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There are several important standard laboratory experiments for determining the quality of produced paper in the paper making industry. To know the quality is essential since it defines the use of paper for various purposes. Moreover, customers are expecting a certain degree of quality. Many of paper printability tests are based on off-line visual inspection. Currently these tests are done by printing test marks on a piece of paper and then observing the quality by a human evaluator. In this report visual inspection on paper by machine vision is discussed from a point of off-line industrial measurements. The work focuses on the following paper printability problems: missing dots (Heliotest), print dot density, unevenness of printing image, surface strength (IGT), ink setting, linting, fiber counting, and digital printing. Compared to visual inspection by human evaluation, automated machine vision systems could offer several useful advantages: less deviations in measurements, better measurement accuracy, new printability parameters, shorter measurement times, less manpower to monotonic measurements, many quality parameters by one system, and automatic data transfer to mill level information systems. Current results with paper and board samples indicate that human evaluators could be replaced. However, further research is needed since the printability problems vary mill by mill, there is a large number of various paper and board samples, and the relationships between off-line and on-line measurements must be considered.

Ink jet printability is rapidly becoming a requirement for all multipurpose office papers. These papers must have an optimized balance of properties so they can perform equally well under various printing methods such as xerography, ink jet, and thermal imaging. The office paper of today truly must be a multipurpose copy paper capable of providing good toner adhesion as well as controlled absorption of aqueous ink jet solutions. The demand for ink jet paper is increasing rapidly. The global market for cut-size ink jet papers will expand to nearly 1.4 million tons by the year 2000. By that time the global market for all cut-size multipurpose plain printing papers will grow to nearly twenty million tons. The ink jet printing process places a large volume of aqueous ink on the surface of a substrate. The manner in which the substrate handles that volume of ink determines in large part the quality of the print. Multipurpose office papers are composed chiefly of cellulose fibers, inorganic fillers, and chemical additives. All of these components affect the quality of the sheet as an ink jet substrate. The particle morphology, surface area, and surface treatment of PCC fillers affect the ink jet printability of multipurpose office papers. This paper focuses on results from pilot paper machine and commercial trials performed in an effort to turn 'plain' office papers into high quality multipurpose papers capable of meeting or exceeding ink jet print quality specifications.© (1997) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.

Uncontrolled growth of bacteria and fungi in the papermaking process adversely affects machine runability. How this growth influences factors in the finished sheet and sheet print properties is often overlooked, even though it can have a profound effect on printing characteristics. Many of the materials used in making paper coatings are excellent microbial nutrients. In addition to being nutrients, these compounds are critical to performance. For example, coatings made of poorly preserved clays can form a surface that has fine scratches caused by microagglomeration of the clay particles. This may be caused by microbial degradation of the dispersants in the clays. This paper explores these issues and discusses steps that can be taken to minimize these problems.© (1997) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.

The expression 'Plain' paper was coined in the early days of electrophotography to distinguish the capabilities of the new dry toner based photocopying process which did not require a sensitized or special coated paper to produce an image. Currently 'Plain' paper is considered in the electronic printing industry, to be any uncoated paper, usually of the type used in office photocopying applications. It is assumed that all 'Plain' papers are identical or at least equivalent in their properties such that all papers will give equivalent print quality performance. Due to the wide availability and low price of 'Plain' papers, it is also considered desirable by vendors of electronic marking processes, that their technology be capable of producing good image quality on 'Plain' paper. The chemical and physical differences which can occur among 'Plain' papers are discussed with respect to the specific image quality and engine reliability requirements of the major nonimpact electronic marking technologies, including electrophotography and laser printing, electrographic and ionographic processes, thermal transfer and ink jet. Paper properties of interest include, smoothness, surface energy, electrical resistivity, porosity and aqueous and nonaqueous liquid adsorption. Color printing has added additional requirements to paper quality, if good image quality is to be achieved and maintained. Given the apparently conflicting requirements for some of the electronic marking technologies, it will be a challenge to define a single grade of paper which will produce optimum print quality for all electronic printing processes.© (1995) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.

A multilayer Paper Analytical Device (PAD) is provided for detection of at least two chemical components indicative of a low quality pharmaceutical or dietary supplement product. A method for detection of at least two chemical components indicative of a low quality pharmaceutical or dietary supplement product is also provided that employs a multilayer PAD. A kit is provided for detection of at least two chemical components indicative of a low quality pharmaceutical or dietary supplement product that includes a multilayer PAD and instructions for using the kit.

This paper contains the case description of reviewing of different research papers for scientific conference and Models related to the chosen case description. The evaluation of the business models is based on the Sequal quality framework. This paper is based on the case description as provided in later sections of this paper; however the case is extended and focused as necessary to explain the business models.

During his explorations of Africa, David Livingstone kept a diary and wrote letters about his experiences. Near the end of his travels, he ran out of paper and ink and began recording his thoughts on leftover newspaper with ink made from local seeds. These writings suffer from fading, from interference with the printed text and from bleed through of the handwriting on the other side of the paper, making them hard to read. New image processing techniques have been developed to deal with these papers to make Livingstone's handwriting available to the scholars to read. A scan of the David Livingstone's papers was made using a twelve-wavelength, multispectral imaging system. The wavelengths ranged from the ultraviolet to the near infrared. In these wavelengths, the three different types of writing behave differently, making them distinguishable from each other. So far, three methods have been used to recover Livingstone's handwriting. These include pseudocolor (to make the different writings distinguishable), spectral band ratios (to remove text that does not change), and principal components analysis (to separate the different writings). In initial trials, these techniques have been able to lift handwriting off printed text and have suppressed handwriting that has bled through from the other side of the paper.

