An Efficient and Effective Design of InP Nanowires for Maximal Solar Energy Harvesting.

PubMed

Wu, Dan; Tang, Xiaohong; Wang, Kai; He, Zhubing; Li, Xianqiang

2017-11-25

Solar cells based on subwavelength-dimensions semiconductor nanowire (NW) arrays promise a comparable or better performance than their planar counterparts by taking the advantages of strong light coupling and light trapping. In this paper, we present an accurate and time-saving analytical design for optimal geometrical parameters of vertically aligned InP NWs for maximal solar energy absorption. Short-circuit current densities are calculated for each NW array with different geometrical dimensions under solar illumination. Optimal geometrical dimensions are quantitatively presented for single, double, and multiple diameters of the NW arrays arranged both squarely and hexagonal achieving the maximal short-circuit current density of 33.13 mA/cm 2 . At the same time, intensive finite-difference time-domain numerical simulations are performed to investigate the same NW arrays for the highest light absorption. Compared with time-consuming simulations and experimental results, the predicted maximal short-circuit current densities have tolerances of below 2.2% for all cases. These results unambiguously demonstrate that this analytical method provides a fast and accurate route to guide high performance InP NW-based solar cell design.

An Efficient and Effective Design of InP Nanowires for Maximal Solar Energy Harvesting

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Dan; Tang, Xiaohong; Wang, Kai; He, Zhubing; Li, Xianqiang

2017-11-01

Solar cells based on subwavelength-dimensions semiconductor nanowire (NW) arrays promise a comparable or better performance than their planar counterparts by taking the advantages of strong light coupling and light trapping. In this paper, we present an accurate and time-saving analytical design for optimal geometrical parameters of vertically aligned InP NWs for maximal solar energy absorption. Short-circuit current densities are calculated for each NW array with different geometrical dimensions under solar illumination. Optimal geometrical dimensions are quantitatively presented for single, double, and multiple diameters of the NW arrays arranged both squarely and hexagonal achieving the maximal short-circuit current density of 33.13 mA/cm2. At the same time, intensive finite-difference time-domain numerical simulations are performed to investigate the same NW arrays for the highest light absorption. Compared with time-consuming simulations and experimental results, the predicted maximal short-circuit current densities have tolerances of below 2.2% for all cases. These results unambiguously demonstrate that this analytical method provides a fast and accurate route to guide high performance InP NW-based solar cell design.

The potential of statistical shape modelling for geometric morphometric analysis of human teeth in archaeological research

PubMed Central

Fernee, Christianne; Browne, Martin; Zakrzewski, Sonia

2017-01-01

This paper introduces statistical shape modelling (SSM) for use in osteoarchaeology research. SSM is a full field, multi-material analytical technique, and is presented as a supplementary geometric morphometric (GM) tool. Lower mandibular canines from two archaeological populations and one modern population were sampled, digitised using micro-CT, aligned, registered to a baseline and statistically modelled using principal component analysis (PCA). Sample material properties were incorporated as a binary enamel/dentin parameter. Results were assessed qualitatively and quantitatively using anatomical landmarks. Finally, the technique’s application was demonstrated for inter-sample comparison through analysis of the principal component (PC) weights. It was found that SSM could provide high detail qualitative and quantitative insight with respect to archaeological inter- and intra-sample variability. This technique has value for archaeological, biomechanical and forensic applications including identification, finite element analysis (FEA) and reconstruction from partial datasets. PMID:29216199

Horizontal alignment design consistency for rural two-lane highways.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1995-01-01

The state of the practice in highway geometric design consistency was determined through a review of U.S. and foreign geometric design policy, practice, and research. Models, and a menu-driven microcomputer procedure for their use, were developed for...

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lee, Kyung Eun; Oh, Jung Jae; Yun, Taeyeong

Graphene is an emerging graphitic carbon materials, consisting of sp{sup 2} hybridized two dimensinal honeycomb structure. It has been widely studied to incorporate graphene with polymer to utilize unique property of graphene and reinforce electrical, mechanical and thermal property of polymer. In composite materials, orientation control of graphene significantly influences the property of composite. Until now, a few method has been developed for orientation control of graphene within polymer matrix. Here, we demonstrate facile fabrication of high aligned large graphene oxide (LGO) composites in polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) matrix exploiting liquid crystallinity. Liquid crystalline aqueous dispersion of LGO is parallel oriented withinmore » flat confinement geometry. Freeze-drying of the aligned LGO dispersion and subsequent infiltration with PDMS produce highly aligned LGO/PDMS composites. Owing to the large shape anisotropy of LGO, liquid crystalline alignment occurred at low concentration of 2 mg/ml in aqueous dispersion, which leads to the 0.2 wt% LGO loaded composites. - Graphical abstract: Liquid crystalline LGO aqueous dispersions are spontaneous parallel aligned between geometric confinement for highly aligned LGO/polymer composite fabrication. - Highlights: • A simple fabrication method for highly aligned LGO/PDMS composites is proposed. • LGO aqueous dispersion shows nematic liquid crystalline phase at 0.8 mg/ml. • In nematic phase, LGO flakes are highly aligned by geometric confinement. • Infiltration of PDMS into freeze-dried LGO allows highly aligned LGO/PDMS composites.« less

Quantitative evaluation of the lumbosacral sagittal alignment in degenerative lumbar spinal stenosis

PubMed Central

Makirov, Serik K.; Jahaf, Mohammed T.; Nikulina, Anastasia A.

2015-01-01

Goal of the study This study intends to develop a method of quantitative sagittal balance parameters assessment, based on a geometrical model of lumbar spine and sacrum. Methods One hundred eight patients were divided into 2 groups. In the experimental group have been included 59 patients with lumbar spinal stenosis on L1-5 level. Forty-nine healthy volunteers without history of any lumbar spine pathlogy were included in the control group. All patients have been examined with supine MRI. Lumbar lordosis has been adopted as circular arc and described either anatomical (lumbar lordosis angle), or geometrical (chord length, circle segment height, the central angle, circle radius) parameters. Moreover, 2 sacral parameters have been assessed for all patients: sacral slope and sacral deviation angle. Both parameters characterize sacrum disposition in horizontal and vertical axis respectively. Results Significant correlation was observed between anatomical and geometrical lumbo-sacral parameters. Significant differences between stenosis group and control group were observed in the value of the “central angle” and “sacral deviation” parameters. We propose additional parameters: lumbar coefficient, as ratio of the lordosis angle to the segmental angle (Kl); sacral coefficient, as ratio of the sacral tilt (ST) to the sacral deviation (SD) angle (Ks); and assessment modulus of the mathematical difference between sacral and lumbar coefficients has been used for determining lumbosacral balance (LSB). Statistically significant differences between main and control group have been obtained for all described coefficients (p = 0.006, p = 0.0001, p = 0.0001, accordingly). Median of LSB value of was 0.18 and 0.34 for stenosis and control groups, accordingly. Conclusion Based on these results we believe that that spinal stenosis is associated with an acquired deformity that is measureable by the described parameters. It's possible that spinal stenosis occurs in patients with an LSB of 0.2 or less, so this value can be predictable for its development. It may suggest that spinal stenosis is more likely to occur in patients with the spinal curvature of this type because of abnormal distribution of the spine loads. This fact may have prognostic significance for develop vertebral column disease and evaluation of treatment results. PMID:26767160

Cellular self-organization by autocatalytic alignment feedback

PubMed Central

Junkin, Michael; Leung, Siu Ling; Whitman, Samantha; Gregorio, Carol C.; Wong, Pak Kin

2011-01-01

Myoblasts aggregate, differentiate and fuse to form skeletal muscle during both embryogenesis and tissue regeneration. For proper muscle function, long-range self-organization of myoblasts is required to create organized muscle architecture globally aligned to neighboring tissue. However, how the cells process geometric information over distances considerably longer than individual cells to self-organize into well-ordered, aligned and multinucleated myofibers remains a central question in developmental biology and regenerative medicine. Using plasma lithography micropatterning to create spatial cues for cell guidance, we show a physical mechanism by which orientation information can propagate for a long distance from a geometric boundary to guide development of muscle tissue. This long-range alignment occurs only in differentiating myoblasts, but not in non-fusing myoblasts perturbed by microfluidic disturbances or other non-fusing cell types. Computational cellular automata analysis of the spatiotemporal evolution of the self-organization process reveals that myogenic fusion in conjunction with rotational inertia functions in a self-reinforcing manner to enhance long-range propagation of alignment information. With this autocatalytic alignment feedback, well-ordered alignment of muscle could reinforce existing orientations and help promote proper arrangement with neighboring tissue and overall organization. Such physical self-enhancement might represent a fundamental mechanism for long-range pattern formation during tissue morphogenesis. PMID:22193956

Systematic effects on dark energy from 3D weak shear

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kitching, T. D.; Taylor, A. N.; Heavens, A. F.

2008-09-01

We present an investigation into the potential effect of systematics inherent in multiband wide-field surveys on the dark energy equation-of-state determination for two 3D weak lensing methods. The weak lensing methods are a geometric shear-ratio method and 3D cosmic shear. The analysis here uses an extension of the Fisher matrix framework to include jointly photometric redshift systematics, shear distortion systematics and intrinsic alignments. Using analytic parametrizations of these three primary systematic effects allows an isolation of systematic parameters of particular importance. We show that assuming systematic parameters are fixed, but possibly biased, results in potentially large biases in dark energy parameters. We quantify any potential bias by defining a Bias Figure of Merit. By marginalizing over extra systematic parameters, such biases are negated at the expense of an increase in the cosmological parameter errors. We show the effect on the dark energy Figure of Merit of marginalizing over each systematic parameter individually. We also show the overall reduction in the Figure of Merit due to all three types of systematic effects. Based on some assumption of the likely level of systematic errors, we find that the largest effect on the Figure of Merit comes from uncertainty in the photometric redshift systematic parameters. These can reduce the Figure of Merit by up to a factor of 2 to 4 in both 3D weak lensing methods, if no informative prior on the systematic parameters is applied. Shear distortion systematics have a smaller overall effect. Intrinsic alignment effects can reduce the Figure of Merit by up to a further factor of 2. This, however, is a worst-case scenario, within the assumptions of the parametrizations used. By including prior information on systematic parameters, the Figure of Merit can be recovered to a large extent, and combined constraints from 3D cosmic shear and shear ratio are robust to systematics. We conclude that, as a rule of thumb, given a realistic current understanding of intrinsic alignments and photometric redshifts, then including all three primary systematic effects reduces the Figure of Merit by at most a factor of 2.

Molecular design for nonpolar chiral-axial quadratic nonlinear optics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wiggers, Gregory A.

In this thesis the hyperpolarizability of various multi-dimensional molecules is studied theoretically/computationally, with particular focus on the second-rank Kleinman-disallowed (KD) component of the hyperpolarizability. This component, which transforms as a second-rank traceless symmetric tensor, could be utilized in certain chiral-axial molecular alignment schemes to produce a bulk response. Nonpolar chiral-axial systems have been proposed in contrast to polar media, which utilize the vector component of the molecular hyperpolarizability and require parallel alignment of the molecular dipoles. Such parallel alignment of dipoles must be "frozen in" in order to overcome the natural tendency for dipoles to align anti-parallel. This limits the density of chromophores that can be loaded into a polar material. Nonpolar materials do not have such limits in theory. The two geometric classes of molecules that can most easily be incorporated into nonpolar chiral-uniaxial materials are propeller-shaped (C3 or D3 symmetry) and Λ-shaped (C2v symmetry). This work describes efforts to design molecules within these classes that would be suitable for bulk NLO materials. The sum-over-states (SOS) expression is used to model the molecular hyperpolarizability, and quantum chemical calculations, along with linear absorption data (when available) provide the necessary parameters to evaluate truncated forms of the SOS expression. A host of chemical and geometric modifications will be considered in order to elucidate important structure/function relationships. Also, the SOS model will be tested in some cases when experimental measurements (via Kleinman-disallowed hyper-Rayleigh scattering) are available. While a majority of this work focuses on multi-dimensional molecules, a small section deals with the question of optimizing the hyperpolarizability of a one-dimensional system. It is suggested that the recently-proposed idea of "modulated conjugation" as a means for improving intrinsic molecular hyperpolarizability is based on subtle misinterpretations of computational results. Even so, the concept of modulated conjugation may lead to improved hyperpolarizabilities and possible reasons are discussed.

Alignment of sensor arrays in optical instruments using a geometric approach.

PubMed

Sawyer, Travis W

2018-02-01

Alignment of sensor arrays in optical instruments is critical to maximize the instrument's performance. While many commercial systems use standardized mounting threads for alignment, custom systems require specialized equipment and alignment procedures. These alignment procedures can be time-consuming, dependent on operator experience, and have low repeatability. Furthermore, each alignment solution must be considered on a case-by-case basis, leading to additional time and resource cost. Here I present a method to align a sensor array using geometric analysis. By imaging a grid pattern of dots, I show that it is possible to calculate the misalignment for a sensor in five degrees of freedom simultaneously. I first test the approach by simulating different cases of misalignment using Zemax before applying the method to experimentally acquired data of sensor misalignment for an echelle spectrograph. The results show that the algorithm effectively quantifies misalignment in five degrees of freedom for an F/5 imaging system, accurate to within ±0.87  deg in rotation and ±0.86  μm in translation. Furthermore, the results suggest that the method can also be applied to non-imaging systems with a small penalty to precision. This general approach can potentially improve the alignment of sensor arrays in custom instruments by offering an accurate, quantitative approach to calculating misalignment in five degrees of freedom simultaneously.

Coordinate alignment of combined measurement systems using a modified common points method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, G.; Zhang, P.; Xiao, W.

2018-03-01

The co-ordinate metrology has been extensively researched for its outstanding advantages in measurement range and accuracy. The alignment of different measurement systems is usually achieved by integrating local coordinates via common points before measurement. The alignment errors would accumulate and significantly reduce the global accuracy, thus need to be minimized. In this thesis, a modified common points method (MCPM) is proposed to combine different traceable system errors of the cooperating machines, and optimize the global accuracy by introducing mutual geometric constraints. The geometric constraints, obtained by measuring the common points in individual local coordinate systems, provide the possibility to reduce the local measuring uncertainty whereby enhance the global measuring certainty. A simulation system is developed in Matlab to analyze the feature of MCPM using the Monto-Carlo method. An exemplary setup is constructed to verify the feasibility and efficiency of the proposed method associated with laser tracker and indoor iGPS systems. Experimental results show that MCPM could significantly improve the alignment accuracy.

Characterization and Mitigation of ICRF Antenna - Plasma Edge Interaction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hong, Rongjie; Tynan, George; Wukitch, Steve; Lin, Yijun; Terry, Jim; Chilenski, M.; Golfinopoulos, T.; Hubbard, A.; Mumgaard, R. T.; Perkins, R.; Reinke, M. L.; Alcator C-Mod Team

2017-10-01

Recent experiments reveal that RF-induced potentials (VRF) in the SOL and impurity source at the antenna can be reduced to background levels via optimizing the power ratio between the inner and outer current straps, Pcent /Pout . Experiments indicate the antenna impurity source reduction for the field aligned antenna is due to geometrical alignment rather than electrical symmetry. Additional experiments performed without an optimized Pcent /Pout showed that VRF and the associated convection cells do not influence the impurity penetration or core impurity confinement. These results suggest the core impurity contamination associated with ICRF heating is dominated by an increased impurity source rather than a change in impurity transport. Further, the convective cell strength was expected to scale inversely with B-field. The observed poloidal velocity (measure of convective cell strength), however, decreased less than expected. In addition, the measured maximum VRF increased and penetrated farther into the SOL at higher B-field and plasma current. Results also suggest VRF is strongly influenced by the SOL plasma parameters rather than by RF parameters. Work supported by the U.S. DoE, Office of Science, Office of Fusion Energy Sciences, User Facility Alcator C-Mod under DE-FC02-99ER54512 and DE-SC 0010720.

An Analytic Approach for Optimal Geometrical Design of GaAs Nanowires for Maximal Light Harvesting in Photovoltaic Cells

PubMed Central

Wu, Dan; Tang, Xiaohong; Wang, Kai; Li, Xianqiang

2017-01-01

Semiconductor nanowires(NWs) with subwavelength scale diameters have demonstrated superior light trapping features, which unravel a new pathway for low cost and high efficiency future generation solar cells. Unlike other published work, a fully analytic design is for the first time proposed for optimal geometrical parameters of vertically-aligned GaAs NW arrays for maximal energy harvesting. Using photocurrent density as the light absorbing evaluation standard, 2 μm length NW arrays whose multiple diameters and periodicity are quantitatively identified achieving the maximal value of 29.88 mA/cm2 under solar illumination. It also turns out that our method has wide suitability for single, double and four different diameters of NW arrays for highest photon energy harvesting. To validate this analytical method, intensive numerical three-dimensional finite-difference time-domain simulations of the NWs’ light harvesting are also carried out. Compared with the simulation results, the predicted maximal photocurrent densities lie within 1.5% tolerance for all cases. Along with the high accuracy, through directly disclosing the exact geometrical dimensions of NW arrays, this method provides an effective and efficient route for high performance photovoltaic design. PMID:28425488

Simultaneous dual-color fluorescence microscope: a characterization study.

PubMed

Li, Zheng; Chen, Xiaodong; Ren, Liqiang; Song, Jie; Li, Yuhua; Zheng, Bin; Liu, Hong

2013-01-01

High spatial resolution and geometric accuracy is crucial for chromosomal analysis of clinical cytogenetic applications. High resolution and rapid simultaneous acquisition of multiple fluorescent wavelengths can be achieved by utilizing concurrent imaging with multiple detectors. However, such class of microscopic systems functions differently from traditional fluorescence microscopes. To develop a practical characterization framework to assess and optimize the performance of a high resolution and dual-color fluorescence microscope designed for clinical chromosomal analysis. A dual-band microscopic imaging system utilizes a dichroic mirror, two sets of specially selected optical filters, and two detectors to simultaneously acquire two fluorescent wavelengths. The system's geometric distortion, linearity, the modulation transfer function, and the dual detectors' alignment were characterized. Experiment results show that the geometric distortion at lens periphery is less than 1%. Both fluorescent channels show linear signal responses, but there exists discrepancy between the two due to the detectors' non-uniform response ratio to different wavelengths. In terms of the spatial resolution, the two contrast transfer function curves trend agreeably with the spatial frequency. The alignment measurement allows quantitatively assessing the cameras' alignment. A result image of adjusted alignment is demonstrated to show the reduced discrepancy by using the alignment measurement method. In this paper, we present a system characterization study and its methods for a specially designed imaging system for clinical cytogenetic applications. The presented characterization methods are not only unique to this dual-color imaging system but also applicable to evaluation and optimization of other similar multi-color microscopic image systems for improving their clinical utilities for future cytogenetic applications.

Geometry calibration for x-ray equipment in radiation treatment devices and estimation of remaining patient alignment errors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Selby, Boris P.; Sakas, Georgios; Walter, Stefan; Stilla, Uwe

2008-03-01

Positioning a patient accurately in treatment devices is crucial for radiological treatment, especially if accuracy vantages of particle beam treatment are exploited. To avoid sub-millimeter misalignments, X-ray images acquired from within the device are compared to a CT to compute respective alignment corrections. Unfortunately, deviations of the underlying geometry model for the imaging system degrade the achievable accuracy. We propose an automatic calibration routine, which bases on the geometry of a phantom and its automatic detection in digital radiographs acquired for various geometric device settings during the calibration. The results from the registration of the phantom's X-ray projections and its known geometry are used to update the model of the respective beamlines, which is used to compute the patient alignment correction. The geometric calibration of a beamline takes all nine relevant degrees of freedom into account, including detector translations in three directions, detector tilt by three axes and three possible translations for the X-ray tube. Introducing a stochastic model for the calibration we are able to predict the patient alignment deviations resulting from inaccuracies inherent to the phantom design and the calibration. Comparisons of the alignment results for a treatment device without calibrated imaging systems and a calibrated device show that an accurate calibration can enhance alignment accuracy.

Electromechanical modeling and experimental verification of a directly printed nanocomposite

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nafari, Alireza; Sodano, Henry A.

2018-03-01

Piezoelectric materials are currently among the most promising building blocks of sensing, actuating and energy harvesting systems. However, these materials are limited in applications due to difficulty in machining and casting it on to curve surfaces. To mitigate this issue, one method is through additive manufacturing (direct printing) of piezoelectric nanocomposite in which piezoelectric nanomaterials are embedded into a polymer matrix. Although significant progress has been recently made in this area, modeling the electromechanical response of a directly printed nanocomposite remains a challenge. Thus the objective of this study is to develop robust micromechanical and finite element models that allows the study of the electroelastic properties of a directly printed nanocomposite containing piezoelectric inclusions. Furthermore, the dependence of these properties on geometrical parameters such as aspect ratio and alignment of the active phase are investigated. The focus of this work is a demonstration of the effect gradual alignment of piezoelectric nanowires in a nanocomposite from randomly oriented to purely aligned improves the electroelastic properties of a directly printed nanocomposite. Finally, these models are verified through experimental measurement of electroelastic properties of the nanocomposites containing barium titanate nanowires in Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) polymer.

Controlled alignment of carbon nanofibers in a large-scale synthesis process

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Merkulov, Vladimir I.; Melechko, A. V.; Guillorn, M. A.; Simpson, M. L.; Lowndes, D. H.; Whealton, J. H.; Raridon, R. J.

2002-06-01

Controlled alignment of catalytically grown carbon nanofibers (CNFs) at a variable angle to the substrate during a plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition process is achieved. The CNF alignment is controlled by the direction of the electric field lines during the synthesis process. Off normal CNF orientations are achieved by positioning the sample in the vicinity of geometrical features of the sample holder, where bending of the electric field lines occurs. The controlled growth of kinked CNFs that consist of two parts aligned at different angles to the substrate normal also is demonstrated.

Advanced Land Imager Assessment System

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chander, Gyanesh; Choate, Mike; Christopherson, Jon; Hollaren, Doug; Morfitt, Ron; Nelson, Jim; Nelson, Shar; Storey, James; Helder, Dennis; Ruggles, Tim;

Spatial and functional modeling of carnivore and insectivore molariform teeth.

PubMed

Evans, Alistair R; Sanson, Gordon D

2006-06-01

The interaction between the two main competing geometric determinants of teeth (the geometry of function and the geometry of occlusion) were investigated through the construction of three-dimensional spatial models of several mammalian tooth forms (carnassial, insectivore premolar, zalambdodont, dilambdodont, and tribosphenic). These models aim to emulate the shape and function of mammalian teeth. The geometric principles of occlusion relating to single- and double-crested teeth are reviewed. Function was considered using engineering principles that relate tooth shape to function. Substantial similarity between the models and mammalian teeth were achieved. Differences between the two indicate the influence of tooth strength, geometric relations between upper and lower teeth (including the presence of the protocone), and wear on tooth morphology. The concept of "autocclusion" is expanded to include any morphological features that ensure proper alignment of cusps on the same tooth and other teeth in the tooth row. It is concluded that the tooth forms examined are auto-aligning, and do not require additional morphological guides for correct alignment. The model of therian molars constructed by Crompton and Sita-Lumsden ([1970] Nature 227:197-199) is reconstructed in 3D space to show that their hypothesis of crest geometry is erroneous, and that their model is a special case of a more general class of models. (c) 2004 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

The on-orbit calibration of geometric parameters of the Tian-Hui 1 (TH-1) satellite

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Jianrong; Wang, Renxiang; Hu, Xin; Su, Zhongbo

2017-02-01

The on-orbit calibration of geometric parameters is a key step in improving the location accuracy of satellite images without using Ground Control Points (GCPs). Most methods of on-orbit calibration are based on the self-calibration using additional parameters. When using additional parameters, different number of additional parameters may lead to different results. The triangulation bundle adjustment is another way to calibrate the geometric parameters of camera, which can describe the changes in each geometric parameter. When triangulation bundle adjustment method is applied to calibrate geometric parameters, a prerequisite is that the strip model can avoid systematic deformation caused by the rate of attitude changes. Concerning the stereo camera, the influence of the intersection angle should be considered during calibration. The Equivalent Frame Photo (EFP) bundle adjustment based on the Line-Matrix CCD (LMCCD) image can solve the systematic distortion of the strip model, and obtain high accuracy location without using GCPs. In this paper, the triangulation bundle adjustment is used to calibrate the geometric parameters of TH-1 satellite cameras based on LMCCD image. During the bundle adjustment, the three-line array cameras are reconstructed by adopting the principle of inverse triangulation. Finally, the geometric accuracy is validated before and after on-orbit calibration using 5 testing fields. After on-orbit calibration, the 3D geometric accuracy is improved to 11.8 m from 170 m. The results show that the location accuracy of TH-1 without using GCPs is significantly improved using the on-orbit calibration of the geometric parameters.

Geometric Cues, Reference Frames, and the Equivalence of Experienced-Aligned and Novel-Aligned Views in Human Spatial Memory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kelly, Jonathan W.; Sjolund, Lori A.; Sturz, Bradley R.

2013-01-01

Spatial memories are often organized around reference frames, and environmental shape provides a salient cue to reference frame selection. To date, however, the environmental cues responsible for influencing reference frame selection remain relatively unknown. To connect research on reference frame selection with that on orientation via…

Sound production on a "coaxial saxophone".

PubMed

Doc, J-B; Vergez, C; Guillemain, P; Kergomard, J

2016-11-01

Sound production on a "coaxial saxophone" is investigated experimentally. The coaxial saxophone is a variant of the cylindrical saxophone made up of two tubes mounted in parallel, which can be seen as a low-frequency analogy of a truncated conical resonator with a mouthpiece. Initially developed for the purposes of theoretical analysis, an experimental verification of the analogy between conical and cylindrical saxophones has never been reported. The present paper explains why the volume of the cylindrical saxophone mouthpiece limits the achievement of a good playability. To limit the mouthpiece volume, a coaxial alignment of pipes is proposed and a prototype of coaxial saxophone is built. An impedance model of coaxial resonator is proposed and validated by comparison with experimental data. Sound production is also studied through experiments with a blowing machine. The playability of the prototype is then assessed and proven for several values of the blowing pressure, of the embouchure parameter, and of the instrument's geometrical parameters.

The Folded Paper Size Illusion: Evidence of Inability to Perceptually Integrate More Than One Geometrical Dimension

PubMed Central

2016-01-01

The folded paper-size illusion is as easy to demonstrate as it is powerful in generating insights into perceptual processing: First take two A4 sheets of paper, one original sized, another halved by folding, then compare them in terms of area size by centering the halved sheet on the center of the original one! We perceive the larger sheet as far less than double (i.e., 100%) the size of the small one, typically only being about two thirds larger—this illusion is preserved by rotating the inner sheet and even by aligning it to one or two sides, but is dissolved by aligning both sheets to three sides, here documented by 88 participants’ data. A potential explanation might be the general incapability of accurately comparing more than one geometrical dimension at once—in everyday life, we solve this perceptual-cognitive bottleneck by reducing the complexity of such a task via aligning parts with same lengths. PMID:27698977

Optimal geometrical design of inertial vibration DC piezoelectric nanogenerators based on obliquely aligned InN nanowire arrays.

PubMed

Ku, Nai-Jen; Liu, Guocheng; Wang, Chao-Hung; Gupta, Kapil; Liao, Wei-Shun; Ban, Dayan; Liu, Chuan-Pu

2017-09-28

Piezoelectric nanogenerators have been investigated to generate electricity from environmental vibrations due to their energy conversion capabilities. In this study, we demonstrate an optimal geometrical design of inertial vibration direct-current piezoelectric nanogenerators based on obliquely aligned InN nanowire (NW) arrays with an optimized oblique angle of ∼58°, and driven by the inertial force of their own weight, using a mechanical shaker without any AC/DC converters. The nanogenerator device manifests potential applications not only as a unique energy harvesting device capable of scavenging energy from weak mechanical vibrations, but also as a sensitive strain sensor. The maximum output power density of the nanogenerator is estimated to be 2.9 nW cm -2 , leading to an improvement of about 3-12 times that of vertically aligned ZnO NW DC nanogenerators. Integration of two nanogenerators also exhibits a linear increase in the output power, offering an enormous potential for the creation of self-powered sustainable nanosystems utilizing incessantly natural ambient energy sources.

Supercritical fluid attachment of palladium nanoparticles on aligned carbon nanotubes.

PubMed

Ye, Xiang-Rong; Lin, Yuehe; Wai, Chien M; Talbot, Jan B; Jin, Sungho

2005-06-01

Nanocomposite materials consisting of Pd nanoparticles deposited on aligned multi-walled carbon nanotubes have been fabricated through hydrogen reduction of palladium-beta-diketone precursor in supercritical carbon dioxide. The supercritical fluid processing allowed deposition of high-density Pd nanoparticles (approximately 5-10 nm) on both as-grown (unfunctionalized) and functionalized (using HNO3 oxidation) nanotubes. However, the wet processing for functionalization results in pre-agglomerated, bundle-shaped nanotubes, thus significantly reducing the effective surface area for Pd particle deposition, although the bundling provides more secure, lock-in-place positioning of nanotubes and Pd catalyst particles. The nanotube bundling is substantially mitigated by Pd nanoparticle deposition on the unfunctionalized and geometrically separated nanotubes, which provides much higher catalyst surface area. Such nanocomposite materials utilizing geometrically secured and aligned nanotubes can be useful for providing much enhanced catalytic activities to chemical and electrochemical reactions (e.g., fuel cell reactions), and eliminate the need for tedious catalyst recovery process after the reaction is completed.

Toward End-to-End Face Recognition Through Alignment Learning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhong, Yuanyi; Chen, Jiansheng; Huang, Bo

2017-08-01

Plenty of effective methods have been proposed for face recognition during the past decade. Although these methods differ essentially in many aspects, a common practice of them is to specifically align the facial area based on the prior knowledge of human face structure before feature extraction. In most systems, the face alignment module is implemented independently. This has actually caused difficulties in the designing and training of end-to-end face recognition models. In this paper we study the possibility of alignment learning in end-to-end face recognition, in which neither prior knowledge on facial landmarks nor artificially defined geometric transformations are required. Specifically, spatial transformer layers are inserted in front of the feature extraction layers in a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) for face recognition. Only human identity clues are used for driving the neural network to automatically learn the most suitable geometric transformation and the most appropriate facial area for the recognition task. To ensure reproducibility, our model is trained purely on the publicly available CASIA-WebFace dataset, and is tested on the Labeled Face in the Wild (LFW) dataset. We have achieved a verification accuracy of 99.08\\% which is comparable to state-of-the-art single model based methods.

Model-based recognition of 3D articulated target using ladar range data.

PubMed

Lv, Dan; Sun, Jian-Feng; Li, Qi; Wang, Qi

2015-06-10

Ladar is suitable for 3D target recognition because ladar range images can provide rich 3D geometric surface information of targets. In this paper, we propose a part-based 3D model matching technique to recognize articulated ground military vehicles in ladar range images. The key of this approach is to solve the decomposition and pose estimation of articulated parts of targets. The articulated components were decomposed into isolate parts based on 3D geometric properties of targets, such as surface point normals, data histogram distribution, and data distance relationships. The corresponding poses of these separate parts were estimated through the linear characteristics of barrels. According to these pose parameters, all parts of the target were roughly aligned to 3D point cloud models in a library and fine matching was finally performed to accomplish 3D articulated target recognition. The recognition performance was evaluated with 1728 ladar range images of eight different articulated military vehicles with various part types and orientations. Experimental results demonstrated that the proposed approach achieved a high recognition rate.

Relating cell shape and mechanical stress in a spatially disordered epithelium using a vertex-based model

PubMed Central

Nestor-Bergmann, Alexander; Goddard, Georgina; Woolner, Sarah; Jensen, Oliver E

2018-01-01

Abstract Using a popular vertex-based model to describe a spatially disordered planar epithelial monolayer, we examine the relationship between cell shape and mechanical stress at the cell and tissue level. Deriving expressions for stress tensors starting from an energetic formulation of the model, we show that the principal axes of stress for an individual cell align with the principal axes of shape, and we determine the bulk effective tissue pressure when the monolayer is isotropic at the tissue level. Using simulations for a monolayer that is not under peripheral stress, we fit parameters of the model to experimental data for Xenopus embryonic tissue. The model predicts that mechanical interactions can generate mesoscopic patterns within the monolayer that exhibit long-range correlations in cell shape. The model also suggests that the orientation of mechanical and geometric cues for processes such as cell division are likely to be strongly correlated in real epithelia. Some limitations of the model in capturing geometric features of Xenopus epithelial cells are highlighted. PMID:28992197

Manipulating mammalian cell morphologies using chemical-mechanical polished integrated circuit chips

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Moussa, Hassan I.; Logan, Megan; Siow, Geoffrey C.; Phann, Darron L.; Rao, Zheng; Aucoin, Marc G.; Tsui, Ting Y.

2017-12-01

Tungsten chemical-mechanical polished integrated circuits were used to study the alignment and immobilization of mammalian (Vero) cells. These devices consist of blanket silicon oxide thin films embedded with micro- and nano-meter scale tungsten metal line structures on the surface. The final surfaces are extremely flat and smooth across the entire substrate, with a roughness in the order of nanometers. Vero cells were deposited on the surface and allowed to adhere. Microscopy examinations revealed that cells have a strong preference to adhere to tungsten over silicon oxide surfaces with up to 99% of cells adhering to the tungsten portion of the surface. Cells self-aligned and elongated into long threads to maximize contact with isolated tungsten lines as thin as 180 nm. The orientation of the Vero cells showed sensitivity to the tungsten line geometric parameters, such as line width and spacing. Up to 93% of cells on 10 μm wide comb structures were aligned within ± 20° of the metal line axis. In contrast, only 22% of cells incubated on 0.18 μm comb patterned tungsten lines were oriented within the same angular interval. This phenomenon is explained using a simple model describing cellular geometry as a function of pattern width and spacing, which showed that cells will rearrange their morphology to maximize their contact to the embedded tungsten. Finally, it was discovered that the materials could be reused after cleaning the surfaces, while maintaining cell alignment capability.

Manipulating mammalian cell morphologies using chemical-mechanical polished integrated circuit chips.

PubMed

Moussa, Hassan I; Logan, Megan; Siow, Geoffrey C; Phann, Darron L; Rao, Zheng; Aucoin, Marc G; Tsui, Ting Y

2017-01-01

Tungsten chemical-mechanical polished integrated circuits were used to study the alignment and immobilization of mammalian (Vero) cells. These devices consist of blanket silicon oxide thin films embedded with micro- and nano-meter scale tungsten metal line structures on the surface. The final surfaces are extremely flat and smooth across the entire substrate, with a roughness in the order of nanometers. Vero cells were deposited on the surface and allowed to adhere. Microscopy examinations revealed that cells have a strong preference to adhere to tungsten over silicon oxide surfaces with up to 99% of cells adhering to the tungsten portion of the surface. Cells self-aligned and elongated into long threads to maximize contact with isolated tungsten lines as thin as 180 nm. The orientation of the Vero cells showed sensitivity to the tungsten line geometric parameters, such as line width and spacing. Up to 93% of cells on 10 μm wide comb structures were aligned within ± 20° of the metal line axis. In contrast, only ~22% of cells incubated on 0.18 μm comb patterned tungsten lines were oriented within the same angular interval. This phenomenon is explained using a simple model describing cellular geometry as a function of pattern width and spacing, which showed that cells will rearrange their morphology to maximize their contact to the embedded tungsten. Finally, it was discovered that the materials could be reused after cleaning the surfaces, while maintaining cell alignment capability.

Manipulating mammalian cell morphologies using chemical-mechanical polished integrated circuit chips

PubMed Central

Moussa, Hassan I.; Logan, Megan; Siow, Geoffrey C.; Phann, Darron L.; Rao, Zheng; Aucoin, Marc G.; Tsui, Ting Y.

2017-01-01

Abstract Tungsten chemical-mechanical polished integrated circuits were used to study the alignment and immobilization of mammalian (Vero) cells. These devices consist of blanket silicon oxide thin films embedded with micro- and nano-meter scale tungsten metal line structures on the surface. The final surfaces are extremely flat and smooth across the entire substrate, with a roughness in the order of nanometers. Vero cells were deposited on the surface and allowed to adhere. Microscopy examinations revealed that cells have a strong preference to adhere to tungsten over silicon oxide surfaces with up to 99% of cells adhering to the tungsten portion of the surface. Cells self-aligned and elongated into long threads to maximize contact with isolated tungsten lines as thin as 180 nm. The orientation of the Vero cells showed sensitivity to the tungsten line geometric parameters, such as line width and spacing. Up to 93% of cells on 10 μm wide comb structures were aligned within ± 20° of the metal line axis. In contrast, only ~22% of cells incubated on 0.18 μm comb patterned tungsten lines were oriented within the same angular interval. This phenomenon is explained using a simple model describing cellular geometry as a function of pattern width and spacing, which showed that cells will rearrange their morphology to maximize their contact to the embedded tungsten. Finally, it was discovered that the materials could be reused after cleaning the surfaces, while maintaining cell alignment capability. PMID:29152017

Molded Magnetic Article

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bryant, Robert G. (Inventor); Namkung, Min (Inventor); Wincheski, Russell A. (Inventor); Fulton, James P. (Inventor); Fox, Robert L. (Inventor)

2000-01-01

A molded magnetic article and fabrication method are provided. Particles of ferromagnetic material embedded in a polymer binder are molded under heat and pressure into a geometric shape. Each particle is an oblate spheroid having a radius-to-thickness aspect ratio approximately in the range of 15-30. Each oblate spheroid has flattened poles that are substantially in perpendicular alignment to a direction of the molding pressure throughout the geometric shape.

Four years of Landsat-7 on-orbit geometric calibration and performance

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lee, D.S.; Storey, James C.; Choate, M.J.; Hayes, R.W.

2004-01-01

Unlike its predecessors, Landsat-7 has undergone regular geometric and radiometric performance monitoring and calibration since launch in April 1999. This ongoing activity, which includes issuing quarterly updates to calibration parameters, has generated a wealth of geometric performance data over the four-year on-orbit period of operations. A suite of geometric characterization (measurement and evaluation procedures) and calibration (procedures to derive improved estimates of instrument parameters) methods are employed by the Landsat-7 Image Assessment System to maintain the geometric calibration and to track specific aspects of geometric performance. These include geodetic accuracy, band-to-band registration accuracy, and image-to-image registration accuracy. These characterization and calibration activities maintain image product geometric accuracy at a high level - by monitoring performance to determine when calibration is necessary, generating new calibration parameters, and verifying that new parameters achieve desired improvements in accuracy. Landsat-7 continues to meet and exceed all geometric accuracy requirements, although aging components have begun to affect performance.

Comparative modeling without implicit sequence alignments.

PubMed

Kolinski, Andrzej; Gront, Dominik

2007-10-01

The number of known protein sequences is about thousand times larger than the number of experimentally solved 3D structures. For more than half of the protein sequences a close or distant structural analog could be identified. The key starting point in a classical comparative modeling is to generate the best possible sequence alignment with a template or templates. With decreasing sequence similarity, the number of errors in the alignments increases and these errors are the main causes of the decreasing accuracy of the molecular models generated. Here we propose a new approach to comparative modeling, which does not require the implicit alignment - the model building phase explores geometric, evolutionary and physical properties of a template (or templates). The proposed method requires prior identification of a template, although the initial sequence alignment is ignored. The model is built using a very efficient reduced representation search engine CABS to find the best possible superposition of the query protein onto the template represented as a 3D multi-featured scaffold. The criteria used include: sequence similarity, predicted secondary structure consistency, local geometric features and hydrophobicity profile. For more difficult cases, the new method qualitatively outperforms existing schemes of comparative modeling. The algorithm unifies de novo modeling, 3D threading and sequence-based methods. The main idea is general and could be easily combined with other efficient modeling tools as Rosetta, UNRES and others.

Modelling gamma-ray light curves of phase-aligned millisecond pulsars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chang, Shan; Zhang, Li; Li, Xiang; Jiang, Zejun

2018-04-01

Three gamma-ray millisecond pulsars (MSPs), PSR J1939+2134, PSR J1959+2048, and PSR J0034-0534, have been confirmed to have a common feature of phase-aligned in radio and gamma-ray bands. With a geometric (two-pole caustic) model and a physical outer gap model (revised 3D outer gap model) in a three dimensional (3D) retarded magnetic dipole with a perturbation magnetic field, the observed features of these MSPs are studied. In order to obtained the best-fitting model parameters, the Markov chain Monte Carlo technique is used and reasonable GeV band light curves for three MSPs are given. Our calculations indicate that MSPs emit high energy photons with smaller inclination angles (α ≈ 10°-50°), larger view angles (ζ ≈ 65°-100°), and smaller perturbation factor (ɛ ≈ -0.15-0.1). Note that the factor ɛ, describing the strength of the perturbed magnetic field, is all less than zero in these two models, so the magnetic field caused by current-induced play a leading role in the pulsed location of MSPs.

Modeling and Simulations on the Intramural Thermoelectric Generator of Lower-Re-fluid

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Zheng; Zheng, Ding; Chen, Yushan

The thermoelectric conversion with lower Renault number (Re) fluid, such as waste heat from industry boiler, and engine's circled cooling water, which can be designed as intramural generator structure. In this research, a thermoelectric project analysis model and the description of an intensified system are presented, its generator with the aligned or staggered platoon structure has strengthened heat-transfer property, and the heat convection coefficient ratio has increased times than plain tube; For the fluid kinetic energy's loss is influenced by the whirlpool, the pressure difference is several hundred Pa level which changes along with geometric parameters of transform components; what's more, heat transfer area increase distinctly under the same generator volume, which has built the foundation for the enhancement output electric power.

A geometric performance assessment of the EO-1 advanced land imager

USGS Publications Warehouse

Storey, James C.; Choate, M.J.; Meyer, D.J.

2004-01-01

The Earth Observing 1 (EO-1) Advanced Land Imager (ALI) demonstrates technology applicable to a successor system to the Landsat Thematic Mapper series. A study of the geometric performance characteristics of the ALI was conducted under the auspices of the EO-1 Science Validation Team. This study evaluated ALI performance with respect to absolute pointing knowledge, focal plane sensor chip assembly alignment, and band-to-band registration for purposes of comparing this new technology to the heritage Landsat systems. On-orbit geometric calibration procedures were developed that allowed the generation of ALI geometrically corrected products that compare favorably with their Landsat 7 counterparts with respect to absolute geodetic accuracy, internal image geometry, and band registration.

Accuracy Estimation and Parameter Advising for Protein Multiple Sequence Alignment

PubMed Central

DeBlasio, Dan

2013-01-01

Abstract We develop a novel and general approach to estimating the accuracy of multiple sequence alignments without knowledge of a reference alignment, and use our approach to address a new task that we call parameter advising: the problem of choosing values for alignment scoring function parameters from a given set of choices to maximize the accuracy of a computed alignment. For protein alignments, we consider twelve independent features that contribute to a quality alignment. An accuracy estimator is learned that is a polynomial function of these features; its coefficients are determined by minimizing its error with respect to true accuracy using mathematical optimization. Compared to prior approaches for estimating accuracy, our new approach (a) introduces novel feature functions that measure nonlocal properties of an alignment yet are fast to evaluate, (b) considers more general classes of estimators beyond linear combinations of features, and (c) develops new regression formulations for learning an estimator from examples; in addition, for parameter advising, we (d) determine the optimal parameter set of a given cardinality, which specifies the best parameter values from which to choose. Our estimator, which we call Facet (for “feature-based accuracy estimator”), yields a parameter advisor that on the hardest benchmarks provides more than a 27% improvement in accuracy over the best default parameter choice, and for parameter advising significantly outperforms the best prior approaches to assessing alignment quality. PMID:23489379

Design study of the geometry of the blanking tool to predict the burr formation of Zircaloy-4 sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ha, Jisun; Lee, Hyungyil; Kim, Dongchul; Kim, Naksoo

2013-12-01

In this work, we investigated factors that influence burr formation for zircaloy-4 sheet used for spacer grids of nuclear fuel roads. Factors we considered are geometric factors of punch. We changed clearance and velocity in order to consider the failure parameters, and we changed shearing angle and corner radius of L-shaped punch in order to consider geometric factors of punch. First, we carried out blanking test with failure parameter of GTN model using L-shaped punch. The tendency of failure parameters and geometric factors that affect burr formation by analyzing sheared edges is investigated. Consequently, geometric factor's influencing on the burr formation is also high as failure parameters. Then, the sheared edges and burr formation with failure parameters and geometric factors is investigated using FE analysis model. As a result of analyzing sheared edges with the variables, we checked geometric factors more affect burr formation than failure parameters. To check the reliability of the FE model, the blanking force and the sheared edges obtained from experiments are compared with the computations considering heat transfer.

Route towards cylindrical cloaking at visible frequencies using an optimization algorithm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rottler, Andreas; Krüger, Benjamin; Heitmann, Detlef; Pfannkuche, Daniela; Mendach, Stefan

2012-12-01

We derive a model based on the Maxwell-Garnett effective-medium theory that describes a cylindrical cloaking shell composed of metal rods which are radially aligned in a dielectric host medium. We propose and demonstrate a minimization algorithm that calculates for given material parameters the optimal geometrical parameters of the cloaking shell such that its effective optical parameters fit the best to the required permittivity distribution for cylindrical cloaking. By means of sophisticated full-wave simulations we find that a cylindrical cloak with good performance using silver as the metal can be designed with our algorithm for wavelengths in the red part of the visible spectrum (623nm <λ<773nm). We also present a full-wave simulation of such a cloak at an exemplary wavelength of λ=729nm (ℏω=1.7eV) which indicates that our model is useful to find design rules of cloaks with good cloaking performance. Our calculations investigate a structure that is easy to fabricate using standard preparation techniques and therefore pave the way to a realization of guiding light around an object at visible frequencies, thus rendering it invisible.

Optimization of design and operating parameters of a space-based optical-electronic system with a distributed aperture.

PubMed

Tcherniavski, Iouri; Kahrizi, Mojtaba

2008-11-20

Using a gradient optimization method with objective functions formulated in terms of a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) calculated at given values of the prescribed spatial ground resolution, optimization problems of geometrical parameters of a distributed optical system and a charge-coupled device of a space-based optical-electronic system are solved for samples of the optical systems consisting of two and three annular subapertures. The modulation transfer function (MTF) of the distributed aperture is expressed in terms of an average MTF taking residual image alignment (IA) and optical path difference (OPD) errors into account. The results show optimal solutions of the optimization problems depending on diverse variable parameters. The information on the magnitudes of the SNR can be used to determine the number of the subapertures and their sizes, while the information on the SNR decrease depending on the IA and OPD errors can be useful in design of a beam combination control system to produce the necessary requirements to its accuracy on the basis of the permissible deterioration in the image quality.

Design of geometric phase measurement in EAST Tokamak

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lan, T.; Institute of Plasma Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, Anhui 230031; Liu, H. Q., E-mail: hqliu@ipp.ac.cn

2016-07-15

The optimum scheme for geometric phase measurement in EAST Tokamak is proposed in this paper. The theoretical values of geometric phase for the probe beams of EAST Polarimeter-Interferometer (POINT) system are calculated by path integration in parameter space. Meanwhile, the influences of some controllable parameters on geometric phase are evaluated. The feasibility and challenge of distinguishing geometric effect in the POINT signal are also assessed in detail.

Aligned Immobilization of Proteins Using AC Electric Fields.

PubMed

Laux, Eva-Maria; Knigge, Xenia; Bier, Frank F; Wenger, Christian; Hölzel, Ralph

2016-03-01

Protein molecules are aligned and immobilized from solution by AC electric fields. In a single-step experiment, the enhanced green fluorescent proteins are immobilized on the surface as well as at the edges of planar nanoelectrodes. Alignment is found to follow the molecules' geometrical shape with their longitudinal axes parallel to the electric field. Simultaneous dielectrophoretic attraction and AC electroosmotic flow are identified as the dominant forces causing protein movement and alignment. Molecular orientation is determined by fluorescence microscopy based on polarized excitation of the proteins' chromophores. The chromophores' orientation with respect to the whole molecule supports X-ray crystal data. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Protein structure-structure alignment with discrete Fréchet distance.

PubMed

Jiang, Minghui; Xu, Ying; Zhu, Binhai

2008-02-01

Matching two geometric objects in two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) spaces is a central problem in computer vision, pattern recognition, and protein structure prediction. In particular, the problem of aligning two polygonal chains under translation and rotation to minimize their distance has been studied using various distance measures. It is well known that the Hausdorff distance is useful for matching two point sets, and that the Fréchet distance is a superior measure for matching two polygonal chains. The discrete Fréchet distance closely approximates the (continuous) Fréchet distance, and is a natural measure for the geometric similarity of the folded 3D structures of biomolecules such as proteins. In this paper, we present new algorithms for matching two polygonal chains in two dimensions to minimize their discrete Fréchet distance under translation and rotation, and an effective heuristic for matching two polygonal chains in three dimensions. We also describe our empirical results on the application of the discrete Fréchet distance to protein structure-structure alignment.

PSO-based methods for medical image registration and change assessment of pigmented skin

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kacenjar, Steve; Zook, Matthew; Balint, Michael

2011-03-01

There are various scientific and technological areas in which it is imperative to rapidly detect and quantify changes in imagery over time. In fields such as earth remote sensing, aerospace systems, and medical imaging, searching for timedependent, regional changes across deformable topographies is complicated by varying camera acquisition geometries, lighting environments, background clutter conditions, and occlusion. Under these constantly-fluctuating conditions, the use of standard, rigid-body registration approaches often fail to provide sufficient fidelity to overlay image scenes together. This is problematic because incorrect assessments of the underlying changes of high-level topography can result in systematic errors in the quantification and classification of interested areas. For example, in the current naked-eye detection strategies of melanoma, a dermatologist often uses static morphological attributes to identify suspicious skin lesions for biopsy. This approach does not incorporate temporal changes which suggest malignant degeneration. By performing the co-registration of time-separated skin imagery, a dermatologist may more effectively detect and identify early morphological changes in pigmented lesions; enabling the physician to detect cancers at an earlier stage resulting in decreased morbidity and mortality. This paper describes an image processing system which will be used to detect changes in the characteristics of skin lesions over time. The proposed system consists of three main functional elements: 1.) coarse alignment of timesequenced imagery, 2.) refined alignment of local skin topographies, and 3.) assessment of local changes in lesion size. During the coarse alignment process, various approaches can be used to obtain a rough alignment, including: 1.) a manual landmark/intensity-based registration method1, and 2.) several flavors of autonomous optical matched filter methods2. These procedures result in the rough alignment of a patient's back topography. Since the skin is a deformable membrane, this process only provides an initial condition for subsequent refinements in aligning the localized topography of the skin. To achieve a refined enhancement, a Particle Swarm Optimizer (PSO) is used to optimally determine the local camera models associated with a generalized geometric transform. Here the optimization process is driven using the minimization of entropy between the multiple time-separated images. Once the camera models are corrected for local skin deformations, the images are compared using both pixel-based and regional-based methods. Limits on the detectability of change are established by the fidelity to which the algorithm corrects for local skin deformation and background alterations. These limits provide essential information in establishing early-warning thresholds for Melanoma detection. Key to this work is the development of a PSO alignment algorithm to perform the refined alignment in local skin topography between the time sequenced imagery (TSI). Test and validation of this alignment process is achieved using a forward model producing known geometric artifacts in the images and afterwards using a PSO algorithm to demonstrate the ability to identify and correct for these artifacts. Specifically, the forward model introduces local translational, rotational, and magnification changes within the image. These geometric modifiers are expected during TSI acquisition because of logistical issues to precisely align the patient to the image recording geometry and is therefore of paramount importance to any viable image registration system. This paper shows that the PSO alignment algorithm is effective in autonomously determining and mitigating these geometric modifiers. The degree of efficacy is measured by several statistically and morphologically based pre-image filtering operations applied to the TSI imagery before applying the PSO alignment algorithm. These trade studies show that global image threshold binarization provides rapid and superior convergence characteristics relative to that of morphologically based methods.

Dynamo Catalogue: Geometrical tools and data management for particle picking in subtomogram averaging of cryo-electron tomograms.

PubMed

Castaño-Díez, Daniel; Kudryashev, Mikhail; Stahlberg, Henning

2017-02-01

Cryo electron tomography allows macromolecular complexes within vitrified, intact, thin cells or sections thereof to be visualized, and structural analysis to be performed in situ by averaging over multiple copies of the same molecules. Image processing for subtomogram averaging is specific and cumbersome, due to the large amount of data and its three dimensional nature and anisotropic resolution. Here, we streamline data processing for subtomogram averaging by introducing an archiving system, Dynamo Catalogue. This system manages tomographic data from multiple tomograms and allows visual feedback during all processing steps, including particle picking, extraction, alignment and classification. The file structure of a processing project file structure includes logfiles of performed operations, and can be backed up and shared between users. Command line commands, database queries and a set of GUIs give the user versatile control over the process. Here, we introduce a set of geometric tools that streamline particle picking from simple (filaments, spheres, tubes, vesicles) and complex geometries (arbitrary 2D surfaces, rare instances on proteins with geometric restrictions, and 2D and 3D crystals). Advanced functionality, such as manual alignment and subboxing, is useful when initial templates are generated for alignment and for project customization. Dynamo Catalogue is part of the open source package Dynamo and includes tools to ensure format compatibility with the subtomogram averaging functionalities of other packages, such as Jsubtomo, PyTom, PEET, EMAN2, XMIPP and Relion. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier Inc.

Landsat-8 Operational Land Imager (OLI) radiometric performance on-orbit

USGS Publications Warehouse

Morfitt, Ron; Barsi, Julia A.; Levy, Raviv; Markham, Brian L.; Micijevic, Esad; Ong, Lawrence; Scaramuzza, Pat; Vanderwerff, Kelly

2015-01-01

Expectations of the Operational Land Imager (OLI) radiometric performance onboard Landsat-8 have been met or exceeded. The calibration activities that occurred prior to launch provided calibration parameters that enabled ground processing to produce imagery that met most requirements when data were transmitted to the ground. Since launch, calibration updates have improved the image quality even more, so that all requirements are met. These updates range from detector gain coefficients to reduce striping and banding to alignment parameters to improve the geometric accuracy. This paper concentrates on the on-orbit radiometric performance of the OLI, excepting the radiometric calibration performance. Topics discussed in this paper include: signal-to-noise ratios that are an order of magnitude higher than previous Landsat missions; radiometric uniformity that shows little residual banding and striping, and continues to improve; a dynamic range that limits saturation to extremely high radiance levels; extremely stable detectors; slight nonlinearity that is corrected in ground processing; detectors that are stable and 100% operable; and few image artifacts.

Stability estimate for the aligned magnetic field in a periodic quantum waveguide from Dirichlet-to-Neumann map

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Mejri, Youssef, E-mail: josef-bizert@hotmail.fr; Dép. des Mathématiques, Faculté des Sciences de Bizerte, 7021 Jarzouna; Laboratoire de Modélisation Mathématique et Numérique dans les Sciences de l’Ingénieur, ENIT BP 37, Le Belvedere, 1002 Tunis

In this article, we study the boundary inverse problem of determining the aligned magnetic field appearing in the magnetic Schrödinger equation in a periodic quantum cylindrical waveguide, by knowledge of the Dirichlet-to-Neumann map. We prove a Hölder stability estimate with respect to the Dirichlet-to-Neumann map, by means of the geometrical optics solutions of the magnetic Schrödinger equation.

Progress in linear optics, non-linear optics and surface alignment of liquid crystals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ong, H. L.; Meyer, R. B.; Hurd, A. J.; Karn, A. J.; Arakelian, S. M.; Shen, Y. R.; Sanda, P. N.; Dove, D. B.; Jansen, S. A.; Hoffmann, R.

We first discuss the progress in linear optics, in particular, the formulation and application of geometrical-optics approximation and its generalization. We then discuss the progress in non-linear optics, in particular, the enhancement of a first-order Freedericksz transition and intrinsic optical bistability in homeotropic and parallel oriented nematic liquid crystal cells. Finally, we discuss the liquid crystal alignment and surface effects on field-induced Freedericksz transition.

LAMBADA and InflateGRO2: efficient membrane alignment and insertion of membrane proteins for molecular dynamics simulations.

PubMed

Schmidt, Thomas H; Kandt, Christian

2012-10-22

At the beginning of each molecular dynamics membrane simulation stands the generation of a suitable starting structure which includes the working steps of aligning membrane and protein and seamlessly accommodating the protein in the membrane. Here we introduce two efficient and complementary methods based on pre-equilibrated membrane patches, automating these steps. Using a voxel-based cast of the coarse-grained protein, LAMBADA computes a hydrophilicity profile-derived scoring function based on which the optimal rotation and translation operations are determined to align protein and membrane. Employing an entirely geometrical approach, LAMBADA is independent from any precalculated data and aligns even large membrane proteins within minutes on a regular workstation. LAMBADA is the first tool performing the entire alignment process automatically while providing the user with the explicit 3D coordinates of the aligned protein and membrane. The second tool is an extension of the InflateGRO method addressing the shortcomings of its predecessor in a fully automated workflow. Determining the exact number of overlapping lipids based on the area occupied by the protein and restricting expansion, compression and energy minimization steps to a subset of relevant lipids through automatically calculated and system-optimized operation parameters, InflateGRO2 yields optimal lipid packing and reduces lipid vacuum exposure to a minimum preserving as much of the equilibrated membrane structure as possible. Applicable to atomistic and coarse grain structures in MARTINI format, InflateGRO2 offers high accuracy, fast performance, and increased application flexibility permitting the easy preparation of systems exhibiting heterogeneous lipid composition as well as embedding proteins into multiple membranes. Both tools can be used separately, in combination with other methods, or in tandem permitting a fully automated workflow while retaining a maximum level of usage control and flexibility. To assess the performance of both methods, we carried out test runs using 22 membrane proteins of different size and transmembrane structure.

FEAST: sensitive local alignment with multiple rates of evolution.

PubMed

Hudek, Alexander K; Brown, Daniel G

2011-01-01

We present a pairwise local aligner, FEAST, which uses two new techniques: a sensitive extension algorithm for identifying homologous subsequences, and a descriptive probabilistic alignment model. We also present a new procedure for training alignment parameters and apply it to the human and mouse genomes, producing a better parameter set for these sequences. Our extension algorithm identifies homologous subsequences by considering all evolutionary histories. It has higher maximum sensitivity than Viterbi extensions, and better balances specificity. We model alignments with several submodels, each with unique statistical properties, describing strongly similar and weakly similar regions of homologous DNA. Training parameters using two submodels produces superior alignments, even when we align with only the parameters from the weaker submodel. Our extension algorithm combined with our new parameter set achieves sensitivity 0.59 on synthetic tests. In contrast, LASTZ with default settings achieves sensitivity 0.35 with the same false positive rate. Using the weak submodel as parameters for LASTZ increases its sensitivity to 0.59 with high error. FEAST is available at http://monod.uwaterloo.ca/feast/.

Small-Scale Surf Zone Geometric Roughness

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-12-01

and an image of the tie points can be seen (Figure 6). 23 Figure 6. Screen Shot of Alignment Process On the left side is the workspace which...rest of the points, producing the 3D surface. 24 Figure 7. Screen Shot of Dense Cloud Process On the left side is the workspace which...maximum 200 words) Measurements of small-scale (O(mm)) geometric roughness (kf) associated with breaking wave foam were obtained within the surf zone on

Shear induced alignment of short nanofibers in 3D printed polymer composites.

PubMed

Yunus, Doruk Erdem; Shi, Wentao; Sohrabi, Salman; Liu, Yaling

2016-12-09

3D printing of composite materials offers an opportunity to combine the desired properties of composite materials with the flexibility of additive manufacturing in geometric shape and complexity. In this paper, the shear-induced alignment of aluminum oxide nanowires during stereolithography printing was utilized to fabricate a nanowire reinforced polymer composite. To align the fibers, a lateral oscillation mechanism was implemented and combined with wall pattern printing technique to generate shear flow in both vertical and horizontal directions. A series of specimens were fabricated for testing the composite material's tensile strength. The results showed that mechanical properties of the composite were improved by reinforcement of nanofibers through shear induced alignment. The improvement of tensile strength was approximately ∼28% by aligning the nanowires at 5 wt% (∼1.5% volume fraction) loading of aluminum oxide nanowires.

Cultivation mode research of practical application talents for optical engineering major

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Zhiying

2017-08-01

The requirements on science and technology graduates are more and higher with modern science progress and society market economy development. Because optical engineering major is with very long practicality, practice should be paid more attention from analysis of optical engineering major and students' foundation. To play role of practice to a large amount, the practice need be systemic and correlation. It should be combination of foundation and profundity. Modern foundation professional knowledge is studied with traditional optical concept and technology at the same time. Systemic regularity and correlation should be embodied in the contents. Start from basic geometrical optics concept, the optical parameter of optical instrument is analyzed, the optical module is built and ray tracing is completed during geometrical optics practice. With foundation of primary aberration calculation, the optical system is further designed and evaluated during optical design practice course. With the optical model and given instrument functions and requirements, the optical-mechanism is matched. The accuracy is calculated, analyzed and distributed in every motion segment. And the mechanism should guarantee the alignment and adjustment. The optical mechanism is designed during the instrument and element design practice. When the optical and mechanism drawings are completed, the system is ready to be fabricated. Students can complete grinding, polishing and coating process by themselves through optical fabricating practice. With the optical and mechanical elements, the system can be assembled and aligned during the thesis practice. With a set of correlated and logical practices, the students can acquire the whole process knowledge about optical instrument. All details are contained in every practice process. These practical experiences provide students working ability. They do not need much adaption anymore when they go to work after graduation. It is favorable to both student talents and employer.

A direct method for computing extreme value (Gumbel) parameters for gapped biological sequence alignments.

PubMed

Quinn, Terrance; Sinkala, Zachariah

2014-01-01

We develop a general method for computing extreme value distribution (Gumbel, 1958) parameters for gapped alignments. Our approach uses mixture distribution theory to obtain associated BLOSUM matrices for gapped alignments, which in turn are used for determining significance of gapped alignment scores for pairs of biological sequences. We compare our results with parameters already obtained in the literature.

Correlation between preoperative spinopelvic alignment and risk of proximal junctional kyphosis after posterior-only surgical correction of Scheuermann kyphosis.

PubMed

Nasto, Luigi A; Perez-Romera, Ana Belen; Shalabi, Saggah Tarek; Quraishi, Nasir A; Mehdian, Hossein

2016-04-01

Surgical correction of Scheuermann kyphosis (SK) is challenging and plagued by relatively high rates of proximal junctional kyphosis and failure (PJK and PJF). Normal sagittal alignment of the spine is determined by pelvic geometric parameters. How these parameters correlate with the risk of developing PJK in SK is not known. The study aimed to investigate the relationship between preoperative and postoperative spinopelvic alignment and occurrence of PJK and PJF. This is a retrospective observational cohort study. The sample included 37 patients who underwent posterior correction of SK from January 2006 to December 2012. The outcome measure was correlation analysis between preoperative and postoperative spinopelvic alignment parameters and the development of PJK over the course of the study period. Whole spine x-rays obtained before surgery, 3 months after surgery, and at the latest follow-up were analyzed. The following parameters were measured: thoracic kyphosis (TK), lumbar lordosis (LL), sagittal vertical axis (SVA), pelvic incidence (PI), pelvic tilt (PT), and sacral slope (SS). The development of PJK was considered the primary end point of the study. Patient population was split into a control and a PJK group; repeated-measures analysis of variance was used to assess group and time differences. Seven patients developed PJK over the study period. Although the severity of the preoperative deformity (TK) did not differ significantly between the two groups, preoperative PI was significantly higher in the PJK group (51.9°C±8.6°C vs. 42.7°C±8.8°C, p=.018). Postoperative correction of TK was similar between the two groups (39.3% and 41.2%, p=.678) and final LL did not differ as well (53.6°C±9.2°C vs. 51.3°C±11.5°C). However, because PJK patients had larger preoperative PI values, a significant deficit of LL was observed at final follow-up in this group compared with the control group (ΔLL -10.5°C±9.8°C vs. 0.6°C±10.5°C, p=.013). Scheuermann kyphosis patients who developed PJK appeared to have a significant postoperative deficit of LL (lumbopelvic mismatch). Lumbar lordosis decreases after surgery following correction of TK; therefore, TK correction should be planned according to preoperative PI values to avoid excessive reduction of LL in patients with higher PI values. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Exploiting Auto-Collimation for Real-Time Onboard Monitoring of Space Optical Camera Geometric Parameters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, W.; Wang, H.; Liu, D.; Miu, Y.

2018-05-01

Precise geometric parameters are essential to ensure the positioning accuracy for space optical cameras. However, state-of-the-art onorbit calibration method inevitably suffers from long update cycle and poor timeliness performance. To this end, in this paper we exploit the optical auto-collimation principle and propose a real-time onboard calibration scheme for monitoring key geometric parameters. Specifically, in the proposed scheme, auto-collimation devices are first designed by installing collimated light sources, area-array CCDs, and prisms inside the satellite payload system. Through utilizing those devices, the changes in the geometric parameters are elegantly converted into changes in the spot image positions. The variation of geometric parameters can be derived via extracting and processing the spot images. An experimental platform is then set up to verify the feasibility and analyze the precision index of the proposed scheme. The experiment results demonstrate that it is feasible to apply the optical auto-collimation principle for real-time onboard monitoring.

Geometrical appearance and spatial arrangement of structural blocks of the Malan loess in NW China: implications for the formation of loess columns

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Yanrong; Zhang, Tao; Zhang, Yongbo; Xu, Qiang

2018-06-01

Loess, as one of the main Quaternary deposits, covers approximately 6% of the land surface of the Earth. Although loess is loose and fragile, loess columns are popular and they can stand stably for hundreds of years, thereby forming a spectacular landform. The formation of such special column-shaped soil structures is puzzling, and the underlying fundamentals remain unclear. The present study focuses on quantifying and examining the geometrical shape and spatial alignment of structural blocks of the Malan loess at different locations in the Loess Plateau of China. The structural blocks under investigation include clay- and silt-sized particles, aggregates, fragments, lumps, and columns, which vary in size from microns to tens of meters. Regardless of their size, the structural blocks of the Malan loess are found to be similar in shape, i.e., elongated with a length-to-width ratio of approximately 2.6. The aggregates, fragments, lumps, columns, and macropores between aggregates exhibit strong concentration in the vertical or subvertical alignment. These phenomena imply that the Malan loess is anisotropic and it is composed of a combination of vertically aligned strong units and vertically aligned weak segments. Based on this, "vertiloess" structure is proposed to denote this combination. The vertiloess structure prevents horizontal erosion, but favors spalling, peeling, toppling, falling and cracking-sliding of vertical loess pieces, thereby forming loess columns.

Three-Dimensional Evolution of Flux-Rope CMEs and Its Relation to the Local Orientation of the Heliospheric Current Sheet

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Isavnin, A.; Vourlidas, A.; Kilpua, E. K. J.

2014-06-01

Flux ropes ejected from the Sun may change their geometrical orientation during their evolution, which directly affects their geoeffectiveness. Therefore, it is crucial to understand how solar flux ropes evolve in the heliosphere to improve our space-weather forecasting tools. We present a follow-up study of the concepts described by Isavnin, Vourlidas, and Kilpua ( Solar Phys. 284, 203, 2013). We analyze 14 coronal mass ejections (CMEs), with clear flux-rope signatures, observed during the decay of Solar Cycle 23 and rise of Solar Cycle 24. First, we estimate initial orientations of the flux ropes at the origin using extreme-ultraviolet observations of post-eruption arcades and/or eruptive prominences. Then we reconstruct multi-viewpoint coronagraph observations of the CMEs from ≈ 2 to 30 R⊙ with a three-dimensional geometric representation of a flux rope to determine their geometrical parameters. Finally, we propagate the flux ropes from ≈ 30 R⊙ to 1 AU through MHD-simulated background solar wind while using in-situ measurements at 1 AU of the associated magnetic cloud as a constraint for the propagation technique. This methodology allows us to estimate the flux-rope orientation all the way from the Sun to 1 AU. We find that while the flux-ropes' deflection occurs predominantly below 30 R⊙, a significant amount of deflection and rotation happens between 30 R⊙ and 1 AU. We compare the flux-rope orientation to the local orientation of the heliospheric current sheet (HCS). We find that slow flux ropes tend to align with the streams of slow solar wind in the inner heliosphere. During the solar-cycle minimum the slow solar-wind channel as well as the HCS usually occupy the area in the vicinity of the solar equatorial plane, which in the past led researchers to the hypothesis that flux ropes align with the HCS. Our results show that exceptions from this rule are explained by interaction with the Parker-spiraled background magnetic field, which dominates over the magnetic interaction with the HCS in the inner heliosphere at least during solar-minimum conditions.

