This thesis, for the first time in the literature, presents an automatic mode-matching system that uses the phase relationships between the residual quadrature and drive signals in a gyroscope to achieve and maintain the frequency matching condition, and also the system allows controlling the system bandwidth by adjusting the closed loop parameters of the sense mode controller, independently from the mechanical sensor bandwidth. There are two mode-matching methods, using the proposed mode-matching system, presented in this thesis. In the first method, the frequency matching between the resonance modes of the gyroscope is automatically accomplished by changing the proof mass potential. The main motivation behind the first method is to tune the sense mode resonance frequency with respect to the drive mode resonance frequency using the electrostatic tuning capability of the sense mode. In the second method, the mode-matched gyroscope operation is accomplished by using dedicated frequency tuning electrodes that only provides a capability of tuning the sense mode resonance frequency generating an electrostatic spring effect on the sense frame, independently from the proof mass potential. This study mainly focuses on the second method because the proof mass potential variation is not desired during the gyroscope operation since the proof mass potential directly affects the drive and sense mode dynamics of the gyroscope. Therefore, a single-mass fully-decoupled gyroscope including the dedicated frequency tuning electrodes are designed. To identify mode shapes and mode frequencies of the designed gyroscope, FEM simulations are performed. The designed gyroscopes are fabricated using SOI-based SOG process. The fabrication imperfections are clarified during the formation of the structural layer of the gyroscope. Next, the closed loop controllers are designed for the drive amplitude control, sense force-feedback, quadrature cancellation, and mode-matching regarding the phase relationship between the quadrature and drive signals. Mode-matching is achieved by using a closed loop controller that provides a DC tuning potential. The mode-matching system consisting of vacuum packaged sensor, drive amplitude control, sense force-feedback, quadrature cancellation, and mode-matching modules is implemented on a printed circuit board (PCB), and then the system level tests are performed. Tests illustrate that the mode-matching system operates in a desired manner. Test results demonstrate that the performances of the studied MEMS gyroscopes are improved up to 2.6 times in bias instability and 2 times in ARW under the mode-matched condition compared to the mismatched (~200 Hz) condition, reaching down to 0.73 &deg / /hr and 0.024 &deg / /&radic / hr, respectively. At the mode-matched gyroscope operation, the better performance is obtained to be bias instability of 0.87

The essence of the most advantageous tender (MAT) is to allow the procuring authorities to carry out a comprehensive assessment on the technical merits, quality, function, terms and prices of tenders in accordance with the judging criteria listed on the tendering document. In this way, the award of contract can be determined that ensures the best quality within the budget and encourages good competition among tendering parties while eliminate vicious undercutting. Scandals arose from recent procurement projects such as the ETC procurement project, High Speed Rail vibration reduction project, the procurement of Kuan-hwa Fast Attack Boat Guide-Missile (F-ABG), and the construction of the southern courtyard of the National Palace museum have attracted great attention. On March 22, 2006, the Premier announced that ¡§Award to the lowest tender should be made the rule while the MAT should be the exception¡¨ in future government procurement projects. This announcement highlighted the flaws and problems yet to be improved within the existing system. After studying related literatures, conducting a thorough analysis of the current situation and different case studies of the tender selection process, this paper conducted a survey among the people involved in government procurement to find out how they think of the selection of the most advantageous tender legally and in practice, the function of the tender selection committee, the management and the efficiency of the selection process. Suggestions for improvement are put forward based on the findings and analysis. The survey found that the Ranking Method while considering the price factor and the Overall Evaluation Score Method are the most frequently used tendering methods in the past experience of our interviewees. Price may be a crucial factor in determining