Abstract: Product Data Management (PDM) systems for Computer
Aided Design (CAD) file management are widely established
in design processes. This management system is indispensable for
design collaboration or when design task distribution is present. It is
thus surprising that engineering design curricula has not paid much
attention in the education of PDM systems. This is also the case
for eduction of ecodesign and environmental evaluation of products.
With the rise of sustainability as a strategic aspect in companies,
environmental concerns are becoming a key issue in design. This
paper discusses the establishment of a PDM platform to be used
among technical and vocational schools in Austria. The PDM system
facilitates design collaboration among these schools. Further, it will
be discussed how the PDM system has been prepared in order to
facilitate environmental evaluation of parts, components and subassemblies
of a product. By integrating a Business Intelligence
solution, environmental Life Cycle Assessment and communication
of results is enabled.
Abstract: This article examines the emergence and development
of the Kazakhstan species of humanism. The biggest challenge for
Kazakhstan in terms of humanism is connected with advocating
human values in parallel to promoting national interests; preserving
the continuity of traditions in various spheres of life, business and
culture. This should be a common goal for the entire society, the
main direction for a national intelligence, and a platform for the state
policy. An idea worth considering is a formation of national humanist
tradition model; the challenges are adapting people to live in the
context of new industrial and innovative economic conditions,
keeping the balance during intensive economic development of the
country, and ensuring social harmony in the society.
Abstract: To explore pipelines is one of various bio-mimetic
robot applications. The robot may work in common buildings such as
between ceilings and ducts, in addition to complicated and massive
pipeline systems of large industrial plants. The bio-mimetic robot finds
any troubled area or malfunction and then reports its data. Importantly,
it can not only prepare for but also react to any abnormal routes in the
pipeline. The pipeline monitoring tasks require special types of mobile
robots. For an effective movement along a pipeline, the movement of
the robot will be similar to that of insects or crawling animals. During
its movement along the pipelines, a pipeline monitoring robot has an
important task of finding the shapes of the approaching path on the
pipes. In this paper we propose an effective solution to the pipeline
pattern recognition, based on the fuzzy classification rules for the
measured IR distance data.
Abstract: We present in this paper a new approach for specific JPEG steganalysis and propose studying statistics of the compressed DCT coefficients. Traditionally, steganographic algorithms try to preserve statistics of the DCT and of the spatial domain, but they cannot preserve both and also control the alteration of the compressed data. We have noticed a deviation of the entropy of the compressed data after a first embedding. This deviation is greater when the image is a cover medium than when the image is a stego image. To observe this deviation, we pointed out new statistic features and combined them with the Multiple Embedding Method. This approach is motivated by the Avalanche Criterion of the JPEG lossless compression step. This criterion makes possible the design of detectors whose detection rates are independent of the payload. Finally, we designed a Fisher discriminant based classifier for well known steganographic algorithms, Outguess, F5 and Hide and Seek. The experiemental results we obtained show the efficiency of our classifier for these algorithms. Moreover, it is also designed to work with low embedding rates (< 10-5) and according to the avalanche criterion of RLE and Huffman compression step, its efficiency is independent of the quantity of hidden information.
Abstract: Imperfect transmission conditions modeling a thin reactive 2D interphases layer between two dissimilar bonded strips have been extracted. In this paper, the soundness of these transmission conditions for heat conduction problems are examined by the finite element method for a strong temperature-dependent source or sink and non-monotonic temperature distributions around the faces..
Abstract: E-government projects have potential for greater efficiency and effectiveness of government operations. For this reason, many developing countries governments have invested heavily in this agenda and an increasing number of e-government projects are being implemented. However, there is a lack of clear case material, which describes the potentialities and consequence experienced by organizations trying to manage with this change. The Ministry of State for Administrative Development (MSAD) is the organization responsible for the e-Government program in Egypt since early 2004. This paper presents a case study of the process of admission to public universities and institutions in Egypt which is led by MSAD. Underlining the key benefits resulting from the initiative, explaining the strategies and the development steps used to implement it, and highlighting the main obstacles encountered and how they were overcome will help repeat the experience in other useful e-government projects.
Abstract: Cell formation is the first step in the design of cellular
manufacturing systems. In this study, a general purpose
computational scheme employing a hybrid tabu search algorithm as
the core is proposed to solve the cell formation problem and its
variants. In the proposed scheme, great flexibilities are left to the
users. The core solution searching algorithm embedded in the scheme
can be easily changed to any other meta-heuristic algorithms, such as
the simulated annealing, genetic algorithm, etc., based on the
characteristics of the problems to be solved or the preferences the
users might have. In addition, several counters are designed to control
the timing of conducting intensified solution searching and diversified
solution searching strategies interactively.
