Special issue on microscopic image processing

Cataloged from PDF version of article

Content-based video copy detection based on motion vectors estimated using a lower frame rate

Cataloged from PDF version of article.We propose a motion vector based Video Content Based Copy Detection (VCBCD) method. One of the signatures of a given video is motion vectors extracted from image sequences. However, when consecutive image frames are used they are not descriptive enough because most vectors are either too small or they appear to scatter in all directions. We calculate motion vectors in a lower frame rate than the actual frame rate of the video to overcome this problem. As a result we obtain large vectors and they represent a given video in a robust manner. We carry out experiments for various parameters and present the results

Microchannel heat transfer with slip flow and wall effects

Cataloged from PDF version of article.Analysis is presented for conjugate heat transfer in a parallel-plate microchannel. Axial conduction in the fluid and in the adjacent wall is included. The fluid is a constant property gas with a slip-flow velocity distribution. The microchannel is heated by a small region on the channel wall. The analytic solution is given in the form of integrals by the method of Green's functions. Quadrature is used to obtain numerical results for the temperature and heat transfer coefficient on the heated region for various Peclet number, Knudsen number, and wall materials. A region downstream of the heater is also explored. These results have application in the optimal design of small-scale heat transfer devices for biomedical applications, electronic cooling, and advanced fuel cells

Projections Onto Convex Sets (POCS) Based Optimization by Lifting

Two new optimization techniques based on projections onto convex space (POCS) framework for solving convex and some non-convex optimization problems are presented. The dimension of the minimization problem is lifted by one and sets corresponding to the cost function are defined. If the cost function is a convex function in R^N the corresponding set is a convex set in R^(N+1). The iterative optimization approach starts with an arbitrary initial estimate in R^(N+1) and an orthogonal projection is performed onto one of the sets in a sequential manner at each step of the optimization problem. The method provides globally optimal solutions in total-variation, filtered variation, l1, and entropic cost functions. It is also experimentally observed that cost functions based on lp, p<1 can be handled by using the supporting hyperplane concept

Warpage characterization of microchannels fabricated by injection molding

Cataloged from PDF version of article.Mass-production of microfluidic devices is important for biomedical applications in which disposable devices are widely used. Injection molding is a well-known process for the production of devices on a mass scale at low-cost. In this study, the injection molding process is adapted for the fabrication of a microfluidic device with a single microchannel. To increase the product quality, high-precision mechanical machining is utilized for the manufacturing of the mold of the microfluidic device. A conventional injection molding machine is implemented in the process. Injection molding was performed at different mold temperatures. The warpage of the injected pieces was characterized by measuring the part deformation. The effect of the mold temperature on the quality of the final device was assessed in terms of the part deformation and bonding quality. From the experimental results, oneto-one correspondence between the warpage and the bonding quality of the molded pieces was observed. It was found that as the warpage of the pieces decreases, the bonding quality increases. A maximum point for the breaking pressure of the bonding and the minimum point for the warpage were found at the same mold temperature. This mold temperature was named as the optimum temperature for the designed microfluidic device. It was observed that the produced microfluidic devices at the mold temperature of 45 !C were able to withstand pressures up to 74 ba

Compressive sensing using the modified entropy functional

Cataloged from PDF version of article.In most compressive sensing problems, 1 norm is used during the signal reconstruction process. In this article, a modified version of the entropy functional is proposed to approximate the 1 norm. The proposed modified version of the entropy functional is continuous, differentiable and convex. Therefore, it is possible to construct globally convergent iterative algorithms using Bregman’s row-action method for compressive sensing applications. Simulation examples with both 1D signals and images are presented. © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved

