• International Journal of Fuzzy Logic and Intelligent Systems
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.35-44
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• 2015

The main purpose of image enhancement is to improve certain characteristics of an image to improve its visual quality. This paper proposes a method for image contrast enhancement that can be applied to both medical and natural images. The proposed algorithm is designed to achieve contrast enhancement while also preserving the local image details. To achieve this, the proposed method combines local image contrast preserving dynamic range compression and contrast limited adaptive histogram equalization (CLAHE). Global gain parameters for contrast enhancement are inadequate for preserving local image details. Therefore, in the proposed method, in order to preserve local image details, local contrast enhancement at any pixel position is performed based on the corresponding local gain parameter, which is calculated according to the current pixel neighborhood edge density. Different image quality measures are used for evaluating the performance of the proposed method. Experimental results show that the proposed method provides more information about the image details, which can help facilitate further image analysis.

• Architectural research
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.53-62
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• 2010

The purpose of this study is to examine design preferences for the sales spaces of duty-free shops (DFSs) by conducting image evaluations. The results will help improve quality by influencing designs for the construction, extension or remodeling of these shops. An image measurement method, the semantic differential method, was used to measure cognitive structure using photos of shops. Photos were collected of the DFS at Jeju Island, as well as photos of brand stores designed by architects. Two sets of 16 photos (32 different photos in all) were selected according to photo classification standards and design concepts, both decided by reviewing previous studies and related materials. The evaluation and survey were done by two sets of subjects: sales employees, who have experience and special knowledge of the evaluation of sales space; and students majoring in architecture. To strengthen the evaluation results, I conducted a preliminary survey and a main survey, verifying and complementing findings. 116 surveys were conducted, of which 14 were of poor quality and rejected, leaving and 102 to be analyzed. The collected surveys were statistically analyzed, using SPSS 12.0 for Windows. Reliability, image profile, factor and multi-dimensional scaling analyses were conducted. As a result, image evaluation structure and characteristics were obtained for sales spaces of DFSs, confirming the difference between them and other spaces.

• Journal of Broadcast Engineering
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• v.24 no.5
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• pp.827-835
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• 2019

In the pooling stage of a full reference image quality assessment (FR-IQA) technique, the global perceived quality for any distorted image is usually measured from the quality of its local image patches. But all the image patches do not have equal contribution when estimating the overall visual quality since the degree of degradation on those patches depends on various considerations i.e., types of the patches, types of the distortions, distortion sensitivities of the patches, saliency score of the patches, etc. As a result, weighted pooling strategy comes into account and different weighting mechanisms are used by the existing FR-IQA methods. This paper performs a thorough analysis and proposes a novel weighting function by considering the luminance adaptation as well as the visual saliency effect to offer more appropriate local weights, which can be adopted in the existing FR-IQA frameworks to improve their prediction accuracy. The extended experimental results show the effectiveness of the proposed weighting function.

• Imaging Science in Dentistry
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• v.53 no.4
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• pp.325-333
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• 2023

Purpose: The objective of this study was to evaluate and compare the accuracy and image quality of root surface area (RSA) measurements obtained with various cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) protocols, relative to the gold standard of micro-computed tomography (CT), in an in vitro setting. Materials and Methods: Four dry human skulls were scanned using 8 different protocols, with voxel sizes of 0.15 mm, 0.3 mm, and 0.4 mm. Three-dimensional models of the selected teeth were constructed using CBCT and microCT protocols, and the RSA was automatically measured by the image-processing software. The absolute difference in the percentage of the RSA(%ΔRSA) was calculated and compared across the 8 CBCT protocols using repeatedmeasures analysis of variance. Finally, image quality scores of the RSA measurements were computed and reported in terms of percent distribution. Results: No significant differences were observed in the %ΔRSA across the 8 protocols (P>0.05). The deviation in %ΔRSA ranged from 1.51% to 4.30%, with an increase corresponding to voxel size. As the voxel size increased, the image quality deteriorated. This decline in quality was particularly noticeable at the apical level of the root, where the distribution of poorer scores was most concentrated. Conclusion: Relative to CBCT protocols with voxel sizes of 0.15mm and 0.3mm, the protocols with a voxel size of 0.4 mm demonstrated inferior image quality at the apical levels. In spite of this, no significant discrepancies were observed in RSA measurements across the different CBCT protocols.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.190-200
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• 2008

