Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Determining PHEV Performance Potential – User and Environmental Influences on A123 Systems’ Hymotion™ Plug-In Conversion Module for the Toyota Prius

A123Systems’s HymotionTM L5 Plug-in Conversion Module (PCM) is a supplemental battery system that converts the Toyota Prius hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) into a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV). The Hymotion system uses a lithium ion battery pack with 4.5 kWh of useable energy capacity and recharges by plugging into a standard 110/120V outlet. The system is designed to more than double the Prius fuel efficiency for 30-50km of charge depleting range. This paper will cover efforts by A123 Systems and the Idaho National Laboratory in studying the on-road performance of this PHEV fleet. The performance potentials of various fleets will be compared in order to determine the major influences on overall performance.
Surveyors Board of Queensland RTK GNSS for cadastral surveys: guideline

The Surveyors Board of Queensland has recently become aware of some issues with the use of GNSS/GPS, particularly Real-Time Kinematic (RTK), on cadastral surveys. This document is designed to provide a summary of overarching principles that should govern how surveyors go about this task. It is not exhaustive: rather it is essentially an interim document designed to bring attention to some common errors in practice and will be later supplemented by more detailed guidelines. It is also designed to be read in conjunction with best practice guidelines such as SP#1 (refer to References). In this document RTK refers to the use of good quality geodetic receivers and antennas and not hand held mapping grade receivers, nor DGPS systems. Although this guideline primarily covers cadastral surveys where some aspects of the work will be carried out using RTK GNSS, these principles may be also applicable to engineering, topographic, and other surveys, particularly where local ground-based coordinates and dimensions are required. For completeness and clarity, parts of the document also may refer to GNSS observational techniques other than RTK. Logically, this guideline is not applicable when using conventional measurement techniques only. The document does not cover • legal traceability of measurement and survey integration – you should refer to requirements of the appropriate verifying authority for details on that aspect. • the general operational aspects of RTK GNSS – you should refer to manufacturers' specifications and other guidelines.
Core J2EE Patterns: Best Practices and Design Strategies

From the Book: In the world of software, a pattern is a tangible manifestation of an organization's tribal memory. A pattern provides a common solution to a common problem and so, within the culture of one specific organization or within one domain, naming and then specifying a pattern represents the codification of a common solution, drawn from proven, prior experience. Having a good language of patterns at your disposal is like having an extended team of experts sitting at your side during development: by applying one of their patterns, you in effect take the benefit of their hard-won knowledge. As such, the best patterns are not so much invented as they are discovered and then harvested from existing, successful systems. Thus, at its most mature state, a pattern is full of things that work, absent of things that don't work, and revealing of the wisdom and rationale of its designers. Deep, really useful, patterns are typically ancient: you see one and will often remark, "Hey, I've done that before. " However, the very naming of the pattern gives you a vocabulary that you didn't have previously and so helps you apply that pattern in ways you otherwise might have not have realized. Ultimately, the effect of such a pattern will be to make your system simpler. Patterns not only help you build simpler systems that work, but they also help you build beautiful programs. In a culture of time starvation, writing beautiful software is often impossible. That's sad, for as professionals, we strive to build things of quality. By applying a good set of patterns, it is possible to bring a degree of elegance in to your systems that might otherwise have been lacking. The authors of Core J2EE Patterns have harvested a really useful set of patterns. Don't get me wrong: J2EE is certainly an important platform, enabling teams to build some very powerful systems. However, reality is, there is still a wide semantic gap between the abstractions and services that J2EE provides and the final application that a team must build. Patterns such as specified in this book represent solutions that appear again and again in filling that gap. By applying these patterns, you thus carry out the primary means of reducing software risk: you write less software. Rather than discovering these solutions on your own, apply these patterns, which have already proven their utility in existing systems. More than just naming a set of patterns, the authors make them approachable by specifying their semantics using the UML. Additionally, they show you how to apply these patterns and how to refactor your system to take advantage of them. Again, it's just like having a team of experts sitting at your side. Grady Booch Chief Scientist Rational Software Corporation
Identification of voltage collapse points and weak buses under security constraints using hybrid particle swarm optimization technique

SUMMARY The efficient way to assess the steady-state voltage stability is identification of voltage collapse point (VCP) and weak buses of a network. Under practical security constraints, conventional derivative based algorithm fails to provide appropriate VCP as Jacobian matrix becomes singular near VCP. Security constraints are incorporated as penalty factors in mathematical modeling of the maximization problem. In adaptive PSO (APSO) technique, particle swarm optimization (PSO) parameters are designed in such a way that these parameters become adaptive with problems to provide faster convergence than general PSO. For further improvement of the convergence characteristics of larger networks, hybrid PSO technique is developed. Hybrid PSO technique is the combination of APSO and genetic algorithm, and it includes breeding and subpopulation of genetic algorithm into APSO. From the results, it can be concluded that the proposed technique successfully overcomes premature convergence and stagnation of the method and provides better performances than other evolutionary techniques. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Detection and mitigation of misbehavior in cooperative wireless communications

