Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Elimination of scan blindness with compact defected ground structures in microstrip phased array

A compact H -shaped defected ground structure (DGS) is applied to reduce the mutual coupling between array elements and eliminate the scan blindness in a microstrip phased array design. The proposed DGS is inserted between the adjacent E -plane coupled elements in the array to suppress the pronounced surface waves. A two-element array is measured and the results show that a reduction in mutual coupling of 12 dB is obtained between elements at the operation frequency of the array. The scan properties of microstrip phased arrays with and without DGS are studied by the waveguide simulator method. The analysis indicates that the scan blindness of the microstrip phased array can be well eliminated because of the effect of the proposed DGS. Meanwhile, the active patterns of the array centre element in 7times3 element arrays with and without the H -shaped DGS are simulated, and the results agree with those obtained by the waveguide simulator method.
Association of the state hope and decisional conflict with the outcomes of an educational intervention to decrease cardiovascular risk in women: mixed methods study in primary health care

BackgroundPatient education in lifestyle changes has a positive effect on health in individuals with cardiovascular (CV) risk. We analyzed the effect of an educational intervention on women with different menopausal status in relation to their decisional conflict (DC) about treatment for CV risk and hope that their health will improve according to desired expectations.MethodsThis prospective interventional follow-up study exposed women to the intervention consisted of a 60-minute lecture on the change of lifestyle and nutrition habits to reduce CV risk. We measured the 10-year risk of fatal cardiovascular disease (CVD) and parameters that increase CV risk, the participants filled in 3 questionnaires and six months after the intervention we collected the participants’ feedback on the intervention.ResultsOut of 104 participants, 102 (98%) completed the study. The intervention significantly decreased the 10-year risk of fatal CVD at three months from median 3.3 (95% CI = 2.6–4.3) to 2.9 (95% CI = 2.2–3.6) (P < 0.001) regardless of their menopausal status. The intervention decreased decisional conflict for all respondents after the intervention, and it remained significantly lower at 3 months, but the overall state hope did not change. Two predictive factors of reduced CV risk were identified: high 10-year risk of fatal CVD at the beginning of the study (OR = 1.58, 95% CI 1.15–2.13) and smoking status before the intervention (OR = 4.05, 95% CI 1.07–15.51). ConclusionsA brief educational intervention may be effective in reducing CV risk. Hope and decisional conflict seem not to contribute to CV risk reduction, as only poor health and smoking habits were predictive of risk reduction success.Trial registrationTrial was retrospectively registrated in CT.gov in February 28th 2019.Number of protocol: IP-2014-09-7672. Number of registration: NCT03863210.
MoSi absorber photomask for 32nm node

The development of semiconductor process for 32nm node is in progress. Immersion lithography has been introduced as an extension of 193nm lithograpy. In addition, DPL (Double patterning lithography) is becoming a strong candidate of next generation lithography. The extension of optical lithography increases more mask complexity and tighter specification of photomasks. CD performance is the most important issue in the advanced photomask technology. However, it is expected that conventional mask cannot satisfy the required mask specifications for 32nm node and beyond. Most of CD errors are contributed to the dry etching process. Mask CD variation is greatly influenced by the loading effect from dry etching of the absorber. As the required accuracy of the mask arises, Cr absorber thickness has been gradually thinner. CD linearity with the thinner Cr absorber thickness has better performance. However, it is difficult to apply thinner Cr absorber thickness simply under the condition of OD > 3, which is needed for wafer printing. So, we adopted MoSi absorber instead of conventional Cr absorber, because MoSi absorber has less micro and global loading effect than that of Cr absorber. By using MoSi absorber, we can reduce Cr thickness as a hardmask. The thinner Cr hardmask allows for reduce resist thickness and become same condition for conventional EB resist lithography. The lithography performances were confirmed by the simulation and wafer printing. The new MoSi absorber mask behaves similar to the conventional Cr absorber mask. The adoption of super thin Cr as a hardmask made it possible to reduce resist thickness. By the application of the thin resist and the latest tools, we'll improve the mask performance to meet the 32 nm generation specification.
Predicting the effect of stirrups on shear strength of reinforced normal-strength concrete (NSC) and high-strength concrete (HSC) slender beams using artificial intelligence

The exact effect that each of the basic shear design parameters exerts on the shear capacity of reinforced concrete (RC) beams without shear reinforcement (Vc) is still unclear. Previous research on this subject often yielded contradictory results, especially for reinforced high-strength concrete (HSC) beams. Furthermore, by simply adding Vc and the contribution of stirrups Vs to calculate the ultimate shear capacity Vu, current shear design practice assumes that the addition of stirrups does not alter the effect of shear design parameters on Vc. This paper investigates the validity of such a practice. Data on 656 reinforced concrete beams were used to train an artificial neural network model to predict the shear capacity of reinforced concrete beams and evaluate the performance of several existing shear strength calculation procedures. A parametric study revealed that the effect of shear reinforcement on the shear strength of RC beams decreases at a higher reinforcement ratio. It was also observed that t.
Innovation in IT education—practising what we preach