the most advantageous tender. The most important factor in the award selection process is technical merits. The process of selecting the most advantageous tender is most susceptible to flaws and scandals. The inappropriate appointment of the committee members is the main cause of these flaws. In practice, the selection of committee members itself is of great difficulty. The expertise, personal bias, as well as one¡¦s understanding of the procurement could all affect the fairness and credibility of the tendering process. Besides these committee members, top officials in the procuring institutions also play important roles in the decision-making process. Cognitive differences among interviewees in the understanding of the legal institutions of the MAT selection, the functions of the selection committee, the execution of the MAT selection, the management mechanisms of the MAT selection may be caused by elements such the institutions they work for, the nature of their works, the job title, the training hours they received, whether they are professionally accredited. Yet, different years of experience did not contribute to such differences. People with different job title, nature of work, years of experience, and training hours did cause significant difference in the understanding of the efficiency of the MAT selection. Working at different institutions and professional accreditation, however, did not result in such difference. Based on the above findings, a way forward has been provided: a set of comprehensive regulations for the most advantageous tender selection should be established. A standard of procedure and module should be designed. The decision authority of the procuring institution should be defined in order to actually fulfill the need of the procurement. A comprehensive list of suggested professionals should be compiled to assist different kinds of procurements. This list would ensure the fairness of the selection process. Specify the judging criteria for prices, weights of evaluating elements, and the scoring principle. Determine a set of reasonable scoring method for prices. Provide professional training for procurement professionals. Enhance the efficiency of the MAT selection. Committee members should receive professional training in order to improve the credibility of the selection process. A performance evaluation mechanism should be established in order to improve efficiency and put the government¡¦s budget to the best use.

Income inequality and its relationship to long-term GDP per capita growth has been researched for decades since the development of the Kuznet’s Curve. Theoretical and empirical research has shown mixed results including positive, negative, non-existent, or statistically insignificant relationships. Empirical research on income inequality and economic growth in the United States has also shown mixed results. In addition to using existing data, this paper uses originally-constructed Gini Coefficients from 2005 to 2009. A statistically significant negative correlation between income inequality, and both short-term growth and long-term growth is found in the analysis of this data. Finally, this paper attempts to justify a causal relationship between income inequality and long-term growth.

This paper investigates the science fiction novels of Swedish crime writer Per Wahlöö, most famous for his collaboration with his writing partner Maj Sjöwall on the ten Martin Beck mysteries. During two important years, 1964 and 1968, Wahlöö wrote the novels Murder On the 31st Floor and The Steel Spring, set in a near future land ruled by a social fascist power structure where political opposition is eradicated. The pretexted notion of this paper is that these novels consists of extensive quantities of criticism against the Swedish welfare state and the monopoly-capitalistic Swedish press during the sixties. Through the lens of science fiction theory and the notion of the novels as historical sources this paper concludes that Per Wahlöö´s science fiction becomes a bridge between the classic Swedish detective novel and the new social critic crime fiction in the style of Sjöwall-Wahlöö and others. The novels are also representations of the historical process in the mid-sixties during the radical turn: the sci-fi novels as social criticism of the contemporary society – an utopian flare. Other conclusions of this paper are the connections between Wahlöö´s novels and marxist critical theory as well as their relation to the Swedish labour literature´s view on the individual in the modern society. Especially Murder On the 31st Floor forebodes a lot of the radical marxist criticism so widely spread in the latter part of the sixties.