Due to the rise in performance of digital printing, image-based applications are gaining popularity. This creates needs for specifying the quality potential of printers and materials in more detail than before. Both production and end-use standpoints are relevant. This paper gives an overview of an on-going study which has the goal of determining a framework model for the visual quality potential of paper in color image printing. The approach is top-down and it is founded on the concept of a layered network model. The model and its subjective, objective and instrumental measurement layers are discussed. Some preliminary findings are presented. These are based on data from samples obtained by printing natural image contents and simple test fields on a wide range of paper grades by ink-jet in a color managed process. Color profiles were paper specific. Visual mean opinion score data by human observers could be accounted for by two or three dimensions. In the first place these are related to brightness and color brightness. Image content has a marked effect on the dimensions. This underlines the challenges in designing the test images.

The whiteness level of a printing paper is considered as an important quality measure. High paper whiteness improves the contrast to printed areas providing a more distinct appearance of printed text and colors and increases the number of reproducible colors. Its influence on perceived color rendering quality is however not completely explained. The intuitive interpretation of paper whiteness is a material with high light reflection for all wavelengths in the visual part of the color spectrum. However, a slightly bluish shade is perceived as being whiter than a neutral white. Accordingly, papers with high whiteness values incline toward bluish-white. In paper production, a high whiteness level is achieved by the use of highly bleached pulp together with high light scattering filler pigment. To further increase whiteness levels expensive additives such as Fluorescent Whitening Agents (FWA) and shading dyes are needed. During the last years, the CIE whiteness level of some commercial available office paper has exceeded 170 CIE units, a level that can only be reached by the addition of significant amounts of FWA. Although paper whiteness is considered as an important paper quality criterion, its influence on printed color images is complicated. The dynamic mechanisms of the human visual system strive to optimize the visual response to each particular viewing condition. One of these mechanisms is chromatic adaptation, where colored objects get the same appearance under different light sources, i.e. a white paper appears white under tungsten, fluorescent and day light. In the process of judging printed color images, paper whiteness will be part of the chromatic adaptation. This implies that variations in paper whiteness would be discounted by the human visual system. On the other hand, high paper whiteness improves the contrast as well as the color gamut, both important parameters for the perceived color reproduction quality. In order to quantify the influence of paper whiteness pilot papers with different amount of FWA but in all other respects similar were produced on a small scale experimental paper machine. The fact that only the FWA content changes reduces the influences of other properties separated from the paper whiteness in the evaluation process. A set of images, all having characteristics with the potential to reveal the influence of the varied whiteness level on color reproduction quality, were printed on the pilot papers in two different printers. Prior to printing the test images in the experiment, ICC-profiles were calculated for all the used printer-substrate combinations. A visual assessment study of the printed samples was carried out in order to relate the influence of the paper whiteness level to perceived color reproduction quality. The results show an improved color rendering quality with increased CIE whiteness value up to a certain level. Any further increase in paper whiteness does not contribute to an improved color reproduction quality. Furthermore, the fact that some printing inks are UV blocking while others are not will introduce a non uniform color shift in the printed image when the FWA activation changes. This non uniform color shift has been quantified both for variations in illuminant as well as variations of FWA content in the paper.

Chemical and biochemical sensing is under the extensive research all over the world and many chemical and biochemical sensors are finding increasing number of applications in industry, environmental monitoring, medicine, biomedicine and chemical analysis. This is evidenced by each-year-growing number of international scientific conferences, in which advances in the field of the sensors are reported. One of the main reason why only a few sensors reach the international market, notwithstanding the high number of laboratory prototype described in many peer reviewed papers, lies in the fact that a biochemical sensor is a highly interdisciplinary "object" the realization of which requires the team work of scientists coming from different areas such as chemistry, physics, optoelectronics, engineering, biochemistry, and medicine. And this peculiarity is not easily found in the research teams. In the present paper, the fundamental bases of chemical and biochemical optical sensing are summarised and the new trends are described.

Today's design-manufacturing interface lacks essential mechanisms to link disparate disciplines and tool sets. In this paper, we describe three specific mechanisms for improving OPC quality via interactions within the design-to-manufacturing flow. Our studies of these improvements have yielded promising results.

Searching for a closed-form exact solution for American put options under the Black-Scholes framework has been a long standing problem in the past; many researchers believe that it is impossible to find such a solution. In this paper, a closed-form exact solution, in the form of a Taylor’s series expansion, of the well-known Black-Scholes 1 equation is presented for the first time. As a result of this analytic solution, the optimal exercise boundary, which is the main difficulty of the problem, is found as an explicit function of the risk-free interest rate, the volatility and the time to expiration.

Since the terrible events of 11 Sep 2001 the response to security vulnerabilities has been to throw “Guns, Gates and Guards” at the problem. Three years later and it is clear that, although this may have had a short-term effect, it is unsustainable and unaffordable in the long term. The war on terrorism is going to be fought for a very long time. Defending against terrorism and enhancing the resilience and robustness of society and its processes now requires constant vigilance. Only technology can provide that vigilance at an efficiency that can provide certainty of detection and fast response. A technology led approach, integrating with people and their processes calls for innovation and a new generation of technology that fuses the physical world with the logical world. This approach is measurable in terms of capability and investment, in the way that the previous Newtonian security approach of cause and effect is not. This paper will address this new security environment and the different approach that R&D has to take to ensure that life and Democracy thrive and terrorism is defeated.

