Reduce Measurement Time Research Articles

Optimal reference polarization states for the calibration of general Stokes polarimeters in the presence of noise

During the calibration of the system matrix of a Stokes polarimeter using reference polarization states (RPSs) and pseudo-inversion estimation method, the measurement intensities are usually noised by the signal-independent additive Gaussian noise or signal-dependent Poisson shot noise, the precision of the estimated system matrix is degraded. In this paper, we present a paradigm for selecting RPSs to improve the precision of the estimated system matrix in the presence of both types of noise. The analytical solution of the precision of the system matrix estimated with the RPSs are derived. Experimental measurements from a general Stokes polarimeter show that accurate system matrix is estimated with the optimal RPSs, which are generated using two rotating quarter-wave plates. The advantage of using optimal RPSs is a reduction in measurement time with high calibration precision.

Graphene Field-Effect Transistor as a High-Throughput Platform to Probe Charge Separation at Donor-Acceptor Interfaces.

In organic and low-dimensional materials, electrons and holes are bound together to form excitons. Effective exciton dissociation at interfaces is essential for applications such as photovoltaics and photosensing. Here, we present an interface-sensitive, time-resolved method that utilizes graphene field effect transistor as an electric-field sensor to measure the charge separation dynamics and yield at donor-acceptor interfaces. Compared to other interface-sensitive spectroscopy techniques, our method has a much reduced measurement time and can be easily adapted to different material interfaces. Hence, it can be used as a high throughput screening tool to evaluate the charge separation efficiency in a large number of systems. By using zinc phthalocyanine/fullerene interface, we demonstrate how this method can be used to quantify the charge separation dynamics and yield at a typical organic donor-acceptor interface.

Time-of-flight MR-angiography with a helical trajectory and slice-super-resolution reconstruction.

To improve 2D noncontrast-enhanced MRA by using a helical time-of-flight (TOF) acquisition technique and a slice-super-resolution reconstruction. The TOF technique is combined with a helical trajectory with golden-angle-based radial projection reordering. A continuous spatial shift in slice direction is realized by adjusting the frequency of the excitation pulse between the individual projections. The limited resolution along the shift direction is improved by a deconvolution with simulated slice profile. The helical TOF (hTOF) was compared in vivo with a conventional 2D and 3D TOF. Results from in vivo experiments on the carotid show that the visual resolution in slice direction can be improved by using hTOF and the slice-super-resolution reconstruction. The vessels appear up to 1.5 times sharper and can be better separated from each other. Compared to 2D TOF images, the stair step artifacts are strongly reduced in reformatted hTOF images, whereas measurement time is decreased by at least 35%. Compared to 3D TOF, the hTOF offers a higher blood-to-background contrast, better visualization of smaller vessels, and reduced measurement time. The hTOF benefits from a 2D acquisition and a 3D reconstruction, which makes it a promising technique for the noncontrast-enhanced imaging of the carotid.

Systematic Evaluation of Non-Uniform Sampling Parameters in the Targeted Analysis of Urine Metabolites by 1H,1H 2D NMR Spectroscopy

Non-uniform sampling (NUS) allows the accelerated acquisition of multidimensional NMR spectra. The aim of this contribution was the systematic evaluation of the impact of various quantitative NUS parameters on the accuracy and precision of 2D NMR measurements of urinary metabolites. Urine aliquots spiked with varying concentrations (15.6–500.0 µM) of tryptophan, tyrosine, glutamine, glutamic acid, lactic acid, and threonine, which can only be resolved fully by 2D NMR, were used to assess the influence of the sampling scheme, reconstruction algorithm, amount of omitted data points, and seed value on the quantitative performance of NUS in 1H,1H-TOCSY and 1H,1H-COSY45 NMR spectroscopy. Sinusoidal Poisson-gap sampling and a compressed sensing approach employing the iterative re-weighted least squares method for spectral reconstruction allowed a 50% reduction in measurement time while maintaining sufficient quantitative accuracy and precision for both types of homonuclear 2D NMR spectroscopy. Together with other advances in instrument design, such as state-of-the-art cryogenic probes, use of 2D NMR spectroscopy in large biomedical cohort studies seems feasible.

