Shuli Gai, Wenhua Cui and Bodong Liang
Fisheye camera is a wide-angle camera with a large field of view, which can obtain more information than conventional cameras, but its own disadvantage of large distortion can…
Abstract
Purpose
Fisheye camera is a wide-angle camera with a large field of view, which can obtain more information than conventional cameras, but its own disadvantage of large distortion can lead to shape distortion of objects in the captured image. To correct lens distortion, most scholars use manual calibration methods. The traditional manual calibration method relies on complex data computation and specialized mathematical knowledge, but the method is complex and not universal. Considering the nonlinear features of neural networks can be used to fit the nonlinear distortion of distorted images, this paper aims to correct the distortion of a fisheye image based on convolutional neural networks.
Design/methodology/approach
By generating fisheye distortion images using readily available cityscape road data sets, this paper designs an effective correction model by taking advantage of the fact that the relationship between the pixel coordinates is basically stable after uniform distortion. In our training process, the corresponding distortion is firstly synthesized using the original image, the loss function is constructed using the geometric means of the Hough transform, the whole model is then trained with the help of the loss of the linear slope, and finally the predicted parameters are used to correct the fisheye image, which realizes the overall end-to-end framework.
Findings
Experimental results show that the method proposed in this paper outperforms similar methods in terms of correction performance.
Originality/value
This paper proposed a fisheye distortion correction algorithm based on convolutional neural network, which uses distortion-free images based on a generalized fisheye imaging model and maps to generate a fisheye distortion picture data set. It also builds a loss function training model based on line reconstruction error loss of Hough transforms.
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Wenhua Hou and Lun Wang
With the majority of highway projects in China having entered their operational phases, the maintenance and repair of the pavement is receiving increasing attention. One problem…
Abstract
Purpose
With the majority of highway projects in China having entered their operational phases, the maintenance and repair of the pavement is receiving increasing attention. One problem that needs to be addressed urgently is that of how to raise the proper funds for highway maintenance to ensure the sustainable operation of the project. To this end, the aim of this study is to investigate the capital demand for operation and maintenance of a project by means of a refinancing scheme, in order to reduce the possibility of project bankruptcy and to enhance the economic value of the project.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on an analysis of the dynamic complexity of the highway pavement maintenance system, a Markov model is used to predict pavement performance, and an optimal capital structure decision model is proposed for highway public–private partnership (PPP) project refinancing, using the method of system dynamics (SD). The proposed model is then applied to a real case study.
Findings
Results show that the proposed model can be used to predict accurately the dynamic changes in the demand for road maintenance funds and refinancing during the period of operation, before making the optimal decision for the refinancing capital structure.
Originality/value
Although many scholars have studied the optimal refinancing capital structure of PPP projects, the dynamic changes inherent in the demand for maintenance funds for highway PPP projects are seldom considered. Therefore, in the approach used here the influence of the dynamic change of road maintenance capital demand on refinancing is investigated, and SD is used for the optimal capital structure decision-making model of highway PPP project refinancing, to make the decision-making process more reasonable and scientific.
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Yao-Chung Liu, Bor-Hon Lee, Yu-Chih Lo and Shih-Shuo Yeh
This research attempts to examine the co-creation process involving Chiayi City International Band Festival (CIBF). It deploys a questionnaire survey which assesses the level of…
Abstract
This research attempts to examine the co-creation process involving Chiayi City International Band Festival (CIBF). It deploys a questionnaire survey which assesses the level of activity involvement, preference to local products, and place attachment. The questionnaire is pretested, which utilizes college students as the samples to screen the clarity of wordings covered in the questionnaire and the reliability of the study scales. Subsequently, 342 festivity attendees, who are not local residents, are invited to participate in the survey. Structural equational modeling is used to test the study hypotheses. The results show a mediating effect of co-creation between activity involvement and place attachment.
