Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
An Ultra-Low-Power ADPLL for WPAN Applications

RF PLLs for frequency synthesis and modulation consume a significant share of the total transceiver power, making sub-mW PLLs key to realize ulp WPAN radios. Compared to analog PLLs, all-digital phase-locked loops (ADPLLs) are preferred in nanoscale CMOS, as they offer benefits of smaller area, programmability, capability of extensive self-calibrations, and easy portability. However, analog PLLs dominate the ulp arena, since the time-to-digital converter (TDC) of an ADPLL has traditionally been power hungry. In this work [1], an ultra-low power 2.1 GHz – 2.7 GHz fractional-N ADPLL is presented for wireless personal area network (WPAN) applications. A DTC-assisted snapshot TDC and a DC-coupled DCO buffer with a tunable voltage transfer characteristic (VTC) are proposed to lower the power consumption. The ADPLL prototype fabricated in TSMC LP 40 nm CMOS process consumes only 860 µW at 1 V supply, and has a measured rms jitter of 1.71 ps (integrated from 1k to 100MHz), leading to a state-of-the-art jitter -power FoM of -236 dB. The frequency modulation capability is also demonstrated with a 2 Mcps HS-QPSK modulation for IEEE 802.15. 4 (ZigBee) and 1 Mbps GFSK for Bluetooth Smart. This work presents the first-ever wireless ADPLL to break the 1mW barrier and consumes at least five-times lower power compared to state-of-the-art ADPLLs. The presented low-power techniques enable the adoption of ADPLLs in the emerging ultra-low-power applications.
Computer Aided Design of Internally Compensated CMOS Operational Amplifiers

In this paper a design procedure and successful experimental results obtained from it are being reported for implementing internally compensated operational amplifiers powered from a single power supply and with high gain-bandwidth product, good slew-rate, low output impedance and good drive levels. The procedure was developed for an in-house training course on "analog integrated circuit design" as an example of using mathematical tools (MathCad) in the design of analog integrated circuit blocks. The resulting MathCad file became a design automation tool for CMOS OpAmp Design. It is shown that all opamp specs targeted are met or exceeded by the sample opamp designed and fabricated using Fairchild Semiconductor's CS80C CMOS process with the W/L ratios predicted by this tool.
The use of measurement uncertainty to assess the reliability of on-site field test kits for the investigation of contaminated land. Proceedings of ConSoil 2008

It can be seen from the case study that the generally poor quality of the lab data makes validation of the on-site kit measurements difficult, particularly for total PAH and TPH. Shortcomings in the sample preparation by the lab have probably also contributed to the high measurement uncertainties, however this highlights this issue of the quality of routine lab analysis that could affect any user of test kits aiming to validate results using lab measurements. It is possible that the PXRF could have been used at this site for on-site decision making e.g. where to sample or not to continue sampling, which samples should be sent for external analysis etc, as long as the measurement uncertainties estimated are quoted and taken into consideration. However for TPH and total PAH the quality of the lab data would make it unadvisable in this case to use the on-site test kits to make on-site decisions, as there isn't a strong relationship between the field and lab data. From this Case Study lessons have been learnt that will benefit further case studies in the project and other on-site tool users. These include: o the importance of a rigorously designed and implemented sample preparation in field and lab, o good communication with the lab prior to the experiment to ensure that all the data quality requirements and sample preparation are carried out as required, o knowing the definition of the analyte used in the on-site test kit and in the lab (e.g. TPH). If there is a discrepancy in the definition of an analyte between the field test kits and the lab that isn't known about, it could cause problems in the data comparison between the different techniques. However, with knowledge of it and if a relationship can be established between the field and the lab data then the field data could still be used effectively in the field to help manage sampling and remediation decisions. o the need for duplicates and matched CRMs in both the field and the lab for the estimation of measurement uncertainty. o the need for good data quality from the lab in order to validate field measurements. In general it can be seen that the estimation of measurement uncertainty is a simple and effective method for the validation of field test kits. Estimating and quoting the measurement uncertainty provides the user with a given confidence in the quality of the data and therefore gives confidence in the risk management decisions that are based upon the data.
Power Analyze of Elliptic Curve Cryptography for Usage in Wireless Sensor Networks

Wireless Sensor Networks are new emerging technology used in various applications for habitat, health and air pollution monitoring, vehicle tracking etc. Every sensor node is powered with battery that must last for mounts or years which constrains the WSN in term of energy used. Other critical issue is the secure communication between the nodes and the deployment of cryptography method is challenging task. Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC) is low- power consuming cryptographic scheme that combines high- level of security and low power usage for key generation and its distribution through the network.
Artificial intelligence applied to investment in variable income through the MACD (moving average convergence/divergence) indicator