A three-dimensional microelectrode array composed of vertically aligned ultra-dense carbon nanotube networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nick, C.; Yadav, S.; Joshi, R.; Schneider, J. J.; Thielemann, C.

2015-07-01

Electrodes based on carbon nanotubes are a promising approach to manufacture highly sensitive sensors with a low limit of signal detection and a high signal-to-noise ratio. This is achieved by dramatically increasing the electrochemical active surface area without increasing the overall geometrical dimensions. Typically, carbon nanotube electrodes are nearly planar and composed of randomly distributed carbon nanotube networks having a limited surface gain for a specific geometrical surface area. To overcome this limitation, we have introduced vertically aligned carbon nanotube (VACNT) networks as electrodes, which are arranged in a microelectrode pattern of 60 single electrodes. Each microelectrode features a very high aspect ratio of more than 300 and thus a dramatically increased surface area. These microelectrodes composed of VACNT networks display dramatically decreased impedance over the entire frequency range compared to planar microelectrodes caused by the enormous capacity increase. This is experimentally verified by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry.

Interband emission energy in a dilute nitride quaternary semiconductor quantum dot for longer wavelength applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mageshwari, P. Uma; Peter, A. John; Lee, Chang Woo; Duque, C. A.

2016-07-01

Excitonic properties are studied in a strained Ga1-xInxNyAs1-y/GaAs cylindrical quantum dot. The optimum condition for the desired band alignment for emitting wavelength 1.55 μm is investigated using band anticrossing model and the model solid theory. The band gap and the band discontinuities of a Ga1-xInxNyAs1-y/GaAs quantum dot on GaAs are computed with the geometrical confinement effect. The binding energy of the exciton, the oscillator strength and its radiative life time for the optimum condition are found taking into account the spatial confinement effect. The effects of geometrical confinement and the nitrogen incorporation on the interband emission energy are brought out. The result shows that the desired band alignment for emitting wavelength 1.55 μm is achieved for the inclusion of alloy contents, y=0.0554% and x=0.339% in Ga1-xInxNyAs1-y/GaAs quantum dot. And the incorporation of nitrogen and indium shows the red-shift and the geometrical confinement shows the blue-shift. And it can be applied for fibre optical communication networks.

Relative impact of uniaxial alignment vs. form-induced stress on differentiation of human adipose derived stem cells

PubMed Central

Huang, Samuel; Li, Julie Yi-Shuan; Chien, Shu; Zhang, Kang; Chen, Shaochen

2013-01-01

ADSCs are a great cell source for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. However, the development of methods to appropriately manipulate these cells in vitro remains a challenge. Here the proliferation and differentiation of ADSCs on microfabricated surfaces with varying geometries were investigated. To create the patterned substrates, a maskless biofabrication method was developed based on dynamic optical projection stereolithography. Proliferation and early differentiation of ADSCs were compared across three distinct multicellular patterns, namely stripes (ST), symmetric fork (SF), and asymmetric fork (AF). The ST pattern was designed for uniaxial cell alignment while the SF and AF pattern were designed with altered cell directionality to different extents. The SF and AF patterns generated similar levels of regional peak stress, which were both significantly higher than those within the ST pattern. No significant difference in ADSC proliferation was observed among the three patterns. In comparison to the ST pattern, higher peak stress levels of the SF and AF patterns were associated with up-regulation of the chondrogenic and osteogenic markers SOX9 and RUNX2. Interestingly, uniaxial cell alignment in the ST pattern seemed to increase the expression of SM22α and smooth muscle α-actin, suggesting an early smooth muscle lineage progression. These results indicate that geometric cues that promote uniaxial alignment might be more potent for myogenesis than those with increased peak stress. Overall, the use of these patterned geometric cues for modulating cell alignment and form-induced stress can serve as a powerful and versatile technique towards controlling differentiation in ADSCs. PMID:24060419

A Wafer-Bonded, Floating Element Shear-Stress Sensor Using a Geometric Moire Optical Transduction Technique

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Horowitz, Stephen; Chen, Tai-An; Chandrasekaran, Venkataraman; Tedjojuwono, Ken; Cattafesta, Louis; Nishida, Toshikazu; Sheplak, Mark

2004-01-01

This paper presents a geometric Moir optical-based floating-element shear stress sensor for wind tunnel turbulence measurements. The sensor was fabricated using an aligned wafer-bond/thin-back process producing optical gratings on the backside of a floating element and on the top surface of the support wafer. Measured results indicate a static sensitivity of 0.26 microns/Pa, a resonant frequency of 1.7 kHz, and a noise floor of 6.2 mPa/(square root)Hz.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Barnes, Jason W.; Linscott, Ethan; Shporer, Avi, E-mail: jwbarnes@uidaho.edu

We model the asymmetry of the KOI-13.01 transit lightcurve assuming a gravity-darkened rapidly rotating host star in order to constrain the system's spin-orbit alignment and transit parameters. We find that our model can reproduce the Kepler lightcurve for KOI-13.01 with a sky-projected alignment of {lambda} = 23 Degree-Sign {+-} 4 Degree-Sign and with the star's north pole tilted away from the observer by 48 Degree-Sign {+-} 4 Degree-Sign (assuming M{sub *} = 2.05 M{sub Sun }). With both these determinations, we calculate that the net misalignment between this planet's orbit normal and its star's rotational pole is 56 Degree-Sign {+-}more » 4 Degree-Sign . Degeneracies in our geometric interpretation also allow a retrograde spin-orbit angle of 124 Degree-Sign {+-} 4 Degree-Sign . This is the first spin-orbit measurement to come from gravity darkening and is one of only a few measurements of the full (not just the sky-projected) spin-orbit misalignment of an extrasolar planet. We also measure accurate transit parameters incorporating stellar oblateness and gravity darkening: R{sub *} 1.756 {+-} 0.014 R{sub Sun }, R{sub p} = 1.445 {+-} 0.016 R{sub Jup}, and i = 85.{sup 0}9 {+-} 0.{sup 0}4. The new lower planetary radius falls within the planetary mass regime for plausible interior models for the transiting body. A simple initial calculation shows that KOI-13.01's circular orbit is apparently inconsistent with the Kozai mechanism having driven its spin-orbit misalignment; planet-planet scattering and stellar spin migration remain viable mechanisms. Future Kepler data will improve the precision of the KOI-13.01 transit lightcurve, allowing more precise determination of transit parameters and the opportunity to use the Photometric Rossiter-McLaughlin effect to resolve the prograde/retrograde orbit determination degeneracy.« less

Towards a complete Δ(27) × SO(10) GUT of flavour

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Björkeroth, Fredrik

2017-09-01

We propose a renormalisable model based on Δ(27) family symmetry with an SO(10) grand unified theory (GUT) leading to a novel form of spontaneous geometrical CP violation. The symmetries are broken close to the GUT breaking scale to yield the minimal supersymmetric standard model with standard R-parity. Low-scale Yukawa structure is dictated by the coupling of matter to Δ(27) antitriplets \\bar φ whose vacuum expectation values are aligned in the CSD3 directions by the superpotential. Light physical Majorana neutrinos masses emerge from the seesaw mechanism within SO(10). The model predicts a normal neutrino mass hierarchy with the best-fit lightest neutrino mass m 1 ∼ 0.3 meV, CP-violating oscillation phase δl ≈ 280° and the remaining neutrino parameters all within 1σ of their best-fit experimental values.

Breadboard stellar tracker system test report

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kollodge, J. C.; Parrish, K. A.

1984-01-01

BASD has, in the past, developed several unique position tracking algorithms for charge transfer device (CTD) sensors. These algorithms provide an interpixel transfer function with the following characteristics: (1) high linearity; (2) simplified track logic; (3) high gain; and (4) high noise rejection. A previous test program using the GE charge injection device (CID) showed that accuracy for BASD's breadboard was limited to approximately 2% of a pixel (1 sigma) whereas analysis and simulation indicated the limit should be less than 0.5% of a pixel, assuming the limit to be detector response and dark current noise. The test program was conducted under NASA contract No. NAS8-34263. The test approach for that program did not provide sufficient data to identify the sources of error and left open the amount of contribution from parameters such as image distribution, geometric distortion and system alignment errors.

Reconstruction of the spatial dependence of dielectric and geometrical properties of adhesively bonded structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mackay, C.; Hayward, D.; Mulholland, A. J.; McKee, S.; Pethrick, R. A.

2005-06-01

An inverse problem motivated by the nondestructive testing of adhesively bonded structures used in the aircraft industry is studied. Using transmission line theory, a model is developed which, when supplied with electrical and geometrical parameters, accurately predicts the reflection coefficient associated with such structures. Particular attention is paid to modelling the connection between the structures and the equipment used to measure the reflection coefficient. The inverse problem is then studied and an optimization approach employed to recover these electrical and geometrical parameters from experimentally obtained data. In particular the approach focuses on the recovery of spatially varying geometrical parameters as this is paramount to the successful reconstruction of electrical parameters. Reconstructions of structure geometry using this method are found to be in close agreement with experimental observations.

Finite element analysis of the Wolf Creek multispan curved girder bridge.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2008-01-01

The use of curved girder bridges in highway construction has grown steadily during the last 40 years. Today, roughly 25% of newly constructed bridges have a curved alignment. Curved girder bridges have numerous complicating geometric features that di...

An information geometric approach to least squares minimization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Transtrum, Mark; Machta, Benjamin; Sethna, James

2009-03-01

Parameter estimation by nonlinear least squares minimization is a ubiquitous problem that has an elegant geometric interpretation: all possible parameter values induce a manifold embedded within the space of data. The minimization problem is then to find the point on the manifold closest to the origin. The standard algorithm for minimizing sums of squares, the Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm, also has geometric meaning. When the standard algorithm fails to efficiently find accurate fits to the data, geometric considerations suggest improvements. Problems involving large numbers of parameters, such as often arise in biological contexts, are notoriously difficult. We suggest an algorithm based on geodesic motion that may offer improvements over the standard algorithm for a certain class of problems.

A method for cone fitting based on certain sampling strategy in CMM metrology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Li; Guo, Chaopeng

2018-04-01

A method of cone fitting in engineering is explored and implemented to overcome shortcomings of current fitting method. In the current method, the calculations of the initial geometric parameters are imprecise which cause poor accuracy in surface fitting. A geometric distance function of cone is constructed firstly, then certain sampling strategy is defined to calculate the initial geometric parameters, afterwards nonlinear least-squares method is used to fit the surface. The experiment is designed to verify accuracy of the method. The experiment data prove that the proposed method can get initial geometric parameters simply and efficiently, also fit the surface precisely, and provide a new accurate way to cone fitting in the coordinate measurement.

Development and presentation of a roadway and roadside design course : final report, December 2009.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2009-12-01

The overall goal of this course is to provide training in the elements of geometric highway : design. Specific course objectives are: : To review the geometry of horizontal and vertical alignment including simple circular : curves, compound curve...

A Micromachined Geometric Moire Interferometric Floating-Element Shear Stress Sensor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Horowitz, S.; Chen, T.; Chandrasekaran, V.; Tedjojuwono, K.; Nishida, T.; Cattafesta, L.; Sheplak, M.

2004-01-01

This paper presents the development of a floating-element shear stress sensor that permits the direct measurement of skin friction based on geometric Moir interferometry. The sensor was fabricated using an aligned wafer-bond/thin-back process producing optical gratings on the backside of a floating element and on the top surface of the support wafer. Experimental characterization indicates a static sensitivity of 0.26 microns/Pa, a resonant frequency of 1.7 kHz, and a noise floor of 6.2 mPa/(square root)Hz.

Changes in male foot shape and size with weightbearing.

PubMed

Houston, Vern L; Luo, Gangming; Mason, Carl P; Mussman, Martin; Garbarini, Maryanne; Beattie, Aaron C

2006-01-01

Accurate, consistent measurement of foot-ankle geometry is essential for the design and manufacture of well-fitting, functional, comfortable footwear; for the diagnosis of certain biomechanical disorders; and for consistent longitudinal monitoring and assessment of pedorthic treatment outcomes. We sought to formulate a basic set of measures characterizing the principal geometric dimensions of the foot, to investigate how these measures vary with increasing weightbearing, and to explore the implications of weightbearing changes in pedal geometry for orthopedic footwear design and manufacture. The right feet of 40 healthy men aged 22 to 71 years were scanned using the Department of Veterans Affairs Pedorthics Optical Digitizer in neutral alignment, sequentially bearing 0%, 10%, 25%, 50%, and 100% of the subjects' body weight. With support of the full body weight, the following mean changes in the pedal parameters were observed: heel-to-toe length, 1.5%; ball width, 4.3%; maximum heel width, 4.8%; and instep height, -9.3%. On average, 71% of the changes sustained in the pedal parameters at full weightbearing occurred when, or before, 25% of the body weight was applied.

Cardiac risk index as a simple geometric indicator to select patients for the heart-sparing radiotherapy of left-sided breast cancer.

PubMed

Sung, KiHoon; Choi, Young Eun; Lee, Kyu Chan

2017-06-01

This is a dosimetric study to identify a simple geometric indicator to discriminate patients who meet the selection criterion for heart-sparing radiotherapy (RT). The authors proposed a cardiac risk index (CRI), directly measurable from the CT images at the time of scanning. Treatment plans were regenerated using the CT data of 312 consecutive patients with left-sided breast cancer. Dosimetric analysis was performed to estimate the risk of cardiac mortality using cardiac dosimetric parameters, such as the relative heart volumes receiving ≥25 Gy (heart V 25 ). For each CT data set, in-field heart depth (HD) and in-field heart width (HW) were measured to generate the geometric parameters, including maximum HW (HW max ) and maximum HD (HD max ). Seven geometric parameters were evaluated as candidates for CRI. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses were used to examine the overall discriminatory power of the geometric parameters to select high-risk patients (heart V 25  ≥ 10%). Seventy-one high-risk (22.8%) and 241 low-risk patients (77.2%) were identified by dosimetric analysis. The geometric and dosimetric parameters were significantly higher in the high-risk group. Heart V 25 showed the strong positive correlations with all geometric parameters examined (r > 0.8, p < 0.001). The product of HD max and HW max (CRI) revealed the largest area under the curve (AUC) value (0.969) and maintained 100% sensitivity and 88% specificity at the optimal cut-off value of 14.58 cm 2 . Cardiac risk index proposed as a simple geometric indicator to select high-risk patients provides useful guidance for clinicians considering optimal implementation of heart-sparing RT. © 2016 The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Radiologists.

Angular and Intensity Dependent Spectral Modulations in High Harmonics from N2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McFarland, Brian; Farrell, Joseph; Bucksbaum, Philip; Guehr, Markus

2009-05-01

The spectral amplitude and phase modulation of high harmonics (HHG) in molecules provides important clues to molecular structure and dynamics in strong laser fields. We have studied these effects in aligned N2. Earlier results of HHG experiments claimed that the spectral amplitude modulation was predominantly due to geometrical interference between the recombining electron and the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) [1]. We report evidence that contradicts this simple view. We observe a phase jump accompanied by a spectral minimum for HHG in aligned N2. The minimum shifts to lower harmonics as the angle between the molecular axis and harmonic generation polarization increases, and shifts to higher harmonics with increasing harmonic generation intensity. The features observed cannot be fully explained by a geometrical model. We discuss alternative explanations involving multi orbital effects [2]. [0pt] [1] Lein et al., Phys. Rev. A, 66, 023805 (2002) [2] B. K. McFarland, J. P. Farrell, P. H. Bucksbaum and M. Gühr, Science 322, 1232 (2008)

The registration of non-cooperative moving targets laser point cloud in different view point

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Shuai; Sun, Huayan; Guo, Huichao

2018-01-01

Non-cooperative moving target multi-view cloud registration is the key technology of 3D reconstruction of laser threedimension imaging. The main problem is that the density changes greatly and noise exists under different acquisition conditions of point cloud. In this paper, firstly, the feature descriptor is used to find the most similar point cloud, and then based on the registration algorithm of region segmentation, the geometric structure of the point is extracted by the geometric similarity between point and point, The point cloud is divided into regions based on spectral clustering, feature descriptors are created for each region, searching to find the most similar regions in the most similar point of view cloud, and then aligning the pair of point clouds by aligning their minimum bounding boxes. Repeat the above steps again until registration of all point clouds is completed. Experiments show that this method is insensitive to the density of point clouds and performs well on the noise of laser three-dimension imaging.

Simple microfluidic stagnation point flow geometries

PubMed Central

Dockx, Greet; Verwijlen, Tom; Sempels, Wouter; Nagel, Mathias; Moldenaers, Paula; Hofkens, Johan; Vermant, Jan

2016-01-01

A geometrically simple flow cell is proposed to generate different types of stagnation flows, using a separation flow and small variations of the geometric parameters. Flows with high local deformation rates can be changed from purely rotational, over simple shear flow, to extensional flow in a region surrounding a stagnation point. Computational fluid dynamic calculations are used to analyse how variations of the geometrical parameters affect the flow field. These numerical calculations are compared to the experimentally obtained streamlines of different designs, which have been determined by high speed confocal microscopy. As the flow type is dictated predominantly by the geometrical parameters, such simple separating flow devices may alleviate the requirements for flow control, while offering good stability for a wide variety of flow types. PMID:27462382

Adaptive Local Realignment of Protein Sequences.

PubMed

DeBlasio, Dan; Kececioglu, John

2018-06-11

While mutation rates can vary markedly over the residues of a protein, multiple sequence alignment tools typically use the same values for their scoring-function parameters across a protein's entire length. We present a new approach, called adaptive local realignment, that in contrast automatically adapts to the diversity of mutation rates along protein sequences. This builds upon a recent technique known as parameter advising, which finds global parameter settings for an aligner, to now adaptively find local settings. Our approach in essence identifies local regions with low estimated accuracy, constructs a set of candidate realignments using a carefully-chosen collection of parameter settings, and replaces the region if a realignment has higher estimated accuracy. This new method of local parameter advising, when combined with prior methods for global advising, boosts alignment accuracy as much as 26% over the best default setting on hard-to-align protein benchmarks, and by 6.4% over global advising alone. Adaptive local realignment has been implemented within the Opal aligner using the Facet accuracy estimator.

Effect of nanowire curviness on the percolation resistivity of transparent, conductive metal nanowire networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hicks, Jeremy; Li, Junying; Ying, Chen; Ural, Ant

2018-05-01

We study the effect of nanowire curviness on the percolation resistivity of transparent, conductive metal nanowire networks by Monte Carlo simulations. We generate curvy nanowires as one-dimensional sticks using 3rd-order Bézier curves. The degree of curviness in the network is quantified by the concept of curviness angle and curl ratio. We systematically study the interaction between the effect of curviness and five other nanowire/device parameters on the network resistivity, namely nanowire density, nanowire length, device length, device width, and nanowire alignment. We find that the resistivity exhibits a power law dependence on the curl ratio, which is a signature of percolation transport. In each case, we extract the power-law scaling critical exponents and explain the results using geometrical and physical arguments. The value of the curl ratio critical exponent is not universal, but increases as the other nanowire/device parameters drive the network toward the percolation threshold. We find that, for randomly oriented networks, curviness is undesirable since it increases the resistivity. For well-aligned networks, on the other hand, some curviness is highly desirable, since the resistivity minimum occurs for partially curvy nanowires. We explain these results by considering the two competing effects of curviness on the percolation resistivity. The results presented in this work can be extended to any network, film, or nanocomposite consisting of one-dimensional nanoelements. Our results show that Monte Carlo simulations are an essential predictive tool for both studying the percolation transport and optimizing the electronic properties of transparent, conductive nanowire networks for a wide range of applications.

Fluid signatures of rotational discontinuities at Earth's magnetopause

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Scudder, J. D.

1983-01-01

Fluid signatures in the MHD approximation at rotational discontinuities (RD) of finite width called rotational shear layers (RSL) are examined for general flow and magnetic geometries. Analytical and geometrical arguments illustrate that the fluid speed can either go up or down across an RSL for a fixed normal mass flux. The speed profile may or may not be monotonic depending on the boundary conditions. The flow velocity may or may not be field aligned or ""jetting'' as a result of traversing the RSL. In general, significant ""convection'' is expected in the layer. The observable signatures of (MHD) RSL's depend on 7 (boundary condition) parameters are (1) the mass density, (2 to 5) the incident normal and transverse components of the magnetic field and fluid velocity, (6) the angle epsilon between the incident tangential flow velocity and tangential magnetic field, and (7) the size of the magnetic angular rotation implemented by the layer delta phi.

Equilibrium state of a cylindrical particle with flat ends in nematic liquid crystals.

PubMed

Hashemi, S Masoomeh; Ejtehadi, Mohammad Reza

2015-01-01

A continuum theory is employed to numerically study the equilibrium orientation and defect structures of a circular cylindrical particle with flat ends under a homeotropic anchoring condition in a uniform nematic medium. Different aspect ratios of this colloidal geometry from thin discotic to long rodlike shapes and several colloidal length scales ranging from mesoscale to nanoscale are investigated. We show that the equilibrium state of this colloidal geometry is sensitive to the two geometrical parameters: aspect ratio and length scale of the particle. For a large enough mesoscopic particle, there is a specific asymptotic equilibrium angle associated to each aspect ratio. Upon reducing the particle size to nanoscale, the equilibrium angle follows a descending or ascending trend in such a way that the equilibrium angle of a particle with the aspect ratio bigger than 1:1 (a discotic particle) goes to a parallel alignment with respect to the far-field nematic, whereas the equilibrium angle for a particle with the aspect ratio 1:1 and smaller (a rodlike particle) tends toward a perpendicular alignment to the uniform nematic direction. The discrepancy between the equilibrium angles of the mesoscopic and nanoscopic particles originates from the significant differences between their defect structures. The possible defect structures related to mesoscopic and nanoscopic colloidal particles of this geometry are also introduced.

Slit-Slat Collimator Equipped Gamma Camera for Whole-Mouse SPECT-CT Imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cao, Liji; Peter, Jörg

2012-06-01

A slit-slat collimator is developed for a gamma camera intended for small-animal imaging (mice). The tungsten housing of a roof-shaped collimator forms a slit opening, and the slats are made of lead foils separated by sparse polyurethane material. Alignment of the collimator with the camera's pixelated crystal is performed by adjusting a micrometer screw while monitoring a Co-57 point source for maximum signal intensity. For SPECT, the collimator forms a cylindrical field-of-view enabling whole mouse imaging with transaxial magnification and constant on-axis sensitivity over the entire axial direction. As the gamma camera is part of a multimodal imaging system incorporating also x-ray CT, five parameters corresponding to the geometric displacements of the collimator as well as to the mechanical co-alignment between the gamma camera and the CT subsystem are estimated by means of bimodal calibration sources. To illustrate the performance of the slit-slat collimator and to compare its performance to a single pinhole collimator, a Derenzo phantom study is performed. Transaxial resolution along the entire long axis is comparable to a pinhole collimator of same pinhole diameter. Axial resolution of the slit-slat collimator is comparable to that of a parallel beam collimator. Additionally, data from an in-vivo mouse study are presented.

The Influence of Parameters on the Generatrix of the Helicoid Form Guide of Geokhod Bar Working Body

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aksenov, Vladimir; Sadovets, Vladimir; Pashkov, Dmitriy

2017-11-01

Influence of geometrical parameters of generatrix of helicoid on a guide of geokhod bar working body is proved in article. The relevance of the conducted research is considered and proved. General characteristics of the geokhod are presented. Features of geokhod working body, in particular formation of irregular shape of a surface of a face and working body are formulated and also it is told that at screw movement of geokhod working body of a face, points of working body will be formed a helicoid (screw) surface of a face. For establishing of die goals and objectives of research general geometrical parameters of generatrix is marked and justified which treat length of generatrix, width of generatrix of helicoid. pitch of hehcoid and it's form. Forms of guides of geokhod bar working body based on basis parameters of geokhod and accepted general geometrical parameters of geokhod working body are received and presented. In virtue of the conducted research the dependence of a form of a guide of bar on general geometrical parameters of helicoid is defined and also basis parameters of hehcoid in influencing a form of guide of working body.

An efficient direct method for image registration of flat objects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nikolaev, Dmitry; Tihonkih, Dmitrii; Makovetskii, Artyom; Voronin, Sergei

2017-09-01

Image alignment of rigid surfaces is a rapidly developing area of research and has many practical applications. Alignment methods can be roughly divided into two types: feature-based methods and direct methods. Known SURF and SIFT algorithms are examples of the feature-based methods. Direct methods refer to those that exploit the pixel intensities without resorting to image features and image-based deformations are general direct method to align images of deformable objects in 3D space. Nevertheless, it is not good for the registration of images of 3D rigid objects since the underlying structure cannot be directly evaluated. In the article, we propose a model that is suitable for image alignment of rigid flat objects under various illumination models. The brightness consistency assumptions used for reconstruction of optimal geometrical transformation. Computer simulation results are provided to illustrate the performance of the proposed algorithm for computing of an accordance between pixels of two images.

Constraints on axion inflation from the weak gravity conjecture

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Rudelius, Tom, E-mail: rudelius@physics.harvard.edu

2015-09-01

We derive constraints facing models of axion inflation based on decay constant alignment from a string-theoretic and quantum gravitational perspective. In particular, we investigate the prospects for alignment and 'anti-alignment' of C{sub 4} axion decay constants in type IIB string theory, deriving a strict no-go result in the latter case. We discuss the relationship of axion decay constants to the weak gravity conjecture and demonstrate agreement between our string-theoretic constraints and those coming from the 'generalized' weak gravity conjecture. Finally, we consider a particular model of decay constant alignment in which the potential of C{sub 4} axions in type IIBmore » compactifications on a Calabi-Yau three-fold is dominated by contributions from D7-branes, pointing out that this model evades some of the challenges derived earlier in our paper but is highly constrained by other geometric considerations.« less

3D Geometric Analysis of the Pediatric Aorta in 3D MRA Follow-Up Images with Application to Aortic Coarctation.

PubMed

Wörz, Stefan; Schenk, Jens-Peter; Alrajab, Abdulsattar; von Tengg-Kobligk, Hendrik; Rohr, Karl; Arnold, Raoul

2016-10-17

Coarctation of the aorta is one of the most common congenital heart diseases. Despite different treatment opportunities, long-term outcome after surgical or interventional therapy is diverse. Serial morphologic follow-up of vessel growth is necessary, because vessel growth cannot be predicted by primer morphology or a therapeutic option. For the analysis of the long-term outcome after therapy of congenital diseases such as aortic coarctation, accurate 3D geometric analysis of the aorta from follow-up 3D medical image data such as magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) is important. However, for an objective, fast, and accurate 3D geometric analysis, an automatic approach for 3D segmentation and quantification of the aorta from pediatric images is required. We introduce a new model-based approach for the segmentation of the thoracic aorta and its main branches from follow-up pediatric 3D MRA image data. For robust segmentation of vessels even in difficult cases (e.g., neighboring structures), we propose a new extended parametric cylinder model that requires only relatively few model parameters. Moreover, we include a novel adaptive background-masking scheme used for least-squares model fitting, we use a spatial normalization scheme to align the segmentation results from follow-up examinations, and we determine relevant 3D geometric parameters of the aortic arch. We have evaluated our proposed approach using different 3D synthetic images. Moreover, we have successfully applied the approach to follow-up pediatric 3D MRA image data, we have normalized the 3D segmentation results of follow-up images of individual patients, and we have combined the results of all patients. We also present a quantitative evaluation of our approach for four follow-up 3D MRA images of a patient, which confirms that our approach yields accurate 3D segmentation results. An experimental comparison with two previous approaches demonstrates that our approach yields superior results. From the results, we found that our approach is well suited for the quantification of the 3D geometry of the aortic arch from follow-up pediatric 3D MRA image data. In future work, this will enable to investigate the long-term outcome of different surgical and interventional therapies for aortic coarctation.

Perceptual Calibration for Immersive Display Environments

PubMed Central

Ponto, Kevin; Gleicher, Michael; Radwin, Robert G.; Shin, Hyun Joon

2013-01-01

The perception of objects, depth, and distance has been repeatedly shown to be divergent between virtual and physical environments. We hypothesize that many of these discrepancies stem from incorrect geometric viewing parameters, specifically that physical measurements of eye position are insufficiently precise to provide proper viewing parameters. In this paper, we introduce a perceptual calibration procedure derived from geometric models. While most research has used geometric models to predict perceptual errors, we instead use these models inversely to determine perceptually correct viewing parameters. We study the advantages of these new psychophysically determined viewing parameters compared to the commonly used measured viewing parameters in an experiment with 20 subjects. The perceptually calibrated viewing parameters for the subjects generally produced new virtual eye positions that were wider and deeper than standard practices would estimate. Our study shows that perceptually calibrated viewing parameters can significantly improve depth acuity, distance estimation, and the perception of shape. PMID:23428454

A distributed system for fast alignment of next-generation sequencing data.

PubMed

Srimani, Jaydeep K; Wu, Po-Yen; Phan, John H; Wang, May D

2010-12-01

We developed a scalable distributed computing system using the Berkeley Open Interface for Network Computing (BOINC) to align next-generation sequencing (NGS) data quickly and accurately. NGS technology is emerging as a promising platform for gene expression analysis due to its high sensitivity compared to traditional genomic microarray technology. However, despite the benefits, NGS datasets can be prohibitively large, requiring significant computing resources to obtain sequence alignment results. Moreover, as the data and alignment algorithms become more prevalent, it will become necessary to examine the effect of the multitude of alignment parameters on various NGS systems. We validate the distributed software system by (1) computing simple timing results to show the speed-up gained by using multiple computers, (2) optimizing alignment parameters using simulated NGS data, and (3) computing NGS expression levels for a single biological sample using optimal parameters and comparing these expression levels to that of a microarray sample. Results indicate that the distributed alignment system achieves approximately a linear speed-up and correctly distributes sequence data to and gathers alignment results from multiple compute clients.

Sensitivity of tire response to variations in material and geometric parameters

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Noor, Ahmed K.; Tanner, John A.; Peters, Jeanne M.

1992-01-01

A computational procedure is presented for evaluating the analytic sensitivity derivatives of the tire response with respect to material and geometric parameters of the tire. The tire is modeled by using a two-dimensional laminated anisotropic shell theory with the effects of variation in material and geometric parameters included. The computational procedure is applied to the case of uniform inflation pressure on the Space Shuttle nose-gear tire when subjected to uniform inflation pressure. Numerical results are presented showing the sensitivity of the different response quantities to variations in the material characteristics of both the cord and the rubber.

Fuzzy adaptive strong tracking scaled unscented Kalman filter for initial alignment of large misalignment angles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Jing; Song, Ningfang; Yang, Gongliu; Jiang, Rui

2016-07-01

In the initial alignment process of strapdown inertial navigation system (SINS), large misalignment angles always bring nonlinear problem, which can usually be processed using the scaled unscented Kalman filter (SUKF). In this paper, the problem of large misalignment angles in SINS alignment is further investigated, and the strong tracking scaled unscented Kalman filter (STSUKF) is proposed with fixed parameters to improve convergence speed, while these parameters are artificially constructed and uncertain in real application. To further improve the alignment stability and reduce the parameters selection, this paper proposes a fuzzy adaptive strategy combined with STSUKF (FUZZY-STSUKF). As a result, initial alignment scheme of large misalignment angles based on FUZZY-STSUKF is designed and verified by simulations and turntable experiment. The results show that the scheme improves the accuracy and convergence speed of SINS initial alignment compared with those based on SUKF and STSUKF.

Nonequilibrium Synthesis of Highly Porous Single-Crystalline Oxide Nanostructures

DOE PAGES

Lee, Dongkyu; Gao, Xiang; Fan, Lisha; ...

2017-01-20

A novel synthesis route to the formation of vertically aligned single–crystalline oxide nanostructures is found by precisely controlling the nonequilibrium pulsed laser deposition process. Here, the columnar nanostructures with deep crevices offering a large surface area are generated owing to the diffusion limited geometric shadowing effect.

Early functional outcome after lateral UKA is sensitive to postoperative lower limb alignment.

PubMed

van der List, J P; Chawla, H; Villa, J C; Zuiderbaan, H A; Pearle, A D

2017-03-01

The predictive role of patient-specific characteristics and radiographic parameters on medial unicompartmental knee arthroplasty (UKA) outcomes is well known, but knowledge of these predictors is lacking in lateral UKA. Therefore, purpose of this study was to assess the predictive role of these parameters on short-term functional outcomes of lateral UKA. In this retrospective cohort study, Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Arthritis Index scores were collected at 2-year follow-up (median 2.2 years, range 2.0-4.0 years) in 39 patients who underwent lateral UKA. Patient-specific characteristics included age, BMI and gender, while radiographic parameters included osteoarthritis severity of all three compartments and both preoperative and postoperative hip-knee-ankle alignment. BMI, gender, age and preoperative valgus alignment were not correlated with functional outcomes, while postoperative valgus alignment was correlated with functional outcomes (0.561; p = 0.001). Postoperative valgus of 3°-7° was correlated with better outcomes than more neutral (-2° to 3° valgus) alignment (96.7 vs. 85.6; p = 0.011). Postoperative alignment was a predictor when corrected for patient-specific characteristics (regression coefficient 4.1; p < 0.001) and radiological parameters (regression coefficient 3.8; p = 0.002). Postoperative valgus alignment of 3°-7° was correlated with the best short-term functional outcomes in lateral UKA surgery, while patient-specific parameters and preoperative alignment were not correlated with functional outcomes. Based on these findings, a surgeon should aim for valgus alignment of 3°-7° when performing lateral UKA surgery for optimal functional outcomes. Prognostic study, Level II.

Determination of calibration parameters of a VRX CT system using an “Amoeba” algorithm

PubMed Central

Jordan, Lawrence M.; DiBianca, Frank A.; Melnyk, Roman; Choudhary, Apoorva; Shukla, Hemant; Laughter, Joseph; Gaber, M. Waleed

2008-01-01

Efforts to improve the spatial resolution of CT scanners have focused mainly on reducing the source and detector element sizes, ignoring losses from the size of the secondary-ionization charge “clouds” created by the detected x-ray photons, i.e., the “physics limit.” This paper focuses on implementing a technique called “projective compression.” which allows further reduction in effective cell size while overcoming the physics limit as well. Projective compression signifies detector geometries in which the apparent cell size is smaller than the physical cell size, allowing large resolution boosts. A realization of this technique has been developed with a dual-arm “variable-resolution x-ray” (VRX) detector. Accurate values of the geometrical parameters are needed to convert VRX outputs to formats ready for optimal image reconstruction by standard CT techniques. The required calibrating data are obtained by scanning a rotating pin and fitting a theoretical parametric curve (using a multi-parameter minimization algorithm) to the resulting pin sinogram. Excellent fits are obtained for both detector-arm sections with an average (maximum) fit deviation of ~0.05 (0.1) detector cell width. Fit convergence and sensitivity to starting conditions are considered. Pre- and post-optimization reconstructions of the alignment pin and a biological subject reconstruction after calibration are shown. PMID:19430581

Determination of calibration parameters of a VRX CT system using an "Amoeba" algorithm.

PubMed

Jordan, Lawrence M; Dibianca, Frank A; Melnyk, Roman; Choudhary, Apoorva; Shukla, Hemant; Laughter, Joseph; Gaber, M Waleed

2004-01-01

Efforts to improve the spatial resolution of CT scanners have focused mainly on reducing the source and detector element sizes, ignoring losses from the size of the secondary-ionization charge "clouds" created by the detected x-ray photons, i.e., the "physics limit." This paper focuses on implementing a technique called "projective compression." which allows further reduction in effective cell size while overcoming the physics limit as well. Projective compression signifies detector geometries in which the apparent cell size is smaller than the physical cell size, allowing large resolution boosts. A realization of this technique has been developed with a dual-arm "variable-resolution x-ray" (VRX) detector. Accurate values of the geometrical parameters are needed to convert VRX outputs to formats ready for optimal image reconstruction by standard CT techniques. The required calibrating data are obtained by scanning a rotating pin and fitting a theoretical parametric curve (using a multi-parameter minimization algorithm) to the resulting pin sinogram. Excellent fits are obtained for both detector-arm sections with an average (maximum) fit deviation of ~0.05 (0.1) detector cell width. Fit convergence and sensitivity to starting conditions are considered. Pre- and post-optimization reconstructions of the alignment pin and a biological subject reconstruction after calibration are shown.

Exciton Fine-Structure Splitting in Self-Assembled Lateral InAs/GaAs Quantum-Dot Molecular Structures.

PubMed

Fillipov, Stanislav; Puttisong, Yuttapoom; Huang, Yuqing; Buyanova, Irina A; Suraprapapich, Suwaree; Tu, Charles W; Chen, Weimin M

2015-06-23

Fine-structure splitting (FSS) of excitons in semiconductor nanostructures is a key parameter that has significant implications in photon entanglement and polarization conversion between electron spins and photons, relevant to quantum information technology and spintronics. Here, we investigate exciton FSS in self-organized lateral InAs/GaAs quantum-dot molecular structures (QMSs) including laterally aligned double quantum dots (DQDs), quantum-dot clusters (QCs), and quantum rings (QRs), by employing polarization-resolved microphotoluminescence (μPL) spectroscopy. We find a clear trend in FSS between the studied QMSs depending on their geometric arrangements, from a large FSS in the DQDs to a smaller FSS in the QCs and QRs. This trend is accompanied by a corresponding difference in the optical polarization directions of the excitons between these QMSs, namely, the bright-exciton lines are linearly polarized preferably along or perpendicular to the [11̅0] crystallographic axis in the DQDs that also defines the alignment direction of the two constituting QDs, whereas in the QCs and QRs, the polarization directions are randomly oriented. We attribute the observed trend in the FSS to a significant reduction of the asymmetry in the lateral confinement potential of the excitons in the QRs and QCs as compared with the DQDs, as a result of a compensation between the effects of lateral shape anisotropy and piezoelectric field. Our work demonstrates that FSS strongly depends on the geometric arrangements of the QMSs, which effectively tune the degree of the compensation effects and are capable of reducing FSS even in a strained QD system to a limit similar to strain-free QDs. This approach provides a pathway in obtaining high-symmetry quantum emitters desirable for realizing photon entanglement and spintronic devices based on such nanostructures, utilizing an uninterrupted epitaxial growth procedure without special requirements for lattice-matched materials combinations, specific substrate orientations, and nanolithography.

Development and applications of retro-reflective surfaces for ultrasound in LBE

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

NONE

The Belgian Nuclear Research Centre SCK-CEN is in the process of developing MYRRHA - a fast flux research reactor to replace the aging BR2. MYRRHA is conceptualized as an accelerator driven system cooled by lead bismuth eutectic mixture (LBE). As LBE is opaque to visual light, ultrasonic measurement techniques are employed as the main technology to provide feedback to submerged operations when needed. Conceptually, MYRRHA is a pool type reactor divided in a cold lower plenum and hot upper plenum separated by a diaphragm that forces the main flow through the core. The main flow is cooled by four heatmore » exchangers and driven by two liquid metal pumps. One of the tasks tackled using ultrasound is locating a potentially lost fuel assembly to assist a recovery operation. As all fuel manipulations in MYRRHA are performed in the lower plenum, a potentially lost fuel assembly is located in the lower plenum. Buoyancy will force the lost fuel assembly to float against the diaphragm unless it is still partially inserted in the core. Because of the latter situation, an ultrasonic scan localizing the fuel assembly should be performed from a large distance to avoid a collision with such a partially inserted fuel assembly. Unfortunately, standard machined stainless steel objects, such as a fuel assembly, reflect an ultrasonic pulse in a specular way which induces stringent requirements on the alignment of the ultrasonic sensor with respect to the fuel assembly as we cannot rely on diffuse reflections and/or scattering of the ultrasonic pulse. Moreover, increasing the distance also increases geometric spreading and absorption of the pulse weakening the signal amplitude even faster to noise levels when deviating from perfect alignment. An alternative approach consists in relying on reflections from the known surroundings: a lost fuel assembly will block the line-of-sight to the diaphragm resulting in an anomaly in the reflection - either a shorter than expected time-of-flight of the pulse or a complete absence of a reflection like a shadow. In that way, it suffices to align the sensor with the diaphragm instead of the fuel assembly which is much easier to achieve as the robotics on which the sensor is mounted move parallel with the diaphragm. The alignment requirement in the latter approach can be further relaxed by using a tiling of retro-reflectors on the lower surface of the diaphragm. In that way, alignment becomes less vital and the main source of acoustic energy loss - geometric spread of the beam - is almost completely removed, leaving only absorption losses. In this paper, we present the first results in developing a retro reflectance surface for ultrasound in LBE. We present experimental results for different designs of retro-reflectors in both water and LBE. We discuss both linear and array retro-reflectors of different sizes and investigate the influence of the main relevant ultrasonic parameters such as wavelength and spot size on the strength of the received reflection under different alignment angles. We also demonstrate how retro-reflective surfaces can be exploited when localizing objects using linear and rotating scanning methods. (authors)« less

Calculation and experimental determination of the geometric parameters of the coatings by laser cladding

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Birukov, V. P.; Fichkov, A. A.

2017-12-01

In the present work the experiments on laser cladding of powder Fe-B-Cr-6-2 on samples of steel 20. Metallographic studies of geometric parameters of deposited layers and the depth of the heat affected zone (HAZ). Using is the method of full factorial experiment (FFE) mathematical dependences of the geometrical sizes of the deposited layers of processing modes. Deviation of calculated values from experimental data is not more than 3%.

Manifold alignment with Schroedinger eigenmaps

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Johnson, Juan E.; Bachmann, Charles M.; Cahill, Nathan D.

2016-05-01

The sun-target-sensor angle can change during aerial remote sensing. In an attempt to compensate BRDF effects in multi-angular hyperspectral images, the Semi-Supervised Manifold Alignment (SSMA) algorithm pulls data from similar classes together and pushes data from different classes apart. SSMA uses Laplacian Eigenmaps (LE) to preserve the original geometric structure of each local data set independently. In this paper, we replace LE with Spatial-Spectral Schoedinger Eigenmaps (SSSE) which was designed to be a semisupervised enhancement to the to extend the SSMA methodology and improve classification of multi-angular hyperspectral images captured over Hog Island in the Virginia Coast Reserve.

Null test fourier domain alignment technique for phase-shifting point diffraction interferometer

DOEpatents

Naulleau, Patrick; Goldberg, Kenneth Alan

2000-01-01

Alignment technique for calibrating a phase-shifting point diffraction interferometer involves three independent steps where the first two steps independently align the image points and pinholes in rotation and separation to a fixed reference coordinate system, e.g, CCD. Once the two sub-elements have been properly aligned to the reference in two parameters (separation and orientation), the third step is to align the two sub-element coordinate systems to each other in the two remaining parameters (x,y) using standard methods of locating the pinholes relative to some easy to find reference point.

Static internal performance of single-expansion-ramp nozzles with various combinations of internal geometric parameters

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Re, R. J.; Leavitt, L. D.

1984-01-01

The effects of five geometric design parameters on the internal performance of single-expansion-ramp nozzles were investigated at nozzle pressure ratios up to 10 in the static-test facility of the Langley 16-Foot Transonic Tunnel. The geometric variables on the expansion-ramp surface of the upper flap consisted of ramp chordal angle, ramp length, and initial ramp angle. On the lower flap, the geometric variables consisted of flap angle and flap length. Both internal performance and static-pressure distributions on the centerlines of the upper and lower flaps were obtained for all 43 nozzle configurations tested.

Effect of atelectasis changes on tissue mass and dose during lung radiotherapy.

PubMed

Guy, Christopher L; Weiss, Elisabeth; Jan, Nuzhat; Reshko, Leonid B; Christensen, Gary E; Hugo, Geoffrey D

2016-11-01

To characterize mass and density changes of lung parenchyma in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients following midtreatment resolution of atelectasis and to quantify the impact this large geometric change has on normal tissue dose. Baseline and midtreatment CT images and contours were obtained for 18 NSCLC patients with atelectasis. Patients were classified based on atelectasis volume reduction between the two scans as having either full, partial, or no resolution. Relative mass and density changes from baseline to midtreatment were calculated based on voxel intensity and volume for each lung lobe. Patients also had clinical treatment plans available which were used to assess changes in normal tissue dose constraints from baseline to midtreatment. The midtreatment image was rigidly aligned with the baseline scan in two ways: (1) bony anatomy and (2) carina. Treatment parameters (beam apertures, weights, angles, monitor units, etc.) were transferred to each image. Then, dose was recalculated. Typical IMRT dose constraints were evaluated on all images, and the changes from baseline to each midtreatment image were investigated. Atelectatic lobes experienced mean (stdev) mass changes of -2.8% (36.6%), -24.4% (33.0%), and -9.2% (17.5%) and density changes of -66.0% (6.4%), -25.6% (13.6%), and -17.0% (21.1%) for full, partial, and no resolution, respectively. Means (stdev) of dose changes to spinal cord D max , esophagus D mean , and lungs D mean were 0.67 (2.99), 0.99 (2.69), and 0.50 Gy (2.05 Gy), respectively, for bone alignment and 0.14 (1.80), 0.77 (2.95), and 0.06 Gy (1.71 Gy) for carina alignment. Dose increases with bone alignment up to 10.93, 7.92, and 5.69 Gy were found for maximum spinal cord, mean esophagus, and mean lung doses, respectively, with carina alignment yielding similar values. 44% and 22% of patients had at least one metric change by at least 5 Gy (dose metrics) or 5% (volume metrics) for bone and carina alignments, respectively. Investigation of GTV coverage showed mean (stdev) changes in V Rx , D max , and D min of -5.5% (13.5%), 2.5% (4.2%), and 0.8% (8.9%), respectively, for bone alignment with similar results for carina alignment. Resolution of atelectasis caused mass and density decreases, on average, and introduced substantial changes in normal tissue dose metrics in a subset of the patient cohort.

Effect of atelectasis changes on tissue mass and dose during lung radiotherapy

PubMed Central

Guy, Christopher L.; Weiss, Elisabeth; Jan, Nuzhat; Reshko, Leonid B.; Christensen, Gary E.; Hugo, Geoffrey D.

2016-01-01

Purpose: To characterize mass and density changes of lung parenchyma in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients following midtreatment resolution of atelectasis and to quantify the impact this large geometric change has on normal tissue dose. Methods: Baseline and midtreatment CT images and contours were obtained for 18 NSCLC patients with atelectasis. Patients were classified based on atelectasis volume reduction between the two scans as having either full, partial, or no resolution. Relative mass and density changes from baseline to midtreatment were calculated based on voxel intensity and volume for each lung lobe. Patients also had clinical treatment plans available which were used to assess changes in normal tissue dose constraints from baseline to midtreatment. The midtreatment image was rigidly aligned with the baseline scan in two ways: (1) bony anatomy and (2) carina. Treatment parameters (beam apertures, weights, angles, monitor units, etc.) were transferred to each image. Then, dose was recalculated. Typical IMRT dose constraints were evaluated on all images, and the changes from baseline to each midtreatment image were investigated. Results: Atelectatic lobes experienced mean (stdev) mass changes of −2.8% (36.6%), −24.4% (33.0%), and −9.2% (17.5%) and density changes of −66.0% (6.4%), −25.6% (13.6%), and −17.0% (21.1%) for full, partial, and no resolution, respectively. Means (stdev) of dose changes to spinal cord Dmax, esophagus Dmean, and lungs Dmean were 0.67 (2.99), 0.99 (2.69), and 0.50 Gy (2.05 Gy), respectively, for bone alignment and 0.14 (1.80), 0.77 (2.95), and 0.06 Gy (1.71 Gy) for carina alignment. Dose increases with bone alignment up to 10.93, 7.92, and 5.69 Gy were found for maximum spinal cord, mean esophagus, and mean lung doses, respectively, with carina alignment yielding similar values. 44% and 22% of patients had at least one metric change by at least 5 Gy (dose metrics) or 5% (volume metrics) for bone and carina alignments, respectively. Investigation of GTV coverage showed mean (stdev) changes in VRx, Dmax, and Dmin of −5.5% (13.5%), 2.5% (4.2%), and 0.8% (8.9%), respectively, for bone alignment with similar results for carina alignment. Conclusions: Resolution of atelectasis caused mass and density decreases, on average, and introduced substantial changes in normal tissue dose metrics in a subset of the patient cohort. PMID:27806593

Online geometric calibration of cone-beam computed tomography for arbitrary imaging objects.

PubMed

Meng, Yuanzheng; Gong, Hui; Yang, Xiaoquan

2013-02-01

A novel online method based on the symmetry property of the sum of projections (SOP) is proposed to obtain the geometric parameters in cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT). This method requires no calibration phantom and can be used in circular trajectory CBCT with arbitrary cone angles. An objective function is deduced to illustrate the dependence of the symmetry of SOP on geometric parameters, which will converge to its minimum when the geometric parameters achieve their true values. Thus, by minimizing the objective function, we can obtain the geometric parameters for image reconstruction. To validate this method, numerical phantom studies with different noise levels are simulated. The results show that our method is insensitive to the noise and can determine the skew (in-plane rotation angle of the detector), the roll (rotation angle around the projection of the rotation axis on the detector), and the rotation axis with high accuracy, while the mid-plane and source-to-detector distance will be obtained with slightly lower accuracy. However, our simulation studies validate that the errors of the latter two parameters brought by our method will hardly degrade the quality of reconstructed images. The small animal studies show that our method is able to deal with arbitrary imaging objects. In addition, the results of the reconstructed images in different slices demonstrate that we have achieved comparable image quality in the reconstructions as some offline methods.

Simple and Reliable Determination of Intravoxel Incoherent Motion Parameters for the Differential Diagnosis of Head and Neck Tumors

PubMed Central

Sasaki, Miho; Sumi, Misa; Eida, Sato; Katayama, Ikuo; Hotokezaka, Yuka; Nakamura, Takashi

2014-01-01

Intravoxel incoherent motion (IVIM) imaging can characterize diffusion and perfusion of normal and diseased tissues, and IVIM parameters are authentically determined by using cumbersome least-squares method. We evaluated a simple technique for the determination of IVIM parameters using geometric analysis of the multiexponential signal decay curve as an alternative to the least-squares method for the diagnosis of head and neck tumors. Pure diffusion coefficients (D), microvascular volume fraction (f), perfusion-related incoherent microcirculation (D*), and perfusion parameter that is heavily weighted towards extravascular space (P) were determined geometrically (Geo D, Geo f, and Geo P) or by least-squares method (Fit D, Fit f, and Fit D*) in normal structures and 105 head and neck tumors. The IVIM parameters were compared for their levels and diagnostic abilities between the 2 techniques. The IVIM parameters were not able to determine in 14 tumors with the least-squares method alone and in 4 tumors with the geometric and least-squares methods. The geometric IVIM values were significantly different (p<0.001) from Fit values (+2±4% and −7±24% for D and f values, respectively). Geo D and Fit D differentiated between lymphomas and SCCs with similar efficacy (78% and 80% accuracy, respectively). Stepwise approaches using combinations of Geo D and Geo P, Geo D and Geo f, or Fit D and Fit D* differentiated between pleomorphic adenomas, Warthin tumors, and malignant salivary gland tumors with the same efficacy (91% accuracy = 21/23). However, a stepwise differentiation using Fit D and Fit f was less effective (83% accuracy = 19/23). Considering cumbersome procedures with the least squares method compared with the geometric method, we concluded that the geometric determination of IVIM parameters can be an alternative to least-squares method in the diagnosis of head and neck tumors. PMID:25402436

Geometric dimension model of virtual astronaut body for ergonomic analysis of man-machine space system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Qianxiang, Zhou

2012-07-01

It is very important to clarify the geometric characteristic of human body segment and constitute analysis model for ergonomic design and the application of ergonomic virtual human. The typical anthropometric data of 1122 Chinese men aged 20-35 years were collected using three-dimensional laser scanner for human body. According to the correlation between different parameters, curve fitting were made between seven trunk parameters and ten body parameters with the SPSS 16.0 software. It can be concluded that hip circumference and shoulder breadth are the most important parameters in the models and the two parameters have high correlation with the others parameters of human body. By comparison with the conventional regressive curves, the present regression equation with the seven trunk parameters is more accurate to forecast the geometric dimensions of head, neck, height and the four limbs with high precision. Therefore, it is greatly valuable for ergonomic design and analysis of man-machine system.This result will be very useful to astronaut body model analysis and application.

Digital breast tomosynthesis geometry calibration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Xinying; Mainprize, James G.; Kempston, Michael P.; Mawdsley, Gordon E.; Yaffe, Martin J.

2007-03-01

Digital Breast Tomosynthesis (DBT) is a 3D x-ray technique for imaging the breast. The x-ray tube, mounted on a gantry, moves in an arc over a limited angular range around the breast while 7-15 images are acquired over a period of a few seconds. A reconstruction algorithm is used to create a 3D volume dataset from the projection images. This procedure reduces the effects of tissue superposition, often responsible for degrading the quality of projection mammograms. This may help improve sensitivity of cancer detection, while reducing the number of false positive results. For DBT, images are acquired at a set of gantry rotation angles. The image reconstruction process requires several geometrical factors associated with image acquisition to be known accurately, however, vibration, encoder inaccuracy, the effects of gravity on the gantry arm and manufacturing tolerances can produce deviations from the desired acquisition geometry. Unlike cone-beam CT, in which a complete dataset is acquired (500+ projections over 180°), tomosynthesis reconstruction is challenging in that the angular range is narrow (typically from 20°-45°) and there are fewer projection images (~7-15). With such a limited dataset, reconstruction is very sensitive to geometric alignment. Uncertainties in factors such as detector tilt, gantry angle, focal spot location, source-detector distance and source-pivot distance can produce several artifacts in the reconstructed volume. To accurately and efficiently calculate the location and angles of orientation of critical components of the system in DBT geometry, a suitable phantom is required. We have designed a calibration phantom for tomosynthesis and developed software for accurate measurement of the geometric parameters of a DBT system. These have been tested both by simulation and experiment. We will present estimates of the precision available with this technique for a prototype DBT system.

Matching Aerial Images to 3D Building Models Using Context-Based Geometric Hashing

PubMed Central

Jung, Jaewook; Sohn, Gunho; Bang, Kiin; Wichmann, Andreas; Armenakis, Costas; Kada, Martin

2016-01-01

A city is a dynamic entity, which environment is continuously changing over time. Accordingly, its virtual city models also need to be regularly updated to support accurate model-based decisions for various applications, including urban planning, emergency response and autonomous navigation. A concept of continuous city modeling is to progressively reconstruct city models by accommodating their changes recognized in spatio-temporal domain, while preserving unchanged structures. A first critical step for continuous city modeling is to coherently register remotely sensed data taken at different epochs with existing building models. This paper presents a new model-to-image registration method using a context-based geometric hashing (CGH) method to align a single image with existing 3D building models. This model-to-image registration process consists of three steps: (1) feature extraction; (2) similarity measure; and matching, and (3) estimating exterior orientation parameters (EOPs) of a single image. For feature extraction, we propose two types of matching cues: edged corner features representing the saliency of building corner points with associated edges, and contextual relations among the edged corner features within an individual roof. A set of matched corners are found with given proximity measure through geometric hashing, and optimal matches are then finally determined by maximizing the matching cost encoding contextual similarity between matching candidates. Final matched corners are used for adjusting EOPs of the single airborne image by the least square method based on collinearity equations. The result shows that acceptable accuracy of EOPs of a single image can be achievable using the proposed registration approach as an alternative to a labor-intensive manual registration process. PMID:27338410

Probability density cloud as a geometrical tool to describe statistics of scattered light.

PubMed

Yaitskova, Natalia

2017-04-01

First-order statistics of scattered light is described using the representation of the probability density cloud, which visualizes a two-dimensional distribution for complex amplitude. The geometric parameters of the cloud are studied in detail and are connected to the statistical properties of phase. The moment-generating function for intensity is obtained in a closed form through these parameters. An example of exponentially modified normal distribution is provided to illustrate the functioning of this geometrical approach.

Strain-Induced Alignment in Collagen Gels

PubMed Central

Vader, David; Kabla, Alexandre; Weitz, David; Mahadevan, Lakshminarayana

2009-01-01

Collagen is the most abundant extracellular-network-forming protein in animal biology and is important in both natural and artificial tissues, where it serves as a material of great mechanical versatility. This versatility arises from its almost unique ability to remodel under applied loads into anisotropic and inhomogeneous structures. To explore the origins of this property, we develop a set of analysis tools and a novel experimental setup that probes the mechanical response of fibrous networks in a geometry that mimics a typical deformation profile imposed by cells in vivo. We observe strong fiber alignment and densification as a function of applied strain for both uncrosslinked and crosslinked collagenous networks. This alignment is found to be irreversibly imprinted in uncrosslinked collagen networks, suggesting a simple mechanism for tissue organization at the microscale. However, crosslinked networks display similar fiber alignment and the same geometrical properties as uncrosslinked gels, but with full reversibility. Plasticity is therefore not required to align fibers. On the contrary, our data show that this effect is part of the fundamental non-linear properties of fibrous biological networks. PMID:19529768

Multiple-bolted joints in wood members : a literature review

Treesearch

Peter James Moss

1997-01-01

This study reviewed the literature on experimental and analytical research for the connection of wood members using multiple laterally loaded bolts. From this, the influence of geometric factors were ascertained, such as staggered and aligned fasteners, optimum fastener configurations, row factors and length-to-diameter bolt ratios, spacing, end and edge distances, and...

Neutron guide

DOEpatents

Greene, Geoffrey L.

1999-01-01

A neutron guide in which lengths of cylindrical glass tubing have rectangular glass plates properly dimensioned to allow insertion into the cylindrical glass tubing so that a sealed geometrically precise polygonal cross-section is formed in the cylindrical glass tubing. The neutron guide provides easier alignment between adjacent sections than do the neutron guides of the prior art.

Navigation: Whence Our Sense of Direction?

PubMed

Gallistel, C R

2017-02-06

Behavioral data have long implied our sense of direction derives from global environmental shape; electrophysiological evidence, however, has seemed to imply it derives from salient non-geometric landmarks. Experiments on the re-establishment of place fields in disoriented mice now align the electrophysiological data with the behavioral data. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Human Corneal Limbal-Epithelial Cell Response to Varying Silk Film Geometric Topography In Vitro

PubMed Central

Lawrence, Brian D.; Pan, Zhi; Liu, Aihong; Kaplan, David L.; Rosenblatt, Mark I.

2012-01-01

Silk fibroin films are a promising class of biomaterials that have a number of advantages for use in ophthalmic applications due to their transparent nature, mechanical properties and minimal inflammatory response upon implantation. Freestanding silk films with parallel line and concentric ring topographies were generated for in vitro characterization of human corneal limbal-epithelial (HCLE) cell response upon differing geometric patterned surfaces. Results indicated that silk film topography significantly affected initial HCLE culture substrate attachment, cellular alignment, cell-to-cell contact formation, actin cytoskeleton alignment, and focal adhesion (FA) localization. Most notably, parallel line patterned surfaces displayed a 36%–54% increase on average in initial cell attachment, which corresponded to an over 2-fold increase in FA localization when compared to other silk film surfaces and controls. In addition, distinct localization of FA formation was observed along the edges for all patterned silk film topographies. In conclusion, silk film feature topography appears to help direct corneal epithelial cell response and cytoskeleton development, especially in regards to FA distribution, in vitro. PMID:22705042

SnapDock—template-based docking by Geometric Hashing

PubMed Central

Estrin, Michael; Wolfson, Haim J.

2017-01-01

Abstract Motivation: A highly efficient template-based protein–protein docking algorithm, nicknamed SnapDock, is presented. It employs a Geometric Hashing-based structural alignment scheme to align the target proteins to the interfaces of non-redundant protein–protein interface libraries. Docking of a pair of proteins utilizing the 22 600 interface PIFACE library is performed in < 2 min on the average. A flexible version of the algorithm allowing hinge motion in one of the proteins is presented as well. Results: To evaluate the performance of the algorithm a blind re-modelling of 3547 PDB complexes, which have been uploaded after the PIFACE publication has been performed with success ratio of about 35%. Interestingly, a similar experiment with the template free PatchDock docking algorithm yielded a success rate of about 23% with roughly 1/3 of the solutions different from those of SnapDock. Consequently, the combination of the two methods gave a 42% success ratio. Availability and implementation: A web server of the application is under development. Contact: michaelestrin@gmail.com or wolfson@tau.ac.il PMID:28881968

Towards an information geometric characterization/classification of complex systems. I. Use of generalized entropies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ghikas, Demetris P. K.; Oikonomou, Fotios D.

2018-04-01

Using the generalized entropies which depend on two parameters we propose a set of quantitative characteristics derived from the Information Geometry based on these entropies. Our aim, at this stage, is to construct first some fundamental geometric objects which will be used in the development of our geometrical framework. We first establish the existence of a two-parameter family of probability distributions. Then using this family we derive the associated metric and we state a generalized Cramer-Rao Inequality. This gives a first two-parameter classification of complex systems. Finally computing the scalar curvature of the information manifold we obtain a further discrimination of the corresponding classes. Our analysis is based on the two-parameter family of generalized entropies of Hanel and Thurner (2011).

Automated Acquisition of Proximal Femur Morphological Characteristics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tabakovic, Slobodan; Zeljkovic, Milan; Milojevic, Zoran

2014-10-01

The success of the hip arthroplasty surgery largely depends on the endoprosthesis adjustment to the patient's femur. This implies that the position of the femoral bone in relation to the pelvis is preserved and that the endoprosthesis position ensures its longevity. Dimensions and body shape of the hip joint endoprosthesis and its position after the surgery depend on a number of geometrical parameters of the patient's femur. One of the most suitable methods for determination of these parameters involves 3D reconstruction of femur, based on diagnostic images, and subsequent determination of the required geometric parameters. In this paper, software for automated determination of geometric parameters of the femur is presented. Detailed software development procedure for the purpose of faster and more efficient design of the hip endoprosthesis that ensures patients' specific requirements is also offered

A preliminary study for fully automated quantification of psoriasis severity using image mapping

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mukai, Kazuhiro; Iyatomi, Hitoshi

2014-03-01

Psoriasis is a common chronic skin disease and it detracts patients' QoL seriously. Since there is no known permanent cure so far, controlling appropriate disease condition is necessary and therefore quantification of its severity is important. In clinical, psoriasis area and severity index (PASI) is commonly used for abovementioned purpose, however it is often subjective and troublesome. A fully automatic computer-assisted area and severity index (CASI) was proposed to make an objective quantification of skin disease. It investigates the size and density of erythema based on digital image analysis, however it does not consider various inadequate effects caused by different geometrical conditions under clinical follow-up (i.e. variability in direction and distance between camera and patient). In this study, we proposed an image alignment method for clinical images and investigated to quantify the severity of psoriasis under clinical follow-up combined with the idea of CASI. The proposed method finds geometrical same points in patient's body (ROI) between images with Scale Invariant Feature Transform (SIFT) and performs the Affine transform to map the pixel value to the other. In this study, clinical images from 7 patients with psoriasis lesions on their trunk under clinical follow-up were used. In each series, our image alignment algorithm align images to the geometry of their first image. Our proposed method aligned images appropriately on visual assessment and confirmed that psoriasis areas were properly extracted using the approach of CASI. Although we cannot evaluate PASI and CASI directly due to their different definition of ROI, we confirmed that there is a large correlation between those scores with our image quantification method.

3D registration of surfaces for change detection in medical images

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fisher, Elizabeth; van der Stelt, Paul F.; Dunn, Stanley M.

1997-04-01

Spatial registration of data sets is essential for quantifying changes that take place over time in cases where the position of a patient with respect to the sensor has been altered. Changes within the region of interest can be problematic for automatic methods of registration. This research addresses the problem of automatic 3D registration of surfaces derived from serial, single-modality images for the purpose of quantifying changes over time. The registration algorithm utilizes motion-invariant, curvature- based geometric properties to derive an approximation to an initial rigid transformation to align two image sets. Following the initial registration, changed portions of the surface are detected and excluded before refining the transformation parameters. The performance of the algorithm was tested using simulation experiments. To quantitatively assess the registration, random noise at various levels, known rigid motion transformations, and analytically-defined volume changes were applied to the initial surface data acquired from models of teeth. These simulation experiments demonstrated that the calculated transformation parameters were accurate to within 1.2 percent of the total applied rotation and 2.9 percent of the total applied translation, even at the highest applied noise levels and simulated wear values.

Joint pricing and production management: a geometric programming approach with consideration of cubic production cost function

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sadjadi, Seyed Jafar; Hamidi Hesarsorkh, Aghil; Mohammadi, Mehdi; Bonyadi Naeini, Ali

2015-06-01

Coordination and harmony between different departments of a company can be an important factor in achieving competitive advantage if the company corrects alignment between strategies of different departments. This paper presents an integrated decision model based on recent advances of geometric programming technique. The demand of a product considers as a power function of factors such as product's price, marketing expenditures, and consumer service expenditures. Furthermore, production cost considers as a cubic power function of outputs. The model will be solved by recent advances in convex optimization tools. Finally, the solution procedure is illustrated by numerical example.

Algorithm for lens calculations in the geometrized Maxwell theory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kulyabov, Dmitry S.; Korolkova, Anna V.; Sevastianov, Leonid A.; Gevorkyan, Migran N.; Demidova, Anastasia V.

2018-04-01

Nowadays the geometric approach in optics is often used to find out media parameters based on propagation paths of the rays because in this case it is a direct problem. However inverse problem in the framework of geometrized optics is usually not given attention. The aim of this work is to demonstrate the work of the proposed the algorithm in the framework of geometrized approach to optics for solving the problem of finding the propagation path of the electromagnetic radiation depending on environmental parameters. The methods of differential geometry are used for effective metrics construction for isotropic and anisotropic media. For effective metric space ray trajectories are obtained in the form of geodesic curves. The introduced algorithm is applied to well-known objects, Maxwell and Luneburg lenses. The similarity of results obtained by classical and geometric approach is demonstrated.

Concentration solar power optimization system and method of using the same

DOEpatents

Andraka, Charles E

2014-03-18

A system and method for optimizing at least one mirror of at least one CSP system is provided. The system has a screen for displaying light patterns for reflection by the mirror, a camera for receiving a reflection of the light patterns from the mirror, and a solar characterization tool. The solar characterization tool has a characterizing unit for determining at least one mirror parameter of the mirror based on an initial position of the camera and the screen, and a refinement unit for refining the determined parameter(s) based on an adjusted position of the camera and screen whereby the mirror is characterized. The system may also be provided with a solar alignment tool for comparing at least one mirror parameter of the mirror to a design geometry whereby an alignment error is defined, and at least one alignment unit for adjusting the mirror to reduce the alignment error.

Optimization of geometric parameters of heat exchange pipes pin finning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Akulov, K. A.; Golik, V. V.; Voronin, K. S.; Zakirzakov, A. G.

2018-05-01

The work is devoted to optimization of geometric parameters of the pin finning of heat-exchanging pipes. Pin fins were considered from the point of view of mechanics of a deformed solid body as overhang beams with a uniformly distributed load. It was found out under what geometric parameters of the nib (diameter and length); the stresses in it from the influence of the washer fluid will not exceed the yield strength of the material (aluminum). Optimal values of the geometric parameters of nibs were obtained for different velocities of the medium washed by them. As a flow medium, water and air were chosen, and the cross section of the nibs was round and square. Pin finning turned out to be more than 3 times more compact than circumferential finning, so its use makes it possible to increase the number of fins per meter of the heat-exchanging pipe. And it is well-known that this is the main method for increasing the heat transfer of a convective surface, giving them an indisputable advantage.

Online measurement for geometrical parameters of wheel set based on structure light and CUDA parallel processing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wu, Kaihua; Shao, Zhencheng; Chen, Nian; Wang, Wenjie

2018-01-01

The wearing degree of the wheel set tread is one of the main factors that influence the safety and stability of running train. Geometrical parameters mainly include flange thickness and flange height. Line structure laser light was projected on the wheel tread surface. The geometrical parameters can be deduced from the profile image. An online image acquisition system was designed based on asynchronous reset of CCD and CUDA parallel processing unit. The image acquisition was fulfilled by hardware interrupt mode. A high efficiency parallel segmentation algorithm based on CUDA was proposed. The algorithm firstly divides the image into smaller squares, and extracts the squares of the target by fusion of k_means and STING clustering image segmentation algorithm. Segmentation time is less than 0.97ms. A considerable acceleration ratio compared with the CPU serial calculation was obtained, which greatly improved the real-time image processing capacity. When wheel set was running in a limited speed, the system placed alone railway line can measure the geometrical parameters automatically. The maximum measuring speed is 120km/h.

