Search results for: Image Modeling
Commenced in January 2007
Frequency: Monthly
Edition: International
Paper Count: 3549

Search results for: Image Modeling

549 Review and Classification of the Indicators and Trends Used in Bridge Performance Modeling

Authors: S. Rezaei, Z. Mirzaei, M. Khalighi, J. Bahrami

Abstract:

Bridges, as an essential part of road infrastructures, are affected by various deterioration mechanisms over time due to the changes in their performance. As changes in performance can have many negative impacts on society, it is essential to be able to evaluate and measure the performance of bridges throughout their life. This evaluation includes the development or the choice of the appropriate performance indicators, which, in turn, are measured based on the selection of appropriate models for the existing deterioration mechanism. The purpose of this article is a statistical study of indicators and deterioration mechanisms of bridges in order to discover further research capacities in bridges performance assessment. For this purpose, some of the most common indicators of bridge performance, including reliability, risk, vulnerability, robustness, and resilience, were selected. The researches performed on each index based on the desired deterioration mechanisms and hazards were comprehensively reviewed. In addition, the formulation of the indicators and their relationship with each other were studied. The research conducted on the mentioned indicators were classified from the point of view of deterministic or probabilistic method, the level of study (element level, object level, etc.), and the type of hazard and the deterioration mechanism of interest. For each of the indicators, a number of challenges and recommendations were presented according to the review of previous studies.

Keywords: Bridge, deterioration mechanism, lifecycle, performance indicator.

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548 Potential of Tourism Logistic Service Business in the Border Areas of Chong Anma, Chong Sa-Ngam, and Chong Jom Checkpoints in Thailand to Increase Competitive Efficiency among the ASEAN Community

Authors: Pariwat Somnuek

Abstract:

This study focused on tourism logistic services in the border areas of Thailand by an analysis and comparison of the opinions of tourists, villagers, and entrepreneurs of these services. Sample representatives of this study were a total of 600 villagers and 15 entrepreneurs in the three border areas consisting of Chong Anma, Chong Sa-Ngam, and Chong Jom checkpoints. For methodology, survey questionnaires, situation analysis, TOWS matrix, and focus group discussions were used for data collection, as well as descriptive analysis and statistics such as arithmetic means and standard deviations, were employed for data analysis. The findings revealed that business potential was at the medium level and entrepreneurs were satisfied with their turnovers. However, perspectives of transportation and tourism services provided for tourists need to be immediately improved. Recommendations for the potential development included promotion of border tourism destinations and foreign investments into accommodation, restaurants, and transport, as well as the establishment of business networks between Thailand and Cambodia, along with the introduction of new tourism destinations by co-operation between entrepreneurs in both countries. These initiatives may lead to increased visitors, collaboration of security offices, and an improved image of tourism security.

Keywords: Business potential, potential development, tourism logistics, services.

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547 Model Reduction of Linear Systems by Conventional and Evolutionary Techniques

Authors: S. Panda, S. K. Tomar, R. Prasad, C. Ardil

Abstract:

Reduction of Single Input Single Output (SISO) continuous systems into Reduced Order Model (ROM), using a conventional and an evolutionary technique is presented in this paper. In the conventional technique, the mixed advantages of Mihailov stability criterion and continued fraction expansions (CFE) technique is employed where the reduced denominator polynomial is derived using Mihailov stability criterion and the numerator is obtained by matching the quotients of the Cauer second form of Continued fraction expansions. In the evolutionary technique method Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) is employed to reduce the higher order model. PSO method is based on the minimization of the Integral Squared Error (ISE) between the transient responses of original higher order model and the reduced order model pertaining to a unit step input. Both the methods are illustrated through numerical example.

Keywords: Reduced Order Modeling, Stability, Continued Fraction Expansions, Mihailov Stability Criterion, Particle Swarm Optimization, Integral Squared Error.

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546 Efficient Tuning Parameter Selection by Cross-Validated Score in High Dimensional Models

Authors: Yoonsuh Jung

Abstract:

As DNA microarray data contain relatively small sample size compared to the number of genes, high dimensional models are often employed. In high dimensional models, the selection of tuning parameter (or, penalty parameter) is often one of the crucial parts of the modeling. Cross-validation is one of the most common methods for the tuning parameter selection, which selects a parameter value with the smallest cross-validated score. However, selecting a single value as an ‘optimal’ value for the parameter can be very unstable due to the sampling variation since the sample sizes of microarray data are often small. Our approach is to choose multiple candidates of tuning parameter first, then average the candidates with different weights depending on their performance. The additional step of estimating the weights and averaging the candidates rarely increase the computational cost, while it can considerably improve the traditional cross-validation. We show that the selected value from the suggested methods often lead to stable parameter selection as well as improved detection of significant genetic variables compared to the tradition cross-validation via real data and simulated data sets.

