Search Results (347)

Crack detection plays a pivotal role in ensuring the safety and stability of infrastructure. Despite advancements in deep learning-based image analysis, accurately capturing multiscale crack features in complex environments remains challenging. These challenges arise from several factors, including the presence of cracks with varying sizes, shapes, and orientations, as well as the influence of environmental conditions such as lighting variations, surface textures, and noise. This study introduces DAH-YOLO (Dynamic-Attention-Haar-YOLO), an innovative model that integrates dynamic convolution, an attention-enhanced dynamic detection head, and Haar wavelet down-sampling to address these challenges. First, dynamic convolution is integrated into the YOLOv8 framework to adaptively capture complex crack features while simultaneously reducing computational complexity. Second, an attention-enhanced dynamic detection head is introduced to refine the model’s ability to focus on crack regions, facilitating the detection of cracks with varying scales and morphologies. Third, a Haar wavelet down-sampling layer is employed to preserve fine-grained crack details, enhancing the recognition of subtle and intricate cracks. Experimental results on three public datasets demonstrate that DAH-YOLO outperforms baseline models and state-of-the-art crack detection methods in terms of precision, recall, and mean average precision, while maintaining low computational complexity. Our findings provide a robust, efficient solution for automated crack detection, which has been successfully applied in real-world engineering scenarios with favorable outcomes, advancing the development of intelligent structural health monitoring. Full article

Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming numerous sectors, and its integration into the legal domain holds significant potential for automating labor-intensive tasks, enhancing judicial decision-making, and improving overall system efficiency. This study introduces an AI-powered model, named the Legal Judgment Prediction Ensemble (LJPE), which is designed to predict legal case outcomes by leveraging historical judicial data. By using natural language processing (NLP) techniques, feature engineering, and a complex two-level stacking ensemble, the LJPE model has better predictive accuracy at 94.68% compared to modern legal language and conventional machine learning models. Moreover, the findings underline the predictive strength of textual features obtained from case facts, vote margins, and legal-specific features. This study offers a solid technical solution for predicting legal judgments for the responsible use of the model, helping to create a more efficient, transparent, and fair legal system. Full article

To address the high incidence of work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) at manual edge-banding workstations in furniture factories, and in an effort to tackle the existing research challenges of poor cumulative risk quantification and inconsistent evaluations, this paper proposes a three-stage system for continuous, automated, non-invasive WMSD risk monitoring. First, MediaPipe 0.10.11 is used to extract 33 key joint coordinates, compute seven types of joint angles, and resolve missing joint data, ensuring biomechanical data integrity for subsequent analysis. Second, joint angles are converted into graded parameters via RULA, REBA, and OWAS criteria, enabling automatic calculation of posture risk scores and grades. Third, an Adaptive Pooling Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) and Long Short-Term Memory Network (LSTM) dual-branch hybrid model based on the Efficient Channel Attention (ECA) mechanism is built, which takes nine-dimensional features as the input to predict expert-rated fatigue states. For validation, 32 experienced female workers performed manual edge-banding tasks, with smartphones capturing videos of the eight work steps to ensure authentic and representative data. The results show the following findings: (1) system ratings strongly correlate with expert evaluations, verifying its validity for posture risk assessment; (2) the hybrid model successfully captures the complex mapping of expert-derived fatigue patterns, outperforming standalone CNN and LSTM models in fatigue prediction—by integrating CNN-based spatial feature extraction and LSTM-based temporal analysis—and accurately maps fatigue indexes while generating intervention recommendations. This study addresses the limitations of traditional manual evaluations (e.g., subjectivity, poor temporal resolution, and inability to capture cumulative risk), providing an engineered solution for WMSD prevention at these workstations and serving as a technical reference for occupational health management in labor-intensive industries. Full article

