Mesh Represented Recycle Learning for 3D Hand Pose and Mesh Estimation

In general, hand pose estimation aims to improve the robustness of model performance in the real-world scenes. However, it is difficult to enhance the robustness since existing datasets are obtained in restricted environments to annotate 3D information. Although neural networks quantitatively achieve a high estimation accuracy, unsatisfied results can be observed in visual quality. This discrepancy between quantitative results and their visual qualities remains an open issue in the hand pose representation. To this end, we propose a mesh represented recycle learning strategy for 3D hand pose and mesh estimation which reinforces synthesized hand mesh representation in a training phase. To be specific, a hand pose and mesh estimation model first predicts parametric 3D hand annotations (i.e., 3D keypoint positions and vertices for hand mesh) with real-world hand images in the training phase. Second, synthetic hand images are generated with self-estimated hand mesh representations. After that, the synthetic hand images are fed into the same model again. Thus, the proposed learning strategy simultaneously improves quantitative results and visual qualities by reinforcing synthetic mesh representation. To encourage consistency between original model output and its recycled one, we propose self-correlation loss which maximizes the accuracy and reliability of our learning strategy. Consequently, the model effectively conducts self-refinement on hand pose estimation by learning mesh representation from its own output. To demonstrate the effectiveness of our learning strategy, we provide extensive experiments on FreiHAND dataset. Notably, our learning strategy improves the performance on hand pose and mesh estimation without any extra computational burden during the inference

Hybrid model for Single-Stage Multi-Person Pose Estimation

In general, human pose estimation methods are categorized into two approaches according to their architectures: regression (i.e., heatmap-free) and heatmap-based methods. The former one directly estimates precise coordinates of each keypoint using convolutional and fully-connected layers. Although this approach is able to detect overlapped and dense keypoints, unexpected results can be obtained by non-existent keypoints in a scene. On the other hand, the latter one is able to filter the non-existent ones out by utilizing predicted heatmaps for each keypoint. Nevertheless, it suffers from quantization error when obtaining the keypoint coordinates from its heatmaps. In addition, unlike the regression one, it is difficult to distinguish densely placed keypoints in an image. To this end, we propose a hybrid model for single-stage multi-person pose estimation, named HybridPose, which mutually overcomes each drawback of both approaches by maximizing their strengths. Furthermore, we introduce self-correlation loss to inject spatial dependencies between keypoint coordinates and their visibility. Therefore, HybridPose is capable of not only detecting densely placed keypoints, but also filtering the non-existent keypoints in an image. Experimental results demonstrate that proposed HybridPose exhibits the keypoints visibility without performance degradation in terms of the pose estimation accuracy

Special IR properties of palladium nanoparticles and their aggregations in CO molecular probe infrared spectroscopy

Dispersed Pd nanoparticles (Pd-n) have been synthesized by reducing H2PdCl4 with ethanol, and stabilized using poly(vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP). The Pd-n is applied to the glassy carbon substrate to form a thin film, and then the potential cyclic scanning at 50 mV. s(-1) from -0.25 to 1.25 V was carried out for about 30 min to form the aggregations of Pd-n (Pd-n(ag)). FTIR spectroscopy of both transmission and reflection modes was employed to study CO adsorption on Pd-n and Pd-n(ag) in both solid\liquid and solid\gas; interfaces. It has been revealed that CO adsorption on Pd-n film yields two IR bands near 1964 and 1906 cm(-1), which are assigned to IR absorption of CO bonded on asymmetric and symmetric bridge sites, respectively. In contrast to the IR properties of CO adsorbed on Pd-n, only species of CO bonded on asymmetric bridge sites was determined on Pd-n(ag), and the direction of the IR band near 1963 cm(-1) is completely inverted. The full width at half-maximum (FWHM) of the COBas band near 1964 cm(-1) is measured to be 14 cm(-1) on Pd-n film, while it is 24 cm(-1) on Pd-n(ag) film. The results of the present study demonstrated that the inverting of the IR band direction is a general phenomenon that is closely related to the interaction between nanoparticles in aggregation of Pd-n