The purposes of this study were to identify brand equity factors influencing brand preference and to investigate the effects of preference and other factors on brand performance of domestic and imported fashion accessary(handbag, shoes, purse, etc.) brands. A total of 300 women aged between 20 and 49 years were surveyed during the month of September, 2006, on 2 domestic brands and 2 imported brands that were well-known to consumers. The data were analyzed with factorial analysis, multiple regression analysis, ANOVA, Cronbach's ${\alpha}$, etc., using the SPSS 10.0. The result of research showed: 1) Four factors of brand equity were identified: quality, awareness, image, and trust. 2) Quality, awareness, price acceptability, distribution proximity, and brand performance of the domestic brands were higher than those of the imported brands. But brand preference of the imported brands was higher than that of the domestic brands. 3) Brand preference of the domestic brands was affected by quality, awareness, image, and trust. And brand performance of the domestic brands was affected by appropriateness, brand preference, and distribution proximity. 4) Brand preference of the imported brands was affected by image, quality, awareness, and trust. And brand performance of the imported brands was affected by price acceptability, appropriateness, and distribution proximity.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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• v.14 no.6
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• pp.819-825
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• 2020

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of the developed air mattress for reducing the deterioration of image quality due to the scattered radiation generated on the computed tomography equipment table. 5 cm and 10 cm thick air mattresses were developed and the image quality was measured by scanning the AAPM phantom according to thickness and thickness. Statistical significance was confirmed by One Way Analysis of Variance(ANOVA) Compared with the AAPM phantom scanned in the standard method, the image with the air mattress did not show any difference, but when the air mattress was not applied, the CT number and uniformity were low and the noise was high, and the spatial resolution Respectively. The developed air mattress has no harmful effect on the diagnostic image, it is very effective in improving the image quality and can increase the CT image quality by simply applying Air Mattress to existing equipment without using the technology applied to the latest and high-cost equipment.

• Korean Journal of Human Ecology
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.5-18
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• 2005

The purposes of this study were to identify brand image and advertising image perception maps of domestic make-up products. A self-administered questionnaire was used for data collection. KYST, CORAN and SPSS PC(Ver. 12.0) were used for data analysis. The results were as follows: 1. Brand images of Etude, Isa Knox, and Laneige were perceived as unique, stimulative, high quality, elegant, modern, and sophisticated. Brand image of Cathycat was perceived highly in high quality, elegant, modern, and sophisticated, but low in unique and stimulative. Brand image of Lac Vert was perceived high in unique and stimulative, but low in high quality, elegant, modern, and sophisticated. Brand images of Hercyna and Vov were the lowest. 2. Advertisement images of Etude was perceived as modern, sophisticated, familiar, and unique, but Lac Vert was perceived adversely, Advertising images of Laneigne and Isa Knox were high in modern, sophisticated and familiar, but low in uniqueness. And advertising images of Hercyna, Cathycat, and Vov were perceived as modern, sophisticated, and familiar.

• Journal of Korean Academy of Nursing
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.383-392
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• 1999

