Search results for: Decision Support System
Commenced in January 2007
Frequency: Monthly
Edition: International
Paper Count: 10379

Search results for: Decision Support System

4739 A Post Keynesian Environmental Macroeconomic Model for Agricultural Water Sustainability under Climate Change in the Murray-Darling Basin, Australia

Authors: Ke Zhao, Ballarat Colin Richardson, Jerry Courvisanos, John Crawford

Abstract:

Climate change has profound consequences for the agriculture of south-eastern Australia and its climate-induced water shortage in the Murray-Darling Basin. Post Keynesian Economics (PKE) macro-dynamics, along with Kaleckian investment and growth theory, are used to develop an ecological-economic system dynamics model of this complex nonlinear river basin system. The Murray- Darling Basin Simulation Model (MDB-SM) uses the principles of PKE to incorporate the fundamental uncertainty of economic behaviors of farmers regarding the investments they make and the climate change they face, particularly as regards water ecosystem services. MDB-SM provides a framework for macroeconomic policies, especially for long-term fiscal policy and for policy directed at the sustainability of agricultural water, as measured by socio-economic well-being considerations, which include sustainable consumption and investment in the river basin. The model can also reproduce other ecological and economic aspects and, for certain parameters and initial values, exhibit endogenous business cycles and ecological sustainability with realistic characteristics. Most importantly, MDBSM provides a platform for the analysis of alternative economic policy scenarios. These results reveal the importance of understanding water ecosystem adaptation under climate change by integrating a PKE macroeconomic analytical framework with the system dynamics modelling approach. Once parameterised and supplied with historical initial values, MDB-SM should prove to be a practical tool to provide alternative long-term policy simulations of agricultural water and socio-economic well-being.

Keywords: Agricultural water, Macroeconomic dynamics, Modeling, Investment dynamics, Sustainability, Unemployment, Economics, Keynesian, Kaleckian.

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4738 Interfacing Photovoltaic Systems to the Utility Grid: A Comparative Simulation Study to Mitigate the Impact of Unbalanced Voltage Dips

Authors: Badr M. Alshammari, A. Rabeh, A. K. Mohamed

Abstract:

This paper presents the modeling and the control of a grid-connected photovoltaic system (PVS). Firstly, the MPPT control of the PVS and its associated DC/DC converter has been analyzed in order to extract the maximum of available power. Secondly, the control system of the grid side converter (GSC) which is a three-phase voltage source inverter (VSI) has been presented. A special attention has been paid to the control algorithms of the GSC converter during grid voltages imbalances. Especially, three different control objectives are to achieve; the mitigation of the grid imbalance adverse effects, at the point of common coupling (PCC), on the injected currents, the elimination of double frequency oscillations in active power flow, and the elimination of double frequency oscillations in reactive power flow. Simulation results of two control strategies have been performed via MATLAB software in order to demonstrate the particularities of each control strategy according to power quality standards.

Keywords: Renewable energies, photovoltaic systems, DC link, voltage source inverter, space vector SVPWM, unbalanced voltage dips, symmetrical components.

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4737 Self-Tuning Fuzzy Control of Seat Vibrations of Active Quarter Car Model

Authors: Devdutt

Abstract:

An active quarter car model with three degrees of freedom is presented for vibration reduction of passenger seat. The designed Fuzzy Logic Controller (FLC) and Self-Tuning Fuzzy Logic Controller (STFLC) are applied in seat suspension. Vibration control performance of active and passive quarter car systems are determined using simulation work. Simulation results in terms of passenger seat acceleration and displacement responses are compared for controlled and uncontrolled cases. Simulation results showed the improved results of both FLC and STFLC controllers in improving passenger ride comfort compared to uncontrolled case. Furthermore, the best performance in simulation studies is achieved by STFLC controlled suspension system compared to FLC controlled and uncontrolled cases.

Keywords: Active suspension system, quarter car model, passenger ride comfort, self-tuning fuzzy logic controller.