Keywords: Cross Validation, Parameter Averaging, Parameter Selection, Regularization Parameter Search.

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545 The Impact of Modeling Method of Moisture Emission from the Swimming Pool on the Accuracy of Numerical Calculations of Air Parameters in Ventilated Natatorium

Authors: Piotr Ciuman, Barbara Lipska

Abstract:

The aim of presented research was to improve numerical predictions of air parameters distribution in the actual natatorium by the selection of calculation formula of mass flux of moisture emitted from the pool. Selected correlation should ensure the best compliance of numerical results with the measurements' results of these parameters in the facility. The numerical model of the natatorium was developed, for which boundary conditions were prepared on the basis of measurements' results carried out in the actual facility. Numerical calculations were carried out with the use of ANSYS CFX software, with six formulas being implemented, which in various ways made the moisture emission dependent on water surface temperature and air parameters in the natatorium. The results of calculations with the use of these formulas were compared for air parameters' distributions: Specific humidity, velocity and temperature in the facility. For the selection of the best formula, numerical results of these parameters in occupied zone were validated by comparison with the measurements' results carried out at selected points of this zone.

Keywords: Experimental validation, indoor swimming pool, moisture emission, natatorium, numerical calculations, CFD, thermal and humidity conditions, ventilation.

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544 Modeling and Analysis of the Effects of Temperature and Pressure on the Gas-Crossover in Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Electrolyzer

Authors: A. H. Abdol Rahim, Alhassan Salami Tijani

Abstract:

Hydrogen produced by means of polymer electrolyte membrane electrolyzer (PEME) is one of the most promising methods due to clean and renewable energy source. In the process, some energy loss due to mass transfer through a PEM is caused by diffusion, electro-osmotic drag, and the pressure difference between the cathode channel and anode channel. In PEME, water molecules and ionic particles transferred between the electrodes from anode to cathode, Extensive mixing of the hydrogen and oxygen at anode channel due to gases cross-over must be avoided. In recent times the consciousness of safety issue in high pressure PEME where the oxygen mix with hydrogen at anode channel could create, explosive conditions have generated a lot of concern. In this paper, the steady state and simulation analysis of gases crossover in PEME on the temperature and pressure effect are presented. The simulations have been analysis in MATLAB based on the well-known Fick’s Law of molecular diffusion. The simulation results indicated that as temperature increases, there is a significant decrease in operating voltage.

Keywords: Diffusion, gases cross-over, steady state.

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543 The Use of Different Methodological Approaches to Teaching Mathematics at Secondary Level

Authors: M. Rodionov, N. Sharapova, Z. Dedovets

Abstract:

The article describes methods of preparation of future teachers that includes the entire diversity of traditional and computer-oriented methodological approaches. The authors reveal how, in the specific educational environment, a teacher can choose the most effective combination of educational technologies based on the nature of the learning task. The key conditions that determine such a choice are that the methodological approach corresponds to the specificity of the problem being solved and that it is also responsive to the individual characteristics of the students. The article refers to the training of students in the proper use of mathematical electronic tools for educational purposes. The preparation of future mathematics teachers should be a step-by-step process, building on specific examples. At the first stage, students optimally solve problems aided by electronic means of teaching. At the second stage, the main emphasis is on modeling lessons. At the third stage, students develop and implement strategies in the study of one of the topics within a school mathematics curriculum. The article also recommended the implementation of this strategy in preparation of future teachers and stated the possible benefits.

Keywords: Computer-oriented approach, traditional approach, future teachers, mathematics, lesson, students, education.

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542 Metallic Coating for Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer Matrix Composite Substrate

Authors: Amine Rezzoug, Said Abdi, Nadjet Bouhelal, Ismail Daoud

Abstract:

This paper investigates the application of metallic coatings on high fiber volume fraction carbon/epoxy polymer matrix composites. For the grip of the metallic layer, a method of modifying the surface of the composite by introducing a mixture of copper and steel powder (filler powders) which can reduce the impact of thermal spray particles. The powder was introduced to the surface at the time of the forming. Arc spray was used to project the zinc coating layer. The substrate was grit blasted to avoid poor adherence. The porosity, microstructure, and morphology of layers are characterized by optical microscopy, SEM and image analysis. The samples were studied also in terms of hardness and erosion resistance. This investigation did not reveal any visible evidence damage to the substrates. The hardness of zinc layer was about 25.94 MPa and the porosity was around (∼6.70%). The erosion test showed that the zinc coating improves the resistance to erosion. Based on the results obtained, we can conclude that thermal spraying allows the production of protective coating on PMC. Zinc coating has been identified as a compatible material with the substrate. The filler powders layer protects the substrate from the impact of hot particles and allows avoiding the rupture of brittle carbon fibers.