AEgIS at ELENA: outlook for physics with a pulsed cold antihydrogen beam.

The efficient production of cold antihydrogen atoms in particle traps at CERN's Antiproton Decelerator has opened up the possibility of performing direct measurements of the Earth's gravitational acceleration on purely antimatter bodies. The goal of the AEgIS collaboration is to measure the value of g for antimatter using a pulsed source of cold antihydrogen and a Moiré deflectometer/Talbot-Lau interferometer. The same antihydrogen beam is also very well suited to measuring precisely the ground-state hyperfine splitting of the anti-atom. The antihydrogen formation mechanism chosen by AEgIS is resonant charge exchange between cold antiprotons and Rydberg positronium. A series of technical developments regarding positrons and positronium (Ps formation in a dedicated room-temperature target, spectroscopy of the n=1-3 and n=3-15 transitions in Ps, Ps formation in a target at 10 K inside the 1 T magnetic field of the experiment) as well as antiprotons (high-efficiency trapping of [Formula: see text], radial compression to sub-millimetre radii of mixed [Formula: see text] plasmas in 1 T field, high-efficiency transfer of [Formula: see text] to the antihydrogen production trap using an in-flight launch and recapture procedure) were successfully implemented. Two further critical steps that are germane mainly to charge exchange formation of antihydrogen-cooling of antiprotons and formation of a beam of antihydrogen-are being addressed in parallel. The coming of ELENA will allow, in the very near future, the number of trappable antiprotons to be increased by more than a factor of 50. For the antihydrogen production scheme chosen by AEgIS, this will be reflected in a corresponding increase of produced antihydrogen atoms, leading to a significant reduction of measurement times and providing a path towards high-precision measurements.This article is part of the Theo Murphy meeting issue 'Antiproton physics in the ELENA era'.

A smart all-in-one device to measure vital signs in admitted patients.

BackgroundVital sign measurements in hospitalized patients by nurses are time consuming and prone to operational errors. The Checkme, a smart all-in-one device capable of measuring vital signs, could improve daily patient monitoring by reducing measurement time, inter-observer variability, and incorrect inputs in the Electronic Health Record (EHR). We evaluated the accuracy of self measurements by patient using the Checkme in comparison with gold standard and nurse measurements.Methods and findingsThis prospective comparative study was conducted at the Internal Medicine ward of an academic hospital in the Netherlands. Fifty non-critically ill patients were enrolled in the study. Time-related measurement sessions were conducted on consecutive patients in a randomized order: vital sign measurement in duplicate by a well-trained investigator (gold standard), a Checkme measurement by the patient, and a routine vital sign measurement by a nurse. In 41 patients (82%), initial calibration of the Checkme was successful and results were eligible for analysis. In total, 69 sessions were conducted for these 41 patients. The temperature results recorded by the patient with the Checkme differed significantly from the gold standard core temperature measurements (mean difference 0.1 ± 0.3). Obtained differences in vital signs and calculated Modified Early Warning Score (MEWS) were small and were in range with predefined accepted discrepancies.ConclusionsPatient-calculated MEWS using the Checkme, nurse measurements, and gold standard measurements all correlated well, and the small differences observed between modalities would not have affected clinical decision making. Using the Checkme, patients in a general medical ward setting are able to measure their own vital signs easily and accurately by themselves. This could be time saving for nurses and prevent errors due to manually entering data in the EHR.

Three Dimensional Polarimetric Neutron Tomography of Magnetic Fields

Through the use of Time-of-Flight Three Dimensional Polarimetric Neutron Tomography (ToF 3DPNT) we have for the first time successfully demonstrated a technique capable of measuring and reconstructing three dimensional magnetic field strengths and directions unobtrusively and non-destructively with the potential to probe the interior of bulk samples which is not amenable otherwise. Using a pioneering polarimetric set-up for ToF neutron instrumentation in combination with a newly developed tailored reconstruction algorithm, the magnetic field generated by a current carrying solenoid has been measured and reconstructed, thereby providing the proof-of-principle of a technique able to reveal hitherto unobtainable information on the magnetic fields in the bulk of materials and devices, due to a high degree of penetration into many materials, including metals, and the sensitivity of neutron polarisation to magnetic fields. The technique puts the potential of the ToF time structure of pulsed neutron sources to full use in order to optimise the recorded information quality and reduce measurement time.