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Friendships, an important form of people’s everyday relationships with others, have been studied by many scholars from different disciplines. However, there is limited research on…
Abstract
Friendships, an important form of people’s everyday relationships with others, have been studied by many scholars from different disciplines. However, there is limited research on friendship in the context of childhood, particularly that of Chinese rural children. This chapter presents findings from an in-depth study on Chinese children’s understandings and experiences of friendships with peers in the context of a rural primary boarding school. Data for this research were collected through an intensive five-month study, using an ethnographic approach, in a rural primary boarding school (given the pseudonym ‘Central Primary School’) in the western area of China in 2016. This chapter discusses parents’ influences on children’s selection of friends, particularly their ‘good’ friends, and their understandings of the functions of making friends in the context of rural China. It unpacks parents’ interventions on children’s friendships by discussing the moralised hierarchical relationship between children and their parents – children are expected to show obedience to parents. Then, it argues that the Confucian-collectivist values construct a relationship between a child’s individual achievement and their family’s collective good, which makes friendship not only an individual issue but also a collective one too.
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Ling Chen, Zhi Su, Xiaotong He, Xiang Chen and Lin Dong
Embroidery as a textile embellishment technique plays an important role in people's daily life. Esthetic embroidery artworks possess cultural values. With the development of…
Abstract
Purpose
Embroidery as a textile embellishment technique plays an important role in people's daily life. Esthetic embroidery artworks possess cultural values. With the development of robotics and artificial intelligence (AI), these technologies have been studied and applied in the embroidery process. This study aims to survey how these technologies facilitate embroidery from different aspects.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper surveys how the technologies of robotics and AI are applied in the embroidery field. The applications are mainly reviewed from three aspects: computerized robotic embroidery systems has been widely used for the mass production of embroidered textiles, the advanced technological systems and techniques have greatly facilitated the development of smart textiles and the artificial intelligence plays an important role in the inheritance, innovation and protection of traditional handicraft artwork of embroidery.
Findings
The programmable robotic embroidery machines have greatly improved the production efficiency of embroidered textiles and promoted the development of electronic textiles. The AI, mainly the deep learning technology, brings significant benefits to esthetic embroidery creation. Technology-based embroidery has become a hot research topic in the field of textiles.
Originality/value
This paper summarizes the application of robotics and AI technologies in the field of embroidery, which provides readers a comprehensive and systematic understanding about the research progress of modern technology-oriented embroidery. This helps readers gain inspiration from the technology perspectives.
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Yuting Wu, Athira Azmi, Rahinah Ibrahim, Azmiah Abd Ghafar and Sarah Abdulkareem Salih
With rapid urbanization, cities are facing various ecological and environmental problems. Living in harmony with nature is more important than ever. This paper aims to evaluate…
Abstract
Purpose
With rapid urbanization, cities are facing various ecological and environmental problems. Living in harmony with nature is more important than ever. This paper aims to evaluate the ecosystem and ecological features of Azheke village, a key component of the Hani Rice Terraces World Cultural Heritage in China. The focus is on exploring effective ways to improve the relationship between humans and the natural environment through urban design in order to create a livable and sustainable city that can promote the development of sustainable smart urban ecology design.
Design/methodology/approach
This study conducted a systematic literature review to answer the following research questions: (1) How does Azheke design achieve harmony between humans and nature? (2) What are the effective approaches to improve the relationship between humans and nature within urban ecosystems? (3) How can urban design learn and integrate from Azheke’s ecological features to improve the relationship between humans and nature?
Findings
Azheke sustains long-term human-nature harmony through traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) and efficient natural resource use. By incorporating biophilic design and nature-based solutions from Azheke, along with biodiversity-friendly urban planning, we can boost urban ecosystem health and create unique Azheke-inspired urban designs.
Research limitations/implications
This research primarily focuses on the human-nature relationship, exploring design strategies based on biodiversity without delving into the interactions between other components of urban ecosystems, such as social-cultural and economic components.
Originality/value
This paper provides a new perspective and strategies for developing sustainable and smart urban ecology design. These findings can provide theoretical references for urban planners, designers and decision-makers.
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This paper examines the relationship between traditional timber frame structure and the diasporic identity of the Southern Fujianese Chinese community in West Malaysia. It…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper examines the relationship between traditional timber frame structure and the diasporic identity of the Southern Fujianese Chinese community in West Malaysia. It analyses the cultural semiotics of Southern Fujianese traditional Chinese temple timber frame structure architectural language. This study addresses the under-examined domain of Chinese cultural identity representation through the architecture of traditional Chinese temples in Malaysia. It seeks to understand its underlying structure and process involved in revealing its disposition within the cultural phenomena from the perspective of Chinese cultural semiotics.
