1,415 research outputs found
Building Fuzzy Elevation Maps from a Ground-based 3D Laser Scan for Outdoor Mobile Robots
Mandow, A; Cantador, T.J.; Reina, A.J.; Martínez, J.L.; Morales, J.; García-Cerezo, A. "Building Fuzzy Elevation Maps from a Ground-based 3D Laser Scan for Outdoor Mobile Robots," Robot2015: Second Iberian Robotics Conference, Advances in Robotics, (2016) Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing, vol. 418. This is a self-archiving copy of the author’s accepted manuscript. The final publication is available at Springer via
http://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-319-27149-1.The paper addresses terrain modeling for mobile robots with fuzzy elevation maps by improving computational
speed and performance over previous work on fuzzy terrain identification from a three-dimensional (3D) scan. To this end,
spherical sub-sampling of the raw scan is proposed to select training data that does not filter out salient obstacles. Besides,
rule structure is systematically defined by considering triangular sets with an unevenly distributed standard fuzzy partition
and zero order Sugeno-type consequents. This structure, which favors a faster training time and reduces the number of rule
parameters, also serves to compute a fuzzy reliability mask for the continuous fuzzy surface. The paper offers a case study
using a Hokuyo-based 3D rangefinder to model terrain with and without outstanding obstacles. Performance regarding error
and model size is compared favorably with respect to a solution that uses quadric-based surface simplification (QSlim).This work was partially supported by the Spanish CICYT project DPI 2011-22443, the Andalusian project PE-2010 TEP-6101, and Universidad de Málaga-Andalucía Tech
Engineered arrays of NV color centers in diamond based on implantation of CN- molecules through nanoapertures
We report a versatile method to engineer arrays of nitrogen-vacancy (NV)
color centers in dia- mond at the nanoscale. The defects were produced in
parallel by ion implantation through 80 nm diameter apertures patterned using
electron beam lithography in a PMMA layer deposited on a diamond surface. The
implantation was performed with CN- molecules which increased the NV defect
formation yield. This method could enable the realization of a solid-state
coupled-spin array and could be used for positioning an optically active NV
center on a photonic microstructure.Comment: 12 pages, 3 figure
DISTO data on Kpp
The data from the DISTO Collaboration on the exclusive pp -> p K+ Lambda
production acquired at T_p = 2.85 GeV have been re-analysed in order to search
for a deeply bound K- pp (= X) state, to be formed in the binary process pp ->
K+ X. The preliminary spectra of the DeltaM_{K+} missing-mass and of the M_{p
Lambda} invariant-mass show, for large transverse-momenta of protons and kaons,
a distinct broad peak with a mass M_X = 2265 +- 2 MeV/c^2 and a width Gamma_X =
118 +- 8 MeV/c^2.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures. Talk presented at the "10th International
Conference on Hypernuclear and Strange Particle Physics" (HYP-X), Tokai,
Ibaraki, Japan, September 14th-18th, 2009. To appear in the proceeding
Indication of a deeply bound compact K-pp state formed in the pp -> p Lambda K+ reaction at 2.85 GeV
We have analyzed data of the DISTO experiment on the exclusive pp -> p Lambda
K+ reaction at 2.85 GeV to search for a strongly bound compact K-pp (= X) state
to be formed in the pp -> K+ + X reaction. The observed spectra of the K+
missing-mass and the p Lambda invariant-mass with high transverse momenta of p
and K+ revealed a broad distinct peak with a mass M_X = 2265 +- 2 (stat) +- 5
(syst) MeV/c2 and a width Gamma_X = 118 +- 8 (stat) +- 10 (syst) MeV.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Involvement of patients or their representatives in quality management functions in EU hospitals:implementation and impact on patient-centred care strategies
OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to describe the involvement of patients or their representatives in quality management (QM) functions and to assess associations between levels of involvement and the implementation of patient-centred care strategies. DESIGN: A cross-sectional, multilevel STUDY DESIGN: that surveyed quality managers and department heads and data from an organizational audit. SETTING: Randomly selected hospitals (n = 74) from seven European countries (The Czech Republic, France, Germany, Poland, Portugal, Spain and Turkey). PARTICIPANTS: Hospital quality managers (n = 74) and heads of clinical departments (n = 262) in charge of four patient pathways (acute myocardial infarction, stroke, hip fracture and deliveries) participated in the data collection between May 2011 and February 2012. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Four items reflecting essential patient-centred care strategies based on an on-site hospital visit: (1) formal survey seeking views of patients and carers, (2) written policies on patients' rights, (3) patient information literature including guidelines and (4) fact sheets for post-discharge care. The main predictors were patient involvement in QM at the (i) hospital level and (ii) pathway level. RESULTS: Current levels of involving patients and their representatives in QM functions in European hospitals are low at hospital level (mean score 1.6 on a scale of 0 to 5, SD 0.7), but even lower at departmental level (mean 0.6, SD 0.7). We did not detect associations between levels of involving patients and their representatives in QM functions and the implementation of patient-centred care strategies; however, the smallest hospitals were more likely to have implemented patient-centred care strategies. CONCLUSIONS: There is insufficient evidence that involving patients and their representatives in QM leads to establishing or implementing strategies and procedures that facilitate patient-centred care; however, lack of evidence should not be interpreted as evidence of no effect
Demonstration of entanglement-by-measurement of solid state qubits
Projective measurements are a powerful tool for manipulating quantum states.
