Abstract: This paper presents design features of a rescue robot, named CEO Mission II. Its body is designed to be the track wheel type with double front flippers for climbing over the collapse and the rough terrain. With 125 cm. long, 5-joint mechanical arm installed on the robot body, it is deployed not only for surveillance from the top view but also easier and faster access to the victims to get their vital signs. Two cameras and sensors for searching vital signs are set up at the tip of the multi-joint mechanical arm. The third camera is at the back of the robot for driving control. Hardware and software of the system, which controls and monitors the rescue robot, are explained. The control system is used for controlling the robot locomotion, the 5-joint mechanical arm, and for turning on/off devices. The monitoring system gathers all information from 7 distance sensors, IR temperature sensors, 3 CCD cameras, voice sensor, robot wheels encoders, yawn/pitch/roll angle sensors, laser range finder and 8 spare A/D inputs. All sensors and controlling data are communicated with a remote control station via IEEE 802.11b Wi-Fi. The audio and video data are compressed and sent via another IEEE 802.11g Wi-Fi transmitter for getting real-time response. At remote control station site, the robot locomotion and the mechanical arm are controlled by joystick. Moreover, the user-friendly GUI control program is developed based on the clicking and dragging method to easily control the movement of the arm. Robot traveling map is plotted from computing the information of wheel encoders and the yawn/pitch data. 2D Obstacle map is plotted from data of the laser range finder. The concept and design of this robot can be adapted to suit many other applications. As the Best Technique awardee from Thailand Rescue Robot Championship 2006, all testing results are satisfied.
Abstract: Proxy signature helps the proxy signer to sign
messages on behalf of the original signer. It is very useful when
the original signer (e.g. the president of a company) is not
available to sign a specific document. If the original signer can
not forge valid proxy signatures through impersonating the proxy
signer, it will be robust in a virtual environment; thus the original
signer can not shift any illegal action initiated by herself to the
proxy signer. In this paper, we propose a new proxy signature
scheme. The new scheme can prevent the original signer from
impersonating the proxy signer to sign messages. The proposed
scheme is based on the regular ElGamal signature. In addition,
the fair privacy of the proxy signer is maintained. That means,
the privacy of the proxy signer is preserved; and the privacy can
be revealed when it is necessary.
Abstract: Three-dimensional simulation of harmonic up
generation in free electron laser amplifier operating simultaneously
with a cold and relativistic electron beam is presented in steady-state
regime where the slippage of the electromagnetic wave with respect
to the electron beam is ignored. By using slowly varying envelope
approximation and applying the source-dependent expansion to wave
equations, electromagnetic fields are represented in terms of the
Hermit Gaussian modes which are well suited for the planar wiggler
configuration. The electron dynamics is described by the fully threedimensional
Lorentz force equation in presence of the realistic planar
magnetostatic wiggler and electromagnetic fields. A set of coupled
nonlinear first-order differential equations is derived and solved
numerically. The fundamental and third harmonic radiation of the
beam is considered. In addition to uniform beam, prebunched
electron beam has also been studied. For this effect of sinusoidal
distribution of entry times for the electron beam on the evolution of
radiation is compared with uniform distribution. It is shown that
prebunching reduces the saturation length substantially. For
efficiency enhancement the wiggler is set to decrease linearly when
the radiation of the third harmonic saturates. The optimum starting
point of tapering and the slope of radiation in the amplitude of
wiggler are found by successive run of the code.
Abstract: This paper presented a new approach for centralized
monitoring and self-protected against fiber fault in fiber-to-the-home
(FTTH) access network by using Smart Access Network Testing,
Analyzing and Database (SANTAD). SANTAD will be installed
with optical line terminal (OLT) at central office (CO) for in-service
transmission surveillance and fiber fault localization within FTTH
with point-to-multipoint (P2MP) configuration downwardly from CO
towards customer residential locations based on the graphical user
interface (GUI) processing capabilities of MATLAB software.
SANTAD is able to detect any fiber fault as well as identify the
failure location in the network system. SANTAD enable the status of
each optical network unit (ONU) connected line is displayed onto
one screen with capability to configure the attenuation and detect the
failure simultaneously. The analysis results and information will be
delivered to the field engineer for promptly actions, meanwhile the
failure line will be diverted to protection line to ensure the traffic
flow continuously. This approach has a bright prospect to improve
the survivability and reliability as well as increase the efficiency and
monitoring capabilities in FTTH.
