EMIFF: Enhanced Multi-scale Image Feature Fusion for Vehicle-Infrastructure Cooperative 3D Object Detection

In autonomous driving, cooperative perception makes use of multi-view cameras from both vehicles and infrastructure, providing a global vantage point with rich semantic context of road conditions beyond a single vehicle viewpoint. Currently, two major challenges persist in vehicle-infrastructure cooperative 3D (VIC3D) object detection: $1)$ inherent pose errors when fusing multi-view images, caused by time asynchrony across cameras; $2)$ information loss in transmission process resulted from limited communication bandwidth. To address these issues, we propose a novel camera-based 3D detection framework for VIC3D task, Enhanced Multi-scale Image Feature Fusion (EMIFF). To fully exploit holistic perspectives from both vehicles and infrastructure, we propose Multi-scale Cross Attention (MCA) and Camera-aware Channel Masking (CCM) modules to enhance infrastructure and vehicle features at scale, spatial, and channel levels to correct the pose error introduced by camera asynchrony. We also introduce a Feature Compression (FC) module with channel and spatial compression blocks for transmission efficiency. Experiments show that EMIFF achieves SOTA on DAIR-V2X-C datasets, significantly outperforming previous early-fusion and late-fusion methods with comparable transmission costs.Comment: 7 pages, 8 figures. Accepted by ICRA 2024. arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:arXiv:2303.1097

The accuracy of echocardiography versus surgical and pathological classification of patients with ruptured mitral chordae tendineae: a large study in a Chinese cardiovascular center

BACKGROUND: The accuracy of echocardiography versus surgical and pathological classification of patients with ruptured mitral chordae tendineae (RMCT) has not yet been investigated with a large study. METHODS: Clinical, hemodynamic, surgical, and pathological findings were reviewed for 242 patients with a preoperative diagnosis of RMCT that required mitral valvular surgery. Subjects were consecutive in-patients at Fuwai Hospital in 2002-2008. Patients were evaluated by thoracic echocardiography (TTE) and transesophageal echocardiography (TEE). RMCT cases were classified by location as anterior or posterior, and classified by degree as partial or complete RMCT, according to surgical findings. RMCT cases were also classified by pathology into four groups: myxomatous degeneration, chronic rheumatic valvulitis (CRV), infective endocarditis and others. RESULTS: Echocardiography showed that most patients had a flail mitral valve, moderate to severe mitral regurgitation, a dilated heart chamber, mild to moderate pulmonary artery hypertension and good heart function. The diagnostic accuracy for RMCT was 96.7% for TTE and 100% for TEE compared with surgical findings. Preliminary experiments demonstrated that the sensitivity and specificity of diagnosing anterior, posterior and partial RMCT were high, but the sensitivity of diagnosing complete RMCT was low. Surgical procedures for RMCT depended on the location of ruptured chordae tendineae, with no relationship between surgical procedure and complete or partial RMCT. The echocardiographic characteristics of RMCT included valvular thickening, extended subvalvular chordae, echo enhancement, abnormal echo or vegetation, combined with aortic valve damage in the four groups classified by pathology. The incidence of extended subvalvular chordae in the myxomatous group was higher than that in the other groups, and valve thickening in combination with AV damage in the CRV group was higher than that in the other groups. Infective endocarditis patients were younger than those in the other groups. Furthermore, compared other groups, the CRV group had a larger left atrium, higher aortic velocity, and a higher pulmonary arterial systolic pressure. CONCLUSIONS: Echocardiography is a reliable method for diagnosing RMCT and is useful for classification. Echocardiography can be used to guide surgical procedures and for preliminary determination of RMCT pathological types

Crowdsourcing in China: Exploring the Work Experience of Solo Crowdworkers and Crowdfarm Workers

Recent research highlights the potential of crowdsourcing in China. Yet very few studies explore the workplace context and experiences of Chinese crowdworkers. Those that do, focus mainly on the work experiences of solo crowdworkers but do not deal with issues pertaining to the substantial amount of people working in ‘crowdfarms’. This article addresses this gap as one of its primary concerns. Drawing on a study that involves 48 participants, our research explores, compares and contrasts the work experiences of solo crowdworkers to those of crowdfarm workers. Our findings illustrate that the work experiences and context of the solo workers and crowdfarm workers are substantially different, with regards to their motivations, the ways they engage with crowdsourcing, the tasks they work on, and the crowdsourcing platforms they utilize. Overall, our study contributes to furthering the understandings on the work experiences of crowdworkers in China