Enhancing The Speed of Inspection in Coordinate Measuring Machine Using Genetic Algorithm

Due to high accuracy and precision, coordinate measuring machine (CMM) has been an important tool of inspection in quality control for several years. Effectiveness of inspection greatly depends on measurement cycle time. Lesser the inspection time taken by CMM to measure a given part better will be the performance of inspection process. Therefore, for efficient performance of inspection process, it is critical to reduce measurement time. Goal of our research is to improve measurement accuracy and reduce the cycle time of inspection. There are various methods to generate most suitable measurement path which will result in minimum inspection time. These methods are based on different algorithms to reduce measurement cycle time for CMM. Genetic algorithm, which is one of the optimization techniques can be used to find the minimum cycle path and hence can be used to increase the speed of inspection.

Development, validation and utility of a simulation model of the nociceptive flexion reflex threshold

ObjectiveA variety of algorithms is used for nociceptive flexion reflex threshold (NFRT) estimation, but their estimation accuracy is unknown. We developed a computer based simulation model of the NFRT to quantify and compare the accuracy of available estimation algorithms. MethodsThis simulation model is based on basic characteristics of the NFRT and specified by data collected from 60 healthy volunteers. We validated the model by comparing simulated data with data obtained independently in another volunteer population. The model was used to quantify the accuracy of previously published NFRT estimation algorithm for three NFRT variabilities representing sensory deprivation, distraction and general anaesthesia. ResultsThe dynamic staircase algorithm obtained most accurate NFRT estimates during all NFRT variabilities. The number of stimuli applied can be chosen higher to increase estimate precision or lower to reduce measurement time. ConclusionsOur simulation model is a valid tool to measure the accuracy of NFRT estimation algorithms. It can be applied to analyse and develop algorithms. The dynamic staircase algorithm shows the highest precision in NFRT estimation and is recommended for NFRT studies. SignificanceUsing optimized NFRT estimation algorithms increases precision in clinical and experimental NFRT studies and might therefore reduce the measurement effort necessary.

Lateral ventricular volume measurement by 3D MR hydrography in fetal ventriculomegaly and normal lateral ventricles.

In fetuses with prenatal ventriculomegaly (VM), ventricular volume on MRI has been shown to correlate with poor postnatal outcomes and in utero death. 3D magnetic resonance hydrography (MRH) has been widely used for MR cholangiopancreatography. To investigate the reliability of 3D MRH for lateral ventricular volume measurement in fetuses with VM and normal lateral ventricles, using manual multisection planimetry (MSP) as a reference standard. Prospective study. Thirty-five fetuses with VM at 24-37 gestational weeks (GA) and 35 fetuses with normal lateral ventricles at 24-38 GA. 1.5T MRI with 3D MRH and T2 -weighted single-shot fast-spin echo sequence. Left, right, and total lateral ventricle volumes in fetuses were acquired from 3D MRH and manual MSP. All image analysis was performed by a radiologist twice and another radiologist once, blindly. Analysis of linear regression analysis, Pearson's correlation coefficient, Bland-Altman plots, intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC), and independent samples t-test were used for statistical analyses. There were highly significant relationships between all 3D MRH and manual MSP measurements of lateral ventricular volumes (rVM = 0.92-0.98; rN = 0.95-0.98; all P < 0.0001; VM: VM group, N: normal group), although left, right, and total lateral ventricular volumes measured by 3D MRH tended to be slightly larger than MSP (biasVM 0.1 ± 0.95, 0.26 ± 0.63, and 0.3 ± 0.68 mL, respectively; biasN 0.1 ± 0.95, 0.26 ± 0.63, and 0.3 ± 0.68 mL, respectively). Interrater agreement and intrarater repeatability were also excellent for 3D MRH (ICCVM = 0.994-0.99, ICCN = 0.989-0.992; ICCVM = 0.975-0.987, ICCN = 0.958-0.971, respectively). 3D MRH showed significantly reduced measurement time (VM: 3.55 ± 0.42 vs. 11.81 ± 0.13 min; N: 3.08 ± 0.39 vs. 12.12 ± 0.11 min; all P < 0.0001). Lateral ventricular volume measurement by 3D MRH was comparable to manual MSP. 1 Technical Efficacy Stage 1 J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2017.

