Corridor Navigation for Monocular Vision Mobile Robots

Monocular vision robots use a single camera to process information about its environment. By analyzing this scene, the robot can determine the best navigation direction. Many modern approaches to robot hallway navigation involve using a plethora of sensors to detect certain features in the environment. This can be laser range finders, inertial measurement units, motor encoders, and cameras. By combining all these sensors, there is unused data which could be useful for navigation. To draw back and develop a baseline approach, this thesis explores the reliability and capability of solely using a camera for navigation. The basic navigation structure begins by taking frames from the camera and breaking them down to find the most prominent lines. The location where these lines intersect determine the forward direction to drive the robot. To improve the accuracy of navigation, algorithm improvements and additional features from the camera frames are used. This includes line intersection weighting to reduce noise from extraneous lines, floor segmentation to improve rotational stability, and person detection

Roborodentia 2016 - Autonomous Omnidirectional Ring Moving Robot

Our team created an autonomous omnidirectional driving robot that was capable of small micro adjustments to accurately follow the black guide line using four motors. This omnidirectional robot used a linear potentiometer to raise and lower the grabbing mechanism. The grabbing mechanism was a claw with 3D printed extensions which increased the amount of rings that could be picked up in a single motion. We expect this methodology of quick driving and streamlined movements would be a deciding factor in scoring points for our team

Retardation of cochlear maturation and impaired hair cell function caused by deletion of all known thyroid hormone receptors

The deafness caused by early onset hypothyroidism indicates that thyroid hormone is essential for the development of hearing. We investigated the underlying roles of the TRa1 and TRß thyroid hormone receptors in the auditory system using receptor-deficient mice. TRa1 and TRß, which act as hormone-activated transcription factors, are encoded by the Thra and Thrb genes, respectively, and both are expressed in the developing cochlea. TRß is required for hearing because TRß-deficient (Thrb tm1/tm1) mice have a defective auditory-evoked brainstem response and retarded expression of a potassium current (I K,f) in the cochlear inner hair cells. Here, we show that although TRa1 is individually dispensable, TRa1 and TRß synergistically control an extended array of functions in postnatal cochlear development. Compared with Thrb tm1/tm1 mice, the deletion of all TRs inThra tm1/tm1 Thrb tm1/tm1mice produces exacerbated and novel phenotypes, including delayed differentiation of the sensory epithelium, malformation of the tectorial membrane, impairment of electromechanical transduction in outer hair cells, and a low endocochlear potential. The induction ofI K,f in inner hair cells was not markedly more retarded than in Thrb tm1/tm1mice, suggesting that this feature of hair cell maturation is primarily TRß-dependent. These results indicate that distinct pathways mediated by TRß alone or by TRß and TRa1 together facilitate control over an extended range of functions during the maturation of the cochlea

The Creation and Validation of a Compromising Scale for Nurses

For reasons such as job context and different interactions, compromising as performed by nurses is likely fundamentally different than compromising performed by other occupations. The following study proposes the creation and validation of a compromising scale for nurses. The first study aims to create the compromising scale for nurses through contemporary methods then test the reliability as well as the factor structure using an exploratory factor analysis on currently employed nurses recruited through a Qualtrics panel study. The second study then takes the final compromising scale for nurses and conducts a confirmatory factor analysis among a sample of employed nurses participating in a mindfulness intervention to verify the previously discovered factor structure. This study provides a unique approach to conflict resolution instruments and discusses the implications this may have

Variability of Driving Performance During Microsleeps

This study aimed to evaluate the value of measuring microsleeps as anindicator of driving performance impairment in drowsy drivers with sleepdisorders. Drivers with sleep disorders such as obstructive sleep apnea/hypopenasyndrome (OSAHS) are at increased risk for driving performance errors due tomicrosleep episodes, which presage sleep onset. To meet this aim, we tested thehypothesis that OSAHS drivers show impaired control over vehicle steering, laneposition and velocity during microsleep episodes compared to when they aredriving without microsleeps on similar road segments. A microsleep is defined asa 3-14 sec episode during which 4-7 Hz (theta) activity replaces the waking 8-13Hz (alpha) background rhythm. Microsleep episodes were identified in theelectroencephalography (EEG) record by a neurologist certified by the AmericanBoard of Sleep Medicine. Twenty-four drivers with OSAHS were tested usingsimulated driving scenarios. Steering variability, lane position variability,acceleration and velocity measures were assessed in the periods during amicrosleep, immediately preceding (pre) microsleep, and immediately following(post) microsleep. In line with our introductory hypothesis, drivers with OSAHSdid show significantly greater variation in steering and lane position during themicrosleep episodes compared to the periods pre and post microsleep. The resultsindicate that identification of microsleep episodes can provide a marker fordeclining vehicle control of drivers with OSAHS