Evaporometer | A Wireless Mesh of Open-Source Rainfall/Evaporation Gauge and Sensor Suite for In Situ Near-Real-Time Environmental Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kwon, M.; Lopez Alcala, J. M.; DeBell, T. C.; Udell, C.; Selker, J. S.

2017-12-01

Access to in situ near real-time environmental sensor data in remote locations provides invaluable utility in the fields of agricultural and environmental sciences. For studies where data needs to be gathered frequently, it could be costly and dangerous to take numerous trips into the field to collect this information and to inspect multitudes of distributed devices to ensure proper operation. One solution is to develop remote sensors capable of transmitting data and status updates (like battery level) over long distances from unserviced locations to a receiver hub to be accessed in near real-time online. The Openly Published Environmental Sensing Lab at Oregon State University (OPEnS Lab) produced a low-cost Open Source environmental sensing station called the Evaporometer that collects data at precisely timed intervals including rainfall amount, rate of evaporation, temperature, humidity and light (IR and Visible spectra), while CO2 and other sensors are also being evaluated for inclusion. This project focuses on the development and deployment of the prototype Evaporometer in HJ Andrew's Experimental Forest located in Blue River Oregon. The Evaporometer was designed for efficiency and succeeds in systematically collecting environmental data in hard to reach places over long periods of time. A real time clock interrupt enables the device to enter and exit "sleep mode", allowing Evaporometers to remain in the field over long periods of time and controlling the how frequently data should be collected. A load cell measures the weight of collected water in a container. This container is tightly packed with a fiberglass wick, which draws water from the bottom to the surface for efficient evaporation. A siphon has been designed into the container to prevent any possible water overflow situations and lost collected rainfall. All data collection and transmission processes are handled by an Adafruit Feather development board equipped with a long range, low power wireless

Toward Global Real Time Hydrologic Modeling - An "Open" View From the Trenches

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nelson, J.

2015-12-01

Big Data has become a popular term to describe the exponential growth of data and related cyber infrastructure to process it so that better analysis can be performed and lead to improved decision-making. How are we doing in the hydrologic sciences? As part of a significant collaborative effort that brought together scientists from public, private, and academic organizations a new transformative hydrologic forecasting modeling infrastructure has been developed. How was it possible to go from deterministic hydrologic forecasts largely driven through manual interactions at 3600 stations to automated 15-day ensemble forecasts at 2.67 million stations? Earth observations of precipitation, temperature, moisture, and other atmospheric and land surface conditions form the foundation of global hydrologic forecasts, but this project demonstrates a critical component to harness these resources can be summed up in one word: OPEN. Whether it is open data sources, open software solutions with open standards, or just being open to collaborations and building teams across institutions, disciplines, and international boundaries, time and time again through my involvement in the development of a high-resolution real time global hydrologic forecasting model I have discovered that in every aspect the sum has always been greater than the parts. While much has been accomplished, much more remains to be done, but the most important lesson learned has been to the degree that we can remain open and work together, the greater our ability will be to use big data hydrologic modeling resources to solve the world's most vexing water related challenges. This presentation will demonstrate a transformational global real time hydrologic forecasting application based on downscaled ECMWF ensemble forecasts, RAPID routing, and Tethys Platform for cloud computing and visualization with discussions of the human and cyber infrastructure connections that make it successful and needs moving forward.

Soil Monitor: an open source web application for real-time soil sealing monitoring and assessment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Langella, Giuliano; Basile, Angelo; Giannecchini, Simone; Iamarino, Michela; Munafò, Michele; Terribile, Fabio

2016-04-01

Soil sealing is one of the most important causes of land degradation and desertification. In Europe, soil covered by impermeable materials has increased by about 80% from the Second World War till nowadays, while population has only grown by one third. There is an increasing concern at the high political levels about the need to attenuate imperviousness itself and its effects on soil functions. European Commission promulgated a roadmap (COM(2011) 571) by which the net land take would be zero by 2050. Furthermore, European Commission also published a report in 2011 providing best practices and guidelines for limiting soil sealing and imperviousness. In this scenario, we developed an open source and an open source based Soil Sealing Geospatial Cyber Infrastructure (SS-GCI) named as "Soil Monitor". This tool merges a webGIS with parallel geospatial computation in a fast and dynamic fashion in order to provide real-time assessments of soil sealing at high spatial resolution (20 meters and below) over the whole Italy. Common open source webGIS packages are used to implement both the data management and visualization infrastructures, such as GeoServer and MapStore. The high-speed geospatial computation is ensured by a GPU parallelism using the CUDA (Computing Unified Device Architecture) framework by NVIDIA®. This kind of parallelism required the writing - from scratch - all codes needed to fulfil the geospatial computation built behind the soil sealing toolbox. The combination of GPU computing with webGIS infrastructures is relatively novel and required particular attention at the Java-CUDA programming interface. As a result, Soil Monitor is smart because it can perform very high time-consuming calculations (querying for instance an Italian administrative region as area of interest) in less than one minute. The web application is embedded in a web browser and nothing must be installed before using it. Potentially everybody can use it, but the main targets are the

SUPRA: open-source software-defined ultrasound processing for real-time applications : A 2D and 3D pipeline from beamforming to B-mode.

PubMed

Göbl, Rüdiger; Navab, Nassir; Hennersperger, Christoph

2018-06-01

Research in ultrasound imaging is limited in reproducibility by two factors: First, many existing ultrasound pipelines are protected by intellectual property, rendering exchange of code difficult. Second, most pipelines are implemented in special hardware, resulting in limited flexibility of implemented processing steps on such platforms. With SUPRA, we propose an open-source pipeline for fully software-defined ultrasound processing for real-time applications to alleviate these problems. Covering all steps from beamforming to output of B-mode images, SUPRA can help improve the reproducibility of results and make modifications to the image acquisition mode accessible to the research community. We evaluate the pipeline qualitatively, quantitatively, and regarding its run time. The pipeline shows image quality comparable to a clinical system and backed by point spread function measurements a comparable resolution. Including all processing stages of a usual ultrasound pipeline, the run-time analysis shows that it can be executed in 2D and 3D on consumer GPUs in real time. Our software ultrasound pipeline opens up the research in image acquisition. Given access to ultrasound data from early stages (raw channel data, radiofrequency data), it simplifies the development in imaging. Furthermore, it tackles the reproducibility of research results, as code can be shared easily and even be executed without dedicated ultrasound hardware.

Celeris: A GPU-accelerated open source software with a Boussinesq-type wave solver for real-time interactive simulation and visualization

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tavakkol, Sasan; Lynett, Patrick

2017-08-01

In this paper, we introduce an interactive coastal wave simulation and visualization software, called Celeris. Celeris is an open source software which needs minimum preparation to run on a Windows machine. The software solves the extended Boussinesq equations using a hybrid finite volume-finite difference method and supports moving shoreline boundaries. The simulation and visualization are performed on the GPU using Direct3D libraries, which enables the software to run faster than real-time. Celeris provides a first-of-its-kind interactive modeling platform for coastal wave applications and it supports simultaneous visualization with both photorealistic and colormapped rendering capabilities. We validate our software through comparison with three standard benchmarks for non-breaking and breaking waves.

Open-Source RTOS Space Qualification: An RTEMS Case Study

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zemerick, Scott

2017-01-01

NASA space-qualification of reusable off-the-shelf real-time operating systems (RTOSs) remains elusive due to several factors notably (1) The diverse nature of RTOSs utilized across NASA, (2) No single NASA space-qualification criteria, lack of verification and validation (V&V) analysis, or test beds, and (3) different RTOS heritages, specifically open-source RTOSs and closed vendor-provided RTOSs. As a leader in simulation test beds, the NASA IV&V Program is poised to help jump-start and lead the space-qualification effort of the open source Real-Time Executive for Multiprocessor Systems (RTEMS) RTOS. RTEMS, as a case-study, can be utilized as an example of how to qualify all RTOSs, particularly the reusable non-commercial (open-source) ones that are gaining usage and popularity across NASA. Qualification will improve the overall safety and mission assurance of RTOSs for NASA-agency wide usage. NASA's involvement in space-qualification of an open-source RTOS such as RTEMS will drive the RTOS industry toward a more qualified and mature open-source RTOS product.

A Real-Time Linux for Multicore Platforms

DTIC Science & Technology

2013-12-20

under ARO support) to obtain a fully-functional OS for supporting real-time workloads on multicore platforms. This system, called LITMUS -RT...to be specified as plugin components. LITMUS -RT is open-source software (available at The views, opinions and/or findings contained in this report... LITMUS -RT (LInux Testbed for MUltiprocessor Scheduling in Real-Time systems), allows different multiprocessor real-time scheduling and

Using Open and Interoperable Ways to Publish and Access LANCE AIRS Near-Real Time Data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zhao, Peisheng; Lynnes, Christopher; Vollmer, Bruce; Savtchenko, Andrey; Theobald, Michael; Yang, Wenli

2011-01-01

The Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) Near-Real Time (NRT) data from the Land Atmosphere Near real-time Capability for EOS (LANCE) element at the Goddard Earth Sciences Data and Information Services Center (GES DISC) provides information on the global and regional atmospheric state, with very low temporal latency, to support climate research and improve weather forecasting. An open and interoperable platform is useful to facilitate access to, and integration of, LANCE AIRS NRT data. As Web services technology has matured in recent years, a new scalable Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) is emerging as the basic platform for distributed computing and large networks of interoperable applications. Following the provide-register-discover-consume SOA paradigm, this presentation discusses how to use open-source geospatial software components to build Web services for publishing and accessing AIRS NRT data, explore the metadata relevant to registering and discovering data and services in the catalogue systems, and implement a Web portal to facilitate users' consumption of the data and services.

Using Open and Interoperable Ways to Publish and Access LANCE AIRS Near-Real Time Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, P.; Lynnes, C.; Vollmer, B.; Savtchenko, A. K.; Yang, W.

2011-12-01

Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) Near-Real Time (NRT) data from the Land Atmosphere Near real time Capability for EOS (LANCE) provide the information on the global and regional atmospheric state with very low latency. An open and interoperable platform is useful to facilitate access to and integration of LANCE AIRS NRT data. This paper discusses the use of open-source software components to build Web services for publishing and accessing AIRS NRT data in the context of Service Oriented Architecture (SOA). The AIRS NRT data have also been made available through an OPeNDAP server. OPeNDAP allows several open-source netCDF-based tools such as Integrated Data Viewer, Ferret and Panoply to directly display the Level 2 data over the network. To enable users to locate swath data files in the OPeNDAP server that lie within a certain geographical area, graphical "granule maps" are being added to show the outline of each file on a map of the Earth. The metadata of AIRS NRT data and services is then explored to implement information advertisement and discovery in catalogue systems. Datacasting, an RSS-based technology for accessing Earth Science data and information to facilitate the subscriptions to AIRS NRT data availability, filtering, downloading and viewing data, is also discussed. To provide an easy entry point to AIRS NRT data and services, a Web portal designed for customized data downloading and visualization is introduced.

Implementation of a near-real time cross-border web-mapping platform on airborne particulate matter (PM) concentration with open-source software

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Knörchen, Achim; Ketzler, Gunnar; Schneider, Christoph

2015-01-01

Although Europe has been growing together for the past decades, cross-border information platforms on environmental issues are still scarce. With regard to the establishment of a web-mapping tool on airborne particulate matter (PM) concentration for the Euregio Meuse-Rhine located in the border region of Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands, this article describes the research on methodical and technical backgrounds implementing such a platform. An open-source solution was selected for presenting the data in a Web GIS (OpenLayers/GeoExt; both JavaScript-based), applying other free tools for data handling (Python), data management (PostgreSQL), geo-statistical modelling (Octave), geoprocessing (GRASS GIS/GDAL) and web mapping (MapServer). The multilingual, made-to-order online platform provides access to near-real time data on PM concentration as well as additional background information. In an open data section, commented configuration files for the Web GIS client are being made available for download. Furthermore, all geodata generated by the project is being published under public domain and can be retrieved in various formats or integrated into Desktop GIS as Web Map Services (WMS).

Using open data in near real time disaster analysis and knowledge generation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

She, Jun

2017-04-01

This presentation will address the value of using open operational geo data in near real time disaster analysis and knowledge generation. In the past, mechanism analysis of a meteo-hyrological extreme event may take month and years with lots of resources since there exist many kinds of restrictions on the model and observation data, e.g., in availability, accessibility, adequacy in resolution, quality and delivery time etc. In recent years, thanks to the open data and open service programs such as Copernicus, EMODnet (European Marine Observation Data Network) and data sharing activities in ROOSs (Regional Operational Oceanography Systems) and national agencies, the disaster analysis become a much faster and efficient procedure. The study will present such a case study for analyzing a hundred-year storm event in January 2017 which affects Danish and German coasts in western Baltic Sea. The event and its forecasts have caused lots of attention in Danish and German media. However, the explanations on how the storm surge is formed and why the prediction is good or bad in this or that country are still largely absent in the media reports. All the data and plots used in the analysis are from open sources. It is found that with the open data, the spatiotemporal variation and the internal links between weather, sea level and water mass movements can be well understood. New knowledge on key factors for the unusual high waters in the western Baltic is obtained from this analysis. Finally, recommendations for using open operational data in generating open science are given.

Real-Time Event Detection for Monitoring Natural and Source ...

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

The use of event detection systems in finished drinking water systems is increasing in order to monitor water quality in both operational and security contexts. Recent incidents involving harmful algal blooms and chemical spills into watersheds have increased interest in monitoring source water quality prior to treatment. This work highlights the use of the CANARY event detection software in detecting suspected illicit events in an actively monitored watershed in South Carolina. CANARY is an open source event detection software that was developed by USEPA and Sandia National Laboratories. The software works with any type of sensor, utilizes multiple detection algorithms and approaches, and can incorporate operational information as needed. Monitoring has been underway for several years to detect events related to intentional or unintentional dumping of materials into the monitored watershed. This work evaluates the feasibility of using CANARY to enhance the detection of events in this watershed. This presentation will describe the real-time monitoring approach used in this watershed, the selection of CANARY configuration parameters that optimize detection for this watershed and monitoring application, and the performance of CANARY during the time frame analyzed. Further, this work will highlight how rainfall events impacted analysis, and the innovative application of CANARY taken in order to effectively detect the suspected illicit events. This presentation d

openPSTD: The open source pseudospectral time-domain method for acoustic propagation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hornikx, Maarten; Krijnen, Thomas; van Harten, Louis

2016-06-01

An open source implementation of the Fourier pseudospectral time-domain (PSTD) method for computing the propagation of sound is presented, which is geared towards applications in the built environment. Being a wave-based method, PSTD captures phenomena like diffraction, but maintains efficiency in processing time and memory usage as it allows to spatially sample close to the Nyquist criterion, thus keeping both the required spatial and temporal resolution coarse. In the implementation it has been opted to model the physical geometry as a composition of rectangular two-dimensional subdomains, hence initially restricting the implementation to orthogonal and two-dimensional situations. The strategy of using subdomains divides the problem domain into local subsets, which enables the simulation software to be built according to Object-Oriented Programming best practices and allows room for further computational parallelization. The software is built using the open source components, Blender, Numpy and Python, and has been published under an open source license itself as well. For accelerating the software, an option has been included to accelerate the calculations by a partial implementation of the code on the Graphical Processing Unit (GPU), which increases the throughput by up to fifteen times. The details of the implementation are reported, as well as the accuracy of the code.

Open-circuit respirometry: real-time, laboratory-based systems.

PubMed

Ward, Susan A

2018-05-04

This review explores the conceptual and technological factors integral to the development of laboratory-based, automated real-time open-circuit mixing-chamber and breath-by-breath (B × B) gas-exchange systems, together with considerations of assumptions and limitations. Advances in sensor technology, signal analysis, and digital computation led to the emergence of these technologies in the mid-20th century, at a time when investigators were beginning to recognise the interpretational advantages of nonsteady-state physiological-system interrogation in understanding the aetiology of exercise (in)tolerance in health, sport, and disease. Key milestones include the 'Auchincloss' description of an off-line system to estimate alveolar O 2 uptake B × B during exercise. This was followed by the first descriptions of real-time automated O 2 uptake and CO 2 output B × B measurement by Beaver and colleagues and by Linnarsson and Lindborg, and mixing-chamber measurement by Wilmore and colleagues. Challenges to both approaches soon emerged: e.g., the influence of mixing-chamber washout kinetics on mixed-expired gas concentration determination, and B × B alignment of gas-concentration signals with respired flow. The challenging algorithmic and technical refinements required for gas-exchange estimation at the alveolar level have also been extensively explored. In conclusion, while the technology (both hardware and software) underpinning real-time automated gas-exchange measurement has progressively advanced, there are still concerns regarding accuracy especially under the challenging conditions of changing metabolic rate.

Capability of a Mobile Monitoring System to Provide Real-Time Data Broadcasting and Near Real-Time Source Attribution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Erickson, M.; Olaguer, J.; Wijesinghe, A.; Colvin, J.; Neish, B.; Williams, J.

2014-12-01

It is becoming increasingly important to understand the emissions and health effects of industrial facilities. Many areas have no or limited sustained monitoring capabilities, making it difficult to quantify the major pollution sources affecting human health, especially in fence line communities. Developments in real-time monitoring and micro-scale modeling offer unique ways to tackle these complex issues. This presentation will demonstrate the capability of coupling real-time observations with micro-scale modeling to provide real-time information and near real-time source attribution. The Houston Advanced Research Center constructed the Mobile Acquisition of Real-time Concentrations (MARC) laboratory. MARC consists of a Ford E-350 passenger van outfitted with a Proton Transfer Reaction Mass Spectrometer (PTR-MS) and meteorological equipment. This allows for the fast measurement of various VOCs important to air quality. The data recorded from the van is uploaded to an off-site database and the information is broadcast to a website in real-time. This provides for off-site monitoring of MARC's observations, which allows off-site personnel to provide immediate input to the MARC operators on how to best achieve project objectives. The information stored in the database can also be used to provide near real-time source attribution. An inverse model has been used to ascertain the amount, location, and timing of emissions based on MARC measurements in the vicinity of industrial sites. The inverse model is based on a 3D micro-scale Eulerian forward and adjoint air quality model known as the HARC model. The HARC model uses output from the Quick Urban and Industrial Complex (QUIC) wind model and requires a 3D digital model of the monitored facility based on lidar or industrial permit data. MARC is one of the instrument platforms deployed during the 2014 Benzene and other Toxics Exposure Study (BEE-TEX) in Houston, TX. The main goal of the study is to quantify and explain the

Real-time inverse kinematics and inverse dynamics for lower limb applications using OpenSim

PubMed Central

Modenese, L.; Lloyd, D.G.

2017-01-01

Real-time estimation of joint angles and moments can be used for rapid evaluation in clinical, sport, and rehabilitation contexts. However, real-time calculation of kinematics and kinetics is currently based on approximate solutions or generic anatomical models. We present a real-time system based on OpenSim solving inverse kinematics and dynamics without simplifications at 2000 frame per seconds with less than 31.5ms of delay. We describe the software architecture, sensitivity analyses to minimise delays and errors, and compare offline and real-time results. This system has the potential to strongly impact current rehabilitation practices enabling the use of personalised musculoskeletal models in real-time. PMID:27723992

Real-time inverse kinematics and inverse dynamics for lower limb applications using OpenSim.

PubMed

Pizzolato, C; Reggiani, M; Modenese, L; Lloyd, D G

2017-03-01

Real-time estimation of joint angles and moments can be used for rapid evaluation in clinical, sport, and rehabilitation contexts. However, real-time calculation of kinematics and kinetics is currently based on approximate solutions or generic anatomical models. We present a real-time system based on OpenSim solving inverse kinematics and dynamics without simplifications at 2000 frame per seconds with less than 31.5 ms of delay. We describe the software architecture, sensitivity analyses to minimise delays and errors, and compare offline and real-time results. This system has the potential to strongly impact current rehabilitation practices enabling the use of personalised musculoskeletal models in real-time.

Real-time realizations of the Bayesian Infrasonic Source Localization Method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pinsky, V.; Arrowsmith, S.; Hofstetter, A.; Nippress, A.

2015-12-01

The Bayesian Infrasonic Source Localization method (BISL), introduced by Mordak et al. (2010) and upgraded by Marcillo et al. (2014) is destined for the accurate estimation of the atmospheric event origin at local, regional and global scales by the seismic and infrasonic networks and arrays. The BISL is based on probabilistic models of the source-station infrasonic signal propagation time, picking time and azimuth estimate merged with a prior knowledge about celerity distribution. It requires at each hypothetical source location, integration of the product of the corresponding source-station likelihood functions multiplied by a prior probability density function of celerity over the multivariate parameter space. The present BISL realization is generally time-consuming procedure based on numerical integration. The computational scheme proposed simplifies the target function so that integrals are taken exactly and are represented via standard functions. This makes the procedure much faster and realizable in real-time without practical loss of accuracy. The procedure executed as PYTHON-FORTRAN code demonstrates high performance on a set of the model and real data.

RTSPM: real-time Linux control software for scanning probe microscopy.

PubMed

Chandrasekhar, V; Mehta, M M

2013-01-01

Real time computer control is an essential feature of scanning probe microscopes, which have become important tools for the characterization and investigation of nanometer scale samples. Most commercial (and some open-source) scanning probe data acquisition software uses digital signal processors to handle the real time data processing and control, which adds to the expense and complexity of the control software. We describe here scan control software that uses a single computer and a data acquisition card to acquire scan data. The computer runs an open-source real time Linux kernel, which permits fast acquisition and control while maintaining a responsive graphical user interface. Images from a simulated tuning-fork based microscope as well as a standard topographical sample are also presented, showing some of the capabilities of the software.

X-LUNA: Extending Free/Open Source Real Time Executive for On-Board Space Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Braga, P.; Henriques, L.; Zulianello, M.

2008-08-01

In this paper we present xLuna, a system based on the RTEMS [1] Real-Time Operating System that is able to run on demand a GNU/Linux Operating System [2] as RTEMS' lowest priority task. Linux runs in user-mode and in a different memory partition. This allows running Hard Real-Time tasks and Linux applications on the same system sharing the Hardware resources while keeping a safe isolation and the Real-Time characteristics of RTEMS. Communication between both Systems is possible through a loose coupled mechanism based on message queues. Currently only SPARC LEON2 processor with Memory Management Unit (MMU) is supported. The advantage in having two isolated systems is that non critical components are quickly developed or simply ported reducing time-to-market and budget.

Flutrack.org: Open-source and linked data for epidemiology.

PubMed

Chorianopoulos, Konstantinos; Talvis, Karolos

2016-12-01

Epidemiology has made advances, thanks to the availability of real-time surveillance data and by leveraging the geographic analysis of incidents. There are many health information systems that visualize the symptoms of influenza-like illness on a digital map, which is suitable for end-users, but it does not afford further processing and analysis. Existing systems have emphasized the collection, analysis, and visualization of surveillance data, but they have neglected a modular and interoperable design that integrates high-resolution geo-location with real-time data. As a remedy, we have built an open-source project and we have been operating an open service that detects flu-related symptoms and shares the data in real-time with anyone who wants to built upon this system. An analysis of a small number of precisely geo-located status updates (e.g. Twitter) correlates closely with the Google Flu Trends and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention flu-positive reports. We suggest that public health information systems should embrace an open-source approach and offer linked data, in order to facilitate the development of an ecosystem of applications and services, and in order to be transparent to the general public interest. © The Author(s) 2015.

The Raptor Real-Time Processing Architecture

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Galassi, M.; Starr, D.; Wozniak, P.; Brozdin, K.

The primary goal of Raptor is ambitious: to identify interesting optical transients from very wide field of view telescopes in real time, and then to quickly point the higher resolution Raptor ``fovea'' cameras and spectrometer to the location of the optical transient. The most interesting of Raptor's many applications is the real-time search for orphan optical counterparts of Gamma Ray Bursts. The sequence of steps (data acquisition, basic calibration, source extraction, astrometry, relative photometry, the smarts of transient identification and elimination of false positives, telescope pointing feedback, etc.) is implemented with a ``component'' approach. All basic elements of the pipeline functionality have been written from scratch or adapted (as in the case of SExtractor for source extraction) to form a consistent modern API operating on memory resident images and source lists. The result is a pipeline which meets our real-time requirements and which can easily operate as a monolithic or distributed processing system. Finally, the Raptor architecture is entirely based on free software (sometimes referred to as ``open source'' software). In this paper we also discuss the interplay between various free software technologies in this type of astronomical problem.

Managing research and surveillance projects in real-time with a novel open-source eManagement tool designed for under-resourced countries.

PubMed

Steiner, Andreas; Hella, Jerry; Grüninger, Servan; Mhalu, Grace; Mhimbira, Francis; Cercamondi, Colin I; Doulla, Basra; Maire, Nicolas; Fenner, Lukas

2016-09-01

A software tool is developed to facilitate data entry and to monitor research projects in under-resourced countries in real-time. The eManagement tool "odk_planner" is written in the scripting languages PHP and Python. The odk_planner is lightweight and uses minimal internet resources. It was designed to be used with the open source software Open Data Kit (ODK). The users can easily configure odk_planner to meet their needs, and the online interface displays data collected from ODK forms in a graphically informative way. The odk_planner also allows users to upload pictures and laboratory results and sends text messages automatically. User-defined access rights protect data and privacy. We present examples from four field applications in Tanzania successfully using the eManagement tool: 1) clinical trial; 2) longitudinal Tuberculosis (TB) Cohort Study with a complex visit schedule, where it was used to graphically display missing case report forms, upload digitalized X-rays, and send text message reminders to patients; 3) intervention study to improve TB case detection, carried out at pharmacies: a tablet-based electronic referral system monitored referred patients, and sent automated messages to remind pharmacy clients to visit a TB Clinic; and 4) TB retreatment case monitoring designed to improve drug resistance surveillance: clinicians at four public TB clinics and lab technicians at the TB reference laboratory used a smartphone-based application that tracked sputum samples, and collected clinical and laboratory data. The user friendly, open source odk_planner is a simple, but multi-functional, Web-based eManagement tool with add-ons that helps researchers conduct studies in under-resourced countries. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the American Medical Informatics Association. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

A real-time camera calibration system based on OpenCV

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Hui; Wang, Hua; Guo, Huinan; Ren, Long; Zhou, Zuofeng

2015-07-01

Camera calibration is one of the essential steps in the computer vision research. This paper describes a real-time OpenCV based camera calibration system, and developed and implemented in the VS2008 environment. Experimental results prove that the system to achieve a simple and fast camera calibration, compared with MATLAB, higher precision and does not need manual intervention, and can be widely used in various computer vision system.

Development open source microcontroller based temperature data logger

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abdullah, M. H.; Che Ghani, S. A.; Zaulkafilai, Z.; Tajuddin, S. N.

2017-10-01

This article discusses the development stages in designing, prototyping, testing and deploying a portable open source microcontroller based temperature data logger for use in rough industrial environment. The 5V powered prototype of data logger is equipped with open source Arduino microcontroller for integrating multiple thermocouple sensors with their module, secure digital (SD) card storage, liquid crystal display (LCD), real time clock and electronic enclosure made of acrylic. The program for the function of the datalogger is programmed so that 8 readings from the thermocouples can be acquired within 3 s interval and displayed on the LCD simultaneously. The recorded temperature readings at four different points on both hydrodistillation show similar profile pattern and highest yield of extracted oil was achieved on hydrodistillation 2 at 0.004%. From the obtained results, this study achieved the objective of developing an inexpensive, portable and robust eight channels temperature measuring module with capabilities to monitor and store real time data.

Tuning Linux to meet real time requirements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Herbel, Richard S.; Le, Dang N.

2007-04-01

There is a desire to use Linux in military systems. Customers are requesting contractors to use open source to the maximal possible extent in contracts. Linux is probably the best operating system of choice to meet this need. It is widely used. It is free. It is royalty free, and, best of all, it is completely open source. However, there is a problem. Linux was not originally built to be a real time operating system. There are many places where interrupts can and will be blocked for an indeterminate amount of time. There have been several attempts to bridge this gap. One of them is from RTLinux, which attempts to build a microkernel underneath Linux. The microkernel will handle all interrupts and then pass it up to the Linux operating system. This does insure good interrupt latency; however, it is not free [1]. Another is RTAI, which provides a similar typed interface; however, the PowerPC platform, which is used widely in real time embedded community, was stated as "recovering" [2]. Thus this is not suited for military usage. This paper provides a method for tuning a standard Linux kernel so it can meet the real time requirement of an embedded system.

Building energy simulation in real time through an open standard interface

DOE PAGES

Pang, Xiufeng; Nouidui, Thierry S.; Wetter, Michael; ...

2015-10-20

Building energy models (BEMs) are typically used for design and code compliance for new buildings and in the renovation of existing buildings to predict energy use. We present the increasing adoption of BEM as standard practice in the building industry presents an opportunity to extend the use of BEMs into construction, commissioning and operation. In 2009, the authors developed a real-time simulation framework to execute an EnergyPlus model in real time to improve building operation. This paper reports an enhancement of that real-time energy simulation framework. The previous version only works with software tools that implement the custom co-simulation interfacemore » of the Building Controls Virtual Test Bed (BCVTB), such as EnergyPlus, Dymola and TRNSYS. The new version uses an open standard interface, the Functional Mockup Interface (FMI), to provide a generic interface to any application that supports the FMI protocol. In addition, the new version utilizes the Simple Measurement and Actuation Profile (sMAP) tool as the data acquisition system to acquire, store and present data. Lastly, this paper introduces the updated architecture of the real-time simulation framework using FMI and presents proof-of-concept demonstration results which validate the new framework.« less

Raptor -- Mining the Sky in Real Time

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Galassi, M.; Borozdin, K.; Casperson, D.; McGowan, K.; Starr, D.; White, R.; Wozniak, P.; Wren, J.

2004-06-01

The primary goal of Raptor is ambitious: to identify interesting optical transients from very wide field of view telescopes in real time, and then to quickly point the higher resolution Raptor ``fovea'' cameras and spectrometer to the location of the optical transient. The most interesting of Raptor's many applications is the real-time search for orphan optical counterparts of Gamma Ray Bursts. The sequence of steps (data acquisition, basic calibration, source extraction, astrometry, relative photometry, the smarts of transient identification and elimination of false positives, telescope pointing feedback...) is implemented with a ``component'' aproach. All basic elements of the pipeline functionality have been written from scratch or adapted (as in the case of SExtractor for source extraction) to form a consistent modern API operating on memory resident images and source lists. The result is a pipeline which meets our real-time requirements and which can easily operate as a monolithic or distributed processing system. Finally: the Raptor architecture is entirely based on free software (sometimes referred to as "open source" software). In this paper we also discuss the interplay between various free software technologies in this type of astronomical problem.

Digital time stamping system based on open source technologies.

PubMed

Miskinis, Rimantas; Smirnov, Dmitrij; Urba, Emilis; Burokas, Andrius; Malysko, Bogdan; Laud, Peeter; Zuliani, Francesco

2010-03-01

A digital time stamping system based on open source technologies (LINUX-UBUNTU, OpenTSA, OpenSSL, MySQL) is described in detail, including all important testing results. The system, called BALTICTIME, was developed under a project sponsored by the European Commission under the Program FP 6. It was designed to meet the requirements posed to the systems of legal and accountable time stamping and to be applicable to the hardware commonly used by the national time metrology laboratories. The BALTICTIME system is intended for the use of governmental and other institutions as well as personal bodies. Testing results demonstrate that the time stamps issued to the user by BALTICTIME and saved in BALTICTIME's archives (which implies that the time stamps are accountable) meet all the regulatory requirements. Moreover, the BALTICTIME in its present implementation is able to issue more than 10 digital time stamps per second. The system can be enhanced if needed. The test version of the BALTICTIME service is free and available at http://baltictime. pfi.lt:8080/btws/ and http://baltictime.lnmc.lv:8080/btws/.

Recent achievements in real-time computational seismology in Taiwan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, S.; Liang, W.; Huang, B.

2012-12-01

Real-time computational seismology is currently possible to be achieved which needs highly connection between seismic database and high performance computing. We have developed a real-time moment tensor monitoring system (RMT) by using continuous BATS records and moment tensor inversion (CMT) technique. The real-time online earthquake simulation service is also ready to open for researchers and public earthquake science education (ROS). Combine RMT with ROS, the earthquake report based on computational seismology can provide within 5 minutes after an earthquake occurred (RMT obtains point source information < 120 sec; ROS completes a 3D simulation < 3 minutes). All of these computational results are posted on the internet in real-time now. For more information, welcome to visit real-time computational seismology earthquake report webpage (RCS).

Open Ephys: an open-source, plugin-based platform for multichannel electrophysiology.

PubMed

Siegle, Joshua H; López, Aarón Cuevas; Patel, Yogi A; Abramov, Kirill; Ohayon, Shay; Voigts, Jakob

2017-08-01

Closed-loop experiments, in which causal interventions are conditioned on the state of the system under investigation, have become increasingly common in neuroscience. Such experiments can have a high degree of explanatory power, but they require a precise implementation that can be difficult to replicate across laboratories. We sought to overcome this limitation by building open-source software that makes it easier to develop and share algorithms for closed-loop control. We created the Open Ephys GUI, an open-source platform for multichannel electrophysiology experiments. In addition to the standard 'open-loop' visualization and recording functionality, the GUI also includes modules for delivering feedback in response to events detected in the incoming data stream. Importantly, these modules can be built and shared as plugins, which makes it possible for users to extend the functionality of the GUI through a simple API, without having to understand the inner workings of the entire application. In combination with low-cost, open-source hardware for amplifying and digitizing neural signals, the GUI has been used for closed-loop experiments that perturb the hippocampal theta rhythm in a phase-specific manner. The Open Ephys GUI is the first widely used application for multichannel electrophysiology that leverages a plugin-based workflow. We hope that it will lower the barrier to entry for electrophysiologists who wish to incorporate real-time feedback into their research.

Openly Published Environmental Sensing (OPEnS) | Advancing Open-Source Research, Instrumentation, and Dissemination

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Udell, C.; Selker, J. S.

2017-12-01

The increasing availability and functionality of Open-Source software and hardware along with 3D printing, low-cost electronics, and proliferation of open-access resources for learning rapid prototyping are contributing to fundamental transformations and new technologies in environmental sensing. These tools invite reevaluation of time-tested methodologies and devices toward more efficient, reusable, and inexpensive alternatives. Building upon Open-Source design facilitates community engagement and invites a Do-It-Together (DIT) collaborative framework for research where solutions to complex problems may be crowd-sourced. However, barriers persist that prevent researchers from taking advantage of the capabilities afforded by open-source software, hardware, and rapid prototyping. Some of these include: requisite technical skillsets, knowledge of equipment capabilities, identifying inexpensive sources for materials, money, space, and time. A university MAKER space staffed by engineering students to assist researchers is one proposed solution to overcome many of these obstacles. This presentation investigates the unique capabilities the USDA-funded Openly Published Environmental Sensing (OPEnS) Lab affords researchers, within Oregon State and internationally, and the unique functions these types of initiatives support at the intersection of MAKER spaces, Open-Source academic research, and open-access dissemination.

Open Probe fast GC-MS - combining ambient sampling ultra-fast separation and in-vacuum ionization for real-time analysis.

PubMed

Keshet, U; Alon, T; Fialkov, A B; Amirav, A

2017-07-01

An Open Probe inlet was combined with a low thermal mass ultra-fast gas chromatograph (GC), in-vacuum electron ionization ion source and a mass spectrometer (MS) of GC-MS for obtaining real-time analysis with separation. The Open Probe enables ambient sampling via sample vaporization in an oven that is open to room air, and the ultra-fast GC provides ~30-s separation, while if no separation is required, it can act as a transfer line with 2 to 3-s sample transfer time. Sample analysis is as simple as touching the sample, pushing the sample holder into the Open Probe oven and obtaining the results in 30 s. The Open Probe fast GC was mounted on a standard Agilent 7890 GC that was coupled with an Agilent 5977A MS. Open Probe fast GC-MS provides real-time analysis combined with GC separation and library identification, and it uses the low-cost MS of GC-MS. The operation of Open Probe fast GC-MS is demonstrated in the 30-s separation and 50-s full analysis cycle time of tetrahydrocannabinol and cannabinol in Cannabis flower, sub 1-min analysis of trace trinitrotoluene transferred from a finger onto a glass surface, vitamin E in canola oil, sterols in olive oil, polybrominated flame retardants in plastics, alprazolam in Xanax drug pill and free fatty acids and cholesterol in human blood. The extrapolated limit of detection for pyrene is <1 fg, but the concentration is too high and the software noise calculation is untrustworthy. The broad range of compounds amenable for analysis is demonstrated in the analysis of reserpine. The possible use with alternate standard GC-MS and Open Probe fast GC-MS is demonstrated in the analysis of heroin in its street drug powder. The use of Open Probe with the fast GC acting as a transfer line is demonstrated in <10-s analysis without separation of ibuprofen and estradiol. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Real-time open-loop frequency response analysis of flight test data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Bosworth, J. T.; West, J. C.

1986-01-01

A technique has been developed to compare the open-loop frequency response of a flight test aircraft real time with linear analysis predictions. The result is direct feedback to the flight control systems engineer on the validity of predictions and adds confidence for proceeding with envelope expansion. Further, gain and phase margins can be tracked for trends in a manner similar to the techniques used by structural dynamics engineers in tracking structural modal damping.

A Real-Time Web of Things Framework with Customizable Openness Considering Legacy Devices.

PubMed

Zhao, Shuai; Yu, Le; Cheng, Bo

2016-09-28

With the development of the Internet of Things (IoT), resources and applications based on it have emerged on a large scale. However, most efforts are "silo" solutions where devices and applications are tightly coupled. Infrastructures are needed to connect sensors to the Internet, open up and break the current application silos and move to a horizontal application mode. Based on the concept of Web of Things (WoT), many infrastructures have been proposed to integrate the physical world with the Web. However, issues such as no real-time guarantee, lack of fine-grained control of data, and the absence of explicit solutions for integrating heterogeneous legacy devices, hinder their widespread and practical use. To address these issues, this paper proposes a WoT resource framework that provides the infrastructures for the customizable openness and sharing of users' data and resources under the premise of ensuring the real-time behavior of their own applications. The proposed framework is validated by actual systems and experimental evaluations.

From open source communications to knowledge

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Preece, Alun; Roberts, Colin; Rogers, David; Webberley, Will; Innes, Martin; Braines, Dave

2016-05-01

Rapid processing and exploitation of open source information, including social media sources, in order to shorten decision-making cycles, has emerged as an important issue in intelligence analysis in recent years. Through a series of case studies and natural experiments, focussed primarily upon policing and counter-terrorism scenarios, we have developed an approach to information foraging and framing to inform decision making, drawing upon open source intelligence, in particular Twitter, due to its real-time focus and frequent use as a carrier for links to other media. Our work uses a combination of natural language (NL) and controlled natural language (CNL) processing to support information collection from human sensors, linking and schematising of collected information, and the framing of situational pictures. We illustrate the approach through a series of vignettes, highlighting (1) how relatively lightweight and reusable knowledge models (schemas) can rapidly be developed to add context to collected social media data, (2) how information from open sources can be combined with reports from trusted observers, for corroboration or to identify con icting information; and (3) how the approach supports users operating at or near the tactical edge, to rapidly task information collection and inform decision-making. The approach is supported by bespoke software tools for social media analytics and knowledge management.

Open Source Seismic Software in NOAA's Next Generation Tsunami Warning System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hellman, S. B.; Baker, B. I.; Hagerty, M. T.; Leifer, J. M.; Lisowski, S.; Thies, D. A.; Donnelly, B. K.; Griffith, F. P.

2014-12-01

The Tsunami Information technology Modernization (TIM) is a project spearheaded by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to update the United States' Tsunami Warning System software currently employed at the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (Eva Beach, Hawaii) and the National Tsunami Warning Center (Palmer, Alaska). This entirely open source software project will integrate various seismic processing utilities with the National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office's core software, AWIPS2. For the real-time and near real-time seismic processing aspect of this project, NOAA has elected to integrate the open source portions of GFZ's SeisComP 3 (SC3) processing system into AWIPS2. To provide for better tsunami threat assessments we are developing open source tools for magnitude estimations (e.g., moment magnitude, energy magnitude, surface wave magnitude), detection of slow earthquakes with the Theta discriminant, moment tensor inversions (e.g. W-phase and teleseismic body waves), finite fault inversions, and array processing. With our reliance on common data formats such as QuakeML and seismic community standard messaging systems, all new facilities introduced into AWIPS2 and SC3 will be available as stand-alone tools or could be easily integrated into other real time seismic monitoring systems such as Earthworm, Antelope, etc. Additionally, we have developed a template based design paradigm so that the developer or scientist can efficiently create upgrades, replacements, and/or new metrics to the seismic data processing with only a cursory knowledge of the underlying SC3.

Real-time Experiment Interface for Biological Control Applications

PubMed Central

Lin, Risa J.; Bettencourt, Jonathan; White, John A.; Christini, David J.; Butera, Robert J.

2013-01-01

The Real-time Experiment Interface (RTXI) is a fast and versatile real-time biological experimentation system based on Real-Time Linux. RTXI is open source and free, can be used with an extensive range of experimentation hardware, and can be run on Linux or Windows computers (when using the Live CD). RTXI is currently used extensively for two experiment types: dynamic patch clamp and closed-loop stimulation pattern control in neural and cardiac single cell electrophysiology. RTXI includes standard plug-ins for implementing commonly used electrophysiology protocols with synchronized stimulation, event detection, and online analysis. These and other user-contributed plug-ins can be found on the website (http://www.rtxi.org). PMID:21096883

Shelf Life of Food Products: From Open Labeling to Real-Time Measurements.

PubMed

Corradini, Maria G

2018-03-25

The labels currently used on food and beverage products only provide consumers with a rough guide to their expected shelf lives because they assume that a product only experiences a limited range of predefined handling and storage conditions. These static labels do not take into consideration conditions that might shorten a product's shelf life (such as temperature abuse), which can lead to problems associated with food safety and waste. Advances in shelf-life estimation have the potential to improve the safety, reliability, and sustainability of the food supply. Selection of appropriate kinetic models and data-analysis techniques is essential to predict shelf life, to account for variability in environmental conditions, and to allow real-time monitoring. Novel analytical tools to determine safety and quality attributes in situ coupled with modern tracking technologies and appropriate predictive tools have the potential to provide accurate estimations of the remaining shelf life of a food product in real time. This review summarizes the necessary steps to attain a transition from open labeling to real-time shelf-life measurements.

Sharing Lessons-Learned on Effective Open Data, Open-Source Practices from OpenAQ, a Global Open Air Quality Community.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hasenkopf, C. A.

2017-12-01

Increasingly, open data, open-source projects are unearthing rich datasets and tools, previously impossible for more traditional avenues to generate. These projects are possible, in part, because of the emergence of online collaborative and code-sharing tools, decreasing costs of cloud-based services to fetch, store, and serve data, and increasing interest of individuals to contribute their time and skills to 'open projects.' While such projects have generated palpable enthusiasm from many sectors, many of these projects face uncharted paths for sustainability, visibility, and acceptance. Our project, OpenAQ, is an example of an open-source, open data community that is currently forging its own uncharted path. OpenAQ is an open air quality data platform that aggregates and universally formats government and research-grade air quality data from 50 countries across the world. To date, we make available more than 76 million air quality (PM2.5, PM10, SO2, NO2, O3, CO and black carbon) data points through an open Application Programming Interface (API) and a user-customizable download interface at https://openaq.org. The goal of the platform is to enable an ecosystem of users to advance air pollution efforts from science to policy to the private sector. The platform is also an open-source project (https://github.com/openaq) and has only been made possible through the coding and data contributions of individuals around the world. In our first two years of existence, we have seen requests for data to our API skyrocket to more than 6 million datapoints per month, and use-cases as varied as ingesting data aggregated from our system into real-time models of wildfires to building open-source statistical packages (e.g. ropenaq and py-openaq) on top of the platform to creating public-friendly apps and chatbots. We will share a whirl-wind trip through our evolution and the many lessons learned so far related to platform structure, community engagement, organizational model type

Open Ephys: an open-source, plugin-based platform for multichannel electrophysiology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Siegle, Joshua H.; Cuevas López, Aarón; Patel, Yogi A.; Abramov, Kirill; Ohayon, Shay; Voigts, Jakob

2017-08-01

Objective. Closed-loop experiments, in which causal interventions are conditioned on the state of the system under investigation, have become increasingly common in neuroscience. Such experiments can have a high degree of explanatory power, but they require a precise implementation that can be difficult to replicate across laboratories. We sought to overcome this limitation by building open-source software that makes it easier to develop and share algorithms for closed-loop control. Approach. We created the Open Ephys GUI, an open-source platform for multichannel electrophysiology experiments. In addition to the standard ‘open-loop’ visualization and recording functionality, the GUI also includes modules for delivering feedback in response to events detected in the incoming data stream. Importantly, these modules can be built and shared as plugins, which makes it possible for users to extend the functionality of the GUI through a simple API, without having to understand the inner workings of the entire application. Main results. In combination with low-cost, open-source hardware for amplifying and digitizing neural signals, the GUI has been used for closed-loop experiments that perturb the hippocampal theta rhythm in a phase-specific manner. Significance. The Open Ephys GUI is the first widely used application for multichannel electrophysiology that leverages a plugin-based workflow. We hope that it will lower the barrier to entry for electrophysiologists who wish to incorporate real-time feedback into their research.

Web-Based Real-Time Emergency Monitoring

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Harvey, Craig A.; Lawhead, Joel

2007-01-01

The Web-based Real-Time Asset Monitoring (RAM) module for emergency operations and facility management enables emergency personnel in federal agencies and local and state governments to monitor and analyze data in the event of a natural disaster or other crisis that threatens a large number of people and property. The software can manage many disparate sources of data within a facility, city, or county. It was developed on industry-standard Geo- Spatial software and is compliant with open GIS standards. RAM View can function as a standalone system, or as an integrated plugin module to Emergency Operations Center (EOC) software suites such as REACT (Real-time Emergency Action Coordination Tool), thus ensuring the widest possible distribution among potential users. RAM has the ability to monitor various data sources, including streaming data. Many disparate systems are included in the initial suite of supported hardware systems, such as mobile GPS units, ambient measurements of temperature, moisture and chemical agents, flow meters, air quality, asset location, and meteorological conditions. RAM View displays real-time data streams such as gauge heights from the U.S. Geological Survey gauging stations, flood crests from the National Weather Service, and meteorological data from numerous sources. Data points are clearly visible on the map interface, and attributes as specified in the user requirements can be viewed and queried.

GPU-based real-time trinocular stereo vision

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yao, Yuanbin; Linton, R. J.; Padir, Taskin

2013-01-01

Most stereovision applications are binocular which uses information from a 2-camera array to perform stereo matching and compute the depth image. Trinocular stereovision with a 3-camera array has been proved to provide higher accuracy in stereo matching which could benefit applications like distance finding, object recognition, and detection. This paper presents a real-time stereovision algorithm implemented on a GPGPU (General-purpose graphics processing unit) using a trinocular stereovision camera array. Algorithm employs a winner-take-all method applied to perform fusion of disparities in different directions following various image processing techniques to obtain the depth information. The goal of the algorithm is to achieve real-time processing speed with the help of a GPGPU involving the use of Open Source Computer Vision Library (OpenCV) in C++ and NVidia CUDA GPGPU Solution. The results are compared in accuracy and speed to verify the improvement.

Locating arbitrarily time-dependent sound sources in three dimensional space in real time.

PubMed

Wu, Sean F; Zhu, Na

2010-08-01

This paper presents a method for locating arbitrarily time-dependent acoustic sources in a free field in real time by using only four microphones. This method is capable of handling a wide variety of acoustic signals, including broadband, narrowband, impulsive, and continuous sound over the entire audible frequency range, produced by multiple sources in three dimensional (3D) space. Locations of acoustic sources are indicated by the Cartesian coordinates. The underlying principle of this method is a hybrid approach that consists of modeling of acoustic radiation from a point source in a free field, triangulation, and de-noising to enhance the signal to noise ratio (SNR). Numerical simulations are conducted to study the impacts of SNR, microphone spacing, source distance and frequency on spatial resolution and accuracy of source localizations. Based on these results, a simple device that consists of four microphones mounted on three mutually orthogonal axes at an optimal distance, a four-channel signal conditioner, and a camera is fabricated. Experiments are conducted in different environments to assess its effectiveness in locating sources that produce arbitrarily time-dependent acoustic signals, regardless whether a sound source is stationary or moves in space, even toward behind measurement microphones. Practical limitations on this method are discussed.

A Real-Time Web of Things Framework with Customizable Openness Considering Legacy Devices

PubMed Central

Zhao, Shuai; Yu, Le; Cheng, Bo

2016-01-01

With the development of the Internet of Things (IoT), resources and applications based on it have emerged on a large scale. However, most efforts are “silo” solutions where devices and applications are tightly coupled. Infrastructures are needed to connect sensors to the Internet, open up and break the current application silos and move to a horizontal application mode. Based on the concept of Web of Things (WoT), many infrastructures have been proposed to integrate the physical world with the Web. However, issues such as no real-time guarantee, lack of fine-grained control of data, and the absence of explicit solutions for integrating heterogeneous legacy devices, hinder their widespread and practical use. To address these issues, this paper proposes a WoT resource framework that provides the infrastructures for the customizable openness and sharing of users’ data and resources under the premise of ensuring the real-time behavior of their own applications. The proposed framework is validated by actual systems and experimental evaluations. PMID:27690038

Real-Time Nanoscale Open-Circuit Voltage Dynamics of Perovskite Solar Cells.

PubMed

Garrett, Joseph L; Tennyson, Elizabeth M; Hu, Miao; Huang, Jinsong; Munday, Jeremy N; Leite, Marina S

2017-04-12

Hybrid organic-inorganic perovskites based on methylammonium lead (MAPbI 3 ) are an emerging material with great potential for high-performance and low-cost photovoltaics. However, for perovskites to become a competitive and reliable solar cell technology their instability and spatial variation must be understood and controlled. While the macroscopic characterization of the devices as a function of time is very informative, a nanoscale identification of their real-time local optoelectronic response is still missing. Here, we implement a four-dimensional imaging method through illuminated heterodyne Kelvin probe force microscopy to spatially (<50 nm) and temporally (16 s/scan) resolve the voltage of perovskite solar cells in a low relative humidity environment. Local open-circuit voltage (V oc ) images show nanoscale sites with voltage variation >300 mV under 1-sun illumination. Surprisingly, regions of voltage that relax in seconds and after several minutes consistently coexist. Time-dependent changes of the local V oc are likely due to intragrain ion migration and are reversible at low injection level. These results show for the first time the real-time transient behavior of the V oc in perovskite solar cells at the nanoscale. Understanding and controlling the light-induced electrical changes that affect device performance are critical to the further development of stable perovskite-based solar technologies.

An evolutive real-time source inversion based on a linear inverse formulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sanchez Reyes, H. S.; Tago, J.; Cruz-Atienza, V. M.; Metivier, L.; Contreras Zazueta, M. A.; Virieux, J.