In particular, a set of qubits can be entangled by measurement of a joint
property such as qubit parity. These joint measurements do not require a direct
interaction between qubits and therefore provide a unique resource for quantum
information processing with well-isolated qubits. Numerous schemes for
entanglement-by-measurement of solid-state qubits have been proposed, but the
demanding experimental requirements have so far hindered implementations. Here
we realize a two-qubit parity measurement on nuclear spins in diamond by
exploiting the electron spin of a nitrogen-vacancy center as readout ancilla.
The measurement enables us to project the initially uncorrelated nuclear spins
into maximally entangled states. By combining this entanglement with
high-fidelity single-shot readout we demonstrate the first violation of Bells
inequality with solid-state spins. These results open the door to a new class
of experiments in which projective measurements are used to create, protect and
manipulate entanglement between solid-state qubits.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figure
Assumptions behind grammatical approaches to code-switching: when the blueprint is a red herring
Many of the so-called ‘grammars’ of code-switching are based on various underlying assumptions, e.g. that informal speech can be adequately or appropriately described in terms of ‘‘grammar’’; that deep, rather than surface, structures are involved in code-switching; that one ‘language’ is the ‘base’ or ‘matrix’; and that constraints derived from existing data are universal and predictive. We question these assumptions on several grounds. First, ‘grammar’ is arguably distinct from the processes driving speech production. Second, the role of grammar is mediated by the variable, poly-idiolectal repertoires of bilingual speakers. Third, in many instances of CS the notion of a ‘base’ system is either irrelevant, or fails to explain the facts. Fourth, sociolinguistic factors frequently override ‘grammatical’ factors, as evidence from the same language pairs in different settings has shown. No principles proposed to date account for all the facts, and it seems unlikely that ‘grammar’, as conventionally conceived, can provide definitive answers. We conclude that rather than seeking universal, predictive grammatical rules, research on CS should focus on the variability of bilingual grammars
Photonic quantum state transfer between a cold atomic gas and a crystal
Interfacing fundamentally different quantum systems is key to build future
hybrid quantum networks. Such heterogeneous networks offer superior
capabilities compared to their homogeneous counterparts as they merge
individual advantages of disparate quantum nodes in a single network
architecture. However, only very few investigations on optical
hybrid-interconnections have been carried out due to the high fundamental and
technological challenges, which involve e.g. wavelength and bandwidth matching
of the interfacing photons. Here we report the first optical quantum
interconnection between two disparate matter quantum systems with photon
storage capabilities. We show that a quantum state can be faithfully
transferred between a cold atomic ensemble and a rare-earth doped crystal via a
single photon at telecommunication wavelength, using cascaded quantum frequency
conversion. We first demonstrate that quantum correlations between a photon and
a single collective spin excitation in the cold atomic ensemble can be
transferred onto the solid-state system. We also show that single-photon
time-bin qubits generated in the cold atomic ensemble can be converted, stored
and retrieved from the crystal with a conditional qubit fidelity of more than
. Our results open prospects to optically connect quantum nodes with
different capabilities and represent an important step towards the realization
of large-scale hybrid quantum networks
Current Closure in the Auroral Ionosphere: Results from the Auroral Current and Electrodynamics Structure Rocket Mission
The Auroral Current and Electrodynamics Structure (ACES) mission consisted of two sounding rockets launched nearly simultaneously from Poker Flat Research Range, AK on January 29, 2009 into a dynamic multiple-arc aurora. The ACES rocket mission was designed to observe electrodynamic and plasma parameters above and within the current closure region of the auroral ionosphere. Two well instrumented payloads were flown along very similar magnetic field footprints, at different altitudes, with small temporal separation between both payloads. The higher altitude payload (apogee 360 km), obtained in-situ measurements of electrodynamic and plasma parameters above the current closure region to determine the input signature. The low altitude payload (apogee 130 km), made similar observations within the current closure region. Results are presented comparing observations of the electric fields, magnetic components, and the differential electron energy flux at magnetic footpoints common to both payloads. In situ data is compared to the ground based all-sky imager data, which presents the evolution of the auroral event as the payloads traversed through magnetically similar regions. Current measurements derived from the magnetometers on the high altitude payload observed upward and downward field-aligned currents. The effect of collisions with the neutral atmosphere is investigated to determine it is a significant mechanism to explain discrepancies in the low energy electron flux. The high altitude payload also observed time-dispersed arrivals in the electron flux and perturbations in the electric and magnetic field components, which are indicative of Alfven waves
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