Search results for: video modelling

Authors: Thomas Elliot, Javier Babi Almenar, Benedetto Rugani

Abstract:

The integration of urban metabolism (UM) with spatially explicit ecosystem service (ES) stocks has the potential to advance sustainable urban development. It will correct the lack of spatially specificity of current urban metabolism models. Furthermore, it will include into UM not only the physical properties of material and energy stocks and flows, but also the implications to the natural capital that provides and maintains human well-being. This paper presents the first stages of a modelling framework by which urban planners can assess spatially the trade-offs of ES flows resulting from urban interventions of different character and scale. This framework allows for a multi-region assessment which takes into account sustainability burdens consequent to an urban planning event occurring elsewhere in the environment. The urban boundary is defined as the Functional Urban Audit (FUA) method to account for trans-administrative ES flows. ES are mapped using CORINE land use within the FUA. These stocks and flows are incorporated into a UM assessment method to demonstrate the transfer and flux of ES arising from different urban planning implementations.

Keywords: ecological economics, ecosystem services, spatial planning, urban metabolism

Procedia PDF Downloads 332

Authors: J. A. Ujam, J. L. Chukwuneke, C. H. Achebe, G. O. R. Ikwu

Abstract:

This work investigates the effect of head and bucket splitter angle on the power output of a pelton turbine (water turbine), so as to boost the efficiency of Hydro-electric power generation systems. A simulation program was developed using MatLab to depict the force generated by the bucket as the water jet strikes the existing splitter angle (100 to 150) and predicted (10 to 250) splitter angles. Result shows that in addition to the existing splitter angle, six more angles have been investigated for the two operating conditions to give maximum power. The angles are 250, 60 and 190 for high head and low flow with increased pressure while low head and high flow with decreased pressure are 230, 210 and 30 in order of the maximum generating power. The Turbine power output for simulation was more than that of the experiment. This was as a result of their head conditions and the bucket splitter angle.

Keywords: bucket splitter angle, force, head, modelling, pelton turbine, power output, shaft output

Procedia PDF Downloads 355

Authors: Divine Agozie, Muesser Nat, Eric Afful-Dadzie

Abstract:

This examination attempts an analysis of the effect of business intelligence and analytics (BI&A) capabilities on organizational role stressors and the implications of such an effect on performance. Two hundred twenty-eight responses gathered from seventy-six firms across Ghana were analyzed using the Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) approach to validate the hypothesized relationships identified in the research model. Findings suggest both endogenous and exogenous dependencies of the sensing capability on the multiple role requirements of personnel. Further, transforming capability increases role conflict, whereas driving capability of BI&A systems impacts role conflict and role ambiguity. This study poses many practical insights to firms seeking to acquire analytics capabilities to drive performance and data-driven decision-making. It is important for firms to consider balancing role changes and task requirements before implementing and post-implementation stages of BI&A innovations.

Keywords: business intelligence and analytics, dynamic capabilities view, organizational stressors, structural equation modelling

Procedia PDF Downloads 110

Authors: Marrone Silverio Melo Dantas Pedro Henrique Dreyer, Gabriel Fonseca Reis de Souza, Daniel Bezerra, Ricardo Souza, Silvia Lins, Judith Kelner, Djamel Fawzi Hadj Sadok

Abstract:

The creation of a dataset is time-consuming and often discourages researchers from pursuing their goals. To overcome this problem, we present and discuss two solutions adopted for the automation of this process. Both optimize valuable user time and resources and support video object segmentation with object tracking and 3D projection. In our scenario, we acquire images from a moving robotic arm and, for each approach, generate distinct annotated datasets. We evaluated the precision of the annotations by comparing these with a manually annotated dataset, as well as the efficiency in the context of detection and classification problems. For detection support, we used YOLO and obtained for the projection dataset an F1-Score, accuracy, and mAP values of 0.846, 0.924, and 0.875, respectively. Concerning the tracking dataset, we achieved an F1-Score of 0.861, an accuracy of 0.932, whereas mAP reached 0.894. In order to evaluate the quality of the annotated images used for classification problems, we employed deep learning architectures. We adopted metrics accuracy and F1-Score, for VGG, DenseNet, MobileNet, Inception, and ResNet. The VGG architecture outperformed the others for both projection and tracking datasets. It reached an accuracy and F1-score of 0.997 and 0.993, respectively. Similarly, for the tracking dataset, it achieved an accuracy of 0.991 and an F1-Score of 0.981.

