Advancements in Industrial Visual Inspection: Harnessing Hyperspectral Imaging for Automated Solder Quality Assessment

This paper presents a groundbreaking advancementin industrial quality control through the development of anautomated soldering quality assessment system for circuit boardsutilizing hyperspectral imaging (HSI) technology. Building uponthe transformative capabilities of HSI in visual inspection, ourresearch focuses on enhancing the precision and depth of assessment in soldering processes, a critical aspect of electronicsmanufacturing. By leveraging the unique spectral informationcaptured by HSI, beyond the capabilities of traditional visionsystems, our automated solution offers a comprehensive evaluation of solder quality, overcoming challenges posed by similar absorption characteristics of materials. We detail the methodology,algorithms, and integration of HSI into the inspection pipeline,highlighting its effectiveness in detecting defects, ensuring uniformity, and improving overall product quality. The application ofthis technology extends beyond electronics manufacturing, withpotential implications for various industries requiring meticulousquality control. Through this study, we contribute to the ongoingevolution of visual inspection systems, empowering industrieswith advanced tools for precise and reliable quality assessment

Quantifying Temporal Entropy in Neuromorphic Memory Forgetting: Exploring Advanced Forgetting Models for Robust Long-term Information Storage

This paper presents a progression of a popular neuromorphic memory structure by exploring advanced forgetting models for robust long-term information storage. Inspired by biological neuronal systems, neuromorphic sensors efficiently capture and transmit sensory information using event-based communication. Managing the decay of information over time is a critical aspect, and forgetting models play a vital role in this process. Building upon the foundation of an existing popular neuromorphic memory structure, this study introduces and evaluates four advanced forgetting models: ROT, adaptive, emotional memory enhancement, and context-dependent memory forgetting models. Each model incorporates different factors to modulate the rate of decay or forgetting. Through rigorous experimentation and analysis, these models are compared with the original ROT forgetting model to assess their effectiveness in retaining relevant information while discarding irrelevant or outdated data. The results provide insights into the strengths, limitations, and potential applications of these advanced forgetting models in the context of neuromorphic memory systems, thereby contributing to the progression of this popular neuromorphic memory structure

Neuromorphic Event Alarm Time-Series Suppression

The field of neuromorphic vision systems aims to replicate the functionality of biological visual systems by mimicking their physical structure and electrical behaviour. Unlike traditional full-frame sensors, neuromorphic systems process data asynchronously and at the pixel level, modelling biological signalling processes. This allows for high-speed operation with lower energy consumption, making them suitable for applications like autonomous vehicles and embedded robotics. This work introduces the Neuromorphic Event Alarm Time-Series Suppression (NEATS) framework, designed to filter noise and detect outlier behaviours in event data without the need for 2-D transformations. NEATS employs rolling statistics and advanced neuromorphic data structures to minimise noise while identifying changes in scene dynamics. This framework injects attention into scene processing, similar to summarisation frameworks in traditional image processing. A novel event-vision alarm change collection (EACC) database is presented, containing controlled stimuli pattern changes captured using leading neuromorphic imaging devices. This database facilitates future benchmarking of neuromorphic attention frameworks, advancing the development of efficient and accurate artificial vision systems

Recording problems and diagnoses in clinical care: developing guidance for healthcare professionals and system designers.

Funder: Professional Record Standards BodyFunder: Royal College of Physicians; FundRef: http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100000395BACKGROUND: Accurate recording of problems and diagnoses in health records is key to safe and effective patient care, yet it is often done poorly. Electronic health record systems vary in their functionality and ease of use, and are not optimally designed for easy recording and sharing of clinical information. There is a lack of professional consensus and guidance on how problems and diagnoses should be recorded. METHODS: The Professional Record Standards Body commissioned work led by the Royal College of Physicians Health Informatics Unit to carry out a literature review, draft guidance, carry out an online consultation and round table discussion, and produce a report including recommendations for systems. A patient workshop was held to explore patient preferences for mechanisms for sharing diagnosis information between primary and secondary care. RESULTS: Consensus was reached among medical specialties on key elements of diagnosis recording, and draft guidance was produced ready for piloting in a variety of care settings. Patients were keen for better ways for diagnosis information to be shared. DISCUSSION: Improving the recording of diagnoses and problems will require a major effort of which the new guidance is only a part. The guidance needs to be embedded in training, and clinical systems need to have improved, standardised functionality. Front-line clinicians, specialist societies, clinical informaticians and patients need to be engaged in developing information models for diagnoses to support care and research, accessible via user-friendly interfaces

Common polygenic variation in coeliac disease and confirmation of ZNF335 and NIFA as disease susceptibility loci

Coeliac disease (CD) is a chronic immune-mediated disease triggered by the ingestion of gluten. It has an estimated prevalence of approximately 1% in European populations. Specific HLA-DQA1 and HLA-DQB1 alleles are established coeliac susceptibility genes and are required for the presentation of gliadin to the immune system resulting in damage to the intestinal mucosa. In the largest association analysis of CD to date, 39 non-HLA risk loci were identified, 13 of which were new, in a sample of 12 014 individuals with CD and 12 228 controls using the Immunochip genotyping platform. Including the HLA, this brings the total number of known CD loci to 40. We have replicated this study in an independent Irish CD case–control population of 425 CD and 453 controls using the Immunochip platform. Using a binomial sign test, we show that the direction of the effects of previously described risk alleles were highly correlated with those reported in the Irish population, (P=2.2 × 10−16). Using the Polygene Risk Score (PRS) approach, we estimated that up to 35% of the genetic variance could be explained by loci present on the Immunochip (P=9 × 10−75). When this is limited to non-HLA loci, we explain a maximum of 4.5% of the genetic variance (P=3.6 × 10−18). Finally, we performed a meta-analysis of our data with the previous reports, identifying two further loci harbouring the ZNF335 and NIFA genes which now exceed genome-wide significance, taking the total number of CD susceptibility loci to 42

International genome-wide meta-analysis identifies new primary biliary cirrhosis risk loci and targetable pathogenic pathways.

Primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) is a classical autoimmune liver disease for which effective immunomodulatory therapy is lacking. Here we perform meta-analyses of discovery data sets from genome-wide association studies of European subjects (n=2,764 cases and 10,475 controls) followed by validation genotyping in an independent cohort (n=3,716 cases and 4,261 controls). We discover and validate six previously unknown risk loci for PBC (Pcombined<5 × 10(-8)) and used pathway analysis to identify JAK-STAT/IL12/IL27 signalling and cytokine-cytokine pathways, for which relevant therapies exist