In this paper, we propose a simple, yet effective, multiuser detection scheme for a two-hop cooperative CDMAs. In phase 1, the minimum mean square error (MMSE) detector at the destination is used to identify reliable decisions of direct transmissions from the sources and return them to the relays. Then, in phase 2, based on the reliable decisions, the relays and the destination successively utilize the maximum likelihood (ML) detectors to estimate the residual symbols. Due to the destination estimating the symbols separately from direct transmissions and the relaying signals, as a result the destination does not need the information about the relays' decision performance for the construction of the ML detector. Hence, the proposed scheme is more feasible than existing approaches for practical implementation. In addition, due to the ML detectors in phase 2 only estimating the residual symbols, the number of computations performed by the ML detectors can be reduced significantly. The results of simulations and complexity analysis demonstrate the efficiency and effectiveness of the proposed scheme.

A non-audible murmur (NAM), a very weak whisper sound produced without vocal fold vibration, has been researched in the development of a silent-speech communication tool for functional speech disorders as well as human-to-human/machine interfaces with inaudible voice input. The NAM can be detected using a specially designed microphone, called a NAM microphone, attached to the neck. However, the detected NAM signal has a low signal-to-noise ratio and severely suppressed high-frequency component. To improve NAM clarity, the mechanism of a NAM production must be clarified. In this work, an air flow through a glottis in the vocal tract was numerically simulated using computational fluid dynamics and vocal tract shape models that are obtained by a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan for whispered voice production with various strengths, i.e. strong, weak, and very weak. For a very weak whispering during the MRI scan, subjects were trained, just before the scanning, to produce the very weak whispered voice, or the NAM. The numerical results show that a weak vorticity flow occurs in the supraglottal region even during a very weak whisper production; such vorticity flow provide aeroacoustic sources for a very weak whispering, i.e. NAM, as in an ordinary whispering.

The adequate evaluation of sound quality is an important issue for the lossy compression codecs, such as MP3. ITU-R Rec BS. 1387-1 (PEAQ – Perceptual Evaluation of Audio Quality) is the most widely used method to evaluate sound quality objectively. However, PEAQ can only be used for mono signals or two channel stereo signals, because it considers only timbral factors when assessing sound quality. This paper introduces an improved objective quality assessment method that can be used for mono signals and multichannel audio signals that considers both “spatial” and “timbral” factors. The “spatial” factors, which measure perceptual distortions in spatial impression, are important to evaluate the quality of multichannel sounds.

In this paper, we present an approach of detecting speech presence for which the decision rule is based on a combination of multiple features using a sigmoid function. A minimum classification error (MCE) training is used to update the weights adjustment for the combination. The features, consisting of three parameters: the ratio of ZCR, the spectral energy, and spectral entropy, are combined linearly with weights derived from the sub-band domain. First, the Bark-scale wavelet decomposition (BSWD) is used to split the input speech into 24 critical sub-bands. Next, the feature parameters are derived from the selected frequency sub-band to form robust voice feature parameters. In order to discard the seriously corrupted frequency sub-band, a strategy of adaptive frequency sub-band extraction (AFSE) dependant on the sub-band SNR is then applied to only the frequency sub-band used. Finally, these three feature parameters, which only consider the useful sub-band, are combined through a sigmoid type function incorporating optimal weights based on MSE training to detect either a speech present frame or a speech absent frame. Experimental results show that the performance of the proposed algorithm is superior to the standard methods such as G.729B and AMR2.

We propose a novel method of supervised feature projection called class-distance-based discriminant analysis (CDDA), which is suitable for automatic age estimation (AAE) from facial images. Most methods of supervised feature projection, e.g., Fisher discriminant analysis (FDA) and local Fisher discriminant analysis (LFDA), focus on determining whether two samples belong to the same class (i.e., the same age in AAE) or not. Even if an estimated age is not consistent with the correct age in AAE systems, i.e., the AAE system induces error, smaller errors are better. To treat such characteristics in AAE, CDDA determines between-class separability according to the class distance (i.e., difference in ages); two samples with similar ages are imposed to be close and those with spaced ages are imposed to be far apart. Furthermore, we propose an extension of CDDA called local CDDA (LCDDA), which aims at handling multimodality in samples. Experimental results revealed that CDDA and LCDDA could extract more discriminative features than FDA and LFDA.

Boosting over weak classifiers is widely used in pedestrian detection. As the number of weak classifiers is large, researchers always use a sampling method over weak classifiers before training. The sampling makes the boosting process harder to reach the fixed target. In this paper, we propose a partial derivative guidance for weak classifier mining method which can be used in conjunction with a boosting algorithm. Using weak classifier mining method makes the sampling less degraded in the performance. It has the same effect as testing more weak classifiers while using acceptable time. Experiments demonstrate that our algorithm can process quicker than [1] algorithm in both training and testing, without any performance decrease. The proposed algorithms is easily extending to any other boosting algorithms using a window-scanning style and HOG-like features.