Keywords: RJ45, automatic annotation, object tracking, 3D projection

Procedia PDF Downloads 167

Authors: Valentina Manna, Oscar Pisanti

Abstract:

The term sibling has been adopted by Italian brothers and sisters of people with disabilities, to define themselves as a group with shared features. This choice is due to the importance of underlying the centrality of what being a brother/sister means to these people because of and beyond the disability. Being a sibling offers great opportunities to develop empathy and relational skills but it may also amplify the typical dynamics of fraternal relationships dealing with envy, rivalry and concern. This outlines a condition of potential developmental risk for the non-disabled sibling, being at the same time a great resource for the child with special needs, as actor of an intimate relationship usually lasting after that one with parents. However, young siblings are often unheeded in their needs for comprehension of disability and not considered as persons requiring attention themselves. Moreover, scholars have scarcely undertaken an exploration of siblings’ perspective as competent contributors for producing knowledge useful to the benefit of families with special needs children. This contribution describes a preventive intervention for young siblings (6 – 16 years) of children with Down syndrome, by means of a psychodynamic-oriented group where participants could communicate, explore and share their emotional experiences as siblings. Based on a participatory approach, the program represents an action-research project, involving siblings as key experts for our understanding of siblings’ lives. The initiative used social media and video technologies to rise children’s voice: as a final product, participants were involved in the realization of a video campaign –which they defined ‘a difficult advertising’– built on the insights generated by the program and addressed to other siblings to help them facing and recognizing resources and difficulties related to their status. The final video campaign realized by the participants summarizes the main themes emerged during the intervention; as revealed by a thematic analysis, they are related to the difficulty in feeling to have a personal identity, to face disability as a form of ‘untought known’ and to integrate ambivalent emotions. In conclusion, the group device revealed its efficacy as a preventive tool: it allowed participants to deeply reflect on their own experiences and to communicate them for the first time in a verbal and mentalized form.

Keywords: down syndrome, group, siblings, prevention

Procedia PDF Downloads 244

Authors: Leila Trabelsi

Abstract:

The urbanization of Information Systems (IS) is an effective approach to master the complexity of the organization. It strengthens the coherence of IS and aligns it with the business strategy. Moreover, this approach has significant advantages such as reducing Information Technologies (IT) costs, enhancing the IS position in a competitive environment and ensuring the scalability of the IS through the integration of technological innovations. Therefore, the urbanization is considered as a business strategic decision. Thus, its embedding becomes a necessity in order to improve the IS practice. However, there is a lack of experimental cases studying meta-modelling of Urbanized Information System (UIS). The aim of this paper addresses new urbanization content meta-model which permits modelling, testing and taking into consideration organizational aspects. This methodological framework is structured according to two main abstraction levels, a conceptual level and an operational level. For each of these levels, different models are proposed and presented. The proposed model for has been empirically tested on company. The findings of this paper present an experimental study of urbanization meta-model. The paper points out the significant relationships between dimensions and their evolution.

Keywords: urbanization, information systems, enterprise architecture, meta-model

Procedia PDF Downloads 437

Authors: Edwin Cartledge, Jack Clark, Mazaher Molaei-Chalchooghi

Abstract:

The mixing in the crystallization step of active pharmaceutical ingredient manufacturers was studied via advanced modeling tools to enable a successful scale-up. A virtual representation of the vessel was created, and computational fluid dynamics were used to simulate multiphase flow and, thus, the mixing environment within this vessel. The study identified a significant dead zone in the vessel underneath the impeller and found that increasing the impeller speed and power did not improve the mixing. A series of sensitivity analyses found that to improve mixing, the vessel had to be redesigned, and found that optimal mixing could be obtained by adding two extra cylindrical baffles. The same two baffles from the simulated environment were then constructed and added to the process vessel. By identifying these potential issues before starting the manufacture and modifying the vessel to ensure good mixing, this study mitigated a failed crystallization and potential batch disposal, which could have resulted in a significant loss of high-value material.

Keywords: active pharmaceutical ingredient, baffles, computational fluid dynamics, mixing, modelling

Procedia PDF Downloads 97

Authors: Moien Mojabi, Aurelien Hospital, Daniel Potts, Chris Young, Albert Leung

Abstract:

The wave analysis is an integral part of the hydrotechnical assessment carried out during the permitting and design phases for coastal structures, such as marinas. This analysis aims in quantifying: i) the Suitability of the coastal structure design against Small Craft Harbour wave tranquility safety criterion; ii) Potential environmental impacts of the structure (e.g., effect on wave, flow, and sediment transport); iii) Mooring and dock design and iv) Requirements set by regulatory agency’s (e.g., WSA section 11 application). While a complex three-dimensional hydrodynamic modelling approach can be applied on large-scale projects, the need for an efficient and reliable wave analysis method suitable for smaller scale marina projects was identified. As a result, Tetra Tech has developed and applied an integrated analysis framework (hereafter TT approach), which takes the advantage of the state-of-the-art numerical models while preserving the level of simplicity that fits smaller scale projects. The present paper aims to describe the TT approach and highlight the key advantages of using this integrated framework in lake marina projects. The core of this methodology is made by integrating wind, water level, bathymetry, and structure geometry data. To respond to the needs of specific projects, several add-on modules have been added to the core of the TT approach. The main advantages of this method over the simplified analytical approaches are i) Accounting for the proper physics of the lake through the modelling of the entire lake (capturing real lake geometry) instead of a simplified fetch approach; ii) Providing a more realistic representation of the waves by modelling random waves instead of monochromatic waves; iii) Modelling wave-structure interaction (e.g. wave transmission/reflection application for floating structures and piles amongst others); iv) Accounting for wave interaction with the lakebed (e.g. bottom friction, refraction, and breaking); v) Providing the inputs for flow and sediment transport assessment at the project site; vi) Taking in consideration historical and geographical variations of the wind field; and vii) Independence of the scale of the reservoir under study. Overall, in comparison with simplified analytical approaches, this integrated framework provides a more realistic and reliable estimation of wave parameters (and its spatial distribution) in lake marinas, leading to a realistic hydrotechnical assessment accessible to any project size, from the development of a new marina to marina expansion and pile replacement. Tetra Tech has successfully utilized this approach since many years in the Okanagan area.

