Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Inductorless Chua's circuit

The famous chaotic oscillator known as Chua's circuit, despite the robustness of the chaotic behaviour to parametric mismatches, requires the construction of noncommercial valued inductors. A low cost inductorless version of Chua's circuit is presented. It is argued that the new circuit is better suited for control and synchronisation purposes.
Numerical Modelling of Crack Growth in a Gear Tooth Root

A computational model for determination of crack growth in a gear tooth root is presented. Two loading conditions are taken into account: (i) normal pulsating force acting at the highest point of the single tooth contact and (ii) the moving load along the tooth flank. In numerical analysis it is assumed that the crack is initiated at the point of the largest stresses in a gear tooth root. The simple Paris equation is then used for a further simulation of the fatigue crack growth. The functional relationship between the the stress intensity factor and crack length K = f(a), which is needed for determining the required number of loading cycles N for a crack propagation from the initial to the critical length, is obtained using a displacement correlation method in the framework of the FEM-method considering the effect of crack closure. The model is used for determining fatigue crack growth in a real gear made from case carburised and ground steel 14CiNiMo13-4, where the required material parameters were determined previously by appropriate test specimens. The results of the numerical analysis show that the prediction of crack propagation live and crack path in a gear tooth root are significantly different for both loading conditions considered.
Estimating Potential Aggregate Interlock Load Transfer Based on Measurements of Volumetric Surface Texture of Fracture Plane

The volumetric surface texture (VST) test was developed at the University of Minnesota to provide an estimate of the load transfer potential available through aggregate interlock across a concrete fracture plane. It can also provide an estimate of the abrasion that has taken place since fracture. A study was undertaken to validate the VST concept and test procedures. The factors investigated in this study include the effects of aggregate characteristics on measured surface texture and the effects of measured surface texture on crack and undoweled joint performance, as indicated by deflection-based load transfer efficiency. Deflection, load, and crack width data were collected for both field and laboratory slabs, and VST testing was performed with companion specimens for these slabs. This study has shown that the VST test provides a means of accurately measuring surface texture so that the selection of concrete aggregates can be performed with consideration of potential aggregate interlock at cracks and undoweled joints. Performance prediction equations were developed to provide an early indication of how cracks and undoweled joints will perform before a particular aggregate size, type, gradation, or blend is used in an actual pavement.
Implementing lean sigma framework in an Indian automotive valves manufacturing organisation: a case study

The manufacturing organisations have been witnessing a key transition to lean manufacturing paradigm so as to eliminate waste. Concurrently, six sigma methodology has been widely used for reducing the defects. In order to attain the combined benefits of these two approaches, the amalgamated lean sigma framework has originated. Lean sigma framework proves drawbacks, such as lack of systematic and scientific management and feeble lean anchorage. In order to overcome these deficiencies, this article contributes a refined lean sigma framework, and its effectiveness has been test implemented in an Indian automotive valves manufacturing organisation. The implementation benefits are described in this article.
BooVAE: Boosting Approach for Continual Learning of VAE

Variational autoencoder (VAE) is a deep generative model for unsupervised learning, allowing to encode observations into the meaningful latent space. VAE is prone to catastrophic forgetting when tasks arrive sequentially, and only the data for the current one is available. We address this problem of continual learning for VAEs. It is known that the choice of the prior distribution over the latent space is crucial for VAE in the non-continual setting. We argue that it can also be helpful to avoid catastrophic forgetting. We learn the approximation of the aggregated posterior as a prior for each task. This approximation is parametrised as an additive mixture of distributions induced by encoder evaluated at trainable pseudo-inputs. We use a greedy boosting-like approach with entropy regularisation to learn the components. This method encourages components diversity, which is essential as we aim at memorising the current task with the fewest components possible. Based on the learnable prior, we introduce an end-to-end approach for continual learning of VAEs and provide empirical studies on commonly used benchmarks (MNIST, Fashion MNIST, NotMNIST) and CelebA datasets. For each dataset, the proposed method avoids catastrophic forgetting in a fully automatic way.
Rill Erosion as Affected by Incorporated Crop Residue and Seasonal Consolidation

