The 3-D world modeling with updating capability based on combinatorial geometry

A 3-D world modeling technique using range data is discribed. Range data quantify the distances from the sensor focal plane to the object surface, i.e., the 3-D coordinates of discrete points on the object surface are known. The approach proposed herein for 3-D world modeling is based on the Combinatorial Geometry (CG) method which is widely used in Monte Carlo particle transport calculations. First, each measured point on the object surface is surrounded by a small sphere with a radius determined by the range to that point. Then, the 3-D shapes of the visible surfaces are obtained by taking the (Boolean) union of all the spheres. The result is an unambiguous representation of the object's boundary surfaces. The pre-learned partial knowledge of the environment can be also represented using the CG Method with a relatively small amount of data. Using the CG type of representation, distances in desired directions to boundary surfaces of various objects are efficiently calculated. This feature is particularly useful for continuously verifying the world model against the data provided by a range finder, and for integrating range data from successive locations of the robot during motion. The efficiency of the proposed approach is illustrated by simulations of a spherical robot in a 3-D room in the presence of moving obstacles and inadequate prelearned partial knowledge of the environment

Military objectives in cyber warfare

This Chapter discusses the possible problems arising from the application of the principle of distinction under the law of armed conflict to cyber attacks. It first identifies when cyber attacks qualify as ‘attacks’ under the law of armed conflict and then examines the two elements of the definition of ‘military objective’ contained in Article 52(2) of the 1977 Protocol I additional to the 1949 Geneva Conventions on the Protection of Victims of War. The Chapter concludes that this definition is flexible enough to apply in the cyber context without significant problems and that none of the challenges that characterize cyber attacks hinders the application of the principle of distinction

A CALCULATION OF THE GAMMA-RAY SPECTRUM OF THE BULK SHIELDING REACTOR

A calculation was performed to determine the highenergy portion of the gamma-ray flux at the surfacc of the uranium-aluminum BSF reactor. The flux was considered to consist entirely of the uncollided flux plus the Comptonscattered flux. The four sources of primary gamma rays included in the calculation were prompt fission gamma rays, capture gamma rays from aluminum, capture gamma rays from uranium, and fission-product decay gamma rays. These sources were divided into four energy groups. Although the assumptions used to calculate the Comptonscattered flux tended to over-estimate the actual spectrum, the calculated results were considerably lower than a previously measured spectrum. (auth

R-matrix analysis of the /sup 239/Pu neutron cross sections

/sup 239/Pu neutron cross-section data in the resolved resonance region were analyzed with the R-Matrix Bayesian Program SAMMY. Below 30 eV the cross sections computed with the multilevel parameters are consistent with recent fission and transmission measurements as well as with older capture and alpha measurements. Above 30 eV no suitable transmission data were available and only fission cross-section measurements were analyzed. However, since the analysis conserves the complete covariance matrix, the analysis can be updated by the Bayes method as transmission measurements become available. To date, the analysis of the fission measurements has been completed up to 300 eV. 14 refs

CARDIOGRAMA: a stochastic, semi-empirical methodology for power-reactor surveillance and diagnostics

The utilization of stochastic methods (reactor noise) for power reactor diagnostics and surveillance applications is by now a relatively well-established technique. In this technique, the power spectral density (PSD) of the fluctuations of a specified state variable is often used to define the reactor's signature at a given configuration. The purpose of the present work is to address the problem of handling efficiently the substantial amount of information involved in the application of reactor surveillance and diagnostics methods. Specifically, a methodology is described for: (a) representing the PSDs parametrically, and (b) detecting changes from the reactor's baseline PSD (normal signature)

UC (Series). 34, Physics

Report issued by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory discussing techniques to obtain measurements of alpha for enriched uranium. Descriptions of equipment and experiments used to obtain alpha are presented. This report includes tables, and illustrations