Design/methodology/approach
Selected Southern Fujianese traditional Chinese temples in West Malaysia built between the 18th to the 19th century that retain the traditional timber frame structure were investigated through field survey and focused publication review. Historical interpretive analysis and typological analysis supplement the cultural semiotics analysis to assess the timber frame structure attributes concerning architectural language expressions.
Findings
Findings reveal that the architectural language signifiers of the structural disposition of the timber framework and its corresponding formal articulation establish a clear statement of the Southern Fujian Chinese cultural identity.
Originality/value
The evaluation of the cultural identity signifiers helps to understand the underlying structure and process of the Chinese cultural semiotics in architecture. Results of this research substantiate the significance of timber frame structure in preserving the architectural heritage of the Southern Fujianese traditional Chinese temples. They provide important references for conservation and cultural studies of such building typology.
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Ahmad Rajabi and Zahra Babakhani
This study aims to present the climate change effect on potential evapotranspiration (ETP) in future periods.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to present the climate change effect on potential evapotranspiration (ETP) in future periods.
Design/methodology/approach
Daily minimum and maximum temperature, solar radiation and precipitation weather parameters have been downscaled by global circulation model (GCM) and Lars-WG outputs. Weather data have been estimated according to the Had-CM3 GCM and by A1B, A2 and B1 scenarios in three periods: 2011-2030, 2045-2046 and 2080-2099. To select the more suitable method for ETP estimation, the Hargreaves-Samani (H-S) method and the Priestly–Taylor (P-T) method have been compared with the Penman-Monteith (P-M) method. Regarding the fact that the H-S method has been in better accordance with the P-M method, ETP in future periods has been estimated by this method for different scenarios.
Findings
In all five stations, in all three scenarios and in all three periods, ETP will increase. The highest ETP increase will occur in the A1B scenario and then in the A1 scenario. The lowest increase will occur in the B1 scenario. In the 2020 decade, the highest ETP increase in three scenarios will occur in Khorramabad and then Hamedan. Kermanshah, Sanandaj and Ilam stations come at third to fifth place, respectively, with a close increase in amount. In the 2050 decade, ETP increase percentages in all scenarios are close to each other in all the five stations. In the 2080 decade, ETP increase percentages in all scenarios will be close to each other in four stations, namely, Kermanshah, Sanandaj, Khorramabad and Hamedan, and Ilam station will have a higher increase compared with the other four stations.
Originality/value
Meanwhile, the highest ETP increase will occur in hot months of the year, which are significant with regard to irrigation and water resources.
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Xiangfeng Chen, Chenyu Wang and Shuting Li
Agriculture and cultivation firms are facing severe competition in the saturated market. Due to the characteristics of heavy assets, low investment return, long cycle and high…
Abstract
Purpose
Agriculture and cultivation firms are facing severe competition in the saturated market. Due to the characteristics of heavy assets, low investment return, long cycle and high price fluctuation, agri-food firms require innovations for capital support. The purpose of this paper is to provide valuable insights on how firms in the food/agricultural industry approach innovations and reinforce their advantages through functional and structural innovations by adopting supply chain finance (SCF).
Design/methodology/approach
This research adopts a single-case study methodology to investigate the innovations and mechanisms taking place at H Corp Agriculture Group (H Corp hereafter), a Chinese egg company.
Findings
The findings of this paper indicate that SCF could have a great impact on supply chain management through functional and structural innovations throughout the supply chain and solve the capital constraint problems in the agricultural development process, promoting the implementation of the integration strategy as well as innovation in the agricultural industry chain. The research also shows that supply chain structural and functional innovations could promote corporate social responsibility (CSR) and creating shared value (CSV).
Research limitations/implications
The research contributes to the application of SCF mechanisms and the realization of CSV and CSR jointly – both in the literature and in firms’ practices. It also contributes to the extension of structural and functional innovations and vertical integration of the supply chain. However, generalizability and universality are insufficient for a single case study in the specified industry. Data collection and quantitative analysis could be extended for further research.
Originality/value
The study addresses the need for comprehensive research on SCF and its applications. It proposes effective and efficient strategies for agri-food firms applying SCF to overcome industry capital constraints and develop competitiveness. It also provides a balanced and positive circulation between economic value and social value, realizing CSR and CSV.