Distributed Calibration of a Camera Sensor Network

The thesis proposes algorithms to perform distributed calibration of a camera sensor network. Unlike other calibration techniques which involve non-linear computations, we propose simple techniques which can be implemented on low power processors. The concept of pin-hole camera model and generation of a reference coordinate system that are used in this thesis, were inspired from some existing work. A cooperative friendly target equipped with a dead reckoning position sensor, moves around in the environment and communicates its coordinate information at three distinct locations in the field of view of a camera sensor node. The sensor node uses the concept of slope angle of a straight line to solve for its location and orientation. This method does not require any initial guesses to calculate the external parameters of a camera. The correctness of the method was verified experimentally and its scalability for a large scale sensor network was validated through simulation.School of Electrical & Computer Engineerin

pulmonary hypertension in left heart disease

Elevated left ventricular filling pressures are a general feature and hallmark of heart failure resulting from cardiac dysfunctions, essentially arising from and affecting the left ventricle [1, 2]. These disorders include heart failure due to diastolic and/or systolic malfunctions, as such heart failure with preserved (HFpEF) and without preserved; reduced (HFrEF) ejection fraction; valvular diseases; congenital cardiomyopathies; and congenital and acquired afflictions of left heart inflow and/or outflow tract [2, 3]. Thereby, the pressure of the left atrium will be elevated, either subsequently due to the increased LV-filling pressure [1, 4] or even initially, primarily in case of mitral stenosis [5]. In any case, left heart disease (LHD) is generally characterized by elevated left-sided filling pressures [4, 6]. The left-sided filling pressures are transmitted backwards, downstream, thereby causing an increase in pulmonary venous pressures [1, 5–7], a condition "of passive or congestive nature" as associated with pulmonary venous congestion [6]. In the literature this issue has in the past been called pulmonary venous hypertension (PvH) [8], or post-capillary pulmonary hypertension [9] or passive pulmonary hypertension [10]. Consequently, with the rise in pulmonary venous pressure, pulmonary artery pressure (PAP) also increases [11]

Rationalized Approach for Formulation and Optimization of Ebastine Microemulsion Using Design Expert for Solubility Enhancement

Ebastine is available as an oral antihistamine formula for allergic disorders such as tablets and syrup. Oral ebastine causes unfavorable effects on heart like QT prolongation, severe gastric distress, decreased tear production, resulting in dryness of the ocular surface, which exacerbates ocular discomfort and increasing susceptibility of eye to irritation. To avoid systemic side effects and ocular discomfort, topical ocular therapy could prove to be superior to systemic therapy in treating ocular allergies. Hence, topical formulation was developed to achieve onsite exposure of ebastine for ocular allergies. Moreover, conjunctiva is more accessible to hydrophilic molecules than lipophilic molecules. This creates challenge for a lipophilic molecule such as ebastine for topical ocular development. Successful dissolution of ebastine in o/w microemulsion allows its use in more convenient soluble form. Initially, solubility of drug in various oils, surfactant and cosurfactant was determined, followed by pseudo-ternary phase diagram to find microemulsion area. The D-optimal mixture design was employed for optimization of formulation. The optimized microemulsion formulation was characterized for its transparency, drug content, droplet size, zeta potential, viscosity, isotonicity, osmolarity and surface tension etc. The optimum physicochemical properties were observed to be eye-fitting. Carboxy methyl cellulose and sodium hyaluronate were used as gelling agents at different concentrations to increase residential time at the site of action. In vitro drug release study revealed that ebastine release from microemulsion gel in a sustained manner up to 24 hrs. for the purpose of providing prolonged therapy for ocular allergy. Hence, prepared microemulsion had great potential as an alternative to customary oral formulations of poorly soluble drug. Keywords:  Ebastine, Microemulsion, D-optimal mixture design, Solubilit

Type 2 diabetes mellitus and coronary artery stenosis: a risk pattern association study

