A strong tracking nonlinear robust filter for eye tracking

Non-intrusive methods for eye tracking are important for many applications of vision-based human computer interaction.However,due to the high nonlinearity of eye motion,how to ensure the robustness of external interference and accuracy of eye tracking pose the primary obstacle to the integration of eye movements into today＇s interfaces.In this paper,we present a strong tracking unscented Kalman filter （ST-UKF） algorithm,aiming to overcome the difficulty in nonlinear eye tracking.In the proposed ST-UKF,the Suboptimal fading factor of strong tracking filtering is introduced to improve robustness and accuracy of eye tracking.Compared with the related Kalman filter for eye tracking,the proposed ST-UKF has potential advantages in robustness and tracking accuracy.The last experimental results show the validity of our method for eye tracking under realistic conditions.

A portable,auxiliary photovoltaic power system for electric vehicles based on a foldable scissors mechanism

In recent years,countries worldwide have actively advocated electric vehicles for environmental protection.How-ever,restrictions on the driving range and charging have hampered the promotion of electric vehicles.This study proposes a portable,auxiliary photovoltaic power system based on a foldable scissors mechanism for electric vehicles.The system includes a photovoltaic power generation module and an electricity transfer module.The photovoltaic power generation module built based on a foldable scissors mechanism is five times smaller than in its unfolded state,improving its portability in its folded state.The electricity transfer module transfers electricity into the cabin via wireless power transfer units and stores electricity in supercapacitors.Solar simulation exper-iments were conducted to evaluate the system’s performance:maximum output power of 1.736 W is measured when the load is 5Ω,while maximum wireless power transfer efficiency is up to 57.7% with 10Ω load.An elec-tric vehicle in Chengdu city was simulated for a case study.The results show that the annual output of a single photovoltaic power system can drive the MINIEV for 423.625 km,indicating that the proposed system would be able to supply power for electric vehicles as an auxiliary power supply system.

Elastic energy storage technology using spiral spring devices and its applications:A review

Harvesting and storing energy is a key problem in some applications.Elastic energy storage technology has the advantages of wide-sources,simple structural principle,renewability,high effectiveness and environmental-friendliness.This paper elaborates the operational principles and technical properties and summarizes the appli-cability of elastic energy storage technology with spiral springs.Elastic energy storage using spiral spring can realize the balance between energy supply and demand in some applications.Continuous input-spontaneous out-put working style can provide simple energy sources for short-time energy supply,and provide strong moment impact and rapid start,or realize the energy conservation for reciprocating movement.Uniform output working style can realize energy output with uniform speed for timekeeping and load-driving.Random input working style can harvest and store random mechanical energy or convert small torque into a large moment to drive external loads.Finally,this paper proposes new researches and developments of elastic energy storage technology on new materials and structures,mechanical properties and structural dynamics analyses,design and control for new functions.

A high-efficiency regenerative shock absorber considering twin ball screws transmissions for application in range-extended electric vehicles

Renewable energy technologies,particularly in electric vehicles(EVs),have received significant attention in re-cent years.The wasted energy in a vehicle’s shock absorber can be converted into an alternative energy source by regenerative shock absorbers.In this paper,a high-efficiency regenerative shock absorber considering twin ball screws transmissions is proposed for application in range-extended electric vehicles.The proposed regenerative shock absorber can convert vibrational kinetic energy,which is traditionally dissipated as heat in suspension systems,into electricity.The proposed system is divided into four modules:suspension vibration input module,transmission module,generator module and power storage module.Induced by road roughness,the irregular linear oscillations of the suspension are transmitted to the suspension vibration input module.The reciprocating vibrations are converted into unidirectional rotation of the generator by a pair of ball screws,gears,and two overrun clutches in the transmission module.The utilisation of different screw pitches leads to different damping coefficients for upward and downward progress,enabling the shock absorber to fully utilise elastic elements to im-prove vehicle comfort when compressed and quickly absorb vibrations when stretched.The electricity produced by the generator is stored in supercapacitors to charge the battery and extend the range of EVs.The mechanical properties of the full-scaled fabricated prototype were studied by utilising a mechanical testing and sensing fix-ture.An average power output of 3.701 W in 1Hz-3 mm sinusoidal vibration input and a peak efficiency of 51.1%and average efficiency of 36.4%were achieved in a bench tests.The range can be approximately extended by 1 mile per 100 miles when EV is driving on the road of class B with a speed of 60 km/h,demonstrating that the proposed high-efficiency regenerative shock absorber is beneficial for harvesting renewable energy,and practical and significant for extending the range of EVs.

Potential for energy conservation:A portable desktop paper reusing system for office waste paper

Renewable paper reusing plays a significant role in the sustainable environment under the background of the shortage in forest resources and the pollution from the paper industry.The conventional reusing stream of waste office paper appears to have low reusing rates while consuming massive amounts of energy in intermediate steps.In this study,we developed a novel portable renewable desktop paper reusing system based on font area detection and greyscale sensor.The proposed system consists of two main parts,namely,a greyscale sensor and font area detection model and a polishing mechanism.Acting as an ink mark detector for waste desktop paper,the greyscale sensor and font area detection model can detect the font in the waste desktop paper using an adaptive dynamic compensation schematic.The polishing mechanism will grind the font area of the wasted desktop paper,and this paper reusing processing is non-chemical,energy saving and environmentally friendly.The proposed system is demonstrated through simulations and experimental results,which show that the proposed renewable desktop paper reusing system is portable and is effective for reusing waste office paper in the office.An accuracy of 99.78%is demonstrated in the greyscale sensor and font area detection model,and the average reuse rate of one piece of paper is 2.52 times,verifying that the proposed portable system is effective and practical in renewable desktop paper reusing applications.