Differences in Interactions with a Conversational Agent.

Recent technological advances introduced conversational agents into homes. Many researchers have investigated how people utilize and perceive them. However, only a small number of studies have focused on how older adults interact with these agents.

Safe Helicopter Landing on Unprepared Terrain Using Onboard Interferometric Radar.

This letter proposes a radar interferometric survey system for the ground surface of helicopter landing sites. This system generates high-quality three-dimensional terrain surface topography data and estimates the slope of the site with the required accuracy. This study presents the processing algorithms of the radar system for safe helicopter landing using an interferometric method and also demonstrates the efficiency of the proposed approach based on computer simulation results.

3D MTF estimation using sphere phantoms for cone-beam computed tomography systems.

Purpose: For cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) systems, we propose a sphere phantom based method to estimate the full three-dimensional (3D) modulation transfer function (MTF).

Methods: The FDK reconstruction of CBCT system in a local region was modeled by a triple convolution operator. Afterward, we calculated the directional projections of ideal and reconstructed sphere phantoms into a two-dimensional (2D) plane for multiple views.

Human observer performance on in-plane digital breast tomosynthesis images: Effects of reconstruction filters and data acquisition angles on signal detection.

For digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) systems, we investigate the effects of the reconstruction filters for different data acquisition angles on signal detection. We simulated a breast phantom with a 30% volume glandular fraction (VGF) of breast anatomy using the power law spectrum and modeled the breast mass as a spherical object with a 1 mm diameter. Projection data were acquired using two different data acquisition angles and numbers of projection view pairs, and in-plane breast images were reconstructed using the Feldkamp-Davis-Kress (FDK) algorithm with three different reconstruction filter schemes.

Electrochemical local etching of silicon in etchant vapor.

Direct machining and imprinting of Si are beneficial for simplifying the fabrication of microelectromechanical systems, nanoelectromechanical systems, optical devices, and fin field-effect transistors, and for reducing process costs. Electrochemical micromachining has been introduced for highly doped Si, but complex structures cannot be imprinted directly. With chemical imprinting, complex nano/micropatterns can be imprinted even on low-doped Si, but the physical contact can damage the templates.

Effective Schottky barrier lowering of NiGe/p-Ge(100) using Terbium interlayer structure for high performance p-type MOSFETs.

Ultra-low contact resistance at the interface between NiGe and p-Ge, i.e., NiGe/p-Ge was achieved by introducing terbium (Tb) as an interlayer in forming NiGe using Tb/Ni/TiN structure.

A convolutional neural network-based model observer for breast CT images.

Purpose: In this paper, we propose a convolutional neural network (CNN)-based efficient model observer for breast computed tomography (CT) images.

Methods: We first showed that the CNN-based model observer provided similar detection performance to the ideal observer (IO) for signal-known-exactly and background-known-exactly detection tasks with an uncorrelated Gaussian background noise image. We then demonstrated that a single-layer CNN without a nonlinear activation function provided similar detection performance in breast CT images to the Hotelling observer (HO).

Thermo and flex multi-functional array ionic sensor for a human adaptive device.

Recently, electronic skin that mimics human skin in measuring tactile stimuli, temperature, and humidity and having a self-healing function was developed. Furthermore, with the advances in the field of artificial intelligence and health monitoring, various materials and methods have been studied for e-skin. The limitations to work on actual human skin include device flexibility and large-area applications through array structures, and many studies are underway to overcome these problems.

Hands-Free User Interface for AR/VR Devices Exploiting Wearer's Facial Gestures Using Unsupervised Deep Learning.

Developing a user interface (UI) suitable for headset environments is one of the challenges in the field of augmented reality (AR) technologies. This study proposes a hands-free UI for an AR headset that exploits facial gestures of the wearer to recognize user intentions. The facial gestures of the headset wearer are detected by a custom-designed sensor that detects skin deformation based on infrared diffusion characteristics of human skin.