Cucumber downy mildew, angular leaf spot, and powdery mildew represent three predominant fungal diseases that substantially compromise cucumber yield and quality. To address the challenges posed by the irregular morphology, prominent multi-scale characteristics, and ambiguous lesion boundaries of cucumber foliar diseases in complex field environments—which often lead to insufficient detection accuracy—along with the existing models’ difficulty in balancing high precision with lightweight deployment, this study presents YOLOv11n-DSU (a lightweight hierarchical detection model engineered using the YOLOv11n architecture). The proposed model integrates three key enhancements: deformable convolution (DEConv) for optimized feature extraction from irregular lesions, a spatial and channel-wise attention (SCSA) mechanism for adaptive feature refinement, and a Unified Intersection over Union (Unified-IoU) loss function to improve localization accuracy. Experimental evaluations demonstrate substantial performance gains, with mean Average Precision at 50% IoU threshold (mAP₅₀) and mAP_50–95 increasing by 7.9 and 10.9 percentage points, respectively, and precision and recall improving by 6.1 and 10.0 percentage points. Moreover, the computational complexity is markedly reduced to 5.8 Giga Floating Point Operations (GFLOPs). Successful deployment on an embedded platform confirms the model’s practical viability, exhibiting robust real-time inference capabilities and portability. This work provides an accurate and efficient solution for automated disease grading in field conditions, enabling real-time and precise severity classification, and offers significant potential for advancing precision plant protection and smart agricultural systems. Full article

Dynamic stress data are essential for evaluating structural fatigue life. To address the challenges of complex test data formats, low data reading efficiency, and insufficient visualization, this study systematically analyzes the .raw and .sie file formats from IMC and HBM data acquisition systems and proposes a unified parsing approach. A lightweight .dac format is designed, featuring a “single-channel–single-file” storage strategy that enables rapid, independent retrieval of specific channels and seamless cross-platform sharing, effectively eliminating the inefficiency of the .sie format caused by multi-channel coupling. Based on Python v3.11, an automated format conversion tool and a PyQt5-based visualization platform are developed, integrating graphical plotting, interactive operations, and fatigue strength evaluation functions. The platform supports stress feature extraction, rainflow counting, Goodman correction, and full life-cycle fatigue damage assessment based on the Palmgren–Miner rule. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed system accurately reproduces both time- and frequency-domain features, with equivalent stress deviations within 2% of nCode results, and achieves a 7–8× improvement in file loading speed compared with the original format. Furthermore, multi-channel scalability tests confirm a linear increase in conversion time (R² > 0.98) and stable throughput across datasets up to 10.20 GB, demonstrating strong performance consistency for large-scale engineering data. The proposed approach establishes a reliable data foundation and efficient analytical tool for fatigue life assessment of structures under complex operating conditions. Full article

Characterizing and simulating complex reservoirs, particularly unconventional resources with multiscale and non-homogeneous features, presents significant bottlenecks in cost, efficiency, and accuracy for conventional research methods. Consequently, there is an urgent need for the digital and intelligent transformation of the field. To address this challenge, this paper proposes that the core solution lies in the deep integration of physical mechanisms and data intelligence. We systematically review and define a new research paradigm characterized by the trinity of digital cores (geometric foundation), physical simulation (mechanism constraints), and artificial intelligence (efficient reasoning). This review clarifies the core technological path: first, AI technologies such as generative adversarial networks and super-resolution empower digital cores to achieve high-fidelity, multiscale geometric characterization; second, cross-scale physical simulations (e.g., molecular dynamics and the lattice Boltzmann method) provide indispensable constraints and high-fidelity training data. Building on this, the methodology evolves from surrogate models to physics-informed neural networks, and ultimately to neural operators that learn the solution operator. The analysis demonstrates that integrating these techniques into an automated “generation–simulation–inversion” closed-loop system effectively overcomes the limitations of isolated data and the lack of physical interpretability. This closed-loop workflow offers innovative solutions to complex engineering problems such as parameter inversion and history matching. In conclusion, this integration paradigm serves not only as a cornerstone for constructing reservoir digital twins and realizing real-time decision-making but also provides robust technical support for emerging energy industries, including carbon capture, utilization, and sequestration (CCUS), geothermal energy, and underground hydrogen storage. Full article