There are many vital issues which are impacting our daily lives and will continue to haunt us as long as we live on this planet of ours. These issues range from food supply availability, drought, coastal zone erosion, volcanoes, hurricanes, terrorism, global warming, earthquakes, water resources, air quality, public health, and agriculture production. Such societal needs are directly linked to our geometric population growth, and abundance of automobiles, industrial emissions, industrial waste and extensive fishing of our oceans and elimination of our ecology. The questions which require serious thoughts, research, coordination, and resources to understand, plan and strike a sensible balance in our daily lives and the above issues are tough to deal with. However, with the advent of remote sensing technologies, tremendous progress has been made in applying space-based and airborne data and products in solving real societal problems. Several of these problems, such as coastal zone erosion, air quality, severe weather, water availability and quality, public health, fires, land slides and others are intricately related; and in the long run can have serious consequences if not properly addressed by scientists, regulatory bodies and policy makers. Although it is a much involved and tangled web to unravel, nevertheless we have an excellent start in understanding some of the phenomena and hopefully can mitigate some of the severe effects by advancing our scientific knowledge. This paper briefly discusses the applications of remote sensing data from Terra, Aqua, and other NASA satellites how to deal with such complex problems; it provides an excellent start.

The eleven universities of the State University System of Florida (SUS-FL) have established a consortium to address the full range of homeland security and domestic preparedness requirements for both Florida and the U.S. The Consortium has established the Florida Homeland Security Institute to provide an effective and efficient mechanism to coordinate, mobilize, combine, and form into teams the diverse, cross-disciplinary expertise, facilities, and established large base of technology development activities within the SUS-FL institutions and their established associates at industrial companies, governmental labs, and other universities. The Florida Consortium and Institute may provide a model for other state university systems for how to combine established resources effectively to address specific homeland security and domestic preparedness needs. This paper describes the Consortium and Institute goals, structure, and operations, with examples of how it has functioned in its brief existence as an effective mechanism for integrating the wide range of university, industry, and government capabilities within the state for addressing homeland security requirements.

A biological(bio)-molecular inspired electronic architecture is presented that offers the potential for defining nanoscale sensor platforms with enhanced capabilities for sensing terahertz (THz) frequency bio-signatures. This architecture makes strategic use of integrated biological elements to enable communication and high-level function within densely-packed nanoelectronic systems. In particular, this architecture introduces a new paradigm for establishing hybrid Electro-THz-Optical (ETO) communication channels where the THz-frequency spectral characteristics that are uniquely associated with the embedded bio-molecules are utilized directly. Since the functionality of this architecture is built upon the spectral characteristics of bio-molecules, this immediately allows for defining new methods for enhanced sensing of THz bio-signatures. First, this integrated sensor concept greatly facilitates the collection of THz bio-signatures associated with embedded bio-molecules via interactions with the time-dependent signals propagating through the nanoelectronic circuit. Second, it leads to a new Multi-State Spectral Sensing (MS3) approach where bio-signature information can be collected from multiple metastable state conformations. This paper will also introduce a new class of prototype devices that utilize THz-sensitive bio-molecules to achieve molecular-level sensing and functionality. Here, new simulation results are presented for a class of bio-molecular components that exhibit the prescribed type of ETO characteristics required for realizing integrated sensor platforms. Most noteworthy, this research derives THz spectral bio-signatures for organic molecules that are amenable to photo-induced metastable-state conformations and establishes an initial scientific foundation and design blueprint for an enhanced THz bio-signature sensing capability.

Standards for creating and integrating information about patients, equipment, and procedures are vitally needed when planning for an efficient Operating Room (OR). The DICOM Working Group 24 (WG24) has been established to develop DICOM objects and services related to Image Guided Surgery (IGS). To determine these standards, it is important to define day-to-day, step-by-step surgical workflow practices and create surgery workflow models per procedures or per variable cases. A well-defined workflow and a high fidelity patient model will be the base of activities for both, radiation therapy and surgery. Considering the present and future requirements for surgical planning and intervention, such a patient model must be n-dimensional, were n may include the spatial and temporal dimensions as well as a number of functional variables. As the boundaries between radiation therapy, surgery and interventional radiology are becoming less well-defined, precise patient models will become the greatest common denominator for all therapeutic disciplines. In addition to imaging, the focus of WG24 should, therefore, also be to serve the therapeutic disciplines by enabling modelling technology to be based on standards.

Papermaking process consists in a succession of unit operations that are successively the forming section, the press section and finally the drying section. Forming and pressing are on the scope of this paper as they may influence the aspect of the studied material: paper. The main objective is to characterize paper and more specifically its visual quality, mainly due to marking which consists in successive white and dark strips. A proposed method is described in order to analyze the quality of this visual aspect of paper, which is a very important factor for the consumer. This paper is therefore devoted to the presentation of an industrial tool to Digital Image Processing that allows the evaluation of cigarette paper marking quality. This problem is delicate as different technical and physical parameters have some influence on the paper appearance. For example the whiteness or the opacity of paper influences the evaluation of the quality of the marking. Furthermore, an expert of paper cigarette who observes the paper lying on a black support carries out the classical test of quality evaluation. Thus the reflection of light is mainly observed instead of the look- through aspect. Usually, this determination is made by the experienced eye of the expert who may distinguish between 5 to 6 classes of paper quality. Moreover, sensibility and subjectivity play an important role in this grading establishment. The aim of the presented tool is to obtain an object classification of the paper marking quality. Image analysis is used in order to mimic the expert experience. In a first step, the image acquisition is done using a standard scanner. Then developed software analyzes the obtained image numerically. The sensibility of the image analysis is high, and the results are repeatable. The classification of different cigarette papers using this method provided the same results as the human expert, pointing out the validity of the developed method. Some experimental results are presented in order to illustrate the industrial interest for this method. We present in a first part the new method to obtain an evaluation of the quality of a material property (paper aspect) from image analysis. Then example of measurements obtained on different paper samples, using a classical scanner, illustrate the proposed methodology. Finally, some comparison between the classifications obtained from the proposed method and the human expertise are presented to underline the interest of the proposed objective method.© (2000) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.

