On images of affine spaces

We prove that every non-degenerate toric variety, every homogeneous space of a connected linear algebraic group without non-constant invertible regular functions, and every variety covered by affine spaces admit a surjective morphism from an affine space.     

Two-Phase Image Segmentation by Nonconvex Nonsmooth Models with Convergent Alternating Minimization Algorithms

Two-phase image segmentation is a fundamental task to partition an image into foreground and background. In this paper, two types of nonconvex and nonsmooth regularization models are proposed for basic two-phase segmentation. They extend the convex regularization on the characteristic function on the image domain to the nonconvex case, which are able to better obtain piecewise constant regions with neat boundaries. By analyzing the proposed non-Lipschitz model, we combine the proximal alternating minimization framework with support shrinkage and linearization strategies to design our algorithm. This leads to two alternating strongly convex subproblems which can be easily solved. Similarly, we present an algorithm without support shrinkage operation for the nonconvex Lipschitz case. Using the Kurdyka-Łojasiewicz property of the objective function, we prove that the limit point of the generated sequence is a critical point of the original nonconvex nonsmooth problem. Numerical experiments and comparisons illustrate the effectiveness of our method in two-phase image segmentation.     

Interaction between a screw dislocation and an elastic elliptical inhomogeneity with interfacial cracks

The elastic interaction between a screw dislocation and an elliptical inhomogeneity with interfacial cracks is studied. The screw dislocation may be located outside or inside the inhomogeneity. An efficient complex variable method for the complex multiply connected region is developed, and the general solutions to the problem are derived. As illustrative examples, solutions in explicit series form for complex potentials are presented in the case of one or two interfacial cracks. Image forces on the dislocation are calculated by using the Peach-Koehler formula. The influence of crack geometries and material properties on the image forces is evaluated and discussed. It is shown that the interfacial crack has a significant effect on the equilibrium position of the dislocation near an elliptical-arc interface. The main results indicate, when the length of the crack goes up to a critical value, the presence of the interfacial crack can change the interaction mechanism between a screw dislocation and an elliptical inclusion. The present solutions can include a number of previously known results as special cases.The project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(10272009 and 10472030) and the Natural Science Foundation of Hunan Province(02JJY2014)     

Diffuse mode bifurcation of soil causing convection-like shear investigated by group-theoretic image analysis

Diffuse mode bifurcation of soil under plane-strain compression test is shown, by means of an image analysis based on group-theoretic bifurcation theory, to trigger convection-like shear and to precede shear band formation. First digital photos of Toyoura sand specimens are processed by PIV (particle image velocimetry) to gather digitized images of deformation. Next bifurcation from a uniform state is detected by expanding these images into the double Fourier series and finding a predominant harmonic diffuse bifurcation mode based on that theory. This harmonic bifurcation mode, which is the mixture of a few harmonic functions, expresses complex convection-like shear. Last bifurcation from a non-uniform state is detected by decomposing each image into a few images with different symmetries to extract non-harmonic diffuse bifurcation modes. Diffuse modes of bifurcation, which hitherto were hidden behind predominant uniform compressive deformation, have thus been made transparent by virtue of the group-theoretic image analysis proposed. A possible course of deformation suggested herein is the evolution of diffuse mode bifurcation with a convection-like bifurcation mode breaking uniformity and symmetry, followed by the formation of shear bands through localization.     

Dynamic stress of a circular cavity buried in a semi-infinite functionally graded piezoelectric material subjected to shear waves

The paper presents a theoretical method to investigate the multiple scattering of shear waves and dynamic stress around a circular cavity in a semi-infinite functionally graded piezoelectric material. The analytical solutions of wave fields are expressed by employing wave function expansion method and the expanded mode coefficients are determined by satisfying the boundary conditions of the cavity. Image method is used to satisfy the free boundary condition of the semi-infinite structure. According to the analytical expression of this problem, the numerical solutions of the dynamic stress concentration factor around the cavity are presented. The effects of the piezoelectric property, the buried depth of the cavity, the incident wave number and the nonhomogeneous parameter of materials on the dynamic stress around the cavity are analyzed. Analyses show that the piezoelectric property has great effect on the dynamic stress in the region of intermediate frequency and the effect increases with increasing wave number. When the nonhomogeneous parameter of materials is less than zero, it has less influence on the maximum dynamic stress around the cavity; however, it has greater influence on the distribution of the dynamic stress around the cavity. When the nonhomogeneous parameter of materials is greater than zero, it has greater influence on both the maximum dynamic stress and the distribution of dynamic stress around the cavity, especially in the case that the buried depth is comparatively small.     