Improvement of Gaofen-3 Absolute Positioning Accuracy Based on Cross-Calibration

PubMed Central

Deng, Mingjun; Li, Jiansong

2017-01-01

The Chinese Gaofen-3 (GF-3) mission was launched in August 2016, equipped with a full polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (SAR) sensor in the C-band, with a resolution of up to 1 m. The absolute positioning accuracy of GF-3 is of great importance, and in-orbit geometric calibration is a key technology for improving absolute positioning accuracy. Conventional geometric calibration is used to accurately calibrate the geometric calibration parameters of the image (internal delay and azimuth shifts) using high-precision ground control data, which are highly dependent on the control data of the calibration field, but it remains costly and labor-intensive to monitor changes in GF-3’s geometric calibration parameters. Based on the positioning consistency constraint of the conjugate points, this study presents a geometric cross-calibration method for the rapid and accurate calibration of GF-3. The proposed method can accurately calibrate geometric calibration parameters without using corner reflectors and high-precision digital elevation models, thus improving absolute positioning accuracy of the GF-3 image. GF-3 images from multiple regions were collected to verify the absolute positioning accuracy after cross-calibration. The results show that this method can achieve a calibration accuracy as high as that achieved by the conventional field calibration method. PMID:29240675

Enhanced spatio-temporal alignment of plantar pressure image sequences using B-splines.

PubMed

Oliveira, Francisco P M; Tavares, João Manuel R S

2013-03-01

This article presents an enhanced methodology to align plantar pressure image sequences simultaneously in time and space. The temporal alignment of the sequences is accomplished using B-splines in the time modeling, and the spatial alignment can be attained using several geometric transformation models. The methodology was tested on a dataset of 156 real plantar pressure image sequences (3 sequences for each foot of the 26 subjects) that was acquired using a common commercial plate during barefoot walking. In the alignment of image sequences that were synthetically deformed both in time and space, an outstanding accuracy was achieved with the cubic B-splines. This accuracy was significantly better (p < 0.001) than the one obtained using the best solution proposed in our previous work. When applied to align real image sequences with unknown transformation involved, the alignment based on cubic B-splines also achieved superior results than our previous methodology (p < 0.001). The consequences of the temporal alignment on the dynamic center of pressure (COP) displacement was also assessed by computing the intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) before and after the temporal alignment of the three image sequence trials of each foot of the associated subject at six time instants. The results showed that, generally, the ICCs related to the medio-lateral COP displacement were greater when the sequences were temporally aligned than the ICCs of the original sequences. Based on the experimental findings, one can conclude that the cubic B-splines are a remarkable solution for the temporal alignment of plantar pressure image sequences. These findings also show that the temporal alignment can increase the consistency of the COP displacement on related acquired plantar pressure image sequences.

Electromagnetic-Guided MLC Tracking Radiation Therapy for Prostate Cancer Patients: Prospective Clinical Trial Results.

PubMed

Keall, Paul J; Colvill, Emma; O'Brien, Ricky; Caillet, Vincent; Eade, Thomas; Kneebone, Andrew; Hruby, George; Poulsen, Per R; Zwan, Benjamin; Greer, Peter B; Booth, Jeremy

2018-06-01

To report on the primary and secondary outcomes of a prospective clinical trial of electromagnetic-guided multileaf collimator (MLC) tracking radiation therapy for prostate cancer. Twenty-eight men with prostate cancer were treated with electromagnetic-guided MLC tracking with volumetric modulated arc therapy. A total of 858 fractions were delivered, with the dose per fraction ranging from 2 to 13.75 Gy. The primary outcome was feasibility, with success determined if >95% of fractions were successfully delivered. The secondary outcomes were (1) the improvement in beam-target geometric alignment, (2) the improvement in dosimetric coverage of the prostate and avoidance of critical structures, and (3) no acute grade ≥3 genitourinary or gastrointestinal toxicity. All 858 planned fractions were successfully delivered with MLC tracking, demonstrating the primary outcome of feasibility (P < .001). MLC tracking improved the beam-target geometric alignment from 1.4 to 0.90 mm (root-mean-square error). MLC tracking improved the dosimetric coverage of the prostate and reduced the daily variation in dose to critical structures. No acute grade ≥3 genitourinary or gastrointestinal toxicity was observed. Electromagnetic-guided MLC tracking radiation therapy for prostate cancer is feasible. The patients received improved geometric targeting and delivered dose distributions that were closer to those planned than they would have received without electromagnetic-guided MLC tracking. No significant acute toxicity was observed. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

16 CFR 1203.17 - Impact attenuation test.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... lb), the upper surface of which shall consist of a steel plate at least 12 mm (0.47 in.) thick and... aluminum plate. The geometric center of the MEP pad shall be aligned with the center vertical axis of the... orientation shall be chosen by the test personnel to provide the most severe test for the helmet. Rivets and...

16 CFR § 1203.17 - Impact attenuation test.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... 135 kg (298 lb), the upper surface of which shall consist of a steel plate at least 12 mm (0.47 in... mm (1/4 in.) thick aluminum plate. The geometric center of the MEP pad shall be aligned with the... anvil sites and orientation shall be chosen by the test personnel to provide the most severe test for...

16 CFR 1203.17 - Impact attenuation test.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... lb), the upper surface of which shall consist of a steel plate at least 12 mm (0.47 in.) thick and... aluminum plate. The geometric center of the MEP pad shall be aligned with the center vertical axis of the... orientation shall be chosen by the test personnel to provide the most severe test for the helmet. Rivets and...

16 CFR 1203.17 - Impact attenuation test.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... lb), the upper surface of which shall consist of a steel plate at least 12 mm (0.47 in.) thick and... aluminum plate. The geometric center of the MEP pad shall be aligned with the center vertical axis of the... orientation shall be chosen by the test personnel to provide the most severe test for the helmet. Rivets and...

16 CFR 1203.17 - Impact attenuation test.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... lb), the upper surface of which shall consist of a steel plate at least 12 mm (0.47 in.) thick and... aluminum plate. The geometric center of the MEP pad shall be aligned with the center vertical axis of the... orientation shall be chosen by the test personnel to provide the most severe test for the helmet. Rivets and...

Correlation and Reliability of Cervical Sagittal Alignment Parameters between Lateral Cervical Radiograph and Lateral Whole-Body EOS Stereoradiograph.

PubMed

Singhatanadgige, Weerasak; Kang, Daniel G; Luksanapruksa, Panya; Peters, Colleen; Riew, K Daniel

2016-09-01

Retrospective analysis. To evaluate the correlation and reliability of cervical sagittal alignment parameters obtained from lateral cervical radiographs (XRs) compared with lateral whole-body stereoradiographs (SRs). We evaluated adults with cervical deformity using both lateral XRs and lateral SRs obtained within 1 week of each other between 2010 and 2014. XR and SR images were measured by two independent spine surgeons using the following sagittal alignment parameters: C2-C7 sagittal Cobb angle (SCA), C2-C7 sagittal vertical axis (SVA), C1-C7 translational distance (C1-7), T1 slope (T1-S), neck tilt (NT), and thoracic inlet angle (TIA). Pearson correlation and paired t test were used for statistical analysis, with intra- and interrater reliability analyzed using intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). A total of 35 patients were included in the study. We found excellent intrarater reliability for all sagittal alignment parameters in both the XR and SR groups with ICC ranging from 0.799 to 0.994 for XR and 0.791 to 0.995 for SR. Interrater reliability was also excellent for all parameters except NT and TIA, which had fair reliability. We also found excellent correlations between XR and SR measurements for most sagittal alignment parameters; SCA, SVA, and C1-C7 had r > 0.90, and only NT had r < 0.70. There was a significant difference between groups, with SR having lower measurements compared with XR for both SVA (0.68 cm lower, p < 0.001) and C1-C7 (1.02 cm lower, p < 0.001). There were no differences between groups for SCA, T1-S, NT, and TIA. Whole-body stereoradiography appears to be a viable alternative for measuring cervical sagittal alignment parameters compared with standard radiography. XR and SR demonstrated excellent correlation for most sagittal alignment parameters except NT. However, SR had significantly lower average SVA and C1-C7 measurements than XR. The lower radiation exposure using single SR has to be weighed against its higher cost compared with XR.

Digital polarization holography advancing geometrical phase optics.

PubMed

De Sio, Luciano; Roberts, David E; Liao, Zhi; Nersisyan, Sarik; Uskova, Olena; Wickboldt, Lloyd; Tabiryan, Nelson; Steeves, Diane M; Kimball, Brian R

2016-08-08

Geometrical phase or the fourth generation (4G) optics enables realization of optical components (lenses, prisms, gratings, spiral phase plates, etc.) by patterning the optical axis orientation in the plane of thin anisotropic films. Such components exhibit near 100% diffraction efficiency over a broadband of wavelengths. The films are obtained by coating liquid crystalline (LC) materials over substrates with patterned alignment conditions. Photo-anisotropic materials are used for producing desired alignment conditions at the substrate surface. We present and discuss here an opportunity of producing the widest variety of "free-form" 4G optical components with arbitrary spatial patterns of the optical anisotropy axis orientation with the aid of a digital spatial light polarization converter (DSLPC). The DSLPC is based on a reflective, high resolution spatial light modulator (SLM) combined with an "ad hoc" optical setup. The most attractive feature of the use of a DSLPC for photoalignment of nanometer thin photo-anisotropic coatings is that the orientation of the alignment layer, and therefore of the fabricated LC or LC polymer (LCP) components can be specified on a pixel-by-pixel basis with high spatial resolution. By varying the optical magnification or de-magnification the spatial resolution of the photoaligned layer can be adjusted to an optimum for each application. With a simple "click" it is possible to record different optical components as well as arbitrary patterns ranging from lenses to invisible labels and other transparent labels that reveal different images depending on the side from which they are viewed.

3D Architecture of Trabecular Bone in the Pig Mandible and Femur: Inter-Trabecular Angle Distributions.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ben-Zvi, Yehonatan; Reznikov, Natalie; Shahar, Ron; Weiner, Steve

2017-09-01

Cancellous bone is an intricate network of interconnected trabeculae, to which analysis of network topology can be applied. The inter-trabecular angle (ITA) analysis - an analysis of network topological parameters and regularity of network-forming nodes, was previously carried out on human proximal femora and showed that trabecular bone follows two main principles: sparsity of the network connectedness (prevalence of nodes with low connectivity in the network) and maximal space spanning (angular offset of connected elements is maximal for their number and approximates the values of geometrically symmetric shapes). These observations suggest that 3D organization of trabecular bone, irrespective of size and shape of individual elements, reflects a tradeoff between minimal metabolic cost of maintenance and maximal network stability under conditions of multidirectional loading. In this study we validate the ITA application using additional 3D structures (cork and 3D-printed metal lattices), analyze the ITA parameters in porcine proximal femora and mandibles and carry out a spatial analysis of the most common node type in the porcine mandibular condyle. The validation shows that the ITA application reliably detects designed or evolved topological parameters. The ITA parameters of porcine trabecular bones are similar to those of human bones. We demonstrate functional adaptation in the pig mandibular condyle by showing that the planar nodes with 3 edges are preferentially aligned in relation to the muscle forces that are applied to the condyle. We conclude that the ITA topological parameters are remarkable conserved, but locally do adapt to applied stresses.

Magnetic Field Alignment of PS-P4VP: a Non-Liquid Crystalline Coil-Coil Block Copolymer

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rokhlenko, Yekaterina; Zhang, Kai; Larson, Steven; Gopalan, Padma; O'Hern, Corey; Osuji, Chinedum

2015-03-01

Magnetic fields provide the ability to control alignment of self-assembled soft materials such as block copolymers. Most prior work in this area has relied on the presence of ordered assemblies of anisotropic liquid crystalline species to ensure sufficient magnetic anisotropy to drive alignment. Recent experiments with poly(styrene-b-4-vinylpyridine), a non-liquid crystalline BCP, however, show field-induced alignment of a lamellar microstructure during cooling across the order-disorder transition. Using in situ x-ray scattering, we examine the roles of field strength and cooling rate on the alignment response of this low MW coil-coil BCP. Alignment is first observed at field strengths as low as 1 Tesla and improves markedly with both increasing field strength and slower cooling. We present a geometric argument to illustrate the origin of a finite, non-trivial magnetic susceptibility anisotropy for highly stretched surface-tethered polymer chains and corroborate this using coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations. We rationalize the magnetic field response of the system in terms of the mobility afforded by the absence of entanglements, the intrinsic anisotropy resulting from the stretched polymer chains and sterically constrained conjugated rings, and the large grain size in these low molecular weight materials.

Computational design and engineering of polymeric orthodontic aligners.

PubMed

Barone, S; Paoli, A; Razionale, A V; Savignano, R

2016-10-05

Transparent and removable aligners represent an effective solution to correct various orthodontic malocclusions through minimally invasive procedures. An aligner-based treatment requires patients to sequentially wear dentition-mating shells obtained by thermoforming polymeric disks on reference dental models. An aligner is shaped introducing a geometrical mismatch with respect to the actual tooth positions to induce a loading system, which moves the target teeth toward the correct positions. The common practice is based on selecting the aligner features (material, thickness, and auxiliary elements) by only considering clinician's subjective assessments. In this article, a computational design and engineering methodology has been developed to reconstruct anatomical tissues, to model parametric aligner shapes, to simulate orthodontic movements, and to enhance the aligner design. The proposed approach integrates computer-aided technologies, from tomographic imaging to optical scanning, from parametric modeling to finite element analyses, within a 3-dimensional digital framework. The anatomical modeling provides anatomies, including teeth (roots and crowns), jaw bones, and periodontal ligaments, which are the references for the down streaming parametric aligner shaping. The biomechanical interactions between anatomical models and aligner geometries are virtually reproduced using a finite element analysis software. The methodology allows numerical simulations of patient-specific conditions and the comparative analyses of different aligner configurations. In this article, the digital framework has been used to study the influence of various auxiliary elements on the loading system delivered to a maxillary and a mandibular central incisor during an orthodontic tipping movement. Numerical simulations have shown a high dependency of the orthodontic tooth movement on the auxiliary element configuration, which should then be accurately selected to maximize the aligner's effectiveness. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Automatic alignment for three-dimensional tomographic reconstruction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van Leeuwen, Tristan; Maretzke, Simon; Joost Batenburg, K.

2018-02-01

In tomographic reconstruction, the goal is to reconstruct an unknown object from a collection of line integrals. Given a complete sampling of such line integrals for various angles and directions, explicit inverse formulas exist to reconstruct the object. Given noisy and incomplete measurements, the inverse problem is typically solved through a regularized least-squares approach. A challenge for both approaches is that in practice the exact directions and offsets of the x-rays are only known approximately due to, e.g. calibration errors. Such errors lead to artifacts in the reconstructed image. In the case of sufficient sampling and geometrically simple misalignment, the measurements can be corrected by exploiting so-called consistency conditions. In other cases, such conditions may not apply and we have to solve an additional inverse problem to retrieve the angles and shifts. In this paper we propose a general algorithmic framework for retrieving these parameters in conjunction with an algebraic reconstruction technique. The proposed approach is illustrated by numerical examples for both simulated data and an electron tomography dataset.

Increased alignment sensitivity improves the usage of genome alignments for comparative gene annotation.

PubMed

Sharma, Virag; Hiller, Michael

2017-08-21

Genome alignments provide a powerful basis to transfer gene annotations from a well-annotated reference genome to many other aligned genomes. The completeness of these annotations crucially depends on the sensitivity of the underlying genome alignment. Here, we investigated the impact of the genome alignment parameters and found that parameters with a higher sensitivity allow the detection of thousands of novel alignments between orthologous exons that have been missed before. In particular, comparisons between species separated by an evolutionary distance of >0.75 substitutions per neutral site, like human and other non-placental vertebrates, benefit from increased sensitivity. To systematically test if increased sensitivity improves comparative gene annotations, we built a multiple alignment of 144 vertebrate genomes and used this alignment to map human genes to the other 143 vertebrates with CESAR. We found that higher alignment sensitivity substantially improves the completeness of comparative gene annotations by adding on average 2382 and 7440 novel exons and 117 and 317 novel genes for mammalian and non-mammalian species, respectively. Our results suggest a more sensitive alignment strategy that should generally be used for genome alignments between distantly-related species. Our 144-vertebrate genome alignment and the comparative gene annotations (https://bds.mpi-cbg.de/hillerlab/144VertebrateAlignment_CESAR/) are a valuable resource for comparative genomics. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

Physical and geometrical parameters of VCBS XIII: HIP 105947

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gumaan Masda, Suhail; Al-Wardat, Mashhoor Ahmed; Pathan, Jiyaulla Khan Moula Khan

2018-06-01

The best physical and geometrical parameters of the main sequence close visual binary system (CVBS), HIP 105947, are presented. These parameters have been constructed conclusively using Al-Wardat’s complex method for analyzing CVBSs, which is a method for constructing a synthetic spectral energy distribution (SED) for the entire binary system using individual SEDs for each component star. The model atmospheres are in its turn built using the Kurucz (ATLAS9) line-blanketed plane-parallel models. At the same time, the orbital parameters for the system are calculated using Tokovinin’s dynamical method for constructing the best orbits of an interferometric binary system. Moreover, the mass-sum of the components, as well as the Δθ and Δρ residuals for the system, is introduced. The combination of Al-Wardat’s and Tokovinin’s methods yields the best estimations of the physical and geometrical parameters. The positions of the components in the system on the evolutionary tracks and isochrones are plotted and the formation and evolution of the system are discussed.

SU-G-JeP2-12: Quantification of 3D Geometric Distortion for 1.5T and 3T MRI Scanners Used for Radiation Therapy

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Stowe, M; Gupta, N; Raterman, B

Purpose: To quantify the magnitude of geometric distortion for MRI scanners and provide recommendations for MRI imaging for radiation therapy Methods: A novel phantom, QUASAR MRID3D [Modus Medical Devices Inc.], was scanned to evaluate the level of 3D geometric distortion present in five MRI scanners used for radiation therapy in our department. The phantom was scanned using the body coil with 1mm image slice thickness to acquire 3D images of the phantom body. The phantom was aligned to its geometric center for each scan, and the field of view was set to visualize the entire phantom. The dependence of distortionmore » magnitude with distance from imaging isocenter and with magnetic field strength (1.5T and 3T) was investigated. Additionally, the characteristics of distortion for Siemens and GE machines were compared. The image distortion for each scanner was quantified in terms of mean, standard deviation (STD), maximum distortion, and skewness. Results: The 3T and 1.5T scans show a similar absolute distortion with a mean of 1.38mm (0.33mm STD) for 3T and 1.39mm (0.34mm STD) for 1.5T for a 100mm radius distance from isocenter. Some machines can have a distortion larger than 10mm at a distance of 200mm from the isocenter. The distortions are presented with plots of the x, y, and z directional components. Conclusion: The results indicate that quantification of MRI image distortion is crucial in radiation oncology for target and organ delineation and treatment planning. The magnitude of geometric distortion determines the margin needed for target contouring which is usually neglected in treatment planning process, especially for SRS/SBRT treatments. Understanding the 3D distribution of the MRI image distortion will improve the accuracy of target delineation and, hence, treatment efficacy. MRI imaging with proper patient alignment to the isocenter is vital to reducing the effects of MRI distortion in treatment planning.« less

Landmark matching based retinal image alignment by enforcing sparsity in correspondence matrix.

PubMed

Zheng, Yuanjie; Daniel, Ebenezer; Hunter, Allan A; Xiao, Rui; Gao, Jianbin; Li, Hongsheng; Maguire, Maureen G; Brainard, David H; Gee, James C

2014-08-01

Retinal image alignment is fundamental to many applications in diagnosis of eye diseases. In this paper, we address the problem of landmark matching based retinal image alignment. We propose a novel landmark matching formulation by enforcing sparsity in the correspondence matrix and offer its solutions based on linear programming. The proposed formulation not only enables a joint estimation of the landmark correspondences and a predefined transformation model but also combines the benefits of the softassign strategy (Chui and Rangarajan, 2003) and the combinatorial optimization of linear programming. We also introduced a set of reinforced self-similarities descriptors which can better characterize local photometric and geometric properties of the retinal image. Theoretical analysis and experimental results with both fundus color images and angiogram images show the superior performances of our algorithms to several state-of-the-art techniques. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Constraints on axion inflation from the weak gravity conjecture

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Rudelius, Tom

2015-09-08

We derive constraints facing models of axion inflation based on decay constant alignment from a string-theoretic and quantum gravitational perspective. In particular, we investigate the prospects for alignment and ‘anti-alignment’ of C{sub 4} axion decay constants in type IIB string theory, deriving a strict no-go result in the latter case. We discuss the relationship of axion decay constants to the weak gravity conjecture and demonstrate agreement between our string-theoretic constraints and those coming from the ‘generalized’ weak gravity conjecture. Finally, we consider a particular model of decay constant alignment in which the potential of C{sub 4} axions in type IIBmore » compactifications on a Calabi-Yau three-fold is dominated by contributions from D7-branes, pointing out that this model evades some of the challenges derived earlier in our paper but is highly constrained by other geometric considerations.« less

Determination of Geometric and Kinematical Parameters of Coronal Mass Ejections Using STEREO Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fainshtein, V. G.; Tsivileva, D. M.; Kashapova, L. K.

2010-03-01

We present a new, relatively simple and fast method to determine true geometric and kinematical CME parameters from simultaneous STEREO A, B observations of CMEs. These parameters are the three-dimensional direction of CME propagation, velocity and acceleration of CME front, CME angular sizes and front position depending on time. The method is based on the assumption that CME shape may be described by a modification of so-called ice-cream cone models. The method has been tested for several CMEs.

Measuring Parameters of Massive Black Hole Binaries with Partially Aligned Spins

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lang, Ryan N.; Hughes, Scott A.; Cornish, Neil J.

2011-01-01

The future space-based gravitational wave detector LISA will be able to measure parameters of coalescing massive black hole binaries, often to extremely high accuracy. Previous work has demonstrated that the black hole spins can have a strong impact on the accuracy of parameter measurement. Relativistic spin-induced precession modulates the waveform in a manner which can break degeneracies between parameters, in principle significantly improving how well they are measured. Recent studies have indicated, however, that spin precession may be weak for an important subset of astrophysical binary black holes: those in which the spins are aligned due to interactions with gas. In this paper, we examine how well a binary's parameters can be measured when its spins are partially aligned and compare results using waveforms that include higher post-Newtonian harmonics to those that are truncated at leading quadrupole order. We find that the weakened precession can substantially degrade parameter estimation, particularly for the "extrinsic" parameters sky position and distance. Absent higher harmonics, LISA typically localizes the sky position of a nearly aligned binary about an order of magnitude less accurately than one for which the spin orientations are random. Our knowledge of a source's sky position will thus be worst for the gas-rich systems which are most likely to produce electromagnetic counterparts. Fortunately, higher harmonics of the waveform can make up for this degradation. By including harmonics beyond the quadrupole in our waveform model, we find that the accuracy with which most of the binary's parameters are measured can be substantially improved. In some cases, the improvement is such that they are measured almost as well as when the binary spins are randomly aligned.

Angular ellipticity correlations in a composite alignment model for elliptical and spiral galaxies and inference from weak lensing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tugendhat, Tim M.; Schäfer, Björn Malte

2018-05-01

We investigate a physical, composite alignment model for both spiral and elliptical galaxies and its impact on cosmological parameter estimation from weak lensing for a tomographic survey. Ellipticity correlation functions and angular ellipticity spectra for spiral and elliptical galaxies are derived on the basis of tidal interactions with the cosmic large-scale structure and compared to the tomographic weak-lensing signal. We find that elliptical galaxies cause a contribution to the weak-lensing dominated ellipticity correlation on intermediate angular scales between ℓ ≃ 40 and ℓ ≃ 400 before that of spiral galaxies dominates on higher multipoles. The predominant term on intermediate scales is the negative cross-correlation between intrinsic alignments and weak gravitational lensing (GI-alignment). We simulate parameter inference from weak gravitational lensing with intrinsic alignments unaccounted; the bias induced by ignoring intrinsic alignments in a survey like Euclid is shown to be several times larger than the statistical error and can lead to faulty conclusions when comparing to other observations. The biases generally point into different directions in parameter space, such that in some cases one can observe a partial cancellation effect. Furthermore, it is shown that the biases increase with the number of tomographic bins used for the parameter estimation process. We quantify this parameter estimation bias in units of the statistical error and compute the loss of Bayesian evidence for a model due to the presence of systematic errors as well as the Kullback-Leibler divergence to quantify the distance between the true model and the wrongly inferred one.

Paraplegic patients: how to measure balance and what is normal or functional?

PubMed

Barkoh, Kaku; Lucas, Joshua W; Lee, Larry; Hsieh, Patrick C; Wang, Jeffrey C; Rolfe, Kevin

2018-02-01

To review the current understanding and data of sagittal balance and alignment considerations in paraplegic patients. A PubMed literature search was conducted to identify all relevant articles relating to sagittal alignment and sagittal balance considerations in paraplegic and spinal cord injury patients. While there are numerous studies and publications on sagittal balance in the ambulatory patient with spinal deformity or complex spine disorders, there is paucity of the literature on "normal" sagittal balance in the paraplegic patients. Studies have reported significantly alterations of the sagittal alignment parameters in the non-ambulatory paraplegic patients compared to ambulatory patients. The variability of the alignment changes is related to the differences in the level of the spinal cord injury and their differences in the activations of truncal muscles to allow functional movements in those patients, particularly in optimizing sitting and transferring. Surgical goal in treating paraplegic patients with complex pathologies should not be solely directed to achieve the "normal" radiographic parameters of sagittal alignment in the ambulatory patients. The goal should be to maintain good coronal balance to allow ideal sitting position and to preserve motion segment to optimize functions of paraplegia patients. Current available literature data have not defined normal sagittal parameters for paraplegic patients. There are significant differences in postural sagittal parameters and muscle activations in paraplegic and non-spinal cord injury patients that can lead to differences in sagittal alignment and balance. Treatment goal in spine surgery for paraplegic patients should address their global function, sitting balance, and ability to perform self-care rather than the accepted radiographic parameters for adult spinal deformity in ambulatory patients.

Section modulus is the optimum geometric predictor for stress fractures and medial tibial stress syndrome in both male and female athletes.

PubMed

Franklyn, Melanie; Oakes, Barry; Field, Bruce; Wells, Peter; Morgan, David

2008-06-01

Various tibial dimensions and geometric parameters have been linked to stress fractures in athletes and military recruits, but many mechanical parameters have still not been investigated. Sedentary people, athletes with medial tibial stress syndrome, and athletes with stress fractures have smaller tibial geometric dimensions and parameters than do uninjured athletes. Cohort study; Level of evidence, 3. Using a total of 88 subjects, male and female patients with either a tibial stress fracture or medial tibial stress syndrome were compared with both uninjured aerobically active controls and uninjured sedentary controls. Tibial scout radiographs and cross-sectional computed tomography images of all subjects were scanned at the junction of the midthird and distal third of the tibia. Tibial dimensions were measured directly from the films; other parameters were calculated numerically. Uninjured exercising men have a greater tibial cortical cross-sectional area than do their sedentary and injured counterparts, resulting in a greater value of some other cross-sectional geometric parameters, particularly the section modulus. However, for women, the cross-sectional areas are either not different or only marginally different, and there are few tibial dimensions or geometric parameters that distinguish the uninjured exercisers from the sedentary and injured subjects. In women, the main difference between the groups was the distribution of cortical bone about the centroid as a result of the different values of section modulus. Last, medial tibial stress syndrome subjects had smaller tibial cross-sectional dimensions than did their uninjured exercising counterparts, suggesting that medial tibial stress syndrome is not just a soft-tissue injury but also a bony injury. The results show that in men, the cross-sectional area and the section modulus are the key parameters in the tibia to distinguish exercise and injury status, whereas for women, it is the section modulus only.

New generation photoelectric converter structure optimization using nano-structured materials

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dronov, A.; Gavrilin, I.; Zheleznyakova, A.

2014-12-01

In present work the influence of anodizing process parameters on PAOT geometric parameters for optimizing and increasing ETA-cell efficiency was studied. During the calculations optimal geometrical parameters were obtained. Parameters such as anodizing current density, electrolyte composition and temperature, as well as the anodic oxidation process time were selected for this investigation. Using the optimized TiO2 photoelectrode layer with 3,6 μm porous layer thickness and pore diameter more than 80 nm the ETA-cell efficiency has been increased by 3 times comparing to not nanostructured TiO2 photoelectrode.

Biomechanical Characterization of Cardiomyocyte Using PDMS Pillar with Microgrooves

PubMed Central

Oyunbaatar, Nomin-Erdene; Lee, Deok-Hyu; Patil, Swati J.; Kim, Eung-Sam; Lee, Dong-Weon

2016-01-01

This paper describes the surface-patterned polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) pillar arrays for enhancing cell alignment and contraction force in cardiomyocytes. The PDMS micropillar (μpillar) arrays with microgrooves (μgrooves) were fabricated using a unique micro-mold made using SU-8 double layer processes. The spring constant of the μpillar arrays was experimentally confirmed using atomic force microscopy (AFM). After culturing cardiac cells on the two different types of μpillar arrays, with and without grooves on the top of μpillar, the characteristics of the cardiomyocytes were analyzed using a custom-made image analysis system. The alignment of the cardiomyocytes on the μgrooves of the μpillars was clearly observed using a DAPI staining process. The mechanical force generated by the contraction force of the cardiomyocytes was derived from the displacement of the μpillar arrays. The contraction force of the cardiomyocytes aligned on the μgrooves was 20% higher than that of the μpillar arrays without μgrooves. The experimental results prove that applied geometrical stimulus is an effective method for aligning and improving the contraction force of cardiomyocytes. PMID:27517924

Measurement of the geometric parameters of power contact wire based on binocular stereovision

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pan, Xue-Tao; Zhang, Ya-feng; Meng, Fei

2010-10-01

In the electrified railway power supply system, electric locomotive obtains power from the catenary's wire through the pantograph. Under the action of the pantograph, combined with various factors such as vibration, touch current, relative sliding speed, load, etc, the contact wire will produce mechanical wear and electrical wear. Thus, in electrified railway construction and daily operations, the geometric parameters such as line height, pull value, the width of wear surface must be under real-timely and non-contact detection. On the one hand, the safe operation of electric railways will be guaranteed; on the other hand, the wire endurance will be extended, and operating costs reduced. Based on the characteristics of the worn wires' image signal, the binocular stereo vision technology was applied for measurement of contact wire geometry parameters, a mathematical model of measurement of geometric parameters was derived, and the boundaries of the wound wire abrasion-point value were extracted by means of sub-pixel edge detection method based on the LOG operator with the least-squares fitting, thus measurements of the wire geometry parameters were realized. Principles were demonstrated through simulation experiments, and the experimental results show that the detection methods presented in this paper for measuring the accuracy, efficiency and convenience, etc. are close to or superior to the traditional measurements, which has laid a good foundation for the measurement system of geometric parameters for the contact wire of the development of binocular vision.

Geometric parameter analysis to predetermine optimal radiosurgery technique for the treatment of arteriovenous malformation

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Mestrovic, Ante; Clark, Brenda G.; Department of Medical Physics, British Columbia Cancer Agency, Vancouver, British Columbia

2005-11-01

Purpose: To develop a method of predicting the values of dose distribution parameters of different radiosurgery techniques for treatment of arteriovenous malformation (AVM) based on internal geometric parameters. Methods and Materials: For each of 18 previously treated AVM patients, four treatment plans were created: circular collimator arcs, dynamic conformal arcs, fixed conformal fields, and intensity-modulated radiosurgery. An algorithm was developed to characterize the target and critical structure shape complexity and the position of the critical structures with respect to the target. Multiple regression was employed to establish the correlation between the internal geometric parameters and the dose distribution for differentmore » treatment techniques. The results from the model were applied to predict the dosimetric outcomes of different radiosurgery techniques and select the optimal radiosurgery technique for a number of AVM patients. Results: Several internal geometric parameters showing statistically significant correlation (p < 0.05) with the treatment planning results for each technique were identified. The target volume and the average minimum distance between the target and the critical structures were the most effective predictors for normal tissue dose distribution. The structure overlap volume with the target and the mean distance between the target and the critical structure were the most effective predictors for critical structure dose distribution. The predicted values of dose distribution parameters of different radiosurgery techniques were in close agreement with the original data. Conclusions: A statistical model has been described that successfully predicts the values of dose distribution parameters of different radiosurgery techniques and may be used to predetermine the optimal technique on a patient-to-patient basis.« less

Heuristics for multiobjective multiple sequence alignment.

PubMed

Abbasi, Maryam; Paquete, Luís; Pereira, Francisco B

2016-07-15

Aligning multiple sequences arises in many tasks in Bioinformatics. However, the alignments produced by the current software packages are highly dependent on the parameters setting, such as the relative importance of opening gaps with respect to the increase of similarity. Choosing only one parameter setting may provide an undesirable bias in further steps of the analysis and give too simplistic interpretations. In this work, we reformulate multiple sequence alignment from a multiobjective point of view. The goal is to generate several sequence alignments that represent a trade-off between maximizing the substitution score and minimizing the number of indels/gaps in the sum-of-pairs score function. This trade-off gives to the practitioner further information about the similarity of the sequences, from which she could analyse and choose the most plausible alignment. We introduce several heuristic approaches, based on local search procedures, that compute a set of sequence alignments, which are representative of the trade-off between the two objectives (substitution score and indels). Several algorithm design options are discussed and analysed, with particular emphasis on the influence of the starting alignment and neighborhood search definitions on the overall performance. A perturbation technique is proposed to improve the local search, which provides a wide range of high-quality alignments. The proposed approach is tested experimentally on a wide range of instances. We performed several experiments with sequences obtained from the benchmark database BAliBASE 3.0. To evaluate the quality of the results, we calculate the hypervolume indicator of the set of score vectors returned by the algorithms. The results obtained allow us to identify reasonably good choices of parameters for our approach. Further, we compared our method in terms of correctly aligned pairs ratio and columns correctly aligned ratio with respect to reference alignments. Experimental results show that our approaches can obtain better results than TCoffee and Clustal Omega in terms of the first ratio.

A numerical framework for studying the biomechanical behavior of abdominal aortic aneurysm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jalalahmadi, Golnaz; Linte, Cristian; Helguera, María.

2017-03-01

Abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) is known as a leading cause of death in the United States. AAA is an abnormal dilation of the aorta, which usually occurs below the renal arteries and causes an expansion at least 1.5 times its normal diameter. It has been shown that biomechanical parameters of the aortic tissue coupled with a set of specific geometric parameters characterizing the vessel expansion, affect the risk of aneurysm rupture. Here, we developed a numerical framework that incorporates both biomechanical and geometrical factors to study the behavior of abdominal aortic aneurysm. Our workflow enables the extraction of the aneurysm geometry from both clinical quality, as well as low-resolution MR images. We used a two-parameter, hyper-elastic, isotropic, incompressible material to model the vessel tissue. Our numerical model was tested using both synthetic and mouse data and we evaluated the effects of the geometrical and biomechanical properties on the developed peak wall stress. In addition, we performed several parameter sensitivity studies to investigate the effect of different factors affecting the AAA and its behavior and rupture. Lastly, relationships between different geometrical and biomechanical parameters and peak wall stress were determined. These studies help us better understand vessel tissue response to various loading, geometry and biomechanics conditions, and we plan to further correlate these findings with the pathophysiological conditions from a patient population diagnosed with abdominal aortic aneurysms.

Polar alignment of a protoplanetary disc around an eccentric binary II: Effect of binary and disc parameters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Martin, Rebecca G.; Lubow, Stephen H.

2018-06-01

In a recent paper Martin & Lubow showed that a circumbinary disc around an eccentric binary can undergo damped nodal oscillations that lead to the polar (perpendicular) alignment of the disc relative to the binary orbit. The disc angular momentum vector aligns to the eccentricity vector of the binary. We explore the robustness of this mechanism for a low mass disc (0.001 of the binary mass) and its dependence on system parameters by means of hydrodynamic disc simulations. We describe how the evolution depends upon the disc viscosity, temperature, size, binary mass ratio, orbital eccentricity and inclination. We compare results with predictions of linear theory. We show that polar alignment of a low mass disc may occur over a wide range of binary-disc parameters. We discuss the application of our results to the formation of planetary systems around eccentric binary stars.

Measuring Parameters of Massive Black Hole Binaries with Partially-Aligned Spins

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Lang, Ryan N.; Hughes, Scott A.; Cornish, Neil J.

2010-01-01

It is important to understand how well the gravitational-wave observatory LISA can measure parameters of massive black hole binaries. It has been shown that including spin precession in the waveform breaks degeneracies and produces smaller expected parameter errors than a simpler, precession-free analysis. However, recent work has shown that gas in binaries can partially align the spins with the orbital angular momentum, thus reducing the precession effect. We show how this degrades the earlier results, producing more pessimistic errors in gaseous mergers. However, we then add higher harmonics to the signal model; these also break degeneracies, but they are not affected by the presence of gas. The harmonics often restore the errors in partially-aligned binaries to the same as, or better than/ those that are obtained for fully precessing binaries with no harmonics. Finally, we investigate what LISA measurements of spin alignment can tell us about the nature of gas around a binary,

Locating and defining underground goaf caused by coal mining from space-borne SAR interferometry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Zefa; Li, Zhiwei; Zhu, Jianjun; Yi, Huiwei; Feng, Guangcai; Hu, Jun; Wu, Lixin; Preusse, Alex; Wang, Yunjia; Papst, Markus

2018-01-01

It is crucial to locate underground goafs (i.e., mined-out areas) resulting from coal mining and define their spatial dimensions for effectively controlling the induced damages and geohazards. Traditional geophysical techniques for locating and defining underground goafs, however, are ground-based, labour-consuming and costly. This paper presents a novel space-based method for locating and defining the underground goaf caused by coal extraction using Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar (InSAR) techniques. As the coal mining-induced goaf is often a cuboid-shaped void and eight critical geometric parameters (i.e., length, width, height, inclined angle, azimuth angle, mining depth, and two central geodetic coordinates) are capable of locating and defining this underground space, the proposed method reduces to determine the eight geometric parameters from InSAR observations. Therefore, it first applies the Probability Integral Method (PIM), a widely used model for mining-induced deformation prediction, to construct a functional relationship between the eight geometric parameters and the InSAR-derived surface deformation. Next, the method estimates these geometric parameters from the InSAR-derived deformation observations using a hybrid simulated annealing and genetic algorithm. Finally, the proposed method was tested with both simulated and two real data sets. The results demonstrate that the estimated geometric parameters of the goafs are accurate and compatible overall, with averaged relative errors of approximately 2.1% and 8.1% being observed for the simulated and the real data experiments, respectively. Owing to the advantages of the InSAR observations, the proposed method provides a non-contact, convenient and practical method for economically locating and defining underground goafs in a large spatial area from space.

Blind Forensics of Successive Geometric Transformations in Digital Images Using Spectral Method: Theory and Applications.

PubMed

Chen, Chenglong; Ni, Jiangqun; Shen, Zhaoyi; Shi, Yun Qing

2017-06-01

Geometric transformations, such as resizing and rotation, are almost always needed when two or more images are spliced together to create convincing image forgeries. In recent years, researchers have developed many digital forensic techniques to identify these operations. Most previous works in this area focus on the analysis of images that have undergone single geometric transformations, e.g., resizing or rotation. In several recent works, researchers have addressed yet another practical and realistic situation: successive geometric transformations, e.g., repeated resizing, resizing-rotation, rotation-resizing, and repeated rotation. We will also concentrate on this topic in this paper. Specifically, we present an in-depth analysis in the frequency domain of the second-order statistics of the geometrically transformed images. We give an exact formulation of how the parameters of the first and second geometric transformations influence the appearance of periodic artifacts. The expected positions of characteristic resampling peaks are analytically derived. The theory developed here helps to address the gap left by previous works on this topic and is useful for image security and authentication, in particular, the forensics of geometric transformations in digital images. As an application of the developed theory, we present an effective method that allows one to distinguish between the aforementioned four different processing chains. The proposed method can further estimate all the geometric transformation parameters. This may provide useful clues for image forgery detection.

Radiometric and geometric assessment of data from the RapidEye constellation of satellites

USGS Publications Warehouse

Chander, Gyanesh; Haque, Md. Obaidul; Sampath, Aparajithan; Brunn, A.; Trosset, G.; Hoffmann, D.; Roloff, S.; Thiele, M.; Anderson, C.

2013-01-01

To monitor land surface processes over a wide range of temporal and spatial scales, it is critical to have coordinated observations of the Earth's surface using imagery acquired from multiple spaceborne imaging sensors. The RapidEye (RE) satellite constellation acquires high-resolution satellite images covering the entire globe within a very short period of time by sensors identical in construction and cross-calibrated to each other. To evaluate the RE high-resolution Multi-spectral Imager (MSI) sensor capabilities, a cross-comparison between the RE constellation of sensors was performed first using image statistics based on large common areas observed over pseudo-invariant calibration sites (PICS) by the sensors and, second, by comparing the on-orbit radiometric calibration temporal trending over a large number of calibration sites. For any spectral band, the individual responses measured by the five satellites of the RE constellation were found to differ <2–3% from the average constellation response depending on the method used for evaluation. Geometric assessment was also performed to study the positional accuracy and relative band-to-band (B2B) alignment of the image data sets. The position accuracy was assessed by comparing the RE imagery against high-resolution aerial imagery, while the B2B characterization was performed by registering each band against every other band to ensure that the proper band alignment is provided for an image product. The B2B results indicate that the internal alignments of these five RE bands are in agreement, with bands typically registered to within 0.25 pixels of each other or better.

Unsupervised parameter optimization for automated retention time alignment of severely shifted gas chromatographic data using the piecework alignment algorithm.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Pierce, Karisa M.; Wright, Bob W.; Synovec, Robert E.

2007-02-02

First, simulated chromatographic separations with declining retention time precision were used to study the performance of the piecewise retention time alignment algorithm and to demonstrate an unsupervised parameter optimization method. The average correlation coefficient between the first chromatogram and every other chromatogram in the data set was used to optimize the alignment parameters. This correlation method does not require a training set, so it is unsupervised and automated. This frees the user from needing to provide class information and makes the alignment algorithm more generally applicable to classifying completely unknown data sets. For a data set of simulated chromatograms wheremore » the average chromatographic peak was shifted past two neighboring peaks between runs, the average correlation coefficient of the raw data was 0.46 ± 0.25. After automated, optimized piecewise alignment, the average correlation coefficient was 0.93 ± 0.02. Additionally, a relative shift metric and principal component analysis (PCA) were used to independently quantify and categorize the alignment performance, respectively. The relative shift metric was defined as four times the standard deviation of a given peak’s retention time in all of the chromatograms, divided by the peak-width-at-base. The raw simulated data sets that were studied contained peaks with average relative shifts ranging between 0.3 and 3.0. Second, a “real” data set of gasoline separations was gathered using three different GC methods to induce severe retention time shifting. In these gasoline separations, retention time precision improved ~8 fold following alignment. Finally, piecewise alignment and the unsupervised correlation optimization method were applied to severely shifted GC separations of reformate distillation fractions. The effect of piecewise alignment on peak heights and peak areas is also reported. Piecewise alignment either did not change the peak height, or caused it to slightly decrease. The average relative difference in peak height after piecewise alignment was –0.20%. Piecewise alignment caused the peak areas to either stay the same, slightly increase, or slightly decrease. The average absolute relative difference in area after piecewise alignment was 0.15%.« less

Data mining the Kansas traffic-crash database : final report.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2009-08-01

Traffic crashes results from the interaction of different parameters which includes highway geometrics, traffic characteristics and human factors. Geometric variables include number of lanes, lane width, median width, shoulder width, roadway section ...

Data mining the Kansas traffic-crash database : summary.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2009-08-01

Traffic crashes results from the interaction of different parameters which includes highway geometrics, traffic : characteristics and human factors. Geometric variables include number of lanes, lane width, median width, shoulder : width, roadway sect...

Circumferentially aligned fibers guided functional neoartery regeneration in vivo.

PubMed

Zhu, Meifeng; Wang, Zhihong; Zhang, Jiamin; Wang, Lina; Yang, Xiaohu; Chen, Jingrui; Fan, Guanwei; Ji, Shenglu; Xing, Cheng; Wang, Kai; Zhao, Qiang; Zhu, Yan; Kong, Deling; Wang, Lianyong

2015-08-01

An ideal vascular graft should have the ability to guide the regeneration of neovessels with structure and function similar to those of the native blood vessels. Regeneration of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) with circumferential orientation within the grafts is crucial for functional vascular reconstruction in vivo. To date, designing and fabricating a vascular graft with well-defined geometric cues to facilitate simultaneously VSMCs infiltration and their circumferential alignment remains a great challenge and scarcely reported in vivo. Thus, we have designed a bi-layered vascular graft, of which the internal layer is composed of circumferentially aligned microfibers prepared by wet-spinning and an external layer composed of random nanofibers prepared by electrospinning. While the internal circumferentially aligned microfibers provide topographic guidance for in vivo regeneration of circumferentially aligned VSMCs, the external random nanofibers can offer enhanced mechanical property and prevent bleeding during and after graft implantation. VSMCs infiltration and alignment within the scaffold was then evaluated in vitro and in vivo. Our results demonstrated that the circumferentially oriented VSMCs and longitudinally aligned ECs were successfully regenerated in vivo after the bi-layered vascular grafts were implanted in rat abdominal aorta. No formation of thrombosis or intimal hyperplasia was observed up to 3 month post implantation. Further, the regenerated neoartery exhibited contraction and relaxation property in response to vasoactive agents. This new strategy may bring cell-free small diameter vascular grafts closer to clinical application. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Image-based quantification of fiber alignment within electrospun tissue engineering scaffolds is related to mechanical anisotropy.

PubMed

Fee, Timothy; Downs, Crawford; Eberhardt, Alan; Zhou, Yong; Berry, Joel

2016-07-01

It is well documented that electrospun tissue engineering scaffolds can be fabricated with variable degrees of fiber alignment to produce scaffolds with anisotropic mechanical properties. Several attempts have been made to quantify the degree of fiber alignment within an electrospun scaffold using image-based methods. However, these methods are limited by the inability to produce a quantitative measure of alignment that can be used to make comparisons across publications. Therefore, we have developed a new approach to quantifying the alignment present within a scaffold from scanning electron microscopic (SEM) images. The alignment is determined by using the Sobel approximation of the image gradient to determine the distribution of gradient angles with an image. This data was fit to a Von Mises distribution to find the dispersion parameter κ, which was used as a quantitative measure of fiber alignment. We fabricated four groups of electrospun polycaprolactone (PCL) + Gelatin scaffolds with alignments ranging from κ = 1.9 (aligned) to κ = 0.25 (random) and tested our alignment quantification method on these scaffolds. It was found that our alignment quantification method could distinguish between scaffolds of different alignments more accurately than two other published methods. Additionally, the alignment parameter κ was found to be a good predictor the mechanical anisotropy of our electrospun scaffolds. The ability to quantify fiber alignment within and make direct comparisons of scaffold fiber alignment across publications can reduce ambiguity between published results where cells are cultured on "highly aligned" fibrous scaffolds. This could have important implications for characterizing mechanics and cellular behavior on aligned tissue engineering scaffolds. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part A: 104A: 1680-1686, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Second derivative in the model of classical binary system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abubekerov, M. K.; Gostev, N. Yu.

2016-06-01

We have obtained an analytical expression for the second derivatives of the light curve with respect to geometric parameters in the model of eclipsing classical binary systems. These expressions are essentially efficient algorithm to calculate the numerical values of these second derivatives for all physical values of geometric parameters. Knowledge of the values of second derivatives of the light curve at some point provides additional information about asymptotical behaviour of the function near this point and can significantly improve the search for the best-fitting light curve through the use of second-order optimization method. We write the expression for the second derivatives in a form which is most compact and uniform for all values of the geometric parameters and so make it easy to write a computer program to calculate the values of these derivatives.

Absolute and geometric parameters of contact binary GW Cnc

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gürol, B.; Gökay, G.; Saral, G.; Gürsoytrak, S. H.; Cerit, S.; Terzioğlu, Z.

2016-07-01

We present the results of our investigation on the geometrical and physical parameters of the W UMa type binary system GW Cnc. We analyzed the photometric data obtained in 2010 and 2011 at Ankara University Observatory (AUO) and the spectroscopic data obtained in 2010 at TUBITAK National Observatory (TUG) by using the Wilson-Devinney (2013 revision) code to obtain the absolute and geometrical parameters. We derived masses and radii of the eclipsing system to be M1 = 0.257M⊙ , M2 = 0.971M⊙ , R1 = 0.526R⊙ and R2 = 0.961R⊙ with an orbital inclination i(∘) = 83.38 ± 0.25 and we determined the GW Cnc system to be a W-type W UMa over-contact binary with a mass ratio of q = 3.773 ± 0.007 .

Optimization of the blade trailing edge geometric parameters for a small scale ORC turbine

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, L.; Zhuge, W. L.; Peng, J.; Liu, S. J.; Zhang, Y. J.

2013-12-01

In general, the method proposed by Whitfield and Baines is adopted for the turbine preliminary design. In this design procedure for the turbine blade trailing edge geometry, two assumptions (ideal gas and zero discharge swirl) and two experience values (WR and γ) are used to get the three blade trailing edge geometric parameters: relative exit flow angle β6, the exit tip radius R6t and hub radius R6h for the purpose of maximizing the rotor total-to-static isentropic efficiency. The method above is established based on the experience and results of testing using air as working fluid, so it does not provide a mathematical optimal solution to instruct the optimization of geometry parameters and consider the real gas effects of the organic, working fluid which must be taken into consideration for the ORC turbine design procedure. In this paper, a new preliminary design and optimization method is established for the purpose of reducing the exit kinetic energy loss to improve the turbine efficiency ηts, and the blade trailing edge geometric parameters for a small scale ORC turbine with working fluid R123 are optimized based on this method. The mathematical optimal solution to minimize the exit kinetic energy is deduced, which can be used to design and optimize the exit shroud/hub radius and exit blade angle. And then, the influence of blade trailing edge geometric parameters on turbine efficiency ηts are analysed and the optimal working ranges of these parameters for the equations are recommended in consideration of working fluid R123. This method is used to modify an existing ORC turbine exit kinetic energy loss from 11.7% to 7%, which indicates the effectiveness of the method. However, the internal passage loss increases from 7.9% to 9.4%, so the only way to consider the influence of geometric parameters on internal passage loss is to give the empirical ranges of these parameters, such as the recommended ranges that the value of γ is at 0.3 to 0.4, and the value of τ is at 0.5 to 0.6.

Investigation of the influence of geometric parameters of carbon nanotube arrays on their adhesion properties

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Il’ina, M. V.; Konshin, A. A.; Il’in, O. I.; Rudyk, N. N.; Fedotov, A. A.; Ageev, O. A.

2018-03-01

The results of experimental studies of adhesion of carbon nanotube (CNT) arrays with different geometric parameters and orientations using atomic-force microscopy are presented. The adhesion values of CNT arrays were determined, which were from 82 to 1315 nN depending on the parameters of the array. As a result, it was established that the adhesion of a CNT array increases with an increase in branching and disorientation of the array, as well as with the growth of the aspect ratio of CNTs in the array.

Dynamic Stability Derivatives

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-06-01

kinematic viscocity , and speed-of-sound; wing geometric characteristics (area, mean aerodynamic chord and taper ratio); and its motion (free-stream...computed by integrating the vehicle’s velocity components expressed in a "trajectory" coordinate system which is fixed in space and aligned with the system...yawing motion is superfluous . The pitching motion results presented in Table 3-5 are interesting, though. Recall that the rotation rates are body

Analysis of a piezoelectric bimorph plate with a central-attached mass as an energy harvester.

PubMed

Jiang, Shunong; Hu, Yuantai

2007-07-01

This article analyzes the performance of a piezoelectric energy harvester in the flexural mode for scavenging ambient vibration energy. The energy harvester consists of a piezoelectric bimorph plate with a central-attached mass. The linear piezoelectricity theory is applied to evaluate the performance dependence upon the physical and geometrical parameters of the model bimorph plate. The analytical solution for the flexural motion of the piezoelectric bimorph plate energy harvester shows that the output power density increases initially, reaches a maximum, then decreases monotonically with the increasing load impedance, which is normalized by a parameter that is a simple combination of the physical and geometrical parameters of the scavenging structure, the bimorph plate, and the frequency of the ambient vibration, underscoring the importance for the load circuit to have the impedance desirable by the scavenging structure. The numerical results illustrate the considerably enhanced performances by adjusting the physical and geometrical parameters of the scavenging structure.

Polarization ellipse and Stokes parameters in geometric algebra.

PubMed

Santos, Adler G; Sugon, Quirino M; McNamara, Daniel J

2012-01-01

In this paper, we use geometric algebra to describe the polarization ellipse and Stokes parameters. We show that a solution to Maxwell's equation is a product of a complex basis vector in Jackson and a linear combination of plane wave functions. We convert both the amplitudes and the wave function arguments from complex scalars to complex vectors. This conversion allows us to separate the electric field vector and the imaginary magnetic field vector, because exponentials of imaginary scalars convert vectors to imaginary vectors and vice versa, while exponentials of imaginary vectors only rotate the vector or imaginary vector they are multiplied to. We convert this expression for polarized light into two other representations: the Cartesian representation and the rotated ellipse representation. We compute the conversion relations among the representation parameters and their corresponding Stokes parameters. And finally, we propose a set of geometric relations between the electric and magnetic fields that satisfy an equation similar to the Poincaré sphere equation.

Dynamics of Geometrically Nonlinear Elastic Nonthin Anisotropic Shells of Variable Thickness

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marchuk, M. V.; Tuchapskii, R. I.

2017-11-01

A theory of dynamic elastic geometrically nonlinear deformation of nonthin anisotropic shells with variable thickness is constructed. Shells are assumed asymmetric about the reference surface. Functions are expanded into Legendre series. The basic equations are written in a coordinate system aligned with the lines of curvature of the reference surface. The equations of motion and appropriate boundary conditions are obtained using the Hamilton-Ostrogradsky variational principle. The change in metric across the thickness is taken into account. The theory assumes that the refinement process is regular and allows deriving equations including products of terms of Legendre series of unknown functions of arbitrary order. The behavior of a square metallic plate acted upon by a pressure pulse distributed over its face is studied.

Interplay between Peptide Bond Geometrical Parameters in Nonglobular Structural Contexts

PubMed Central

Esposito, Luciana; De Simone, Alfonso; Vitagliano, Luigi

2013-01-01

Several investigations performed in the last two decades have unveiled that geometrical parameters of protein backbone show a remarkable variability. Although these studies have provided interesting insights into one of the basic aspects of protein structure, they have been conducted on globular and water-soluble proteins. We report here a detailed analysis of backbone geometrical parameters in nonglobular proteins/peptides. We considered membrane proteins and two distinct fibrous systems (amyloid-forming and collagen-like peptides). Present data show that in these systems the local conformation plays a major role in dictating the amplitude of the bond angle N-Cα-C and the propensity of the peptide bond to adopt planar/nonplanar states. Since the trends detected here are in line with the concept of the mutual influence of local geometry and conformation previously established for globular and water-soluble proteins, our analysis demonstrates that the interplay of backbone geometrical parameters is an intrinsic and general property of protein/peptide structures that is preserved also in nonglobular contexts. For amyloid-forming peptides significant distortions of the N-Cα-C bond angle, indicative of sterical hidden strain, may occur in correspondence with side chain interdigitation. The correlation between the dihedral angles Δω/ψ in collagen-like models may have interesting implications for triple helix stability. PMID:24455689

Interplay between peptide bond geometrical parameters in nonglobular structural contexts.

PubMed

Esposito, Luciana; Balasco, Nicole; De Simone, Alfonso; Berisio, Rita; Vitagliano, Luigi

2013-01-01

Several investigations performed in the last two decades have unveiled that geometrical parameters of protein backbone show a remarkable variability. Although these studies have provided interesting insights into one of the basic aspects of protein structure, they have been conducted on globular and water-soluble proteins. We report here a detailed analysis of backbone geometrical parameters in nonglobular proteins/peptides. We considered membrane proteins and two distinct fibrous systems (amyloid-forming and collagen-like peptides). Present data show that in these systems the local conformation plays a major role in dictating the amplitude of the bond angle N-C(α)-C and the propensity of the peptide bond to adopt planar/nonplanar states. Since the trends detected here are in line with the concept of the mutual influence of local geometry and conformation previously established for globular and water-soluble proteins, our analysis demonstrates that the interplay of backbone geometrical parameters is an intrinsic and general property of protein/peptide structures that is preserved also in nonglobular contexts. For amyloid-forming peptides significant distortions of the N-C(α)-C bond angle, indicative of sterical hidden strain, may occur in correspondence with side chain interdigitation. The correlation between the dihedral angles Δω/ψ in collagen-like models may have interesting implications for triple helix stability.

Subject-specific body segment parameter estimation using 3D photogrammetry with multiple cameras

PubMed Central

Morris, Mark; Sellers, William I.

2015-01-01

Inertial properties of body segments, such as mass, centre of mass or moments of inertia, are important parameters when studying movements of the human body. However, these quantities are not directly measurable. Current approaches include using regression models which have limited accuracy: geometric models with lengthy measuring procedures or acquiring and post-processing MRI scans of participants. We propose a geometric methodology based on 3D photogrammetry using multiple cameras to provide subject-specific body segment parameters while minimizing the interaction time with the participants. A low-cost body scanner was built using multiple cameras and 3D point cloud data generated using structure from motion photogrammetric reconstruction algorithms. The point cloud was manually separated into body segments, and convex hulling applied to each segment to produce the required geometric outlines. The accuracy of the method can be adjusted by choosing the number of subdivisions of the body segments. The body segment parameters of six participants (four male and two female) are presented using the proposed method. The multi-camera photogrammetric approach is expected to be particularly suited for studies including populations for which regression models are not available in literature and where other geometric techniques or MRI scanning are not applicable due to time or ethical constraints. PMID:25780778

Subject-specific body segment parameter estimation using 3D photogrammetry with multiple cameras.

PubMed

Peyer, Kathrin E; Morris, Mark; Sellers, William I

2015-01-01

Inertial properties of body segments, such as mass, centre of mass or moments of inertia, are important parameters when studying movements of the human body. However, these quantities are not directly measurable. Current approaches include using regression models which have limited accuracy: geometric models with lengthy measuring procedures or acquiring and post-processing MRI scans of participants. We propose a geometric methodology based on 3D photogrammetry using multiple cameras to provide subject-specific body segment parameters while minimizing the interaction time with the participants. A low-cost body scanner was built using multiple cameras and 3D point cloud data generated using structure from motion photogrammetric reconstruction algorithms. The point cloud was manually separated into body segments, and convex hulling applied to each segment to produce the required geometric outlines. The accuracy of the method can be adjusted by choosing the number of subdivisions of the body segments. The body segment parameters of six participants (four male and two female) are presented using the proposed method. The multi-camera photogrammetric approach is expected to be particularly suited for studies including populations for which regression models are not available in literature and where other geometric techniques or MRI scanning are not applicable due to time or ethical constraints.

Influence of the volume and density functions within geometric models for estimating trunk inertial parameters.

PubMed

Wicke, Jason; Dumas, Genevieve A

2010-02-01

The geometric method combines a volume and a density function to estimate body segment parameters and has the best opportunity for developing the most accurate models. In the trunk, there are many different tissues that greatly differ in density (e.g., bone versus lung). Thus, the density function for the trunk must be particularly sensitive to capture this diversity, such that accurate inertial estimates are possible. Three different models were used to test this hypothesis by estimating trunk inertial parameters of 25 female and 24 male college-aged participants. The outcome of this study indicates that the inertial estimates for the upper and lower trunk are most sensitive to the volume function and not very sensitive to the density function. Although it appears that the uniform density function has a greater influence on inertial estimates in the lower trunk region than in the upper trunk region, this is likely due to the (overestimated) density value used. When geometric models are used to estimate body segment parameters, care must be taken in choosing a model that can accurately estimate segment volumes. Researchers wanting to develop accurate geometric models should focus on the volume function, especially in unique populations (e.g., pregnant or obese individuals).

Optimal Parameter Design of Coarse Alignment for Fiber Optic Gyro Inertial Navigation System.

PubMed

Lu, Baofeng; Wang, Qiuying; Yu, Chunmei; Gao, Wei

2015-06-25

Two different coarse alignment algorithms for Fiber Optic Gyro (FOG) Inertial Navigation System (INS) based on inertial reference frame are discussed in this paper. Both of them are based on gravity vector integration, therefore, the performance of these algorithms is determined by integration time. In previous works, integration time is selected by experience. In order to give a criterion for the selection process, and make the selection of the integration time more accurate, optimal parameter design of these algorithms for FOG INS is performed in this paper. The design process is accomplished based on the analysis of the error characteristics of these two coarse alignment algorithms. Moreover, this analysis and optimal parameter design allow us to make an adequate selection of the most accurate algorithm for FOG INS according to the actual operational conditions. The analysis and simulation results show that the parameter provided by this work is the optimal value, and indicate that in different operational conditions, the coarse alignment algorithms adopted for FOG INS are different in order to achieve better performance. Lastly, the experiment results validate the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm.

Lidar inelastic multiple-scattering parameters of cirrus particle ensembles determined with geometrical-optics crystal phase functions.

PubMed

Reichardt, J; Hess, M; Macke, A

2000-04-20

Multiple-scattering correction factors for cirrus particle extinction coefficients measured with Raman and high spectral resolution lidars are calculated with a radiative-transfer model. Cirrus particle-ensemble phase functions are computed from single-crystal phase functions derived in a geometrical-optics approximation. Seven crystal types are considered. In cirrus clouds with height-independent particle extinction coefficients the general pattern of the multiple-scattering parameters has a steep onset at cloud base with values of 0.5-0.7 followed by a gradual and monotonic decrease to 0.1-0.2 at cloud top. The larger the scattering particles are, the more gradual is the rate of decrease. Multiple-scattering parameters of complex crystals and of imperfect hexagonal columns and plates can be well approximated by those of projected-area equivalent ice spheres, whereas perfect hexagonal crystals show values as much as 70% higher than those of spheres. The dependencies of the multiple-scattering parameters on cirrus particle spectrum, base height, and geometric depth and on the lidar parameters laser wavelength and receiver field of view, are discussed, and a set of multiple-scattering parameter profiles for the correction of extinction measurements in homogeneous cirrus is provided.

Multi-parameter geometrical scaledown study for energy optimization of MTJ and related spintronics nanodevices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Farhat, I. A. H.; Alpha, C.; Gale, E.; Atia, D. Y.; Stein, A.; Isakovic, A. F.

The scaledown of magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJ) and related nanoscale spintronics devices poses unique challenges for energy optimization of their performance. We demonstrate the dependence of the switching current on the scaledown variable, while considering the influence of geometric parameters of MTJ, such as the free layer thickness, tfree, lateral size of the MTJ, w, and the anisotropy parameter of the MTJ. At the same time, we point out which values of the saturation magnetization, Ms, and anisotropy field, Hk, can lead to lowering the switching current and overall decrease of the energy needed to operate an MTJ. It is demonstrated that scaledown via decreasing the lateral size of the MTJ, while allowing some other parameters to be unconstrained, can improve energy performance by a measurable factor, shown to be the function of both geometric and physical parameters above. Given the complex interdependencies among both families of parameters, we developed a particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm that can simultaneously lower energy of operation and the switching current density. Results we obtained in scaledown study and via PSO optimization are compared to experimental results. Support by Mubadala-SRC 2012-VJ-2335 is acknowledged, as are staff at Cornell-CNF and BNL-CFN.

Sagittal alignment after single cervical disc arthroplasty.

PubMed

Guérin, Patrick; Obeid, Ibrahim; Gille, Olivier; Bourghli, Anouar; Luc, Stéphane; Pointillart, Vincent; Vital, Jean-Marc

2012-02-01

Prospective study. To analyze the sagittal balance after single-level cervical disc replacement (CDR) and range of motion (ROM). To define clinical and radiologic parameters those have a significant correlation with segmental and overall cervical curvature after CDR. Clinical outcomes and ROM after CDR with Mobi-C (LDR, Troyes, France) prosthesis have been documented in few studies. No earlier report of this prosthesis has studied correlations between static and dynamic parameters or those between static parameters and clinical outcomes. Forty patients were evaluated. Clinical outcome was assessed using the Short Form-36 questionnaire, Neck Disability Index, and a Visual Analog Scale. Spineview software (Surgiview, Paris, France) was used to investigate sagittal balance parameters and ROM. The mean follow-up was 24.3 months (range: 12 to 36 mo). Clinical outcomes were satisfactory. There was a significant improvement of Short Form-36, Neck Disability Index, and Visual Analog Scale scores. Mean ROM was 8.3 degrees preoperatively and 11.0 degrees postoperatively (P=0.013). Mean preoperative C2C7 curvature was 12.8 and 16.0 degrees at last follow-up (P=0.001). Mean preoperative functional spinal unit (FSU) angle was 2.3 and 5.3 degrees postoperatively (P<0.0001). Mean postoperative shell angle was 5.5 degrees. There was a significant correlation between postoperative C2C7 alignment and preoperative C2C7 alignment, change of C2C7 alignment, preoperative and postoperative FSU angle, and prosthesis shell angle. There was also a significant correlation between postoperative FSU angle and preoperative C2C7 alignment, preoperative FSU angle, change of FSU angle, and prosthesis shell angle. Regression analysis showed that prosthesis shell angle and preoperative FSU angle contributed significantly to postoperative FSU angle. Moreover, preoperative C2C7 alignment, preoperative FSU angle, postoperative FSU angle, and prosthesis shell angle contributed significantly to postoperative C2C7 alignment. No significant correlation was observed between ROM and sagittal parameters. Few correlations were found between sagittal alignment and clinical results. CDR with this prosthesis provided favorable clinical outcomes and maintains ROM of the FSU, overall and segmental cervical alignment. Long-term follow-up will be needed to assess the effectiveness and advantages of this procedure.

On-Ground Processing of Yaogan-24 Remote Sensing Satellite Attitude Data and Verification Using Geometric Field Calibration

PubMed Central

Wang, Mi; Fan, Chengcheng; Yang, Bo; Jin, Shuying; Pan, Jun

2016-01-01

Satellite attitude accuracy is an important factor affecting the geometric processing accuracy of high-resolution optical satellite imagery. To address the problem whereby the accuracy of the Yaogan-24 remote sensing satellite’s on-board attitude data processing is not high enough and thus cannot meet its image geometry processing requirements, we developed an approach involving on-ground attitude data processing and digital orthophoto (DOM) and the digital elevation model (DEM) verification of a geometric calibration field. The approach focuses on three modules: on-ground processing based on bidirectional filter, overall weighted smoothing and fitting, and evaluation in the geometric calibration field. Our experimental results demonstrate that the proposed on-ground processing method is both robust and feasible, which ensures the reliability of the observation data quality, convergence and stability of the parameter estimation model. In addition, both the Euler angle and quaternion could be used to build a mathematical fitting model, while the orthogonal polynomial fitting model is more suitable for modeling the attitude parameter. Furthermore, compared to the image geometric processing results based on on-board attitude data, the image uncontrolled and relative geometric positioning result accuracy can be increased by about 50%. PMID:27483287

Geometric diffusion of quantum trajectories

PubMed Central

Yang, Fan; Liu, Ren-Bao

2015-01-01

A quantum object can acquire a geometric phase (such as Berry phases and Aharonov–Bohm phases) when evolving along a path in a parameter space with non-trivial gauge structures. Inherent to quantum evolutions of wavepackets, quantum diffusion occurs along quantum trajectories. Here we show that quantum diffusion can also be geometric as characterized by the imaginary part of a geometric phase. The geometric quantum diffusion results from interference between different instantaneous eigenstate pathways which have different geometric phases during the adiabatic evolution. As a specific example, we study the quantum trajectories of optically excited electron-hole pairs in time-reversal symmetric insulators, driven by an elliptically polarized terahertz field. The imaginary geometric phase manifests itself as elliptical polarization in the terahertz sideband generation. The geometric quantum diffusion adds a new dimension to geometric phases and may have applications in many fields of physics, e.g., transport in topological insulators and novel electro-optical effects. PMID:26178745

Accessing the molecular frame through strong-field alignment of distributions of gas phase molecules

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reid, Katharine L.

