Computer Sciences Commons^™

Evolved Design Of A Nonlinear Proportional Integral Derivative (Npid) Controller, Shubham Chopra

Dissertations and Theses

This research presents a solution to the problem of tuning a PID controller for a nonlinear system. Many systems in industrial applications use a PID controller to control a plant or the process. Conventional PID controllers work in linear systems but are less effective when the plant or the process is nonlinear because PID controllers cannot adapt the gain parameters as needed. In this research we design a Nonlinear PID (NPID) controller using a fuzzy logic system based on the Mamdani type Fuzzy Inference System to control three different DC motor systems. This fuzzy system is responsible for adapting the …

Memristor-Based Reservoir Computing, Manjari S. Kulkarni

Dissertations and Theses

In today's nanoscale era, scaling down to even smaller feature sizes poses a significant challenge in the device fabrication, the circuit, and the system design and integration. On the other hand, nanoscale technology has also led to novel materials and devices with unique properties. The memristor is one such emergent nanoscale device that exhibits non-linear current-voltage characteristics and has an inherent memory property, i.e., its current state depends on the past. Both the non-linear and the memory property of memristors have the potential to enable solving spatial and temporal pattern recognition tasks in radically different ways from traditional binary transistor-based …

Object Retrieval From Secure Unknown Interior Spaces Using Autonomous Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, John Levous, Julie Hoven, Victor Habgood, Abdulrahman Alotaibi, Brandon Ordway, Garibe Mohammed-Jones, Haole Guo, Filip Cuckov, Chung-Hao Chen

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

This paper describes an autonomous unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) designed to participate in the 23rd annual International Aerial Robotics Competition. The UAV is equipped with onboard sensors and a Harvard architecture 8-bit RISC microcontroller to monitor and locally control its flight telemetry. Additional sensors (and an additional microcontroller) are used for detecting and mapping of structural and environmental objects while the UAV is in flight. The microcontrollers are interfaced with wireless communication modules for transmitting flight telemetry and structural/environmental data to a ground control station that sends the UAV command and control signals required for the mission objectives. The UAV …

Model Individualization For Real-Time Operator Functional State Assessment, Guangfan Zhang, Roger Xu, Wei Wang, Aaron A. Pepe, Feng Li, Jiang Li, Frederick Mckenzie, Tom Schnell, Nick Anderson, Dean Heitkamp

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Proper assessment of Operator Functional State (OFS) and appropriate workload modulation offer the potential to improve mission effectiveness and aviation safety in both overload and under-load conditions. Although a wide range of research has been devoted to building OFS assessment models, most of the models are based on group statistics and little or no research has been directed towards model individualization, i.e., tuning the group statistics based model for individual pilots. Moreover, little emphasis has been placed on monitoring whether the pilot is disengaged during low workload conditions. The primary focus of this research is to provide a real-time engagement …

Performance Analysis Of Two Priority Queuing Systems In Tandem, Faouzi Kamoun

All Works

In this paper, we consider a tandem of two head-of-line (HOL) non-preemptive priority queuing systems, each with a single server and a deterministic service-time. Two classes of traffic are considered, namely high priority and low priority traffic. By means of a generating function approach, we present a technique to derive closed-form expressions for the mean buffer occupancy at each node and mean delay. Finally, we illustrate our solution technique with some numerical examples, whereby we illustrate the starvation impact of the HOL priority scheduling discipline on the performance of the low-priority traffic stream. Our research highlights the important fact that …

Column: Factors Affecting Data Decay, Kevin Fairbanks, Simson Garfinkel

Journal of Digital Forensics, Security and Law

In nuclear physics, the phrase decay rate is used to denote the rate that atoms and other particles spontaneously decompose. Uranium-235 famously decays into a variety of daughter isotopes including Thorium and Neptunium, which themselves decay to others. Decay rates are widely observed and wildly different depending on many factors, both internal and external. U-235 has a half-life of 703,800,000 years, for example, while free neutrons have a half-life of 611 seconds and neutrons in an atomic nucleus are stable.

