Multi-resolution dental image registration based on genetic algorithm

The Automated Dental Identification System (ADIS) is a Post Mortem Dental Identification System. This thesis presents dental image registration, required for the preprocessing steps of the image comparison component of ADIS. We proposed a multi resolution dental image registration based on genetic algorithms. The main objective of this research is to develop techniques for registration of extracted subject regions of interest with corresponding reference regions of interest.;We investigated and implemented registration using two multi resolution techniques namely image sub sampling and wavelet decomposition. Multi resolution techniques help in the reduction of search data since initial registration is carried at lower levels and results are updated as the levels of resolutions increase. We adopted edges as image features that needed to be aligned. Affine transformations were selected to transform the subject dental region of interest to achieve better alignment with the reference region of interest. These transformations are known to capture complex image distortions. The similarity between subject and reference image has been computed using Oriented Hausdorff Similarity measure that is robust to severe noise and image degradations. A genetic algorithm was adopted to search for the best transformation parameters that give maximum similarity score.;Testing results show that the developed registration algorithm yielded reasonable results in accuracy for dental test cases that contained slight misalignments. The relative percentage errors between the known and estimated transformation parameters were less than 20% with a termination criterion of a ten minute time limit. Further research is needed for dental cases that contain high degree of misalignment, noise and distortions

Cluster Analysis Using Geographic Data

Many businesses suffer from losses after establishing their business due to a lack of proper research before deciding on a new establishment location. The method proposed in this paper can land on the best possible location for a new establishment by web scraping a target list of Grand Rapids neighbourhoods using beautifulsoup library, and passing this list to geocoder library, to retrieve a list of geographical coordinates. API calls are made to Foursquare API with each coordinate as parameter which returns a JSON output consisting all the venues around. After various stages of pre-processing such as data cleaning, normalization and feature engineering this data is fed to a clustering algorithm such as K-means clustering; an unsupervised learning technique which strives to choose its centroids to minimize the inertia in the given data. The number of centroids in K-means clustering is determined by utilizing the two methods namely, Silhouette and Elbow method. The best location is determined by scrutinizing the frequency of coffee shops, hence, the competition/demand of coffee shops in the area and suggest the best possible spot for a new coffee shop. Grand Rapids is chosen as the location for this project. Of course, just like any other business decision, opening a new coffee shop requires various other factors to be considered, such as the audience in that area or any schools around. Nevertheless, determining a location for the new establishment is the primary step that any individual would think of

Automated Testing of Wireless Link Standards

With the increase of the wireless market, there is a trend to equip a hand held wireless device with all the features of a desktop. The wireless devices are becoming more and more integrated into our everyday lives. As these devices become less of a technology toy, and more of a necessity, we will find that our dependence on the correct operation and non-interference of the device rises to the level that errors or defects will not be tolerated readily.This means that the devices we will use in the future will not malfunction at all, which is not practical in engineering, or that the wireless devices developed will have to be extensively and rigorously tested. These tests have to follow a standard based approach. The ISO/ICE 18000 - Part 7 standard defines the air interface for radio-frequency identification (RFID) devices operating in the 433.92MHz Industrial, Scientific and Medical (ISM) band used in item management applications. The test procedures are divided into two parts. Testing the interrogator (reader) and testing the tag (both active and passive).This thesis document explains the development of generalized test procedures to test a wireless RFID device, and for conformance to the ISO/ICE 18000 - Part 7 standard as a particular example. A brief description on how to configure and use the test procedures is also included. The test procedures were developed using Labview software, which is a versatile graphical programming language that can be used for programming hardware devices. The test procedures were developed so that they can be easily updated if the standard itself changes and also they can be modified to develop new test procedures for different standards

Development of Automated Test Analysis, Methodology and Procedure for Interoperability Measure in ISO 18000-7 Active RFID