Research on Mathematic Relationship of Discrete Reliability Parameters

In the aerospace system, there are many reliability parameters to describe the reliability characteristics of products, but most of them are based on continuous reliability parameters in continuous time, and there are fewer descriptions of discrete reliability parameters that are defined as reliability parameters in discrete time, such as discrete failure probability. In order to make up for the shortcomings of reliability theory in this aspect, the mathematic relationship of discrete reliability parameters are studied from the perspective of discrete time, including the mathematical conversion formula of discrete failure probability and discrete failure rate, the mathematical of calculating discrete reliability by discrete failure rate, and the mathematical conversion formula of mean work times to failures and discrete failure probability. These works can provide the mathematical theory basis for the conversion calculation of reliability parameters and indicators

Associated-Extraction Efficiency of Six Cyclodextrins on Various Flavonoids in Puerariae Lobatae Radix

Puerariae Lobatae Radix (PLR), a well-known herbal medicine, is the root of Pueraria lobata (Willd.) Ohwi and has been employed for the treatment and prevention of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. The purpose of this study was to compare the associated-extraction efficiency of six cyclodextrins (CDs) on five flavonoids in PLR, namely puerarin, daidzein, daidzin, genistein and genistin, which are the major secondary metabolites, and exhibit low water solubility. The six CDs applied were β-cyclodextrin (β-CD), γ-cyclodextrin (γ-CD), hydroxypropyl-β-cyclodextrin (HP-β-CD), hydroxypropyl-γ-cyclodextrin (HP-γ-CD), carboxymethyl-β-cyclodextrin (CM-β-CD), and sulfobutyl ether β-cyclodextrin (SBE-β-CD). They can be grouped into one of the following three categories: traditional cyclodextrins (β-CD and γ-CD), water-soluble cyclodextrin derivatives (HP-β-CD and HP-γ-CD) and ionic cyclodextrin derivatives (SBE-β-CD and CM-β-CD). High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) was used to analyze the five flavonoids in the original aqueous extracts (OAE) in the presence or absence of various CDs. The associated-extraction efficiency of the various CDs followed the ranking: SBE-β-CD > HP-β-CD > CM-β-CD > HP-γ-CD > γ-CD > β-CD. It was clear that SBE-β-CD presented the highest associated-extraction capability, and it was used to extract the four flavonoids from three PLR products, including raw product, stir- fried product, and product simmered with wheat bran. The results showed that SBE-β-CD could improve the extraction capability of flavonoids, both from the raw product and in processed products of PLR. In conclusion, CDs, especially SBE-β-CD, have a promising application for the associated-extraction of flavonoids from PLR

Simulating Study on Mechanical Properties of Rock Wool Board for Thermal Insulation on External Walls

Rock wool board (RWB) is widely used in construction of exterior insulation worldwide. Fiber diameter, solid volume fraction (SVF), and contact degree among the fibers significantly influence the RWB physical properties. Herein, the effects of these factors on the mechanical properties of RWB were investigated using the GeoDict software. First, the fiberization process resulted in a finer fiber diameter, and the SVF of RWB increased with decreasing pore sizes. In addition, both the fiber diameter and SVF significantly influenced the RWB shear strength. Furthermore, in compliance with the Chinese standards of compression, tensile, and shear strength, the SVF of RWB with a 10.5 μm fiber diameter did not exceed 4.72%, 4.04%, and 5.4%, respectively. The novel method proposed herein can be used for optimizing the RWB manufacturing process

Calculation of Electric Field on Substation Equipment considering AC Ion Flow Field

With the increase of voltage levels in substation corona discharge on the surface of high voltage conductors and equipment in substations becoming more and more severe, the influence on the electromagnetic environment around substations is becoming more and more obvious. In order to study the influence of corona discharge on the ground electric field under substation equipment in AC substations, this paper proposes an improved method based on Abdel-Salam’s calculation of the ion flow field on AC power lines. By redefining the criterion of corona onset and the amount of emission charge and combining with the migration, motion, and recombination of the space charge, a new model which can be applied to the calculation of AC ion flow field electric field of multiphase bundle conductors in substations is established. The calculation results of the ground power frequency electric field of the conductor at the typical tower in the light, medium, and heavy ice regions of 750 kV typical AC transmission project show that the ground electric field gradually decreases with the increase of conductor height. At the same conductor height, the ground electric field strength in the heavy ice region is the largest, while under the conductor in a light ice region, it is the smallest, and the minimum allowable conductor-to-ground distance can be concluded that the national standard limit value is not exceeded when the conductor-to-ground distance in light ice region is 24.5 m, the conductor-to-ground distance in medium ice region is 25.5 m, and the conductor-to-ground distance in heavy ice region is 26 m

The accuracy of echocardiography versus surgical and pathological classification of patients with ruptured mitral chordae tendineae: a large study in a Chinese cardiovascular center