Abstract: In this paper, the differential quadrature method is applied to simulate natural convection in an inclined cubic cavity using velocity-vorticity formulation. The numerical capability of the present algorithm is demonstrated by application to natural convection in an inclined cubic cavity. The velocity Poisson equations, the vorticity transport equations and the energy equation are all solved as a coupled system of equations for the seven field variables consisting of three velocities, three vorticities and temperature. The coupled equations are simultaneously solved by imposing the vorticity definition at boundary without requiring the explicit specification of the vorticity boundary conditions. Test results obtained for an inclined cubic cavity with different angle of inclinations for Rayleigh number equal to 103, 104, 105 and 106 indicate that the present coupled solution algorithm could predict the benchmark results for temperature and flow fields. Thus, it is convinced that the present formulation is capable of solving coupled Navier-Stokes equations effectively and accurately.
Abstract: Flight management system (FMS) is a specialized
computer system that automates a wide variety of in-flight tasks,
reducing the workload on the flight crew to the point that modern
aircraft no longer carry flight engineers or navigators. The primary
function of FMS is to perform the in-flight management of the flight
plan using various sensors (such as GPS and INS often backed up by
radio navigation) to determine the aircraft's position. From the
cockpit FMS is normally controlled through a Control Display Unit
(CDU) which incorporates a small screen and keyboard or touch
screen. This paper investigates the performance of GPS/ INS
integration techniques in which the data fusion process is done using
Kalman filtering. This will include the importance of sensors
calibration as well as the alignment of the strap down inertial
navigation system. The limitations of the inertial navigation systems
are investigated in order to understand why INS sometimes is
integrated with other navigation aids and not just operating in standalone
mode. Finally, both the loosely coupled and tightly coupled
configurations are analyzed for several types of situations and
operational conditions.
Abstract: The increasing industrialization and motorization of the world has led to a steep rise for the demand of petroleum-based fuels. Petroleum-based fuels are obtained from limited reserves. These finite reserves are highly concentrated in certain regions of the world. Therefore, those countries not having these resources are facing energy/foreign exchange crisis, mainly due to the import of crude petroleum. Hence, it is necessary to look for alternative fuels which can be produced from resources available locally within the country such as alcohol, biodiesel, vegetable oils etc. Biodiesel is a renewable, domestically produced fuel that has been shown to reduce particulate, hydrocarbon, and carbon monoxide emissions from combustion. In the present study an experimental investigation on emission characteristic of a liquid burner system operating on several percentage of biodiesel and gas oil is carried out. Samples of exhaust gas are analysed with Testo 350 Xl. The results show that biodiesel can lower some pollutant such as CO, CO2 and particulate matter emissions while NOx emission would increase in comparison with gas oil. The results indicate there may be benefits to using biodiesel in industrial processes.
Abstract: The data is available in abundance in any business
organization. It includes the records for finance, maintenance,
inventory, progress reports etc. As the time progresses, the data keep
on accumulating and the challenge is to extract the information from
this data bank. Knowledge discovery from these large and complex
databases is the key problem of this era. Data mining and machine
learning techniques are needed which can scale to the size of the
problems and can be customized to the application of business. For
the development of accurate and required information for particular
problem, business analyst needs to develop multidimensional models
which give the reliable information so that they can take right
decision for particular problem. If the multidimensional model does
not possess the advance features, the accuracy cannot be expected.
The present work involves the development of a Multidimensional
data model incorporating advance features. The criterion of
computation is based on the data precision and to include slowly
change time dimension. The final results are displayed in graphical
form.
Abstract: In this paper, a low noise microwave bandpass filter
(BPF) is presented. This filter is fabricated by modifying the
conventional cross-coupled structure. The spurious response is
improved by using the end open coupled lines, and the influence of the
noise is minimized. Impedance matrix of the open end coupled circuit
clarifies the characteristic of the suppression of the spurious response.
The rejection of spurious suppression region of the proposed filter is
greater than 20 dB from 3-13 GHz. The measured results of the
fabricated filter confirm the concepts of the proposed design and
exhibits high performance.