ABSTRACT Afield study using artificial rainfall and added inflow was conducted to investigate the effects of incorporated-crop residue and tillage condition on rill erosion. Cornstalk residue was incorporated at rates of 0, 1 120, 2 240, and 4 480 kg/ha. The experiments were conducted just after incorporation, and 30 and 60 days following incorporation. Just after incorporation, rill erosion rates were significantly reduced 75 and 40%, at inflow rates of 9 and 69 L/min, respectively, for the 4 480 kg/ha rate compared to the zero residue rate. Rill erosion was significantly greater for the first experimental run on each furrow compared to experimental runs 30 and 60 days later. For a majority of furrows, the eroded channel shape produced by the first experimental run was essentially unchanged during later runs. An empirical factor was developed from the data to express the relative effect of incorporated-crop residues on rill erosion. This factor was a decreasing exponential model with a decay coefficient value of 0.000277. An empirical factor was also identified to express the combined relative effects of prior erosion, lack of disturbance, weathering, and wetting and drying on rill erosion. This factor was a decreasing exponential model with a decay coefficient value of 0.046. The decay coefficients were developed for these study conditions. These coefficient values may vary with a number of factors such as residue type, soil, and other site specific conditions.
Dynamics of Falling Weight Deflectometer

An elastodynamic analysis of pavement response to Falling Weight Deflectometer blows is presented. The analysis is based on a Fourier synthesis of a solution for periodic loading of elastic or viscoelastic horizontally layered strata. The method is applied to selected flexible AASHO test sections for which high quality experimental data are available in the literature. The results show that inertial effects are important in the prediction of the pavement response. Conventional static analyses yield significantly different results and, therefore, yield erroneous (unconservative) predictions of pavement moduli back‐calculated from deflection data. Elastodynamic analyses, based on fundamental material parameters (Young's modulus, mass density) appear to provide a useful vehicle for correlating pavement response between different loading modes (impulse, vibratory, etc.). Since resonance is a less important factor in the displacement response characteristics of pavements subjected to transient loading, deflect.
Seismic tests of beam-to-column connections in a precast concrete frame

Two full-scale beam-to-column connections in a precast concrete frame were tested under uni-directional and bi-directional cyclic loading that simulated earthquake-type motions. Variables included the detailing used at the joint to achieve structural continuity of the beam reinforcement, and the type of framing (whether two-dimensional or three-dimensional). The most relevant feature of the connection is that conventional mild steel reinforcing bars or prestressing strands, rather than welding or special bolts, were used to achieve beam continuity. Specimen design followed the strong-column-weak-beam concept. Beam reinforcement was purposely designed and detailed to develop hinges at the joint faces and to impose large inelastic shear force demands into the joint. During specimen fabrication, the joint details enabled ease and speed of construction. As expected, the joint controlled the specimen failure. In general, the performance of both beam-to-column connections was satisfactory. Joint strength was 80 percent of that expected for monolithic reinforced concrete construction. Specimen behavior was ductile due to hoop yielding and bar pullout, while strength was nearly constant up to drifts of 3.5 percent.
Vertical Loads on Concrete Box Culverts under High Embankments

Vertical loads on concrete box culverts under high embankments are examined, where a high embankment is defined herein as one where the height of the fill above the culvert is greater than the width of the culvert. Results from an instrumented culvert are described, with results from pressure cells, strain gages in the wall, and strain gages in the roof showing reasonable agreement. There was strong correlation between the height of fill and the pressure and internal forces in the culvert, suggesting that the soil–structure interaction factor is independent of the H∕B ratio. The results of the instrumented culvert were compared to those of other instrumented culverts under high embankments. The measured roof pressures were significantly greater than the pressure due to the soil overburden, with the measured pressures averaging 1.5 times the soil overburden pressure. Although the soil–structure interaction factor recommended by the American Society of Highway and Transportation Officials specification tend.
Hydrodynamic Loads on Flexible Marine Structures due to Vortex Shedding

This paper makes a comparison of experimental measurements and a recently developed methodology for the prediction of the increase in the steady drag of a cylinder undergoing vortex-induced vibrations. The experimental results were obtained during the development of a means to reduce the flow-induced vibration of a cable-suspended pile of the COGNAC platform installation and agree well with the predictions made in this paper. Next, a brief consideration is made of some of the authors' experience of methods used to reduce vortex-induced vibrations, and hence stress levels. Finally, a reduction method which used an air-blowing manifold is described and results presented.
Control of threshold voltage in low-voltage organic complementary inverter circuits with floating gate structures