Abstract Background The accuracy of echocardiography versus surgical and pathological classification of patients with ruptured mitral chordae tendineae (RMCT) has not yet been investigated with a large study. Methods Clinical, hemodynamic, surgical, and pathological findings were reviewed for 242 patients with a preoperative diagnosis of RMCT that required mitral valvular surgery. Subjects were consecutive in-patients at Fuwai Hospital in 2002-2008. Patients were evaluated by thoracic echocardiography (TTE) and transesophageal echocardiography (TEE). RMCT cases were classified by location as anterior or posterior, and classified by degree as partial or complete RMCT, according to surgical findings. RMCT cases were also classified by pathology into four groups: myxomatous degeneration, chronic rheumatic valvulitis (CRV), infective endocarditis and others. Results Echocardiography showed that most patients had a flail mitral valve, moderate to severe mitral regurgitation, a dilated heart chamber, mild to moderate pulmonary artery hypertension and good heart function. The diagnostic accuracy for RMCT was 96.7% for TTE and 100% for TEE compared with surgical findings. Preliminary experiments demonstrated that the sensitivity and specificity of diagnosing anterior, posterior and partial RMCT were high, but the sensitivity of diagnosing complete RMCT was low. Surgical procedures for RMCT depended on the location of ruptured chordae tendineae, with no relationship between surgical procedure and complete or partial RMCT. The echocardiographic characteristics of RMCT included valvular thickening, extended subvalvular chordae, echo enhancement, abnormal echo or vegetation, combined with aortic valve damage in the four groups classified by pathology. The incidence of extended subvalvular chordae in the myxomatous group was higher than that in the other groups, and valve thickening in combination with AV damage in the CRV group was higher than that in the other groups. Infective endocarditis patients were younger than those in the other groups. Furthermore, compared other groups, the CRV group had a larger left atrium, higher aortic velocity, and a higher pulmonary arterial systolic pressure. Conclusions Echocardiography is a reliable method for diagnosing RMCT and is useful for classification. Echocardiography can be used to guide surgical procedures and for preliminary determination of RMCT pathological types.</p

COX-2/sEH Dual Inhibitor PTUPB Alleviates CCl 4 -Induced Liver Fibrosis and Portal Hypertension.

Background: 4-(5-phenyl-3-{3-[3-(4-trifluoromethylphenyl)-ureido]-propyl}-pyrazol-1-yl) -benzenesulfonamide (PTUPB), a dual cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2)/soluble epoxide hydrolase (sEH) inhibitor, was found to alleviate renal, pulmonary fibrosis and liver injury. However, few is known about the effect of PTUPB on liver cirrhosis. In this study, we aimed to explore the role of PTUPB in liver cirrhosis and portal hypertension (PHT). Method: Rat liver cirrhosis model was established via subcutaneous injection of carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) for 16 weeks. The experimental group received oral administration of PTUPB (10 mg/kg) for 4 weeks. We subsequently analyzed portal pressure (PP), liver fibrosis, inflammation, angiogenesis, and intra- or extrahepatic vascular remodeling. Additionally, network pharmacology was used to investigate the possible mechanisms of PTUPB in live fibrosis. Results: CCl4 exposure induced liver fibrosis, inflammation, angiogenesis, vascular remodeling and PHT, and PTUPB alleviated these changes. PTUPB decreased PP from 17.50 ± 4.65 to 6.37 ± 1.40 mmHg, reduced collagen deposition and profibrotic factor. PTUPB alleviated the inflammation and bile duct proliferation, as indicated by decrease in serum interleukin-6 (IL-6), liver cytokeratin 19 (CK-19), transaminase, and macrophage infiltration. PTUPB also restored vessel wall thickness of superior mesenteric arteries (SMA) and inhibited intra- or extrahepatic angiogenesis and vascular remodeling via vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), von Willebrand factor (vWF), etc. Moreover, PTUPB induced sinusoidal vasodilation by upregulating endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) and GTP-cyclohydrolase 1 (GCH1). In enrichment analysis, PTUPB engaged in multiple biological functions related to cirrhosis, including blood pressure, tissue remodeling, immunological inflammation, macrophage activation, and fibroblast proliferation. Additionally, PTUPB suppressed hepatic expression of sEH, COX-2, and transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β). Conclusion: 4-(5-phenyl-3-{3-[3-(4-trifluoromethylphenyl)-ureido]-propyl}-pyrazol-1-yl)- benzenesulfonamide ameliorated liver fibrosis and PHT by inhibiting fibrotic deposition, inflammation, angiogenesis, sinusoidal, and SMA remodeling. The molecular mechanism may be mediated via the downregulation of the sEH/COX-2/TGF-β