The Empirical Effect of Gaussian Noise in Undersampled MRI Reconstruction

In Fourier-based medical imaging, sampling below the Nyquist rate results in an underdetermined system, in which a linear reconstruction will exhibit artifacts. Another consequence is lower signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) because of fewer acquired measurements. Even if one could obtain information to perfectly disambiguate the underdetermined system, the reconstructed image could still have lower image quality than a corresponding fully sampled acquisition because of reduced measurement time. The coupled effects of low SNR and underdetermined system during reconstruction makes it difficult to isolate the impact of low SNR on image quality. To this end, we present an image quality prediction process that reconstructs fully sampled, fully determined data with noise added to simulate the SNR loss induced by a given undersampling pattern. The resulting prediction image empirically shows the effects of noise in undersampled image reconstruction without any effect from an underdetermined system. We discuss how our image quality prediction process simulates the distribution of noise for a given undersampling pattern, including variable density sampling that produces colored noise in the measurement data. An interesting consequence of our prediction model is that recovery from an underdetermined nonuniform sampling is equivalent to a weighted least squares optimization that accounts for heterogeneous noise levels across measurements. Through experiments with synthetic and in vivo datasets, we demonstrate the efficacy of the image quality prediction process and show that it provides a better estimation of reconstruction image quality than the corresponding fully sampled reference image.

First demonstration of aerial gamma-ray imaging using drone for prompt radiation survey in Fukushima

Considerable amounts of radioactive substances (mainly 137Cs and 134Cs) were released into the environment after the Japanese nuclear disaster in 2011. Some restrictions on residence areas were lifted in April 2017, owing to the successive and effective decontamination operations. However, the distribution of radioactive substances in vast areas of mountain, forest and satoyama close to the city is still unknown; thus, decontamination operations in such areas are being hampered. In this paper, we report on the first aerial gamma-ray imaging of a schoolyard in Fukushima using a drone that carries a high sensitivity Compton camera. We show that the distribution of 137Cs in regions with a diameter of several tens to a hundred meters can be imaged with a typical resolution of 2–5 m within a 10–20 min flights duration. The aerial gamma-ray images taken 10 m and 20 m above the ground are qualitatively consistent with a dose map reconstructed from the ground-based measurements using a survey meter. Although further quantification is needed for the distance and air-absorption corrections to derive in situ dose map, such an aerial drone system can reduce measurement time by a factor of ten and is suitable for place where ground-based measurement are difficult.

A novel system for commissioning brachytherapy applicators: example of a ring applicator

A novel system was developed to improve commissioning and quality assurance of brachytherapy applicators used in high dose rate (HDR). It employs an imaging panel to create reference images and to measure dwell times and dwell positions. As an example: two ring applicators of the same model were evaluated. An applicator was placed on the surface of an imaging panel and a HDR 192Ir source was positioned in an imaging channel above the panel to generate an image of the applicator, using the gamma photons of the brachytherapy source. The applicator projection image was overlaid with the images acquired by capturing the gamma photons emitted by the source dwelling inside the applicator. We verified 0.1, 0.2, 0.5 and 1.0 cm interdwell distances for different offsets, applicator inclinations and transfer tube curvatures. The data analysis was performed using in-house developed software capable of processing the data in real time, defining catheters and creating movies recording the irradiation procedure. One applicator showed up to 0.3 cm difference from the expected position for a specific dwell position. The problem appeared intermittently. The standard deviations of the remaining dwell positions (40 measurements) were less than 0.05 cm. The second ring applicator had a similar reproducibility with absolute coordinate differences from expected values ranging from −0.10 up to 0.18 cm. The curvature of the transfer tube can lead to differences larger than 0.1 cm whilst the inclination of the applicator showed a negligible effect. The proposed method allows the verification of all steps of the irradiation, providing accurate information about dwell positions and dwell times. It allows the verification of small interdwell positions (⩽0.1 cm) and reduces measurement time. In addition, no additional radiation source is necessary since the HDR 192Ir source is used to generate an image of the applicator.