We have demonstrated threshold-voltage control of p- and n-channel organic transistors with a floating-gate structure and self-assembled monolayer-based gate dielectrics and applied this technique to tune the switching voltage of organic complementary inverters. The threshold voltages of the p- and n-channel transistors are changed independently and systematically across a wide range from +2.4 to –1 V and from –0.3 to +1.5 V, respectively, when the program voltages of –6 V and +6 V are applied to the p- and n-channel transistors, respectively. Furthermore, we fabricated tunable organic complementary inverters, and ring oscillators whose oscillations are controlled by varying floating-gate charges.
A Coupled Approach to Simulate the Explosion Response of a Buried Structure in a Soil-Rock Layered Medium

The paper presents an investigation on the response of a buried structure in a soft soil layer above a rock bed that is subjected to blast loading. A comprehensive approach to simulate the behavior of soft soil with a buried structure laying over a rock mass due to the dynamic (explosive) action in the rock mass is presented. The numerical algorithm was developed to simulate the shock wave propagation within the medium, considering both the bulk and deviatoric damage and taking into account the possible shear damage accumulation. It takes into account the contact conditions between the layers to simulate the shock wave transmission and the soil-structure interaction including their possible separation. The soil-lining interaction problem is solved by a combination of the variational-difference method (for the lining) and of the Godunov's method (for the soil). The coupling of these two approaches is performed by calculation of the contact stresses and velocities on the soil-lining boundary. Two types of the soil models were investigated – an ideal elastic plastic medium and an irreversible compressible medium with failure in bulk tension – and the results were compared with each other. The analysis of the free surface and interface velocities and displacements as well as the contact stresses and the damage at the media interface were carried out. The effects of the relative cover thickness on the interface and free surface behavior is studied. Analysis of the contact stresses at the soil-tunnel interface, was carried out. The effect of the charge location as well as the effect of the soil-rock interface on the tunnel's response was investigated.
A ROBUST INTELLIGENT PID-TYPE FUZZY CONTROL STRUCTURE FOR PRESSURE CONTROL

A PID-type fuzzy controller for regulating pressure in a pilot pressure control system has been demonstrated in this article. The control algorithm for the proposed control logic has been developed in embedded Keil environment, and then downloaded into a target ARM7 microcontroller (AT91M55800A) for real-time validation. Although well-tuned conventional fuzzy controllers perform well around normal working regions, their outputs have small steady-state error and reduced dynamic performance in some types of control applications. These limitations are eliminated by applying the PID-type fuzzy control logic. The performance of the proposed fuzzy controller was initially tested through simulation and then by real-time experiments. The experimental results of the proposed controller have been compared with conventional type (PD like) fuzzy controllers to demonstrate its performance. The PID-type fuzzy controller has shown improved performance in terms of settling time, eliminating the disturbances, and reducing the steady-state error in pressure control application.
BREAK REACTION TIMES OF UNALERTED DRIVERS

The statistical distribution of driver reaction times is discussed, and the results of four published investigations are analyzed and their parametric values are tabulated. The works of Gazis et al, Wortman and Mathias, Chang et al, and Sivak and collegues are considered. The statistical distribution of the brake reaction times is estimated by the lognormal probability density model. The fitting of the lognormal model to experimental data is described. All 4 experimental investigations yieled measures of central tendencies that were in close agreement. Specific comments are made on the individual studies.
Localizing of Community Resilience Indicators for Assessing the Urban Community Resilience in Putrajaya, Malaysia

The resilient concept has been widely used by major world cities as one of the strategies in tackling shocks and stresses and become more resilient to the physical, social and economic challenges. This concept helps in building a resilient community with a high-quality, proactive and dynamics which capable of addressing the challenges of urbanization. Urbanization leads to widening income inequality, high dependency on government and lack of social cohesion significantly affect the social lives of the urban community. This paper aims to localize the resilience community indicators for measuring the resilience level of the urban community in Putrajaya. The aspect studied is localizing the resilience community indicators of the urban community. This research used a qualitative approach by a semi-structured interview. The population of the study consists of three experts in resilient concept as well as community development and three main informants who lived in Putrajaya. The researcher believes that by building a resilient community, indirectly the urban community will be more prepared for the challenges of modernity in the future and move in tandem with the big cities of the world. Therefore, the emphasis of the resilience concept able to improves the quality of the community and enhances community development.
Invasive species compendium.