Abstract: What influences microsystems (MEMS) and nanosystems (NEMS) innovation teams apart from technology complexity? Based on in-depth interviews with innovators, this research explores the key influences on innovation teams in the early phases of MEMS/NEMS. Projects are rare and may last from 5 to 10 years or more from idea to concept. As fundamental technology development in MEMS/NEMS is highly complex and interdisciplinary by involving expertise from different basic and engineering disciplines, R&D is rather a 'testing of ideas' with many uncertainties than a clearly structured process. The purpose of this study is to explore the innovation teams- environment and give specific insights for future management practices. The findings are grouped into three major areas: people, know-how and experience, and market. The results highlight the importance and differences of innovation teams- composition, transdisciplinary knowledge, project evaluation and management compared to the counterparts from new product development teams.
Abstract: The possibilities of mobile technology generate new
demands for vocational teacher trainers to transform their approach
to work and to incorporate its usage into their ordinary educational
practice. This paper presents findings of a focus discussion group
(FDG) session on the usage of iPads within a school of vocational
teacher education (SoVTE). It aims to clarify how the teacher
trainers are using iPads and what has changed in their work during
the usage of iPads. The analytical framework bases on content
analysis and expansive learning cycle. It was not only found what
kind of a role iPads played in their daily practices but it brought also
into attention how a cultural change regarding the usage of social
media and mobile technology was desperately needed in the whole
work community. Thus, the FGD was abducted for developing the
knowledge practices of the community of the SoVTE.
Abstract: Protein 3D structure prediction has always been an
important research area in bioinformatics. In particular, the
prediction of secondary structure has been a well-studied research
topic. Despite the recent breakthrough of combining multiple
sequence alignment information and artificial intelligence algorithms
to predict protein secondary structure, the Q3 accuracy of various
computational prediction algorithms rarely has exceeded 75%. In a
previous paper [1], this research team presented a rule-based method
called RT-RICO (Relaxed Threshold Rule Induction from Coverings)
to predict protein secondary structure. The average Q3 accuracy on
the sample datasets using RT-RICO was 80.3%, an improvement
over comparable computational methods. Although this demonstrated
that RT-RICO might be a promising approach for predicting
secondary structure, the algorithm-s computational complexity and
program running time limited its use. Herein a parallelized
implementation of a slightly modified RT-RICO approach is
presented. This new version of the algorithm facilitated the testing of
a much larger dataset of 396 protein domains [2]. Parallelized RTRICO
achieved a Q3 score of 74.6%, which is higher than the
consensus prediction accuracy of 72.9% that was achieved for the
same test dataset by a combination of four secondary structure
prediction methods [2].
Abstract: We successfully developed a new straw combustion
technology that efficiently reduces problems with unmanageable deposits inside straw fueled boilers in Zluticka Heating Plant. The
deposits are mainly created by glass-forming melts. We plotted straw compositions in K2O-CaO-SiO2 phase diagram and illustrated
they are in the area of low-melting eutectic poi
melting of ash and the formation of deposits
compositions by injecting additives into biomass fuel
ueled points. To prevent the
deposits, we modified ash
fuel.
Abstract: The use of a Bayesian Hierarchical Model (BHM) to interpret breath measurements obtained during a 13C Octanoic Breath Test (13COBT) is demonstrated. The statistical analysis was implemented using WinBUGS, a commercially available computer package for Bayesian inference. A hierarchical setting was adopted where poorly defined parameters associated with a delayed Gastric Emptying (GE) were able to "borrow" strength from global distributions. This is proved to be a sufficient tool to correct model's failures and data inconsistencies apparent in conventional analyses employing a Non-linear least squares technique (NLS). Direct comparison of two parameters describing gastric emptying ng ( tlag -lag phase, t1/ 2 -half emptying time) revealed a strong correlation between the two methods. Despite our large dataset ( n = 164 ), Bayesian modeling was fast and provided a successful fitting for all subjects. On the contrary, NLS failed to return acceptable estimates in cases where GE was delayed.
Abstract: The objective of this research is to study plant layout
of iron manufacturing based on the systematic layout planning
pattern theory (SLP) for increased productivity. In this case study,
amount of equipments and tools in iron production are studied. The
detailed study of the plant layout such as operation process chart,
flow of material and activity relationship chart has been investigated.
The new plant layout has been designed and compared with the
present plant layout. The SLP method showed that new plant layout
significantly decrease the distance of material flow from billet
cutting process until keeping in ware house.