Keywords: wave modelling, wind-wave, extreme value analysis, marina

Procedia PDF Downloads 84

Authors: Fatema Akram, Mohammad Golam Rasul, Mohammad Masud Kamal Khan, Md. Sharif Imam Ibne Amir

Abstract:

A variety of routing techniques are available to develop surface runoff hydrographs from rainfall. The selection of runoff routing method is very vital as it is directly related to the type of watershed and the required degree of accuracy. There are different modelling softwares available to explore the rainfall-runoff process in urban areas. XPSTORM, a link-node based, integrated storm-water modelling software, has been used in this study for developing surface runoff hydrograph for a Golf course area located in Rockhampton in Central Queensland in Australia. Four commonly used methods, namely SWMM runoff, Kinematic wave, Laurenson, and Time-Area are employed to generate runoff hydrograph for design storm of this study area. In runoff mode of XPSTORM, the rainfall, infiltration, evaporation and depression storage for sub-catchments were simulated and the runoff from the sub-catchment to collection node was calculated. The simulation results are presented, discussed and compared. The total surface runoff generated by SWMM runoff, Kinematic wave and Time-Area methods are found to be reasonably close, which indicates any of these methods can be used for developing runoff hydrograph of the study area. Laurenson method produces a comparatively less amount of surface runoff, however, it creates highest peak of surface runoff among all which may be suitable for hilly region. Although the Laurenson hydrograph technique is widely acceptable surface runoff routing technique in Queensland (Australia), extensive investigation is recommended with detailed topographic and hydrologic data in order to assess its suitability for use in the case study area.

Keywords: ARI, design storm, IFD, rainfall temporal pattern, routing techniques, surface runoff, XPSTORM

Procedia PDF Downloads 453

Authors: Hanbey Hazar, Hakan Gul

Abstract:

In this study; piston, exhaust, and suction valves of a diesel engine were coated in 300 mm thickness with Tungsten Carbide (WC) by using the HVOF coating method. Mathematical modeling of a coated and uncoated (standardized) engine was performed by using ANN (Artificial Neural Networks). The purpose was to decrease the number of repetitions of tests and reduce the test cost through mathematical modeling of engines by using ANN. The results obtained from the tests were entered in ANN and therefore engines' values at all speeds were estimated. Results obtained from the tests were compared with those obtained from ANN and they were observed to be compatible. It was also observed that, with thermal barrier coating, hydrocarbon (HC), carbon monoxide (CO), and smoke density values of the diesel engine decreased; but nitrogen oxides (NOx) increased. Furthermore, it was determined that results obtained through mathematical modeling by means of ANN reduced the number of test repetitions. Therefore, it was understood that time, fuel and labor could be saved in this way.

Keywords: Artificial Neural Network, Diesel Engine, Mathematical Modelling, Thermal Barrier Coating

Procedia PDF Downloads 528

Authors: Mahesh Kumar Jat, Manisha Choudhary

Abstract:

Rapid population and economic growth resulted in changes in large-scale land use land cover (LULC) changes. Changes in the biophysical properties of the Earth's surface and its impact on climate are of primary concern nowadays. Different approaches, ranging from location-based relationships or modelling earth surface - atmospheric interaction through modelling techniques like surface energy balance (SEB) have been used in the recent past to examine the relationship between changes in Earth surface land cover and climatic characteristics like temperature and precipitation. A remote sensing-based model i.e., Surface Energy Balance Algorithm for Land (SEBAL), has been used to estimate the surface heat fluxes over Mahi Bajaj Sagar catchment (India) from 2001 to 2020. Landsat ETM and OLI satellite data are used to model the SEB of the area. Changes in observed precipitation and temperature, obtained from India Meteorological Department (IMD) have been correlated with changes in surface heat fluxes to understand the relative contributions of LULC change in changing these climatic variables. Results indicate a noticeable impact of LULC changes on climatic variables, which are aligned with respective changes in SEB components. Results suggest that precipitation increases at a rate of 20 mm/year. The maximum and minimum temperature decreases and increases at 0.007 ℃ /year and 0.02 ℃ /year, respectively. The average temperature increases at 0.009 ℃ /year. Changes in latent heat flux and sensible heat flux positively correlate with precipitation and temperature, respectively. Variation in surface heat fluxes influences the climate parameters and is an adequate reason for climate change. So, SEB modelling is helpful to understand the LULC change and its impact on climate.