2016-12-01

Finite source inversion is a steppingstone to unveil earthquake rupture. It is used on ground motion predictions and its results shed light on seismic cycle for better tectonic understanding. It is not yet used for quasi-real-time analysis. Nowadays, significant progress has been made on approaches regarding earthquake imaging, thanks to new data acquisition and methodological advances. However, most of these techniques are posterior procedures once seismograms are available. Incorporating source parameters estimation into early warning systems would require to update the source build-up while recording data. In order to go toward this dynamic estimation, we developed a kinematic source inversion formulated in the time-domain, for which seismograms are linearly related to the slip distribution on the fault through convolutions with Green's functions previously estimated and stored (Perton et al., 2016). These convolutions are performed in the time-domain as we progressively increase the time window of records at each station specifically. Selected unknowns are the spatio-temporal slip-rate distribution to keep the linearity of the forward problem with respect to unknowns, as promoted by Fan and Shearer (2014). Through the spatial extension of the expected rupture zone, we progressively build-up the slip-rate when adding new data by assuming rupture causality. This formulation is based on the adjoint-state method for efficiency (Plessix, 2006). The inverse problem is non-unique and, in most cases, underdetermined. While standard regularization terms are used for stabilizing the inversion, we avoid strategies based on parameter reduction leading to an unwanted non-linear relationship between parameters and seismograms for our progressive build-up. Rise time, rupture velocity and other quantities can be extracted later on as attributs from the slip-rate inversion we perform. Satisfactory results are obtained on a synthetic example (FIgure 1) proposed by the Source

Near real-time estimation of the seismic source parameters in a compressed domain

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rodriguez, Ismael A. Vera

Seismic events can be characterized by its origin time, location and moment tensor. Fast estimations of these source parameters are important in areas of geophysics like earthquake seismology, and the monitoring of seismic activity produced by volcanoes, mining operations and hydraulic injections in geothermal and oil and gas reservoirs. Most available monitoring systems estimate the source parameters in a sequential procedure: first determining origin time and location (e.g., epicentre, hypocentre or centroid of the stress glut density), and then using this information to initialize the evaluation of the moment tensor. A more efficient estimation of the source parameters requires a concurrent evaluation of the three variables. The main objective of the present thesis is to address the simultaneous estimation of origin time, location and moment tensor of seismic events. The proposed method displays the benefits of being: 1) automatic, 2) continuous and, depending on the scale of application, 3) of providing results in real-time or near real-time. The inversion algorithm is based on theoretical results from sparse representation theory and compressive sensing. The feasibility of implementation is determined through the analysis of synthetic and real data examples. The numerical experiments focus on the microseismic monitoring of hydraulic fractures in oil and gas wells, however, an example using real earthquake data is also presented for validation. The thesis is complemented with a resolvability analysis of the moment tensor. The analysis targets common monitoring geometries employed in hydraulic fracturing in oil wells. Additionally, it is presented an application of sparse representation theory for the denoising of one-component and three-component microseismicity records, and an algorithm for improved automatic time-picking using non-linear inversion constraints.

NASA's Earth Imagery Service as Open Source Software

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

De Cesare, C.; Alarcon, C.; Huang, T.; Roberts, J. T.; Rodriguez, J.; Cechini, M. F.; Boller, R. A.; Baynes, K.

2016-12-01

The NASA Global Imagery Browse Service (GIBS) is a software system that provides access to an archive of historical and near-real-time Earth imagery from NASA-supported satellite instruments. The imagery itself is open data, and is accessible via standards such as the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC)'s Web Map Tile Service (WMTS) protocol. GIBS includes three core software projects: The Imagery Exchange (TIE), OnEarth, and the Meta Raster Format (MRF) project. These projects are developed using a variety of open source software, including: Apache HTTPD, GDAL, Mapserver, Grails, Zookeeper, Eclipse, Maven, git, and Apache Commons. TIE has recently been released for open source, and is now available on GitHub. OnEarth, MRF, and their sub-projects have been on GitHub since 2014, and the MRF project in particular receives many external contributions from the community. Our software has been successful beyond the scope of GIBS: the PO.DAAC State of the Ocean and COVERAGE visualization projects reuse components from OnEarth. The MRF source code has recently been incorporated into GDAL, which is a core library in many widely-used GIS software such as QGIS and GeoServer. This presentation will describe the challenges faced in incorporating open software and open data into GIBS, and also showcase GIBS as a platform on which scientists and the general public can build their own applications.

Real-time Neuroimaging and Cognitive Monitoring Using Wearable Dry EEG

PubMed Central

Mullen, Tim R.; Kothe, Christian A.E.; Chi, Mike; Ojeda, Alejandro; Kerth, Trevor; Makeig, Scott; Jung, Tzyy-Ping; Cauwenberghs, Gert

2015-01-01

Goal We present and evaluate a wearable high-density dry electrode EEG system and an open-source software framework for online neuroimaging and state classification. Methods The system integrates a 64-channel dry EEG form-factor with wireless data streaming for online analysis. A real-time software framework is applied, including adaptive artifact rejection, cortical source localization, multivariate effective connectivity inference, data visualization, and cognitive state classification from connectivity features using a constrained logistic regression approach (ProxConn). We evaluate the system identification methods on simulated 64-channel EEG data. Then we evaluate system performance, using ProxConn and a benchmark ERP method, in classifying response errors in 9 subjects using the dry EEG system. Results Simulations yielded high accuracy (AUC=0.97±0.021) for real-time cortical connectivity estimation. Response error classification using cortical effective connectivity (sdDTF) was significantly above chance with similar performance (AUC) for cLORETA (0.74±0.09) and LCMV (0.72±0.08) source localization. Cortical ERP-based classification was equivalent to ProxConn for cLORETA (0.74±0.16) but significantly better for LCMV (0.82±0.12). Conclusion We demonstrated the feasibility for real-time cortical connectivity analysis and cognitive state classification from high-density wearable dry EEG. Significance This paper is the first validated application of these methods to 64-channel dry EEG. The work addresses a need for robust real-time measurement and interpretation of complex brain activity in the dynamic environment of the wearable setting. Such advances can have broad impact in research, medicine, and brain-computer interfaces. The pipelines are made freely available in the open-source SIFT and BCILAB toolboxes. PMID:26415149

Real-time identification of indoor pollutant source positions based on neural network locator of contaminant sources and optimized sensor networks.

PubMed

Vukovic, Vladimir; Tabares-Velasco, Paulo Cesar; Srebric, Jelena

2010-09-01

A growing interest in security and occupant exposure to contaminants revealed a need for fast and reliable identification of contaminant sources during incidental situations. To determine potential contaminant source positions in outdoor environments, current state-of-the-art modeling methods use computational fluid dynamic simulations on parallel processors. In indoor environments, current tools match accidental contaminant distributions with cases from precomputed databases of possible concentration distributions. These methods require intensive computations in pre- and postprocessing. On the other hand, neural networks emerged as a tool for rapid concentration forecasting of outdoor environmental contaminants such as nitrogen oxides or sulfur dioxide. All of these modeling methods depend on the type of sensors used for real-time measurements of contaminant concentrations. A review of the existing sensor technologies revealed that no perfect sensor exists, but intensity of work in this area provides promising results in the near future. The main goal of the presented research study was to extend neural network modeling from the outdoor to the indoor identification of source positions, making this technology applicable to building indoor environments. The developed neural network Locator of Contaminant Sources was also used to optimize number and allocation of contaminant concentration sensors for real-time prediction of indoor contaminant source positions. Such prediction should take place within seconds after receiving real-time contaminant concentration sensor data. For the purpose of neural network training, a multizone program provided distributions of contaminant concentrations for known source positions throughout a test building. Trained networks had an output indicating contaminant source positions based on measured concentrations in different building zones. A validation case based on a real building layout and experimental data demonstrated the ability

Real-Time Motion Capture Toolbox (RTMocap): an open-source code for recording 3-D motion kinematics to study action-effect anticipations during motor and social interactions.

PubMed

Lewkowicz, Daniel; Delevoye-Turrell, Yvonne

2016-03-01

We present here a toolbox for the real-time motion capture of biological movements that runs in the cross-platform MATLAB environment (The MathWorks, Inc., Natick, MA). It provides instantaneous processing of the 3-D movement coordinates of up to 20 markers at a single instant. Available functions include (1) the setting of reference positions, areas, and trajectories of interest; (2) recording of the 3-D coordinates for each marker over the trial duration; and (3) the detection of events to use as triggers for external reinforcers (e.g., lights, sounds, or odors). Through fast online communication between the hardware controller and RTMocap, automatic trial selection is possible by means of either a preset or an adaptive criterion. Rapid preprocessing of signals is also provided, which includes artifact rejection, filtering, spline interpolation, and averaging. A key example is detailed, and three typical variations are developed (1) to provide a clear understanding of the importance of real-time control for 3-D motion in cognitive sciences and (2) to present users with simple lines of code that can be used as starting points for customizing experiments using the simple MATLAB syntax. RTMocap is freely available (http://sites.google.com/site/RTMocap/) under the GNU public license for noncommercial use and open-source development, together with sample data and extensive documentation.

Characterizing open and non-uniform vertical heat sources: towards the identification of real vertical cracks in vibrothermography experiments

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Castelo, A.; Mendioroz, A.; Celorrio, R.; Salazar, A.; López de Uralde, P.; Gorosmendi, I.; Gorostegui-Colinas, E.

2017-05-01

Lock-in vibrothermography is used to characterize vertical kissing and open cracks in metals. In this technique the crack heats up during ultrasound excitation due mainly to friction between the defect's faces. We have solved the inverse problem, consisting in determining the heat source distribution produced at cracks under amplitude modulated ultrasound excitation, which is an ill-posed inverse problem. As a consequence the minimization of the residual is unstable. We have stabilized the algorithm introducing a penalty term based on Total Variation functional. In the inversion, we combine amplitude and phase surface temperature data obtained at several modulation frequencies. Inversions of synthetic data with added noise indicate that compact heat sources are characterized accurately and that the particular upper contours can be retrieved for shallow heat sources. The overall shape of open and homogeneous semicircular strip-shaped heat sources representing open half-penny cracks can also be retrieved but the reconstruction of the deeper end of the heat source loses contrast. Angle-, radius- and depth-dependent inhomogeneous heat flux distributions within these semicircular strips can also be qualitatively characterized. Reconstructions of experimental data taken on samples containing calibrated heat sources confirm the predictions from reconstructions of synthetic data. We also present inversions of experimental data obtained from a real welded Inconel 718 specimen. The results are in good qualitative agreement with the results of liquids penetrants testing.

Design and Deployment of a General Purpose, Open Source LoRa to Wi-Fi Hub and Data Logger

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

DeBell, T. C.; Udell, C.; Kwon, M.; Selker, J. S.; Lopez Alcala, J. M.

2017-12-01

Methods and technologies facilitating internet connectivity and near-real-time status updates for in site environmental sensor data are of increasing interest in Earth Science. However, Open Source, Do-It-Yourself technologies that enable plug and play functionality for web-connected sensors and devices remain largely inaccessible for typical researchers in our community. The Openly Published Environmental Sensing Lab at Oregon State University (OPEnS Lab) constructed an Open Source 900 MHz Long Range Radio (LoRa) receiver hub with SD card data logger, Ethernet and Wi-Fi shield, and 3D printed enclosure that dynamically uploads transmissions from multiple wirelessly-connected environmental sensing devices. Data transmissions may be received from devices up to 20km away. The hub time-stamps, saves to SD card, and uploads all transmissions to a Google Drive spreadsheet to be accessed in near-real-time by researchers and GeoVisualization applications (such as Arc GIS) for access, visualization, and analysis. This research expands the possibilities of scientific observation of our Earth, transforming the technology, methods, and culture by combining open-source development and cutting edge technology. This poster details our methods and evaluates the application of using 3D printing, Arduino Integrated Development Environment (IDE), Adafruit's Open-Hardware Feather development boards, and the WIZNET5500 Ethernet shield for designing this open-source, general purpose LoRa to Wi-Fi data logger.

MNE Scan: Software for real-time processing of electrophysiological data.

PubMed

Esch, Lorenz; Sun, Limin; Klüber, Viktor; Lew, Seok; Baumgarten, Daniel; Grant, P Ellen; Okada, Yoshio; Haueisen, Jens; Hämäläinen, Matti S; Dinh, Christoph

2018-06-01

Magnetoencephalography (MEG) and Electroencephalography (EEG) are noninvasive techniques to study the electrophysiological activity of the human brain. Thus, they are well suited for real-time monitoring and analysis of neuronal activity. Real-time MEG/EEG data processing allows adjustment of the stimuli to the subject's responses for optimizing the acquired information especially by providing dynamically changing displays to enable neurofeedback. We introduce MNE Scan, an acquisition and real-time analysis software based on the multipurpose software library MNE-CPP. MNE Scan allows the development and application of acquisition and novel real-time processing methods in both research and clinical studies. The MNE Scan development follows a strict software engineering process to enable approvals required for clinical software. We tested the performance of MNE Scan in several device-independent use cases, including, a clinical epilepsy study, real-time source estimation, and Brain Computer Interface (BCI) application. Compared to existing tools we propose a modular software considering clinical software requirements expected by certification authorities. At the same time the software is extendable and freely accessible. We conclude that MNE Scan is the first step in creating a device-independent open-source software to facilitate the transition from basic neuroscience research to both applied sciences and clinical applications. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Real-time earthquake source imaging: An offline test for the 2011 Tohoku earthquake

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Yong; Wang, Rongjiang; Zschau, Jochen; Parolai, Stefano; Dahm, Torsten

2014-05-01

In recent decades, great efforts have been expended in real-time seismology aiming at earthquake and tsunami early warning. One of the most important issues is the real-time assessment of earthquake rupture processes using near-field seismogeodetic networks. Currently, earthquake early warning systems are mostly based on the rapid estimate of P-wave magnitude, which contains generally large uncertainties and the known saturation problem. In the case of the 2011 Mw9.0 Tohoku earthquake, JMA (Japan Meteorological Agency) released the first warning of the event with M7.2 after 25 s. The following updates of the magnitude even decreased to M6.3-6.6. Finally, the magnitude estimate stabilized at M8.1 after about two minutes. This led consequently to the underestimated tsunami heights. By using the newly developed Iterative Deconvolution and Stacking (IDS) method for automatic source imaging, we demonstrate an offline test for the real-time analysis of the strong-motion and GPS seismograms of the 2011 Tohoku earthquake. The results show that we had been theoretically able to image the complex rupture process of the 2011 Tohoku earthquake automatically soon after or even during the rupture process. In general, what had happened on the fault could be robustly imaged with a time delay of about 30 s by using either the strong-motion (KiK-net) or the GPS (GEONET) real-time data. This implies that the new real-time source imaging technique is helpful to reduce false and missing warnings, and therefore should play an important role in future tsunami early warning and earthquake rapid response systems.

Expanding Access and Usage of NASA Near Real-Time Imagery and Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cechini, M.; Murphy, K. J.; Boller, R. A.; Schmaltz, J. E.; Thompson, C. K.; Huang, T.; McGann, J. M.; Ilavajhala, S.; Alarcon, C.; Roberts, J. T.

2013-12-01

In late 2009, the Land Atmosphere Near-real-time Capability for EOS (LANCE) was created to greatly expand the range of near real-time data products from a variety of Earth Observing System (EOS) instruments. Since that time, NASA's Earth Observing System Data and Information System (EOSDIS) developed the Global Imagery Browse Services (GIBS) to provide highly responsive, scalable, and expandable imagery services that distribute near real-time imagery in an intuitive and geo-referenced format. The GIBS imagery services provide access through standards-based protocols such as the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) Web Map Tile Service (WMTS) and standard mapping file formats such as the Keyhole Markup Language (KML). Leveraging these standard mechanisms opens NASA near real-time imagery to a broad landscape of mapping libraries supporting mobile applications. By easily integrating with mobile application development libraries, GIBS makes it possible for NASA imagery to become a reliable and valuable source for end-user applications. Recently, EOSDIS has taken steps to integrate near real-time metadata products into the EOS ClearingHOuse (ECHO) metadata repository. Registration of near real-time metadata allows for near real-time data discovery through ECHO clients. In kind with the near real-time data processing requirements, the ECHO ingest model allows for low-latency metadata insertion and updates. Combining with the ECHO repository, the fast visual access of GIBS imagery can now be linked directly back to the source data file(s). Through the use of discovery standards such as OpenSearch, desktop and mobile applications can connect users to more than just an image. As data services, such as OGC Web Coverage Service, become more prevalent within the EOSDIS system, applications may even be able to connect users from imagery to data values. In addition, the full resolution GIBS imagery provides visual context to other GIS data and tools. The NASA near real-time imagery

Handheld real-time volumetric 3-D gamma-ray imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Haefner, Andrew; Barnowski, Ross; Luke, Paul; Amman, Mark; Vetter, Kai

2017-06-01

This paper presents the concept of real-time fusion of gamma-ray imaging and visual scene data for a hand-held mobile Compton imaging system in 3-D. The ability to obtain and integrate both gamma-ray and scene data from a mobile platform enables improved capabilities in the localization and mapping of radioactive materials. This not only enhances the ability to localize these materials, but it also provides important contextual information of the scene which once acquired can be reviewed and further analyzed subsequently. To demonstrate these concepts, the high-efficiency multimode imager (HEMI) is used in a hand-portable implementation in combination with a Microsoft Kinect sensor. This sensor, in conjunction with open-source software, provides the ability to create a 3-D model of the scene and to track the position and orientation of HEMI in real-time. By combining the gamma-ray data and visual data, accurate 3-D maps of gamma-ray sources are produced in real-time. This approach is extended to map the location of radioactive materials within objects with unknown geometry.

Falcon: a highly flexible open-source software for closed-loop neuroscience.

PubMed

Ciliberti, Davide; Kloosterman, Fabian

2017-08-01

Closed-loop experiments provide unique insights into brain dynamics and function. To facilitate a wide range of closed-loop experiments, we created an open-source software platform that enables high-performance real-time processing of streaming experimental data. We wrote Falcon, a C++ multi-threaded software in which the user can load and execute an arbitrary processing graph. Each node of a Falcon graph is mapped to a single thread and nodes communicate with each other through thread-safe buffers. The framework allows for easy implementation of new processing nodes and data types. Falcon was tested both on a 32-core and a 4-core workstation. Streaming data was read from either a commercial acquisition system (Neuralynx) or the open-source Open Ephys hardware, while closed-loop TTL pulses were generated with a USB module for digital output. We characterized the round-trip latency of our Falcon-based closed-loop system, as well as the specific latency contribution of the software architecture, by testing processing graphs with up to 32 parallel pipelines and eight serial stages. We finally deployed Falcon in a task of real-time detection of population bursts recorded live from the hippocampus of a freely moving rat. On Neuralynx hardware, round-trip latency was well below 1 ms and stable for at least 1 h, while on Open Ephys hardware latencies were below 15 ms. The latency contribution of the software was below 0.5 ms. Round-trip and software latencies were similar on both 32- and 4-core workstations. Falcon was used successfully to detect population bursts online with ~40 ms average latency. Falcon is a novel open-source software for closed-loop neuroscience. It has sub-millisecond intrinsic latency and gives the experimenter direct control of CPU resources. We envisage Falcon to be a useful tool to the neuroscientific community for implementing a wide variety of closed-loop experiments, including those requiring use of complex data structures and real-time

Falcon: a highly flexible open-source software for closed-loop neuroscience

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ciliberti, Davide; Kloosterman, Fabian

2017-08-01

Objective. Closed-loop experiments provide unique insights into brain dynamics and function. To facilitate a wide range of closed-loop experiments, we created an open-source software platform that enables high-performance real-time processing of streaming experimental data. Approach. We wrote Falcon, a C++ multi-threaded software in which the user can load and execute an arbitrary processing graph. Each node of a Falcon graph is mapped to a single thread and nodes communicate with each other through thread-safe buffers. The framework allows for easy implementation of new processing nodes and data types. Falcon was tested both on a 32-core and a 4-core workstation. Streaming data was read from either a commercial acquisition system (Neuralynx) or the open-source Open Ephys hardware, while closed-loop TTL pulses were generated with a USB module for digital output. We characterized the round-trip latency of our Falcon-based closed-loop system, as well as the specific latency contribution of the software architecture, by testing processing graphs with up to 32 parallel pipelines and eight serial stages. We finally deployed Falcon in a task of real-time detection of population bursts recorded live from the hippocampus of a freely moving rat. Main results. On Neuralynx hardware, round-trip latency was well below 1 ms and stable for at least 1 h, while on Open Ephys hardware latencies were below 15 ms. The latency contribution of the software was below 0.5 ms. Round-trip and software latencies were similar on both 32- and 4-core workstations. Falcon was used successfully to detect population bursts online with ~40 ms average latency. Significance. Falcon is a novel open-source software for closed-loop neuroscience. It has sub-millisecond intrinsic latency and gives the experimenter direct control of CPU resources. We envisage Falcon to be a useful tool to the neuroscientific community for implementing a wide variety of closed-loop experiments, including those

U.S. Tsunami Information technology (TIM) Modernization:Developing a Maintainable and Extensible Open Source Earthquake and Tsunami Warning System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hellman, S. B.; Lisowski, S.; Baker, B.; Hagerty, M.; Lomax, A.; Leifer, J. M.; Thies, D. A.; Schnackenberg, A.; Barrows, J.

2015-12-01

Tsunami Information technology Modernization (TIM) is a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) project to update and standardize the earthquake and tsunami monitoring systems currently employed at the U.S. Tsunami Warning Centers in Ewa Beach, Hawaii (PTWC) and Palmer, Alaska (NTWC). While this project was funded by NOAA to solve a specific problem, the requirements that the delivered system be both open source and easily maintainable have resulted in the creation of a variety of open source (OS) software packages. The open source software is now complete and this is a presentation of the OS Software that has been funded by NOAA for benefit of the entire seismic community. The design architecture comprises three distinct components: (1) The user interface, (2) The real-time data acquisition and processing system and (3) The scientific algorithm library. The system follows a modular design with loose coupling between components. We now identify the major project constituents. The user interface, CAVE, is written in Java and is compatible with the existing National Weather Service (NWS) open source graphical system AWIPS. The selected real-time seismic acquisition and processing system is open source SeisComp3 (sc3). The seismic library (libseismic) contains numerous custom written and wrapped open source seismic algorithms (e.g., ML/mb/Ms/Mwp, mantle magnitude (Mm), w-phase moment tensor, bodywave moment tensor, finite-fault inversion, array processing). The seismic library is organized in a way (function naming and usage) that will be familiar to users of Matlab. The seismic library extends sc3 so that it can be called by the real-time system, but it can also be driven and tested outside of sc3, for example, by ObsPy or Earthworm. To unify the three principal components we have developed a flexible and lightweight communication layer called SeismoEdex.

The Open Source DataTurbine Initiative: Streaming Data Middleware for Environmental Observing Systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fountain T.; Tilak, S.; Shin, P.; Hubbard, P.; Freudinger, L.

2009-01-01

The Open Source DataTurbine Initiative is an international community of scientists and engineers sharing a common interest in real-time streaming data middleware and applications. The technology base of the OSDT Initiative is the DataTurbine open source middleware. Key applications of DataTurbine include coral reef monitoring, lake monitoring and limnology, biodiversity and animal tracking, structural health monitoring and earthquake engineering, airborne environmental monitoring, and environmental sustainability. DataTurbine software emerged as a commercial product in the 1990 s from collaborations between NASA and private industry. In October 2007, a grant from the USA National Science Foundation (NSF) Office of Cyberinfrastructure allowed us to transition DataTurbine from a proprietary software product into an open source software initiative. This paper describes the DataTurbine software and highlights key applications in environmental monitoring.

EHDViz: clinical dashboard development using open-source technologies

PubMed Central

Badgeley, Marcus A; Shameer, Khader; Glicksberg, Benjamin S; Tomlinson, Max S; Levin, Matthew A; McCormick, Patrick J; Kasarskis, Andrew; Reich, David L; Dudley, Joel T

2016-01-01

Objective To design, develop and prototype clinical dashboards to integrate high-frequency health and wellness data streams using interactive and real-time data visualisation and analytics modalities. Materials and methods We developed a clinical dashboard development framework called electronic healthcare data visualization (EHDViz) toolkit for generating web-based, real-time clinical dashboards for visualising heterogeneous biomedical, healthcare and wellness data. The EHDViz is an extensible toolkit that uses R packages for data management, normalisation and producing high-quality visualisations over the web using R/Shiny web server architecture. We have developed use cases to illustrate utility of EHDViz in different scenarios of clinical and wellness setting as a visualisation aid for improving healthcare delivery. Results Using EHDViz, we prototyped clinical dashboards to demonstrate the contextual versatility of EHDViz toolkit. An outpatient cohort was used to visualise population health management tasks (n=14 221), and an inpatient cohort was used to visualise real-time acuity risk in a clinical unit (n=445), and a quantified-self example using wellness data from a fitness activity monitor worn by a single individual was also discussed (n-of-1). The back-end system retrieves relevant data from data source, populates the main panel of the application and integrates user-defined data features in real-time and renders output using modern web browsers. The visualisation elements can be customised using health features, disease names, procedure names or medical codes to populate the visualisations. The source code of EHDViz and various prototypes developed using EHDViz are available in the public domain at http://ehdviz.dudleylab.org. Conclusions Collaborative data visualisations, wellness trend predictions, risk estimation, proactive acuity status monitoring and knowledge of complex disease indicators are essential components of implementing data

EHDViz: clinical dashboard development using open-source technologies.

PubMed

Badgeley, Marcus A; Shameer, Khader; Glicksberg, Benjamin S; Tomlinson, Max S; Levin, Matthew A; McCormick, Patrick J; Kasarskis, Andrew; Reich, David L; Dudley, Joel T

2016-03-24

To design, develop and prototype clinical dashboards to integrate high-frequency health and wellness data streams using interactive and real-time data visualisation and analytics modalities. We developed a clinical dashboard development framework called electronic healthcare data visualization (EHDViz) toolkit for generating web-based, real-time clinical dashboards for visualising heterogeneous biomedical, healthcare and wellness data. The EHDViz is an extensible toolkit that uses R packages for data management, normalisation and producing high-quality visualisations over the web using R/Shiny web server architecture. We have developed use cases to illustrate utility of EHDViz in different scenarios of clinical and wellness setting as a visualisation aid for improving healthcare delivery. Using EHDViz, we prototyped clinical dashboards to demonstrate the contextual versatility of EHDViz toolkit. An outpatient cohort was used to visualise population health management tasks (n=14,221), and an inpatient cohort was used to visualise real-time acuity risk in a clinical unit (n=445), and a quantified-self example using wellness data from a fitness activity monitor worn by a single individual was also discussed (n-of-1). The back-end system retrieves relevant data from data source, populates the main panel of the application and integrates user-defined data features in real-time and renders output using modern web browsers. The visualisation elements can be customised using health features, disease names, procedure names or medical codes to populate the visualisations. The source code of EHDViz and various prototypes developed using EHDViz are available in the public domain at http://ehdviz.dudleylab.org. Collaborative data visualisations, wellness trend predictions, risk estimation, proactive acuity status monitoring and knowledge of complex disease indicators are essential components of implementing data-driven precision medicine. As an open-source visualisation

Open Source GIS based integrated watershed management

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Byrne, J. M.; Lindsay, J.; Berg, A. A.

2013-12-01

Optimal land and water management to address future and current resource stresses and allocation challenges requires the development of state-of-the-art geomatics and hydrological modelling tools. Future hydrological modelling tools should be of high resolution, process based with real-time capability to assess changing resource issues critical to short, medium and long-term enviromental management. The objective here is to merge two renowned, well published resource modeling programs to create an source toolbox for integrated land and water management applications. This work will facilitate a much increased efficiency in land and water resource security, management and planning. Following an 'open-source' philosophy, the tools will be computer platform independent with source code freely available, maximizing knowledge transfer and the global value of the proposed research. The envisioned set of water resource management tools will be housed within 'Whitebox Geospatial Analysis Tools'. Whitebox, is an open-source geographical information system (GIS) developed by Dr. John Lindsay at the University of Guelph. The emphasis of the Whitebox project has been to develop a user-friendly interface for advanced spatial analysis in environmental applications. The plugin architecture of the software is ideal for the tight-integration of spatially distributed models and spatial analysis algorithms such as those contained within the GENESYS suite. Open-source development extends knowledge and technology transfer to a broad range of end-users and builds Canadian capability to address complex resource management problems with better tools and expertise for managers in Canada and around the world. GENESYS (Generate Earth Systems Science input) is an innovative, efficient, high-resolution hydro- and agro-meteorological model for complex terrain watersheds developed under the direction of Dr. James Byrne. GENESYS is an outstanding research and applications tool to address

Head movement compensation in real-time magnetoencephalographic recordings.

PubMed

Little, Graham; Boe, Shaun; Bardouille, Timothy

2014-01-01

Neurofeedback- and brain-computer interface (BCI)-based interventions can be implemented using real-time analysis of magnetoencephalographic (MEG) recordings. Head movement during MEG recordings, however, can lead to inaccurate estimates of brain activity, reducing the efficacy of the intervention. Most real-time applications in MEG have utilized analyses that do not correct for head movement. Effective means of correcting for head movement are needed to optimize the use of MEG in such applications. Here we provide preliminary validation of a novel analysis technique, real-time source estimation (rtSE), that measures head movement and generates corrected current source time course estimates in real-time. rtSE was applied while recording a calibrated phantom to determine phantom position localization accuracy and source amplitude estimation accuracy under stationary and moving conditions. Results were compared to off-line analysis methods to assess validity of the rtSE technique. The rtSE method allowed for accurate estimation of current source activity at the source-level in real-time, and accounted for movement of the source due to changes in phantom position. The rtSE technique requires modifications and specialized analysis of the following MEG work flow steps.•Data acquisition•Head position estimation•Source localization•Real-time source estimation This work explains the technical details and validates each of these steps.

Independent component analysis algorithm FPGA design to perform real-time blind source separation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meyer-Baese, Uwe; Odom, Crispin; Botella, Guillermo; Meyer-Baese, Anke

2015-05-01

The conditions that arise in the Cocktail Party Problem prevail across many fields creating a need for of Blind Source Separation. The need for BSS has become prevalent in several fields of work. These fields include array processing, communications, medical signal processing, and speech processing, wireless communication, audio, acoustics and biomedical engineering. The concept of the cocktail party problem and BSS led to the development of Independent Component Analysis (ICA) algorithms. ICA proves useful for applications needing real time signal processing. The goal of this research was to perform an extensive study on ability and efficiency of Independent Component Analysis algorithms to perform blind source separation on mixed signals in software and implementation in hardware with a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA). The Algebraic ICA (A-ICA), Fast ICA, and Equivariant Adaptive Separation via Independence (EASI) ICA were examined and compared. The best algorithm required the least complexity and fewest resources while effectively separating mixed sources. The best algorithm was the EASI algorithm. The EASI ICA was implemented on hardware with Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGA) to perform and analyze its performance in real time.

Managing a Real-Time Embedded Linux Platform with Buildroot

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

Diamond, J.; Martin, K.

2015-01-01

Developers of real-time embedded software often need to build the operating system, kernel, tools and supporting applications from source to work with the differences in their hardware configuration. The first attempts to introduce Linux-based real-time embedded systems into the Fermilab accelerator controls system used this approach but it was found to be time-consuming, difficult to maintain and difficult to adapt to different hardware configurations. Buildroot is an open source build system with a menu-driven configuration tool (similar to the Linux kernel build system) that automates this process. A customized Buildroot [1] system has been developed for use in the Fermilabmore » accelerator controls system that includes several hardware configuration profiles (including Intel, ARM and PowerPC) and packages for Fermilab support software. A bootable image file is produced containing the Linux kernel, shell and supporting software suite that varies from 3 to 20 megabytes large – ideal for network booting. The result is a platform that is easier to maintain and deploy in diverse hardware configurations« less

Real Time Linux - The RTOS for Astronomy?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Daly, P. N.

The BoF was attended by about 30 participants and a free CD of real time Linux-based upon RedHat 5.2-was available. There was a detailed presentation on the nature of real time Linux and the variants for hard real time: New Mexico Tech's RTL and DIAPM's RTAI. Comparison tables between standard Linux and real time Linux responses to time interval generation and interrupt response latency were presented (see elsewhere in these proceedings). The present recommendations are to use RTL for UP machines running the 2.0.x kernels and RTAI for SMP machines running the 2.2.x kernel. Support, both academically and commercially, is available. Some known limitations were presented and the solutions reported e.g., debugging and hardware support. The features of RTAI (scheduler, fifos, shared memory, semaphores, message queues and RPCs) were described. Typical performance statistics were presented: Pentium-based oneshot tasks running > 30kHz, 486-based oneshot tasks running at ~ 10 kHz, periodic timer tasks running in excess of 90 kHz with average zero jitter peaking to ~ 13 mus (UP) and ~ 30 mus (SMP). Some detail on kernel module programming, including coding examples, were presented showing a typical data acquisition system generating simulated (random) data writing to a shared memory buffer and a fifo buffer to communicate between real time Linux and user space. All coding examples were complete and tested under RTAI v0.6 and the 2.2.12 kernel. Finally, arguments were raised in support of real time Linux: it's open source, free under GPL, enables rapid prototyping, has good support and the ability to have a fully functioning workstation capable of co-existing hard real time performance. The counter weight-the negatives-of lack of platforms (x86 and PowerPC only at present), lack of board support, promiscuous root access and the danger of ignorance of real time programming issues were also discussed. See ftp://orion.tuc.noao.edu/pub/pnd/rtlbof.tgz for the StarOffice overheads

Real-time photo-magnetic imaging.

PubMed

Nouizi, Farouk; Erkol, Hakan; Luk, Alex; Unlu, Mehmet B; Gulsen, Gultekin

2016-10-01

We previously introduced a new high resolution diffuse optical imaging modality termed, photo-magnetic imaging (PMI). PMI irradiates the object under investigation with near-infrared light and monitors the variations of temperature using magnetic resonance thermometry (MRT). In this paper, we present a real-time PMI image reconstruction algorithm that uses analytic methods to solve the forward problem and assemble the Jacobian matrix much faster. The new algorithm is validated using real MRT measured temperature maps. In fact, it accelerates the reconstruction process by more than 250 times compared to a single iteration of the FEM-based algorithm, which opens the possibility for the real-time PMI.

Characterization and application of droplet spray ionization for real-time reaction monitoring.

PubMed

Zhang, Hong; Li, Na; Li, Xiao-di; Jiang, Jie; Zhao, Dan-Dan; You, Hong

2016-08-01

The ionization source for real-time reaction monitoring has attracted tremendous interest in recent years. We have previously reported a reliable approach in which droplet spray ionization (DSI) was used for monitoring chemical reactions in real-time. Herein, we systematically investigated the characterization and application of DSI for real-time reaction monitoring. Analyte ions are generated by loading a sample solution onto a corner of a microscope cover glass positioned in front of the MS inlet and applying a high voltage to the sample. The tolerance to positioning, solvent effect, spray angle and spray time were investigated. Extension to real-time monitoring of macromolecule reactions was also demonstrated by the charge state change of cytochrome c in the presence of acetic acid. The corner could be positioned within an area of approximately 10 × 6 × 5 mm (x, y, z) in front of the MS inlet. The broad polarities of solvents from methanol to PhF were suitable for DSI. It featured monitoring real-time changes in reactions on the time scale of seconds to minutes. A real-time charge state change of cytochrome c was captured. DSI-MS features ease of use, durability of the spray platform and reusability of the ion source. Eliminating the need for a sample transport capillary, DSI opens a new avenue for the in situ analysis and real-time monitoring of short-lived key reaction intermediates even at subsecond dead times. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Instrumentino: An Open-Source Software for Scientific Instruments.

PubMed

Koenka, Israel Joel; Sáiz, Jorge; Hauser, Peter C

2015-01-01

Scientists often need to build dedicated computer-controlled experimental systems. For this purpose, it is becoming common to employ open-source microcontroller platforms, such as the Arduino. These boards and associated integrated software development environments provide affordable yet powerful solutions for the implementation of hardware control of transducers and acquisition of signals from detectors and sensors. It is, however, a challenge to write programs that allow interactive use of such arrangements from a personal computer. This task is particularly complex if some of the included hardware components are connected directly to the computer and not via the microcontroller. A graphical user interface framework, Instrumentino, was therefore developed to allow the creation of control programs for complex systems with minimal programming effort. By writing a single code file, a powerful custom user interface is generated, which enables the automatic running of elaborate operation sequences and observation of acquired experimental data in real time. The framework, which is written in Python, allows extension by users, and is made available as an open source project.

EVALUATION OF REAL-TIME INNOVATIVE BIOLOGICAL AND CHEMICAL MONITORING SYSTEMS TO PROTECT SOURCE WATERS

EPA Science Inventory

Evaluation of Real-Time Innovative Biological and Chemical Monitoring Systems
To Protect Source Waters

Drinking water supplies have in recent years come under increasing pressure from regulatory concerns regarding TMDL designations and restoration strategies as well ...

1.0 T open-configuration magnetic resonance-guided microwave ablation of pig livers in real time

PubMed Central

Dong, Jun; Zhang, Liang; Li, Wang; Mao, Siyue; Wang, Yiqi; Wang, Deling; Shen, Lujun; Dong, Annan; Wu, Peihong

2015-01-01

The current fastest frame rate of each single image slice in MR-guided ablation is 1.3 seconds, which means delayed imaging for human at an average reaction time: 0.33 seconds. The delayed imaging greatly limits the accuracy of puncture and ablation, and results in puncture injury or incomplete ablation. To overcome delayed imaging and obtain real-time imaging, the study was performed using a 1.0-T whole-body open configuration MR scanner in the livers of 10 Wuzhishan pigs. A respiratory-triggered liver matrix array was explored to guide and monitor microwave ablation in real-time. We successfully performed the entire ablation procedure under MR real-time guidance at 0.202 s, the fastest frame rate for each single image slice. The puncture time ranged from 23 min to 3 min. For the pigs, the mean puncture time was shorted to 4.75 minutes and the mean ablation time was 11.25 minutes at power 70 W. The mean length and widths were 4.62 ± 0.24 cm and 2.64 ± 0.13 cm, respectively. No complications or ablation related deaths during or after ablation were observed. In the current study, MR is able to guide microwave ablation like ultrasound in real-time guidance showing great potential for the treatment of liver tumors. PMID:26315365

Using Citizen Science and Crowdsourcing via Aurorasaurus as a Near Real Time Data Source for Space Weather Applications

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

MacDonald, E.; Heavner, M.; Hall, M.; Tapia, A.; Lalone, N.; Clayon, J.; Case, N.

2014-12-01

Aurorasaurus is on the cutting edge of space science, citizen science, and computer science simultaneously with the broad goals to develop a real-time citizen science network, educate the general public about the northern lights, and revolutionize real-time space weather nowcasting of the aurora for the public. We are currently in the first solar maximum with social media, which enables the technological roots to connect users, citizen scientists, and professionals around a shared global, rare interest. We will introduce the project which has been in a prototype mode since 2012 and recently relaunched with a new mobile and web presence and active campaigns. We will showcase the interdisciplinary advancements which include a more educated public, disaster warning system applications, and improved real-time ground truth data including photographs and observations of the Northern Lights. We will preview new data which validates the proof of concept for significant improvements in real-time space weather nowcasting. Our aim is to provide better real-time notifications of the visibility of the Northern Lights to the interested public via the combination of noisy crowd-sourced ground truth with noisy satellite-based predictions. The latter data are available now but are often delivered with significant jargon and uncertainty, thus reliable, timely interpretation of such forecasts by the public are problematic. The former data show real-time characteristic significant rises (in tweets for instance) that correlate with other non-real-time indices of auroral activity (like the Kp index). We will discuss the source of 'noise' in each data source. Using citizen science as a platform to provide a basis for deeper understanding is one goal; secondly we want to improve understanding of and appreciation for the dynamics and beauty of the Northern Lights by the public and scientists alike.

Real-time radar signal processing using GPGPU (general-purpose graphic processing unit)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kong, Fanxing; Zhang, Yan Rockee; Cai, Jingxiao; Palmer, Robert D.

2016-05-01

This study introduces a practical approach to develop real-time signal processing chain for general phased array radar on NVIDIA GPUs(Graphical Processing Units) using CUDA (Compute Unified Device Architecture) libraries such as cuBlas and cuFFT, which are adopted from open source libraries and optimized for the NVIDIA GPUs. The processed results are rigorously verified against those from the CPUs. Performance benchmarked in computation time with various input data cube sizes are compared across GPUs and CPUs. Through the analysis, it will be demonstrated that GPGPUs (General Purpose GPU) real-time processing of the array radar data is possible with relatively low-cost commercial GPUs.

Development of a web application for water resources based on open source software

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Delipetrev, Blagoj; Jonoski, Andreja; Solomatine, Dimitri P.

2014-01-01

This article presents research and development of a prototype web application for water resources using latest advancements in Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), open source software and web GIS. The web application has three web services for: (1) managing, presenting and storing of geospatial data, (2) support of water resources modeling and (3) water resources optimization. The web application is developed using several programming languages (PhP, Ajax, JavaScript, Java), libraries (OpenLayers, JQuery) and open source software components (GeoServer, PostgreSQL, PostGIS). The presented web application has several main advantages: it is available all the time, it is accessible from everywhere, it creates a real time multi-user collaboration platform, the programing languages code and components are interoperable and designed to work in a distributed computer environment, it is flexible for adding additional components and services and, it is scalable depending on the workload. The application was successfully tested on a case study with concurrent multi-users access.

Implementation, reliability, and feasibility test of an Open-Source PACS.

PubMed

Valeri, Gianluca; Zuccaccia, Matteo; Badaloni, Andrea; Ciriaci, Damiano; La Riccia, Luigi; Mazzoni, Giovanni; Maggi, Stefania; Giovagnoni, Andrea

2015-12-01

To implement a hardware and software system able to perform the major functions of an Open-Source PACS, and to analyze it in a simulated real-world environment. A small home network was implemented, and the Open-Source operating system Ubuntu 11.10 was installed in a laptop containing the Dcm4chee suite with the software devices needed. The Open-Source PACS implemented is compatible with Linux OS, Microsoft OS, and Mac OS X; furthermore, it was used with operating systems that guarantee the operation in portable devices (smartphone, tablet) Android and iOS. An OSS PACS is useful for making tutorials and workshops on post-processing techniques for educational and training purposes.

Open Source Tools for Seismicity Analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Powers, P.

2010-12-01

The spatio-temporal analysis of seismicity plays an important role in earthquake forecasting and is integral to research on earthquake interactions and triggering. For instance, the third version of the Uniform California Earthquake Rupture Forecast (UCERF), currently under development, will use Epidemic Type Aftershock Sequences (ETAS) as a model for earthquake triggering. UCERF will be a "living" model and therefore requires robust, tested, and well-documented ETAS algorithms to ensure transparency and reproducibility. Likewise, as earthquake aftershock sequences unfold, real-time access to high quality hypocenter data makes it possible to monitor the temporal variability of statistical properties such as the parameters of the Omori Law and the Gutenberg Richter b-value. Such statistical properties are valuable as they provide a measure of how much a particular sequence deviates from expected behavior and can be used when assigning probabilities of aftershock occurrence. To address these demands and provide public access to standard methods employed in statistical seismology, we present well-documented, open-source JavaScript and Java software libraries for the on- and off-line analysis of seismicity. The Javascript classes facilitate web-based asynchronous access to earthquake catalog data and provide a framework for in-browser display, analysis, and manipulation of catalog statistics; implementations of this framework will be made available on the USGS Earthquake Hazards website. The Java classes, in addition to providing tools for seismicity analysis, provide tools for modeling seismicity and generating synthetic catalogs. These tools are extensible and will be released as part of the open-source OpenSHA Commons library.

A freely available real-time operating system well suited for astronomy and the physical sciences

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pedretti, Ettore; Monnier, John D.; Thureau, Nathalie D.; Berger, David H.

2006-06-01

This paper wants to be a practical example in building a real-time data-acquisition and control system from scratch using relatively non-expensive PC hardware and open-source software. The practical example of building the control system for the Michigan Infrared Combiner (MIRC) at the CHARA interferometer will be used to give the reader a 'hands-on' experience in installing and configuring the RTAI-Fusion real-time operating system and developing a complete control system with it.

The Efficient Utilization of Open Source Information

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

Baty, Samuel R.

These are a set of slides on the efficient utilization of open source information. Open source information consists of a vast set of information from a variety of sources. Not only does the quantity of open source information pose a problem, the quality of such information can hinder efforts. To show this, two case studies are mentioned: Iran and North Korea, in order to see how open source information can be utilized. The huge breadth and depth of open source information can complicate an analysis, especially because open information has no guarantee of accuracy. Open source information can provide keymore » insights either directly or indirectly: looking at supporting factors (flow of scientists, products and waste from mines, government budgets, etc.); direct factors (statements, tests, deployments). Fundamentally, it is the independent verification of information that allows for a more complete picture to be formed. Overlapping sources allow for more precise bounds on times, weights, temperatures, yields or other issues of interest in order to determine capability. Ultimately, a "good" answer almost never comes from an individual, but rather requires the utilization of a wide range of skill sets held by a team of people.« less

Diagnosing turbulence for research aircraft safety using open source toolkits

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lang, T. J.; Guy, N.

Open source software toolkits have been developed and applied to diagnose in-cloud turbulence in the vicinity of Earth science research aircraft, via analysis of ground-based Doppler radar data. Based on multiple retrospective analyses, these toolkits show promise for detecting significant turbulence well prior to cloud penetrations by research aircraft. A pilot study demonstrated the ability to provide mission scientists turbulence estimates in near real time during an actual field campaign, and thus these toolkits are recommended for usage in future cloud-penetrating aircraft field campaigns.

Real-time multi-DSP control of three-phase current-source unity power factor PWM rectifier

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

Xiao Wang; Boon-Teck Ooi

1993-07-01

The design of a real-time multi-DSP controller for a high-quality six-valve three-phase current-source unity power factor PWM rectifier is discussed in this paper. With the decoupler preprocessor and the dynamic trilogic PWM trigger scheme, each of the three input currents can be controlled independently. Based on the a-b-c frame system model and the fast parallel computer control, the pole-placement control method is implemented successfully to achieve fast response in the ac currents. The low-frequency resonance in the ac filter L-C networks has been damped effectively. The experimental results are obtained from a 1-kVA bipolar transistor current-source PWM rectifier with amore » real-time controller using three TMS320C25 DSP's.« less

Cloud-Hosted Real-time Data Services for the Geosciences (CHORDS)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Daniels, M. D.; Graves, S. J.; Kerkez, B.; Chandrasekar, V.; Vernon, F.; Martin, C. L.; Maskey, M.; Keiser, K.; Dye, M. J.

2015-12-01

The Cloud-Hosted Real-time Data Services for the Geosciences (CHORDS) project, funded as part of NSF's EarthCube initiative, addresses the ever-increasing importance of real-time scientific data, particularly in mission critical scenarios, where informed decisions must be made rapidly. Advances in the distribution of real-time data are leading many new transient phenomena in space-time to be observed, however, real-time decision-making is infeasible in many cases as these streaming data are either completely inaccessible or only available to proprietary in-house tools or displays. This lack of accessibility prohibits advanced algorithm and workflow development that could be initiated or enhanced by these data streams. Small research teams do not have resources to develop tools for the broad dissemination of their valuable real-time data and could benefit from an easy to use, scalable, cloud-based solution to facilitate access. CHORDS proposes to make a very diverse suite of real-time data available to the broader geosciences community in order to allow innovative new science in these areas to thrive. This presentation will highlight recently developed CHORDS portal tools and processing systems aimed at addressing some of the gaps in handling real-time data, particularly in the provisioning of data from the "long-tail" scientific community through a simple interface deployed in the cloud. The CHORDS system will connect these real-time streams via standard services from the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) and does so in a way that is simple and transparent to the data provider. Broad use of the CHORDS framework will expand the role of real-time data within the geosciences, and enhance the potential of streaming data sources to enable adaptive experimentation and real-time hypothesis testing. Adherence to community data and metadata standards will promote the integration of CHORDS real-time data with existing standards-compliant analysis, visualization and modeling

Laser-Generated Ultrasonic Source for a Real-Time Dry-Contact Imaging System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Petculescu, G.; Zhou, Y.; Komsky, I.; Krishnaswamy, S.

2006-03-01

A laser-generated ultrasonic source, to be used with a real-time imaging device, was developed. The ultrasound is generated in the thermoelastic regime, in a composite layer composed of absorbing particles (carbon) and silicone rubber. The composite layer plays three roles: of absorption, constriction and dry-coupling. The central frequency of the generated pulse was controlled by varying the absorption depth of the generation layer. The maximum peak frequency obtained was 4MHz. When additional constriction was provided to the composite layer, the amplitude of the generated signal increased further, due to the large thermal expansion coefficient of the silicone. Images using the laser-generated ultrasonic source were taken.

Earthquake source parameters from GPS-measured static displacements with potential for real-time application

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

O'Toole, Thomas B.; Valentine, Andrew P.; Woodhouse, John H.

2013-01-01

We describe a method for determining an optimal centroid-moment tensor solution of an earthquake from a set of static displacements measured using a network of Global Positioning System receivers. Using static displacements observed after the 4 April 2010, MW 7.2 El Mayor-Cucapah, Mexico, earthquake, we perform an iterative inversion to obtain the source mechanism and location, which minimize the least-squares difference between data and synthetics. The efficiency of our algorithm for forward modeling static displacements in a layered elastic medium allows the inversion to be performed in real-time on a single processor without the need for precomputed libraries of excitation kernels; we present simulated real-time results for the El Mayor-Cucapah earthquake. The only a priori information that our inversion scheme needs is a crustal model and approximate source location, so the method proposed here may represent an improvement on existing early warning approaches that rely on foreknowledge of fault locations and geometries.

Conceptualization and validation of an open-source closed-loop deep brain stimulation system in rat.

PubMed

Wu, Hemmings; Ghekiere, Hartwin; Beeckmans, Dorien; Tambuyzer, Tim; van Kuyck, Kris; Aerts, Jean-Marie; Nuttin, Bart

2015-04-21

Conventional deep brain stimulation (DBS) applies constant electrical stimulation to specific brain regions to treat neurological disorders. Closed-loop DBS with real-time feedback is gaining attention in recent years, after proved more effective than conventional DBS in terms of pathological symptom control clinically. Here we demonstrate the conceptualization and validation of a closed-loop DBS system using open-source hardware. We used hippocampal theta oscillations as system input, and electrical stimulation in the mesencephalic reticular formation (mRt) as controller output. It is well documented that hippocampal theta oscillations are highly related to locomotion, while electrical stimulation in the mRt induces freezing. We used an Arduino open-source microcontroller between input and output sources. This allowed us to use hippocampal local field potentials (LFPs) to steer electrical stimulation in the mRt. Our results showed that closed-loop DBS significantly suppressed locomotion compared to no stimulation, and required on average only 56% of the stimulation used in open-loop DBS to reach similar effects. The main advantages of open-source hardware include wide selection and availability, high customizability, and affordability. Our open-source closed-loop DBS system is effective, and warrants further research using open-source hardware for closed-loop neuromodulation.

