Hierarchical Clustering Algorithm for Land Cover Mapping Using Satellite Images

This paper presents hierarchical clustering algorithms for land cover mapping problem using multi-spectral satellite images. In unsupervised techniques, the automatic generation of number of clusters and its centers for a huge database is not exploited to their full potential. Hence, a hierarchical clustering algorithm that uses splitting and merging techniques is proposed. Initially, the splitting method is used to search for the best possible number of clusters and its centers using Mean Shift Clustering (MSC), Niche Particle Swarm Optimization (NPSO) and Glowworm Swarm Optimization (GSO). Using these clusters and its centers, the merging method is used to group the data points based on a parametric method (k-means algorithm). A performance comparison of the proposed hierarchical clustering algorithms (MSC, NPSO and GSO) is presented using two typical multi-spectral satellite images - Landsat 7 thematic mapper and QuickBird. From the results obtained, we conclude that the proposed GSO based hierarchical clustering algorithm is more accurate and robust.

Nonuniform random geometric graphs with location-dependent radii

We propose a distribution-free approach to the study of random geometric graphs. The distribution of vertices follows a Poisson point process with intensity function n f(center dot), where n is an element of N, and f is a probability density function on R-d. A vertex located at x connects via directed edges to other vertices that are within a cut-off distance r(n)(x). We prove strong law results for (i) the critical cut-off function so that almost surely, the graph does not contain any node with out-degree zero for sufficiently large n and (ii) the maximum and minimum vertex degrees. We also provide a characterization of the cut-off function for which the number of nodes with out-degree zero converges in distribution to a Poisson random variable. We illustrate this result for a class of densities with compact support that have at most polynomial rates of decay to zero. Finally, we state a sufficient condition for an enhanced version of the above graph to be almost surely connected eventually.

Determination of Isospectral Nonuniform Rotating Beams

In this paper we look for nonuniform rotating beams that are isospectral to a given uniform nonrotating beam. A rotating nonuniform beam is isospectral to the given uniform nonrotating beam if both the beams have the same spectral properties, i.e., both the beams have the same set of natural frequencies under a given boundary condition. The Barcilon-Gottlieb type transformation is proposed that converts the governing equation of a rotating beam to that of a uniform nonrotating beam. We show that there exist rotating beams isospectral to a given uniform nonrotating beam under some special conditions. The boundary conditions we consider are clamped-free and hinged-free with an elastic hinge spring. An upper bound on the rotation speed for which isospectral beams exist is proposed. The mass and stiffness distributions for these nonuniform rotating beams which are isospectral to the given uniform nonrotating beam are obtained. We use these mass and stiffness distributions in a finite element analysis to show that the obtained beams are isospectral to the given uniform nonrotating beam. A numerical example of a beam having a rectangular cross section is presented to show the application of our analysis. DOI: 10.1115/1.4006460]

Fabrication and characterization of micro-arc oxidized fluoride containing titania films on Cp Ti

The present study is focussed at establishing an appropriate electrolyte system for developing electrochemically stable and fluorine (F) containing titania (F-TiO2) films on Cp Ti by micro-arc oxidation (MAO) technique. To fabricate the F-TiO2 films on Cp Ti, different electrolyte solutions of chosen concentrations of tri-sodium orthophosphate (TSOP, Na3PO4 center dot I2H2O), potassium hydroxide (KOH) and various F-containing compounds such as ammonium fluoride (NH4F), potassium fluoride (KF), sodium fluoride (NaF) and potassium fluorotitanate (K2TiF6) are employed. The structural and morphological characteristics, thickness and elemental composition of the developed films have been assessed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) techniques. The in-vitro electrochemical corrosion behavior of the films was studied under Kokubo simulated body fluid (SBF) environment by potentiodynamic polarization, long term potential measurement and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) methods. The XRD and SEM-EDS results show that the rutile content in the films vary in the range of 15-37 wt% and the F and P contents in the films is found to be in the range of 2-3 at% and 2.9-4.7 at% respectively, suggesting that the anatase to rutile phase transformation and the incorporation of F and P into the films are significantly controlled by the respective electrolyte solution. The SEM elemental mapping results show that the electrolyte borne F and P elements are incorporated and distributed uniformly in all the films. Among all the films under study, the film developed with 5 g TSOP+2 g KOH+3 g K2TiF6 electrolyte system exhibits considerably improved in-vitro corrosion resistance and therefore best suited for biomedical applications. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd and Techna Group S.r.l. All rights reserved.

