Kalman Filter Implementation of Subglottal Impedance-Based Inverse Filtering to Estimate Glottal Airflow during Phonation

Subglottal Impedance-Based Inverse Filtering (IBIF) allows for the continuous, non-invasive estimation of glottal airflow from a surface accelerometer placed over the anterior neck skin below the larynx. It has been shown to be advantageous for the ambulatory monitoring of vocal function, specifically in the use of high-order statistics to understand long-term vocal behavior. However, during long-term ambulatory recordings over several days, conditions may drift from the laboratory environment where the IBIF parameters were initially estimated due to sensor positioning, skin attachment, or temperature, among other factors. Observation uncertainties and model mismatch may result in significant deviations in the glottal airflow estimates; unfortunately, they are very difficult to quantify in ambulatory conditions due to a lack of a reference signal. To address this issue, we propose a Kalman filter implementation of the IBIF filter, which allows for both estimating the model uncertainty and adapting the airflow estimates to correct for signal deviations. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) results from laboratory experiments using the Rainbow Passage indicate an improvement using the modified Kalman filter on amplitude-based measures for phonotraumatic vocal hyperfunction (PVH) subjects compared to the standard IBIF; the latter showing a statistically difference (p-value =0.02, F=4.1) with respect to a reference glottal volume velocity signal estimated from a single notch filter used here as ground-truth in this work. In contrast, maximum flow declination rates from subjects with vocal phonotrauma exhibit a small but statistically difference between the ground-truth signal and the modified Kalman filter when using one-way ANOVA (p-value =0.04, F=3.3). Other measures did not have significant differences with either the modified Kalman filter or IBIF compared to ground-truth, with the exception of H1-H2, whose performance deteriorates for both methods. Overall, both methods (modified Kalman filter and IBIF) show similar glottal airflow measures, with the advantage of the modified Kalman filter to improve amplitude estimation. Moreover, Kalman filter deviations from the IBIF output airflow might suggest a better representation of some fine details in the ground-truth glottal airflow signal. Other applications may take more advantage from the adaptation offered by the modified Kalman filter implementation.

Calculation of Hydrophysical Fields with Assimilation of Observational Data in the Northern Part of the Black Sea in Autumn 2016

The paper analyzes the results of calculation of the circulation and thermohaline water structure based on a three-dimensional nonlinear hydrodynamic model and hydrological data from a survey, carried out in the northern part of the Black Sea in autumn 2016. We used a high spatial resolution (horizontal grid ~1.6 × 1.6 km and 27 vertical layers) model and realistic atmospheric forcing. The assimilation procedure of observational data was based on a modified Kalman filter taking into account the heterogeneity and anisotropy of estimation error of the temperature and salinity fields. The calculated fields of currents were characterized by eddies and jet currents. The following circulation features were observed in the northern part of the Black Sea: an intense jet of the Black Sea Rim Current along the Crimean coast, anticyclonic eddies with a radius of about 30 km near Sevastopol and in the western part of the region, a cyclonic eddy with a radius of about 40 km between 34.5 and 35.5 E, anticyclonic eddies with a radius of about 25 km along the Crimean coast. Eddy formations of different scales and different signs of rotation were obtained (in the Kalamitsky Bay, in the eastern part and along the eastern coast of the Crimea), when the current flowed around irregularities of the coastline and the bottom relief in the coastal zone. The correlation between the formation of zones of lower and higher temperature relative to adjacent waters and the location of features in the field of current (in particular, the correspondence of zones with warmer desalinated water to the anticyclonic formations) was noted from the analysis of the reconstructed thermohaline fields.

