Genesis Reentry Observations and Data Analysis

The Genesis spacecraft reentry represented a unique opportunity to observe a "calibrated meteor" from northern Nevada. Knowing its speed, mass, composition, and precise trajectory made it a good subject to test some of the algorithms used to determine meteoroid mass from observed brightness. It was also a good test of an inexpensive set of cameras that could be deployed to observe future shuttle reentries. The utility of consumer-grade video cameras was evident during the STS-107 accident investigation, and the Genesis reentry gave us the opportunity to specify and test commercially available cameras that could be used during future reentries. This Technical Memorandum describes the video observations and their analysis, compares the results with a simple photometric model, describes the forward scatter radar experiment, and lists lessons learned from the expedition and implications for the Stardust reentry in January 2006 as well as future shuttle reentries

A Study of Colour Rendering in the In-Camera Imaging Pipeline

Consumer cameras such as digital single-lens reflex camera (DSLR) and smartphone cameras have onboard hardware that applies a series of processing steps to transform the initial captured raw sensor image to the final output image that is provided to the user. These processing steps collectively make up the in-camera image processing pipeline. This dissertation aims to study the processing steps related to colour rendering which can be categorized into two stages. The first stage is to convert an image's sensor-specific raw colour space to a device-independent perceptual colour space. The second stage is to further process the image into a display-referred colour space and includes photo-finishing routines to make the image appear visually pleasing to a human. This dissertation makes four contributions towards the study of camera colour rendering. The first contribution is the development of a software-based research platform that closely emulates the in-camera image processing pipeline hardware. This platform allows the examination of the various image states of the captured image as it is processed from the sensor response to the final display output. Our second contribution is to demonstrate the advantage of having access to intermediate image states within the in-camera pipeline that provide more accurate colourimetric consistency among multiple cameras. Our third contribution is to analyze the current colourimetric method used by consumer cameras and to propose a modification that is able to improve its colour accuracy. Our fourth contribution is to describe how to customize a camera imaging pipeline using machine vision cameras to produce high-quality perceptual images for dermatological applications. The dissertation concludes with a summary and future directions

Potential use of drone ultra-high-definition videos for detailed 3D city modeling

Ongoing developments in video resolution either using consumer-grade or professional cameras has opened opportunities for different applications such as in sports events broadcasting and digital cinematography. In the field of geoinformation science and photogrammetry, image-based 3D city modeling is expected to benefit from this technology development. Highly detailed 3D point clouds with low noise are expected to be produced when using ultra high definition UHD videos (e.g., 4K, 8K). Furthermore, a greater benefit is expected when the UHD videos are captured from the air by consumer-grade or professional drones. To the best of our knowledge, no studies have been published to quantify the expected outputs when using UHD cameras in terms of 3D modeling and point cloud density. In this paper, a quantification is shown about the expected point clouds and orthophotos qualities when using UHD videos from consumer-grade drones and a review of which applications they can be applied in. The results show that an improvement in 3D models of ≅65% relative accuracy and ≅90% in point density can be attained when using 8K video frames compared with HD video frames which will open a wide range of applications and business cases in the near future

Viewing the Future? Virtual Reality In Journalism

Journalism underwent a flurry of virtual reality content creation, production and distribution starting in the final months of 2015. The New York Times distributed more than 1 million cardboard virtual reality viewers and released an app showing a spherical video short about displaced refugees. The Los Angeles Times landed people next to a crater on Mars. USA TODAY took visitors on a ride-along in the "Back to the Future" car on the Universal Studios lot and on a spin through Old Havana in a bright pink '57 Ford. ABC News went to North Korea for a spherical view of a military parade and to Syria to see artifacts threatened by war. The Emblematic Group, a company that creates virtual reality content, followed a woman navigating a gauntlet of anti- abortion demonstrators at a family planning clinic and allowed people to witness a murder-suicide stemming from domestic violence.In short, the period from October 2015 through February 2016 was one of significant experimentation with virtual reality (VR) storytelling. These efforts are part of an initial foray into determining whether VR is a feasible way to present news. The year 2016 is shaping up as a period of further testing and careful monitoring of potential growth in the use of virtual reality among consumers

Weathering the Nest: Privacy Implications of Home Monitoring for the Aging American Population

The research in this paper will seek to ascertain the extent of personal data entry and collection required to enjoy at least the minimal promised benefits of distributed intelligence and monitoring in the home. Particular attention will be given to the abilities and sensitivities of the population most likely to need these devices, notably the elderly and disabled. The paper will then evaluate whether existing legal limitations on the collection, maintenance, and use of such data are applicable to devices currently in use in the home environment and whether such regulations effectively protect privacy. Finally, given appropriate policy parameters, the paper will offer proposals to effectuate reasonable and practical privacy-protective solutions for developers and consumers

Use of consumer-grade cameras to assess wheat N status and grain yield

Relationships between (a) fractional Intercepted PAR (fIPAR), and (b) aboveground biomass (Biomass) and (c) grain yield at harvest with the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) derived either from a spectroradiometer or a conventional camera at final grain filling (n = 12).Postprint (published version