• Journal of Broadcast Engineering
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• v.17 no.5
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• pp.851-863
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• 2012

Retinex algorithm enhances the contrast of image through visibility improvement. However, the conventional Retinex methods may produces color distortions due to error of hue representation and over-saturation since the methods work in RGB color space. In this paper, we propose a new Retinex algorithm with color correction, which improves contrast by using MSR(Multi-Scale Retinex) working in YCbCr color space and adaptively compensates the color saturation based on the maximum color difference table. Our algorithm maps the color difference signals to the correct gamut to prevent over-saturation phenomenon by considering the correlation between luminance and hue dependent saturation. Simulations results show that the proposed method gives better color improvement compared to the conventional methods.

• Journal of Broadcast Engineering
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• v.12 no.5
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• pp.503-515
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• 2007

A new fast motion estimation algorithm is presented in this paper. The algorithm, named Enhanced Cross-Diamond Search (ECDS), is based on the Diamond Search (DS) algorithm. The DS algorithm, even though faster than the most well-known algorithms, was found not to be very robust in terms of objective and subjective qualities for several sequences and the algorithm searches unnecessary candidate blocks. We propose a novel ECDS algorithm using a small cross search as the initial step, and large/small DS patterns as subsequent steps for fast block motion estimation. Experimental results show that the ECDS is much more robust, provides a faster searching speed, and smaller distortions than other popular fast block-matching algorithms.

• Toxicological Research
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.317-325
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• 2016

Increased access to highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) has made the management of drug toxicities an increasingly crucial component of HIV. This study investigated the effects of adjuvant use of coconut oil and HAART on testicular morphology and seminal parameters in Sprague-Dawley rats. Twelve adult male Sprague-Dawley rats, weighing 153~169 g were distributed into four groups (A-D) and treated as follows: A served as control (distilled water); B (HAART cocktail-Zidovudine, Lamivudine and Nevirapine); C (HAART + Virgin coconut oil 10 mL/kg) and D (Virgin coconut oil 10 mL/kg). After 56 days of treatment, animals were killed and laparotomy to exercise the epididymis for seminal fluid analyses done whilst testicular tissues were processed for histo-morphometric studies. Result showed a significant decline in sperm motility (P < 0.05) and count (P < 0.0001) in HAART-treated animals while there was insignificant changes in other parameters in groups C and D except count that was reduced (P < 0.0001) when compared with controls. Histomorphological studies showed HAART caused disorders in seminiferous tubular architecture with significant (P < 0.01) decline in epithelial height closely mirrored by extensive reticulin framework and positive PAS cells. Adjuvant Virgin coconut oil + HAART resulted in significant decrease in seminiferous tubular diameter (P < 0.05), but other morphometric and histological parameters were similar to control or Virgin coconut oil alone (which showed normal histoarchitecture levels). While derangements in testicular and seminal fluid parameters occurred following HAART, adjuvant treatment with Virgin coconut oil restored the distortions emanating thereof.

• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• v.47 no.3
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• pp.168-179
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• 2020

Objective: This study investigated testicular oxidative stress status and physiomorphological function in Wistar rats fed with yaji and cadmium chloride (CdCl₂). Methods: Sixty male albino Wistar rats (12 per group) were randomly assigned to five groups: group I (control), group II (300 mg/kg.bw of yaji), group III (500 mg/kg.bw of yaji), group IV (2.5 mg/kg.bw of CdCl₂), and group V (2.5 mg/kg.bw of yaji+4 mg/kg.bw omega-3). Each group was evenly subdivided into two subgroups and treatment was administered for 14 days and 42 days, respectively. Semen quality (sperm count, progressive motility, normal morphology, and gonadosomatic index), hormones (testosterone, follicle-stimulating hormone, and luteinizing hormone), testicular oxidative stress markers (superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione peroxidase, and malonaldehyde) and testicular histomorphological features were examined. Results: Yaji caused significant (p< 0.05) dose- and duration-dependent reductions in semen quality, the gonadosomatic index, testosterone, follicle-stimulating hormone, and luteinizing hormone. Yaji also caused significant (p< 0.05) dose- and duration-dependent decreases in superoxide dismutase, catalase, and glutathione peroxidase activity, as well as increased testicular malonaldehyde levels. Yaji induced distortions in the testicular histological architecture. CdCl₂ damaged testicular function by significantly (p< 0.05) reducing semen quality, reproductive hormone levels, and oxidative stress markers in albino Wistar rats. CdCl₂ also altered the histology of the testis. Conclusion: This study shows that yaji sauce has similar anti-fertility effects to those of CdCl₂, as it adversely interferes with male reproduction by impairing oxidative stress markers and the function and morphological features of the testis.

• Journal of IKEEE
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• v.3 no.2 s.5
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• pp.221-225
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• 1999

In this paper, a new type of predistortion linearizer has been studied. It employs a series feedback amplifier with a large source inductance as a predistortion linearizer, which provides positive amplitude and negative phase deviations for input Power and can compensate for AM-AM and AM-PM distortions of power amplifier. This predistortion lineariaer consists of only one CaAs FET, large source inductor, input output matching networks and bias circuits. Because of its simple circuit, the linear can be operated over a broad bandwidth and has good thermal stability The characteristics of this linearizer can be easily tuned using source inductor, its gate bias condition. In fabricated linearizer, the third-order intermodulation distortion(IMD) for main amplifier alone is 10.61dBc, and the $IM_3$ for main amplifier with predistorter is 21.91dBc. Therefore, the $IM_3$ characteristic results an improvement of approximately 11dB.