In today's modern development process, for all embedded systems including wireless devices, commercial off the shelf products form the basic building blocks of the design. Such projects, often confront interoperability conflicts mainly because of the incompatible assumptions made by the development engineers and many possible solutions available for every problem. Lack of standard procedures and a sound mathematical basis describing the interoperability verification process and electronic tools to aid the interoperability analysis is hindering development of interoperable systems. It is therefore essential to develop a methodology to analyze and develop an interoperable measure of the system during and after development. It is also important to develop tools that will aid interoperability analysis with minimum human supervision. As an example, active RFID systems conforming to standards such as ISO 18000-7 are designed to meet customer requirements. Apart from conforming to all the required standards, these RFID systems also need to be interoperable with each other. In simple terms the reader of any one vendor should be able to communicate with tags from all vendors.The first step in verifying interoperability is to determine all factors, including those not explicitly defined by the standard, and determining the extreme limits of operation of each factor. In designing the analysis tool, statistical concepts like analysis of variance will be used to determine the effect of one factor on other and to determine the minimum number of required factors in an experiment. Depending on controllable factors, uncontrollable factors and dependent factors, the minimum number of experiments will be designed using blocking and randomizing techniques. The confidence level associated each experiment will be calculated using the acceptance sampling technique. Finally a technique to compare experiments performed on the same or different setup is proposed.This method is not only limited to active RFID but has the potential to revolutionize interoperability verification process among all wireless devices communicating via a command - reply protocol. The developed procedures will assist in planning the development process and also help alter it where and when necessary while not only obeying the standard but also understanding the ultimate essence of it

Design and implementation of an image based portable ELISA analyzer using EIPA and 4PLR

This thesis presents an implementation of predictive analytics on ELISA Imaging Systems in the absence of the standard laboratory equipment for field diagnostics. To that aim I developed a custom built optical setup with image processing and machine learning techniques. Using the light absorbance and transmittance properties of chemical compounds involved in hormone assays, I was able to estimate the hormone levels across reproductive stages. This work would allow for the eventual development of compact and economical closed systems which can be used for diagnostic advisory purposes in remote areas. This line of applied research, is expected to yield data that can be used to monitor health related outcomes. To test this use I focus the development of this tool on the monitoring of women’s ovarian function. Experimental results demonstrate that our proposed model predicts hormone levels comparable to currently used commercial and laboratory methods

Dynamic F-18-FDG PET Lymphography for In Vivo Identification of Lymph Node Metastases in Murine Melanoma

Positron lymphography using F-18-FDG followed by Cerenkov-guided resection of lymph nodes in healthy mice has previously been introduced by our group. Our aim in this study was to further assess the technique's potential beyond merely localizing sentinel lymph nodes. We now aimed to evaluate the potential of positron lymphography to characterize the nodes with respect to their tumor status in order to identify metastatic lymph nodes. We explored whether metastatic nodes could be distinguished from normal nodes via dynamic F-18-FDG lymphography, to then be resected under Cerenkov imaging guidance. Methods: A murine melanoma cell line highly metastatic to lymph nodes (B16F10) was implanted subcutaneously on the dorsal hind paw of C57 mice while the tumor-free contralateral leg served as an intraindividual control. A model of reactive lymph nodes after concanavalin A challenge served as an additional control to provide nonmalignant inflammatory lymphadenopathy. Dynamic PET/CT imaging was performed immediately after injection of F-18-FDG around the tumor or intracutaneously in the contralateral footpad. Furthermore, PET/CT and Cerenkov studies were performed repeatedly over time to follow the course of metastatic spread. In selected mice, popliteal lymph nodes underwent Cerenkov luminescence imaging. Hematoxylin and eosin staining was done to verify the presence of lymphatic melanoma infiltration. Results: Positron lymphography using F-18-FDG was successfully performed on tumor-bearing and non-tumor-bearing mice, as well as on controls bearing sites of inflammation; the results clearly identified the sentinel lymph node basin and delineated the lymphatic drainage. Significantly prolonged retention of activity was evident in metastatic nodes as compared with controls without tumor. On the basis of these results, the contrast in detection and identification of metastatic lymph nodes was distinct and could be used for guided lymph node resection, such as by using Cerenkov luminescence imaging. However, retention after F-18-FDG lymphography was also seen in acute inflammatory lymphadenopathy. Conclusion: In a tumor model, significantly longer retention of the radiotracer during F-18-FDG lymphography was seen in metastatic than nonmetastatic lymph nodes, allowing for differentiation between the two and for selective resection of tumor-bearing nodes using Cerenkov imaging. Inflammation can be better differentiated in a subacute state