Keywords: Arc spray, coating, composite, erosion.

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541 Examination of Flood Runoff Reproductivity for Different Rainfall Sources in Central Vietnam

Authors: Do Hoai Nam, Keiko Udo, Akira Mano

Abstract:

This paper presents the combination of different precipitation data sets and the distributed hydrological model, in order to examine the flood runoff reproductivity of scattered observation catchments. The precipitation data sets were obtained from observation using rain-gages, satellite based estimate (TRMM), and numerical weather prediction model (NWP), then were coupled with the super tank model. The case study was conducted in three basins (small, medium, and large size) located in Central Vietnam. Calculated hydrographs based on ground observation rainfall showed best fit to measured stream flow, while those obtained from TRMM and NWP showed high uncertainty of peak discharges. However, calculated hydrographs using the adjusted rainfield depicted a promising alternative for the application of TRMM and NWP in flood modeling for scattered observation catchments, especially for the extension of forecast lead time.

Keywords: Flood forecast, rainfall-runoff model, satellite rainfall estimate, numerical weather prediction, quantitative precipitation forecasting.

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540 Capability Prediction of Machining Processes Based on Uncertainty Analysis

Authors: Hamed Afrasiab, Saeed Khodaygan

Abstract:

Prediction of machining process capability in the design stage plays a key role to reach the precision design and manufacturing of mechanical products. Inaccuracies in machining process lead to errors in position and orientation of machined features on the part, and strongly affect the process capability in the final quality of the product. In this paper, an efficient systematic approach is given to investigate the machining errors to predict the manufacturing errors of the parts and capability prediction of corresponding machining processes. A mathematical formulation of fixture locators modeling is presented to establish the relationship between the part errors and the related sources. Based on this method, the final machining errors of the part can be accurately estimated by relating them to the combined dimensional and geometric tolerances of the workpiece – fixture system. This method is developed for uncertainty analysis based on the Worst Case and statistical approaches. The application of the presented method is illustrated through presenting an example and the computational results are compared with the Monte Carlo simulation results.

Keywords: Process capability, machining error, dimensional and geometrical tolerances, uncertainty analysis.

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539 On Developing an Automatic Speech Recognition System for Standard Arabic Language

Authors: R. Walha, F. Drira, H. El-Abed, A. M. Alimi

Abstract:

The Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) applied to Arabic language is a challenging task. This is mainly related to the language specificities which make the researchers facing multiple difficulties such as the insufficient linguistic resources and the very limited number of available transcribed Arabic speech corpora. In this paper, we are interested in the development of a HMM-based ASR system for Standard Arabic (SA) language. Our fundamental research goal is to select the most appropriate acoustic parameters describing each audio frame, acoustic models and speech recognition unit. To achieve this purpose, we analyze the effect of varying frame windowing (size and period), acoustic parameter number resulting from features extraction methods traditionally used in ASR, speech recognition unit, Gaussian number per HMM state and number of embedded re-estimations of the Baum-Welch Algorithm. To evaluate the proposed ASR system, a multi-speaker SA connected-digits corpus is collected, transcribed and used throughout all experiments. A further evaluation is conducted on a speaker-independent continue SA speech corpus. The phonemes recognition rate is 94.02% which is relatively high when comparing it with another ASR system evaluated on the same corpus.

Keywords: ASR, HMM, acoustical analysis, acoustic modeling, Standard Arabic language

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538 Numerical Modeling of Wave Run-Up in Shallow Water Flows Using Moving Wet/Dry Interfaces

Authors: Alia Alghosoun, Michael Herty, Mohammed Seaid

Abstract:

We present a new class of numerical techniques to solve shallow water flows over dry areas including run-up. Many recent investigations on wave run-up in coastal areas are based on the well-known shallow water equations. Numerical simulations have also performed to understand the effects of several factors on tsunami wave impact and run-up in the presence of coastal areas. In all these simulations the shallow water equations are solved in entire domain including dry areas and special treatments are used for numerical solution of singularities at these dry regions. In the present study we propose a new method to deal with these difficulties by reformulating the shallow water equations into a new system to be solved only in the wetted domain. The system is obtained by a change in the coordinates leading to a set of equations in a moving domain for which the wet/dry interface is the reconstructed using the wave speed. To solve the new system we present a finite volume method of Lax-Friedrich type along with a modified method of characteristics. The method is well-balanced and accurately resolves dam-break problems over dry areas.

