Pattern recognition processing in underwater acoustics

Pattern recognition application to underwater acoustics is a relatively less explored area, even considering some reports which may not be available in the public domain. In this paper three problem areas of pattern recognition processing in underwater acoustics are reported. The first problem is three-dimensional target motion analysis. A reference map is generated and partitioned into a number of cells corresponding to possible target locations. The pattern matching idea is then used to estimate the target range, velocity and bearing. The second problem is concerned with multipath ranging. An image processing technique is used to extract the significant tracks from the correlograms to provide a continuous estimate of time delay or range under a multipath environment. The third problem deals with submarine transient signals. A spectral analysis is made to determine spectral features for detection and event classification. The use of entropy distance measure for waveform segmentation is then examined. Major computer results are presented along with a discussion of unresolved issues for each problem area.     

Pattern recognition in image processing using interpixel correlation

When within-object interpixel correlation varies appreciably from object to object, it may be important for the classifier to utilize this correlation, as well as the mean and variance of pixel intensities. In this correspondence interpixel correlation is brought into the classification scheme by means of a two-dimensional Markov model.     

MIPAS: A neural network-based multimedia information processing and analysis system

This paper presents the structure and design criteria of a neural network-based multimedia information processing and analysis system (MIPAS) which can be used to deal with more-complicated intelligence issues. According to the structure and design criteria, a software environment (SEMIPAS), which supports the implementation of multimedia information (image + speech, image + characters, speech + characters, image + speech + characters) processing and analysis applications, is implemented and introduced. Under this software environment, a multimedia information processing and analysis system called “To Know the World” is constructed. Experiments show that the multimedia information processing and analysis is much more powerful and effective than single-medium information processing and analysis.     

WESONet: Applying semantic web technologies and collaborative tagging to multimedia web information systems

The publication of different media types, like images, audio and video in the World Wide Web is getting more importance each day. However, searching and locating content in multimedia sites is challenging. In this paper, we propose a platform for the development of multimedia web information systems. Our approach is based on the combination between semantic web technologies and collaborative tagging. Producers can add meta-data to multimedia content associating it with different domain-specific ontologies. At the same time, users can tag the content in a collaborative way. The proposed system uses a search engine that combines both kinds of meta-data to locate the desired content. It will also provide browsing capabilities through the ontology concepts and the developed tags.     

A spatio-temporal semantic model for multimedia database systemsand multimedia information systems

As more information sources become available in multimedia systems, the development of abstract semantic models for video, audio, text, and image data is becoming very important. An abstract semantic model has two requirements: it should be rich enough to provide a friendly interface of multimedia presentation synchronization schedules to the users and it should be a good programming data structure for implementation in order to control multimedia playback. An abstract semantic model based on an augmented transition network (ATN) is presented. The inputs for ATNs are modeled by multimedia input strings. Multimedia input strings provide an efficient means for iconic indexing of the temporal/spatial relations of media streams and semantic objects. An ATN and its subnetworks are used to represent the appearing sequence of media streams and semantic objects. The arc label is a substring of a multimedia input string. In this design, a presentation is driven by a multimedia input string. Each subnetwork has its own multimedia input string. Database queries relative to text, image, and video can be answered via substring matching at subnetworks. Multimedia browsing allows users the flexibility to select any part of the presentation they prefer to see. This means that the ATN and its subnetworks can be included in multimedia database systems which are controlled by a database management system (DBMS). User interactions and loops are also provided in an ATN. Therefore, ATNs provide three major capabilities: multimedia presentations, temporal/spatial multimedia database searching, and multimedia browsing     

Properties of information sets and information processing with an application to face recognition

This paper presents the properties of information sets that help derive local features from a face when partitioned into windows and devises the information rules from the generalized fuzzy rules for information processing that helps match the unknown test face with the known for authenticating a user. information set is constituted from the information values that result from representing the uncertainty in a type-1 fuzzy set by Hanman–Anirban entropy function. The information values are shown to be the products of information sources (gray levels) in a window and their membership function values. The Hanman filter (HF) is devised to modify the information values using a cosine function whereas the Hanman transform (HT) is devised to evaluate the information source values based on the information obtained on them. Three classifiers, namely the inner product classifier, normed error classifier, and Hanman classifier are formulated. The two feature types based on HF and HT are tested on the AT&T (ORL) database, which contains pose variations in the face images and two other face databases: Indian face Database (IIT Kanpur) and UMIST (Sheffield) using new as well as known classifiers like Euclidean distance- based, Bayesian, and support vector machine classifiers.     