A Noise Robust Micro-Range Estimation Method for Precession Cone-Shaped Targets

The estimation of micro-Range (m-R) is important for micro-motion feature extraction and imaging, which provides significant supports for the classification of a precession cone-shaped target. Under low signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) circumstances, the modified Kalman filter (MKF) will obtain broken segments rather than complete m-R tracks due to missing trajectories, and the performance of the MKF is restricted by unknown noise covariance. To solve these problems, a noise-robust m-R estimation method, which combines the adaptive Kalman filter (AKF) and the random sample consensus (RANSAC) algorithm, is proposed in this paper. The AKF, where the noise covariance is not required for the estimation of the state vector, is applied to associate m-R trajectories for higher estimation accuracy and lower wrong association probability. Due to missing trajectories, several associated segments which are parts of the m-R tracks can be obtained by the AKF. Then, the RANSAC algorithm is utilized to associate the segments and the complete m-R tracks can be obtained. Compared with the MKF, the proposed method can obtain complete m-R tracks instead of several segments, and avoids the influence of unknown noise covariance under low SNR circumstances. Experimental results based on electromagnetic simulation data demonstrate that the proposed method is more precise and robust compared with traditional methods.

Pedestrian navigation: how can inertial measurment units assist smartphones?

This paper is devoted to construction of reference walking trajectories for developing pedestrian navigation algorithms for smartphones. Such trajectories can be used both for verification of classical algorithms of navigation or for application of machine learning technics. Reconstruction of closed trajectories based on data from foot-mounted inertial measurement units (IMU) is investigated. The advantages of the approach are the use of inexpensive sensors and the simplicity of the presented method. We propose algorithms for reconstruction of smooth 2D pedestrian trajectories based on measurements from a single IMU as well as on combined measurements from two IMU’s. Introduced algorithms are based on application of modified Kalman filter with an assumption of IMU having zero velocity when foot contacts the ground. In case of two measurement units, it is additionally assumed that the positions of the sensors cannot differ significantly from each other. The algorithms were tested on trajectories lasting from 1 to 10 minutes, passing indoors on horizontal surfaces. Obtained results were compared with high precision trajectories acquired with GNSS RTK receivers. Additionally, the process of inter-device time synchronization is investigated and detailed description of the experiments and used equipment is given. The dataset used for verification of proposed algorithms is freely available at: http://gartseev.ru/projects/rtj2021.

Performance Analysis of Computational Intelligence Correction

Kalman filter (KF) is a widely used navigation algorithm, especially for precise positioning applications. However, the exact filter parameters must be defined a priori to use standard Kalman filters for coping with low error values. But for the dynamic system model, the covariance of process noise is a priori entirely undefined, which results in difficulties and challenges in the implementation of the conventional Kalman filter. Kalman Filter with recursive covariance estimation applied to solve those complicated functional issues, which can also be used in many other applications involving Kalaman filtering technology, a modified Kalman filter called MKF-RCE. While this is a better approach, KF with SAR tuned covariance has been proposed to resolve the problem of estimation for the dynamic model. The data collected at (x: 706970.9093 m, y: 6035941.0226 m, z: 1930009.5821 m) used to illustrate the performance analysis of KF with recursive covariance and KF with computational intelligence correction by means of SAR (Search and Rescue) tuned covariance, when the covariance matrices of process and measurement noises are completely unknown in advance.

Activities of daily living with bionic arm improved by combination training and latching filter in prosthesis control comparison

Background Advanced prostheses can restore function and improve quality of life for individuals with amputations. Unfortunately, most commercial control strategies do not fully utilize the rich control information from residual nerves and musculature. Continuous decoders can provide more intuitive prosthesis control using multi-channel neural or electromyographic recordings. Three components influence continuous decoder performance: the data used to train the algorithm, the algorithm, and smoothing filters on the algorithm’s output. Individual groups often focus on a single decoder, so very few studies compare different decoders using otherwise similar experimental conditions. Methods We completed a two-phase, head-to-head comparison of 12 continuous decoders using activities of daily living. In phase one, we compared two training types and a smoothing filter with three algorithms (modified Kalman filter, multi-layer perceptron, and convolutional neural network) in a clothespin relocation task. We compared training types that included only individual digit and wrist movements vs. combination movements (e.g., simultaneous grasp and wrist flexion). We also compared raw vs. nonlinearly smoothed algorithm outputs. In phase two, we compared the three algorithms in fragile egg, zipping, pouring, and folding tasks using the combination training and smoothing found beneficial in phase one. In both phases, we collected objective, performance-based (e.g., success rate), and subjective, user-focused (e.g., preference) measures. Results Phase one showed that combination training improved prosthesis control accuracy and speed, and that the nonlinear smoothing improved accuracy but generally reduced speed. Phase one importantly showed simultaneous movements were used in the task, and that the modified Kalman filter and multi-layer perceptron predicted more simultaneous movements than the convolutional neural network. In phase two, user-focused metrics favored the convolutional neural network and modified Kalman filter, whereas performance-based metrics were generally similar among all algorithms. Conclusions These results confirm that state-of-the-art algorithms, whether linear or nonlinear in nature, functionally benefit from training on more complex data and from output smoothing. These studies will be used to select a decoder for a long-term take-home trial with implanted neuromyoelectric devices. Overall, clinical considerations may favor the mKF as it is similar in performance, faster to train, and computationally less expensive than neural networks.