In forming an historical perspective of the development of optical scanning, we ask a probing question: What was the first major optical scanning innovation? We offer one having unexpected attributes, and seek audience ideas. We then demonstrate the pioneering work in Optical Scanning for information transfer, some created long before we arrived on the scene. Our job has been and is: Make it Faster and Better . The body of the presentation addresses how our technology advanced to this useful state.

We study the Turing instability to stationary spatial patterns in reaction-transport systems with inertia. After a brief discussion of hyperbolic reaction-diffusion equations and reaction-Cattaneo equations we focus on reaction random walks, which are the most natural generalization of reaction-diffusion equations. We analyze the effect of inertia in the transport on spatial instabilities of the homogeneous steady state. Direction-dependent reaction walks, where the interaction between particles depends on the direction in which the particles are moving, allow us to take account of an energy requirement for reactive interactions, i.e., an activation energy, in the reaction-transport equation. We compare bifurcation conditions for direction-independent reaction walks and for direction-dependent reaction walks to assess the effect of inertia in the transport and the effect of activation energies in the kinetics on the Turing instability.© (2005) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.

The 'LuminusR' that you see in the title of this paper is a registered trade mark of a security paper product which has patent protection to date in six countries, including the United States. Further patent applications are in progress in over forty other countries. The essential characteristic of LuminusR Paper is that it contains a coloured image that is substantially undetectable when viewed in reflected light but becomes apparent when viewed through transmitted light. The stronger the light source, the more pronounced the image becomes. The purpose of this paper is to explain the technical aspects of the product and to explain, in effect, why it is a patentable, completely new technology for protection against counterfeiting. First, it must be explained that the inventors set out to develop a paper that, in conjunction with the surface print on a document, could not be reproduced by the normal means open to a counterfeiter: especially colour photocopying and Offset printing. During the time that Domtar proceeded to bring the concept to the stage of a commercial product, three other advantages became apparent: (1) Durability in use as proven by lab results and a 'live' circulation trial. (2) Design flexibility: giving a third 'side' to the paper that can receive a design. (3) Processing ability in existing equipment including printing presses and cash handling machinery. I am going to concentrate, however, on the anti-counterfeiting aspects of LuminusR Security Paper as security is the theme of this conference. In this respect, I will cover the following subject areas: (1) Make-up of the product, including production methods; (2) Security elements that can be incorporated to deter counterfeiting; (3) Health and safety aspects; (4) Testing against counterfeiting and simulation; (5) Cost-benefit of the product. I am also going to concentrate on one end-use, bank notes, although LuminusR paper has been tested through use in other security documents, in particular travel documents such as passports and visas.© (1998) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.

Distributing a radiographic image with the verbal report would help to avoid misunderstanding and would aid the referring physician in understanding better the severity of the disease described. With magnetic resonance imaging it is customary in our practice to distribute a copy of the examination to the referring physician. Distributing a film copy of the image is expensive. Based on our initial experience with the Scitex paper printer, we believe that this system provides a paper image of sufficient quality that it would be acceptable as a referrer's copy. Paper copies are cheaper to produce and can be more easily filed with the remainder of the patient's paper based medical record. This presentation discusses the printing method employed by the Scitex printer, demonstrates comparisons between Scitex and laser print images, and discusses the current problems of interfacing the printer to image acquisition devices. As we develop our image management and communication system (IMAC), we anticipate that a need for hard copy images will remain. We discuss the role that we believe this paper printer serves in an IMAC film independent system.© (1994) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.

Ink-jet printers (IJ) were developed in the early 1980s and recently, their use has spread in the fields of business applications and computer graphics. IJs feature a faster printing speed than a thermal transfer printer. The printing quality of IJs has been improved to 400 DPI. It is said that even 600 DPI can be realized. Accordingly, almost the same level of printing quality as that of a laser beam printer (LBP) is possible. A compact model requires space of less than 50% of an LBP and smaller power consumption also should expand the demand of IJs for business application. In addition, with the extension of computer graphics, IJ color printers have been increasing remarkably lately. IJs have many advantages compared with the conventional electro photographic system. In the use of color ink-jet printers, an image quality is important and it is influenced by the applied ink and paper. In this connection, the recent trends are explained.© (1993) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.

Our innate ability to process and interpret large volumes of poorly defined visual data, in essence to perceive visual information, enables us to function effectively in a continually changing complex world. As knowledge engineers, it would be highly desirable to incorporate such flexibility into artificial systems. Fuzzy logic is a mathematical tool created to help synthesize complex systems and decision processes that must deal with imprecise or ambiguous information. In terms of vision, this ambiguity arises from the meanings attached to the sensor inputs and the rules used to describe the relationship between the various informative visual attributes. Notions that pertain to vision perception such as fuzzy images, fuzzy mathematical operators and fuzzy inference procedures are outlined in this paper.© (1992) COPYRIGHT SPIE--The International Society for Optical Engineering. Downloading of the abstract is permitted for personal use only.