Technology Corner Automated Data Extraction Using Facebook, Nick V. Flor

Journal of Digital Forensics, Security and Law

Because of Facebook’s popularity, law enforcement agents often use it as a key source of evidence. But like many user digital trails, there can be a large amount of data to extract for analysis. In this paper, we explore the basics of extracting data programmatically from a user’s Facebook via a Web app. A data extraction app requests data using the Facebook Graph API, and Facebook returns a JSON object containing the data. Before an app can access a user’s Facebook data, the user must log into Facebook and give permission. Thus, this approach is limited to situations where users …

Book Review: Mastering Windows Network Forensics And Investigation, 2/E, John C. Ebert

Journal of Digital Forensics, Security and Law

The book is available as a paperback and e-book. The e-book versions allow you to preview several chapters at any of a number of online vendors. The e-book prices vary from the same as the soft cover version ($59.99) to about $38.99. Some of the vendor's e-books retain the color illustrations found in the print version, but others produce them in grey scale, so you might want to look out for that. The book is divided into four parts (17 chapters) plus two appendices.

I am compelled to give the book illustrations a highly unfavorable assessment regarding their readability qualities. …

Column: Analysis Of Digital Traces, Fred Cohen

Journal of Digital Forensics, Security and Law

In part 1 of this series (Cohen, 2011a), Analysis of digital traces is a foundational process by which the examiner, typically using computer software tools, comes to understand and answer basic questions regarding digital traces.

An Australian Perspective On The Challenges For Computer And Network Security For Novice Endusers, Patryk Szewczyk

Journal of Digital Forensics, Security and Law

It is common for end-users to have difficulty in using computer or network security appropriately and thus have often been ridiculed when misinterpreting instructions or procedures. This discussion paper details the outcomes of research undertaken over the past six years on why security is overly complex for endusers. The results indicate that multiple issues may render end-users vulnerable to security threats and that there is no single solution to address these problems. Studies on a small group of senior citizens has shown that educational seminars can be beneficial in ensuring that simple security aspects are understood and used appropriately.

Automated Identification And Reconstruction Of Youtube Video Access, Jonathan Patterson, Christopher Hargreaves

Journal of Digital Forensics, Security and Law

YouTube is one of the most popular video-sharing websites on the Internet, allowing users to upload, view and share videos with other users all over the world. YouTube contains many different types of videos, from homemade sketches to instructional and educational tutorials, and therefore attracts a wide variety of users with different interests. The majority of YouTube visits are perfectly innocent, but there may be circumstances where YouTube video access is related to a digital investigation, e.g. viewing instructional videos on how to perform potentially unlawful actions or how to make unlawful articles. When a user accesses a YouTube video …

Book Review: System Forensics, Investigation, And Response, Nate Keith

Journal of Digital Forensics, Security and Law

I recently expressed an interest to a respected colleague in finding a way to “give back” to the forensic community. He suggested writing a review for a text he recently received and provide feedback to the community. It is my intent to present an objective analysis of System Forensics, Investigation, and Response.

Identifying Trace Evidence From Target-Specific Data Wiping Application Software, Gregory H. Carlton, Gary C. Kessler

Journal of Digital Forensics, Security and Law

One area of particular concern for computer forensics examiners involves situations in which someone utilized software applications to destroy evidence. There are products available in the marketplace that are relatively inexpensive and advertised as being able to destroy targeted portions of data stored within a computer system. This study was undertaken to analyze a subset of these tools in order to identify trace evidence, if any, left behind on disk media after executing these applications. We evaluated five Windows 7 compatible software products whose advertised features include the ability for users to wipe targeted files, folders, or evidence of selected …

Table Of Contents

Journal of Digital Forensics, Security and Law

No abstract provided.

Technology Corner: A Regular Expression Training App, Nick V. Flor

Journal of Digital Forensics, Security and Law

Regular expressions enable digital forensic analysts to find information in files. The best way for an analyst to become proficient in writing regular expressions is to practice. This paper presents the code for an app that allows an analyst to practice writing regular expressions.

Back Matter

Journal of Digital Forensics, Security and Law

No abstract provided.

Table Of Contents

Journal of Digital Forensics, Security and Law

No abstract provided.