The changing skills requirements for the information systems professionals of the nineties has forced many universities to reconsider their curriculum. The concept of a generic curriculum to meet the educational needs of all future IS professionals is obsolete and IS curriculum design must be targeted at specific career tracks. This paper describes the development of an innovative program to cultivate the "hybrid" business and information systems manager who can play a major role in strategy formulation for effective use of information technology. In order to sustain a high degree of relevancy to the needs of the business community, an action research approach is used which allows the students to build up case portfolios through an organizational cultural audit. These cases have initiated and supported considerable research work from Faculty and provide a longitudinal study of IS development, application and growth. In particular, they have been invaluable as input to our research program on IS strategy formulation as significant patterns of change have been seen to evolve. These relate to a number of contingent factors which would have been impossible to explore through individual research studies.
Resonance antennas based on substrate integrated waveguide

Two types of antennas based on the open-ended substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) resonator are presented and investigated in this study. To understand the operation mechanism of these antennas, the open-ended SIW resonator is analysed by two different approaches. The waveguides theory is used in the first approach and the transmission line-based metamaterials theory is used in the second approach. Using the above-mentioned resonator and with regard to its analysed characteristics, two antennas are designed, simulated and fabricated. Both of them operate at the TM110 mode of the resonator. The measured operating frequency, bandwidth and peak gain of the first antenna are 8.46 GHz, 2.7% and 7.3 dBi, respectively. The second antenna which is the compact version of the first one has nearly the same operating frequency with smaller size. Its measured operating frequency, bandwidth and peak gain are 8.38 GHz, 5.9% and 4.8 dBi, respectively. The proposed antennas have advantages of low cross-polarisation radiation, low profile, compact size, easy fabrication and easy integration with other circuits.
Tragstruktur und Installation der Offshore‐Windenergieanlage Repower 5M

Im Sommer 2006 wurde in Schottland erstmals eine 5‐Megawatt‐Offshore‐Windenergieanlage (WEA) vom Typ REpower 5M in 45 m Wassertiefe errichtet. Die Tiefe des Wassers und weitere Standortbedingungen, die sich durch hohe Wellenbelastung und ungünstige Bodenverhältnisse auszeichnen, erforderten innovative Ansätze für die Tragstruktur und die Installation der REpower 5M. In diesem Beitrag wird über Entwurf, Fertigung und Montage der Jacket‐Strukturen für diese Windenergieanlage berichtet. Außerdem wird eine neuartige Montagemethode für die WEA beschrieben, bei der von einem Schwimmkran gearbeitet wurde. Die gewonnenen Erkenntnisse schaffen Grundlagen für die Errichtung größerer Stückzahlen von 5‐MW‐Windenergieanlagen in bislang nicht erschlossenen Wassertiefen größer als 20 m.
Rapid Manufacturing of Shaped Die and Draw Punch Tools for Presses

Traditionally forming tools for a press are machined with a CNC-machine. This is quite time consuming - calculating tool tracks, selecting cutting tools, cutting blanks, design fixation and finally machining - especially for a small batch of parts. One alternative method is to cut a die and a draw punch tools from a blank sheet and bunching the plates. Clamping plates together is fast and easy to implement by using for example studs and bars with a certain tolerance to ensure alignment. A laser, a water jet or a plasma cutter can be used for cutting plates. Especially the laser and the water jet cutting are precise methods giving a fine surface quality without a need for fine-tuning. The method saves material compared with machining because a die and a punch could be cut at the same time from a blank sheet as compatible pair as well as the needed amount of plates could be estimated depending of the length of a pressed product. University of Oulu, Oulu Southern institute, Future Manufacturing Technology -group has manufactured several forming tools within this technique and found it extremely suitable for experimenting different solutions and options fast. Furthermore, the method is likely to help especially SMEs in their R&D-phase by lowering production costs in a cost-efficiency way.
Integrated simulation–optimisation of pull control systems

Pull policies are considered to be among the most efficient control strategy. Setting the correct parameters to maximise their efficiency is, however, not a trivial task. Simulation–optimisation techniques have received particular attention as a means to solve this problem. Nevertheless, they require the iterative solution of an optimisation model to generate the parameter values and a discrete event simulator to evaluate the resulting system performance. In the framework of simulation-optimisation, this paper proposes a combined solution of the optimisation and simulation problems for the optimal operation of pull control systems under several control strategies. Numerical experiments were performed to evaluate the performance of the proposed technique.
Full-Scale Measurements on a Polar Supply and Research Vessel During Maneouver Tests in an Ice Field in the Baltic Sea