2018-03-01

A rationale for creating highly aligned distributions of molecules is that it enables vector properties referenced to molecule-fixed axes (the molecular frame) to be determined. In the present work, the degree of alignment that is necessary for this to be achieved in practice is explored. Alignment is commonly parametrized in experiments by a single parameter, ?, which is insufficient to enable predictive calculations to be performed. Here, it is shown that, if the full distribution of molecular axes takes a Gaussian form, this single parameter can be used to determine the complete set of alignment moments needed to characterize the distribution. In order to demonstrate the degree of alignment that is required to approach the molecular frame, the alignment moments corresponding to a few chosen values of ? are used to project a model molecular frame photoelectron angular distribution into the laboratory frame. These calculations show that ? needs to approach 0.9 in order to avoid significant blurring to be caused by averaging. This article is part of the theme issue `Modern theoretical chemistry'.

Cervical spine alignment in the pediatric population: a radiographic normative study of 150 asymptomatic patients.

PubMed

Abelin-Genevois, K; Idjerouidene, A; Roussouly, P; Vital, J M; Garin, C

2014-07-01

To describe the normal cervical sagittal alignment of the pediatric spine in a normal population and to identify the changes during growth period. We randomly selected in PACS database 150 full-spine standing views. Exclusion criteria were: age >18 years, spinal deformity and any disease affecting the spine (medical charts reviewing). For cervical alignment we measured: OC-angle according to Mc Gregor, C1C7 angle, upper cervical angle, inferior cervical angle and C7 tilt. Spino pelvic parameters were analyzed: T1 tilt, thoracic kyphosis, lumbar lordosis, pelvic incidence, sacral slope and pelvic tilt. We compared two age subgroups (juvenile and adolescent). Differences between age groups and gender were tested using Student's t test. Correlations between sagittal spinal parameters were evaluated using Pearson's test. Cervical spine shape was correlated to cranio cervical orientation to maintain horizontal gaze (r = 0.60) and to thoracic kyphosis (r = -0.46). Cervical spine alignment was significantly different between the two age groups except for the global C1C7 cervical lordosis, which remained stable. A significant gender difference was found for all the cervical sagittal angles (p < 0.01) whereas no differences were demonstrated for the spino pelvic parameters, except the lumbar lordosis (p = 0.047). This study is the first to report the cervical spinal alignment in a normal pediatric Caucasian population. Even though cervical lordosis is the common shape, our results showed variability in cervical sagittal alignment. Cervical spine is a junctional area that adjusts its alignment to the head position and to the underlying spinal alignment.

Deformation effect in the fast neutron total cross section of aligned /sup 59/Co

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Fasoli, U.; Pavan, P.; Toniolo, D.

1983-05-01

The variation of the total neutron cross section, ..delta..sigma/sub align/, on /sup 59/Co due to nuclear alignment of the target has been measured over the energy range from 0.8 to 20 MeV employing a cobalt single crystal with a 34% nuclear alignment. The results show that ..delta..sigma/sub align/ oscillates from a minimum of -5% at about 2.5 MeV to a maximum of +1% at about 10 MeV. The data were successfully fitted by optical model coupled-channel calculations. The coupling terms were deduced from a model representing the /sup 59/Co nucleus as a vibrational /sup 60/Ni core coupled to a protonmore » hole in a (1f/sub 7/2/) shell, without free parameters. The optical model parameters were determined by fitting the total cross section, which was independently measured. The theoretical calculations show that, at lower energies, ..delta..sigma/sub align/ depends appreciably on the coupling with the low-lying levels.« less

Cooperative ordering and kinetics of cellulose nanocrystal alignment in a magnetic field

DOE PAGES

De France, Kevin J.; Yager, Kevin G.; Hoare, Todd; ...

2016-07-13

Cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) are emerging nanomaterials that form chiral nematic liquid crystals above a critical concentration (C*) and additionally orient within electromagnetic fields. The control over CNC alignment is significant for materials processing and end use; to date, magnetic alignment has been demonstrated using only strong fields over extended or arbitrary time scales. This work investigates the effects of comparatively weak magnetic fields (0–1.2 T) and CNC concentration (1.65–8.25 wt %) on the kinetics and degree of CNC ordering using small-angle X-ray scattering. Interparticle spacing, correlation length, and orientation order parameters (η and S) increased with time and field strengthmore » following a sigmoidal profile. In a 1.2 T magnetic field for CNC suspensions above C*, partial alignment occurred in under 2 min followed by slower cooperative ordering to achieve nearly perfect alignment in under 200 min (S = –0.499 where S = –0.5 indicates perfect antialignment). At 0.56 T, nearly perfect alignment was also achieved, yet the ordering was 36% slower. Outside of a magnetic field, the order parameter plateaued at 52% alignment (S = –0.26) after 5 h, showcasing the drastic effects of relatively weak magnetic fields on CNC alignment. For suspensions below C*, no magnetic alignment was detected.« less

MM Algorithms for Geometric and Signomial Programming

PubMed Central

Lange, Kenneth; Zhou, Hua

2013-01-01

This paper derives new algorithms for signomial programming, a generalization of geometric programming. The algorithms are based on a generic principle for optimization called the MM algorithm. In this setting, one can apply the geometric-arithmetic mean inequality and a supporting hyperplane inequality to create a surrogate function with parameters separated. Thus, unconstrained signomial programming reduces to a sequence of one-dimensional minimization problems. Simple examples demonstrate that the MM algorithm derived can converge to a boundary point or to one point of a continuum of minimum points. Conditions under which the minimum point is unique or occurs in the interior of parameter space are proved for geometric programming. Convergence to an interior point occurs at a linear rate. Finally, the MM framework easily accommodates equality and inequality constraints of signomial type. For the most important special case, constrained quadratic programming, the MM algorithm involves very simple updates. PMID:24634545

MM Algorithms for Geometric and Signomial Programming.

PubMed

Lange, Kenneth; Zhou, Hua

2014-02-01

This paper derives new algorithms for signomial programming, a generalization of geometric programming. The algorithms are based on a generic principle for optimization called the MM algorithm. In this setting, one can apply the geometric-arithmetic mean inequality and a supporting hyperplane inequality to create a surrogate function with parameters separated. Thus, unconstrained signomial programming reduces to a sequence of one-dimensional minimization problems. Simple examples demonstrate that the MM algorithm derived can converge to a boundary point or to one point of a continuum of minimum points. Conditions under which the minimum point is unique or occurs in the interior of parameter space are proved for geometric programming. Convergence to an interior point occurs at a linear rate. Finally, the MM framework easily accommodates equality and inequality constraints of signomial type. For the most important special case, constrained quadratic programming, the MM algorithm involves very simple updates.

A Route for Polymer Nanocomposites with Engineered Electrical Conductivity and Percolation Threshold

PubMed Central

Kalaitzidou, Kyriaki; Fukushima, Hiroyuki; Drzal, Lawrence T.

2010-01-01

Polymer nanocomposites with engineered electrical properties can be made by tuning the fabrication method, processing conditions and filler’s geometric and physical properties. This work focuses on investigating the effect of filler’s geometry (aspect ratio and shape), intrinsic electrical conductivity, alignment and dispersion within the polymer, and polymer crystallinity, on the percolation threshold and electrical conductivity of polypropylene based nanocomposites. The conductive reinforcements used are exfoliated graphite nanoplatelets, carbon black, vapor grown carbon fibers and polyacrylonitrile carbon fibers. The composites are made using melt mixing followed by injection molding. A coating method is also employed to improve the nanofiller’s dispersion within the polymer and compression molding is used to alter the nanofiller’s alignment.

Femtosecond laser-induced surface structures on carbon fibers.

PubMed

Sajzew, Roman; Schröder, Jan; Kunz, Clemens; Engel, Sebastian; Müller, Frank A; Gräf, Stephan

2015-12-15

The influence of different polarization states during the generation of periodic nanostructures on the surface of carbon fibers was investigated using a femtosecond laser with a pulse duration τ=300  fs, a wavelength λ=1025  nm, and a peak fluence F=4  J/cm². It was shown that linear polarization results in a well-aligned periodic pattern with different orders of magnitude concerning their period and an alignment parallel and perpendicular to fiber direction, respectively. For circular polarization, both types of uniform laser-induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS) patterns appear simultaneously with different dominance in dependence on the position at the fiber surface. Their orientation was explained by the polarization-dependent absorptivity and the geometrical anisotropy of the carbon fibers.

Binding energy and photoionization cross-section of hydrogen-like donor impurity in strongly oblate ellipsoidal quantum dot

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hayrapetyan, D. B.; Ohanyan, G. L.; Baghdasaryan, D. A.; Sarkisyan, H. A.; Baskoutas, S.; Kazaryan, E. M.

2018-01-01

Hydrogen-like donor impurity states in strongly oblate ellipsoidal quantum dot have been studied. The hydrogen-like donor impurity states are investigated within the framework of variational method. The trial wave function constructed on the base of wave functions of the system without impurity. The dependence of the energy and binding energy for the ground and first excited states on the geometrical parameters of the ellipsoidal quantum dot and on the impurity position have been calculated. The behavior of the oscillator strength for different angles of incident light and geometrical parameters have been revealed. Photoionization cross-section of the electron transitions from the impurity ground state to the size-quantized ground and first excited states have been studied. The effects of impurity position and the geometrical parameters of the ellipsoidal quantum dot on the photoionization cross section dependence on the photon energy have been considered.

Research on the effects of geometrical and material uncertainties on the band gap of the undulated beam

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Yi; Xu, Yanlong

2017-09-01

Considering uncertain geometrical and material parameters, the lower and upper bounds of the band gap of an undulated beam with periodically arched shape are studied by the Monte Carlo Simulation (MCS) and interval analysis based on the Taylor series. Given the random variations of the overall uncertain variables, scatter plots from the MCS are used to analyze the qualitative sensitivities of the band gap respect to these uncertainties. We find that the influence of uncertainty of the geometrical parameter on the band gap of the undulated beam is stronger than that of the material parameter. And this conclusion is also proved by the interval analysis based on the Taylor series. Our methodology can give a strategy to reduce the errors between the design and practical values of the band gaps by improving the accuracy of the specially selected uncertain design variables of the periodical structures.

Absolute and geometric parameters of contact binary BO Arietis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gürol, B.; Gürsoytrak, S. H.; Bradstreet, D. H.

2015-08-01

We present the results of our investigation on the geometrical and physical parameters of the W UMa type binary system BO Ari from analyzed CCD (BVRI) light curves and radial velocity data. The photometric data were obtained in 2009 and 2010 at Ankara University Observatory (AUO) and the spectroscopic observations were made in 2007 and 2010 at TUBITAK National Observatory (TUG). These light and radial velocity observations were analyzed simultaneously by using the Wilson-Devinney (2013 revision) code to obtain absolute and geometrical parameters. The system was determined to be an A-type W UMa system. Combining our photometric solution with the spectroscopic data we derived masses and radii of the eclipsing system to be M1 = 0.995M⊙,M2 = 0.189M⊙,R1 = 1.090R⊙ and R2 = 0.515R⊙ . Finally, we discuss the evolutionary status of the system.

Absolute and geometric parameters of contact binary V1918 Cyg

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gürol, B.

2016-08-01

We present the results of our investigation on the geometrical and physical parameters of the W UMa type binary system V1918 Cyg from analyzed CCD (BVR) light curves and radial velocity data. We used the photometric data published by Yang et al. (2013) and spectroscopic data obtained in 2012 at TUBITAK National Observatory (TUG). The light and radial velocity observations were analyzed simultaneously by using the Wilson-Devinney (2015 revision) code to obtain absolute and geometrical parameters of the system. It is confirmed that the system is an A-type W UMa as indicated by Yang et al. (2013). Combining our spectroscopic data with the photometric solution we derived masses and radii of the eclipsing system as M1 = 1.302M⊙ , M2 = 0.362M⊙ , R1 = 1.362R⊙ and R2 = 0.762R⊙ . Finally, we discuss the evolutionary status of the system.

Toward a Definition of Intrinsic Axes: The Effect of Orthogonality and Symmetry on the Preferred Direction of Spatial Memory

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Richard, Laurence; Waller, David

2013-01-01

Mou, Zhao, and McNamara (2007) proposed the "intrinsic model of human spatial memory," which posits that a viewer's memory of an array of objects will exhibit a preferred direction that is aligned with an intrinsic axis of the array. They defined intrinsic axes as salient axes created in part by the physical (geometric) properties of the…

Changes in the transmission properties of multi-tooth plasmonic nano-filters (multi-TPNFs) caused by geometrical imperfection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khaksar, A.; Fatemi, H.

2012-08-01

To model the filtering behavior of a multi-tooth plasmonic nano-filter (multi-TPNF), an equivalent circuitry composed of a set of serried impedances is considered. The changes caused in its filtering behavior are proposed as a measuring tool to investigate the effect of the geometrical imperfections occurring during the manufacture of the device. Consequently, the effects of changes in the nominal size of each of the geometrical parameters of a multi-TPNF sample, such as its tooth height, d, its tooth width, w, and the separation between two successive teeth, Δ, on its transmittance are investigated. It is observed that each single tooth of the multi-TPNF and also the waveguide between any of its two successive teeth exhibit a very Fabry-Perot interferometer like behavior. The variation of the transmission spectra of a multi-TPNF whose geometrical parameters are imperfect is compared with the desired filter, and also the effect of the number of geometrically imperfect teeth of the multi-TPNF on the filtering spectra is examined.

Generalized design of a zero-geometric-loss, astigmatism-free, modified four-objective multipass matrix system.

PubMed

Guo, Yin; Sun, LiQun; Yang, Zheng; Liu, Zilong

2016-02-20

During this study we constructed a generalized parametric modified four-objective multipass matrix system (MMS). We used an optical system comprising four asymmetrical spherical mirrors to improve the alignment process. The use of a paraxial equation for the design of the front transfer optics yielded the initial condition for modeling our MMS. We performed a ray tracing simulation to calculate the significant aberration of the system (astigmatism). Based on the calculated meridional and sagittal focus positions, the complementary focusing mirror was easily designed to provide an output beam free of astigmatism. We have presented an example of a 108-transit multipass system (5×7 matrix arrangement) with a relatively larger numerical aperture source (xenon light source). The whole system exhibits zero theoretical geometrical loss when simulated with Zemax software. The MMS construction strategy described in this study provides an anastigmatic output beam and the generalized approach to design a controllable matrix spot pattern on the field mirrors. Asymmetrical reflective mirrors aid in aligning the whole system with high efficiency. With the generalized design strategy in terms of optics configuration and asymmetrical fabrication method in this paper, other kinds of multipass matrix system coupled with different sources and detector systems also can be achieved.

The geometric field (gravity) as an electro-chemical potential in a Ginzburg-Landau theory of superconductivity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Atanasov, Victor

2017-07-01

We extend the superconductor's free energy to include an interaction of the order parameter with the curvature of space-time. This interaction leads to geometry dependent coherence length and Ginzburg-Landau parameter which suggests that the curvature of space-time can change the superconductor's type. The curvature of space-time doesn't affect the ideal diamagnetism of the superconductor but acts as chemical potential. In a particular circumstance, the geometric field becomes order-parameter dependent, therefore the superconductor's order parameter dynamics affects the curvature of space-time and electrical or internal quantum mechanical energy can be channelled into the curvature of space-time. Experimental consequences are discussed.

Electromagnetic versus Lense-Thirring alignment of black hole accretion discs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Polko, Peter; McKinney, Jonathan C.

2017-01-01

Accretion discs and black holes (BHs) have angular momenta that are generally misaligned, which can lead to warped discs and bends in any jets produced. We examine whether a disc that is misaligned at large radii can be aligned more efficiently by the torque of a Blandford-Znajek (BZ) jet than by Lense-Thirring (LT) precession. To obtain a strong result, we will assume that these torques maximally align the disc, rather than cause precession, or disc tearing. We consider several disc states that include radiatively inefficient thick discs, radiatively efficient thin discs, and super-Eddington accretion discs. The magnetic field strength of the BZ jet is chosen as either from standard equipartition arguments or from magnetically arrested disc (MAD) simulations. We show that standard thin accretion discs can reach spin-disc alignment out to large radii long before LT would play a role, due to the slow infall time that gives even a weak BZ jet time to align the disc. We show that geometrically thick radiatively inefficient discs and super-Eddington discs in the MAD state reach spin-disc alignment near the BH when density profiles are shallow as in magnetohydrodynamical simulations, while the BZ jet aligns discs with steep density profiles (as in advection-dominated accretion flows) out to larger radii. Our results imply that the BZ jet torque should affect the cosmological evolution of BH spin magnitude and direction, spin measurements in active galactic nuclei and X-ray binaries, and the interpretations for Event Horizon Telescope observations of discs or jets in strong-field gravity regimes.

Landsat-5 bumper-mode geometric correction

USGS Publications Warehouse

Storey, James C.; Choate, Michael J.

2004-01-01

The Landsat-5 Thematic Mapper (TM) scan mirror was switched from its primary operating mode to a backup mode in early 2002 in order to overcome internal synchronization problems arising from long-term wear of the scan mirror mechanism. The backup bumper mode of operation removes the constraints on scan start and stop angles enforced in the primary scan angle monitor operating mode, requiring additional geometric calibration effort to monitor the active scan angles. It also eliminates scan timing telemetry used to correct the TM scan geometry. These differences require changes to the geometric correction algorithms used to process TM data. A mathematical model of the scan mirror's behavior when operating in bumper mode was developed. This model includes a set of key timing parameters that characterize the time-varying behavior of the scan mirror bumpers. To simplify the implementation of the bumper-mode model, the bumper timing parameters were recast in terms of the calibration and telemetry data items used to process normal TM imagery. The resulting geometric performance, evaluated over 18 months of bumper-mode operations, though slightly reduced from that achievable in the primary operating mode, is still within the Landsat specifications when the data are processed with the most up-to-date calibration parameters.

Determination of Impact Parameters in Aligned Breakup of Projectile-like Fragments in $$^{197}$$Au + $$^{197}$$Au Collisions at 23$A$MeV

DOE PAGES

Cap, T.; Siwek-Wilczyńska, K.; Wilczynski, J.; ...

2016-03-01

Symmetric and asymmetric aligned breakup of projectile-like fragments inmore » $$^{197}$$Au + $$^{197}$$Au collisions at 23$A$,MeV was studied. Independently of the asymmetry, the reaction yields have been found peaked at a common, very narrow range of impact parameters.« less

A laboratory verification sensor

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Vaughan, Arthur H.

1988-01-01

The use of a variant of the Hartmann test is described to sense the coalignment of the 36 primary mirror segments of the Keck 10-meter Telescope. The Shack-Hartmann alignment camera is a surface-tilt-error-sensing device, operable with high sensitivity over a wide range of tilt errors. An interferometer, on the other hand, is a surface-height-error-sensing device. In general, if the surface height error exceeds a few wavelengths of the incident illumination, an interferogram is difficult to interpret and loses utility. The Shack-Hartmann aligment camera is, therefore, likely to be attractive as a development tool for segmented mirror telescopes, particularly at early stages of development in which the surface quality of developmental segments may be too poor to justify interferometric testing. The constraints are examined which would define the first-order properties of a Shack-Hartmann alignment camera and the precision and range of measurement one could expect to achieve with it are investigated. Fundamental constraints do arise, however, from consideration of geometrical imaging, diffraction, and the density of sampling of images at the detector array. Geometrical imagining determines the linear size of the image, and depends on the primary mirror diameter and the f-number of a lenslet. Diffraction is another constraint; it depends on the lenslet aperture. Finally, the sampling density at the detector array is important since the number of pixels in the image determines how accurately the centroid of the image can be measured. When these factors are considered under realistic assumptions it is apparent that the first order design of a Shack-Hartmann alignment camera is completely determined by the first-order constraints considered, and that in the case of a 20-meter telescope with seeing-limited imaging, such a camera, used with a suitable detector array, will achieve useful precision.

Assessing Temporal Behavior in LIDAR Point Clouds of Urban Environments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schachtschneider, J.; Schlichting, A.; Brenner, C.

2017-05-01

Self-driving cars and robots that run autonomously over long periods of time need high-precision and up-to-date models of the changing environment. The main challenge for creating long term maps of dynamic environments is to identify changes and adapt the map continuously. Changes can occur abruptly, gradually, or even periodically. In this work, we investigate how dense mapping data of several epochs can be used to identify the temporal behavior of the environment. This approach anticipates possible future scenarios where a large fleet of vehicles is equipped with sensors which continuously capture the environment. This data is then being sent to a cloud based infrastructure, which aligns all datasets geometrically and subsequently runs scene analysis on it, among these being the analysis for temporal changes of the environment. Our experiments are based on a LiDAR mobile mapping dataset which consists of 150 scan strips (a total of about 1 billion points), which were obtained in multiple epochs. Parts of the scene are covered by up to 28 scan strips. The time difference between the first and last epoch is about one year. In order to process the data, the scan strips are aligned using an overall bundle adjustment, which estimates the surface (about one billion surface element unknowns) as well as 270,000 unknowns for the adjustment of the exterior orientation parameters. After this, the surface misalignment is usually below one centimeter. In the next step, we perform a segmentation of the point clouds using a region growing algorithm. The segmented objects and the aligned data are then used to compute an occupancy grid which is filled by tracing each individual LiDAR ray from the scan head to every point of a segment. As a result, we can assess the behavior of each segment in the scene and remove voxels from temporal objects from the global occupancy grid.

Mutual information registration of multi-spectral and multi-resolution images of DigitalGlobe's WorldView-3 imaging satellite

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miecznik, Grzegorz; Shafer, Jeff; Baugh, William M.; Bader, Brett; Karspeck, Milan; Pacifici, Fabio

2017-05-01

WorldView-3 (WV-3) is a DigitalGlobe commercial, high resolution, push-broom imaging satellite with three instruments: visible and near-infrared VNIR consisting of panchromatic (0.3m nadir GSD) plus multi-spectral (1.2m), short-wave infrared SWIR (3.7m), and multi-spectral CAVIS (30m). Nine VNIR bands, which are on one instrument, are nearly perfectly registered to each other, whereas eight SWIR bands, belonging to the second instrument, are misaligned with respect to VNIR and to each other. Geometric calibration and ortho-rectification results in a VNIR/SWIR alignment which is accurate to approximately 0.75 SWIR pixel at 3.7m GSD, whereas inter-SWIR, band to band registration is 0.3 SWIR pixel. Numerous high resolution, spectral applications, such as object classification and material identification, require more accurate registration, which can be achieved by utilizing image processing algorithms, for example Mutual Information (MI). Although MI-based co-registration algorithms are highly accurate, implementation details for automated processing can be challenging. One particular challenge is how to compute bin widths of intensity histograms, which are fundamental building blocks of MI. We solve this problem by making the bin widths proportional to instrument shot noise. Next, we show how to take advantage of multiple VNIR bands, and improve registration sensitivity to image alignment. To meet this goal, we employ Canonical Correlation Analysis, which maximizes VNIR/SWIR correlation through an optimal linear combination of VNIR bands. Finally we explore how to register images corresponding to different spatial resolutions. We show that MI computed at a low-resolution grid is more sensitive to alignment parameters than MI computed at a high-resolution grid. The proposed modifications allow us to improve VNIR/SWIR registration to better than ¼ of a SWIR pixel, as long as terrain elevation is properly accounted for, and clouds and water are masked out.

Optical coupling of bare optoelectronic components and flexographically printed polymer waveguides in planar optronic systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Yixiao; Wolfer, Tim; Lange, Alex; Overmeyer, Ludger

2016-05-01

Large scale, planar optronic systems allowing spatially distributed functionalities can be well used in diverse sensor networks, such as for monitoring the environment by measuring various physical quantities in medicine or aeronautics. In these systems, mechanically flexible and optically transparent polymeric foils, e.g. polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET), are employed as carrier materials. A benefit of using these materials is their low cost. The optical interconnections from light sources to light transmission structures in planar optronic systems occupy a pivotal position for the sensing functions. As light sources, we employ the optoelectronic components, such as edgeemitting laser diodes, in form of bare chips, since their extremely small structures facilitate a high integration compactness and ensure sufficient system flexibility. Flexographically printed polymer optical waveguides are deployed as light guiding structures for short-distance communication in planar optronic systems. Printing processes are utilized for this generation of waveguides to achieve a cost-efficient large scale and high-throughput production. In order to attain a high-functional optronic system for sensing applications, one of the most essential prerequisites is the high coupling efficiency between the light sources and the waveguides. Therefore, in this work, we focus on the multimode polymer waveguide with a parabolic cross-section and investigate its optical coupling with the bare laser diode. We establish the geometrical model of the alignment based on the previous works on the optodic bonding of bare laser diodes and the fabrication process of polymer waveguides with consideration of various parameters, such as the beam profile of the laser diode, the employed polymer properties of the waveguides as well as the carrier substrates etc. Accordingly, the optical coupling of the bare laser diodes and the polymer waveguides was simulated. Additionally, we demonstrate optical links by adopting the aforementioned processes used for defining the simulation. We verify the feasibility of the developed processes for planar optronic systems by using an active alignment and conduct discussions for further improvements of optical alignment.

Neutron Detection using Amorphous Boron-Carbide Hetero-Junction Diodes

DTIC Science & Technology

2012-03-22

Parameter Calculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80 B.1.1 UMKC Built-in Voltage...Electronic properties of boron carbide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 2. Diode Material/Geometric Parameters ...42 6. Material parameters for Davinci model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 x List of

The Effects of Molecular Properties on Ready Biodegradation of Aromatic Compounds in the OECD 301B CO2 Evolution Test.

PubMed

He, Mei; Mei, Cheng-Fang; Sun, Guo-Ping; Li, Hai-Bei; Liu, Lei; Xu, Mei-Ying

2016-07-01

Ready biodegradation is the primary biodegradability of a compound, which is used for discriminating whether a compound could be rapidly and readily biodegraded in the natural ecosystems in a short period and has been applied extensively in the environmental risk assessment of many chemicals. In this study, the effects of 24 molecular properties (including 2 physicochemical parameters, 10 geometrical parameters, 6 topological parameters, and 6 electronic parameters) on the ready biodegradation of 24 kinds of synthetic aromatic compounds were investigated using the OECD 301B CO2 Evolution test. The relationship between molecular properties and ready biodegradation of these aromatic compounds varied with molecular properties. A significant inverse correlation was found for the topological parameter TD, five geometrical parameters (Rad, CAA, CMA, CSEV, and N c), and the physicochemical parameter K ow, and a positive correlation for two topological parameters TC and TVC, whereas no significant correlation was observed for any of the electronic parameters. Based on the correlations between molecular properties and ready biodegradation of these aromatic compounds, the importance of molecular properties was demonstrated as follows: geometrical properties > topological properties > physicochemical properties > electronic properties. Our study first demonstrated the effects of molecular properties on ready biodegradation by a number of experiment data under the same experimental conditions, which should be taken into account to better guide the ready biodegradation tests and understand the mechanisms of the ready biodegradation of aromatic compounds.

Directionally Antagonistic Graphene Oxide-Polyurethane Hybrid Aerogel as a Sound Absorber.

PubMed

Oh, Jung-Hwan; Kim, Jieun; Lee, Hyeongrae; Kang, Yeonjune; Oh, Il-Kwon

2018-06-21

Innovative sound absorbers, the design of which is based on carbon nanotubes and graphene derivatives, could be used to make more efficient sound absorbing materials because of their excellent intrinsic mechanical and chemical properties. However, controlling the directional alignments of low-dimensional carbon nanomaterials, such as restacking, alignment, and dispersion, has been a challenging problem when developing sound absorbing forms. Herein, we present the directionally antagonistic graphene oxide-polyurethane hybrid aerogel we developed as a sound absorber, the physical properties of which differ according to the alignment of the microscopic graphene oxide sheets. This porous graphene sound absorber has a microporous hierarchical cellular structure with adjustable stiffness and improved sound absorption performance, thereby overcoming the restrictions of both geometric and function-orientated functions. Furthermore, by controlling the inner cell size and aligned structure of graphene oxide layers in this study, we achieved remarkable improvement of the sound absorption performance at low frequency. This improvement is attributed to multiple scattering of incident and reflection waves on the aligned porous surfaces, and air-viscous resistance damping inside interconnected structures between the urethane foam and the graphene oxide network. Two anisotropic sound absorbers based on the directionally antagonistic graphene oxide-polyurethane hybrid aerogels were fabricated. They show remarkable differences owing to the opposite alignment of graphene oxide layers inside the polyurethane foam and are expected to be appropriate for the engineering design of sound absorbers in consideration of the wave direction.

A geometric model of a V-slit Sun sensor correcting for spacecraft wobble

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mcmartin, W. P.; Gambhir, S. S.

1994-01-01

A V-Slit sun sensor is body-mounted on a spin-stabilized spacecraft. During injection from a parking or transfer orbit to some final orbit, the spacecraft may not be dynamically balanced. This may result in wobble about the spacecraft spin axis as the spin axis may not be aligned with the spacecraft's axis of symmetry. While the widely used models in Spacecraft Attitude Determination and Control, edited by Wertz, correct for separation, elevation, and azimuthal mounting biases, spacecraft wobble is not taken into consideration. A geometric approach is used to develop a method for measurement of the sun angle which corrects for the magnitude and phase of spacecraft wobble. The algorithm was implemented using a set of standard mathematical routines for spherical geometry on a unit sphere.

Experimental characterization of a F/1.5 geometric-phase lens with high-achromatic efficiency and low aberration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hornburg, Kathryn J.; Kim, Jihwan; Escuti, Michael J.

2017-02-01

We report on the properties of a fast F/1.5 geometric-phase lens with a focal length of 37 mm at 633 nm and a 24.5 mm diameter. This lens employs photo-aligned liquid crystal layers to implement the spatially varying Pancharatnam-Berry phase, leading to the expected polarization- and wavelength-dependent focusing. An achromatic spectrum is achieved using (chiral nematic) multi-twist retarder coatings, with high first-order (>=98%) and low zero-order (<=1%) transmittance across 450-700 nm. We measure traditional optical metrics of the GP lens including focused spot profile and modulation transfer function through knife edge testing and NBS 1963a resolution charts. This work includes a comparison to similar F/# conventional thick and thin lenses.

Increasing the quality of excavators’ planetary reduction gearboxes on the basis of dimensional analysis and geometrical characteristics of tooth wheels

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Drygin, M. Yu; Kuryshkin, N. P.

2018-01-01

The article describes the problem of extending operational electrically driven excavators’ reducing gear boxes which break down nearly every six months. The main reason of the function loss is the breakdown of the bearing assembly of one of the pinions. The authors performed kinematic, dynamic and geometric calculation of gearing to detect the breakdown reasons. The main reason is that alignment condition is not provided in the differential part and in the power return gear. All toothed gear wheels must be manufactured with the positive bias of the generating rack profile, but in fact all pinions and idle gears are manufactured with negative bias. This lead to an intolerable radial clearance in the gearing and skew of the floating master gears.

Thrust and torque vector characteristics of axially-symmetric E-sail

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bassetto, Marco; Mengali, Giovanni; Quarta, Alessandro A.

2018-05-01

The Electric Solar Wind Sail is an innovative propulsion system concept that gains propulsive acceleration from the interaction with charged particles released by the Sun. The aim of this paper is to obtain analytical expressions for the thrust and torque vectors of a spinning sail of given shape. Under the only assumption that each tether belongs to a plane containing the spacecraft spin axis, a general analytical relation is found for the thrust and torque vectors as a function of the spacecraft attitude relative to an orbital reference frame. The results are then applied to the noteworthy situation of a Sun-facing sail, that is, when the spacecraft spin axis is aligned with the Sun-spacecraft line, which approximatively coincides with the solar wind direction. In that case, the paper discusses the equilibrium shape of the generic conducting tether as a function of the sail geometry and the spin rate, using both a numerical and an analytical (approximate) approach. As a result, the structural characteristics of the conducting tether are related to the spacecraft geometric parameters.

Automatic Coregistration and orthorectification (ACRO) and subsequent mosaicing of NASA high-resolution imagery over the Mars MC11 quadrangle, using HRSC as a baseline

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sidiropoulos, Panagiotis; Muller, Jan-Peter; Watson, Gillian; Michael, Gregory; Walter, Sebastian

2018-02-01

This work presents the coregistered, orthorectified and mosaiced high-resolution products of the MC11 quadrangle of Mars, which have been processed using novel, fully automatic, techniques. We discuss the development of a pipeline that achieves fully automatic and parameter independent geometric alignment of high-resolution planetary images, starting from raw input images in NASA PDS format and following all required steps to produce a coregistered geotiff image, a corresponding footprint and useful metadata. Additionally, we describe the development of a radiometric calibration technique that post-processes coregistered images to make them radiometrically consistent. Finally, we present a batch-mode application of the developed techniques over the MC11 quadrangle to validate their potential, as well as to generate end products, which are released to the planetary science community, thus assisting in the analysis of Mars static and dynamic features. This case study is a step towards the full automation of signal processing tasks that are essential to increase the usability of planetary data, but currently, require the extensive use of human resources.

Auto calibration of a cone-beam-CT

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Gross, Daniel; Heil, Ulrich; Schulze, Ralf

2012-10-15

Purpose: This paper introduces a novel autocalibration method for cone-beam-CTs (CBCT) or flat-panel CTs, assuming a perfect rotation. The method is based on ellipse-fitting. Autocalibration refers to accurate recovery of the geometric alignment of a CBCT device from projection images alone, without any manual measurements. Methods: The authors use test objects containing small arbitrarily positioned radio-opaque markers. No information regarding the relative positions of the markers is used. In practice, the authors use three to eight metal ball bearings (diameter of 1 mm), e.g., positioned roughly in a vertical line such that their projection image curves on the detector preferablymore » form large ellipses over the circular orbit. From this ellipse-to-curve mapping and also from its inversion the authors derive an explicit formula. Nonlinear optimization based on this mapping enables them to determine the six relevant parameters of the system up to the device rotation angle, which is sufficient to define the geometry of a CBCT-machine assuming a perfect rotational movement. These parameters also include out-of-plane rotations. The authors evaluate their method by simulation based on data used in two similar approaches [L. Smekal, M. Kachelriess, S. E, and K. Wa, 'Geometric misalignment and calibration in cone-beam tomography,' Med. Phys. 31(12), 3242-3266 (2004); K. Yang, A. L. C. Kwan, D. F. Miller, and J. M. Boone, 'A geometric calibration method for cone beam CT systems,' Med. Phys. 33(6), 1695-1706 (2006)]. This allows a direct comparison of accuracy. Furthermore, the authors present real-world 3D reconstructions of a dry human spine segment and an electronic device. The reconstructions were computed from projections taken with a commercial dental CBCT device having two different focus-to-detector distances that were both calibrated with their method. The authors compare their reconstruction with a reconstruction computed by the manufacturer of the CBCT device to demonstrate the achievable spatial resolution of their calibration procedure. Results: Compared to the results published in the most closely related work [K. Yang, A. L. C. Kwan, D. F. Miller, and J. M. Boone, 'A geometric calibration method for cone beam CT systems,' Med. Phys. 33(6), 1695-1706 (2006)], the simulation proved the greater accuracy of their method, as well as a lower standard deviation of roughly 1 order of magnitude. When compared to another similar approach [L. Smekal, M. Kachelriess, S. E, and K. Wa, 'Geometric misalignment and calibration in cone-beam tomography,' Med. Phys. 31(12), 3242-3266 (2004)], their results were roughly of the same order of accuracy. Their analysis revealed that the method is capable of sufficiently calibrating out-of-plane angles in cases of larger cone angles when neglecting these angles negatively affects the reconstruction. Fine details in the 3D reconstruction of the spine segment and an electronic device indicate a high geometric calibration accuracy and the capability to produce state-of-the-art reconstructions. Conclusions: The method introduced here makes no requirements on the accuracy of the test object. In contrast to many previous autocalibration methods their approach also includes out-of-plane rotations of the detector. Although assuming a perfect rotation, the method seems to be sufficiently accurate for a commercial CBCT scanner. For devices which require higher dimensional geometry models, the method could be used as a initial calibration procedure.« less

DISCRETE COMPOUND POISSON PROCESSES AND TABLES OF THE GEOMETRIC POISSON DISTRIBUTION.

DTIC Science & Technology

A concise summary of the salient properties of discrete Poisson processes , with emphasis on comparing the geometric and logarithmic Poisson processes . The...the geometric Poisson process are given for 176 sets of parameter values. New discrete compound Poisson processes are also introduced. These...processes have properties that are particularly relevant when the summation of several different Poisson processes is to be analyzed. This study provides the

Self-learning computers for surgical planning and prediction of postoperative alignment.

PubMed

Lafage, Renaud; Pesenti, Sébastien; Lafage, Virginie; Schwab, Frank J

2018-02-01

In past decades, the role of sagittal alignment has been widely demonstrated in the setting of spinal conditions. As several parameters can be affected, identifying the driver of the deformity is the cornerstone of a successful treatment approach. Despite the importance of restoring sagittal alignment for optimizing outcome, this task remains challenging. Self-learning computers and optimized algorithms are of great interest in spine surgery as in that they facilitate better planning and prediction of postoperative alignment. Nowadays, computer-assisted tools are part of surgeons' daily practice; however, the use of such tools remains to be time-consuming. NARRATIVE REVIEW AND RESULTS: Computer-assisted methods for the prediction of postoperative alignment consist of a three step analysis: identification of anatomical landmark, definition of alignment objectives, and simulation of surgery. Recently, complex rules for the prediction of alignment have been proposed. Even though this kind of work leads to more personalized objectives, the number of parameters involved renders it difficult for clinical use, stressing the importance of developing computer-assisted tools. The evolution of our current technology, including machine learning and other types of advanced algorithms, will provide powerful tools that could be useful in improving surgical outcomes and alignment prediction. These tools can combine different types of advanced technologies, such as image recognition and shape modeling, and using this technique, computer-assisted methods are able to predict spinal shape. The development of powerful computer-assisted methods involves the integration of several sources of information such as radiographic parameters (X-rays, MRI, CT scan, etc.), demographic information, and unusual non-osseous parameters (muscle quality, proprioception, gait analysis data). In using a larger set of data, these methods will aim to mimic what is actually done by spine surgeons, leading to real tailor-made solutions. Integrating newer technology can change the current way of planning/simulating surgery. The use of powerful computer-assisted tools that are able to integrate several parameters and learn from experience can change the traditional way of selecting treatment pathways and counseling patients. However, there is still much work to be done to reach a desired level as noted in other orthopedic fields, such as hip surgery. Many of these tools already exist in non-medical fields and their adaptation to spine surgery is of considerable interest.

Direct numerical simulation of particle alignment in viscoelastic fluids

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hulsen, Martien; Jaensson, Nick; Anderson, Patrick

2016-11-01

Rigid particles suspended in viscoelastic fluids under shear can align in string-like structures in flow direction. To unravel this phenomenon, we present 3D direct numerical simulations of the alignment of two and three rigid, non-Brownian particles in a shear flow of a viscoelastic fluid. The equations are solved on moving, boundary-fitted meshes, which are locally refined to accurately describe the polymer stresses around and in between the particles. A small minimal gap size between the particles is introduced. The Giesekus model is used and the effect of the Weissenberg number, shear thinning and solvent viscosity is investigated. Alignment of two and three particles is observed. Morphology plots have been created for various combinations of fluid parameters. Alignment is mainly governed by the value of the elasticity parameter S, defined as half of the ratio between the first normal stress difference and shear stress of the suspending fluid. Alignment appears to occur above a critical value of S, which decreases with increasing shear thinning. This result, together with simulations of a shear-thinning Carreau fluid, leads us to the conclusion that normal stress differences are essential for particle alignment to occur, but it is also strongly promoted by shear thinning.

Quantification of Cardiomyocyte Alignment from Three-Dimensional (3D) Confocal Microscopy of Engineered Tissue.

PubMed

Kowalski, William J; Yuan, Fangping; Nakane, Takeichiro; Masumoto, Hidetoshi; Dwenger, Marc; Ye, Fei; Tinney, Joseph P; Keller, Bradley B

2017-08-01

Biological tissues have complex, three-dimensional (3D) organizations of cells and matrix factors that provide the architecture necessary to meet morphogenic and functional demands. Disordered cell alignment is associated with congenital heart disease, cardiomyopathy, and neurodegenerative diseases and repairing or replacing these tissues using engineered constructs may improve regenerative capacity. However, optimizing cell alignment within engineered tissues requires quantitative 3D data on cell orientations and both efficient and validated processing algorithms. We developed an automated method to measure local 3D orientations based on structure tensor analysis and incorporated an adaptive subregion size to account for multiple scales. Our method calculates the statistical concentration parameter, κ, to quantify alignment, as well as the traditional orientational order parameter. We validated our method using synthetic images and accurately measured principal axis and concentration. We then applied our method to confocal stacks of cleared, whole-mount engineered cardiac tissues generated from human-induced pluripotent stem cells or embryonic chick cardiac cells and quantified cardiomyocyte alignment. We found significant differences in alignment based on cellular composition and tissue geometry. These results from our synthetic images and confocal data demonstrate the efficiency and accuracy of our method to measure alignment in 3D tissues.

Geometric algebra description of polarization mode dispersion, polarization-dependent loss, and Stokes tensor transformations.

PubMed

Soliman, George; Yevick, David; Jessop, Paul

2014-09-01

This paper demonstrates that numerous calculations involving polarization transformations can be condensed by employing suitable geometric algebra formalism. For example, to describe polarization mode dispersion and polarization-dependent loss, both the material birefringence and differential loss enter as bivectors and can be combined into a single symmetric quantity. Their frequency and distance evolution, as well as that of the Stokes vector through an optical system, can then each be expressed as a single compact expression, in contrast to the corresponding Mueller matrix formulations. The intrinsic advantage of the geometric algebra framework is further demonstrated by presenting a simplified derivation of generalized Stokes parameters that include the electric field phase. This procedure simultaneously establishes the tensor transformation properties of these parameters.

Automatic Registration of GF4 Pms: a High Resolution Multi-Spectral Sensor on Board a Satellite on Geostationary Orbit

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gao, M.; Li, J.

2018-04-01

Geometric correction is an important preprocessing process in the application of GF4 PMS image. The method of geometric correction that is based on the manual selection of geometric control points is time-consuming and laborious. The more common method, based on a reference image, is automatic image registration. This method involves several steps and parameters. For the multi-spectral sensor GF4 PMS, it is necessary for us to identify the best combination of parameters and steps. This study mainly focuses on the following issues: necessity of Rational Polynomial Coefficients (RPC) correction before automatic registration, base band in the automatic registration and configuration of GF4 PMS spatial resolution.

Alignment in the transverse plane, but not sagittal or coronal plane, affects the risk of recurrent patella dislocation.

PubMed

Takagi, Shigeru; Sato, Takashi; Watanabe, Satoshi; Tanifuji, Osamu; Mochizuki, Tomoharu; Omori, Go; Endo, Naoto

2017-11-17

Abnormalities of lower extremity alignment (LEA) in recurrent patella dislocation (RPD) have been studied mostly by two-dimensional (2D) procedures leaving three-dimensional (3D) factors unknown. This study aimed to three-dimensionally examine risk factors for RPD in lower extremity alignment under the weight-bearing conditions. The alignment of 21 limbs in 15 RPD subjects was compared to the alignment of 24 limbs of 12 healthy young control subjects by an our previously reported 2D-3D image-matching technique. The sagittal, coronal, and transverse alignment in full extension as well as the torsional position of the femur (anteversion) and tibia (tibial torsion) under weight-bearing standing conditions were assessed by our previously reported 3D technique. The correlations between lower extremity alignment and RPD were assessed using multiple logistic regression analysis. The difference of lower extremity alignment in RPD between under the weight-bearing conditions and under the non-weight-bearing conditions was assessed. In the sagittal and coronal planes, there was no relationship (statistically or by clinically important difference) between lower extremity alignment angle and RPD. However, in the transverse plane, increased external tibial rotation [odds ratio (OR) 1.819; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.282-2.581], increased femoral anteversion (OR 1.183; 95% CI 1.029-1.360), and increased external tibial torsion (OR 0.880; 95% CI 0.782-0.991) were all correlated with RPD. The tibia was more rotated relative to femur at the knee joint in the RPD group under the weight-bearing conditions compared to under the non-weight-bearing conditions (p < 0.05). This study showed that during weight-bearing, alignment parameters in the transverse plane related to the risk of RPD, while in the sagittal and coronal plane alignment parameters did not correlate with RPD. The clinical importance of this study is that the 3D measurements more directly, precisely, and sensitively detect rotational parameters associated with RPD and hence predict risk of RPD. III.

MOLA Topography and Morphometry of Rampart and Pedestal Craters, Mars

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mitchell, D. E.; Sakimoto, S. E. H.; Garvin, J. B.

2002-01-01

Martian rampart and pedestal craters have characteristic geometric parameter ranges that are significantly different than fresh craters. Combined MOLA geometric measurements and MOC analyses can be used to constrain their modification. Additional information is contained in the original extended abstract.

PURY: a database of geometric restraints of hetero compounds for refinement in complexes with macromolecular structures.

PubMed

Andrejasic, Miha; Praaenikar, Jure; Turk, Dusan

2008-11-01

The number and variety of macromolecular structures in complex with ;hetero' ligands is growing. The need for rapid delivery of correct geometric parameters for their refinement, which is often crucial for understanding the biological relevance of the structure, is growing correspondingly. The current standard for describing protein structures is the Engh-Huber parameter set. It is an expert data set resulting from selection and analysis of the crystal structures gathered in the Cambridge Structural Database (CSD). Clearly, such a manual approach cannot be applied to the vast and ever-growing number of chemical compounds. Therefore, a database, named PURY, of geometric parameters of chemical compounds has been developed, together with a server that accesses it. PURY is a compilation of the whole CSD. It contains lists of atom classes and bonds connecting them, as well as angle, chirality, planarity and conformation parameters. The current compilation is based on CSD 5.28 and contains 1978 atom classes and 32,702 bonding, 237,068 angle, 201,860 dihedral and 64,193 improper geometric restraints. Analysis has confirmed that the restraints from the PURY database are suitable for use in macromolecular crystal structure refinement and should be of value to the crystallographic community. The database can be accessed through the web server http://pury.ijs.si/, which creates topology and parameter files from deposited coordinates in suitable forms for the refinement programs MAIN, CNS and REFMAC. In the near future, the server will move to the CSD website http://pury.ccdc.cam.ac.uk/.

Optimal image alignment with random projections of manifolds: algorithm and geometric analysis.

PubMed

Kokiopoulou, Effrosyni; Kressner, Daniel; Frossard, Pascal

2011-06-01

This paper addresses the problem of image alignment based on random measurements. Image alignment consists of estimating the relative transformation between a query image and a reference image. We consider the specific problem where the query image is provided in compressed form in terms of linear measurements captured by a vision sensor. We cast the alignment problem as a manifold distance minimization problem in the linear subspace defined by the measurements. The transformation manifold that represents synthesis of shift, rotation, and isotropic scaling of the reference image can be given in closed form when the reference pattern is sparsely represented over a parametric dictionary. We show that the objective function can then be decomposed as the difference of two convex functions (DC) in the particular case where the dictionary is built on Gaussian functions. Thus, the optimization problem becomes a DC program, which in turn can be solved globally by a cutting plane method. The quality of the solution is typically affected by the number of random measurements and the condition number of the manifold that describes the transformations of the reference image. We show that the curvature, which is closely related to the condition number, remains bounded in our image alignment problem, which means that the relative transformation between two images can be determined optimally in a reduced subspace.

FtsZ rings and helices: physical mechanisms for the dynamic alignment of biopolymers in rod-shaped bacteria.

PubMed

Fischer-Friedrich, Elisabeth; Friedrich, Benjamin M; Gov, Nir S

2012-02-01

In many bacterial species, the protein FtsZ forms a cytoskeletal ring that marks the future division site and scaffolds the division machinery. In rod-shaped bacteria, most frequently membrane-attached FtsZ rings or ring fragments are reported and occasionally helices. By contrast, axial FtsZ clusters have never been reported. In this paper, we investigate theoretically how dynamic FtsZ aggregates align in rod-shaped bacteria. We study systematically different physical mechanisms that affect the alignment of FtsZ polymers using a computational model that relies on autocatalytic aggregation of FtsZ filaments at the membrane. Our study identifies a general tool kit of physical and geometrical mechanisms by which rod-shaped cells align biopolymer aggregates. Our analysis compares the relative impact of each mechanism on the circumferential alignment of FtsZ as observed in rod-shaped bacteria. We determine spontaneous curvature of FtsZ polymers and axial confinement of FtsZ on the membrane as the strongest factors. Including Min oscillations in our model, we find that these stabilize axial and helical clusters on short time scales, but promote the formation of an FtsZ ring at the cell middle at longer times. This effect could provide an explanation to the long standing puzzle of transiently observed oscillating FtsZ helices in Escherichia coli cells prior to cell division.

Hot-embossing replication of self-centering optical fiber alignment structures prototyped by deep proton writing

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ebraert, Evert; Wissmann, Markus; Guttmann, Markus; Kolew, Alexander; Worgull, Matthias; Barié, Nicole; Schneider, Marc; Hofmann, Andreas; Beri, Stefano; Watté, Jan; Thienpont, Hugo; Van Erps, Jürgen

2016-07-01

This paper presents the hot-embossing replication of self-centering fiber alignment structures for high-precision, single-mode optical fiber connectors. To this end, a metal mold insert was fabricated by electroforming a polymer prototype patterned by means of deep proton writing (DPW). To achieve through-hole structures, we developed a postembossing process step to remove the residual layer inherently present in hot-embossed structures. The geometrical characteristics of the hot-embossed replicas are compared, before and after removal of the residual layer, with the DPW prototypes. Initial measurements on the optical performance of the replicas are performed. The successful replication of these components paves the way toward low-cost mass replication of DPW-fabricated prototypes in a variety of high-tech plastics.

Effect of Ply Orientation and Crack Location on SIFs in Finite Multilayers with Aligned Cracks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chen, Linfeng; Pindera, Marek-Jerzy

2008-02-01

An exact elasticity solution is presented for arbitrarily laminated finite multilayers in a state of generalized plane deformation under horizontally pinned end constraints that are weakened by aligned cracks. Based on half-range Fourier series and the local/global stiffness matrix approach, the mixed boundary-value problem is reduced to Cauchy-type singular integral equations in the unknown displacement discontinuities. Solution to these equations is obtained using the approach developed by Erdogan and co-workers. Numerical results quantify the thus-far undocumented geometric and material effects on Mode I, II and III stress intensity factors in composite multilayers with interacting cracks under uniform vertical displacement. These effects include finite dimensions, crack location, material anisotropy due to a unidirectional fiber-reinforced layer/s orientation, and orientational grading.

Geometric Characterization of Multi-Axis Multi-Pinhole SPECT

PubMed Central

DiFilippo, Frank P.

2008-01-01

A geometric model and calibration process are developed for SPECT imaging with multiple pinholes and multiple mechanical axes. Unlike the typical situation where pinhole collimators are mounted directly to rotating gamma ray detectors, this geometric model allows for independent rotation of the detectors and pinholes, for the case where the pinhole collimator is physically detached from the detectors. This geometric model is applied to a prototype small animal SPECT device with a total of 22 pinholes and which uses dual clinical SPECT detectors. All free parameters in the model are estimated from a calibration scan of point sources and without the need for a precision point source phantom. For a full calibration of this device, a scan of four point sources with 360° rotation is suitable for estimating all 95 free parameters of the geometric model. After a full calibration, a rapid calibration scan of two point sources with 180° rotation is suitable for estimating the subset of 22 parameters associated with repositioning the collimation device relative to the detectors. The high accuracy of the calibration process is validated experimentally. Residual differences between predicted and measured coordinates are normally distributed with 0.8 mm full width at half maximum and are estimated to contribute 0.12 mm root mean square to the reconstructed spatial resolution. Since this error is small compared to other contributions arising from the pinhole diameter and the detector, the accuracy of the calibration is sufficient for high resolution small animal SPECT imaging. PMID:18293574

Alignment-free Transcriptomic and Metatranscriptomic Comparison Using Sequencing Signatures with Variable Length Markov Chains.

PubMed

Liao, Weinan; Ren, Jie; Wang, Kun; Wang, Shun; Zeng, Feng; Wang, Ying; Sun, Fengzhu

2016-11-23

The comparison between microbial sequencing data is critical to understand the dynamics of microbial communities. The alignment-based tools analyzing metagenomic datasets require reference sequences and read alignments. The available alignment-free dissimilarity approaches model the background sequences with Fixed Order Markov Chain (FOMC) yielding promising results for the comparison of microbial communities. However, in FOMC, the number of parameters grows exponentially with the increase of the order of Markov Chain (MC). Under a fixed high order of MC, the parameters might not be accurately estimated owing to the limitation of sequencing depth. In our study, we investigate an alternative to FOMC to model background sequences with the data-driven Variable Length Markov Chain (VLMC) in metatranscriptomic data. The VLMC originally designed for long sequences was extended to apply to high-throughput sequencing reads and the strategies to estimate the corresponding parameters were developed. The flexible number of parameters in VLMC avoids estimating the vast number of parameters of high-order MC under limited sequencing depth. Different from the manual selection in FOMC, VLMC determines the MC order adaptively. Several beta diversity measures based on VLMC were applied to compare the bacterial RNA-Seq and metatranscriptomic datasets. Experiments show that VLMC outperforms FOMC to model the background sequences in transcriptomic and metatranscriptomic samples. A software pipeline is available at https://d2vlmc.codeplex.com.

A UNIFIED MODEL OF GRAIN ALIGNMENT: RADIATIVE ALIGNMENT OF INTERSTELLAR GRAINS WITH MAGNETIC INCLUSIONS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Hoang, Thiem; Lazarian, A.

The radiative torque (RAT) alignment of interstellar grains with ordinary paramagnetic susceptibilities has been supported by earlier studies. The alignment of such grains depends on the so-called RAT parameter q {sup max}, which is determined by the grain shape. In this paper, we elaborate on our model of RAT alignment for grains with enhanced magnetic susceptibility due to iron inclusions, such that RAT alignment is magnetically enhanced, which we term the MRAT mechanism. Such grains can be aligned with high angular momentum at the so-called high- J attractor points, achieving a high degree of alignment. Using our analytical model ofmore » RATs, we derive the critical value of the magnetic relaxation parameter δ {sub m} to produce high- J attractor points as functions of q {sup max} and the anisotropic radiation angle relative to the magnetic field ψ . We find that if about 10% of the total iron abundance present in silicate grains is forming iron clusters, this is sufficient to produce high- J attractor points for all reasonable values of q {sup max}. To calculate the degree of grain alignment, we carry out numerical simulations of MRAT alignment by including stochastic excitations from gas collisions and magnetic fluctuations. We show that large grains can achieve perfect alignment when the high- J attractor point is present, regardless of the values of q {sup max}. Our obtained results pave the way for the physical modeling of polarized thermal dust emission as well as magnetic dipole emission. We also find that millimeter-sized grains in accretion disks may be aligned with the magnetic field if they are incorporated with iron nanoparticles.« less

Parametric and non-parametric masking of randomness in sequence alignments can be improved and leads to better resolved trees.

PubMed

Kück, Patrick; Meusemann, Karen; Dambach, Johannes; Thormann, Birthe; von Reumont, Björn M; Wägele, Johann W; Misof, Bernhard

2010-03-31

Methods of alignment masking, which refers to the technique of excluding alignment blocks prior to tree reconstructions, have been successful in improving the signal-to-noise ratio in sequence alignments. However, the lack of formally well defined methods to identify randomness in sequence alignments has prevented a routine application of alignment masking. In this study, we compared the effects on tree reconstructions of the most commonly used profiling method (GBLOCKS) which uses a predefined set of rules in combination with alignment masking, with a new profiling approach (ALISCORE) based on Monte Carlo resampling within a sliding window, using different data sets and alignment methods. While the GBLOCKS approach excludes variable sections above a certain threshold which choice is left arbitrary, the ALISCORE algorithm is free of a priori rating of parameter space and therefore more objective. ALISCORE was successfully extended to amino acids using a proportional model and empirical substitution matrices to score randomness in multiple sequence alignments. A complex bootstrap resampling leads to an even distribution of scores of randomly similar sequences to assess randomness of the observed sequence similarity. Testing performance on real data, both masking methods, GBLOCKS and ALISCORE, helped to improve tree resolution. The sliding window approach was less sensitive to different alignments of identical data sets and performed equally well on all data sets. Concurrently, ALISCORE is capable of dealing with different substitution patterns and heterogeneous base composition. ALISCORE and the most relaxed GBLOCKS gap parameter setting performed best on all data sets. Correspondingly, Neighbor-Net analyses showed the most decrease in conflict. Alignment masking improves signal-to-noise ratio in multiple sequence alignments prior to phylogenetic reconstruction. Given the robust performance of alignment profiling, alignment masking should routinely be used to improve tree reconstructions. Parametric methods of alignment profiling can be easily extended to more complex likelihood based models of sequence evolution which opens the possibility of further improvements.

Research on Geometric Calibration of Spaceborne Linear Array Whiskbroom Camera

PubMed Central

Sheng, Qinghong; Wang, Qi; Xiao, Hui; Wang, Qing

2018-01-01

The geometric calibration of a spaceborne thermal-infrared camera with a high spatial resolution and wide coverage can set benchmarks for providing an accurate geographical coordinate for the retrieval of land surface temperature. The practice of using linear array whiskbroom Charge-Coupled Device (CCD) arrays to image the Earth can help get thermal-infrared images of a large breadth with high spatial resolutions. Focusing on the whiskbroom characteristics of equal time intervals and unequal angles, the present study proposes a spaceborne linear-array-scanning imaging geometric model, whilst calibrating temporal system parameters and whiskbroom angle parameters. With the help of the YG-14—China’s first satellite equipped with thermal-infrared cameras of high spatial resolution—China’s Anyang Imaging and Taiyuan Imaging are used to conduct an experiment of geometric calibration and a verification test, respectively. Results have shown that the plane positioning accuracy without ground control points (GCPs) is better than 30 pixels and the plane positioning accuracy with GCPs is better than 1 pixel. PMID:29337885

Nanoscale control of competing interactions and geometrical frustration in a dipolar trident lattice.

PubMed

Farhan, Alan; Petersen, Charlotte F; Dhuey, Scott; Anghinolfi, Luca; Qin, Qi Hang; Saccone, Michael; Velten, Sven; Wuth, Clemens; Gliga, Sebastian; Mellado, Paula; Alava, Mikko J; Scholl, Andreas; van Dijken, Sebastiaan

2017-10-17

Geometrical frustration occurs when entities in a system, subject to given lattice constraints, are hindered to simultaneously minimize their local interactions. In magnetism, systems incorporating geometrical frustration are fascinating, as their behavior is not only hard to predict, but also leads to the emergence of exotic states of matter. Here, we provide a first look into an artificial frustrated system, the dipolar trident lattice, where the balance of competing interactions between nearest-neighbor magnetic moments can be directly controlled, thus allowing versatile tuning of geometrical frustration and manipulation of ground state configurations. Our findings not only provide the basis for future studies on the low-temperature physics of the dipolar trident lattice, but also demonstrate how this frustration-by-design concept can deliver magnetically frustrated metamaterials.Artificial magnetic nanostructures enable the study of competing frustrated interactions with more control over the system parameters than is possible in magnetic materials. Farhan et al. present a two-dimensional lattice geometry where the frustration can be controlled by tuning the unit cell parameters.

Fatigue Magnification Factors of Arc-Soft-Toe Bracket Joints

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fu, Qiang; Li, Huajun; Wang, Hongqing; Wang, Shuqing; Li, Dejiang; Li, Qun; Fang, Hui

2018-06-01

Arc-soft-toe bracket (ASTB), as a joint structure in the marine structure, is the hot spot with significant stress concentration, therefore, fatigue behavior of ASTBs is an important point of concern in their design. Since macroscopic geometric factors obviously influence the stress flaws in joints, the shapes and sizes of ASTBs should represent the stress distribution around cracks in the hot spots. In this paper, we introduce a geometric magnification factor for reflecting the macroscopic geometric effects of ASTB crack features and construct a 3D finite element model to simulate the distribution of stress intensity factor (SIF) at the crack endings. Sensitivity analyses with respect to the geometric ratio H t / L b , R/ L b , L t / L b are performed, and the relations between the geometric factor and these parameters are presented. A set of parametric equations with respect to the geometric magnification factor is obtained using a curve fitting technique. A nonlinear relationship exists between the SIF and the ratio of ASTB arm to toe length. When the ratio of ASTB arm to toe length reaches a marginal value, the SIF of crack at the ASTB toe is not influenced by ASTB geometric parameters. In addition, the arc shape of the ASTB slope edge can transform the stress flowing path, which significantly affects the SIF at the ASTB toe. A proper method to reduce stress concentration is setting a slope edge arc size equal to the ASTB arm length.

Single-vehicle crashes along rural mountainous highways in Malaysia: An application of random parameters negative binomial model.

PubMed

Rusli, Rusdi; Haque, Md Mazharul; King, Mark; Voon, Wong Shaw

2017-05-01

Mountainous highways generally associate with complex driving environment because of constrained road geometries, limited cross-section elements, inappropriate roadside features, and adverse weather conditions. As a result, single-vehicle (SV) crashes are overrepresented along mountainous roads, particularly in developing countries, but little attention is known about the roadway geometric, traffic and weather factors contributing to these SV crashes. As such, the main objective of the present study is to investigate SV crashes using detailed data obtained from a rigorous site survey and existing databases. The final dataset included a total of 56 variables representing road geometries including horizontal and vertical alignment, traffic characteristics, real-time weather condition, cross-sectional elements, roadside features, and spatial characteristics. To account for structured heterogeneities resulting from multiple observations within a site and other unobserved heterogeneities, the study applied a random parameters negative binomial model. Results suggest that rainfall during the crash is positively associated with SV crashes, but real-time visibility is negatively associated. The presence of a road shoulder, particularly a bitumen shoulder or wider shoulders, along mountainous highways is associated with less SV crashes. While speeding along downgrade slopes increases the likelihood of SV crashes, proper delineation decreases the likelihood. Findings of this study have significant implications for designing safer highways in mountainous areas, particularly in the context of a developing country. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Routes for GMR-Sensor Design in Non-Destructive Testing

PubMed Central

Pelkner, Matthias; Neubauer, Andreas; Reimund, Verena; Kreutzbruck, Marc; Schütze, Andreas

2012-01-01

GMR sensors are widely used in many industrial segments such as information technology, automotive, automation and production, and safety applications. Each area requires an adaption of the sensor arrangement in terms of size adaption and alignment with respect to the field source involved. This paper deals with an analysis of geometric sensor parameters and the arrangement of GMR sensors providing a design roadmap for non-destructive testing (NDT) applications. For this purpose we use an analytical model simulating the magnetic flux leakage (MFL) distribution of surface breaking defects and investigate the flux leakage signal as a function of various sensor parameters. Our calculations show both the influence of sensor length and height and that when detecting the magnetic flux leakage of μm sized defects a gradiometer base line of 250 μm leads to a signal strength loss of less than 10% in comparison with a magnetometer response. To validate the simulation results we finally performed measurements with a GMR magnetometer sensor on a test plate with artificial μm-range cracks. The differences between simulation and measurement are below 6%. We report on the routes for a GMR gradiometer design as a basis for the fabrication of NDT-adapted sensor arrays. The results are also helpful for the use of GMR in other application when it comes to measure positions, lengths, angles or electrical currents.

TransFit: Finite element analysis data fitting software

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Freeman, Mark

1993-01-01

The Advanced X-Ray Astrophysics Facility (AXAF) mission support team has made extensive use of geometric ray tracing to analyze the performance of AXAF developmental and flight optics. One important aspect of this performance modeling is the incorporation of finite element analysis (FEA) data into the surface deformations of the optical elements. TransFit is software designed for the fitting of FEA data of Wolter I optical surface distortions with a continuous surface description which can then be used by SAO's analytic ray tracing software, currently OSAC (Optical Surface Analysis Code). The improved capabilities of Transfit over previous methods include bicubic spline fitting of FEA data to accommodate higher spatial frequency distortions, fitted data visualization for assessing the quality of fit, the ability to accommodate input data from three FEA codes plus other standard formats, and options for alignment of the model coordinate system with the ray trace coordinate system. TransFit uses the AnswerGarden graphical user interface (GUI) to edit input parameters and then access routines written in PV-WAVE, C, and FORTRAN to allow the user to interactively create, evaluate, and modify the fit. The topics covered include an introduction to TransFit: requirements, designs philosophy, and implementation; design specifics: modules, parameters, fitting algorithms, and data displays; a procedural example; verification of performance; future work; and appendices on online help and ray trace results of the verification section.

Homogeneous alignment of nematic liquid crystals by ion beam etched surfaces

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wintucky, E. G.; Mahmood, R.; Johnson, D. L.

1979-01-01

A wide range of ion beam etch parameters capable of producing uniform homogeneous alignment of nematic liquid crystals on SiO2 films are discussed. The alignment surfaces were generated by obliquely incident (angles of 5 to 25 deg) argon ions with energies in the range of 0.5 to 2.0 KeV, ion current densities of 0.1 to 0.6 mA sq cm and etch times of 1 to 9 min. A smaller range of ion beam parameters (2.0 KeV, 0.2 mA sq cm, 5 to 10 deg and 1 to 5 min.) were also investigated with ZrO2 films and found suitable for homogeneous alignment. Extinction ratios were very high (1000), twist angles were small ( or = 3 deg) and tilt-bias angles very small ( or = 1 deg). Preliminary scanning electron microscopy results indicate a parallel oriented surface structure on the ion beam etched surfaces which may determine alignment.

Influence of optimized leading-edge deflection and geometric anhedral on the low-speed aerodynamic characteristics of a low-aspect-ratio highly swept arrow-wing configuration. [langley 7 by 10 foot tunnel

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Coe, P. L., Jr.; Huffman, J. K.

1979-01-01

An investigation conducted in the Langley 7 by 10 foot tunnel to determine the influence of an optimized leading-edge deflection on the low speed aerodynamic performance of a configuration with a low aspect ratio, highly swept wing. The sensitivity of the lateral stability derivative to geometric anhedral was also studied. The optimized leading edge deflection was developed by aligning the leading edge with the incoming flow along the entire span. Owing to spanwise variation of unwash, the resulting optimized leading edge was a smooth, continuously warped surface for which the deflection varied from 16 deg at the side of body to 50 deg at the wing tip. For the particular configuration studied, levels of leading-edge suction on the order of 90 percent were achieved. The results of tests conducted to determine the sensitivity of the lateral stability derivative to geometric anhedral indicate values which are in reasonable agreement with estimates provided by simple vortex-lattice theories.

Connecting Majorana phases to the geometric parameters of the Majorana unitarity triangle in a neutrino mass matrix model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Verma, Surender; Bhardwaj, Shankita

2018-05-01

We have investigated a possible connection between the Majorana phases and geometric parameters of Majorana unitarity triangle (MT) in two-texture zero neutrino mass matrix. Such analytical relations can, also, be obtained for other theoretical models viz. hybrid textures, neutrino mass matrix with vanishing minors and have profound implications for geometric description of C P violation. As an example, we have considered the two-texture zero neutrino mass model to obtain a relation between Majorana phases and MT parameters that may be probed in various lepton number violating processes. In particular, we find that Majorana phases depend on only one of the three interior angles of the MT in each class of two-texture zero neutrino mass matrix. We have also constructed the MT for class A , B , and C neutrino mass matrices. Nonvanishing areas and nontrivial orientations of these Majorana unitarity triangles indicate nonzero C P violation as a generic feature of this class of mass models.

Critical space-time networks and geometric phase transitions from frustrated edge antiferromagnetism

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Trugenberger, Carlo A.

