Automatic Estimation of Modulation Transfer Functions

The modulation transfer function (MTF) is widely used to characterise the performance of optical systems. Measuring it is costly and it is thus rarely available for a given lens specimen. Instead, MTFs based on simulations or, at best, MTFs measured on other specimens of the same lens are used. Fortunately, images recorded through an optical system contain ample information about its MTF, only that it is confounded with the statistics of the images. This work presents a method to estimate the MTF of camera lens systems directly from photographs, without the need for expensive equipment. We use a custom grid display to accurately measure the point response of lenses to acquire ground truth training data. We then use the same lenses to record natural images and employ a data-driven supervised learning approach using a convolutional neural network to estimate the MTF on small image patches, aggregating the information into MTF charts over the entire field of view. It generalises to unseen lenses and can be applied for single photographs, with the performance improving if multiple photographs are available

Online Video Deblurring via Dynamic Temporal Blending Network

State-of-the-art video deblurring methods are capable of removing non-uniform blur caused by unwanted camera shake and/or object motion in dynamic scenes. However, most existing methods are based on batch processing and thus need access to all recorded frames, rendering them computationally demanding and time consuming and thus limiting their practical use. In contrast, we propose an online (sequential) video deblurring method based on a spatio-temporal recurrent network that allows for real-time performance. In particular, we introduce a novel architecture which extends the receptive field while keeping the overall size of the network small to enable fast execution. In doing so, our network is able to remove even large blur caused by strong camera shake and/or fast moving objects. Furthermore, we propose a novel network layer that enforces temporal consistency between consecutive frames by dynamic temporal blending which compares and adaptively (at test time) shares features obtained at different time steps. We show the superiority of the proposed method in an extensive experimental evaluation.Comment: 10 page

Discriminative Transfer Learning for General Image Restoration

Recently, several discriminative learning approaches have been proposed for effective image restoration, achieving convincing trade-off between image quality and computational efficiency. However, these methods require separate training for each restoration task (e.g., denoising, deblurring, demosaicing) and problem condition (e.g., noise level of input images). This makes it time-consuming and difficult to encompass all tasks and conditions during training. In this paper, we propose a discriminative transfer learning method that incorporates formal proximal optimization and discriminative learning for general image restoration. The method requires a single-pass training and allows for reuse across various problems and conditions while achieving an efficiency comparable to previous discriminative approaches. Furthermore, after being trained, our model can be easily transferred to new likelihood terms to solve untrained tasks, or be combined with existing priors to further improve image restoration quality

Learning Blind Motion Deblurring

As handheld video cameras are now commonplace and available in every smartphone, images and videos can be recorded almost everywhere at anytime. However, taking a quick shot frequently yields a blurry result due to unwanted camera shake during recording or moving objects in the scene. Removing these artifacts from the blurry recordings is a highly ill-posed problem as neither the sharp image nor the motion blur kernel is known. Propagating information between multiple consecutive blurry observations can help restore the desired sharp image or video. Solutions for blind deconvolution based on neural networks rely on a massive amount of ground-truth data which is hard to acquire. In this work, we propose an efficient approach to produce a significant amount of realistic training data and introduce a novel recurrent network architecture to deblur frames taking temporal information into account, which can efficiently handle arbitrary spatial and temporal input sizes. We demonstrate the versatility of our approach in a comprehensive comparison on a number of challening real-world examples.Comment: International Conference on Computer Vision (ICCV) (2017

Singular which, mention-some, and variable scope uniqueness

Singular wh-questions carry a uniqueness presupposition. Dayal (1996) proposed that uniqueness is triggered by an answer operator (ANS), which occurs highest in the question LF, outside the question nucleus. We observe data which we take to show that uniqueness may be triggered at a low scope site, beneath operators which themselves are within the question nucleus. In response to these "low uniqueness" cases, we remove the uniqueness presupposition from ANS, and suggest re-localizing it to the wh itself, which can reconstruct into the question nucleus to take narrow scope. This paves the way for a weakening of ANS previously suggested in Fox (2013) to accommodate mention-some questions

Anreizkompatibilität von Entschädigungssystemen für Kosten und Verluste aus Tierseuchenausbrüchen in der Europäischen Union