Anodic Imprint Lithography: Direct Imprinting of Single Crystalline GaAs with Anodic Stamp.

Anodic imprint lithography patterns the GaAs substrate electrochemically by applying a voltage through a predefined anodic stamp. This newly devised technique performs anodic etching in a stamping manner. Stamps that serve as anodic electrodes are fabricated precisely, and the patterns can be imprinted continuously on GaAs substrates.

Hexagonal Boron Nitride for Surface Passivation of Two-Dimensional van der Waals Heterojunction Solar Cells.

Two-dimensional (2D) semiconductors can be promising active materials for solar cells due to their advantageous electrical and optical properties, in addition to their ability to form high-quality van der Waals (vdW) heterojunctions using a simple process. Furthermore, the atomically thin nature of these 2D materials allows them to form lightweight and transparent thin-film solar cells. However, strategies appropriate for optimizing their properties have not been extensively studied yet.

Fluorinated low-viscosity copolymer with enhanced release property for roll-to-plate UV nanoimprint lithography.

A new fluorinated low-viscosity copolymer resin with enhanced release properties has been developed to provide higher fidelity for roll-based ultraviolet (UV) nanoimprint lithography (NIL) and simplify the process. The properties are optimized by blending (2,2,3,3,4,4,5,5,6,6,7,7,8,8,9,9,9-heptadecafluorononyl) oxirane (EP-F8) and 1,4-butanediol divinyl ether (BDDVE) with 3,4-epoxycyclohexylmethyl-3,4-epoxy cyclohexane carboxylate. The cured resin renders the hydrophobicity and allows demolding from the stamp mold without an anti-stick layer (ASL), as further verified by the contact angle and the work of adhesion measurements.

Synthesis of Magnetic Ferrite Nanoparticles with High Hyperthermia Performance via a Controlled Co-Precipitation Method.

Magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) that exhibit high specific loss power (SLP) at lower metal content are highly desirable for hyperthermia applications. The conventional co-precipitation process has been widely employed for the synthesis of magnetic nanoparticles. However, their hyperthermia performance is often insufficient, which is considered as the main challenge to the development of practicable cancer treatments.

Interplay of strain and intermixing effects on direct-bandgap optical transition in strained Ge-on-Si under thermal annealing.

The influence of thermal annealing on the properties of germanium grown on silicon (Ge-on-Si) has been investigated. Depth dependencies of strain and photoluminescence (PL) were compared for as-grown and annealed Ge-on-Si samples to investigate how intermixing affects the optical properties of Ge-on-Si. The tensile strain on thermally annealed Ge-on-Si increases at the deeper region, while the PL wavelength becomes shorter.

Subwavelength photocathodes via metal-assisted chemical etching of GaAs for solar hydrogen generation.

MacEtch allows subwavelength-structured (SWS) texturing on the GaAs surface without compromising crystallinity. The current density increases greatly, which is directly due to the reduction in the reflectance. Photons absorbed under reduced light reflectance are less affected by the charge recombination arising from crystal defects.

A performance comparison of convolutional neural network-based image denoising methods: The effect of loss functions on low-dose CT images.

Purpose: Convolutional neural network (CNN)-based image denoising techniques have shown promising results in low-dose CT denoising. However, CNN often introduces blurring in denoised images when trained with a widely used pixel-level loss function. Perceptual loss and adversarial loss have been proposed recently to further improve the image denoising performance.

Theoretical Analysis for Wireless Magnetothermal Deep Brain Stimulation Using Commercial Nanoparticles.

A wireless magnetothermal stimulation (WMS) is suggested as a fast, tetherless, and implanted device-free stimulation method using low-radio frequency (100 kHz to 1 MHz) alternating magnetic fields (AMF). As magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) can transduce alternating magnetic fields into heat, they are targeted to a region of the brain expressing the temperature-sensitive ion channel (TRPV1). The local temperature of the targeted area is increased up to 44 °C to open the TRPV1 channels and cause an influx of Ca sensitive promoter, which can activate individual neurons inside the brain.