Quasi-based hierarchical clustering for land cover mapping using satellite images

This paper presents an improved hierarchical clustering algorithm for land cover mapping problem using quasi-random distribution. Initially, Niche Particle Swarm Optimization (NPSO) with pseudo/quasi-random distribution is used for splitting the data into number of cluster centers by satisfying Bayesian Information Criteria (BIC). Themain objective is to search and locate the best possible number of cluster and its centers. NPSO which highly depends on the initial distribution of particles in search space is not been exploited to its full potential. In this study, we have compared more uniformly distributed quasi-random with pseudo-random distribution with NPSO for splitting data set. Here to generate quasi-random distribution, Faure method has been used. Performance of previously proposed methods namely K-means, Mean Shift Clustering (MSC) and NPSO with pseudo-random is compared with the proposed approach - NPSO with quasi distribution(Faure). These algorithms are used on synthetic data set and multi-spectral satellite image (Landsat 7 thematic mapper). From the result obtained we conclude that use of quasi-random sequence with NPSO for hierarchical clustering algorithm results in a more accurate data classification.

Mapping joint ROM on a cube using electromagnetic trackers

This paper presents a unified framework using the unit cube for measurement, representation and usage of the range of motion (ROM) of body joints with multiple degrees of freedom (d.o.f) to be used for digital human models (DHM). Traditional goniometry needs skill and kn owledge; it is intrusive and has limited applicability for multi-d.o.f. joints. Measurements using motion capture systems often involve complicated mathematics which itself need validation. In this paper we use change of orientation as the measure of rotation; this definition does not require the identification of any fixed axis of rotation. A two-d.o.f. joint ROM can be represented as a Gaussian map. Spherical polygon representation of ROM, though popular, remains inaccurate, vulnerable due to singularities on parametric sphere and difficult to use for point classification. The unit cube representation overcomes these difficulties. In the work presented here, electromagnetic trackers have been effectively used for measuring the relative orientation of a body segment of interest with respect to another body segment. The orientation is then mapped on a surface gridded cube. As the body segment is moved, the grid cells visited are identified and visualized. Using the visual display as a feedback, the subject is instructed to cover as many grid cells as he can. In this way we get a connected patch of contiguous grid cells. The boundary of this patch represents the active ROM of the concerned joint. The tracker data is converted into the motion of a direction aligned with the axis of the segment and a rotation about this axis later on. The direction identifies the grid cells on the cube and rotation about the axis is represented as a range and visualized using color codes. Thus the present methodology provides a simple, intuitive and accura te determination and representation of up to 3 d.o.f. joints. Basic results are presented for the shoulder. The measurement scheme to be used for wrist and neck, and approach for estimation of the statistical distribution of ROM for a given population are also discussed.

Mapping the apoptosis inducing domain of an immunomodulatory protein: glycodelin A

Glycodelin A (GdA) is a dimeric glycoprotein synthesized by the human endometrium under progesterone regulation. Based on the high sequence similarity with beta-lactoglobulin, it is placed under the lipocalin superfamily. The protein is one of the local immunomodulators present at the feto-maternal interface which affects both the innate as well as the acquired arms of the immune system, thereby bringing about successful establishment and progression of pregnancy. Our previous studies revealed that the domain responsible for the immunosuppressive activity of glycodelin lies on its protein backbone and the glycans modulate the same. This study attempts to further delineate the apoptosis inducing region of GdA. Our results demonstrate that the stretch of amino acid sequence between Met24 to Leu105 is necessary and sufficient to inhibit proliferation of T cells and induce apoptosis in them. Further, within this region the key residues involved in harboring the activity were shown to be present between Asp52 and Ser65.

Towards the understanding of formation of micro/nano holes of Ge/GeO2 through phase mapping

Here, we report for the first time a simple thermal oxidation strategy for the large area synthesis of Ge/GeO2 nanoholes from Ge and studied the luminescence of Ge/GeO2 and hole formation mechanism through phase and luminescence mapping. Photoluminescence mapping reveals that the emission in the visible range is only from the hole region, which provokes the necessity of the nanoholes. Such materials can also be used to convert ultraviolet to visible radiation for detection by conventional phototubes and to coat blue or ultraviolet diodes to obtain white light.

Position control of DC motors with experience mapping based prediction controller

The paper presents a new controller inspired by the human experience based, voluntary body action control (dubbed motor control) learning mechanism. The controller is called Experience Mapping based Prediction Controller (EMPC). EMPC is designed with auto-learning features without the need for the plant model. The core of the controller is formed around the motor action prediction-control mechanism of humans based on past experiential learning with the ability to adapt to environmental changes intelligently. EMPC is utilized for high precision position control of DC motors. The simulation results are presented to show that accurate position control is achieved using EMPC for step and dynamic demands. The performance of EMPC is compared with conventional PD controller and MRAC based position controller under different system conditions. Position Control using EMPC is practically implemented and the results are presented.