For horizontal path observation, atmospheric scene degradation of high resolution infrared (IR) imagery is more than an extinction coefficient derived from LOWTRAN calculations. The reduction in ability to distinguish scene features has three main sources. First, variation of the inherent radiation from the objects and backgrounds in the scene can cause decreased contrast. Second, the measured contrast from distant observation locations can be reduced by attenuation losses due to atmospheric propagation (contrast transmission) and path radiance that cannot be reestablished through sensor gain changes alone. Finally, blurring and distortion of scene details are also caused by thermal and humidity gradient induced optical turbulence and aerosol scattering. The Mobile Imaging Spectroscopy Laboratory (MISL) of the U.S. Army Research Laboratory was used to measure inherent scene dynamics and contrast transmission. Measurements useful for estimating the short and long exposure atmospheric modulation transfer function (MTF) in the IR were also made. An essential element of these measurements is a unique large area (1.8 m by 1.8 m) uniform temperature blackbody with spatial bar patterns. The measurements presented illustrate the dramatic interdependence of inherent contrast changes, contrast transmission, and atmospheric MTF.

After a rapid introduction that presents the main reasons for the renewal of interest for photorefractive holographic memories, we first discuss their potentialities and limitations. We then continue by a presentation and analysis of novel techniques that permit considerable facilitation of the memory operation and improve its capabilities. In conclusion, we indicate envisioned applications for photorefractive holographic memories.

Nationwide BRDF round robin results in the visible and infrared showed the need for standardized scatter measurement and reporting procedures within the optical community. ASTM Subcommittee E12.09 was formed in 1988 to address this need. This presentation reviews the round robin results, the work of E12.09 to promulgate a BRDF Standard Practice, and work on infrared BRDF reference samples.

Large telescopes have been objects of interest and fascination for many years. Today it seems that very large optical systems for ground and space are entering into a new era of development. For ground-based astronomy alone, one can identify a need for up to twenty 7.5-meter-diameter primary mirrors, some of which will go into telescope arrays of such giant mirrors. Possible space-based systems have even greater potential size and resolution capabilities. This talk will focus on the present and the required technology for such telescopes, and will try to sort out the reality and the mere possibilities in the design and fabrication of such next-generation monsters. As no surprise, the work at the University of Arizona will be emphasized.

A specialty area in the commercial photographic industry involves simultaneously producing a plurality of high-quality photographs of varying size and shape from a single photographic negative or digital image. The images are formed on a large piece of photographic paper by a set of lenses having specific magnifications and appropriately located between the negative and paper. Package printers are typically reconfigurable to allow different sets of images to be created; however, such reconfiguration is time consuming. Most often, a package printer is configured and then devoted to a specific format. The case study presented in this paper covers the system requirements, design and fabrication of the various lenses, exposure and color balancing of the lenses, alignment and tolerancing. An interesting aspect of this package printer project was that the client literally built everything in-house including the mechanical housing, film and paper transports, lamp houses, lenses, and coatings. A critical element of the design, fabrication, and assembly of these package printers was tolerancing. Since a large number of these package printers was to be manufactured for their in-house, management needed assurance that the unit could be reasonably manufactured and would be reliable in the several plants around the world. The emphasis of this case study is on the challenge of producibility which required close attention to the capabilities of the various fabrication groups, assemblers, and technicians employed by the client. The project was successful and untold billions of photographs have been made by these package printers.

The development of image simulation techniques which map the effects of a notional, modeled sensor system onto an existing image can be used to evaluate the image quality of camera systems prior to the development of prototype systems. In addition, image simulation or `virtual prototyping' can be utilized to reduce the time and expense associated with conducting extensive field trials. In this paper we examine the development of a perception study designed to assess the performance of the NVESD imager performance metrics as a function of fixed pattern noise. This paper discusses the development of the model theory and the implementation and execution of the perception study. In addition, other applications of the image simulation component including the evaluation of limiting resolution and other test targets is provided.

After the development of the OCAM2 EMCCD fast visible camera [1] dedicated to advanced adaptive optics wavefront sensing, First Light Imaging moved to the SWIR fast cameras with the C-RED One and the C-RED 2 cameras. These cameras and their performances are described extensively in this paper. First Light Imaging C-RED One infrared camera is capable of capturing up to 3500 full frames per second with subelectron readout noise and very low background. C-RED One is based on the last version of the SAPHIRA detector developed by Leonardo UK. This breakthrough has been made possible thanks to the use of an e-APD infrared focal plane array which is a real disruptive technology in imagery. C-RED One is an autonomous system with an integrated cooling system and a vacuum regeneration system. It operates its sensor with a wide variety of read out techniques and processes video on-board thanks to a Xlinks embedded FPGA. In addition to this project, First Light Imaging developed an InGaAs 640x512 fast camera with unprecedented performances in terms of noise, dark and readout speed for equivalent products. This camera is based on the SNAKE SWIR detector from Sofradir and was called C-RED 2. The C-RED 2 characteristics and performances are also fully described in this paper. The C-RED One project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under grant agreement N° 673944. C-RED2 development is supported by the "Investments for the future" program and the Provence Alpes Cote d'Azur Region, in the frame of the CPER.