Remaining Useful Life (RUL) prediction has become a crucial component in predictive maintenance and condition-based operation with the rapid advancement of industrial automation and the increasing complexity of mechanical systems. Although existing deep learning models, such as Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) networks and conventional Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs), have demonstrated effectiveness in modeling equipment degradation from multivariate sensor data, they still face several limitations. Recurrent architectures often suffer from vanishing gradients and struggle to capture long-term dependencies, while CNN-based methods typically rely on small convolutional kernels and deterministic feature extractors, limiting their ability to model long-range dependencies and stochastic degradation transitions. To address these challenges, this study proposes a novel hybrid deep learning framework that integrates large-kernel convolutional feature extraction with Markov transition modeling for RUL prediction. Specifically, the large-kernel CNN captures both local and global degradation patterns, while the Markov feature module encodes probabilistic state transitions to characterize the stochastic evolution of equipment health. Furthermore, a lightweight channel attention mechanism is incorporated to adaptively emphasize degradation-sensitive sensor information, thereby enhancing feature discriminability. Extensive experiments conducted on the NASA C-MAPSS turbofan engine dataset demonstrate that the proposed model consistently outperforms conventional CNN, LSTM, and hybrid baselines in terms of Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) and the NASA scoring metric. The results verify that combining deep convolutional representations with probabilistic transition information significantly enhances prediction accuracy and robustness in industrial RUL estimation tasks. Full article

Magnetic Barkhausen noise (MBN) represents a powerful non-destructive testing and material characterization methodology enabling quantitative assessment of microstructural features, mechanical properties, and stress states in ferromagnetic materials. This comprehensive review synthesizes recent advances spanning theoretical foundations, sensor design, signal processing methodologies, and industrial applications. The physical basis rooted in domain wall dynamics and statistical mechanics provides rigorous frameworks for interpreting MBN signals in terms of grain structure, dislocation density, phase composition, and residual stress. Contemporary instrumentation innovations including miniaturized sensors, multi-parameter systems, and high-entropy alloy cores enable measurements in challenging environments. Advanced signal processing techniques—encompassing time-domain analysis, frequency-domain spectral methods, time–frequency transforms, and machine learning algorithms—extract comprehensive material information from raw Barkhausen signals. Deep learning approaches demonstrate superior performance for automated material classification and property prediction compared to traditional statistical methods. Industrial applications span manufacturing quality control, structural health monitoring, railway infrastructure assessment, and predictive maintenance strategies. Key achievements include establishing quantitative correlations between material properties and stress states, with measurement uncertainties of ±15–20 MPa for stress and ±20 HV for hardness. Emerging challenges include standardization imperatives, characterization of advanced materials, machine learning robustness, and autonomous system integration. Future developments prioritizing international standards, physics-informed neural networks, multimodal sensor fusion, and wireless monitoring networks will accelerate industrial adoption supporting safe, efficient engineering practice across diverse sectors. Full article

Duplicate bug reports increase the workload of software engineering teams and delay the resolution of critical issues, making automated detection essential. This paper presents a two-stage approach that combines transformer-based semantic retrieval with classical machine-learning classification. First, text features of the defect are vectorised using transformer models such as BERT (Bidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers, google-bert/bert-base-uncased), MiniLM (Miniature Language Model, sentence-transformers/all-MiniLM-L6-v2) or MPNet (Masked and Permuted Pre-training for Language Understanding, sentence-transformers/all-mpnet-base-v2) to identify semantically similar reports and narrow the candidate search space. Second, the filtered pairs are classified using algorithms such as XGBoost (eXtreme Gradient Boosting), SVM (Support Vector Machines) or logistic regression to determine true duplicates. This hybrid method improves accuracy while substantially lowering computational cost. Experimental results validate the proposed approach, demonstrating robust accuracy and consistent performance in identifying duplicate defect reports. Full article