A novel approach for detecting anomaly in visual surveillance system is proposed in this paper. It is composed of three parts: (a) a dense motion field and motion statistics method, (b) motion directional PCA for feature dimensionality reduction, (c) an improved one-class SVM for one-class classification. Experiments demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm in detecting abnormal events in surveillance video, while keeping a low false alarm rate. Our scheme works well in complicated situations that common tracking or detection modules cannot handle.

In this paper, we deal with the pedestrian detection task in outdoor scenes. Because of the complexity of such scenes, generally used gradient-feature-based detectors do not work well on them. We propose to use sparse 3D depth information as an additional cue to do the detection task, in order to achieve a fast improvement in performance. Our proposed method uses a probabilistic model to integrate image-feature-based classification with sparse depth estimation. Benefiting from the depth estimates, we map the prior distribution of human's actual height onto the image, and update the image-feature-based classification result probabilistically. We have two contributions in this paper: 1) a simplified graphical model which can efficiently integrate depth cue in detection; and 2) a sparse depth estimation method which could provide fast and reliable estimation of depth information. An experiment shows that our method provides a promising enhancement over baseline detector within minimal additional time.

Locally linear embedding (LLE) is a well-known method for nonlinear dimensionality reduction. The mathematical proof and experimental results presented in this paper show that the neighborhood sizes in LLE must be smaller than the dimensions of input data spaces, otherwise LLE would degenerate from a nonlinear method for dimensionality reduction into a linear method for dimensionality reduction. Furthermore, when the neighborhood sizes are larger than the dimensions of input data spaces, the solutions to LLE are not unique. In these cases, the addition of some regularization method is often proposed. The experimental results presented in this paper show that the regularization method is not robust. Too large or too small regularization parameters cannot unwrap S-curve. Although a moderate regularization parameters can unwrap S-curve, the relative distance in the input data will be distorted in unwrapping. Therefore, in order to make LLE play fully its advantage in nonlinear dimensionality reduction and avoid multiple solutions happening, the best way is to make sure that the neighborhood sizes are smaller than the dimensions of input data spaces.

A 0.8-V CMOS Phase-Locked Loop (PLL) has been designed and fabricated by using a 0.13-µm 1p8m CMOS process. In the proposed PLL, the double-positive-feedbacks voltage-controlled oscillator (DPF-VCO) is used to generate current signals for the coupling current-mode injection-locked frequency divider (CCMILFD) and current-injection current-mode logic (CICML) divider. A short-pulsed-reset phase frequency detector (SPR-PFD) with the reduced pulse width of reset signal to improve the linear range of the PFD and a complementary-type charge pump to eliminate the current path delay are also adopted in the proposed PLL. The measured in-band phase noise of the fabricated PLL is -98 dBc/Hz. The locking range of the PLL is from 22.6 GHz to 23.3 GHz and the reference spur level is -69 dBm that is 54 dB bellow the carrier. The power consumption is 9.2 mW under a 0.8-V power supply. The proposed PLL has the advantages of low phase noise, low reference spur, and low power dissipation at low voltage operation.

A novel divide-by-3 injection-locked frequency divider (ILFD) is proposed. The ILFD circuit is realized with a cross-coupled n-core MOS LC-tank oscillator embedded with a push-push signal generator and two injection MOSFETs for coupling the injection signal into the resonator. The ILFD uses the linear mixer to extend the locking range and has been implemented in a standard 0.18 µm CMOS process. The core power consumption of the ILFD core is 3.12 mW. The divider's free-running frequency is tunable from 4.26 GHz to 4.9 GHz by tuning the varactor's control bias, and at the incident power of 0 dBm the locking range of the ILFD used as a divide-by-3 divider is 1.5 GHz, from 12.5 GHz to 14.0 GHz.

This paper presents a current-reused quadrature voltage-controlled oscillator (QVCO) which adopts a source-connection coupling structure. The QVCO simultaneously achieves low phase noise and low power consumption by newly combining current-reused VCOs and coupling transistors. The measured QVCO obtains good FoM of -188.2 dBc at a frequency of 2.2 GHz with 3.96 mW power consumption.

This paper introduces a random selection cooperation scheme that takes the Decode-and-Forward (DF) approach to solve the unfairness problem in selection cooperation. Compared to previous work which obtained fairness but introduced performance loss, the proposed scheme guarantees fairness without performance loss. Its essence is to randomly select from the relays that can ensure the successful communication between the source and the destination, rather than to select the best relay. Both a theoretical analysis and simulation results confirm that the proposed scheme could achieve fairness and introduce no performance loss. We also discuss the conditions under which the proposed scheme is practical to implement.

