Abstract: The history of technology and banking is examined as
it relates to risk and technological determinism. It is proposed that
the services that banks offer are determined by technology and that
banks must adopt new technologies to be competitive. The adoption
of technologies paradoxically forces the adoption of other new
technologies to protect the bank from the increased risk of
technology. This cycle will lead to bank examiners and regulators to
focus on human behavior, not on the ever changing technology.
Abstract: In this paper, three types of defected ground structure
(DGS) units which are triangular-head (TH), rectangular-head (RH)
and U-shape (US) are investigated. They are further used to low-pass
and band-pass filters designs (LPF and BPF) and the obtained
performances are examined. The LPF employing RH-DGS geometry
presents the advantages of compact size, low-insertion loss and wide
stopband compared to the other filters. It provides cutoff frequency of
2.5 GHz, largest rejection band width of 20 dB from 2.98 to 8.76
GHz, smallest transition region and smallest sharpness of the cutoff
frequency. The BPF based on RH-DGS has the highest bandwidth
(BW) of about 0.74 GHz and the lowest center frequency of 3.24
GHz, whereas the other BPFs have BWs less than 0.7 GHz.
Abstract: Image compression plays a vital role in today-s
communication. The limitation in allocated bandwidth leads to
slower communication. To exchange the rate of transmission in the
limited bandwidth the Image data must be compressed before
transmission. Basically there are two types of compressions, 1)
LOSSY compression and 2) LOSSLESS compression. Lossy
compression though gives more compression compared to lossless
compression; the accuracy in retrievation is less in case of lossy
compression as compared to lossless compression. JPEG, JPEG2000
image compression system follows huffman coding for image
compression. JPEG 2000 coding system use wavelet transform,
which decompose the image into different levels, where the
coefficient in each sub band are uncorrelated from coefficient of
other sub bands. Embedded Zero tree wavelet (EZW) coding exploits
the multi-resolution properties of the wavelet transform to give a
computationally simple algorithm with better performance compared
to existing wavelet transforms. For further improvement of
compression applications other coding methods were recently been
suggested. An ANN base approach is one such method. Artificial
Neural Network has been applied to many problems in image
processing and has demonstrated their superiority over classical
methods when dealing with noisy or incomplete data for image
compression applications. The performance analysis of different
images is proposed with an analysis of EZW coding system with
Error Backpropagation algorithm. The implementation and analysis
shows approximately 30% more accuracy in retrieved image
compare to the existing EZW coding system.
Abstract: Let D ≠ 1 be a positive non-square integer. In this
paper are given the proofs for two conjectures related to Pell-s
equation x2 -Dy2 = ± 4, proposed by A. Tekcan.
Abstract: Determining depth of anesthesia is a challenging problem
in the context of biomedical signal processing. Various methods
have been suggested to determine a quantitative index as depth of
anesthesia, but most of these methods suffer from high sensitivity
during the surgery. A novel method based on energy scattering of
samples in the wavelet domain is suggested to represent the basic
content of electroencephalogram (EEG) signal. In this method, first
EEG signal is decomposed into different sub-bands, then samples
are squared and energy of samples sequence is constructed through
each scale and time, which is normalized and finally entropy of the
resulted sequences is suggested as a reliable index. Empirical Results
showed that applying the proposed method to the EEG signals can
classify the awake, moderate and deep anesthesia states similar to
BIS.
Abstract: Traditionally, Internet has provided best-effort service to every user regardless of its requirements. However, as Internet becomes universally available, users demand more bandwidth and applications require more and more resources, and interest has developed in having the Internet provide some degree of Quality of Service. Although QoS is an important issue, the question of how it will be brought into the Internet has not been solved yet. Researches, due to the rapid advances in technology are proposing new and more desirable capabilities for the next generation of IP infrastructures. But neither all applications demand the same amount of resources, nor all users are service providers. In this way, this paper is the first of a series of papers that presents an architecture as a first step to the optimization of QoS in the Internet environment as a solution to a SMSE's problem whose objective is to provide public service to internet with certain Quality of Service expectations. The service provides new business opportunities, but also presents new challenges. We have designed and implemented a scalable service framework that supports adaptive bandwidth based on user demands, and the billing based on usage and on QoS. The developed application has been evaluated and the results show that traffic limiting works at optimum and so it does exceeding bandwidth distribution. However, some considerations are done and currently research is under way in two basic areas: (i) development and testing new transfer protocols, and (ii) developing new strategies for traffic improvements based on service differentiation.