Full-field speckle pattern image correlation with B-Spline deformation function

A full-field speckle pattern image correlation method is presented that will determine directly the complete, two-dimensional deformation field during the image correlation process on digital images obtained using computer vision systems. In this work, a B-Spline function is used to represent the object deformation field throughout the entire image area. This is an improvement over subset-based image correlation methods by implicitly maintaining position and derivative continuity constraints among subsets up to a specified order. The control point variables within the B-Spline deformation function are optimized iteratively with the Levenberg-Marquardt method to achieve minimum disparity between the predicted and actual deformed images. Results have shown that the proposed method is computationally efficient, accurate and robust. The general framework of this method can be applied ton-dimensional image correlation systems that solve for multi-dimension vector fields.     

基于数字图像的土、岩和混凝土内部结构定量分析和力学数值计算的研究进展

土、岩及混凝土是一种内部结构极其复杂的材料,内部细观组成和结构决定了它们在外力作用下内部应力和应变等物理场的分布状态,在很大程度上控制了它们的宏观力学响应和破坏机理和过程。自1995年以来,数字图像处理技术作为一种材料细观空间结构及几何形态的精确量测和数字表述手段快速地被应用于沥青混凝土、水泥混凝土、土和岩体材料细观结构定量分析中来。本文在研究相关文献的基础上,分析和研究了数字图像技术在土、岩及混凝土内部结构定量分析和力学数值计算中的发展过程和研究成果,内容包括:单个骨料颗粒形态特征定量分析;土、岩和混凝土内部结构定量分析;岩体结构定量分析中的应用;基于数字图像处理的土、岩和混凝土细观结构力学计算。在此基础上,本文进一步对数字图像技术在岩土领域中的应用进展及未来的发展趋势进行了探讨,认为数字图像作为一种空间分布测量手段和数字表述方法使得它具有巨大的潜力,特别是在岩土领域的纵深发展过程中,它可能实现考虑细微观结构性的岩土力学和工程分析和预测的、新的方法和理论。     

Micro- and Nanoscale Deformation Measurement of Surface and Internal Planes via Digital Image Correlation

The digital image correlation (DIC) technique is successfully applied across multiple length scales through the generation of a suitable speckle pattern at each size scale. For microscale measurements, a random speckle pattern of paint is created with a fine point airbrush. Nanoscale displacement resolution is achieved with a speckle pattern formed by solution deposition of fluorescent silica nanoparticles. When excited, the particles fluoresce and form a speckle pattern that can be imaged with an optical microscope. Displacements are measured on the surface and on an interior plane of transparent polymer samples with the different speckle patterns. Rigid body translation calibrations and uniaxial tension experiments establish a surface displacement resolution of 1 μm over a 5×6 mm scale field of view for the airbrushed samples and 17 nm over a 100×100 μm scale field of view for samples with the fluorescent nanoparticle speckle. To demonstrate the capabilities of the method, we characterize the internal deformation fields generated around silica microspheres embedded in an elastomer under tensile loading. The DIC technique enables measurement of complex deformation fields with nanoscale precision over relatively large areas, making it of particular relevance to materials that possess multiple length scales.     

Statistical Analysis of the Effect of Intensity Pattern Noise on the Displacement Measurement Precision of Digital Image Correlation Using Self-correlated Images

This paper discusses the effect of intensity pattern noise on the displacement measurement precision of digital image correlation (DIC). Through mathematical deduction, a formula is presented to estimate the displacement measurement error caused by intensity pattern noise. The resulting formula synthetically reflects the effects of the variance of noise, the intensity variance and the subset size on the displacement measurement precision. To verify the correctness of the resulting formula, two experiments are done. The first one is a real self-correlation experiment, and aims to analyze the effect of the subset size, while the second is a numerical self-correlation experiment, and is to analyze to the effect of the different noise levels. The experimental results are in good agreement with the theoretical predictions. The project is supported by the National Science Foundation of China (10572103).     

Residual Stress Determination Using Hole Drilling and 3D Image Correlation

In recent years, the hole drilling method for determining residual stresses has been implemented with optical methods such as holographic interferometry and ESPI to overcome certain limitations of the strain rosette version of hole drilling. Although offering advantages, the interferometric methods require vibration isolation, a significant drawback to their use outside of the laboratory. In this study, a 3D image correlation approach was used to measure micron-sized surface displacements caused by the localized stress relief associated with hole drilling. Residual stresses were then found from the displacements using non-dimensional relations previously derived by finite element analysis. A major advantage of image correlation is that it does not require interferometric vibration isolation. Experiments were performed to check the ability of this new approach for uniaxial and equi-biaxial states of stress. Stresses determined by the approach were in good agreement with computed values and those determined by hole drilling using holographic interferometry.