Conceptualization and validation of an open-source closed-loop deep brain stimulation system in rat

PubMed Central

Wu, Hemmings; Ghekiere, Hartwin; Beeckmans, Dorien; Tambuyzer, Tim; van Kuyck, Kris; Aerts, Jean-Marie; Nuttin, Bart

2015-01-01

Conventional deep brain stimulation (DBS) applies constant electrical stimulation to specific brain regions to treat neurological disorders. Closed-loop DBS with real-time feedback is gaining attention in recent years, after proved more effective than conventional DBS in terms of pathological symptom control clinically. Here we demonstrate the conceptualization and validation of a closed-loop DBS system using open-source hardware. We used hippocampal theta oscillations as system input, and electrical stimulation in the mesencephalic reticular formation (mRt) as controller output. It is well documented that hippocampal theta oscillations are highly related to locomotion, while electrical stimulation in the mRt induces freezing. We used an Arduino open-source microcontroller between input and output sources. This allowed us to use hippocampal local field potentials (LFPs) to steer electrical stimulation in the mRt. Our results showed that closed-loop DBS significantly suppressed locomotion compared to no stimulation, and required on average only 56% of the stimulation used in open-loop DBS to reach similar effects. The main advantages of open-source hardware include wide selection and availability, high customizability, and affordability. Our open-source closed-loop DBS system is effective, and warrants further research using open-source hardware for closed-loop neuromodulation. PMID:25897892

Open Source, Openness, and Higher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wiley, David

2006-01-01

In this article David Wiley provides an overview of how the general expansion of open source software has affected the world of education in particular. In doing so, Wiley not only addresses the development of open source software applications for teachers and administrators, he also discusses how the fundamental philosophy of the open source…

Processor core for real time background identification of HD video based on OpenCV Gaussian mixture model algorithm

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Genovese, Mariangela; Napoli, Ettore

2013-05-01

The identification of moving objects is a fundamental step in computer vision processing chains. The development of low cost and lightweight smart cameras steadily increases the request of efficient and high performance circuits able to process high definition video in real time. The paper proposes two processor cores aimed to perform the real time background identification on High Definition (HD, 1920 1080 pixel) video streams. The implemented algorithm is the OpenCV version of the Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM), an high performance probabilistic algorithm for the segmentation of the background that is however computationally intensive and impossible to implement on general purpose CPU with the constraint of real time processing. In the proposed paper, the equations of the OpenCV GMM algorithm are optimized in such a way that a lightweight and low power implementation of the algorithm is obtained. The reported performances are also the result of the use of state of the art truncated binary multipliers and ROM compression techniques for the implementation of the non-linear functions. The first circuit has commercial FPGA devices as a target and provides speed and logic resource occupation that overcome previously proposed implementations. The second circuit is oriented to an ASIC (UMC-90nm) standard cell implementation. Both implementations are able to process more than 60 frames per second in 1080p format, a frame rate compatible with HD television.

Real-time source deformation modeling through GNSS permanent stations at Merapi volcano (Indonesia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Beauducel, F.; Nurnaning, A.; Iguchi, M.; Fahmi, A. A.; Nandaka, M. A.; Sumarti, S.; Subandriyo, S.; Metaxian, J. P.

2014-12-01

Mt. Merapi (Java, Indonesia) is one of the most active and dangerous volcano in the world. A first GPS repetition network was setup and periodically measured since 1993, allowing detecting a deep magma reservoir, quantifying magma flux in conduit and identifying shallow discontinuities around the former crater (Beauducel and Cornet, 1999;Beauducel et al., 2000, 2006). After the 2010 centennial eruption, when this network was almost completely destroyed, Indonesian and Japanese teams installed a new continuous GPS network for monitoring purpose (Iguchi et al., 2011), consisting of 3 stations located at the volcano flanks, plus a reference station at the Yogyakarta Observatory (BPPTKG).In the framework of DOMERAPI project (2013-2016) we have completed this network with 5 additional stations, which are located on the summit area and volcano surrounding. The new stations are 1-Hz sampling, GNSS (GPS + GLONASS) receivers, and near real-time data streaming to the Observatory. An automatic processing has been developed and included in the WEBOBS system (Beauducel et al., 2010) based on GIPSY software computing precise daily moving solutions every hour, and for different time scales (2 months, 1 and 5 years), time series and velocity vectors. A real-time source modeling estimation has also been implemented. It uses the depth-varying point source solution (Mogi, 1958; Williams and Wadge, 1998) in a systematic inverse problem model exploration that displays location, volume variation and 3-D probability map.The operational system should be able to better detect and estimate the location and volume variations of possible magma sources, and to follow magma transfer towards the surface. This should help monitoring and contribute to decision making during future unrest or eruption.

Real-time sensor validation and fusion for distributed autonomous sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yuan, Xiaojing; Li, Xiangshang; Buckles, Bill P.

2004-04-01

Multi-sensor data fusion has found widespread applications in industrial and research sectors. The purpose of real time multi-sensor data fusion is to dynamically estimate an improved system model from a set of different data sources, i.e., sensors. This paper presented a systematic and unified real time sensor validation and fusion framework (RTSVFF) based on distributed autonomous sensors. The RTSVFF is an open architecture which consists of four layers - the transaction layer, the process fusion layer, the control layer, and the planning layer. This paradigm facilitates distribution of intelligence to the sensor level and sharing of information among sensors, controllers, and other devices in the system. The openness of the architecture also provides a platform to test different sensor validation and fusion algorithms and thus facilitates the selection of near optimal algorithms for specific sensor fusion application. In the version of the model presented in this paper, confidence weighted averaging is employed to address the dynamic system state issue noted above. The state is computed using an adaptive estimator and dynamic validation curve for numeric data fusion and a robust diagnostic map for decision level qualitative fusion. The framework is then applied to automatic monitoring of a gas-turbine engine, including a performance comparison of the proposed real-time sensor fusion algorithms and a traditional numerical weighted average.

GiPSi:a framework for open source/open architecture software development for organ-level surgical simulation.

PubMed

Cavuşoğlu, M Cenk; Göktekin, Tolga G; Tendick, Frank

2006-04-01

This paper presents the architectural details of an evolving open source/open architecture software framework for developing organ-level surgical simulations. Our goal is to facilitate shared development of reusable models, to accommodate heterogeneous models of computation, and to provide a framework for interfacing multiple heterogeneous models. The framework provides an application programming interface for interfacing dynamic models defined over spatial domains. It is specifically designed to be independent of the specifics of the modeling methods used, and therefore facilitates seamless integration of heterogeneous models and processes. Furthermore, each model has separate geometries for visualization, simulation, and interfacing, allowing the model developer to choose the most natural geometric representation for each case. Input/output interfaces for visualization and haptics for real-time interactive applications have also been provided.

OOSTethys - Open Source Software for the Global Earth Observing Systems of Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bridger, E.; Bermudez, L. E.; Maskey, M.; Rueda, C.; Babin, B. L.; Blair, R.

2009-12-01

An open source software project is much more than just picking the right license, hosting modular code and providing effective documentation. Success in advancing in an open collaborative way requires that the process match the expected code functionality to the developer's personal expertise and organizational needs as well as having an enthusiastic and responsive core lead group. We will present the lessons learned fromOOSTethys , which is a community of software developers and marine scientists who develop open source tools, in multiple languages, to integrate ocean observing systems into an Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS). OOSTethys' goal is to dramatically reduce the time it takes to install, adopt and update standards-compliant web services. OOSTethys has developed servers, clients and a registry. Open source PERL, PYTHON, JAVA and ASP tool kits and reference implementations are helping the marine community publish near real-time observation data in interoperable standard formats. In some cases publishing an OpenGeospatial Consortium (OGC), Sensor Observation Service (SOS) from NetCDF files or a database or even CSV text files could take only minutes depending on the skills of the developer. OOSTethys is also developing an OGC standard registry, Catalog Service for Web (CSW). This open source CSW registry was implemented to easily register and discover SOSs using ISO 19139 service metadata. A web interface layer over the CSW registry simplifies the registration process by harvesting metadata describing the observations and sensors from the “GetCapabilities” response of SOS. OPENIOOS is the web client, developed in PERL to visualize the sensors in the SOS services. While the number of OOSTethys software developers is small, currently about 10 around the world, the number of OOSTethys toolkit implementers is larger and growing and the ease of use has played a large role in spreading the use of interoperable standards compliant web services widely

nodeGame: Real-time, synchronous, online experiments in the browser.

PubMed

Balietti, Stefano

2017-10-01

nodeGame is a free, open-source JavaScript/ HTML5 framework for conducting synchronous experiments online and in the lab directly in the browser window. It is specifically designed to support behavioral research along three dimensions: (i) larger group sizes, (ii) real-time (but also discrete time) experiments, and (iii) batches of simultaneous experiments. nodeGame has a modular source code, and defines an API (application programming interface) through which experimenters can create new strategic environments and configure the platform. With zero-install, nodeGame can run on a great variety of devices, from desktop computers to laptops, smartphones, and tablets. The current version of the software is 3.0, and extensive documentation is available on the wiki pages at http://nodegame.org .

Reflections on the role of open source in health information system interoperability.

PubMed

Sfakianakis, S; Chronaki, C E; Chiarugi, F; Conforti, F; Katehakis, D G

2007-01-01

This paper reflects on the role of open source in health information system interoperability. Open source is a driving force in computer science research and the development of information systems. It facilitates the sharing of information and ideas, enables evolutionary development and open collaborative testing of code, and broadens the adoption of interoperability standards. In health care, information systems have been developed largely ad hoc following proprietary specifications and customized design. However, the wide deployment of integrated services such as Electronic Health Records (EHRs) over regional health information networks (RHINs) relies on interoperability of the underlying information systems and medical devices. This reflection is built on the experiences of the PICNIC project that developed shared software infrastructure components in open source for RHINs and the OpenECG network that offers open source components to lower the implementation cost of interoperability standards such as SCP-ECG, in electrocardiography. Open source components implementing standards and a community providing feedback from real-world use are key enablers of health care information system interoperability. Investing in open source is investing in interoperability and a vital aspect of a long term strategy towards comprehensive health services and clinical research.

Real time wind farm emulation using SimWindFarm toolbox

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Topor, Marcel

2016-06-01

This paper presents a wind farm emulation solution using an open source Matlab/Simulink toolbox and the National Instruments cRIO platform. This work is based on the Aeolus SimWindFarm (SWF) toolbox models developed at Aalborg university, Denmark. Using the Matlab Simulink models developed in SWF, the modeling code can be exported to a real time model using the NI Veristand model framework and the resulting code is integrated as a hardware in the loop control on the NI 9068 platform.

Real-time speckle variance swept-source optical coherence tomography using a graphics processing unit.

PubMed

Lee, Kenneth K C; Mariampillai, Adrian; Yu, Joe X Z; Cadotte, David W; Wilson, Brian C; Standish, Beau A; Yang, Victor X D

2012-07-01

Advances in swept source laser technology continues to increase the imaging speed of swept-source optical coherence tomography (SS-OCT) systems. These fast imaging speeds are ideal for microvascular detection schemes, such as speckle variance (SV), where interframe motion can cause severe imaging artifacts and loss of vascular contrast. However, full utilization of the laser scan speed has been hindered by the computationally intensive signal processing required by SS-OCT and SV calculations. Using a commercial graphics processing unit that has been optimized for parallel data processing, we report a complete high-speed SS-OCT platform capable of real-time data acquisition, processing, display, and saving at 108,000 lines per second. Subpixel image registration of structural images was performed in real-time prior to SV calculations in order to reduce decorrelation from stationary structures induced by the bulk tissue motion. The viability of the system was successfully demonstrated in a high bulk tissue motion scenario of human fingernail root imaging where SV images (512 × 512 pixels, n = 4) were displayed at 54 frames per second.

7 Questions to Ask Open Source Vendors

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Raths, David

2012-01-01

With their budgets under increasing pressure, many campus IT directors are considering open source projects for the first time. On the face of it, the savings can be significant. Commercial emergency-planning software can cost upward of six figures, for example, whereas the open source Kuali Ready might run as little as $15,000 per year when…

Network protocols for real-time applications

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Johnson, Marjory J.

1987-01-01

The Fiber Distributed Data Interface (FDDI) and the SAE AE-9B High Speed Ring Bus (HSRB) are emerging standards for high-performance token ring local area networks. FDDI was designed to be a general-purpose high-performance network. HSRB was designed specifically for military real-time applications. A workshop was conducted at NASA Ames Research Center in January, 1987 to compare and contrast these protocols with respect to their ability to support real-time applications. This report summarizes workshop presentations and includes an independent comparison of the two protocols. A conclusion reached at the workshop was that current protocols for the upper layers of the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) network model are inadequate for real-time applications.

Open Source Software Development

DTIC Science & Technology

2011-01-01

Software, 2002, 149(1), 3-17. 3. DiBona , C., Cooper, D., and Stone, M. (Eds.), Open Sources 2.0, 2005, O’Reilly Media, Sebastopol, CA. Also see, C... DiBona , S. Ockman, and M. Stone (Eds.). Open Sources: Vocides from the Open Source Revolution, 1999. O’Reilly Media, Sebastopol, CA. 4. Ducheneaut, N

Open source tools for fluorescent imaging.

PubMed

Hamilton, Nicholas A

2012-01-01

As microscopy becomes increasingly automated and imaging expands in the spatial and time dimensions, quantitative analysis tools for fluorescent imaging are becoming critical to remove both bottlenecks in throughput as well as fully extract and exploit the information contained in the imaging. In recent years there has been a flurry of activity in the development of bio-image analysis tools and methods with the result that there are now many high-quality, well-documented, and well-supported open source bio-image analysis projects with large user bases that cover essentially every aspect from image capture to publication. These open source solutions are now providing a viable alternative to commercial solutions. More importantly, they are forming an interoperable and interconnected network of tools that allow data and analysis methods to be shared between many of the major projects. Just as researchers build on, transmit, and verify knowledge through publication, open source analysis methods and software are creating a foundation that can be built upon, transmitted, and verified. Here we describe many of the major projects, their capabilities, and features. We also give an overview of the current state of open source software for fluorescent microscopy analysis and the many reasons to use and develop open source methods. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Transforming High School Classrooms with Free/Open Source Software: "It's Time for an Open Source Software Revolution"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pfaffman, Jay

2008-01-01

Free/Open Source Software (FOSS) applications meet many of the software needs of high school science classrooms. In spite of the availability and quality of FOSS tools, they remain unknown to many teachers and utilized by fewer still. In a world where most software has restrictions on copying and use, FOSS is an anomaly, free to use and to…

Open Source Vision

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Villano, Matt

2006-01-01

Increasingly, colleges and universities are turning to open source as a way to meet their technology infrastructure and application needs. Open source has changed life for visionary CIOs and their campus communities nationwide. The author discusses what these technologists see as the benefits--and the considerations.

An approach to a real-time distribution system

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kittle, Frank P., Jr.; Paddock, Eddie J.; Pocklington, Tony; Wang, Lui

1990-01-01

The requirements of a real-time data distribution system are to provide fast, reliable delivery of data from source to destination with little or no impact to the data source. In this particular case, the data sources are inside an operational environment, the Mission Control Center (MCC), and any workstation receiving data directly from the operational computer must conform to the software standards of the MCC. In order to supply data to development workstations outside of the MCC, it is necessary to use gateway computers that prevent unauthorized data transfer back to the operational computers. Many software programs produced on the development workstations are targeted for real-time operation. Therefore, these programs must migrate from the development workstation to the operational workstation. It is yet another requirement for the Data Distribution System to ensure smooth transition of the data interfaces for the application developers. A standard data interface model has already been set up for the operational environment, so the interface between the distribution system and the application software was developed to match that model as closely as possible. The system as a whole therefore allows the rapid development of real-time applications without impacting the data sources. In summary, this approach to a real-time data distribution system provides development users outside of the MCC with an interface to MCC real-time data sources. In addition, the data interface was developed with a flexible and portable software design. This design allows for the smooth transition of new real-time applications to the MCC operational environment.

ObsPy: Establishing and maintaining an open-source community package

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Krischer, L.; Megies, T.; Barsch, R.

2017-12-01

Python's ecosystem evolved into one of the most powerful and productive research environment across disciplines. ObsPy (https://obspy.org) is a fully community driven, open-source project dedicated to provide a bridge for seismology into that ecosystem. It does so by offering Read and write support for essentially every commonly used data format in seismology, Integrated access to the largest data centers, web services, and real-time data streams, A powerful signal processing toolbox tuned to the specific needs of seismologists, and Utility functionality like travel time calculations, geodetic functions, and data visualizations. ObsPy has been in constant unfunded development for more than eight years and is developed and used by scientists around the world with successful applications in all branches of seismology. By now around 70 people directly contributed code to ObsPy and we aim to make it a self-sustaining community project.This contributions focusses on several meta aspects of open-source software in science, in particular how we experienced them. During the panel we would like to discuss obvious questions like long-term sustainability with very limited to no funding, insufficient computer science training in many sciences, and gaining hard scientific credits for software development, but also the following questions: How to best deal with the fact that a lot of scientific software is very specialized thus usually solves a complex problem but at the same time can only ever reach a limited pool of developers and users by virtue of it being so specialized? Therefore the "many eyes on the code" approach to develop and improve open-source software only applies in a limited fashion. An initial publication for a significant new scientific software package is fairly straightforward. How to on-board and motivate potential new contributors when they can no longer be lured by a potential co-authorship? When is spending significant time and effort on reusable

Real-time color measurement using active illuminant

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tominaga, Shoji; Horiuchi, Takahiko; Yoshimura, Akihiko

2010-01-01

This paper proposes a method for real-time color measurement using active illuminant. A synchronous measurement system is constructed by combining a high-speed active spectral light source and a high-speed monochrome camera. The light source is a programmable spectral source which is capable of emitting arbitrary spectrum in high speed. This system is the essential advantage of capturing spectral images without using filters in high frame rates. The new method of real-time colorimetry is different from the traditional method based on the colorimeter or the spectrometers. We project the color-matching functions onto an object surface as spectral illuminants. Then we can obtain the CIE-XYZ tristimulus values directly from the camera outputs at every point on the surface. We describe the principle of our colorimetric technique based on projection of the color-matching functions and the procedure for realizing a real-time measurement system of a moving object. In an experiment, we examine the performance of real-time color measurement for a static object and a moving object.

A Cloud-Based Infrastructure for Near-Real-Time Processing and Dissemination of NPP Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Evans, J. D.; Valente, E. G.; Chettri, S. S.

2011-12-01

We are building a scalable cloud-based infrastructure for generating and disseminating near-real-time data products from a variety of geospatial and meteorological data sources, including the new National Polar-Orbiting Environmental Satellite System (NPOESS) Preparatory Project (NPP). Our approach relies on linking Direct Broadcast and other data streams to a suite of scientific algorithms coordinated by NASA's International Polar-Orbiter Processing Package (IPOPP). The resulting data products are directly accessible to a wide variety of end-user applications, via industry-standard protocols such as OGC Web Services, Unidata Local Data Manager, or OPeNDAP, using open source software components. The processing chain employs on-demand computing resources from Amazon.com's Elastic Compute Cloud and NASA's Nebula cloud services. Our current prototype targets short-term weather forecasting, in collaboration with NASA's Short-term Prediction Research and Transition (SPoRT) program and the National Weather Service. Direct Broadcast is especially crucial for NPP, whose current ground segment is unlikely to deliver data quickly enough for short-term weather forecasters and other near-real-time users. Direct Broadcast also allows full local control over data handling, from the receiving antenna to end-user applications: this provides opportunities to streamline processes for data ingest, processing, and dissemination, and thus to make interpreted data products (Environmental Data Records) available to practitioners within minutes of data capture at the sensor. Cloud computing lets us grow and shrink computing resources to meet large and rapid fluctuations in data availability (twice daily for polar orbiters) - and similarly large fluctuations in demand from our target (near-real-time) users. This offers a compelling business case for cloud computing: the processing or dissemination systems can grow arbitrarily large to sustain near-real time data access despite surges in

An Open Source Rapid Computer Aided Control System Design Toolchain Using Scilab, Scicos and RTAI Linux

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bouchpan-Lerust-Juéry, L.

2007-08-01

Current and next generation on-board computer systems tend to implement real-time embedded control applications (e.g. Attitude and Orbit Control Subsystem (AOCS), Packet Utililization Standard (PUS), spacecraft autonomy . . . ) which must meet high standards of Reliability and Predictability as well as Safety. All these requirements require a considerable amount of effort and cost for Space Sofware Industry. This paper, in a first part, presents a free Open Source integrated solution to develop RTAI applications from analysis, design, simulation and direct implementation using code generation based on Open Source and in its second part summarises this suggested approach, its results and the conclusion for further work.

A real-time simulator of a turbofan engine

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Litt, Jonathan S.; Delaat, John C.; Merrill, Walter C.

1989-01-01

A real-time digital simulator of a Pratt and Whitney F100 engine has been developed for real-time code verification and for actuator diagnosis during full-scale engine testing. This self-contained unit can operate in an open-loop stand-alone mode or as part of closed-loop control system. It can also be used for control system design and development. Tests conducted in conjunction with the NASA Advanced Detection, Isolation, and Accommodation program show that the simulator is a valuable tool for real-time code verification and as a real-time actuator simulator for actuator fault diagnosis. Although currently a small perturbation model, advances in microprocessor hardware should allow the simulator to evolve into a real-time, full-envelope, full engine simulation.

VERSE - Virtual Equivalent Real-time Simulation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zheng, Yang; Martin, Bryan J.; Villaume, Nathaniel

2005-01-01

Distributed real-time simulations provide important timing validation and hardware in the- loop results for the spacecraft flight software development cycle. Occasionally, the need for higher fidelity modeling and more comprehensive debugging capabilities - combined with a limited amount of computational resources - calls for a non real-time simulation environment that mimics the real-time environment. By creating a non real-time environment that accommodates simulations and flight software designed for a multi-CPU real-time system, we can save development time, cut mission costs, and reduce the likelihood of errors. This paper presents such a solution: Virtual Equivalent Real-time Simulation Environment (VERSE). VERSE turns the real-time operating system RTAI (Real-time Application Interface) into an event driven simulator that runs in virtual real time. Designed to keep the original RTAI architecture as intact as possible, and therefore inheriting RTAI's many capabilities, VERSE was implemented with remarkably little change to the RTAI source code. This small footprint together with use of the same API allows users to easily run the same application in both real-time and virtual time environments. VERSE has been used to build a workstation testbed for NASA's Space Interferometry Mission (SIM PlanetQuest) instrument flight software. With its flexible simulation controls and inexpensive setup and replication costs, VERSE will become an invaluable tool in future mission development.

StarBase: A Firm Real-Time Database Manager for Time-Critical Applications

DTIC Science & Technology

1995-01-01

Mellon University [IO]. StarBase differs from previous RT-DBMS work [l, 2, 31 in that a) it relies on a real - time operating system which provides...simulation studies, StarBase uses a real - time operating system to provide basic real-time functionality and deals with issues beyond transaction...re- source scheduling provided by the underlying real - time operating system . Issues of data contention are dealt with by use of a priority

OpenFLUID: an open-source software environment for modelling fluxes in landscapes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fabre, Jean-Christophe; Rabotin, Michaël; Crevoisier, David; Libres, Aline; Dagès, Cécile; Moussa, Roger; Lagacherie, Philippe; Raclot, Damien; Voltz, Marc

2013-04-01

Integrative landscape functioning has become a common concept in environmental management. Landscapes are complex systems where many processes interact in time and space. In agro-ecosystems, these processes are mainly physical processes, including hydrological-processes, biological processes and human activities. Modelling such systems requires an interdisciplinary approach, coupling models coming from different disciplines, developed by different teams. In order to support collaborative works, involving many models coupled in time and space for integrative simulations, an open software modelling platform is a relevant answer. OpenFLUID is an open source software platform for modelling landscape functioning, mainly focused on spatial fluxes. It provides an advanced object-oriented architecture allowing to i) couple models developed de novo or from existing source code, and which are dynamically plugged to the platform, ii) represent landscapes as hierarchical graphs, taking into account multi-scale, spatial heterogeneities and landscape objects connectivity, iii) run and explore simulations in many ways : using the OpenFLUID software interfaces for users (command line interface, graphical user interface), or using external applications such as GNU R through the provided ROpenFLUID package. OpenFLUID is developed in C++ and relies on open source libraries only (Boost, libXML2, GLib/GTK, OGR/GDAL, …). For modelers and developers, OpenFLUID provides a dedicated environment for model development, which is based on an open source toolchain, including the Eclipse editor, the GCC compiler and the CMake build system. OpenFLUID is distributed under the GPLv3 open source license, with a special exception allowing to plug existing models licensed under any license. It is clearly in the spirit of sharing knowledge and favouring collaboration in a community of modelers. OpenFLUID has been involved in many research applications, such as modelling of hydrological network

The 2015 Bioinformatics Open Source Conference (BOSC 2015).

PubMed

Harris, Nomi L; Cock, Peter J A; Lapp, Hilmar; Chapman, Brad; Davey, Rob; Fields, Christopher; Hokamp, Karsten; Munoz-Torres, Monica

2016-02-01

The Bioinformatics Open Source Conference (BOSC) is organized by the Open Bioinformatics Foundation (OBF), a nonprofit group dedicated to promoting the practice and philosophy of open source software development and open science within the biological research community. Since its inception in 2000, BOSC has provided bioinformatics developers with a forum for communicating the results of their latest efforts to the wider research community. BOSC offers a focused environment for developers and users to interact and share ideas about standards; software development practices; practical techniques for solving bioinformatics problems; and approaches that promote open science and sharing of data, results, and software. BOSC is run as a two-day special interest group (SIG) before the annual Intelligent Systems in Molecular Biology (ISMB) conference. BOSC 2015 took place in Dublin, Ireland, and was attended by over 125 people, about half of whom were first-time attendees. Session topics included "Data Science;" "Standards and Interoperability;" "Open Science and Reproducibility;" "Translational Bioinformatics;" "Visualization;" and "Bioinformatics Open Source Project Updates". In addition to two keynote talks and dozens of shorter talks chosen from submitted abstracts, BOSC 2015 included a panel, titled "Open Source, Open Door: Increasing Diversity in the Bioinformatics Open Source Community," that provided an opportunity for open discussion about ways to increase the diversity of participants in BOSC in particular, and in open source bioinformatics in general. The complete program of BOSC 2015 is available online at http://www.open-bio.org/wiki/BOSC_2015_Schedule.

Open-source colorimeter.

PubMed

Anzalone, Gerald C; Glover, Alexandra G; Pearce, Joshua M

2013-04-19

The high cost of what have historically been sophisticated research-related sensors and tools has limited their adoption to a relatively small group of well-funded researchers. This paper provides a methodology for applying an open-source approach to design and development of a colorimeter. A 3-D printable, open-source colorimeter utilizing only open-source hardware and software solutions and readily available discrete components is discussed and its performance compared to a commercial portable colorimeter. Performance is evaluated with commercial vials prepared for the closed reflux chemical oxygen demand (COD) method. This approach reduced the cost of reliable closed reflux COD by two orders of magnitude making it an economic alternative for the vast majority of potential users. The open-source colorimeter demonstrated good reproducibility and serves as a platform for further development and derivation of the design for other, similar purposes such as nephelometry. This approach promises unprecedented access to sophisticated instrumentation based on low-cost sensors by those most in need of it, under-developed and developing world laboratories.

Open-Source Colorimeter

PubMed Central

Anzalone, Gerald C.; Glover, Alexandra G.; Pearce, Joshua M.

2013-01-01

The high cost of what have historically been sophisticated research-related sensors and tools has limited their adoption to a relatively small group of well-funded researchers. This paper provides a methodology for applying an open-source approach to design and development of a colorimeter. A 3-D printable, open-source colorimeter utilizing only open-source hardware and software solutions and readily available discrete components is discussed and its performance compared to a commercial portable colorimeter. Performance is evaluated with commercial vials prepared for the closed reflux chemical oxygen demand (COD) method. This approach reduced the cost of reliable closed reflux COD by two orders of magnitude making it an economic alternative for the vast majority of potential users. The open-source colorimeter demonstrated good reproducibility and serves as a platform for further development and derivation of the design for other, similar purposes such as nephelometry. This approach promises unprecedented access to sophisticated instrumentation based on low-cost sensors by those most in need of it, under-developed and developing world laboratories. PMID:23604032

Real-Time Earthquake Monitoring with Spatio-Temporal Fields

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Whittier, J. C.; Nittel, S.; Subasinghe, I.

2017-10-01

With live streaming sensors and sensor networks, increasingly large numbers of individual sensors are deployed in physical space. Sensor data streams are a fundamentally novel mechanism to deliver observations to information systems. They enable us to represent spatio-temporal continuous phenomena such as radiation accidents, toxic plumes, or earthquakes almost as instantaneously as they happen in the real world. Sensor data streams discretely sample an earthquake, while the earthquake is continuous over space and time. Programmers attempting to integrate many streams to analyze earthquake activity and scope need to write code to integrate potentially very large sets of asynchronously sampled, concurrent streams in tedious application code. In previous work, we proposed the field stream data model (Liang et al., 2016) for data stream engines. Abstracting the stream of an individual sensor as a temporal field, the field represents the Earth's movement at the sensor position as continuous. This simplifies analysis across many sensors significantly. In this paper, we undertake a feasibility study of using the field stream model and the open source Data Stream Engine (DSE) Apache Spark(Apache Spark, 2017) to implement a real-time earthquake event detection with a subset of the 250 GPS sensor data streams of the Southern California Integrated GPS Network (SCIGN). The field-based real-time stream queries compute maximum displacement values over the latest query window of each stream, and related spatially neighboring streams to identify earthquake events and their extent. Further, we correlated the detected events with an USGS earthquake event feed. The query results are visualized in real-time.

An open-source, extensible system for laboratory timing and control

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gaskell, Peter E.; Thorn, Jeremy J.; Alba, Sequoia; Steck, Daniel A.

2009-11-01

We describe a simple system for timing and control, which provides control of analog, digital, and radio-frequency signals. Our system differs from most common laboratory setups in that it is open source, built from off-the-shelf components, synchronized to a common and accurate clock, and connected over an Ethernet network. A simple bus architecture facilitates creating new and specialized devices with only moderate experience in circuit design. Each device operates independently, requiring only an Ethernet network connection to the controlling computer, a clock signal, and a trigger signal. This makes the system highly robust and scalable. The devices can all be connected to a single external clock, allowing synchronous operation of a large number of devices for situations requiring precise timing of many parallel control and acquisition channels. Provided an accurate enough clock, these devices are capable of triggering events separated by one day with near-microsecond precision. We have achieved precisions of ˜0.1 ppb (parts per 109) over 16 s.

A real-time biomimetic acoustic localizing system using time-shared architecture

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nourzad Karl, Marianne; Karl, Christian; Hubbard, Allyn

2008-04-01

In this paper a real-time sound source localizing system is proposed, which is based on previously developed mammalian auditory models. Traditionally, following the models, which use interaural time delay (ITD) estimates, the amount of parallel computations needed by a system to achieve real-time sound source localization is a limiting factor and a design challenge for hardware implementations. Therefore a new approach using a time-shared architecture implementation is introduced. The proposed architecture is a purely sample-base-driven digital system, and it follows closely the continuous-time approach described in the models. Rather than having dedicated hardware on a per frequency channel basis, a specialized core channel, shared for all frequency bands is used. Having an optimized execution time, which is much less than the system's sample rate, the proposed time-shared solution allows the same number of virtual channels to be processed as the dedicated channels in the traditional approach. Hence, the time-shared approach achieves a highly economical and flexible implementation using minimal silicon area. These aspects are particularly important in efficient hardware implementation of a real time biomimetic sound source localization system.

Integrating open-source software applications to build molecular dynamics systems.

PubMed

Allen, Bruce M; Predecki, Paul K; Kumosa, Maciej

2014-04-05

Three open-source applications, NanoEngineer-1, packmol, and mis2lmp are integrated using an open-source file format to quickly create molecular dynamics (MD) cells for simulation. The three software applications collectively make up the open-source software (OSS) suite known as MD Studio (MDS). The software is validated through software engineering practices and is verified through simulation of the diglycidyl ether of bisphenol-a and isophorone diamine (DGEBA/IPD) system. Multiple simulations are run using the MDS software to create MD cells, and the data generated are used to calculate density, bulk modulus, and glass transition temperature of the DGEBA/IPD system. Simulation results compare well with published experimental and numerical results. The MDS software prototype confirms that OSS applications can be analyzed against real-world research requirements and integrated to create a new capability. Copyright © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Coordinating Transit Transfers in Real Time

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

2016-05-06

Transfers are a major source of travel time variability for transit passengers. Coordinating transfers between transit routes in real time can reduce passenger waiting times and travel time variability, but these benefits need to be contrasted with t...

Inexpensive Open-Source Data Logging in the Field

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wickert, A. D.

2013-12-01

I present a general-purpose open-source field-capable data logger, which provides a mechanism to develop dense networks of inexpensive environmental sensors. This data logger was developed as a low-power variant of the Arduino open-source development system, and is named the ALog ("Arduino Logger") BottleLogger (it is slim enough to fit inside a Nalgene water bottle) version 1.0. It features an integrated high-precision real-time clock, SD card slot for high-volume data storage, and integrated power switching. The ALog can interface with sensors via six analog/digital pins, two digital pins, and one digital interrupt pin that can read event-based inputs, such as those from a tipping-bucket rain gauge. We have successfully tested the ALog BottleLogger with ultrasonic rangefinders (for water stage and snow accumulation and melt), temperature sensors, tipping-bucket rain gauges, soil moisture and water potential sensors, resistance-based tools to measure frost heave, and cameras that it triggers based on events. The source code for the ALog, including functions to interface with a a range of commercially-available sensors, is provided as an Arduino C++ library with example implementations. All schematics, circuit board layouts, and source code files are open-source and freely available under GNU GPL v3.0 and Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported licenses. Through this work, we hope to foster a community-driven movement to collect field environmental data on a budget that permits citizen-scientists and researchers from low-income countries to collect the same high-quality data as researchers in wealthy countries. These data can provide information about global change to managers, governments, scientists, and interested citizens worldwide. Watertight box with ALog BottleLogger data logger on the left and battery pack with 3 D cells on the right. Data can be collected for 3-5 years on one set of batteries.

Real-time image processing for non-contact monitoring of dynamic displacements using smartphone technologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Min, Jae-Hong; Gelo, Nikolas J.; Jo, Hongki

2016-04-01

The newly developed smartphone application, named RINO, in this study allows measuring absolute dynamic displacements and processing them in real time using state-of-the-art smartphone technologies, such as high-performance graphics processing unit (GPU), in addition to already powerful CPU and memories, embedded high-speed/ resolution camera, and open-source computer vision libraries. A carefully designed color-patterned target and user-adjustable crop filter enable accurate and fast image processing, allowing up to 240fps for complete displacement calculation and real-time display. The performances of the developed smartphone application are experimentally validated, showing comparable accuracy with those of conventional laser displacement sensor.

The 2015 Bioinformatics Open Source Conference (BOSC 2015)

PubMed Central

Harris, Nomi L.; Cock, Peter J. A.; Lapp, Hilmar

2016-01-01

The Bioinformatics Open Source Conference (BOSC) is organized by the Open Bioinformatics Foundation (OBF), a nonprofit group dedicated to promoting the practice and philosophy of open source software development and open science within the biological research community. Since its inception in 2000, BOSC has provided bioinformatics developers with a forum for communicating the results of their latest efforts to the wider research community. BOSC offers a focused environment for developers and users to interact and share ideas about standards; software development practices; practical techniques for solving bioinformatics problems; and approaches that promote open science and sharing of data, results, and software. BOSC is run as a two-day special interest group (SIG) before the annual Intelligent Systems in Molecular Biology (ISMB) conference. BOSC 2015 took place in Dublin, Ireland, and was attended by over 125 people, about half of whom were first-time attendees. Session topics included “Data Science;” “Standards and Interoperability;” “Open Science and Reproducibility;” “Translational Bioinformatics;” “Visualization;” and “Bioinformatics Open Source Project Updates”. In addition to two keynote talks and dozens of shorter talks chosen from submitted abstracts, BOSC 2015 included a panel, titled “Open Source, Open Door: Increasing Diversity in the Bioinformatics Open Source Community,” that provided an opportunity for open discussion about ways to increase the diversity of participants in BOSC in particular, and in open source bioinformatics in general. The complete program of BOSC 2015 is available online at http://www.open-bio.org/wiki/BOSC_2015_Schedule. PMID:26914653

OpenSource lab-on-a-chip physiometer for accelerated zebrafish embryo biotests.

PubMed

Akagi, Jin; Hall, Chris J; Crosier, Kathryn E; Cooper, Jonathan M; Crosier, Philip S; Wlodkowic, Donald

2014-01-02

Zebrafish (Danio rerio) embryo assays have recently come into the spotlight as convenient experimental models in both biomedicine and ecotoxicology. As a small aquatic model organism, zebrafish embryo assays allow for rapid physiological, embryo-, and genotoxic tests of drugs and environmental toxins that can be simply dissolved in water. This protocol describes prototyping and application of an innovative, miniaturized, and polymeric chip-based device capable of immobilizing a large number of living fish embryos for real-time and/or time-lapse microscopic examination. The device provides a physical address designation to each embryo during analysis, continuous perfusion of medium, and post-analysis specimen recovery. Miniaturized embryo array is a new concept of immobilization and real-time drug perfusion of multiple individual and developing zebrafish embryos inside the mesofluidic device. The OpenSource device presented in this protocol is particularly suitable to perform accelerated fish embryo biotests in ecotoxicology and phenotype-based pharmaceutical screening. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Open source posturography.

PubMed

Rey-Martinez, Jorge; Pérez-Fernández, Nicolás

2016-12-01

The proposed validation goal of 0.9 in intra-class correlation coefficient was reached with the results of this study. With the obtained results we consider that the developed software (RombergLab) is a validated balance assessment software. The reliability of this software is dependent of the used force platform technical specifications. Develop and validate a posturography software and share its source code in open source terms. Prospective non-randomized validation study: 20 consecutive adults underwent two balance assessment tests, six condition posturography was performed using a clinical approved software and force platform and the same conditions were measured using the new developed open source software using a low cost force platform. Intra-class correlation index of the sway area obtained from the center of pressure variations in both devices for the six conditions was the main variable used for validation. Excellent concordance between RombergLab and clinical approved force platform was obtained (intra-class correlation coefficient =0.94). A Bland and Altman graphic concordance plot was also obtained. The source code used to develop RombergLab was published in open source terms.

NASA World Wind Near Real Time Data for Earth

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hogan, P.

2013-12-01

Innovation requires open standards for data exchange, not to mention ^access to data^ so that value-added, the information intelligence, can be continually created and advanced by the larger community. Likewise, innovation by academia and entrepreneurial enterprise alike, are greatly benefited by an open platform that provides the basic technology for access and visualization of that data. NASA World Wind Java, and now NASA World Wind iOS for the iPhone and iPad, provides that technology. Whether the interest is weather science or climate science, emergency response or supply chain, seeing spatial data in its native context of Earth accelerates understanding and improves decision-making. NASA World Wind open source technology provides the basic elements for 4D visualization, using Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) protocols, while allowing for customized access to any data, big or small, including support for NetCDF. NASA World Wind includes access to a suite of US Government WMS servers with near real time data. The larger community can readily capitalize on this technology, building their own value-added applications, either open or proprietary. Night lights heat map Glacier National Park

Towards real-time regional earthquake simulation I: real-time moment tensor monitoring (RMT) for regional events in Taiwan

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Shiann-Jong; Liang, Wen-Tzong; Cheng, Hui-Wen; Tu, Feng-Shan; Ma, Kuo-Fong; Tsuruoka, Hiroshi; Kawakatsu, Hitoshi; Huang, Bor-Shouh; Liu, Chun-Chi

2014-01-01

We have developed a real-time moment tensor monitoring system (RMT) which takes advantage of a grid-based moment tensor inversion technique and real-time broad-band seismic recordings to automatically monitor earthquake activities in the vicinity of Taiwan. The centroid moment tensor (CMT) inversion technique and a grid search scheme are applied to obtain the information of earthquake source parameters, including the event origin time, hypocentral location, moment magnitude and focal mechanism. All of these source parameters can be determined simultaneously within 117 s after the occurrence of an earthquake. The monitoring area involves the entire Taiwan Island and the offshore region, which covers the area of 119.3°E to 123.0°E and 21.0°N to 26.0°N, with a depth from 6 to 136 km. A 3-D grid system is implemented in the monitoring area with a uniform horizontal interval of 0.1° and a vertical interval of 10 km. The inversion procedure is based on a 1-D Green's function database calculated by the frequency-wavenumber (fk) method. We compare our results with the Central Weather Bureau (CWB) catalogue data for earthquakes occurred between 2010 and 2012. The average differences between event origin time and hypocentral location are less than 2 s and 10 km, respectively. The focal mechanisms determined by RMT are also comparable with the Broadband Array in Taiwan for Seismology (BATS) CMT solutions. These results indicate that the RMT system is realizable and efficient to monitor local seismic activities. In addition, the time needed to obtain all the point source parameters is reduced substantially compared to routine earthquake reports. By connecting RMT with a real-time online earthquake simulation (ROS) system, all the source parameters will be forwarded to the ROS to make the real-time earthquake simulation feasible. The RMT has operated offline (2010-2011) and online (since January 2012 to present) at the Institute of Earth Sciences (IES), Academia Sinica

Low-cost, portable open-source gas monitoring device based on chemosensory technology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gotor, Raúl; Gaviña, Pablo; Costero, Ana M.

2015-08-01

We report herein the construction of an electronic device to perform the real-time digitalization of the color state of the optical chemosensors used in the detection of dangerous gases. To construct the device, we used open-source modular electronics, such as Arduino and Sparkfun components, as well as free and open-source software (FOSS). The basic principle of the operation of this device is the continuous color measurement of a chemosensor-doped sensing film, whose color changes in the presence of a specific gas. The chemosensor-sensing film can be prepared by using any of the widely available chemosensors for the desired gas. Color measurement is taken by two TCS230 color sensor ICs, reported to the microcontroller, and the results are displayed on an LCD display and pushed through a USB serial port. By using a cyanide optical chemosensor, we demonstrated the operation of the device as a HCN gas detector at low concentrations.

Real-time spectral characterization of a photon pair source using a chirped supercontinuum seed.

PubMed

Erskine, Jennifer; England, Duncan; Kupchak, Connor; Sussman, Benjamin

2018-02-15

Photon pair sources have wide ranging applications in a variety of quantum photonic experiments and protocols. Many of these protocols require well controlled spectral correlations between the two output photons. However, due to low cross-sections, measuring the joint spectral properties of photon pair sources has historically been a challenging and time-consuming task. Here, we present an approach for the real-time measurement of the joint spectral properties of a fiber-based four wave mixing source. We seed the four wave mixing process using a broadband chirped pulse, studying the stimulated process to extract information regarding the spontaneous process. In addition, we compare stimulated emission measurements with the spontaneous process to confirm the technique's validity. Joint spectral measurements have taken many hours historically and several minutes with recent techniques. Here, measurements have been demonstrated in 5-30 s depending on resolution, offering substantial improvement. Additional benefits of this approach include flexible resolution, large measurement bandwidth, and reduced experimental overhead.

Double point source W-phase inversion: Real-time implementation and automated model selection

USGS Publications Warehouse

Nealy, Jennifer; Hayes, Gavin

2015-01-01

Rapid and accurate characterization of an earthquake source is an extremely important and ever evolving field of research. Within this field, source inversion of the W-phase has recently been shown to be an effective technique, which can be efficiently implemented in real-time. An extension to the W-phase source inversion is presented in which two point sources are derived to better characterize complex earthquakes. A single source inversion followed by a double point source inversion with centroid locations fixed at the single source solution location can be efficiently run as part of earthquake monitoring network operational procedures. In order to determine the most appropriate solution, i.e., whether an earthquake is most appropriately described by a single source or a double source, an Akaike information criterion (AIC) test is performed. Analyses of all earthquakes of magnitude 7.5 and greater occurring since January 2000 were performed with extended analyses of the September 29, 2009 magnitude 8.1 Samoa earthquake and the April 19, 2014 magnitude 7.5 Papua New Guinea earthquake. The AIC test is shown to be able to accurately select the most appropriate model and the selected W-phase inversion is shown to yield reliable solutions that match published analyses of the same events.

Real-time monitoring and massive inversion of source parameters of very long period seismic signals: An application to Stromboli Volcano, Italy

USGS Publications Warehouse

Auger, E.; D'Auria, L.; Martini, M.; Chouet, B.; Dawson, P.

2006-01-01

We present a comprehensive processing tool for the real-time analysis of the source mechanism of very long period (VLP) seismic data based on waveform inversions performed in the frequency domain for a point source. A search for the source providing the best-fitting solution is conducted over a three-dimensional grid of assumed source locations, in which the Green's functions associated with each point source are calculated by finite differences using the reciprocal relation between source and receiver. Tests performed on 62 nodes of a Linux cluster indicate that the waveform inversion and search for the best-fitting signal over 100,000 point sources require roughly 30 s of processing time for a 2-min-long record. The procedure is applied to post-processing of a data archive and to continuous automatic inversion of real-time data at Stromboli, providing insights into different modes of degassing at this volcano. Copyright 2006 by the American Geophysical Union.

How Is Open Source Special?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kapor, Mitchell

2005-01-01

Open source software projects involve the production of goods, but in software projects, the "goods" consist of information. The open source model is an alternative to the conventional centralized, command-and-control way in which things are usually made. In contrast, open source projects are genuinely decentralized and transparent. Transparent…

AI based HealthCare Platform for Real Time, Predictive and Prescriptive Analytics using Reactive Programming

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kaur, Jagreet; Singh Mann, Kulwinder, Dr.

2018-01-01

AI in Healthcare needed to bring real, actionable insights and Individualized insights in real time for patients and Doctors to support treatment decisions., We need a Patient Centred Platform for integrating EHR Data, Patient Data, Prescriptions, Monitoring, Clinical research and Data. This paper proposes a generic architecture for enabling AI based healthcare analytics Platform by using open sources Technologies Apache beam, Apache Flink Apache Spark, Apache NiFi, Kafka, Tachyon, Gluster FS, NoSQL- Elasticsearch, Cassandra. This paper will show the importance of applying AI based predictive and prescriptive analytics techniques in Health sector. The system will be able to extract useful knowledge that helps in decision making and medical monitoring in real-time through an intelligent process analysis and big data processing.

Continuous, real time microwave plasma element sensor

DOEpatents

Woskov, Paul P.; Smatlak, Donna L.; Cohn, Daniel R.; Wittle, J. Kenneth; Titus, Charles H.; Surma, Jeffrey E.

1995-01-01

Microwave-induced plasma for continuous, real time trace element monitoring under harsh and variable conditions. The sensor includes a source of high power microwave energy and a shorted waveguide made of a microwave conductive, refractory material communicating with the source of the microwave energy to generate a plasma. The high power waveguide is constructed to be robust in a hot, hostile environment. It includes an aperture for the passage of gases to be analyzed and a spectrometer is connected to receive light from the plasma. Provision is made for real time in situ calibration. The spectrometer disperses the light, which is then analyzed by a computer. The sensor is capable of making continuous, real time quantitative measurements of desired elements, such as the heavy metals lead and mercury.

Continuous, real time microwave plasma element sensor

DOEpatents

Woskov, P.P.; Smatlak, D.L.; Cohn, D.R.; Wittle, J.K.; Titus, C.H.; Surma, J.E.

1995-12-26

Microwave-induced plasma is described for continuous, real time trace element monitoring under harsh and variable conditions. The sensor includes a source of high power microwave energy and a shorted waveguide made of a microwave conductive, refractory material communicating with the source of the microwave energy to generate a plasma. The high power waveguide is constructed to be robust in a hot, hostile environment. It includes an aperture for the passage of gases to be analyzed and a spectrometer is connected to receive light from the plasma. Provision is made for real time in situ calibration. The spectrometer disperses the light, which is then analyzed by a computer. The sensor is capable of making continuous, real time quantitative measurements of desired elements, such as the heavy metals lead and mercury. 3 figs.

Oculomatic: High speed, reliable, and accurate open-source eye tracking for humans and non-human primates.

PubMed

Zimmermann, Jan; Vazquez, Yuriria; Glimcher, Paul W; Pesaran, Bijan; Louie, Kenway

2016-09-01

Video-based noninvasive eye trackers are an extremely useful tool for many areas of research. Many open-source eye trackers are available but current open-source systems are not designed to track eye movements with the temporal resolution required to investigate the mechanisms of oculomotor behavior. Commercial systems are available but employ closed source hardware and software and are relatively expensive, limiting wide-spread use. Here we present Oculomatic, an open-source software and modular hardware solution to eye tracking for use in humans and non-human primates. Oculomatic features high temporal resolution (up to 600Hz), real-time eye tracking with high spatial accuracy (<0.5°), and low system latency (∼1.8ms, 0.32ms STD) at a relatively low-cost. Oculomatic compares favorably to our existing scleral search-coil system while being fully non invasive. We propose that Oculomatic can support a wide range of research into the properties and neural mechanisms of oculomotor behavior. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Real-time monitoring of focused ultrasound blood-brain barrier opening via subharmonic acoustic emission detection: implementation of confocal dual-frequency piezoelectric transducers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tsai, Chih-Hung; Zhang, Jia-Wei; Liao, Yi-Yi; Liu, Hao-Li

2016-04-01

Burst-tone focused ultrasound exposure in the presence of microbubbles has been demonstrated to be effective at inducing temporal and local opening of the blood-brain barrier (BBB), which promises significant clinical potential to deliver therapeutic molecules into the central nervous system (CNS). Traditional contrast-enhanced imaging confirmation after focused ultrasound (FUS) exposure serves as a post-operative indicator of the effectiveness of FUS-BBB opening, however, an indicator that can concurrently report the BBB status and BBB-opening effectiveness is required to provide effective feedback to implement this treatment clinically. In this study, we demonstrate the use of subharmonic acoustic emission detection with implementation on a confocal dual-frequency piezoelectric ceramic structure to perform real-time monitoring of FUS-BBB opening. A confocal dual-frequency (0.55 MHz/1.1 MHz) focused ultrasound transducer was designed. The 1.1 MHz spherically-curved ceramic was employed to deliver FUS exposure to induce BBB-opening, whereas the outer-ring 0.55 MHz ceramic was employed to detect the subharmonic acoustic emissions originating from the target position. In stage-1 experiments, we employed spectral analysis and performed an energy spectrum density (ESD) calculation. An optimized 0.55 MHz ESD level change was shown to effectively discriminate the occurrence of BBB-opening. Wideband acoustic emissions received from 0.55 MHz ceramics were also analyzed to evaluate its correlations with erythrocyte extravasations. In stage-2 real-time monitoring experiments, we applied the predetermined ESD change as a detection threshold in PC-controlled algorithm to predict the FUS exposure intra-operatively. In stage-1 experiment, we showed that subharmonic ESD presents distinguishable dynamics between intact BBB and opened BBB, and therefore a threshold ESD change level (5.5 dB) can be identified for BBB-opening prediction. Using this ESD change threshold detection as a

Real-time monitoring of focused ultrasound blood-brain barrier opening via subharmonic acoustic emission detection: implementation of confocal dual-frequency piezoelectric transducers.