Syftet med föreliggande litteraturstudie var att beskriva rådgivningssamtalet vid centrala sjukvårdsrådgivningar. Studien har gjorts som en litteraturstudie med deskriptiv design. Studien har baserats på 12 vetenskapliga artiklar som har sökts fram via Cinahl och PubMed. Resultatet visade att rådgivningssamtalet innehöll en gemensam interaktion och bedömningsprocess, där sjuksköterskan analyserade och tolkade det objektiva och subjektiva i den vårdsökandes hälsoproblem för att nå fram till samförstånd i beslut och åtgärd. Processen skedde i ett ansiktslöst icke fysiskt vårdmöte mellan sjuksköterskan och den vårdsökande och kunde beskrivas utifrån fyra faser 1) att samla information 2) att analysera och tolka 3) att bedöma 4) att åtgärda. Sjuksköterskans möjligheter med samtalet var att skapa en bra relation och god kontakt, analysera hälsoproblemet och bedöma behov av vård och tolka den vårdsökandes känslor av upplevelsen runt symtom och situation. Sjuksköterskorna upplevde svårigheter med att ställa de rätta frågorna och att hantera känslor hos den vårdsökande. De vårdsökandes möjligheter var att bli vägledda och lotsade, hjälp att hantera oro och stöd till egen förmåga att hantera hälsoproblemet samt att bli tagen på allvar och att få vara delaktig. Att inte få respekt och bekräftelse av känslor och önskningar runt hälsoproblemet samt att bli behandlad som ett objekt var svårigheter för den vårdsökande i rådgivningssamtalet. Rådgivningssamtalets innehåll kan beskrivas som en process med fyra faser liknande vårdprocessen med en gemensam interaktion och beslutsprocess mellan sjuksköterskan och den vårdsökande för att nå fram till samförstånd i beslut och åtgärd. / The aim of the present literature studie was to describe the process of telephone nursing at the central medical care help line. Article search was performed through PubMed and Cinahl. The results showed that counseling call could be described by four phases 1) collect and disseminate information 2) analysis and interpretation 3) assessment 4)proceed. Opportunities for the nurse were to create a good relationship and good contact, analyze health problem and assess care needs and interpret the care seekers feelings of experience of the symptoms and situation. Results showed that nurses experienced difficulty in asking the right questions and to manage emotions of the care seekers. The care seekers opportunities in counseling call were to get their health assessed and guidance in managing their health problems, both practical and emotional. Not getting the respect and acknowledgment of feelings and desires around health problem were difficulties for the care seekers in the counseling call. The conclusion from this study is that the call may be described as a process with four phases similar to the care process with an interaction and decision-making with the nurse and the care seekers together to reach consensus in decision and action.

Multi-antenna relay beamforming is a promising candidate in the next generation wireless communication systems. The assumption of sum power constraint at the relay in previous work is often unrealistic in practice, since each antenna of the relay is limited by its own front-end power amplifier and thus has its own individual power constraint. In this thesis, given per-antenna power constraints, we obtain the semi-closed form solution for the optimal relay beamforming design in the two-hop amplify-and-forward relay beamforming and establish its duality with the point-to-point single-input multiple-output (SIMO) beamforming system. Simulation results show that the per-antenna power constraint case has much lower per-antenna peak power and much smaller variance of per-antenna power usage than the sum-power constraint case. A heuristic iterative algorithm to minimize the total power of relay network is proposed.

Multi-antenna relay beamforming is a promising candidate in the next generation wireless communication systems. The assumption of sum power constraint at the relay in previous work is often unrealistic in practice, since each antenna of the relay is limited by its own front-end power amplifier and thus has its own individual power constraint. In this thesis, given per-antenna power constraints, we obtain the semi-closed form solution for the optimal relay beamforming design in the two-hop amplify-and-forward relay beamforming and establish its duality with the point-to-point single-input multiple-output (SIMO) beamforming system. Simulation results show that the per-antenna power constraint case has much lower per-antenna peak power and much smaller variance of per-antenna power usage than the sum-power constraint case. A heuristic iterative algorithm to minimize the total power of relay network is proposed.