Keywords: Run-up waves, Shallow water equations, finite volume method, wet/dry interface, dam-break problem.

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537 Design and Implementation of a Counting and Differentiation System for Vehicles through Video Processing

Authors: Derlis Gregor, Kevin Cikel, Mario Arzamendia, Raúl Gregor

Abstract:

This paper presents a self-sustaining mobile system for counting and classification of vehicles through processing video. It proposes a counting and classification algorithm divided in four steps that can be executed multiple times in parallel in a SBC (Single Board Computer), like the Raspberry Pi 2, in such a way that it can be implemented in real time. The first step of the proposed algorithm limits the zone of the image that it will be processed. The second step performs the detection of the mobile objects using a BGS (Background Subtraction) algorithm based on the GMM (Gaussian Mixture Model), as well as a shadow removal algorithm using physical-based features, followed by morphological operations. In the first step the vehicle detection will be performed by using edge detection algorithms and the vehicle following through Kalman filters. The last step of the proposed algorithm registers the vehicle passing and performs their classification according to their areas. An auto-sustainable system is proposed, powered by batteries and photovoltaic solar panels, and the data transmission is done through GPRS (General Packet Radio Service)eliminating the need of using external cable, which will facilitate it deployment and translation to any location where it could operate. The self-sustaining trailer will allow the counting and classification of vehicles in specific zones with difficult access.

Keywords: Intelligent transportation systems, object detection, video processing, road traffic, vehicle counting, vehicle classification.

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536 Celebrity Endorsement: How It Works When a Celebrity Fits the Brand and Advertisement

Authors: Göksel Şimşek

Abstract:

Celebrities are admired, appreciated and imitated all over the world. As a natural result of this, today many brands choose to work with celebrities for their advertisements. It can be said that the more the brands include celebrities in their marketing communication strategies, the tougher the competition in this field becomes and they allocate a large portion of their marketing budget to this. Brands invest in celebrities who will represent them in order to build the image they want to create.

This study aimed to bring under spotlight the perceptions of Turkish customers regarding the use of celebrities in advertisements and marketing communication and try to understand their possible effects on subsequent purchasing decisions. In addition, consumers’ reactions and perceptions were investigated in the context of the product-celebrity match, to what extent the celebrity conforms to the concept of the advertisement and the celebrity-target audience match.

In  order  to  achieve  this  purpose, a  quantitative research  was conducted  as a case  study concerning  Mavi Jeans  (textile company). Information was obtained through survey. The results from this case study are supported by relevant theories concerning the main subject. The most valuable result would be that instead of creating an advertisement around a celebrity in demand at the time, using a celebrity that fits the concept of the advertisement and feeds the concept rather than replaces it, that is celebrity endorsement, will lead to more striking and positive results.

Keywords: Celebrity endorsement, product-celebrity match, advertising.

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535 Robot Control by ERPs of Brain Waves

Authors: K. T. Sun, Y. H. Tai, H. W. Yang, H. T. Lin

Abstract:

This paper presented the technique of robot control by event-related potentials (ERPs) of brain waves. Based on the proposed technique, severe physical disabilities can free browse outside world. A specific component of ERPs, N2P3, was found and used to control the movement of robot and the view of camera on the designed brain-computer interface (BCI). Users only required watching the stimuli of attended button on the BCI, the evoked potentials of brain waves of the target button, N2P3, had the greatest amplitude among all control buttons. An experimental scene had been constructed that the robot required walking to a specific position and move the view of camera to see the instruction of the mission, and then completed the task. Twelve volunteers participated in this experiment, and experimental results showed that the correct rate of BCI control achieved 80% and the average of execution time was 353 seconds for completing the mission. Four main contributions included in this research: (1) find an efficient component of ERPs, N2P3, for BCI control, (2) embed robot's viewpoint image into user interface for robot control, (3) design an experimental scene and conduct the experiment, and (4) evaluate the performance of the proposed system for assessing the practicability.

Keywords: Brain-computer interface (BCI), event-related potentials (ERPs), robot control, severe physical disabilities.