PubMed

Tsai, Chih-Hung; Zhang, Jia-Wei; Liao, Yi-Yi; Liu, Hao-Li

2016-04-07

Burst-tone focused ultrasound exposure in the presence of microbubbles has been demonstrated to be effective at inducing temporal and local opening of the blood-brain barrier (BBB), which promises significant clinical potential to deliver therapeutic molecules into the central nervous system (CNS). Traditional contrast-enhanced imaging confirmation after focused ultrasound (FUS) exposure serves as a post-operative indicator of the effectiveness of FUS-BBB opening, however, an indicator that can concurrently report the BBB status and BBB-opening effectiveness is required to provide effective feedback to implement this treatment clinically. In this study, we demonstrate the use of subharmonic acoustic emission detection with implementation on a confocal dual-frequency piezoelectric ceramic structure to perform real-time monitoring of FUS-BBB opening. A confocal dual-frequency (0.55 MHz/1.1 MHz) focused ultrasound transducer was designed. The 1.1 MHz spherically-curved ceramic was employed to deliver FUS exposure to induce BBB-opening, whereas the outer-ring 0.55 MHz ceramic was employed to detect the subharmonic acoustic emissions originating from the target position. In stage-1 experiments, we employed spectral analysis and performed an energy spectrum density (ESD) calculation. An optimized 0.55 MHz ESD level change was shown to effectively discriminate the occurrence of BBB-opening. Wideband acoustic emissions received from 0.55 MHz ceramics were also analyzed to evaluate its correlations with erythrocyte extravasations. In stage-2 real-time monitoring experiments, we applied the predetermined ESD change as a detection threshold in PC-controlled algorithm to predict the FUS exposure intra-operatively. In stage-1 experiment, we showed that subharmonic ESD presents distinguishable dynamics between intact BBB and opened BBB, and therefore a threshold ESD change level (5.5 dB) can be identified for BBB-opening prediction. Using this ESD change threshold detection as a

Open Standards, Open Source, and Open Innovation: Harnessing the Benefits of Openness

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Committee for Economic Development, 2006

2006-01-01

Digitization of information and the Internet have profoundly expanded the capacity for openness. This report details the benefits of openness in three areas--open standards, open-source software, and open innovation--and examines the major issues in the debate over whether openness should be encouraged or not. The report explains each of these…

Open-source, small-animal magnetic resonance-guided focused ultrasound system.

PubMed

Poorman, Megan E; Chaplin, Vandiver L; Wilkens, Ken; Dockery, Mary D; Giorgio, Todd D; Grissom, William A; Caskey, Charles F

2016-01-01

MR-guided focused ultrasound or high-intensity focused ultrasound (MRgFUS/MRgHIFU) is a non-invasive therapeutic modality with many potential applications in areas such as cancer therapy, drug delivery, and blood-brain barrier opening. However, the large financial costs involved in developing preclinical MRgFUS systems represent a barrier to research groups interested in developing new techniques and applications. We aim to mitigate these challenges by detailing a validated, open-source preclinical MRgFUS system capable of delivering thermal and mechanical FUS in a quantifiable and repeatable manner under real-time MRI guidance. A hardware and software package was developed that includes closed-loop feedback controlled thermometry code and CAD drawings for a therapy table designed for a preclinical MRI scanner. For thermal treatments, the modular software uses a proportional integral derivative controller to maintain a precise focal temperature rise in the target given input from MR phase images obtained concurrently. The software computes the required voltage output and transmits it to a FUS transducer that is embedded in the delivery table within the magnet bore. The delivery table holds the FUS transducer, a small animal and its monitoring equipment, and a transmit/receive RF coil. The transducer is coupled to the animal via a water bath and is translatable in two dimensions from outside the magnet. The transducer is driven by a waveform generator and amplifier controlled by real-time software in Matlab. MR acoustic radiation force imaging is also implemented to confirm the position of the focus for mechanical and thermal treatments. The system was validated in tissue-mimicking phantoms and in vivo during murine tumor hyperthermia treatments. Sonications were successfully controlled over a range of temperatures and thermal doses for up to 20 min with minimal temperature overshoot. MR thermometry was validated with an optical temperature probe, and focus

Conversion and Validation of Distribution System Model from a QSTS-Based Tool to a Real-Time Dynamic Phasor Simulator

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

Chamana, Manohar; Prabakar, Kumaraguru; Palmintier, Bryan

A software process is developed to convert distribution network models from a quasi-static time-series tool (OpenDSS) to a real-time dynamic phasor simulator (ePHASORSIM). The description of this process in this paper would be helpful for researchers who intend to perform similar conversions. The converter could be utilized directly by users of real-time simulators who intend to perform software-in-the-loop or hardware-in-the-loop tests on large distribution test feeders for a range of use cases, including testing functions of advanced distribution management systems against a simulated distribution system. In the future, the developers intend to release the conversion tool as open source tomore » enable use by others.« less

PlanetSense: A Real-time Streaming and Spatio-temporal Analytics Platform for Gathering Geo-spatial Intelligence from Open Source Data

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

Thakur, Gautam S; Bhaduri, Budhendra L; Piburn, Jesse O

Geospatial intelligence has traditionally relied on the use of archived and unvarying data for planning and exploration purposes. In consequence, the tools and methods that are architected to provide insight and generate projections only rely on such datasets. Albeit, if this approach has proven effective in several cases, such as land use identification and route mapping, it has severely restricted the ability of researchers to inculcate current information in their work. This approach is inadequate in scenarios requiring real-time information to act and to adjust in ever changing dynamic environments, such as evacuation and rescue missions. In this work, wemore » propose PlanetSense, a platform for geospatial intelligence that is built to harness the existing power of archived data and add to that, the dynamics of real-time streams, seamlessly integrated with sophisticated data mining algorithms and analytics tools for generating operational intelligence on the fly. The platform has four main components i) GeoData Cloud a data architecture for storing and managing disparate datasets; ii) Mechanism to harvest real-time streaming data; iii) Data analytics framework; iv) Presentation and visualization through web interface and RESTful services. Using two case studies, we underpin the necessity of our platform in modeling ambient population and building occupancy at scale.« less

Automated real-time software development

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jones, Denise R.; Walker, Carrie K.; Turkovich, John J.

1993-01-01

A Computer-Aided Software Engineering (CASE) system has been developed at the Charles Stark Draper Laboratory (CSDL) under the direction of the NASA Langley Research Center. The CSDL CASE tool provides an automated method of generating source code and hard copy documentation from functional application engineering specifications. The goal is to significantly reduce the cost of developing and maintaining real-time scientific and engineering software while increasing system reliability. This paper describes CSDL CASE and discusses demonstrations that used the tool to automatically generate real-time application code.

Real-time neutron imaging of gas turbines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stewart, P. A. E.

1987-06-01

The current status of real-time neutron radiography imaging is briefly reviewed, and results of tests carried out on cold neutron sources are reported. In particular, attention is given to demonstrations of neutron radiography on a running gas turbine engine. The future role of real-time neutron imaging in engineering diagnostics is briefly discussed.

Real-time hierarchically distributed processing network interaction simulation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Zimmerman, W. F.; Wu, C.

1987-01-01

The Telerobot Testbed is a hierarchically distributed processing system which is linked together through a standard, commercial Ethernet. Standard Ethernet systems are primarily designed to manage non-real-time information transfer. Therefore, collisions on the net (i.e., two or more sources attempting to send data at the same time) are managed by randomly rescheduling one of the sources to retransmit at a later time interval. Although acceptable for transmitting noncritical data such as mail, this particular feature is unacceptable for real-time hierarchical command and control systems such as the Telerobot. Data transfer and scheduling simulations, such as token ring, offer solutions to collision management, but do not appropriately characterize real-time data transfer/interactions for robotic systems. Therefore, models like these do not provide a viable simulation environment for understanding real-time network loading. A real-time network loading model is being developed which allows processor-to-processor interactions to be simulated, collisions (and respective probabilities) to be logged, collision-prone areas to be identified, and network control variable adjustments to be reentered as a means of examining and reducing collision-prone regimes that occur in the process of simulating a complete task sequence.

The Commercial Open Source Business Model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Riehle, Dirk

Commercial open source software projects are open source software projects that are owned by a single firm that derives a direct and significant revenue stream from the software. Commercial open source at first glance represents an economic paradox: How can a firm earn money if it is making its product available for free as open source? This paper presents the core properties of com mercial open source business models and discusses how they work. Using a commercial open source approach, firms can get to market faster with a superior product at lower cost than possible for traditional competitors. The paper shows how these benefits accrue from an engaged and self-supporting user community. Lacking any prior comprehensive reference, this paper is based on an analysis of public statements by practitioners of commercial open source. It forges the various anecdotes into a coherent description of revenue generation strategies and relevant business functions.

An Evolving Worldview: Making Open Source Easy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rice, Z.

2017-12-01

NASA Worldview is an interactive interface for browsing full-resolution, global satellite imagery. Worldview supports an open data policy so that academia, private industries and the general public can use NASA's satellite data to address Earth science related issues. Worldview was open sourced in 2014. By shifting to an open source approach, the Worldview application has evolved to better serve end-users. Project developers are able to have discussions with end-users and community developers to understand issues and develop new features. Community developers are able to track upcoming features, collaborate on them and make their own contributions. Developers who discover issues are able to address those issues and submit a fix. This reduces the time it takes for a project developer to reproduce an issue or develop a new feature. Getting new developers to contribute to the project has been one of the most important and difficult aspects of open sourcing Worldview. After witnessing potential outside contributors struggle, a focus has been made on making the installation of Worldview simple to reduce the initial learning curve and make contributing code easy. One way we have addressed this is through a simplified setup process. Our setup documentation includes a set of prerequisites and a set of straightforward commands to clone, configure, install and run. This presentation will emphasize our focus to simplify and standardize Worldview's open source code so that more people are able to contribute. The more people who contribute, the better the application will become over time.

Climate Signals: An On-Line Digital Platform for Mapping Climate Change Impacts in Real Time

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cutting, H.

2016-12-01

Climate Signals is an on-line digital platform for cataloging and mapping the impacts of climate change. The CS platform specifies and details the chains of connections between greenhouse gas emissions and individual climate events. Currently in open-beta release, the platform is designed to to engage and serve the general public, news media, and policy-makers, particularly in real-time during extreme climate events. Climate Signals consists of a curated relational database of events and their links to climate change, a mapping engine, and a gallery of climate change monitors offering real-time data. For each event in the database, an infographic engine provides a custom attribution "tree" that illustrates the connections to climate change. In addition, links to key contextual resources are aggregated and curated for each event. All event records are fully annotated with detailed source citations and corresponding hyper links. The system of attribution used to link events to climate change in real-time is detailed here. This open-beta release is offered for public user testing and engagement. Launched in May 2016, the operation of this platform offers lessons for public engagement in climate change impacts.

Aurorasaurus Database of Real-Time, Soft-Sensor Sourced Aurora Data for Space Weather Research

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kosar, B.; MacDonald, E.; Heavner, M.

2017-12-01

Aurorasaurus is an innovative citizen science project focused on two fundamental objectives i.e., collecting real-time, ground-based signals of auroral visibility from citizen scientists (soft-sensors) and incorporating this new type of data into scientific investigations pertaining to aurora. The project has been live since the Fall of 2014, and as of Summer 2017, the database compiled approximately 12,000 observations (5295 direct reports and 6413 verified tweets). In this presentation, we will focus on demonstrating the utility of this robust science quality data for space weather research needs. These data scale with the size of the event and are well-suited to capture the largest, rarest events. Emerging state-of-the-art computational methods based on statistical inference such as machine learning frameworks and data-model integration methods can offer new insights that could potentially lead to better real-time assessment and space weather prediction when citizen science data are combined with traditional sources.

Kurtosis-Based Blind Source Extraction of Complex Non-Circular Signals with Application in EEG Artifact Removal in Real-Time

PubMed Central

Javidi, Soroush; Mandic, Danilo P.; Took, Clive Cheong; Cichocki, Andrzej

2011-01-01

A new class of complex domain blind source extraction algorithms suitable for the extraction of both circular and non-circular complex signals is proposed. This is achieved through sequential extraction based on the degree of kurtosis and in the presence of non-circular measurement noise. The existence and uniqueness analysis of the solution is followed by a study of fast converging variants of the algorithm. The performance is first assessed through simulations on well understood benchmark signals, followed by a case study on real-time artifact removal from EEG signals, verified using both qualitative and quantitative metrics. The results illustrate the power of the proposed approach in real-time blind extraction of general complex-valued sources. PMID:22319461

AUTOMATED DECONVOLUTION OF COMPOSITE MASS SPECTRA OBTAINED WITH AN OPEN-AIR IONIZATIONS SOURCE BASED ON EXACT MASSES AND RELATIVE ISOTIPIC ABUNDANCES

EPA Science Inventory

Chemicals dispersed by accidental, deliberate, or weather-related events must be rapidly identified to assess health risks. Mass spectra from high levels of analytes obtained using rapid, open-air ionization by a Direct Analysis in Real Time (DART®) ion source often contain

A Dozen Years after Open Source's 1998 Birth, It's Time for "OpenTechComm"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Still, Brian

2010-01-01

2008 marked the 10-year Anniversary of the Open Source movement, which has had a substantial impact on not only software production and adoption, but also on the sharing and distribution of information. Technical communication as a discipline has taken some advantage of the movement or its derivative software, but this article argues not as much…

Forensic Disaster Analysis in Near-real Time

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kunz, Michael; Zschau, Jochen; Wenzel, Friedemann; Khazai, Bijan; Kunz-Plapp, Tina; Trieselmann, Werner

2014-05-01

The impacts of extreme hydro-meteorological and geophysical events are controlled by various factors including severity of the event (intensity, duration, spatial extent), amplification with other phenomena (multihazard or cascading effects), interdependencies of technical systems and infrastructure, preparedness and resilience of the society. The Center for Disaster Management and Risk Reduction Technology (CEDIM) has adopted the comprehensive understanding of disasters and develops methodologies of near real-time FDA as a complementing component of the FORIN program of IRDR. The new research strategy 'Near Real-Time Forensic Disaster Analysis (FDA)' aims at scrutinizing disasters closely with a multi-disciplinary approach in order to assess the various aspects of disasters and to identify mechanisms most relevant for an extreme event to become a disaster (e.g., causal loss analysis). Recent technology developments - which have opened unprecedented opportunities for real-time hazard, vulnerability and loss assessment - are used for analyzing disasters and their impacts in combination with databases of historical events. The former covers modern empirical and analytical methods available in engineering and remote sensing for rapid impact assessments, rapid information extraction from crowd sourcing as well as rapid assessments of socio-economic impacts and economic losses. The event-driven science-based assessments of CEDIM are compiled based on interdisciplinary expertise and include the critical evaluation, assessment, validation, and quantification of an event. An important component of CEDIM's FDA is the near real-time approach which is expected to significantly speed up our understanding of natural disasters and be used to provide timely, relevant and valuable information to various user groups within their respective contexts. Currently, CEDIM has developed models and methodologies to assess different types of hazard. These approaches were applied to several

Source modeling and inversion with near real-time GPS: a GITEWS perspective for Indonesia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Babeyko, A. Y.; Hoechner, A.; Sobolev, S. V.

2010-07-01

We present the GITEWS approach to source modeling for the tsunami early warning in Indonesia. Near-field tsunami implies special requirements to both warning time and details of source characterization. To meet these requirements, we employ geophysical and geological information to predefine a maximum number of rupture parameters. We discretize the tsunamigenic Sunda plate interface into an ordered grid of patches (150×25) and employ the concept of Green's functions for forward and inverse rupture modeling. Rupture Generator, a forward modeling tool, additionally employs different scaling laws and slip shape functions to construct physically reasonable source models using basic seismic information only (magnitude and epicenter location). GITEWS runs a library of semi- and fully-synthetic scenarios to be extensively employed by system testing as well as by warning center personnel teaching and training. Near real-time GPS observations are a very valuable complement to the local tsunami warning system. Their inversion provides quick (within a few minutes on an event) estimation of the earthquake magnitude, rupture position and, in case of sufficient station coverage, details of slip distribution.

Real-Time Systems

DTIC Science & Technology

1992-02-01

Postgraduate School Autonomous Under Vehicle (AUV) are then examined. Autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV), hard real-time system, real - time operating system , real-time programming language, real-time system, soft real-time system.

An Evolving Worldview: Making Open Source Easy

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Rice, Zachary

2017-01-01

NASA Worldview is an interactive interface for browsing full-resolution, global satellite imagery. Worldview supports an open data policy so that academia, private industries and the general public can use NASA's satellite data to address Earth science related issues. Worldview was open sourced in 2014. By shifting to an open source approach, the Worldview application has evolved to better serve end-users. Project developers are able to have discussions with end-users and community developers to understand issues and develop new features. New developers are able to track upcoming features, collaborate on them and make their own contributions. Getting new developers to contribute to the project has been one of the most important and difficult aspects of open sourcing Worldview. A focus has been made on making the installation of Worldview simple to reduce the initial learning curve and make contributing code easy. One way we have addressed this is through a simplified setup process. Our setup documentation includes a set of prerequisites and a set of straight forward commands to clone, configure, install and run. This presentation will emphasis our focus to simplify and standardize Worldview's open source code so more people are able to contribute. The more people who contribute, the better the application will become over time.

Weather forecasting with open source software

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rautenhaus, Marc; Dörnbrack, Andreas

2013-04-01

To forecast the weather situation during aircraft-based atmospheric field campaigns, we employ a tool chain of existing and self-developed open source software tools and open standards. Of particular value are the Python programming language with its extension libraries NumPy, SciPy, PyQt4, Matplotlib and the basemap toolkit, the NetCDF standard with the Climate and Forecast (CF) Metadata conventions, and the Open Geospatial Consortium Web Map Service standard. These open source libraries and open standards helped to implement the "Mission Support System", a Web Map Service based tool to support weather forecasting and flight planning during field campaigns. The tool has been implemented in Python and has also been released as open source (Rautenhaus et al., Geosci. Model Dev., 5, 55-71, 2012). In this presentation we discuss the usage of free and open source software for weather forecasting in the context of research flight planning, and highlight how the field campaign work benefits from using open source tools and open standards.

Conversion and Validation of Distribution System Model from a QSTS-Based Tool to a Real-Time Dynamic Phasor Simulator: Preprint

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

Chamana, Manohar; Prabakar, Kumaraguru; Palmintier, Bryan

A software process is developed to convert distribution network models from a quasi-static time-series tool (OpenDSS) to a real-time dynamic phasor simulator (ePHASORSIM). The description of this process in this paper would be helpful for researchers who intend to perform similar conversions. The converter could be utilized directly by users of real-time simulators who intend to perform software-in-the-loop or hardware-in-the-loop tests on large distribution test feeders for a range of use cases, including testing functions of advanced distribution management systems against a simulated distribution system. In the future, the developers intend to release the conversion tool as open source tomore » enable use by others.« less

Near real-time finite fault source inversion for moderate-large earthquakes in Taiwan using teleseismic P waveform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wong, T. P.; Lee, S. J.; Gung, Y.

2017-12-01

Taiwan is located at one of the most active tectonic regions in the world. Rapid estimation of the spatial slip distribution of moderate-large earthquake (Mw6.0) is important for emergency response. It is necessary to have a real-time system to provide the report immediately after earthquake happen. The earthquake activities in the vicinity of Taiwan can be monitored by Real-Time Moment Tensor Monitoring System (RMT) which provides the rapid focal mechanism and source parameters. In this study, we follow up the RMT system to develop a near real-time finite fault source inversion system for the moderate-large earthquakes occurred in Taiwan. The system will be triggered by the RMT System when an Mw6.0 is detected. According to RMT report, our system automatically determines the fault dimension, record length, and rise time. We adopted one segment fault plane with variable rake angle. The generalized ray theory was applied to calculate the Green's function for each subfault. The primary objective of the system is to provide the first order image of coseismic slip pattern and identify the centroid location on the fault plane. The performance of this system had been demonstrated by 23 big earthquakes occurred in Taiwan successfully. The results show excellent data fits and consistent with the solutions from other studies. The preliminary spatial slip distribution will be provided within 25 minutes after an earthquake occurred.

Cluster Computing For Real Time Seismic Array Analysis.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Martini, M.; Giudicepietro, F.

A seismic array is an instrument composed by a dense distribution of seismic sen- sors that allow to measure the directional properties of the wavefield (slowness or wavenumber vector) radiated by a seismic source. Over the last years arrays have been widely used in different fields of seismological researches. In particular they are applied in the investigation of seismic sources on volcanoes where they can be suc- cessfully used for studying the volcanic microtremor and long period events which are critical for getting information on the volcanic systems evolution. For this reason arrays could be usefully employed for the volcanoes monitoring, however the huge amount of data produced by this type of instruments and the processing techniques which are quite time consuming limited their potentiality for this application. In order to favor a direct application of arrays techniques to continuous volcano monitoring we designed and built a small PC cluster able to near real time computing the kinematics properties of the wavefield (slowness or wavenumber vector) produced by local seis- mic source. The cluster is composed of 8 Intel Pentium-III bi-processors PC working at 550 MHz, and has 4 Gigabytes of RAM memory. It runs under Linux operating system. The developed analysis software package is based on the Multiple SIgnal Classification (MUSIC) algorithm and is written in Fortran. The message-passing part is based upon the LAM programming environment package, an open-source imple- mentation of the Message Passing Interface (MPI). The developed software system includes modules devote to receiving date by internet and graphical applications for the continuous displaying of the processing results. The system has been tested with a data set collected during a seismic experiment conducted on Etna in 1999 when two dense seismic arrays have been deployed on the northeast and the southeast flanks of this volcano. A real time continuous acquisition system has been simulated by

Creating Open Source Conversation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sheehan, Kate

2009-01-01

Darien Library, where the author serves as head of knowledge and learning services, launched a new website on September 1, 2008. The website is built with Drupal, an open source content management system (CMS). In this article, the author describes how she and her colleagues overhauled the library's website to provide an open source content…

Open-source software: not quite endsville.

PubMed

Stahl, Matthew T

2005-02-01

Open-source software will never achieve ubiquity. There are environments in which it simply does not flourish. By its nature, open-source development requires free exchange of ideas, community involvement, and the efforts of talented and dedicated individuals. However, pressures can come from several sources that prevent this from happening. In addition, openness and complex licensing issues invite misuse and abuse. Care must be taken to avoid the pitfalls of open-source software.

The OPEnSampler: A Low-Cost, Low-Weight, Customizable and Modular Open Source 24-Unit Automatic Water Sampler

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nelke, M.; Selker, J. S.; Udell, C.

2017-12-01

Reliable automatic water samplers allow repetitive sampling of various water sources over long periods of time without requiring a researcher on site, reducing human error as well as the monetary and time costs of traveling to the field, particularly when the scale of the sample period is hours or days. The high fixed cost of buying a commercial sampler with little customizability can be a barrier to research requiring repetitive samples, such as the analysis of septic water pre- and post-treatment. DIY automatic samplers proposed in the past sacrifice maximum volume, customizability, or scope of applications, among other features, in exchange for a lower net cost. The purpose of this project was to develop a low-cost, highly customizable, robust water sampler that is capable of sampling many sources of water for various analytes. A lightweight aluminum-extrusion frame was designed and assembled, chosen for its mounting system, strength, and low cost. Water is drawn from two peristaltic pumps through silicone tubing and directed into 24 foil-lined 250mL bags using solenoid valves. A programmable Arduino Uno microcontroller connected to a circuit board communicates with a battery operated real-time clock, initiating sampling stages. Period and volume settings are programmable in-field by the user via serial commands. The OPEnSampler is an open design, allowing the user to decide what components to use and the modular theme of the frame allows fast mounting of new manufactured or 3D printed components. The 24-bag system weighs less than 10kg and the material cost is under $450. Up to 6L of sample water can be drawn at a rate of 100mL/minute in either direction. Faster flowrates are achieved by using more powerful peristaltic pumps. Future design changes could allow a greater maximum volume by filling the unused space with more containers and adding GSM communications to send real time status information.

Autonomous watersheds: Reducing flooding and stream erosion through real-time control

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kerkez, B.; Wong, B. P.

2017-12-01

We introduce an analytical toolchain, based on dynamical system theory and feedback control, to determine how many control points (valves, gates, pumps, etc.) are needed to transform urban watersheds from static to adaptive. Advances and distributed sensing and control stand to fundamentally change how we manage urban watersheds. In lieu of new and costly infrastructure, the real-time control of stormwater systems will reduce flooding, mitigate stream erosion, and improve the treatment of polluted runoff. We discuss the how open source technologies, in the form of wireless sensor nodes and remotely-controllable valves (open-storm.org), have been deployed to build "smart" stormwater systems in the Midwestern US. Unlike "static" infrastructure, which cannot readily adapt to changing inputs and land uses, these distributed control assets allow entire watersheds to be reconfigured on a storm-by-storm basis. Our results show how the control of even just a few valves within urban catchments (1-10km^2) allows for the real-time "shaping" of hydrographs, which reduces downstream erosion and flooding. We also introduce an equivalence framework that can be used by decision-makers to objectively compare investments into "smart" system to more traditional solutions, such as gray and green stormwater infrastructure.

Real-time visual simulation of APT system based on RTW and Vega

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xiong, Shuai; Fu, Chengyu; Tang, Tao

2012-10-01

The Matlab/Simulink simulation model of APT (acquisition, pointing and tracking) system is analyzed and established. Then the model's C code which can be used for real-time simulation is generated by RTW (Real-Time Workshop). Practical experiments show, the simulation result of running the C code is the same as running the Simulink model directly in the Matlab environment. MultiGen-Vega is a real-time 3D scene simulation software system. With it and OpenGL, the APT scene simulation platform is developed and used to render and display the virtual scenes of the APT system. To add some necessary graphics effects to the virtual scenes real-time, GLSL (OpenGL Shading Language) shaders are used based on programmable GPU. By calling the C code, the scene simulation platform can adjust the system parameters on-line and get APT system's real-time simulation data to drive the scenes. Practical application shows that this visual simulation platform has high efficiency, low charge and good simulation effect.

OnEarth: An Open Source Solution for Efficiently Serving High-Resolution Mapped Image Products

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Thompson, C. K.; Plesea, L.; Hall, J. R.; Roberts, J. T.; Cechini, M. F.; Schmaltz, J. E.; Alarcon, C.; Huang, T.; McGann, J. M.; Chang, G.; Boller, R. A.; Ilavajhala, S.; Murphy, K. J.; Bingham, A. W.

2013-12-01

This presentation introduces OnEarth, a server side software package originally developed at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), that facilitates network-based, minimum-latency geolocated image access independent of image size or spatial resolution. The key component in this package is the Meta Raster Format (MRF), a specialized raster file extension to the Geospatial Data Abstraction Library (GDAL) consisting of an internal indexed pyramid of image tiles. Imagery to be served is converted to the MRF format and made accessible online via an expandable set of server modules handling requests in several common protocols, including the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) compliant Web Map Tile Service (WMTS) as well as Tiled WMS and Keyhole Markup Language (KML). OnEarth has recently transitioned to open source status and is maintained and actively developed as part of GIBS (Global Imagery Browse Services), a collaborative project between JPL and Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC). The primary function of GIBS is to enhance and streamline the data discovery process and to support near real-time (NRT) applications via the expeditious ingestion and serving of full-resolution imagery representing science products from across the NASA Earth Science spectrum. Open source software solutions are leveraged where possible in order to utilize existing available technologies, reduce development time, and enlist wider community participation. We will discuss some of the factors and decision points in transitioning OnEarth to a suitable open source paradigm, including repository and licensing agreement decision points, institutional hurdles, and perceived benefits. We will also provide examples illustrating how OnEarth is integrated within GIBS and other applications.

Real-time Tsunami Inundation Prediction Using High Performance Computers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oishi, Y.; Imamura, F.; Sugawara, D.

2014-12-01

Recently off-shore tsunami observation stations based on cabled ocean bottom pressure gauges are actively being deployed especially in Japan. These cabled systems are designed to provide real-time tsunami data before tsunamis reach coastlines for disaster mitigation purposes. To receive real benefits of these observations, real-time analysis techniques to make an effective use of these data are necessary. A representative study was made by Tsushima et al. (2009) that proposed a method to provide instant tsunami source prediction based on achieving tsunami waveform data. As time passes, the prediction is improved by using updated waveform data. After a tsunami source is predicted, tsunami waveforms are synthesized from pre-computed tsunami Green functions of linear long wave equations. Tsushima et al. (2014) updated the method by combining the tsunami waveform inversion with an instant inversion of coseismic crustal deformation and improved the prediction accuracy and speed in the early stages. For disaster mitigation purposes, real-time predictions of tsunami inundation are also important. In this study, we discuss the possibility of real-time tsunami inundation predictions, which require faster-than-real-time tsunami inundation simulation in addition to instant tsunami source analysis. Although the computational amount is large to solve non-linear shallow water equations for inundation predictions, it has become executable through the recent developments of high performance computing technologies. We conducted parallel computations of tsunami inundation and achieved 6.0 TFLOPS by using 19,000 CPU cores. We employed a leap-frog finite difference method with nested staggered grids of which resolution range from 405 m to 5 m. The resolution ratio of each nested domain was 1/3. Total number of grid points were 13 million, and the time step was 0.1 seconds. Tsunami sources of 2011 Tohoku-oki earthquake were tested. The inundation prediction up to 2 hours after the

Open-source hardware for medical devices.

PubMed

Niezen, Gerrit; Eslambolchilar, Parisa; Thimbleby, Harold

2016-04-01

Open-source hardware is hardware whose design is made publicly available so anyone can study, modify, distribute, make and sell the design or the hardware based on that design. Some open-source hardware projects can potentially be used as active medical devices. The open-source approach offers a unique combination of advantages, including reducing costs and faster innovation. This article compares 10 of open-source healthcare projects in terms of how easy it is to obtain the required components and build the device.

Open Genetic Code: on open source in the life sciences.

PubMed

Deibel, Eric

2014-01-01

The introduction of open source in the life sciences is increasingly being suggested as an alternative to patenting. This is an alternative, however, that takes its shape at the intersection of the life sciences and informatics. Numerous examples can be identified wherein open source in the life sciences refers to access, sharing and collaboration as informatic practices. This includes open source as an experimental model and as a more sophisticated approach of genetic engineering. The first section discusses the greater flexibly in regard of patenting and the relationship to the introduction of open source in the life sciences. The main argument is that the ownership of knowledge in the life sciences should be reconsidered in the context of the centrality of DNA in informatic formats. This is illustrated by discussing a range of examples of open source models. The second part focuses on open source in synthetic biology as exemplary for the re-materialization of information into food, energy, medicine and so forth. The paper ends by raising the question whether another kind of alternative might be possible: one that looks at open source as a model for an alternative to the commodification of life that is understood as an attempt to comprehensively remove the restrictions from the usage of DNA in any of its formats.

Human fecal source identification with real-time quantitative PCR

EPA Science Inventory

Waterborne diseases represent a significant public health risk worldwide, and can originate from contact with water contaminated with human fecal material. We describe a real-time quantitative PCR (qPCR) method that targets a Bacteroides dori human-associated genetic marker for...

Early warning by near-real time disturbance monitoring (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Verbesselt, J.; Zeileis, A.; Herold, M.

2013-12-01

Near real-time monitoring of ecosystem disturbances is critical for rapidly assessing and addressing impacts on carbon dynamics, biodiversity, and socio-ecological processes. Satellite remote sensing enables cost-effective and accurate monitoring at frequent time steps over large areas. Yet, generic methods to detect disturbances within newly captured satellite images are lacking. We propose a multi-purpose time-series-based disturbance detection approach that identifies and models stable historical variation to enable change detection within newly acquired data. Satellite image time series of vegetation greenness provide a global record of terrestrial vegetation productivity over the past decades. Here, we assess and demonstrate the method by applying it to (1) real-world satellite greenness image time series between February 2000 and July 2011 covering Somalia to detect drought-related vegetation disturbances (2) landsat image time series to detect forest disturbances. First, results illustrate that disturbances are successfully detected in near real-time while being robust to seasonality and noise. Second, major drought-related disturbance corresponding with most drought-stressed regions in Somalia are detected from mid-2010 onwards. Third, the method can be applied to landsat image time series having a lower temporal data density. Furthermore the method can analyze in-situ or satellite data time series of biophysical indicators from local to global scale since it is fast, does not depend on thresholds and does not require time series gap filling. While the data and methods used are appropriate for proof-of-concept development of global scale disturbance monitoring, specific applications (e.g., drought or deforestation monitoring) mandates integration within an operational monitoring framework. Furthermore, the real-time monitoring method is implemented in open-source environment and is freely available in the BFAST package for R software. Information

Open-source hardware for medical devices

PubMed Central

2016-01-01

Open-source hardware is hardware whose design is made publicly available so anyone can study, modify, distribute, make and sell the design or the hardware based on that design. Some open-source hardware projects can potentially be used as active medical devices. The open-source approach offers a unique combination of advantages, including reducing costs and faster innovation. This article compares 10 of open-source healthcare projects in terms of how easy it is to obtain the required components and build the device. PMID:27158528

A real-time remote video streaming platform for ultrasound imaging.

PubMed

Ahmadi, Mehdi; Gross, Warren J; Kadoury, Samuel

2016-08-01

Ultrasound is a viable imaging technology in remote and resources-limited areas. Ultrasonography is a user-dependent skill which depends on a high degree of training and hands-on experience. However, there is a limited number of skillful sonographers located in remote areas. In this work, we aim to develop a real-time video streaming platform which allows specialist physicians to remotely monitor ultrasound exams. To this end, an ultrasound stream is captured and transmitted through a wireless network into remote computers, smart-phones and tablets. In addition, the system is equipped with a camera to track the position of the ultrasound probe. The main advantage of our work is using an open source platform for video streaming which gives us more control over streaming parameters than the available commercial products. The transmission delays of the system are evaluated for several ultrasound video resolutions and the results show that ultrasound videos close to the high-definition (HD) resolution can be received and displayed on an Android tablet with the delay of 0.5 seconds which is acceptable for accurate real-time diagnosis.

The goldstone real-time connected element interferometer

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Edwards, C., Jr.; Rogstad, D.; Fort, D.; White, L.; Iijima, B.

1992-01-01

Connected element interferometry (CEI) is a technique of observing a celestial radio source at two spatially separated antennas and then interfering the received signals to extract the relative phase of the signal at the two antennas. The high precision of the resulting phase delay data type can provide an accurate determination of the angular position of the radio source relative to the baseline vector between the two stations. This article describes a recently developed connected element interferometer on a 21-km baseline between two antennas at the Deep Space Network's Goldstone, California, tracking complex. Fiber-optic links are used to transmit the data to a common site for processing. The system incorporates a real-time correlator to process these data in real time. The architecture of the system is described, and observational data are presented to characterize the potential performance of such a system. The real-time processing capability offers potential advantages in terms of increased reliability and improved delivery of navigational data for time-critical operations. Angular accuracies of 50-100 nrad are achievable on this baseline.

RMG An Open Source Electronic Structure Code for Multi-Petaflops Calculations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Briggs, Emil; Lu, Wenchang; Hodak, Miroslav; Bernholc, Jerzy

RMG (Real-space Multigrid) is an open source, density functional theory code for quantum simulations of materials. It solves the Kohn-Sham equations on real-space grids, which allows for natural parallelization via domain decomposition. Either subspace or Davidson diagonalization, coupled with multigrid methods, are used to accelerate convergence. RMG is a cross platform open source package which has been used in the study of a wide range of systems, including semiconductors, biomolecules, and nanoscale electronic devices. It can optionally use GPU accelerators to improve performance on systems where they are available. The recently released versions (>2.0) support multiple GPU's per compute node, have improved performance and scalability, enhanced accuracy and support for additional hardware platforms. New versions of the code are regularly released at http://www.rmgdft.org. The releases include binaries for Linux, Windows and MacIntosh systems, automated builds for clusters using cmake, as well as versions adapted to the major supercomputing installations and platforms. Several recent, large-scale applications of RMG will be discussed.

Open Source Molecular Modeling

PubMed Central

Pirhadi, Somayeh; Sunseri, Jocelyn; Koes, David Ryan

2016-01-01

The success of molecular modeling and computational chemistry efforts are, by definition, dependent on quality software applications. Open source software development provides many advantages to users of modeling applications, not the least of which is that the software is free and completely extendable. In this review we categorize, enumerate, and describe available open source software packages for molecular modeling and computational chemistry. PMID:27631126

Real-time dose computation: GPU-accelerated source modeling and superposition/convolution

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

Jacques, Robert; Wong, John; Taylor, Russell

. Pinnacle{sup 3} times were 8.3 and 94 s, respectively, on an AMD (Sunnyvale, CA) Opteron 254 (two cores, 2.8 GHz). Conclusions: The authors have completed a comprehensive, GPU-accelerated dose engine in order to provide a substantial performance gain over CPU based implementations. Real-time dose computation is feasible with the accuracy levels of the superposition/convolution algorithm.« less

Toward Real-Time Infoveillance of Twitter Health Messages.

PubMed

Colditz, Jason B; Chu, Kar-Hai; Emery, Sherry L; Larkin, Chandler R; James, A Everette; Welling, Joel; Primack, Brian A

2018-06-21

There is growing interest in conducting public health research using data from social media. In particular, Twitter "infoveillance" has demonstrated utility across health contexts. However, rigorous and reproducible methodologies for using Twitter data in public health are not yet well articulated, particularly those related to content analysis, which is a highly popular approach. In 2014, we gathered an interdisciplinary team of health science researchers, computer scientists, and methodologists to begin implementing an open-source framework for real-time infoveillance of Twitter health messages (RITHM). Through this process, we documented common challenges and novel solutions to inform future work in real-time Twitter data collection and subsequent human coding. The RITHM framework allows researchers and practitioners to use well-planned and reproducible processes in retrieving, storing, filtering, subsampling, and formatting data for health topics of interest. Further considerations for human coding of Twitter data include coder selection and training, data representation, codebook development and refinement, and monitoring coding accuracy and productivity. We illustrate methodological considerations through practical examples from formative work related to hookah tobacco smoking, and we reference essential methods literature related to understanding and using Twitter data. (Am J Public Health. Published online ahead of print June 21, 2018: e1-e6. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2018.304497).

Open Source Drug Discovery: Highly Potent Antimalarial Compounds Derived from the Tres Cantos Arylpyrroles

PubMed Central

2016-01-01

The development of new antimalarial compounds remains a pivotal part of the strategy for malaria elimination. Recent large-scale phenotypic screens have provided a wealth of potential starting points for hit-to-lead campaigns. One such public set is explored, employing an open source research mechanism in which all data and ideas were shared in real time, anyone was able to participate, and patents were not sought. One chemical subseries was found to exhibit oral activity but contained a labile ester that could not be replaced without loss of activity, and the original hit exhibited remarkable sensitivity to minor structural change. A second subseries displayed high potency, including activity within gametocyte and liver stage assays, but at the cost of low solubility. As an open source research project, unexplored avenues are clearly identified and may be explored further by the community; new findings may be cumulatively added to the present work. PMID:27800551

Toward transient finite element simulation of thermal deformation of machine tools in real-time

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Naumann, Andreas; Ruprecht, Daniel; Wensch, Joerg

2018-01-01

Finite element models without simplifying assumptions can accurately describe the spatial and temporal distribution of heat in machine tools as well as the resulting deformation. In principle, this allows to correct for displacements of the Tool Centre Point and enables high precision manufacturing. However, the computational cost of FE models and restriction to generic algorithms in commercial tools like ANSYS prevents their operational use since simulations have to run faster than real-time. For the case where heat diffusion is slow compared to machine movement, we introduce a tailored implicit-explicit multi-rate time stepping method of higher order based on spectral deferred corrections. Using the open-source FEM library DUNE, we show that fully coupled simulations of the temperature field are possible in real-time for a machine consisting of a stock sliding up and down on rails attached to a stand.

Characteristics and sensitivity analysis of multiple-time-resolved source patterns of PM2.5 with real time data using Multilinear Engine 2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peng, Xing; Shi, Guo-Liang; Gao, Jian; Liu, Jia-Yuan; HuangFu, Yan-Qi; Ma, Tong; Wang, Hai-Ting; Zhang, Yue-Chong; Wang, Han; Li, Hui; Ivey, Cesunica E.; Feng, Yin-Chang

2016-08-01

With real time resolved data of Particulate matter (PM) and chemical species, understanding the source patterns and chemical characteristics is critical to establish controlling of PM. In this work, PM2.5 and chemical species were measured by corresponding online instruments with 1-h time resolution in Beijing. Multilinear Engine 2 (ME2) model was applied to explore the sources, and four sources (vehicle emission, crustal dust, secondary formation and coal combustion) were identified. To investigate the sensitivity of time resolution on the source contributions and chemical characteristics, ME2 was conducted with four time resolution runs (1-h, 2-h, 4-h, and 8-h). Crustal dust and coal combustion display large variation in the four time resolutions runs, with their contributions ranging from 6.7 to 10.4 μg m-3 and from 6.4 to 12.2 μg m-3, respectively. The contributions of vehicle emission and secondary formation range from 7.5 to 10.5 and from 14.7 to 16.7 μg m-3, respectively. The sensitivity analyses were conducted by principal component analysis-plot (PCA-plot), coefficient of divergence (CD), average absolute error (AAE) and correlation coefficients. For the four time resolution runs, the source contributions and profiles of crustal dust and coal combustion were more unstable than other source categories, possibly due to the lack of key markers of crustal dust and coal combustion (e.g. Si, Al). On the other hand, vehicle emission and crustal dust were more sensitive to time series of source contributions at different time resolutions. Findings in this study can improve our knowledge of source contributions and chemical characteristics at different time solutions.

CPU-GPU mixed implementation of virtual node method for real-time interactive cutting of deformable objects using OpenCL.

PubMed

Jia, Shiyu; Zhang, Weizhong; Yu, Xiaokang; Pan, Zhenkuan

2015-09-01

Surgical simulators need to simulate interactive cutting of deformable objects in real time. The goal of this work was to design an interactive cutting algorithm that eliminates traditional cutting state classification and can work simultaneously with real-time GPU-accelerated deformation without affecting its numerical stability. A modified virtual node method for cutting is proposed. Deformable object is modeled as a real tetrahedral mesh embedded in a virtual tetrahedral mesh, and the former is used for graphics rendering and collision, while the latter is used for deformation. Cutting algorithm first subdivides real tetrahedrons to eliminate all face and edge intersections, then splits faces, edges and vertices along cutting tool trajectory to form cut surfaces. Next virtual tetrahedrons containing more than one connected real tetrahedral fragments are duplicated, and connectivity between virtual tetrahedrons is updated. Finally, embedding relationship between real and virtual tetrahedral meshes is updated. Co-rotational linear finite element method is used for deformation. Cutting and collision are processed by CPU, while deformation is carried out by GPU using OpenCL. Efficiency of GPU-accelerated deformation algorithm was tested using block models with varying numbers of tetrahedrons. Effectiveness of our cutting algorithm under multiple cuts and self-intersecting cuts was tested using a block model and a cylinder model. Cutting of a more complex liver model was performed, and detailed performance characteristics of cutting, deformation and collision were measured and analyzed. Our cutting algorithm can produce continuous cut surfaces when traditional minimal element creation algorithm fails. Our GPU-accelerated deformation algorithm remains stable with constant time step under multiple arbitrary cuts and works on both NVIDIA and AMD GPUs. GPU-CPU speed ratio can be as high as 10 for models with 80,000 tetrahedrons. Forty to sixty percent real-time

Nowcasting influenza outbreaks using open-source media report.

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

Ray, Jaideep; Brownstein, John S.

We construct and verify a statistical method to nowcast influenza activity from a time-series of the frequency of reports concerning influenza related topics. Such reports are published electronically by both public health organizations as well as newspapers/media sources, and thus can be harvested easily via web crawlers. Since media reports are timely, whereas reports from public health organization are delayed by at least two weeks, using timely, open-source data to compensate for the lag in %E2%80%9Cofficial%E2%80%9D reports can be useful. We use morbidity data from networks of sentinel physicians (both the Center of Disease Control's ILINet and France's Sentinelles network)more » as the gold standard of influenza-like illness (ILI) activity. The time-series of media reports is obtained from HealthMap (http://healthmap.org). We find that the time-series of media reports shows some correlation ( 0.5) with ILI activity; further, this can be leveraged into an autoregressive moving average model with exogenous inputs (ARMAX model) to nowcast ILI activity. We find that the ARMAX models have more predictive skill compared to autoregressive (AR) models fitted to ILI data i.e., it is possible to exploit the information content in the open-source data. We also find that when the open-source data are non-informative, the ARMAX models reproduce the performance of AR models. The statistical models are tested on data from the 2009 swine-flu outbreak as well as the mild 2011-2012 influenza season in the U.S.A.« less

Evaluation of classifier topologies for the real-time classification of simultaneous limb motions.

PubMed

Ortiz-Catalan, Max; Branemark, Rickard; Hakansson, Bo

2013-01-01

The prediction of motion intent through the decoding of myoelectric signals has the potential to improve the functionally of limb prostheses. Considerable research on individual motion classifiers has been done to exploit this idea. A drawback with the individual prediction approach, however, is its limitation to serial control, which is slow, cumbersome, and unnatural. In this work, different classifier topologies suitable for the decoding of mixed classes, and thus capable of predicting simultaneous motions, were investigated in real-time. These topologies resulted in higher offline accuracies than previously achieved, but more importantly, positive indications of their suitability for real-time systems were found. Furthermore, in order to facilitate further development, benchmarking, and cooperation, the algorithms and data generated in this study are freely available as part of BioPatRec, an open source framework for the development of advanced prosthetic control strategies.

Real-Time CORBA

DTIC Science & Technology

2000-10-01

control systems and prototyped the approach by porting the ILU ORB from Xerox to the Lynx real - time operating system . They then provided a distributed...compliant real - time operating system , a real-time ORB, and an ODMG-compliant real-time ODBMS [12]. The MITRE system is an infrastructure for...the server’s local operating system can handle. For instance, on a node controlled by the VXWorks real - time operating system with 256 local

Graph-based real-time fault diagnostics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Padalkar, S.; Karsai, G.; Sztipanovits, J.

1988-01-01

A real-time fault detection and diagnosis capability is absolutely crucial in the design of large-scale space systems. Some of the existing AI-based fault diagnostic techniques like expert systems and qualitative modelling are frequently ill-suited for this purpose. Expert systems are often inadequately structured, difficult to validate and suffer from knowledge acquisition bottlenecks. Qualitative modelling techniques sometimes generate a large number of failure source alternatives, thus hampering speedy diagnosis. In this paper we present a graph-based technique which is well suited for real-time fault diagnosis, structured knowledge representation and acquisition and testing and validation. A Hierarchical Fault Model of the system to be diagnosed is developed. At each level of hierarchy, there exist fault propagation digraphs denoting causal relations between failure modes of subsystems. The edges of such a digraph are weighted with fault propagation time intervals. Efficient and restartable graph algorithms are used for on-line speedy identification of failure source components.

Toward real-time regional earthquake simulation II: Real-time Online earthquake Simulation (ROS) of Taiwan earthquakes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Shiann-Jong; Liu, Qinya; Tromp, Jeroen; Komatitsch, Dimitri; Liang, Wen-Tzong; Huang, Bor-Shouh

2014-06-01

We developed a Real-time Online earthquake Simulation system (ROS) to simulate regional earthquakes in Taiwan. The ROS uses a centroid moment tensor solution of seismic events from a Real-time Moment Tensor monitoring system (RMT), which provides all the point source parameters including the event origin time, hypocentral location, moment magnitude and focal mechanism within 2 min after the occurrence of an earthquake. Then, all of the source parameters are automatically forwarded to the ROS to perform an earthquake simulation, which is based on a spectral-element method (SEM). A new island-wide, high resolution SEM mesh model is developed for the whole Taiwan in this study. We have improved SEM mesh quality by introducing a thin high-resolution mesh layer near the surface to accommodate steep and rapidly varying topography. The mesh for the shallow sedimentary basin is adjusted to reflect its complex geometry and sharp lateral velocity contrasts. The grid resolution at the surface is about 545 m, which is sufficient to resolve topography and tomography data for simulations accurate up to 1.0 Hz. The ROS is also an infrastructural service, making online earthquake simulation feasible. Users can conduct their own earthquake simulation by providing a set of source parameters through the ROS webpage. For visualization, a ShakeMovie and ShakeMap are produced during the simulation. The time needed for one event is roughly 3 min for a 70 s ground motion simulation. The ROS is operated online at the Institute of Earth Sciences, Academia Sinica (http://ros.earth.sinica.edu.tw/). Our long-term goal for the ROS system is to contribute to public earth science outreach and to realize seismic ground motion prediction in real-time.

IoT for Real-Time Measurement of High-Throughput Liquid Dispensing in Laboratory Environments.

PubMed

Shumate, Justin; Baillargeon, Pierre; Spicer, Timothy P; Scampavia, Louis

2018-04-01

Critical to maintaining quality control in high-throughput screening is the need for constant monitoring of liquid-dispensing fidelity. Traditional methods involve operator intervention with gravimetric analysis to monitor the gross accuracy of full plate dispenses, visual verification of contents, or dedicated weigh stations on screening platforms that introduce potential bottlenecks and increase the plate-processing cycle time. We present a unique solution using open-source hardware, software, and 3D printing to automate dispenser accuracy determination by providing real-time dispense weight measurements via a network-connected precision balance. This system uses an Arduino microcontroller to connect a precision balance to a local network. By integrating the precision balance as an Internet of Things (IoT) device, it gains the ability to provide real-time gravimetric summaries of dispensing, generate timely alerts when problems are detected, and capture historical dispensing data for future analysis. All collected data can then be accessed via a web interface for reviewing alerts and dispensing information in real time or remotely for timely intervention of dispense errors. The development of this system also leveraged 3D printing to rapidly prototype sensor brackets, mounting solutions, and component enclosures.

A real-time detector system for precise timing of audiovisual stimuli.

PubMed

Henelius, Andreas; Jagadeesan, Sharman; Huotilainen, Minna

2012-01-01

The successful recording of neurophysiologic signals, such as event-related potentials (ERPs) or event-related magnetic fields (ERFs), relies on precise information of stimulus presentation times. We have developed an accurate and flexible audiovisual sensor solution operating in real-time for on-line use in both auditory and visual ERP and ERF paradigms. The sensor functions independently of the used audio or video stimulus presentation tools or signal acquisition system. The sensor solution consists of two independent sensors; one for sound and one for light. The microcontroller-based audio sensor incorporates a novel approach to the detection of natural sounds such as multipart audio stimuli, using an adjustable dead time. This aids in producing exact markers for complex auditory stimuli and reduces the number of false detections. The analog photosensor circuit detects changes in light intensity on the screen and produces a marker for changes exceeding a threshold. The microcontroller software for the audio sensor is free and open source, allowing other researchers to customise the sensor for use in specific auditory ERP/ERF paradigms. The hardware schematics and software for the audiovisual sensor are freely available from the webpage of the authors' lab.

Development of Real-Time PCR to Monitor Groundwater Contaminated by Fecal Sources and Leachate from the Carcass

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Park, S.; Kim, H.; Kim, M.; Lee, Y.; Han, J.