Keywords: remote sensing, GIS, object based, classification

Procedia PDF Downloads 130

Authors: Salem B. Abdalla

Abstract:

This study investigated the current Building Information Modelling (BIM) trends and practices in the UAE, particularly to shed light on a recently circulated Dubai BIM mandate. Two sets of surveys were mailed to the AEC industry and the corresponding academic sector within the UAE to collect up-to-date data on BIM awareness and utilization. The surveys showed startling results concerning the academic sector in the UAE where almost 70% of respondents were not aware of the BIM mandate. Among the rest, even when aware, the majority of mechanical and electrical engineering schools felt that BIM is not pertinent to their discipline. Therefore, the response to offering BIM in their curriculum was substantially low (35%). On the other hand, the industrial survey identified a large majority (76.5%) of the AEC industry in the UAE are using BIM. The results clearly indicate that the academia should include BIM in their curriculum to produce qualified graduates to support the market. However, the academia is also faced with several obstacles to implement BIM in their curriculum, where the main pretext is that there is “no room for new courses in existing curriculum”.

Keywords: building information modeling, BIM adoption, UAE BIM industry survey, UAE BIM academia survey, Dubai BIM mandate, UK BIM mandate, BIM education, architecture education, engineering schools, BIM implementation, BIM curriculum

Procedia PDF Downloads 414

Authors: Rahimah Saimin

Abstract:

Previous research has shown that young children can learn from educational television programmes, videos or other technological media. However, the blending of any of these with traditional printed-based text appears to be omitted. Repeated viewing is an important factor in children's ability to comprehend the content or plot. The present study combined videos with traditional printed-based text and required repeated viewing and is original and distinctive. The first study was a pilot study to explore whether the intervention is implementable in ordinary classrooms. The second study explored whether the curricular embedding is important or whether the video with curricular embedding is effective. The third study explored the effect of “dosage”, i.e. whether a longer/ more intense intervention has a proportionately greater effect on outcomes. Both measured outcomes (comprehension, word sounds, and early word recognition) and unmeasured outcomes (engagement to reading traditional printed-based texts or/and multimodal texts) were obtained from this study. Observation indicated degree of engagement in reading. The theoretical framework was multimodality theory combined with Piaget’s and Vygotsky’s learning theories. An experimental design was used with 4-5-year-old children in nursery schools and primary schools. Six links to video clips exploring non-fiction science content were provided to teachers. The first session is whole-class and subsequent sessions small-group. The teacher then engaged the children in dialogue using supplementary materials. About half of each class was selected randomly for pre-post assessments. Two assessments were used the British Picture Vocabulary Scale (BPVSIII) and the York Assessment of Reading for Comprehension (YARC): Early Reading. Different programme fidelity means were deployed- observations, teacher self-reports attendance logs and post-delivery interviews. Data collection is in progress and results will be available shortly. If this multiphase study show effectiveness in one or other application, then teachers will have other tools which they can use to enhance vocabulary, letter knowledge and word reading. This would be a valuable addition to their repertoire.

Keywords: language skills, literacy skills, multimodality, video

Procedia PDF Downloads 337

Authors: Kuo-Cheng Liu

Abstract:

In the latest research efforts, the structures of the image in the spatial domain have been successfully analyzed and proved to deduce the visual masking for accurately estimating the visibility thresholds of the image. If the structural properties of the video sequence in the temporal domain are taken into account to estimate the temporal masking, the improvement and enhancement of the as-sessing spatio-temporal visibility thresholds are reasonably expected. In this paper, the temporal characteristics of human perception to the change in block structures on the time axis are analyzed. The temporal characteristics of human perception are represented in terms of the significant variation in block structures for the analysis of human visual system (HVS). Herein, the block structure in each frame is computed by combined the pattern masking and the contrast masking simultaneously. The contrast masking always overestimates the visibility thresholds of edge regions and underestimates that of texture regions, while the pattern masking is weak on a uniform background and is strong on the complex background with spatial patterns. Under considering the significant variation of block structures between successive frames, we extend the block structures of images in the spatial domain to that of video sequences in the temporal domain to analyze the relation between the inter-frame variation of structures and the temporal masking. Meanwhile, the subjective viewing test and the fair rating process are designed to evaluate the consistency of the temporal characteristics with the HVS under a specified viewing condition.

Keywords: temporal characteristic, block structure, pattern masking, contrast masking

Procedia PDF Downloads 413

Authors: V. Vicente E. Mujica, Gustavo Gonzalez

Abstract:

The global coverage of broadband multimedia and internet-based services in terrestrial-satellite networks demand particular interests for satellite providers in order to enhance services with low latencies and high signal quality to diverse users. In particular, the delay of on-board processing is an inherent source of latency in a satellite communication that sometimes is discarded for the end-to-end delay of the satellite link. The frame work for this paper includes modelling of an on-orbit satellite payload using an agent model that can reproduce the properties of processing delays. In essence, a comparison of different spatial interpolation methods is carried out to evaluate physical data obtained by an GEO satellite in order to define a discretization function for determining that delay. Furthermore, the performance of the proposed agent and the development of a delay discretization function are together validated by simulating an hybrid satellite and terrestrial network. Simulation results show high accuracy according to the characteristics of initial data points of processing delay for Ku bands.