Cooperative diversity protocols are designed with the assumption that wireless users always cooperate in a socially efficient manner. This assumption may not be valid in commercial wireless networks where users may violate rules of cooperation for malicious or selfish reasons. In the presence of misbehavior, it is difficult to ensure a socially efficient cooperation without techniques to enforce cooperation. In this dissertation, we develop techniques to detect and mitigate misbehavior in cooperative wireless networks. We first examine effects of misbehavior on performance of existing cooperative protocols. We show both analytically and by simulation the incurred performance degradation. We show based on game theoretic arguments that existing cooperative schemes are characterized by a non-cooperative Nash equilibrium. We examine using evolutionary game dynamics effects of a small number of mutants on the behavior of a population of cooperators. We then propose two classes of misbehavior detection techniques. The first class of detectors determine behavior of relay nodes using signals transmitted over source-destination channel as a side information. The second class of detectors are developed for cooperative networks with hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) protocol. We develop optimal detection techniques (1) based on uniformly most powerful (UMP) test; (2) based on sequential probability ratio test (SPRT). Misbehavior is determined based on control packets exchanged to reveal status of transmissions. Performance of the proposed detection techniques is evaluated based on detection delay, computational complexity and memory requirement. The proposed detection techniques provide only a localized view of the cooperative system. However, to mitigate further effects of misbehavior a mechanism is required to give each node a global view of the network. To this end, we formulate cooperative communications as a dynamic game with incomplete information, which provides a framework (1) to develop a model for selfish behavior and (2) for designing a reliable partner selection scheme in the presence of uncertainty. We show that the proposed dynamic Bayesian game model captures vital aspects of cooperative communications. We show that the proposed dynamic Bayesian game satisfies the requirements for the existence of Perfect Bayesian Equilibrium.
Putting the employment status of faculty into the quality of education: A Canadian case study

ABSTRACT Drawing on qualitative data, this case study explores how the precarious employment status of college contract instructors in Canada pushes them to consider bypassing some policies and affects their well-being, both of which could negatively influence the quality of education. Since keeping abreast with internationalisation requires addressing quality assurance, it seems that demographic data on the employment status and well-being of academic staff should be incorporated in quality assurance procedures.
Parallel robots with configurable platforms: Fundamental aspects of a new class of robotic architectures

This paper introduces general and fundamental aspects of a new class of parallel robots termed “parallel robots with configurable platforms”. The concept behind parallel mechanisms with configurable platforms is that the rigid link (non-configurable) end-effector is replaced by an additional closed-loop chain (the configurable platform). Some of the links of this closed loop are attached to the limbs so both the position and the configuration of the platform can be fully controlled from the motors located on the base. They retain the advantages of classical parallel robots, i.e. that all the motors are grounded on the base, while offering mechanical grasping capabilities via multiple contact points. Despite the few studies that have been done yet on the subject, the possible range of applications for this type of architecture is promising since it would be suitable for any application requiring both controlled grasping capabilities and high dynamic performance. This paper provides some preliminary results regarding the topology, mobility, overconstraints, Jacobian matrix, singularities and type synthesis of parallel robots with configurable platforms.
A comparative study of different buck topologies for high efficiency low voltage applications

In this paper, a comparison is performed between six different configurations of buck power converters for low voltage applications. The considered converters operate under hard and soft switching conditions and are equipped with conventional and synchronous output rectification. The comparison is based on overall efficiency, power device stresses, electromagnetic emissions and power converter sizes. Guidelines are finally given to help designers of high frequency low power SMPS in selecting the best topology according to the specific design.
A novel hysteresis current controller for multilevel single phase voltage source inverters

The application and benefits of hysteresis current control for two level voltage source inverters are well understood, but the extension of the strategy to multilevel inverters is much less established. Previous approaches have used either multiple hysteresis bands or a time based lockout strategy to decide when to switch to successive voltage levels, but these approaches are either complex, and/or have restricted applicability. This paper presents a simple hysteresis strategy which uses the slope of the current error to confine this error to within a single hysteresis band, by recursively stepping the inverter output between successive voltage levels when the hysteresis band is exceeded. The algorithm can be used with any level of multilevel inverter, and achieves a robust steady state operation that fully utilises the multiple DC levels available. Theory, simulation and experimental results are presented.
The Nexus between Artificial Intelligence and Economics