2011-12-01

The 2010 outbreak of foot and mouth disease (FMD) in South Korea caused about 4,054 carcass burial sites to dispose the carcasses. Potential environmental impacts by leachate of carcass on groundwater have been issued and it still needs to be studied. Therefore, we tried to develop robust and sensitive tool to immediately determine a groundwater contamination by the leachate from carcass burial. For tracking both an agricultural fecal contamination source and the leachate in groundwater, competitive real-time PCR and PCR method were developed using various PCR primer sets designed to detect E. Coli uidA gene and mtDNA(cytochrome B, cytB) of the animal species such as ovine, porcine, caprine, and bovine. The designed methods were applied to tract the animal species in livestock wastewater and leachate of carcass under appropriate PCR or real-time PCR condition. In the result, mtDNA primer sets for individual (Cow or Pig) and multiple (Cow and Pig) amplification, and E. Coli uidA primers for fecal source amplification were specific and sensitive to target genes. To determine contamination source, concentration of amplified mtDNA and uidA was competitively quantified in Livestock wastewater, leachate of carcass, and groundwater. The highest concentration of mtDNA and uidA showed in leachate of carcass and livestock wastewater, respectively. Groundwater samples possibly contaminated by leachate of carcass were analyzed by this assay and it was able to prove contamination source.

REAL-TIME FEEDBACK FOR IMPROVING COMPLIANCE TO HAND SANITIZATION AMONG HEALTHCARE WORKERS IN AN OPEN LAYOUT ICU USING RADIOFREQUENCY IDENTIFICATION

PubMed Central

Waghmare, Abijeet; Ekstrand, Maria; Raj, Tony; Selvam, Sumithra; Sreerama, Sai Madhukar; Sampath, Sriram

2015-01-01

Objective To increase hand sanitizer usage among healthcare workers by developing and implementing a low-cost intervention using RFID and wireless mesh networks to provide real-time alarms for increasing hand hygiene compliance during opportune moments in an open layout Intensive Care Unit (ICU). Method A wireless, RFID based system was developed and deployed in the ICU. The ICU beds were divded into an intervention arm (n=10) and a control arm (n=14). Passive RFID tags were issued to the doctors, nurses and support staff of the ICU. Long range RFID readers were positioned strategically. Sensors were placed beneath the hand sanitizers to record sanitizer usage. The system would alert the HCWs by flashing a light if an opportune moment for hand sanitization was detected. Results A significant increase in hand sanitizer use was noted in the intervention arm. Usage was highest during the early part of the workday and decreased as the day progressed. Hand wash events per person hour was highest among the ancilliary staff followed by the doctors and nurses. Conclusion Real-time feedback has potential to increase hand hygiene compliance among HCWs. The system demonstrates the possibility of automating compliance monitoring in an ICU with an open layout. PMID:25957165

Real-time feedback for improving compliance to hand sanitization among healthcare workers in an open layout ICU using radiofrequency identification.

PubMed

Radhakrishna, Kedar; Waghmare, Abijeet; Ekstrand, Maria; Raj, Tony; Selvam, Sumithra; Sreerama, Sai Madhukar; Sampath, Sriram

2015-06-01

The aim of this study is to increase hand sanitizer usage among healthcare workers by developing and implementing a low-cost intervention using RFID and wireless mesh networks to provide real-time alarms for increasing hand hygiene compliance during opportune moments in an open layout Intensive Care Unit (ICU). A wireless, RFID based system was developed and implemented in the ICU. The ICU beds were divded into an intervention arm (n = 10) and a control arm (n = 14). Passive RFID tags were issued to the doctors, nurses and support staff of the ICU. Long range RFID readers were positioned strategically. Sensors were placed beneath the hand sanitizers to record sanitizer usage. The system would alert the HCWs by flashing a light if an opportune moment for hand sanitization was detected. A significant increase in hand sanitizer use was noted in the intervention arm. Usage was highest during the early part of the workday and decreased as the day progressed. Hand wash events per person hour was highest among the ancilliary staff followed by the doctors and nurses. Real-time feedback has potential to increase hand hygiene compliance among HCWs. The system demonstrates the possibility of automating compliance monitoring in an ICU with an open layout.

A Graphics Processing Unit Accelerated Motion Correction Algorithm and Modular System for Real-time fMRI

PubMed Central

Scheinost, Dustin; Hampson, Michelle; Qiu, Maolin; Bhawnani, Jitendra; Constable, R. Todd; Papademetris, Xenophon

2013-01-01

Real-time functional magnetic resonance imaging (rt-fMRI) has recently gained interest as a possible means to facilitate the learning of certain behaviors. However, rt-fMRI is limited by processing speed and available software, and continued development is needed for rt-fMRI to progress further and become feasible for clinical use. In this work, we present an open-source rt-fMRI system for biofeedback powered by a novel Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) accelerated motion correction strategy as part of the BioImage Suite project (www.bioimagesuite.org). Our system contributes to the development of rt-fMRI by presenting a motion correction algorithm that provides an estimate of motion with essentially no processing delay as well as a modular rt-fMRI system design. Using empirical data from rt-fMRI scans, we assessed the quality of motion correction in this new system. The present algorithm performed comparably to standard (non real-time) offline methods and outperformed other real-time methods based on zero order interpolation of motion parameters. The modular approach to the rt-fMRI system allows the system to be flexible to the experiment and feedback design, a valuable feature for many applications. We illustrate the flexibility of the system by describing several of our ongoing studies. Our hope is that continuing development of open-source rt-fMRI algorithms and software will make this new technology more accessible and adaptable, and will thereby accelerate its application in the clinical and cognitive neurosciences. PMID:23319241

A graphics processing unit accelerated motion correction algorithm and modular system for real-time fMRI.

PubMed

Scheinost, Dustin; Hampson, Michelle; Qiu, Maolin; Bhawnani, Jitendra; Constable, R Todd; Papademetris, Xenophon

2013-07-01

Real-time functional magnetic resonance imaging (rt-fMRI) has recently gained interest as a possible means to facilitate the learning of certain behaviors. However, rt-fMRI is limited by processing speed and available software, and continued development is needed for rt-fMRI to progress further and become feasible for clinical use. In this work, we present an open-source rt-fMRI system for biofeedback powered by a novel Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) accelerated motion correction strategy as part of the BioImage Suite project ( www.bioimagesuite.org ). Our system contributes to the development of rt-fMRI by presenting a motion correction algorithm that provides an estimate of motion with essentially no processing delay as well as a modular rt-fMRI system design. Using empirical data from rt-fMRI scans, we assessed the quality of motion correction in this new system. The present algorithm performed comparably to standard (non real-time) offline methods and outperformed other real-time methods based on zero order interpolation of motion parameters. The modular approach to the rt-fMRI system allows the system to be flexible to the experiment and feedback design, a valuable feature for many applications. We illustrate the flexibility of the system by describing several of our ongoing studies. Our hope is that continuing development of open-source rt-fMRI algorithms and software will make this new technology more accessible and adaptable, and will thereby accelerate its application in the clinical and cognitive neurosciences.

Free for All: Open Source Software

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schneider, Karen

2008-01-01

Open source software has become a catchword in libraryland. Yet many remain unclear about open source's benefits--or even what it is. So what is open source software (OSS)? It's software that is free in every sense of the word: free to download, free to use, and free to view or modify. Most OSS is distributed on the Web and one doesn't need to…

Open Source Based Sensor Platform for Mobile Environmental Monitoring and Data Acquisition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schima, Robert; Goblirsch, Tobias; Misterek, René; Salbach, Christoph; Schlink, Uwe; Francyk, Bogdan; Dietrich, Peter; Bumberger, Jan

2016-04-01

The impact of global change, urbanization and complex interactions between humans and the environment show different effects on different scales. However, the desire to obtain a better understanding of ecosystems and process dynamics in nature accentuates the need for observing these processes in higher temporal and spatial resolutions. Especially with regard to the process dynamics and heterogeneity of urban areas, a comprehensive monitoring of these effects remains to be a challenging issue. Open source based electronics and cost-effective sensors are offering a promising approach to explore new possibilities of mobile data acquisition and innovative strategies and thereby support a comprehensive ad-hoc monitoring and the capturing of environmental processes close to real time. Accordingly, our project aims the development of new strategies for mobile data acquisition and real-time processing of user-specific environmental data, based on a holistic and integrated process. To this end, the concept of our monitoring system covers the data collection, data processing and data integration as well as the data provision within one infrastructure. This ensures a consistent data stream and a rapid data processing. However, the overarching goal is the provision of an integrated service instead of lengthy and arduous data acquisition by hand. Therefore, the system also serves as a data acquisition assistant and gives guidance during the measurements. In technical terms, our monitoring system consists of mobile sensor devices, which can be controlled and managed by a smart phone app (Android). At the moment, the system is able to acquire temperature and humidity in space (GPS) and time (real-time clock) as a built in function. In addition, larger system functionality can be accomplished by adding further sensors for the detection of e.g. fine dust, methane or dissolved organic compounds. From the IT point of view, the system includes a smart phone app and a web service for

Effective learning strategies for real-time image-guided adaptive control of multiple-source hyperthermia applicators.

PubMed

Cheng, Kung-Shan; Dewhirst, Mark W; Stauffer, Paul R; Das, Shiva

2010-03-01

This paper investigates overall theoretical requirements for reducing the times required for the iterative learning of a real-time image-guided adaptive control routine for multiple-source heat applicators, as used in hyperthermia and thermal ablative therapy for cancer. Methods for partial reconstruction of the physical system with and without model reduction to find solutions within a clinically practical timeframe were analyzed. A mathematical analysis based on the Fredholm alternative theorem (FAT) was used to compactly analyze the existence and uniqueness of the optimal heating vector under two fundamental situations: (1) noiseless partial reconstruction and (2) noisy partial reconstruction. These results were coupled with a method for further acceleration of the solution using virtual source (VS) model reduction. The matrix approximation theorem (MAT) was used to choose the optimal vectors spanning the reduced-order subspace to reduce the time for system reconstruction and to determine the associated approximation error. Numerical simulations of the adaptive control of hyperthermia using VS were also performed to test the predictions derived from the theoretical analysis. A thigh sarcoma patient model surrounded by a ten-antenna phased-array applicator was retained for this purpose. The impacts of the convective cooling from blood flow and the presence of sudden increase of perfusion in muscle and tumor were also simulated. By FAT, partial system reconstruction directly conducted in the full space of the physical variables such as phases and magnitudes of the heat sources cannot guarantee reconstructing the optimal system to determine the global optimal setting of the heat sources. A remedy for this limitation is to conduct the partial reconstruction within a reduced-order subspace spanned by the first few maximum eigenvectors of the true system matrix. By MAT, this VS subspace is the optimal one when the goal is to maximize the average tumor temperature

An environmental-level, real-time, pulsed photon dosemeter.

PubMed

Olsher, R H; Frymire, A; Gregoire, T

2005-01-01

Radiation sources producing short pulses of photon radiation are widespread. Such sources include electron linear accelerators and field emission impulse generators. It is often desirable to measure leakage and skyshine radiation for these sources in real time and at environmental levels as low as 0.02 microSv per pulse. This note provides an overview of the design and performance of a commercial, real-time, pulsed photon dosemeter (PPD) capable of single-pulse dose measurements over the range from 0.02 to 20 microSv. The PPD may also be operated in a multiple-pulse mode that integrates the dose from a train of pulses over a 3 s period. A pulse repetition rate of up to 300 Hz is accommodated.

Software for real-time localization of baleen whale calls using directional sonobuoys: A case study on Antarctic blue whales.

PubMed

Miller, Brian S; Calderan, Susannah; Gillespie, Douglas; Weatherup, Graham; Leaper, Russell; Collins, Kym; Double, Michael C

2016-03-01

Directional frequency analysis and recording (DIFAR) sonobuoys can allow real-time acoustic localization of baleen whales for underwater tracking and remote sensing, but limited availability of hardware and software has prevented wider usage. These software limitations were addressed by developing a module in the open-source software PAMGuard. A case study is presented demonstrating that this software provides greater efficiency and accessibility than previous methods for detecting, localizing, and tracking Antarctic blue whales in real time. Additionally, this software can easily be extended to track other low and mid frequency sounds including those from other cetaceans, pinnipeds, icebergs, shipping, and seismic airguns.

Real Time Revisited

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Allen, Phillip G.

1985-12-01

The call for abolishing photo reconnaissance in favor of real time is once more being heard. Ten years ago the same cries were being heard with the introduction of the Charge Coupled Device (CCD). The real time system problems that existed then and stopped real time proliferation have not been solved. The lack of an organized program by either DoD or industry has hampered any efforts to solve the problems, and as such, very little has happened in real time in the last ten years. Real time is not a replacement for photo, just as photo is not a replacement for infra-red or radar. Operational real time sensors can be designed only after their role has been defined and improvements made to the weak links in the system. Plodding ahead on a real time reconnaissance suite without benefit of evaluation of utility will allow this same paper to be used ten years from now.

Open-Source GIS

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

Vatsavai, Raju; Burk, Thomas E; Lime, Steve

2012-01-01

The components making up an Open Source GIS are explained in this chapter. A map server (Sect. 30.1) can broadly be defined as a software platform for dynamically generating spatially referenced digital map products. The University of Minnesota MapServer (UMN Map Server) is one such system. Its basic features are visualization, overlay, and query. Section 30.2 names and explains many of the geospatial open source libraries, such as GDAL and OGR. The other libraries are FDO, JTS, GEOS, JCS, MetaCRS, and GPSBabel. The application examples include derived GIS-software and data format conversions. Quantum GIS, its origin and its applications explainedmore » in detail in Sect. 30.3. The features include a rich GUI, attribute tables, vector symbols, labeling, editing functions, projections, georeferencing, GPS support, analysis, and Web Map Server functionality. Future developments will address mobile applications, 3-D, and multithreading. The origins of PostgreSQL are outlined and PostGIS discussed in detail in Sect. 30.4. It extends PostgreSQL by implementing the Simple Feature standard. Section 30.5 details the most important open source licenses such as the GPL, the LGPL, the MIT License, and the BSD License, as well as the role of the Creative Commons.« less

Connecting real-time data to algorithms and databases: EarthCube's Cloud-Hosted Real-time Data Services for the Geosciences (CHORDS)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Daniels, M. D.; Graves, S. J.; Kerkez, B.; Chandrasekar, V.; Vernon, F.; Martin, C. L.; Maskey, M.; Keiser, K.; Dye, M. J.

2015-12-01

The Cloud-Hosted Real-time Data Services for the Geosciences (CHORDS) project was funded under the National Science Foundation's EarthCube initiative. CHORDS addresses the ever-increasing importance of real-time scientific data in the geosciences, particularly in mission critical scenarios, where informed decisions must be made rapidly. Access to constant streams of real-time data also allow many new transient phenomena in space-time to be observed, however, much of these streaming data are either completely inaccessible or only available to proprietary in-house tools or displays. Small research teams do not have the resources to develop tools for the broad dissemination of their unique real-time data and require an easy to use, scalable, cloud-based solution to facilitate this access. CHORDS will make these diverse streams of real-time data available to the broader geosciences community. This talk will highlight a recently developed CHORDS portal tools and processing systems which address some of the gaps in handling real-time data, particularly in the provisioning of data from the "long-tail" scientific community through a simple interface that is deployed in the cloud, is scalable and is able to be customized by research teams. A running portal, with operational data feeds from across the nation, will be presented. The processing within the CHORDS system will expose these real-time streams via standard services from the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) in a way that is simple and transparent to the data provider, while maximizing the usage of these investments. The ingestion of high velocity, high volume and diverse data has allowed the project to explore a NoSQL database implementation. Broad use of the CHORDS framework by geoscientists will help to facilitate adaptive experimentation, model assimilation and real-time hypothesis testing.

Real time gamma-ray signature identifier

DOEpatents

Rowland, Mark [Alamo, CA; Gosnell, Tom B [Moraga, CA; Ham, Cheryl [Livermore, CA; Perkins, Dwight [Livermore, CA; Wong, James [Dublin, CA

2012-05-15

A real time gamma-ray signature/source identification method and system using principal components analysis (PCA) for transforming and substantially reducing one or more comprehensive spectral libraries of nuclear materials types and configurations into a corresponding concise representation/signature(s) representing and indexing each individual predetermined spectrum in principal component (PC) space, wherein an unknown gamma-ray signature may be compared against the representative signature to find a match or at least characterize the unknown signature from among all the entries in the library with a single regression or simple projection into the PC space, so as to substantially reduce processing time and computing resources and enable real-time characterization and/or identification.

Real-Time Symbol Extraction From Grey-Level Images

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Massen, R.; Simnacher, M.; Rosch, J.; Herre, E.; Wuhrer, H. W.

1988-04-01

A VME-bus image pipeline processor for extracting vectorized contours from grey-level images in real-time is presented. This 3 Giga operation per second processor uses large kernel convolvers and new non-linear neighbourhood processing algorithms to compute true 1-pixel wide and noise-free contours without thresholding even from grey-level images with quite varying edge sharpness. The local edge orientation is used as an additional cue to compute a list of vectors describing the closed and open contours in real-time and to dump a CAD-like symbolic image description into a symbol memory at pixel clock rate.

Real-time two-dimensional temperature imaging using ultrasound.

PubMed

Liu, Dalong; Ebbini, Emad S

2009-01-01

We present a system for real-time 2D imaging of temperature change in tissue media using pulse-echo ultrasound. The frontend of the system is a SonixRP ultrasound scanner with a research interface giving us the capability of controlling the beam sequence and accessing radio frequency (RF) data in real-time. The beamformed RF data is streamlined to the backend of the system, where the data is processed using a two-dimensional temperature estimation algorithm running in the graphics processing unit (GPU). The estimated temperature is displayed in real-time providing feedback that can be used for real-time control of the heating source. Currently we have verified our system with elastography tissue mimicking phantom and in vitro porcine heart tissue, excellent repeatability and sensitivity were demonstrated.

Interactive, open source, travel time scenario modelling: tools to facilitate participation in health service access analysis.

PubMed

Fisher, Rohan; Lassa, Jonatan

2017-04-18

Modelling travel time to services has become a common public health tool for planning service provision but the usefulness of these analyses is constrained by the availability of accurate input data and limitations inherent in the assumptions and parameterisation. This is particularly an issue in the developing world where access to basic data is limited and travel is often complex and multi-modal. Improving the accuracy and relevance in this context requires greater accessibility to, and flexibility in, travel time modelling tools to facilitate the incorporation of local knowledge and the rapid exploration of multiple travel scenarios. The aim of this work was to develop simple open source, adaptable, interactive travel time modelling tools to allow greater access to and participation in service access analysis. Described are three interconnected applications designed to reduce some of the barriers to the more wide-spread use of GIS analysis of service access and allow for complex spatial and temporal variations in service availability. These applications are an open source GIS tool-kit and two geo-simulation models. The development of these tools was guided by health service issues from a developing world context but they present a general approach to enabling greater access to and flexibility in health access modelling. The tools demonstrate a method that substantially simplifies the process for conducting travel time assessments and demonstrate a dynamic, interactive approach in an open source GIS format. In addition this paper provides examples from empirical experience where these tools have informed better policy and planning. Travel and health service access is complex and cannot be reduced to a few static modeled outputs. The approaches described in this paper use a unique set of tools to explore this complexity, promote discussion and build understanding with the goal of producing better planning outcomes. The accessible, flexible, interactive and

Open source tools for ATR development and performance evaluation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baumann, James M.; Dilsavor, Ronald L.; Stubbles, James; Mossing, John C.

2002-07-01

Early in almost every engineering project, a decision must be made about tools; should I buy off-the-shelf tools or should I develop my own. Either choice can involve significant cost and risk. Off-the-shelf tools may be readily available, but they can be expensive to purchase and to maintain licenses, and may not be flexible enough to satisfy all project requirements. On the other hand, developing new tools permits great flexibility, but it can be time- (and budget-) consuming, and the end product still may not work as intended. Open source software has the advantages of both approaches without many of the pitfalls. This paper examines the concept of open source software, including its history, unique culture, and informal yet closely followed conventions. These characteristics influence the quality and quantity of software available, and ultimately its suitability for serious ATR development work. We give an example where Python, an open source scripting language, and OpenEV, a viewing and analysis tool for geospatial data, have been incorporated into ATR performance evaluation projects. While this case highlights the successful use of open source tools, we also offer important insight into risks associated with this approach.

Open Data, Open Source and Open Standards in chemistry: The Blue Obelisk five years on

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Background The Blue Obelisk movement was established in 2005 as a response to the lack of Open Data, Open Standards and Open Source (ODOSOS) in chemistry. It aims to make it easier to carry out chemistry research by promoting interoperability between chemistry software, encouraging cooperation between Open Source developers, and developing community resources and Open Standards. Results This contribution looks back on the work carried out by the Blue Obelisk in the past 5 years and surveys progress and remaining challenges in the areas of Open Data, Open Standards, and Open Source in chemistry. Conclusions We show that the Blue Obelisk has been very successful in bringing together researchers and developers with common interests in ODOSOS, leading to development of many useful resources freely available to the chemistry community. PMID:21999342

Open Source Service Agent (OSSA) in the intelligence community's Open Source Architecture

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Fiene, Bruce F.

1994-01-01

The Community Open Source Program Office (COSPO) has developed an architecture for the intelligence community's new Open Source Information System (OSIS). The architecture is a multi-phased program featuring connectivity, interoperability, and functionality. OSIS is based on a distributed architecture concept. The system is designed to function as a virtual entity. OSIS will be a restricted (non-public), user configured network employing Internet communications. Privacy and authentication will be provided through firewall protection. Connection to OSIS can be made through any server on the Internet or through dial-up modems provided the appropriate firewall authentication system is installed on the client.

Open source data assimilation framework for hydrological modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ridler, Marc; Hummel, Stef; van Velzen, Nils; Katrine Falk, Anne; Madsen, Henrik

2013-04-01

An open-source data assimilation framework is proposed for hydrological modeling. Data assimilation (DA) in hydrodynamic and hydrological forecasting systems has great potential to improve predictions and improve model result. The basic principle is to incorporate measurement information into a model with the aim to improve model results by error minimization. Great strides have been made to assimilate traditional in-situ measurements such as discharge, soil moisture, hydraulic head and snowpack into hydrologic models. More recently, remotely sensed data retrievals of soil moisture, snow water equivalent or snow cover area, surface water elevation, terrestrial water storage and land surface temperature have been successfully assimilated in hydrological models. The assimilation algorithms have become increasingly sophisticated to manage measurement and model bias, non-linear systems, data sparsity (time & space) and undetermined system uncertainty. It is therefore useful to use a pre-existing DA toolbox such as OpenDA. OpenDA is an open interface standard for (and free implementation of) a set of tools to quickly implement DA and calibration for arbitrary numerical models. The basic design philosophy of OpenDA is to breakdown DA into a set of building blocks programmed in object oriented languages. To implement DA, a model must interact with OpenDA to create model instances, propagate the model, get/set variables (or parameters) and free the model once DA is completed. An open-source interface for hydrological models exists capable of all these tasks: OpenMI. OpenMI is an open source standard interface already adopted by key hydrological model providers. It defines a universal approach to interact with hydrological models during simulation to exchange data during runtime, thus facilitating the interactions between models and data sources. The interface is flexible enough so that models can interact even if the model is coded in a different language, represent

Magneto-optical system for high speed real time imaging.

PubMed

Baziljevich, M; Barness, D; Sinvani, M; Perel, E; Shaulov, A; Yeshurun, Y

2012-08-01

A new magneto-optical system has been developed to expand the range of high speed real time magneto-optical imaging. A special source for the external magnetic field has also been designed, using a pump solenoid to rapidly excite the field coil. Together with careful modifications of the cryostat, to reduce eddy currents, ramping rates reaching 3000 T/s have been achieved. Using a powerful laser as the light source, a custom designed optical assembly, and a high speed digital camera, real time imaging rates up to 30 000 frames per seconds have been demonstrated.

Magneto-optical system for high speed real time imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Baziljevich, M.; Barness, D.; Sinvani, M.; Perel, E.; Shaulov, A.; Yeshurun, Y.

2012-08-01

A new magneto-optical system has been developed to expand the range of high speed real time magneto-optical imaging. A special source for the external magnetic field has also been designed, using a pump solenoid to rapidly excite the field coil. Together with careful modifications of the cryostat, to reduce eddy currents, ramping rates reaching 3000 T/s have been achieved. Using a powerful laser as the light source, a custom designed optical assembly, and a high speed digital camera, real time imaging rates up to 30 000 frames per seconds have been demonstrated.

Status and future plans for open source QuickPIC

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

An, Weiming; Decyk, Viktor; Mori, Warren

2017-10-01

QuickPIC is a three dimensional (3D) quasi-static particle-in-cell (PIC) code developed based on the UPIC framework. It can be used for efficiently modeling plasma based accelerator (PBA) problems. With quasi-static approximation, QuickPIC can use different time scales for calculating the beam (or laser) evolution and the plasma response, and a 3D plasma wake field can be simulated using a two-dimensional (2D) PIC code where the time variable is ξ = ct - z and z is the beam propagation direction. QuickPIC can be thousand times faster than the normal PIC code when simulating the PBA. It uses an MPI/OpenMP hybrid parallel algorithm, which can be run on either a laptop or the largest supercomputer. The open source QuickPIC is an object-oriented program with high level classes written in Fortran 2003. It can be found at https://github.com/UCLA-Plasma-Simulation-Group/QuickPIC-OpenSource.git

A Cloud-based, Open-Source, Command-and-Control Software Paradigm for Space Situational Awareness (SSA)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Melton, R.; Thomas, J.

With the rapid growth in the number of space actors, there has been a marked increase in the complexity and diversity of software systems utilized to support SSA target tracking, indication, warning, and collision avoidance. Historically, most SSA software has been constructed with "closed" proprietary code, which limits interoperability, inhibits the code transparency that some SSA customers need to develop domain expertise, and prevents the rapid injection of innovative concepts into these systems. Open-source aerospace software, a rapidly emerging, alternative trend in code development, is based on open collaboration, which has the potential to bring greater transparency, interoperability, flexibility, and reduced development costs. Open-source software is easily adaptable, geared to rapidly changing mission needs, and can generally be delivered at lower costs to meet mission requirements. This paper outlines Ball's COSMOS C2 system, a fully open-source, web-enabled, command-and-control software architecture which provides several unique capabilities to move the current legacy SSA software paradigm to an open source model that effectively enables pre- and post-launch asset command and control. Among the unique characteristics of COSMOS is the ease with which it can integrate with diverse hardware. This characteristic enables COSMOS to serve as the command-and-control platform for the full life-cycle development of SSA assets, from board test, to box test, to system integration and test, to on-orbit operations. The use of a modern scripting language, Ruby, also permits automated procedures to provide highly complex decision making for the tasking of SSA assets based on both telemetry data and data received from outside sources. Detailed logging enables quick anomaly detection and resolution. Integrated real-time and offline data graphing renders the visualization of the both ground and on-orbit assets simple and straightforward.

Using R to implement spatial analysis in open source environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shao, Yixi; Chen, Dong; Zhao, Bo

2007-06-01

R is an open source (GPL) language and environment for spatial analysis, statistical computing and graphics which provides a wide variety of statistical and graphical techniques, and is highly extensible. In the Open Source environment it plays an important role in doing spatial analysis. So, to implement spatial analysis in the Open Source environment which we called the Open Source geocomputation is using the R data analysis language integrated with GRASS GIS and MySQL or PostgreSQL. This paper explains the architecture of the Open Source GIS environment and emphasizes the role R plays in the aspect of spatial analysis. Furthermore, one apt illustration of the functions of R is given in this paper through the project of constructing CZPGIS (Cheng Zhou Population GIS) supported by Changzhou Government, China. In this project we use R to implement the geostatistics in the Open Source GIS environment to evaluate the spatial correlation of land price and estimate it by Kriging Interpolation. We also use R integrated with MapServer and php to show how R and other Open Source software cooperate with each other in WebGIS environment, which represents the advantages of using R to implement spatial analysis in Open Source GIS environment. And in the end, we points out that the packages for spatial analysis in R is still scattered and the limited memory is still a bottleneck when large sum of clients connect at the same time. Therefore further work is to group the extensive packages in order or design normative packages and make R cooperate better with other commercial software such as ArcIMS. Also we look forward to developing packages for land price evaluation.

FPGA-based real-time swept-source OCT systems for B-scan live-streaming or volumetric imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bandi, Vinzenz; Goette, Josef; Jacomet, Marcel; von Niederhäusern, Tim; Bachmann, Adrian H.; Duelk, Marcus

2013-03-01

We have developed a Swept-Source Optical Coherence Tomography (Ss-OCT) system with high-speed, real-time signal processing on a commercially available Data-Acquisition (DAQ) board with a Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA). The Ss-OCT system simultaneously acquires OCT and k-clock reference signals at 500MS/s. From the k-clock signal of each A-scan we extract a remap vector for the k-space linearization of the OCT signal. The linear but oversampled interpolation is followed by a 2048-point FFT, additional auxiliary computations, and a data transfer to a host computer for real-time, live-streaming of B-scan or volumetric C-scan OCT visualization. We achieve a 100 kHz A-scan rate by parallelization of our hardware algorithms, which run on standard and affordable, commercially available DAQ boards. Our main development tool for signal analysis as well as for hardware synthesis is MATLAB® with add-on toolboxes and 3rd-party tools.

The 2017 Bioinformatics Open Source Conference (BOSC)

PubMed Central

Harris, Nomi L.; Cock, Peter J.A.; Chapman, Brad; Fields, Christopher J.; Hokamp, Karsten; Lapp, Hilmar; Munoz-Torres, Monica; Tzovaras, Bastian Greshake; Wiencko, Heather

2017-01-01

The Bioinformatics Open Source Conference (BOSC) is a meeting organized by the Open Bioinformatics Foundation (OBF), a non-profit group dedicated to promoting the practice and philosophy of Open Source software development and Open Science within the biological research community. The 18th annual BOSC ( http://www.open-bio.org/wiki/BOSC_2017) took place in Prague, Czech Republic in July 2017. The conference brought together nearly 250 bioinformatics researchers, developers and users of open source software to interact and share ideas about standards, bioinformatics software development, open and reproducible science, and this year’s theme, open data. As in previous years, the conference was preceded by a two-day collaborative coding event open to the bioinformatics community, called the OBF Codefest. PMID:29118973

The 2017 Bioinformatics Open Source Conference (BOSC).

PubMed

Harris, Nomi L; Cock, Peter J A; Chapman, Brad; Fields, Christopher J; Hokamp, Karsten; Lapp, Hilmar; Munoz-Torres, Monica; Tzovaras, Bastian Greshake; Wiencko, Heather

2017-01-01

The Bioinformatics Open Source Conference (BOSC) is a meeting organized by the Open Bioinformatics Foundation (OBF), a non-profit group dedicated to promoting the practice and philosophy of Open Source software development and Open Science within the biological research community. The 18th annual BOSC ( http://www.open-bio.org/wiki/BOSC_2017) took place in Prague, Czech Republic in July 2017. The conference brought together nearly 250 bioinformatics researchers, developers and users of open source software to interact and share ideas about standards, bioinformatics software development, open and reproducible science, and this year's theme, open data. As in previous years, the conference was preceded by a two-day collaborative coding event open to the bioinformatics community, called the OBF Codefest.

The Emergence of Open-Source Software in China

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pan, Guohua; Bonk, Curtis J.

2007-01-01

The open-source software movement is gaining increasing momentum in China. Of the limited numbers of open-source software in China, "Red Flag Linux" stands out most strikingly, commanding 30 percent share of Chinese software market. Unlike the spontaneity of open-source movement in North America, open-source software development in…

Open source molecular modeling.

PubMed

Pirhadi, Somayeh; Sunseri, Jocelyn; Koes, David Ryan

2016-09-01

The success of molecular modeling and computational chemistry efforts are, by definition, dependent on quality software applications. Open source software development provides many advantages to users of modeling applications, not the least of which is that the software is free and completely extendable. In this review we categorize, enumerate, and describe available open source software packages for molecular modeling and computational chemistry. An updated online version of this catalog can be found at https://opensourcemolecularmodeling.github.io. Copyright © 2016 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Removing a barrier to computer-based outbreak and disease surveillance--the RODS Open Source Project.

PubMed

Espino, Jeremy U; Wagner, M; Szczepaniak, C; Tsui, F C; Su, H; Olszewski, R; Liu, Z; Chapman, W; Zeng, X; Ma, L; Lu, Z; Dara, J

2004-09-24

Computer-based outbreak and disease surveillance requires high-quality software that is well-supported and affordable. Developing software in an open-source framework, which entails free distribution and use of software and continuous, community-based software development, can produce software with such characteristics, and can do so rapidly. The objective of the Real-Time Outbreak and Disease Surveillance (RODS) Open Source Project is to accelerate the deployment of computer-based outbreak and disease surveillance systems by writing software and catalyzing the formation of a community of users, developers, consultants, and scientists who support its use. The University of Pittsburgh seeded the Open Source Project by releasing the RODS software under the GNU General Public License. An infrastructure was created, consisting of a website, mailing lists for developers and users, designated software developers, and shared code-development tools. These resources are intended to encourage growth of the Open Source Project community. Progress is measured by assessing website usage, number of software downloads, number of inquiries, number of system deployments, and number of new features or modules added to the code base. During September--November 2003, users generated 5,370 page views of the project website, 59 software downloads, 20 inquiries, one new deployment, and addition of four features. Thus far, health departments and companies have been more interested in using the software as is than in customizing or developing new features. The RODS laboratory anticipates that after initial installation has been completed, health departments and companies will begin to customize the software and contribute their enhancements to the public code base.

"Fast" Is Not "Real-Time": Designing Effective Real-Time AI Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

O'Reilly, Cindy A.; Cromarty, Andrew S.

1985-04-01

Realistic practical problem domains (such as robotics, process control, and certain kinds of signal processing) stand to benefit greatly from the application of artificial intelligence techniques. These problem domains are of special interest because they are typified by complex dynamic environments in which the ability to select and initiate a proper response to environmental events in real time is a strict prerequisite to effective environmental interaction. Artificial intelligence systems developed to date have been sheltered from this real-time requirement, however, largely by virtue of their use of simplified problem domains or problem representations. The plethora of colloquial and (in general) mutually inconsistent interpretations of the term "real-time" employed by workers in each of these domains further exacerbates the difficul-ties in effectively applying state-of-the-art problem solving tech-niques to time-critical problems. Indeed, the intellectual waters are by now sufficiently muddied that the pursuit of a rigorous treatment of intelligent real-time performance mandates the redevelopment of proper problem perspective on what "real-time" means, starting from first principles. We present a simple but nonetheless formal definition of real-time performance. We then undertake an analysis of both conventional techniques and AI technology with respect to their ability to meet substantive real-time performance criteria. This analysis provides a basis for specification of problem-independent design requirements for systems that would claim real-time performance. Finally, we discuss the application of these design principles to a pragmatic problem in real-time signal understanding.

Monitoring and Identifying in Real time Critical Patients Events.

PubMed

Chavez Mora, Emma

2014-01-01

Nowadays pervasive health care monitoring environments, as well as business activity monitoring environments, gather information from a variety of data sources. However it includes new challenges because of the use of body and wireless sensors, nontraditional operational and transactional sources. This makes the health data more difficult to monitor. Decision making in this environment is typically complex and unstructured as clinical work is essentially interpretative, multitasking, collaborative, distributed and reactive. Thus, the health care arena requires real time data management in areas such as patient monitoring, detection of adverse events and adaptive responses to operational failures. This research presents a new architecture that enables real time patient data management through the use of intelligent data sources.

Framework for Real-Time All-Hazards Global Situational Awareness

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

Omitaomu, Olufemi A; Fernandez, Steven J; Bhaduri, Budhendra L

Information systems play a pivotal role in emergency response by making consequence analysis models based on up-to-date data available to decision makers. While consequence analysis models have been used for years on local scales, their application on national and global scales has been constrained by lack of non-proprietary data. This chapter describes how this has changed using a framework for real-time all-hazards situational awareness called the Energy Awareness and Resiliency Standardized Services (EARSS) as an example. EARSS is a system of systems developed to collect non-proprietary data from diverse open content sources to develop a geodatabase of critical infrastructures allmore » over the world. The EARSS system shows that it is feasible to provide global disaster alerts by producing valuable information such as texting messages about detected hazards, emailing reports about affected areas, estimating an expected number of impacted people and their demographic characteristics, identifying critical infrastructures that may be affected, and analyzing potential downstream effects. This information is provided in real-time to federal agencies and subscribers all over the world for decision making in humanitarian assistance and emergency response. The system also uses live streams of power outages, weather, and satellite surveillance data as events unfold. This, in turn, is combined with other public domain or open content information, such as media reports and postings on social networking websites, for complete coverage of the situation as events unfold. Working with up-to-date information from the EARSS system, emergency responders on the ground could pre-position their staff and resources, such as emergency generators and ice, where they are most needed.« less

Open-Source Syringe Pump Library

PubMed Central

Wijnen, Bas; Hunt, Emily J.; Anzalone, Gerald C.; Pearce, Joshua M.

2014-01-01

This article explores a new open-source method for developing and manufacturing high-quality scientific equipment suitable for use in virtually any laboratory. A syringe pump was designed using freely available open-source computer aided design (CAD) software and manufactured using an open-source RepRap 3-D printer and readily available parts. The design, bill of materials and assembly instructions are globally available to anyone wishing to use them. Details are provided covering the use of the CAD software and the RepRap 3-D printer. The use of an open-source Rasberry Pi computer as a wireless control device is also illustrated. Performance of the syringe pump was assessed and the methods used for assessment are detailed. The cost of the entire system, including the controller and web-based control interface, is on the order of 5% or less than one would expect to pay for a commercial syringe pump having similar performance. The design should suit the needs of a given research activity requiring a syringe pump including carefully controlled dosing of reagents, pharmaceuticals, and delivery of viscous 3-D printer media among other applications. PMID:25229451

Open-Source 3D-Printable Optics Equipment

PubMed Central

Zhang, Chenlong; Anzalone, Nicholas C.; Faria, Rodrigo P.; Pearce, Joshua M.

2013-01-01

Just as the power of the open-source design paradigm has driven down the cost of software to the point that it is accessible to most people, the rise of open-source hardware is poised to drive down the cost of doing experimental science to expand access to everyone. To assist in this aim, this paper introduces a library of open-source 3-D-printable optics components. This library operates as a flexible, low-cost public-domain tool set for developing both research and teaching optics hardware. First, the use of parametric open-source designs using an open-source computer aided design package is described to customize the optics hardware for any application. Second, details are provided on the use of open-source 3-D printers (additive layer manufacturing) to fabricate the primary mechanical components, which are then combined to construct complex optics-related devices. Third, the use of the open-source electronics prototyping platform are illustrated as control for optical experimental apparatuses. This study demonstrates an open-source optical library, which significantly reduces the costs associated with much optical equipment, while also enabling relatively easily adapted customizable designs. The cost reductions in general are over 97%, with some components representing only 1% of the current commercial investment for optical products of similar function. The results of this study make its clear that this method of scientific hardware development enables a much broader audience to participate in optical experimentation both as research and teaching platforms than previous proprietary methods. PMID:23544104

Open-source 3D-printable optics equipment.

PubMed

Zhang, Chenlong; Anzalone, Nicholas C; Faria, Rodrigo P; Pearce, Joshua M

2013-01-01

Just as the power of the open-source design paradigm has driven down the cost of software to the point that it is accessible to most people, the rise of open-source hardware is poised to drive down the cost of doing experimental science to expand access to everyone. To assist in this aim, this paper introduces a library of open-source 3-D-printable optics components. This library operates as a flexible, low-cost public-domain tool set for developing both research and teaching optics hardware. First, the use of parametric open-source designs using an open-source computer aided design package is described to customize the optics hardware for any application. Second, details are provided on the use of open-source 3-D printers (additive layer manufacturing) to fabricate the primary mechanical components, which are then combined to construct complex optics-related devices. Third, the use of the open-source electronics prototyping platform are illustrated as control for optical experimental apparatuses. This study demonstrates an open-source optical library, which significantly reduces the costs associated with much optical equipment, while also enabling relatively easily adapted customizable designs. The cost reductions in general are over 97%, with some components representing only 1% of the current commercial investment for optical products of similar function. The results of this study make its clear that this method of scientific hardware development enables a much broader audience to participate in optical experimentation both as research and teaching platforms than previous proprietary methods.

OpenMx: An Open Source Extended Structural Equation Modeling Framework

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Boker, Steven; Neale, Michael; Maes, Hermine; Wilde, Michael; Spiegel, Michael; Brick, Timothy; Spies, Jeffrey; Estabrook, Ryne; Kenny, Sarah; Bates, Timothy; Mehta, Paras; Fox, John

2011-01-01

OpenMx is free, full-featured, open source, structural equation modeling (SEM) software. OpenMx runs within the "R" statistical programming environment on Windows, Mac OS-X, and Linux computers. The rationale for developing OpenMx is discussed along with the philosophy behind the user interface. The OpenMx data structures are…

Real-time target tracking and locating system for UAV

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Chao; Tang, Linbo; Fu, Huiquan; Li, Maowen

2017-07-01

In order to achieve real-time target tracking and locating for UAV, a reliable processing system is built on the embedded platform. Firstly, the video image is acquired in real time by the photovoltaic system on the UAV. When the target information is known, KCF tracking algorithm is adopted to track the target. Then, the servo is controlled to rotate with the target, when the target is in the center of the image, the laser ranging module is opened to obtain the distance between the UAV and the target. Finally, to combine with UAV flight parameters obtained by BeiDou navigation system, through the target location algorithm to calculate the geodetic coordinates of the target. The results show that the system is stable for real-time tracking of targets and positioning.

The 2016 Bioinformatics Open Source Conference (BOSC).

PubMed

Harris, Nomi L; Cock, Peter J A; Chapman, Brad; Fields, Christopher J; Hokamp, Karsten; Lapp, Hilmar; Muñoz-Torres, Monica; Wiencko, Heather

2016-01-01

Message from the ISCB: The Bioinformatics Open Source Conference (BOSC) is a yearly meeting organized by the Open Bioinformatics Foundation (OBF), a non-profit group dedicated to promoting the practice and philosophy of Open Source software development and Open Science within the biological research community. BOSC has been run since 2000 as a two-day Special Interest Group (SIG) before the annual ISMB conference. The 17th annual BOSC ( http://www.open-bio.org/wiki/BOSC_2016) took place in Orlando, Florida in July 2016. As in previous years, the conference was preceded by a two-day collaborative coding event open to the bioinformatics community. The conference brought together nearly 100 bioinformatics researchers, developers and users of open source software to interact and share ideas about standards, bioinformatics software development, and open and reproducible science.

Understanding and Analyzing Latency of Near Real-time Satellite Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Han, W.; Jochum, M.; Brust, J.

2016-12-01

Acquiring and disseminating time-sensitive satellite data in a timely manner is much concerned by researchers and decision makers of weather forecast, severe weather warning, disaster and emergency response, environmental monitoring, and so on. Understanding and analyzing the latency of near real-time satellite data is very useful and helpful to explore the whole data transmission flow, indentify the possible issues, and connect data providers and users better. The STAR (Center for Satellite Applications and Research of NOAA) Central Data Repository (SCDR) is a central repository to acquire, manipulate, and disseminate various types of near real-time satellite datasets to internal and external users. In this system, important timestamps, including observation beginning/end, processing, uploading, downloading, and ingestion, are retrieved and organized in the database, so the time length of each transmission phase can be figured out easily. Open source NoSQL database MongoDB is selected to manage the timestamp information because of features of dynamic schema, aggregation and data processing. A user-friendly user interface is developed to visualize and characterize the latency interactively. Taking the Himawari-8 HSD (Himawari Standard Data) file as an example, the data transmission phases, including creating HSD file from satellite observation, uploading the file to HimawariCloud, updating file link in the webpage, downloading and ingesting the file to SCDR, are worked out from the above mentioned timestamps. The latencies can be observed by time of period, day of week, or hour of day in chart or table format, and the anomaly latencies can be detected and reported through the user interface. Latency analysis provides data providers and users actionable insight on how to improve the data transmission of near real-time satellite data, and enhance its acquisition and management.

AMON: Transition to real-time operations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cowen, D. F.; Keivani, A.; Tešić, G.

2016-04-01

The Astrophysical Multimessenger Observatory Network (AMON) will link the world's leading high-energy neutrino, cosmic-ray, gamma-ray and gravitational wave observatories by performing real-time coincidence searches for multimessenger sources from observatories' subthreshold data streams. The resulting coincidences will be distributed to interested parties in the form of electronic alerts for real-time follow-up observation. We will present the science case, design elements, current and projected partner observatories, status of the AMON project, and an initial AMON-enabled analysis. The prototype of the AMON server has been online since August 2014 and processing archival data. Currently, we are deploying new high-uptime servers and will be ready to start issuing alerts as early as winter 2015/16.

Towards an accurate real-time locator of infrasonic sources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pinsky, V.; Blom, P.; Polozov, A.; Marcillo, O.; Arrowsmith, S.; Hofstetter, A.

2017-11-01

Infrasonic signals propagate from an atmospheric source via media with stochastic and fast space-varying conditions. Hence, their travel time, the amplitude at sensor recordings and even manifestation in the so-called "shadow zones" are random. Therefore, the traditional least-squares technique for locating infrasonic sources is often not effective, and the problem for the best solution must be formulated in probabilistic terms. Recently, a series of papers has been published about Bayesian Infrasonic Source Localization (BISL) method based on the computation of the posterior probability density function (PPDF) of the source location, as a convolution of a priori probability distribution function (APDF) of the propagation model parameters with likelihood function (LF) of observations. The present study is devoted to the further development of BISL for higher accuracy and stability of the source location results and decreasing of computational load. We critically analyse previous algorithms and propose several new ones. First of all, we describe the general PPDF formulation and demonstrate that this relatively slow algorithm might be among the most accurate algorithms, provided the adequate APDF and LF are used. Then, we suggest using summation instead of integration in a general PPDF calculation for increased robustness, but this leads us to the 3D space-time optimization problem. Two different forms of APDF approximation are considered and applied for the PPDF calculation in our study. One of them is previously suggested, but not yet properly used is the so-called "celerity-range histograms" (CRHs). Another is the outcome from previous findings of linear mean travel time for the four first infrasonic phases in the overlapping consecutive distance ranges. This stochastic model is extended here to the regional distance of 1000 km, and the APDF introduced is the probabilistic form of the junction between this travel time model and range-dependent probability

Developing an Open Source Option for NASA Software

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Moran, Patrick J.; Parks, John W. (Technical Monitor)

2003-01-01

We present arguments in favor of developing an Open Source option for NASA software; in particular we discuss how Open Source is compatible with NASA's mission. We compare and contrast several of the leading Open Source licenses, and propose one - the Mozilla license - for use by NASA. We also address some of the related issues for NASA with respect to Open Source. In particular, we discuss some of the elements in the External Release of NASA Software document (NPG 2210.1A) that will likely have to be changed in order to make Open Source a reality withm the agency.

Open-Source Data and the Study of Homicide.

PubMed

Parkin, William S; Gruenewald, Jeff

2015-07-20

To date, no discussion has taken place in the social sciences as to the appropriateness of using open-source data to augment, or replace, official data sources in homicide research. The purpose of this article is to examine whether open-source data have the potential to be used as a valid and reliable data source in testing theory and studying homicide. Official and open-source homicide data were collected as a case study in a single jurisdiction over a 1-year period. The data sets were compared to determine whether open-sources could recreate the population of homicides and variable responses collected in official data. Open-source data were able to replicate the population of homicides identified in the official data. Also, for every variable measured, the open-sources captured as much, or more, of the information presented in the official data. Also, variables not available in official data, but potentially useful for testing theory, were identified in open-sources. The results of the case study show that open-source data are potentially as effective as official data in identifying individual- and situational-level characteristics, provide access to variables not found in official homicide data, and offer geographic data that can be used to link macro-level characteristics to homicide events. © The Author(s) 2015.

40 CFR Table 3 to Subpart Wwww of... - Organic HAP Emissions Limits for Existing Open Molding Sources, New Open Molding Sources Emitting...

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... Existing Open Molding Sources, New Open Molding Sources Emitting Less Than 100 TPY of HAP, and New and... CATEGORIES National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants: Reinforced Plastic Composites... Existing Open Molding Sources, New Open Molding Sources Emitting Less Than 100 TPY of HAP, and New and...

Spatial rainfall data in open source environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schuurmans, Hanneke; Maarten Verbree, Jan; Leijnse, Hidde; van Heeringen, Klaas-Jan; Uijlenhoet, Remko; Bierkens, Marc; van de Giesen, Nick; Gooijer, Jan; van den Houten, Gert

2013-04-01

Since January 2013 The Netherlands have access to innovative high-quality rainfall data that is used for watermanagers. This product is innovative because of the following reasons. (i) The product is developed in a 'golden triangle' construction - corporation between government, business and research. (ii) Second the rainfall products are developed according to the open-source GPL license. The initiative comes from a group of water boards in the Netherlands that joined their forces to fund the development of a new rainfall product. Not only data from Dutch radar stations (as is currently done by the Dutch meteorological organization KNMI) is used but also data from radars in Germany and Belgium. After a radarcomposite is made, it is adjusted according to data from raingauges (ground truth). This results in 9 different rainfall products that give for each moment the best rainfall data. Specific knowledge is necessary to develop these kind of data. Therefore a pool of experts (KNMI, Deltares and 3 universities) participated in the development. The philosophy of the developers (being corporations) is that products like this should be developed in open source. This way knowledge is shared and the whole community is able to make suggestions for improvement. In our opinion this is the only way to make real progress in product development. Furthermore the financial resources of government organizations are optimized. More info (in Dutch): www.nationaleregenradar.nl

Alternative majority-voting methods for real-time computing systems

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shin, Kang G.; Dolter, James W.

1989-01-01

Two techniques that provide a compromise between the high time overhead in maintaining synchronous voting and the difficulty of combining results in asynchronous voting are proposed. These techniques are specifically suited for real-time applications with a single-source/single-sink structure that need instantaneous error masking. They provide a compromise between a tightly synchronized system in which the synchronization overhead can be quite high, and an asynchronous system which lacks suitable algorithms for combining the output data. Both quorum-majority voting (QMV) and compare-majority voting (CMV) are most applicable to distributed real-time systems with single-source/single-sink tasks. All real-time systems eventually have to resolve their outputs into a single action at some stage. The development of the advanced information processing system (AIPS) and other similar systems serve to emphasize the importance of these techniques. Time bounds suggest that it is possible to reduce the overhead for quorum-majority voting to below that for synchronous voting. All the bounds assume that the computation phase is nonpreemptive and that there is no multitasking.

An open-source wireless sensor stack: from Arduino to SDI-12 to Water One Flow

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hicks, S.; Damiano, S. G.; Smith, K. M.; Olexy, J.; Horsburgh, J. S.; Mayorga, E.; Aufdenkampe, A. K.

