Electrical Contracting News (ECN) June 2017 | Page 10

INDUSTRY NEWS THE EYES HAVE IT FOR NEW CAMERA SYSTEM INSPIRED BY ANIMAL VISION Scientists have taken inspiration from how animals’ eyes work to create a new way for computer controlled cameras to ‘see’. In a new paper published in April in the journal Science Advances, University of Glasgow researchers describe a new method for creating video using single-pixel cameras. They have found a way to instruct cameras to prioritise objects in images using a method similar to the way brains make the same decisions. The eyes and brains of humans, and many animals, work in tandem to prioritise specifi c areas of their fi eld of view. During a conversation, for example, visual attention is focused primarily on the other speaker, with less of the brain’s ‘processing time’ given over to peripheral details. The vision of some hunting animals also works along similar lines. The team’s sensor uses just one light sensitive pixel to build up moving images of objects SURVEY: ENGINEERING SERVICES SECTOR POWERS AHEAD placed in front of it. Single-pixel sensors are much cheaper than dedicated megapixel sensors found in digital cameras, and are capable of building images at wavelengths where conventional cameras are expensive or simply don’t exist, such as at the infrared or terahertz frequencies. The images the system outputs are square, with an overall resolution of 1,000 pixels. In conventional cameras, those thousand pixels would be evenly spread in a grid across the image. The team’s new system instead can choose to allocate its ‘pixel budget’ to prioritise the most important areas within the frame, placing more higher resolution pixels in these locations and so sharpening the detail of some sections while sacrifi cing detail in others. This pixel distribution can be changed from one frame to the next, similar to the way biological vision systems work, for example when human gaze is redirected from one person to another. The team’s paper, titled ‘Adaptive foveated single- pixel imaging with dynamic supersampling’, is published in Science Advances. The research was funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and the Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng). Scientists have created a new way for computer controlled cameras to ‘see’ based on animals’ vision. Almost eight in 10 (79 per cent) of engineering services fi rms say turnover increased or remained the same during the fi rst quarter of this year, according to new fi ndings from the sector-wide ‘Building Engineering Business Survey’, sponsored by Scolmore. The survey, which is run in partnership by the Building Engineering Services Association (BESA), the Electrical Contractors’ Association (ECA), and Scottish electrical trade body SELECT, received 370 responses from companies across the engineering services sector. Looking ahead to the second quarter of this year, nearly nine in 10 (88 per cent) businesses expect their turnover to increase or remain steady. BESA chief executive Paul McLaughlin said, ‘We should be extremely heartened by these results. We continue to live through a period of unprecedented political upheaval, yet the building engineering services sector remains on track. For nine out of 10 respondents to be so upbeat about their immediate business prospects in the current uncertain economic climate is testament to this industry’s resilience.’ The Building Engineering Business Survey was completed by BESA, SELECT and ECA members in early April this year, prior to the general election being announced. Members of the three trade bodies have a combined annual turnover of £11bn, spanning building, infrastructure and maintenance activity. Lasnek. Because Quality Matters Stainless Steel Cable Management Systems • The stainless steel containment specialist • Choice of containment types & finishes • Bespoke manufacturing service • Large stock availability www.lasnek.com • [email protected] Lasnek Ltd, 1 President Way, Luton, Bedfordshire LU2 9NR Tel: [phone] ELECTRICAL CONTACTING NEWS - FEB 2017 - 224 X 159.indd 1 16/02/2017 14:45