have divided their research into the broad categories of health, sustainability, information, and systems. While we recognize the imperfect nature of categorizing research that, by its very nature may be interdisciplinary or transdisciplinary, we nonetheless believe it will be helpful as a way to see the depth and breadth of our research endeavors within each grouping. As you read the profiles on these pages, I know you will begin to appreciate that, taken as a whole, the research spectrum at Columbia Engineering is exceptional and that, as our professors go about their work, they are at the cusp of making breakthroughs that will have a major impact on the way we live our lives today and tomorrow.