2013-12-01

Implementing a large-scale streaming environmental sensor network has previously been limited by the high cost of the datalogging and data communication infrastructure. The Christina River Basin Critical Zone Observatory (CRB-CZO) is overcoming the obstacles to large near-real-time data collection networks by using Arduino, an open source electronics platform, in combination with XBee ZigBee wireless radio modules. These extremely low-cost and easy-to-use open source electronics are at the heart of the new DIY movement and have provided solutions to countless projects by over half a million users worldwide. However, their use in environmental sensing is in its infancy. At present a primary limitation to widespread deployment of open-source electronics for environmental sensing is the lack of a simple, open-source software stack to manage streaming data from heterogeneous sensor networks. Here we present a functioning prototype software stack that receives sensor data over a self-meshing ZigBee wireless network from over a hundred sensors, stores the data locally and serves it on demand as a CUAHSI Water One Flow (WOF) web service. We highlight a few new, innovative components, including: (1) a versatile open data logger design based the Arduino electronics platform and ZigBee radios; (2) a software library implementing SDI-12 communication protocol between any Arduino platform and SDI12-enabled sensors without the need for additional hardware (https://github.com/StroudCenter/Arduino-SDI-12); and (3) 'midStream', a light-weight set of Python code that receives streaming sensor data, appends it with metadata on the fly by querying a relational database structured on an early version of the Observations Data Model version 2.0 (ODM2), and uses the WOFpy library to serve the data as WaterML via SOAP and REST web services.

The 2016 Bioinformatics Open Source Conference (BOSC)

PubMed Central

Harris, Nomi L.; Cock, Peter J.A.; Chapman, Brad; Fields, Christopher J.; Hokamp, Karsten; Lapp, Hilmar; Muñoz-Torres, Monica; Wiencko, Heather

2016-01-01

Message from the ISCB: The Bioinformatics Open Source Conference (BOSC) is a yearly meeting organized by the Open Bioinformatics Foundation (OBF), a non-profit group dedicated to promoting the practice and philosophy of Open Source software development and Open Science within the biological research community. BOSC has been run since 2000 as a two-day Special Interest Group (SIG) before the annual ISMB conference. The 17th annual BOSC ( http://www.open-bio.org/wiki/BOSC_2016) took place in Orlando, Florida in July 2016. As in previous years, the conference was preceded by a two-day collaborative coding event open to the bioinformatics community. The conference brought together nearly 100 bioinformatics researchers, developers and users of open source software to interact and share ideas about standards, bioinformatics software development, and open and reproducible science. PMID:27781083

astroplan: An Open Source Observation Planning Package in Python

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Morris, Brett M.; Tollerud, Erik; Sipőcz, Brigitta; Deil, Christoph; Douglas, Stephanie T.; Berlanga Medina, Jazmin; Vyhmeister, Karl; Smith, Toby R.; Littlefair, Stuart; Price-Whelan, Adrian M.; Gee, Wilfred T.; Jeschke, Eric

2018-03-01

We present astroplan—an open source, open development, Astropy affiliated package for ground-based observation planning and scheduling in Python. astroplan is designed to provide efficient access to common observational quantities such as celestial rise, set, and meridian transit times and simple transformations from sky coordinates to altitude-azimuth coordinates without requiring a detailed understanding of astropy’s implementation of coordinate systems. astroplan provides convenience functions to generate common observational plots such as airmass and parallactic angle as a function of time, along with basic sky (finder) charts. Users can determine whether or not a target is observable given a variety of observing constraints, such as airmass limits, time ranges, Moon illumination/separation ranges, and more. A selection of observation schedulers are included that divide observing time among a list of targets, given observing constraints on those targets. Contributions to the source code from the community are welcome.

Self-balanced real-time photonic scheme for ultrafast random number generation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Pu; Guo, Ya; Guo, Yanqiang; Fan, Yuanlong; Guo, Xiaomin; Liu, Xianglian; Shore, K. Alan; Dubrova, Elena; Xu, Bingjie; Wang, Yuncai; Wang, Anbang

2018-06-01

We propose a real-time self-balanced photonic method for extracting ultrafast random numbers from broadband randomness sources. In place of electronic analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), the balanced photo-detection technology is used to directly quantize optically sampled chaotic pulses into a continuous random number stream. Benefitting from ultrafast photo-detection, our method can efficiently eliminate the generation rate bottleneck from electronic ADCs which are required in nearly all the available fast physical random number generators. A proof-of-principle experiment demonstrates that using our approach 10 Gb/s real-time and statistically unbiased random numbers are successfully extracted from a bandwidth-enhanced chaotic source. The generation rate achieved experimentally here is being limited by the bandwidth of the chaotic source. The method described has the potential to attain a real-time rate of 100 Gb/s.

Real-time operating system timing jitter and its impact on motor control

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Proctor, Frederick M.; Shackleford, William P.

2001-12-01

General-purpose microprocessors are increasingly being used for control applications due to their widespread availability and software support for non-control functions like networking and operator interfaces. Two classes of real-time operating systems (RTOS) exist for these systems. The traditional RTOS serves as the sole operating system, and provides all OS services. Examples include ETS, LynxOS, QNX, Windows CE and VxWorks. RTOS extensions add real-time scheduling capabilities to non-real-time OSes, and provide minimal services needed for the time-critical portions of an application. Examples include RTAI and RTL for Linux, and HyperKernel, OnTime and RTX for Windows NT. Timing jitter is an issue in these systems, due to hardware effects such as bus locking, caches and pipelines, and software effects from mutual exclusion resource locks, non-preemtible critical sections, disabled interrupts, and multiple code paths in the scheduler. Jitter is typically on the order of a microsecond to a few tens of microseconds for hard real-time operating systems, and ranges from milliseconds to seconds in the worst case for soft real-time operating systems. The question of its significance on the performance of a controller arises. Naturally, the smaller the scheduling period required for a control task, the more significant is the impact of timing jitter. Aside from this intuitive relationship is the greater significance of timing on open-loop control, such as for stepper motors, than for closed-loop control, such as for servo motors. Techniques for measuring timing jitter are discussed, and comparisons between various platforms are presented. Techniques to reduce jitter or mitigate its effects are presented. The impact of jitter on stepper motor control is analyzed.

Novel Advancements in Internet-Based Real-Time Data Technologies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Myers, Gerry; Welch, Clara L. (Technical Monitor)

2002-01-01

AZ Technology has been working with NASA MSFC (Marshall Space Flight Center) to find ways to make it easier for remote experimenters (RPI's) to monitor their International Space Station (ISS) payloads in real-time from anywhere using standard/familiar devices. That effort resulted in a product called 'EZStream' which is in use on several ISS-related projects. Although the initial implementation is geared toward ISS, the architecture and lessons learned are applicable to other space-related programs. This paper begins with a brief history on why Internet-based real-time data is important and where EZStream or products like it fit in the flow of data from orbit to experimenter/researcher. A high-level architecture is then presented along with explanations of the components used. A combination of commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS), Open Source, and custom components are discussed. The use of standard protocols is shown along with some details on how data flows between server and client. Some examples are presented to illustrate how a system like EZStream can be used in real world applications and how care was taken to make the end-user experience as painless as possible. A system such as EZStream has potential in the commercial (non-ISS) arena and some possibilities are presented. During the development and fielding of EZStream, a lot was learned. Good and not so good decisions were made. Some of the major lessons learned will be shared. The development of EZStream is continuing and the future of EZStream will be discussed to shed some light over the technological horizon.

Axial Tomography from Digitized Real Time Radiography

DOE R&D Accomplishments Database

Zolnay, A. S.; McDonald, W. M.; Doupont, P. A.; McKinney, R. L.; Lee, M. M.

1985-01-18

Axial tomography from digitized real time radiographs provides a useful tool for industrial radiography and tomography. The components of this system are: x-ray source, image intensifier, video camera, video line extractor and digitizer, data storage and reconstruction computers. With this system it is possible to view a two dimensional x-ray image in real time at each angle of rotation and select the tomography plane of interest by choosing which video line to digitize. The digitization of a video line requires less than a second making data acquisition relatively short. Further improvements on this system are planned and initial results are reported.

Open Source and Open Standard based decision support system: the example of lake Verbano floods management.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cannata, Massimiliano; Antonovic, Milan; Pozzoni, Maurizio; Graf, Andrea

2015-04-01

The Locarno area (Switzerland, Canton Ticino) is exposed to lacual floods with a return period of about 7-8 years. The risk is of particular concern because the area is located in a floodplain that registered in the last decades a great increase in settlement and values of the real estates. Moreover small differences in lake altitude may produce a significant increase in flooded area due to the very low average slope of the terrain. While fatalities are not generally registered, several important economic costs are associated, e.g.: damages to real estates, interruption of activities, evacuation and relocation and environmental damages. While important events were registered in 1978, 1993, 2000, 2002 and 2014 the local stakeholder invested time and money in the set-up of an up-to-date decision support system that allows for the reduction of risks. Thanks to impressive technological advances the visionary concept of the Digital Earth (Gore 1992, 1998) is being realizing: geospatial coverages and monitoring systems data are increasingly available on the Web, and more importantly, in a standard format. As a result, today is possible to develop innovative decision support systems (Molinari et al. 2013) which mesh-up several information sources and offers special features for risk scenarios evaluation. In agreement with the exposed view, the authors have recently developed a new Web system whose design is based on the Service Oriented Architecture pattern. Open source software (e.g.: Geoserver, PostGIS, OpenLayers) has been used throughout the whole system and geospatial Open Standards (e.g.: SOS, WMS, WFS) are the pillars it rely on. SITGAP 2.0, implemented in collaboration with the Civil protection of Locarno e Vallemaggia, combines a number of data sources such as the Federal Register of Buildings and Dwellings, the Cantonal Register of residents, the Cadastral Surveying, the Cantonal Hydro-meteorological monitoring observations, the Meteoswiss weather forecasts, and

Reusable Client-Side JavaScript Modules for Immersive Web-Based Real-Time Collaborative Neuroimage Visualization.

PubMed

Bernal-Rusiel, Jorge L; Rannou, Nicolas; Gollub, Randy L; Pieper, Steve; Murphy, Shawn; Robertson, Richard; Grant, Patricia E; Pienaar, Rudolph

2017-01-01

In this paper we present a web-based software solution to the problem of implementing real-time collaborative neuroimage visualization. In both clinical and research settings, simple and powerful access to imaging technologies across multiple devices is becoming increasingly useful. Prior technical solutions have used a server-side rendering and push-to-client model wherein only the server has the full image dataset. We propose a rich client solution in which each client has all the data and uses the Google Drive Realtime API for state synchronization. We have developed a small set of reusable client-side object-oriented JavaScript modules that make use of the XTK toolkit, a popular open-source JavaScript library also developed by our team, for the in-browser rendering and visualization of brain image volumes. Efficient realtime communication among the remote instances is achieved by using just a small JSON object, comprising a representation of the XTK image renderers' state, as the Google Drive Realtime collaborative data model. The developed open-source JavaScript modules have already been instantiated in a web-app called MedView , a distributed collaborative neuroimage visualization application that is delivered to the users over the web without requiring the installation of any extra software or browser plugin. This responsive application allows multiple physically distant physicians or researchers to cooperate in real time to reach a diagnosis or scientific conclusion. It also serves as a proof of concept for the capabilities of the presented technological solution.

ScreenMasker: An Open-source Gaze-contingent Screen Masking Environment.

PubMed

Orlov, Pavel A; Bednarik, Roman

2016-09-01

The moving-window paradigm, based on gazecontingent technic, traditionally used in a studies of the visual perceptual span. There is a strong demand for new environments that could be employed by non-technical researchers. We have developed an easy-to-use tool with a graphical user interface (GUI) allowing both execution and control of visual gaze-contingency studies. This work describes ScreenMasker, an environment that allows create gaze-contingent textured displays used together with stimuli presentation software. ScreenMasker has an architecture that meets the requirements of low-latency real-time eye-movement experiments. It also provides a variety of settings and functions. Effective rendering times and performance are ensured by means of GPU processing under CUDA technology. Performance tests show ScreenMasker's latency to be 67-74 ms on a typical office computer, and high-end 144-Hz screen latencies of about 25-28 ms. ScreenMasker is an open-source system distributed under the GNU Lesser General Public License and is available at https://github.com/PaulOrlov/ScreenMasker .

A software framework for real-time multi-modal detection of microsleeps.

PubMed

Knopp, Simon J; Bones, Philip J; Weddell, Stephen J; Jones, Richard D

2017-09-01

A software framework is described which was designed to process EEG, video of one eye, and head movement in real time, towards achieving early detection of microsleeps for prevention of fatal accidents, particularly in transport sectors. The framework is based around a pipeline structure with user-replaceable signal processing modules. This structure can encapsulate a wide variety of feature extraction and classification techniques and can be applied to detecting a variety of aspects of cognitive state. Users of the framework can implement signal processing plugins in C++ or Python. The framework also provides a graphical user interface and the ability to save and load data to and from arbitrary file formats. Two small studies are reported which demonstrate the capabilities of the framework in typical applications: monitoring eye closure and detecting simulated microsleeps. While specifically designed for microsleep detection/prediction, the software framework can be just as appropriately applied to (i) other measures of cognitive state and (ii) development of biomedical instruments for multi-modal real-time physiological monitoring and event detection in intensive care, anaesthesiology, cardiology, neurosurgery, etc. The software framework has been made freely available for researchers to use and modify under an open source licence.

A Study of Clinically Related Open Source Software Projects

PubMed Central

Hogarth, Michael A.; Turner, Stuart

2005-01-01

Open source software development has recently gained significant interest due to several successful mainstream open source projects. This methodology has been proposed as being similarly viable and beneficial in the clinical application domain as well. However, the clinical software development venue differs significantly from the mainstream software venue. Existing clinical open source projects have not been well characterized nor formally studied so the ‘fit’ of open source in this domain is largely unknown. In order to better understand the open source movement in the clinical application domain, we undertook a study of existing open source clinical projects. In this study we sought to characterize and classify existing clinical open source projects and to determine metrics for their viability. This study revealed several findings which we believe could guide the healthcare community in its quest for successful open source clinical software projects. PMID:16779056

A first near real-time seismology-based landquake monitoring system.

PubMed

Chao, Wei-An; Wu, Yih-Min; Zhao, Li; Chen, Hongey; Chen, Yue-Gau; Chang, Jui-Ming; Lin, Che-Min

2017-03-02

Hazards from gravity-driven instabilities on hillslope (termed 'landquake' in this study) are an important problem facing us today. Rapid detection of landquake events is crucial for hazard mitigation and emergency response. Based on the real-time broadband data in Taiwan, we have developed a near real-time landquake monitoring system, which is a fully automatic process based on waveform inversion that yields source information (e.g., location and mechanism) and identifies the landquake source by examining waveform fitness for different types of source mechanisms. This system has been successfully tested offline using seismic records during the passage of the 2009 Typhoon Morakot in Taiwan and has been in online operation during the typhoon season in 2015. In practice, certain levels of station coverage (station gap < 180°), signal-to-noise ratio (SNR ≥ 5.0), and a threshold of event size (volume >10 6  m 3 and area > 0.20 km 2 ) are required to ensure good performance (fitness > 0.6 for successful source identification) of the system, which can be readily implemented in other places in the world with real-time seismic networks and high landquake activities.

A first near real-time seismology-based landquake monitoring system

PubMed Central

Chao, Wei-An; Wu, Yih-Min; Zhao, Li; Chen, Hongey; Chen, Yue-Gau; Chang, Jui-Ming; Lin, Che-Min

2017-01-01

Hazards from gravity-driven instabilities on hillslope (termed ‘landquake’ in this study) are an important problem facing us today. Rapid detection of landquake events is crucial for hazard mitigation and emergency response. Based on the real-time broadband data in Taiwan, we have developed a near real-time landquake monitoring system, which is a fully automatic process based on waveform inversion that yields source information (e.g., location and mechanism) and identifies the landquake source by examining waveform fitness for different types of source mechanisms. This system has been successfully tested offline using seismic records during the passage of the 2009 Typhoon Morakot in Taiwan and has been in online operation during the typhoon season in 2015. In practice, certain levels of station coverage (station gap < 180°), signal-to-noise ratio (SNR ≥ 5.0), and a threshold of event size (volume >106 m3 and area > 0.20 km2) are required to ensure good performance (fitness > 0.6 for successful source identification) of the system, which can be readily implemented in other places in the world with real-time seismic networks and high landquake activities. PMID:28252039

Real-time processing of EMG signals for bionic arm purposes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Olid Dominguez, Ferran; Wawrzyniak, Zbigniew M.

2016-09-01

This paper is connected with the problem of prostheses, that have always been a necessity for the human being. Bio-physiological signals from muscles, electromyographic signals have been collected, analyzed and processed in order to implement a real-time algorithm which is capable of differentiation of two different states of a bionic hand: open and closed. An algorithm for real-time electromyographic signal processing with almost no false positives is presented and it is explained that in bio-physiological experiments proper signal processing is of great importance.

OpenCFU, a new free and open-source software to count cell colonies and other circular objects.

PubMed

Geissmann, Quentin

2013-01-01

Counting circular objects such as cell colonies is an important source of information for biologists. Although this task is often time-consuming and subjective, it is still predominantly performed manually. The aim of the present work is to provide a new tool to enumerate circular objects from digital pictures and video streams. Here, I demonstrate that the created program, OpenCFU, is very robust, accurate and fast. In addition, it provides control over the processing parameters and is implemented in an intuitive and modern interface. OpenCFU is a cross-platform and open-source software freely available at http://opencfu.sourceforge.net.

Real-time volcano monitoring using GNSS single-frequency receivers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, Seung-Woo; Yun, Sung-Hyo; Kim, Do Hyeong; Lee, Dukkee; Lee, Young J.; Schutz, Bob E.

2015-12-01

We present a real-time volcano monitoring strategy that uses the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), and we examine the performance of the strategy by processing simulated and real data and comparing the results with published solutions. The cost of implementing the strategy is reduced greatly by using single-frequency GNSS receivers except for one dual-frequency receiver that serves as a base receiver. Positions of the single-frequency receivers are computed relative to the base receiver on an epoch-by-epoch basis using the high-rate double-difference (DD) GNSS technique, while the position of the base station is fixed to the values obtained with a deferred-time precise point positioning technique and updated on a regular basis. Since the performance of the single-frequency high-rate DD technique depends on the conditions of the ionosphere over the monitoring area, the ionospheric total electron content is monitored using the dual-frequency data from the base receiver. The surface deformation obtained with the high-rate DD technique is eventually processed by a real-time inversion filter based on the Mogi point source model. The performance of the real-time volcano monitoring strategy is assessed through a set of tests and case studies, in which the data recorded during the 2007 eruption of Kilauea and the 2005 eruption of Augustine are processed in a simulated real-time mode. The case studies show that the displacement time series obtained with the strategy seem to agree with those obtained with deferred-time, dual-frequency approaches at the level of 10-15 mm. Differences in the estimated volume change of the Mogi source between the real-time inversion filter and previously reported works were in the range of 11 to 13% of the maximum volume changes of the cases examined.

Open Source 2010: Reflections on 2007

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wheeler, Brad

2007-01-01

Colleges and universities and commercial firms have demonstrated great progress in realizing the vision proffered for "Open Source 2007," and 2010 will mark even greater progress. Although much work remains in refining open source for higher education applications, the signals are now clear: the collaborative development of software can provide…

The successes and challenges of open-source biopharmaceutical innovation.

PubMed

Allarakhia, Minna

2014-05-01

Increasingly, open-source-based alliances seek to provide broad access to data, research-based tools, preclinical samples and downstream compounds. The challenge is how to create value from open-source biopharmaceutical innovation. This value creation may occur via transparency and usage of data across the biopharmaceutical value chain as stakeholders move dynamically between open source and open innovation. In this article, several examples are used to trace the evolution of biopharmaceutical open-source initiatives. The article specifically discusses the technological challenges associated with the integration and standardization of big data; the human capacity development challenges associated with skill development around big data usage; and the data-material access challenge associated with data and material access and usage rights, particularly as the boundary between open source and open innovation becomes more fluid. It is the author's opinion that the assessment of when and how value creation will occur, through open-source biopharmaceutical innovation, is paramount. The key is to determine the metrics of value creation and the necessary technological, educational and legal frameworks to support the downstream outcomes of now big data-based open-source initiatives. The continued focus on the early-stage value creation is not advisable. Instead, it would be more advisable to adopt an approach where stakeholders transform open-source initiatives into open-source discovery, crowdsourcing and open product development partnerships on the same platform.

GRASS GIS: The first Open Source Temporal GIS

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gebbert, Sören; Leppelt, Thomas

2015-04-01

GRASS GIS is a full featured, general purpose Open Source geographic information system (GIS) with raster, 3D raster and vector processing support[1]. Recently, time was introduced as a new dimension that transformed GRASS GIS into the first Open Source temporal GIS with comprehensive spatio-temporal analysis, processing and visualization capabilities[2]. New spatio-temporal data types were introduced in GRASS GIS version 7, to manage raster, 3D raster and vector time series. These new data types are called space time datasets. They are designed to efficiently handle hundreds of thousands of time stamped raster, 3D raster and vector map layers of any size. Time stamps can be defined as time intervals or time instances in Gregorian calendar time or relative time. Space time datasets are simplifying the processing and analysis of large time series in GRASS GIS, since these new data types are used as input and output parameter in temporal modules. The handling of space time datasets is therefore equal to the handling of raster, 3D raster and vector map layers in GRASS GIS. A new dedicated Python library, the GRASS GIS Temporal Framework, was designed to implement the spatio-temporal data types and their management. The framework provides the functionality to efficiently handle hundreds of thousands of time stamped map layers and their spatio-temporal topological relations. The framework supports reasoning based on the temporal granularity of space time datasets as well as their temporal topology. It was designed in conjunction with the PyGRASS [3] library to support parallel processing of large datasets, that has a long tradition in GRASS GIS [4,5]. We will present a subset of more than 40 temporal modules that were implemented based on the GRASS GIS Temporal Framework, PyGRASS and the GRASS GIS Python scripting library. These modules provide a comprehensive temporal GIS tool set. The functionality range from space time dataset and time stamped map layer management

Making Real-Time Data "Real" for General Interest Users

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hotaling, L.

2003-04-01

Helping educators realize the benefits of integrating technology into curricula to effectively engage student learning and improve student achievement, particularly in science and mathematics, is the core mission of the Center for Improved Engineering and Science Education (CIESE). To achieve our mission, we focus on projects utilizing real-time data available from the Internet, and collaborative projects utilizing the Internet's potential to reach peers and experts around the world. As a member of the Mid-Atlantic Center for Ocean Sciences Education Excellence (COSEE), the Center for Improved Engineering and Science Education (CIESE), is committed to delivering relevant ocean science education to diverse audiences, including K-12 teachers, students, coastal managers, families and tourists. The highest priority of the Mid-Atlantic COSEE is to involve scientists and educators in the translation of data and information from the coastal observatories into instructional materials and products usable by educators and the public. A combination of three regional observing systems, the New Jersey Shelf Observing System (NJSOS), Chesapeake Bay Observing System (CBOS), and the York River observing system will provide the scientific backbone for an integrated program of science and education that improves user access to, and understanding of, modern ocean science and how it affects our daily lives. At present, the Mid-Atlantic COSEE offers three projects that enable users to apply and validate scientific concepts to real world situations. (1) The Gulf Stream Voyage is an online multidisciplinary project that utilizes both real-time data and primary source materials to help guide students to discover the science and history of the Gulf Stream current. (2) C.O.O.L. Classroom is an online project that utilizes concepts and real-time data collected through the NJSOS. The C.O.O.L. Classroom is based on the concept of the Rutgers-IMCS Coastal Ocean Observation Laboratory, a real

MonoSLAM: real-time single camera SLAM.

PubMed

Davison, Andrew J; Reid, Ian D; Molton, Nicholas D; Stasse, Olivier

2007-06-01

We present a real-time algorithm which can recover the 3D trajectory of a monocular camera, moving rapidly through a previously unknown scene. Our system, which we dub MonoSLAM, is the first successful application of the SLAM methodology from mobile robotics to the "pure vision" domain of a single uncontrolled camera, achieving real time but drift-free performance inaccessible to Structure from Motion approaches. The core of the approach is the online creation of a sparse but persistent map of natural landmarks within a probabilistic framework. Our key novel contributions include an active approach to mapping and measurement, the use of a general motion model for smooth camera movement, and solutions for monocular feature initialization and feature orientation estimation. Together, these add up to an extremely efficient and robust algorithm which runs at 30 Hz with standard PC and camera hardware. This work extends the range of robotic systems in which SLAM can be usefully applied, but also opens up new areas. We present applications of MonoSLAM to real-time 3D localization and mapping for a high-performance full-size humanoid robot and live augmented reality with a hand-held camera.

Inexpensive, Low Power, Open-Source Data Logging hardware development

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sandell, C. T.; Schulz, B.; Wickert, A. D.

2017-12-01

Over the past six years, we have developed a suite of open-source, low-cost, and lightweight data loggers for scientific research. These loggers employ the popular and easy-to-use Arduino programming environment, but consist of custom hardware optimized for field research. They may be connected to a broad and expanding range of off-the-shelf sensors, with software support built in directly to the "ALog" library. Three main models exist: The ALog (for Autonomous or Arduino Logger) is the extreme low-power model for years-long deployments with only primary AA or D batteries. The ALog shield is a stripped-down ALog that nests with a standard Arduino board for prototyping or education. The TLog (for Telemetering Logger) contains an embedded radio with 500 m range and a GPS for communications and precision timekeeping. This enables meshed networks of loggers that can send their data back to an internet-connected "home base" logger for near-real-time field data retrieval. All boards feature feature a high-precision clock, full size SD card slot for high-volume data storage, large screw terminals to connect sensors, interrupts, SPI and I2C communication capability, and 3.3V/5V power outputs. The ALog and TLog have fourteen 16-bit analog inputs with a precision voltage reference for precise analog measurements. Their components are rated -40 to +85 degrees C, and they have been tested in harsh field conditions. These low-cost and open-source data loggers have enabled our research group to collect field data across North and South America on a limited budget, support student projects, and build toward better future scientific data systems.

Beyond Open Source: According to Jim Hirsch, Open Technology, Not Open Source, Is the Wave of the Future

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Villano, Matt

2006-01-01

This article presents an interview with Jim Hirsch, an associate superintendent for technology at Piano Independent School District in Piano, Texas. Hirsch serves as a liaison for the open technologies committee of the Consortium for School Networking. In this interview, he shares his opinion on the significance of open source in K-12.

Web accessibility and open source software.

PubMed

Obrenović, Zeljko

2009-07-01

A Web browser provides a uniform user interface to different types of information. Making this interface universally accessible and more interactive is a long-term goal still far from being achieved. Universally accessible browsers require novel interaction modalities and additional functionalities, for which existing browsers tend to provide only partial solutions. Although functionality for Web accessibility can be found as open source and free software components, their reuse and integration is complex because they were developed in diverse implementation environments, following standards and conventions incompatible with the Web. To address these problems, we have started several activities that aim at exploiting the potential of open-source software for Web accessibility. The first of these activities is the development of Adaptable Multi-Interface COmmunicator (AMICO):WEB, an infrastructure that facilitates efficient reuse and integration of open source software components into the Web environment. The main contribution of AMICO:WEB is in enabling the syntactic and semantic interoperability between Web extension mechanisms and a variety of integration mechanisms used by open source and free software components. Its design is based on our experiences in solving practical problems where we have used open source components to improve accessibility of rich media Web applications. The second of our activities involves improving education, where we have used our platform to teach students how to build advanced accessibility solutions from diverse open-source software. We are also partially involved in the recently started Eclipse projects called Accessibility Tools Framework (ACTF), the aim of which is development of extensible infrastructure, upon which developers can build a variety of utilities that help to evaluate and enhance the accessibility of applications and content for people with disabilities. In this article we briefly report on these activities.

Open Source Drug Discovery in Practice: A Case Study

PubMed Central

Årdal, Christine; Røttingen, John-Arne

2012-01-01

Background Open source drug discovery offers potential for developing new and inexpensive drugs to combat diseases that disproportionally affect the poor. The concept borrows two principle aspects from open source computing (i.e., collaboration and open access) and applies them to pharmaceutical innovation. By opening a project to external contributors, its research capacity may increase significantly. To date there are only a handful of open source R&D projects focusing on neglected diseases. We wanted to learn from these first movers, their successes and failures, in order to generate a better understanding of how a much-discussed theoretical concept works in practice and may be implemented. Methodology/Principal Findings A descriptive case study was performed, evaluating two specific R&D projects focused on neglected diseases. CSIR Team India Consortium's Open Source Drug Discovery project (CSIR OSDD) and The Synaptic Leap's Schistosomiasis project (TSLS). Data were gathered from four sources: interviews of participating members (n = 14), a survey of potential members (n = 61), an analysis of the websites and a literature review. Both cases have made significant achievements; however, they have done so in very different ways. CSIR OSDD encourages international collaboration, but its process facilitates contributions from mostly Indian researchers and students. Its processes are formal with each task being reviewed by a mentor (almost always offline) before a result is made public. TSLS, on the other hand, has attracted contributors internationally, albeit significantly fewer than CSIR OSDD. Both have obtained funding used to pay for access to facilities, physical resources and, at times, labor costs. TSLS releases its results into the public domain, whereas CSIR OSDD asserts ownership over its results. Conclusions/Significance Technically TSLS is an open source project, whereas CSIR OSDD is a crowdsourced project. However, both have enabled high quality

Application of Emerging Open-source Embedded Systems for Enabling Low-cost Wireless Mini-observatory Nodes in the Coastal Zone

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Glazer, B. T.

2016-02-01

Here, we describe the development of novel, low-cost, open-source instrumentation to enable wireless data transfer of biogeochemical sensors in the coastal zone. The platform is centered upon the Beaglebone Black single board computer. Process-inquiry in environmental sciences suffers from undersampling; enabling sustained and unattended data collection typically involves expensive instrumentation and infrastructure deployed as cabled observatories with little flexibility in deployment location following initial installation. High cost of commercially-available or custom electronic packages have not only limited the number of sensor node sites that can be targeted by reasonably well-funded academic researchers, but have also entirely prohibited widespread engagement with K-12, public non-profit, and `citizen scientist' STEM audiences. The new platform under development represents a balanced blend of research-grade sensors and low-cost open-source electronics that are easily assembled. Custom, robust, open-source code that remains customizable for specific node configurations can match a specific deployment's measurement needs, depending on the scientific research priorities. We have demonstrated prototype capabilities and versatility through lab testing and field deployments of multiple sensor nodes with multiple sensor inputs, all of which are streaming near-real-time data over wireless RF links to a shore-based base station. On shore, first-pass data processing QA/QC takes place and near-real-time plots are made available on the World Wide Web. Specifically, we have worked closely with an environmental and cultural management and restoration non-profit organization, and middle and high school science classes, engaging their interest in STEM application to local watershed processes. Ultimately, continued successful development of this pilot project can lead to a coastal oceanographic analogue of the popular Weather Underground personal weather station model.

New Open-Source Version of FLORIS Released | News | NREL

Science.gov Websites

New Open-Source Version of FLORIS Released New Open-Source Version of FLORIS Released January 26 , 2018 National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) researchers recently released an updated open-source simplified and documented. Because of the living, open-source nature of the newly updated utility, NREL

Real-Time Earthquake Analysis for Disaster Mitigation (READI) Network

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bock, Y.

2014-12-01

Real-time GNSS networks are making a significant impact on our ability to forecast, assess, and mitigate the effects of geological hazards. I describe the activities of the Real-time Earthquake Analysis for Disaster Mitigation (READI) working group. The group leverages 600+ real-time GPS stations in western North America operated by UNAVCO (PBO network), Central Washington University (PANGA), US Geological Survey & Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SCIGN project), UC Berkeley & US Geological Survey (BARD network), and the Pacific Geosciences Centre (WCDA project). Our goal is to demonstrate an earthquake and tsunami early warning system for western North America. Rapid response is particularly important for those coastal communities that are in the near-source region of large earthquakes and may have only minutes of warning time, and who today are not adequately covered by existing seismic and basin-wide ocean-buoy monitoring systems. The READI working group is performing comparisons of independent real time analyses of 1 Hz GPS data for station displacements and is participating in government-sponsored earthquake and tsunami exercises in the Western U.S. I describe a prototype seismogeodetic system using a cluster of southern California stations that includes GNSS tracking and collocation with MEMS accelerometers for real-time estimation of seismic velocity and displacement waveforms, which has advantages for improved earthquake early warning and tsunami forecasts compared to seismic-only or GPS-only methods. The READI working group's ultimate goal is to participate in an Indo-Pacific Tsunami early warning system that utilizes GNSS real-time displacements and ionospheric measurements along with seismic, near-shore buoys and ocean-bottom pressure sensors, where available, to rapidly estimate magnitude and finite fault slip models for large earthquakes, and then forecast tsunami source, energy scale, geographic extent, inundation and runup. This will require

Cloud-Hosted Real-time Data Services for the Geosciences (CHORDS)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Daniels, M. D.; Graves, S. J.; Vernon, F.; Kerkez, B.; Chandra, C. V.; Keiser, K.; Martin, C.

2014-12-01

Cloud-Hosted Real-time Data Services for the Geosciences (CHORDS) Access, utilization and management of real-time data continue to be challenging for decision makers, as well as researchers in several scientific fields. This presentation will highlight infrastructure aimed at addressing some of the gaps in handling real-time data, particularly in increasing accessibility of these data to the scientific community through cloud services. The Cloud-Hosted Real-time Data Services for the Geosciences (CHORDS) system addresses the ever-increasing importance of real-time scientific data, particularly in mission critical scenarios, where informed decisions must be made rapidly. Advances in the distribution of real-time data are leading many new transient phenomena in space-time to be observed, however real-time decision-making is infeasible in many cases that require streaming scientific data as these data are locked down and sent only to proprietary in-house tools or displays. This lack of accessibility to the broader scientific community prohibits algorithm development and workflows initiated by these data streams. As part of NSF's EarthCube initiative, CHORDS proposes to make real-time data available to the academic community via cloud services. The CHORDS infrastructure will enhance the role of real-time data within the geosciences, specifically expanding the potential of streaming data sources in enabling adaptive experimentation and real-time hypothesis testing. Adherence to community data and metadata standards will promote the integration of CHORDS real-time data with existing standards-compliant analysis, visualization and modeling tools.

Real-Time Verification of a High-Dose-Rate Iridium 192 Source Position Using a Modified C-Arm Fluoroscope

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

Nose, Takayuki, E-mail: nose-takayuki@nms.ac.jp; Chatani, Masashi; Otani, Yuki

Purpose: High-dose-rate (HDR) brachytherapy misdeliveries can occur at any institution, and they can cause disastrous results. Even a patient's death has been reported. Misdeliveries could be avoided with real-time verification methods. In 1996, we developed a modified C-arm fluoroscopic verification of an HDR Iridium 192 source position prevent these misdeliveries. This method provided excellent image quality sufficient to detect errors, and it has been in clinical use at our institutions for 20 years. The purpose of the current study is to introduce the mechanisms and validity of our straightforward C-arm fluoroscopic verification method. Methods and Materials: Conventional X-ray fluoroscopic images aremore » degraded by spurious signals and quantum noise from Iridium 192 photons, which make source verification impractical. To improve image quality, we quadrupled the C-arm fluoroscopic X-ray dose per pulse. The pulse rate was reduced by a factor of 4 to keep the average exposure compliant with Japanese medical regulations. The images were then displayed with quarter-frame rates. Results: Sufficient quality was obtained to enable observation of the source position relative to both the applicators and the anatomy. With this method, 2 errors were detected among 2031 treatment sessions for 370 patients within a 6-year period. Conclusions: With the use of a modified C-arm fluoroscopic verification method, treatment errors that were otherwise overlooked were detected in real time. This method should be given consideration for widespread use.« less

Real-Time Verification of a High-Dose-Rate Iridium 192 Source Position Using a Modified C-Arm Fluoroscope.

PubMed

Nose, Takayuki; Chatani, Masashi; Otani, Yuki; Teshima, Teruki; Kumita, Shinichirou

2017-03-15

High-dose-rate (HDR) brachytherapy misdeliveries can occur at any institution, and they can cause disastrous results. Even a patient's death has been reported. Misdeliveries could be avoided with real-time verification methods. In 1996, we developed a modified C-arm fluoroscopic verification of an HDR Iridium 192 source position prevent these misdeliveries. This method provided excellent image quality sufficient to detect errors, and it has been in clinical use at our institutions for 20 years. The purpose of the current study is to introduce the mechanisms and validity of our straightforward C-arm fluoroscopic verification method. Conventional X-ray fluoroscopic images are degraded by spurious signals and quantum noise from Iridium 192 photons, which make source verification impractical. To improve image quality, we quadrupled the C-arm fluoroscopic X-ray dose per pulse. The pulse rate was reduced by a factor of 4 to keep the average exposure compliant with Japanese medical regulations. The images were then displayed with quarter-frame rates. Sufficient quality was obtained to enable observation of the source position relative to both the applicators and the anatomy. With this method, 2 errors were detected among 2031 treatment sessions for 370 patients within a 6-year period. With the use of a modified C-arm fluoroscopic verification method, treatment errors that were otherwise overlooked were detected in real time. This method should be given consideration for widespread use. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Development and Evaluation of Real-Time Volumetric Compton Gamma-Ray Imaging

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barnowski, Ross Wegner

An approach to gamma-ray imaging has been developed that enables near real-time volumetric (3D) imaging of unknown environments thus improving the utility of gamma-ray imaging for source-search and radiation mapping applications. The approach, herein dubbed scene data fusion (SDF), is based on integrating mobile radiation imagers with real time tracking and scene reconstruction algorithms to enable a mobile mode of operation and 3D localization of gamma-ray sources. The real-time tracking allows the imager to be moved throughout the environment or around a particular object of interest, obtaining the multiple perspectives necessary for standoff 3D imaging. A 3D model of the scene, provided in real-time by a simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM) algorithm, can be incorporated into the image reconstruction reducing the reconstruction time and improving imaging performance. The SDF concept is demonstrated in this work with a Microsoft Kinect RGB-D sensor, a real-time SLAM solver, and two different mobile gamma-ray imaging platforms. The first is a cart-based imaging platform known as the Volumetric Compton Imager (VCI), comprising two 3D position-sensitive high purity germanium (HPGe) detectors, exhibiting excellent gamma-ray imaging characteristics, but with limited mobility due to the size and weight of the cart. The second system is the High Efficiency Multimodal Imager (HEMI) a hand-portable gamma-ray imager comprising 96 individual cm3 CdZnTe crystals arranged in a two-plane, active-mask configuration. The HEMI instrument has poorer energy and angular resolution than the VCI, but is truly hand-portable, allowing the SDF concept to be tested in multiple environments and for more challenging imaging scenarios. An iterative algorithm based on Compton kinematics is used to reconstruct the gamma-ray source distribution in all three spatial dimensions. Each of the two mobile imaging systems are used to demonstrate SDF for a variety of scenarios, including

High performance real-time flight simulation at NASA Langley

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cleveland, Jeff I., II

1994-01-01

In order to meet the stringent time-critical requirements for real-time man-in-the-loop flight simulation, computer processing operations must be deterministic and be completed in as short a time as possible. This includes simulation mathematical model computational and data input/output to the simulators. In 1986, in response to increased demands for flight simulation performance, personnel at NASA's Langley Research Center (LaRC), working with the contractor, developed extensions to a standard input/output system to provide for high bandwidth, low latency data acquisition and distribution. The Computer Automated Measurement and Control technology (IEEE standard 595) was extended to meet the performance requirements for real-time simulation. This technology extension increased the effective bandwidth by a factor of ten and increased the performance of modules necessary for simulator communications. This technology is being used by more than 80 leading technological developers in the United States, Canada, and Europe. Included among the commercial applications of this technology are nuclear process control, power grid analysis, process monitoring, real-time simulation, and radar data acquisition. Personnel at LaRC have completed the development of the use of supercomputers for simulation mathematical model computational to support real-time flight simulation. This includes the development of a real-time operating system and the development of specialized software and hardware for the CAMAC simulator network. This work, coupled with the use of an open systems software architecture, has advanced the state of the art in real time flight simulation. The data acquisition technology innovation and experience with recent developments in this technology are described.

Fuzzy-based decision strategy in real-time strategic games

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Volna, Eva

2017-11-01

The aim of this article is to describe our own gaming artificial intelligence for OpenTTD, which is a real-time building strategy game. A multi-agent system with fuzzy decision-making was used for the proposal itself. The multiagent system was chosen because real-time strategy games achieve great complexity and require decomposition of the problem into individual problems, which are then solved by individual cooperating agents. The system becomes then more stable and easily expandable. The fuzzy approach makes the decision-making process of strategies easier thanks to the use of uncertainty. In the conclusion, own experimental results were compared with other approaches.

Development and methods for an open-sourced data visualization tool

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

This paper presents an open source on-demand web tool, which is specifically addressed to scientists and researchers that are non-expert in converting time series data into a time surface visualization. Similar to a GIS environment the time surface shows time on two axes; time of day vs. day of year...

OpenCFU, a New Free and Open-Source Software to Count Cell Colonies and Other Circular Objects

PubMed Central

Geissmann, Quentin

2013-01-01

Counting circular objects such as cell colonies is an important source of information for biologists. Although this task is often time-consuming and subjective, it is still predominantly performed manually. The aim of the present work is to provide a new tool to enumerate circular objects from digital pictures and video streams. Here, I demonstrate that the created program, OpenCFU, is very robust, accurate and fast. In addition, it provides control over the processing parameters and is implemented in an intuitive and modern interface. OpenCFU is a cross-platform and open-source software freely available at http://opencfu.sourceforge.net. PMID:23457446

Real Time Data for Seismology at the IRIS Data Management Center, AN Nsf-Sponsored Facility

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Benson, R. B.; Ahern, T. K.; Trabant, C.; Weertman, B. R.; Casey, R.; Stromme, S.; Karstens, R.

2012-12-01

the Internet, small or large, can now share data, and today, the IRIS DMC receives nearly all of its seismic data from regional and international networks in real time. We will show that this evolution to managing real time data has provided the framework for accomplishing many important benefits that illustrate that open, real time data should be the goal of every observatory operation and can provide: - Faster (therefore cost and data saving) quality control, - Data products that highlight source properties and provide teachable moments - Data delivery to regional or national networks around the globe for immediate access for monitoring. -Use in teaching the public, providing streaming data to museums, schools, etc.

High-fidelity real-time maritime scene rendering

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shyu, Hawjye; Taczak, Thomas M.; Cox, Kevin; Gover, Robert; Maraviglia, Carlos; Cahill, Colin

2011-06-01

The ability to simulate authentic engagements using real-world hardware is an increasingly important tool. For rendering maritime environments, scene generators must be capable of rendering radiometrically accurate scenes with correct temporal and spatial characteristics. When the simulation is used as input to real-world hardware or human observers, the scene generator must operate in real-time. This paper introduces a novel, real-time scene generation capability for rendering radiometrically accurate scenes of backgrounds and targets in maritime environments. The new model is an optimized and parallelized version of the US Navy CRUISE_Missiles rendering engine. It was designed to accept environmental descriptions and engagement geometry data from external sources, render a scene, transform the radiometric scene using the electro-optical response functions of a sensor under test, and output the resulting signal to real-world hardware. This paper reviews components of the scene rendering algorithm, and details the modifications required to run this code in real-time. A description of the simulation architecture and interfaces to external hardware and models is presented. Performance assessments of the frame rate and radiometric accuracy of the new code are summarized. This work was completed in FY10 under Office of Secretary of Defense (OSD) Central Test and Evaluation Investment Program (CTEIP) funding and will undergo a validation process in FY11.

Real Otto and Diesel Engine Cycles.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Giedd, Ronald

1983-01-01

A thermodynamic analysis of the properties of otto/diesel engines during the time they operate with open chambers illustrates applicability of thermodynamics to real systems, demonstrates how delivered power is controlled, and explains the source of air pollution in terms of thermodynamic laws. (Author/JN)

Sources of unbounded priority inversions in real-time systems and a comparative study of possible solutions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Davari, Sadegh; Sha, Lui

1992-01-01

In the design of real-time systems, tasks are often assigned priorities. Preemptive priority driven schedulers are used to schedule tasks to meet the timing requirements. Priority inversion is the term used to describe the situation when a higher priority task's execution is delayed by lower priority tasks. Priority inversion can occur when there is contention for resources among tasks of different priorities. The duration of priority inversion could be long enough to cause tasks to miss their dead lines. Priority inversion cannot be completely eliminated. However, it is important to identify sources of priority inversion and minimize the duration of priority inversion. In this paper, a comprehensive review of the problem of and solutions to unbounded priority inversion is presented.

Real-time polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography data processing with parallel computing

PubMed Central

Liu, Gangjun; Zhang, Jun; Yu, Lingfeng; Xie, Tuqiang; Chen, Zhongping

2010-01-01

With the increase of the A-line speed of optical coherence tomography (OCT) systems, real-time processing of acquired data has become a bottleneck. The shared-memory parallel computing technique is used to process OCT data in real time. The real-time processing power of a quad-core personal computer (PC) is analyzed. It is shown that the quad-core PC could provide real-time OCT data processing ability of more than 80K A-lines per second. A real-time, fiber-based, swept source polarization-sensitive OCT system with 20K A-line speed is demonstrated with this technique. The real-time 2D and 3D polarization-sensitive imaging of chicken muscle and pig tendon is also demonstrated. PMID:19904337

Dependable Real-Time Systems

DTIC Science & Technology

1991-09-30

0196 or 413 545-0720 PI E-mail Address: krithi@nirvan.cs.umass.edu, stankovic(ocs.umass.edu Grant or Contract Title: Dependable Real - Time Systems Grant...Dependable Real - Time Systems " Grant or Contract Number: N00014-85-k-0398 L " Reporting Period: 1 Oct 87 - 30 Sep 91 , 2. Summary of Accomplishments ’ 2.1 Our...in developing a sound approach to scheduling tasks in complex real - time systems , (2) developed a real-time operating system kernel, a preliminary

Novel algorithm implementations in DARC: the Durham AO real-time controller

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Basden, Alastair; Bitenc, Urban; Jenkins, David

2016-07-01

The Durham AO Real-time Controller has been used on-sky with the CANARY AO demonstrator instrument since 2010, and is also used to provide control for several AO test-benches, including DRAGON. Over this period, many new real-time algorithms have been developed, implemented and demonstrated, leading to performance improvements for CANARY. Additionally, the computational performance of this real-time system has continued to improve. Here, we provide details about recent updates and changes made to DARC, and the relevance of these updates, including new algorithms, to forthcoming AO systems. We present the computational performance of DARC when used on different hardware platforms, including hardware accelerators, and determine the relevance and potential for ELT scale systems. Recent updates to DARC have included algorithms to handle elongated laser guide star images, including correlation wavefront sensing, with options to automatically update references during AO loop operation. Additionally, sub-aperture masking options have been developed to increase signal to noise ratio when operating with non-symmetrical wavefront sensor images. The development of end-user tools has progressed with new options for configuration and control of the system. New wavefront sensor camera models and DM models have been integrated with the system, increasing the number of possible hardware configurations available, and a fully open-source AO system is now a reality, including drivers necessary for commercial cameras and DMs. The computational performance of DARC makes it suitable for ELT scale systems when implemented on suitable hardware. We present tests made on different hardware platforms, along with the strategies taken to optimise DARC for these systems.

Using time-dependent density functional theory in real time for calculating electronic transport

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schaffhauser, Philipp; Kümmel, Stephan

2016-01-01

We present a scheme for calculating electronic transport within the propagation approach to time-dependent density functional theory. Our scheme is based on solving the time-dependent Kohn-Sham equations on grids in real space and real time for a finite system. We use absorbing and antiabsorbing boundaries for simulating the coupling to a source and a drain. The boundaries are designed to minimize the effects of quantum-mechanical reflections and electrical polarization build-up, which are the major obstacles when calculating transport by applying an external bias to a finite system. We show that the scheme can readily be applied to real molecules by calculating the current through a conjugated molecule as a function of time. By comparing to literature results for the conjugated molecule and to analytic results for a one-dimensional model system we demonstrate the reliability of the concept.

Reusable Client-Side JavaScript Modules for Immersive Web-Based Real-Time Collaborative Neuroimage Visualization

PubMed Central

Bernal-Rusiel, Jorge L.; Rannou, Nicolas; Gollub, Randy L.; Pieper, Steve; Murphy, Shawn; Robertson, Richard; Grant, Patricia E.; Pienaar, Rudolph

2017-01-01

In this paper we present a web-based software solution to the problem of implementing real-time collaborative neuroimage visualization. In both clinical and research settings, simple and powerful access to imaging technologies across multiple devices is becoming increasingly useful. Prior technical solutions have used a server-side rendering and push-to-client model wherein only the server has the full image dataset. We propose a rich client solution in which each client has all the data and uses the Google Drive Realtime API for state synchronization. We have developed a small set of reusable client-side object-oriented JavaScript modules that make use of the XTK toolkit, a popular open-source JavaScript library also developed by our team, for the in-browser rendering and visualization of brain image volumes. Efficient realtime communication among the remote instances is achieved by using just a small JSON object, comprising a representation of the XTK image renderers' state, as the Google Drive Realtime collaborative data model. The developed open-source JavaScript modules have already been instantiated in a web-app called MedView, a distributed collaborative neuroimage visualization application that is delivered to the users over the web without requiring the installation of any extra software or browser plugin. This responsive application allows multiple physically distant physicians or researchers to cooperate in real time to reach a diagnosis or scientific conclusion. It also serves as a proof of concept for the capabilities of the presented technological solution. PMID:28507515

The Open Source Teaching Project (OSTP): Research Note.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hirst, Tony

The Open Source Teaching Project (OSTP) is an attempt to apply a variant of the successful open source software approach to the development of educational materials. Open source software is software licensed in such a way as to allow anyone the right to modify and use it. From such a simple premise, a whole industry has arisen, most notably in the…

Real time microcontroller implementation of an adaptive myoelectric filter.

PubMed

Bagwell, P J; Chappell, P H

1995-03-01

This paper describes a real time digital adaptive filter for processing myoelectric signals. The filter time constant is automatically selected by the adaptation algorithm, giving a significant improvement over linear filters for estimating the muscle force and controlling a prosthetic device. Interference from mains sources often produces problems for myoelectric processing, and so 50 Hz and all harmonic frequencies are reduced by an averaging filter and differential process. This makes practical electrode placement and contact less critical and time consuming. An economic real time implementation is essential for a prosthetic controller, and this is achieved using an Intel 80C196KC microcontroller.

Learning from hackers: open-source clinical trials.

PubMed

Dunn, Adam G; Day, Richard O; Mandl, Kenneth D; Coiera, Enrico

2012-05-02

Open sharing of clinical trial data has been proposed as a way to address the gap between the production of clinical evidence and the decision-making of physicians. A similar gap was addressed in the software industry by their open-source software movement. Here, we examine how the social and technical principles of the movement can guide the growth of an open-source clinical trial community.

