The objective of this study was to explore suitable spatial filters for inverse estimation of cortical potentials from the scalp electroencephalogram. The effect of incorporating noise covariance into inverse procedures was examined by computer simulations. The parametric projection filter, which allows inverse estimation with the presence of information on the noise covariance, was applied to an inhomogeneous three-concentric-sphere model under various noise conditions in order to estimate the cortical potentials from the scalp potentials. The present simulation results suggest that incorporation of information on the noise covariance allows better estimation of cortical potentials, than inverse solutions without knowledge about the noise covariance, when the correlation between the signal and noise is low. The method for determining the optimum regularization parameter, which can be applied for parametric inverse techniques, is also discussed.

In this letter, we present groupwise successive interference cancellation (GSIC) receiver with adaptive minimum mean squared error (MMSE) detection and extended GSIC (EGSIC) receiver with adaptive MMSE detection for dual-rate DS-CDMA system. The receivers are GSIC receiver and EGSIC receiver combined with adaptive MMSE detection which is introduced to make initial bit detection more reliable. Furthermore, a multi-user detection scheme is introduced to mitigate the effect of multiple access interference (MAI) between users in a group which is usually ignored in conventional GSIC receiver and EGSIC receiver. Specifically, parallel interference cancellation (PIC) is adopted as a multi-user detection scheme within a group. It is shown that performance of the GSIC receiver and EGSIC receiver is significantly improved by employing adaptive MMSE detection. It is also shown that the performance of the receivers can be improved further by using PIC within a group.

The array-enhanced coherence resonance (AECR) in the diffusively coupled active rotators is investigated and its analysis with the nonlinear Fokker-Planck equation is presented. By considering the nonlinear Fokker-Planck equation of the rotators, it is found that the time-periodic solution exists in some parameter range. By solving the equation of a rotator and the Fokker-Planck equation simultaneously, the behavior of a rotator in the system with infinite number of rotators is considered, and it is found that AECR also takes place in this infinite system. Thus it is concluded that AECR is caused by the time-periodic solution of the probability density induced by noise.

Probabilistic encryption becomes more and more important since its ability to against chosen-ciphertext attack. Applications like online voting schemes and one-show credentials are based on probabilistic encryption. Research on good probabilistic encryptions are on going, while many good deterministic encryption schemes are already well implemented and available in many systems. To convert any deterministic encryption scheme into a probabilistic encryption scheme, a randomized media is needed to apply on the message and carry the message over as an randomized input. In this paper, nonlinear codes obtained by certain mapping from linear error-correcting codes are considered to serve as such carrying media. Binary nonlinear codes obtained by Gray mapping from 4-linear codes are discussed as example for a such scheme.

This paper describes a practical Japanese natural language Question Answering system adopting effective selection of dynamic passages, Lexico-Semantic Patterns (LSP), and Predictive Answer Indexing. By analyzing the previous TREC QA data, we defined a dynamic passage unit and developed a passage selection method suitable for Question Answering. Using LSP, we identify the answer type of a question and detect answer candidates without any deep linguistic analyses of the texts. To guarantee a short response time, Predictive Answer Indexing is combined into our overall system architecture. As a result of the three engineering techniques, our system showed excellent performance when evaluated by mean reciprocal rank (MRR) in NTCIR-3 QAC-1.

A unified linear multiuser receiver that minimizes a weighted sum of the multiple access interference (MAI) and the background noise is introduced. The proposed receiver includes the three popular linear receivers, namely the matched-filter, the decorrelating and the minimum mean-square-error receivers as special cases. Furthermore, by tuning a single weighting factor, it is possible to improve the performance of the proposed receiver over that of any of the above mentioned linear receivers.

Analog Hopfield neural networks (HNNs) have so far been used to solve many kinds of optimization problems, in particular, combinatorial problems such as the TSP, which can be described by an objective function and some equality constraints. When we solve a minimization problem with equality constraints by using HNNs, however, the constraints are satisfied only approximately. In this paper we propose a circuit which rigorously realizes the equality constraints and whose energy function corresponds to the prescribed objective function. We use the SPICE program to solve circuit equations corresponding to the above circuits. The proposed method is applied to several kinds of optimization problems and the results are very satisfactory.