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4736 Evaluating Portfolio Performance by Highlighting Network Property and the Sharpe Ratio in the Stock Market

Authors: Zahra Hatami, Hesham Ali, David Volkman

Abstract:

Selecting a portfolio for investing is a crucial decision for individuals and legal entities. In the last two decades, with economic globalization, a stream of financial innovations has rushed to the aid of financial institutions. The importance of selecting stocks for the portfolio is always a challenging task for investors. This study aims to create a financial network to identify optimal portfolios using network centralities metrics. This research presents a community detection technique of superior stocks that can be described as an optimal stock portfolio to be used by investors. By using the advantages of a network and its property in extracted communities, a group of stocks was selected for each of the various time periods. The performance of the optimal portfolios was compared to the famous index. Their Sharpe ratio was calculated in a timely manner to evaluate their profit for making decisions. The analysis shows that the selected potential portfolio from stocks with low centrality measurement can outperform the market; however, they have a lower Sharpe ratio than stocks with high centrality scores. In other words, stocks with low centralities could outperform the S&P500 yet have a lower Sharpe ratio than high central stocks.

Keywords: Portfolio management performance, network analysis, centrality measurements, Sharpe ratio.

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4735 Entrepreneurial Orientation and Customers Satisfaction: Evidences nearby Khao San Road

Authors: Vichada Chokesikarin

Abstract:

The study aims to determine which factors account for customer satisfaction and to investigate the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation and business success, in particular, context of the information understanding of hostel business in Pranakorn district, Bangkok and the significant element of entrepreneurship in tourism industry. This study covers 352 hostels customers and 61 hostel owners/managers nearby Khao San road. Data collection methods were used by survey questionnaire and a series of hypotheses were developed from services marketing literature. The findings suggest the customer satisfaction most influenced by image, service quality, room quality and price accordingly. Furthermore the findings revealed that significant relationships exist between entrepreneurial orientation and business success; while competitive aggressiveness was found unrelated. The ECSI model’s generic measuring customer satisfaction was found partially mediate the business success. A reconsideration of other variables applicable should be supported with the model of hostel business. The study provides context and overall view of hostel business while discussing from the entrepreneurial orientation to customer satisfaction, thereby reducing decision risk on hostel investment.

Keywords: Customer satisfaction, ECSI Model, entrepreneurial orientation, small hotels, hostel, business performance.

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4734 Shadow Imaging Study of Z-Pinch Dynamic Hohlraum

Authors: Chen Faxin, Feng Jinghua, Yang Jianlun, Li Linbo, Zhou Lin

Abstract:

In order to obtaining the dynamic evolution image of Tungsten array for foam padding, and to research the form of interaction between Tungsten plasma and foam column, a shadow imaging system of four-frame ultraviolet probe laser (266nm)has been designed on 1MA pulse power device. The time resolution of the system is 2.5ns, and static space resolution is superior to 70μm. The radial shadowgraphy image reveals the whole process from the melting and expansion of solid wire to the interaction of the precursor plasma and the foam, from the pinch to rebound inflation. The image shows the continuous interaction of Tungsten plasma and foam in a form of “Raining" within a time of about 50ns, the plasma shell structure has not been found in the whole period of pinch. The quantitative analysis indicates the minimum pinching speed of the foam column is 1.0×106cm/s, and maximum pinching speed is 6.0×106cm/s, and the axial stagnation diameter is approx 1mm.

Keywords: Dynamic hohlraum, Shadowgraphy image, Foam evolution.

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4733 Inter-Organizational Knowledge Transfer Through Malaysia E-government IT Outsourcing: A Theoretical Review

Authors: Nor Aziati Abdul Hamid, Juhana Salim

Abstract:

The main objective of this paper is to contribute the existing knowledge transfer and IT Outsourcing literature specifically in the context of Malaysia by reviewing the current practices of e-government IT outsourcing in Malaysia including the issues and challenges faced by the public agencies in transferring the knowledge during the engagement. This paper discusses various factors and different theoretical model of knowledge transfer starting from the traditional model to the recent model suggested by the scholars. The present paper attempts to align organizational knowledge from the knowledge-based view (KBV) and organizational learning (OL) lens. This review could help shape the direction of both future theoretical and empirical studies on inter-firm knowledge transfer specifically on how KBV and OL perspectives could play significant role in explaining the complex relationships between the client and vendor in inter-firm knowledge transfer and the role of organizational management information system and Transactive Memory System (TMS) to facilitate the organizational knowledge transferring process. Conclusion is drawn and further research is suggested.