This book is organized as follows. Section 2 introduces the notion of the Singularity, a stage in development in which technological progress and economic growth increase at a near-infinite rate. Section 3 describes what artificial intelligence is and how it has been applied. Section 4 considers artificial happiness and the likelihood that artificial intelligence might increase human happiness. Section 5 discusses some prominent related concepts and issues. Section 6 describes the use of artificial agents in economic modeling, and section 7 considers some ways in which economic analysis can offer some hints about what the advent of artificial intelligence might bring. Chapter 8 presents some thoughts about the current state of AI and its future prospects.
Lightning observation station at the Rzeszow University of Technology, Poland

A short description of a lightning observation station which is arranged for investigation of natural lightning at the Rzeszow University of Technology, Poland is presented in the paper. The system is based on electric and magnetic field antennas and fast video camera. Streszczenie: W artykule przedstawiono krotki opis stacji rejestracji wyladowan piorunowych, ktora aktualnie jest budowana na Politechnice Rzeszowskiej. Glownymi elementami systemu są anteny do pomiaru pola elektrycznego i magnetycznego oraz szybka kamera wideo (Stacja obserwacji wyladowan atmosferycznych na Politechnice Rzeszowskiej).
Advantageous of electrode loading of a FET in mixer application

The influence of the loading of the FET electrodes, on signal and noise performances of the device in a mixer application is studied. It is shown that exciting the input signal from one end of the gate and extracting the output signal from the opposite ends of the gate can improve the device characteristics, provided that the two remaining ends of the gate and the drain are properly loaded. This structure makes the lines (i.e. the gate and the drain electrodes) to be matched with the loads. Therefore it leads to a traveling wave FET mixer, which is a good candidate for high power MM-wave application.
Cost‐effective importance measure

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to propose a new measure for criticality analysis of different components of a production plant, called cost‐effective importance measure (CEIM) that considers the component's performance, system structure and economic aspects.Design/methodology/approach – In this work, an explorative literature study covering the concept of importance measure and criticality analysis has been carried out on contemporary literature. The literature study shows that the commonly used importance measures consider the probability of failure of a component and systems structure, and ignore the effect or severity of failures, which is an important factor in engineering decision making. It is not clear how to use the concept of importance measure in combination with cost parameter. Hence, a cost‐effective importance measure (CEIM) is defined and a case study is presented, to demonstrate the application of the proposed importance measure.Findings – The paper indicates that CEIM useful for th.
Wideband high‐gain low‐profile dual‐polarized stacked patch antenna array with parasitic elements

To realize wideband high‐gain dual‐polarized radiation, the proposed antenna array consists of two microstrip feeding networks and two groups, altogether 13 metal radiation patches. One group, namely four of the patches, are two‐layer stacked octagonal patches excited by feeding networks directly, and the other group of nine patches, are parasitic rectangular patches for improving both impedance bandwidth and gain level. The height of the antenna array is 7 mm (∼0.083λ0@3.55 GHz). The measured impedance bandwidths for VSWR < 1.5 at both ports are 12.6% (3.35–3.8 GHz). The isolation between the two ports is greater than 20 dB over the whole operating band. The measured gain is 16.2 dBi and the cross‐polarization level is less than −15 dB. The proposed structure possesses the features of low cost, low profile, high gain, wide band, and so forth. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 57:2012–2016, 2015
Methods and techniques for disruption-free network reconfiguration

With the advent of the Internet, many Internet services have become mission critical. Network operators are therefore under tremendous pressure to make their networks highly available. Yet, network operators also need to regularly change the configuration (i.e., reconfigure) of their networks to deploy new services or upgrade network devices. Despite being necessary, such reconfiguration operations are an important source of concerns as they can lead to severe disruptions. In this thesis, we aim at enabling disruption-free routing reconfiguration which consists in modifying the way a running network forwards traffic without incurring any traffic losses. We consider both intradomain and interdomain routing protocols, the two major routing protocol families used in today's Internet. In both cases, we prove that it is necessary to precisely order the reconfiguration operations. Intuitively, this ordering is such that each intermediate state maintains the network global correctness. Unfortunately, we show that such an ordering does not always exist. Moreover, we prove that deciding if a disruption-free reconfiguration ordering exists is computationally hard (i.e., NP-hard). Despite the inherent complexity, we manage to enable disruption-free reconfiguration in most reconfiguration scenarios and to reduce significantly the number of anomalies in the rest of them. Our techniques include efficient ordering algorithms, configuration guidelines and practical reconfiguration procedures. By combining theory and practice, we also implement and evaluate a reconfiguration framework which completely automates the reconfiguration process including the live provisioning of device configurations.
SELECTION OF ELECTRIC ENERGY PRODUCTION TECHNOLOGIES USING DEA (CASE STUDY: IRAN)