Full-scale measurements were performed on the Polar Supply and Research Vessel, the S.A. Agulhas II during ice-trials in the Baltic Sea. Ice loads on the ship hull and propulsion system were measured concurrently with ice-thickness and whole-body vibration comfort for controlled maneuvers in a level ice field. These measurements were aimed at establishing the links between ice-properties, hull- and shaft loads and the vibration feedback received by the operator of the vessel. Results indicate that maneuvers significantly increase the frequency and magnitude of ice loads at the stern shoulder area as well as the ice impacts on the propellers. The number of ice impacts on the instrumented port side shaft line increased for turning maneuvers in a starboard direction. Occupants on the Bridge did not receive feedback through vibration transmission from ice impacts on the hull as a time-history of discrete events. Instead, ice passage excites the global bending modes of the vessel. Blade impacts between ice debris and the propellers are however perceivably transmitted to vessel operators. Although vibration exposure on the bridge is increased by operations in ice subjective experiences of vibration did not reach levels that caused discomfort.Copyright © 2014 by ASME
Investigating Gains from EWB-USA Involvement

AbstractThere is a national need for an increased quantity of engineers. In addition to pure quantity, there are calls for a more diverse engineering population capable of addressing increasingly complex and global future challenges. Many acknowledge that current institutionalized models of education may not be filling these needs and that extracurricular experiences may recruit and retain diverse engineers while supplementing traditional education. This research investigates the internationally-focused and largely unstudied organization, Engineers Without Borders (EWB-USA), to understand members’ perceptions of what an engineer needs to know, what gaps they experience in their education, and what gains they experience from their membership in EWB-USA. Responses to open-ended questions were collected from 505 members at five geographically spread regional EWB-USA workshops. These responses were analyzed for the total population and disaggregated for gender and professional status. The most common gains me.
Characterization of Local field effect in organic film using pressure technique

This thesis proposes and demonstrates a pressure probing technique for studying the effects of local dielectric changes on the excitonic energy levels in amorphous organic thin films for optoelectronic device applications. Compression of organic films causes a decrease in intermolecular spacing and, through solvation effects, lowers the exciton transition energy. A series of steady-state photoluminescence (PL) measurements performed on doped organic thin films demonstrated the applicability of pressure probing in measuring solvation effects, and fitted to solvation theory. Since a pressure probing technique eliminates composition differences and sample-to-sample variability, in comparison with doping methods, it may be a simpler method of observing energy shifts in solvation effects. Further investigation into spectral diffusion for films under compression indicates a change in spectral diffusion rate due to change in molecular packing density. Comparisons were made between spectral diffusion rates for films under pressure and films of different doping concentrations. Initial measurements of pressure effects on exciplex charge-transfer states in bulk heterojunction films are performed to show change in emission lifetimes. This work could provide a better understanding of the singlet-triplet exciton coupling rates and have a significant impact on device optimization for organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) and solar cell applications. Thesis Supervisor: Vladimir Bulovid Title: Professor of Electrical Engineering
The role of AC & DC hipot testing in stator winding ageing

A recent EPRI survey on practices associated with the use of AC and DC hipot testing for maintenance purposes on rotating machines indicated that some in the utility industry were concerned that the hipot, or repeated applications thereof, may cause ageing of the stator insulation. Consequently, a study of this issue was performed using a failed hydraulic generator stator winding. AC and DC hipots were systematically applied to several bar groups followed by breakdown testing using AC potential. The results of the test program including their implications will be discussed in the proposed contribution.
Calculation of losses in ferro- and ferrimagnetic materials based on the modified Steinmetz equation

This paper discusses the influence of nonsinusoidal flux-waveforms on the remagnetization losses in ferro- and ferrimagnetic materials of inductors, transformers and electrical machines used in power electronic applications. The nonsinusoidal changes of flux originate from driving these devices by nonsinusoidal voltages and currents at different switching frequencies. A detailed examination of a dynamic hysteresis model shows that the physical origin of losses in magnetic material is the average remagnetization velocity rather than the remagnetization frequency. This principle leads to a modification of the most common calculation rule for magnetic core losses, i.e., to the "modified Steinmetz equation" (MSE). In the MSE the remagnetization frequency is replaced by an equivalent frequency which is calculated from the average remagnetization velocity. This approach allows, for the first time, to calculate the losses in the time domain for arbitrary waveforms of flux while using the available set of parameters of the classical Steinmetz equation, DC premagnetization of the material, having a substantial influence on the losses, can also be included. Extensive measurements verify the modified Steinmetz equation presented in this paper.
Effects of phosphorus amended low phosphorus soil on soybean (Glycine max L.) and wheat (Titicum aestivum L.) yield and phosphorus uptake