The present paper deals with the frequency-dependent finite difference time domain ((FD)2TD) method analysis of the light-beam diffraction from a land/groove recording phase-change (PC) disk model with a metal (Al or Au) reflective layer in order to improve the conventional analysis for PC optical disk models with a perfectly conducting reflective layer. The diffracted fields are numerically calculated for both recorded and non-recorded states of the recording layer, and the comparison of the detected signal characteristics between two states is discussed. The crosstalk between the recording marks on lands and grooves are evaluated and the optimum groove depth is examined for Al,Au and perfectly conducting layer models.

We have developed a 2 GHz band superconducting 8-pole tunable quasi-elliptic function filter on sapphire substrate. The tunable filter has a sharp skirt characteristic by transmission zeros. And the tunable filter uses a low-cost substrate of sapphire. An adjustment of center frequency for the filter is realized by a tunable technique with a piezoelectric bending actuator. The tunable filter realized center frequency shift of 7.62 MHz with conditions of bandwidth change of 0.5% and ripple change of 0.25 dB. Center frequency of the 8-pole quasi-elliptic function filter agreed with the designed value. Given these features, a superconducting filter with a sharp skirt characteristic for next-generation mobile RF applications is expected to be realized by applying these filters.

This paper presents a frequency domain simultaneous equations method capable of automatically recovering noise reduction effect degraded by secondary path changes. The simultaneous equations method has been studied, first in time domain. Accordingly to the study, in the time domain, the simultaneous equations method requires an additional filter and a system identification circuit used for transforming the solution of the simultaneous equations into the coefficients of noise control filter, which increase the processing cost. To reduce the processing cost, this paper studies on the application of a frequency domain processing technique, the cross spectrum method, to the simultaneous equations method. By directly applying the equation defining the cross spectrum method to the solution, the additional filter becomes unnecessary. In addition, the system identification circuit is replaced with the inverse Fourier transform. Thereby, the processing cost drastically decreases. This paper also presents simulation results to confirm that the proposed method can automatically recover the noise reduction effect degraded by a path change and provides much higher convergence speed than that of the filtered-x NLMS algorithm with the perfectly modeled secondary path filter.

In this paper, a spatio-temporal error concealment method of transmission errors for improving visual quality over the wireless channel is proposed, which makes use of geometric information extracted from the surrounding blocks. The geometric information is an isophote that is curves of constant intensity of image. To improve visual quality during video communication, the proposed method smoothly connects the isophotes disconnected due to transmission error using a genetic algorithm (GA) with an isophote constraint. In the proposed method, the error concealment problem is modeled as an optimization problem, which in our case, is solved by a cost function with isophotes constraint that is minimized using a GA. Experimental results shows more visually realistic than other error concealment methods.

Integration of the IP/MPLS network and the WDM optical mesh network is a promising approach to realizing an efficient backbone network. Because of the great volumes of traffic carried, the social cost incurred by a failure will be extremely high, so survivability is very important in the backbone network. In survivable IP/MPLS over WDM backbone networks, cooperation of the optical level fault recovery and the IP/MPLS level fault recovery is essential. This paper analyzes cost characteristics of the optical level fault recovery and the IP/MPLS level fault recovery. A mathematical programming method is proposed to minimize the initial network cost when the IP/MPLS level fault recovery is utilized in the survivable IP/MPLS over WDM networks. Using this method, the initial network cost needed for the IP/MPLS level fault recovery is compared with that for the optical level fault recovery. The initial network cost for the LSP (Label Switched Path) protection scheme is smaller than that for the shared light-path protection scheme and larger than that for the pre-plan type light-path restoration scheme. The LSP protection scheme is suitable for the best-effort type traffic while the shared light-path protection scheme may be suitable for the bandwidth guaranteed type traffic.

This paper proposes a disjoint path selection scheme for Generalized Multi-Protocol Label Switching (GMPLS) networks with Shared Risk Link Group (SRLG) constraints. It is called the weighted-SRLG (WSRLG) scheme. It treats the total number of SRLG members related to a link as part of the link cost when the k-shortest path algorithm is executed. In WSRLG, a link that has many SRLG members is rarely selected as the shortest path. Simulation results show that WSRLG finds more disjoint paths than the conventional k-shortest path algorithm. In addition, since WSRLG searches for the weight of the SRLG factor by using a modified binary search algorithm while satisfying the required number of disjoint paths between source and destination nodes, it can find cost-effective disjoint paths.