• Journal of Institute of Control, Robotics and Systems
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• v.21 no.10
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• pp.965-971
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• 2015

This paper suggests a feature point-based Iterative Closest Point (ICP) algorithm to compensate for the disparity error in building a two-dimensional map. The ICP algorithm is a typical algorithm for matching a common object in two different images. In the process of building a two-dimensional map using the laser scanner data, warping and distortions exist in the map because of the disparity between the two sensor values. The ICP algorithm has been utilized to reduce the disparity error in matching the scanned line data. For this matching process in the conventional ICP algorithm, pre-known reference data are required. Since the proposed algorithm extracts characteristic points from laser-scanned data, reference data are not required for the matching. The laser scanner starts from the right side of the mobile robot and ends at the left side, which causes disparity in the scanned line data. By finding the matching points between two consecutive frame images, the motion vector of the mobile robot can be obtained. Therefore, the disparity error can be minimized by compensating for the motion vector caused by the mobile robot motion. The validity of the proposed algorithm has been verified by comparing the proposed algorithm in terms of map-building accuracy to conventional ICP algorithm real experiments.

• Journal of the Institute of Electronics Engineers of Korea SP
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• v.40 no.6
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• pp.51-60
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• 2003

The watermarking is the technique that embeds or extracts the certain data without the change of the original data for the copyright protection of the multimedia contents. Watermark-embedded contents must not be distinguished by human's eye and must be robust to the various image processing and the intentional distortions. In this paper, we propose a new watermarking technique applied in the wavelet domain which has both the spatial and frequency information of a image. For both the robustness and the invisibility, the positions for embedding the watermark is selected with the multi-threshold. We search the similarity between highly correlated coefficients in the each subband and decide the mark space after verifying the significance in the specified subband. The similarity is represented by the coefficient difference between the subbands and its distribution is used in the watermark embedding and extracting. The embedded watermark can be extracted without the original image using the relationship of the subbands. By these properties the proposed watermarking algorithm has the invisibility and the robustness to the attacks such as JPEG compression and the general image processing.

• Journal of the Institute of Electronics Engineers of Korea SP
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• v.44 no.4 s.316
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• pp.70-77
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• 2007

Two kinds of QMF(Quadrature Mirror Filter) pairs are used in JPEG2000 standard, which don't have QMF distortions. However, the QMF pairs have the main disadvantages such that there are gentle roll-off rate, ripples in the passband and unequal band decomposition. In this paper, Maxflat(maximally flat) QMF pairs with a half-band gain are proposed for overcoming these problems. Maxflat QMF pairs are realized due to generalized closed-form formulas, and the filters have maximally flat response in the passband/stopband as well as sharp roll-off rate in the transition band. Comparing proposed filters and JPEG2000's filters in frequency domain, it is found that proposed filters have better performance JPEG2000's filters. Moreover, Maxflat QMF pairs show stopband-attenuation exceeding 200 dB almost everywhere.

• Journal of the Korea Society of Computer and Information
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.55-60
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• 2011

In this paper, we propose a new method for extracting muscles from lumbar images. The proposed method sets areas without distortions with field expert's assistance as areas of measuring interest and removing noises from initial ultrasonic videos. Then, the method emphasizes the brightness contrast with Ends-in search stretching algorithm and separate thoracic vertebra from subcutaneous fat area using morphological characteristics. 4-directions contour tracing algorithm is applied to extract the bottom of subcutaneous fat area. Extracting thoracic vertebra area requires noise removal and morphological characteristics as well among candidate areas obtained by controlling min-max brightness. The thickness of muscles is then defined as the length between subcutaneous fat area and extracted thoracic vertebra. The experiment which consists of 368 image analysis verifies that the proposed method is more effective in measuring the thickness of muscles than before.

• Research in Plant Disease
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.294-297
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• 2006

Leafy lettuce(Lactuca sativa L.) is one of the most important vegetable crops in Korea, cultivated throughout the year in greenhouses. During the autumn of 2005, powdery mildew of lettuce that is a new disease caused by Podosphaera fusca occurred in several plantings grown in plastic houses near Suwon in central Korea. Further survey on commercial fields of the plant in central and southern Korea revealed its widespread occurrence and severe losses. Infections occur on upper part of mature leaves often cause leaf distortions, withering, and reduced vigor and growth. Among 184 greenhouses surveyed 121 were infested by the disease and 52 showed over 10% infection rate. Yields were greatly reduced by the disease reaching only 59% compared to healthy plants. About 60% leaves of infected plant were not marketable and fresh weight of the leaves was 73.6% compared to healthy leaves. Total yield of the greenhouses infested by the disease ranged from $100{\sim}140kg$, while it was 260 kg in a non-infested greenhouse at one time harvest. Since the disease represents a threat to safe cultivation of leafy lettuce in Korea, environmentally-friend control strategies should be urgently developed.