Extraction Of Electronic Evidence From Voip: Identification & Analysis Of Digital Speech, David Irwin, Arek Dadej, Jill Slay

Journal of Digital Forensics, Security and Law

The Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) is increasing in popularity as a cost effective and efficient means of making telephone calls via the Internet. However, VoIP may also be an attractive method of communication to criminals as their true identity may be hidden and voice and video communications are encrypted as they are deployed across the Internet. This produces a new set of challenges for forensic analysts compared with traditional wire-tapping of the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) infrastructure, which is not applicable to VoIP. Therefore, other methods of recovering electronic evidence from VoIP are required. This research investigates the …

Book Review: Dispute Resolution And E-Discovery, Milton Luoma

Journal of Digital Forensics, Security and Law

As is apparent from its title, this book tackles two very current and difficult legal issues – electronic discovery and dispute resolution. The authors tie the two legal concepts together in an effort to provide litigants and practitioners a less expensive and less time consuming alternative than is typically the case with traditional litigation and court proceedings. By including electronic discovery in the discussions, the authors recognize the importance and significance of electronic discovery in mediation and arbitration as it is in traditional litigation.

On The Development Of A Digital Forensics Curriculum, Manghui Tu, Dianxiang Xu, Samsuddin Wira, Cristian Balan, Kyle Cronin

Journal of Digital Forensics, Security and Law

Computer Crime and computer related incidents continue their prevalence and frequency, resulting in losses approaching billions of dollars. To fight against these crimes and frauds, it is urgent to develop digital forensics education programs to train a suitable workforce that can effectively investigate computer crimes and incidents. There is presently no standard to guide the design of digital forensics curriculum for an academic program. In this research, previous work on digital forensics curriculum design and existing education programs are thoroughly investigated. Both digital forensics educators and practitioners were surveyed and results were analyzed to determine the industry and law enforcement …

The Science Of Digital Forensics: Recovery Of Data From Overwritten Areas Of Magnetic Media, Fred Cohen

Journal of Digital Forensics, Security and Law

The first time I encountered data loss and recovery effects of magnetic memory was as a night and weekend computer operator for the computer science department of Carnegie-Mellon University in the 1973-1974 time frame. Part of my job involved dealing directly with outages and failures associated with magnetic memory components used in what, at the time, were large computer systems. On occasions, portions of magnetic core memory or disk drives would encounter various failure modes and the systems using these devices would have to be reconfigured to operate without the failed components until repair personnel could come in to repair …

Automatic Crash Recovery: Internet Explorer's Black Box, John Moran, Douglas Orr

Journal of Digital Forensics, Security and Law

A good portion of today's investigations include, at least in part, an examination of the user's web history. Although it has lost ground over the past several years, Microsoft's Internet Explorer still accounts for a large portion of the web browser market share. Most users are now aware that Internet Explorer will save browsing history, user names, passwords and form history. Consequently some users seek to eliminate these artifacts, leaving behind less evidence for examiners to discover during investigations. However, most users, and probably a good portion of examiners are unaware Automatic Crash Recovery can leave a gold mine of …

Book Review: The Software Ip Detective's Handbook: Measurement, Comparison, And Infringement Detections, Diane Barrett

Journal of Digital Forensics, Security and Law

Do not the book title fool you into thinking that the book is only for those looking to detect software infringement detection. It is a comprehensive look at software intellectual property. The book covers a wide range of topics and has something to offer for just about everyone from lawyers to programmers.

“Preemptive Suppression” – Judges Claim The Right To Find Digital Evidence Inadmissible Before It Is Even Discovered, Bob Simpson

Journal of Digital Forensics, Security and Law

Vermont state prosecutors have asked the Vermont Supreme Court to end a state trial judge’s practice of attaching conditions to computer warrants. The Vermont judge’s conditions are drawn from five conditions established in the 2009 decision of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in the Comprehensive Drug Testing, Inc. case (CDT II). This is the first time the validity of the “CDT conditions” will be decided by a state court of final jurisdiction in the United States

Real-Time Anomaly Detection In Full Motion Video, Glenn Konowicz,, Jiang Li, Donnie Self (Ed.)