Hardening and corrosion behaviour of copper added SUS 304H austenitic steels subjected to thermal cycling

This research was aimed at determining optimum Cu content for the alloy design of SUS 30411 austenitic steels having enhanced heat and corrosion resistance. Samples of the steel containing 1, 3, and 5 wt.% Cu were subjected to repeated heating and cooling to a temperature of 760 degrees C and to a maximum of 15 cycles. Hardness measurement and the corrosion behaviour in 1M NaCl solution were evaluated. The hardness increases with an increase in the number of heating cycles for the three compositions. The hardening response to the thermal cycles is however higher for the 1 wt.% Cu composition and decreases with an increase in the Cu wt.%. The SUS 30411 steel containing 3 wt.% Cu exhibited the least susceptibility to corrosion in the 1M NaCl solution irrespective of the number of heating cycles. The SUS 30411 steel containing 1 wt.% Cu was found to exhibit the highest susceptibility to corrosion for all heating cycles compared.

Effect of Texture and Grain Size on Bio-Corrosion Response of Ultrafine-Grained Titanium

The bio-corrosion response of ultrafine-grained commercially pure titanium processed by different routes of equal-channel angular pressing has been studied in simulated body fluid. The results indicate that the samples processed through route B-c that involved rotation of the workpiece by 90 deg in the same sense between each pass exhibited higher corrosion resistance compared to the ones processed by other routes of equal-channel angular pressing, as well as the coarse-grained sample. For a similar grain size, the higher corrosion resistance of the samples exhibiting off-basal texture compared to shear texture indicates the major role of texture in corrosion behavior. It is postulated that an optimum combination of microstructure and crystallographic texture can lead to high strength and excellent corrosion resistance.

Preparation of Self Assembled Sodium Oleate Monolayer on Mild Steel and Its Corrosion Inhibition Behavior in Saline water

A self assembled monolayer (SAM) of sodium oleate was generated on mild steel by the dip coating method. Formation of the SAM on mild steel was examined using Infrared Reflection Absorption Spectroscopy (IRRAS) and contact angle measurements. The chemical and anticorrosive properties of the SAM were analyzed using different techniques. IRRAS and water contact angle data revealed the crystallinity and chemical stability of the SAM modified mild steel. The electrochemical measurements showed that the mild steel with the sodium oleate derived SAM exhibited better corrosion resistance in saline water. The effect of temperature and pH on the SAM formation and its anti corrosion ability was explored.

Simultaneous source localization and boundary mapping for contaminants

This paper addresses the problem of localizing the sources of contaminants spread in the environment, and mapping the boundary of the affected region using an innovative swarm intelligence based technique. Unlike most work in this area the algorithm is capable of localizing multiple sources simultaneously while also mapping the boundary of the contaminant spread. At the same time the algorithm is suitable for implementation using a mobile robotic sensor network. Two types of agents, called the source localization agents (or S-agents) and boundary mapping agents (or B-agents) are used for this purpose. The paper uses the basic glowworm swarm optimization (GSO) algorithm, which has been used only for multiple signal source localization, and modifies it considerably to make it suitable for both these tasks. This requires the definition of new behaviour patterns for the agents based on their terminal performance as well as interactions between them that helps the swarm to split into subgroups easily and identify contaminant sources as well as spread along the boundary to map its full length. Simulations results are given to demonstrate the efficacy of the algorithm.

Biofouling and microbially influenced corrosion of stainless steels

Stainless steels are among the most investigated materials on biofouling and microbially-influenced corrosion (MIC). Although, generally corrosion-resistant owing to tenacious and passive surface film due to chromium, stainless steels are susceptible to extensive biofouling in subsoil, fresh water and sea water and chemical process environments. Biofilms influence their corrosion behavior due to corrosion potential ennoblement and sub-surface pitting. Both aerobic and anaerobic microorganisms catalyse microbial corrosion of stainless steels through biotic and abiotic mechanisms. MIC of stainless steels is common adjacent to welds at the heat-affected zone. Both austenite and delta ferrite phases may be susceptible. Even super stainless steels are found to be amenable to biofouling and MIC. Microbiological, electrochemical as well as physicochemical aspects of MIC pertaining to stainless steels in different environments are analyzed.

A Contraction Mapping Approach for Robust Estimation of Lagged Autocorrelation

We consider the zero-crossing rate (ZCR) of a Gaussian process and establish a property relating the lagged ZCR (LZCR) to the corresponding normalized autocorrelation function. This is a generalization of Kedem's result for the lag-one case. For the specific case of a sinusoid in white Gaussian noise, we use the higher-order property between lagged ZCR and higher-lag autocorrelation to develop an iterative higher-order autoregressive filtering scheme, which stabilizes the ZCR and consequently provide robust estimates of the lagged autocorrelation. Simulation results show that the autocorrelation estimates converge in about 20 to 40 iterations even for low signal-to-noise ratio.