Microwave Imaging From Sparse Measurements for Near-Field Synthetic Aperture Radar

This paper reports the experimental studies for four image reconstruction methods from sparse measurement using wideband microwave synthetic aperture radar systems. The four methods include two denoising methods using zero filling (ZF) and nonuniform fast Fourier transform (NUFFT), and two compressed sensing (CS) methods using the orthogonal matching pursuit and the conjugate gradient algorithms. The specimens under test (SUTs) consist of a tray of small rocks with different densities with/without one piece wrapped in an aluminum foil. The raw measurements of the SUTs are randomly undersampled in the spatial domain, and the images are reconstructed from the measurements of 10%–60% sparse-sampling rates. The results show that the CS method achieves good image quality with as low as 30% sparse-sampling rate, while ZF and NUFFT require 50% to obtain acceptable quality. An enhanced Otsu’s method is also proposed to detect the foiled rock from sparse reconstructions, which improves detection performance for the sparse-sampling rate of 5%–15%. The reduction of spatial measurement leads to reduced cost or reduced measurement time.

Compressive Sensing Techniques for mm-Wave Nondestructive Testing of Composite Panels

This paper presents imaging results from measurements of an industrially manufactured composite test panel, utilizing two introduced algorithms for data postprocessing. The system employs a planar near-field scanning setup for characterizing defects in composite panels in the 50–67-GHz band, and can be considered as a complementary diagnostic tool for nondestructive testing purposes. The introduced algorithms are based on the reconstruction of the illuminating source at the transmitter, enabling a separation of the sampled signal with respect to the location of its potential sources, the scatterers within the device under test or the transmitter. For the second algorithm, an $L_{1}$ -minimization problem formulation is introduced that enables compressive sensing techniques to be adapted for image retrieval. The algorithms are benchmarked against a more conventional imaging technique, based on the Fourier transform, and it is seen that the complete imaging system provides increased dynamic range, improved resolution, and reduced measurement time by removal of a reference measurement. Moreover, the system provides stable image quality over a range of frequencies.

In Situ Characterization of Pharmaceutical Formulations by Dynamic Nuclear Polarization Enhanced MAS NMR.

A principal advantage of magic angle spinning (MAS) NMR spectroscopy lies in its ability to determine molecular structure in a noninvasive and quantitative manner. Accordingly, MAS should be widely applicable to studies of the structure of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) and formulations. However, the low sensitivity encountered in spectroscopy of natural abundance APIs present at low concentration has limited the success of MAS experiments. Dynamic nuclear polarization (DNP) enhances NMR sensitivity and can be used to circumvent this problem provided that suitable paramagnetic polarizing agent can be incorporated into the system without altering the integrity of solid dosages. Here, we demonstrate that DNP polarizing agents can be added in situ during the preparation of amorphous solid dispersions (ASDs) via spray drying and hot-melt extrusion so that ASDs can be examined during drug development. Specifically, the dependence of DNP enhancement on sample composition, radical concentration, relaxation properties of the API and excipients, types of polarizing agents and proton density, has been thoroughly investigated. Optimal enhancement values are obtained from ASDs containing 1% w/w radical concentration. Both polarizing agents TOTAPOL and AMUPol provided reasonable enhancements. Partial deuteration of the excipient produced 3× higher enhancement values. With these parameters, an ASD containing posaconazole and vinyl acetate yields a 32-fold enhancement which presumably results in a reduction of NMR measurement time by ∼1000. This boost in signal intensity enables the full assignment of the natural abundance pharmaceutical formulation through multidimensional correlation experiments.