2015-12-01

Recently I proposed a simple dynamical network model for discrete space-time that self-organizes as a graph with Hausdorff dimension dH=4 . The model has a geometric quantum phase transition with disorder parameter (dH-ds) , where ds is the spectral dimension of the dynamical graph. Self-organization in this network model is based on a competition between a ferromagnetic Ising model for vertices and an antiferromagnetic Ising model for edges. In this paper I solve a toy version of this model defined on a bipartite graph in the mean-field approximation. I show that the geometric phase transition corresponds exactly to the antiferromagnetic transition for edges, the dimensional disorder parameter of the former being mapped to the staggered magnetization order parameter of the latter. The model has a critical point with long-range correlations between edges, where a continuum random geometry can be defined, exactly as in Kazakov's famed 2D random lattice Ising model but now in any number of dimensions.

Geometric phase of neutrinos: Differences between Dirac and Majorana neutrinos

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Capolupo, A.; Giampaolo, S. M.; Hiesmayr, B. C.; Vitiello, G.

2018-05-01

We analyze the non-cyclic geometric phase for neutrinos. We find that the geometric phase and the total phase associated to the mixing phenomenon provide a theoretical tool to distinguish between Dirac and Majorana neutrinos. Our results hold for neutrinos propagating in vacuum and through the matter. We feed the values of the experimental parameters in our formulas in order to make contact with experiments. Although it remains an open question how the geometric phase of neutrinos could be detected, our theoretical results may open new scenarios in the investigation of the neutrino nature.

A portable foot-parameter-extracting system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, MingKai; Liang, Jin; Li, Wenpan; Liu, Shifan

2016-03-01

In order to solve the problem of automatic foot measurement in garment customization, a new automatic footparameter- extracting system based on stereo vision, photogrammetry and heterodyne multiple frequency phase shift technology is proposed and implemented. The key technologies applied in the system are studied, including calibration of projector, alignment of point clouds, and foot measurement. Firstly, a new projector calibration algorithm based on plane model has been put forward to get the initial calibration parameters and a feature point detection scheme of calibration board image is developed. Then, an almost perfect match of two clouds is achieved by performing a first alignment using the Sampled Consensus - Initial Alignment algorithm (SAC-IA) and refining the alignment using the Iterative Closest Point algorithm (ICP). Finally, the approaches used for foot-parameterextracting and the system scheme are presented in detail. Experimental results show that the RMS error of the calibration result is 0.03 pixel and the foot parameter extracting experiment shows the feasibility of the extracting algorithm. Compared with the traditional measurement method, the system can be more portable, accurate and robust.

Development and evaluation of a new 3-D digitization and computer graphic system to study the anatomic tissue and restoration surfaces.

PubMed

Dastane, A; Vaidyanathan, T K; Vaidyanathan, J; Mehra, R; Hesby, R

1996-01-01

It is necessary to visualize and reconstruct tissue anatomic surfaces accurately for a variety of oral rehabilitation applications such as surface wear characterization and automated fabrication of dental restorations, accuracy of reproduction of impression and die materials, etc. In this investigation, a 3-D digitization and computer-graphic system was developed for surface characterization. The hardware consists of a profiler assembly for digitization in an MTS biomechanical test system with an artificial mouth, an IBM PS/2 computer model 70 for data processing and a Hewlett-Packard laser printer for hardcopy outputs. The software used includes a commercially available Surfer 3-D graphics package, a public domain data-fitting alignment software and an inhouse Pascal program for intercommunication plus some other limited tasks. Surfaces were digitized before and after rotation by angular displacement, the digital data were interpolated by Surfer to provide a data grid and the surfaces were computer graphically reconstructed: Misaligned surfaces were aligned by the data-fitting alignment software under different choices of parameters. The effect of different interpolation parameters (e.g. grid size, method of interpolation) and extent of rotation on the alignment accuracy was determined. The results indicate that improved alignment accuracy results from optimization of interpolation parameters and minimization of the initial misorientation between the digitized surfaces. The method provides important advantages for surface reconstruction and visualization, such as overlay of sequentially generated surfaces and accurate alignment of pairs of surfaces with small misalignment.

Dielectrophoretic alignment of metal and metal oxide nanowires and nanotubes: a universal set of parameters for bridging prepatterned microelectrodes.

PubMed

Maijenburg, A W; Maas, M G; Rodijk, E J B; Ahmed, W; Kooij, E S; Carlen, E T; Blank, D H A; ten Elshof, J E

2011-03-15

Nanowires and nanotubes were synthesized from metals and metal oxides using templated cathodic electrodeposition. With templated electrodeposition, small structures are electrodeposited using a template that is the inverse of the final desired shape. Dielectrophoresis was used for the alignment of the as-formed nanowires and nanotubes between prepatterned electrodes. For reproducible nanowire alignment, a universal set of dielectrophoresis parameters to align any arbitrary nanowire material was determined. The parameters include peak-to-peak potential and frequency, thickness of the silicon oxide layer, grounding of the silicon substrate, and nature of the solvent medium used. It involves applying a field with a frequency >10(5) Hz, an insulating silicon oxide layer with a thickness of 2.5 μm or more, grounding of the underlying silicon substrate, and the use of a solvent medium with a low dielectric constant. In our experiments, we obtained good results by using a peak-to-peak potential of 2.1 V at a frequency of 1.2 × 10(5) Hz. Furthermore, an indirect alignment technique is proposed that prevents short circuiting of nanowires after contacting both electrodes. After alignment, a considerably lower resistivity was found for ZnO nanowires made by templated electrodeposition (2.2-3.4 × 10(-3) Ωm) compared to ZnO nanorods synthesized by electrodeposition (10 Ωm) or molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) (500 Ωm). Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Impact of adhesive surface and volume of luting resin on fracture resistance of root filled teeth.

PubMed

Krastl, G; Gugger, J; Deyhle, H; Zitzmann, N U; Weiger, R; Müller, B

2011-05-01

To investigate the correlation between geometric parameters of severely compromised root filled (RCT) pre-molar teeth with irregular root canals and their fracture resistance. The null hypothesis tested was that the fracture resistance of root filled teeth is not influenced by: (i) the adhesive surface of the post-space preparation (A(PS) ), (ii) the coronal tooth surface (A(A) ), (iii) the amount of resin cement (V(C) ) and (iv) the Young's modulus of the specimens. A total of 48 noncarious human pre-molar teeth with irregular root canals were decoronated, root filled and adhesively restored with post-retained direct composite crowns. After thermomechanical loading (1,200,000×, 5-50° C), static load was applied until failure. The geometric parameters of the tooth were evaluated by microcomputed tomography (μCT) using impressions taken after post-space preparation. Linear regression analyses were performed to correlate the geometric parameters of the specimens with their fracture resistance. The amount of resin cement (V(C) ) comprised up to 88% of the entire post-space (mean 67%) and had no impact on the maximal load (P = 0.88). The latter was significantly influenced by post-space preparation (P = 0.003). Amongst the geometric parameters tested, the surface area in the root canal had the greatest impact on fracture resistance of root filled pre-molars restored with posts and composite crowns, whilst the fit of the post was less important. © 2011 International Endodontic Journal.

Nonlinear Local Bending Response and Bulging Factors for Longitudinal and Circumferential Cracks in Pressurized Cylindrical Shells

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Young, Richard D.; Rose, Cheryl A.; Starnes, James H., Jr.

2000-01-01

Results of a geometrically nonlinear finite element parametric study to determine curvature correction factors or bulging factors that account for increased stresses due to curvature for longitudinal and circumferential cracks in unstiffened pressurized cylindrical shells are presented. Geometric parameters varied in the study include the shell radius, the shell wall thickness, and the crack length. The major results are presented in the form of contour plots of the bulging factor as a function of two nondimensional parameters: the shell curvature parameter, lambda, which is a function of the shell geometry, Poisson's ratio, and the crack length; and a loading parameter, eta, which is a function of the shell geometry, material properties, and the applied internal pressure. These plots identify the ranges of the shell curvature and loading parameters for which the effects of geometric nonlinearity are significant. Simple empirical expressions for the bulging factor are then derived from the numerical results and shown to predict accurately the nonlinear response of shells with longitudinal and circumferential cracks. The numerical results are also compared with analytical solutions based on linear shallow shell theory for thin shells, and with some other semi-empirical solutions from the literature, and limitations on the use of these other expressions are suggested.

Planar incompressible Navier-Stokes and Euler equations: A geometric formulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dimitriou, Ioannis

2017-11-01

In this paper, a novel geometric approach for studying steady, two-dimensional, incompressible flows has been thoroughly developed. The continuity and momentum equations were expressed in the flow's intrinsic coordinate system in order to "accommodate" the geometric parameters characterizing it, namely, the local curvatures of the streamlines and their orthogonal trajectories. As a result, a new description of the governing equations was obtained, in which the concerned variables are the velocity magnitude v and a new quantity which was named geometric vorticity, Γ. The latter is defined by the curl of the global curvature vector KG and can be interpreted as the geometric signature of the known vorticity Ω. This approach leads to a new formulation of the Navier-Stokes and Euler equations, the so-called "velocity-curvature" formulation. In this framework, an expression for the flow velocity as a function of geometric parameters only was developed. This reveals that the physical information of a steady incompressible flow is imprinted in its geometry. It is this insight that makes the aforementioned formulation not only conceptually different to the existing classical descriptions, traditionally employed in both analytical and numerical applications, but also attractive, due to the advantages that it could provide at a theoretical and an experimental level. Finally, the derived results are briefly discussed, while emphasizing the implications that the identified geometry-physics interface might have in the future for planar flow analysis.

An accurate registration technique for distorted images

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Delapena, Michele; Shaw, Richard A.; Linde, Peter; Dravins, Dainis

1990-01-01

Accurate registration of International Ultraviolet Explorer (IUE) images is crucial because the variability of the geometrical distortions that are introduced by the SEC-Vidicon cameras ensures that raw science images are never perfectly aligned with the Intensity Transfer Functions (ITFs) (i.e., graded floodlamp exposures that are used to linearize and normalize the camera response). A technique for precisely registering IUE images which uses a cross correlation of the fixed pattern that exists in all raw IUE images is described.

Synergistic Instance-Level Subspace Alignment for Fine-Grained Sketch-Based Image Retrieval.

PubMed

Li, Ke; Pang, Kaiyue; Song, Yi-Zhe; Hospedales, Timothy M; Xiang, Tao; Zhang, Honggang

2017-08-25

We study the problem of fine-grained sketch-based image retrieval. By performing instance-level (rather than category-level) retrieval, it embodies a timely and practical application, particularly with the ubiquitous availability of touchscreens. Three factors contribute to the challenging nature of the problem: (i) free-hand sketches are inherently abstract and iconic, making visual comparisons with photos difficult, (ii) sketches and photos are in two different visual domains, i.e. black and white lines vs. color pixels, and (iii) fine-grained distinctions are especially challenging when executed across domain and abstraction-level. To address these challenges, we propose to bridge the image-sketch gap both at the high-level via parts and attributes, as well as at the low-level, via introducing a new domain alignment method. More specifically, (i) we contribute a dataset with 304 photos and 912 sketches, where each sketch and image is annotated with its semantic parts and associated part-level attributes. With the help of this dataset, we investigate (ii) how strongly-supervised deformable part-based models can be learned that subsequently enable automatic detection of part-level attributes, and provide pose-aligned sketch-image comparisons. To reduce the sketch-image gap when comparing low-level features, we also (iii) propose a novel method for instance-level domain-alignment, that exploits both subspace and instance-level cues to better align the domains. Finally (iv) these are combined in a matching framework integrating aligned low-level features, mid-level geometric structure and high-level semantic attributes. Extensive experiments conducted on our new dataset demonstrate effectiveness of the proposed method.

Direct measurement of clinical mammographic x-ray spectra using a CdTe spectrometer.

PubMed

Santos, Josilene C; Tomal, Alessandra; Furquim, Tânia A; Fausto, Agnes M F; Nogueira, Maria S; Costa, Paulo R

2017-07-01

To introduce and evaluate a method developed for the direct measurement of mammographic x-ray spectra using a CdTe spectrometer. The assembly of a positioning system and the design of a simple and customized alignment device for this application is described. A positioning system was developed to easily and accurately locate the CdTe detector in the x-ray beam. Additionally, an alignment device to line up the detector with the central axis of the radiation beam was designed. Direct x-ray spectra measurements were performed in two different clinical mammography units and the measured x-ray spectra were compared with computer-generated spectra. In addition, the spectrometer misalignment effect was evaluated by comparing the measured spectra when this device is aligned relatively to when it is misaligned. The positioning and alignment of the spectrometer have allowed the measurements of direct mammographic x-ray spectra in agreement with computer-generated spectra. The most accurate x-ray spectral shape, related with the minimal HVL value, and high photon fluence for measured spectra was found with the spectrometer aligned according to the proposed method. The HVL values derived from both simulated and measured x-ray spectra differ at most 1.3 and 4.5% for two mammography devices evaluated in this study. The experimental method developed in this work allows simple positioning and alignment of a spectrometer for x-ray spectra measurements given the geometrical constraints and maintenance of the original configurations of mammography machines. © 2017 American Association of Physicists in Medicine.

High-performance computing in image registration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zanin, Michele; Remondino, Fabio; Dalla Mura, Mauro

2012-10-01

Thanks to the recent technological advances, a large variety of image data is at our disposal with variable geometric, radiometric and temporal resolution. In many applications the processing of such images needs high performance computing techniques in order to deliver timely responses e.g. for rapid decisions or real-time actions. Thus, parallel or distributed computing methods, Digital Signal Processor (DSP) architectures, Graphical Processing Unit (GPU) programming and Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) devices have become essential tools for the challenging issue of processing large amount of geo-data. The article focuses on the processing and registration of large datasets of terrestrial and aerial images for 3D reconstruction, diagnostic purposes and monitoring of the environment. For the image alignment procedure, sets of corresponding feature points need to be automatically extracted in order to successively compute the geometric transformation that aligns the data. The feature extraction and matching are ones of the most computationally demanding operations in the processing chain thus, a great degree of automation and speed is mandatory. The details of the implemented operations (named LARES) exploiting parallel architectures and GPU are thus presented. The innovative aspects of the implementation are (i) the effectiveness on a large variety of unorganized and complex datasets, (ii) capability to work with high-resolution images and (iii) the speed of the computations. Examples and comparisons with standard CPU processing are also reported and commented.

Parameters influencing focalization spot in time reversal of acoustic waves

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zophoniasson, Harald; Bolzmacher, Christian; Hafez, Moustafa

2015-05-01

Time reversal is an approach that can be used to focus acoustic waves in a particular location on a surface, allowing a multitouch tactile feedback interaction. The spatial resolution in this case depends on several parameters, such as geometrical parameters, frequency used and material properties, described by the Lamb wave theory. This paper highlights the impact of frequency, geometrical parameters such as plate thickness and transducer's surface on the focused spot dimensions. In this paper a study of the influence of the plate's thickness and the frequency bandwidth used in the focusing process is presented. It is also shown that the dimension of the piezoelectric diaphragms used has little influence on the spatial resolution. Resonant behavior of the plate and its implication on focus point dimension and focalization contrast were investigated.

Interrelated Dimensional Chains in Predicting Accuracy of Turbine Wheel Assembly Parameters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yanyukina, M. V.; Bolotov, M. A.; Ruzanov, N. V.

2018-03-01

The working capacity of any device primarily depends on the assembly accuracy which, in its turn, is determined by the quality of each part manufactured, i.e., the degree of conformity between final geometrical parameters and the set ones. However, the assembly accuracy depends not only on a qualitative manufacturing process but also on the assembly process correctness. In this connection, there were preliminary calculations of assembly stages in terms of conformity to real geometrical parameters with their permissible values. This task is performed by means of the calculation of dimensional chains. The calculation of interrelated dimensional chains in the aircraft industry requires particular attention. The article considers the issues of dimensional chain calculation modelling by the example of the turbine wheel assembly process. The authors described the solution algorithm in terms of mathematical statistics implemented in Matlab. The paper demonstrated the results of a dimensional chain calculation for a turbine wheel in relation to the draw of turbine blades to the shroud ring diameter. Besides, the article provides the information on the influence of a geometrical parameter tolerance for the dimensional chain link elements on a closing one.

The influence of atomic alignment on absorption and emission spectroscopy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Heshou; Yan, Huirong; Richter, Philipp

2018-06-01

Spectroscopic observations play essential roles in astrophysics. They are crucial for determining physical parameters in the universe, providing information about the chemistry of various astronomical environments. The proper execution of the spectroscopic analysis requires accounting for all the physical effects that are compatible to the signal-to-noise ratio. We find in this paper the influence on spectroscopy from the atomic/ground state alignment owing to anisotropic radiation and modulated by interstellar magnetic field, has significant impact on the study of interstellar gas. In different observational scenarios, we comprehensively demonstrate how atomic alignment influences the spectral analysis and provide the expressions for correcting the effect. The variations are even more pronounced for multiplets and line ratios. We show the variation of the deduced physical parameters caused by the atomic alignment effect, including alpha-to-iron ratio ([X/Fe]) and ionisation fraction. Synthetic observations are performed to illustrate the visibility of such effect with current facilities. A study of PDRs in ρ Ophiuchi cloud is presented to demonstrate how to account for atomic alignment in practice. Our work has shown that due to its potential impact, atomic alignment has to be included in an accurate spectroscopic analysis of the interstellar gas with current observational capability.

The fractured landscape of RNA-seq alignment: the default in our STARs.

PubMed

Ballouz, Sara; Dobin, Alexander; Gingeras, Thomas R; Gillis, Jesse

2018-06-01

Many tools are available for RNA-seq alignment and expression quantification, with comparative value being hard to establish. Benchmarking assessments often highlight methods' good performance, but are focused on either model data or fail to explain variation in performance. This leaves us to ask, what is the most meaningful way to assess different alignment choices? And importantly, where is there room for progress? In this work, we explore the answers to these two questions by performing an exhaustive assessment of the STAR aligner. We assess STAR's performance across a range of alignment parameters using common metrics, and then on biologically focused tasks. We find technical metrics such as fraction mapping or expression profile correlation to be uninformative, capturing properties unlikely to have any role in biological discovery. Surprisingly, we find that changes in alignment parameters within a wide range have little impact on both technical and biological performance. Yet, when performance finally does break, it happens in difficult regions, such as X-Y paralogs and MHC genes. We believe improved reporting by developers will help establish where results are likely to be robust or fragile, providing a better baseline to establish where methodological progress can still occur.

Model Update of a Micro Air Vehicle (MAV) Flexible Wing Frame with Uncertainty Quantification

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Reaves, Mercedes C.; Horta, Lucas G.; Waszak, Martin R.; Morgan, Benjamin G.

2004-01-01

This paper describes a procedure to update parameters in the finite element model of a Micro Air Vehicle (MAV) to improve displacement predictions under aerodynamics loads. Because of fabrication, materials, and geometric uncertainties, a statistical approach combined with Multidisciplinary Design Optimization (MDO) is used to modify key model parameters. Static test data collected using photogrammetry are used to correlate with model predictions. Results show significant improvements in model predictions after parameters are updated; however, computed probabilities values indicate low confidence in updated values and/or model structure errors. Lessons learned in the areas of wing design, test procedures, modeling approaches with geometric nonlinearities, and uncertainties quantification are all documented.

Effect of several geometric parameters on the static internal performance of three nonaxisymmetric nozzle concepts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Berrier, B. L.; Re, R. J.

1979-01-01

Effects of several geometric parameters on the internal performance of nonaxisymmetric convergent-divergent, single-ramp expansion, and wedge nozzles were investigated at nozzle pressure ratios up to approximately 10. In addition, two different thrust-vectoring schemes were investigated with the wedge nozzle. The results indicated that as with conventional round nozzles, peak nonaxisymmetric nozzle, internal performance occurred near the nozzle pressure ratio required for fully expanded exhaust flow. Nozzle sidewall length or area generally had little effect on the internal performance of the nozzles investigated.

Ion beam sputtering of Ag - Angular and energetic distributions of sputtered and scattered particles

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Feder, René; Bundesmann, Carsten; Neumann, Horst; Rauschenbach, Bernd

2013-12-01

Ion beam sputter deposition (IBD) provides intrinsic features which influence the properties of the growing film, because ion properties and geometrical process conditions generate different energy and spatial distribution of the sputtered and scattered particles. A vacuum deposition chamber is set up to measure the energy and spatial distribution of secondary particles produced by ion beam sputtering of different target materials under variation of geometrical parameters (incidence angle of primary ions and emission angle of secondary particles) and of primary ion beam parameters (ion species and energies).

LPV Modeling of a Flexible Wing Aircraft Using Modal Alignment and Adaptive Gridding Methods

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Al-Jiboory, Ali Khudhair; Zhu, Guoming; Swei, Sean Shan-Min; Su, Weihua; Nguyen, Nhan T.

2017-01-01

One of the earliest approaches in gain-scheduling control is the gridding based approach, in which a set of local linear time-invariant models are obtained at various gridded points corresponding to the varying parameters within the flight envelop. In order to ensure smooth and effective Linear Parameter-Varying control, aligning all the flexible modes within each local model and maintaining small number of representative local models over the gridded parameter space are crucial. In addition, since the flexible structural models tend to have large dimensions, a tractable model reduction process is necessary. In this paper, the notion of s-shifted H2- and H Infinity-norm are introduced and used as a metric to measure the model mismatch. A new modal alignment algorithm is developed which utilizes the defined metric for aligning all the local models over the entire gridded parameter space. Furthermore, an Adaptive Grid Step Size Determination algorithm is developed to minimize the number of local models required to represent the gridded parameter space. For model reduction, we propose to utilize the concept of Composite Modal Cost Analysis, through which the collective contribution of each flexible mode is computed and ranked. Therefore, a reduced-order model is constructed by retaining only those modes with significant contribution. The NASA Generic Transport Model operating at various flight speeds is studied for verification purpose, and the analysis and simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed modeling approach.

Core break-off mechanism

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Myrick, Thomas M. (Inventor)

2003-01-01

A mechanism for breaking off and retaining a core sample of a drill drilled into a ground substrate has an outer drill tube and an inner core break-off tube sleeved inside the drill tube. The break-off tube breaks off and retains the core sample by a varying geometric relationship of inner and outer diameters with the drill tube. The inside diameter (ID) of the drill tube is offset by a given amount with respect to its outer diameter (OD). Similarly, the outside diameter (OD) of the break-off tube is offset by the same amount with respect to its inner diameter (ID). When the break-off tube and drill tube are in one rotational alignment, the two offsets cancel each other such that the drill can operate the two tubes together in alignment with the drill axis. When the tubes are rotated 180 degrees to another positional alignment, the two offsets add together causing the core sample in the break-off tube to be displaced from the drill axis and applying shear forces to break off the core sample.

Geometric correction method for 3d in-line X-ray phase contrast image reconstruction

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

Background Mechanical system with imperfect or misalignment of X-ray phase contrast imaging (XPCI) components causes projection data misplaced, and thus result in the reconstructed slice images of computed tomography (CT) blurred or with edge artifacts. So the features of biological microstructures to be investigated are destroyed unexpectedly, and the spatial resolution of XPCI image is decreased. It makes data correction an essential pre-processing step for CT reconstruction of XPCI. Methods To remove unexpected blurs and edge artifacts, a mathematics model for in-line XPCI is built by considering primary geometric parameters which include a rotation angle and a shift variant in this paper. Optimal geometric parameters are achieved by finding the solution of a maximization problem. And an iterative approach is employed to solve the maximization problem by using a two-step scheme which includes performing a composite geometric transformation and then following a linear regression process. After applying the geometric transformation with optimal parameters to projection data, standard filtered back-projection algorithm is used to reconstruct CT slice images. Results Numerical experiments were carried out on both synthetic and real in-line XPCI datasets. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method improves CT image quality by removing both blurring and edge artifacts at the same time compared to existing correction methods. Conclusions The method proposed in this paper provides an effective projection data correction scheme and significantly improves the image quality by removing both blurring and edge artifacts at the same time for in-line XPCI. It is easy to implement and can also be extended to other XPCI techniques. PMID:25069768

Evaluating the use of electronegativity in band alignment models through the experimental slope parameter of lanthanum aluminate heterostructures

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Liu, Z. Q.; Chim, W. K.; Chiam, S. Y

2011-11-01

In this work, photoelectron spectroscopy is used to characterize the band alignment of lanthanum aluminate heterostructures which possess a wide range of potential applications. It is found that our experimental slope parameter agrees with theory using the metal-induced gap states model while the interface induced gap states (IFIGS) model yields unsatisfactory results. We show that this discrepancy can be attributed to the correlation between the dielectric work function and the electronegativity in the IFIGS model. It is found that the original trend, as established largely by metals, may not be accurate for larger band gap materials. By using a newmore » correlation, our experimental data shows good agreement of the slope parameter using the IFIGS model. This correlation, therefore, plays a crucial role in heterostructures involving wider bandgap materials for accurate band alignment prediction using the IFIGS model.« less

Gauge freedom in observables and Landsberg's nonadiabatic geometric phase: Pumping spectroscopy of interacting open quantum systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pluecker, T.; Wegewijs, M. R.; Splettstoesser, J.

2017-04-01

We set up a general density-operator approach to geometric steady-state pumping through slowly driven open quantum systems. This approach applies to strongly interacting systems that are weakly coupled to multiple reservoirs at high temperature, illustrated by an Anderson quantum dot. Pumping gives rise to a nonadiabatic geometric phase that can be described by a framework originally developed for classical dissipative systems by Landsberg. This geometric phase is accumulated by the transported observable (charge, spin, energy) and not by the quantum state. It thus differs radically from the adiabatic Berry-Simon phase, even when generalizing it to mixed states, following Sarandy and Lidar. As a key feature, our geometric formulation of pumping stays close to a direct physical intuition (i) by tying gauge transformations to calibration of the meter registering the transported observable and (ii) by deriving a geometric connection from a driving-frequency expansion of the current. Furthermore, our approach provides a systematic and efficient way to compute the geometric pumping of various observables, including charge, spin, energy, and heat. These insights seem to be generalizable beyond the present paper's working assumptions (e.g., Born-Markov limit) to more general open-system evolutions involving memory and strong-coupling effects due to low-temperature reservoirs as well. Our geometric curvature formula reveals a general experimental scheme for performing geometric transport spectroscopy that enhances standard nonlinear spectroscopies based on measurements for static parameters. We indicate measurement strategies for separating the useful geometric pumping contribution to transport from nongeometric effects. A large part of the paper is devoted to an explicit comparison with the Sinitsyn-Nemenmann full-counting-statistics (FCS) approach to geometric pumping, restricting attention to the first moments of the pumped observable. Covering all key aspects, gauge freedom, pumping connection, curvature, and gap condition, we argue that our approach is physically more transparent and, importantly, simpler for practical calculations. In particular, this comparison allows us to clarify how in the FCS approach an "adiabatic" approximation leads to a manifestly nonadiabatic result involving a finite retardation time of the response to parameter driving.

High scale flavor alignment in two-Higgs doublet models and its phenomenology

DOE PAGES

Gori, Stefania; Haber, Howard E.; Santos, Edward

2017-06-21

The most general two-Higgs doublet model (2HDM) includes potentially large sources of flavor changing neutral currents (FCNCs) that must be suppressed in order to achieve a phenomenologically viable model. The flavor alignment ansatz postulates that all Yukawa coupling matrices are diagonal when expressed in the basis of mass-eigenstate fermion fields, in which case tree-level Higgs-mediated FCNCs are eliminated. In this work, we explore models with the flavor alignment condition imposed at a very high energy scale, which results in the generation of Higgs-mediated FCNCs via renormalization group running from the high energy scale to the electroweak scale. Using the currentmore » experimental bounds on flavor changing observables, constraints are derived on the aligned 2HDM parameter space. In the favored parameter region, we analyze the implications for Higgs boson phenomenology.« less

Gravitational-Wave Data Analysis with Spinning Merger-Ringdown Waveforms

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kelly Bernard J.

2011-01-01

The recent availability of high-quality, gravitational merger-ringdown waveforms from spinning black-hole systems has made possible the development of multi-mode GW templates for use in data-analysis studies of current and proposed interferometric GW detectors. We report on recent work at NASA Goddard, analyzing the most significant modes from aligned-spin black-hole-binary mergers. From these, we have developed time-domain merger-ringdown GW templates covering the aligned-spin portion of parameter space. We also discuss how using the full information content of aligned-spin mergers can significantly reduce uncertainties in some parameters, emphasizing the significant gains possible in the last stages of merger, inaccessible to inspiral-only post-Newtonian templates.

Photometric and spectroscopic investigation of the oscillating Algol type binary: EW Boo

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Doğruel, Mustafa Burak; Gürol, Birol

2015-10-01

We obtained the physical and geometrical parameters of the EW Boo system, which exhibits short period and small amplitude pulsations as well as brightness variations due to orbital motion of components. Towards this end we carried out photometric observations at Ankara University Kreiken Observatory (AUKO) as well as spectroscopic observations at TUBITAK National Observatory (TNO). The light and radial velocity curves obtained from these observations have been simultaneously analyzed with PHOEBE and the absolute parameters of the system along with the geometric parameters of the components have been determined. Using model light curves of EW Boo, light curve regions in which the pulsations are active have been determined and as a result of analyses performed in the frequency region, characteristic parameters of pulsations have been obtained. We find that the results are compatible with current parameters of similar systems in the literature. The evolutionary status of the components is propounded and discussed.

Novel parameter-based flexure bearing design method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Amoedo, Simon; Thebaud, Edouard; Gschwendtner, Michael; White, David

2016-06-01

A parameter study was carried out on the design variables of a flexure bearing to be used in a Stirling engine with a fixed axial displacement and a fixed outer diameter. A design method was developed in order to assist identification of the optimum bearing configuration. This was achieved through a parameter study of the bearing carried out with ANSYS®. The parameters varied were the number and the width of the arms, the thickness of the bearing, the eccentricity, the size of the starting and ending holes, and the turn angle of the spiral. Comparison was made between the different designs in terms of axial and radial stiffness, the natural frequency, and the maximum induced stresses. Moreover, the Finite Element Analysis (FEA) was compared to theoretical results for a given design. The results led to a graphical design method which assists the selection of flexure bearing geometrical parameters based on pre-determined geometric and material constraints.

Capturing Revolute Motion and Revolute Joint Parameters with Optical Tracking

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Antonya, C.

2017-12-01

Optical tracking of users and various technical systems are becoming more and more popular. It consists of analysing sequence of recorded images using video capturing devices and image processing algorithms. The returned data contains mainly point-clouds, coordinates of markers or coordinates of point of interest. These data can be used for retrieving information related to the geometry of the objects, but also to extract parameters for the analytical model of the system useful in a variety of computer aided engineering simulations. The parameter identification of joints deals with extraction of physical parameters (mainly geometric parameters) for the purpose of constructing accurate kinematic and dynamic models. The input data are the time-series of the marker’s position. The least square method was used for fitting the data into different geometrical shapes (ellipse, circle, plane) and for obtaining the position and orientation of revolute joins.

Field emission from isolated individual vertically aligned carbon nanocones

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baylor, L. R.; Merkulov, V. I.; Ellis, E. D.; Guillorn, M. A.; Lowndes, D. H.; Melechko, A. V.; Simpson, M. L.; Whealton, J. H.

2002-04-01

Field emission from isolated individual vertically aligned carbon nanocones (VACNCs) has been measured using a small-diameter moveable probe. The probe was scanned parallel to the sample plane to locate the VACNCs, and perpendicular to the sample plane to measure the emission turn-on electric field of each VACNC. Individual VACNCs can be good field emitters. The emission threshold field depends on the geometric aspect ratio (height/tip radius) of the VACNC and is lowest when a sharp tip is present. VACNCs exposed to a reactive ion etch process demonstrate a lowered emission threshold field while maintaining a similar aspect ratio. Individual VACNCs can have low emission thresholds, carry high current densities, and have long emission lifetime. This makes them very promising for various field emission applications for which deterministic placement of the emitter with submicron accuracy is needed.

Sub-luminous γ-ray pulsars

DOE PAGES

Romani, R. W.; Kerr, M.; Craig, H. A.; ...

2011-08-17

Here, most pulsars observed by the Fermi Large Area Telescope have γ-ray luminosities scaling with spin-down powermore » $${\\dot{E}}$$ as $$L_\\gamma \\approx ({\\dot{E}}\\, \\times \\, 10^{33}\\,{\\rm erg \\,s^{-1}})^{1/2}$$. However, there exist one detection and several upper limits an order of magnitude or more fainter than this trend. We describe these "sub-luminous" γ-ray pulsars and discuss the case for this being an orientation effect. Of the 12 known young radio pulsars with $${\\dot{E}}>10^{34}\\, {\\rm erg\\,s^{-1}}$$ and d ≤ 2 kpc several are substantially sub-luminous. The limited available geometrical constraints favor aligned geometries for these pulsars, although no one case for alignment is compelling. In this scenario GeV emission detected from such sub-luminous pulsars can be due to a lower altitude, lower-power accelerator gap.« less

Theoretical analysis for scaling law of thermal blooming based on optical phase deference

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sun, Yunqiang; Huang, Zhilong; Ren, Zebin; Chen, Zhiqiang; Guo, Longde; Xi, Fengjie

2016-10-01

In order to explore the laser propagation influence of thermal blooming effect of pipe flow and to analysis the influencing factors, scaling law theoretical analysis of the thermal blooming effects in pipe flow are carry out in detail based on the optical path difference caused by thermal blooming effects in pipe flow. Firstly, by solving the energy coupling equation of laser beam propagation, the temperature of the flow is obtained, and then the optical path difference caused by the thermal blooming is deduced. Through the analysis of the influence of pipe size, flow field and laser parameters on the optical path difference, energy scaling parameters Ne=nTαLPR2/(ρɛCpπR02) and geometric scaling parameters Nc=νR2/(ɛL) of thermal blooming for the pipe flow are derived. Secondly, for the direct solution method, the energy coupled equations have analytic solutions only for the straight tube with Gauss beam. Considering the limitation of directly solving the coupled equations, the dimensionless analysis method is adopted, the analysis is also based on the change of optical path difference, same scaling parameters for the pipe flow thermal blooming are derived, which makes energy scaling parameters Ne and geometric scaling parameters Nc have good universality. The research results indicate that when the laser power and the laser beam diameter are changed, thermal blooming effects of the pipeline axial flow caused by optical path difference will not change, as long as you keep energy scaling parameters constant. When diameter or length of the pipe changes, just keep the geometric scaling parameters constant, the pipeline axial flow gas thermal blooming effects caused by optical path difference distribution will not change. That is to say, when the pipe size and laser parameters change, if keeping two scaling parameters with constant, the pipeline axial flow thermal blooming effects caused by the optical path difference will not change. Therefore, the energy scaling parameters and the geometric scaling parameters can really describe the gas thermal blooming effect in the axial pipe flow. These conclusions can give a good reference for the construction of the thermal blooming test system of laser system. Contrasted with the thermal blooming scaling parameters of the Bradley-Hermann distortion number ND and Fresnel number NF, which were derived based on the change of far field beam intensity distortion, the scaling parameters of pipe flow thermal blooming deduced from the optical path deference variation are very suitable for the optical system with short laser propagation distance, large Fresnel number and obviously changed optical path deference.

COACH: profile-profile alignment of protein families using hidden Markov models.

PubMed

Edgar, Robert C; Sjölander, Kimmen

2004-05-22

Alignments of two multiple-sequence alignments, or statistical models of such alignments (profiles), have important applications in computational biology. The increased amount of information in a profile versus a single sequence can lead to more accurate alignments and more sensitive homolog detection in database searches. Several profile-profile alignment methods have been proposed and have been shown to improve sensitivity and alignment quality compared with sequence-sequence methods (such as BLAST) and profile-sequence methods (e.g. PSI-BLAST). Here we present a new approach to profile-profile alignment we call Comparison of Alignments by Constructing Hidden Markov Models (HMMs) (COACH). COACH aligns two multiple sequence alignments by constructing a profile HMM from one alignment and aligning the other to that HMM. We compare the alignment accuracy of COACH with two recently published methods: Yona and Levitt's prof_sim and Sadreyev and Grishin's COMPASS. On two sets of reference alignments selected from the FSSP database, we find that COACH is able, on average, to produce alignments giving the best coverage or the fewest errors, depending on the chosen parameter settings. COACH is freely available from www.drive5.com/lobster

Application of complex geometrical optics to determination of thermal, transport, and optical parameters of thin films by the photothermal beam deflection technique.

PubMed

Korte, Dorota; Franko, Mladen

2015-01-01

In this work, complex geometrical optics is, for what we believe is the first time, applied instead of geometrical or wave optics to describe the probe beam interaction with the field of the thermal wave in photothermal beam deflection (photothermal deflection spectroscopy) experiments on thin films. On the basis of this approach the thermal (thermal diffusivity and conductivity), optical (energy band gap), and transport (carrier lifetime) parameters of the semiconductor thin films (pure TiO2, N- and C-doped TiO2, or TiO2/SiO2 composites deposited on a glass or aluminum support) were determined with better accuracy and simultaneously during one measurement. The results are in good agreement with results obtained by the use of other methods and reported in the literature.

Hydrodynamics and Heat Transfer in the Case of Combined Flow in a Annular Channel of Small Cross Section

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Komov, A. T.; Varava, A. N.; Dedov, A. V.; Zakharenkov, A. V.; Boltenko, É. A.

2017-01-01

The present work is a continuation of experimental investigations conducted at the Moscow Power Engineering Institute (MPEI) on heat-transfer intensification. Brief descriptions of the working section and structure of intensifiers are given and their basic geometric parameters are enumerated. New systematized experimental data on the coefficients of hydraulic resistance and heat transfer in the regime of single-phase convection are given in an extended range of regime parameters and geometric characteristics of the intensifiers. Considerable increase in the heat-transfer coefficient as a function of the geometric characteristics of the intensifier has been established experimentally. The values of the relative fin height, at which these are the maxima of heat transfer and hydraulic resistance, have been established. Calculated dependences for the coefficient of hydraulic resistance and heat transfer have been obtained.

Angular spectra of the intrinsic galaxy ellipticity field, their observability and their impact on lensing in tomographic surveys

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schäfer, Björn Malte; Merkel, Philipp M.

2017-09-01

This paper describes intrinsic ellipticity correlations between galaxies, their statistical properties, their observability with future surveys and their interference with weak gravitational lensing measurements. Using an angular-momentum-based, quadratic intrinsic alignment model we derive correlation functions of the ellipticity components and project them to yield the four non-zero angular ellipticity spectra C^ɛ _E(ℓ), C^ɛ _B(ℓ), C^ɛ _C(ℓ) and C^ɛ _S(ℓ) in their generalization to tomographic surveys. For a Euclid-like survey, these spectra would have amplitudes smaller than the weak lensing effect on non-linear structures, but would constitute an important systematics. Computing estimation biases for cosmological parameters derived from an alignment-contaminated survey suggests biases of +5σw for the dark energy equation of state parameter w, -20σ _{Ω _m} for the matter density Ωm and -12σ _{σ _8} for the spectrum normalization σ8. Intrinsic alignments yield a signal that is easily observable with a survey similar to Euclid: while not independent, significances for estimates of each of the four spectra reach values of tens of σ if weak lensing and shape noise are considered as noise sources, which suggests relative uncertainties on alignment parameters at the percent level, implying that galaxy alignment mechanisms can be investigated by future surveys.

A radial measurement of the galaxy tidal alignment magnitude with BOSS data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Martens, Daniel; Hirata, Christopher M.; Ross, Ashley J.; Fang, Xiao

2018-07-01

The anisotropy of galaxy clustering in redshift space has long been used to probe the rate of growth of cosmological perturbations. However, if galaxies are aligned by large-scale tidal fields, then a sample with an orientation-dependent selection effect has an additional anisotropy imprinted on to its correlation function. We use the LOWZ and CMASS catalogues of SDSS-III BOSS Data Release 12 to divide galaxies into two subsamples based on their offset from the Fundamental Plane, which should be correlated with orientation. These subsamples must trace the same underlying cosmology, but have opposite orientation-dependent selection effects. We measure the clustering parameters of each subsample and compare them in order to calculate the dimensionless parameter B, a measure of how strongly galaxies are aligned by gravitational tidal fields. We found that for CMASS (LOWZ), the measured B was -0.024 ± 0.015 (-0.030 ± 0.016). This result can be compared to the theoretical predictions of Hirata, who argued that since galaxy formation physics does not depend on the direction of the `observer,' the same intrinsic alignment parameters that describe galaxy-ellipticity correlations should also describe intrinsic alignments in the radial direction. We find that the ratio of observed to theoretical values is 0.51 ± 0.32 (0.77 ± 0.41) for CMASS (LOWZ). We combine the results to obtain a total Obs/Theory = 0.61 ± 0.26. This measurement constitutes evidence (between 2σand 3σ) for radial intrinsic alignments, and is consistent with theoretical expectations (<2σ difference).

A Radial Measurement of the Galaxy Tidal Alignment Magnitude with BOSS Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Martens, Daniel; Hirata, Christopher M.; Ross, Ashley J.; Fang, Xiao

2018-05-01

The anisotropy of galaxy clustering in redshift space has long been used to probe the rate of growth of cosmological perturbations. However, if galaxies are aligned by large-scale tidal fields, then a sample with an orientation-dependent selection effect has an additional anisotropy imprinted onto its correlation function. We use the LOWZ and CMASS catalogs of SDSS-III BOSS Data Release 12 to divide galaxies into two sub-samples based on their offset from the Fundamental Plane, which should be correlated with orientation. These sub-samples must trace the same underlying cosmology, but have opposite orientation-dependent selection effects. We measure the clustering parameters of each sub-sample and compare them in order to calculate the dimensionless parameter B, a measure of how strongly galaxies are aligned by gravitational tidal fields. We found that for CMASS (LOWZ), the measured B was -0.024 ± 0.015 (-0.030 ± 0.016). This result can be compared to the theoretical predictions of Hirata (2009), who argued that since galaxy formation physics does not depend on the direction of the "observer," the same intrinsic alignment parameters that describe galaxy-ellipticity correlations should also describe intrinsic alignments in the radial direction. We find that the ratio of observed to theoretical values is 0.51 ± 0.32 (0.77 ± 0.41) for CMASS (LOWZ). We combine the results to obtain a total Obs/Theory = 0.61 ± 0.26. This measurement constitutes evidence (between 2 and 3σ) for radial intrinsic alignments, and is consistent with theoretical expectations (<2σ difference).

Robust prediction of consensus secondary structures using averaged base pairing probability matrices.

PubMed

Kiryu, Hisanori; Kin, Taishin; Asai, Kiyoshi

2007-02-15

Recent transcriptomic studies have revealed the existence of a considerable number of non-protein-coding RNA transcripts in higher eukaryotic cells. To investigate the functional roles of these transcripts, it is of great interest to find conserved secondary structures from multiple alignments on a genomic scale. Since multiple alignments are often created using alignment programs that neglect the special conservation patterns of RNA secondary structures for computational efficiency, alignment failures can cause potential risks of overlooking conserved stem structures. We investigated the dependence of the accuracy of secondary structure prediction on the quality of alignments. We compared three algorithms that maximize the expected accuracy of secondary structures as well as other frequently used algorithms. We found that one of our algorithms, called McCaskill-MEA, was more robust against alignment failures than others. The McCaskill-MEA method first computes the base pairing probability matrices for all the sequences in the alignment and then obtains the base pairing probability matrix of the alignment by averaging over these matrices. The consensus secondary structure is predicted from this matrix such that the expected accuracy of the prediction is maximized. We show that the McCaskill-MEA method performs better than other methods, particularly when the alignment quality is low and when the alignment consists of many sequences. Our model has a parameter that controls the sensitivity and specificity of predictions. We discussed the uses of that parameter for multi-step screening procedures to search for conserved secondary structures and for assigning confidence values to the predicted base pairs. The C++ source code that implements the McCaskill-MEA algorithm and the test dataset used in this paper are available at http://www.ncrna.org/papers/McCaskillMEA/. Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.

Hydrodynamic and Longitudinal Impedance Analysis of Cerebrospinal Fluid Dynamics at the Craniovertebral Junction in Type I Chiari Malformation

PubMed Central

Martin, Bryn A.; Kalata, Wojciech; Shaffer, Nicholas; Fischer, Paul; Luciano, Mark; Loth, Francis

2013-01-01

Elevated or reduced velocity of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) at the craniovertebral junction (CVJ) has been associated with type I Chiari malformation (CMI). Thus, quantification of hydrodynamic parameters that describe the CSF dynamics could help assess disease severity and surgical outcome. In this study, we describe the methodology to quantify CSF hydrodynamic parameters near the CVJ and upper cervical spine utilizing subject-specific computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations based on in vivo MRI measurements of flow and geometry. Hydrodynamic parameters were computed for a healthy subject and two CMI patients both pre- and post-decompression surgery to determine the differences between cases. For the first time, we present the methods to quantify longitudinal impedance (LI) to CSF motion, a subject-specific hydrodynamic parameter that may have value to help quantify the CSF flow blockage severity in CMI. In addition, the following hydrodynamic parameters were quantified for each case: maximum velocity in systole and diastole, Reynolds and Womersley number, and peak pressure drop during the CSF cardiac flow cycle. The following geometric parameters were quantified: cross-sectional area and hydraulic diameter of the spinal subarachnoid space (SAS). The mean values of the geometric parameters increased post-surgically for the CMI models, but remained smaller than the healthy volunteer. All hydrodynamic parameters, except pressure drop, decreased post-surgically for the CMI patients, but remained greater than in the healthy case. Peak pressure drop alterations were mixed. To our knowledge this study represents the first subject-specific CFD simulation of CMI decompression surgery and quantification of LI in the CSF space. Further study in a larger patient and control group is needed to determine if the presented geometric and/or hydrodynamic parameters are helpful for surgical planning. PMID:24130704

Decomposing the electromagnetic response of magnetic dipoles to determine the geometric parameters of a dipole conductor

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Desmarais, Jacques K.; Smith, Richard S.

2016-03-01

A novel automatic data interpretation algorithm is presented for modelling airborne electromagnetic (AEM) data acquired over resistive environments, using a single-component (vertical) transmitter, where the position and orientation of a dipole conductor is allowed to vary in three dimensions. The algorithm assumes that the magnetic fields produced from compact vortex currents are expressed as a linear combinations of the fields arising from dipoles in the subsurface oriented parallel to the [1, 0, 0], [0, 1, 0], and [0, 0, 1], unit vectors. In this manner, AEM responses can be represented as 12 terms. The relative size of each term in the decomposition can be used to determine geometrical information about the orientation of the subsurface conductivity structure. The geometrical parameters of the dipole (location, depth, dip, strike) are estimated using a combination of a look-up table and a matrix inverted in a least-squares sense. Tests on 703 synthetic models show that the algorithm is capable of extracting most of the correct geometrical parameters of a dipole conductor when three-component receiver data is included in the interpretation procedure. The algorithm is unstable when the target is perfectly horizontal, as the strike is undefined. Ambiguities may occur in predicting the orientation of the dipole conductor if y-component data is excluded from the analysis. Application of our approach to an anomaly on line 15 of the Reid Mahaffy test site yields geometrical parameters in reasonable agreement with previous authors. However, our algorithm provides additional information on the strike and offset from the traverse line of the conductor. Disparities in the values of predicted dip and depth are within the range of numerical precision. The index of fit was better when strike and offset were included in the interpretation procedure. Tests on the data from line 15701 of the Chibougamau MEGATEM survey shows that the algorithm is applicable to situations where three-component AEM data is available.

Geometric model for softwood transverse thermal conductivity. Part I

Treesearch

Hong-mei Gu; Audrey Zink-Sharp

2005-01-01

Thermal conductivity is a very important parameter in determining heat transfer rate and is required for developing of drying models and in industrial operations such as adhesive cure rate. Geometric models for predicting softwood thermal conductivity in the radial and tangential directions were generated in this study based on obervation and measurements of wood...

Fitting-free algorithm for efficient quantification of collagen fiber alignment in SHG imaging applications.

PubMed

Hall, Gunnsteinn; Liang, Wenxuan; Li, Xingde

2017-10-01

Collagen fiber alignment derived from second harmonic generation (SHG) microscopy images can be important for disease diagnostics. Image processing algorithms are needed to robustly quantify the alignment in images with high sensitivity and reliability. Fourier transform (FT) magnitude, 2D power spectrum, and image autocorrelation have previously been used to extract fiber information from images by assuming a certain mathematical model (e.g. Gaussian distribution of the fiber-related parameters) and fitting. The fitting process is slow and fails to converge when the data is not Gaussian. Herein we present an efficient constant-time deterministic algorithm which characterizes the symmetricity of the FT magnitude image in terms of a single parameter, named the fiber alignment anisotropy R ranging from 0 (randomized fibers) to 1 (perfect alignment). This represents an important improvement of the technology and may bring us one step closer to utilizing the technology for various applications in real time. In addition, we present a digital image phantom-based framework for characterizing and validating the algorithm, as well as assessing the robustness of the algorithm against different perturbations.

Investigation on the effect of geometrical and geotechnical parameters on elongated offshore piles using fuzzy inference systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aminfar, Ali; Mojtahedi, Alireza; Ahmadi, Hamid; Aminfar, Mohammad Hossain

2017-06-01

Among numerous offshore structures used in oil extraction, jacket platforms are still the most favorable ones in shallow waters. In such structures, log piles are used to pin the substructure of the platform to the seabed. The pile's geometrical and geotechnical properties are considered as the main parameters in designing these structures. In this study, ANSYS was used as the FE modeling software to study the geometrical and geotechnical properties of the offshore piles and their effects on supporting jacket platforms. For this purpose, the FE analysis has been done to provide the preliminary data for the fuzzy-logic post-process. The resulting data were implemented to create Fuzzy Inference System (FIS) classifications. The resultant data of the sensitivity analysis suggested that the orientation degree is the main factor in the pile's geometrical behavior because piles which had the optimal operational degree of about 5° are more sustained. Finally, the results showed that the related fuzzified data supported the FE model and provided an insight for extended offshore pile designs.

Stochastic Representations of Seismic Anisotropy: Verification of Effective Media Models and Application to the Continental Crust

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Song, X.; Jordan, T. H.

2017-12-01

The seismic anisotropy of the continental crust is dominated by two mechanisms: the local (intrinsic) anisotropy of crustal rocks caused by the lattice-preferred orientation of their constituent minerals, and the geometric (extrinsic) anisotropy caused by the alignment and layering of elastic heterogeneities by sedimentation and deformation. To assess the relative importance of these mechanisms, we have applied Jordan's (GJI, 2015) self-consistent, second-order theory to compute the effective elastic parameters of stochastic media with hexagonal local anisotropy and small-scale 3D heterogeneities that have transversely isotropic (TI) statistics. The theory pertains to stochastic TI media in which the eighth-order covariance tensor of the elastic moduli can be separated into a one-point variance tensor that describes the local anisotropy in terms of a anisotropy orientation ratio (ξ from 0 to ∞), and a two-point correlation function that describes the geometric anisotropy in terms of a heterogeneity aspect ratio (η from 0 to ∞). If there is no local anisotropy, then, in the limiting case of a horizontal stochastic laminate (η→∞), the effective-medium equations reduce to the second-order equations derived by Backus (1962) for a stochastically layered medium. This generalization of the Backus equations to 3D stochastic media, as well as the introduction of local, stochastically rotated anisotropy, provides a powerful theory for interpreting the anisotropic signatures of sedimentation and deformation in continental environments; in particular, the parameterizations that we propose are suitable for tomographic inversions. We have verified this theory through a series high-resolution numerical experiments using both isotropic and anisotropic wave-propagation codes.

Investigation of geometric design in piezoelectric microelectromechanical systems diaphragms for ultrasonic energy harvesting

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shi, Qiongfeng; Wang, Tao; Kobayashi, Takeshi; Lee, Chengkuo

2016-05-01

Acoustic energy transfer (AET) has been widely used for contactless energy delivery to implantable devices. However, most of the energy harvesters (ultrasonic receivers) for AET are macro-scale transducers with large volume and limited operation bandwidth. Here, we propose and investigate two microelectromechanical systems diaphragm based piezoelectric ultrasonic energy harvesters (PUEHs) as an alternative for AET. The proposed PUEHs consist of micro-scale diaphragm array with different geometric parameter design. Diaphragms in PUEH-1 have large length to width ratio to achieve broadband property, while its energy harvesting performance is compromised. Diaphragms in PUEH-2 have smaller length to width ratio and thinner thickness to achieve both broadband property and good energy harvesting performance. Both PUEHs have miniaturized size and wide operation bandwidth that are ideally suitable to be integrated as power source for implantable biomedical devices. PUEH-1 has a merged -6 dB bandwidth of 74.5% with a central frequency of 350 kHz. PUEH-2 has two separate -6 dB bandwidth of 73.7%/30.8% with central frequencies of 285 kHz/650 kHz. They can adapt to various ultrasonic sources with different working frequency spectrum. Maximum output power is 34.3 nW and 84.3 nW for PUEH-1 and PUEH-2 at 1 mW/cm2 ultrasound intensity input, respectively. The associated power density is 0.734 μW/cm2 and 4.1 μW/cm2, respectively. Better energy harvesting performance is achieved for PUEH-2 because of the optimized length to width ratio and thickness design. Both PUEHs offer more alignment flexibility with more than 40% power when they are in the range of the ultrasound transmitter.

Atomically engineered ferroic layers yield a room-temperature magnetoelectric multiferroic

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mundy, Julia A.; Brooks, Charles M.; Holtz, Megan E.; Moyer, Jarrett A.; Das, Hena; Rébola, Alejandro F.; Heron, John T.; Clarkson, James D.; Disseler, Steven M.; Liu, Zhiqi; Farhan, Alan; Held, Rainer; Hovden, Robert; Padgett, Elliot; Mao, Qingyun; Paik, Hanjong; Misra, Rajiv; Kourkoutis, Lena F.; Arenholz, Elke; Scholl, Andreas; Borchers, Julie A.; Ratcliff, William D.; Ramesh, Ramamoorthy; Fennie, Craig J.; Schiffer, Peter; Muller, David A.; Schlom, Darrell G.

2016-09-01

Materials that exhibit simultaneous order in their electric and magnetic ground states hold promise for use in next-generation memory devices in which electric fields control magnetism. Such materials are exceedingly rare, however, owing to competing requirements for displacive ferroelectricity and magnetism. Despite the recent identification of several new multiferroic materials and magnetoelectric coupling mechanisms, known single-phase multiferroics remain limited by antiferromagnetic or weak ferromagnetic alignments, by a lack of coupling between the order parameters, or by having properties that emerge only well below room temperature, precluding device applications. Here we present a methodology for constructing single-phase multiferroic materials in which ferroelectricity and strong magnetic ordering are coupled near room temperature. Starting with hexagonal LuFeO3—the geometric ferroelectric with the greatest known planar rumpling—we introduce individual monolayers of FeO during growth to construct formula-unit-thick syntactic layers of ferrimagnetic LuFe2O4 (refs 17, 18) within the LuFeO3 matrix, that is, (LuFeO3)m/(LuFe2O4)1 superlattices. The severe rumpling imposed by the neighbouring LuFeO3 drives the ferrimagnetic LuFe2O4 into a simultaneously ferroelectric state, while also reducing the LuFe2O4 spin frustration. This increases the magnetic transition temperature substantially—from 240 kelvin for LuFe2O4 (ref. 18) to 281 kelvin for (LuFeO3)9/(LuFe2O4)1. Moreover, the ferroelectric order couples to the ferrimagnetism, enabling direct electric-field control of magnetism at 200 kelvin. Our results demonstrate a design methodology for creating higher-temperature magnetoelectric multiferroics by exploiting a combination of geometric frustration, lattice distortions and epitaxial engineering.

Optimal Control Method of Robot End Position and Orientation Based on Dynamic Tracking Measurement

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Dalong; Xu, Lijuan

2018-01-01

In order to improve the accuracy of robot pose positioning and control, this paper proposed a dynamic tracking measurement robot pose optimization control method based on the actual measurement of D-H parameters of the robot, the parameters is taken with feedback compensation of the robot, according to the geometrical parameters obtained by robot pose tracking measurement, improved multi sensor information fusion the extended Kalan filter method, with continuous self-optimal regression, using the geometric relationship between joint axes for kinematic parameters in the model, link model parameters obtained can timely feedback to the robot, the implementation of parameter correction and compensation, finally we can get the optimal attitude angle, realize the robot pose optimization control experiments were performed. 6R dynamic tracking control of robot joint robot with independent research and development is taken as experimental subject, the simulation results show that the control method improves robot positioning accuracy, and it has the advantages of versatility, simplicity, ease of operation and so on.

Triangle Geometry Processing for Surface Modeling and Cartesian Grid Generation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Aftosmis, Michael J. (Inventor); Melton, John E. (Inventor); Berger, Marsha J. (Inventor)

2002-01-01

Cartesian mesh generation is accomplished for component based geometries, by intersecting components subject to mesh generation to extract wetted surfaces with a geometry engine using adaptive precision arithmetic in a system which automatically breaks ties with respect to geometric degeneracies. During volume mesh generation, intersected surface triangulations are received to enable mesh generation with cell division of an initially coarse grid. The hexagonal cells are resolved, preserving the ability to directionally divide cells which are locally well aligned.

Triangle geometry processing for surface modeling and cartesian grid generation

DOEpatents

Aftosmis, Michael J [San Mateo, CA; Melton, John E [Hollister, CA; Berger, Marsha J [New York, NY

2002-09-03

Cartesian mesh generation is accomplished for component based geometries, by intersecting components subject to mesh generation to extract wetted surfaces with a geometry engine using adaptive precision arithmetic in a system which automatically breaks ties with respect to geometric degeneracies. During volume mesh generation, intersected surface triangulations are received to enable mesh generation with cell division of an initially coarse grid. The hexagonal cells are resolved, preserving the ability to directionally divide cells which are locally well aligned.

Multi-level Bayesian safety analysis with unprocessed Automatic Vehicle Identification data for an urban expressway.

PubMed

Shi, Qi; Abdel-Aty, Mohamed; Yu, Rongjie

2016-03-01

In traffic safety studies, crash frequency modeling of total crashes is the cornerstone before proceeding to more detailed safety evaluation. The relationship between crash occurrence and factors such as traffic flow and roadway geometric characteristics has been extensively explored for a better understanding of crash mechanisms. In this study, a multi-level Bayesian framework has been developed in an effort to identify the crash contributing factors on an urban expressway in the Central Florida area. Two types of traffic data from the Automatic Vehicle Identification system, which are the processed data capped at speed limit and the unprocessed data retaining the original speed were incorporated in the analysis along with road geometric information. The model framework was proposed to account for the hierarchical data structure and the heterogeneity among the traffic and roadway geometric data. Multi-level and random parameters models were constructed and compared with the Negative Binomial model under the Bayesian inference framework. Results showed that the unprocessed traffic data was superior. Both multi-level models and random parameters models outperformed the Negative Binomial model and the models with random parameters achieved the best model fitting. The contributing factors identified imply that on the urban expressway lower speed and higher speed variation could significantly increase the crash likelihood. Other geometric factors were significant including auxiliary lanes and horizontal curvature. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Mandibular kinematics represented by a non-orthogonal floating axis joint coordinate system.

PubMed

Leader, Joseph K; Boston, J Robert; Debski, Richard E; Rudy, Thomas E

2003-02-01

There are many methods used to represent joint kinematics (e.g., roll, pitch, and yaw angles; instantaneous center of rotation; kinematic center; helical axis). Often in biomechanics internal landmarks are inferred from external landmarks. This study represents mandibular kinematics using a non-orthogonal floating axis joint coordinate system based on 3-D geometric models with parameters that are "clinician friendly" and mathematically rigorous. Kinematics data for two controls were acquired from passive fiducial markers attached to a custom dental clutch. The geometric models were constructed from MRI data. The superior point along the arc of the long axis of the condyle was used to define the coordinate axes. The kinematic data and geometric models were registered through fiducial markers visible during both protocols. The mean absolute maxima across the subjects for sagittal rotation, coronal rotation, axial rotation, medial-lateral translation, anterior-posterior translation, and inferior-superior translation were 34.10 degrees, 1.82 degrees, 1.14 degrees, 2.31, 21.07, and 6.95 mm, respectively. All the parameters, except for one subject's axial rotation, were reproducible across two motion recording sessions. There was a linear correlation between sagittal rotation and translation, the dominant motion plane, with approximately 1.5 degrees of rotation per millimeter of translation. The novel approach of combining the floating axis system with geometric models succinctly described mandibular kinematics with reproducible and clinician friendly parameters.

Analysis of the geometric parameters of a solitary waves-based harvester to enhance its power output

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rizzo, Piervincenzo; Li, Kaiyuan

2017-07-01

We present a harvester formed by a metamaterial, an isotropic medium bonded to the metamaterial, and a wafer-type transducer glued to the medium. The harvester conveys the distributed energy of a mechanical oscillator into a focal point where this energy is converted into electricity. The metamaterial is made with an array of granular chains that host the propagation of highly nonlinear solitary waves triggered by the impact of the oscillator. At the interface between the chains and the isotropic solid, part of the acoustic energy refracts into the solid where it triggers the vibration of the solid and coalesces at a point. Here, the transducer converts the focalized stress wave and the waves generated by the reverberation with the edges into electric potential. The effects of the harvester’s geometric parameters on the amount of electrical power that can be harvested are quantified numerically. The results demonstrate that the power output of the harvester increases a few orders of magnitude when the appropriate geometric parameters are selected.

Quality of the log-geometric distribution extrapolation for smaller undiscovered oil and gas pool size

USGS Publications Warehouse

Chenglin, L.; Charpentier, R.R.

2010-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey procedure for the estimation of the general form of the parent distribution requires that the parameters of the log-geometric distribution be calculated and analyzed for the sensitivity of these parameters to different conditions. In this study, we derive the shape factor of a log-geometric distribution from the ratio of frequencies between adjacent bins. The shape factor has a log straight-line relationship with the ratio of frequencies. Additionally, the calculation equations of a ratio of the mean size to the lower size-class boundary are deduced. For a specific log-geometric distribution, we find that the ratio of the mean size to the lower size-class boundary is the same. We apply our analysis to simulations based on oil and gas pool distributions from four petroleum systems of Alberta, Canada and four generated distributions. Each petroleum system in Alberta has a different shape factor. Generally, the shape factors in the four petroleum systems stabilize with the increase of discovered pool numbers. For a log-geometric distribution, the shape factor becomes stable when discovered pool numbers exceed 50 and the shape factor is influenced by the exploration efficiency when the exploration efficiency is less than 1. The simulation results show that calculated shape factors increase with those of the parent distributions, and undiscovered oil and gas resources estimated through the log-geometric distribution extrapolation are smaller than the actual values. ?? 2010 International Association for Mathematical Geology.

Controlling geometric phase optically in a single spin in diamond

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yale, Christopher G.

Geometric phase, or Berry phase, is an intriguing quantum mechanical phenomenon that arises from the cyclic evolution of a quantum state. Unlike dynamical phases, which rely on the time and energetics of the interaction, the geometric phase is determined solely by the geometry of the path travelled in parameter space. As such, it is robust to certain types of noise that preserve the area enclosed by the path, and shows promise for the development of fault-tolerant logic gates. Here, we demonstrate the optical control of geometric phase within a solid-state spin qubit, the nitrogen-vacancy center in diamond. Using stimulated Raman adiabatic passage (STIRAP), we evolve a coherent dark state along `tangerine slice' trajectories on the Bloch sphere and probe these paths through time-resolved state tomography. We then measure the accumulated geometric phase through phase reference to a third ground spin state. In addition, we examine the limits of this control due to adiabatic breakdown as well as the longer timescale effect of far-detuned optical fields. Finally, we intentionally introduce noise into the experimental control parameters, and measure the distributions of the resulting phases to probe the resilience of the phase to differing types of noise. We also examine this robustness as a function of traversal time as well as the noise amplitude. Through these studies, we demonstrate that geometric phase is a promising route toward fault-tolerant quantum information processing. This work is supported by the AFOSR, the NSF, and the German Research Foundation.

Formation of Highly Aligned Collagen Nanofibers by Continuous Cyclic Stretch of a Collagen Hydrogel Sheet.

PubMed

Nam, Eunryel; Lee, Won Chul; Takeuchi, Shoji

2016-07-01

A collagen sheet with highly aligned collagen fibers is fabricated by continuous cyclic stretch. The rearrangement of the collagen fibers depends on the different process parameters of the cyclic stretch, including magnitude, frequency, and period of stretch. The collagen fibers are aligned perpendicularly to the direction of the stretch. Corneal stromal cells and smooth muscle cells cultivated on the highly aligned collagen sheet show alignment along the collagen fibers without the stretch during culture. Thus, the sheet can be a suitable scaffold for use in regenerative medicine. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Analysis of aircraft tires via semianalytic finite elements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Noor, Ahmed K.; Kim, Kyun O.; Tanner, John A.

1990-01-01

A computational procedure is presented for the geometrically nonlinear analysis of aircraft tires. The tire was modeled by using a two-dimensional laminated anisotropic shell theory with the effects of variation in material and geometric parameters included. The four key elements of the procedure are: (1) semianalytic finite elements in which the shell variables are represented by Fourier series in the circumferential direction and piecewise polynomials in the meridional direction; (2) a mixed formulation with the fundamental unknowns consisting of strain parameters, stress-resultant parameters, and generalized displacements; (3) multilevel operator splitting to effect successive simplifications, and to uncouple the equations associated with different Fourier harmonics; and (4) multilevel iterative procedures and reduction techniques to generate the response of the shell.

[Spatial orientation of the facies patellaris femoris].

PubMed

Hassenpflug, J; Hiss, E; Blauth, W

1987-01-01

The present article reports on the geometrical conditions of the physiological movement of the patella. The geometrical shape of 18 femoral condyles and patella sliding areas was investigated in order to describe basic data for the design of endoprostheses. Surface and direction of the facies patellaris femoris were determined by means of radiographic, mechanical and optical measurements. The curvature of the deepest patella sliding groove proves a constant correlation with the dorsal condylar curvature. In the frontal plane the lowest points of the sliding area run with a dispersion of +/- 4 degrees to the vertical line related to the transverse tangent on the dorsal condylar surface. Considering deviations of leg alignment the measures come close to an angle of about 0 degrees. So the direction of the patella sliding groove differs from the normal valgus position of the distal femur. Therefore in artificial knee replacement a lateral tilt of the patella sliding groove should not be propagated as 'physiological'.

Tissue-specific mechanical and geometrical control of cell viability and actin cytoskeleton alignment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Dong; Zheng, Wenfu; Xie, Yunyan; Gong, Peiyuan; Zhao, Fang; Yuan, Bo; Ma, Wanshun; Cui, Yan; Liu, Wenwen; Sun, Yi; Piel, Matthieu; Zhang, Wei; Jiang, Xingyu

2014-08-01

Different tissues have specific mechanical properties and cells of different geometries, such as elongated muscle cells and polygonal endothelial cells, which are precisely regulated during embryo development. However, the mechanisms that underlie these processes are not clear. Here, we built an in vitro model to mimic the cellular microenvironment of muscle by combining both mechanical stretch and geometrical control. We found that mechanical stretch was a key factor that determined the optimal geometry of myoblast C2C12 cells under stretch, whereas vascular endothelial cells and fibroblasts had no such dependency. We presented the first experimental evidence that can explain why myoblasts are destined to take the elongated geometry so as to survive and maintain parallel actin filaments along the stretching direction. The study is not only meaningful for the research on myogenesis but also has potential application in regenerative medicine.