Abstract: Multi-Radio Multi-Channel Wireless Mesh Networks (MRMC-WMNs) operate at the backbone to access and route high volumes of traffic simultaneously. Such roles demand high network capacity, and long “online" time at the expense of accelerated transmission energy depletion and poor connectivity. This is the problem of transmission power control. Numerous power control methods for wireless networks are in literature. However, contributions towards MRMC configurations still face many challenges worth considering. In this paper, an energy-efficient power selection protocol called PMMUP is suggested at the Link-Layer. This protocol first divides the MRMC-WMN into a set of unified channel graphs (UCGs). A UCG consists of multiple radios interconnected to each other via a common wireless channel. In each UCG, a stochastic linear quadratic cost function is formulated. Each user minimizes this cost function consisting of trade-off between the size of unification states and the control action. Unification state variables come from independent UCGs and higher layers of the protocol stack. The PMMUP coordinates power optimizations at the network interface cards (NICs) of wireless mesh routers. The proposed PMMUP based algorithm converges fast analytically with a linear rate. Performance evaluations through simulations confirm the efficacy of the proposed dynamic power control.
Abstract: Careful design and selection of daylighting systems can greatly help in reducing not only artificial lighting use, but also decrease cooling energy consumption and, therefore, potential for downsizing air-conditioning systems. This paper aims to evaluate the energy performance of two types of top-light daylighting systems due to the integration of daylight together with artificial lighting in an existing examinaton hall in University Kebangsaan Malaysia, based on a hot and humid climate. Computer simulation models have been created for building case study (base case) and the two types of toplight daylighting designs for building energy performance evaluation using the VisualDOE 4.0 building energy simulation program. The finding revealed that daylighting through top-light systems is a very beneficial design strategy in reducing annual lighting energy consumption and the overall total annual energy consumption.
Abstract: IEEE 802.16 is a new wireless technology standard, it
has some advantages, including wider coverage, higher bandwidth,
and QoS support. As the new wireless technology for last mile
solution, there are designed two models in IEEE 802.16 standard. One
is PMP (point to multipoint) and the other is Mesh. In this paper we
only focus on IEEE 802.16 Mesh model. According to the IEEE
802.16 standard description, Mesh model has two scheduling modes,
centralized and distributed. Considering the pros and cons of the two
scheduling, we present the combined scheduling QoS framework that
the BS (Base Station) controls time frame scheduling and selects the
shortest path from source to destination directly. On the other hand, we
propose the Expedited Queue mechanism to cut down the transmission
time. The EQ mechanism can reduce a lot of end-to-end delay in our
QoS framework. Simulation study has shown that the average delay is
smaller than contrasts. Furthermore, our proposed scheme can also
achieve higher performance.
Abstract: Mobile ad hoc network is a collection of mobile
nodes communicating through wireless channels without any existing
network infrastructure or centralized administration. Because of the
limited transmission range of wireless network interfaces, multiple
"hops" may be needed to exchange data across the network. In order
to facilitate communication within the network, a routing protocol is
used to discover routes between nodes. The primary goal of such an
ad hoc network routing protocol is correct and efficient route
establishment between a pair of nodes so that messages may be
delivered in a timely manner. Route construction should be done
with a minimum of overhead and bandwidth consumption. This paper
examines two routing protocols for mobile ad hoc networks– the
Destination Sequenced Distance Vector (DSDV), the table- driven
protocol and the Ad hoc On- Demand Distance Vector routing
(AODV), an On –Demand protocol and evaluates both protocols
based on packet delivery fraction, normalized routing load, average
delay and throughput while varying number of nodes, speed and
pause time.