A semi-analytical approach for analyzing the electromagnetic radiation of a line source in cylindrical electromagnetic bandgap (EBG) structure is presented. The cylindrical structure is composed of circular rods periodically distributed along concentrically layered circular rings. The method uses the T-matrix of a circular rod in isolation, the reflection and transmission matrices of a cylindrical array expressed in terms of the cylindrical waves as the basis, and the generalized reflection and transmission matrices for a layered cylindrical structure. Using the proposed method, the radiated field from a line source placed inside a three-layered cylindrical EBG structure with defects is investigated. The defects are created by removing the particular circular rods from each circular ring. The structure is prominent from the viewpoint of flexible design of the directive antennas. Numerical examples demonstrate that the cylindrical EBG structures are very effective at forming and controlling the directed beam in the radiated fields.

A dual-band divide-by-2 quadrature injection-locked frequency divider (QILFD) is proposed to achieve high-speed, low power, wide-locking range, and accurate quadrature output phases. The QILFD consists of two dual-resonance differential voltage controlled oscillators and four coupling NMOS injectors in a ring configuration. The injectors are used as coupling devices of two differential ILFDs and are also used as common source amplifiers. The proposed QILFD has been implemented with the TSMC 90 nm CMOS technology and the core power consumption is 2.31 mW at the dc drain-source bias of 0.5 V. At the input power of 0 dBm, the low-band and high-band divide-by-2 operation ranges are respectively from 7.0 GHz to 10.1 GHz and 19.8 GHz to 24.6 GHz.

The effective ISFs of differential LC oscillators are derived under the assumption that the drain-to-source current is linearly dependent on the gate-to-source voltage for transistors operated in saturation. Moreover, a new interpretation of phase noise is given by examining the real vector diagram of the carrier signal, upon which the noise voltage induced by the impulse noise current is superimposed. The distinct feature of our vector diagram lies in that the noise voltage is always parallel with the horizontal axis. From the Fourier transformations of the derived effective ISFs, the phase noise of differential LC oscillators can be formulated with physical meanings in the frequency domain. The proposed theory can well describe the translation of the noise spectra when the noises from the LC-tank, the switching transistors, and the tail current source are converted into the phase noise. Theoretical predictions from our formulas agree well with the simulation results.

In this article, we first review key derivation functions specified in NIST SP 800-108 and one proposed by Krawczyk. Then, we propose parallelizable key derivation functions obtained by modifying or using the existing schemes. We also define two measures of efficiency of key derivation functions, and evaluate their performance in terms of the two measures.

Detecting spreaders, or scan sources, helps intrusion detection systems (IDS) identify potential attackers. The existing work can only detect aggressive spreaders that scan a large number of distinct destinations in a short period of time. However, stealthy spreaders may perform scanning deliberately at a low rate. We observe that these spreaders can easily evade the detection because current IDS's have serious limitations. Being lightweight, the proposed scheme can detect scan sources in high speed networking while residing in SRAM. By theoretical analysis and experiments on real Internet traffic traces, we demonstrate that the proposed scheme detects stealthy spreaders successfully.

This work describes a 12-bit 100 MS/s 0.13 µm CMOS three-stage pipeline ADC with various circuit design techniques to reduce power and die area. Digitally controlled timing delay and gate-bootstrapping circuits improve the linearity and sampling time mismatch of the SHA-free input network composed of an MDAC and a FLASH ADC. A single two-stage switched op-amp is shared between adjacent MDACs without MOS series switches and memory effects by employing two separate NMOS input pairs based on slightly overlapped switching clocks. The interpolation, open-loop offset sampling, and two-step reference selection schemes for a back-end 6-bit flash ADC reduce both power consumption and chip area drastically compared to the conventional 6-bit flash ADCs. The prototype ADC in a 0.13 µm CMOS process demonstrates measured differential and integral non-linearities within 0.44LSB and 1.54LSB, respectively. The ADC shows a maximum SNDR and SFDR of 60.5 dB and 71.2 dB at 100 MS/s, respectively. The ADC with an active die area of 0.92 mm2 consumes 19 mW at 100 MS/s from a 1.0 V supply. The measured FOM is 0.22 pJ/conversion-step.

In this paper, a new power control scheme is proposed to maximize the network throughput with fairness provisioning. Based on the Stackelberg game model, the proposed scheme consists of two control mechanisms; user-level and system-level mechanisms. Control decisions in each mechanism act cooperatively and collaborate with each other to satisfy efficiency and fairness requirements. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed scheme has excellent network performance, while other schemes cannot offer such an attractive performance balance.