Open architecture in the context of defense applications encourages collaboration across government agencies and academia. This paper describes a success story in the implementation of an open architecture framework that fosters transparency and modularity in the context of Environmental Awareness for Sensor and Emitter Employment (EASEE), a complex physics-based software package for modeling the effects of terrain and atmospheric conditions on signal propagation and sensor performance. Among the highlighted features in this paper are: (1) a code refactorization to separate sensitive parts of EASEE, thus allowing collaborators the opportunity to view and interact with non-sensitive parts of the EASEE framework with the end goal of supporting collaborative innovation, (2) a data exchange and validation effort to enable the dynamic addition of signatures within EASEE thus supporting a modular notion that components can be easily added or removed to the software without requiring recompilation by developers, and (3) a flexible and extensible XML interface, which aids in decoupling graphical user interfaces from EASEE’s calculation engine, and thus encourages adaptability to many different defense applications. In addition to the outlined points above, this paper also addresses EASEE’s ability to interface with both proprietary systems such as ArcGIS. A specific use case regarding the implementation of an ArcGIS toolbar that leverages EASEE’s XML interface and enables users to set up an EASEE-compliant configuration for probability of detection or optimal sensor placement calculations in various modalities is discussed as well.

At SPIE 2013 in Metrology, Inspection, and Process Control for Microlithography an invited paper was published titled “In-line E-beam wafer metrology and defect inspection: the end of an era for image-based critical dimensional metrology? New life for defect inspection”. Three years have passed and numerous developments have occurred as predicted in this paper. The development of E-beam tools that can concurrently handle metrology and defect applications is one of the primary developments. In this paper, the capabilities of these new E-beam tools and their current use cases will be discussed in the areas of Critical Dimension Uniformity (CDU), In-die overlay, Hot spot and Physical defect inspection. Emphasis will be placed on use cases where “massive” CDU data is collected in order to increase yield learning for manufacturing (14nm) and decrease cycles of learning for development (7nm). Additionally, some of the other subject material from the previous publication will also be discussed such as the current state of E-beam critical dimension image fidelity and physical defect detection capabilities. Lastly, future directions and opportunities for In-line E-beam including Multi-beam and/or Multi-column E-beam will be discussed.

This paper presents the new approach in the analysis of the Quality Management Systems (QMS) of companies, based on the revised standard ISO 9001:2015. In the first part of the paper, QMS based on ISO 9001 certification are introduced; the changes and the updates proposed for the new version of ISO 9001:2015 are critically analyzed, based on the documents elaborated by ISO/TC 176. The approach based on ISO 9001:2015 could be considered as “beginning of a new era in development of quality management systems". A comparison between the between the "old" standard ISO 9001:2008 and the "new" standard ISO 9001:2015 is made. In the second part of the paper, steps to be followed in a company to implement this new standard are presented. A peculiar attention is given to the new concept of risk-based thinking in order to support and improve application of the process based approach. The authors conclude that, by considering risk throughout the organization the likelihood of achieving stated objectives is improved, output is more consistent and customers can be confident that they will receive the expected results. Finally, the benefits of the new approach in the development of quality management systems are outlined, as well as how they are reflected in the management of companies in general and those in electronics field, in particular. As demonstrated in this paper, well understood and properly applied, the new approach based on the revised standard ISO9001:2015 could offer a better quality management for companies operating in electronics and beyond.

In the past few years we investigated effects of perception of combined acoustical and optical stimuli. These investigations were triggered by the quest for coherence effects in artificially illuminated environment in conjunction with acoustic immissions. Further, harmonies and chords transposed down to frequencies near flicker perception carried by power modulated light in combination with the coherent acoustic stimuli in audible range were subject to research. A deeper discussion is found in previous SPIE papers. These chord experiments showed that - depending on the spatial distribution of light sources and their spots - rhythmic patterns in time and space are generated by the beat frequencies occurring between the chord components. While these results might have consequences in problems of occupational medicine - the original intention of such studies - there might be applications in music and entertainment. The recent paper deals with a deeper discussion of the interference process in power domain and the limits of perception. The resulting rhythm patterns show a fine structure beside the main beat resulting from the frequency differences of the components, which was not considered in earlier works, but obviously depends on phase and signal shape of the components. A basic framework for the design of optical rhythm pattern corresponding to certain sounds is derived. Especially interesting is the question of perception of static phase of the components of chords in both acoustical and optical domains. The paper will give some practical examples, which are part of the talk and the multimedia attachment.

The paper deals with the concept of creating the union of Open Laboratories of Ideas, Methods and Practices (OLIMP). It describes the structure designed to simplify the relationship, such as business incubators, start-up accelerators, small innovative enterprises, fabrication laboratories and student centers. We consider their advantages and disadvantages for the specific audience of students and enthusiasts who do not have funding for their own projects. The experience of interaction between the Open Laboratories of Ideas, Methods and Practices and the Student Research Laboratory for Optical Engineering shows the relative impact of structures on each other and the value of using such interaction in the learning process. The paper also addresses issues such as: the motivation of students, enthusiasm for the direction the lab participants identify and maintain the initiatives, profiling in the design, scientific, commercial, social sphere.

The Paper presents the design and development of a blended learning concept for an engineering course in the field of color representation and display technologies. A suitable learning environment is crucial for the success of the teaching scenario. A mixture of theoretical lectures and hands-on activities with practical applications and experiments, combined with the advantages of modern digital media is the main topic of the paper. Blended learning describes the didactical change of attendance periods and online periods. The e-learning environment for the online period is designed toward an easy access and interaction. Present digital media extends the established teaching scenarios and enables the presentation of videos, animations and augmented reality (AR). Visualizations are effective tools to impart learning contents with lasting effect. The preparation and evaluation of the theoretical lectures and the hands-on activities are stimulated and affects positively the attendance periods. The tasks and experiments require the students to work independently and to develop individual solution strategies. This engages and motivates the students, deepens the knowledge. The authors will present their experience with the implemented blended learning scenario in this field of optics and photonics. All aspects of the learning environment will be introduced.

