In this paper, we address latency issue in Xen-ARM virtual machines. Despite the advantages of virtualization in mobile systems, the current Xen-ARM is difficult to apply to mobile devices because it has unpredictable I/O latency. This paper analyzes the latency of incoming packet handling in Xen-ARM, and presents how virtualization affects the latency in detail. To make the latency predictable, firstly, we modify Xen-ARM scheduler so that the driver domain can be promptly scheduled by the hypervisor. Secondly, we introduce additional paravirtualization of guest OS that minimizes non-preemptible code path. With our enhancements, 99% of incoming packets are predictably handled within one millisecond at the destined guest OS, which is a feasible time bound for most soft real-time applications.

A novel type of millimeter/submillimeter wave sampler based on resonant tunneling diodes (RTDs) was proposed, and its operation was confirmed by circuit simulation. It consists of an RTD pulse generator and an RTD detector. Owing to the fuse-like nonlinear I-V curve, highly sensitive sampling can be obtained. We also found that the effects of non-ideality in the I-V curve of the RTD can be corrected by sweeping the DC bias for the RTD detector.

This paper proposes an On-Ground Polarization-Forming (GPF) technique to realize a novel polarization-tracking-free satellite communication system whose communication satellite uses linear polarizations. In this system, mobile terminals use circular polarization to realize polarization-tracking-free and simplified terminal configuration. To output circular polarization from the satellite's horizontal and vertical polarization antennas, those output signals transmitted from the satellite are controlled by the base station using the GPF technique. We fabricate a GPF transmitter to evaluate its polarization forming performance. Measured results show that the proposed technique achieves very high cross-polarization discrimination, more than 27 dB.

We propose a reduced complexity maximum likelihood sequence detection (MLSD) equalizer for wireless communications using bidirectional decision feedback equalizers (DFEs). We apply reduced-length two-level estimates produced by a bidirectional DFE. Therefore, the computationally expensive MLSD algorithm is applied sparingly for two-level signals with the effective channel length shorter than the original channel, regardless of the original constellation size of the symbols. Simulation results show that the proposed algorithm outperforms existing combination schemes based on bidirectional DFEs, especially for large constellations.

In this paper, we examine a new P2P traffic localization approach that exploits peer selection adaptation (i.e., preferring peers who are likely to provide better performance), called Netpherd. Netpherd enables peers to communicate with local domain peers by manipulating networking performance across network domains (i.e., adding an artificial delay to inter-domain traffic). Our feasibility study shows that Netpherd reduces the inter-domain traffic by influencing peer selection adaptation. Netpherd also improves download performance of the peers who know many local domain peers. We discuss one guideline to improve Netpherd based on the feasibility study and verify the guideline with evaluation results.

As many digital terrestrial broadcasting stations have been installed and are now broadcasting, the problem of poor reception has become serious even though the receiving powers are high. Although we had developed a interference canceller for broadcast-wave relay stations, an adaptive array is desirable to be more robust against low-D/U multipath environment as a receiver for the service area. In this paper, we propose a weighting coefficient optimization algorithm for post-FFT adaptive array using the reciprocals of weighting coefficients. Numerical examples show the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Microwave imaging techniques, in particular synthetic aperture radar (SAR), are able to obtain useful images even in adverse weather or darkness, which makes them suitable for target position or feature estimation. However, typical SAR imagery is not informative for the operator, because it is synthesized using complex radio signals with greater than 1.0 m wavelength. To deal with the target identification issue for imaging radar, various automatic target recognition (ATR) techniques have been developed. One of the most promising ATR approaches is based on neural network classification. However, in the case of SAR images heavily contaminated by random or speckle noises, the classification accuracy is severely degraded because it only compares the outputs of neurons in the final layer. To overcome this problem, this paper proposes a self organized map (SOM) based ATR method, where the binary SAR image is classified using the unified distance matrix (U-matrix) metric given by the SOM. Our numerical analyses and experiments on 5 types of civilian airplanes, demonstrate that the proposed method remarkably enhances the classification accuracy, particular in lower S/N situations, and holds a significant robustness to the angular variations of the observation.

This paper proposes a third-order low-distortion delta-sigma modulator (DSM). The third-order noise shaping is achieved by a single opamp (excluding the quantizer). In the proposed DSM structure, the timing limitation on the quantizer and dynamic element matching (DEM) logic in a conventional low-distortion structure can be relaxed from a non-overlapping interval to half of the clock period. A cyclic analog-to-digital converter with a loading-free technique is utilized as a quantizer, which shares an opamp with the active adder. The signal transfer function (STF) is preserved as unity, which means that the integrators process only the quantization noise component. As a result, the opamp used for the integrators has lower requirements, as low-distortion DSMs, on slew rate, output swing, and power consumption. The proposed third-order DSM with a 4-bit cyclic-type quantizer is implemented in a 90-nm CMOS process. Under a sampling rate of 80 MHz and oversampling ratio of 16, simulation results show that an 81.97-dB signal-to-noise and distortion ratio and an 80-dB dynamic range are achieved with 4.17-mW total power consumption. The resulting figure of merit (FOM) is 81.5 fJ/conversion-step.