Keywords: E-government, IT Outsourcing, Knowledge Management, Knowledge Transfer

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4732 Oil Recovery Study by Low Temperature Carbon Dioxide Injection in High-Pressure High-Temperature Micromodels

Authors: Zakaria Hamdi, Mariyamni Awang

Abstract:

For the past decades, CO2 flooding has been used as a successful method for enhanced oil recovery (EOR). However, high mobility ratio and fingering effect are considered as important drawbacka of this process. Low temperature injection of CO2 into high temperature reservoirs may improve the oil recovery, but simulating multiphase flow in the non-isothermal medium is difficult, and commercial simulators are very unstable in these conditions. Furthermore, to best of authors’ knowledge, no experimental work was done to verify the results of the simulations and to understand the pore-scale process. In this paper, we present results of investigations on injection of low temperature CO2 into a high-pressure high-temperature micromodel with injection temperature range from 34 to 75 °F. Effect of temperature and saturation changes of different fluids are measured in each case. The results prove the proposed method. The injection of CO2 at low temperatures increased the oil recovery in high temperature reservoirs significantly. Also, CO2 rich phases available in the high temperature system can affect the oil recovery through the better sweep of the oil which is initially caused by penetration of LCO2 inside the system. Furthermore, no unfavorable effect was detected using this method. Low temperature CO2 is proposed to be used as early as secondary recovery.

Keywords: Enhanced oil recovery, CO2 flooding, micromodel studies, miscible flooding.

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4731 A Two-Phase Mechanism for Agent's Action Selection in Soccer Simulation

Authors: Vahid Salmani, Mahmoud Naghibzadeh, Farid Seifi, Amirhossein Taherinia

Abstract:

Soccer simulation is an effort to motivate researchers and practitioners to do artificial and robotic intelligence research; and at the same time put into practice and test the results. Many researchers and practitioners throughout the world are continuously working to polish their ideas and improve their implemented systems. At the same time, new groups are forming and they bring bright new thoughts to the field. The research includes designing and executing robotic soccer simulation algorithms. In our research, a soccer simulation player is considered to be an intelligent agent that is capable of receiving information from the environment, analyze it and to choose the best action from a set of possible ones, for its next move. We concentrate on developing a two-phase method for the soccer player agent to choose its best next move. The method is then implemented into our software system called Nexus simulation team of Ferdowsi University. This system is based on TsinghuAeolus[1] team that was the champion of the world RoboCup soccer simulation contest in 2001 and 2002.

Keywords: RoboCup, Soccer simulation, multi-agent environment, intelligent soccer agent, ball controller agent.

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4730 Dynamic Metrics for Polymorphism in Object Oriented Systems

Authors: Parvinder Singh Sandhu, Gurdev Singh

Abstract:

Metrics is the process by which numbers or symbols are assigned to attributes of entities in the real world in such a way as to describe them according to clearly defined rules. Software metrics are instruments or ways to measuring all the aspect of software product. These metrics are used throughout a software project to assist in estimation, quality control, productivity assessment, and project control. Object oriented software metrics focus on measurements that are applied to the class and other characteristics. These measurements convey the software engineer to the behavior of the software and how changes can be made that will reduce complexity and improve the continuing capability of the software. Object oriented software metric can be classified in two types static and dynamic. Static metrics are concerned with all the aspects of measuring by static analysis of software and dynamic metrics are concerned with all the measuring aspect of the software at run time. Major work done before, was focusing on static metric. Also some work has been done in the field of dynamic nature of the software measurements. But research in this area is demanding for more work. In this paper we give a set of dynamic metrics specifically for polymorphism in object oriented system.

Keywords: Metrics, Software, Quality, Object oriented system, Polymorphism.