Theory and optical design of x-ray echo spectrometers

X-ray echo spectroscopy, a space-domain counterpart of neutron spin echo, is a recently proposed inelastic x-ray scattering (IXS) technique. X-ray echo spectroscopy relies on imaging IXS spectra, and does not require x-ray monochromatization. Due to this, the echo-type IXS spectrometers are broadband, and thus have a potential to simultaneously provide dramatically increased signal strength, reduced measurement times, and higher resolution compared to the traditional narrow-band scanning-type IXS spectrometers. The theory of x-ray echo spectrometers presented in [1] is developed here further with a focus on questions of practical importance, which could facilitate optical design and assessment of the feasibility and performance of the echo spectrometers. Among others, the following questions are addressed: spectral resolution, refocusing condition, echo spectrometer tolerances, refocusing condition adjustment, effective beam size on the sample, spectral window of imaging and scanning range, impact of the secondary source size on the spectral resolution, angular dispersive optics, focusing and collimating optics, and detector's spatial resolution. Examples of optical designs and characteristics of echo spectrometers with 1-meV and 0.1-meV resolutions are presented.

High-speed optical three-axis vector magnetometry based on nonlinear Hanle effect in rubidium vapor

The magnetic-field-compensation optical vector magnetometer based on the nonlinear Hanle effect in alkali metal vapor allowing two-axis measurement operation has been further elaborated for three-axis performance, along with significant reduction of measurement time. The upgrade was achieved by implementing a two-beam resonant excitation configuration and a fast maximum searching algorithm. Results of the proof-of-concept experiments, demonstrating 1 μTB-field resolution, are presented. The applied interest and capability of the proposed technique is analyzed.

Cancellation of interference for emission measurement in open area test site

This paper proposes a technique for implementing the concept of a virtual chamber for radiation emission measurements in time domain. At present measurements for electromagnetic emissions are carried out either with FFT based analyzers or with a conventional-hybrid spectrum analyzer based on heterodyning where interested band of frequencies is swept in the radio frequency range in an anechoic chamber. This method requires a large measurement time especially for wide band frequency measurements; therefore such methods cannot guarantee reliable results in open area. The difficulty lies in the interference cancellation from random sources for prolonged measurement duration.In this paper time domain measurement technique for electromagnetic emissions at open area test site has been proposed, designed, implemented and tested in a laboratory environment. The proposed technique captures multichannel signal from interference sources and equipment under test (EUT) simultaneously on different antenna ports. The continuous signal streams sampled at a very high rate before being fed to the stochastic gradient based adaptive filter. This materializes the cancelation of interference generated by various electronic sources using advanced digital processing techniques. The factors influencing the exactness in estimating interference are discussed in detail and cancelation of interference over the range of frequency (DC-1GHz) has been simulated. The simulation results exhibit how the proposed technique can revoke different kinds of interferences like continuous or transient, narrow or broad band. The performance evaluation of this method is verified through experiments conducted on real electronic appliances in open space environment and cross validated in an anechoic chamber up to 1GHz. The outcome of the research demonstrates the cancellation of both generated as well as naturally existing random interfering signals in an urban site polluted with electrical noise. The results substantiate the accuracy and usefulness of this new method for the measurement of radiation emissions and electromagnetic compatibility in accordance with CISPR standards. Pre-compliance electromagnetic compatibility testing is realized with this work without the need of an expensive anechoic chamber and with a reduced measurement time compared to the conventional measurement system.

Contact Imaging Sensor Automated Resolution Testing Using Stationary Test Objects

A method is described to test the resolution of a contact imaging sensor within a depth of field (DOF) as a function of the distance from the sensor surface. Conventional characterization methods scan resolution test patterns at multiple intervals within the DOF, and calculate the modulation transfer function (MTF). This approach is time-consuming and requires mechanical moving parts. This paper describes an alternative measurement technique that measures: 1) focal distance from the sensor surface and 2) MTF within the DOF. The method utilizes several resolution test targets and a stationary mechanical apparatus. Data from four stationary line-scan images are analyzed, and the focal distance and MTF are calculated. This method reduces measurement time drastically, and eliminates the need for mechanical scanning.