Engineering Commons^™

Partition-Based Interpolation For Color Filter Array Demosaicking And Super-Resolution Reconstruction, Min Shao, Kenneth E. Barner, Russell C. Hardie

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

A class of partition-based interpolators that addresses a variety of image interpolation applications are proposed. The proposed interpolators first partition an image into a finite set of partitions that capture local image structures. Missing high resolution pixels are then obtained through linear operations on neighboring pixels that exploit the captured image structure. By exploiting the local image structure, the proposed algorithm produces excellent performance on both edge and uniform regions. The presented results demonstrate that partition-based interpolation yields results superior to traditional and advanced algorithms in the applications of color filter array (CFA) demosaicking and super-resolution reconstruction.

Scene-Based Nonuniformity Correction Technique For Focal-Plane Arrays Using Readout Architecture, Balaji Narayanan, Russell C. Hardie, Robert A. Muse

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Spatial fixed pattern noise is a common and major problem in modern infrared imagers due to the nonuniform response of the photodiodes in the focal plane array of the imaging system. In addition, the nonuniform response of the readout and the digitization electronics, involved in multiplexing the signals from the photodiodes, causes further nonuniformity. In this paper, we describe a novel scene based nonuniformity correction algorithm that treats the aggregate nonuniformity in separate stages. Firstly, the nonuniformity from the readout amplifiers is corrected using knowledge of the readout architecture of the imaging system. In the second stage, the nonuniformity resulting …

Nanocharacterization Of Bio-Silica Using Atomic Force And Ultrasonic Force Microscopy, Vinaypreet S. Gill, Kevin P. Hallinan, N. S. Brar

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Publications

Nanotechnology has become central to our research efforts to fabricate relatively smaller size devices, which are more versatile than their older and larger predecessors. Silica is a very important material in this regard. Recently, a new biomimetically inspired path to silica production has been demonstrated. This processing technique was inspired from biological organisms, such as marine diatoms, which produce silica at ambient conditions and almost neutral ph with beautiful control over location and structure. Recently, several researchers have demonstrated that positional control of silica formed could be achieved by application of an electric field to locate charged enzymes responsible for …

Development Of Multiple Growth Strategies For Use In Developing Traffic Forecasts: A Robustness Approach, Deogratias Eustace, Eugene R. Russell, E. Dean Landman

Civil and Environmental Engineering and Engineering Mechanics Faculty Publications

Decisions that may be based on misleading forecasts may lead to a misallocation of funds and to under-performing projects during construction and operation. Poor projections of demographic and socioeconomic data are usually cited as the major source of poor traffic assignment projections and hence, unfavorably conceived planning and construction of street and highway infrastructure facilities.

This report evaluated the accuracy of long range projections by using a transportation study done the in 1970s, projecting transportation demand 20 years into the future. The projected travel model inputs were compared with what actually happened after the horizon year had been reached and …

Quantifying Savings From Improved Boiler Operation, Kevin Carpenter, J. Kelly Kissock

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Publications

On/off operation and excess combustion air reduce boiler energy efficiency. This paper presents methods to quantify energy savings from switching to modulation control mode and reducing excess air in natural gas fired boilers.

The methods include calculation of combustion temperature, calculation of the relationship between internal convection coefficient and gas flow rate, and calculation of overall heat transfer assuming a parallel-flow heat exchanger model. The method for estimating savings from changing from on/off to modulation control accounts for purge and drift losses through the boiler and the improved heat transfer within the boiler due to the reduced combustion gas flow …

Results Of An Interlaboratory Study Of The Astm Standard Test Method For Tensile Properties Of Polymer Matrix Composites D 3039, Margaret Pinnell, Richard Fields, Ronald Zabora

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Faculty Publications

An investigation was conducted on the ASTM Standard Test Method for Tensile Properties of Polymer Matrix Composites (D 3039). This investigation consisted of both preliminary testing and an interlaboratory test program. Information generated from preliminary testing was used to determine the effects of various parameters and to optimize the interlaboratory test plan and test protocol. The interlaboratory study portion of this investigation was conducted on six composite material systems in a variety of lay-up configurations. The number of participating labs ranged from five to nine depending on the material type. Precision statistics were determined for the ASTM D 3039 standard …

Signal Flow Analysis, Partha P. Banerjee

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Signal flow graphs are a viable alternative to block diagrammatic representation of a system. What makes signal flow graphs attractive is that certain features from graph theory can be applied to the simplification and the synthesis of complex systems.

Automobiles And Auto Manufacturing, John Alfred Heitmann

History Faculty Publications

In several important respects the automobile and automobile manufacturing proved to be at the heart of North American life during the 1950s. The decade was one characterized as the age of tail fins and chrome, and the automobile was recognized as something far more than ordinary transportation.

Functional Nanoparticles In Thin Films As Sensing Media, Elena A. Guliants, Ryan Schwarb, Hope Bearbower, James R. Gord, Christopher E. Bunker

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

The combination of unique properties offered by materials on the nanoscale with the increased role of surface chemistry in nanostructured solids makes core-shell nanoparticles extremely attractive for application to "smart" thin-film coatings. Sensing properties of nanoparticle-based thin films were studied in several systems containing organic-coated semiconductor and metallic particles. In semiconductors, the interaction of organic shell and/or thin-film "matrix" with the environment results in changes in the nanoparticle's surface states, altering the optical properties of the thin film. Measuring the electrical properties of thin films composed of metallic cores with hydrocarbon shells offers another mechanism to monitor the local environment …