A method using the same light sensor for detecting multiple events near a window in crimes involving intrusion into a home

To combine robots with many sensor nodes on the sensor network is important for improving home security. To reduce the cost of such a system, it is desirable that each sensor node is very cheap and very small. The three events which occur to the window and the key when a thief attempts to intrude into a house are conventionally detected by different sensors. This article proposes a method of detecting all three events by using a simple light sensor consisting of an infrared LED and a photodetector. In the experiments, the light sensor shows the characteristic tendencies that can detect each event. This fact indicates that our proposal can realize one sensor node more efficiently than using different sensors.This work was presented in part at the 15th International Symposium on Artificial Life and Robotics, Oita, Japan, February 4–6, 201

Performance Improvement of Hardware By Series Duplicating Data Buffer for High-level Synthesis

To occupy appropriate the expanding market share of embedded image processing systems, it is important to quickly develop and launch a high-performance and low-power product onto the market tracking the short life cycle of recent products. To achieve high performance and low-power produce quickly, it is effective to develop the hardware module of high computational software processing using high-level synthesis technology automatically converting software to hardware. However, high-level synthesis cannot convert software not taking into hardware organization to the efficient hardware with high-performance and low-power. This paper proposes a software description method for high-level synthesis that replicates histograms in series and pipelines the pre and post processing across the histogram. The experimental result on the real machine demonstrates the effects of the proposed method

Endostatin Stimulates Proliferation and Migration of Myofibroblasts Isolated from Myocardial Infarction Model Rats

Myofibroblasts contribute to the healing of infarcted areas after myocardial infarction through proliferation, migration, and production of extracellular matrix (ECM). Expression of endostatin, a cleaved fragment of type XVIII collagen, increases in the heart tissue of an experimental myocardial infarction model. In the present study, we examined the effect of endostatin on the function of myofibroblasts derived from an infarcted area. The myocardial infarction model was created by ligating the left anterior descending artery in rats. Two weeks after the operation, α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA)-positive myofibroblasts were isolated from the infarcted area. Endostatin significantly increased the proliferation and migration of myofibroblasts in vitro. On the other hand, endostatin had no effect on the production of type I collagen, a major ECM protein produced by myofibroblasts. Endostatin activated Akt and extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK), and the pharmacological inhibition of these signaling pathways suppressed the endostatin-induced proliferation and migration. A knockdown of the COL18A1 gene in the myocardial infarction model rats using small interference RNA (siRNA) worsened the cardiac function concomitant with wall thinning and decreased the α-SMA-positive myofibroblasts and scar formation compared with that of control siRNA-injected rats. In summary, we demonstrated for the first time that endostatin might be an important factor in the healing process after myocardial infarction through the activation of myofibroblasts