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534 Fung’s Model Constants for Intracranial Blood Vessel of Human Using Biaxial Tensile Test Results

Authors: Mohammad Shafigh, Nasser Fatouraee, Amirsaied Seddighi

Abstract:

Mechanical properties of cerebral arteries are, due to their relationship with cerebrovascular diseases, of clinical worth. To acquire these properties, eight samples were obtained from middle cerebral arteries of human cadavers, whose death were not due to injuries or diseases of cerebral vessels, and tested within twelve hours after resection, by a precise biaxial tensile test device specially developed for the present study considering the dimensions, sensitivity and anisotropic nature of samples. The resulting stress-stretch curve was plotted and subsequently fitted to a hyperelastic three-parameter Fung model. It was found that the arteries were noticeably stiffer in circumferential than in axial direction. It was also demonstrated that the use of multi-parameter hyperelastic constitutive models is useful for mathematical description of behavior of cerebral vessel tissue. The reported material properties are a proper reference for numerical modeling of cerebral arteries and computational analysis of healthy or diseased intracranial arteries.

Keywords: Anisotropic Tissue, Cerebral Blood Vessels, Fung Model, Nonlinear Material, Plain Stress.

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533 Dependability Tools in Multi-Agent Support for Failures Analysis of Computer Networks

Authors: Myriam Noureddine

Abstract:

During their activity, all systems must be operational without failures and in this context, the dependability concept is essential avoiding disruption of their function. As computer networks are systems with the same requirements of dependability, this article deals with an analysis of failures for a computer network. The proposed approach integrates specific tools of the plat-form KB3, usually applied in dependability studies of industrial systems. The methodology is supported by a multi-agent system formed by six agents grouped in three meta agents, dealing with two levels. The first level concerns a modeling step through a conceptual agent and a generating agent. The conceptual agent is dedicated to the building of the knowledge base from the system specifications written in the FIGARO language. The generating agent allows producing automatically both the structural model and a dependability model of the system. The second level, the simulation, shows the effects of the failures of the system through a simulation agent. The approach validation is obtained by its application on a specific computer network, giving an analysis of failures through their effects for the considered network.

Keywords: Computer network, dependability, KB3 plat-form, multi-agent system, failure.

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532 Geometric Simplification Method of Building Energy Model Based on Building Performance Simulation

Authors: Yan Lyu, Yiqun Pan, Zhizhong Huang

Abstract:

In the design stage of a new building, the energy model of this building is often required for the analysis of the performance on energy efficiency. In practice, a certain degree of geometric simplification should be done in the establishment of building energy models, since the detailed geometric features of a real building are hard to be described perfectly in most energy simulation engine, such as ESP-r, eQuest or EnergyPlus. Actually, the detailed description is not necessary when the result with extremely high accuracy is not demanded. Therefore, this paper analyzed the relationship between the error of the simulation result from building energy models and the geometric simplification of the models. Finally, the following two parameters are selected as the indices to characterize the geometric feature of in building energy simulation: the southward projected area and total side surface area of the building. Based on the parameterization method, the simplification from an arbitrary column building to a typical shape (a cuboid) building can be made for energy modeling. The result in this study indicates that no more than 7% prediction error of annual cooling/heating load will be caused by the geometric simplification for those buildings with the ratio of southward projection length to total perimeter of the bottom of 0.25~0.35, which means this method is applicable for building performance simulation.

Keywords: building energy model, simulation, geometric simplification, design, regression

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531 Dynamic Correlations and Portfolio Optimization between Islamic and Conventional Equity Indexes: A Vine Copula-Based Approach

Authors: Imen Dhaou

Abstract:

This study examines conditional Value at Risk by applying the GJR-EVT-Copula model, and finds the optimal portfolio for eight Dow Jones Islamic-conventional pairs. Our methodology consists of modeling the data by a bivariate GJR-GARCH model in which we extract the filtered residuals and then apply the Peak over threshold model (POT) to fit the residual tails in order to model marginal distributions. After that, we use pair-copula to find the optimal portfolio risk dependence structure. Finally, with Monte Carlo simulations, we estimate the Value at Risk (VaR) and the conditional Value at Risk (CVaR). The empirical results show the VaR and CVaR values for an equally weighted portfolio of Dow Jones Islamic-conventional pairs. In sum, we found that the optimal investment focuses on Islamic-conventional US Market index pairs because of high investment proportion; however, all other index pairs have low investment proportion. These results deliver some real repercussions for portfolio managers and policymakers concerning to optimal asset allocations, portfolio risk management and the diversification advantages of these markets.