Recent development in multimedia e-learning technologies

Multimedia and networking technologies have significantly impacted on our daily activities, particularly in terms of how we learn. Nowadays, classroom teaching no longer simply relies on chalk and blackboard as the prime medium for course dissemination. E-learning technologies have made it possible to provide a virtual classroom environment on the Web through supporting teacher-student and student-student communications, course material distribution as well as online student assessments. They provide students with more control over their learning schedule and pace. On top of this, multimedia technologies further offer students different forms of media to match their learning styles, leading to enhancements of their learning effectiveness. This extended introduction discusses the latest e-learning specific multimedia technologies, their research challenges and future trends from both pedagogical and technological perspectives. We also summarize the papers included in this special issue.     

A structure-based approach for multimedia information filtering

While multimedia documents are sequentially presented to users, an information filtering (IF) system is useful to achieve a good retrieval performance in terms of both quality and efficiency. Conventional approaches for designing an IF system are based on the user's evaluation on information relevance degree (IRD), but ignore other attributes in system design such as relative importance of the data in a collection of multimedia documents. In this paper, we aim at developing a framework of designing structure-based multimedia IF systems, which incorporates the characteristics of the importance and relevance of multimedia documents. A method of calculating the values of relative importance degree of multimedia documents is proposed. Furthermore, these values are combined into the IRD of multimedia documents to improve the representation of user profiles. An illustrative example is given to demonstrate the proposed techniques.     

Universal multimedia information access

Efficient, effective and intuitive access to multimedia information is essential for business, education, government and leisure. Unfortunately, interface design typically does not account for users with disabilities, estimated at 40 million in America alone. Given broad societal needs, our community has a social responsibility to provide universal designs that ensure efficient and effective access for all to heterogeneous and increasingly growing repositories of global information. This article describes information access functions, discusses associated grand challenges, and outlines potential benefits of technologies that promise to increase overall accessibility and success of interaction with multimedia. The article concludes by projecting the future of multimodal technology via a roadmap of multimodal resources, methods, and systems from 2003 through 2006.     

Pattern recognition for bioprocess control

Pattern recognition is used to identify a distinct state of a biopro-cess; most interesting is the recognition of physiological states. This method is an excellent means for relevant bioprocess monitoring and the respective knowledge can be effectively used for decision making. The multitude and multiplicity of data is treated as a 3 dimensional picture of a process and compared to prototypes, i.e. pictures from, for instance, a reference process. This method was successfully used to detect unique phases in bioprocesses, to initiate certain process operation activities automatically, or to detect faults on line with little time delay.     

Adapting on-line analytical processing for decision modelling: the interaction of information and decision technologies

The introduction of new technologies and concepts has redefined the relative positioning of information systems (IS) and decision technologies in a corporate context. Corporate IS have been extended to include not only transaction processing databases but also analytical databases, often known as Data Warehouses. On-line analytical processing (OLAP), as introduced by Codd et al. [E.F. Codd, S.B Codd, C.T. Salley, Providing On-Line Analytical Processing to User–Analysts: An IT Mandate, E.F. Codd and Associates, 1993], is capable of capturing the structure of the real world data in the form of multidimensional tables which are known as `datacubes' by management information systems (MIS) and statistical systems specialists. Manipulation and presentation of such information through multidimensional views and graphical displays provide invaluable support for the decision-maker. We illustrate the natural coupling, which exists between data modelling, symbolic modelling and `What if' analysis phases of a decision support system (DSS). In particular, we explore the power of roll-up and drill-down features of OLAP and show how these translate into aggregation and disagreggation of the underlying decision models. Our approach sets out a paradigm for analysing the data, applying DSS tools and progressing through the information value chain to create organisational knowledge.