A CMOS current-mode S-shape correction circuit with shape-adjustable control is proposed for suiting different LCD panel's characteristics from different manufactures. The correction shape is divided into three segments for easy curve-fitting using three lower order polynomials. Each segment could be realized by a corresponding current-mode circuit. The proposed circuit consists of several control points which are designed for tuning the correction shape. The S-shape correction circuit was fabricated using the 0.35 µm TSMC CMOS technology. The measured input dynamic range of the circuit is from 0 µA to 220 µA. The -3 dB bandwidth of the circuit is up to 262 MHz in a high input current region.

A solution-processed photosensitive passivation layer with a low dielectric constant (PPLD) has been developed for an a-Si thin film transistor. The PPLD has three highly important properties: a low leakage current, low water absorption, and high-transparency. In addition to providing passivation, the PPLD doubles as a planarization layer. The photoactive property of the PPLD is convenient for its adaption to LCD manufacturing process. A photoactive compound contained in the PPLD enables the formation of contact holes and patterns via a photolithography process. Meanwhile, the PPLD requires ITO workability and strong adhesion property on metal and glass substrates. Apart from the above features, an a-Si TFT must perform with extremely high reliability if it is to replace the conventional inorganic passivation layer (SiNx:H). This reliability has been achieved by an a-Si TFT and LCD panel coated with the PPLD. A reliability test was conducted under a high-temperature, high-humidity (HH) condition to examine how resistant the electronic characteristics were to change. The PPLD-coated LCD panel display view showed no defects for a test duration of HH200 hours. This high reliability was presumed to be at least partly attributable to the low water absorption rate of the passivation layer and the suppression of the increase of the TFT off-leakage current by the PPLD, a passivation layer designed to be non-polar as possible. Judging from the results of these experiments, this solution-processed passivation layer seems to be a viable substitute for the conventional inorganic passivation layer. For a larger screen LCD and higher drive frequency, the problem of RC delay has been emerged. The low dielectric constant of the PPLD will suppress the RC delay of the signal and realize both a higher pixel and a higher drive frequency.

An equivalent network analysis for an arrangement that combines a microstrip line and coaxial conductor for the purpose of measuring permeability is discussed in this paper. The measurement circuit used consists of a coaxial conductor with a sample housed inside and a short microstrip line connected to both sides. The coaxial conductor is composed of an electrically grounded coaxial metal pipe with open ends and a center conductor. Equivalent networks for this arrangement are investigated to determine the complex permeability from the impedance of the measurement circuit. We have employed a π network composed of a resistor and an inductor connected in series, and shunt capacitors as the equivalent circuit for the measurement portion. It has been found that the measurement error ratio of less than a few percent can be obtained for most frequency ranges of 10 MHz to 500 MHz.

A class-F high efficiency GaN power amplifier (PA) for dual band operation at 2.14 GHz and 2.35 GHz is proposed. A novel dual band harmonic-rejection load network, which controls the terminating impedances of the second and third harmonics, and contributes greatly to efficiency improvement of PA, is described. In addition, a matching network which guarantees the high efficiency and gain of PA for the desired dual bands is designed. The proposed load network has the harmonic rejection of more than 24 dB which is sufficient for rejecting harmonics, and an insertion loss of less than 0.11 dB. The dual band matching network for the maximum output power results in the measured highest output power for each operating frequency. The fabricated class-F GaN PA has 43 dBm-65.4% and 43 dBm-63.9% of output power - efficiency at the desired dual frequencies.

In recent years, there has been an increasing demand with regard to available elemental services provided by independent firms for compositing new services. Currently, however, whenever it is difficult to maintain the required level of quality of a new composite web service, assignment of the new computer's resources as provisioning at the data center is not always effective, especially in the area of performance for composite web service providers. Thus, a new approach might be required. This paper presents a new control method aiming to maintain the performance requirements for composite web services. There are three aspects of our method that are applied: first of all, the theory of constraints (TOC) proposed by E.M. Goldratt ; secondly, an evaluation process in the non-linear feed forward controlling method: and finally multiple trials in applying policies with verification. In particular, we will discuss the architectural and theoretical aspects of the method in detail, and will show the insufficiency of combining the feedback controlling approach with TOC as a result of our evaluation.