Keywords: terrestrial-satellite networks, latency, on-orbit satellite payload, simulation

Procedia PDF Downloads 271

Authors: Aqeel Zeid, Hasna Anees, Mohamed Adheeb, Mohamed Rifan, Kalpani Manathunga

Abstract:

To achieve constructive alignment in a higher education program, a clear set of learning outcomes must be defined. Traditional learning outcome definition techniques such as Bloom’s taxonomy are not written to be utilized by the student. This might be disadvantageous for students in student-centric learning settings where the students are expected to formulate their own learning strategies. To solve the problem, we propose the learning outcome relation and aggregation (LORA) model. To achieve alignment, we developed learning outcome, assessment, and resource authoring tools which help teachers to tag learning outcomes during creation. A pilot study was conducted with an expert panel consisting of experienced professionals in the education domain to evaluate whether the LORA model and tools present an improvement over the traditional methods. The panel unanimously agreed that the model and tools are beneficial and effective. Moreover, it helped them model learning outcomes in a more student centric and descriptive way.

Keywords: learning design, constructive alignment, Bloom’s taxonomy, learning outcome modelling

Procedia PDF Downloads 186

Authors: Sadia Arshad

Abstract:

The new coronavirus disease or COVID-19 still poses an alarming situation around the world. Modeling based on the derivative of fractional order is relatively important to capture real-world problems and to analyze the realistic situation of the proposed model. Weproposed a mathematical model for the investigation of COVID-19 dynamics in a generalized fractional framework. The new model is formulated in the Caputo sense and employs a nonlinear time-varying transmission rate. The existence and uniqueness solutions of the fractional order derivative have been studied using the fixed-point theory. The associated dynamical behaviors are discussed in terms of equilibrium, stability, and basic reproduction number. For the purpose of numerical implementation, an effcient approximation scheme is also employed to solve the fractional COVID-19 model. Numerical simulations are reported for various fractional orders, and simulation results are compared with a real case of COVID-19 pandemic. According to the comparative results with real data, we find the best value of fractional orderand justify the use of the fractional concept in the mathematical modelling, for the new fractional modelsimulates the reality more accurately than the other classical frameworks.

Keywords: fractional calculus, modeling, stability, numerical solution

Procedia PDF Downloads 110

Authors: Marina Franulovic, Robert Basan, Bozidar Krizan

Abstract:

Constitutive modelling of material behaviour is becoming increasingly important in prediction of possible failures in highly loaded engineering components, and consequently, optimization of their design. In order to account for large number of phenomena that occur in the material during operation, such as kinematic hardening effect in low cycle fatigue behaviour of steels, complex nonlinear material models are used ever more frequently, despite of the complexity of determination of their parameters. As a method for the determination of these parameters, genetic algorithm is good choice because of its capability to provide very good approximation of the solution in systems with large number of unknown variables. For the application of genetic algorithm to parameter identification, inverse analysis must be primarily defined. It is used as a tool to fine-tune calculated stress-strain values with experimental ones. In order to choose proper objective function for inverse analysis among already existent and newly developed functions, the research is performed to investigate its influence on material behaviour modelling.

Keywords: genetic algorithm, kinematic hardening, material model, objective function

Procedia PDF Downloads 332

Authors: Muhammad Alif Bin Razali, Cheng-Gang Xie, Wai Lam Loh

Abstract:

A venturi device is commonly used as an integral part of a multiphase flowmeter (MPFM) in real-time oil-gas production monitoring. For an accurate determination of individual phase fraction and flowrate, a gas-liquid flow ideally needs to be well mixed in the venturi measurement section. Partial flow mixing is achieved by installing a venturi vertically downstream of the blind-tee pipework that ‘homogenizes’ the incoming horizontal gas-liquid flow. In order to study in-depth the flow-mixing effect of the blind-tee, gas-liquid flows are captured at blind-tee and venturi sections by using a high-speed video camera and a purpose-built transparent test rig, over a wide range of superficial liquid velocities (0.3 to 2.4m/s) and gas volume fractions (10 to 95%). Electrical capacitance sensors are built to measure the instantaneous holdup (of oil-gas flows) at the venturi inlet and throat. Flow regimes and flow (a)symmetry are investigated based on analyzing the statistical features of capacitance sensors’ holdup time-series data and of the high-speed video time-stacked images. The perceived homogenization effect of the blind-tee on the incoming intermittent horizontal flow regimes is found to be relatively small across the tested flow conditions. A horizontal (blind-tee) to vertical (venturi) flow-pattern transition map is proposed based on gas and liquid mass fluxes (weighted by the Baker parameters).