Abstract Agave fourcroydes is a perennial succulent plant that has been extensively cultivated for fibre production (sisal) and as an ornamental. This species is adapted to a wide variety of habitats and spreads easily by bulbils and offshoots from rhizomes. These traits are thought to help the species escape cultivation and easily colonize and become naturalized in new habitats. It is currently listed as invasive in Spain, the Canary Islands and Cuba, where it is described as a species that is spreading, and often forms dense monospecific stands that displace native vegetation.
Management mistakes as causes of corporate crises: Managerial implications for countries in transition

A corporate crisis can be defined as a short-term, undesired, unfavourable and critical state in a company, which has derived from both internal and external causes and which directly endangers the further existence and growth of the company. Although the state of crisis in the company can be affected by various interrelated external and internal causes, which vary by company as to intensity and appearance, the essence of the causes surely lies in the management of the company. During the country's period of transition, all types of explained management mistakes could be found in Slovene corporate systems. Despite the fact that the hypothesis that a pattern of management mistakes follows changes in the political and economic environment cannot be completely reliably confirmed, some outlines of such patterns are seen, in spite of everything. If there really is a more or less valid pattern of management mistakes in corporate crises and these mistakes appear differently with regard to changes in the political and economical environment in countries in transition, this could help decision-makers, who are in the process of appointing new crisis or restructuring managers, make better choices, every time, according to the managers' most appropriate competencies.
Trust-building processes in the context of networks

Abstract This article explores the extent to which an intentionally executed intervention may trigger trust-building processes in networks. In 2001, a management educational concept – network reflection – was developed and carried out as a programme in a collaboration between a regional university college and a network of Norwegian electronics firms. After the programme ended, the participants, who were mostly strangers, increased their cooperation considerably. During the programme, they built swift trust, word-of-mouth, cognitive trust, an encapsulated-interest in trust and affective trust. Four years after the programme ended, they have cooperated on trust-demanding activities such as developing products together, enhancing quality management systems, using each other as mentors and building on two regional communities of practice. At this time, word-of-mouth, cognitive trust, encapsulated-interest account in trust, affective trust and some committed relations seem to have been built among the participants. With the purpose of finding the cause of this enduring trust effect, this process-based and longitudinal case study investigates how management education can contribute to the building of trust in networks. The primary objective of this article is to explore the extent to which network reflection has the capacity to increase different types of interpersonal trust in networks, and to develop a framework of trust-building processes in networks.
Investigation on split-gate RSO MOSFET for 30 V breakdown

In this work, we have modelled a RSO (Resurf Stepped Oxide) and a split-gate RSO MOSFET for a 30 V breakdown range. Simulations corroborate an impressive reduction in the on-resistance and the Miller charge for the Split-Gate RSO MOSFET. Furthermore, we have investigate on the basic physical layout parameters and our results suggest that the split-gate RSO solution is especially suitable to reduce both switching losses as well as conduction losses. In addition, we have compared our results to previously reported lateral and vertical devices illustrating the excellent properties of the split-gate RSO MOSFET.
Impact of environmental regulations on green electronics manufacture

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the electronic industry's reaction to environmental regulations specifically in terms of lead‐free solders and halogen‐free flame‐retardants (FRs). Design/methodology/approach – This work achieves its objective by discussing the various international regulations pertaining to electronics manufacturing and relating the industry reactions to those regulations. The electronics industry is pursuing lead‐free solders and halogen‐free FRs, in part due to regulations. However, the paper includes examples of how the industry is successful in implementing environmentally friendly changes.Findings – The authors compared regulations from Japan, the European Union, and the US. While the regulations themselves vary in scope, industry actions to find alternatives do have common purposes. Electronics manufacturers recognize that environmentally motivated changes are beneficial in terms of waste minimization. Regardless of the regulatory motivation, minimization does l.
Optical Heterodyning Versus Optical Homodyning: A Comparison

Progress in semiconductor laser technology stimulated a revived interest in optical heterodyne and homodyne techniques. The main purpose of this paper is a tutorial comparison of optical heterodyning with optical homodyning. Based on idealized device models, we show that optical homodyning can provide a 3 dB performance improvement with respect to optical heterodyning. The foregoing statement is valid for both ASK and PSK modulation formats. FSK modulation format cannot be used in conjunction with single-detector optical homodyning. Heterodyne FSK systems have the same theoretical performance as heterodyne ASK systems in terms of the average received signal power. Further, we compare the impact of real-world device characteristics on homodyne and heterodyne systems. The impact of optical phase and frequency instability is much more pronounc ed for homodyne systems than for heterodyne systems. On the other hand, homodyne systems can be built with much slower photodetectors than heterodyne systems. A peak in the laser phase noise spectrum can limit the maximum information transmission rate for both homodyne and heterodyne receivers. However, the maximum data rate limit for homodyne systems is 5 to 6 times larger than that for heterodyne systems.