PurposeThis study aims to determine whether, by means of the application of genetic algorithms (GA) through the traditional technical analysis (TA) using moving average convergence/divergence (MACD), is possible to achieve higher yields than those that would be obtained using technical analysis investment strategies following a traditional approach (TA) and the buy and hold (B&H) strategy.Design/methodology/approachThe study was carried out based on the daily price records of the NASDAQ financial asset during 2013–2017. TA approach was carried out under graphical analysis applying the standard MACD. GA approach took place by chromosome encoding, fitness evaluation and genetic operators. Traditional genetic operators (i.e. crossover and mutation) were adopted as based on the chromosome customization and fitness evaluation. The chromosome encoding stage used MACD to represent the genes of each chromosome to encode the parameters of MACD in a chromosome. For each chromosome, buy and sell indexes of the strategy were considered. Fitness evaluation served to defining the evaluation strategy of the chromosomes in the population according to the fitness function using the returns gained in each chromosome.FindingsThe paper provides empirical-theoretical insights about the effectiveness of GA to overcome the investment strategies based on MACD and B&H by achieving 5 and 11% higher returns per year, respectively. GA-based approach was additionally capable of improving the return-to-risk ratio of the investment.Research limitations/implicationsLimitations deal with the fact that the study was carried out on US markets conditions and data which hamper its application in some extend to markets with not as much development.Practical implicationsThe findings suggest that not only skilled but also amateur investors may opt for investment strategies based on GA aiming at refining profitable financial signals to their advantage.Originality/valueThis paper looks at machine learning as an up-to-date tool with great potential for increasing effectiveness in profits when applied into TA investment approaches using MACD in well-developed stock markets.
A Physics-Based Approach to Characterizing Helicopter External Noise Radiation from Ground-Based Noise Measurements

Title of Thesis: A Physics-Based Approach to Characterizing Helicopter External Noise Radiation from Ground-Based Noise Measurements Eric Greenwood, Master of Science, 2008 Thesis Directed by: Senior Research Professor Fredric H. Schmitz Department of Aerospace Engineering This thesis describes a new method of characterizing the external noise radiation of a helicopter suitable for use in the generation of ground noise contours for community land use planning and assessing the acoustic observability of helicopter flight plans. This work is an extension of the semi-empirical Rotorcraft Noise Model / Quasi-Static Acoustic Mapping (RNM/Q-SAM) methodology of characterizing helicopter externally radiated noise using acoustic radiation hemispheres. Current methods of interpolation of data on RNM acoustic radiation spheres are found to lead to high levels of inaccuracy when using sparse microphone arrays. A new method of interpolation based on the theory of radial basis functions is developed in this thesis and shown to lead to significantly improved accuracy. This thesis also extends the RNM/Q-SAM methodology to turning flight conditions. New test procedures are developed for steady turning flight conditions and then used in the acoustic flight testing of the Bell 206B helicopter. The extended RNM/Q-SAM method is applied to the resulting data set in order to generate the first acoustic radiation hemispheres for a helicopter in steady turning flight across a range of flight path angles. The results indicate that the extended Quasi-Static Acoustic Mapping technique is valid for steady turning flight Blade-Vortex Interaction noise. Furthermore, steady turning flight alone is shown not to lead to large increases in externally radiated noise compared to similar straight-line flight conditions. This indicates that high BVI noise levels reported during turns in prior research were most likely caused by transient maneuvers and not turning flight alone. A Physics-Based Approach to Characterizing Helicopter External Noise Radiation from Ground-Based Noise Measurements
A novel method on Disturbance Rejection PID Controller for Quadcopter based on Optimization algorithm

Abstract This paper presents a new method to design a Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) controller with optimal disturbance rejection for quadcopter pitch channel and roll channel. This is done by optimizing the disturbance sensitivity function to obtain the gains of PID controllers. The proposed PID controller is compared with the existing PID controller that is based on Linear-Quadratic-Regulator (LQR) through simulating the closed-loop system and experimentally testing it on an available quadcopter test bed. The results confirm the effectiveness of the proposed method.
Evaluation of Wireless Sensor Network Simulators

This paper is inspired by the lack of detailed wireless sensor network (WSN) simulator surveys. We examine four WSN simulators: ns-2, Castalia (OMNeT++ based), TOSSIM, and COOJA/MSPSim, and define a set of criteria to evaluate and compare the simulators. We provide short descriptions of simulators and tabular comparison based on the criteria. Since none of the simulators under survey is a universal solution, rough guidelines on which simulator to use in particular situation are given.
Assessment of melatonin level and genetic aspect of type 2 diabetes mellitus patients in Thi-Qar province, Iraq