Link prediction is the task of inferring the existence or absence of certain relationships among data objects such as identity, interaction, and collaboration. Link prediction is found in various applications in the fields of information integration, recommender systems, bioinformatics, and social network analysis. The increasing interest in dynamically changing networks has led to growing interest in a more general link prediction problem called temporal link prediction in the data mining and machine learning communities. However, only links among nodes at the same time point are considered in temporal link prediction. We propose a new link prediction problem called cross-temporal link prediction in which the links among nodes at different time points are inferred. A typical example of cross-temporal link prediction is cross-temporal entity resolution to determine the identity of real entities represented by data objects observed in different time periods. In dynamic environments, the features of data change over time, making it difficult to identify cross-temporal links by directly comparing observed data. Other examples of cross-temporal links are asynchronous communications in social networks such as Facebook and Twitter, where a message is posted in reply to a previous message. We adopt a dimension reduction approach to cross-temporal link prediction; that is, data objects in different time frames are mapped into a common low-dimensional latent feature space, and the links are identified on the basis of the distance between the data objects. The proposed method uses different low-dimensional feature projections in different time frames, enabling it to adapt to changes in the latent features over time. Using multi-task learning, it jointly learns a set of feature projection matrices from the training data, given the assumption of temporal smoothness of the projections. The optimal solutions are obtained by solving a single generalized eigenvalue problem. Experiments using a real-world set of bibliographic data for cross-temporal entity resolution and a real-world set of emails for unobserved asynchronous communication inference showed that introducing time-dependent feature projections improved the accuracy of link prediction.

A novel enhancement for the memory-based particle filter is proposed for visual pose tracking under severe occlusions. The enhancement is the addition of a detection-based memory acquisition mechanism. The memory-based particle filter, called M-PF, is a particle filter that predicts prior distributions from past history of target state stored in memory. It can achieve high robustness against abrupt changes in movement direction and quick recovery from target loss due to occlusions. Such high performance requires sufficient past history stored in the memory. Conventionally, M-PF conducts online memory acquisition which assumes simple target dynamics without occlusions for guaranteeing high-quality histories of the target track. The requirement of memory acquisition narrows the coverage of M-PF in practice. In this paper, we propose a new memory acquisition mechanism for M-PF that well supports application in practical conditions including complex dynamics and severe occlusions. The key idea is to use a target detector that can produce additional prior distribution of the target state. We call it M-PFDMA for M-PF with detection-based memory acquisition. The detection-based prior distribution well predicts possible target position/pose even in limited-visibility conditions caused by occlusions. Such better prior distributions contribute to stable estimation of target state, which is then added to memorized data. As a result, M-PFDMA can start with no memory entries but soon achieve stable tracking even in severe conditions. Experiments confirm M-PFDMA's good performance in such conditions.

Recently, asymmetric zero-correlation zone (A-ZCZ) sequence sets that are composed of several sequence subsets have been proposed. In A-ZCZ sequence sets, the zero-cross-correlation zone (ZCCZ) length between different sequence subsets is larger than the zero-correlation zone (ZCZ) length in each sequence subset. However, the ZCCZ length between different sequence subsets was not precisely shown in previous studies. The present letter shows precisely the ZCCZ length between different sequence subsets. This information is useful for estimating the magnitude of inter-cell interference when designing approximately synchronized code-division multiple-access (AS-CDMA) systems.

In this paper, an imaging components transmission scheme for the improvement of multipath delay resolution in a Fractional Sampling (FS) OFDM receiver is proposed. FS has been proposed as a diversity scheme and achieves path diversity by enlarging the bandwidth of the baseband filters in order to transmit the imaging components of the desired signal. However, FS is not able to achieve diversity with very short delay multipaths because of its low multipath delay resolution. Wider bandwidth of the transmission signal is required to improve the resolution of the delay. On the other hand, cognitive radio is an emerging technology to utilize frequency spectrum flexibly through dynamic spectrum access (DSA). To resolve the small delay multipaths and to use the spectrum flexibly with DSA, this paper investigates the FS path diversity with the imaging components on the separated frequency channel. The correlation between the 2 FS branches is analyzed theoretically on the 2 path channel under the conditions of sampling interval, delay spread, and frequency separation. Numerical results through computer simulation show that the proposed scheme improves the multipath resolution and the bit error rate (BER) performance under the existence of small delay multipaths.

In this letter, we propose a new 4-dimensional constellation-rotation (CR) modulation method that achieves diversity gain of 4 in Rayleigh fading channels. The proposed scheme consists of two consecutive CR operations for QAM symbols unlike the conventional 2-dimensional CR method based on only one CR operation. Computer simulation results show that the new method exhibits much better performance than the conventional one in terms of code rate and channel erasure ratio.

The problem of deciding whether a graph contains another graph appears in various applications. For solving this problem efficiently, we developed a numerical method to detect non-subgraphs, graphs which are not subgraphs of other graphs, by comparing eigenvalues of graphs. In this paper, we propose a method to make the detection more efficient by comparing of eigenvalues of graphs decomposed according to labels of the vertices and the edges. The new approach not only reduces the cost of computing eigenvalues but also increases the possibility of detecting non-subgraphs. The experimental evaluation shows the effectiveness of the proposed method.