Aim: Cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are the leading cause of death globally. In the condition of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), the prevalence of CVD increase parallel with the rise of metabolic complication and higher incidence of coronary artery stenosis. The aim of this study was to compare the level of percent stenosis in coronary arteries in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) with and without T2DM, and to measure the severity of CVD using Gensini score (GS) through angiographic data. Methods: The current study was conducted in tertiary care specialized hospital in Delhi, India. The level of percent stenosis in coronary arteries was compared in patients with CAD with and without T2DM. The patients were divided into two groups: group I included 100 patients with T2DM, and group II included 100 non-diabetic CAD patients who underwent coronary angiography by Judkin’s technique. The severity of CVD was measured by GS through angiographic data. The serum levels of glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) ≥ 6.5% were considered diabetic. Results: Significant difference was observed in serum HbA1c, and random blood sugar levels between group I and group II were also observed (P ≤ 0.001). Serum HbA1c shows a significant positive association with GS (r = 0.36, P = 0.007). Conclusions: The study shows a significant level of stenosis in coronary arteries of CAD diabetic patients. However, further prospective analysis of a larger population size will be needed to strengthen the findings and the significant association

Umbilical venous catheter retrieval in a 970 gm neonate by a novel technique

Umbilical venous catheterization is a necessity for the advanced care of very low birth weight neonates. Even with utmost care, few complications cannot be avoided. Fractured and retained catheter fragments are one of them. Endoluminal retrieval of such a catheter is an uncommon and challenging procedure for the interventionist. The only alternative is an open exploration of these patients. Various techniques have been described for retrieval of such foreign bodies. We describe a novel technique for percutaneous retrieval of an embolized umbilical venous catheter from a very low birth weight neonate

A Study on the Bulk Etch Rate of LR-115 Solid State Nuclear Track Detector using Lithium Hydroxide as an Etching Solution

504-508Among numerous applications of Solid-State Nuclear Track Detector (SSNTD), one important application is estimating radon and thoron concentration in an indoor environment. The primarily used SSNTD for this application is LR-115. Studying the behaviour of these SSNTDs for different etching solutions is essential. In this report, Lithium hydroxide solution was used to etch LR-115 SSNTD. The study of the thickness of the film removed is carried out at different normality of etching solution to study the effect of normality of etching solution on the bulk etch rate. The change in bulk etching rate with the change in temperature of the etching solution was also put out in this study. From the results, it is discovered that the bulk etch rate is directly proportional to the normality and temperature of the etching solution. Additionally, it can be deduced that the LiOH bulk etching rate of LR-115 has lower values when compared to those of other alkaline hydroxide etching solutions

Seasonal Variation of Indoor Radon and Thoron Concentration in Dwellings of Gurugram District, Haryana

509-514This study presents the seasonal variation of indoor radon/thoron and their progeny concentrations measured in 50 dwellings in the Gurugram district of Haryana state, India. Single-entry pinhole dosimeters were used for the measurement of radon and thoron concentration, and for the measurement of attached and unattached progenies of these gases, direct radon and thoron progeny sensor with and without wire-mesh were employed. The absorbed inhalation dose to people in the area was calculated for different seasons, and the total average inhalation dose from all seasons was also calculated. The average indoor radon and thoron concentration values were below the ICRP action level of 200-300 Bq/m3 for all seasons. Also, the average absorbed inhalation dose for all seasons is below the action limit in the study area. It was also discovered that the highest concentration of radon and thoron gas is reported in the winter season and the lowest in the summer seaso

Mapping the Variation in Indoor Radon, Thoron and Their Progeny Concentration for Different Seasons

443-449An investigation on passive measurement of indoor radon and thoron concentration was carried out in 50 dwellings of the Patiala district of Punjab, India. A one-year study was conducted to cover all the seasons, and seasonal variation of these radioactive gases was reported. All the measurements were performed using pin-hole dosimeters for passive measurement of radon and thoron gases and their progeny for different seasons. To quantify attached and unattached progeny concentration, DRPS/DTPS and wire-mesh DRPS/DTPS were deployed with dosimeters. The average radon and thoron concentration in all the seasons was below the ICRP action level limit of 200-300 Bq/m3. Out of all season's data, the maximum value of radon and thoron was observed during the winter and the minimum for summer. The ratio of radon and thoron concentration for different seasons was also calculated in this report. Average annual indoor concentrations are compared with the average concentration of different seasons. It was concluded that the average concentration value is very near to monsoon season values, suggesting that the monsoon season is ideal for radon and thoron measurements