Keywords: CVaR, Dow Jones Islamic index, GJR-GARCH-EVT-pair copula, portfolio optimization.

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530 Computer Modeling of Drug Distribution after Intravitreal Administration

Authors: N. Haghjou, M. J. Abdekhodaie, Y. L. Cheng, M. Saadatmand

Abstract:

Intravitreal injection (IVI) is the most common treatment for eye posterior segment diseases such as endopthalmitis, retinitis, age-related macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, uveitis, and retinal detachment. Most of the drugs used to treat vitreoretinal diseases, have a narrow concentration range in which they are effective, and may be toxic at higher concentrations. Therefore, it is critical to know the drug distribution within the eye following intravitreal injection. Having knowledge of drug distribution, ophthalmologists can decide on drug injection frequency while minimizing damage to tissues. The goal of this study was to develop a computer model to predict intraocular concentrations and pharmacokinetics of intravitreally injected drugs. A finite volume model was created to predict distribution of two drugs with different physiochemical properties in the rabbit eye. The model parameters were obtained from literature review. To validate this numeric model, the in vivo data of spatial concentration profile from the lens to the retina were compared with the numeric data. The difference was less than 5% between the numerical and experimental data. This validation provides strong support for the numerical methodology and associated assumptions of the current study.

Keywords: Posterior segment, Intravitreal injection (IVI), Pharmacokinetic, Modelling, Finite volume method.

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529 Pectoral Muscles Suppression in Digital Mammograms Using Hybridization of Soft Computing Methods

Authors: I. Laurence Aroquiaraj, K. Thangavel

Abstract:

Breast region segmentation is an essential prerequisite in computerized analysis of mammograms. It aims at separating the breast tissue from the background of the mammogram and it includes two independent segmentations. The first segments the background region which usually contains annotations, labels and frames from the whole breast region, while the second removes the pectoral muscle portion (present in Medio Lateral Oblique (MLO) views) from the rest of the breast tissue. In this paper we propose hybridization of Connected Component Labeling (CCL), Fuzzy, and Straight line methods. Our proposed methods worked good for separating pectoral region. After removal pectoral muscle from the mammogram, further processing is confined to the breast region alone. To demonstrate the validity of our segmentation algorithm, it is extensively tested using over 322 mammographic images from the Mammographic Image Analysis Society (MIAS) database. The segmentation results were evaluated using a Mean Absolute Error (MAE), Hausdroff Distance (HD), Probabilistic Rand Index (PRI), Local Consistency Error (LCE) and Tanimoto Coefficient (TC). The hybridization of fuzzy with straight line method is given more than 96% of the curve segmentations to be adequate or better. In addition a comparison with similar approaches from the state of the art has been given, obtaining slightly improved results. Experimental results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.

Keywords: X-ray Mammography, CCL, Fuzzy, Straight line.

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528 An Enhanced SAR-Based Tsunami Detection System

Authors: Jean-Pierre Dubois, Jihad S. Daba, H. Karam, J. Abdallah

Abstract:

Tsunami early detection and warning systems have proved to be of ultimate importance, especially after the destructive tsunami that hit Japan in March 2012. Such systems are crucial to inform the authorities of any risk of a tsunami and of the degree of its danger in order to make the right decision and notify the public of the actions they need to take to save their lives. The purpose of this research is to enhance existing tsunami detection and warning systems. We first propose an automated and miniaturized model of an early tsunami detection and warning system. The model for the operation of a tsunami warning system is simulated using the data acquisition toolbox of Matlab and measurements acquired from specified internet pages due to the lack of the required real-life sensors, both seismic and hydrologic, and building a graphical user interface for the system. In the second phase of this work, we implement various satellite image filtering schemes to enhance the acquired synthetic aperture radar images of the tsunami affected region that are masked by speckle noise. This enables us to conduct a post-tsunami damage extent study and calculate the percentage damage. We conclude by proposing improvements to the existing telecommunication infrastructure of existing warning tsunami systems using a migration to IP-based networks and fiber optics links.

Keywords: Detection, GIS, GSN, GTS, GPS, speckle noise, synthetic aperture radar, tsunami, wiener filter.

