Computer vision and color measurement techniques for inline monitoring of cheese curd syneresis

Optical characteristics of stirred curd were simultaneously monitored during syneresis in a 10-L cheese vat using computer vision and colorimetric measurements. Curd syneresis kinetic conditions were varied using 2 levels of milk pH (6.0 and 6.5) and 2 agitation speeds (12.1 and 27.2 rpm). Measured optical parameters were compared with gravimetric measurements of syneresis, taken simultaneously. The results showed that computer vision and colorimeter measurements have potential for monitoring syneresis. The 2 different phases, curd and whey, were distinguished by means of color differences. As syneresis progressed, the backscattered light became increasingly yellow in hue for circa 20 min for the higher stirring speed and circa 30 min for the lower stirring speed. Syneresis-related gravimetric measurements of importance to cheese making (e.g., curd moisture content, total solids in whey, and yield of whey) correlated significantly with computer vision and colorimetric measurements..

Correlation between process cheese meltability determined by sensory analysis, computer vision method and Olson and Price test

The meltabilities of 14 process cheese samples were determined at 2 and 4 weeks after manufacture using sensory analysis, a computer vision method, and the Olson and Price test. Sensory analysis meltability correlated with both computer vision meltability (R-2 = 0.71, P < 0.001) and Olson and Price meltability (R-2 = 0.69, P < 0.001). There was a marked lack of correlation between the computer vision method and the Olson and Price test. This study showed that the Olson and Price test gave greater repeatability than the computer vision method. Results showed process cheese meltability decreased with increasing inorganic salt content and with lower moisture/fat ratios. There was very little evidence in this study to show that process cheese meltability changed between 2 and 4 weeks after manufacture..

An eye for an eye: robust motion segmentation by applying the latest in human vision research

Automatically extracting interesting objects from videos is a very challenging task and is applicable to many research areas such robotics, medical imaging, content based indexing and visual surveillance. Automated visual surveillance is a major research area in computational vision and a commonly applied technique in an attempt to extract objects of interest is that of motion segmentation. Motion segmentation relies on the temporal changes that occur in video sequences to detect objects, but as a technique it presents many challenges that researchers have yet to surmount. Changes in real-time video sequences not only include interesting objects, environmental conditions such as wind, cloud cover, rain and snow may be present, in addition to rapid lighting changes, poor footage quality, moving shadows and reflections. The list provides only a sample of the challenges present. This thesis explores the use of motion segmentation as part of a computational vision system and provides solutions for a practical, generic approach with robust performance, using current neuro-biological, physiological and psychological research in primate vision as inspiration.

Letter processing and font information during reading: beyond distinctiveness, where vision meets design

Letter identification is a critical front end of the reading process. In general, conceptualizations of the identification process have emphasized arbitrary sets of distinctive features. However, a richer view of letter processing incorporates principles from the field of type design, including an emphasis on uniformities across letters within a font. The importance of uniformities is supported by a small body of research indicating that consistency of font increases letter identification efficiency. We review design concepts and the relevant literature, with the goal of stimulating further thinking about letter processing during reading.

Adoption of ICT among small business: vision vs. reality

The aim of this paper is to present a case study of the adoption of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) among 6000 small businesses within a locality of Greater Manchester, England. The paper presents an analysis of factors affecting adoption and discusses the wider implications for achieving the European vision of regional 'digital ecosystems".

The Spanish Ambassador and Samuel Daniel's Vision of the Twelve Goddesses: A New Document [with text]

The performance of Samuel Daniel's masque The Vision of the Twelve Goddesses at court on January 8, 1604 took place in the midst of the preliminary negotiations that would lead to the signing of the Anglo-Spanish peace at Somerset House the following August. Philip III sent a special ambassador to England to congratulate James on his accession, and a series of tussles between Juan de Tassis and his French counterpart ensued. As a recently-discovered document in the Archivo General de Simancas reveals, Anna of Denmark intervened personally to insure that de Tassis, and not the Frenchman, attended the masque. This was a clear signal of James and Anna's peace aims, which de Tassis conveyed to the King of Spain; moreover, he enclosed in his dispatch a text of Daniel's masque which he clearly considered both political intelligence and of interest to the theater-loving Hapsburg monarch. The Simancas text of the Daniel masque is a new version, hitherto unknown, which adds to our knowledge of the circumstances in which the first Stuart masque was performed. Here we present a transcription and annotated translation of both de Tassis' letter and the text of the masque he had compiled for Philip III. (B. C.-E. and M. H.)

Design of a biomimetic skin for an octopus-inspired robot– Part I: characterising octopus skin

Octopus skin samples were tested under quasi-static and scissor cutting conditions to measure the in-plane material properties and fracture toughness. Samples from all eight arms of one octopus were tested statically to investigate how properties vary from arm to arm. Another nine octopus skins were measured to study the influence of body mass on skin properties. Influence of specimen location on skin mechanical properties was also studied. Material properties of skin, i.e. the Young's modulus, ultimate stress, failure strain and fracture toughness have been plotted against the position of skin along the length of arm or body. Statistical studies were carried out to help analyzing experimental data obtained. Results of this work will be used as guidelines for the design and development of artificial skins for an octopus-inspired robot.

Design of a biomimetic skin for an octopus-inspired robot - Part II: Development of the skin artefact

In order to develop skin artefact for an octopus-inspired robot arm, which is designed to be able to elongate 60% of its original length, silicone rubber and knitted nylon sheet were selected to manufacture an artificial skin, due to their higher elastic strain and high flexibility. Tensile and scissors cutting tests were conducted to characterise the matrix and reinforcing materials and the skin artefact. Material properties of the individual and the composite materials were compared with the measured properties of real octopus skin presented in Part I. The Young’s modulus of the skin should be below 20 MPa and the elastic strain range should be over 60%. The fracture toughness should be at least 0.9 kJ·m−2. Tubes made of the skin artefact filled with liquid were tested to study volume change under deformation. Finite element analysis model was developed to simulate the material and arm structure under tensile loading. Results show that the skin artefact developed has similar mechanical properties as the real octopus skin and satisfies all the design specifications of the OCTOPUS robot.

Predictive computed-torque control of a PUMA 560 manipulator robot

This paper describes the integration of constrained predictive control and computed-torque control, and its application on a six degree-of-freedom PUMA 560 manipulator arm. The real-time implementation was based on SIMULINK, with the predictive controller and the computed-torque control law implemented in the C programming language. The constrained predictive controller solved a quadratic programming problem at every sampling interval, which was as short as 10 ms, using a prediction horizon of 150 steps and an 18th order state space model.

Delays versus performance of visually guided systems

The paper presents an overview of dynamic systems with inherent delays in both feedforward and feedback paths and how the performance of such systems can be affected by such delays. The authors concentrate on visually guided systems, where the behaviour of the system is largely dependent on the results of the vision sensors, with particular reference to active robot heads (real-time gaze control). We show how the performance of such systems can deteriorate substantially with the presence of unknown and/or variable delays. Considered choice of system architecture, however, allows the performance of active vision systems to be optimised with respect to the delays present in the system.

Transputer control of a Puma 560 robot via the virtual bus

The robot control problem is discussed with regard to controller implementation on a multitransputer array. Some high-performance aspects required of such controllers are described, with particular reference to robot force control. The implications for the architecture required for controllers based on computed torque are discussed and an example is described. The idea of treating a transputer array as a virtual bus is put forward for the implementation of fast real-time controllers. An example is given of controlling a Puma 560 industrial robot. Some of the practical considerations for using transputers for such control are described.