Abstract A major constraint for crop production on disturbed soils is phosphorus (P). A 2-year field study was conducted on a disturbed soil to evaluate broiler litter ash (BLA) as an inexpensive phosphorus fertilizer for soybean. BLA or super phosphate (SP) was applied at four rates and planted with soybean followed by wheat. At soybean growth stage R3, two plants from each plot were removed for tissue analysis. Soybean tissue P concentration distributions were in the order pods > leaves > stems > roots. At maturity, soybean grain and wheat tissue yields were not significantly affected by P source. Except for the high superphosphate rate for the second crop, P concentrations of soybean grain and wheat tissue were not significant between P source. In this study, BLA was as effective as SP for growth of soybean grain and wheat tissue, suggesting that BLA can be used as an inexpensive P fertilizer on low P disturbed soils.
DETERMINATION OF VOLTAGE STABILITY LIMIT USING FUZZY LOGIC

This article presents a new approach for calculating power systems nose curves and critical loading point. The method is based on fuzzy logic and is used to control the step length of homotophy continuation method by considering the values of load "bus voltage" and "change in bus voltage. " In this method two types of load scenarios are considered. In scenario 1, both real and reactive powers at all load buses are increased simultaneously, and in scenario 2 the reactive power at any one of the load buses is alone increased. The proposed fuzzy logic method determines the critical loading point with fewer iterations and less execution time. The validity of the proposed method is provided by comparing the results of 3-bus, 9-bus, New England 39-bus, and IEEE 118-bus systems with and without fuzzy logic control.
A New Analytical Approach to Estimate Fading in Mobile Communication System Design

This paperprovides a novel analytical platform for evaluating theessential second order statistical boundaries for fading in mobile communication for average fade duration (AFD) and levelcrossing rate (LCR) of Rayleigh, Rician and Nakagami fading channels. We derive new expressions for average LCR and AFD. We then model and computationally simulate the proposed method for Rayleigh, Rician and Nakagami channels and separately calculate the LCR and AFD for each channel by this approach. Simulated results obtained for all three channels show that the values of LCR and AFD calculated by using the proposed approach are much closer to actual simulated values than what conventional theoretical formulas deliver.
Seismic Upgrading of Old Brick-Masonry Urban Houses: Tying of Walls with Steel Ties

The influence of tying the walls with steel ties on the seismic behavior of existing brick-masonry houses has been investigated. Three models of simple two-story brick masonry houses with wooden floors, with or without wall ties, have been tested on a simple earthquake simulator. In addition, a model with identical structural configuration, but with r.c. slabs instead of wooden floors, has been tested for comparison. Whereas wooden floors with joists not anchored to the walls did not prevent separation and disintegration of the walls, rigid slabs and steel ties significantly improved seismic behavior. On the basis of test results, a simple method for designing the ties has been proposed.
Dynamic Bus Arrival Time Prediction with Artificial Neural Networks

Transit operations are interrupted frequently by stochastic variations in traffic and ridership conditions that deteriorate schedule or headway adherence and thus lengthen passenger wait times. Providing passengers with accurate vehicle arrival information through advanced traveler information systems is vital to reducing wait time. Two artificial neural networks (ANNs), trained by link-based and stop-based data, are applied to predict transit arrival times. To improve prediction accuracy, both are integrated with an adaptive algorithm to adapt to the prediction error in real time. The bus arrival times predicted by the ANNs are assessed with the microscopic simulation model CORSIM, which has been calibrated and validated with real-world data collected from route number 39 of the New Jersey Transit Corporation. Results show that the enhanced ANNs outperform the ones without integration of the adaptive algorithm.
Environmentally benign manufacturing of three dimensional integrated circuits

Along with scaling down in size, novel materials have been introduced into the semiconductor industry to enable continued improvements in performance and cost as predicted by Moore’s law. It has become important now more than ever to include an environmental impact evaluation of future technologies, before they are introduced into manufacturing, in order to identify potentially environmentally harmful materials or processes and understand their implications, costs, and mitigation requirements. In this project we introduce a methodology to compare alternative options on the environmental axis, along with the cost and performance axes, in order to create environmentally aware and benign technologies. This methodology also helps to identify potential performance and cost issues in novel technologies by taking a transparent and bottoms-up assessment approach.
Preferred car driving posture using 3-D information

Few studies have presented three-dimensional car-driving postural information. This laboratory study investigated drivers' preferred postures, preferred interior dimensions and how they characterise their postures. The minimum-maximum intervals of preferred angles corresponded well with other experimental studies and were larger than intervals for comfort, strength and alertness defined on the basis of theoretical reasoning. No preferred posture differences were found between females and males; nor were differences found when comparing posture after five and twenty minutes of driving. Preferred posture was not symmetric: significant differences were found between the left and right side. Subjects characterised their posture as comfortable, relaxing and restful.