A line-source method for aligning on-board and other pinhole SPECT systems

PubMed Central

Yan, Susu; Bowsher, James; Yin, Fang-Fang

2013-01-01

Purpose: In order to achieve functional and molecular imaging as patients are in position for radiation therapy, a robotic multipinhole SPECT system is being developed. Alignment of the SPECT system—to the linear accelerator (LINAC) coordinate frame and to the coordinate frames of other on-board imaging systems such as cone-beam CT (CBCT)—is essential for target localization and image reconstruction. An alignment method that utilizes line sources and one pinhole projection is proposed and investigated to achieve this goal. Potentially, this method could also be applied to the calibration of the other pinhole SPECT systems. Methods: An alignment model consisting of multiple alignment parameters was developed which maps line sources in three-dimensional (3D) space to their two-dimensional (2D) projections on the SPECT detector. In a computer-simulation study, 3D coordinates of line-sources were defined in a reference room coordinate frame, such as the LINAC coordinate frame. Corresponding 2D line-source projections were generated by computer simulation that included SPECT blurring and noise effects. The Radon transform was utilized to detect angles (α) and offsets (ρ) of the line-source projections. Alignment parameters were then estimated by a nonlinear least squares method, based on the α and ρ values and the alignment model. Alignment performance was evaluated as a function of number of line sources, Radon transform accuracy, finite line-source width, intrinsic camera resolution, Poisson noise, and acquisition geometry. Experimental evaluations were performed using a physical line-source phantom and a pinhole-collimated gamma camera attached to a robot. Results: In computer-simulation studies, when there was no error in determining angles (α) and offsets (ρ) of the measured projections, six alignment parameters (three translational and three rotational) were estimated perfectly using three line sources. When angles (α) and offsets (ρ) were provided by the Radon transform, estimation accuracy was reduced. The estimation error was associated with rounding errors of Radon transform, finite line-source width, Poisson noise, number of line sources, intrinsic camera resolution, and detector acquisition geometry. Statistically, the estimation accuracy was significantly improved by using four line sources rather than three and by thinner line-source projections (obtained by better intrinsic detector resolution). With five line sources, median errors were 0.2 mm for the detector translations, 0.7 mm for the detector radius of rotation, and less than 0.5° for detector rotation, tilt, and twist. In experimental evaluations, average errors relative to a different, independent registration technique were about 1.8 mm for detector translations, 1.1 mm for the detector radius of rotation (ROR), 0.5° and 0.4° for detector rotation and tilt, respectively, and 1.2° for detector twist. Conclusions: Alignment parameters can be estimated using one pinhole projection of line sources. Alignment errors are largely associated with limited accuracy of the Radon transform in determining angles (α) and offsets (ρ) of the line-source projections. This alignment method may be important for multipinhole SPECT, where relative pinhole alignment may vary during rotation. For pinhole and multipinhole SPECT imaging on-board radiation therapy machines, the method could provide alignment of SPECT coordinates with those of CBCT and the LINAC. PMID:24320537

A line-source method for aligning on-board and other pinhole SPECT systems.

PubMed

Yan, Susu; Bowsher, James; Yin, Fang-Fang

2013-12-01

In order to achieve functional and molecular imaging as patients are in position for radiation therapy, a robotic multipinhole SPECT system is being developed. Alignment of the SPECT system-to the linear accelerator (LINAC) coordinate frame and to the coordinate frames of other on-board imaging systems such as cone-beam CT (CBCT)-is essential for target localization and image reconstruction. An alignment method that utilizes line sources and one pinhole projection is proposed and investigated to achieve this goal. Potentially, this method could also be applied to the calibration of the other pinhole SPECT systems. An alignment model consisting of multiple alignment parameters was developed which maps line sources in three-dimensional (3D) space to their two-dimensional (2D) projections on the SPECT detector. In a computer-simulation study, 3D coordinates of line-sources were defined in a reference room coordinate frame, such as the LINAC coordinate frame. Corresponding 2D line-source projections were generated by computer simulation that included SPECT blurring and noise effects. The Radon transform was utilized to detect angles (α) and offsets (ρ) of the line-source projections. Alignment parameters were then estimated by a nonlinear least squares method, based on the α and ρ values and the alignment model. Alignment performance was evaluated as a function of number of line sources, Radon transform accuracy, finite line-source width, intrinsic camera resolution, Poisson noise, and acquisition geometry. Experimental evaluations were performed using a physical line-source phantom and a pinhole-collimated gamma camera attached to a robot. In computer-simulation studies, when there was no error in determining angles (α) and offsets (ρ) of the measured projections, six alignment parameters (three translational and three rotational) were estimated perfectly using three line sources. When angles (α) and offsets (ρ) were provided by the Radon transform, estimation accuracy was reduced. The estimation error was associated with rounding errors of Radon transform, finite line-source width, Poisson noise, number of line sources, intrinsic camera resolution, and detector acquisition geometry. Statistically, the estimation accuracy was significantly improved by using four line sources rather than three and by thinner line-source projections (obtained by better intrinsic detector resolution). With five line sources, median errors were 0.2 mm for the detector translations, 0.7 mm for the detector radius of rotation, and less than 0.5° for detector rotation, tilt, and twist. In experimental evaluations, average errors relative to a different, independent registration technique were about 1.8 mm for detector translations, 1.1 mm for the detector radius of rotation (ROR), 0.5° and 0.4° for detector rotation and tilt, respectively, and 1.2° for detector twist. Alignment parameters can be estimated using one pinhole projection of line sources. Alignment errors are largely associated with limited accuracy of the Radon transform in determining angles (α) and offsets (ρ) of the line-source projections. This alignment method may be important for multipinhole SPECT, where relative pinhole alignment may vary during rotation. For pinhole and multipinhole SPECT imaging on-board radiation therapy machines, the method could provide alignment of SPECT coordinates with those of CBCT and the LINAC.

Spatio-temporal alignment of multiple sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Tinghua; Ni, Guoqiang; Fan, Guihua; Sun, Huayan; Yang, Biao

2018-01-01

Aiming to achieve the spatio-temporal alignment of multi sensor on the same platform for space target observation, a joint spatio-temporal alignment method is proposed. To calibrate the parameters and measure the attitude of cameras, an astronomical calibration method is proposed based on star chart simulation and collinear invariant features of quadrilateral diagonal between the observed star chart. In order to satisfy a temporal correspondence and spatial alignment similarity simultaneously, the method based on the astronomical calibration and attitude measurement in this paper formulates the video alignment to fold the spatial and temporal alignment into a joint alignment framework. The advantage of this method is reinforced by exploiting the similarities and prior knowledge of velocity vector field between adjacent frames, which is calculated by the SIFT Flow algorithm. The proposed method provides the highest spatio-temporal alignment accuracy compared to the state-of-the-art methods on sequences recorded from multi sensor at different times.

Rotational Alignment Altered by Source Position Correlations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jacobs, Chris S.; Heflin, M. B.; Lanyi, G. E.; Sovers, O. J.; Steppe, J. A.

2010-01-01

In the construction of modern Celestial Reference Frames (CRFs) the overall rotational alignment is only weakly constrained by the data. Therefore, common practice has been to apply a 3-dimensional No-Net-Rotation (NNR) constraint in order to align an under-construction frame to the ICRF. We present evidence that correlations amongst source position parameters must be accounted for in order to properly align a CRF at the 5-10 (mu)as level of uncertainty found in current work. Failure to do so creates errors at the 10-40 (mu)as level.

Simulation-based comprehensive benchmarking of RNA-seq aligners

PubMed Central

Baruzzo, Giacomo; Hayer, Katharina E; Kim, Eun Ji; Di Camillo, Barbara; FitzGerald, Garret A; Grant, Gregory R

2018-01-01

Alignment is the first step in most RNA-seq analysis pipelines, and the accuracy of downstream analyses depends heavily on it. Unlike most steps in the pipeline, alignment is particularly amenable to benchmarking with simulated data. We performed a comprehensive benchmarking of 14 common splice-aware aligners for base, read, and exon junction-level accuracy and compared default with optimized parameters. We found that performance varied by genome complexity, and accuracy and popularity were poorly correlated. The most widely cited tool underperforms for most metrics, particularly when using default settings. PMID:27941783

Fourier-transform and global contrast interferometer alignment methods

DOEpatents

Goldberg, Kenneth A.

2001-01-01

Interferometric methods are presented to facilitate alignment of image-plane components within an interferometer and for the magnified viewing of interferometer masks in situ. Fourier-transforms are performed on intensity patterns that are detected with the interferometer and are used to calculate pseudo-images of the electric field in the image plane of the test optic where the critical alignment of various components is being performed. Fine alignment is aided by the introduction and optimization of a global contrast parameter that is easily calculated from the Fourier-transform.

Optical photon transport in powdered-phosphor scintillators. Part II. Calculation of single-scattering transport parameters

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Poludniowski, Gavin G.; Evans, Philip M.

2013-04-15

Purpose: Monte Carlo methods based on the Boltzmann transport equation (BTE) have previously been used to model light transport in powdered-phosphor scintillator screens. Physically motivated guesses or, alternatively, the complexities of Mie theory have been used by some authors to provide the necessary inputs of transport parameters. The purpose of Part II of this work is to: (i) validate predictions of modulation transform function (MTF) using the BTE and calculated values of transport parameters, against experimental data published for two Gd{sub 2}O{sub 2}S:Tb screens; (ii) investigate the impact of size-distribution and emission spectrum on Mie predictions of transport parameters; (iii)more » suggest simpler and novel geometrical optics-based models for these parameters and compare to the predictions of Mie theory. A computer code package called phsphr is made available that allows the MTF predictions for the screens modeled to be reproduced and novel screens to be simulated. Methods: The transport parameters of interest are the scattering efficiency (Q{sub sct}), absorption efficiency (Q{sub abs}), and the scatter anisotropy (g). Calculations of these parameters are made using the analytic method of Mie theory, for spherical grains of radii 0.1-5.0 {mu}m. The sensitivity of the transport parameters to emission wavelength is investigated using an emission spectrum representative of that of Gd{sub 2}O{sub 2}S:Tb. The impact of a grain-size distribution in the screen on the parameters is investigated using a Gaussian size-distribution ({sigma}= 1%, 5%, or 10% of mean radius). Two simple and novel alternative models to Mie theory are suggested: a geometrical optics and diffraction model (GODM) and an extension of this (GODM+). Comparisons to measured MTF are made for two commercial screens: Lanex Fast Back and Lanex Fast Front (Eastman Kodak Company, Inc.). Results: The Mie theory predictions of transport parameters were shown to be highly sensitive to both grain size and emission wavelength. For a phosphor screen structure with a distribution in grain sizes and a spectrum of emission, only the average trend of Mie theory is likely to be important. This average behavior is well predicted by the more sophisticated of the geometrical optics models (GODM+) and in approximate agreement for the simplest (GODM). The root-mean-square differences obtained between predicted MTF and experimental measurements, using all three models (GODM, GODM+, Mie), were within 0.03 for both Lanex screens in all cases. This is excellent agreement in view of the uncertainties in screen composition and optical properties. Conclusions: If Mie theory is used for calculating transport parameters for light scattering and absorption in powdered-phosphor screens, care should be taken to average out the fine-structure in the parameter predictions. However, for visible emission wavelengths ({lambda} < 1.0 {mu}m) and grain radii (a > 0.5 {mu}m), geometrical optics models for transport parameters are an alternative to Mie theory. These geometrical optics models are simpler and lead to no substantial loss in accuracy.« less

Non-Abelian Geometric Phases Carried by the Quantum Noise Matrix

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bharath, H. M.; Boguslawski, Matthew; Barrios, Maryrose; Chapman, Michael

2017-04-01

Topological phases of matter are characterized by topological order parameters that are built using Berry's geometric phase. Berry's phase is the geometric information stored in the overall phase of a quantum state. We show that geometric information is also stored in the second and higher order spin moments of a quantum spin system, captured by a non-abelian geometric phase. The quantum state of a spin-S system is uniquely characterized by its spin moments up to order 2S. The first-order spin moment is the spin vector, and the second-order spin moment represents the spin fluctuation tensor, i.e., the quantum noise matrix. When the spin vector is transported along a loop in the Bloch ball, we show that the quantum noise matrix picks up a geometric phase. Considering spin-1 systems, we formulate this geometric phase as an SO(3) operator. Geometric phases are usually interpreted in terms of the solid angle subtended by the loop at the center. However, solid angles are not well defined for loops that pass through the center. Here, we introduce a generalized solid angle which is well defined for all loops inside the Bloch ball, in terms of which, we interpret the SO(3) geometric phase. This geometric phase can be used to characterize topological spin textures in cold atomic clouds.

Static internal performance of convergent single-expansion-ramp nozzles with various combinations of internal geometric parameters

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bare, E. Ann; Capone, Francis J.

1989-01-01

An investigation was conducted in the Static Test Facility of the Langley 16-Foot Transonic Tunnel to determine the effects of five geometric design parameters on the internal performance of convergent single expansion ramp nozzles. The effects of ramp chordal angle, initial ramp angle, flap angle, flap length, and ramp length were determined. All nozzles tested has a nominally constant throat area and aspect ratio. Static pressure distributions along the centerlines of the ramp and flap were also obtained for each configuration. Nozzle pressure ratio was varied up to 10.0 for all configurations.

Coercivity scaling in antidot lattices in Fe, Ni, and NiFe thin films

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gräfe, Joachim; Schütz, Gisela; Goering, Eberhard J.

2016-12-01

Antidot lattices can be used to artificially engineer magnetic properties in thin films, however, a conclusive model that describes the coercivity enhancement in this class of magnetic nano-structures has so far not been found. We prepared Fe, Ni, and NiFe thin films and patterned each with 21 square antidot lattices with different geometric parameters and measured their hysteretic behavior. On the basis of this extensive dataset we are able to provide a model that can describe both the coercivity scaling over a wide range of geometric lattice parameters and the influence of different materials.

Non-Abelian monopole in the parameter space of point-like interactions

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ohya, Satoshi, E-mail: ohyasato@fjfi.cvut.cz

2014-12-15

We study non-Abelian geometric phase in N=2 supersymmetric quantum mechanics for a free particle on a circle with two point-like interactions at antipodal points. We show that non-Abelian Berry’s connection is that of SU(2) magnetic monopole discovered by Moody, Shapere and Wilczek in the context of adiabatic decoupling limit of diatomic molecule. - Highlights: • Supersymmetric quantum mechanics is an ideal playground for studying geometric phase. • We determine the parameter space of supersymmetric point-like interactions. • Berry’s connection is given by a Wu–Yang-like magnetic monopole in SU(2) Yang–Mills.

Test of a geometric model for the modification stage of simple impact crater development

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Grieve, R. A. F.; Coderre, J. M.; Rupert, J.; Garvin, J. B.

1989-01-01

This paper presents a geometric model describing the geometry of the transient cavity of an impact crater and the subsequent collapse of its walls to form a crater filled by an interior breccia lens. The model is tested by comparing the volume of slump material calculated from known dimensional parameters with the volume of the breccia lens estimated on the basis of observational data. Results obtained from the model were found to be consistent with observational data, particularly in view of the highly sensitive nature of the model to input parameters.

An automatic alignment tool to improve repeatability of left ventricular function and dyssynchrony parameters in serial gated myocardial perfusion SPECT studies

PubMed Central

Zhou, Yanli; Faber, Tracy L.; Patel, Zenic; Folks, Russell D.; Cheung, Alice A.; Garcia, Ernest V.; Soman, Prem; Li, Dianfu; Cao, Kejiang; Chen, Ji

2013-01-01

Objective Left ventricular (LV) function and dyssynchrony parameters measured from serial gated single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) using blinded processing had a poorer repeatability than when manual side-by-side processing was used. The objective of this study was to validate whether an automatic alignment tool can reduce the variability of LV function and dyssynchrony parameters in serial gated SPECT MPI. Methods Thirty patients who had undergone serial gated SPECT MPI were prospectively enrolled in this study. Thirty minutes after the first acquisition, each patient was repositioned and a gated SPECT MPI image was reacquired. The two data sets were first processed blinded from each other by the same technologist in different weeks. These processed data were then realigned by the automatic tool, and manual side-by-side processing was carried out. All processing methods used standard iterative reconstruction and Butterworth filtering. The Emory Cardiac Toolbox was used to measure the LV function and dyssynchrony parameters. Results The automatic tool failed in one patient, who had a large, severe scar in the inferobasal wall. In the remaining 29 patients, the repeatability of the LV function and dyssynchrony parameters after automatic alignment was significantly improved from blinded processing and was comparable to manual side-by-side processing. Conclusion The automatic alignment tool can be an alternative method to manual side-by-side processing to improve the repeatability of LV function and dyssynchrony measurements by serial gated SPECT MPI. PMID:23211996

Micro-scale and meso-scale architectural cues cooperate and compete to direct aligned tissue formation

PubMed Central

Gilchrist, Christopher L.; Ruch, David S.; Little, Dianne; Guilak, Farshid

2014-01-01

Tissue and biomaterial microenvironments provide architectural cues that direct important cell behaviors including cell shape, alignment, migration, and resulting tissue formation. These architectural features may be presented to cells across multiple length scales, from nanometers to millimeters in size. In this study, we examined how architectural cues at two distinctly different length scales, “micro-scale” cues on the order of ~1–2 μm, and “meso-scale” cues several orders of magnitude larger (>100 μm), interact to direct aligned neo-tissue formation. Utilizing a micro-photopatterning (μPP) model system to precisely arrange cell-adhesive patterns, we examined the effects of substrate architecture at these length scales on human mesenchymal stem cell (hMSC) organization, gene expression, and fibrillar collagen deposition. Both micro- and meso-scale architectures directed cell alignment and resulting tissue organization, and when combined, meso cues could enhance or compete against micro-scale cues. As meso boundary aspect ratios were increased, meso-scale cues overrode micro-scale cues and controlled tissue alignment, with a characteristic critical width (~500 μm) similar to boundary dimensions that exist in vivo in highly aligned tissues. Meso-scale cues acted via both lateral confinement (in a cell-density-dependent manner) and by permitting end-to-end cell arrangements that yielded greater fibrillar collagen deposition. Despite large differences in fibrillar collagen content and organization between μPP architectural conditions, these changes did not correspond with changes in gene expression of key matrix or tendon-related genes. These findings highlight the complex interplay between geometric cues at multiple length scales and may have implications for tissue engineering strategies, where scaffold designs that incorporate cues at multiple length scales could improve neo-tissue organization and resulting functional outcomes. PMID:25263687

EPE analysis of sub-N10 BEoL flow with and without fully self-aligned via using Coventor SEMulator3D

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Franke, Joern-Holger; Gallagher, Matt; Murdoch, Gayle; Halder, Sandip; Juncker, Aurelie; Clark, William

2017-03-01

During the last few decades, the semiconductor industry has been able to scale device performance up while driving costs down. What started off as simple geometrical scaling, driven mostly by advances in lithography, has recently been accompanied by advances in processing techniques and in device architectures. The trend to combine efforts using process technology and lithography is expected to intensify, as further scaling becomes ever more difficult. One promising component of future nodes are "scaling boosters", i.e. processing techniques that enable further scaling. An indispensable component in developing these ever more complex processing techniques is semiconductor process modeling software. Visualization of complex 3D structures in SEMulator3D, along with budget analysis on film thicknesses, CD and etch budgets, allow process integrators to compare flows before any physical wafers are run. Hundreds of "virtual" wafers allow comparison of different processing approaches, along with EUV or DUV patterning options for defined layers and different overlay schemes. This "virtual fabrication" technology produces massively parallel process variation studies that would be highly time-consuming or expensive in experiment. Here, we focus on one particular scaling booster, the fully self-aligned via (FSAV). We compare metal-via-metal (mevia-me) chains with self-aligned and fully-self-aligned via's using a calibrated model for imec's N7 BEoL flow. To model overall variability, 3D Monte Carlo modeling of as many variability sources as possible is critical. We use Coventor SEMulator3D to extract minimum me-me distances and contact areas and show how fully self-aligned vias allow a better me-via distance control and tighter via-me contact area variability compared with the standard self-aligned via (SAV) approach.

Effect of varying internal geometry on the static performance of rectangular thrust-reverser ports

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Re, Richard J.; Mason, Mary L.

1987-01-01

An investigation has been conducted to evaluate the effects of several geometric parameters on the internal performance of rectangular thrust-reverser ports for nonaxisymmetric nozzles. Internal geometry was varied with a test apparatus which simulated a forward-flight nozzle with a single, fully deployed reverser port. The test apparatus was designed to simulate thrust reversal (conceptually) either in the convergent section of the nozzle or in the constant-area duct just upstream of the nozzle. The main geometric parameters investigated were port angle, port corner radius, port location, and internal flow blocker angle. For all reverser port geometries, the port opening had an aspect ratio (throat width to throat height) of 6.1 and had a constant passage area from the geometric port throat to the exit. Reverser-port internal performance and thrust-vector angles computed from force-balance measurements are presented.

Uav-Based Automatic Tree Growth Measurement for Biomass Estimation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Karpina, M.; Jarząbek-Rychard, M.; Tymków, P.; Borkowski, A.

2016-06-01

Manual in-situ measurements of geometric tree parameters for the biomass volume estimation are time-consuming and economically non-effective. Photogrammetric techniques can be deployed in order to automate the measurement procedure. The purpose of the presented work is an automatic tree growth estimation based on Unmanned Aircraft Vehicle (UAV) imagery. The experiment was conducted in an agriculture test field with scots pine canopies. The data was collected using a Leica Aibotix X6V2 platform equipped with a Nikon D800 camera. Reference geometric parameters of selected sample plants were measured manually each week. In situ measurements were correlated with the UAV data acquisition. The correlation aimed at the investigation of optimal conditions for a flight and parameter settings for image acquisition. The collected images are processed in a state of the art tool resulting in a generation of dense 3D point clouds. The algorithm is developed in order to estimate geometric tree parameters from 3D points. Stem positions and tree tops are identified automatically in a cross section, followed by the calculation of tree heights. The automatically derived height values are compared to the reference measurements performed manually. The comparison allows for the evaluation of automatic growth estimation process. The accuracy achieved using UAV photogrammetry for tree heights estimation is about 5cm.

Journal: Efficient Hydrologic Tracer-Test Design for Tracer ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Hydrological tracer testing is the most reliable diagnostic technique available for the determination of basic hydraulic and geometric parameters necessary for establishing operative solute-transport processes. Tracer-test design can be difficult because of a lack of prior knowledge of the basic hydraulic and geometric parameters desired and the appropriate tracer mass to release. A new efficient hydrologic tracer-test design (EHTD) methodology has been developed to facilitate the design of tracer tests by root determination of the one-dimensional advection-dispersion equation (ADE) using a preset average tracer concentration which provides a theoretical basis for an estimate of necessary tracer mass. The method uses basic measured field parameters (e.g., discharge, distance, cross-sectional area) that are combined in functional relatipnships that descrive solute-transport processes related to flow velocity and time of travel. These initial estimates for time of travel and velocity are then applied to a hypothetical continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR) as an analog for the hydrological-flow system to develop initial estimates for tracer concentration, tracer mass, and axial dispersion. Application of the predicted tracer mass with the hydraulic and geometric parameters in the ADE allows for an approximation of initial sample-collection time and subsequent sample-collection frequency where a maximum of 65 samples were determined to be necessary for descri

Tracer-Test Planning Using the Efficient Hydrologic Tracer ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Hydrological tracer testing is the most reliable diagnostic technique available for establishing flow trajectories and hydrologic connections and for determining basic hydraulic and geometric parameters necessary for establishing operative solute-transport processes. Tracer-test design can be difficult because of a lack of prior knowledge of the basic hydraulic and geometric parameters desired and the appropriate tracer mass to release. A new efficient hydrologic tracer-test design (EHTD) methodology has been developed that combines basic measured field parameters (e.g., discharge, distance, cross-sectional area) in functional relationships that describe solute-transport processes related to flow velocity and time of travel. The new method applies these initial estimates for time of travel and velocity to a hypothetical continuously stirred tank reactor as an analog for the hydrologic flow system to develop initial estimates for tracer concentration and axial dispersion, based on a preset average tracer concentration. Root determination of the one-dimensional advection-dispersion equation (ADE) using the preset average tracer concentration then provides a theoretical basis for an estimate of necessary tracer mass.Application of the predicted tracer mass with the hydraulic and geometric parameters in the ADE allows for an approximation of initial sample-collection time and subsequent sample-collection frequency where a maximum of 65 samples were determined to be

EFFICIENT HYDROLOGICAL TRACER-TEST DESIGN (EHTD ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

Hydrological tracer testing is the most reliable diagnostic technique available for establishing flow trajectories and hydrologic connections and for determining basic hydraulic and geometric parameters necessary for establishing operative solute-transport processes. Tracer-test design can be difficult because of a lack of prior knowledge of the basic hydraulic and geometric parameters desired and the appropriate tracer mass to release. A new efficient hydrologic tracer-test design (EHTD) methodology has been developed that combines basic measured field parameters (e.g., discharge, distance, cross-sectional area) in functional relationships that describe solute-transport processes related to flow velocity and time of travel. The new method applies these initial estimates for time of travel and velocity to a hypothetical continuously stirred tank reactor as an analog for the hydrologic flow system to develop initial estimates for tracer concentration and axial dispersion, based on a preset average tracer concentration. Root determination of the one-dimensional advection-dispersion equation (ADE) using the preset average tracer concentration then provides a theoretical basis for an estimate of necessary tracer mass.Application of the predicted tracer mass with the hydraulic and geometric parameters in the ADE allows for an approximation of initial sample-collection time and subsequent sample-collection frequency where a maximum of 65 samples were determined to

Effect of Mach number, valve angle and length to diameter ratio on thermal performance in flow of air through Ranque Hilsch vortex tube

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Devade, Kiran D.; Pise, Ashok T.

2017-01-01

Ranque Hilsch vortex tube is a device that can produce cold and hot air streams simultaneously from pressurized air. Performance of vortex tube is influenced by a number of geometrical and operational parameters. In this study parametric analysis of vortex tube is carried out. Air is used as the working fluid and geometrical parameters like length to diameter ratio (15, 16, 17, 18), exit valve angles (30°-90°), orifice diameters (5, 6 and 7 mm), 2 entry nozzles and tube divergence angle 4° is used for experimentation. Operational parameters like pressure (200-600 kPa), cold mass fraction (0-1) is varied and effect of Mach number at the inlet of the tube is investigated. The vortex tube is tested at sub sonic (0 < Ma < 1), sonic (Ma = 1) and supersonic (1 < Ma < 2) Mach number, and its effect on thermal performance is analysed. As a result it is observed that, higher COP and low cold end temperature is obtained at subsonic Ma. As CMF increases, COP rises and cold and temperature drops. Optimum performance of the tube is observed for CMF up to 0.5. Experimental correlations are proposed for optimum COP. Parametric correlation is developed for geometrical and operational parameters.

Plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition of multiwalled carbon nanofibers.

PubMed

Matthews, Kristopher; Cruden, Brett A; Chen, Bin; Meyyappan, M; Delzeit, Lance

2002-10-01

Plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition is used to grow vertically aligned multiwalled carbon nanofibers (MWNFs). The graphite basal planes in these nanofibers are not parallel as in nanotubes; instead they exhibit a small angle resembling a stacked cone arrangement. A parametric study with varying process parameters such as growth temperature, feedstock composition, and substrate power has been conducted, and these parameters are found to influence the growth rate, diameter, and morphology. The well-aligned MWNFs are suitable for fabricating electrode systems in sensor and device development.

Plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition of multiwalled carbon nanofibers

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Matthews, Kristopher; Cruden, Brett A.; Chen, Bin; Meyyappan, M.; Delzeit, Lance

2002-01-01

Plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition is used to grow vertically aligned multiwalled carbon nanofibers (MWNFs). The graphite basal planes in these nanofibers are not parallel as in nanotubes; instead they exhibit a small angle resembling a stacked cone arrangement. A parametric study with varying process parameters such as growth temperature, feedstock composition, and substrate power has been conducted, and these parameters are found to influence the growth rate, diameter, and morphology. The well-aligned MWNFs are suitable for fabricating electrode systems in sensor and device development.

Using surface creep rate to infer fraction locked for sections of the San Andreas fault system in northern California from alignment array and GPS data

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lienkaemper, James J.; McFarland, Forrest S.; Simpson, Robert W.; Caskey, S. John

2014-01-01

Surface creep rate, observed along five branches of the dextral San Andreas fault system in northern California, varies considerably from one section to the next, indicating that so too may the depth at which the faults are locked. We model locking on 29 fault sections using each section’s mean long‐term creep rate and the consensus values of fault width and geologic slip rate. Surface creep rate observations from 111 short‐range alignment and trilateration arrays and 48 near‐fault, Global Positioning System station pairs are used to estimate depth of creep, assuming an elastic half‐space model and adjusting depth of creep iteratively by trial and error to match the creep observations along fault sections. Fault sections are delineated either by geometric discontinuities between them or by distinctly different creeping behaviors. We remove transient rate changes associated with five large (M≥5.5) regional earthquakes. Estimates of fraction locked, the ratio of moment accumulation rate to loading rate, on each section of the fault system provide a uniform means to inform source parameters relevant to seismic‐hazard assessment. From its mean creep rates, we infer the main branch (the San Andreas fault) ranges from only 20%±10% locked on its central creeping section to 99%–100% on the north coast. From mean accumulation rates, we infer that four urban faults appear to have accumulated enough seismic moment to produce major earthquakes: the northern Calaveras (M 6.8), Hayward (M 6.8), Rodgers Creek (M 7.1), and Green Valley (M 7.1). The latter three faults are nearing or past their mean recurrence interval.

Research and development of asymmetrical heat transfer augmentation method in radial channels of blades for high temperature gas turbines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shevchenko, I. V.; Rogalev, A. N.; Garanin, I. V.; Vegera, A. N.; Kindra, V. O.

2017-11-01

The serpentine-like one and half-pass cooling channel systems are primarily used in blades fabricated by the lost-wax casting process. The heat transfer turbulators like cross-sectional or angled ribs used in channels of the midchord region failed to eliminate the temperature irregularity from the suction and pressure sides, which is reaching 200°C for a first stage blade of the high-pressure turbine for an aircraft engine. This paper presents the results of a numerical and experimental test of an advanced heat transfer augmentation system in radial channels developed for alignment of the temperature field from the suction and pressure sides. A numerical simulation of three-dimensional coolant flow for a wide range of Reynolds numbers was carried out using ANSYS CFX software. Effect of geometrical parameters on the heat removal asymmetry was determined. The test results of a blade with the proposed intensification system conducted in a liquid-metal thermostat confirmed the accuracy of calculations. Based on the experimental data, the dependencies for calculation of heat transfer coefficients to the cooling air in the blade studied were obtained.

Development of a low background test facility for the SPICA-SAFARI on-ground calibration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dieleman, P.; Laauwen, W. M.; Ferrari, L.; Ferlet, M.; Vandenbussche, B.; Meinsma, L.; Huisman, R.

2012-09-01

SAFARI is a far-infrared camera to be launched in 2021 onboard the SPICA satellite. SAFARI offers imaging spectroscopy and imaging photometry in the wavelength range of 34 to 210 μm with detector NEP of 2•10-19 W/√Hz. A cryogenic test facility for SAFARI on-ground calibration and characterization is being developed. The main design driver is the required low background of a few attoWatts per pixel. This prohibits optical access to room temperature and hence all test equipment needs to be inside the cryostat at 4.5K. The instrument parameters to be verified are interfaces with the SPICA satellite, sensitivity, alignment, image quality, spectral response, frequency calibration, and point spread function. The instrument sensitivity is calibrated by a calibration source providing a spatially homogeneous signal at the attoWatt level. This low light intensity is achieved by geometrical dilution of a 150K source to an integrating sphere. The beam quality and point spread function is measured by a pinhole/mask plate wheel, back-illuminated by a second integrating sphere. This sphere is fed by a stable wide-band source, providing spectral lines via a cryogenic etalon.

The Effects of Magnetic-Field Geometry on Longitudinal Oscillations of Solar Prominences: Cross-Sectional Area Variation for Thin Tubes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Luna, M.; Diaz, A. J.; Oliver, R.; Terradas, J.; Karpen, J.

2016-01-01

Solar prominences are subject to both field-aligned (longitudinal) and transverse oscillatory motions, as evidenced by an increasing number of observations. Large-amplitude longitudinal motions provide valuable information on the geometry of the filament channel magnetic structure that supports the cool prominence plasma against gravity. Our pendulum model, in which the restoring force is the gravity projected along the dipped field lines of the magnetic structure, best explains these oscillations. However, several factors can influence the longitudinal oscillations, potentially invalidating the pendulum model. Aims. The aim of this work is to study the influence of large-scale variations in the magnetic field strength along the field lines, i.e., variations of the cross-sectional area along the flux tubes supporting prominence threads. Methods. We studied the normal modes of several flux tube configurations, using linear perturbation analysis, to assess the influence of different geometrical parameters on the oscillation properties. Results. We found that the influence of the symmetric and asymmetric expansion factors on longitudinal oscillations is small.Conclusions. We conclude that the longitudinal oscillations are not significantly influenced by variations of the cross-section of the flux tubes, validating the pendulum model in this context.

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Park, Hong Soo; Lee, Myung Gyoon, E-mail: hspark@astro.snu.ac.kr, E-mail: mglee@astro.snu.ac.kr

We present a determination of the two-dimensional shape parameters of the blue and red globular cluster systems (GCSs) in a large number of elliptical galaxies and lenticular galaxies (early-type galaxies, called ETGs). We use a homogeneous data set of the globular clusters in 23 ETGs obtained from the HST/ACS Virgo Cluster Survey. The position angles of both blue and red GCSs show a correlation with those of the stellar light distribution, showing that the major axes of the GCSs are well aligned with those of their host galaxies. However, the shapes of the red GCSs show a tight correlation withmore » the stellar light distribution as well as with the rotation property of their host galaxies, while the shapes of the blue GCSs do much less. These provide clear geometric evidence that the origins of the blue and red globular clusters are distinct and that ETGs may have dual halos: a blue (metal-poor) halo and a red (metal-rich) halo. These two halos show significant differences in metallicity, structure, and kinematics, indicating that they are formed in two distinguishable ways. The red halos might have formed via dissipational processes with rotation, while the blue halos are through accretion.« less

Accuracy of the HST Standard Astrometric Catalogs w.r.t. Gaia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kozhurina-Platais, V.; Grogin, N.; Sabbi, E.

2018-02-01

The goal of astrometric calibration of the HST ACS/WFC and WFC3/UVIS imaging instruments is to provide a coordinate system free of distortion to the precision level of 0.1 pixel 4-5 mas or better. This astrometric calibration is based on two HST astrometric standard fields in the vicinity of the globular clusters, 47 Tuc and omega Cen, respectively. The derived calibration of the geometric distortion is assumed to be accurate down to 2-3 mas. Is this accuracy in agreement with the true value? Now, with the access to globally accurate positions from the first Gaia data release (DR1), we found that there are measurable offsets, rotation, scale and other deviations of distortion parameters in two HST standard astrometric catalogs. These deviations from the distortion-free and properly aligned coordinate system should be accounted and corrected for, so that the high precision HST positions are free of any systematic errors. We also found that the precision of the HST pixel coordinates is substantially better than the accuracy listed in the Gaia DR1. Therefore, in order to finalize the components of distortion in the HST standard catalogs, the next release of Gaia data is needed.

Alignment and absolute wavelength calibration of imaging Bragg spectrometers.

PubMed

Bertschinger, G; Marchuk, O; Barnsley, R

2016-11-01

In the present and the next generation of fusion devices, imaging Bragg spectrometers are key diagnostics to measure plasma parameters in the hot core, especially ion temperature and plasma rotation. The latter quantities are routinely obtained using the Doppler-width and -shift of the emitted spectral lines, respectively. Line shift measurements require absolute accuracies Δλ/λ of about 10 ppm, where λ-is the observed wavelength. For ITER and the present fusion devices, spectral lines of He-and H-like argon, iron, and krypton as well as Ne-like tungsten are foreseen for the measurements. For these lines, Kα lines can be found, some in higher order, which fit into the narrow energy window of the spectrometers. For arbitrary wavelength settings, Kα lines are also used to measure the miscut of the spherical crystals; afterwards the spectrometers can be set according to the geometrical imaging properties using coordinate measurement machines. For the spectrometers measuring Lyα lines of H-like ions, fluorescence targets can provide in situ localized calibration lines on the spectra. The fluorescence targets are used best in transmission and are excited by the thermal x-ray radiation of the plasma. An analytic theory of fluorescence is worked out.

Numerical Analysis of Micromixers for Optimization of Mixing Action

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Panta, Yogendra; Adhikari, Param

2011-03-01

Micro-bio/chemical applications often require rapid and uniform mixing of a number of fluid streams that carries bio/chemical species in the solution. At microscale, fluid flow is highly laminar with low Reynolds number, fluids mixing mechanism is primarily by diffusion and free from any turbulence. Demand for highly efficient micromixers for microfluidic networks is due to slower mixing process for larger bio-molecules such as peptides, proteins, and nucleic acids compared to micro-scale molecules. Passive and active mixers are two basic mixers that are currently in use for these applications. Passive mixers often require very long mixing channels where are most active mixers require bulky moving parts to stir the fluids. In this study, electroosmotic effects orthogonally aligned with the fluid flowstream are utilized for optimum mixing effect in various micromixers. Cross-dependencies among several geometrical, electrical, and fluid parameters and their significance are studied in order to achieve an optimum mixing effect. It has been planned to optimize the mixer by non-moving stirring actions provided by an external magnetic field. Acknowledgements to School of Graduate Studies and Research at YSU for URC Grant and RP Award 2009-2010.

Crystallographic alignment of high-density gallium nitride nanowire arrays.

PubMed

Kuykendall, Tevye; Pauzauskie, Peter J; Zhang, Yanfeng; Goldberger, Joshua; Sirbuly, Donald; Denlinger, Jonathan; Yang, Peidong

2004-08-01

Single-crystalline, one-dimensional semiconductor nanostructures are considered to be one of the critical building blocks for nanoscale optoelectronics. Elucidation of the vapour-liquid-solid growth mechanism has already enabled precise control over nanowire position and size, yet to date, no reports have demonstrated the ability to choose from different crystallographic growth directions of a nanowire array. Control over the nanowire growth direction is extremely desirable, in that anisotropic parameters such as thermal and electrical conductivity, index of refraction, piezoelectric polarization, and bandgap may be used to tune the physical properties of nanowires made from a given material. Here we demonstrate the use of metal-organic chemical vapour deposition (MOCVD) and appropriate substrate selection to control the crystallographic growth directions of high-density arrays of gallium nitride nanowires with distinct geometric and physical properties. Epitaxial growth of wurtzite gallium nitride on (100) gamma-LiAlO(2) and (111) MgO single-crystal substrates resulted in the selective growth of nanowires in the orthogonal [1\\[Evec]0] and [001] directions, exhibiting triangular and hexagonal cross-sections and drastically different optical emission. The MOCVD process is entirely compatible with the current GaN thin-film technology, which would lead to easy scale-up and device integration.

Starspots on WASP-107 and pulsations of WASP-118

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Močnik, T.; Hellier, C.; Anderson, D. R.; Clark, B. J. M.; Southworth, J.

2017-08-01

By analysing the K2 short-cadence photometry, we detect starspot occultation events in the light curve of WASP-107, the host star of a warm-Saturn exoplanet. WASP-107 also shows a rotational modulation with a period of 17.5 ± 1.4 d. Given that the rotational period is nearly three times the planet's orbital period, one would expect in an aligned system to see starspot occultation events to recur every three transits. The absence of such occultation recurrences suggests a misaligned orbit unless the starspots' lifetimes are shorter than the star's rotational period. We also find stellar variability resembling γ Doradus pulsations in the light curve of WASP-118, which hosts an inflated hot Jupiter. The variability is multiperiodic with a variable semi-amplitude of ˜200 ppm. In addition to these findings, we use the K2 data to refine the parameters of both systems and report non-detections of transit-timing variations, secondary eclipses and any additional transiting planets. We used the upper limits on the secondary-eclipse depths to estimate upper limits on the planetary geometric albedos of 0.7 for WASP-107b and 0.2 for WASP-118b.

Is multiple-sequence alignment required for accurate inference of phylogeny?

PubMed

Höhl, Michael; Ragan, Mark A

2007-04-01

The process of inferring phylogenetic trees from molecular sequences almost always starts with a multiple alignment of these sequences but can also be based on methods that do not involve multiple sequence alignment. Very little is known about the accuracy with which such alignment-free methods recover the correct phylogeny or about the potential for increasing their accuracy. We conducted a large-scale comparison of ten alignment-free methods, among them one new approach that does not calculate distances and a faster variant of our pattern-based approach; all distance-based alignment-free methods are freely available from http://www.bioinformatics.org.au (as Python package decaf+py). We show that most methods exhibit a higher overall reconstruction accuracy in the presence of high among-site rate variation. Under all conditions that we considered, variants of the pattern-based approach were significantly better than the other alignment-free methods. The new pattern-based variant achieved a speed-up of an order of magnitude in the distance calculation step, accompanied by a small loss of tree reconstruction accuracy. A method of Bayesian inference from k-mers did not improve on classical alignment-free (and distance-based) methods but may still offer other advantages due to its Bayesian nature. We found the optimal word length k of word-based methods to be stable across various data sets, and we provide parameter ranges for two different alphabets. The influence of these alphabets was analyzed to reveal a trade-off in reconstruction accuracy between long and short branches. We have mapped the phylogenetic accuracy for many alignment-free methods, among them several recently introduced ones, and increased our understanding of their behavior in response to biologically important parameters. In all experiments, the pattern-based approach emerged as superior, at the expense of higher resource consumption. Nonetheless, no alignment-free method that we examined recovers the correct phylogeny as accurately as does an approach based on maximum-likelihood distance estimates of multiply aligned sequences.

Sequence information signal processor

DOEpatents

Peterson, John C.; Chow, Edward T.; Waterman, Michael S.; Hunkapillar, Timothy J.

1999-01-01

An electronic circuit is used to compare two sequences, such as genetic sequences, to determine which alignment of the sequences produces the greatest similarity. The circuit includes a linear array of series-connected processors, each of which stores a single element from one of the sequences and compares that element with each successive element in the other sequence. For each comparison, the processor generates a scoring parameter that indicates which segment ending at those two elements produces the greatest degree of similarity between the sequences. The processor uses the scoring parameter to generate a similar scoring parameter for a comparison between the stored element and the next successive element from the other sequence. The processor also delivers the scoring parameter to the next processor in the array for use in generating a similar scoring parameter for another pair of elements. The electronic circuit determines which processor and alignment of the sequences produce the scoring parameter with the highest value.

Dosimetry and field matching for radiotherapy to the breast and superclavicular fossa

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Winfield, Elizabeth

Radiotherapy for early breast cancer aims to achieve local disease control and decrease loco-regional recurrence rates. Treatment may be directed to breast or chest wall alone or, include regional lymph nodes. When using tangential fields to treat the breast a separate anterior field directed to the axilla and supraclavicular fossa (SCF) is needed to treat nodal areas. The complex geometry of this region necessitates matching of adjacent radiation fields in three dimensions. The potential exists for zones of overdosage or underdosage along the match line. Cosmetic results may be compromised if treatment fields are not accurately aligned. Techniques for field matching vary between centres in the UK. A study of dosimetry across the match line region using different techniques, as reported in the multi-centre START Trial Quality Assurance (QA) programme, was undertaken. A custom-made anthropomorphic phantom was designed to assess dose distribution in three dimensions using film dosimetry. Methods with varying degrees of complexity were employed to match tangential and SCF beams. Various techniques combined half beam blocking and machine rotations to achieve geometric alignment. Matching of asymmetric beams allowed a single isocentre technique to be used. Where field matching was not undertaken a gap between tangential and SCF fields was employed. Results demonstrated differences between techniques in addition to variations within the same technique between different centres. Geometric alignment techniques produced more homogenous dose distributions in the match region than gap techniques or those techniques not correcting for field divergence. For this multi-centre assessment of match plane techniques film dosimetry used in conjunction with a breast shaped phantom provided relative dose information. This study has highlighted the difficulties of matching treatment fields to achieve homogenous dose distribution through the region of the match plane and the degree of inhomogeneity as a consequence of a gap between treatment fields.

Vertically aligned nanowires from boron-doped diamond.

PubMed

Yang, Nianjun; Uetsuka, Hiroshi; Osawa, Eiji; Nebel, Christoph E

2008-11-01

Vertically aligned diamond nanowires with controlled geometrical properties like length and distance between wires were fabricated by use of nanodiamond particles as a hard mask and by use of reactive ion etching. The surface structure, electronic properties, and electrochemical functionalization of diamond nanowires were characterized by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) as well as electrochemical techniques. AFM and STM experiments show that diamond nanowire etched for 10 s have wire-typed structures with 3-10 nm in length and with typically 11 nm spacing in between. The electrode active area of diamond nanowires is enhanced by a factor of 2. The functionalization of nanowire tips with nitrophenyl molecules is characterized by STM on clean and on nitrophenyl molecule-modified diamond nanowires. Tip-modified diamond nanowires are promising with respect to biosensor applications where controlled biomolecule bonding is required to improve chemical stability and sensing significantly.

Free-viewpoint video of human actors using multiple handheld Kinects.

PubMed

Ye, Genzhi; Liu, Yebin; Deng, Yue; Hasler, Nils; Ji, Xiangyang; Dai, Qionghai; Theobalt, Christian

2013-10-01

We present an algorithm for creating free-viewpoint video of interacting humans using three handheld Kinect cameras. Our method reconstructs deforming surface geometry and temporal varying texture of humans through estimation of human poses and camera poses for every time step of the RGBZ video. Skeletal configurations and camera poses are found by solving a joint energy minimization problem, which optimizes the alignment of RGBZ data from all cameras, as well as the alignment of human shape templates to the Kinect data. The energy function is based on a combination of geometric correspondence finding, implicit scene segmentation, and correspondence finding using image features. Finally, texture recovery is achieved through jointly optimization on spatio-temporal RGB data using matrix completion. As opposed to previous methods, our algorithm succeeds on free-viewpoint video of human actors under general uncontrolled indoor scenes with potentially dynamic background, and it succeeds even if the cameras are moving.

Consistency functional map propagation for repetitive patterns

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Hao

2017-09-01

Repetitive patterns appear frequently in both man-made and natural environments. Automatically and robustly detecting such patterns from an image is a challenging problem. We study repetitive pattern alignment by embedding segmentation cue with a functional map model. However, this model cannot tackle the repetitive patterns directly due to the large photometric and geometric variations. Thus, a consistency functional map propagation (CFMP) algorithm that extends the functional map with dynamic propagation is proposed to address this issue. This propagation model is acquired in two steps. The first one aligns the patterns from a local region, transferring segmentation functions among patterns. It can be cast as an L norm optimization problem. The latter step updates the template segmentation for the next round of pattern discovery by merging the transferred segmentation functions. Extensive experiments and comparative analyses have demonstrated an encouraging performance of the proposed algorithm in detection and segmentation of repetitive patterns.

Nerve Cells Decide to Orient inside an Injectable Hydrogel with Minimal Structural Guidance.

PubMed

Rose, Jonas C; Cámara-Torres, María; Rahimi, Khosrow; Köhler, Jens; Möller, Martin; De Laporte, Laura

2017-06-14

Injectable biomaterials provide the advantage of a minimally invasive application but mostly lack the required structural complexity to regenerate aligned tissues. Here, we report a new class of tissue regenerative materials that can be injected and form an anisotropic matrix with controlled dimensions using rod-shaped, magnetoceptive microgel objects. Microgels are doped with small quantities of superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (0.0046 vol %), allowing alignment by external magnetic fields in the millitesla order. The microgels are dispersed in a biocompatible gel precursor and after injection and orientation are fixed inside the matrix hydrogel. Regardless of the low volume concentration of the microgels below 3%, at which the geometrical constrain for orientation is still minimum, the generated macroscopic unidirectional orientation is strongly sensed by the cells resulting in parallel nerve extension. This finding opens a new, minimal invasive route for therapy after spinal cord injury.

How long does it take to boil an egg? A simple approach to the energy transfer equation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Roura, P.; Fort, J.; Saurina, J.

2000-01-01

The heating of simple geometric objects immersed in an isothermal bath is analysed qualitatively through Fourier's law. The approximate temperature evolution is compared with the exact solution obtained by solving the transport differential equation, the discrepancies being smaller than 20%. Our method succeeds in giving the solution as a function of the Fourier modulus so that the scale laws hold. It is shown that the time needed to homogenize temperature variations that extend over mean distances xm is approximately xm2/icons/Journals/Common/alpha" ALT="alpha" ALIGN="MIDDLE"/>, where icons/Journals/Common/alpha" ALT="alpha" ALIGN="MIDDLE"/> is the thermal diffusivity. This general relationship also applies to atomic diffusion. Within the approach presented there is no need to write down any differential equation. As an example, the analysis is applied to the process of boiling an egg.

AlignMe—a membrane protein sequence alignment web server

PubMed Central

Stamm, Marcus; Staritzbichler, René; Khafizov, Kamil; Forrest, Lucy R.

2014-01-01

We present a web server for pair-wise alignment of membrane protein sequences, using the program AlignMe. The server makes available two operational modes of AlignMe: (i) sequence to sequence alignment, taking two sequences in fasta format as input, combining information about each sequence from multiple sources and producing a pair-wise alignment (PW mode); and (ii) alignment of two multiple sequence alignments to create family-averaged hydropathy profile alignments (HP mode). For the PW sequence alignment mode, four different optimized parameter sets are provided, each suited to pairs of sequences with a specific similarity level. These settings utilize different types of inputs: (position-specific) substitution matrices, secondary structure predictions and transmembrane propensities from transmembrane predictions or hydrophobicity scales. In the second (HP) mode, each input multiple sequence alignment is converted into a hydrophobicity profile averaged over the provided set of sequence homologs; the two profiles are then aligned. The HP mode enables qualitative comparison of transmembrane topologies (and therefore potentially of 3D folds) of two membrane proteins, which can be useful if the proteins have low sequence similarity. In summary, the AlignMe web server provides user-friendly access to a set of tools for analysis and comparison of membrane protein sequences. Access is available at http://www.bioinfo.mpg.de/AlignMe PMID:24753425

Thermodynamics and computation during collective motion near criticality

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Crosato, Emanuele; Spinney, Richard E.; Nigmatullin, Ramil; Lizier, Joseph T.; Prokopenko, Mikhail

2018-01-01

We study self-organization of collective motion as a thermodynamic phenomenon in the context of the first law of thermodynamics. It is expected that the coherent ordered motion typically self-organises in the presence of changes in the (generalized) internal energy and of (generalized) work done on, or extracted from, the system. We aim to explicitly quantify changes in these two quantities in a system of simulated self-propelled particles and contrast them with changes in the system's configuration entropy. In doing so, we adapt a thermodynamic formulation of the curvatures of the internal energy and the work, with respect to two parameters that control the particles' alignment. This allows us to systematically investigate the behavior of the system by varying the two control parameters to drive the system across a kinetic phase transition. Our results identify critical regimes and show that during the phase transition, where the configuration entropy of the system decreases, the rates of change of the work and of the internal energy also decrease, while their curvatures diverge. Importantly, the reduction of entropy achieved through expenditure of work is shown to peak at criticality. We relate this both to a thermodynamic efficiency and the significance of the increased order with respect to a computational path. Additionally, this study provides an information-geometric interpretation of the curvature of the internal energy as the difference between two curvatures: the curvature of the free entropy, captured by the Fisher information, and the curvature of the configuration entropy.

Performance of buried pipe installation : technical summary.

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2010-05-01

The goal of this research project was to determine the effects of geometric and mechanical parameters characterizing the soil-structure interaction developed in a buried pipe installation. Parameters such as pipe ring stiff ness, bedding thickness, t...

Fold assessment for comparative protein structure modeling.

PubMed

Melo, Francisco; Sali, Andrej

2007-11-01

Accurate and automated assessment of both geometrical errors and incompleteness of comparative protein structure models is necessary for an adequate use of the models. Here, we describe a composite score for discriminating between models with the correct and incorrect fold. To find an accurate composite score, we designed and applied a genetic algorithm method that searched for a most informative subset of 21 input model features as well as their optimized nonlinear transformation into the composite score. The 21 input features included various statistical potential scores, stereochemistry quality descriptors, sequence alignment scores, geometrical descriptors, and measures of protein packing. The optimized composite score was found to depend on (1) a statistical potential z-score for residue accessibilities and distances, (2) model compactness, and (3) percentage sequence identity of the alignment used to build the model. The accuracy of the composite score was compared with the accuracy of assessment by single and combined features as well as by other commonly used assessment methods. The testing set was representative of models produced by automated comparative modeling on a genomic scale. The composite score performed better than any other tested score in terms of the maximum correct classification rate (i.e., 3.3% false positives and 2.5% false negatives) as well as the sensitivity and specificity across the whole range of thresholds. The composite score was implemented in our program MODELLER-8 and was used to assess models in the MODBASE database that contains comparative models for domains in approximately 1.3 million protein sequences.

Sentence alignment using feed forward neural network.

PubMed

Fattah, Mohamed Abdel; Ren, Fuji; Kuroiwa, Shingo

2006-12-01

Parallel corpora have become an essential resource for work in multi lingual natural language processing. However, sentence aligned parallel corpora are more efficient than non-aligned parallel corpora for cross language information retrieval and machine translation applications. In this paper, we present a new approach to align sentences in bilingual parallel corpora based on feed forward neural network classifier. A feature parameter vector is extracted from the text pair under consideration. This vector contains text features such as length, punctuate score, and cognate score values. A set of manually prepared training data has been assigned to train the feed forward neural network. Another set of data was used for testing. Using this new approach, we could achieve an error reduction of 60% over length based approach when applied on English-Arabic parallel documents. Moreover this new approach is valid for any language pair and it is quite flexible approach since the feature parameter vector may contain more/less or different features than that we used in our system such as lexical match feature.

Inflight alignment of payload inertial reference from Shuttle navigation system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Treder, A. J.; Norris, R. E.; Ruprecht, R.

Two methods for payload attitude initialization from the STS Orbiter have been proposed: body axis maneuvers (BAM) and star line maneuvers (SLM). The first achieves alignment directly through the Shuttle star tracker, while the second, indirectly through the stellar-updated Shuttle inertial platform. The Inertial Upper Stage (IUS) with its strapdown navigation system is used to demonstrate in-flight alignment techniques. Significant accuracy can be obtained with minimal impact on Orbiter operations, with payload inertial reference potentially approaching the accuracy of the Shuttle star tracker. STS-6 flight performance parameters, including alignment stability, are discussed and compared with operational complexity. Results indicate overall alignment stability of .06 deg, 3 sigma per axis.

Aligning fast alternating current electroosmotic flow fields and characteristic frequencies with dielectrophoretic traps to achieve rapid bacteria detection.

PubMed

Gagnon, Zachary; Chang, Hsueh-Chia

2005-10-01

Tailor-designed alternating current electroosmotic (AC-EO) stagnation flows are used to convect bioparticles globally from a bulk solution to localized dielectrophoretic (DEP) traps that are aligned at the flow stagnation points. The multiscale trap, with a typical trapping time of seconds for a dilute 70 microL volume of 10(3) particles per cc sample, is several orders of magnitude faster than conventional DEP traps and earlier AC-EO traps with parallel, castellated, or finger electrodes. A novel serpentine wire capable of sustaining a high voltage, up to 2500 V(RMS), without causing excessive heat dissipation or Faradaic reaction in strong electrolytes is fabricated to produce the strong AC-EO flow with two separated stagnation lines, one aligned with the field minimum and one with the field maximum. The continuous wire design allows a large applied voltage without inducing Faradaic electrode reactions. Particles are trapped within seconds at one of the traps depending on whether they suffer negative or positive DEP. The particles can also be rapidly released from their respective traps by varying the frequency of the applied AC field below particle-distinct cross-over frequencies. Zwitterion addition to the buffer allows further geometric and frequency alignments of the AC-EO and DEP motions. The same device hence allows fast trapping, detection, sorting, and characterization on a sample with realistic conductivity, volume, and bacteria count.

Design of New Muzzle for 80mm Diamter Single-Stage Gas Gun

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Russell, R. T.; Starks, K. S.; Grote, D. L., II; Vandersall, K. S.; Zhou, M.; Thadhani, N. N.

1999-06-01

In this paper, we describe the design of a new muzzle for the Georgia Institute of Technology's 80mm diameter single-stage gas gun. The muzzle is designed to accommodate both normal and inclined impact experiments. Modular target-holding assemblies are mounted on a hardened tool steel annular plate 3 inches in thickness and 15 inches in diameter. This plate is threaded on to the gun barrel and locked into place by an anti-backlash assembly to prevent loss of alignment. The target mount for normal impact experiments consists of two 4.5 inch diameter semi-cylindrical ring sections with surfaces lapped perpendicular to the major bore axis. The inclined target mount includes a pair of concentric cylinder sections with an inner diameter of 8 inches. Tilt adjustment is achieved around two mutually perpendicular and intersecting axis of rotation, as in a gimbals assembly. Coarse alignment allows for angles between -10 and +30 degrees. Fine alignment is achieved using 3/8 inch machine screws with 40 threads per inch. This mechanism yields a precision of 0.025 inches per revolution, the same precision found in a micrometer. The linear distance between the adjustment mechanisms and the axes of rotation geometrically enhances fine alignment. Velocity measurement assemblies using shear pins, time of arrival pins, and laser/photo-diode circuits are designed as bolt-on modules.

Alignment error of mirror modules of advanced telescope for high-energy astrophysics due to wavefront aberrations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zocchi, Fabio E.

2017-10-01

One of the approaches that is being tested for the integration of the mirror modules of the advanced telescope for high-energy astrophysics x-ray mission of the European Space Agency consists in aligning each module on an optical bench operated at an ultraviolet wavelength. The mirror module is illuminated by a plane wave and, in order to overcome diffraction effects, the centroid of the image produced by the module is used as a reference to assess the accuracy of the optical alignment of the mirror module itself. Among other sources of uncertainty, the wave-front error of the plane wave also introduces an error in the position of the centroid, thus affecting the quality of the mirror module alignment. The power spectral density of the position of the point spread function centroid is here derived from the power spectral density of the wave-front error of the plane wave in the framework of the scalar theory of Fourier diffraction. This allows the defining of a specification on the collimator quality used for generating the plane wave starting from the contribution to the error budget allocated for the uncertainty of the centroid position. The theory generally applies whenever Fourier diffraction is a valid approximation, in which case the obtained result is identical to that derived by geometrical optics considerations.

A line-source method for aligning on-board and other pinhole SPECT systems

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Yan, Susu; Bowsher, James; Yin, Fang-Fang

2013-12-15

Purpose: In order to achieve functional and molecular imaging as patients are in position for radiation therapy, a robotic multipinhole SPECT system is being developed. Alignment of the SPECT system—to the linear accelerator (LINAC) coordinate frame and to the coordinate frames of other on-board imaging systems such as cone-beam CT (CBCT)—is essential for target localization and image reconstruction. An alignment method that utilizes line sources and one pinhole projection is proposed and investigated to achieve this goal. Potentially, this method could also be applied to the calibration of the other pinhole SPECT systems.Methods: An alignment model consisting of multiple alignmentmore » parameters was developed which maps line sources in three-dimensional (3D) space to their two-dimensional (2D) projections on the SPECT detector. In a computer-simulation study, 3D coordinates of line-sources were defined in a reference room coordinate frame, such as the LINAC coordinate frame. Corresponding 2D line-source projections were generated by computer simulation that included SPECT blurring and noise effects. The Radon transform was utilized to detect angles (α) and offsets (ρ) of the line-source projections. Alignment parameters were then estimated by a nonlinear least squares method, based on the α and ρ values and the alignment model. Alignment performance was evaluated as a function of number of line sources, Radon transform accuracy, finite line-source width, intrinsic camera resolution, Poisson noise, and acquisition geometry. Experimental evaluations were performed using a physical line-source phantom and a pinhole-collimated gamma camera attached to a robot.Results: In computer-simulation studies, when there was no error in determining angles (α) and offsets (ρ) of the measured projections, six alignment parameters (three translational and three rotational) were estimated perfectly using three line sources. When angles (α) and offsets (ρ) were provided by the Radon transform, estimation accuracy was reduced. The estimation error was associated with rounding errors of Radon transform, finite line-source width, Poisson noise, number of line sources, intrinsic camera resolution, and detector acquisition geometry. Statistically, the estimation accuracy was significantly improved by using four line sources rather than three and by thinner line-source projections (obtained by better intrinsic detector resolution). With five line sources, median errors were 0.2 mm for the detector translations, 0.7 mm for the detector radius of rotation, and less than 0.5° for detector rotation, tilt, and twist. In experimental evaluations, average errors relative to a different, independent registration technique were about 1.8 mm for detector translations, 1.1 mm for the detector radius of rotation (ROR), 0.5° and 0.4° for detector rotation and tilt, respectively, and 1.2° for detector twist.Conclusions: Alignment parameters can be estimated using one pinhole projection of line sources. Alignment errors are largely associated with limited accuracy of the Radon transform in determining angles (α) and offsets (ρ) of the line-source projections. This alignment method may be important for multipinhole SPECT, where relative pinhole alignment may vary during rotation. For pinhole and multipinhole SPECT imaging on-board radiation therapy machines, the method could provide alignment of SPECT coordinates with those of CBCT and the LINAC.« less

Simulation of exposure and alignment for nanoimprint lithography

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deng, Yunfei; Neureuther, Andrew R.

2002-07-01

Rigorous electromagnetic simulation with TEMPEST is used to examine the exposure and alignment processes for nano-imprint lithography with attenuating thin-film molds. Parameters in the design of topographical features of the nano-imprint system and material choices of the components are analyzed. The small feature size limits light transmission through the feature. While little can be done with auxiliary structures to attract light into small holes, the use of an absorbing material with a low real part of the refractive index such as silver helps mitigates the problem. Results on complementary alignment marks shows that the small transmission through the metal layer and the vertical separation of two alignment marks create the leakage equivalent to 1 nm misalignment but satisfactory alignment can be obtained by measuring alignment signals over a +/- 30 nm range.

Effects of dialysate to serum sodium (Na+) alignment in chronic hemodialysis (HD) patients: retrospective cohort study from a quality improvement project.

PubMed

Raimann, Jochen G; Ficociello, Linda H; Usvyat, Len A; Zhang, Hanjie; Pacelli, Lisa; Moore, Sandi; Sheppard, Penny; Xiao, Qingqing; Wang, Yuedong; Mullon, Claudy; Balter, Paul; Sullivan, Terry; Kotanko, Peter

2018-04-02

Evidence indicates favorable effects of dialysate (DNa + ) to serum sodium concentration (SNa + ) alignment, however, results from larger sample populations are needed. For this reason, we conducted a retrospective propensity score-matched cohort study from a quality improvement project to investigate the effects of alignment on population of maintenance hemodialysis patients. At 4 participating hemodialysis (HD) clinics, patients with SNa + lower than the standard DNa + of 137 mEq/L who received HD with DNa + aligned to the average of the last 4 SNa + measurements were evaluated (clinicaltrials.gov # NCT01825590 ). In this retrospective data analysis, an intention-to-treat (primary) and an as-treated "intervention" (secondary) cohort were created. "Aligned" patients from both cohorts (N = 163 for the primary and N = 137 for the secondary) were then propensity-score matched in a 1:1 fashion to "unaligned" patients from the Renal Research Institute database. The propensity score was generated based on age, gender, white race, Hispanic ethnicity, absence or presence of diabetes, hemodialysis vintage, interdialytic weight gain (IDWG; as a percentage of postdialysis body weight), catheter as primary dialysis access, predialysis systolic blood pressure, serum sodium concentration, hospitalization count during baseline. T-Test was employed for group comparisons of changes to the primary (volume-related and hemodynamic parameters) and tertiary outcomes. All-cause and fluid overload-related hospitalization admission rates were compared using Wilcoxon Rank Sum test and Cox regression analysis for repeated events. In the primary analysis, aligned and unaligned subjects showed comparable demographics at baseline. Treatment effects were significant for IDWG [-0.12 (95% CI -0.24 to 0) L] and showed decreasing non-significant trends for pre-dialysis hemodynamic parameters. Count comparison and Cox regression analysis showed no clear advantage of alignment in terms of all-cause and fluid overload-related hospitalization. Results from the largest sodium alignment program to date suggest positive treatment effects on volume-related and hemodynamic parameters, but no clear effect on risk of hospitalization. Well-matched control patients minimized confounding effects. Small effects and lack of significant differences may be explained by a low baseline DNa + limiting the interventional change.

Towards 3D Matching of Point Clouds Derived from Oblique and Nadir Airborne Imagery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Ming

Because of the low-expense high-efficient image collection process and the rich 3D and texture information presented in the images, a combined use of 2D airborne nadir and oblique images to reconstruct 3D geometric scene has a promising market for future commercial usage like urban planning or first responders. The methodology introduced in this thesis provides a feasible way towards fully automated 3D city modeling from oblique and nadir airborne imagery. In this thesis, the difficulty of matching 2D images with large disparity is avoided by grouping the images first and applying the 3D registration afterward. The procedure starts with the extraction of point clouds using a modified version of the RIT 3D Extraction Workflow. Then the point clouds are refined by noise removal and surface smoothing processes. Since the point clouds extracted from different image groups use independent coordinate systems, there are translation, rotation and scale differences existing. To figure out these differences, 3D keypoints and their features are extracted. For each pair of point clouds, an initial alignment and a more accurate registration are applied in succession. The final transform matrix presents the parameters describing the translation, rotation and scale requirements. The methodology presented in the thesis has been shown to behave well for test data. The robustness of this method is discussed by adding artificial noise to the test data. For Pictometry oblique aerial imagery, the initial alignment provides a rough alignment result, which contains a larger offset compared to that of test data because of the low quality of the point clouds themselves, but it can be further refined through the final optimization. The accuracy of the final registration result is evaluated by comparing it to the result obtained from manual selection of matched points. Using the method introduced, point clouds extracted from different image groups could be combined with each other to build a more complete point cloud, or be used as a complement to existing point clouds extracted from other sources. This research will both improve the state of the art of 3D city modeling and inspire new ideas in related fields.

Analytic Expression of Geometric Discord in Arbitrary Mixture of any Two Bi-qubit Product Pure States

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xie, Chuan-Mei; Liu, Yi-Min; Xing, Hang; Zhang, Zhan-Jun

2015-04-01

Quantum correlations in a family of states comprising any mixture of a pair of arbitrary bi-qubit product pure states are studied by employing geometric discord [Phys. Rev. Lett. 105 (2010) 190502] as the quantifier. First, the inherent symmetry in the family of states about local unitary transformations is revealed. Then, the analytic expression of geometric discords in the states is worked out. Some concrete discussions and analyses on the captured geometric discords are made so that their distinct features are exposed. It is found that, the more averagely the two bi-qubit product states are mixed, the bigger geometric discord the mixed state owns. Moreover, the monotonic relationships of geometric discord with different parameters are revealed. Supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NNSFC) under Grant Nos. 11375011 and 11372122, the Natural Science Foundation of Anhui Province under Grant No. 1408085MA12, and the 211 Project of Anhui University

An optimal beam alignment method for large-scale distributed space surveillance radar system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Jian; Wang, Dongya; Xia, Shuangzhi

2018-06-01

Large-scale distributed space surveillance radar is a very important ground-based equipment to maintain a complete catalogue for Low Earth Orbit (LEO) space debris. However, due to the thousands of kilometers distance between each sites of the distributed radar system, how to optimally implement the Transmitting/Receiving (T/R) beams alignment in a great space using the narrow beam, which proposed a special and considerable technical challenge in the space surveillance area. According to the common coordinate transformation model and the radar beam space model, we presented a two dimensional projection algorithm for T/R beam using the direction angles, which could visually describe and assess the beam alignment performance. Subsequently, the optimal mathematical models for the orientation angle of the antenna array, the site location and the T/R beam coverage are constructed, and also the beam alignment parameters are precisely solved. At last, we conducted the optimal beam alignment experiments base on the site parameters of Air Force Space Surveillance System (AFSSS). The simulation results demonstrate the correctness and effectiveness of our novel method, which can significantly stimulate the construction for the LEO space debris surveillance equipment.

GUIDANCE2: accurate detection of unreliable alignment regions accounting for the uncertainty of multiple parameters.

PubMed

Sela, Itamar; Ashkenazy, Haim; Katoh, Kazutaka; Pupko, Tal

2015-07-01

Inference of multiple sequence alignments (MSAs) is a critical part of phylogenetic and comparative genomics studies. However, from the same set of sequences different MSAs are often inferred, depending on the methodologies used and the assumed parameters. Much effort has recently been devoted to improving the ability to identify unreliable alignment regions. Detecting such unreliable regions was previously shown to be important for downstream analyses relying on MSAs, such as the detection of positive selection. Here we developed GUIDANCE2, a new integrative methodology that accounts for: (i) uncertainty in the process of indel formation, (ii) uncertainty in the assumed guide tree and (iii) co-optimal solutions in the pairwise alignments, used as building blocks in progressive alignment algorithms. We compared GUIDANCE2 with seven methodologies to detect unreliable MSA regions using extensive simulations and empirical benchmarks. We show that GUIDANCE2 outperforms all previously developed methodologies. Furthermore, GUIDANCE2 also provides a set of alternative MSAs which can be useful for downstream analyses. The novel algorithm is implemented as a web-server, available at: http://guidance.tau.ac.il. © The Author(s) 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Nucleic Acids Research.