Utilization of new energy technologies has been received a lot of attentions towards a sustainable energy system. In recent years, policy makers have to rethink on their strategies to warrant support for private sector efforts, including funding and other incentives. Considering energy technologies in terms of the sustainability practices is a complicated task. This paper intends to select and rank a number of technologies, in the context of the Iran Technology Foresight Program from a sustainable point of view. Therefore, data envelopment analysis (DEA) approach as a multicriteria tool has been applied for energy production technology selection. This selection decision has been made based on decision makers’ opinion in linguistic terms. To handle the subjectivity of decision makers’ assessments, fuzzy logic has been applied.
Evaluation of the FAA hybrid iii 50th percentile anthropometric test dummy under the far 23.562 and 25.562 emergency landing conditions for the combined horizontal-vertical dynamic loading

Aircraft regulations for seat certification are adapting to new crashworthiness exigencies. However, the use of the forty year old Hybrid II Anthropomorphic Test Device (ATD) for seat certification has remained invariable in the aircraft community (manufacturers, regulators and researchers) for decades. Although the community has had the improved FAA Hybrid III 50 ATD (FAA HIII) from more than ten years is still scarcely used for seat certification. Possible reasons of the unpopularity of the FAA HIII might be: (1) concern with rumored more stringent biomechanic responses, which might make it more difficult for seat certification and (2) poor literature available for the FAA HIII in comparison to the Hybrid II ATD (HII). This Thesis deals with a research effort to expand the scarce information available on the FAA Hybrid III 50 male ATD, focusing in the lumbar-pelvis responses for different aircraft vertical loading conditions. The results from this Thesis research indicate that the FAA Hybrid III 50 ATD has achieved high degree of repeatability and linearity for lumbar-pelvis responses for Parts 23 and 25 Section 562 Emergency Landing Conditions. The demonstrated FAA HIII s characteristics can help aircraft seat community to predict potential spine responses for different dynamic test configurations and for instance answer “what if” questions at the beginning of the seat design phase. Thus, the biofidelic improvements of the FAA HIII as well as reliable lumbar-pelvis responses can be sufficient enough reasons for replacing the old Hybrid II for seat certification purposes leading in safer designs.
DSL : crosstalk estimation techniques, and impact on DSM

DSL systems "Digitial Subscriber Line", take advantage of the long time not used high frequency bands of twisted pairs in order to transmit signals that may go up to 30 MHz. This band is much higher than the traditional voice band of 4 kHz. Going up in frequency allows DSL systems to transmit at a very high Bit-Rates (24 Mbps in ADSL2+, 100 Mbps for VDSL) , however it also poses various challenges. One of the challenges that may occur , is the increase of the interference between different lines, called crosstalk, at higher frequencies. Another drawback of using higher frequencies, is the fact that the direct channels of the twisted pairs are attenuated severly for long lines at higher frequencies. The attenuation of the direct channel gain for longer lines, coupled with crosstalk caused by other shorter lines in proximity would create a Near-Far problem in DSL systems when short and long lines are mixed together. Dynamic Spectrum Management or DSM was proposed to mitigate the effect of crosstalk on DSL systems. DSM exploits the information about the direct line channels, the crosstalk channels, and the ambient noise to improve the total system capacity. We may distinguish two DSM concepts: PSD coordination and Signal coordination. Both concepts necessitate the knowledge of crosstalk channels information, something that is not available under the current DSL systems. In this thesis we consider the application of DSM algorithms under practical and realistic conditions. In the first part we propose the Balanced Capacity concept as a possible solution for the Near-Far problem, then we proceed with the enhancement of several state of the art algorithms regarding DSM implementation. In the second part, we propose several practical estimation techniques for the crosstalk channel estimation. We start by estimating the crosstalk channel gain, which is sufficient for the application of PSD coordination algorithms, and then we proceed by the estimation of the total crosstalk channel which is required for the implementation of a full signal coordination. All of these estimation techniques are based on a passive or on a limited active observation of the DSL lines. Thus these estimators are practical, and can be used with the current DSL systems with minor modifications on the standards or on the users' modems.
On regenerative processes and inventory control

In this paper we discuss a general framework for single item inventory control models. This framework is based on the regenerative structure of these models. Using results from the theory of regenerative processes a unified presentation of those models is presented. Although most of the results are already known for special cost structures this unified presentation yields us the possibility to show that the same techniques can be applied to each instance.