O conflito presente desde sempre nas relações humanas é, geralmente, confundido com violência ou agressão. Contrário a este sentido, o presente estudo se propõe a analisar o caráter positivado do conflito, de modo a considerá-lo um ato que venha a educar os indivíduos, gerar neles a capacidade de construir, edificar ações, atitudes e pensamentos de positividade. Participar ativamente das questões que ocorrem na sociedade de maneira ética, clara, crítica e reflexiva. Assim, o compreende como o cerne da vida democrática e o ato educativo como seu desenvolvimento. Para tal, analisa três pilares pedagógicos acerca do humano: autonomia, liberdade e alteridade. Em consequência, vê que o indivíduo, na conquista destes pilares, assume o processo consciente e dialógico que os precede sobre as questões que o envolvem num determinado estado conflitivo, a partir de um processo pedagógico progressista. Trata-se de uma pesquisa bibliográfica e qualitativa, de cunho fenomenológico-hermenêutico que busca analisar, interpretar e compreender os textos decodificados em si mesmos. A investigação se pauta em uma consciência crítica e reflexiva sobre as ações e atitudes do ser na atual sociedade, com ênfase na sociedade brasileira. Não se trata de um estudo de constatações empíricas, ele percorre o mundo das palavras e nelas se forma e apresenta verificações específicas e reflexivas ao objeto de estudo. O estudo avalia o Brasil, enquanto um país de conflitos velados esboçando um quadro histórico, político, pedagógico e educacional do país. Constata que a Pedagogia do Conflito possibilita ao indivíduo o valor de perceber os movimentos que ocorrem na sociedade, de maneira a inserir-se neles conscientemente por meio de um constante diálogo; autônomo, liberto e altero para consigo e para com o outro. Constata que o Brasil apresenta um sistema social gerido por uma hierarquia que conduz, dita regras e afirmações desde suas bases de formação. / The present conflict since always in human relations is, usually, confused with violence or aggression. Contrary to this sense, the present article intends to analyze the positive character of the conflict, in order to consider it an act which will come to educate individuals, create on them the capacity to construct, build actions, attitudes and positive thoughts. Actively participate of those questions that occur in society in an ethical manner, clear, critical and reflective. Thus, it includes as core of the democratic life, the educative act as its development. For this end, analyzes three pedagogical pillars about the human: autonomy, freedom and alterity. In consequence, sees that the individual, on the achievement of these pillars, assumes the conscious process e dialogical that precede about the questions that surround him in a certain conflictive state, starting from a progressive biological process. It is a bibliographic and qualitative research, phenomenalogic-hermeneutic imprint that searches to analyze, interpret and comprehend the texts decode in it. The investigation is guided in a critic and reflexive conscious about the actions and attitudes of being in the present society, with emphasis in the Brazilian society. This study is not about empirical findings, it travels the world of words an in it, takes form and presents specific and reflexive verifications to the object of study. The study assesses Brazil, as a country of veiled conflicts drafting an historical, political, pedagogical and educational frame of the country. It notes that the Pedagogic of Conflict enables the individual the value of realize the movements that occur on the society, in order to insert into them consciously by a path of a frequent dialogue; autonomous, free, change to him and to the other. It notes that Brazil presents a social system managed by a hierarchy that leads, said rules and statements from their basis of formation.

L'aplicació de polsos elèctrics d'alta intensitat de camp (PEAIC) és una nova i innovadora tecnologia no tèrmica de processat mínim que és utilitzada com un procés de preservació alternativa per a sucs de fruites. El tractament de PEAIC és capaç d'inactivar microorganismes i allargar la vida útil d'aquests productes sense els efectes indesitjables de calor. Partint d'aquesta premissa, els objectius es van centrar en avaluar i optimitzar els efectes dels temps de tractament (fins 2000 μs) i freqüència de pols (100-250 Hz), com a paràmetres de processament de PEAIC, sobre poblacions de Escherichia coli O157:H7, Salmonella Enteritidis i/o Listeria monocytogenes inoculades en els sucs de meló, síndria, poma, pera, taronja, maduixa i tomaquet. També s' avaluà l'efecte de PEAIC en combinació amb àcid cítric (fins a 2,0%) o oli essencial de canyella (fins a 0,3%), com a substàncies antimicrobianes, sobre aquests