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Improvement in sensor technology such as charge-coupled devices (CCD) as well as constant incremental improvements in storage space has enabled the recording and storage of video more prevalent and lower cost than ever before. However, the improvements in the ability to capture and store a wide array of video have required additional manpower to translate these raw data sources into useful information. We propose an algorithm for automatically detecting anomalous movement patterns within full motion video thus reducing the amount of human intervention required to make use of these new data sources. The proposed algorithm tracks all of the objects …

Sparse Coding For Hyperspectral Images Using Random Dictionary And Soft Thresholding, Ender Oguslu, Khan Iftekharuddin, Jiang Li, Mark Allen Neifeld (Ed.), Amit Ashok (Ed.)

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Many techniques have been recently developed for classification of hyperspectral images (HSI) including support vector machines (SVMs), neural networks and graph-based methods. To achieve good performances for the classification, a good feature representation of the HSI is essential. A great deal of feature extraction algorithms have been developed such as principal component analysis (PCA) and independent component analysis (ICA). Sparse coding has recently shown state-of-the-art performances in many applications including image classification. In this paper, we present a feature extraction method for HSI data motivated by a recently developed sparse coding based image representation technique. Sparse coding consists of a …

Mathematical Model Development Of Super-Resolution Image Wiener Restoration, Amr H. Yousef, Jiang Li, Mohammad A. Karim

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

In super-resolution (SR), a set of degraded low-resolution (LR) images are used to reconstruct a higher-resolution image that suffers from acquisition degradations. One way to boost SR images visual quality is to use restoration filters to remove reconstructed images artifacts. We propose an efficient method to optimally allocate the LR pixels on the high-resolution grid and introduce a mathematical derivation of a stochastic Wiener filter. It relies on the continuous-discrete-continuous model and is constrained by the periodic and nonperiodic interrelationships between the different frequency components of the proposed SR system. We analyze an end-to-end model and formulate the Wiener filter …

Fast Stochastic Wiener Filter For Super-Resolution Image Restoration With Information Theoretic Visual Quality Assessment, Amr Hussein Yousef, Jiang Li, Mohammad Karim, Mark Allen Neifeld (Ed.), Amit Ashok (Ed.)

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Super-resolution (SR) refers to reconstructing a single high resolution (HR) image from a set of subsampled, blurred and noisy low resolution (LR) images. The reconstructed image suffers from degradations such as blur, aliasing, photo-detector noise and registration and fusion error. Wiener filter can be used to remove artifacts and enhance the visual quality of the reconstructed images. In this paper, we introduce a new fast stochastic Wiener filter for SR reconstruction and restoration that can be implemented efficiently in the frequency domain. Our derivation depends on the continuous-discrete-continuous (CDC) model that represents most of the degradations encountered during the image-gathering …

Toward Automatic Subpixel Registration Of Unmanned Airborne Vehicle Images, Amr Hussein Yousef, Jiang Li, Mohammad Karim, Mark Allen Neifeld (Ed.), Amit Ashok (Ed.)

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

Many applications require to register images within subpixel accuracy like computer vision especially super-resolution (SR) where the estimated subpixel shifts are very crucial in the reconstruction and restoration of SR images. In our work we have an optical sensor that is mounted on an unmanned airborne vehicle (UAV) and captures a set of images that contain sufficient overlapped area required to reconstruct a SR image. Due to the wind, The UAV may encounter rotational effects such as yaw, pitch and roll which can distort the acquired as well as processed images with shear, tilt or perspective distortions. In this paper …

Methods And Algorithms For Scalable Verification Of Asynchronous Designs, Haiqiong Yao

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Concurrent systems are getting more complex with the advent of multi-core processors and the support of concurrent programs. However, errors of concurrent systems are too subtle to detect with the traditional testing and simulation. Model checking is an effective method to verify concurrent systems by exhaustively searching the complete state space exhibited by a system. However, the main challenge for model checking is state explosion, that is the state space of a concurrent system grows exponentially in the number of components of the system. The state space explosion problem prevents model checking from being applied to systems in realistic size. …