This study develops a machine-learning-based framework for multiclass soil classification using Cone Penetration Test (CPT) data, aiming to overcome the limitations of traditional empirical Soil Behavior Type (SBT) charts and improve the automation, continuity, robustness, and reliability of stratigraphic interpretation. A dataset of 340 CPT soundings from 26 sites in Shanghai is compiled, and a sliding-window feature engineering strategy is introduced to transform point measurements into local pattern descriptors. An XGBoost-based multiclass classifier is then constructed using fifteen engineered features, integrating second-order optimization, regularized tree structures, and probability-based decision functions. Results demonstrate that the proposed method achieves strong classification performance across nine soil categories, with an overall classification accuracy of approximately 92.6%, an average F1-score exceeding 0.905, and a mean Average Precision (mAP) of 0.954. The confusion matrix, P–R curves, and prediction probabilities show that soil types with distinctive CPT signatures are classified with near-perfect confidence, whereas transitional clay–silt facies exhibit moderate but geologically consistent misclassification. To evaluate depth-wise prediction reliability, an Accuracy Coverage Rate (ACR) metric is proposed. Analysis of all CPTs reveals a mean ACR of 0.924, and the ACR follows a Weibull distribution. Feature importance analysis indicates that depth-dependent variables and smoothed p_s statistics are the dominant predictors governing soil behavior differentiation. The proposed XGBoost-based framework effectively captures nonlinear CPT–soil relationships, offering a practical and interpretable tool for high-resolution soil classification in subsurface investigations. Full article

Quantifying microbial growth with high temporal resolution remains essential yet challenging due to limitations of optical, manual, and biochemical methods. Here, we introduce an AI-enhanced electrochemical impedance spectroscopy platform for real-time, label-free monitoring of Saccharomyces cerevisiae growth. Broadband impedance measurements (1 Hz–100 kHz) were collected from yeast cultures across log-phase development. Engineered features—derived from impedance magnitude and phase—captured dielectric and conductive shifts associated with cell proliferation, membrane polarization, and ionic redistribution. A Gaussian Process Regression model trained on these features predicted optical density (OD600) with high precision (RMSE = 0.79 min; R² = 0.9996; r = 0.9998), and achieved 100% classification accuracy when discretized into 15-min growth intervals. The system operated with sub-millisecond latency and minimal memory footprint, enabling embedded deployment. Benchmarking against conventional methods revealed superior throughput, automation potential, and independence from labeling or turbidity-based optics. This AI-driven platform forms the core of a real-time digital twin for yeast culture monitoring, capable of predictive tracking and adaptive control. By fusing electrochemical biosensing with machine learning, our method offers a scalable and robust solution for intelligent fermentation and bioprocess optimization. Full article

Foggy weather critically undermines the autonomous perception capabilities of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) by degrading image contrast, obscuring object structures, and impairing small target recognition, which often leads to significant performance deterioration in conventional detection models. To address these challenges in automated UAV operations, this study introduces Hazy Aware-YOLO (HA-YOLO), an enhanced detection framework based on YOLO11, specifically engineered for reliable object detection under low-visibility conditions. The proposed model incorporates wavelet convolution to suppress haze-induced noise and enhance multi-scale feature fusion. Furthermore, a novel Context-Enhanced Hybrid Self-Attention (CEHSA) module is developed, which sequentially combines channel attention aggregation (CAA) with multi-head self-attention (MHSA) to capture local contextual cues while mitigating global noise interference. Extensive evaluations demonstrate that HA-YOLO and its variants achieve superior detection precision and robustness compared to the baseline YOLO11, while maintaining model efficacy. In particular, when benchmarked against state-of-the-art detectors, HA-YOLO exhibits a better balance between detection accuracy and complexity, offering a practical and efficient solution for real-world autonomous UAV perception tasks in adverse weather. Full article