Abstract: Structural redundancy is an interesting point in
seismic design of structures. Initially, the structural redundancy is
described as indeterminate degree of a system. Although many definitions are presented for redundancy in structures, recently the
definition of structural redundancy has been related to the configuration of structural system and the number of lateral load
transferring directions in the structure. The steel frames with infill walls are general systems in the constructing of usual residential buildings in some countries. It is
obviously declared that the performance of structures will be affected by adding masonry infill walls. In order to investigate the effect of
infill walls on the redundancy of the steel frame which constructed
with masonry walls, the components of redundancy including redundancy variation index, redundancy strength index and
redundancy response modification factor were extracted for the
frames with masonry infills. Several steel frames with typical storey number and various numbers of bays were designed and considered.
The redundancy of frames with and without infill walls was evaluated by proposed method. The results showed the presence of infill causes increase of redundancy.
Abstract: Response to the public health-related emergencies is analysed here for a rural university in South Africa. The structure of the designated emergency plan covers all the phases of the disaster management cycle. The plan contains elements of the vulnerability model and the technocratic model of emergency management. The response structures are vertically and horizontally integrated, while the planning contains elements of scenario-based and functional planning. The available number of medical professionals at the Rhodes University, along with the medical insurance rates, makes the staff and students potentially more medically vulnerable than the South African population. The main improvements of the emergency management are required in the tornado response and the information dissemination during health emergencies. The latter should involve the increased use of social media and e-mails, following the Taylor model of communication. Infrastructure must be improved in the telecommunication sector in the face of unpredictable electricity outages.
Abstract: Nondestructive testing in engineering is an inverse
Cauchy problem for Laplace equation. In this paper the problem
of nondestructive testing is expressed by a Laplace-s equation with
third-kind boundary conditions. In order to find unknown values on
the boundary, the method of fundamental solution is introduced and
realized. Because of the ill-posedness of studied problems, the TSVD
regularization technique in combination with L-curve criteria and
Generalized Cross Validation criteria is employed. Numerical results
are shown that the TSVD method combined with L-curve criteria is
more efficient than the TSVD method combined with GCV criteria.
The abstract goes here.
Abstract: This paper presents a signal analysis process for
improving energy completeness based on the Hilbert-Huang
Transform (HHT). Firstly, the vibration signal of a DC Motor obtained
by employing an accelerometer is the model used to analyze the
signal. Secondly, the intrinsic mode functions (IMFs) and Hilbert
spectrum of the decomposed signal are obtained by applying HHT.
The results of the IMFs constituent and the original signal are
compared and the process of energy loss is discussed. Finally, the
differences between Wavelet Transform (WT) and HHT in analyzing
the signal are compared. The simulated results reveal the analysis
process based on HHT is advantageous for the enhancement of energy
completeness.
Abstract: As the global climate changes, the threat from
landslides and debris flows increases. Learning how a watershed
initiates landslides under abnormal rainfall conditions and predicting
landslide magnitude and frequency distribution is thus important.
Landslides show a power-law distribution in the frequency-area
distribution. The distribution curve shows an exponent gradient 1.0 in
the Sandpile model test. Will the landslide frequency-area statistics
show a distribution similar to the Sandpile model under extreme
rainfall conditions? The purpose of the study is to identify the extreme
rainfall-induced landslide frequency-area distribution in the Laonong
River Basin in southern Taiwan. Results of the analysis show that a
lower gradient of landslide frequency-area distribution could be
attributed to the transportation and deposition of debris flow areas that
are included in the landslide area.
Abstract: In this paper we present an enhanced noise reduction method for robust speech recognition using Adaptive Gain Equalizer with Non linear Spectral Subtraction. In Adaptive Gain Equalizer method (AGE), the input signal is divided into a number of subbands that are individually weighed in time domain, in accordance to the short time Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR) in each subband estimation at every time instant. Instead of focusing on suppression the noise on speech enhancement is focused. When analysis was done under various noise conditions for speech recognition, it was found that Adaptive Gain Equalizer method algorithm has an obvious failing point for a SNR of -5 dB, with inadequate levels of noise suppression for SNR less than this point. This work proposes the implementation of AGE when coupled with Non linear Spectral Subtraction (AGE-NSS) for robust speech recognition. The experimental result shows that out AGE-NSS performs the AGE when SNR drops below -5db level.
Abstract: Three new algorithms based on minimization of autocorrelation of transmitted symbols and the SLM approach which are computationally less demanding have been proposed. In the first algorithm, autocorrelation of complex data sequence is minimized to a value of 1 that results in reduction of PAPR. Second algorithm generates multiple random sequences from the sequence generated in the first algorithm with same value of autocorrelation i.e. 1. Out of these, the sequence with minimum PAPR is transmitted. Third algorithm is an extension of the second algorithm and requires minimum side information to be transmitted. Multiple sequences are generated by modifying a fixed number of complex numbers in an OFDM data sequence using only one factor. The multiple sequences represent the same data sequence and the one giving minimum PAPR is transmitted. Simulation results for a 256 subcarrier OFDM system show that significant reduction in PAPR is achieved using the proposed algorithms.