Keywords: blind-tee, flow visualization, gas-liquid two-phase flow, MPFM

Procedia PDF Downloads 127

Authors: Gelacio JuáRez-Luna, Daniel Enrique GonzáLez-RamíRez, Enrique Tenorio-Montero

Abstract:

Frame elements coupled with springs elements are used for modelling the development of hinges in segmented tunnels, the spring elements modelled the rotational, transversal and axial failure. These spring elements are equipped with constitutive models to include independently the moment, shear force and axial force, respectively. These constitutive models are formulated based on damage mechanics and experimental test reported in the literature review. The mesh of the segmented tunnels was discretized in the software GID, and the nonlinear analyses were carried out in the finite element software ANSYS. These analyses provide the capacity curve of the primary and secondary lining of a segmented tunnel. Two numerical examples of segmented tunnels show the capability of the spring elements to release energy by the development of hinges. The first example is a segmental concrete lining discretized with frame elements loaded until hinges occurred in the lining. The second example is a tunnel with primary and secondary lining, discretized with a double ring frame model. The outer ring simulates the segmental concrete lining and the inner ring simulates the secondary cast-in-place concrete lining. Spring elements also modelled the joints between the segments in the circumferential direction and the ring joints, which connect parallel adjacent rings. The computed load vs displacement curves are congruent with numerical and experimental results reported in the literature review. It is shown that the modelling of a tunnel with primary and secondary lining with frame elements and springs provides reasonable results and save computational cost, comparing with 2D or 3D models equipped with smeared crack models.

Keywords: damage, hinges, lining, tunnel

Procedia PDF Downloads 390

Authors: Prompt Udomdech, Eleni Papadonikolaki, Andrew Davies

Abstract:

Building information modelling (BIM) is the major technological trend amongst built environment organisations. Digitalising businesses and operations, BIM brings forth a digital transformation in any built environment industry. The adoption of BIM presents challenges for organisations, especially small- and medium-sizes enterprises (SMEs). The main problem for built-environment SMEs is the lack of project actors with adequate BIM competences. The research highlights learning in projects as the key and explores into the learning of BIM in projects of designers and engineers within Thai design and engineering SMEs. The study uncovers three impeding attributes, which are: a) lack of English proficiency; b) unfamiliarity with digital technologies; and c) absence of public standards. This research expands on the literature on BIM competences and adoption.

Keywords: BIM competences and adoption, digital transformation, learning in projects, SMEs, and developing built environment industry

Procedia PDF Downloads 142

Authors: Artur Krukowski, Emmanouela Vogiatzaki

Abstract:

The article presents an ongoing work in research projects such as SCAN4RECO or ARCH, both funded by the European Commission under Horizon 2020 program. The former one concerns multimodal and multispectral scanning of Cultural Heritage assets for their digitization and conservation via spatiotemporal reconstruction and 3D printing, while the latter one aims to better preserve areas of cultural heritage from hazards and risks. It co-creates tools that would help pilot cities to save cultural heritage from the effects of climate change. It develops a disaster risk management framework for assessing and improving the resilience of historic areas to climate change and natural hazards. Tools and methodologies are designed for local authorities and practitioners, urban population, as well as national and international expert communities, aiding authorities in knowledge-aware decision making. In this article we focus on 3D modelling of object geometry using primarily photogrammetric methods to achieve very high model accuracy using consumer types of devices, attractive both to professions and hobbyists alike.

Keywords: 3D modelling, UAS, cultural heritage, preservation

Procedia PDF Downloads 123

Authors: M. A. C. S. Sampath Fernando, James M. Curran, Renate Meyer

Abstract:

Forensic DNA analysis has received much attention over the last three decades, due to its incredible usefulness in human identification. The statistical interpretation of DNA evidence is recognised as one of the most mature fields in forensic science. Peak heights in an Electropherogram (EPG) are approximately proportional to the amount of template DNA in the original sample being tested. A stutter is a minor peak in an EPG, which is not masking as an allele of a potential contributor, and considered as an artefact that is presumed to be arisen due to miscopying or slippage during the PCR. Stutter peaks are mostly analysed in terms of stutter ratio that is calculated relative to the corresponding parent allele height. Analysis of mixture profiles has always been problematic in evidence interpretation, especially with the presence of PCR artefacts like stutters. Unlike binary and semi-continuous models; continuous models assign a probability (as a continuous weight) for each possible genotype combination, and significantly enhances the use of continuous peak height information resulting in more efficient reliable interpretations. Therefore, the presence of a sound methodology to distinguish between stutters and real alleles is essential for the accuracy of the interpretation. Sensibly, any such method has to be able to focus on modelling stutter peaks. Bayesian nonparametric methods provide increased flexibility in applied statistical modelling. Mixture models are frequently employed as fundamental data analysis tools in clustering and classification of data and assume unidentified heterogeneous sources for data. In model-based clustering, each unknown source is reflected by a cluster, and the clusters are modelled using parametric models. Specifying the number of components in finite mixture models, however, is practically difficult even though the calculations are relatively simple. Infinite mixture models, in contrast, do not require the user to specify the number of components. Instead, a Dirichlet process, which is an infinite-dimensional generalization of the Dirichlet distribution, is used to deal with the problem of a number of components. Chinese restaurant process (CRP), Stick-breaking process and Pólya urn scheme are frequently used as Dirichlet priors in Bayesian mixture models. In this study, we illustrate an infinite mixture of simple linear regression models for modelling stutter ratio and introduce some modifications to overcome weaknesses associated with CRP.