Cracks serve as a critical indicator of tunnel structural degradation. Manual inspections are difficult to meet engineering requirements due to their time-consuming and labor-intensive nature, high subjectivity, and significant error rates, while traditional image processing methods exhibit poor performance under complex backgrounds and irregular crack morphologies. To address these limitations, this study developed a high-quality dataset of tunnel crack images and proposed an improved lightweight semantic segmentation network, LiteSqueezeSeg, to enable precise crack identification and quantification. The model was systematically trained and optimized using a dataset comprising 10,000 high-resolution images. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed model achieves an overall accuracy of 95.15% in crack detection. Validation on real-world tunnel surface images indicates that the method effectively suppresses background noise interference and enables high-precision quantification of crack length, average width, and maximum width, with all relative errors maintained within 5%. Furthermore, an integrated intelligent detection system was developed based on the MATLAB (R2023b) platform, facilitating automated crack feature extraction and standardized defect grading. This system supports routine tunnel maintenance and safety assessment, substantially enhancing both inspection efficiency and evaluation accuracy. Through synergistic innovations in lightweight network architecture, accurate quantitative analysis, and standardized assessment protocols, this research establishes a comprehensive technical framework for tunnel crack detection and structural health evaluation, offering an efficient and reliable intelligent solution for tunnel condition monitoring. Full article

Online chess platforms generate vast amounts of game data, presenting opportunities to analyze match outcomes using machine learning approaches. This study develops and compares four machine learning models to classify chess game results (White win, Black win, or Draw) by integrating player rating information with game dynamic metadata. We analyzed 11,510 complete games from the Lichess platform after preprocessing a dataset of 20,058 initial records. Seven key features were engineered to capture both pre-game skill parameters (player ratings, rating difference) and game complexity metrics (game duration, turn count). Four machine learning algorithms were implemented and optimized through grid search cross-validation: Multinomial Logistic Regression, Random Forest, K-Nearest Neighbors, and Histogram Gradient Boosting. The Gradient Boosting classifier achieved the highest performance with 83.19% accuracy on hold-out data and consistent 5-fold cross-validation scores (83.08% ± 0.009%). Feature importance analysis revealed that game complexity (number of turns) was the strongest correlate of the outcome across all models, followed by the rating difference between opponents. Draws represented only 5.11% of outcomes, creating class imbalance challenges that affected classification performance for this outcome category. The results demonstrate that ensemble methods, particularly gradient boosting, can effectively capture non-linear interactions between player skill and game length to classify chess outcomes. These findings have practical applications for chess platforms in automated content curation, post-game quality assessment, and engagement enhancement strategies. The study establishes a foundation for robust outcome analysis systems in online chess environments. Full article

Unconfined Compressive Strength (UCS) of stabilized soils is commonly used for evaluating the effectiveness of soil improvement techniques. Achieving target UCS values through conventional trial-and-error approaches requires extensive laboratory experiments, which are time-consuming and resource-intensive. Automated Machine Learning (AutoML) frameworks offer a promising alternative by enabling automated, reproducible, and accessible predictive modeling of UCS values from more readily obtainable index and physical soil and stabilizer properties, reducing the reliance on experimental testing and empirical relationships, and allowing systematic exploration of multiple models and configurations. This study evaluates the predictive performance of five state-of-the-art AutoML frameworks (i.e., AutoGluon, AutoKeras, FLAML, H2O, and TPOT) using analyses of results from 10 experimental datasets comprising 2083 samples from laboratory experiments spanning diverse soil types, stabilizers, and experimental conditions across many countries worldwide. Comparative analyses revealed that FLAML achieved the highest overall performance (average PI score of 0.7848), whereas AutoKeras exhibited lower accuracy on complex datasets; AutoGluon , H2O and TPOT also demonstrated strong predictive capabilities, with performance varying with dataset characteristics. Despite the promising potential of AutoML, prior research has shown that fully automated frameworks have limited applicability to UCS prediction, highlighting a gap in end-to-end pipeline automation. The findings provide practical guidance for selecting AutoML tools based on dataset characteristics and research objectives, and suggest avenues for future studies, including expanding the range of AutoML frameworks and integrating interpretability techniques, such as feature importance analysis, to deepen understanding of soil–stabilizer interactions. Overall, the results indicate that AutoML frameworks can effectively accelerate UCS prediction, reduce laboratory workload, and support data-driven decision-making in geotechnical engineering. Full article