Abstract: Current trends in manufacturing are characterized by
production broadening, innovation cycle shortening, and the products
having a new shape, material and functions. The production strategy
focused on time needed change from the traditional functional
production structure to flexible manufacturing cells and lines.
Production by automated manufacturing system (AMS) is one of the
most important manufacturing philosophies in the last years. The
main goals of the project we are involved in lies on building a
laboratory in which will be located a flexible manufacturing system
consisting of at least two production machines with NC control
(milling machines, lathe). These machines will be linked to a
transport system and they will be served by industrial robots. Within
this flexible manufacturing system a station for the quality control
consisting of a camera system and rack warehouse will be also
located. The design, analysis and improvement of this manufacturing
system, specially with a special focus on the communication among
devices constitute the main aims of this paper. The key determining
factors for the manufacturing system design are: the product, the
production volume, the used machines, the disposable manpower, the
disposable infrastructure and the legislative frame for the specific
cases.
Abstract: A linear system is called a fully fuzzy linear system (FFLS) if quantities in this system are all fuzzy numbers. For the FFLS, we investigate its solution and develop a new approximate method for solving the FFLS. Observing the numerical results, we find that our method is accurate than the iterative Jacobi and Gauss- Seidel methods on approximating the solution of FFLS.
Abstract: This paper will focus on modeling, analysis and simulation of a 42V/14V dc/dc converter based architecture. This architecture is considered to be technically a viable solution for automotive dual-voltage power system for passenger car in the near further. An interleaved dc/dc converter system is chosen for the automotive converter topology due to its advantages regarding filter reduction, dynamic response, and power management. Presented herein, is a model based on one kilowatt interleaved six-phase buck converter designed to operate in a Discontinuous Conduction Mode (DCM). The control strategy of the converter is based on a voltagemode- controlled Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) with a Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID). The effectiveness of the interleaved step-down converter is verified through simulation results using control-oriented simulator, MatLab/Simulink.
Abstract: In this paper optical code-division multiple-access (OCDMA) packet network is considered, which offers inherent security in the access networks. Two types of random access protocols are proposed for packet transmission. In protocol 1, all distinct codes and in protocol 2, distinct codes as well as shifted versions of all these codes are used. O-CDMA network performance using optical orthogonal codes (OOCs) 1-D and two-dimensional (2-D) wavelength/time single-pulse-per-row (W/T SPR) codes are analyzed. The main advantage of using 2-D codes instead of onedimensional (1-D) codes is to reduce the errors due to multiple access interference among different users. In this paper, correlation receiver is considered in the analysis. Using analytical model, we compute and compare packet-success probability for 1-D and 2-D codes in an O-CDMA network and the analysis shows improved performance with 2-D codes as compared to 1-D codes.
Abstract: In this work a new platform for mobile-health systems is
presented. System target application is providing decision support to
rescue corps or military medical personnel in combat areas. Software
architecture relies on a distributed client-server system that manages a
wireless ad-hoc networks hierarchy in which several different types of
client operate. Each client is characterized for different hardware and
software requirements. Lower hierarchy levels rely in a network of
completely custom devices that store clinical information and patient
status and are designed to form an ad-hoc network operating in the
2.4 GHz ISM band and complying with the IEEE 802.15.4 standard
(ZigBee). Medical personnel may interact with such devices, that are
called MICs (Medical Information Carriers), by means of a PDA
(Personal Digital Assistant) or a MDA (Medical Digital Assistant),
and transmit the information stored in their local databases as well as
issue a service request to the upper hierarchy levels by using IEEE
802.11 a/b/g standard (WiFi). The server acts as a repository that
stores both medical evacuation forms and associated events (e.g., a
teleconsulting request). All the actors participating in the diagnostic
or evacuation process may access asynchronously to such repository
and update its content or generate new events. The designed system
pretends to optimise and improve information spreading and flow
among all the system components with the aim of improving both
diagnostic quality and evacuation process.
Abstract: The paper deals with cartographic visualisation of
results of transport accessibility monitoring with the use of a semiautomated
method of unipolar anamorphosis, developed by the
authors in the GIS environment. The method is based on
transformation of distance in the map to values of a geographical
phenomenon. In the case of time accessibility it is based on
transformation of isochrones converted into the form of concentric
circles, taking into account selected topographic and thematic
elements in the map. The method is most suitable for analyses of
accessibility to or from a centre and for modelling its long-term
context.
The paper provides a detailed analysis of the procedures and
functionality of the method, discussing the issues of coordinates,
transformation, scale and visualisation. It also offers a discussion of
possible problems and inaccuracies. A practical application of the
method is illustrated by previous research results by the authors in
the filed of accessibility in Czechia.