In this letter, we propose a new error protection technique for JPEG2000-coded images and also present its evaluation over an OFDM channel. The method exploits the layer structure of the JPEG2000 codestream, a data embedding technique and a forward error correcting code. The main header and data in the top layer are duplicated and protected by the error correcting code. These data are then embedded into the bottom layer for error recovery purposes. Our method offers several features: preserves the same codestream structure as the one in the JPEG2000 part 1 standard, provides multilevel error protection, and can be combined with the existing error resilience technique. Hence, the method accommodates the new requirements for wireless JPEG2000 (JPWL/JPEG2000 part 11).

This paper presents an algorithm for fingerprint image restoration using Digital Reaction-Diffusion System (DRDS). The DRDS is a model of a discrete-time discrete-space nonlinear reaction-diffusion dynamical system, which is useful for generating biological textures, patterns and structures. This paper focuses on the design of a fingerprint restoration algorithm that combines (i) a ridge orientation estimation technique using an iterative coarse-to-fine processing strategy and (ii) an adaptive DRDS having a capability of enhancing low-quality fingerprint images using the estimated ridge orientation. The phase-only image matching technique is employed for evaluating the similarity between an original fingerprint image and a restored image. The proposed algorithm may be useful for person identification applications using fingerprint images.

This paper proposes a method to integrate computer specifications retrieved from multiple Web sites, to extract characteristic-data of each computer based on integrated information, and to present products suitable for a user's request. The specifications written in HTML are converted into normal forms called table structure. The quantitative attributes such as speed, capacity and dimensions are extracted by comparing them with the mean or mode of all sample data, and the qualitative ones such as kind of processor and graphics chip are extracted using knowledge provided manually. The recommended products are dynamically determined from the extracted data by a user's request and relevance feedback. Experimental results show the effectiveness of our method.

We newly propose a stable algorithm for blind source separation (BSS) combining multistage ICA (MSICA) and linear prediction. The MSICA is the method previously proposed by the authors, in which frequency-domain ICA (FDICA) for a rough separation is followed by time-domain ICA (TDICA) to remove residual crosstalk. For temporally correlated signals, we must use TDICA with a nonholonomic constraint to avoid the decorrelation effect from the holonomic constraint. However, the stability cannot be guaranteed in the nonholonomic case. To solve the problem, the linear predictors estimated from the roughly separated signals by FDICA are inserted before the holonomic TDICA as a prewhitening processing, and the dewhitening is performed after TDICA. The stability of the proposed algorithm can be guaranteed by the holonomic constraint, and the pre/dewhitening processing prevents the decorrelation. The experiments in a reverberant room reveal that the algorithm results in higher stability and separation performance.

This paper proposes a novel extraction method of line parameters for multi-coupled lines on high-speed and high-density PCBs, where it uses TDR measurement in time domain and S-parameter measurement in frequency domain. The accuracy of the proposed method have been verified experimentally by comparing the crosstalk noise in the time domain, where (1) the proposed method extracts RLGC matrices by measuring the test pattern, (2) the crosstalk noise is obtained through SPICE simulation using the extracted RLGC matrices, and (3) the SPICE-simulated crosstalk noise is compared with the measured crosstalk noise. From the crosstalk noise comparison, the proposed method is proven to be very accurate. For N-coupled lines, the proposed method doesn't require expensive 2N-port probe for N-coupled lines but only two-port probe, which provides a simple, accurate, and economic extraction method of line parameters for multi-coupled line on the PCB. In the early stage of PCB design, the proposed method is very useful, because it extracts accurate interconnection parameters of each test board and enables to compensate various side effects due to the variation of PCB fabrication process. Also, the proposed method is necessary to analyze the signal integrity of future high-density and high-speed digital system on PCBs.

Adaptive arrays have been recognized as an attractive mean for overcoming multipath fading and interference rejection in the field of mobile communications. In, an adaptive array applicable to single-user spread spectrum (SS) systems has been proposed. In this system, any a priori information concerning incoming signal, even the spreading code and synchronization, is not necessary while it achieves equalizing, beamforming and despreading of a received signal, simultaneously. In this paper, we propose a multistage blind adaptive array antenna based on the above-mentioned adaptive algorithm in order to realize blind signal processing that is applicable to multi-user SS systems. Behavior and performance of the proposed multistage system are examined through computer simulations.

The present letter introduces a new approach to the construction of a set of ternary arrays having a zero-correlation zone. The proposed array set has a zero-correlation zone for both periodic and aperiodic correlation functions. As such, the proposed arrays can be used as a finite-size array having a zero-correlation zone. The proposed array sets can be constructed from an arbitrary Hadamard matrix. The member size of the proposed array set is close to the theoretical upper bound.