Abstract: This paper deals with the design of a periodic output
feedback controller for a flexible beam structure modeled with
Timoshenko beam theory, Finite Element Method, State space
methods and embedded piezoelectrics concept. The first 3 modes are
considered in modeling the beam. The main objective of this work is
to control the vibrations of the beam when subjected to an external
force. Shear piezoelectric sensors and actuators are embedded into
the top and bottom layers of a flexible aluminum beam structure, thus
making it intelligent and self-adaptive. The composite beam is
divided into 5 finite elements and the control actuator is placed at
finite element position 1, whereas the sensor is varied from position 2
to 5, i.e., from the nearby fixed end to the free end. 4 state space
SISO models are thus developed. Periodic Output Feedback (POF)
Controllers are designed for the 4 SISO models of the same plant to
control the flexural vibrations. The effect of placing the sensor at
different locations on the beam is observed and the performance of
the controller is evaluated for vibration control. Conclusions are
finally drawn.
Abstract: This paper presents three-phase evolution search methodology to automatically design fuzzy logic controllers (FLCs) that can work in a wide range of operating conditions. These include varying load, parameter variations, and unknown external disturbances. The three-phase scheme consists of an exploration phase, an exploitation phase and a robustness phase. The first two phases search for FLC with high accuracy performances while the last phase aims at obtaining FLC providing the best compromise between the accuracy and robustness performances. Simulations were performed for direct-drive two-axis robot arm. The evolved FLC with the proposed design technique found to provide a very satisfactory performance under the wide range of operation conditions and to overcome problem associated with coupling and nonlinearities characteristics inherent to robot arms.
Abstract: The design of Class A and Class AB 2-stage X band
Power Amplifier is described in this report. This power amplifier is
part of a transceiver used in radar for monitoring iron characteristics
in a blast furnace. The circuit was designed using foundry WIN
Semiconductors. The specification requires 15dB gain in the linear
region, VSWR nearly 1 at input as well as at the output, an output
power of 10 dBm and good stable performance in the band 10.9-12.2
GHz. The design was implemented by using inter-stage
configuration, the Class A amplifier was chosen for driver stage i.e.
the first amplifier focusing on the gain and the output amplifier
conducted at Class AB with more emphasis on output power.
Abstract: The Czech Republic is a country whose economy has
undergone a transformation since 1989. Since joining the EU it has
been striving to reduce the differences in its economic standard and
the quality of its institutional environment in comparison with
developed countries. According to an assessment carried out by the
World Bank, the Czech Republic was long classed as a country
whose institutional development was seen as problematic. For many
years one of the things it was rated most poorly on was its bankruptcy
law. The new Insolvency Act, which is a modern law in terms of its
treatment of bankruptcy, was first adopted in the Czech Republic in
2006. This law, together with other regulatory measures, offers debtridden
Czech economic subjects legal instruments which are well
established and in common practice in developed market economies.
Since then, analyses performed by the World Bank and the London
EBRD have shown that there have been significant steps forward in
the quality of Czech bankruptcy law. The Czech Republic still lacks
an analytical apparatus which can offer a structured characterisation
of the general and specific conditions of Czech company and
household debt which is subject to current changes in the global
economy. This area has so far not been given the attention it
deserves. The lack of research is particularly clear as regards analysis
of household debt and householders- ability to settle their debts in a
reasonable manner using legal and other state means of regulation.
We assume that Czech households have recourse to a modern
insolvency law, yet the effective application of this law is hampered
by the inconsistencies in the formal and informal institutions
involved in resolving debt. This in turn is based on the assumption
that this lack of consistency is more marked in cases of personal
bankruptcy. Our aim is to identify the symptoms which indicate that
for some time the effective application of bankruptcy law in the
Czech Republic will be hindered by factors originating in
householders- relative inability to identify the risks of falling into
debt.
Abstract: Adapting wireless devices to communicate within grid
networks empowers us by providing range of possibilities.. These
devices create a mechanism for consumers and publishers to create
modern networks with or without peer device utilization. Emerging
mobile networks creates new challenges in the areas of reliability,
security, and adaptability. In this paper, we propose a system
encompassing mobility management using AAA context transfer for
mobile grid networks. This system ultimately results in seamless task
processing and reduced packet loss, communication delays,
bandwidth, and errors.