MODerate resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), a remarkable heritage sensor in the fleet of Earth Observing System for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is in space orbit on two spacecrafts. They are the Terra (T) and Aqua (A) platforms which tracks the Earth in the morning and afternoon orbits. T-MODIS has continued to operate over 15 years easily surpassing the 6 year design life time on orbit. Of the several science products derived from MODIS, one of the primary derivatives is the MODIS Cloud Mask (MOD035). The cloud mask algorithm incorporates several of the MODIS channels in both reflective and thermal infrared wavelengths to identify cloud pixels from clear sky. Two of the thermal infrared channels used in detecting clouds are the 6.7 μm and 8.5 μm. Based on a difference threshold with the 11 μm channel, the 6.7 μm channel helps in identifying thick high clouds while the 8.5 μm channel being useful for identifying thin clouds. Starting 2010, it had been observed in the cloud mask products that several pixels have been misclassified due to the change in the thermal band radiometry. The long-term radiometric changes in these thermal channels have been attributed to the electronic crosstalk contamination. In this paper, the improvement in cloud detection using the 6.7 μm and 8.5 μm channels are demonstrated using the electronic crosstalk correction. The electronic crosstalk phenomena analysis and characterization were developed using the regular moon observation of MODIS and reported in several works. The results presented in this paper should significantly help in improving the MOD035 product, maintaining the long term dataset from T-MODIS which is important for global change monitoring.

The Gemini Planet Imager has been successfully obtaining images and spectra of exoplanets, brown dwarfs, and debris and protoplanetary circumstellar disks using its integral field spectrograph and polarimeter. GPI observations are transformed from raw data into high-quality astrometrically and photometrically calibrated datacubes using the GPI Data Reduction Pipeline, an open-source software framework continuously developed by our team and available to the community. It uses a flexible system of reduction recipes composed of individual primitive steps, allowing substantial customization of processing depending upon science goals. This paper provides a broad overview of the GPI pipeline, summarizes key lessons learned, and describes improved calibration methods and new capabilities available in the latest version. Enhanced automation better supports observations at the telescope with streamlined and rapid data processing, for instance through real-time assessments of contrast performance and more automated calibration file processing. We have also incorporated the GPI Data Reduction Pipeline as one component in a larger automated data system to support the GPI Exoplanet Survey campaign, while retaining its flexibility and stand-alone capabilities to support the broader GPI observer community. Several accompanying papers describe in more detail specific aspects of the calibration of GPI data in both spectral and polarimetric modes.

The Southern African Large Telescope (SALT) software control system1 is realised as a distributed control system, implemented predominantly in National Instruments' LabVIEW. The telescope control subsystems communicate using cyclic, state-based messages. Currently, transmitting a message is accomplished by performing an HTTP PUT request to a WebDAV directory on a centralised Apache web server, while receiving is based on polling the web server for new messages. While the method works, it presents a number of drawbacks; a scalable distributed communication solution with minimal overhead is a better fit for control systems. This paper describes our exploration of the Data Distribution Service (DDS). DDS is a formal standard specification, defined by the Object Management Group (OMG), that presents a data-centric publish-subscribe model for distributed application communication and integration. It provides an infrastructure for platform- independent many-to-many communication. A number of vendors provide implementations of the DDS standard; RTI, in particular, provides a DDS toolkit for LabVIEW. This toolkit has been evaluated against the needs of SALT, and a few deficiencies have been identified. We have developed our own implementation that interfaces LabVIEW to DDS in order to address our specific needs. Our LabVIEW DDS interface implementation is built against the RTI DDS Core component, provided by RTI under their Open Community Source licence. Our needs dictate that the interface implementation be platform independent. Since we have access to the RTI DDS Core source code, we are able to build the RTI DDS libraries for any of the platforms on which we require support. The communications functionality is based on UDP multicasting. Multicasting is an efficient communications mechanism with low overheads which avoids duplicated point-to-point transmission of data on a network where there are multiple recipients of the data. In the paper we present a performance evaluation of DDS against the current HTTP-based implementation as well as the historical DataSocket implementation. We conclude with a summary and describe future work.

Quality control is critical to manufacturing. Frequently, techniques are used to define object conformity bounds, based on historical quality data. This paper considers techniques for bespoke and small batch jobs that are not statistical model based. These techniques also serve jobs where 100% validation is needed due to the mission or safety critical nature of particular parts. One issue with this type of system is alignment discrepancies between the generated model and the physical part. This paper discusses and evaluates techniques for characterizing and correcting alignment issues between the projected and perceived data sets to prevent errors attributable to misalignment.

This paper addresses how the image processing steps involved in computational imaging can be adapted to specific image-based recognition tasks, and how significant reductions in computational complexity can be achieved by leveraging the recognition algorithm's robustness to defocus, poor exposure, and the like. Unlike aesthetic applications of computational imaging, recognition systems need not produce the best possible image quality, but instead need only satisfy certain quality thresholds that allow for reliable recognition. The paper specifically addresses light field processing for barcode scanning, and presents three optimizations which bring light field processing within the complexity limits of low-powered embedded processors.