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527 Effects of Rarefaction and Compressibility on Fluid Flow at Slip Flow Regime by Direct Simulation of Roughness

Authors: M. Hakak Khadem, M. Shams, S. Hossainpour

Abstract:

A two dimensional numerical simulation has been performed for incompressible and compressible fluid flow through microchannels in slip flow regime. The Navier-Stokes equations have been solved in conjunction with Maxwell slip conditions for modeling flow field associated with slip flow regime. The wall roughness is simulated with triangular microelements distributed on wall surfaces to study the effects of roughness on fluid flow. Various Mach and Knudsen numbers are used to investigate the effects of rarefaction as well as compressibility. It is found that rarefaction has more significant effect on flow field in microchannels with higher relative roughness. It is also found that compressibility has more significant effects on Poiseuille number when relative roughness increases. In addition, similar to incompressible models the increase in average fRe is more significant at low Knudsen number flows but the increase of Poiseuille number duo to relative roughness is sharper for compressible models. The numerical results have also validated with some available theoretical and experimental relations and good agreements have been seen.

Keywords: Relative roughness, slip flow, Poiseuille number.

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526 Computer-Aided Classification of Liver Lesions Using Contrasting Features Difference

Authors: Hussein Alahmer, Amr Ahmed

Abstract:

Liver cancer is one of the common diseases that cause the death. Early detection is important to diagnose and reduce the incidence of death. Improvements in medical imaging and image processing techniques have significantly enhanced interpretation of medical images. Computer-Aided Diagnosis (CAD) systems based on these techniques play a vital role in the early detection of liver disease and hence reduce liver cancer death rate.  This paper presents an automated CAD system consists of three stages; firstly, automatic liver segmentation and lesion’s detection. Secondly, extracting features. Finally, classifying liver lesions into benign and malignant by using the novel contrasting feature-difference approach. Several types of intensity, texture features are extracted from both; the lesion area and its surrounding normal liver tissue. The difference between the features of both areas is then used as the new lesion descriptors. Machine learning classifiers are then trained on the new descriptors to automatically classify liver lesions into benign or malignant. The experimental results show promising improvements. Moreover, the proposed approach can overcome the problems of varying ranges of intensity and textures between patients, demographics, and imaging devices and settings.

Keywords: CAD system, difference of feature, Fuzzy c means, Liver segmentation.

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525 Airfoils Aerodynamic Efficiency Study in Heavy Rain via Two Phase Flow Approach

Authors: M. Ismail, Cao Yihua, Zhao Ming

Abstract:

Heavy rainfall greatly affects the aerodynamic performance of the aircraft. There are many accidents of aircraft caused by aerodynamic efficiency degradation by heavy rain. In this Paper we have studied the heavy rain effects on the aerodynamic efficiency of NACA 64-210 & NACA 0012 airfoils. For our analysis, CFD method and preprocessing grid generator are used as our main analytical tools, and the simulation of rain is accomplished via two phase flow approach-s Discrete Phase Model (DPM). Raindrops are assumed to be non-interacting, non-deforming, non-evaporating and non-spinning spheres. Both airfoil sections exhibited significant reduction in lift and increase in drag for a given lift condition in simulated rain. The most significant difference between these two airfoils was the sensitivity of the NACA 64-210 to liquid water content (LWC), while NACA 0012 performance losses in the rain environment is not a function of LWC . It is expected that the quantitative information gained in this paper will be useful to the operational airline industry and greater effort such as small scale and full scale flight tests should put in this direction to further improve aviation safety.

Keywords: airfoil, discrete phase modeling, heavy rain, Reynolds number

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524 Material Flow Modeling in Friction Stir Welding of AA6061-T6 Alloy and Study of the Effect of Process Parameters

Authors: B. Saha Roy, T. Medhi, S. C. Saha

Abstract:

To understand the friction stir welding process, it is very important to know the nature of the material flow in and around the tool. The process is a combination of both thermal as well as mechanical work i.e. it is a coupled thermo-mechanical process. Numerical simulations are very much essential in order to obtain a complete knowledge of the process as well as the physics underlying it. In the present work a model based approach is adopted in order to study material flow. A thermo-mechanical based CFD model is developed using a Finite Element package, Comsol Multiphysics. The fluid flow analysis is done. The model simultaneously predicts shear strain fields, shear strain rates and shear stress over the entire workpiece for the given conditions. The flow fields generated by the streamline plot give an idea of the material flow. The variation of dynamic viscosity, velocity field and shear strain fields with various welding parameters is studied. Finally the result obtained from the above mentioned conditions is discussed elaborately and concluded.

Keywords: AA6061-T6, friction stir welding, material flow, CFD modelling.