Activities of Daily Living with Bionic Arm Improved by Combination Training and Latching Filter in Prosthesis Control Comparison

BackgroundAdvanced prostheses can restore function and improve quality of life for individuals with amputations. Unfortunately, most commercial control strategies do not utilize the rich control information from residual nerves and musculature. Continuous decoders can provide more intuitive prosthesis control from multi-channel neural or electromyographic recordings. Three components influence continuous decoder performance: the data used to train the algorithm, the algorithm, and smoothing filters on the algorithm’s output. As individual groups often focus on a single decoder, very few studies compare different decoders using otherwise similar experimental conditions.MethodsWe completed a two-phase head-to-head comparison of 12 continuous decoders using activities of daily living. In phase one, we compared two training types and a smoothing filter with three algorithms (modified Kalman filter, multi-layer perceptron, and convolutional neural network) in a clothespin relocation task. We compared training types that included data with only individual digit and wrist movements vs. combination movements (e.g., simultaneous grasp and wrist flexion). We also compared raw vs. nonlinearly smoothed algorithm outputs. In phase two, we compared the three algorithms in fragile egg, zipping, pouring, and folding tasks using the combination training and smoothing found beneficial in phase one. In both phases, we collected objective, performance-based (e.g., success rate) and subjective, user-focused (e.g., preference) measures.ResultsPhase one showed that combination training improved prosthesis control accuracy and speed, and that the nonlinear smoothing improved accuracy but generally reduced speed. Phase one importantly showed simultaneous movements were used in the task, and that the modified Kalman filter and multi-layer perceptron predicted more simultaneous movements than the convolutional neural network. In phase two, user-focused metrics favored the convolutional neural network and modified Kalman filter, whereas performance-based metrics were generally similar among all algorithms.ConclusionsThese results confirm that state-of-the-art algorithms, whether linear or nonlinear in nature, functionally benefit from training on more complex data and from output smoothing. These studies will be used to select a decoder for a long-term take-home trial with implanted neuromyoelectric devices. Overall, clinical considerations may favor the mKF as it is similar in performance, faster to train, and computationally less expensive than neural networks.

A Modified Kalman Filter for Integrating the Different Rate Data of Gyros and Accelerometers Retrieved from Android Smartphones in the GNSS/IMU Coupled Navigation

Recent study indicates that by using the inertial measurement unit (IMU) sensors inside smartphones, we can obtain similar navigation solutions to the professional ones. However, the sampling rates of the gyros and accelerometers inside some types of smartphones are not set in the same frequencies, i.e., the gyros of “Huawei p40” are in 50 Hz while the accelerometer is 100 Hz. The conventional method is resampling the higher frequency to the lower frequency ones, which means the resampled accelerometer will lose half frequency observations. In this work, a modified Kalman filter was proposed to integrate all these different rate IMU data in the GNSS/IMU-smartphone coupled navigation. To validate the proposed method, a terrestrial test with two different types of android smartphones was done. With the proposed method, a slight improvement of the attitude solutions can be seen in the experiments under the GNSS open-sky condition, and the obvious improvement of the attitude solutions can be witnessed at the simulated GNSS denied situation. The improvements by 45% and 23% of the horizontal position accuracy can be obtained from the experiments under the GNSS outage of 50 s in a straight line and 30 s in a turning line, respectively.