PRIMAS: a real-time 3D motion-analysis system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sabel, Jan C.; van Veenendaal, Hans L. J.; Furnee, E. Hans

1994-03-01

The paper describes a CCD TV-camera-based system for real-time multicamera 2D detection of retro-reflective targets and software for accurate and fast 3D reconstruction. Applications of this system can be found in the fields of sports, biomechanics, rehabilitation research, and various other areas of science and industry. The new feature of real-time 3D opens an even broader perspective of application areas; animations in virtual reality are an interesting example. After presenting an overview of the hardware and the camera calibration method, the paper focuses on the real-time algorithms used for matching of the images and subsequent 3D reconstruction of marker positions. When using a calibrated setup of two cameras, it is now possible to track at least ten markers at 100 Hz. Limitations in the performance are determined by the visibility of the markers, which could be improved by adding a third camera.

Supporting Real-Time Computer Vision Workloads using OpenVX on Multicore+GPU Platforms

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-05-01

a registered trademark of the NVIDIA Corporation . Report Documentation Page Form ApprovedOMB No. 0704-0188 Public reporting burden for the collection...from NVIDIA , we adapted an alpha- version of an NVIDIA OpenVX implementation called VisionWorks® [3] to run atop PGMRT (a graph-based mid- dleware...time support to an OpenVX implementation by NVIDIA called VisionWorks. Our modifications were applied to an alpha-version of VisionWorks. This alpha

A real-time pulsed photon dosimeter

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brown, David; Olsher, Richard H.; Eisen, Yosef; Rodriguez, Joseph F.

1996-02-01

Radiation sources producing short pulses of photon radiation are now widespread. Such sources include electron and proton linear accelerators, betatrons, synchrotrons, and field-emission impulse generators. It is often desirable to measure leakage and skyshine radiation from such sources in real time, on a single-pulse basis as low as 8.7 nGy (1 μR) per pulse. This paper describes the design and performance of a prototype, real-time, pulsed photon dosimeter (PPD) capable of single-pulse dose measurements over the range from 3.5 nGy to 3.5 μGy (0.4 to 400 μR). The PPD may also be operated in a multiple-pulse mode that integrates the dose from a train of radiation pulses over a 3-s period. A pulse repetition rate of up to 300 Hz is accommodated. The design is eminently suitable for packaging as a lightweight, portable, survey meter. The PPD uses a CdWO 4 scintillator optically coupled to a photodiode to generate a charge at the diode output. A pulse amplifier converts the charge to a voltage pulse. A digitizer circuit generates a burst of logic pulses whose number is proportional to the peak value of the voltage pulse. The digitizer output is recorded by a pulse counter and suitably displayed. A prototype PPD was built for testing and evaluation purposes. The performance of the PPD was evaluated with a variety of pulsed photon sources. The dynamic range, energy response, and response to multiple pulses were characterized. The experimental data confirm the viability of the PPD for pulsed photon dosimetry.

Near Real Time Processing Chain for Suomi NPP Satellite Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Monsorno, Roberto; Cuozzo, Giovanni; Costa, Armin; Mateescu, Gabriel; Ventura, Bartolomeo; Zebisch, Marc

2014-05-01

Since 2009, the EURAC satellite receiving station, located at Corno del Renon, in a free obstacle site at 2260 m a.s.l., has been acquiring data from Aqua and Terra NASA satellites equipped with Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) sensors. The experience gained with this local ground segmenthas given the opportunity of adapting and modifying the processing chain for MODIS data to the Suomi NPP, the natural successor to Terra and Aqua satellites. The processing chain, initially implemented by mean of a proprietary system supplied by Seaspace and Advanced Computer System, was further developed by EURAC's Institute for Applied Remote Sensing engineers. Several algorithms have been developed using MODIS and Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) data to produce Snow Cover, Particulate Matter estimation and Meteo maps. These products are implemented on a common processor structure based on the use of configuration files and a generic processor. Data and products have then automatically delivered to the customers such as the Autonomous Province of Bolzano-Civil Protection office. For the processing phase we defined two goals: i) the adaptation and implementation of the products already available for MODIS (and possibly new ones) to VIIRS, that is one of the sensors onboard Suomi NPP; ii) the use of an open source processing chain in order to process NPP data in Near Real Time, exploiting the knowledge we acquired on parallel computing. In order to achieve the second goal, the S-NPP data received and ingested are sent as input to RT-STPS (Real-time Software Telemetry Processing System) software developed by the NASA Direct Readout Laboratory 1 (DRL) that gives as output RDR files (Raw Data Record) for VIIRS, ATMS (Advanced Technology Micorwave Sounder) and CrIS (Cross-track Infrared Sounder)sensors. RDR are then transferred to a server equipped with CSPP2 (Community Satellite Processing Package) software developed by the University of

CACTI: free, open-source software for the sequential coding of behavioral interactions.

PubMed

Glynn, Lisa H; Hallgren, Kevin A; Houck, Jon M; Moyers, Theresa B

2012-01-01

The sequential analysis of client and clinician speech in psychotherapy sessions can help to identify and characterize potential mechanisms of treatment and behavior change. Previous studies required coding systems that were time-consuming, expensive, and error-prone. Existing software can be expensive and inflexible, and furthermore, no single package allows for pre-parsing, sequential coding, and assignment of global ratings. We developed a free, open-source, and adaptable program to meet these needs: The CASAA Application for Coding Treatment Interactions (CACTI). Without transcripts, CACTI facilitates the real-time sequential coding of behavioral interactions using WAV-format audio files. Most elements of the interface are user-modifiable through a simple XML file, and can be further adapted using Java through the terms of the GNU Public License. Coding with this software yields interrater reliabilities comparable to previous methods, but at greatly reduced time and expense. CACTI is a flexible research tool that can simplify psychotherapy process research, and has the potential to contribute to the improvement of treatment content and delivery.

CACTI: Free, Open-Source Software for the Sequential Coding of Behavioral Interactions

PubMed Central

Glynn, Lisa H.; Hallgren, Kevin A.; Houck, Jon M.; Moyers, Theresa B.

2012-01-01

The sequential analysis of client and clinician speech in psychotherapy sessions can help to identify and characterize potential mechanisms of treatment and behavior change. Previous studies required coding systems that were time-consuming, expensive, and error-prone. Existing software can be expensive and inflexible, and furthermore, no single package allows for pre-parsing, sequential coding, and assignment of global ratings. We developed a free, open-source, and adaptable program to meet these needs: The CASAA Application for Coding Treatment Interactions (CACTI). Without transcripts, CACTI facilitates the real-time sequential coding of behavioral interactions using WAV-format audio files. Most elements of the interface are user-modifiable through a simple XML file, and can be further adapted using Java through the terms of the GNU Public License. Coding with this software yields interrater reliabilities comparable to previous methods, but at greatly reduced time and expense. CACTI is a flexible research tool that can simplify psychotherapy process research, and has the potential to contribute to the improvement of treatment content and delivery. PMID:22815713

The SAMI2 Open Source Project

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huba, J. D.; Joyce, G.

2001-05-01

In the past decade, the Open Source Model for software development has gained popularity and has had numerous major achievements: emacs, Linux, the Gimp, and Python, to name a few. The basic idea is to provide the source code of the model or application, a tutorial on its use, and a feedback mechanism with the community so that the model can be tested, improved, and archived. Given the success of the Open Source Model, we believe it may prove valuable in the development of scientific research codes. With this in mind, we are `Open Sourcing' the low to mid-latitude ionospheric model that has recently been developed at the Naval Research Laboratory: SAMI2 (Sami2 is Another Model of the Ionosphere). The model is comprehensive and uses modern numerical techniques. The structure and design of SAMI2 make it relatively easy to understand and modify: the numerical algorithms are simple and direct, and the code is reasonably well-written. Furthermore, SAMI2 is designed to run on personal computers; prohibitive computational resources are not necessary, thereby making the model accessible and usable by virtually all researchers. For these reasons, SAMI2 is an excellent candidate to explore and test the open source modeling paradigm in space physics research. We will discuss various topics associated with this project. Research supported by the Office of Naval Research.

Network Reduction Algorithm for Developing Distribution Feeders for Real-Time Simulators: Preprint

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

Nagarajan, Adarsh; Nelson, Austin; Prabakar, Kumaraguru

As advanced grid-support functions (AGF) become more widely used in grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) inverters, utilities are increasingly interested in their impacts when implemented in the field. These effects can be understood by modeling feeders in real-time systems and testing PV inverters using power hardware-in-the-loop (PHIL) techniques. This paper presents a novel feeder model reduction algorithm using a Monte Carlo method that enables large feeders to be solved and operated on real-time computing platforms. Two Hawaiian Electric feeder models in Synergi Electric's load flow software were converted to reduced order models in OpenDSS, and subsequently implemented in the OPAL-RT real-time digitalmore » testing platform. Smart PV inverters were added to the real-time model with AGF responses modeled after characterizing commercially available hardware inverters. Finally, hardware inverters were tested in conjunction with the real-time model using PHIL techniques so that the effects of AGFs on the choice feeders could be analyzed.« less

Open Access, Open Source and Digital Libraries: A Current Trend in University Libraries around the World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Krishnamurthy, M.

2008-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to describe the open access and open source movement in the digital library world. Design/methodology/approach: A review of key developments in the open access and open source movement is provided. Findings: Open source software and open access to research findings are of great use to scholars in developing…

A small, lightweight multipollutant sensor system for ground-mobile and aerial emission sampling from open area sources

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Xiaochi; Aurell, Johanna; Mitchell, William; Tabor, Dennis; Gullett, Brian

2017-04-01

Characterizing highly dynamic, transient, and vertically lofted emissions from open area sources poses unique measurement challenges. This study developed and applied a multipollutant sensor and time-integrated sampler system for use on mobile applications such as vehicles, tethered balloons (aerostats) and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to determine emission factors. The system is particularly applicable to open area sources, such as forest fires, due to its light weight (3.5 kg), compact size (6.75 L), and internal power supply. The sensor system, termed ;Kolibri;, consists of sensors measuring CO2 and CO, and samplers for particulate matter (PM) and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). The Kolibri is controlled by a microcontroller which can record and transfer data in real time through a radio module. Selection of the sensors was based on laboratory testing for accuracy, response delay and recovery, cross-sensitivity, and precision. The Kolibri was compared against rack-mounted continuous emissions monitoring system (CEMs) and another mobile sampling instrument (the ;Flyer;) that has been used in over ten open area pollutant sampling events. Our results showed that the time series of CO, CO2, and PM2.5 concentrations measured by the Kolibri agreed well with those from the CEMs and the Flyer, with a laboratory-tested percentage error of 4.9%, 3%, and 5.8%, respectively. The VOC emission factors obtained using the Kolibri were consistent with existing literature values that relate concentration to modified combustion efficiency. The potential effect of rotor downwash on particle sampling was investigated in an indoor laboratory and the preliminary results suggested that its influence is minimal. Field application of the Kolibri sampling open detonation plumes indicated that the CO and CO2 sensors responded dynamically and their concentrations co-varied with emission transients. The Kolibri system can be applied to various challenging open area scenarios such as

Flying Real-Time Network to Coordinate Disaster Relief Activities in Urban Areas †

PubMed Central

Micheletto, Matias; Orozco, Javier; Mosse, Daniel

2018-01-01

While there have been important advances within wireless communication technology, the provision of communication support during disaster relief activities remains an open issue. The literature in disaster research reports several major restrictions to conducting first response activities in urban areas, given the limitations of telephone networks and radio systems to provide digital communication in the field. In search-and-rescue operations, the communication requirements are increased, since the first responders need to rely on real-time and reliable communication to perform their activities and coordinate their efforts with other teams. Therefore, these limitations open the door to improvisation during disaster relief efforts. In this paper, we argue that flying ad-hoc networks can provide the communication support needed in these scenarios, and propose a new solution towards that goal. The proposal involves the use of flying witness units, implemented using drones, that act as communication gateways between first responders working at different locations of the affected area. The proposal is named the Flying Real-Time Network, and its feasibility to provide communication in a disaster scenario is shown by presenting both a real-time schedulability analysis of message delivery, as well as simulations of the communication support in a physical scenario inspired by a real incident. The obtained results were highly positive and consistent, therefore this proposal represents a step forward towards the solution of this open issue. PMID:29789458

Flying Real-Time Network to Coordinate Disaster Relief Activities in Urban Areas †.

PubMed

Micheletto, Matias; Petrucci, Vinicius; Santos, Rodrigo; Orozco, Javier; Mosse, Daniel; Ochoa, Sergio F; Meseguer, Roc

2018-05-22

While there have been important advances within wireless communication technology, the provision of communication support during disaster relief activities remains an open issue. The literature in disaster research reports several major restrictions to conducting first response activities in urban areas, given the limitations of telephone networks and radio systems to provide digital communication in the field. In search-and-rescue operations, the communication requirements are increased, since the first responders need to rely on real-time and reliable communication to perform their activities and coordinate their efforts with other teams. Therefore, these limitations open the door to improvisation during disaster relief efforts. In this paper, we argue that flying ad-hoc networks can provide the communication support needed in these scenarios, and propose a new solution towards that goal. The proposal involves the use of flying witness units, implemented using drones, that act as communication gateways between first responders working at different locations of the affected area. The proposal is named the Flying Real-Time Network, and its feasibility to provide communication in a disaster scenario is shown by presenting both a real-time schedulability analysis of message delivery, as well as simulations of the communication support in a physical scenario inspired by a real incident. The obtained results were highly positive and consistent, therefore this proposal represents a step forward towards the solution of this open issue.

Real-Time Multiprocessor Programming Language (RTMPL) user's manual

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Arpasi, D. J.

1985-01-01

A real-time multiprocessor programming language (RTMPL) has been developed to provide for high-order programming of real-time simulations on systems of distributed computers. RTMPL is a structured, engineering-oriented language. The RTMPL utility supports a variety of multiprocessor configurations and types by generating assembly language programs according to user-specified targeting information. Many programming functions are assumed by the utility (e.g., data transfer and scaling) to reduce the programming chore. This manual describes RTMPL from a user's viewpoint. Source generation, applications, utility operation, and utility output are detailed. An example simulation is generated to illustrate many RTMPL features.

Judicialization 2.0: Understanding right-to-health litigation in real time.

PubMed

Biehl, João; Socal, Mariana P; Gauri, Varun; Diniz, Debora; Medeiros, Marcelo; Rondon, Gabriela; Amon, Joseph J

2018-05-21

Over the past two decades, debate over the whys, the hows, and the effects of the ever-expanding phenomenon of right-to-health litigation ('judicialization') throughout Latin America have been marked by polarised arguments and limited information. In contrast to claims of judicialization as a positive or negative trend, less attention has been paid to ways to better understand the phenomenon in real time. In this article, we propose a new approach-Judicialization 2.0-that recognises judicialization as an integral part of democratic life. This approach seeks to expand access to information about litigation on access to medicines (and health care generally) in order to better characterise the complexity of the phenomenon and thus inform new research and more robust public discussions. Drawing from our multi-disciplinary perspectives and field experiences in highly judicialized contexts, we thus describe a new multi-source, multi-stakeholder mixed-method approach designed to capture the patterns and heterogeneity of judicialization and understand its medical and socio-political impact in real time, along with its counterfactuals. By facilitating greater data availability and open access, we can drive advancements towards transparent and participatory priority setting, as well as accountability mechanisms that promote quality universal health coverage.

Real-time handling of existing content sources on a multi-layer display

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Singh, Darryl S. K.; Shin, Jung

2013-03-01

A Multi-Layer Display (MLD) consists of two or more imaging planes separated by physical depth where the depth is a key component in creating a glasses-free 3D effect. Its core benefits include being viewable from multiple angles, having full panel resolution for 3D effects with no side effects of nausea or eye-strain. However, typically content must be designed for its optical configuration in foreground and background image pairs. A process was designed to give a consistent 3D effect in a 2-layer MLD from existing stereo video content in real-time. Optimizations to stereo matching algorithms that generate depth maps in real-time were specifically tailored for the optical characteristics and image processing algorithms of a MLD. The end-to-end process included improvements to the Hierarchical Belief Propagation (HBP) stereo matching algorithm, improvements to optical flow and temporal consistency. Imaging algorithms designed for the optical characteristics of a MLD provided some visual compensation for depth map inaccuracies. The result can be demonstrated in a PC environment, displayed on a 22" MLD, used in the casino slot market, with 8mm of panel seperation. Prior to this development, stereo content had not been used to achieve a depth-based 3D effect on a MLD in real-time

A clinic compatible, open source electrophysiology system.

PubMed

Hermiz, John; Rogers, Nick; Kaestner, Erik; Ganji, Mehran; Cleary, Dan; Snider, Joseph; Barba, David; Dayeh, Shadi; Halgren, Eric; Gilja, Vikash

2016-08-01

Open source electrophysiology (ephys) recording systems have several advantages over commercial systems such as customization and affordability enabling more researchers to conduct ephys experiments. Notable open source ephys systems include Open-Ephys, NeuroRighter and more recently Willow, all of which have high channel count (64+), scalability, and advanced software to develop on top of. However, little work has been done to build an open source ephys system that is clinic compatible, particularly in the operating room where acute human electrocorticography (ECoG) research is performed. We developed an affordable (<; $10,000) and open system for research purposes that features power isolation for patient safety, compact and water resistant enclosures and 256 recording channels sampled up to 20ksam/sec, 16-bit. The system was validated by recording ECoG with a high density, thin film device for an acute, awake craniotomy study at UC San Diego, Thornton Hospital Operating Room.

Real-Time Joint Streaming Data Processing from Social and Physical Sensors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kropivnitskaya, Y. Y.; Qin, J.; Tiampo, K. F.; Bauer, M.

2014-12-01

The results of the technological breakthroughs in computing that have taken place over the last few decades makes it possible to achieve emergency management objectives that focus on saving human lives and decreasing economic effects. In particular, the integration of a wide variety of information sources, including observations from spatially-referenced physical sensors and new social media sources, enables better real-time seismic hazard analysis through distributed computing networks. The main goal of this work is to utilize innovative computational algorithms for better real-time seismic risk analysis by integrating different data sources and processing tools into streaming and cloud computing applications. The Geological Survey of Canada operates the Canadian National Seismograph Network (CNSN) with over 100 high-gain instruments and 60 low-gain or strong motion seismographs. The processing of the continuous data streams from each station of the CNSN provides the opportunity to detect possible earthquakes in near real-time. The information from physical sources is combined to calculate a location and magnitude for an earthquake. The automatically calculated results are not always sufficiently precise and prompt that can significantly reduce the response time to a felt or damaging earthquake. Social sensors, here represented as Twitter users, can provide information earlier to the general public and more rapidly to the emergency planning and disaster relief agencies. We introduce joint streaming data processing from social and physical sensors in real-time based on the idea that social media observations serve as proxies for physical sensors. By using the streams of data in the form of Twitter messages, each of which has an associated time and location, we can extract information related to a target event and perform enhanced analysis by combining it with physical sensor data. Results of this work suggest that the use of data from social media, in conjunction

OMPC: an Open-Source MATLAB®-to-Python Compiler

PubMed Central

Jurica, Peter; van Leeuwen, Cees

2008-01-01

Free access to scientific information facilitates scientific progress. Open-access scientific journals are a first step in this direction; a further step is to make auxiliary and supplementary materials that accompany scientific publications, such as methodological procedures and data-analysis tools, open and accessible to the scientific community. To this purpose it is instrumental to establish a software base, which will grow toward a comprehensive free and open-source language of technical and scientific computing. Endeavors in this direction are met with an important obstacle. MATLAB®, the predominant computation tool in many fields of research, is a closed-source commercial product. To facilitate the transition to an open computation platform, we propose Open-source MATLAB®-to-Python Compiler (OMPC), a platform that uses syntax adaptation and emulation to allow transparent import of existing MATLAB® functions into Python programs. The imported MATLAB® modules will run independently of MATLAB®, relying on Python's numerical and scientific libraries. Python offers a stable and mature open source platform that, in many respects, surpasses commonly used, expensive commercial closed source packages. The proposed software will therefore facilitate the transparent transition towards a free and general open-source lingua franca for scientific computation, while enabling access to the existing methods and algorithms of technical computing already available in MATLAB®. OMPC is available at http://ompc.juricap.com. PMID:19225577

OMPC: an Open-Source MATLAB-to-Python Compiler.

PubMed

Jurica, Peter; van Leeuwen, Cees

2009-01-01

Free access to scientific information facilitates scientific progress. Open-access scientific journals are a first step in this direction; a further step is to make auxiliary and supplementary materials that accompany scientific publications, such as methodological procedures and data-analysis tools, open and accessible to the scientific community. To this purpose it is instrumental to establish a software base, which will grow toward a comprehensive free and open-source language of technical and scientific computing. Endeavors in this direction are met with an important obstacle. MATLAB((R)), the predominant computation tool in many fields of research, is a closed-source commercial product. To facilitate the transition to an open computation platform, we propose Open-source MATLAB((R))-to-Python Compiler (OMPC), a platform that uses syntax adaptation and emulation to allow transparent import of existing MATLAB((R)) functions into Python programs. The imported MATLAB((R)) modules will run independently of MATLAB((R)), relying on Python's numerical and scientific libraries. Python offers a stable and mature open source platform that, in many respects, surpasses commonly used, expensive commercial closed source packages. The proposed software will therefore facilitate the transparent transition towards a free and general open-source lingua franca for scientific computation, while enabling access to the existing methods and algorithms of technical computing already available in MATLAB((R)). OMPC is available at http://ompc.juricap.com.

Sustaining Composition: Studying Content-Based, Ecological, and Economical Sustainability of Open-Source Textbooks through "Writing Spaces: Readings on Writing"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Munson, Margaret

2013-01-01

Writing programs in institutions of higher education work to prepare students for real-world writing within any field of study. The composition of "Writing Spaces: Readings on Writing" offers an open-source text for students, teachers, and policy-makers at all levels. Exposure to an open space for learning encourages access to information,…

Automated real time peg and tool detection for the FLS trainer box.

PubMed

Nemani, Arun; Sankaranarayanan, Ganesh

2012-01-01

This study proposes a method that effectively tracks trocar tool and peg positions in real time to allow real time assessment of the peg transfer task of the Fundamentals of Laparoscopic Surgery (FLS). By utilizing custom code along with OpenCV libraries, tool and peg positions can be accurately tracked without altering the original setup conditions of the FLS trainer box. This is achieved via a series of image filtration sequences, thresholding functions, and Haar training methods.

Real-Time X-Ray Microscopy of Al-Cu Eutectic Solidification

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kaukler, William F.; Curreri, Peter A.; Sen, Subhayu

1998-01-01

Recent improvements in the resolution of the X-ray Transmission Microscope (XTM) for Solidification Studies provide microstructure feature detectability down to 5 micrometers during solidification. This presentation will show the recent results from observations made in real-time of the solid-liquid interfacial morphologies of the Al-CuAI2 eutectic alloy. Lamellar dimensions and spacings, transitions of morphology caused by growth rate changes, and eutectic grain structures are open to measurements. A unique vantage point viewing the face of the interface isotherm is possible for the first time with the XTM due to its infinite depth of field. A video of the solid-liquid interfaces seen in-situ and in real-time will be shown.

4onse: four times open & non-conventional technology for sensing the environment

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Cannata, Massimiliano; Ratnayake, Rangageewa; Antonovic, Milan; Strigaro, Daniele; Cardoso, Mirko; Hoffmann, Marcus

2017-04-01

The availability of complete, quality and dense monitoring hydro-meteorological data is essential to address a number of practical issues including, but not limited to, flood-water and urban drainage management, climate change impact assessment, early warning and risk management, now-casting and weather predictions. Thanks to the recent technological advances such as Internet Of Things, Big Data and Ubiquitous Internet, non-conventional monitoring systems based on open technologies and low cost sensors may represent a great opportunity either as a complement of authoritative monitoring network or as a vital source of information wherever existing monitoring networks are in decline or completely missing. Nevertheless, scientific literature on such a kind of open and non-conventional monitoring systems is still limited and often relates to prototype engineering and testing in rather limited case studies. For this reason the 4onse project aims at integrating existing open technologies in the field of Free & Open Source Software, Open Hardware, Open Data, and Open Standards and evaluate this kind of system in a real case (about 30 stations) for a medium period of 2 years to better scientifically understand strengths, criticalities and applicabilities in terms of data quality; system durability; management costs; performances; sustainability. The ultimate objective is to contribute in non-conventional monitoring systems adoption based on four open technologies.

Reference Network Real-Time Services Control Techniques

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nykiel, Grzegorz; Szolucha, Marcin

2013-04-01

Differential corrections and services for real-time kinematic method (RTK) in many cases are used to support survey being base for administration decision. For that reason, services which allow to perform GNSS measurements should be constantly monitored to minimize the risk of any errors or unexpected gap in observation. System providing such control is the subject of the work carried out under a grant NR09-0010-10/2010 conducted by the Military University of Technology. This study was made to develop the concept of monitoring real-time services of Polish reference network ASG-EUPOS and the implementation of software providing users information on system accuracy. The main objectives of all concepts were: maximum use of existing infrastructure while minimizing the cost of installation of new elements, providing users calculation results via the ASG-EUPOS website. In the same time concept assume openness of the module that allow the successive development of applications and integration with existing solutions. This paper present several solutions and algorithms which have been implemented and tested. It also consist some examples of data visualization methods.

NEDE: an open-source scripting suite for developing experiments in 3D virtual environments.

PubMed

Jangraw, David C; Johri, Ansh; Gribetz, Meron; Sajda, Paul

2014-09-30

As neuroscientists endeavor to understand the brain's response to ecologically valid scenarios, many are leaving behind hyper-controlled paradigms in favor of more realistic ones. This movement has made the use of 3D rendering software an increasingly compelling option. However, mastering such software and scripting rigorous experiments requires a daunting amount of time and effort. To reduce these startup costs and make virtual environment studies more accessible to researchers, we demonstrate a naturalistic experimental design environment (NEDE) that allows experimenters to present realistic virtual stimuli while still providing tight control over the subject's experience. NEDE is a suite of open-source scripts built on the widely used Unity3D game development software, giving experimenters access to powerful rendering tools while interfacing with eye tracking and EEG, randomizing stimuli, and providing custom task prompts. Researchers using NEDE can present a dynamic 3D virtual environment in which randomized stimulus objects can be placed, allowing subjects to explore in search of these objects. NEDE interfaces with a research-grade eye tracker in real-time to maintain precise timing records and sync with EEG or other recording modalities. Python offers an alternative for experienced programmers who feel comfortable mastering and integrating the various toolboxes available. NEDE combines many of these capabilities with an easy-to-use interface and, through Unity's extensive user base, a much more substantial body of assets and tutorials. Our flexible, open-source experimental design system lowers the barrier to entry for neuroscientists interested in developing experiments in realistic virtual environments. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Gpufit: An open-source toolkit for GPU-accelerated curve fitting.

PubMed

Przybylski, Adrian; Thiel, Björn; Keller-Findeisen, Jan; Stock, Bernd; Bates, Mark

2017-11-16

We present a general purpose, open-source software library for estimation of non-linear parameters by the Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm. The software, Gpufit, runs on a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) and executes computations in parallel, resulting in a significant gain in performance. We measured a speed increase of up to 42 times when comparing Gpufit with an identical CPU-based algorithm, with no loss of precision or accuracy. Gpufit is designed such that it is easily incorporated into existing applications or adapted for new ones. Multiple software interfaces, including to C, Python, and Matlab, ensure that Gpufit is accessible from most programming environments. The full source code is published as an open source software repository, making its function transparent to the user and facilitating future improvements and extensions. As a demonstration, we used Gpufit to accelerate an existing scientific image analysis package, yielding significantly improved processing times for super-resolution fluorescence microscopy datasets.

The case for open-source software in drug discovery.

PubMed

DeLano, Warren L

2005-02-01

Widespread adoption of open-source software for network infrastructure, web servers, code development, and operating systems leads one to ask how far it can go. Will "open source" spread broadly, or will it be restricted to niches frequented by hopeful hobbyists and midnight hackers? Here we identify reasons for the success of open-source software and predict how consumers in drug discovery will benefit from new open-source products that address their needs with increased flexibility and in ways complementary to proprietary options.

Real-time monitoring of human blood-brain barrier disruption

PubMed Central

Kiviniemi, Vesa; Korhonen, Vesa; Kortelainen, Jukka; Rytky, Seppo; Keinänen, Tuija; Tuovinen, Timo; Isokangas, Matti; Sonkajärvi, Eila; Siniluoto, Topi; Nikkinen, Juha; Alahuhta, Seppo; Tervonen, Osmo; Turpeenniemi-Hujanen, Taina; Myllylä, Teemu; Kuittinen, Outi; Voipio, Juha

2017-01-01

Chemotherapy aided by opening of the blood-brain barrier with intra-arterial infusion of hyperosmolar mannitol improves the outcome in primary central nervous system lymphoma. Proper opening of the blood-brain barrier is crucial for the treatment, yet there are no means available for its real-time monitoring. The intact blood-brain barrier maintains a mV-level electrical potential difference between blood and brain tissue, giving rise to a measurable electrical signal at the scalp. Therefore, we used direct-current electroencephalography (DC-EEG) to characterize the spatiotemporal behavior of scalp-recorded slow electrical signals during blood-brain barrier opening. Nine anesthetized patients receiving chemotherapy were monitored continuously during 47 blood-brain barrier openings induced by carotid or vertebral artery mannitol infusion. Left or right carotid artery mannitol infusion generated a strongly lateralized DC-EEG response that began with a 2 min negative shift of up to 2000 μV followed by a positive shift lasting up to 20 min above the infused carotid artery territory, whereas contralateral responses were of opposite polarity. Vertebral artery mannitol infusion gave rise to a minimally lateralized and more uniformly distributed slow negative response with a posterior-frontal gradient. Simultaneously performed near-infrared spectroscopy detected a multiphasic response beginning with mannitol-bolus induced dilution of blood and ending in a prolonged increase in the oxy/deoxyhemoglobin ratio. The pronounced DC-EEG shifts are readily accounted for by opening and sealing of the blood-brain barrier. These data show that DC-EEG is a promising real-time monitoring tool for blood-brain barrier disruption augmented drug delivery. PMID:28319185

Research on OpenStack of open source cloud computing in colleges and universities’ computer room

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wang, Lei; Zhang, Dandan

2017-06-01

In recent years, the cloud computing technology has a rapid development, especially open source cloud computing. Open source cloud computing has attracted a large number of user groups by the advantages of open source and low cost, have now become a large-scale promotion and application. In this paper, firstly we briefly introduced the main functions and architecture of the open source cloud computing OpenStack tools, and then discussed deeply the core problems of computer labs in colleges and universities. Combining with this research, it is not that the specific application and deployment of university computer rooms with OpenStack tool. The experimental results show that the application of OpenStack tool can efficiently and conveniently deploy cloud of university computer room, and its performance is stable and the functional value is good.

Freeing Worldview's development process: Open source everything!

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gunnoe, T.

2016-12-01

Freeing your code and your project are important steps for creating an inviting environment for collaboration, with the added side effect of keeping a good relationship with your users. NASA Worldview's codebase was released with the open source NOSA (NASA Open Source Agreement) license in 2014, but this is only the first step. We also have to free our ideas, empower our users by involving them in the development process, and open channels that lead to the creation of a community project. There are many highly successful examples of Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) projects of which we can take note: the Linux kernel, Debian, GNOME, etc. These projects owe much of their success to having a passionate mix of developers/users with a great community and a common goal in mind. This presentation will describe the scope of this openness and how Worldview plans to move forward with a more community-inclusive approach.

Real-time fMRI neurofeedback: Progress and challenges

PubMed Central

Sulzer, J.; Haller, S.; Scharnowski, F.; Weiskopf, N.; Birbaumer, N.; Blefari, M.L.; Bruehl, A.B.; Cohen, L.G.; deCharms, R.C.; Gassert, R.; Goebel, R.; Herwig, U.; LaConte, S.; Linden, D.; Luft, A.; Seifritz, E.; Sitaram, R.

2016-01-01

In February of 2012, the first international conference on real time functional magnetic resonance imaging (rtfMRI) neurofeedback was held at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETHZ), Switzerland. This review summarizes progress in the field, introduces current debates, elucidates open questions, and offers viewpoints derived from the conference. The review offers perspectives on study design, scientific and clinical applications, rtfMRI learning mechanisms and future outlook. PMID:23541800

Methods for Real-Time PCR-Based Diagnosis of Chlamydia pneumoniae, Chlamydia psittaci, and Chlamydia abortus Infections in an Opened Molecular Diagnostic Platform.

PubMed

Opota, Onya; Brouillet, René; Greub, Gilbert; Jaton, Katia

2017-01-01

The advances in molecular biology of the last decades have dramatically improved the field of diagnostic bacteriology. In particular, PCR-based technologies have impacted the diagnosis of infections caused by obligate intracellular bacteria such as pathogens from the Chlamydiacae family. Here, we describe a real-time PCR-based method using the Taqman technology for the diagnosis of Chlamydia pneumoniae, Chlamydia psittaci, and Chlamydia abortus infection. The method presented here can be applied to various clinical samples and can be adapted on opened molecular diagnostic platforms.

Real-time multiplexed digital cavity-enhanced spectroscopy

DOE PAGES

Boyson, Toby K.; Dagdigian, Paul J.; Pavey, Karl D.; ...

2015-10-01

Cavity-enhanced spectroscopy is a sensitive optical absorption technique but one where the practical applications have been limited to studying small wavelength ranges. In addition, this Letter shows that wideband operation can be achieved by combining techniques usually reserved for the communications community with that of cavity-enhanced spectroscopy, producing a multiplexed real-time cavity-enhanced spectrometer. We use multiple collinear laser sources operating asynchronously and simultaneously while being detected on a single photodetector. This is synonymous with radio frequency (RF) cellular systems in which signals are detected on a single antenna but decoded uniquely. Here, we demonstrate results with spectra of methyl salicylatemore » and show parts-per-billion per root hertz sensitivity measured in real-time.« less

Real-Time IRI driven by GIRO data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Galkin, Ivan; Huang, Xueqin; Reinisch, Bodo; Bilitza, Dieter; Vesnin, Artem

considerate of data uncertainties (noise) and immune to data errors. Future IRTAM work is directed toward accepting a greater diversity of near-real-time sensor data, and the paper discusses potential new data sources and challenges associated with their assimilation.

Design and development of a highly sensitive, field portable plasma source instrument for on-line liquid stream monitoring and real-time sample analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Duan, Yixiang; Su, Yongxuan; Jin, Zhe; Abeln, Stephen P.

2000-03-01

The development of a highly sensitive, field portable, low-powered instrument for on-site, real-time liquid waste stream monitoring is described in this article. A series of factors such as system sensitivity and portability, plasma source, sample introduction, desolvation system, power supply, and the instrument configuration, were carefully considered in the design of the portable instrument. A newly designed, miniature, modified microwave plasma source was selected as the emission source for spectroscopy measurement, and an integrated small spectrometer with a charge-coupled device detector was installed for signal processing and detection. An innovative beam collection system with optical fibers was designed and used for emission signal collection. Microwave plasma can be sustained with various gases at relatively low power, and it possesses high detection capabilities for both metal and nonmetal pollutants, making it desirable to use for on-site, real-time, liquid waste stream monitoring. An effective in situ sampling system was coupled with a high efficiency desolvation device for direct-sampling liquid samples into the plasma. A portable computer control system is used for data processing. The new, integrated instrument can be easily used for on-site, real-time monitoring in the field. The system possesses a series of advantages, including high sensitivity for metal and nonmetal elements; in situ sampling; compact structure; low cost; and ease of operation and handling. These advantages will significantly overcome the limitations of previous monitoring techniques and make great contributions to environmental restoration and monitoring.

Energy Spectral Behaviors of Communication Networks of Open-Source Communities

PubMed Central

Yang, Jianmei; Yang, Huijie; Liao, Hao; Wang, Jiangtao; Zeng, Jinqun

2015-01-01

Large-scale online collaborative production activities in open-source communities must be accompanied by large-scale communication activities. Nowadays, the production activities of open-source communities, especially their communication activities, have been more and more concerned. Take CodePlex C # community for example, this paper constructs the complex network models of 12 periods of communication structures of the community based on real data; then discusses the basic concepts of quantum mapping of complex networks, and points out that the purpose of the mapping is to study the structures of complex networks according to the idea of quantum mechanism in studying the structures of large molecules; finally, according to this idea, analyzes and compares the fractal features of the spectra in different quantum mappings of the networks, and concludes that there are multiple self-similarity and criticality in the communication structures of the community. In addition, this paper discusses the insights and application conditions of different quantum mappings in revealing the characteristics of the structures. The proposed quantum mapping method can also be applied to the structural studies of other large-scale organizations. PMID:26047331

Real-time Kp predictions from ACE real time solar wind

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Detman, Thomas; Joselyn, Joann

1999-06-01

The Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE) spacecraft provides nearly continuous monitoring of solar wind plasma, magnetic fields, and energetic particles from the Sun-Earth L1 Lagrange point upstream of Earth in the solar wind. The Space Environment Center (SEC) in Boulder receives ACE telemetry from a group of international network of tracking stations. One-minute, and 1-hour averages of solar wind speed, density, temperature, and magnetic field components are posted on SEC's World Wide Web page within 3 to 5 minutes after they are measured. The ACE Real Time Solar Wind (RTSW) can be used to provide real-time warnings and short term forecasts of geomagnetic storms based on the (traditional) Kp index. Here, we use historical data to evaluate the performance of the first real-time Kp prediction algorithm to become operational.

Cloud computing geospatial application for water resources based on free and open source software and open standards - a prototype

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Delipetrev, Blagoj

2016-04-01

Presently, most of the existing software is desktop-based, designed to work on a single computer, which represents a major limitation in many ways, starting from limited computer processing, storage power, accessibility, availability, etc. The only feasible solution lies in the web and cloud. This abstract presents research and development of a cloud computing geospatial application for water resources based on free and open source software and open standards using hybrid deployment model of public - private cloud, running on two separate virtual machines (VMs). The first one (VM1) is running on Amazon web services (AWS) and the second one (VM2) is running on a Xen cloud platform. The presented cloud application is developed using free and open source software, open standards and prototype code. The cloud application presents a framework how to develop specialized cloud geospatial application that needs only a web browser to be used. This cloud application is the ultimate collaboration geospatial platform because multiple users across the globe with internet connection and browser can jointly model geospatial objects, enter attribute data and information, execute algorithms, and visualize results. The presented cloud application is: available all the time, accessible from everywhere, it is scalable, works in a distributed computer environment, it creates a real-time multiuser collaboration platform, the programing languages code and components are interoperable, and it is flexible in including additional components. The cloud geospatial application is implemented as a specialized water resources application with three web services for 1) data infrastructure (DI), 2) support for water resources modelling (WRM), 3) user management. The web services are running on two VMs that are communicating over the internet providing services to users. The application was tested on the Zletovica river basin case study with concurrent multiple users. The application is a state

Closed-Loop, Multichannel Experimentation Using the Open-Source NeuroRighter Electrophysiology Platform

PubMed Central

Newman, Jonathan P.; Zeller-Townson, Riley; Fong, Ming-Fai; Arcot Desai, Sharanya; Gross, Robert E.; Potter, Steve M.

2013-01-01

Single neuron feedback control techniques, such as voltage clamp and dynamic clamp, have enabled numerous advances in our understanding of ion channels, electrochemical signaling, and neural dynamics. Although commercially available multichannel recording and stimulation systems are commonly used for studying neural processing at the network level, they provide little native support for real-time feedback. We developed the open-source NeuroRighter multichannel electrophysiology hardware and software platform for closed-loop multichannel control with a focus on accessibility and low cost. NeuroRighter allows 64 channels of stimulation and recording for around US $10,000, along with the ability to integrate with other software and hardware. Here, we present substantial enhancements to the NeuroRighter platform, including a redesigned desktop application, a new stimulation subsystem allowing arbitrary stimulation patterns, low-latency data servers for accessing data streams, and a new application programming interface (API) for creating closed-loop protocols that can be inserted into NeuroRighter as plugin programs. This greatly simplifies the design of sophisticated real-time experiments without sacrificing the power and speed of a compiled programming language. Here we present a detailed description of NeuroRighter as a stand-alone application, its plugin API, and an extensive set of case studies that highlight the system’s abilities for conducting closed-loop, multichannel interfacing experiments. PMID:23346047

Developing a Near Real-time System for Earthquake Slip Distribution Inversion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhao, Li; Hsieh, Ming-Che; Luo, Yan; Ji, Chen

2016-04-01

Advances in observational and computational seismology in the past two decades have enabled completely automatic and real-time determinations of the focal mechanisms of earthquake point sources. However, seismic radiations from moderate and large earthquakes often exhibit strong finite-source directivity effect, which is critically important for accurate ground motion estimations and earthquake damage assessments. Therefore, an effective procedure to determine earthquake rupture processes in near real-time is in high demand for hazard mitigation and risk assessment purposes. In this study, we develop an efficient waveform inversion approach for the purpose of solving for finite-fault models in 3D structure. Full slip distribution inversions are carried out based on the identified fault planes in the point-source solutions. To ensure efficiency in calculating 3D synthetics during slip distribution inversions, a database of strain Green tensors (SGT) is established for 3D structural model with realistic surface topography. The SGT database enables rapid calculations of accurate synthetic seismograms for waveform inversion on a regular desktop or even a laptop PC. We demonstrate our source inversion approach using two moderate earthquakes (Mw~6.0) in Taiwan and in mainland China. Our results show that 3D velocity model provides better waveform fitting with more spatially concentrated slip distributions. Our source inversion technique based on the SGT database is effective for semi-automatic, near real-time determinations of finite-source solutions for seismic hazard mitigation purposes.

Real-time scalable visual analysis on mobile devices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pattath, Avin; Ebert, David S.; May, Richard A.; Collins, Timothy F.; Pike, William

2008-02-01

Interactive visual presentation of information can help an analyst gain faster and better insight from data. When combined with situational or context information, visualization on mobile devices is invaluable to in-field responders and investigators. However, several challenges are posed by the form-factor of mobile devices in developing such systems. In this paper, we classify these challenges into two broad categories - issues in general mobile computing and issues specific to visual analysis on mobile devices. Using NetworkVis and Infostar as example systems, we illustrate some of the techniques that we employed to overcome many of the identified challenges. NetworkVis is an OpenVG-based real-time network monitoring and visualization system developed for Windows Mobile devices. Infostar is a flash-based interactive, real-time visualization application intended to provide attendees access to conference information. Linked time-synchronous visualization, stylus/button-based interactivity, vector graphics, overview-context techniques, details-on-demand and statistical information display are some of the highlights of these applications.

PhysioNet: physiologic signals, time series and related open source software for basic, clinical, and applied research.

PubMed

Moody, George B; Mark, Roger G; Goldberger, Ary L

2011-01-01

PhysioNet provides free web access to over 50 collections of recorded physiologic signals and time series, and related open-source software, in support of basic, clinical, and applied research in medicine, physiology, public health, biomedical engineering and computing, and medical instrument design and evaluation. Its three components (PhysioBank, the archive of signals; PhysioToolkit, the software library; and PhysioNetWorks, the virtual laboratory for collaborative development of future PhysioBank data collections and PhysioToolkit software components) connect researchers and students who need physiologic signals and relevant software with researchers who have data and software to share. PhysioNet's annual open engineering challenges stimulate rapid progress on unsolved or poorly solved questions of basic or clinical interest, by focusing attention on achievable solutions that can be evaluated and compared objectively using freely available reference data.

The IRIS DMC: Perspectives on Real-Time Data Management and Open Access From a Large Seismological Archive: Challenges, Tools, and Quality Assurance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Benson, R. B.

2007-05-01

The IRIS Data Management Center, located in Seattle, WA, is the largest openly accessible geophysical archive in the world, and has a unique perspective on data management and operational practices that gets the most out of your network. Networks scale broad domains in time and space, from finite needs to monitor bridges and dams to national and international networks like the GSN and the FDSN that establish a baseline for global monitoring and research, the requirements that go into creating a well-tuned DMC archive treat these the same, building a collaborative network of networks that generations of users rely on and adds value to the data. Funded by the National Science Foundation through the Division of Earth Sciences, IRIS is operated through member universities and in cooperation with the USGS, and the DMS facility is a bridge between a globally distributed collaboration of seismic networks and an equally distributed network of users that demand a high standard for data quality, completeness, and ease of access. I will describe the role that a perpetual archive has in the life cycle of data, and how hosting real-time data performs a dual role of being a hub for continuous data from approximately 59 real-time networks, and distributing these (along with other data from the 40-year library of available time-series data) to researchers, while simultaneously providing shared data back to networks in real- time that benefits monitoring activities. I will describe aspects of our quality-assurance framework that are both passively and actively performed on 1100 seismic stations, generating over 6,000 channels of regularly sampled data arriving daily, that data providers can use as aids in operating their network, and users can likewise use when requesting suitable data for research purposes. The goal of the DMC is to eliminate bottlenecks in data discovery and shortening the steps leading to analysis. This includes many challenges, including keeping metadata

An Analysis of Open Source Security Software Products Downloads

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Barta, Brian J.

2014-01-01

Despite the continued demand for open source security software, a gap in the identification of success factors related to the success of open source security software persists. There are no studies that accurately assess the extent of this persistent gap, particularly with respect to the strength of the relationships of open source software…

Open-Source Unionism: New Workers, New Strategies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schmid, Julie M.

2004-01-01

In "Open-Source Unionism: Beyond Exclusive Collective Bargaining," published in fall 2002 in the journal Working USA, labor scholars Richard B. Freeman and Joel Rogers use the term "open-source unionism" to describe a form of unionization that uses Web technology to organize in hard-to-unionize workplaces. Rather than depend on the traditional…

Real-Time Tropospheric Delay Estimation using IGS Products

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stürze, Andrea; Liu, Sha; Söhne, Wolfgang

2014-05-01

opens the possibility to evaluate the potential of troposphere parameter determination in real-time and its effect to Precise Point Positioning. Starting with an offline investigation of the influence of different RTS products and a priori troposphere models the configuration delivering the best results is used for a real-time processing of the GREF (German Geodetic Reference) network over a suitable period of time. The evaluation of the derived ZTD parameters and station heights is done with respect to well proven GREF, EUREF, IGS, and E-GVAP analysis results. Keywords: GNSS, Zenith Tropospheric Delay, Real-time Precise Point Positioning

Real-time flutter analysis of an active flutter-suppression system on a remotely piloted research aircraft

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Gilyard, G. B.; Edwards, J. W.

1983-01-01

Flight flutter-test results of the first aeroelastic research wing (ARW-1) of NASA's drones for aerodynamic and structural testing program are presented. The flight-test operation and the implementation of the active flutter-suppression system are described as well as the software techniques used to obtain real-time damping estimates and the actual flutter testing procedure. Real-time analysis of fast-frequency aileron excitation sweeps provided reliable damping estimates. The open-loop flutter boundary was well defined at two altitudes; a maximum Mach number of 0.91 was obtained. Both open-loop and closed-loop data were of exceptionally high quality. Although the flutter-suppression system provided augmented damping at speeds below the flutter boundary, an error in the implementation of the system resulted in the system being less stable than predicted. The vehicle encountered system-on flutter shortly after crossing the open-loop flutter boundary on the third flight and was lost. The aircraft was rebuilt. Changes made in real-time test techniques are included.

Effective Product Recommendation using the Real-Time Web

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Esparza, Sandra Garcia; O'Mahony, Michael P.; Smyth, Barry

The so-called real-time web (RTW) is a web of opinions, comments, and personal viewpoints, often expressed in the form of short, 140-character text messages providing abbreviated and highly personalized commentary in real-time. Today, Twitter is undoubtedly the king of the RTW. It boasts 190 million users and generates in the region of 65m tweets per day1. This RTW data is far from the structured data (movie ratings, product features, etc.) that is familiar to recommender systems research but it is useful to consider its applicability to recommendation scenarios. In this paper we consider harnessing the real-time opinions of users, expressed through the Twitter-like short textual reviews available on the Blippr service (www.blippr.com). In particular we describe how users and products can be represented from the terms used in their associated reviews and describe experiments to highlight the recommendation potential of this RTW data-source and approach.

Open source OCR framework using mobile devices

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhou, Steven Zhiying; Gilani, Syed Omer; Winkler, Stefan

2008-02-01

Mobile phones have evolved from passive one-to-one communication device to powerful handheld computing device. Today most new mobile phones are capable of capturing images, recording video, and browsing internet and do much more. Exciting new social applications are emerging on mobile landscape, like, business card readers, sing detectors and translators. These applications help people quickly gather the information in digital format and interpret them without the need of carrying laptops or tablet PCs. However with all these advancements we find very few open source software available for mobile phones. For instance currently there are many open source OCR engines for desktop platform but, to our knowledge, none are available on mobile platform. Keeping this in perspective we propose a complete text detection and recognition system with speech synthesis ability, using existing desktop technology. In this work we developed a complete OCR framework with subsystems from open source desktop community. This includes a popular open source OCR engine named Tesseract for text detection & recognition and Flite speech synthesis module, for adding text-to-speech ability.

Exploring the "what if?" in geology through a RESTful open-source framework for cloud-based simulation and analysis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klump, Jens; Robertson, Jess

2016-04-01

The spatial and temporal extent of geological phenomena makes experiments in geology difficult to conduct, if not entirely impossible and collection of data is laborious and expensive - so expensive that most of the time we cannot test a hypothesis. The aim, in many cases, is to gather enough data to build a predictive geological model. Even in a mine, where data are abundant, a model remains incomplete because the information at the level of a blasting block is two orders of magnitude larger than the sample from a drill core, and we have to take measurement errors into account. So, what confidence can we have in a model based on sparse data, uncertainties and measurement error? Our framework consist of two layers: (a) a ground-truth layer that contains geological models, which can be statistically based on historical operations data, and (b) a network of RESTful synthetic sensor microservices which can query the ground-truth for underlying properties and produce a simulated measurement to a control layer, which could be a database or LIMS, a machine learner or a companies' existing data infrastructure. Ground truth data are generated by an implicit geological model which serves as a host for nested models of geological processes as smaller scales. Our two layers are implemented using Flask and Gunicorn, which are open source Python web application framework and server, the PyData stack (numpy, scipy etc) and Rabbit MQ (an open-source queuing library). Sensor data is encoded using a JSON-LD version of the SensorML and Observations and Measurements standards. Containerisation of the synthetic sensors using Docker and CoreOS allows rapid and scalable deployment of large numbers of sensors, as well as sensor discovery to form a self-organized dynamic network of sensors. Real-time simulation of data sources can be used to investigate crucial questions such as the potential information gain from future sensing capabilities, or from new sampling strategies, or the

PFLOTRAN-E4D: A parallel open source PFLOTRAN module for simulating time-lapse electrical resistivity data

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

Johnson, Timothy C.; Hammond, Glenn E.; Chen, Xingyuan

Time-lapse electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) is finding increased application for remotely monitoring processes occurring in the near subsurface in three-dimensions (i.e. 4D monitoring). However, there are few codes capable of simulating the evolution of subsurface resistivity and corresponding tomographic measurements arising from a particular process, particularly in parallel and with an open source license. Herein we describe and demonstrate an electrical resistivity tomography module for the PFLOTRAN subsurface simulation code, named PFLOTRAN-E4D. The PFLOTRAN-E4D module operates in parallel using a dedicated set of compute cores in a master-slave configuration. At each time step, the master processes receives subsurface states frommore » PFLOTRAN, converts those states to bulk electrical conductivity, and instructs the slave processes to simulate a tomographic data set. The resulting multi-physics simulation capability enables accurate feasibility studies for ERT imaging, the identification of the ERT signatures that are unique to a given process, and facilitates the joint inversion of ERT data with hydrogeological data for subsurface characterization. PFLOTRAN-E4D is demonstrated herein using a field study of stage-driven groundwater/river water interaction ERT monitoring along the Columbia River, Washington, USA. Results demonstrate the complex nature of changes subsurface electrical conductivity, in both the saturated and unsaturated zones, arising from water table changes and from river water intrusion into the aquifer. The results also demonstrate the sensitivity of surface based ERT measurements to those changes over time. PFLOTRAN-E4D is available with the PFLOTRAN development version with an open-source license at https://bitbucket.org/pflotran/pflotran-dev .« less

PFLOTRAN-E4D: A parallel open source PFLOTRAN module for simulating time-lapse electrical resistivity data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Johnson, Timothy C.; Hammond, Glenn E.; Chen, Xingyuan

2017-02-01

Time-lapse electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) is finding increased application for remotely monitoring processes occurring in the near subsurface in three-dimensions (i.e. 4D monitoring). However, there are few codes capable of simulating the evolution of subsurface resistivity and corresponding tomographic measurements arising from a particular process, particularly in parallel and with an open source license. Herein we describe and demonstrate an electrical resistivity tomography module for the PFLOTRAN subsurface flow and reactive transport simulation code, named PFLOTRAN-E4D. The PFLOTRAN-E4D module operates in parallel using a dedicated set of compute cores in a master-slave configuration. At each time step, the master processes receives subsurface states from PFLOTRAN, converts those states to bulk electrical conductivity, and instructs the slave processes to simulate a tomographic data set. The resulting multi-physics simulation capability enables accurate feasibility studies for ERT imaging, the identification of the ERT signatures that are unique to a given process, and facilitates the joint inversion of ERT data with hydrogeological data for subsurface characterization. PFLOTRAN-E4D is demonstrated herein using a field study of stage-driven groundwater/river water interaction ERT monitoring along the Columbia River, Washington, USA. Results demonstrate the complex nature of subsurface electrical conductivity changes, in both the saturated and unsaturated zones, arising from river stage fluctuations and associated river water intrusion into the aquifer. The results also demonstrate the sensitivity of surface based ERT measurements to those changes over time. PFLOTRAN-E4D is available with the PFLOTRAN development version with an open-source license at https://bitbucket.org/pflotran/pflotran-dev.