microorganismes patògens inoculats en els sucs de fruites. L'efecte de PEAIC amb o sense antimicrobians sobre la microflora nativa present en cada suc de fruita i el seu impacte sobre els atributs sensorials foren avaluats igualment. El temps de tractament va tenir una major influència que la freqüència de pols sobre les poblacions microbianes, sent major la inactivació microbiana quan es van aplicar temps més llargs de tractament. Es van estimar els valors òptims de temps de tractament i freqüència de pols per a disminuir la quantitat màxima dels patògens de cada suc de fruita utilitzant una anàlisi de resposta múltiple. El suc de taronja fou pasteuritzat completament per PEAIC, ja que s'aconseguiren més de 5 reduccions logarítmiques de les bactèries patògenes objectius. L. monocytogenes va mostrar ser més resistent a tractaments de PEAIC seguit per S. Enteritidis i després E. coli O157:H7. Tanmateix, quan PEAIC va ser combinat amb àcid cítric o oli essencial de canyella, es va observar una major resistència de E. coli O157:H7 al tractament, independentment del suc de fruita utilitzat. D'altra banda, quan PEAIC i antimicrobians es van combinar es va aconseguir reduït els microorganismes patògenes per més de 5-log10, inactivar la flora nativa i l'allargament de la vida útil microbiològica en tots els sucs de fruites per més de 91 dies. Tot i que la qualitat i seguretat microbiològica dels diferents sucs de fruites estudiats van ser garantits per combinar PEAIC i antimicrobians, es van detectar canvis perceptibles sobre alguns atributs sensorials, tals com sabor, olor i acidesa. / La aplicación de pulsos eléctricos de alta intensidad de campo (PEAIC) esuna nueva e innovadora tecnología no térmica de procesado mínimo que es usada como un proceso de preservación alternativa para zumos de frutas. El tratamiento de PEAIC es capaz de inactivar microorganismos y prolongar la vida útil de estos productos sin los efectos indeseables de calor. Partiendo de esta premisa, los objetivos se centraron en evaluar y optimizar los efectos del tiempo de tratamiento (hasta 2000 μs) y frecuencia del pulso (100-250 Hz), como parámetros de procesamiento de PEAIC, sobre poblaciones de Escherichia coli O157:H7, Salmonella Enteritidis y/o Listeria monocytogenes inoculadas en los zumos de melón, sandía, manzana, pera, naranja, fresa y tomate. También se evaluó el efecto de PEAIC en combinación con ácido cítrico (hasta 2,0%) o aceite esencial de canela (hasta 0,3%), como sustancias antimicrobianas, sobre estos microorganismos patógenos inoculados en los zumos de frutas. El efecto de PEAIC con o sin antimicrobianos sobre la microflora nativa presente en cada zumo de fruta y su impacto sobre los atributos sensoriales fueron evaluados igualmente. El tiempo de tratamiento tuvo una mayor influencia que la frecuencia de pulsos sobre las poblaciones microbianas, siendo mayor la inactivación microbiana cuando se aplicaron tiempos más largos de tratamiento. Se estimaron los valores óptimos de tiempo de tratamiento y frecuencia de pulso para reducir la cantidad máxima de los patógenos en cada zumo de fruta usando un análisis de respuesta múltiple. El zumo de naranja fue pasteurizado completamente por PEAIC, ya que se lograron más de 5 reducciones logarítmicas de las bacterias patógenas objetivos. L. monocytogenes mostró ser más resistente a tratamientos de PEAIC seguido por S. Enteritidis y luego E. coli O157:H7. Sin embargo, cuando PEAIC se combinó con ácido cítrico o aceite esencial de canela, se observó una mayor resistencia de E. coli O157:H7 al tratamiento, independientemente del zumo de fruta utilizado. Por otra parte, cuando PEAIC y antimicrobianos se combinaron se logró reducir a los microorganismos patogénicos por más de 5-log10, inactivar la flora nativa y extender la vida útil microbiológica de todos los zumos de frutas por más de 91 días. Aunque, la calidad e inocuidad microbiológica de los diferentes zumos de frutas estudiados fueron aseguradas al combinar PEAIC y antimicrobianos, se detectaron cambios perceptibles sobre algunos atributos sensoriales, tales como sabor, olor y acidez. / The application of high-intensity pulsed electric fields (HIPEF) process is a novel and innovative non-thermal minimal processing technology that is used as an alternative preservation process for fruit juices, because it is able to inactivate microorganisms and to increase the shelf-life of these products without undesirable heat effects. Based on these premises, the objectives were focused to evaluate and optimize the effects of treatment time (up to2000 μs) and pulse frequency (100-250 Hz), as processing parameters of HIPEF, on populations of Escherichia coli O157:H7, Salmonella Enteritidis and/or Listeria monocytogenes inoculated in melon, watermelon, apple, pear, orange, strawberry