Walking Drosophila align with the e-vector of linearly polarized light through directed modulation of angular acceleration

PubMed Central

Velez, Mariel M.; Wernet, Mathias F.; Clark, Damon A.

2014-01-01

Understanding the mechanisms that link sensory stimuli to animal behavior is a central challenge in neuroscience. The quantitative description of behavioral responses to defined stimuli has led to a rich understanding of different behavioral strategies in many species. One important navigational cue perceived by many vertebrates and insects is the e-vector orientation of linearly polarized light. Drosophila manifests an innate orientation response to this cue (‘polarotaxis’), aligning its body axis with the e-vector field. We have established a population-based behavioral paradigm for the genetic dissection of neural circuits guiding polarotaxis to both celestial as well as reflected polarized stimuli. However, the behavioral mechanisms by which flies align with a linearly polarized stimulus remain unknown. Here, we present a detailed quantitative description of Drosophila polarotaxis, systematically measuring behavioral parameters that are modulated by the stimulus. We show that angular acceleration is modulated during alignment, and this single parameter may be sufficient for alignment. Furthermore, using monocular deprivation, we show that each eye is necessary for modulating turns in the ipsilateral direction. This analysis lays the foundation for understanding how neural circuits guide these important visual behaviors. PMID:24810784

Some aspects of SR beamline alignment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gaponov, Yu. A.; Cerenius, Y.; Nygaard, J.; Ursby, T.; Larsson, K.

2011-09-01

Based on the Synchrotron Radiation (SR) beamline optical element-by-element alignment with analysis of the alignment results an optimized beamline alignment algorithm has been designed and developed. The alignment procedures have been designed and developed for the MAX-lab I911-4 fixed energy beamline. It has been shown that the intermediate information received during the monochromator alignment stage can be used for the correction of both monochromator and mirror without the next stages of alignment of mirror, slits, sample holder, etc. Such an optimization of the beamline alignment procedures decreases the time necessary for the alignment and becomes useful and helpful in the case of any instability of the beamline optical elements, storage ring electron orbit or the wiggler insertion device, which could result in the instability of angular and positional parameters of the SR beam. A general purpose software package for manual, semi-automatic and automatic SR beamline alignment has been designed and developed using the developed algorithm. The TANGO control system is used as the middle-ware between the stand-alone beamline control applications BLTools, BPMonitor and the beamline equipment.

Comparison of Two Methods Used to Model Shape Parameters of Pareto Distributions

USGS Publications Warehouse

Liu, C.; Charpentier, R.R.; Su, J.

2011-01-01

Two methods are compared for estimating the shape parameters of Pareto field-size (or pool-size) distributions for petroleum resource assessment. Both methods assume mature exploration in which most of the larger fields have been discovered. Both methods use the sizes of larger discovered fields to estimate the numbers and sizes of smaller fields: (1) the tail-truncated method uses a plot of field size versus size rank, and (2) the log-geometric method uses data binned in field-size classes and the ratios of adjacent bin counts. Simulation experiments were conducted using discovered oil and gas pool-size distributions from four petroleum systems in Alberta, Canada and using Pareto distributions generated by Monte Carlo simulation. The estimates of the shape parameters of the Pareto distributions, calculated by both the tail-truncated and log-geometric methods, generally stabilize where discovered pool numbers are greater than 100. However, with fewer than 100 discoveries, these estimates can vary greatly with each new discovery. The estimated shape parameters of the tail-truncated method are more stable and larger than those of the log-geometric method where the number of discovered pools is more than 100. Both methods, however, tend to underestimate the shape parameter. Monte Carlo simulation was also used to create sequences of discovered pool sizes by sampling from a Pareto distribution with a discovery process model using a defined exploration efficiency (in order to show how biased the sampling was in favor of larger fields being discovered first). A higher (more biased) exploration efficiency gives better estimates of the Pareto shape parameters. ?? 2011 International Association for Mathematical Geosciences.

Physical Parameters of Components in Close Binary Systems: IV

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gazeas, K. D.; Baran, A.; Niarchos, P.; Zola, S.; Kreiner, J. M.; Ogloza, W.; Rucinski, S. M.; Zakrzewski, B.; Siwak, M.; Pigulski, A.; Drozdz, M.

2005-03-01

The paper presents new geometric, photometric and absolute parameters, derived from combined spectroscopic and photometric solutions, for ten contact binary systems. The analysis shows that three systems (EF Boo, GM Dra and SW Lac) are of W-type with shallow to moderate contact. Seven systems (V417 Aql, AH Aur, YY CrB, UX Eri, DZ Psc, GR Vir and NN Vir) are of A-type in a deep contact configuration. For six systems (V417 Aql, YY CrB, GM Dra, UX Eri, SW Lac and GR Vir) a spot model is introduced to explain the O'Connell effect in their light curves. The photometric and geometric elements of the systems are combined with the spectroscopic data taken at David Dunlap Observatory to yield the absolute parameters of the components.

Aeroelastic considerations for torsionally soft rotors

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mantay, W. R.; Yeager, W. T., Jr.

1985-01-01

A research study was initiated to systematically determine the impact of selected blade tip geometric parameters on conformable rotor performance and loads characteristics. The model articulated rotors included baseline and torsionally soft blades with interchangeable tips. Seven blade tip designs were evaluated on the baseline rotor and six tip designs were tested on the torsionally soft blades. The designs incorporated a systemmatic variation in geometric parameters including sweep, taper, and anhedral. The rotors were evaluated in the NASA Langley Transonic Dynamics Tunnel at several advance ratios, lift and propulsive force values, and tip Mach numbers. A track sensitivity study was also conducted at several advance ratios for both rotors. Based on the test results, tip parameter variations generated significant rotor performance and loads differences for both baseline and torsionally soft blades.

Three-dimensional matrix fiber alignment modulates cell migration and MT1-MMP utility by spatially and temporally directing protrusions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fraley, Stephanie I.; Wu, Pei-Hsun; He, Lijuan; Feng, Yunfeng; Krisnamurthy, Ranjini; Longmore, Gregory D.; Wirtz, Denis

2015-10-01

Multiple attributes of the three-dimensional (3D) extracellular matrix (ECM) have been independently implicated as regulators of cell motility, including pore size, crosslink density, structural organization, and stiffness. However, these parameters cannot be independently varied within a complex 3D ECM protein network. We present an integrated, quantitative study of these parameters across a broad range of complex matrix configurations using self-assembling 3D collagen and show how each parameter relates to the others and to cell motility. Increasing collagen density resulted in a decrease and then an increase in both pore size and fiber alignment, which both correlated significantly with cell motility but not bulk matrix stiffness within the range tested. However, using the crosslinking enzyme Transglutaminase II to alter microstructure independently of density revealed that motility is most significantly predicted by fiber alignment. Cellular protrusion rate, protrusion orientation, speed of migration, and invasion distance showed coupled biphasic responses to increasing collagen density not predicted by 2D models or by stiffness, but instead by fiber alignment. The requirement of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) activity was also observed to depend on microstructure, and a threshold of MMP utility was identified. Our results suggest that fiber topography guides protrusions and thereby MMP activity and motility.

An MHD simulation of By-dependent magnetospheric convection and field-aligned currents during northward IMF

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ogino, T.; Walker, R. J.; Ashour-Abdalla, M.; Dawson, J. M.

1985-01-01

A three-dimensional MHD simulation code is used to model the magnetospheric configuration when the IMF has both a northward B(z) component and a B(y) component in the east-west direction. Projections of the plasma pressure, the field-aligned velocity, the field-aligned vorticity, and the field-aligned current along the magnetic field lines into the northern ionosphere are shown and discussed. Cross-sectional patterns of these parameters are shown. The results demonstrate that the B(y) component of the IMF strongly influences the plasma sheet configuration and the magnetospheric convection pattern.

Navigating neurites utilize cellular topography of Schwann cell somas and processes for optimal guidance

PubMed Central

Lopez-Fagundo, Cristina; Mitchel, Jennifer A.; Ramchal, Talisha D.; Dingle, Yu-Ting L.; Hoffman-Kim, Diane

2013-01-01

The path created by aligned Schwann cells (SCs) after nerve injury underlies peripheral nerve regeneration. We developed geometric bioinspired substrates to extract key information needed for axon guidance by deconstructing the topographical cues presented by SCs. We have previously reported materials that directly replicate SC topography with micro- and nanoscale resolution, but a detailed explanation of the means of directed axon extension on SC topography has not yet been described. Here, using neurite tracing and time-lapse microscopy, we analyzed the SC features that influence axon guidance. Novel poly(dimethylsiloxane) materials, fabricated via photolithography, incorporated bioinspired topographical components with the shapes and sizes of aligned SCs, namely somas and processes, where the length of the processes were varied but the soma geometry and dimensions were kept constant. Rat dorsal root ganglia neurites aligned to all materials presenting bioinspired topography after a 5 days in culture and to bioinspired materials presenting soma and process features after only 17 hours in culture. Key findings of this study were: Neurite response to underlying bioinspired topographical features was time dependent, where at 5 days, neurites aligned most strongly to materials presenting combinations of soma and process features, with higher than average density of either process or soma features; but at 17 hours they aligned more strongly to materials presenting average densities of soma and process features and to materials presenting process features only. These studies elucidate the influence of SC topography on axon guidance in a time-dependent setting and have implications for the optimization of nerve regeneration strategies. PMID:23557939

Superposition and alignment of labeled point clouds.

PubMed

Fober, Thomas; Glinca, Serghei; Klebe, Gerhard; Hüllermeier, Eyke

2011-01-01

Geometric objects are often represented approximately in terms of a finite set of points in three-dimensional euclidean space. In this paper, we extend this representation to what we call labeled point clouds. A labeled point cloud is a finite set of points, where each point is not only associated with a position in three-dimensional space, but also with a discrete class label that represents a specific property. This type of model is especially suitable for modeling biomolecules such as proteins and protein binding sites, where a label may represent an atom type or a physico-chemical property. Proceeding from this representation, we address the question of how to compare two labeled points clouds in terms of their similarity. Using fuzzy modeling techniques, we develop a suitable similarity measure as well as an efficient evolutionary algorithm to compute it. Moreover, we consider the problem of establishing an alignment of the structures in the sense of a one-to-one correspondence between their basic constituents. From a biological point of view, alignments of this kind are of great interest, since mutually corresponding molecular constituents offer important information about evolution and heredity, and can also serve as a means to explain a degree of similarity. In this paper, we therefore develop a method for computing pairwise or multiple alignments of labeled point clouds. To this end, we proceed from an optimal superposition of the corresponding point clouds and construct an alignment which is as much as possible in agreement with the neighborhood structure established by this superposition. We apply our methods to the structural analysis of protein binding sites.

In-flight alignment using H ∞ filter for strapdown INS on aircraft.

PubMed

Pei, Fu-Jun; Liu, Xuan; Zhu, Li

2014-01-01

In-flight alignment is an effective way to improve the accuracy and speed of initial alignment for strapdown inertial navigation system (INS). During the aircraft flight, strapdown INS alignment was disturbed by lineal and angular movements of the aircraft. To deal with the disturbances in dynamic initial alignment, a novel alignment method for SINS is investigated in this paper. In this method, an initial alignment error model of SINS in the inertial frame is established. The observability of the system is discussed by piece-wise constant system (PWCS) theory and observable degree is computed by the singular value decomposition (SVD) theory. It is demonstrated that the system is completely observable, and all the system state parameters can be estimated by optimal filter. Then a H ∞ filter was designed to resolve the uncertainty of measurement noise. The simulation results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm can reach a better accuracy under the dynamic disturbance condition.

Multiple nodes transfer alignment for airborne missiles based on inertial sensor network

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Si, Fan; Zhao, Yan

2017-09-01

Transfer alignment is an important initialization method for airborne missiles because the alignment accuracy largely determines the performance of the missile. However, traditional alignment methods are limited by complicated and unknown flexure angle, and cannot meet the actual requirement when wing flexure deformation occurs. To address this problem, we propose a new method that uses the relative navigation parameters between the weapons and fighter to achieve transfer alignment. First, in the relative inertial navigation algorithm, the relative attitudes and positions are constantly computed in wing flexure deformation situations. Secondly, the alignment results of each weapon are processed using a data fusion algorithm to improve the overall performance. Finally, the feasibility and performance of the proposed method were evaluated under two typical types of deformation, and the simulation results demonstrated that the new transfer alignment method is practical and has high-precision.

Estimating Model Probabilities using Thermodynamic Markov Chain Monte Carlo Methods

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ye, M.; Liu, P.; Beerli, P.; Lu, D.; Hill, M. C.

2014-12-01

Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods are widely used to evaluate model probability for quantifying model uncertainty. In a general procedure, MCMC simulations are first conducted for each individual model, and MCMC parameter samples are then used to approximate marginal likelihood of the model by calculating the geometric mean of the joint likelihood of the model and its parameters. It has been found the method of evaluating geometric mean suffers from the numerical problem of low convergence rate. A simple test case shows that even millions of MCMC samples are insufficient to yield accurate estimation of the marginal likelihood. To resolve this problem, a thermodynamic method is used to have multiple MCMC runs with different values of a heating coefficient between zero and one. When the heating coefficient is zero, the MCMC run is equivalent to a random walk MC in the prior parameter space; when the heating coefficient is one, the MCMC run is the conventional one. For a simple case with analytical form of the marginal likelihood, the thermodynamic method yields more accurate estimate than the method of using geometric mean. This is also demonstrated for a case of groundwater modeling with consideration of four alternative models postulated based on different conceptualization of a confining layer. This groundwater example shows that model probabilities estimated using the thermodynamic method are more reasonable than those obtained using the geometric method. The thermodynamic method is general, and can be used for a wide range of environmental problem for model uncertainty quantification.

Geometric dependence of the parasitic components and thermal properties of HEMTs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vun, Peter V.; Parker, Anthony E.; Mahon, Simon J.; Fattorini, Anthony

2007-12-01

For integrated circuit design up to 50GHz and beyond accurate models of the transistor access structures and intrinsic structures are necessary for prediction of circuit performance. The circuit design process relies on optimising transistor geometry parameters such as unit gate width, number of gates, number of vias and gate-to-gate spacing. So the relationship between electrical and thermal parasitic components in transistor access structures, and transistor geometry is important to understand when developing models for transistors of differing geometries. Current approaches to describing the geometric dependence of models are limited to empirical methods which only describe a finite set of geometries and only include unit gate width and number of gates as variables. A better understanding of the geometric dependence is seen as a way to provide scalable models that remain accurate for continuous variation of all geometric parameters. Understanding the distribution of parasitic elements between the manifold, the terminal fingers, and the reference plane discontinuities is an issue identified as important in this regard. Examination of dc characteristics and thermal images indicates that gate-to-gate thermal coupling and increased thermal conductance at the gate ends, affects the device total thermal conductance. Consequently, a distributed thermal model is proposed which accounts for these effects. This work is seen as a starting point for developing comprehensive scalable models that will allow RF circuit designers to optimise circuit performance parameters such as total die area, maximum output power, power-added-efficiency (PAE) and channel temperature/lifetime.

Physical Principles of the Method for Determination of Geometrical Characteristics and Particle Recognition in Digital Holography

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dyomin, V. V.; Polovtsev, I. G.; Davydova, A. Yu.

2018-03-01

The physical principles of a method for determination of geometrical characteristics of particles and particle recognition based on the concepts of digital holography, followed by processing of the particle images reconstructed from the digital hologram, using the morphological parameter are reported. An example of application of this method for fast plankton particle recognition is given.

Triggered Snap-Through of Bistable Shells

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cai, Yijie; Huang, Shicheng; Trase, Ian; Hu, Nan; Chen, Zi

Elastic bistable shells are common structures in nature and engineering, such as the lobes of the Venus flytrap or the surface of a toy jumping poppers. Despite their ubiquity, the parameters that control the bistability of such structures are not well understood. In this study, we explore how the geometrical features of radially symmetric elastic shells affect the shape and potential energy of a shell's stable states, and how to tune certain parameters in order to generate a snap-through transition from a convex semi-stable state to concave stable state. We fabricated a series of elastic shells with varying geometric parameters out of silicone rubber and measured the resulting potential energy in the semi-stable state. Finite element simulations were also conducted in order to determine the deformation and stress in the shells during snap-through. It was found that the energy of the semi-stable state is controlled by only two geometric parameters and a dimensionless ratio. We also noted two distinct transitions during snap-through, one between monostability and semi-bistability (the state a popper toy is in before it snaps-through and jumps), and a second transition between semi-bistability and true bistability. This work shows that it is possible to use a set of simple parameters to tailor the energy landscape of an elastic shell in order to generate complex trigger motions for their potential use in smart applications. Z.C. acknowledge support from Society in Science-Branco Weiss Fellowship, administered by ETH Zurich.

Micropatterned photoalignment for wavefront controlled switchable optical devices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Glazar, Nikolaus

Photoalignment is a well-established technique for surface alignment of the liquid crystal director. Previously, chrome masks were necessary for patterned photoalignment but were difficult to use, costly, and inflexible. To extend the capabilities of photoalignment we built an automated maskless multi-domain photoalignment device based on a DMD (digital multimirror device) projection system. The device is capable of creating arbitrary photoalignment patterns with micron-sized features. Pancharatnam-Berry phase (PB-phase) is a geometric phase that arises from cyclic change of polarization state. By varying the azimuthal anchoring angle in a hybrid-aligned liquid crystal cell we can control the spatial variation of the PB-phase shift. Using our automated photoalignment device to align the liquid crystal arbitrary wave front manipulations are possible. The PB-phase shift effect is maximized when the cell is tuned to have a half-wave retardation and disappears at full-wave retardation, so the cell can be switched on and off by applying a voltage. Two wavefront controlled devices developed using this technique will be discussed: A switchable liquid crystal phase shift mask for creating sub-diffraction sized photolithographic features, and a transparent diffractive display that utilizes a switchable liquid crystal diffraction grating.

Predicting pulsar scintillation from refractive plasma sheets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simard, Dana; Pen, Ue-Li

2018-07-01

The dynamic and secondary spectra of many pulsars show evidence for long-lived, aligned images of the pulsar that are stationary on a thin scattering sheet. One explanation for this phenomenon considers the effects of wave crests along sheets in the ionized interstellar medium, such as those due to Alfvén waves propagating along current sheets. If these sheets are closely aligned to our line of sight to the pulsar, high bending angles arise at the wave crests and a selection effect causes alignment of images produced at different crests, similar to grazing reflection off of a lake. Using geometric optics, we develop a simple parametrized model of these corrugated sheets that can be constrained with a single observation and that makes observable predictions for variations in the scintillation of the pulsar over time and frequency. This model reveals qualitative differences between lensing from overdense and underdense corrugated sheets: only if the sheet is overdense compared to the surrounding interstellar medium can the lensed images be brighter than the line-of-sight image to the pulsar, and the faint lensed images are closer to the pulsar at higher frequencies if the sheet is underdense, but at lower frequencies if the sheet is overdense.

Predicting Pulsar Scintillation from Refractive Plasma Sheets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Simard, Dana; Pen, Ue-Li

2018-05-01

The dynamic and secondary spectra of many pulsars show evidence for long-lived, aligned images of the pulsar that are stationary on a thin scattering sheet. One explanation for this phenomenon considers the effects of wave crests along sheets in the ionized interstellar medium, such as those due to Alfvén waves propagating along current sheets. If these sheets are closely aligned to our line-of-sight to the pulsar, high bending angles arise at the wave crests and a selection effect causes alignment of images produced at different crests, similar to grazing reflection off of a lake. Using geometric optics, we develop a simple parameterized model of these corrugated sheets that can be constrained with a single observation and that makes observable predictions for variations in the scintillation of the pulsar over time and frequency. This model reveals qualitative differences between lensing from overdense and underdense corrugated sheets: Only if the sheet is overdense compared to the surrounding interstellar medium can the lensed images be brighter than the line-of-sight image to the pulsar, and the faint lensed images are closer to the pulsar at higher frequencies if the sheet is underdense, but at lower frequencies if the sheet is overdense.

SubVis: an interactive R package for exploring the effects of multiple substitution matrices on pairwise sequence alignment

PubMed Central

Coan, Heather B.; Youker, Robert T.

2017-01-01

Understanding how proteins mutate is critical to solving a host of biological problems. Mutations occur when an amino acid is substituted for another in a protein sequence. The set of likelihoods for amino acid substitutions is stored in a matrix and input to alignment algorithms. The quality of the resulting alignment is used to assess the similarity of two or more sequences and can vary according to assumptions modeled by the substitution matrix. Substitution strategies with minor parameter variations are often grouped together in families. For example, the BLOSUM and PAM matrix families are commonly used because they provide a standard, predefined way of modeling substitutions. However, researchers often do not know if a given matrix family or any individual matrix within a family is the most suitable. Furthermore, predefined matrix families may inaccurately reflect a particular hypothesis that a researcher wishes to model or otherwise result in unsatisfactory alignments. In these cases, the ability to compare the effects of one or more custom matrices may be needed. This laborious process is often performed manually because the ability to simultaneously load multiple matrices and then compare their effects on alignments is not readily available in current software tools. This paper presents SubVis, an interactive R package for loading and applying multiple substitution matrices to pairwise alignments. Users can simultaneously explore alignments resulting from multiple predefined and custom substitution matrices. SubVis utilizes several of the alignment functions found in R, a common language among protein scientists. Functions are tied together with the Shiny platform which allows the modification of input parameters. Information regarding alignment quality and individual amino acid substitutions is displayed with the JavaScript language which provides interactive visualizations for revealing both high-level and low-level alignment information. PMID:28674656

Orientation and Order in Shear-Aligned Thin Films of Cylinder-Forming Block Copolymers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Register, Richard

The regularity and tunability of the nanoscale structure in block copolymers makes their thin films attractive as nanolithographic templates; however, in the absence of a guiding field, self-assembly produces a polygrain structure with no particular orientation and a high density of defects. As demonstrated in the elegant studies of Ed Kramer and coworkers, graphoepitaxy can provide local control over domain orientation, with a dramatic reduction in defect density. Alternatively, cylindrical microdomains lying in the plane of the film can be aligned over macroscopic areas by applying shear stress at the film surface. In non-sheared films of polystyrene-poly(n-hexylmethacrylate) diblocks, PS-PHMA, the PS cylinder axis orientation relative to the surface switches from parallel to perpendicular as a function of film thickness; this oscillation is damped out as the fraction of the PS block increases, away from the sphere-cylinder phase boundary. In aligned films, thicknesses which possess the highest coverage of parallel cylinders prior to shear show the highest quality of alignment post-shear, as measured by the in-plane orientational order parameter. In well-aligned samples of optimal thickness, the quality of alignment is limited by isolated dislocations, whose density is highest at high PS contents, and by undulations in the cylinders' trajectories, whose impact is most severe at low PS contents; consequently, polymers whose compositions lie in the middle of the cylinder-forming region exhibit the highest quality of alignment. The dynamics of the alignment process are also investigated, and fit to a melting-recrystallization model which allows for the determination of two key alignment parameters: the critical stress needed for alignment, and an orientation rate constant. For films containing a monolayer of cylindrical domains, as PS weight fraction or overall molecular weight increases, the critical stress increases moderately, while the rate of alignment drastically decreases. As the number of layers of cylinders in the film increases, the critical stress decreases modestly, while the rate remains unchanged; substrate wetting condition has no measurable influence on alignment response. [Work of Raleigh Davis, in collaboration with Paul Chaikin.

Optimization of processing parameters on the controlled growth of ZnO nanorod arrays for the performance improvement of solid-state dye-sensitized solar cells

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lee, Yi-Mu, E-mail: ymlee@nuu.edu.t; Yang, Hsi-Wen

2011-03-15

High-transparency and high quality ZnO nanorod arrays were grown on the ITO substrates by a two-step chemical bath deposition (CBD) method. The effects of processing parameters including reaction temperature (25-95 {sup o}C) and solution concentration (0.01-0.1 M) on the crystal growth, alignment, optical and electrical properties were systematically investigated. It has been found that these process parameters are critical for the growth, orientation and aspect ratio of the nanorod arrays, showing different structural and optical properties. Experimental results reveal that the hexagonal ZnO nanorod arrays prepared under reaction temperature of 95 {sup o}C and solution concentration of 0.03 M possessmore » highest aspect ratio of {approx}21, and show the well-aligned orientation and optimum optical properties. Moreover the ZnO nanorod arrays based heterojunction electrodes and the solid-state dye-sensitized solar cells (SS-DSSCs) were fabricated with an improved optoelectrical performance. -- Graphical abstract: The ZnO nanorod arrays demonstrate well-alignment, high aspect ratio (L/D{approx}21) and excellent optical transmittance by low-temperature chemical bath deposition (CBD). Display Omitted Research highlights: > Investigate the processing parameters of CBD on the growth of ZnO nanorod arrays. > Optimization of CBD process parameters: 0.03 M solution concentration and reaction temperature of 95 {sup o}C. > The prepared ZnO samples possess well-alignment and high aspect ratio (L/D{approx}21). > An n-ZnO/p-NiO heterojunction: great rectifying behavior and low leakage current. > SS-DSSC has J{sub SC} of 0.31 mA/cm{sup 2} and V{sub OC} of 590 mV, and an improved {eta} of 0.059%.« less

Matching experimental and three dimensional numerical models for structural vibration problems with uncertainties

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Langer, P.; Sepahvand, K.; Guist, C.; Bär, J.; Peplow, A.; Marburg, S.

2018-03-01

The simulation model which examines the dynamic behavior of real structures needs to address the impact of uncertainty in both geometry and material parameters. This article investigates three-dimensional finite element models for structural dynamics problems with respect to both model and parameter uncertainties. The parameter uncertainties are determined via laboratory measurements on several beam-like samples. The parameters are then considered as random variables to the finite element model for exploring the uncertainty effects on the quality of the model outputs, i.e. natural frequencies. The accuracy of the output predictions from the model is compared with the experimental results. To this end, the non-contact experimental modal analysis is conducted to identify the natural frequency of the samples. The results show a good agreement compared with experimental data. Furthermore, it is demonstrated that geometrical uncertainties have more influence on the natural frequencies compared to material parameters and material uncertainties are about two times higher than geometrical uncertainties. This gives valuable insights for improving the finite element model due to various parameter ranges required in a modeling process involving uncertainty.

New fast least-squares algorithm for estimating the best-fitting parameters due to simple geometric-structures from gravity anomalies.

PubMed

Essa, Khalid S

2014-01-01

A new fast least-squares method is developed to estimate the shape factor (q-parameter) of a buried structure using normalized residual anomalies obtained from gravity data. The problem of shape factor estimation is transformed into a problem of finding a solution of a non-linear equation of the form f(q) = 0 by defining the anomaly value at the origin and at different points on the profile (N-value). Procedures are also formulated to estimate the depth (z-parameter) and the amplitude coefficient (A-parameter) of the buried structure. The method is simple and rapid for estimating parameters that produced gravity anomalies. This technique is used for a class of geometrically simple anomalous bodies, including the semi-infinite vertical cylinder, the infinitely long horizontal cylinder, and the sphere. The technique is tested and verified on theoretical models with and without random errors. It is also successfully applied to real data sets from Senegal and India, and the inverted-parameters are in good agreement with the known actual values.

New fast least-squares algorithm for estimating the best-fitting parameters due to simple geometric-structures from gravity anomalies

PubMed Central

Essa, Khalid S.

2013-01-01

A new fast least-squares method is developed to estimate the shape factor (q-parameter) of a buried structure using normalized residual anomalies obtained from gravity data. The problem of shape factor estimation is transformed into a problem of finding a solution of a non-linear equation of the form f(q) = 0 by defining the anomaly value at the origin and at different points on the profile (N-value). Procedures are also formulated to estimate the depth (z-parameter) and the amplitude coefficient (A-parameter) of the buried structure. The method is simple and rapid for estimating parameters that produced gravity anomalies. This technique is used for a class of geometrically simple anomalous bodies, including the semi-infinite vertical cylinder, the infinitely long horizontal cylinder, and the sphere. The technique is tested and verified on theoretical models with and without random errors. It is also successfully applied to real data sets from Senegal and India, and the inverted-parameters are in good agreement with the known actual values. PMID:25685472

Validation of geometric models for fisheye lenses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schneider, D.; Schwalbe, E.; Maas, H.-G.

The paper focuses on the photogrammetric investigation of geometric models for different types of optical fisheye constructions (equidistant, equisolid-angle, sterographic and orthographic projection). These models were implemented and thoroughly tested in a spatial resection and a self-calibrating bundle adjustment. For this purpose, fisheye images were taken with a Nikkor 8 mm fisheye lens on a Kodak DSC 14n Pro digital camera in a hemispherical calibration room. Both, the spatial resection and the bundle adjustment resulted in a standard deviation of unit weight of 1/10 pixel with a suitable set of simultaneous calibration parameters introduced into the camera model. The camera-lens combination was treated with all of the four basic models mentioned above. Using the same set of additional lens distortion parameters, the differences between the models can largely be compensated, delivering almost the same precision parameters. The relative object space precision obtained from the bundle adjustment was ca. 1:10 000 of the object dimensions. This value can be considered as a very satisfying result, as fisheye images generally have a lower geometric resolution as a consequence of their large field of view and also have a inferior imaging quality in comparison to most central perspective lenses.

Aligning HST Images to Gaia: A Faster Mosaicking Workflow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bajaj, V.

2017-11-01

We present a fully programmatic workflow for aligning HST images using the high-quality astrometry provided by Gaia Data Release 1. Code provided in a Jupyter Notebook works through this procedure, including parsing the data to determine the query area parameters, querying Gaia for the coordinate catalog, and using the catalog with TweakReg as reference catalog. This workflow greatly simplifies the normally time-consuming process of aligning HST images, especially those taken as part of mosaics.

Polar Metals by Geometric Design

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kim, T. H.; Puggioni, D.; Yuan, Y.

2016-05-05

Gauss's law dictates that the net electric field inside a conductor in electrostatic equilibrium is zero by effective charge screening; free carriers within a metal eliminate internal dipoles that may arise owing to asymmetric charge distributions(1). Quantum physics supports this view(2), demonstrating that delocalized electrons make a static macroscopic polarization, an ill-defined quantity in metals(3)-it is exceedingly unusual to find a polar metal that exhibits long-range ordered dipoles owing to cooperative atomic displacements aligned from dipolar interactions as in insulating phases(4). Here we describe the quantum mechanical design and experimental realization of room-temperature polar metals in thin-film ANiO(3) perovskite nickelatesmore » using a strategy based on atomic-scale control of inversion-preserving (centric) displacements(5). We predict with ab initio calculations that cooperative polar A cation displacements are geometrically stabilized with a non-equilibrium amplitude and tilt pattern of the corner-connected NiO6 octahedra-the structural signatures of perovskites-owing to geometric constraints imposed by the underlying substrate. Heteroepitaxial thin-films grown on LaAlO3 (111) substrates fulfil the design principles. We achieve both a conducting polar monoclinic oxide that is inaccessible in compositionally identical films grown on (001) substrates, and observe a hidden, previously unreported(6-10), non-equilibrium structure in thin-film geometries. We expect that the geometric stabilization approach will provide novel avenues for realizing new multifunctional materials with unusual coexisting properties.« less

Transverse Kick Analysis of SSR1 Due to Possible Geometrical Variations in Fabrication

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Yakovlev, V.P.; /Fermilab; Awida, M.H.

2012-05-01

Due to fabrication tolerance, it is expected that some geometrical variations could happen to the SSR1 cavities of Project X, like small shifts in the transverse direction of the beam pipe or the spoke. It is necessary to evaluate the resultant transverse kick due to these geometrical variations, in order to make sure that they are within the limits of the correctors in the solenoids. In this paper, we report the transverse kick values for various fabrications errors and the sensitivity of the beam to these errors. Transverse kick that could happen in SSR1 cavities due to geometrical variations ofmore » the fabricated cavities from the designed geometry has been analysed and evaluated. From fabrication experience, three kinds of variations were under investigation concerning the alignment of both the beam pipe and spoke with respect to the beam axis. Simulation study has been carried out implementing these variations in the simulation model. CMM measurements of five fabricated SSR1 cavities were carried out to investigate the amount of physical misalignments of the beam pipe and spoke. Bead-pull measurements were also conducted to evaluate the transverse kick values in the fabricated cavities. Simulation and measurements are relatively in good agreement. Maximum kick in the fabricated cavities is within 154 keV that would induce about 1.12 mrad beam deviation, which could be definitely corrected with the 10 mrad specified correctors of Project X.« less

An algorithm for converting a virtual-bond chain into a complete polypeptide backbone chain

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Luo, N.; Shibata, M.; Rein, R.

1991-01-01

A systematic analysis is presented of the algorithm for converting a virtual-bond chain, defined by the coordinates of the alpha-carbons of a given protein, into a complete polypeptide backbone. An alternative algorithm, based upon the same set of geometric parameters used in the Purisima-Scheraga algorithm but with a different "linkage map" of the algorithmic procedures, is proposed. The global virtual-bond chain geometric constraints are more easily separable from the loal peptide geometric and energetic constraints derived from, for example, the Ramachandran criterion, within the framework of this approach.

Laser manufacturing: strategies for dealing with the challenges

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barr, John R. M.

2012-09-01

Laser manufacturing in Edinburgh was initiated in 1963 by Ferranti (one of the previous names for SELEX Galileo). Since 2003 a modernized range of military lasers has been established. Innovation, both technical and in other aspects of the business, has enabled the design and manufacture of world leading laser designators and countermeasure lasers. Specific examples will be given including: the application of Geometric Algebra to resonator design; novel alignment free optical parametric oscillators; techniques for designing thermally insensitive laser diode pump heads; and methods for contamination control in lasers.

Radiative Transfer and Satellite Remote Sensing of Cirrus Clouds Using FIRE-2-IFO Data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2000-01-01

Under the support of the NASA grant, we have developed a new geometric-optics model (GOM2) for the calculation of the single-scattering and polarization properties for arbitrarily oriented hexagonal ice crystals. From comparisons with the results computed by the finite difference time domain (FDTD) method, we show that the novel geometric-optics can be applied to the computation of the extinction cross section and single-scattering albedo for ice crystals with size parameters along the minimum dimension as small as approximately 6. We demonstrate that the present model converges to the conventional ray tracing method for large size parameters and produces single-scattering results close to those computed by the FDTD method for size parameters along the minimum dimension smaller than approximately 20. We demonstrate that neither the conventional geometric optics method nor the Lorenz-Mie theory can be used to approximate the scattering, absorption, and polarization features for hexagonal ice crystals with size parameters from approximately 5 to 20. On the satellite remote sensing algorithm development and validation, we have developed a numerical scheme to identify multilayer cirrus cloud systems using AVHRR data. We have applied this scheme to the satellite data collected over the FIRE-2-IFO area during nine overpasses within seven observation dates. Determination of the threshold values used in the detection scheme are based on statistical analyses of these satellite data.

Node fingerprinting: an efficient heuristic for aligning biological networks.

PubMed

Radu, Alex; Charleston, Michael

2014-10-01

With the continuing increase in availability of biological data and improvements to biological models, biological network analysis has become a promising area of research. An emerging technique for the analysis of biological networks is through network alignment. Network alignment has been used to calculate genetic distance, similarities between regulatory structures, and the effect of external forces on gene expression, and to depict conditional activity of expression modules in cancer. Network alignment is algorithmically complex, and therefore we must rely on heuristics, ideally as efficient and accurate as possible. The majority of current techniques for network alignment rely on precomputed information, such as with protein sequence alignment, or on tunable network alignment parameters, which may introduce an increased computational overhead. Our presented algorithm, which we call Node Fingerprinting (NF), is appropriate for performing global pairwise network alignment without precomputation or tuning, can be fully parallelized, and is able to quickly compute an accurate alignment between two biological networks. It has performed as well as or better than existing algorithms on biological and simulated data, and with fewer computational resources. The algorithmic validation performed demonstrates the low computational resource requirements of NF.

Non-equilibrium current via geometric scatterers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Exner, Pavel; Neidhardt, Hagen; Tater, Miloš; Zagrebnov, Valentin A.

2014-10-01

We investigate non-equilibrium particle transport in a system consisting of a geometric scatterer and two leads coupled to heat baths with different chemical potentials. We derive an expression for the corresponding current, the carriers of which are fermions, and analyze numerically its dependence on the model parameters in examples where the scatterer has a rectangular or triangular shape. Dedicated to the memory of Markus Büttiker (1950-2013).

Empirical Allometric Models to Estimate Total Needle Biomass For Loblolly Pine

Treesearch

Hector M. de los Santos-Posadas; Bruce E. Borders

2002-01-01

Empirical geometric models based on the cone surface formula were adapted and used to estimate total dry needle biomass (TNB) and live branch basal area (LBBA). The results suggest that the empirical geometric equations produced good fit and stable parameters while estimating TNB and LBBA. The data used include trees form a spacing study of 12 years old and a set of...

Geometry modeling of single track cladding deposited by high power diode laser with rectangular beam spot

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Huaming; Qin, Xunpeng; Huang, Song; Hu, Zeqi; Ni, Mao

2018-01-01

This paper presents an investigation on the relationship between the process parameters and geometrical characteristics of the sectional profile for the single track cladding (STC) deposited by High Power Diode Laser (HPDL) with rectangle beam spot (RBS). To obtain the geometry parameters, namely cladding width Wc and height Hc of the sectional profile, a full factorial design (FFD) of experiment was used to conduct the experiments with a total of 27. The pre-placed powder technique has been employed during laser cladding. The influence of the process parameters including laser power, powder thickness and scanning speed on the Wc and Hc was analyzed in detail. A nonlinear fitting model was used to fit the relationship between the process parameters and geometry parameters. And a circular arc was adopted to describe the geometry profile of the cross-section of STC. The above models were confirmed by all the experiments. The results indicated that the geometrical characteristics of the sectional profile of STC can be described as the circular arc, and the other geometry parameters of the sectional profile can be calculated only using Wc and Hc. Meanwhile, the Wc and Hc can be predicted through the process parameters.

Study on the impedance of aligned carbon microcoils embedded in silicone rubber matrix

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhu, Ya-Bo; Zhang, Lin; Guo, Li-Tong; Xiang, Dong-Hu

2010-12-01

This paper reports that carbon microcoils are grown through a chemical vapour deposit process, they are then embedded in silicone rubber, and manipulated to parallel with each other along their axes in the resulting composite. The impedance |Z| as well as phase angle θ of both the original carbon microcoil sheets and the aligned carbon microcoil/silicone rubber composites are measured. The results illustrate that carbon microcoils in different forms show different alternating current electric properties. The aligned carbon microcoils in the composites show stable parameters for f < 104 Hz but a sharp decrease in both |Z| and θ for frequencies > 104 Hz, which will also change as the carbon microcoils are extended. But, the original sheets have a pure resistance with their parameters stable throughout the entire alternating current frequency range investigated.

Critical Science Instrument Alignment of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) Integrated Science Instrument Module (ISIM)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rohrbach, Scott O.; Kubalak, David A.; Gracey, Renee M.; Sabatke, Derek S.; Howard, Joseph M.; Telfer, Randal C.; Zielinski, Thomas P.

2016-01-01

This paper describes the critical instrument alignment terms associated with the six-degree of freedom alignment of each the Science Instrument (SI) in the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), including focus, pupil shear, pupil clocking, and boresight. We present the test methods used during cryogenic-vacuum tests to directly measure the performance of each parameter, the requirements levied on each, and the impact of any violations of these requirements at the instrument and Observatory level.

Ranges of applicability for the continuum beam model in the mechanics of carbon nanotubes and nanorods

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Harik, V. M.

2001-01-01

Limitations in the validity of the continuum beam model for carbon nanotubes (NTs) and nanorods are examined. Applicability of all assumptions used in the model is restricted by the two criteria for geometric parameters that characterize the structure of NTs. The key non-dimensional parameters that control the NT buckling behavior are derived via dimensional analysis of the nanomechanical problem. A mechanical law of geometric similitude for NT buckling is extended from continuum mechanics for different molecular structures. A model applicability map, where two classes of beam-like NTs are identified, is constructed for distinct ranges of non-dimensional parameters. Expressions for the critical buckling loads and strains are tailored for two classes of NTs and compared with the data provided by the molecular dynamics simulations. copyright 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Beta-Geometric Model Applied to Fecundability in a Sample of Married Women

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Adekanmbi, D. B.; Bamiduro, T. A.

2006-10-01

The time required to achieve pregnancy among married couples termed fecundability has been proposed to follow a beta-geometric distribution. The accuracy of the method used in estimating the parameters of the model has an implication on the goodness of fit of the model. In this study, the parameters of the model are estimated using the Method of Moments and Newton-Raphson estimation procedure. The goodness of fit of the model was considered, using estimates from the two methods of estimation, as well as the asymptotic relative efficiency of the estimates. A noticeable improvement in the fit of the model to the data on time to conception was observed, when the parameters are estimated by Newton-Raphson procedure, and thereby estimating reasonable expectations of fecundability for married female population in the country.

Modeling the focusing efficiency of lobster-eye optics for image shifting depending on the soft x-ray wavelength.

PubMed

Su, Luning; Li, Wei; Wu, Mingxuan; Su, Yun; Guo, Chongling; Ruan, Ningjuan; Yang, Bingxin; Yan, Feng

2017-08-01

Lobster-eye optics is widely applied to space x-ray detection missions and x-ray security checks for its wide field of view and low weight. This paper presents a theoretical model to obtain spatial distribution of focusing efficiency based on lobster-eye optics in a soft x-ray wavelength. The calculations reveal the competition mechanism of contributions to the focusing efficiency between the geometrical parameters of lobster-eye optics and the reflectivity of the iridium film. In addition, the focusing efficiency image depending on x-ray wavelengths further explains the influence of different geometrical parameters of lobster-eye optics and different soft x-ray wavelengths on focusing efficiency. These results could be beneficial to optimize parameters of lobster-eye optics in order to realize maximum focusing efficiency.

Experimental investigation of a small solar chimney in the south of Algeria

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hadj, Achouri El; Noureddine, Settou; Mabrouk, Drid Momamed; Belkhir, Negrou; Soumia, Rahmouni

2018-05-01

The solar chimney power plant (SCPP) is an economical device for the production of solar electricity. Among the parameters influencing the efficiency of the solar chimney are the dimensions, namely: Height and diameter of the chimney and diameter and height of the collector. In order to give our contribution we have established a prototype of a solar chimney which allows us to take a real vision on the influence of the geometrical parameters on the air flow under the collector and next the production efficiency of the solar chimney in the south of Algeria. In this study, we take different values of the height and diameter of the tower and of the height of the collector entrance. The results obtained show the remarkable influence of the geometrical parameters on the flow velocity afterwards on the energy produced.

The fractal-multifractal method and temporal resolution: Application to precipitation and streamflow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Maskey, M.; Puente, C. E.; Sivakumar, B.

2017-12-01

In the past, we have established that the deterministic fractal-multifractal (FM) method is a promising geometric tool to analyze hydro-climatic variables, such as precipitation, river flow, and temperature. In this study, we address the issue of temporal resolution to advance the suitability and usefulness of the FM approach in hydro-climate. Specifically, we elucidate the evolution of FM geometric parameters as computed at different time scales ranging from a day to a month (30-day) in increments of a day. For this purpose, both rainfall and river discharge records at Sacramento, California gathered over a year are encoded at different time scales. The analysis reveals that: (a) the FM approach yields faithful encodings of both kinds of data sets at the resolutions considered with reasonably small errors; and (b) the "best" FM parameters ultimately converge when the resolution is increased, thus allowing visualizing both hydrologic attributes. By addressing the scalability of the geometric patterns, these results further advance the suitability of the FM approach.

Impulse propagation in the nocturnal boundary layer: analysis of the geometric component.

PubMed

Blom, Philip; Waxler, Roger

2012-05-01

On clear dry nights over flat land, a temperature inversion and stable nocturnal wind jet lead to an acoustic duct in the lowest few hundred meters of the atmosphere. An impulsive signal propagating in such a duct is received at long ranges from the source as an extended wave train consisting of a series of weakly dispersed distinct arrivals followed by a strongly dispersed low-frequency tail. The leading distinct arrivals have been previously shown to be well modeled by geometric acoustics. In this paper, the geometric acoustics approximation for the leading arrivals is investigated. Using the solutions of the eikonal and transport equations, travel times, amplitudes, and caustic structures of the distinct arrivals have been determined. The time delay between and relative amplitudes of the direct-refracted and single ground reflection arrivals have been investigated as parameters for an inversion scheme. A two parameter quadratic approximation to the effective sound speed profile has been fit and found to be in strong agreement with meteorological measurements from the time of propagation.

Theoretical study on the molecular structure and vibrational properties, NBO and HOMO-LUMO analysis of the POX3 (X = F, Cl, Br, I) series of molecules

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Galván, Jorge E.; Gil, Diego M.; Lanús, Hernán E.; Altabef, Aida Ben

2015-02-01

The fourth member of the series of compounds of the type POX3 with X = I was synthesized and characterized by infrared spectroscopy. The geometrical parameters and vibrational properties of POX3 (X = F, Cl, Br, I) molecules were investigated theoretically by means DFT and ab initio methods. Available geometrical and vibrational data were used together with theoretical calculations in order to obtain a set of scaled force constants. The observed trends in geometrical parameters are analyzed and compared with those obtained in a previous work for the VOX3 (X = F, Cl, Br, I) series of compounds. NBO analysis was performed in order to know the hyper-conjugative interactions that favor one structure over another. The molecular properties such as ionization potential, electron affinity, electronegativity, chemical potential, chemical hardness, softness and global electrophilicity index have been deduced from HOMO-LUMO analysis.

The Use of Video-Tacheometric Technology for Documenting and Analysing Geometric Features of Objects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Woźniak, Marek; Świerczyńska, Ewa; Jastrzębski, Sławomir

2015-12-01

This paper analyzes selected aspects of the use of video-tacheometric technology for inventorying and documenting geometric features of objects. Data was collected with the use of the video-tacheometer Topcon Image Station IS-3 and the professional camera Canon EOS 5D Mark II. During the field work and the development of data the following experiments have been performed: multiple determination of the camera interior orientation parameters and distortion parameters of five lenses with different focal lengths, reflectorless measurements of profiles for the elevation and inventory of decorative surface wall of the building of Warsaw Ballet School. During the research the process of acquiring and integrating video-tacheometric data was analysed as well as the process of combining "point cloud" acquired by using video-tacheometer in the scanning process with independent photographs taken by a digital camera. On the basis of tests performed, utility of the use of video-tacheometric technology in geodetic surveys of geometrical features of buildings has been established.

Method for Providing Semiconductors Having Self-Aligned Ion Implant

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Neudeck, Philip G. (Inventor)

2014-01-01

A method is disclosed that provides a self-aligned nitrogen-implant particularly suited for a Junction Field Effect Transistor (JFET) semiconductor device preferably comprised of a silicon carbide (SiC). This self-aligned nitrogen-implant allows for the realization of durable and stable electrical functionality of high temperature transistors such as JFETs. The method implements the self-aligned nitrogen-implant having predetermined dimensions, at a particular step in the fabrication process, so that the SiC junction field effect transistors are capable of being electrically operating continuously at 500.degree. C. for over 10,000 hours in an air ambient with less than a 10% change in operational transistor parameters.

Alignment of chirped-pulse compressor

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Yakovlev, I V

2012-11-30

An original method of alignment of grating compressors for ultrahigh-power CPA laser systems is proposed. The use of this method for adjustment of the grating compressor of a PEARL subpetawatt laser complex made it possible to align the diffraction gratings with a second accuracy in all three angular degrees of freedom, including alignment of the grooves, and to adjust the angles of beam incidence on the grating with a high accuracy. A simple method for measuring the difference in the groove densities of gratings with accuracy better than 0.005 lines mm{sup -1} is proposed and tested. (control of laser radiationmore » parameters)« less

Method for Providing Semiconductors Having Self-Aligned Ion Implant

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Neudeck, Philip G. (Inventor)

2011-01-01

A method is disclosed that provides a self-aligned nitrogen-implant particularly suited for a Junction Field Effect Transistor (JFET) semiconductor device preferably comprised of a silicon carbide (SiC). This self-aligned nitrogen-implant allows for the realization of durable and stable electrical functionality of high temperature transistors such as JFETs. The method implements the self-aligned nitrogen-implant having predetermined dimensions, at a particular step in the fabrication process, so that the SiC junction field effect transistors are capable of being electrically operating continuously at 500.degree. C. for over 10,000 hours in an air ambient with less than a 10% change in operational transistor parameters.

Spectral statistics of random geometric graphs

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dettmann, C. P.; Georgiou, O.; Knight, G.

2017-04-01

We use random matrix theory to study the spectrum of random geometric graphs, a fundamental model of spatial networks. Considering ensembles of random geometric graphs we look at short-range correlations in the level spacings of the spectrum via the nearest-neighbour and next-nearest-neighbour spacing distribution and long-range correlations via the spectral rigidity Δ3 statistic. These correlations in the level spacings give information about localisation of eigenvectors, level of community structure and the level of randomness within the networks. We find a parameter-dependent transition between Poisson and Gaussian orthogonal ensemble statistics. That is the spectral statistics of spatial random geometric graphs fits the universality of random matrix theory found in other models such as Erdős-Rényi, Barabási-Albert and Watts-Strogatz random graphs.

Optical rectification using geometrical field enhancement in gold nano-arrays

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Piltan, S.; Sievenpiper, D.

2017-11-01

Conversion of photons to electrical energy has a wide variety of applications including imaging, solar energy harvesting, and IR detection. A rectenna device consists of an antenna in addition to a rectifying element to absorb the incident radiation within a certain frequency range. We designed, fabricated, and measured an optical rectifier taking advantage of asymmetrical field enhancement for forward and reverse currents due to geometrical constraints. The gold nano-structures as well as the geometrical parameters offer enhanced light-matter interaction at 382 THz. Using the Taylor expansion of the time-dependent current as a function of the external bias and oscillating optical excitation, we obtained responsivities close to quantum limit of operation. This geometrical approach can offer an efficient, broadband, and scalable solution for energy conversion and detection in the future.

Langlands Parameters of Quivers in the Sato Grassmannian

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Luu, Martin T.; Penciak, Matej

2018-01-01

Motivated by quantum field theoretic partition functions that can be expressed as products of tau functions of the KP hierarchy we attach several types of local geometric Langlands parameters to quivers in the Sato Grassmannian. We study related questions of Virasoro constraints, of moduli spaces of relevant quivers, and of classical limits of the Langlands parameters.

Accuracy of binary black hole waveform models for aligned-spin binaries

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kumar, Prayush; Chu, Tony; Fong, Heather; Pfeiffer, Harald P.; Boyle, Michael; Hemberger, Daniel A.; Kidder, Lawrence E.; Scheel, Mark A.; Szilagyi, Bela

2016-05-01

Coalescing binary black holes are among the primary science targets for second generation ground-based gravitational wave detectors. Reliable gravitational waveform models are central to detection of such systems and subsequent parameter estimation. This paper performs a comprehensive analysis of the accuracy of recent waveform models for binary black holes with aligned spins, utilizing a new set of 84 high-accuracy numerical relativity simulations. Our analysis covers comparable mass binaries (mass-ratio 1 ≤q ≤3 ), and samples independently both black hole spins up to a dimensionless spin magnitude of 0.9 for equal-mass binaries and 0.85 for unequal mass binaries. Furthermore, we focus on the high-mass regime (total mass ≳50 M⊙ ). The two most recent waveform models considered (PhenomD and SEOBNRv2) both perform very well for signal detection, losing less than 0.5% of the recoverable signal-to-noise ratio ρ , except that SEOBNRv2's efficiency drops slightly for both black hole spins aligned at large magnitude. For parameter estimation, modeling inaccuracies of the SEOBNRv2 model are found to be smaller than systematic uncertainties for moderately strong GW events up to roughly ρ ≲15 . PhenomD's modeling errors are found to be smaller than SEOBNRv2's, and are generally irrelevant for ρ ≲20 . Both models' accuracy deteriorates with increased mass ratio, and when at least one black hole spin is large and aligned. The SEOBNRv2 model shows a pronounced disagreement with the numerical relativity simulation in the merger phase, for unequal masses and simultaneously both black hole spins very large and aligned. Two older waveform models (PhenomC and SEOBNRv1) are found to be distinctly less accurate than the more recent PhenomD and SEOBNRv2 models. Finally, we quantify the bias expected from all four waveform models during parameter estimation for several recovered binary parameters: chirp mass, mass ratio, and effective spin.

Research issues of geometry-based visual languages and some solutions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Green, Thorn G.

This dissertation addresses the problem of how to design visual language systems that are based upon Geometric Algebra, and provide a visual coupling of algebraic expressions and geometric depictions. This coupling of algebraic expressions and geometric depictions provides a new means for expressing both mathematical and geometric relationships present in mathematics, physics, and Computer-Aided Geometric Design (CAGD). Another significant feature of such a system is that the result of changing a parameter (by dragging the mouse) can be seen immediately in the depiction(s) of all expressions that use that parameter. This greatly aides the cognition of the relationships between variables. Systems for representing such a coupling of algebra and geometry have characteristics of both visual language systems, and systems for scientific visualization. Instead of using a parsing or dataflow paradigm for the visual language representation, the systems instead represent equations as manipulatible constrained diagrams for their visualization. This requires that the design of such a system have (but is not limited to) a means for parsing equations entered by the user, a scheme for producing a visual representation of these equations; techniques for maintaining the coupling between the expressions entered and the diagrams displayed; algorithms for maintaining the consistency of the diagrams; and, indexing capabilities that are efficient enough to allow diagrams to be created, and manipulated in a short enough period of time. The author proposes solutions for how such a design can be realized.

Hybrid Geometric Calibration Method for Multi-Platform Spaceborne SAR Image with Sparse Gcps

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lv, G.; Tang, X.; Ai, B.; Li, T.; Chen, Q.

2018-04-01

Geometric calibration is able to provide high-accuracy geometric coordinates of spaceborne SAR image through accurate geometric parameters in the Range-Doppler model by ground control points (GCPs). However, it is very difficult to obtain GCPs that covering large-scale areas, especially in the mountainous regions. In addition, the traditional calibration method is only used for single platform SAR images and can't support the hybrid geometric calibration for multi-platform images. To solve the above problems, a hybrid geometric calibration method for multi-platform spaceborne SAR images with sparse GCPs is proposed in this paper. First, we calibrate the master image that contains GCPs. Secondly, the point tracking algorithm is used to obtain the tie points (TPs) between the master and slave images. Finally, we calibrate the slave images using TPs as the GCPs. We take the Beijing-Tianjin- Hebei region as an example to study SAR image hybrid geometric calibration method using 3 TerraSAR-X images, 3 TanDEM-X images and 5 GF-3 images covering more than 235 kilometers in the north-south direction. Geometric calibration of all images is completed using only 5 GCPs. The GPS data extracted from GNSS receiver are used to assess the plane accuracy after calibration. The results after geometric calibration with sparse GCPs show that the geometric positioning accuracy is 3 m for TSX/TDX images and 7.5 m for GF-3 images.

Effect of particle Alignment on mechanical properties of neat cellulose nanocrystal films

Treesearch

Alexander B. Reising; Robert J. Moon; Jeffrey P. Youngblood

2012-01-01

Shear-based film casting methods were used to cast neat films from wood-based cellulose nanocrystal (CNC) suspensions. The degree of CNC alignment in dried films was characterized using the Hermans order parameter (S), and the film elastic modulus (E), ultimate tensile strength (σf ), elongation at failure (εf...

Alignment limit of the NMSSM Higgs sector

DOE PAGES

Carena, Marcela; Haber, Howard E.; Low, Ian; ...

2016-02-17

The Next-to-Minimal Supersymmetric extension of the Standard Model (NMSSM) with a Higgs boson of mass 125 GeV can be compatible with stop masses of order of the electroweak scale, thereby reducing the degree of fine-tuning necessary to achieve electroweak symmetry breaking. Moreover, in an attractive region of the NMSSM parameter space, corresponding to the \\alignment limit" in which one of the neutral Higgs fields lies approximately in the same direction in field space as the doublet Higgs vacuum expectation value, the observed Higgs boson is predicted to have Standard- Model-like properties. We derive analytical expressions for the alignment conditions andmore » show that they point toward a more natural region of parameter space for electroweak symmetry breaking, while allowing for perturbativity of the theory up to the Planck scale. Additionally, the alignment limit in the NMSSM leads to a well defined spectrum in the Higgs and Higgsino sectors, and yields a rich and interesting Higgs boson phenomenology that can be tested at the LHC. Here, we discuss the most promising channels for discovery and present several benchmark points for further study.« less

Geometrical Calibration of the Photo-Spectral System and Digital Maps Retrieval

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bruchkouskaya, S.; Skachkova, A.; Katkovski, L.; Martinov, A.

2013-12-01

Imaging systems for remote sensing of the Earth are required to demonstrate high metric accuracy of the picture which can be provided through preliminary geometrical calibration of optical systems. Being defined as a result of the geometrical calibration, parameters of internal and external orientation of the cameras are needed while solving such problems of image processing, as orthotransformation, geometrical correction, geographical coordinate fixing, scale adjustment and image registration from various channels and cameras, creation of image mosaics of filmed territories, and determination of geometrical characteristics of objects in the images. The geometrical calibration also helps to eliminate image deformations arising due to manufacturing defects and errors in installation of camera elements and photo receiving matrices as well as those resulted from lens distortions. A Photo-Spectral System (PhSS), which is intended for registering reflected radiation spectra of underlying surfaces in a wavelength range from 350 nm to 1050 nm and recording images of high spatial resolution, has been developed at the A.N. Sevchenko Research Institute of Applied Physical Problems of the Belarusian State University. The PhSS has undergone flight tests over the territory of Belarus onboard the Antonov AN-2 aircraft with the aim to obtain visible range images of the underlying surface. Then we performed the geometrical calibration of the PhSS and carried out the correction of images obtained during the flight tests. Furthermore, we have plotted digital maps of the terrain using the stereo pairs of images acquired from the PhSS and evaluated the accuracy of the created maps. Having obtained the calibration parameters, we apply them for correction of the images from another identical PhSS device, which is located at the Russian Orbital Segment of the International Space Station (ROS ISS), aiming to retrieve digital maps of the terrain with higher accuracy.

The dependence of the strength and thickness of field-aligned currents on solar wind and ionospheric parameters

PubMed Central

Johnson, Jay R.; Wing, Simon

2017-01-01

Sheared plasma flows at the low-latitude boundary layer (LLBL) correlate well with early afternoon auroral arcs and upward field-aligned currents. We present a simple analytic model that relates solar wind and ionospheric parameters to the strength and thickness of field-aligned currents (Λ) in a region of sheared velocity, such as the LLBL. We compare the predictions of the model with DMSP observations and find remarkably good scaling of the upward region 1 currents with solar wind and ionospheric parameters in region located at the boundary layer or open field lines at 1100–1700 magnetic local time. We demonstrate that Λ~nsw−0.5 and Λ ~ L when Λ/L < 5 where L is the auroral electrostatic scale length. The sheared boundary layer thickness (Δm) is inferred to be around 3000 km, which appears to have weak dependence on Vsw. J‖ has dependencies on Δm, Σp, nsw, and Vsw. The analytic model provides a simple way to organize data and to infer boundary layer structures from ionospheric data. PMID:29057194

The sagittal stem alignment and the stem version clearly influence the impingement-free range of motion in total hip arthroplasty: a computer model-based analysis.

PubMed

Müller, Michael; Duda, Georg; Perka, Carsten; Tohtz, Stephan

2016-03-01

The component alignment in total hip arthroplasty influences the impingement-free range of motion (ROM). While substantiated data is available for the cup positioning, little is known about the stem alignment. Especially stem rotation and the sagittal alignment influence the position of the cone in relation to the edge of the socket and thus the impingement-free functioning. Hence, the question arises as to what influence do these parameters have on the impingement-free ROM? With the help of a computer model the influence of the sagittal stem alignment and rotation on the impingement-free ROM were investigated. The computer model was based on the CT dataset of a patient with a non-cemented THA. In the model the stem version was set at 10°/0°/-10° and the sagittal alignment at 5°/0°/-5°, which resulted in nine alternative stem positions. For each position, the maximum impingement-free ROM was investigated. Both stem version and sagittal stem alignment have a relevant influence on the impingement-free ROM. In particular, flexion and extension as well as internal and external rotation capability present evident differences. In the position intervals of 10° sagittal stem alignment and 20° stem version a difference was found of about 80° in the flexion and 50° in the extension capability. Likewise, differences were evidenced of up to 72° in the internal and up to 36° in the external rotation. The sagittal stem alignment and the stem torsion have a relevant influence on the impingement-free ROM. To clarify the causes of an impingement or accompanying problems, both parameters should be examined and, if possible, a combined assessment of these factors should be made.

Geometrical feature of the scaling behavior of the limit-point pressure of inflated hyperelastic membranes.

PubMed

Tamadapu, Ganesh; Dhavale, Nikhil Nandkumar; DasGupta, Anirvan

2013-11-01

The occurrence of the limit-point instability is an intriguing phenomenon observed during stretching of hyperelastic membranes. In toy rubber balloons, this phenomenon may be experienced in the sudden reduction in the level of difficulty of blowing the balloon accompanied by its rapid inflation. The present paper brings out a link between the geometry and strain-hardening parameter of the membrane, and the occurrence of the limit-point instability. Inflation of membranes with different geometries and boundary conditions is considered, and the corresponding limit-point pressures are obtained for different strain-hardening parameter values. Interestingly, it is observed that the limit-point pressure for the different geometries is inversely proportional to a geometric parameter of the uninflated membrane. This dependence is shown analytically, which can be extended to a general membrane geometry. More surprisingly, the proportionality constant has a power-law dependence on the nondimensional material strain-hardening parameter. The constants involved in the power-law relation are universal constants for a particular membrane geometry.

Uncertainty in temperature-based determination of time of death

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Weiser, Martin; Erdmann, Bodo; Schenkl, Sebastian; Muggenthaler, Holger; Hubig, Michael; Mall, Gita; Zachow, Stefan

2018-03-01

Temperature-based estimation of time of death (ToD) can be performed either with the help of simple phenomenological models of corpse cooling or with detailed mechanistic (thermodynamic) heat transfer models. The latter are much more complex, but allow a higher accuracy of ToD estimation as in principle all relevant cooling mechanisms can be taken into account. The potentially higher accuracy depends on the accuracy of tissue and environmental parameters as well as on the geometric resolution. We investigate the impact of parameter variations and geometry representation on the estimated ToD. For this, numerical simulation of analytic heat transport models is performed on a highly detailed 3D corpse model, that has been segmented and geometrically reconstructed from a computed tomography (CT) data set, differentiating various organs and tissue types. From that and prior information available on thermal parameters and their variability, we identify the most crucial parameters to measure or estimate, and obtain an a priori uncertainty quantification for the ToD.

Model of the vertical structure of the optical parameters of the Neptune atmosphere.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Morozhenko, A. V.

Analyzes the wavelength dependence of the geometric albedo of Neptune's disk and estimates some parameters of the planet's atmosphere by the method based on the determination of deviations of the vertical structure of the cloud layer from the homogeneity condition. The ratio between the methane and gas scale heights is found to be about 0.4. For the upper atmosphere, components of methane, aerosol, the mean geometric radius of particles, the turbulent mixing coefficient are determined. Two solutions were found for deeper atmospheric layers. The first one suggests a rather dense cloud; in the second solution the lower cloud layer is an extension of the upper aerosol layer.

In-Flight Alignment Using H ∞ Filter for Strapdown INS on Aircraft

PubMed Central

Pei, Fu-Jun; Liu, Xuan; Zhu, Li

2014-01-01

In-flight alignment is an effective way to improve the accuracy and speed of initial alignment for strapdown inertial navigation system (INS). During the aircraft flight, strapdown INS alignment was disturbed by lineal and angular movements of the aircraft. To deal with the disturbances in dynamic initial alignment, a novel alignment method for SINS is investigated in this paper. In this method, an initial alignment error model of SINS in the inertial frame is established. The observability of the system is discussed by piece-wise constant system (PWCS) theory and observable degree is computed by the singular value decomposition (SVD) theory. It is demonstrated that the system is completely observable, and all the system state parameters can be estimated by optimal filter. Then a H ∞ filter was designed to resolve the uncertainty of measurement noise. The simulation results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm can reach a better accuracy under the dynamic disturbance condition. PMID:24511300

A Probabilistic Model of Local Sequence Alignment That Simplifies Statistical Significance Estimation

PubMed Central

Eddy, Sean R.

2008-01-01

Sequence database searches require accurate estimation of the statistical significance of scores. Optimal local sequence alignment scores follow Gumbel distributions, but determining an important parameter of the distribution (λ) requires time-consuming computational simulation. Moreover, optimal alignment scores are less powerful than probabilistic scores that integrate over alignment uncertainty (“Forward” scores), but the expected distribution of Forward scores remains unknown. Here, I conjecture that both expected score distributions have simple, predictable forms when full probabilistic modeling methods are used. For a probabilistic model of local sequence alignment, optimal alignment bit scores (“Viterbi” scores) are Gumbel-distributed with constant λ = log 2, and the high scoring tail of Forward scores is exponential with the same constant λ. Simulation studies support these conjectures over a wide range of profile/sequence comparisons, using 9,318 profile-hidden Markov models from the Pfam database. This enables efficient and accurate determination of expectation values (E-values) for both Viterbi and Forward scores for probabilistic local alignments. PMID:18516236

Track Geometry Development : UMTA Urban Rail Supporting Technology Program

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1974-04-01

Measurement of transit system track geometry parameters, under normal operating conditions, is essential for planning and conducting an effective maintenance program. The pertinent parameters are profile, gage, alignment, and cross level. Present met...

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kumar, Sumit; Srivastava, Subodh; Agrawal, Shweta

The composite membranes of multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) and polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) were prepared by solution cast method. The MWCNT was dispersing a very low concentration (0.1 wt %) in PMMA matrix. Alignment of MWCNT in PMMA matrix has been performed by inducing a DC electric field at different voltage parameter varying from 350 V/cm to 1250 V/cm. The MWCNT/PMMA composites were characterized by gas permeation and electrical measurement before and after electric field alignment. The effect of electric field alignment has been studied on gas permeation measurements for gas purification applications. These measurements indicate the enhancement in gas permeability duemore » to the aligned of MWCNT in PMMA matix as compare to randomly dispersed MWCNT. I-V characteristics measurement also indicates that aligned MWCNT/PMMA composite membrane exhibits electron tunneling conductivity.« less

Improving left ventricular segmentation in four-dimensional flow MRI using intramodality image registration for cardiac blood flow analysis.

PubMed

Gupta, Vikas; Bustamante, Mariana; Fredriksson, Alexandru; Carlhäll, Carl-Johan; Ebbers, Tino

2018-01-01

Assessment of blood flow in the left ventricle using four-dimensional flow MRI requires accurate left ventricle segmentation that is often hampered by the low contrast between blood and the myocardium. The purpose of this work is to improve left-ventricular segmentation in four-dimensional flow MRI for reliable blood flow analysis. The left ventricle segmentations are first obtained using morphological cine-MRI with better in-plane resolution and contrast, and then aligned to four-dimensional flow MRI data. This alignment is, however, not trivial due to inter-slice misalignment errors caused by patient motion and respiratory drift during breath-hold based cine-MRI acquisition. A robust image registration based framework is proposed to mitigate such errors automatically. Data from 20 subjects, including healthy volunteers and patients, was used to evaluate its geometric accuracy and impact on blood flow analysis. High spatial correspondence was observed between manually and automatically aligned segmentations, and the improvements in alignment compared to uncorrected segmentations were significant (P < 0.01). Blood flow analysis from manual and automatically corrected segmentations did not differ significantly (P > 0.05). Our results demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed approach in improving left-ventricular segmentation in four-dimensional flow MRI, and its potential for reliable blood flow analysis. Magn Reson Med 79:554-560, 2018. © 2017 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine. © 2017 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.

Non-line-of-sight ultraviolet link loss in noncoplanar geometry.