A performance comparison of anthropomorphic model observers for breast cone beam CT images: A single-slice and multislice study.

Purpose: In this work, we investigate single-slice and multislice model observers which can predict human observer performance for simulated single-slice and multislice breast cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) images with a constant internal noise level.

Methods: Breast background is generated based on a power spectrum of mammograms, and breast mass is modeled by a spherical signal. Human observer performance is evaluated for detecting 1 and 2 mm signals in different noise structures stemming from different reconstruction filters and image planes in a Feldkamp-Davis-Kress reconstruction.

Low-Cost Curb Detection and Localization System Using Multiple Ultrasonic Sensors.

Curb detection and localization systems constitute an important aspect of environmental recognition systems of autonomous driving vehicles. This is because detecting curbs can provide information about the boundary of a road, which can be used as a safety system to prevent unexpected intrusions into pedestrian walkways. Moreover, curb detection and localization systems enable the autonomous vehicle to recognize the surrounding environment and the lane in which the vehicle is driving.

Resist-Free Direct Stamp Imprinting of GaAs via Metal-Assisted Chemical Etching.

We introduce a method for the direct imprinting of GaAs substrates using wet-chemical stamping. The predefined patterns on the stamps etch the GaAs substrates via metal-assisted chemical etching. This is a resist-free method in which the stamp and the GaAs substrate are directly pressed together.

Research on How Emotional Expressions of Emotional Labor Workers and Perception of Customer Feedbacks Affect Turnover Intentions: Emphasis on Moderating Effects of Emotional Intelligence.

Previous studies have used various external variables and parameters as well as moderator variables such as emotional intelligence have been to understand emotional labor and its related problems. However, a comprehensive model to study such variables' correlations with each other and their overall effect on emotional labor has not yet been established. This study used a structural equation model to understand the relationship between employees' expression of emotional labor and perception of customer feedbacks.

Haptic-Based Manipulation Scheme of Magnetic Nanoparticles in a Multi-Branch Blood Vessel for Targeted Drug Delivery.

Magnetic drug targeting is a promising technique that can deliver drugs to the diseased region, while keeping the drug away from healthy parts of body. Introducing a human in the control loop of a targeted drug delivery system and using inherent bilateralism of a haptic device at the same time can considerably improve the performance of targeted drug delivery systems. In this paper, we suggest a novel intelligent haptic guidance scheme for steering a number of magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) using forbidden region virtual fixtures and a haptic rendering scheme with multi particles.

Effects of proton conduction on dielectric properties of peptides.

Peptides have been overlooked for their use in the field of electronics, even though they are one of the most commonly found bio-induced materials, and are not only easy to mass-produce but also exhibit a high dielectric constant. Additionally, unlike proteins, which are gaining considerable interest with materials researchers, peptides are much simpler, rendering their original characteristics easier to maintain without significant alteration of their structure. On the other hand, proteins tend to deform due to their susceptibility to environmental changes.

Two-Dimensional WSe/MoS p-n Heterojunction-Based Transparent Photovoltaic Cell and Its Performance Enhancement by Fluoropolymer Passivation.

As a means to overcome the limitation of installation space and to promote the utilization of the solar cell in various applications, a transparent thin-film solar cell has been studied by many researchers. To achieve a transparent solar cell, the choice of materials which are transparent enough and showing the photovoltaic property at the same time is the key. Here, we suggest a two-dimensional (2D) p-n heterojunction of WSe/MoS and an indium tin oxide electrode to fabricate a transparent thin-film photovoltaic cell.

Evaluation of human observer performance on lesion detectability in single-slice and multislice dedicated breast cone beam CT images with breast anatomical background.

Purpose: We evaluate the lesion detectability using human and model observer studies in single-slice and multislice cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) images with a breast anatomical background. The purposes of this work are (a) to compare human observer detectability between single-slice and multislice images for different signal sizes and noise structures, (b) to investigate the effect of different multislice viewing modes (i.e.