• Journal of the Institute of Electronics Engineers of Korea SP
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• v.43 no.2 s.308
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• pp.19-29
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• 2006

As the security of personal information is becoming more important in mobile phones, we are starting to apply iris recognition technology to these devices. In conventional iris recognition, magnified iris images are required. For that, it has been necessary to use large magnified zoom & focus lens camera to capture images, but due to the requirement about low size and cost of mobile phones, the zoom & focus lens are difficult to be used. However, with rapid developments and multimedia convergence trends in mobile phones, more and more companies have built mega-pixel cameras into their mobile phones. These devices make it possible to capture a magnified iris image without zoom & focus lens. Although facial images are captured far away from the user using a mega-pixel camera, the captured iris region possesses sufficient pixel information for iris recognition. However, in this case, the eye region should be detected for accurate iris recognition in facial images. So, we propose a new fast iris detection method, which is appropriate for mobile phones based on corneal specular reflection. To detect specular reflection robustly, we propose the theoretical background of estimating the size and brightness of specular reflection based on eye, camera and illuminator models. In addition, we use the successive On/Off scheme of the illuminator to detect the optical/motion blurring and sunlight effect on input image. Experimental results show that total processing time(detecting iris region) is on average 65ms on a Samsung SCH-S2300 (with 150MHz ARM 9 CPU) mobile phone. The rate of correct iris detection is 99% (about indoor images) and 98.5% (about outdoor images).

• Clean Technology
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.277-290
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• 2021

A supercapacitor, also called an ultracapacitor or an electrochemical capacitor, stores electrochemical energy by the adsorption/desorption of electrolytic ions or a fast and reversible redox reaction at the electrode surface, which is distinct from the chemical reaction of a battery. A supercapacitor features high specific power, high capacitance, almost infinite cyclability (~ 100,000 cycle), short charging time, good stability, low maintenance cost, and fast frequency response. Supercapacitors have been used in electronic devices to meet the requirements of rapid charging/discharging, such as for memory back-up, and uninterruptible power supply (UPS). Also, their use is being extended to transportation and large industry applications that require high power/energy density, such as for electric vehicles and power quality systems of smart grids. In power generation using intermittent power sources such as solar and wind, a supercapacitor is configured in the energy storage system together with a battery to compensate for the relatively slow charging/discharging time of the battery, to contribute to extending the lifecycle of the battery, and to improve the system power quality. This article provides a concise overview of the principles, mechanisms, and classification of energy storage of supercapacitors in accordance with the electrode materials. Also, it provides a review of the status of recent research and patent, product, and market trends in supercapacitor technology. There are many challenges to be solved to meet industrial demands such as for high voltage module technologies, high efficiency charging, safety, performance improvement, and competitive prices.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.22 no.5
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• pp.310-316
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• 2021

Conventional satellites are generally large satellites that are multi-functional and have high performance. However, small satellites have been gradually drawing attention since the recent development of lightweight and integrated electric, electronic, and optical technologies. As the size and weight of a satellite decrease, the barrier to satellite development is becoming lower due to the cost of manufacture and cheaper launch. However, solar panels are essential for the power supply of satellites but have limitations in miniaturization and weight reduction because they require a large surface area to be efficiently exposed to sunlight. Space solar cells must be manufactured in consideration of various space environments such as spacecraft and environments with solar thermal temperatures. It is necessary to study structural materials for lightweight and high-efficiency solar cells by applying an unfolding mechanism that optimizes the surface-to-volume ratio. Currently, most products are developed and operated as solar cell panels for space applications with a triple-junction structure of InGaP/GaAs/Ge materials for high efficiency. Furthermore, multi-layered junctions have been studied for ultra-high-efficiency solar cells. Flexible thin-film solar cells and organic-inorganic hybrid solar cells are advantageous for material weight reduction and are attracting attention as next-generation solar cells for small satellites.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Illuminating and Electrical Installation Engineers
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.8-15
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• 2006

To reduce costs and address other practical concern related to architectural lighting, we have been involved in various aspects of advanced daylighting design and control. If we look toward future building trends, we see that the advanced has already successfully deployed such complex lighting control systems. This paper takes a broad view of what advanced manufacturers have done to develop energy efficient lighting control technologies such as sensors, lumen maintenance, time of day scheduling, peak demand reduction and so forth. First of all strategies, daylighting controls would also need to be commissioned to respond to the specific daylighting signature of the zone. To translate the daylight in term of the amount of energy savings, an electric lighting system is designed and automatic on-off control system integrated with the contribution of daylighting has been applied to the operating of the artificial lighting. The lighting analysis program, Lumen-Micro predicts the optimal layout of conventional fluorescent and incandescent lighting fixtures to meet the designed lighting level and calculates unit power density, which translates the demanded amount of lighting energy.

• Clean Technology
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• v.27 no.4
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• pp.291-296
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• 2021

Recently, there has been increasing demand for advancing photocatalytic techniques that are capable of the efficient removal of organic pollutants in water. TiO₂, a representative photocatalytic material, has been commonly used as an effective photocatalyst, but it is rather expensive and an alternative is required that will fulfill the requirements of both high performing photocatalytic activities and cost-effectiveness. In this work, ZnO, which is more cost effective than TiO₂, was synthesized by using a microreactor-assisted nanomaterials (MAN) process. The process enabled a continuous production of ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) with a flower-like structure with high uniformity. In order to resolve the limited light absorption of ZnO arising from its large band gap, Ag NPs were uniformly decorated on the flower-like ZnO surface by using the MAN process. The plasmonic effect of Ag NPs led to a broadening of the absorption range toward visible wavelengths. Ag NPs also helped inhibit the electron-hole recombination by drawing electrons generated from the light absorption of the flower-like ZnO NPs. As a result, the Ag-ZnO nanocomposites showed improved photocatalytic activities compared with the flower-like ZnO NPs. The photocatalytic activities were evaluated through the degradation of methylene blue (MB) solution. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), x-ray diffraction (XRD), and energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDS) confirmed the successful synthesis of Ag-ZnO nanocomposites with high uniformity. Ag-ZnO nanocomposites synthesized via the MAN process offer the potential for cost-effective and scalable production of next-generation photocatalytic materials.