PubMed

Wang, Leijie; Xu, Zhengyuan; Sadler, Brian M

2010-04-15

Various path loss models have been developed for solar blind non-line-of-sight UV communication links under an assumption of coplanar source beam axis and receiver pointing direction. This work further extends an existing single-scattering coplanar analytical model to noncoplanar geometry. The model is derived as a function of geometric parameters and atmospheric characteristics. Its behavior is numerically studied in different noncoplanar geometric settings.

Self-Assembly of Human Serum Albumin: A Simplex Phenomenon

PubMed Central

Thakur, Garima; Prashanthi, Kovur; Jiang, Keren; Thundat, Thomas

2017-01-01

Spontaneous self-assemblies of biomolecules can generate geometrical patterns. Our findings provide an insight into the mechanism of self-assembled ring pattern generation by human serum albumin (HSA). The self-assembly is a process guided by kinetic and thermodynamic parameters. The generated protein ring patterns display a behavior which is geometrically related to a n-simplex model and is explained through thermodynamics and chemical kinetics. PMID:28930179

Reflective all-sky thermal infrared cloud imager.

PubMed

Redman, Brian J; Shaw, Joseph A; Nugent, Paul W; Clark, R Trevor; Piazzolla, Sabino

2018-04-30

A reflective all-sky imaging system has been built using a long-wave infrared microbolometer camera and a reflective metal sphere. This compact system was developed for measuring spatial and temporal patterns of clouds and their optical depth in support of applications including Earth-space optical communications. The camera is mounted to the side of the reflective sphere to leave the zenith sky unobstructed. The resulting geometric distortion is removed through an angular map derived from a combination of checkerboard-target imaging, geometric ray tracing, and sun-location-based alignment. A tape of high-emissivity material on the side of the reflector acts as a reference that is used to estimate and remove thermal emission from the metal sphere. Once a bias that is under continuing study was removed, sky radiance measurements from the all-sky imager in the 8-14 μm wavelength range agreed to within 0.91 W/(m 2 sr) of measurements from a previously calibrated, lens-based infrared cloud imager over its 110° field of view.

The Principal Components of Adult Female Insole Shape Align Closely with Two of Its Classic Indicators.

PubMed

Bookstein, Fred L; Domjanic, Jacqueline

2015-01-01

The plantar surface of the human foot transmits the weight and dynamic force of the owner's lower limbs to the ground and the reaction forces back to the musculoskeletal system. Its anatomical variation is intensely studied in such fields as sports medicine and orthopedic dysmorphology. Yet, strangely, the shape of the insole that accommodates this surface and elastically buffers these forces is neither an aspect of the conventional anthropometrics of feet nor an informative label on the packet that markets supplementary insoles. In this paper we pursue an earlier suggestion that insole form in vertical view be quantified in terms of the shape of the foot not at the plane of support (the "footprint") but some two millimeters above that level. Using such sections extracted from laser scans of 158 feet of adult women from the University of Zagreb, in conjunction with an appropriate modification of today's standard geometric morphometrics (GMM), we find that the sectioned form can be described by its size together with two meaningful relative warps of shape. The pattern of this shape variation is not novel. It is closely aligned with two of the standard footprint measurements, the Chippaux-Šmiřák arch index and the Clarke arch angle, whose geometrical foci (the former in the ball of the foot, the latter in the arch) it apparently combines. Thus a strong contemporary analysis complements but does not supplant the simpler anthropometric analyses of half a century ago, with implications for applied anthropology.

The Principal Components of Adult Female Insole Shape Align Closely with Two of Its Classic Indicators

PubMed Central

Bookstein, Fred L.; Domjanic, Jacqueline

2015-01-01

The plantar surface of the human foot transmits the weight and dynamic force of the owner’s lower limbs to the ground and the reaction forces back to the musculoskeletal system. Its anatomical variation is intensely studied in such fields as sports medicine and orthopedic dysmorphology. Yet, strangely, the shape of the insole that accommodates this surface and elastically buffers these forces is neither an aspect of the conventional anthropometrics of feet nor an informative label on the packet that markets supplementary insoles. In this paper we pursue an earlier suggestion that insole form in vertical view be quantified in terms of the shape of the foot not at the plane of support (the “footprint”) but some two millimeters above that level. Using such sections extracted from laser scans of 158 feet of adult women from the University of Zagreb, in conjunction with an appropriate modification of today’s standard geometric morphometrics (GMM), we find that the sectioned form can be described by its size together with two meaningful relative warps of shape. The pattern of this shape variation is not novel. It is closely aligned with two of the standard footprint measurements, the Chippaux-Šmiřák arch index and the Clarke arch angle, whose geometrical foci (the former in the ball of the foot, the latter in the arch) it apparently combines. Thus a strong contemporary analysis complements but does not supplant the simpler anthropometric analyses of half a century ago, with implications for applied anthropology. PMID:26308442

GuiTope: an application for mapping random-sequence peptides to protein sequences.

PubMed

Halperin, Rebecca F; Stafford, Phillip; Emery, Jack S; Navalkar, Krupa Arun; Johnston, Stephen Albert

2012-01-03

Random-sequence peptide libraries are a commonly used tool to identify novel ligands for binding antibodies, other proteins, and small molecules. It is often of interest to compare the selected peptide sequences to the natural protein binding partners to infer the exact binding site or the importance of particular residues. The ability to search a set of sequences for similarity to a set of peptides may sometimes enable the prediction of an antibody epitope or a novel binding partner. We have developed a software application designed specifically for this task. GuiTope provides a graphical user interface for aligning peptide sequences to protein sequences. All alignment parameters are accessible to the user including the ability to specify the amino acid frequency in the peptide library; these frequencies often differ significantly from those assumed by popular alignment programs. It also includes a novel feature to align di-peptide inversions, which we have found improves the accuracy of antibody epitope prediction from peptide microarray data and shows utility in analyzing phage display datasets. Finally, GuiTope can randomly select peptides from a given library to estimate a null distribution of scores and calculate statistical significance. GuiTope provides a convenient method for comparing selected peptide sequences to protein sequences, including flexible alignment parameters, novel alignment features, ability to search a database, and statistical significance of results. The software is available as an executable (for PC) at http://www.immunosignature.com/software and ongoing updates and source code will be available at sourceforge.net.

'Compromise position' image alignment to accommodate independent motion of multiple clinical target volumes during radiotherapy: A high risk prostate cancer example.

PubMed

Rosewall, Tara; Yan, Jing; Alasti, Hamideh; Cerase, Carla; Bayley, Andrew

2017-04-01

Inclusion of multiple independently moving clinical target volumes (CTVs) in the irradiated volume causes an image guidance conundrum. The purpose of this research was to use high risk prostate cancer as a clinical example to evaluate a 'compromise' image alignment strategy. The daily pre-treatment orthogonal EPI for 14 consecutive patients were included in this analysis. Image matching was performed by aligning to the prostate only, the bony pelvis only and using the 'compromise' strategy. Residual CTV surrogate displacements were quantified for each of the alignment strategies. Analysis of the 388 daily fractions indicated surrogate displacements were well-correlated in all directions (r 2  = 0.95 (LR), 0.67 (AP) and 0.59 (SI). Differences between the surrogates displacements (95% range) were -0.4 to 1.8 mm (LR), -1.2 to 5.2 mm (SI) and -1.2 to 5.2 mm (AP). The distribution of the residual displacements was significantly smaller using the 'compromise' strategy, compared to the other strategies (p 0.005). The 'compromise' strategy ensured the CTV was encompassed by the PTV in all fractions, compared to 47 PTV violations when aligned to prostate only. This study demonstrated the feasibility of a compromise position image guidance strategy to accommodate simultaneous displacements of two independently moving CTVs. Application of this strategy was facilitated by correlation between the CTV displacements and resulted in no geometric excursions of the CTVs beyond standard sized PTVs. This simple image guidance strategy may also be applicable to other disease sites that concurrently irradiate multiple CTVs, such as head and neck, lung and cervix cancer. © 2016 The Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Radiologists.

Improving Robotic Operator Performance Using Augmented Reality

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Maida, James C.; Bowen, Charles K.; Pace, John W.

2007-01-01

The Special Purpose Dexterous Manipulator (SPDM) is a two-armed robot that functions as an extension to the end effector of the Space Station Robotics Manipulator System (SSRMS), currently in use on the International Space Station (ISS). Crew training for the SPDM is accomplished using a robotic hardware simulator, which performs most of SPDM functions under normal static Earth gravitational forces. Both the simulator and SPDM are controlled from a standard robotic workstation using a laptop for the user interface and three monitors for camera views. Most operations anticipated for the SPDM involve the manipulation, insertion, and removal of any of several types of Orbital Replaceable Unit (ORU), modules which control various ISS functions. Alignment tolerances for insertion of the ORU into its receptacle are 0.25 inch and 0.5 degree from nominal values. The pre-insertion alignment task must be performed within these tolerances by using available video camera views of the intrinsic features of the ORU and receptacle, without special registration markings. Since optimum camera views may not be available, and dynamic orbital lighting conditions may limit periods of viewing, a successful ORU insertion operation may require an extended period of time. This study explored the feasibility of using augmented reality (AR) to assist SPDM operations. Geometric graphical symbols were overlaid on one of the workstation monitors to afford cues to assist the operator in attaining adequate pre-insertion ORU alignment. Twelve skilled subjects performed eight ORU insertion tasks using the simulator with and without the AR symbols in a repeated measures experimental design. Results indicated that using the AR symbols reduced pre-insertion alignment error for all subjects and reduced the time to complete pre-insertion alignment for most subjects.

Molecular engineering of lanthanide ion chelating phospholipids generating assemblies with a switched magnetic susceptibility.

PubMed

Isabettini, Stéphane; Massabni, Sarah; Hodzic, Arnel; Durovic, Dzana; Kohlbrecher, Joachim; Ishikawa, Takashi; Fischer, Peter; Windhab, Erich J; Walde, Peter; Kuster, Simon

2017-08-09

Lanthanide ion (Ln 3+ ) chelating amphiphiles are powerful molecules for tailoring the magnetic response of polymolecular assemblies. Mixtures of 1,2-dimyristoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DMPC) and 1,2-dimyristoyl-sn-glycero-3-phospho-ethanolamine-diethylene triaminepentaacetate (DMPE-DTPA) complexed to Ln 3+ deliver highly magnetically responsive bicelles. Their magnetic properties are readily tuned by changing the bicellar size or the magnetic susceptibility Δχ of the bilayer lipids. The former technique is intrinsically bound to the region of the phase diagram guarantying the formation of bicelles. Methods aiming towards manipulating the Δχ of the bilayer are comparatively more robust, flexible and lacking. Herein, we synthesized a new Ln 3+ chelating phospholipid using glutamic acid as a backbone: DMPE-Glu-DTPA. The chelate polyhedron was specifically engineered to alter the Δχ, whilst remaining geometrically similar to DMPE-DTPA. Planar asymmetric assemblies hundreds of nanometers in size were achieved presenting unprecedented magnetic alignments. The DMPE-Glu-DTPA/Ln 3+ complex switched the Δχ, achieving perpendicular alignment of assemblies containing Dy 3+ and parallel alignment of those containing Tm 3+ . Moreover, samples with chelated Yb 3+ were more alignable than the Tm 3+ chelating counterparts. Such a possibility has never been demonstrated for planar Ln 3+ chelating polymolecular assemblies. The physico-chemical properties of these novel assemblies were further studied by monitoring the alignment behavior at different temperatures and by including 16 mol% of cholesterol (Chol-OH) in the phospholipid bilayer. The DMPE-Glu-DTPA/Ln 3+ complex and the resulting assemblies are promising candidates for applications in numerous fields including pharmaceutical technologies, structural characterization of membrane biomolecules by NMR spectroscopy, as contrasting agents for magnetic resonance imaging, and for the development of smart optical gels.

Analysis of Knee Joint Line Obliquity after High Tibial Osteotomy.

PubMed

Oh, Kwang-Jun; Ko, Young Bong; Bae, Ji Hoon; Yoon, Suk Tae; Kim, Jae Gyoon

2016-11-01

The aim of this study was to evaluate which lower extremity alignment (knee and ankle joint) parameters affect knee joint line obliquity (KJLO) in the coronal plane after open wedge high tibial osteotomy (OWHTO). Overall, 69 knees of patients that underwent OWHTO were evaluated using radiographs obtained preoperatively and from 6 weeks to 3 months postoperatively. We measured multiple parameters of knee and ankle joint alignment (hip-knee-ankle angle [HKA], joint line height [JLH], posterior tibial slope [PS], femoral condyle-tibial plateau angle [FCTP], medial proximal tibial angle [MPTA], mechanical lateral distal femoral angle [mLDFA], KJLO, talar tilt angle [TTA], ankle joint obliquity [AJO], and the lateral distal tibial ground surface angle [LDTGA]; preoperative [-pre], postoperative [-post], and the difference between -pre and -post values [-Δ]). We categorized patients into two groups according to the KJLO-post value (the normal group [within ± 4 degrees, 56 knees] and the abnormal group [greater than ± 4 degrees, 13 knees]), and compared their -pre parameters. Multiple logistic regression analysis was used to examine the contribution of the -pre parameters to abnormal KJLO-post. The mean HKA-Δ (-9.4 ± 4.7 degrees) was larger than the mean KJLO-Δ (-2.1 ± 3.2 degrees). The knee joint alignment parameters (the HKA-pre, FCTP-pre) differed significantly between the two groups ( p  < 0.05). In addition, the HKA-pre (odds ratio [OR] = 1.27, p  = 0.006) and FCTP-pre (OR = 2.13, p  = 0.006) were significant predictors of abnormal KJLO-post. However, -pre ankle joint parameters (TTA, AJO, and LDTGA) did not differ significantly between the two groups and were not significantly associated with the abnormal KJLO-post. The -pre knee joint alignment and knee joint convergence angle evaluated by HKA-pre and FCTP-pre angle, respectively, were significant predictors of abnormal KJLO after OWHTO. However, -pre ankle joint parameters were not significantly associated with abnormal KJLO after OWHTO. Thieme Medical Publishers 333 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10001, USA.

Estimation of soil saturated hydraulic conductivity by artificial neural networks ensemble in smectitic soils

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sedaghat, A.; Bayat, H.; Safari Sinegani, A. A.

2016-03-01

The saturated hydraulic conductivity ( K s ) of the soil is one of the main soil physical properties. Indirect estimation of this parameter using pedo-transfer functions (PTFs) has received considerable attention. The Purpose of this study was to improve the estimation of K s using fractal parameters of particle and micro-aggregate size distributions in smectitic soils. In this study 260 disturbed and undisturbed soil samples were collected from Guilan province, the north of Iran. The fractal model of Bird and Perrier was used to compute the fractal parameters of particle and micro-aggregate size distributions. The PTFs were developed by artificial neural networks (ANNs) ensemble to estimate K s by using available soil data and fractal parameters. There were found significant correlations between K s and fractal parameters of particles and microaggregates. Estimation of K s was improved significantly by using fractal parameters of soil micro-aggregates as predictors. But using geometric mean and geometric standard deviation of particles diameter did not improve K s estimations significantly. Using fractal parameters of particles and micro-aggregates simultaneously, had the most effect in the estimation of K s . Generally, fractal parameters can be successfully used as input parameters to improve the estimation of K s in the PTFs in smectitic soils. As a result, ANNs ensemble successfully correlated the fractal parameters of particles and micro-aggregates to K s .

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Makhnovskii, Yurii A.; Berezhkovskii, Alexander M.; Antipov, Anatoly E.

This paper is devoted to particle transport in a tube formed by alternating wide and narrow sections, in the presence of an external biasing force. The focus is on the effective transport coefficients—mobility and diffusivity, as functions of the biasing force and the geometric parameters of the tube. Dependences of the effective mobility and diffusivity on the tube geometric parameters are known in the limiting cases of no bias and strong bias. The approximations used to obtain these results are inapplicable at intermediate values of the biasing force. To bridge the two limits Brownian dynamics simulations were run to determinemore » the transport coefficients at intermediate values of the force. The simulations were performed for a representative set of tube geometries over a wide range of the biasing force. They revealed that there is a range of the narrow section length, where the force dependence of the mobility has a maximum. In contrast, the diffusivity is a monotonically increasing function of the force. A simple formula is proposed, which reduces to the known dependences of the diffusivity on the tube geometric parameters in both limits of zero and strong bias. At intermediate values of the biasing force, the formula catches the diffusivity dependence on the narrow section length, if the radius of these sections is not too small.« less

Measurement of spectral characteristics and CCT mixture of PDMS and the luminophore depending on the geometric parameters and the concentration of the samples of the special optical fibers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jargus, Jan; Nedoma, Jan; Fajkus, Marcel; Novak, Martin; Bednarek, Lukas; Vasinek, Vladimir

2017-05-01

White light is produced by a suitable combination of spectral components RGB (colors) or through exposure excitation of blue light (the blue component of light). This blue part of the light is partly and suitably transformed by luminophore so that the resulting emitted spectrum corresponded to the spectral characteristics of white light with a given correlated color temperature (CCT). This paper deals with the measurement of optical properties of a mixture polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and luminophore, which is irradiated by the blue LED (Light-Emitting Diode) to obtain the white color of light. The subject of the investigation is the dependence of CCT on the concentration of the luminophore in a mixture of PDMS and different geometrical parameters of the samples. There are many kinds of PDMS and luminophore. We used PDMS Sylgard 184 and luminophore-labeled U2. More accurately Yttrium Aluminium Oxide: Cerium Y3Al5O12: Ce. From the analyzed data, we determined, which mutual combinations of concentration of the mixture of luminophore and PDMS together with the geometric parameters of the samples of the special optical fibers are suitable for illumination, while we get the desired CCT.

Impact of Ice Morphology on Design Space of Pharmaceutical Freeze-Drying.

PubMed

Goshima, Hiroshika; Do, Gabsoo; Nakagawa, Kyuya

2016-06-01

It has been known that the sublimation kinetics of a freeze-drying product is affected by its internal ice crystal microstructures. This article demonstrates the impact of the ice morphologies of a frozen formulation in a vial on the design space for the primary drying of a pharmaceutical freeze-drying process. Cross-sectional images of frozen sucrose-bovine serum albumin aqueous solutions were optically observed and digital pictures were acquired. Binary images were obtained from the optical data to extract the geometrical parameters (i.e., ice crystal size and tortuosity) that relate to the mass-transfer resistance of water vapor during the primary drying step. A mathematical model was used to simulate the primary drying kinetics and provided the design space for the process. The simulation results predicted that the geometrical parameters of frozen solutions significantly affect the design space, with large and less tortuous ice morphologies resulting in wide design spaces and vice versa. The optimal applicable drying conditions are influenced by the ice morphologies. Therefore, owing to the spatial distributions of the geometrical parameters of a product, the boundary curves of the design space are variable and could be tuned by controlling the ice morphologies. Copyright © 2016 American Pharmacists Association®. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Combined geometric and algebraic solutions for removal of bSSFP banding artifacts with performance comparisons.

PubMed

Hoff, Michael N; Andre, Jalal B; Xiang, Qing-San

2017-02-01

Balanced steady state free precession (bSSFP) imaging suffers from off-resonance artifacts such as signal modulation and banding. Solutions for removal of bSSFP off-resonance dependence are described and compared, and an optimal solution is proposed. An Algebraic Solution (AS) that complements a previously described Geometric Solution (GS) is derived from four phase-cycled bSSFP datasets. A composite Geometric-Algebraic Solution (GAS) is formed from a noise-variance-weighted average of the AS and GS images. Two simulations test the solutions over a range of parameters, and phantom and in vivo experiments are implemented. Image quality and performance of the GS, AS, and GAS are compared with the complex sum and a numerical parameter estimation algorithm. The parameter estimation algorithm, GS, AS, and GAS remove most banding and signal modulation in bSSFP imaging. The variable performance of the GS and AS on noisy data justifies generation of the GAS, which consistently provides the highest performance. The GAS is a robust technique for bSSFP signal demodulation that balances the regional efficacy of the GS and AS to remove banding, a feat not possible with prevalent techniques. Magn Reson Med 77:644-654, 2017. © 2016 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine. © 2016 International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.

Geometric phase topology in weak measurement

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Samlan, C. T.; Viswanathan, Nirmal K.

2017-12-01

The geometric phase visualization proposed by Bhandari (R Bhandari 1997 Phys. Rep. 281 1-64) in the ellipticity-ellipse orientation basis of the polarization ellipse of light is implemented to understand the geometric aspects of weak measurement. The weak interaction of a pre-selected state, acheived via spin-Hall effect of light (SHEL), results in a spread in the polarization ellipticity (η) or ellipse orientation (χ) depending on the resulting spatial or angular shift, respectively. The post-selection leads to the projection of the η spread in the complementary χ basis results in the appearance of a geometric phase with helical phase topology in the η - χ parameter space. By representing the weak measurement on the Poincaré sphere and using Jones calculus, the complex weak value and the geometric phase topology are obtained. This deeper understanding of the weak measurement process enabled us to explore the techniques’ capabilities maximally, as demonstrated via SHEL in two examples—external reflection at glass-air interface and transmission through a tilted half-wave plate.

Non-associativity in non-geometric string and M-theory backgrounds, the algebra of octonions, and missing momentum modes

DOE PAGES

Günaydin, Murat; Lüst, Dieter; Malek, Emanuel

2016-11-07

We propose a non-associative phase space algebra for M-theory backgrounds with locally non-geometric fluxes based on the non-associative algebra of octonions. Our proposal is based on the observation that the non-associative algebra of the non-geometric R-flux background in string theory can be obtained by a proper contraction of the simple Malcev algebra generated by imaginary octonions. Furthermore, by studying a toy model of a four-dimensional locally non-geometric M-theory background which is dual to a twisted torus, we show that the non-geometric background is “missing” a momentum mode. The resulting seven-dimensional phase space can thus be naturally identified with the imaginarymore » octonions. This allows us to interpret the full uncontracted algebra of imaginary octonions as the uplift of the string theory R-flux algebra to M-theory, with the contraction parameter playing the role of the string coupling constant g s.« less

Non-associativity in non-geometric string and M-theory backgrounds, the algebra of octonions, and missing momentum modes

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Günaydin, Murat; Lüst, Dieter; Malek, Emanuel

We propose a non-associative phase space algebra for M-theory backgrounds with locally non-geometric fluxes based on the non-associative algebra of octonions. Our proposal is based on the observation that the non-associative algebra of the non-geometric R-flux background in string theory can be obtained by a proper contraction of the simple Malcev algebra generated by imaginary octonions. Furthermore, by studying a toy model of a four-dimensional locally non-geometric M-theory background which is dual to a twisted torus, we show that the non-geometric background is “missing” a momentum mode. The resulting seven-dimensional phase space can thus be naturally identified with the imaginarymore » octonions. This allows us to interpret the full uncontracted algebra of imaginary octonions as the uplift of the string theory R-flux algebra to M-theory, with the contraction parameter playing the role of the string coupling constant g s.« less

Modeling and analysis of the space shuttle nose-gear tire with semianalytic finite elements

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kim, Kyun O.; Noor, Ahmed K.; Tanner, John A.

1990-01-01

A computational procedure is presented for the geometrically nonlinear analysis of aircraft tires. The Space Shuttle Orbiter nose gear tire was modeled by using a two-dimensional laminated anisotropic shell theory with the effects of variation in material and geometric parameters included. The four key elements of the procedure are: (1) semianalytic finite elements in which the shell variables are represented by Fourier series in the circumferential direction and piecewise polynominals in the meridional direction; (2) a mixed formulation with the fundamental unknowns consisting of strain parameters, stress-resultant parameters, and generalized displacements; (3) multilevel operator splitting to effect successive simplifications, and to uncouple the equations associated with different Fourier harmonics; and (4) multilevel iterative procedures and reduction techniques to generate the response of the shell. Numerical results of the Space Shuttle Orbiter nose gear tire model are compared with experimental measurements of the tire subjected to inflation loading.

SED Modeling of 20 Massive Young Stellar Objects

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tanti, Kamal Kumar

In this paper, we present the spectral energy distributions (SEDs) modeling of twenty massive young stellar objects (MYSOs) and subsequently estimated different physical and structural/geometrical parameters for each of the twenty central YSO outflow candidates, along with their associated circumstellar disks and infalling envelopes. The SEDs for each of the MYSOs been reconstructed by using 2MASS, MSX, IRAS, IRAC & MIPS, SCUBA, WISE, SPIRE and IRAM data, with the help of a SED Fitting Tool, that uses a grid of 2D radiative transfer models. Using the detailed analysis of SEDs and subsequent estimation of physical and geometrical parameters for the central YSO sources along with its circumstellar disks and envelopes, the cumulative distribution of the stellar, disk and envelope parameters can be analyzed. This leads to a better understanding of massive star formation processes in their respective star forming regions in different molecular clouds.

SIFT optimization and automation for matching images from multiple temporal sources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Castillo-Carrión, Sebastián; Guerrero-Ginel, José-Emilio

2017-05-01

Scale Invariant Feature Transformation (SIFT) was applied to extract tie-points from multiple source images. Although SIFT is reported to perform reliably under widely different radiometric and geometric conditions, using the default input parameters resulted in too few points being found. We found that the best solution was to focus on large features as these are more robust and not prone to scene changes over time, which constitutes a first approach to the automation of processes using mapping applications such as geometric correction, creation of orthophotos and 3D models generation. The optimization of five key SIFT parameters is proposed as a way of increasing the number of correct matches; the performance of SIFT is explored in different images and parameter values, finding optimization values which are corroborated using different validation imagery. The results show that the optimization model improves the performance of SIFT in correlating multitemporal images captured from different sources.

Blanking and piercing theory, applications and recent experimental results

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zaid, Adnan l. O.

2014-06-01

Blanking and piercing are manufacturing processes by which certain geometrical shapes are sheared off a sheet metal. If the sheared off part is the one required, the processes referred to as blanking and if the remaining part in the sheet is the one required, the process is referred to as piercing. In this paper, the theory and practice of these processes are reviewed and discussed The main parameters affecting these processes are presented and discussed. These include: the radial clearance percentage, punch and die geometrical parameters, for example punch and die profile radii. The abovementioned parameters on the force and energy required to effect blanking together with their effect on the quality of the products are also presented and discussed. Recent experimental results together with photomacrographs and photomicrographs are also included and discussed. Finally, the effect of punch and die wear on the quality of the blanks is alsogiven and discussed.

Alignment methods: strategies, challenges, benchmarking, and comparative overview.

PubMed

Löytynoja, Ari

2012-01-01

Comparative evolutionary analyses of molecular sequences are solely based on the identities and differences detected between homologous characters. Errors in this homology statement, that is errors in the alignment of the sequences, are likely to lead to errors in the downstream analyses. Sequence alignment and phylogenetic inference are tightly connected and many popular alignment programs use the phylogeny to divide the alignment problem into smaller tasks. They then neglect the phylogenetic tree, however, and produce alignments that are not evolutionarily meaningful. The use of phylogeny-aware methods reduces the error but the resulting alignments, with evolutionarily correct representation of homology, can challenge the existing practices and methods for viewing and visualising the sequences. The inter-dependency of alignment and phylogeny can be resolved by joint estimation of the two; methods based on statistical models allow for inferring the alignment parameters from the data and correctly take into account the uncertainty of the solution but remain computationally challenging. Widely used alignment methods are based on heuristic algorithms and unlikely to find globally optimal solutions. The whole concept of one correct alignment for the sequences is questionable, however, as there typically exist vast numbers of alternative, roughly equally good alignments that should also be considered. This uncertainty is hidden by many popular alignment programs and is rarely correctly taken into account in the downstream analyses. The quest for finding and improving the alignment solution is complicated by the lack of suitable measures of alignment goodness. The difficulty of comparing alternative solutions also affects benchmarks of alignment methods and the results strongly depend on the measure used. As the effects of alignment error cannot be predicted, comparing the alignments' performance in downstream analyses is recommended.

Investigation of thermal conduction in symmetric and asymmetric nanoporous structures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yu, Ziqi; Ferrer-Argemi, Laia; Lee, Jaeho

2017-12-01

Nanoporous structures with a critical dimension comparable to or smaller than the phonon mean free path have demonstrated significant thermal conductivity reductions that are attractive for thermoelectric applications, but the presence of various geometric parameters complicates the understanding of governing mechanisms. Here, we use a ray tracing technique to investigate phonon boundary scattering phenomena in Si nanoporous structures of varying pore shapes, pore alignments, and pore size distributions, and identify mechanisms that are primarily responsible for thermal conductivity reductions. Our simulation results show that the neck size, or the smallest distance between nearest pores, is the key parameter in understanding nanoporous structures of varying pore shapes and the same porosities. When the neck size and the porosity are both identical, asymmetric pore shapes provide a lower thermal conductivity compared with symmetric pore shapes, due to localized heat fluxes. Asymmetric nanoporous structures show possibilities of realizing thermal rectification even with fully diffuse surface boundaries, in which optimal arrangements of triangular pores show a rectification ratio up to 13 when the injection angles are optimally controlled. For symmetric nanoporous structures, hexagonal-lattice pores achieve larger thermal conductivity reductions than square-lattice pores due to the limited line of sight for phonons. We also show that nanoporous structures of alternating pore size distributions from large to small pores yield a lower thermal conductivity compared with those of uniform pore size distributions in the given porosity. These findings advance the understanding of phonon boundary scattering phenomena in complex geometries and enable optimal designs of artificial nanostructures for thermoelectric energy harvesting and solid-state cooling systems.

Geometric model from microscopic theory for nuclear absorption

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

John, Sarah; Townsend, Lawrence W.; Wilson, John W.; Tripathi, Ram K.

1993-01-01

A parameter-free geometric model for nuclear absorption is derived herein from microscopic theory. The expression for the absorption cross section in the eikonal approximation, taken in integral form, is separated into a geometric contribution that is described by an energy-dependent effective radius and two surface terms that cancel in an asymptotic series expansion. For collisions of light nuclei, an expression for the effective radius is derived from harmonic oscillator nuclear density functions. A direct extension to heavy nuclei with Woods-Saxon densities is made by identifying the equivalent half-density radius for the harmonic oscillator functions. Coulomb corrections are incorporated, and a simplified geometric form of the Bradt-Peters type is obtained. Results spanning the energy range from 1 MeV/nucleon to 1 GeV/nucleon are presented. Good agreement with experimental results is obtained.

Geometric model for nuclear absorption from microscopic theory

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

John, S.; Townsend, L. W.; Wilson, J. W.; Tripathi, R. K.

1993-01-01

A parameter-free geometric model for nuclear absorption is derived from microscopic theory. The expression for the absorption cross section in the eikonal approximation taken in integral form is separated into a geometric contribution, described by an energy-dependent effective radius, and two surface terms which are shown to cancel in an asymptotic series expansion. For collisions of light nuclei, an expression for the effective radius is derived using harmonic-oscillator nuclear density functions. A direct extension to heavy nuclei with Woods-Saxon densities is made by identifying the equivalent half density radius for the harmonic-oscillator functions. Coulomb corrections are incorporated and a simplified geometric form of the Bradt-Peters type obtained. Results spanning the energy range of 1 MeV/nucleon to 1 GeV/nucleon are presented. Good agreement with experimental results are obtained.

Initial Navigation Alignment of Optical Instruments on GOES-R

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Isaacson, P.; DeLuccia, F.; Reth, A. D.; Igli, D. A.; Carter, D.

2016-12-01

The GOES-R satellite is the first in NOAA's next-generation series of geostationary weather satellites. In addition to a number of space weather sensors, it will carry two principal optical earth-observing instruments, the Advanced Baseline Imager (ABI) and the Geostationary Lightning Mapper (GLM). During launch, currently scheduled for November of 2016, the alignment of these optical instruments is anticipated to shift from that measured during pre-launch characterization. While both instruments have image navigation and registration (INR) processing algorithms to enable automated geolocation of the collected data, the launch-derived misalignment may be too large for these approaches to function without an initial adjustment to calibration parameters. The parameters that may require adjustment are for Line of Sight Motion Compensation (LMC), and the adjustments will be estimated on orbit during the post-launch test (PLT) phase. We have developed approaches to estimate the initial alignment errors for both ABI and GLM image products. Our approaches involve comparison of ABI and GLM images collected during PLT to a set of reference ("truth") images using custom image processing tools and other software (the INR Performance Assessment Tool Set, or "IPATS") being developed for other INR assessments of ABI and GLM data. IPATS is based on image correlation approaches to determine offsets between input and reference images, and these offsets are the fundamental input to our estimate of the initial alignment errors. Initial testing of our alignment algorithms on proxy datasets lends high confidence that their application will determine the initial alignment errors to within sufficient accuracy to enable the operational INR processing approaches to proceed in a nominal fashion. We will report on the algorithms, implementation approach, and status of these initial alignment tools being developed for the GOES-R ABI and GLM instruments.

A novel fully automatic scheme for fiducial marker-based alignment in electron tomography.

PubMed

Han, Renmin; Wang, Liansan; Liu, Zhiyong; Sun, Fei; Zhang, Fa

2015-12-01

Although the topic of fiducial marker-based alignment in electron tomography (ET) has been widely discussed for decades, alignment without human intervention remains a difficult problem. Specifically, the emergence of subtomogram averaging has increased the demand for batch processing during tomographic reconstruction; fully automatic fiducial marker-based alignment is the main technique in this process. However, the lack of an accurate method for detecting and tracking fiducial markers precludes fully automatic alignment. In this paper, we present a novel, fully automatic alignment scheme for ET. Our scheme has two main contributions: First, we present a series of algorithms to ensure a high recognition rate and precise localization during the detection of fiducial markers. Our proposed solution reduces fiducial marker detection to a sampling and classification problem and further introduces an algorithm to solve the parameter dependence of marker diameter and marker number. Second, we propose a novel algorithm to solve the tracking of fiducial markers by reducing the tracking problem to an incomplete point set registration problem. Because a global optimization of a point set registration occurs, the result of our tracking is independent of the initial image position in the tilt series, allowing for the robust tracking of fiducial markers without pre-alignment. The experimental results indicate that our method can achieve an accurate tracking, almost identical to the current best one in IMOD with half automatic scheme. Furthermore, our scheme is fully automatic, depends on fewer parameters (only requires a gross value of the marker diameter) and does not require any manual interaction, providing the possibility of automatic batch processing of electron tomographic reconstruction. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Intradomain phase transitions in flexible block copolymers with self-aligning segments.

PubMed

Burke, Christopher J; Grason, Gregory M

2018-05-07

We study a model of flexible block copolymers (BCPs) in which there is an enlthalpic preference for orientational order, or local alignment, among like-block segments. We describe a generalization of the self-consistent field theory of flexible BCPs to include inter-segment orientational interactions via a Landau-de Gennes free energy associated with a polar or nematic order parameter for segments of one component of a diblock copolymer. We study the equilibrium states of this model numerically, using a pseudo-spectral approach to solve for chain conformation statistics in the presence of a self-consistent torque generated by inter-segment alignment forces. Applying this theory to the structure of lamellar domains composed of symmetric diblocks possessing a single block of "self-aligning" polar segments, we show the emergence of spatially complex segment order parameters (segment director fields) within a given lamellar domain. Because BCP phase separation gives rise to spatially inhomogeneous orientation order of segments even in the absence of explicit intra-segment aligning forces, the director fields of BCPs, as well as thermodynamics of lamellar domain formation, exhibit a highly non-linear dependence on both the inter-block segregation (χN) and the enthalpy of alignment (ε). Specifically, we predict the stability of new phases of lamellar order in which distinct regions of alignment coexist within the single mesodomain and spontaneously break the symmetries of the lamella (or smectic) pattern of composition in the melt via in-plane tilt of the director in the centers of the like-composition domains. We further show that, in analogy to Freedericksz transition confined nematics, the elastic costs to reorient segments within the domain, as described by the Frank elasticity of the director, increase the threshold value ε needed to induce this intra-domain phase transition.

Intradomain phase transitions in flexible block copolymers with self-aligning segments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Burke, Christopher J.; Grason, Gregory M.

2018-05-01

We study a model of flexible block copolymers (BCPs) in which there is an enlthalpic preference for orientational order, or local alignment, among like-block segments. We describe a generalization of the self-consistent field theory of flexible BCPs to include inter-segment orientational interactions via a Landau-de Gennes free energy associated with a polar or nematic order parameter for segments of one component of a diblock copolymer. We study the equilibrium states of this model numerically, using a pseudo-spectral approach to solve for chain conformation statistics in the presence of a self-consistent torque generated by inter-segment alignment forces. Applying this theory to the structure of lamellar domains composed of symmetric diblocks possessing a single block of "self-aligning" polar segments, we show the emergence of spatially complex segment order parameters (segment director fields) within a given lamellar domain. Because BCP phase separation gives rise to spatially inhomogeneous orientation order of segments even in the absence of explicit intra-segment aligning forces, the director fields of BCPs, as well as thermodynamics of lamellar domain formation, exhibit a highly non-linear dependence on both the inter-block segregation (χN) and the enthalpy of alignment (ɛ). Specifically, we predict the stability of new phases of lamellar order in which distinct regions of alignment coexist within the single mesodomain and spontaneously break the symmetries of the lamella (or smectic) pattern of composition in the melt via in-plane tilt of the director in the centers of the like-composition domains. We further show that, in analogy to Freedericksz transition confined nematics, the elastic costs to reorient segments within the domain, as described by the Frank elasticity of the director, increase the threshold value ɛ needed to induce this intra-domain phase transition.

SU-G-IeP3-12: Preliminary Report On the Experience of Patient Radiation Dose Monitoring and Tracking Systems; PEMNET, Radimetrics and DoseWatch

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Lin, P; Corwin, F; Ghita, M

Purpose: Three patient radiation dose monitoring and tracking (PRDMT) systems have been in operation at this institution for the past 6 months. There are useful information that should be disseminated to those who are considering installation of PRDMT programs. In addition, there are “problems” uncovered in the process of estimating fluoroscopic “peak” skin dose (PSD), especially, for those patients who received interventional angiographic studies and in conjunction with surgical procedures. Methods: Upon exporting the PRDMT data to Microsoft Excel program, the peak skin dose can be estimated by applying various correction factors including; attenuation due to the tabletop and examinationmore » mattress, table height, tabletop translation, backscatter, etc. A procedure was established to screen and divide the PRDMT reported radiation dose and estimated PSD to three different levels of threshold to assess the potential skin injuries, to assist patient follow-up, risk management and provide radiation dosimetry information in case of “Sentinel Event”. Results: The Radiation Dose Structured Report (RDSR) was found to be the prerequisite for the PRDMT systems to work seamlessly. And, the geometrical parameters (gantry and table orientation) displayed by the equipment are not necessarily implemented in the “patient centric” manner which could result in a large error in the PSD estimation. Since, the PRDMT systems obtain their pertinent data from the DICOM tags including the polarity (+ and − signs), the geometrical parameters need to be verified. Conclusion: PRDMT systems provide a more accurate PSD estimation than previously possible as the air-kerma-area dose meter become widely implemented. However, care should be exercised to correctly apply the geometrical parameters in estimating the patient dose. In addition, further refinement is necessary for these software programs to account for all geometrical parameters such as the tabletop translation in the z-direction in particular.« less

Sensitivity of drainage efficiency of cranberry fields to edaphic conditions

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Periard, Yann; José Gumiere, Silvio; Rousseau, Alain N.; Caron, Jean; Hallema, Dennis W.

2014-05-01

Water management on a cranberry farm requires intelligent irrigation and drainage strategies to sustain strong productivity and minimize environmental impact. For example, to avoid propagation of disease and meet evapotranspiration demand, it is imperative to maintain optimal moisture conditions in the root zone, which depends on an efficient drainage system. However, several drainage problems have been identified in cranberry fields. Most of these drainage problems are due to the presence of a restrictive layer in the soil profile (Gumiere et al., 2014). The objective of this work is to evaluate the effects of a restrictive layer on the drainage efficiency by the bias of a multi-local sensitivity analysis. We have tested the sensitivity of the drainage efficiency to different input parameters set of soil hydraulic properties, geometrical parameters and climatic conditions. Soil water flux dynamic for every input parameters set was simulated with finite element model Hydrus 1D (Simanek et al., 2008). Multi-local sensitivity was calculated with the Gâteaux directional derivatives with the procedure described by Cheviron et al. (2010). Results indicate that drainage efficiency is more sensitive to soil hydraulic properties than geometrical parameters and climatic conditions. Then, the geometrical parameters of the depth are more sensitive than the thickness. The drainage efficiency was very insensitive to the climatic conditions. Understanding the sensitivity of drainage efficiency according to soil hydraulic properties, geometrical and climatic conditions are essential for diagnosis drainage problems. However, it becomes important to identify the mechanisms involved in the genesis of anthropogenic soils cranberry to identify conditions that may lead to the formation of a restrictive layer. References: Cheviron, B., S.J. Gumiere, Y. Le Bissonnais, R. Moussa and D. Raclot. 2010. Sensitivity analysis of distributed erosion models: Framework. Water Resources Research 46: W08508. doi:10.1029/2009WR007950. Gumiere, S.J., J. Lafond, D. W. Hallema, Y. Périard, J. Caron et J. Gallichand. 2014. Mapping soil hydraulic conductivity and matric potential for water management of cranberry: Characterization and spatial interpolation methods. Biosystems Engineering.

Template-free synthesis of multifunctional carbonaceous microcone forests

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Qiang; Yang, Lei; Dai, Bing; Bai, Jie; Yang, Zhenhuai; Guo, Shuai; He, Yurong; Han, Jiecai; Zhu, Jiaqi

2018-01-01

Forests of vertically aligned carbonaceous microcones are fabricated directly on a nickel mesh by microwave-plasma-assisted chemical vapor deposition. The microstructure is formed through a simple one-step process involving self-assembly. The fabricated composite exhibits superhydrophobicity and superoleophilicity as well as low density, owing to which it floats on water and can be used for the in-situ separation of oil from water at the oil/water interface. Furthermore, the composite exhibits pH responsivity, and its water permeability can be varied simply by altering the pH of the aqueous solution. In addition, the composite is suitable for use as an electrode material for supercapacitors owing to its large geometric surface area, porous structure, and superior electrical properties, which allow for fast ion and electron transportation. Thus, this composite consisting of forests of vertically aligned carbonaceous microcones on a nickel mesh is expected to find use in a wide range of fields and applications, including in environmental cleanup, flow switches, and energy storage devices.

Inter-allotropic transformations in the heterogeneous carbon nanotube networks.

PubMed

Jung, Hyun Young; Jung, Sung Mi; Kim, Dong Won; Jung, Yung Joon

2017-01-19

The allotropic transformations of carbon provide an immense technological interest for tailoring the desired molecular structures in the scalable nanoelectronic devices. Herein, we explore the effects of morphology and geometric alignment of the nanotubes for the re-engineering of carbon bonds in the heterogeneous carbon nanotube (CNT) networks. By applying alternating voltage pulses and electrical forces, the single-walled CNTs in networks were predominantly transformed into other predetermined sp 2 carbon structures (multi-walled CNTs and multi-layered graphitic nanoribbons), showing a larger intensity in a coalescence-induced mode of Raman spectra with the increasing channel width. Moreover, the transformed networks have a newly discovered sp 2 -sp 3 hybrid nanostructures in accordance with the alignment. The sp 3 carbon structures at the small channel are controlled, such that they contain up to about 29.4% networks. This study provides a controllable method for specific types of inter-allotropic transformations/hybridizations, which opens up the further possibility for the engineering of nanocarbon allotropes in the robust large-scale network-based devices.

The Status of the Cms Experiment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Green, Dan

The CMS experiment was completely assembled in the fall of 2008 after a decade of design, construction and installation. During the last two years, cosmic ray data were taken on a regular basis. These data have enabled CMS to align the detector components, both spatially and temporally. Initial use of muons has also established the relative alignment of the CMS tracking and muon systems. In addition, the CMS calorimetry has been crosschecked with test beam data, thus providing an initial energy calibration of CMS calorimetry to about 5%. The CMS magnet has been powered and field mapped. The trigger and data acquisition systems have been installed and run at full speed. The tiered data analysis system has been exercised at full design bandwidth for Tier0, Tier1 and Tier2 sites. Monte Carlo simulation of the CMS detector has been constructed at a detailed geometric level and has been tuned to test beam and other production data to provide a realistic model of the CMS detector prior to first collisions.

ON THE TIDAL DISSIPATION OF OBLIQUITY

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Rogers, T. M.; Lin, D. N. C., E-mail: tami@lpl.arizona.edu, E-mail: lin@ucolick.org

2013-05-20

We investigate tidal dissipation of obliquity in hot Jupiters. Assuming an initial random orientation of obliquity and parameters relevant to the observed population, the obliquity of hot Jupiters does not evolve to purely aligned systems. In fact, the obliquity evolves to either prograde, retrograde, or 90 Degree-Sign orbits where the torque due to tidal perturbations vanishes. This distribution is incompatible with observations which show that hot Jupiters around cool stars are generally aligned. This calls into question the viability of tidal dissipation as the mechanism for obliquity alignment of hot Jupiters around cool stars.

On aggregation in CA models in biology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alber, Mark S.; Kiskowski, Audi

2001-12-01

Aggregation of randomly distributed particles into clusters of aligned particles is modeled using a cellular automata (CA) approach. The CA model accounts for interactions between more than one type of particle, in which pressures for angular alignment with neighbors compete with pressures for grouping by cell type. In the case of only one particle type clusters tend to unite into one big cluster. In the case of several types of particles the dynamics of clusters is more complicated and for specific choices of parameters particle sorting occurs simultaneously with the formation of clusters of aligned particles.

Criteria for Neoclassical Tearing Modes Suppression in KSTAR

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Park, Y. S.; Hwang, Y. S.

2007-11-01

In KSTAR, neoclassical tearing modes(NTMs) will be suppressed by using 170GHz electron cyclotron current drive(ECCD) system with steering mirrors that align the current deposition to NTM locations. As an initial stage of NTM suppression study, 1 MW ECCD power will be used to suppress m/n = 3/2 and 2/1 NTMs. To confirm the feasibility of successful suppression of the modes under the proposed KSTAR environment, modified Rutherford equation(MRE) which encapsulates stability of NTMs is constructed for the target equilibrium of KSTAR. The geometric coefficients in MRE are obtained by comparing saturated sizes of NTMs from ISLAND code [1] with the amounts of local bootstrap currents from ONETWO. Parameters related to the operation of ECCD are analyzed by TORAY-GA linear ray-tracing code. Due to the small ECCD power available at the initial stage of KSTAR, condition of the optimum ECCD modulation is considered in the analysis to maximize suppression performance. From the analyses, criteria such as the minimum ECCD power required for complete suppression of the modes and the optimum conditions of EC wave launch angle and modulation duty factor are derived for the successful NTM suppression in KSTAR. [1] C.N. Nguyen, G. Bateman and A.H. Kritz, Phys. Plasmas 11 3460 (2004)

Rapid Prototyping of Polymeric Nanopillars by 3D Direct Laser Writing for Controlling Cell Behavior.

PubMed

Buch-Månson, Nina; Spangenberg, Arnaud; Gomez, Laura Piedad Chia; Malval, Jean-Pierre; Soppera, Olivier; Martinez, Karen L

2017-08-23

Mammalian cells have been widely shown to respond to nano- and microtopography that mimics the extracellular matrix. Synthetic nano- and micron-sized structures are therefore of great interest in the field of tissue engineering, where polymers are particularly attractive due to excellent biocompatibility and versatile fabrication methods. Ordered arrays of polymeric pillars provide a controlled topographical environment to study and manipulate cells, but processing methods are typically either optimized for the nano- or microscale. Here, we demonstrate polymeric nanopillar (NP) fabrication using 3D direct laser writing (3D DLW), which offers a rapid prototyping across both size regimes. The NPs are interfaced with NIH3T3 cells and the effect of tuning geometrical parameters of the NP array is investigated. Cells are found to adhere on a wide range of geometries, but the interface depends on NP density and length. The Cell Interface with Nanostructure Arrays (CINA) model is successfully extended to predict the type of interface formed on different NP geometries, which is found to correlate with the efficiency of cell alignment along the NPs. The combination of the CINA model with the highly versatile 3D DLW fabrication thus holds the promise of improved design of polymeric NP arrays for controlling cell growth.

Design of a thin-plate based tunable high-quality narrow passband filter for elastic transverse waves propagate in metals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, J.; Zeng, L. H.; Hu, C. L.; Yan, W. S.; Pennec, Yan; Hu, N.

2018-03-01

For the elastic SV (transverse) waves in metals, a high-quality narrow passband filter that consists of aligned parallel thin plates with small gaps is designed. In order to obtain a good performance, the thin plates should be constituted by materials with a smaller mass density and Young's modulus, such as polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA), compared to the embedded materials in which the elastic SV waves propagate. Both the theoretical model and the full numerical simulation show that the transmission spectrum of the designed filter demonstrates several peaks with flawless transmission within 0 KHz ˜20 KHz frequency range. The peaks can be readily tuned by manipulating the geometrical parameters of the plates. Therefore, the current design works well for both low and high frequencies with a controllable size. Even for low frequencies on the order of kilohertz, the size of this filter can be still limited to the order of centimeters, which significantly benefits the real applications. The investigation also finds that the same filter is valid when using different metals and the reason behind this is explained theoretically. Additionally, the effect of bonding conditions of interfaces between thin plates and the base material is investigated using a spring model.

Classification of driving workload affected by highway alignment conditions based on classification and regression tree algorithm.

PubMed

Hu, Jiangbi; Wang, Ronghua

2018-02-17

Guaranteeing a safe and comfortable driving workload can contribute to reducing traffic injuries. In order to provide safe and comfortable threshold values, this study attempted to classify driving workload from the aspects of human factors mainly affected by highway geometric conditions and to determine the thresholds of different workload classifications. This article stated a hypothesis that the values of driver workload change within a certain range. Driving workload scales were stated based on a comprehensive literature review. Through comparative analysis of different psychophysiological measures, heart rate variability (HRV) was chosen as the representative measure for quantifying driving workload by field experiments. Seventy-two participants (36 car drivers and 36 large truck drivers) and 6 highways with different geometric designs were selected to conduct field experiments. A wearable wireless dynamic multiparameter physiological detector (KF-2) was employed to detect physiological data that were simultaneously correlated to the speed changes recorded by a Global Positioning System (GPS) (testing time, driving speeds, running track, and distance). Through performing statistical analyses, including the distribution of HRV during the flat, straight segments and P-P plots of modified HRV, a driving workload calculation model was proposed. Integrating driving workload scales with values, the threshold of each scale of driving workload was determined by classification and regression tree (CART) algorithms. The driving workload calculation model was suitable for driving speeds in the range of 40 to 120 km/h. The experimental data of 72 participants revealed that driving workload had a significant effect on modified HRV, revealing a change in driving speed. When the driving speed was between 100 and 120 km/h, drivers showed an apparent increase in the corresponding modified HRV. The threshold value of the normal driving workload K was between -0.0011 and 0.056 for a car driver and between -0.00086 and 0.067 for a truck driver. Heart rate variability was a direct and effective index for measuring driving workload despite being affected by multiple highway alignment elements. The driving workload model and the thresholds of driving workload classifications can be used to evaluate the quality of highway geometric design. A higher quality of highway geometric design could keep driving workload within a safer and more comfortable range. This study provided insight into reducing traffic injuries from the perspective of disciplinary integration of highway engineering and human factor engineering.

Search algorithm complexity modeling with application to image alignment and matching

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

DelMarco, Stephen

2014-05-01

Search algorithm complexity modeling, in the form of penetration rate estimation, provides a useful way to estimate search efficiency in application domains which involve searching over a hypothesis space of reference templates or models, as in model-based object recognition, automatic target recognition, and biometric recognition. The penetration rate quantifies the expected portion of the database that must be searched, and is useful for estimating search algorithm computational requirements. In this paper we perform mathematical modeling to derive general equations for penetration rate estimates that are applicable to a wide range of recognition problems. We extend previous penetration rate analyses to use more general probabilistic modeling assumptions. In particular we provide penetration rate equations within the framework of a model-based image alignment application domain in which a prioritized hierarchical grid search is used to rank subspace bins based on matching probability. We derive general equations, and provide special cases based on simplifying assumptions. We show how previously-derived penetration rate equations are special cases of the general formulation. We apply the analysis to model-based logo image alignment in which a hierarchical grid search is used over a geometric misalignment transform hypothesis space. We present numerical results validating the modeling assumptions and derived formulation.

Isoperimetric surfaces and area-angular momentum inequality in a rotating black hole in new massive gravity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aceña, Andrés; López, Ericson; Llerena, Mario

2018-03-01

We study the existence and stability of isoperimetric surfaces in a family of rotating black holes in new massive gravity. We show that the stability of such surfaces is determined by the sign of the hair parameter. We use the isoperimetric surfaces to find a geometric inequality between the area and the angular momentum of the black hole, conjecturing geometric inequalities for more general black holes.

Transactions of the Army Conference on Applied Mathematics and Computing (1st) Held at Washington, DC on 9-11 May 1983

DTIC Science & Technology

1984-02-01

I . . . . . . An Introduction to Geometric Programming Patrick D. Allen and David W. Baker . . . . . . , . . . . . . . Space and Time...Zarwyn, US-Army Electronics R & D Comhiand GEOMETRIC PROGRAMING SPACE AND TIFFE ANALYSIS IN DYNAMIC PROGRAMING ALGORITHMS Renne..tf Stizti, AkeanXa...physical and parameter space can be connected by asymptotic matching. The purpose of the asymptotic analysis is to define the simplest problems

A mean-field theory for self-propelled particles interacting by velocity alignment mechanisms

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peruani, F.; Deutsch, A.; Bär, M.

2008-04-01

A mean-field approach (MFA) is proposed for the analysis of orientational order in a two-dimensional system of stochastic self-propelled particles interacting by local velocity alignment mechanism. The treatment is applied to the cases of ferromagnetic (F) and liquid-crystal (LC) alignment. In both cases, MFA yields a second order phase transition for a critical noise strength and a scaling exponent of 1/2 for the respective order parameters. We find that the critical noise amplitude ηc at which orientational order emerges in the LC case is smaller than in the F-alignment case, i.e. ηLC C<ηF C. A comparison with simulations of individual-based models with F- resp. LC-alignment shows that the predictions about the critical behavior and the qualitative relation between the respective critical noise amplitudes are correct.

Fabrication of overlaid nanopattern arrays for plasmon memory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Okabe, Takao; Wadayama, Hisahiro; Taniguchi, Jun

2018-01-01

Stacking technique of nanopattern array is gathering attention to fabricate next generation data storage such as plasmon memory. This technique provides multi- overlaid nanopatterns which made by nanoimprint lithography. In the structure, several metal nanopatterned layer and resin layer as a spacer are overlaid alternately. The horizontal position of nanopatterns to under nanopatterns and thickness of resin layer as spacer should be controlled accurately, because these parameters affect reading performance and capacity of plasmon memory. In this study, we developed new alignment mark to fabricate multi- overlaid nanopatterns. The alignment accuracy with the order of 300 nm was demonstrated for Ag nanopatterns in 2 layers. The alignment mark can measure the thickness of spacer. The relationship of spacer thickness and position of scale bar on the alignment mark was measured. The usefulness of the alignment mark for highdensity plasmon memory is shown.

Earth Rotation Parameters from DSN VLBI: 1994

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Steppe, J. A.; Oliveau, S. H.; Sovers, O. J.

1994-01-01

In this report, Earth Rotation Parameter (ERP) estimates ahve been obtained from an analysis of Deep Space Network (DSN) VLBI data that directly aligns its celestial and terrestrial reference frames with those of the International Earth Rotation Service (IERS).

Ion beam accelerator system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Aston, Graeme (Inventor)

1984-01-01

A system is described that combines geometrical and electrostatic focusing to provide high ion extraction efficiency and good focusing of an accelerated ion beam. The apparatus includes a pair of curved extraction grids (16, 18) with multiple pairs of aligned holes positioned to direct a group of beamlets (20) along converging paths. The extraction grids are closely spaced and maintained at a moderate potential to efficiently extract beamlets of ions and allow them to combine into a single beam (14). An accelerator electrode device (22) downstream from the extraction grids, is at a much lower potential than the grids to accelerate the combined beam.

First-order and subsidiary faults controlling the time-space evolution of the Central Italy 2016 seismic sequence - a multi-source data detailed 3D reconstruction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lavecchia, Giusy; de nardis, Rita; Ferrarini, Federica; Cirillo, Daniele; Brozzetti, Francesco

2017-04-01

The Central Italy 2016 seismic sequence, with its three major events (24 August, Mw 6.0/6.2; 26 October Mw5.9/6.0; 30 October Mw6.5/6.6), activated a well-known active west-dipping extensional fault alignment of central Italy (Vettore-Gorzano faults, VEGO). Soon after the first event, based on geological, interferometric and at that moment available seismological data, a preliminary 3D fault model of VEGO was built. Such a model is here updated and improved at the light of a large amount of relocated earthquake data (time interval 24 August to 30 November 2016, 0.1≤ML ≤6.5, Chiaraluce at al., submitted to SRL) plus additional geological information. The 3D modeling was done using the software package MOVE from the Midland Valley. All the available data were taken into consideration (surface traces, fault-slip data, primary co-seismic surface fractures, geological maps and cross-sections, hypocentral locations and focal mechanisms of both background seismicity and seismic sequences). The VEGO geometric configuration did not substantially changed with respect to the previous model, but some additional structures involved in the sequence were reconstructed. In particular, four additional faults are well evident: a NE-dipping normal fault (dip-angle 50˚ ) antithetic to Vettore Fault, located at depths between 1 and 5 km; a WNW dipping plane (dip-angle 30˚ ) located at depth between 1 and 4 km within the Vettore footwall volume; this structure represents a splay of the late Miocene Sibillini thrust, which is evidently cross-cut and dislocated by the Vettore normal fault; a SW-dipping normal fault representing an unknown northward prosecution of the VEGO alignment, where since 26 October a relevant seismic activity was released; an unknown east-dipping low-angle detachment, where VEGO detaches at a depth of about 10-11 km. An uninterrupted microseismic activity has illuminated such a detachment not only during the overall sequence, but also in the previous months. At the light of the reconstructed geometric pattern integrated with the evidences of primary co-seismic fractures, it results evident that the Central Italy seismic sequence represents a "classic", although complex, intra-Apennine normal-faulting event, reactivating a long-term quiescent seismogenic alignment (e.g. VEGO). The reactivated and inverted compressional structures are confined at shallow depth within the Vettore footwall, and in no way control the major events of the sequence. Conversely, an important regional role is played by the east-dipping detachment. It represents the missing geometric link between the Altotiberina LANF of northern Umbria and the recently discovered LANF of Latium-Abruzzi.

Modeling Phase-Aligned Gamma-Ray And Radio Millisecond Pulsar Light Curves

DOE PAGES

Venter, C.; Johnson, T. J.; Harding, A. K.

2011-12-12

The gamma-ray population of millisecond pulsars (MSPs) detected by the Fermi Large Area Telescope (LAT) has been steadily increasing. A number of the more recent detections, including PSR J0034-0534, PSR J1939+2134 (B1937+21; the first MSP ever discovered), PSR J1959+2048 (B1957+20; the first black widow system), and PSR J2214+3000, exhibit an unusual phenomenon: nearly phase-aligned radio and gamma- ray light curves (LCs). To account for the phase alignment, we explore geometric models where both the radio and gamma-ray emission originate either in the outer magnetosphere near the light cylinder (R LC) or near the polar caps (PCs). We obtain reasonable fitsmore » for the first three of these MSPs in the context of “altitude- limited” outer gap (alOG) and two-pole caustic (alTPC) geometries. The outer magnetosphere phase-aligned models differ from the standard outer gap (OG) / two-pole caustic (TPC) models in two respects: first, the radio emission originates in caustics at relatively high altitudes compared to the usual low-altitude conal radio beams; second, we allow the maximum altitude of the gamma-ray emission region as well as both the minimum and maximum altitudes of the radio emission region to vary within a limited range. Alternatively, there also exist phase-aligned LC solutions for emission originating near the stellar surface in a slot gap (SG) scenario (“low-altitude slot gap” (laSG) models). We find best-fit LCs using a Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) max- imum likelihood approach [30]. Our fits imply that the phase-aligned LCs are likely of caustic origin, produced in the outer magnetosphere, and that the radio emission may come from close to R LC. We lastly constrain the emission altitudes with typical uncertainties of ~ 0.3RLC. Our results describe a third gamma-ray MSP subclass, in addition to the two (with non-aligned LCs) previously found [50]: those with LCs fit by standard OG / TPC models, and those with LCs fit by pair-starved polar cap (PSPC) models.« less

Focal-Plane Alignment Sensing

DTIC Science & Technology

1993-02-01

amplification induced by the inverse filter. The problem of noise amplification that arises in conventional image deblurring problems has often been... noise sensitivity, and strategies for selecting a regularization parameter have been developed. The probability of convergence to within a prescribed...Strategies in Image Deblurring .................. 12 2.2.2 CLS Parameter Selection ........................... 14 2.2.3 Wiener Parameter Selection

Do small changes in rotation affect measurements of lower extremity limb alignment?

PubMed

Jamali, Amir A; Meehan, John P; Moroski, Nathan M; Anderson, Matthew J; Lamba, Ramit; Parise, Carol

2017-05-22

The alignment of the lower extremity has important implications in the development of knee arthritis. The effect of incremental rotations of the limb on common parameters of alignment has not been studied. The purpose of the study was to (1) determine the standardized neutral position measurements of alignment and (2) determine the effect of rotation on commonly used measurements of alignment. Eighty-seven full length CT angiography studies (49 males and 38 females, average age 66 years old) were included. Three-dimensional models were created using a rendering software program and placed on a virtual plane. An image of the extremity was obtained. Thirty scans were randomly selected, and those models were rotated in 3° intervals around the longitudinal axis and additional images were obtained. In the neutral position, the mechanical lateral distal femoral articular angle (mLDFA) was 85.6 ± 2.3°, medial proximal tibial angle (MPTA) was 86.1 ± 2.8°, and mechanical tibiofemoral angle (mTFA) was -0.7 ± 3.1°. Females had a more valgus alignment with a mTFA of 0.5 ± 2.9° while males had a more varus alignment with a mTFA of -1.7 ± 2.9°. The anatomic tibiofemoral angle (aTFA) was 4.8 ± 2.6°, the anatomic lateral distal femoral angle (aLDFA) measured 80.2 ± 2.2°, and the anatomical-mechanical angle (AMA) was 5.4 ± 0.7°. The prevalence of constitutional varus was 18%. The effect of rotation on the rotated scans led to statistically significant differences relative to the 0° measurement for all measurements. These effects may be small, and their clinical importance is unknown. This study provides new information on standardized measures of lower extremity alignment and the relationship between discreet axial rotations of the entire lower extremity and these parameters.

A generalized method for alignment of block copolymer films: solvent vapor annealing with soft shear.

PubMed

Qiang, Zhe; Zhang, Yuanzhong; Groff, Jesse A; Cavicchi, Kevin A; Vogt, Bryan D

2014-08-28

One of the key issues associated with the utilization of block copolymer (BCP) thin films in nanoscience and nanotechnology is control of their alignment and orientation over macroscopic dimensions. We have recently reported a method, solvent vapor annealing with soft shear (SVA-SS), for fabricating unidirectional alignment of cylindrical nanostructures. This method is a simple extension of the common SVA process by adhering a flat, crosslinked poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) pad to the BCP thin film. The impact of processing parameters, including annealing time, solvent removal rate and the physical properties of the PDMS pad, on the quality of alignment quantified by the Herman's orientational factor (S) is systematically examined for a model system of polystyrene-block-polyisoprene-block-polystyrene (SIS). As annealing time increases, the SIS morphology transitions from isotropic rods to highly aligned cylinders. Decreasing the rate of solvent removal, which impacts the shear rate imposed by the contraction of the PDMS, improves the orientation factor of the cylindrical domains; this suggests the nanostructure alignment is primarily induced by contraction of PDMS during solvent removal. Moreover, the physical properties of the PDMS controlled by the crosslink density impact the orientation factor by tuning its swelling extent during SVA-SS and elastic modulus. Decreasing the PDMS crosslink density increases S; this effect appears to be primarily driven by the changes in the solubility of the SVA-SS solvent in the PDMS. With this understanding of the critical processing parameters, SVA-SS has been successfully applied to align a wide variety of BCPs including polystyrene-block-polybutadiene-block-polystyrene (SBS), polystyrene-block-poly(N,N-dimethyl-n-octadecylammonium p-styrenesulfonate) (PS-b-PSS-DMODA), polystyrene-block-polydimethylsiloxane (PS-b-PDMS) and polystyrene-block-poly(2-vinlypyridine) (PS-b-P2VP). These results suggest that SVA-SS is a generalizable method for the alignment of BCP thin films.

Taking directions: the role of microtubule-bound nucleation in the self-organization of the plant cortical array

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deinum, Eva E.; Tindemans, Simon H.; Mulder, Bela M.

2011-10-01

The highly aligned cortical microtubule array of interphase plant cells is a key regulator of anisotropic cell expansion. Recent computational and analytical work has shown that the non-equilibrium self-organization of this structure can be understood on the basis of experimentally observed collisional interactions between dynamic microtubules attached to the plasma membrane. Most of these approaches assumed that new microtubules are homogeneously and isotropically nucleated on the cortical surface. Experimental evidence, however, shows that nucleation mostly occurs from other microtubules and under specific relative angles. Here, we investigate the impact of directed microtubule-bound nucleations on the alignment process using computer simulations. The results show that microtubule-bound nucleations can increase the degree of alignment achieved, decrease the timescale of the ordering process and widen the regime of dynamic parameters for which the system can self-organize. We establish that the major determinant of this effect is the degree of co-alignment of the nucleations with the parent microtubule. The specific role of sideways branching nucleations appears to allow stronger alignment while maintaining a measure of overall spatial homogeneity. Finally, we investigate the suggestion that observed persistent rotation of microtubule domains can be explained through a handedness bias in microtubule-bound nucleations, showing that this is possible only for an extreme bias and over a limited range of parameters.

Thermal and magnetic properties of electron gas in toroidal quantum dot

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baghdasaryan, D. A.; Hayrapetyan, D. B.; Kazaryan, E. M.; Sarkisyan, H. A.

2018-07-01

One-electron states in a toroidal quantum dot in the presence of an external magnetic field have been considered. The magnetic field operator and the Schrodinger equation have been written in toroidal coordinates. The dependence of one-electron energy spectrum and wave function on the geometrical parameters of a toroidal quantum dot and magnetic field strength have been studied. The energy levels are employed to calculate the canonical partition function, which in its turn is used to obtain mean energy, heat capacity, entropy, magnetization, and susceptibility of noninteracting electron gas. The possibility to control the thermodynamic and magnetic properties of the noninteracting electron gas via changing the geometric parameters of the QD, magnetic field, and temperature, was demonstrated.

An integrated software system for geometric correction of LANDSAT MSS imagery

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Parada, N. D. J. (Principal Investigator); Esilva, A. J. F. M.; Camara-Neto, G.; Serra, P. R. M.; Desousa, R. C. M.; Mitsuo, Fernando Augusta, II

1984-01-01

A system for geometrically correcting LANDSAT MSS imagery includes all phases of processing, from receiving a raw computer compatible tape (CCT) to the generation of a corrected CCT (or UTM mosaic). The system comprises modules for: (1) control of the processing flow; (2) calculation of satellite ephemeris and attitude parameters, (3) generation of uncorrected files from raw CCT data; (4) creation, management and maintenance of a ground control point library; (5) determination of the image correction equations, using attitude and ephemeris parameters and existing ground control points; (6) generation of corrected LANDSAT file, using the equations determined beforehand; (7) union of LANDSAT scenes to produce and UTM mosaic; and (8) generation of output tape, in super-structure format.

Influence of the Geometric Parameter on the Regimes of Natural Convection and Thermal Surface Radiation in a Closed Parallelepiped

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Martyushev, S. G.; Miroshnichenko, I. V.; Sheremet, M. A.

2015-11-01

We have performed a numerical analysis of the stationary regimes of thermogravitational convection and thermal surface radiation in a closed differentially heated parallelepiped. The mathematical model formulated in dimensionless natural velocity-pressure-temperature variables was realized numerically in the control volume approach. Analysis of the radiative heat exchange was carried out on the basis of the surface radiation approach with the use of the balance method in the Polyak variant. We have obtained three-dimensional temperature and velocity fields, as well as dependences for the mean Nusselt number reflecting the influence of the geometric parameter, the Rayleigh number, and the reduced emissive factor of the walls on the flow structure and the heat transfer.