Assessment of Liquefaction-Induced Foundation Soil Deformations

Although there exist some consensus regarding seismic soil liquefaction triggering assessment of free field soil sites, estimating the liquefaction triggering potential beneath building foundations still stays as a controversial and a difficult issue. Assessing liquefaction triggering potential under building foundations requires the estimation of cyclic and static stress state of the soil medium. In the recent studies (e.g. Unutmaz 2008), the cyclic stress ratio corrected for Kα and Kσ effects under and adjacent to building foundations subjected to cyclic loading are to be estimated with the help of a series of 2-D and 3-D numerical simulations for different generic cases. A representative and a maximum cyclic stress ratio terms of the soil-structure-earthquake interaction system, denoted as CSRSSEI,rep and CSRSSEI,max respectively was defined as a function of i) ratio of the pre-earthquake fundamental period of the structure and soil (σ), ii) free field spectral acceleration at the fixed-base period of the structure(SA), iii) the peak ground acceleration of the free field soil sites (PGA), and iv) aspect ratio of the structure (h/B). In this paper, the results of the previously mentioned numerical findings have been verified by using case histories documented after 1999 Kocaeli Earthquake, where significant foundation displacements were observed due to liquefaction of the underlying foundation soils. The foundation soil profiles of these case histories generally consist of silty soils, sand-silt mixtures and silt-clay mixtures. Overburden and procedure corrected SPT-N values vary in the range of 2 to 5 blows/30 cm in the upper 5 meters and gradually increases up to a maximum value of 25 blows/30 cm beyond depths of 5 to 8 m’s. Overlying structures are mainly 3 to 4 storey, residential buildings with no basements. As the concluding remark, the proposed simplified procedures are shown to predict cyclically-induced foundation settlements accurately within an accuracy factor of two (i.e.: predictions fall within 1:2 and 2:1 limits of the measured settlements)

Performance of a Pier Consisting of Three Sections

A deteriorated 600 ft. long pier in Quincy, Massachusetts consisting of timber pile supported relieving platform and anchored steel sheet pile bulkhead sections was replaced with a new pier. The majority of the new pier consists of a deadman anchored steel sheet pile bulkhead. Due to the proximity of adjacent structures and another existing pier, two areas along the new pier could not accommodate an anchored bulkhead system. In these two areas, relieving platform and double steel sheet pile wall systems were constructed. Inclinometer data showing horizontal movements in the sheeting during the construction and post-construction periods are presented

3D Model compression using Connectivity-Guided Adaptive Wavelet Transform built into 2D SPIHT

Cataloged from PDF version of article.Connectivity-Guided Adaptive Wavelet Transform based mesh compression framework is proposed. The transformation uses the connectivity information of the 3D model to exploit the inter-pixel correlations. Orthographic projection is used for converting the 3D mesh into a 2D image-like representation. The proposed conversion method does not change the connectivity among the vertices of the 3D model. There is a correlation between the pixels of the composed image due to the connectivity of the 3D mesh. The proposed wavelet transform uses an adaptive predictor that exploits the connectivity information of the 3D model. Known image compression tools cannot take advantage of the correlations between the samples. The wavelet transformed data is then encoded using a zero-tree wavelet based method. Since the encoder creates a hierarchical bitstream, the proposed technique is a progressive mesh compression technique. Experimental results show that the proposed method has a better rate distortion performance than MPEG-3DGC/MPEG-4 mesh coder. © 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved

Probabilistic Assessment of Liquefaction Over Large Areas

Since the 1964 Niigata, Japan, earthquake, damages attributed to earthquake induced liquefaction phenomena have cost society hundreds of millions U.S. dollars. Most procedures developed so far predict the potential for earthquake induced liquefaction at the “point” or over the small area, where the soil strength is evaluated. This paper describes a technique to estimate the probability of earthquake induced liquefaction over arbitrary large areas. The proposed technique may be of special interest to both large corporation and insurance company risk management departments, which are looking at estimating earthquake damages over a large area. The area of interest is meshed forming a grid of individual cells, for which the probability of liquefaction is estimated. The probability of liquefaction for a given percentage of the total area is then computed as a system reliability problem