Keywords: Chinese restaurant process, Dirichlet prior, infinite mixture model, PCR stutter

Procedia PDF Downloads 330

Authors: Yassa Nacera, Badji Abderrezak, Saidoune Abdelmalek, Houassine Hamza

Abstract:

Several kinds of faults can occur in a permanent magnet synchronous machine (PMSM) systems: bearing faults, electrically short/open faults, eccentricity faults, and demagnetization faults. Demagnetization fault means that the strengths of permanent magnets (PM) in PMSM decrease, and it causes low output torque, which is undesirable for EVs. The fault is caused by physical damage, high-temperature stress, inverse magnetic field, and aging. Motor current signature analysis (MCSA) is a conventional motor fault detection method based on the extraction of signal features from stator current. a simulation model of the PMSM under partial demagnetization and uniform demagnetization fault was established, and different degrees of demagnetization fault were simulated. The harmonic analyses using the Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) show that the fault diagnosis method based on the harmonic wave analysis is only suitable for partial demagnetization fault of the PMSM and does not apply to uniform demagnetization fault of the PMSM.

Keywords: permanent magnet, diagnosis, demagnetization, modelling

Procedia PDF Downloads 68

Authors: Reza Kalantari, Ghazanfarah Hafeez

Abstract:

The paper presents outcomes of the numerical research performed on standard and dovetail corner joints under lateral loads. An overview of the past research on log shear walls is also presented. To the authors’ best knowledge, currently, there are no specific design guidelines available in the code for the design of log shear walls, implying the need to investigate the performance of log shear walls. This research explores the performance of the log shear wall corner joint system of standard joint and dovetail types using numerical methods based on research available in the literature. A parametric study is performed to study the effect of gap size provided between two orthogonal logs and the presence of wood and steel dowels provided as joinery between log courses on the performance of such a structural system. The research outcomes are the force-displacement curves. 8% variability is seen in the reaction forces with the change of gap size for the case of the standard joint, while a variation of 10% is observed in the reaction forces for the dovetail joint system.

Keywords: dovetail joint, finite element modelling, log shear walls, standard joint

Procedia PDF Downloads 213

Authors: Syed Ahsan, Saleh Alshomrani, Ishtiaq Rasool, Ali Hassan

Abstract:

In this oral presentation, we will provide an overview of the technical and semantic architecture of a desert border security and critical infrastructure protection security system. Modern border security systems are designed to reduce the dependability and intrusion of human operators. To achieve this, different types of sensors are use along with video surveillance technologies. Application of these technologies in a harsh desert environment of Saudi Arabia poses unique challenges. Environmental and geographical factors including high temperatures, desert storms, temperature variations and remoteness adversely affect the reliability of surveillance systems. To successfully implement a reliable, effective system in a harsh desert environment, the following must be achieved: i) Selection of technology including sensors, video cameras, and communication infrastructure that suit desert environments. ii) Reduced power consumption and efficient usage of equipment to increase the battery life of the equipment. iii) A reliable and robust communication network with efficient usage of bandwidth. Also, to reduce the expert bottleneck, an ontology-based intelligent information systems needs to be developed. Domain knowledge unique and peculiar to Saudi Arabia needs to be formalized to develop an expert system that can detect abnormal activities and any intrusion.

Keywords: border security, sensors, abnormal activity detection, ontologies

Procedia PDF Downloads 481

Authors: Andres Pinilla Palacios, Ricardo Tamayo

Abstract:

Emotional contagion is characterized as an automatic tendency to synchronize behaviors that facilitate emotional convergence among humans. It might thus play a pivotal role to understand the dynamics of key social interactions. However, a few research has investigated its potential mechanisms. We suggest two complementary but independent processes that may underlie emotional contagion. The efficient contagion hypothesis, based on fast and implicit bottom-up processes, modulated by familiarity and spread of activation in the emotional associative networks of memory. Secondly, the emotional contrast hypothesis, based on slow and explicit top-down processes guided by deliberated appraisal and hypothesis-testing. In order to assess these two hypotheses, an experiment with 39 participants was conducted. In the first phase, participants were induced (between-groups) to an emotional state (positive, neutral or negative) using a standardized video taken from the FilmStim database. In the second phase, participants classified and rated (within-subject) the emotional state of 15 faces (5 for each emotional state) taken from the POFA database. In the third phase, all participants were returned to a baseline emotional state using the same neutral video used in the first phase. In a fourth phase, participants classified and rated a new set of 15 faces. The accuracy in the identification and rating of emotions was partially explained by the efficient contagion hypothesis, but the speed with which these judgments were made was partially explained by the emotional contrast hypothesis. However, results are ambiguous, so a follow-up experiment is proposed in which emotional expressions and activation of the sympathetic system will be measured using EMG and EDA respectively.