and tomato juices. The HIPEF combination with citric acid (up to 2.0%) or cinnamon oil (up to 0.3%), as antimicrobial substances, against those pathogenic microorganisms in fruit juices was also evaluated. The effect of HIPEF with or without antimicrobial on the naturally occurring microorganisms in each fruit juice as well as their impacts on the sensory attributes were also studied. Treatment time was more influential than pulse frequency on the microbial populations, being greater the microbial inactivation when longer treatment times were applied. Optimum treatment time and pulse frequency values to reduce the highest levels of the pathogenic microorganisms in each fruit juice using a multiple response analysis were estimated. Only, orange juice could be pasteurized by HIPEF, since, more than 5 log reductions of those target pathogenic microorganisms were achieved. L. monocytogenes showed to be more HIPEF-resistant than S. Enteritidis and E. coli O157:H7. However, when HIPEF treatment was combined with citric acid or cinnamon oil, a higher resistant of E. coli O157:H7 to the treatment was found, irrespectively the kind of juice used. On the other hand, more than 5-log10 reductions of pathogenic microorganisms, inactivation of spoilage microorganisms, and an extension of the microbiological shelf-life by more than 91 days in all fruit juices were achieved when HIPEF treatment and antimicrobials were combined. Although, the microbiological safety and quality of the fruit juices were ensured by combining HIPEF and antimicrobials, noticeable changes on some sensory attributes such as taste, odor and sourness were detected.

El mètode de detecció de simetria local de reflexió que es presenta, pretén ser una aportació més a la recerca en visió per computador i la robòtica. Com és sabut haches camps d'aplicació impliquen considerar el temps de processament com un paràmetre bàsic. Així doncs, en aquesta tesi no ens conformem en obtenir un algorisme eficient de detecció de simetria si no que es planteja millorar el temps de processame nt a partir de l'obtenció de metodologies i algorismes que tinguin la qualitat de permetre una fácil implantació del processament en paral· lel així com de la implementació de processadors específics.El mètode de detecció de simetria es basa en les contribucions a la simetria de les parelles de segments rectilinis de la imatge. Aquesta aproximació permet una reducció considerable de la complexitat, de la mateixa manera que altres autors utilitzen reduccions basades en diferents agrupacions de punts de contorn, com ara segments d'arcs, b-splines etc. El mètode, així concebut, serà aplicable en imatges on les línies rectes siguin predominats com és el cas de construccions artificials i entorns estructurats.Tot i que l'anterior restricció és important, és adequada per al tipus d'aplicacions que hem exposat anteriorment i ens permet obtenir un mètode de detecció contributiu, a partir de l'acumulació de contribucions locals a la simetria de les parelles de segments rectilinis de la imatge. Es tracta doncs d'un mètode basat en un anàlisi local que mostra els avantatges d'aquesta aproximació mentre que pel fet de tractar-se d'un mètode contributiu millora els dos principals inconvenients de l'aproximació local, és a dir, la sensibilitat al soroll i la inestabilitat, la qual cosa representa una aportació a la superació del dilema "anàlisi local versus anàlisi global".El mètode es composa de quatre etapes:- Obtenció de la llista de segments rectilinis de la imatge- Obtenció dels segments de contribució a la simetria- Càlcul del mapa d'acumulació dels segments de contribució- Extracció d'eixos locals de simetriaUna característica que distingeix el mètode és que proporciona l'abast de la simetria, és a dir, la llargada dels eixos de simetria, precisant-ne els punts inicial i final. Per altra banda la característica contributiva del mètode proposat, ha permès detectar els eixos de simetria local amb una ponderació associada segons la seva importància. D'aquesta forma s'evita el processat d'alt nivell posterior per tal de determinar els eixos més significatius, necessari en la majoria de mètodes basat en l'aproximació local. Respecta la millora del temps de processat i donada la complexitat i extensió del problema de la detecció de simetria, s'ha fet un primer esforç en una de les etapes del mètode de més cost de computació. Concretament s'ha accelerat un procés que forma part del càlcul del mapa d'acumulació esmentat anteriorment, consistent en l'obtenció dels píxels que aproximen, en el pla discret, un segment rectilini especificat per els seus punts inicial i finals. Aquesta millora s'ha obtingut mitjançant un algorisme paral· lel que presenta com avantatges més rellevants: la simplicitat, eficiència i que permet un