Structure and reactivity of different ZnO and Cu/ZnO surfaces studied by HREELS

Der oberflächenwissenschaftliche Ansatz zur heterogenen Katalyse beruht auf Untersuchungen an wohldefinierten Modellkatalysatoren. Diese Modellsysteme ermöglichen es, spezifische Probleme auf atomarer Ebene zu betrachten, die sich kaum durch Untersuchungen an Pulverproben lösen lassen. In dieser Arbeit wurde mithilfe der hochauflösenden Elektronenenergieverlustspektroskopie (HREELS) und der thermischen Desorptionsspektroskopie die Adsorption verschiedener Moleküle auf polaren und unpolaren ZnO-Oberflächen untersucht. Die Anwendung der HREELS-Methode an Oxidoberflächen stellt wegen experimentellen Schwierigkeiten eine große Herausforderung dar. Hier präsentieren wir hochwertige HREELS-Daten, die einen detaillierten Einblick in die mikroskopischen Reaktionsmechanismen auf verschiedenen ZnO-Oberflächen liefern können. Darüber hinaus ist diese Methode erfolgreich zu Untersuchungen an weitaus komplexeren Systemen (ZnO mit Oberflächendefekten und Kupferpartikeln auf ZnO) eingesetzt worden

Reduced Numbers of Nerve Fibers in the Oviduct Ampulla of Women with Tubal Ectopic Pregnancy

Background: The oviduct plays a major role in fertility by facilitating the movement of gametes to promote fertilization and passage of the embryo for implantation. In the present study, we compared the distribution of nerve fibers in the ampulla of the oviduct tube in patients who presented with and without ectopic pregnancy (EP). Our aim was to acquire a better understanding of the pathologies underlying EP. Methods: We recruited 25 patients with EP (representing group A) and 25 patients who underwent hysterectomy for benign gynecological diseases (representing group B). None of the recruited women had a previous history of induced abortion. We acquired the oviduct ampulla from each patient in the two groups and used immunohistochemistry to detect S100 and protein gene product 9.5 (PGP9.5) and reveal abnormal distributions of nerve fibers within the fallopian tubes. Results: There was no statistical difference between the two groups in terms of the proportion of S100- and PGP9.5-immunoreactive nerve fibers in the mucosal, muscular and serosal layers of the oviduct ampulla. However, the proportions of S100- and PGP9.5-immunoreactive nerve fibers were reduced in the mucosal, muscular and serosal layers of the oviduct ampulla in women with EP when compared to women without EP. Conclusions: The reduced density of nerve fibers in the endometrial and muscular layer of the ampulla of the fallopian tube, as detected by PGP9.5 and S100, may play a significant role in the pathologies underlying ectopic pregnancy

Side-Chain Liquid Crystal Co-Polymers for Angular Photochromic Anti-Counterfeiting Powder and Fiber

Anti-counterfeiting technologies with the features of easy distinguishability, high cost performance, and good processability are needed to meet the demands of a market during the consumption upgrading moment. A series of side-chain liquid crystal co-polymers (SCLCPs) are designed, synthesized, and blended, and the preparation of a series of angular photochromic materials that have different center reflection wavelengths in the visible and near infra-red region is reported in this article. Differential scanning calorimetry and polarized optical microscopy were utilized to characterize the phase transition behaviors and self-assembling structures of the SCLCPs. The selective reflection properties were characterized with a UV/VIS/IR spectrum study and further verified by scanning electron microscopy. The results showed that the SCLCPs had the desired reflection wavelengths and thermal stability. The SCLCPs could easily form a planar texture of cholesteric liquid crystal and, depending on the good processability, anti-counterfeiting powders and fibers with angular photochromic features were prepared and characterized to prove the potential applications of the SCLCPs in anti-counterfeiting labels