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523 Impact of Modeling Different Fading Channels on Wireless MAN Fixed IEEE802.16d OFDM System with Diversity Transmission Technique

Authors: Shanar Askar, Shahzad Memon, LachhmanDas, MSKalhoro

Abstract:

Wimax (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) is a promising technology which can offer high speed data, voice and video service to the customer end, which is presently, dominated by the cable and digital subscriber line (DSL) technologies. The performance assessment of Wimax systems is dealt with. The biggest advantage of Broadband wireless application (BWA) over its wired competitors is its increased capacity and ease of deployment. The aims of this paper are to model and simulate the fixed OFDM IEEE 802.16d physical layer under variant combinations of digital modulation (BPSK, QPSK, and 16-QAM) over diverse combination of fading channels (AWGN, SUIs). Stanford University Interim (SUI) Channel serial was proposed to simulate the fixed broadband wireless access channel environments where IEEE 802.16d is to be deployed. It has six channel models that are grouped into three categories according to three typical different outdoor Terrains, in order to give a comprehensive effect of fading channels on the overall performance of the system.

Keywords: WIMAX, OFDM, Additive White Gaussian Noise, Fading Channel, SUI, Doppler Effect.

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522 Numerical Study of Fatigue Crack Growth at a Web Stiffener of Ship Structural Details

Authors: Wentao He, Jingxi Liu, De Xie

Abstract:

It is necessary to manage the fatigue crack growth (FCG) once those cracks are detected during in-service inspections. In this paper, a simulation program (FCG-System) is developed utilizing the commercial software ABAQUS with its object-oriented programming interface to simulate the fatigue crack path and to compute the corresponding fatigue life. In order to apply FCG-System in large-scale marine structures, the substructure modeling technique is integrated in the system under the consideration of structural details and load shedding during crack growth. Based on the nodal forces and nodal displacements obtained from finite element analysis, a formula for shell elements to compute stress intensity factors is proposed in the view of virtual crack closure technique. The cracks initiating from the intersection of flange and the end of the web-stiffener are investigated for fatigue crack paths and growth lives under water pressure loading and axial force loading, separately. It is found that the FCG-System developed by authors could be an efficient tool to perform fatigue crack growth analysis on marine structures.

Keywords: Crack path, Fatigue crack, Fatigue live, FCG-System, Virtual crack closure technique.

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521 Influence of p-y curves on Buckling Capacity of Pile Foundation

Authors: Praveen Huded M., Suresh R. Dash

Abstract:

Pile foundations are one of the most preferred deep foundation systems for high rise or heavily loaded structures. In many instances, the failure of the pile founded structures in liquefiable soils had been observed even in many recent earthquakes. Failure of pile foundation have occurred because of buckling, as the pile behaves as an unsupported slender structural element once the surrounding soil liquefies. However, the buckling capacity depends on the depth of soil liquefied and its residual strength. Hence it is essential to check the pile against the possible buckling failure. Beam on non-linear Winkler Foundation is one of the efficient methods to model the pile-soil behavior in liquefiable soil. The pile-soil interaction is modelled through p-y springs, there are different p-y curves available for modeling liquefiable soil. In the present work, the influence of two such p-y curves on the buckling capacity of pile foundation is studied considering the initial geometric and non-linear behavior of pile foundation. The proposed method is validated against experimental results. A significant difference in the buckling capacity is observed for the two p-y curves used in the analysis. A parametric study is conducted to understand the influence of pile flexural rigidity, different initial geometric imperfections, and different soil relative densities on the buckling capacity of pile foundation.

Keywords: pile foundation, liquefaction, buckling load, non-linear p-y curve

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520 A Model-Reference Sliding Mode for Dual-Stage Actuator Servo Control in HDD

Authors: S. Sonkham, U. Pinsopon, W. Chatlatanagulchai

Abstract:

This paper presents a method of sliding mode control (SMC) designing and developing for the servo system in a dual-stage actuator (DSA) hard disk drive. Mathematical modeling of hard disk drive actuators is obtained, extracted from measuring frequency response of the voice-coil motor (VCM) and PZT micro-actuator separately. Matlab software tools are used for mathematical model estimation and also for controller design and simulation. A model-reference approach for tracking requirement is selected as a proposed technique. The simulation results show that performance of a model-reference SMC controller design in DSA servo control can be satisfied in the tracking error, as well as keeping the positioning of the head within the boundary of +/-5% of track width under the presence of internal and external disturbance. The overall results of model-reference SMC design in DSA are met per requirement specifications and significant reduction in %off track is found when compared to the single-state actuator (SSA).

Keywords: Hard Disk Drive, Dual-Stage Actuator, Track Following, HDD Servo Control, Sliding Mode Control, Model-Reference, Tracking Control.

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