directa implementació d'un processador dedicat. Per l'altra banda, amb el mateix objectiu de millorar el temps de processament i en base a l'algorisme anterior, s'ha dissenyat un processador paral· lel dedicat que té la capacitat d'obtenir i emmagatzemar simultàniament, en una matriu de registres, el conjunt de píxels que aproximen, en el pla discret, un segment rectilini caracteritzat per els seus punts inicial i final. Una característica molt remarcable del processador és que obté i registra els píxels anteriors en un únic període de rellotge.Finalment per tal de conèixer el paràmetres referents a la seva viabilitat i prestacions, s'ha obtingut, mitjançant la simulació, una versió reduïda amb tecnologia d'alta escala d'integració VLSI en un únic circuit. El disseny obtingut ha mostrat la capacitat de processar17,2 Mega Segments/seg, en el pitjor del casos, mentre que en les condicions més favorables es capaç de processar 57,3 Mega segments/segon. / The method of reflection local symmetry detection presented aims to be a new approach to the research in vision computer and robotics. As we know them, these fields of application imply to consider the processing time as a basic parameter. In this way, in this thesis we shall obtain an efficient algorithm for symmetry detection and, moreover, we will try to improve the processing time with methodologies and algorithms that will be able to embed easily in parallel architectures and the implementation of specific processors.The symmetry detection method is based in symmetry contributions from the straight segments in the image. This approximation permits a considerable reduction in the complexity in the same way that other authors use reductions based in different grouping of contour points, such as arcs, b-splines, etc. The method conceived like this will be applicable in images where straight lines are predominant like in the case of artificial buildings and structured environments.Although the above restriction is important, it is suitable for all kinds of applications that we have exposed previously and it allows us to obtain a contributive detection method from the accumulation of local contribution of symmetry in pairs of straight segments in the image. Thus, it is a method based in the local analysis that shows the advantages of this approach while it improves the two main disadvantages of local approximation because it is a contributive method. These drawbacks are the sensibility to noise and instability which represent a novel approach to the overcoming of the "local analysis versus global analysis" dilemma.Four steps compose the method: - To obtain the straight segments list in the image- To obtain the symmetry contribution segments- To calculate an accumulation map of contribution segments- To extract the local symmetry axes.A distinctive feature is that the method yields the symmetry range, that is, the length of symmetry axes, with precise position of initial and final points.On the other hand, the contributive feature of the proposed method has allowed us to detect the local symmetry axes with an associated weight to their importance. That avoids the posterior high level processing in order to determine the more significative axes needed in most of the approaches based in local approximation. With respect to the improvement of processing time, and given the complexity and extension of the symmetry detection problem, an initial effort has been made in one of the stages of higher computational cost in the method. Specifically, a process in the calculation of the accumulation map has been accelerated, consistently in the achieving of pixels that form, in the discrete plane, a straight segment specified for its initial and final points. This improvement has been obtained with a parallel algorithm that presents more relevant advantages: simplicity, efficiency and it allows a direct implementation with a dedicated processor.Furthermore, with the same objective of processing time improvement and in basis to the above algorithm, a dedicated parallel processor has been designed with the capability to obtain and store simultaneously, in an array of registers, the set of pixels that approximate, in the discrete plane, a straight segment characterised by its initial and final points. A very remarkable feature of the processor is to obtain and store those pixels in a unique clock period.Finally, in order to know the parameters concerning its viability and performance, a simulated reduced version with VLSI (very large scale integration) technology in a unique circuit has been achieved. The obtained design has shown the capability of processing 17.2 million segments per second in the worst case, while in the most favourable conditions it is able to process up to 57.3 million segments per second.