Recently, the hospitals in Korea has positively changed one way or another. Therefore hospital managers must focus on the nurses' role in terms of consumers' perception of overall image of hospitals and the degree of satisfaction of the consumers. To achieve the purposes, the questionnaire was developed and distributed to 280 people who had a direct experience with nursing services subjected hospitals in Seoul at the time of screening. Among them, 229 responses were turned out to be useful and used for final analysis. The measurement instrument for hospital nursing service quality evaluation was modified from the SERVQUAL model originated from Parasuraman, Zeithaml, and Berry (1988). For data analysis, SPSS/PC and PC-MDS program were used. The results were as follows : 1) The perception map showed that the seven subjected hospitals were divided into three groups. It could be interpreted that the hospitals in the same group had a strong competitive relationships. Because the nursing services' scores of hospitals C and E were higher than those of other hospitals, they could be served as a benchmark for the other hospitals. 2) The marketing place of hospital nursing services was divided by four. Since service generally had a strong point in nearby service market segment. Aiming an nearby hospital nursing services market segment by the hospital nursing services department was regarded as a good repositioning strategy. 3) When consumers evaluated the quality of hospital nursing services, they were greatly affected by the hospitals' overall image or other characteristics. Therefore, for improving hospital's nursing services, hospital nursing services department requires a great deal of labor to improve hospitals' overall image or other characteristics.

• Journal of the Korean Home Economics Association
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• v.47 no.3
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• pp.35-44
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• 2009

The purpose of this study is to analyze the relationships between clothing image and clothing shopping orientation of middle aged women. For this purpose, the subjects of 300 adult women from in their 40’s to 50’s, living in Daegu area were sampled out by convenient sampling method. The result of this analysis are as follows. 1)a factor analysis identified six different types of clothing image: classy, bold, plain, feminine, casual, and peculiar. 2)five different types of clothing shopping orientation were identified: conspicuous, conformable, hedonic, uniqueness conscious, and quality conscious. 3)the results of multiple regression analysis found that clothing images affected clothing shopping orientation of middle aged women. This meant that significant relationships existed among these variables and there was a causal relationship between clothing image and clothing shopping orientation.

• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.24 no.10
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• pp.1006-1016
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• 2023

Objective: Computed tomography (CT) is an established method for the diagnosis, staging, and treatment of multiple myeloma. Here, we investigated the potential of photon-counting detector computed tomography (PCD-CT) in terms of image quality, diagnostic confidence, and radiation dose compared with energy-integrating detector CT (EID-CT). Materials and Methods: In this prospective study, patients with known multiple myeloma underwent clinically indicated whole-body PCD-CT. The image quality of PCD-CT was assessed qualitatively by three independent radiologists for overall image quality, edge sharpness, image noise, lesion conspicuity, and diagnostic confidence using a 5-point Likert scale (5 = excellent), and quantitatively for signal homogeneity using the coefficient of variation (CV) of Hounsfield Units (HU) values and modulation transfer function (MTF) via the full width at half maximum (FWHM) in the frequency space. The results were compared with those of the current clinical standard EID-CT protocols as controls. Additionally, the radiation dose (CTDIvol) was determined. Results: We enrolled 35 patients with multiple myeloma (mean age 69.8 ± 9.1 years; 18 [51%] males). Qualitative image analysis revealed superior scores (median [interquartile range]) for PCD-CT regarding overall image quality (4.0 [4.0-5.0] vs. 4.0 [3.0-4.0]), edge sharpness (4.0 [4.0-5.0] vs. 4.0 [3.0-4.0]), image noise (4.0 [4.0-4.0] vs. 3.0 [3.0-4.0]), lesion conspicuity (4.0 [4.0-5.0] vs. 4.0 [3.0-4.0]), and diagnostic confidence (4.0 [4.0-5.0] vs. 4.0 [3.0-4.0]) compared with EID-CT (P ≤ 0.004). In quantitative image analyses, PCD-CT compared with EID-CT revealed a substantially lower FWHM (2.89 vs. 25.68 cy/pixel) and a significantly more homogeneous signal (mean CV ± standard deviation [SD], 0.99 ± 0.65 vs. 1.66 ± 0.5; P < 0.001) at a significantly lower radiation dose (mean CTDIvol ± SD, 3.33 ± 0.82 vs. 7.19 ± 3.57 mGy; P < 0.001). Conclusion: Whole-body PCD-CT provides significantly higher subjective and objective image quality at significantly reduced radiation doses than the current clinical standard EID-CT protocols, along with readily available multi-spectral data, facilitating the potential for further advanced post-processing.