The present study was designed to assessment of melatonin level and genetic aspects of patients with diabetes mellitus type 2 in Thi-Qar province, Iraq. The sample includes 80 patients compared with 40 as control group. The results showed a significant increase in levels of serum glucose in patients with DM type 2 compared with 40 as a control group at (p<0.05). The level of melatonin showed a significant decrease in patients of diabetes compared with the control group. The genetic study was conducted to identify the potential association of melatonin receptor MTNR1B gene SNPs with the progression of type 2diabetes mellitus (T2DM). In this same locus, four new SNPs were observed and their novelty were proven, including g.10718G>C, g.10863A>G, g.10865G>A, and g.10867T>A, while only one SNP was found to be known, namely rs1431442778. The current results indicated the presence of all of the observed SNPs only in the patients’ samples.
Ready or Not, Big Data Is Coming to a City (Transportation Agency) Near You

For public transportation agencies, Big Data – particularly floating traveller data (FTD) – opens up a world of possibilities. FTD locates travellers using signals from mobile phones, GPS, and/or Bluetooth systems. Traveller location, speed, and direction of travel are aggregated, producing high-quality travel information in real-time. In recent years, sample sizes have increased, technologies have improved, and analytics have become more sophisticated, making FTD an affordable and reliable source of information. Using FTD, agencies can track vehicle travel patterns, volumes and speeds across the full network. Information on pedestrians and cyclists is not far behind. Agencies can use FTD data to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of service provision, and to develop new services that meet users’ needs. Applications include: analyzing system performance; planning transportation infrastructure; evaluating operational interventions; conducting active traffic management; forecasting travel conditions; and providing enhanced traveller information systems. At the same time, Big Data will bring new challenges for public transportation agencies, many of whom lack the analytical expertise, baseline investments in IT, and organizational culture required to capture Big Data’s value. This paper discusses the evolution and future directions of travel data in transportation agencies. It illustrates the wide variety of FTD applications and describes how agencies are harnessing FTD to understand and improve transportation system performance. The paper identifies the investments and organizational changes that transportation agencies may need to make to harness the value of Big Data. Finally, it explores the big questions that accompany Big Data and provides recommendations for getting started with Big Data.
Technique development for determining total lime requirement for acid mine sites

Surface coal mining and hard rock mining operations often expose iron sulfide minerals (e.g. pyritic sulfur) and organic sulfur containing substances to a new oxidizing environment. Acid generation from the oxidation of these materials often inhibits the revegetation of mine spoils. A total lime requirement must be determined to mitigate existing acidity and prevent re-acidification from the continued oxidation of sulfide and organic sulfur containing materials. Traditional agricultural lime rate determination methods are not appropriate for mined land situations where the majority of acid production is from the weathering of relatively insoluble minerals such as pyrite. Because of this limitation, acid-base accounting has become the standard in the reclamation industry for the estimation of lime requirements for acid mine spoils. This method, however, has technical limitations and frequently leads to erroneous results. Thus, there is a need for the development of a reliable methodology to determine the total lime requirement for acid mine wastes. In this study, simulated weathering chambers were designed to examine acid production potential of mine waste materials under weathering conditions similar to the natural mine site. This methodology eliminated errors in interpretation of acid-base account data and provided a more accurate lime rate recommendation for acid mine spoils. TECHNIQUE DEVELOPMENT FOR DETERMINING TOTAL LIME REQUIREMENT FOR ACID MINE SITES by Luther John Russell A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in
FM/CW Radar Signals and Digital Processing

Abstract : The use and processing of the FM/CW signal for radar and acoustic sounder systems are examined. This signal--along with real-time digital processing via minicomputers--is currently being used by several groups for HF over-the-horizon radars. A comparative analysis of the different processing techniques for general radar applications has yet to be undertaken. This note therefore attempts to promulgate details of these techniques so that they may find use in other systems. An example involving an HF backscatter radar is used to permit the reader to see how the technique are applied to an actual problem.
SERDP and ESTCP Workshop on Research and Development Needs for Long-Term Management of Contaminated Sediments