The Emergence of Open-Source Software in North America

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Pan, Guohua; Bonk, Curtis J.

2007-01-01

Unlike conventional models of software development, the open source model is based on the collaborative efforts of users who are also co-developers of the software. Interest in open source software has grown exponentially in recent years. A "Google" search for the phrase open source in early 2005 returned 28.8 million webpage hits, while…

a Framework for AN Open Source Geospatial Certification Model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Khan, T. U. R.; Davis, P.; Behr, F.-J.

2016-06-01

The geospatial industry is forecasted to have an enormous growth in the forthcoming years and an extended need for well-educated workforce. Hence ongoing education and training play an important role in the professional life. Parallel, in the geospatial and IT arena as well in the political discussion and legislation Open Source solutions, open data proliferation, and the use of open standards have an increasing significance. Based on the Memorandum of Understanding between International Cartographic Association, OSGeo Foundation, and ISPRS this development led to the implementation of the ICA-OSGeo-Lab imitative with its mission "Making geospatial education and opportunities accessible to all". Discussions in this initiative and the growth and maturity of geospatial Open Source software initiated the idea to develop a framework for a worldwide applicable Open Source certification approach. Generic and geospatial certification approaches are already offered by numerous organisations, i.e., GIS Certification Institute, GeoAcademy, ASPRS, and software vendors, i. e., Esri, Oracle, and RedHat. They focus different fields of expertise and have different levels and ways of examination which are offered for a wide range of fees. The development of the certification framework presented here is based on the analysis of diverse bodies of knowledge concepts, i.e., NCGIA Core Curriculum, URISA Body Of Knowledge, USGIF Essential Body Of Knowledge, the "Geographic Information: Need to Know", currently under development, and the Geospatial Technology Competency Model (GTCM). The latter provides a US American oriented list of the knowledge, skills, and abilities required of workers in the geospatial technology industry and influenced essentially the framework of certification. In addition to the theoretical analysis of existing resources the geospatial community was integrated twofold. An online survey about the relevance of Open Source was performed and evaluated with 105

Real-time solar magnetograph operation system software design and user's guide

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wang, C.

1984-01-01

The Real Time Solar Magnetograph (RTSM) Operation system software design on PDP11/23+ is presented along with the User's Guide. The RTSM operation software is for real time instrumentation control, data collection and data management. The data is used for vector analysis, plotting or graphics display. The processed data is then easily compared with solar data from other sources, such as the Solar Maximum Mission (SMM).

Your Personal Analysis Toolkit - An Open Source Solution

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mitchell, T.

2009-12-01

Open source software is commonly known for its web browsers, word processors and programming languages. However, there is a vast array of open source software focused on geographic information management and geospatial application building in general. As geo-professionals, having easy access to tools for our jobs is crucial. Open source software provides the opportunity to add a tool to your tool belt and carry it with you for your entire career - with no license fees, a supportive community and the opportunity to test, adopt and upgrade at your own pace. OSGeo is a US registered non-profit representing more than a dozen mature geospatial data management applications and programming resources. Tools cover areas such as desktop GIS, web-based mapping frameworks, metadata cataloging, spatial database analysis, image processing and more. Learn about some of these tools as they apply to AGU members, as well as how you can join OSGeo and its members in getting the job done with powerful open source tools. If you haven't heard of OSSIM, MapServer, OpenLayers, PostGIS, GRASS GIS or the many other projects under our umbrella - then you need to hear this talk. Invest in yourself - use open source!

Network Reduction Algorithm for Developing Distribution Feeders for Real-Time Simulators

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

Nagarajan, Adarsh; Nelson, Austin A; Prabakar, Kumaraguru

As advanced grid-support functions (AGF) become more widely used in grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) inverters, utilities are increasingly interested in their impacts when implemented in the field. These effects can be understood by modeling feeders in real-time simulators and test PV inverters using power hardware-in-the-loop (PHIL) techniques. This paper presents a novel feeder model reduction algorithm using a ruin & reconstruct methodology that enables large feeders to be solved and operated on real-time computing platforms. Two Hawaiian Electric feeder models in Synergi Electric's load flow software were converted to reduced order models in OpenDSS, and subsequently implemented in the OPAL-RT real-timemore » digital testing platform. Smart PV inverters were added to the realtime model with AGF responses modeled after characterizing commercially available hardware inverters. Finally, hardware inverters were tested in conjunction with the real-time model using PHIL techniques so that the effects of AGFs on the feeders could be analyzed.« less

Robust Real-Time Musculoskeletal Modeling Driven by Electromyograms.

PubMed

Durandau, Guillaume; Farina, Dario; Sartori, Massimo

2018-03-01

Current clinical biomechanics involves lengthy data acquisition and time-consuming offline analyses with biomechanical models not operating in real-time for man-machine interfacing. We developed a method that enables online analysis of neuromusculoskeletal function in vivo in the intact human. We used electromyography (EMG)-driven musculoskeletal modeling to simulate all transformations from muscle excitation onset (EMGs) to mechanical moment production around multiple lower-limb degrees of freedom (DOFs). We developed a calibration algorithm that enables adjusting musculoskeletal model parameters specifically to an individual's anthropometry and force-generating capacity. We incorporated the modeling paradigm into a computationally efficient, generic framework that can be interfaced in real-time with any movement data collection system. The framework demonstrated the ability of computing forces in 13 lower-limb muscle-tendon units and resulting moments about three joint DOFs simultaneously in real-time. Remarkably, it was capable of extrapolating beyond calibration conditions, i.e., predicting accurate joint moments during six unseen tasks and one unseen DOF. The proposed framework can dramatically reduce evaluation latency in current clinical biomechanics and open up new avenues for establishing prompt and personalized treatments, as well as for establishing natural interfaces between patients and rehabilitation systems. The integration of EMG with numerical modeling will enable simulating realistic neuromuscular strategies in conditions including muscular/orthopedic deficit, which could not be robustly simulated via pure modeling formulations. This will enable translation to clinical settings and development of healthcare technologies including real-time bio-feedback of internal mechanical forces and direct patient-machine interfacing.

Low Cost Real Time Autonomous Remote Monitoring Platform

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rodríguez, J. R.; Maldonado, P. M.; Pierson, J. J.; Harris, L.

2016-02-01

Environmental scientists have a need for gathering multiple parameters during specific time periods to answer their research questions. Most available monitoring systems are very expensive and closed systems, which limits the potential to scale up research projects. We developed a low cost, autonomous, real-time monitoring platform that is both open hardware/software and easy to build, deploy, manage and maintain. The hardware is built with off-the-shelf components and a credit card sized computer called Raspberry Pi, running an open source operating (Raspbian). The system runs off a set of batteries and a solar panel, which makes it ideal for remote locations. The software is divided into three parts: 1) a framework for abstracting the sensors (initializing, pooling and communications) designed in python and using a fully object-oriented design, making it easy for new sensor to be added with minimal code changes, 2) a web front end for managing the entire system, 3) a data store (database) framework for local and remote data retrieval and reporting services. Connectivity to the system can be accomplished through a Wi-Fi or cellular Internet connection. Scientists are being forced to do more with less, in response our platform will provide them with a flexible system that can improve the process of data gathering with an accessible, modular, low-cost, and efficient monitoring system. Currently, we have the required permits from the Department of Natural Resources in Puerto Rico to deploy the platform at the Laguna Grande Bioluminescence Lagoon in Fajardo, PR. This station will include probes for pH, DO, Conductivity and water temperature.

Toward real-time regional earthquake simulation of Taiwan earthquakes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lee, S.; Liu, Q.; Tromp, J.; Komatitsch, D.; Liang, W.; Huang, B.

2013-12-01

We developed a Real-time Online earthquake Simulation system (ROS) to simulate regional earthquakes in Taiwan. The ROS uses a centroid moment tensor solution of seismic events from a Real-time Moment Tensor monitoring system (RMT), which provides all the point source parameters including the event origin time, hypocentral location, moment magnitude and focal mechanism within 2 minutes after the occurrence of an earthquake. Then, all of the source parameters are automatically forwarded to the ROS to perform an earthquake simulation, which is based on a spectral-element method (SEM). We have improved SEM mesh quality by introducing a thin high-resolution mesh layer near the surface to accommodate steep and rapidly varying topography. The mesh for the shallow sedimentary basin is adjusted to reflect its complex geometry and sharp lateral velocity contrasts. The grid resolution at the surface is about 545 m, which is sufficient to resolve topography and tomography data for simulations accurate up to 1.0 Hz. The ROS is also an infrastructural service, making online earthquake simulation feasible. Users can conduct their own earthquake simulation by providing a set of source parameters through the ROS webpage. For visualization, a ShakeMovie and ShakeMap are produced during the simulation. The time needed for one event is roughly 3 minutes for a 70 sec ground motion simulation. The ROS is operated online at the Institute of Earth Sciences, Academia Sinica (http://ros.earth.sinica.edu.tw/). Our long-term goal for the ROS system is to contribute to public earth science outreach and to realize seismic ground motion prediction in real-time.

Interim Open Source Software (OSS) Policy

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

This interim Policy establishes a framework to implement the requirements of the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) Federal Source Code Policy to achieve efficiency, transparency and innovation through reusable and open source software.

Itzï (version 17.1): an open-source, distributed GIS model for dynamic flood simulation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guillaume Courty, Laurent; Pedrozo-Acuña, Adrián; Bates, Paul David

2017-05-01

Worldwide, floods are acknowledged as one of the most destructive hazards. In human-dominated environments, their negative impacts are ascribed not only to the increase in frequency and intensity of floods but also to a strong feedback between the hydrological cycle and anthropogenic development. In order to advance a more comprehensive understanding of this complex interaction, this paper presents the development of a new open-source tool named Itzï that enables the 2-D numerical modelling of rainfall-runoff processes and surface flows integrated with the open-source geographic information system (GIS) software known as GRASS. Therefore, it takes advantage of the ability given by GIS environments to handle datasets with variations in both temporal and spatial resolutions. Furthermore, the presented numerical tool can handle datasets from different sources with varied spatial resolutions, facilitating the preparation and management of input and forcing data. This ability reduces the preprocessing time usually required by other models. Itzï uses a simplified form of the shallow water equations, the damped partial inertia equation, for the resolution of surface flows, and the Green-Ampt model for the infiltration. The source code is now publicly available online, along with complete documentation. The numerical model is verified against three different tests cases: firstly, a comparison with an analytic solution of the shallow water equations is introduced; secondly, a hypothetical flooding event in an urban area is implemented, where results are compared to those from an established model using a similar approach; and lastly, the reproduction of a real inundation event that occurred in the city of Kingston upon Hull, UK, in June 2007, is presented. The numerical approach proved its ability at reproducing the analytic and synthetic test cases. Moreover, simulation results of the real flood event showed its suitability at identifying areas affected by

Efficient Blood-Brain Barrier Opening in Primates with Neuronavigation-Guided Ultrasound and Real-Time Acoustic Mapping.

PubMed

Wu, Shih-Ying; Aurup, Christian; Sanchez, Carlos Sierra; Grondin, Julien; Zheng, Wenlan; Kamimura, Hermes; Ferrera, Vincent P; Konofagou, Elisa E

2018-05-22

Brain diseases including neurological disorders and tumors remain under treated due to the challenge to access the brain, and blood-brain barrier (BBB) restricting drug delivery which, also profoundly limits the development of pharmacological treatment. Focused ultrasound (FUS) with microbubbles is the sole method to open the BBB noninvasively, locally, and transiently and facilitate drug delivery, while translation to the clinic is challenging due to long procedure, targeting limitations, or invasiveness of current systems. In order to provide rapid, flexible yet precise applications, we have designed a noninvasive FUS and monitoring system with the protocol tested in monkeys (from in silico preplanning and simulation, real-time targeting and acoustic mapping, to post-treatment assessment). With a short procedure (30 min) similar to current clinical imaging duration or radiation therapy, the achieved targeting (both cerebral cortex and subcortical structures) and monitoring accuracy was close to the predicted 2-mm lower limit. This system would enable rapid clinical transcranial FUS applications outside of the MRI system without a stereotactic frame, thereby benefiting patients especially in the elderly population.

Open-Source Electronic Health Record Systems for Low-Resource Settings: Systematic Review

PubMed Central

Zolfo, Maria; Diro, Ermias

2017-01-01

Background Despite the great impact of information and communication technologies on clinical practice and on the quality of health services, this trend has been almost exclusive to developed countries, whereas countries with poor resources suffer from many economic and social issues that have hindered the real benefits of electronic health (eHealth) tools. As a component of eHealth systems, electronic health records (EHRs) play a fundamental role in patient management and effective medical care services. Thus, the adoption of EHRs in regions with a lack of infrastructure, untrained staff, and ill-equipped health care providers is an important task. However, the main barrier to adopting EHR software in low- and middle-income countries is the cost of its purchase and maintenance, which highlights the open-source approach as a good solution for these underserved areas. Objective The aim of this study was to conduct a systematic review of open-source EHR systems based on the requirements and limitations of low-resource settings. Methods First, we reviewed existing literature on the comparison of available open-source solutions. In close collaboration with the University of Gondar Hospital, Ethiopia, we identified common limitations in poor resource environments and also the main requirements that EHRs should support. Then, we extensively evaluated the current open-source EHR solutions, discussing their strengths and weaknesses, and their appropriateness to fulfill a predefined set of features relevant for low-resource settings. Results The evaluation methodology allowed assessment of several key aspects of available solutions that are as follows: (1) integrated applications, (2) configurable reports, (3) custom reports, (4) custom forms, (5) interoperability, (6) coding systems, (7) authentication methods, (8) patient portal, (9) access control model, (10) cryptographic features, (11) flexible data model, (12) offline support, (13) native client, (14) Web client,(15

Open-Source Electronic Health Record Systems for Low-Resource Settings: Systematic Review.

PubMed

Syzdykova, Assel; Malta, André; Zolfo, Maria; Diro, Ermias; Oliveira, José Luis

2017-11-13

Despite the great impact of information and communication technologies on clinical practice and on the quality of health services, this trend has been almost exclusive to developed countries, whereas countries with poor resources suffer from many economic and social issues that have hindered the real benefits of electronic health (eHealth) tools. As a component of eHealth systems, electronic health records (EHRs) play a fundamental role in patient management and effective medical care services. Thus, the adoption of EHRs in regions with a lack of infrastructure, untrained staff, and ill-equipped health care providers is an important task. However, the main barrier to adopting EHR software in low- and middle-income countries is the cost of its purchase and maintenance, which highlights the open-source approach as a good solution for these underserved areas. The aim of this study was to conduct a systematic review of open-source EHR systems based on the requirements and limitations of low-resource settings. First, we reviewed existing literature on the comparison of available open-source solutions. In close collaboration with the University of Gondar Hospital, Ethiopia, we identified common limitations in poor resource environments and also the main requirements that EHRs should support. Then, we extensively evaluated the current open-source EHR solutions, discussing their strengths and weaknesses, and their appropriateness to fulfill a predefined set of features relevant for low-resource settings. The evaluation methodology allowed assessment of several key aspects of available solutions that are as follows: (1) integrated applications, (2) configurable reports, (3) custom reports, (4) custom forms, (5) interoperability, (6) coding systems, (7) authentication methods, (8) patient portal, (9) access control model, (10) cryptographic features, (11) flexible data model, (12) offline support, (13) native client, (14) Web client,(15) other clients, (16) code

Open-source telemedicine platform for wireless medical video communication.

PubMed

Panayides, A; Eleftheriou, I; Pantziaris, M

2013-01-01

An m-health system for real-time wireless communication of medical video based on open-source software is presented. The objective is to deliver a low-cost telemedicine platform which will allow for reliable remote diagnosis m-health applications such as emergency incidents, mass population screening, and medical education purposes. The performance of the proposed system is demonstrated using five atherosclerotic plaque ultrasound videos. The videos are encoded at the clinically acquired resolution, in addition to lower, QCIF, and CIF resolutions, at different bitrates, and four different encoding structures. Commercially available wireless local area network (WLAN) and 3.5G high-speed packet access (HSPA) wireless channels are used to validate the developed platform. Objective video quality assessment is based on PSNR ratings, following calibration using the variable frame delay (VFD) algorithm that removes temporal mismatch between original and received videos. Clinical evaluation is based on atherosclerotic plaque ultrasound video assessment protocol. Experimental results show that adequate diagnostic quality wireless medical video communications are realized using the designed telemedicine platform. HSPA cellular networks provide for ultrasound video transmission at the acquired resolution, while VFD algorithm utilization bridges objective and subjective ratings.

Open-Source Telemedicine Platform for Wireless Medical Video Communication

PubMed Central

Panayides, A.; Eleftheriou, I.; Pantziaris, M.

2013-01-01

An m-health system for real-time wireless communication of medical video based on open-source software is presented. The objective is to deliver a low-cost telemedicine platform which will allow for reliable remote diagnosis m-health applications such as emergency incidents, mass population screening, and medical education purposes. The performance of the proposed system is demonstrated using five atherosclerotic plaque ultrasound videos. The videos are encoded at the clinically acquired resolution, in addition to lower, QCIF, and CIF resolutions, at different bitrates, and four different encoding structures. Commercially available wireless local area network (WLAN) and 3.5G high-speed packet access (HSPA) wireless channels are used to validate the developed platform. Objective video quality assessment is based on PSNR ratings, following calibration using the variable frame delay (VFD) algorithm that removes temporal mismatch between original and received videos. Clinical evaluation is based on atherosclerotic plaque ultrasound video assessment protocol. Experimental results show that adequate diagnostic quality wireless medical video communications are realized using the designed telemedicine platform. HSPA cellular networks provide for ultrasound video transmission at the acquired resolution, while VFD algorithm utilization bridges objective and subjective ratings. PMID:23573082

Real-Time GPS Monitoring for Earthquake Rapid Assessment in the San Francisco Bay Area

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Guillemot, C.; Langbein, J. O.; Murray, J. R.

2012-12-01

The U.S. Geological Survey Earthquake Science Center has deployed a network of eight real-time Global Positioning System (GPS) stations in the San Francisco Bay area and is implementing software applications to continuously evaluate the status of the deformation within the network. Real-time monitoring of the station positions is expected to provide valuable information for rapidly estimating source parameters should a large earthquake occur in the San Francisco Bay area. Because earthquake response applications require robust data access, as a first step we have developed a suite of web-based applications which are now routinely used to monitor the network's operational status and data streaming performance. The web tools provide continuously updated displays of important telemetry parameters such as data latency and receive rates, as well as source voltage and temperature information within each instrument enclosure. Automated software on the backend uses the streaming performance data to mitigate the impact of outages, radio interference and bandwidth congestion on deformation monitoring operations. A separate set of software applications manages the recovery of lost data due to faulty communication links. Displacement estimates are computed in real-time for various combinations of USGS, Plate Boundary Observatory (PBO) and Bay Area Regional Deformation (BARD) network stations. We are currently comparing results from two software packages (one commercial and one open-source) used to process 1-Hz data on the fly and produce estimates of differential positions. The continuous monitoring of telemetry makes it possible to tune the network to minimize the impact of transient interruptions of the data flow, from one or more stations, on the estimated positions. Ongoing work is focused on using data streaming performance history to optimize the quality of the position, reduce drift and outliers by switching to the best set of stations within the network, and

Improving Mid-Course Flight Through an Application of Real-Time Optimal Control

DTIC Science & Technology

2017-12-01

COURSE FLIGHT THROUGH AN APPLICATION OF REAL- TIME OPTIMAL CONTROL by Mark R. Roncoroni December 2017 Thesis Advisor: Ronald Proulx Co...collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instruction, searching existing data sources...AND DATES COVERED Master’s thesis 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE IMPROVING MID-COURSE FLIGHT THROUGH AN APPLICATION OF REAL- TIME OPTIMAL CONTROL 5. FUNDING

Building a Snow Data Management System using Open Source Software (and IDL)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goodale, C. E.; Mattmann, C. A.; Ramirez, P.; Hart, A. F.; Painter, T.; Zimdars, P. A.; Bryant, A.; Brodzik, M.; Skiles, M.; Seidel, F. C.; Rittger, K. E.

2012-12-01

At NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory free and open source software is used everyday to support a wide range of projects, from planetary to climate to research and development. In this abstract I will discuss the key role that open source software has played in building a robust science data processing pipeline for snow hydrology research, and how the system is also able to leverage programs written in IDL, making JPL's Snow Data System a hybrid of open source and proprietary software. Main Points: - The Design of the Snow Data System (illustrate how the collection of sub-systems are combined to create a complete data processing pipeline) - Discuss the Challenges of moving from a single algorithm on a laptop, to running 100's of parallel algorithms on a cluster of servers (lesson's learned) - Code changes - Software license related challenges - Storage Requirements - System Evolution (from data archiving, to data processing, to data on a map, to near-real-time products and maps) - Road map for the next 6 months (including how easily we re-used the snowDS code base to support the Airborne Snow Observatory Mission) Software in Use and their Software Licenses: IDL - Used for pre and post processing of data. Licensed under a proprietary software license held by Excelis. Apache OODT - Used for data management and workflow processing. Licensed under the Apache License Version 2. GDAL - Geospatial Data processing library used for data re-projection currently. Licensed under the X/MIT license. GeoServer - WMS Server. Licensed under the General Public License Version 2.0 Leaflet.js - Javascript web mapping library. Licensed under the Berkeley Software Distribution License. Python - Glue code and miscellaneous data processing support. Licensed under the Python Software Foundation License. Perl - Script wrapper for running the SCAG algorithm. Licensed under the General Public License Version 3. PHP - Front-end web application programming. Licensed under the PHP License Version

Design of a portable, intrinsically safe multichannel acquisition system for high-resolution, real-time processing HD-sEMG.

PubMed

Barone, Umberto; Merletti, Roberto

2013-08-01

A compact and portable system for real-time, multichannel, HD-sEMG acquisition is presented. The device is based on a modular, multiboard approach for scalability and to optimize power consumption for battery operating mode. The proposed modular approach allows us to configure the number of sEMG channels from 64 to 424. A plastic-optical-fiber-based 10/100 Ethernet link is implemented on a field-programmable gate array (FPGA)-based board for real-time, safety data transmission toward a personal computer or laptop for data storage and offline analysis. The high-performance A/D conversion stage, based on 24-bit ADC, allows us to automatically serialize the samples and transmits them on a single SPI bus connecting a sequence of up to 14 ADC chips in chain mode. The prototype is configured to work with 64 channels and a sample frequency of 2.441 ksps (derived from 25-MHz clock source), corresponding to a real data throughput of 3 Mbps. The prototype was assembled to demonstrate the available features (e.g., scalability) and evaluate the expected performances. The analog front end board could be dynamically configured to acquire sEMG signals in monopolar or single differential mode by means of FPGA I/O interface. The system can acquire continuously 64 channels for up to 5 h with a lightweight battery pack of 7.5 Vdc/2200 mAh. A PC-based application was also developed, by means of the open source Qt Development Kit from Nokia, for prototype characterization, sEMG measurements, and real-time visualization of 2-D maps.

An Open Source Model for Open Access Journal Publication

PubMed Central

Blesius, Carl R.; Williams, Michael A.; Holzbach, Ana; Huntley, Arthur C.; Chueh, Henry

2005-01-01

We describe an electronic journal publication infrastructure that allows a flexible publication workflow, academic exchange around different forms of user submissions, and the exchange of articles between publishers and archives using a common XML based standard. This web-based application is implemented on a freely available open source software stack. This publication demonstrates the Dermatology Online Journal's use of the platform for non-biased independent open access publication. PMID:16779183

Open Source in Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lakhan, Shaheen E.; Jhunjhunwala, Kavita

2008-01-01

Educational institutions have rushed to put their academic resources and services online, beginning the global community onto a common platform and awakening the interest of investors. Despite continuing technical challenges, online education shows great promise. Open source software offers one approach to addressing the technical problems in…

Open source Modeling and optimization tools for Planning

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

Peles, S.

Open source modeling and optimization tools for planning The existing tools and software used for planning and analysis in California are either expensive, difficult to use, or not generally accessible to a large number of participants. These limitations restrict the availability of participants for larger scale energy and grid studies in the state. The proposed initiative would build upon federal and state investments in open source software, and create and improve open source tools for use in the state planning and analysis activities. Computational analysis and simulation frameworks in development at national labs and universities can be brought forward tomore » complement existing tools. An open source platform would provide a path for novel techniques and strategies to be brought into the larger community and reviewed by a broad set of stakeholders.« less

SOFTWARE DESIGN FOR REAL-TIME SYSTEMS.

DTIC Science & Technology

Real-time computer systems and real-time computations are defined for the purposes of this report. The design of software for real - time systems is...discussed, employing the concept that all real - time systems belong to one of two types. The types are classified according to the type of control...program used; namely: Pre-assigned Iterative Cycle and Real-time Queueing. The two types of real - time systems are described in general, with supplemental

Open source bioimage informatics for cell biology.

PubMed

Swedlow, Jason R; Eliceiri, Kevin W

2009-11-01

Significant technical advances in imaging, molecular biology and genomics have fueled a revolution in cell biology, in that the molecular and structural processes of the cell are now visualized and measured routinely. Driving much of this recent development has been the advent of computational tools for the acquisition, visualization, analysis and dissemination of these datasets. These tools collectively make up a new subfield of computational biology called bioimage informatics, which is facilitated by open source approaches. We discuss why open source tools for image informatics in cell biology are needed, some of the key general attributes of what make an open source imaging application successful, and point to opportunities for further operability that should greatly accelerate future cell biology discovery.

Open source bioimage informatics for cell biology

PubMed Central

Swedlow, Jason R.; Eliceiri, Kevin W.

2009-01-01

Significant technical advances in imaging, molecular biology and genomics have fueled a revolution in cell biology, in that the molecular and structural processes of the cell are now visualized and measured routinely. Driving much of this recent development has been the advent of computational tools for the acquisition, visualization, analysis and dissemination of these datasets. These tools collectively make up a new subfield of computational biology called bioimage informatics, which is facilitated by open source approaches. We discuss why open source tools for image informatics in cell biology are needed, some of the key general attributes of what make an open source imaging application successful, and point to opportunities for further operability that should greatly accelerate future cell biology discovery. PMID:19833518

PyEEG: an open source Python module for EEG/MEG feature extraction.

PubMed

Bao, Forrest Sheng; Liu, Xin; Zhang, Christina

2011-01-01

Computer-aided diagnosis of neural diseases from EEG signals (or other physiological signals that can be treated as time series, e.g., MEG) is an emerging field that has gained much attention in past years. Extracting features is a key component in the analysis of EEG signals. In our previous works, we have implemented many EEG feature extraction functions in the Python programming language. As Python is gaining more ground in scientific computing, an open source Python module for extracting EEG features has the potential to save much time for computational neuroscientists. In this paper, we introduce PyEEG, an open source Python module for EEG feature extraction.

PyEEG: An Open Source Python Module for EEG/MEG Feature Extraction

PubMed Central

Bao, Forrest Sheng; Liu, Xin; Zhang, Christina

2011-01-01

Computer-aided diagnosis of neural diseases from EEG signals (or other physiological signals that can be treated as time series, e.g., MEG) is an emerging field that has gained much attention in past years. Extracting features is a key component in the analysis of EEG signals. In our previous works, we have implemented many EEG feature extraction functions in the Python programming language. As Python is gaining more ground in scientific computing, an open source Python module for extracting EEG features has the potential to save much time for computational neuroscientists. In this paper, we introduce PyEEG, an open source Python module for EEG feature extraction. PMID:21512582

Open Source, Open Standards, and Health Care Information Systems

PubMed Central

2011-01-01

Recognition of the improvements in patient safety, quality of patient care, and efficiency that health care information systems have the potential to bring has led to significant investment. Globally the sale of health care information systems now represents a multibillion dollar industry. As policy makers, health care professionals, and patients, we have a responsibility to maximize the return on this investment. To this end we analyze alternative licensing and software development models, as well as the role of standards. We describe how licensing affects development. We argue for the superiority of open source licensing to promote safer, more effective health care information systems. We claim that open source licensing in health care information systems is essential to rational procurement strategy. PMID:21447469

Open source, open standards, and health care information systems.

PubMed

Reynolds, Carl J; Wyatt, Jeremy C

2011-02-17

Recognition of the improvements in patient safety, quality of patient care, and efficiency that health care information systems have the potential to bring has led to significant investment. Globally the sale of health care information systems now represents a multibillion dollar industry. As policy makers, health care professionals, and patients, we have a responsibility to maximize the return on this investment. To this end we analyze alternative licensing and software development models, as well as the role of standards. We describe how licensing affects development. We argue for the superiority of open source licensing to promote safer, more effective health care information systems. We claim that open source licensing in health care information systems is essential to rational procurement strategy.

Real-time determination of the worst tsunami scenario based on Earthquake Early Warning

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Furuya, Takashi; Koshimura, Shunichi; Hino, Ryota; Ohta, Yusaku; Inoue, Takuya

2016-04-01

In recent years, real-time tsunami inundation forecasting has been developed with the advances of dense seismic monitoring, GPS Earth observation, offshore tsunami observation networks, and high-performance computing infrastructure (Koshimura et al., 2014). Several uncertainties are involved in tsunami inundation modeling and it is believed that tsunami generation model is one of the great uncertain sources. Uncertain tsunami source model has risk to underestimate tsunami height, extent of inundation zone, and damage. Tsunami source inversion using observed seismic, geodetic and tsunami data is the most effective to avoid underestimation of tsunami, but needs to expect more time to acquire the observed data and this limitation makes difficult to terminate real-time tsunami inundation forecasting within sufficient time. Not waiting for the precise tsunami observation information, but from disaster management point of view, we aim to determine the worst tsunami source scenario, for the use of real-time tsunami inundation forecasting and mapping, using the seismic information of Earthquake Early Warning (EEW) that can be obtained immediately after the event triggered. After an earthquake occurs, JMA's EEW estimates magnitude and hypocenter. With the constraints of earthquake magnitude, hypocenter and scaling law, we determine possible multi tsunami source scenarios and start searching the worst one by the superposition of pre-computed tsunami Green's functions, i.e. time series of tsunami height at offshore points corresponding to 2-dimensional Gaussian unit source, e.g. Tsushima et al., 2014. Scenario analysis of our method consists of following 2 steps. (1) Searching the worst scenario range by calculating 90 scenarios with various strike and fault-position. From maximum tsunami height of 90 scenarios, we determine a narrower strike range which causes high tsunami height in the area of concern. (2) Calculating 900 scenarios that have different strike, dip, length

An open-source and low-cost monitoring system for precision enology.

PubMed

Di Gennaro, Salvatore Filippo; Matese, Alessandro; Mancin, Mirko; Primicerio, Jacopo; Palliotti, Alberto

2014-12-05

Winemaking is a dynamic process, where microbiological and chemical effects may strongly differentiate products from the same vineyard and even between wine vats. This high variability means an increase in work in terms of control and process management. The winemaking process therefore requires a site-specific approach in order to optimize cellar practices and quality management, suggesting a new concept of winemaking, identified as Precision Enology. The Institute of Biometeorology of the Italian National Research Council has developed a wireless monitoring system, consisting of a series of nodes integrated in barrel bungs with sensors for the measurement of wine physical and chemical parameters in the barrel. This paper describes an open-source evolution of the preliminary prototype, using Arduino-based technology. Results have shown good performance in terms of data transmission and accuracy, minimal size and power consumption. The system has been designed to create a low-cost product, which allows a remote and real-time control of wine evolution in each barrel, minimizing costs and time for sampling and laboratory analysis. The possibility of integrating any kind of sensors makes the system a flexible tool that can satisfy various monitoring needs.

A demonstration of real-time connected element interferometry for spacecraft navigation

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Edwards, C.; Rogstad, D.; Fort, D.; White, L.; Iijima, B.

1992-01-01

Connected element interferometry is a technique of observing a celestial radio source at two spatially separated antennas, and then interfering the received signals to extract the relative phase of the signal at the two antennas. The high precision of the resulting phase delay data type can provide an accurate determination of the angular position of the radio source relative to the baseline vector between the two stations. A connected element interferometer on a 21-km baseline between two antennas at the Deep Space Network's Goldstone, CA tracking complex is developed. Fiber optic links are used to transmit the data at 112 Mbit/sec to a common site for processing. A real-time correlator to process these data in real-time is implemented. The architecture of the system is described, and observational data is presented to characterize the potential performance of such a system. The real-time processing capability offers potential advantages in terms of increased reliability and improved delivery of navigational data for time-critical operations. Angular accuracies of 50-100 nrad are achievable on this baseline.

A Methadology for Near-Real-Time Access to Environmental Data through Federation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Orcutt, J. A.; Rajasekar, A.; Moore, R. W.; Vernon, F.

2015-12-01

The availability of near-real-time data can be critical for response to rapid changes including violent storms, tsunamis and earthquakes. While climate changes relatively slowly, compared to a tsunami, the increasing variance in weather over time and warming must also be considered in terms of civil impacts. A simple example is the decreasing resilience of coastal communities to severe weather as sea level increases. The integration of these data for modeling and response activities in near-real-time must be pursued to make data collection practical. We present an approach to data and metadata integration that has occurred over the past 10-20 years in Earth and Ocean sciences that provide a model for the future. The NSF Data Federation Consortium (DFC) is working to integrate data and metadata from a number of fields using iRODS (Integrated Rule-Oriented Data System). iRODS is open source software for building distributed data collections. In particular, the SCION (SCIence Observatory Network) funded by the NSF provides Python-based software for data and metadata access from a variety of near-real-time data sets relevant to climate studies including weather and hazards from other observational systems. As an example, we are working on the integration of data on shore and offshore in southern California using resources from the High Performance Wireless Research and Education Network (HPWREN) and the Southern California Coastal Ocean Observing System (SCCOOS). National and International integration of near-real-time earthquake data through the Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology (IRIS) and the International Federation of Digital Seismic Networks (FDSN) provide a well-integrated data and metadata system for both research and civil uses. ObsPy, written in Python, has proved to be a highly successful methodology for accessing global data from thousands of stations with well-developed metadata. The persistence of the data and metadata, in turn, provides

DABAM: an open-source database of X-ray mirrors metrology

PubMed Central

Sanchez del Rio, Manuel; Bianchi, Davide; Cocco, Daniele; Glass, Mark; Idir, Mourad; Metz, Jim; Raimondi, Lorenzo; Rebuffi, Luca; Reininger, Ruben; Shi, Xianbo; Siewert, Frank; Spielmann-Jaeggi, Sibylle; Takacs, Peter; Tomasset, Muriel; Tonnessen, Tom; Vivo, Amparo; Yashchuk, Valeriy

2016-01-01

An open-source database containing metrology data for X-ray mirrors is presented. It makes available metrology data (mirror heights and slopes profiles) that can be used with simulation tools for calculating the effects of optical surface errors in the performances of an optical instrument, such as a synchrotron beamline. A typical case is the degradation of the intensity profile at the focal position in a beamline due to mirror surface errors. This database for metrology (DABAM) aims to provide to the users of simulation tools the data of real mirrors. The data included in the database are described in this paper, with details of how the mirror parameters are stored. An accompanying software is provided to allow simple access and processing of these data, calculate the most usual statistical parameters, and also include the option of creating input files for most used simulation codes. Some optics simulations are presented and discussed to illustrate the real use of the profiles from the database. PMID:27140145

Open Source Cloud-Based Technologies for Bim

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Logothetis, S.; Karachaliou, E.; Valari, E.; Stylianidis, E.

2018-05-01

This paper presents a Cloud-based open source system for storing and processing data from a 3D survey approach. More specifically, we provide an online service for viewing, storing and analysing BIM. Cloud technologies were used to develop a web interface as a BIM data centre, which can handle large BIM data using a server. The server can be accessed by many users through various electronic devices anytime and anywhere so they can view online 3D models using browsers. Nowadays, the Cloud computing is engaged progressively in facilitating BIM-based collaboration between the multiple stakeholders and disciplinary groups for complicated Architectural, Engineering and Construction (AEC) projects. Besides, the development of Open Source Software (OSS) has been rapidly growing and their use tends to be united. Although BIM and Cloud technologies are extensively known and used, there is a lack of integrated open source Cloud-based platforms able to support all stages of BIM processes. The present research aims to create an open source Cloud-based BIM system that is able to handle geospatial data. In this effort, only open source tools will be used; from the starting point of creating the 3D model with FreeCAD to its online presentation through BIMserver. Python plug-ins will be developed to link the two software which will be distributed and freely available to a large community of professional for their use. The research work will be completed by benchmarking four Cloud-based BIM systems: Autodesk BIM 360, BIMserver, Graphisoft BIMcloud and Onuma System, which present remarkable results.

Fault Tolerant Real-Time Systems

DTIC Science & Technology

1993-09-30

The ART (Advanced Real-Time Technology) Project of Carnegie Mellon University is engaged in wide ranging research on hard real - time systems . The...including hardware and software fault tolerance using temporal redundancy and analytic redundancy to permit the construction of real - time systems whose

Open Source Dataturbine (OSDT) Android Sensorpod in Environmental Observing Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fountain, T. R.; Shin, P.; Tilak, S.; Trinh, T.; Smith, J.; Kram, S.

2014-12-01

The OSDT Android SensorPod is a custom-designed mobile computing platform for assembling wireless sensor networks for environmental monitoring applications. Funded by an award from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, the OSDT SensorPod represents a significant technological advance in the application of mobile and cloud computing technologies to near-real-time applications in environmental science, natural resources management, and disaster response and recovery. It provides a modular architecture based on open standards and open-source software that allows system developers to align their projects with industry best practices and technology trends, while avoiding commercial vendor lock-in to expensive proprietary software and hardware systems. The integration of mobile and cloud-computing infrastructure represents a disruptive technology in the field of environmental science, since basic assumptions about technology requirements are now open to revision, e.g., the roles of special purpose data loggers and dedicated site infrastructure. The OSDT Android SensorPod was designed with these considerations in mind, and the resulting system exhibits the following characteristics - it is flexible, efficient and robust. The system was developed and tested in the three science applications: 1) a fresh water limnology deployment in Wisconsin, 2) a near coastal marine science deployment at the UCSD Scripps Pier, and 3) a terrestrial ecological deployment in the mountains of Taiwan. As part of a public education and outreach effort, a Facebook page with daily ocean pH measurements from the UCSD Scripps pier was developed. Wireless sensor networks and the virtualization of data and network services is the future of environmental science infrastructure. The OSDT Android SensorPod was designed and developed to harness these new technology developments for environmental monitoring applications.

HPC enabled real-time remote processing of laparoscopic surgery

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ronaghi, Zahra; Sapra, Karan; Izard, Ryan; Duffy, Edward; Smith, Melissa C.; Wang, Kuang-Ching; Kwartowitz, David M.

2016-03-01

Laparoscopic surgery is a minimally invasive surgical technique. The benefit of small incisions has a disadvantage of limited visualization of subsurface tissues. Image-guided surgery (IGS) uses pre-operative and intra-operative images to map subsurface structures. One particular laparoscopic system is the daVinci-si robotic surgical system. The video streams generate approximately 360 megabytes of data per second. Real-time processing this large stream of data on a bedside PC, single or dual node setup, has become challenging and a high-performance computing (HPC) environment may not always be available at the point of care. To process this data on remote HPC clusters at the typical 30 frames per second rate, it is required that each 11.9 MB video frame be processed by a server and returned within 1/30th of a second. We have implement and compared performance of compression, segmentation and registration algorithms on Clemson's Palmetto supercomputer using dual NVIDIA K40 GPUs per node. Our computing framework will also enable reliability using replication of computation. We will securely transfer the files to remote HPC clusters utilizing an OpenFlow-based network service, Steroid OpenFlow Service (SOS) that can increase performance of large data transfers over long-distance and high bandwidth networks. As a result, utilizing high-speed OpenFlow- based network to access computing clusters with GPUs will improve surgical procedures by providing real-time medical image processing and laparoscopic data.

Near real-time geomagnetic data for space weather applications in the European sector

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Johnsen, M. G.; Hansen, T. L.

2012-12-01

Tromsø Geophysical Observatory (TGO) is responsible for making and maintaining long time-series of geomagnetic measurements in Norway. TGO is currently operating 3 geomagnetic observatories and 11 variometer stations from southern Norway to Svalbard . Data from these 14 locations are acquired, processed and made available for the user community in near real-time. TGO is participating in several European Union (EU) and European Space Agency (ESA) space weather related projects where both near real-time data and derived products are provided. In addition the petroleum industry is benefiting from our real-time data services for directional drilling. Near real-time data from TGO is freely available for non-commercial purposes. TGO is exchanging data in near real-time with several institutions, enabling the presentation of near real-time geomagnetic data from more than 40 different locations in Fennoscandia and Greenland. The open exchange of non real-time geomagnetic data has been successfully going on for many years through services such as the world data center in Kyoto, SuperMAG, IMAGE and SPIDR. TGO's vision is to take this one step further and make the exchange of near real-time geomagnetic data equally available for the whole community. This presentation contains an overview of TGO, our activities and future aims. We will show how our near real-time data are presented. Our contribution to the space weather forecasting and nowcasting effort in the EU and ESA will be presented with emphasis on our real-time auroral activity index and brand new auroral activity monitor and electrojet tracker.

Archiving and Near Real Time Visualization of USGS Instantaneous Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zaslavsky, I.; Ryan, D.; Whitenack, T.; Valentine, D. W.; Rodriguez, M.

2009-12-01

The CUAHSI Hydrologic Information System project has been developing databases, services and online and desktop software applications supporting standards-based publication and access to large volumes of hydrologic data from US federal agencies and academic partners. In particular, the CUAHSI WaterML 1.x schema specification for exchanging hydrologic time series, earlier published as an OGC Discussion Paper (2007), has been adopted by the United States Geological Survey to provide web service access to USGS daily values and instantaneous data. The latter service, making available raw measurements of discharge, gage height and several other parameters for over 10,000 USGS real time measurement points, was announced by USGS, as an experimental WaterML-compliant service, at the end of July 2009. We demonstrate an online application that leverages the new service for nearly continuous harvesting of USGS real time data, and simultaneous visualization and analysis of the data streams. To make this possible, we integrate service components of the CUAHSI software stack with Open Source Data Turbine (OSDT) system, an NSF-supported software environment for robust and scalable assimilation of multimedia data streams (e.g. from sensors), and interfacing with a variety of viewers, databases, archival systems and client applications. Our application continuously queries USGS Instantaneous water data service (which provides access to 15-min measurements updated at USGS every 4 hours), and maps the results for each station-variable combination to a separate "channel", which is used by OSDT to quickly access and manipulate the time series. About 15,000 channels are used, which makes it by far the largest deployment of OSDT. Using RealTime Data Viewer, users can now select one or more stations of interest (e.g. from upstream or downstream from each other), and observe and annotate simultaneous dynamics in the respective discharge and gage height values, using fast forward or

BabelFish-Tools for IEEE C37.118.2-compliant real-time synchrophasor data mediation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Almas, M. S.; Vanfretti, L.; Baudette, M.

BabelFish (BF) is a real-time data mediator for development and fast prototyping of synchrophasor applications. BF is compliant with the synchrophasor data transmission IEEE Std C37.118.2-2011. BF establishes a TCP/IP connection with any Phasor Measurement Unit (PMU) or Phasor Data Concentrator (PDC) stream and parses the IEEE Std C37.118.2-2011 frames in real-time to provide access to raw numerical data in the LabVIEW environment. Furthermore, BF allows the user to select "data-of-interest" and transmit it to either a local or remote application using the User Datagram Protocol (UDP) in order to support both unicast and multicast communication. In the power systems Wide Area Monitoring Protection and Control (WAMPAC) domain, BF provides the first Free/Libre and Open Source Software (FLOSS) for the purpose of giving the users tools for fast prototyping of new applications processing PMU measurements in their chosen environment, thus liberating them of time consuming synchrophasor data handling and allowing them to develop applications in a modular fashion, without a need of a large and monolithic synchrophasor software environment.

Managing multicentre clinical trials with open source.

PubMed

Raptis, Dimitri Aristotle; Mettler, Tobias; Fischer, Michael Alexander; Patak, Michael; Lesurtel, Mickael; Eshmuminov, Dilmurodjon; de Rougemont, Olivier; Graf, Rolf; Clavien, Pierre-Alain; Breitenstein, Stefan

2014-03-01

Multicentre clinical trials are challenged by high administrative burden, data management pitfalls and costs. This leads to a reduced enthusiasm and commitment of the physicians involved and thus to a reluctance in conducting multicentre clinical trials. The purpose of this study was to develop a web-based open source platform to support a multi-centre clinical trial. We developed on Drupal, an open source software distributed under the terms of the General Public License, a web-based, multi-centre clinical trial management system with the design science research approach. This system was evaluated by user-testing and well supported several completed and on-going clinical trials and is available for free download. Open source clinical trial management systems are capable in supporting multi-centre clinical trials by enhancing efficiency, quality of data management and collaboration.

The INGV Real Time Strong Motion Database

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Massa, Marco; D'Alema, Ezio; Mascandola, Claudia; Lovati, Sara; Scafidi, Davide; Gomez, Antonio; Carannante, Simona; Franceschina, Gianlorenzo; Mirenna, Santi; Augliera, Paolo

2017-04-01

The INGV real time strong motion data sharing is assured by the INGV Strong Motion Database. ISMD (http://ismd.mi.ingv.it) was designed in the last months of 2011 in cooperation among different INGV departments, with the aim to organize the distribution of the INGV strong-motion data using standard procedures for data acquisition and processing. The first version of the web portal was published soon after the occurrence of the 2012 Emilia (Northern Italy), Mw 6.1, seismic sequence. At that time ISMD was the first European real time web portal devoted to the engineering seismology community. After four years of successfully operation, the thousands of accelerometric waveforms collected in the archive need necessary a technological improvement of the system in order to better organize the new data archiving and to make more efficient the answer to the user requests. ISMD 2.0 was based on PostgreSQL (www.postgresql.org), an open source object- relational database. The main purpose of the web portal is to distribute few minutes after the origin time the accelerometric waveforms and related metadata of the Italian earthquakes with ML≥3.0. Data are provided both in raw SAC (counts) and automatically corrected ASCII (gal) formats. The web portal also provide, for each event, a detailed description of the ground motion parameters (i.e. Peak Ground Acceleration, Velocity and Displacement, Arias and Housner Intensities) data converted in velocity and displacement, response spectra up to 10.0 s and general maps concerning the recent and the historical seismicity of the area together with information about its seismic hazard. The focal parameters of the events are provided by the INGV National Earthquake Center (CNT, http://cnt.rm.ingv.it). Moreover, the database provides a detailed site characterization section for each strong motion station, based on geological, geomorphological and geophysical information. At present (i.e. January 2017), ISMD includes 987 (121

The TimeStudio Project: An open source scientific workflow system for the behavioral and brain sciences.

PubMed

Nyström, Pär; Falck-Ytter, Terje; Gredebäck, Gustaf

2016-06-01

This article describes a new open source scientific workflow system, the TimeStudio Project, dedicated to the behavioral and brain sciences. The program is written in MATLAB and features a graphical user interface for the dynamic pipelining of computer algorithms developed as TimeStudio plugins. TimeStudio includes both a set of general plugins (for reading data files, modifying data structures, visualizing data structures, etc.) and a set of plugins specifically developed for the analysis of event-related eyetracking data as a proof of concept. It is possible to create custom plugins to integrate new or existing MATLAB code anywhere in a workflow, making TimeStudio a flexible workbench for organizing and performing a wide range of analyses. The system also features an integrated sharing and archiving tool for TimeStudio workflows, which can be used to share workflows both during the data analysis phase and after scientific publication. TimeStudio thus facilitates the reproduction and replication of scientific studies, increases the transparency of analyses, and reduces individual researchers' analysis workload. The project website ( http://timestudioproject.com ) contains the latest releases of TimeStudio, together with documentation and user forums.

Real-time image processing for particle tracking velocimetry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kreizer, Mark; Ratner, David; Liberzon, Alex

2010-01-01

We present a novel high-speed particle tracking velocimetry (PTV) experimental system. Its novelty is due to the FPGA-based, real-time image processing "on camera". Instead of an image, the camera transfers to the computer using a network card, only the relevant information of the identified flow tracers. Therefore, the system is ideal for the remote particle tracking systems in research and industrial applications, while the camera can be controlled and data can be transferred over any high-bandwidth network. We present the hardware and the open source software aspects of the PTV experiments. The tracking results of the new experimental system has been compared to the flow visualization and particle image velocimetry measurements. The canonical flow in the central cross section of a a cubic cavity (1:1:1 aspect ratio) in our lid-driven cavity apparatus is used for validation purposes. The downstream secondary eddy (DSE) is the sensitive portion of this flow and its size was measured with increasing Reynolds number (via increasing belt velocity). The size of DSE estimated from the flow visualization, PIV and compressed PTV is shown to agree within the experimental uncertainty of the methods applied.

Real-time WAMI streaming target tracking in fog