Abstract: Studies regarding the determination of population
trend of Lipaphis erysimi (kalt.) and its associated natural enemies in
different Brassica lines along with the effect of gamma radiation on
their population were conducted at Agricultural Research Farm,
Malakandher, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Agricultural University
Peshawar during spring 2006. Three different Brassica lines F6B3,
F6B6 and F6B7 were used, which were replicated four times in
Randomized Complete Block Design. The data revealed that aphid
infestation invariably stated in all three varieties during last week of
February 2006 (1st observation). The peak population of 4.39 aphids
leaf-1 was s recorded during 2nd week of March and lowest population
of 1.02 aphids leaf-1 was recorded during 5th week of March. The
species of lady bird beetle (Coccinella septempunctata) and Syrphid
fly (Syrphus balteatus) first appeared on 24th February with a mean
number of 0.40 lady bird beetle leaf-1 and 0.87 Syrphid fly leaf-1,
respectively. At the time when aphid population started to increase
the peak population of C. septempunctata (0.70 lady bird beetle leaf-
1) and S. balteatus (1.04 syrphid fly leaf-1) was recorded on the 2nd
week of March. Chrysoperla carnea appeared in the 1st week of
March and their peak population was recorded during the 3rd week of
March with mean population of 1.46 C. carnea leaf-1. Among all the
Brassica lines, F6B7 showed comparatively more resistance as
compared to F6B3 F6B6. F6B3 showed least resistance against L.
erysimi, which was found to be the most susceptible cultivar. F6B7
was also found superior in terms of natural enemies. Maximum
number of all natural enemies was recorded on this variety followed
by F6B6. Lowest number of natural enemies was recorded in F6B3.
No significant effect was recorded for the effect of gamma radiation
on the population of aphids, natural enemies and on the varieties.
Abstract: Prediction of benzene transport in soil and volatilization from soil to the atmosphere is important for the preservation of human health and management of contaminated soils. The adequacy of a simple numerical model, assuming two-phase diffusion and equilibrium of liquid/solid adsorption, was investigated by experimental data of benzene concentration in a flux chamber (with headspace) where Andosol and sand were filled. Adsorption experiment for liquid phase was performed to determine an adsorption coefficient. Furthermore, adequacy of vapor phase adsorption was also studied through two runs of experiment using sand with different water content. The results show that the model adequately predicted benzene transport and volatilization from Andosol and sand with water content of 14.0%. In addition, the experiment additionally revealed that vapor phase adsorption should be considered in diffusion model for sand with very low water content.
Abstract: The paper presents a detailed calculation of characteristic of five different topology permanent magnet machines for high performance traction including hybrid -electric vehicles using finite element analysis (FEA) method. These machines include V-shape single layer interior PM, W-shape single-layer interior PM, Segment interior PM and surface PM on the rotor and with distributed winding on the stator. The performance characteristics which include the back-emf voltage and its harmonic, magnet mass, iron loss and ripple torque are compared and analyzed. One of a 7.5kW IPM prototype was tested and verified finite-element analysis results. The aim of the paper is given some guidance and reference for machine designer which are interested in IPM machine selection for high performance traction application.
Abstract: Probabilistic characteristics of seismic responses of the
Partially Restrained connection rotation (PRCR) and panel zone
deformation (PZD) installed in older steel moment frames were
investigated in accordance with statistical inference in
decision-making process. The 4, 6 and 8 story older steel moment
frames with clip angle and T-stub connections were designed and
analyzed using 2%/50yrs ground motions in four cities of the
Mid-America earthquake region. The probability density function and
cumulative distribution function of PRCR and PZD were determined
by the goodness-of-fit tests based on probabilistic parameters
measured from the results of the nonlinear time-history analyses. The
obtained probabilistic parameters and distributions can be used to find
out what performance level mainly PR connections and panel zones
satisfy and how many PR connections and panel zones experience a
serious damage under the Mid-America ground motions.
Abstract: The advancement of smartphones, wireless
networking and Near Field Communication (NFC) technology have
opened up a new approach to indoor navigation. Although NFC
technology has been used to support electronic commerce, access
control, and ticketing, there is a lack of research work on building
NFC-based indoor navigation system for smartphone users. This
paper presents an indoor interactive navigation system (named
I2Navi) based on NFC technology for users to navigate within a
building with ease using their smartphones. The I2Navi system has
been implemented at the Faculty of Engineering (FOE), Multimedia
University (MMU) to enable students, parents, visitors who own
NFC-enabled Android smartphones to navigate themselves within the
faculty. An evaluation is carried out and the results show positive
response to the proposed indoor navigation system using NFC and
smartphone technologies.