Re: Image Enhancement

[Mark Sylvester <msylvest@SPIN.IT>]

We've used PHYSVIS and PHYSFIT with our video capture card very
successfully. E.g. this week students have been doing a range of projects
and one group is assessing traffic accident risk at key points in our
village where students pass frequently. A traffic speed survey was called
for, and this was handled by marking off a five metre interval on the road
for calibration purposes, and then simply recording passing cars with a
video camera. Analysis with physvis/fit yielded the speeds. Today things
were getting more complicated and my colleague was doing emergency stops
with his car for the camera.

It doesn't take much to learn to use the system. We basically say to the
students "look, here's an interesting program that you can use with the
video camera" and they take it from there!

Mark


At 09:53 28/04/99 -0700, Shawn wrote:
> I highly agree with Ludwik.  We have video capture capabilities on the
> new computers at our school, however, no one really knows how to use
> it.  It would be great if there was a workshop on this .
>
> Shawn
>
> --- Ludwik Kowalski  wrote:
> > It would be great if you, or Tim Wilson who provided
> > the URL,
> > could offer the whole day workshop on this, for
> > example, at the
> > next AAPT winter meeting. Especially making movies
> > and
> > capturing frames. I would certainly sign for it.
> > Ludwik Kowalski
> >
> > David Kulp wrote:
> >
> > > I found NIH Image (free from the NIH web site) to
> > be superb for image
> > > enhancement.  It's available for Mac and Wintel
> > platforms.  In addition to
> > > the great documentation which comes with the
> > download, there is also a
> > > listserv which has quite a bit of traffic, and
> > plenty of people who
> > > try to help.
> > >
> > > In my previous job, I used Image to teach a lab on
> > projectile motion.
> > > Students would toss a ball in front of a wall
> > painted with coordinate axes
> > > which had been marked in half-meter increments.
> > The students could then
> > > use Image to determine range and height data.
> > Time data was available
> > > from the frame rate of the video capture.  For my
> > M.S., I used Image to
> > > find the edge of a fluid-air interface, then
> > determined fractal scaling
> > > laws from the height/width/time data.  One more
> > thing, Image is fully
> > > scriptable and comes with a bunch of plug-ins
> > already installed.  If you
> > > need one that doesn't come as a default, search
> > the web.  Image has been
> > > around long enough that someone has probably
> > written the routine you need.
> > > Before you buy any programs, I'd recommend
> > checking this out for free.
> > > David Kulp                              Thinking
> > Different since 1984.
> > > david@nuclear.physics.gatech.edu
>
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Mark Sylvester
United World College of the Adriatic
34013 Duino TS
Italy.
msylvest@spin.it
tel: +39 040 3739 255