Der Beitrag enthält eine anreiztheoretische Analyse der Versicherungssysteme, die zur Entschädigung von Kosten und Verlusten aus Tierseuchenausbrüchen in den EUMitgliedsländern eingerichtet sind. Es wird gezeigt, dass Kompensationszahlungen zur Erzielung effizienter Schadenverhütungsanreize prinzipiell notwendig sind. Die derzeitigen Regeln zur Finanzierung der Risikokosten und Kompensation von Schäden in der EU beinhalten jedoch Fehlanreize, die zu ineffizienten Produktionsstrukturen und zu geringen Schadenverhütungsanstrengungen von Tierhaltern führen. Darauf aufbauend werden Grundprinzipien für den institutionellen Aufbau und die Finanzierungs- und Kompensationsregeln anreizkompatibler Entschädigungssysteme entwickelt. -- This article focuses on analysing the incentive compatibility of existing compensation schemes in the member states of the EU indemnifying costs and losses of animal disease outbreaks. It is shown that efficient animal disease risk management basically requires compensation of costs and losses. The financing and indemnification principles of the compensation systems in the European Union however provide adverse incentives and result in inefficient livestock production structures and insufficient loss prevention activities of livestock holders. Guidelines are provided for the institutional arrangement and the financing and indemnification policy of compensation systems that allow for efficient animal disease risk management.Tierseuchen,Risikomanagement,Externalitäten,moralisches Risiko,Animal diseases,risk management,externalities,moral hazard

Die Value Balance Card

"Werte werden im unternehmerischen Kontext immer wichtiger. Deswegen ist es sowohl für Unternehmen als auch für Investoren wichtig, Informationen darüber zu sammeln. Dieser Beitrag stellt ein Instrument, die Value Balance Card vor, mit dem Informationen über Wertvorstellungen gesammelt, strukturiert und für Kooperationsentscheidungen genutzt werden können." (Autorenreferat)"Values are more than ever important in the economic context. Therefore it is important to get information about values even for companies, but also for investors. This article introduces an instrument how information about values can be collected, structured and used for decisions about cooperating with potential partners in risky environments. The instrument is called Value Balance Card. The Value Balance Card can be used in an practical context as it is shown in an example in this article." (author's abstract

Der Beitrag deutscher Aufsichtsräte zu einer verantwortungsvollen Unternehmensführung deutscher Unternehmen: konzeptionelle Überlegungen und empirische Erkenntnisse

"Der Beitrag diskutiert die Verantwortung deutscher Aufsichträte für eine gute Unternehmensführung auf Basis einer empirischen Untersuchung. Weil der Deutsche Corporate Governance Kodex Vorstand und Aufsichtsrat explizit verpflichtet, 'zum Wohle des Unternehmens eng zusammen(zuarbeiten)', wurden Vorstandsvorsitzende bezüglich der Qualität 'ihrer' Aufsichtsräte befragt. Die Resultate wurden einer ethischen Bewertung unterzogen." (Autorenreferat)"This paper presents the results of empirical research about the quality of good governance in German companies. Answers of 86 CEO give a differentiated perspective on the work of German supervisory boards. The results of the study are discussed from an ethical point of view." (author's abstract

Objektorientierte Graphendarstellung von Simulink-Modellen zur einfachen Analyse und Transformation

In software and hardware development MATLAB and Simulink are used to model cyber physical systems for many years, , especially in automation technology and the automotive industry. Compliance with the required product quality and project efficiency is facilitated by analyzing and transforming Simulink models. The existing API, provided by MATLAB is only suitable for programmatic changing of Simulink models. We show using our own tool which is used in industry, how such as a Simulink model can be edited more easily. For this purpose the model, is converted to an object-oriented class structure that provides convenient access and editing APIs and allows applying well-known algorithms and analyses from graph theory directly. It is also designed as a bi-directional tool, so it transforms a Simulink model into a graph representation and vice versa. ----- In der Software- und Hardwareentwicklung wird seit Jahren verst\"arkt MATLAB und Simulink f\"ur die Modellierung von cyberphysikalischen Systemen, insbesondere in der Automatisierungstechnik und der Automobilindustrie eingesetzt. Die Einhaltung der notwendigen Produktqualit\"at und Projekteffizienz wird durch Analysen und Transformationen auf Simulink-Modellen erleichtert. Die bestehende, von MATLAB bereitgestellte, API ist f\"ur die programmatische Ver\"anderung von Simulink-Modellen nur bedingt geeignet. Wir zeigen deshalb anhand eines eigenen, im industriellen Einsatz befindlichen Werkzeugs, wie ein Simulink-Modell leichter bearbeitet werden kann. Dazu wird es in eine objektorientierte Klassenstruktur \"uberf\"uhrt, die einen komfortablen Zugang und Bearbeitungs-APIs bietet und es erlaubt bekannte Algorithmen und Analysen aus der Graphentheorie direkt anzuwenden. Das Werkzeug ist bidirektional entworfen, es transformiert also ein Simulink-Modell in eine Graphenrepresentation und umgekehrt.Comment: 10 pages in German, 7 figures. AALE 2013 in Stralsund Germany, 10. Fachkonferenz, Das Forum f\"ur Fachleute der Automatisierungstechnik aus Hochschulen und Wirtschaft, 201