Keywords: electromyography, emotional contagion, emotional valence, identification of emotions, imitation

Procedia PDF Downloads 316

Authors: Fabrizio Ascione, Martina Borrelli, Rosa Francesca De Masi, Silvia Ruggiero, Giuseppe Peter Vanoli

Abstract:

The refurbishment of public buildings is one of the key factors of energy efficiency policy of European States. Educational buildings account for the largest share of the oldest edifice with interesting potentialities for demonstrating best practice with regards to high performance and low and zero-carbon design and for becoming exemplar cases within the community. In this context, this paper discusses the critical issue of dealing the energy refurbishment of a university building in heating dominated climate of South Italy. More in detail, the importance of using validated models will be examined exhaustively by proposing an analysis on uncertainties due to modelling assumptions mainly referring to the adoption of stochastic schedules for occupant behavior and equipment or lighting usage. Indeed, today, the great part of commercial tools provides to designers a library of possible schedules with which thermal zones can be described. Very often, the users do not pay close attention to diversify thermal zones and to modify or to adapt predefined profiles, and results of designing are affected positively or negatively without any alarm about it. Data such as occupancy schedules, internal loads and the interaction between people and windows or plant systems, represent some of the largest variables during the energy modelling and to understand calibration results. This is mainly due to the adoption of discrete standardized and conventional schedules with important consequences on the prevision of the energy consumptions. The problem is surely difficult to examine and to solve. In this paper, a sensitivity analysis is presented, to understand what is the order of magnitude of error that is committed by varying the deterministic schedules used for occupation, internal load, and lighting system. This could be a typical uncertainty for a case study as the presented one where there is not a regulation system for the HVAC system thus the occupant cannot interact with it. More in detail, starting from adopted schedules, created according to questioner’ s responses and that has allowed a good calibration of energy simulation model, several different scenarios are tested. Two type of analysis are presented: the reference building is compared with these scenarios in term of percentage difference on the projected total electric energy need and natural gas request. Then the different entries of consumption are analyzed and for more interesting cases also the comparison between calibration indexes. Moreover, for the optimal refurbishment solution, the same simulations are done. The variation on the provision of energy saving and global cost reduction is evidenced. This parametric study wants to underline the effect on performance indexes evaluation of the modelling assumptions during the description of thermal zones.

Keywords: energy simulation, modelling calibration, occupant behavior, university building

Procedia PDF Downloads 140

Authors: Elisenda Camprecios, Alicia Macarrila, Montse Albiol, Neus Garriga Garriga

Abstract:

The loss of a child during pregnancy, or shortly after birth, is not a common occurrence, but it is a prevalent fact in our society. When this loss happens, life and death walk together. The grief that parents experience following a perinatal loss is a devastating experience. Professionals are aware that the quality of care offered during this first period is crucial to support the families experiencing a perinatal loss and meet their needs. However, it is not always easy for the health care professionals to know what to say and what to do in these difficult circumstances. Given the complexity of the Health, painful process that a family must face when is affected by such loss, we believe that the creation of a protocol that pays special attention to the emotional needs of those couples can be a very valuable tool for the professionals. The short documentary named ‘When the illusion vanished’ was created as part of the material of this protocol, which focuses on the emotional needs of the families who have suffered a perinatal loss. This video is designed to see what impact has a perinatal death and to raise awareness among professionals working in this field. The methodology is based on interviews with couples who have experienced perinatal death and to professionals who accompany families suffering from perinatal loss. The use of sensitive and empathized words, being encouraged to express feelings, respect the time, appropriate training for the professionals are some of the issues reflected in this documentary. We believe that this video has contributed to help health care professionals to empathize and understand the need to be able to accompany these families with the appropriate care, respectful, empathetic attitude and professionalism so that they can start the path to a ‘healthy’ mourning.

Keywords: neonatal loss, midwifery, perinatal bereavement, perinatal loss

Procedia PDF Downloads 150

Authors: Ren Moses, Jaqueline Masaki

Abstract:

This paper addresses the need for accurate and updated vehicle classification system through a thorough evaluation of vehicle class categories to identify errors arising from the existing system and proposing modifications. The data collected from two permanent traffic monitoring sites in Florida were used to evaluate the performance of the existing vehicle classification table. The vehicle data were collected and classified by the automatic vehicle classifier (AVC), and a video camera was used to obtain ground truth data. The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) vehicle classification definitions were used to define vehicle classes from the video and compare them to the data generated by AVC in order to identify the sources of misclassification. Six types of errors were identified. Modifications were made in the classification table to improve the classification accuracy. The results of this study include the development of updated vehicle classification table with a reduction in total error by 5.1%, a step by step procedure to use for evaluation of vehicle classification studies and recommendations to improve FHWA 13-category rule set. The recommendations for the FHWA 13-category rule set indicate the need for the vehicle classification definitions in this scheme to be updated to reflect the distribution of current traffic. The presented results will be of interest to States’ transportation departments and consultants, researchers, engineers, designers, and planners who require accurate vehicle classification information for planning, designing and maintenance of transportation infrastructures.

Keywords: vehicle classification, traffic monitoring, pavement design, highway traffic

Procedia PDF Downloads 180