The present remote sensing techniques have imposed limitations in the applications of LIDAR Technology. The fundamental sampling inadequacy of the remote sensing data obtained from satellites is that they cannot resolve in the third spatial dimension, the vertical. This limits our possibilities of measuring any vertical variability in the water column. Also the interaction between the physical and biological process in the oceans and their effects at subsequent depths cannot be modeled with present techniques. The idea behind this paper is to introduce underwater LIDAR measurement system by using a LIDAR mounted on an Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV). The paper introduces working principles and design parameters for the LIDAR mounted AUV (AUV-LIDAR). Among several applications the papers discusses the possible use and advantages of AUV-LIDAR in water pollution detection through profiling of Dissolved Organic Matter (DOM) in water bodies.

Block copolymers, polymers composed of two or more homopolymers covalently bonded together, are currently being investigated as a method to extend optical lithography due to their ability to microphase separate on small size scales. In order to drive down the size that these BCPs phase separate, the BCPs with larger Flory-Huggin's χparameter needs to be found. Typically these BCPs are composed of more dissimilar homopolymers. However, changing these interactions also changes how BCPs interact with their guiding underlayers. In this paper, several block copolymers are simulated annealing on chemoepitaxial guiding underlayers using a coarse-grained molecular dynamics model in order to explore the effect that either energetic asymmetry or density asymmetry in the BCP have on the pattern registration. It is found that energetic asymmetry in BCPs causes one of the blocks to desire to skin, which shifts the composition of the background region that leads to well aligned vertical lamellae formation. It is hypothesized that moderate footing and undercutting at the underlayer or slight skinning at the free surface can increase the kinetics of defect annihilation by decreasing the distance that bridges must form. The density asymmetric BCPs simulated in this paper have different mechanical properties which lead to straighter sidewalls in the BCP film and potentially lead to better pattern registration. It is hypothesized that altering the compressibility of the blocks can alter equilibrium defectivity.

In order to realize online real-time monitoring of the hydraulic bracket support, improve the existing communication system, and improve the reliability of data transmission, this paper set up the communication simulation system and platform to simulate the coal mine communication based CAN bus. Based on the design and analysis of system hardware and software, this paper completed the construction of the whole hardware and the debugging of communication system. The debug end can communicate simulate by the CAN protocol simulation device, and realized the work of the entire communication system. Experiments showed that the monitoring system can work reliably.

Based on the relative theories of quality resource management system and “Internet +”, this paper combines the “Internet +”and quality resource management system. By using quality management process approach and taking computers and databases technology as tools, the system collects, archives and manages the quality data in process network, to supervise and control the process of the quality resource management system more effectively. Based on the quality control process in production site and the characteristics of the process, the paper constructs the frame of the resource management system. By taking the STM32F103 series microcontroller as core controller, the system achieves a network system and collects data automatically. The results show that the system can be positioning problem accurately timely and improves the productivity and quality of products.

The paper presents algorithm of decision making for development strategy of information systems. The process of development is planned taking into account the internal and external factors of the enterprise which affect the prospects of development of both the information system and the whole enterprise. The initial state of the system must be taken into account. The total risk is the criterion for selecting the strategy. The risk is calculated using statistical and fuzzy data of system's parameters. These data are summarized by means of the function of uncertainty. The software for the realization of the algorithm of decision making on choosing the development strategy of information system is developed and created in this paper.

This work scales the present globalism of ecological and energetic problems. The ecological problem is connected with environment pollution by polymeric waste. The energetic problem - with traditional approaches of modern energetic, in particular, use of fossil fuel for energy production and concentration of capacities for ensuring overall performance of global power supply systems that doesn't guarantee a sustainable development of power for long prospect, doesn't provide power safety of the country. The second part of work is devoted to a choice of the most effective solutions of the present global problems. The authors have proposed the plasma-chemical method of the polymer waste processing and developed a schematic diagram of the reactor. The paper contains the results of the theoretical calculation of the polymer waste processing products. The reagents, allowing to obtain hydrogen and other liquid products from polymer waste are selected. It is proposed to use rare elements for increasing the efficiency of hydrogen production from polymer waste. The results of the calculation of the efficiency of hydrogen production from polymer waste using molybdenum are revealed in the paper.

The image quality and resolution will be affected, if the multiplication gain value of EMCCD imaging system is too low or too high. This paper presents the algorithm of EMCCD automatic gain adjustment based on fixed gray level. The algorithm takes the average brightness of the image as a measure of image quality. It calculates the multiplication gain adjustment value through the calculation of average brightness of current frame image, combining the two gray level threshold values and the system exposure function, so that the next frame image will achieve the ideal brightness value. On the basis of the algorithm, this paper builds a multiplication gain adjustment control circuit and a multiplication gain resistor lookup table. Then, we can achieve automatic adjustment of multiplication gain by changing the resistance value of the digital potentiometer in the circuit. Experimental results show that the image quality can be effectively improved, by using the algorithm of automatic gain adjustment based on fixed gray level. After adjustment, the brightness of the image is moderate, contrast enhanced, and the details more clear.

In recent years , laser guided weapons behave very well at destroying the military goals in the local wars, the single-shot probability, effective range and hitting precision getting better. And the semi-active laser guided weapons are the most widely used laser guided weapons. In order to improve the viability and protect important military goals, it’s necessary to study the technology to against the semi-active guided weapons. This paper studies the working principle, the advantages and disadvantages of the semi-active guided weapons at first, and analyze the possibility of laser angle deception jamming system working. Then it analyzes the working principle and process of laser angle deception jamming technology. Finally it designs a half-real simulation system of laser angle deception jamming, which consists of semi-active laser guided weapons simulation system and laser angle deception jamming system. The simulation system demonstrates the working process of the laser angle deception jamming system. This paper provides fundamental base for the research on the countermeasure technology of semi-active laser guided weapons.