Abstract: Detection and classification of power quality (PQ)
disturbances is an important consideration to electrical utilities and
many industrial customers so that diagnosis and mitigation of such
disturbance can be implemented quickly. S-transform algorithm and
continuous wavelet transforms (CWT) are time-frequency
algorithms, and both of them are powerful in detection and
classification of PQ disturbances. This paper presents detection and
classification of PQ disturbances using S-transform and CWT
algorithms. The results of detection and classification, provides that
S-transform is more accurate in detection and classification for most
PQ disturbance than CWT algorithm, where as CWT algorithm more
powerful in detection in some disturbances like notching
Abstract: True stress-strain curve of railhead steel is required to
investigate the behaviour of railhead under wheel loading through elasto-plastic Finite Element (FE) analysis. To reduce the rate of wear, the railhead material is hardened through annealing and
quenching. The Australian standard rail sections are not fully hardened and hence suffer from non-uniform distribution of the
material property; usage of average properties in the FE modelling can potentially induce error in the predicted plastic strains. Coupons
obtained at varying depths of the railhead were, therefore, tested under axial tension and the strains were measured using strain gauges as well as an image analysis technique, known as the Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV). The head hardened steel exhibit existence of three distinct zones of yield strength; the yield strength as the ratio of the average yield strength provided in the standard (σyr=780MPa) and
the corresponding depth as the ratio of the head hardened zone along
the axis of symmetry are as follows: (1.17 σyr, 20%), (1.06 σyr, 20%-80%) and (0.71 σyr, > 80%). The stress-strain curves exhibit limited plastic zone with fracture occurring at strain less than 0.1.
Abstract: Modeling of complex dynamic systems, which are
very complicated to establish mathematical models, requires new and
modern methodologies that will exploit the existing expert
knowledge, human experience and historical data. Fuzzy cognitive
maps are very suitable, simple, and powerful tools for simulation and
analysis of these kinds of dynamic systems. However, human experts
are subjective and can handle only relatively simple fuzzy cognitive
maps; therefore, there is a need of developing new approaches for an
automated generation of fuzzy cognitive maps using historical data.
In this study, a new learning algorithm, which is called Big Bang-Big
Crunch, is proposed for the first time in literature for an automated
generation of fuzzy cognitive maps from data. Two real-world
examples; namely a process control system and radiation therapy
process, and one synthetic model are used to emphasize the
effectiveness and usefulness of the proposed methodology.
Abstract: A low-complexity, high-accurate frequency offset
estimation for multi-band orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (MB-OFDM) based ultra-wide band systems is presented regarding different carrier frequency offsets, different channel frequency
responses, different preamble patterns in different bands. Utilizing a
half-cycle Constant Amplitude Zero Auto Correlation (CAZAC) sequence as the preamble sequence, the estimator with a semi-cross
contrast scheme between two successive OFDM symbols is proposed. The CRLB and complexity of the proposed algorithm are derived.
Compared to the reference estimators, the proposed method achieves
significantly less complexity (about 50%) for all preamble patterns of the MB-OFDM systems. The CRLBs turn out to be of well performance.
Abstract: This work was conducted to improve the level of
resistant starch (RS) in a rice noodle using unripe banana flour and to
investigate the effect of substitution of unripe banana flour for rice
flour on the physical properties of rice noodle. In order to prepare
rice noodles, the unripe banana flour were replaced the rice flour
with different degrees of substitutions including 0, 20, 40, 60, 80, and
100%. The results indicated that substitution of unripe banana flour
was significantly affected the viscosity properties of noodle flour,
color, cooking loss, RS and total starch content of noodle. It was
found that the noodle prepared from 100% unripe banana indicated
the greatest changes on the viscosity properties and color profiles. It
also showed the highest values of cooking loss (2.53%), tensile
strength (129.03%), and RS content (13.15%).