The Object Management Group's (OMG) Model Driven Architecture (MDA) strategy envisages a world where models play a more direct role in software production, being amenable to manipulation and transformation by machine. Model Driven Engineering (MDE) is wider in scope than MDA. MDE combines process and analysis with architecture. This article sets out a framework for model driven engineering, which can be used as a point of reference for activity in this area. It proposes an organisation of the modelling 'space' and how to locate models in that space. It discusses different kinds of mappings between models. It explains why process and architecture are tightly connected. It discusses the importance and nature of tools. It identifies the need for defining families of languages and transformations, and for developing techniques for generating/configuring tools from such definitions. It concludes with a call to align metamodelling with formal language engineering techniques.

Model Driven Engineering

Developing on-board automotive driver assistance systems aiming to alert drivers about driving environments, and possible collision with other vehicles has attracted a lot of attention lately. In these systems, robust and reliable vehicle detection is a critical step. This paper presents a review of recent vision-based on-road vehicle detection systems. Our focus is on systems where the camera is mounted on the vehicle rather than being fixed such as in traffic/driveway monitoring systems. First, we discuss the problem of on-road vehicle detection using optical sensors followed by a brief review of intelligent vehicle research worldwide. Then, we discuss active and passive sensors to set the stage for vision-based vehicle detection. Methods aiming to quickly hypothesize the location of vehicles in an image as well as to verify the hypothesized locations are reviewed next. Integrating detection with tracking is also reviewed to illustrate the benefits of exploiting temporal continuity for vehicle detection. Finally, we present a critical overview of the methods discussed, we assess their potential for future deployment, and we present directions for future research.

/pdf/on-road-vehicle-detection-a-review-4iw469j6iz.pdf

On-road vehicle detection: a review

This paper formulates a general analytic approach to the theory of microwave generation in magnetic nano-structures driven by spin-polarized current and reviews analytic results obtained in this theory. The proposed approach is based on the universal model of an auto-oscillator with negative damping and nonlinear frequency shift. It is demonstrated that this universal model, when applied to the case of a spin-torque oscillator (STO) based on a current-driven magnetic nano-pillar or nano-contact, gives adequate description of most of the experimentally observed properties of STO. In particular, the model describes the power and frequency of the generated microwave signal as functions of the bias current and magnetic field, predicts the magnitude and properties of the generation linewidth, and explains the STO behavior under the influence of periodic and stochastic external signals: frequency modulation, phase-locking to external signals, mutual phase-locking in an array of STO, broadening of the generation linewidth near the generation threshold, etc. The proposed nonlinear auto-oscillator theory is rather general and can be used not only for the development of practical nano-sized STO, but, also, for the description of nonlinear auto-oscillating systems of any physical nature.

Nonlinear Auto-Oscillator Theory of Microwave Generation by Spin-Polarized Current

Introductory Fourier transform spectroscopy

Within the field of spectral imaging, the vast majority of instruments used are scanning devices. Recently, several snapshot spectral imaging systems have become commercially available, providing new functionality for users and opening up the field to a wide array of new applications. A comprehensive survey of the available snapshot technologies is provided, and an attempt has been made to show how the new capabilities of snapshot approaches can be fully utilized.

https://www.spiedigitallibrary.org/journals/optical-engineering/volume-52/issue-9/090901/Review-of-snapshot-spectral-imaging-technologies/10.1117/1.OE.52.9.090901.pdf

Review of snapshot spectral imaging technologies

Unmanned Ground Vehicle Technology

Today the great majority of target acquisition models within the Department of Defense (DoD) originate from two primary sources of empirical human observer data: the Blackwell-Tiffany visual perception experiments begun in World War II and the Army Night Vision Electro- optic Sensors Directorate (NVESD) field test trials with military observ- ers. An extensive sensitivity analysis that compares the performance of several DoD acquisition models derived from these two extensive sets of data was carried out. A comprehensive analysis of each method and a detailed comparison of these different methodologies shows that they are in remarkably good agreement throughout their ranges of applicabil- ity. The authors show when the various modeling methodologies are applicable for a variety of military sensor and countermeasure scenarios. © 1996 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers.

Target acquisition methodology for visual and infrared imaging sensors

Clutter plays a very important role in the area of machine and human-in-the-loop target acquisition. A great deal of interest has recently been shown in assessing several different definitions of clutter. In spite of so many definitions available, no single clutter definition has been agreed on by the target acquisition modeling community as being the best. Here we develop a new clutter metric, called relative clutter, based on factor analysis which is extensively used for statistical analysis. This relative clutter combines many definitions of clutter. Different methods for calculating the relative clutter based on the magnitude of the eigenvalues obtained from the correlation matrix are suggested. The relative clutter of many images is analyzed. The relative clutter is used to calculate probability of detection on Night Vision Lab (NVL) Terrain Board Infrared images.

Detection probability using relative clutter in infrared images

The current threats to US security, both military and civilian, have led to an increased interest in the development of technologies to safeguard national facilities such as military bases, federal buildings, nuclear power plants, and national laboratories. As a result, the imaging, robotics, and intelligent systems (IRIS) laboratory at the University of Tennessee has established a research consortium, known as security automation and future electromotive robotics (SAFER), to develop, test, and deploy sensing and imaging systems. In this paper, we describe efforts made to build multi-perspective mosaics of infrared and color video data for the purpose of under vehicle inspection. It is desired to create a large, high-resolution mosaic that may be used to quickly visualize the entire scene shot by a camera making a single pass underneath the vehicle. Several constraints are placed on the video data in order to facilitate the assumption that the entire scene in the sequence exists on a single plane. Therefore, a single mosaic is used to represent a single video sequence.

Research article SAFER under vehicle inspection through video mosaic building

A method for determining polarization profiles of individual wavelengths hin a polychromatic source utilizes a variable filter system comprised of a retarder and a linear polarizer Polychromatic light from the source is transmitted through the system and exits therefrom with attenuated intensities unique for each wavelength of the light The attenuated intensities are recorded by a spectroradiometer and used to calculate Stokes parameters for each wavelength The inherent problem of the retarder introducing a different phase differential for each individual wavelength transmitted therethrough is solved by expressing the Stokes parameters explicitly as a function of wavelength The primary purpose of the method is to obtain the four Stokes parameters for individual bands of wavelength within a polychromatic light beam

Grant R. Gerhart

Papers

Unmanned Ground Vehicle Technology

Target acquisition methodology for visual and infrared imaging sensors

Detection probability using relative clutter in infrared images

Research article SAFER under vehicle inspection through video mosaic building

Method of determining polarization profiles for polychromatic sources