Abstract : Sediment contamination remains a significant liability for the Department of Defense (DoD), with overall liabilities estimated to approach $2 billion. Contaminants at DoD sites include a wide variety of compounds including polychlorinated biphenyls, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, various metals and metalloids, and military-unique compounds such as munitions constituents. Most of these contaminants tend to remain in the sediment long-term, resulting in persistent exposure to ecological and human receptors. Environmental restoration and closure of these contaminated sites is a top priority for DoD. Since 1996, the Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP) and the Environmental Security Technology Certification Program (ESTCP) have supported research and demonstration strategies for sediment characterization, site restoration and long-term monitoring to support DoD restoration goals. Beginning in 2004, SERDP and ESTCP recognized the need to hold strategic planning sessions to identify and prioritize research needs that could have the greatest impact on sediment site restoration. Workshops were previously held in 2004, and again in 2008, to identify high priority needs for research, development, and field demonstrations. As DoD site management priorities for contaminated sediments are changing, SERDP and ESTCP identified the need to update the strategic research investment plan. Over the next five to ten years, the DoD programs will emphasize achieving site closure. Sediment sites will be completing feasibility studies, designing and implementing remedies, or be engaged in the long-term monitoring of the success of those implemented alternatives. Any new investigation work will largely be associated with identifying recontamination sources within the local and regional watersheds, and with emerging contaminants.
Materials and Techniques of the “Chun Rong Xuan Mao” Birthday Inscribed Plaque in the Bashu Area of China During the Reign of Tongzhi Emperor of the Qing Dynasty

In ancient China, people presented inscribed plaques as gifts to the elderly on their birthdays to wish them longevity. Under long-term weathering conditions, the plaques, often hung on the lintel of a door, gradually deform, the words fade,and the decorative parts deteriorate. Whenever possible, original materials and techniques should be used to restore such cultural relics. Therefore, it is important to analyze the materials and techniques used for the production of the inscribed plaques. However, no study has been carried out on the materials and techniques used to create inscribed plaques. In this study, multi-analytical scientific approach, including optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), micro-attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (μ-ATR-FTIR), and micro-Raman spectroscopy (μ-Raman), were used to explore the materials and techniques utilized to create the “Chun Rong Xuan Mao” birthday inscribed plaque in the Bashu area of China produced during the fifth year of the reign of Tongzhi Emperor of the Qing Dynasty. The results showed that the plaque wad made of cypress wood and decorative parts consisting of the surface lacquer layers, plaster lacquer layers and primer lacquer layers. Chinese lacquer was the principal material used in the surface lacquer layers; gypsum and Chinese lacquer were the materials used in the plaster lacquer layers; and the primer lacquer layers was composed of Chinese lacquer, calcite, and mixed pigments by cinnabar and minium. The surface lacquer layers of the inscribed plaque were lacquered black. Gypsum lacquer plaster has been commonly used in the ground layer of lacquerware in modern history. This study confirmed the existence of technology to make lacquerware using gypsum lacquer plaster in the Bashu area during the late Qing Dynasty. Moreover, this study not only provides new findings regarding the traditional production of inscribed plaques and offers technical support for the protection and restoration of such plaques but also has great significance to exploring the history of ancient techniques of lacquering and decorating lacquerware.
Energy Analysis in Semiconductor Manufacturing

The semiconductor industry accounts for 1.3%-2% of the total US electricity consumption in the manufacturing sector. Energy in the form of electricity is required to operate the manufacturing process equipment, maintain the cleanroom conditions, and operate heating ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) units and chillers. As a significant amount of energy is used by some of the manufacturing process, it becomes necessary to determine process parameters that impact power and energy consumption. Energy-intensive processes such as layering and diffusion are studied, and process parameters most sensitive to power and energy consumption have been determined. A computer-based interactive model was developed in this research to estimate the energy requirement of specific processes in semiconductor manufacturing. This article reports a sensitivity analysis of key process variables with respect to power and energy consumption.
Commercial Vehicle Dispatch System

The purpose of this project was to design and deploy an Intelligent Transportation System (ITS) solution for ground transportation management at Vancouver International Airport. IBI Group designed and developed a Commercial Vehicle Dispatch System (CVDS) incorporating the following key features: (1) A central sub-system enabling the dispatch office to dispatch commercial buses, and manage the system using a web-based application; (2) A mobile sub-system enabling curbside personnel to dispatch taxis and monitor conditions using hand-held computers, software, and wireless communications; (3) A large eight-line variable message sign displaying dispatch requirements in the holding lot; (4) A vehicle detection system for automatically updating dispatch requirements on the sign. The resulting system has helped the airport to optimize its resources at the curb; lower passenger wait times through efficient dispatching; provide more detailed dispatch requests on the specific type of vehicle needed and the location they are needed at; minimize unnecessary oversupply, congestion, and idling at the terminals; and eliminate the reliance on a loud public address system. Partly funded by Transport Canada’s ITS Deployment and Integration Program, the project has successfully demonstrated the application of leading-edge, low-cost, and quickly deployable ITS solutions.