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4729 Students’ Perception and Patterns of Listening Behavior in an Online Forum Discussion

Authors: K. L. Wong, I. N. Umar

Abstract:

Online forum is part of a Learning Management System (LMS) environment in which students share their opinions. This study attempts to investigate the perceptions of students towards online forum and their patterns of listening behavior during the forum interaction. The students’ perceptions were measured using a questionnaire, in which seven dimensions were used involving online experience, benefits of forum participation, cost of participation, perceived ease of use, usefulness, attitude, and intention. Meanwhile, their patterns of listening behaviors were obtained using the log file extracted from the LMS. A total of 25 postgraduate students undertaking a course were involved in this study, and their activities in the forum session were recorded by the LMS and used as a log file. The results from the questionnaire analysis indicated that the students perceived that the forum is easy to use, useful, and bring benefits to them. Also, they showed positive attitude towards online forum, and they have the intention to use it in future. Based on the log data, the participants were also divided into six clusters of listening behavior, in which they are different in terms of temporality, breadth, depth and speaking level. The findings were compared to previous clusters grouping and future recommendations are also discussed.

Keywords: e-learning, learning management system, listening behavior, online forum.

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4728 Stress Analysis of Hexagonal Element for Precast Concrete Pavements

Authors: J. Novak, A. Kohoutkova, V. Kristek, J. Vodicka, M. Sramek

Abstract:

While the use of cast-in-place concrete for an airfield and highway pavement overlay is very common, the application of precast concrete elements is very limited today. The main reasons consist of high production costs and complex structural behavior. Despite that, several precast concrete systems have been developed and tested with the aim to provide a system with rapid construction. The contribution deals with the reinforcement design of a hexagonal element developed for a proposed airfield pavement system. The sub-base course of the system is composed of compacted recycled concrete aggregates and fiber reinforced concrete with recycled aggregates place on top of it. The selected element belongs to a group of precast concrete elements which are being considered for the construction of a surface course. Both high costs of full-scale experiments and the need to investigate various elements force to simulate their behavior in a numerical analysis software by using finite element method instead of performing expensive experiments. The simulation of the selected element was conducted on a nonlinear model in order to obtain such results which could fully compensate results from experiments. The main objective was to design reinforcement of the precast concrete element subject to quasi-static loading from airplanes with respect to geometrical imperfections, manufacturing imperfections, tensile stress in reinforcement, compressive stress in concrete and crack width. The obtained findings demonstrate that the position and the presence of imperfection in a pavement highly affect the stress distribution in the precast concrete element. The precast concrete element should be heavily reinforced to fulfill all the demands. Using under-reinforced concrete elements would lead to the formation of wide cracks and cracks permanently open.

Keywords: Imperfection, numerical simulation, pavement, precast concrete element, reinforcement design, stress analysis.

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4727 A Unique Solution for Designing Low-Cost, Heterogeneous Sensor Networks Using a Middleware Integration Platform

Authors: Jarrod Trevathan, Trina Myers

Abstract:

Proprietary sensor network systems are typically expensive, rigid and difficult to incorporate technologies from other vendors. When using competing and incompatible technologies, a non-proprietary system is complex to create because it requires significant technical expertise and effort, which can be more expensive than a proprietary product. This paper presents the Sensor Abstraction Layer (SAL) that provides middleware architectures with a consistent and uniform view of heterogeneous sensor networks, regardless of the technologies involved. SAL abstracts and hides the hardware disparities and specificities related to accessing, controlling, probing and piloting heterogeneous sensors. SAL is a single software library containing a stable hardware-independent interface with consistent access and control functions to remotely manage the network. The end-user has near-real-time access to the collected data via the network, which results in a cost-effective, flexible and simplified system suitable for novice users. SAL has been used for successfully implementing several low-cost sensor network systems.

Keywords: Sensor networks, hardware abstraction, middleware integration platform, sensor web enablement.

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4726 Perceived Constraints on Sport Participation among Young Koreans in Australia

Authors: Jae Won Kang

Abstract:

The purpose of this study was to examine a broader range of sport constraints perceived by young Koreans in Australia who may need to adjust to changing behavioral expectations due to the socio-cultural transitions. Regardless of gender, in terms of quantitative findings, the most important participation constraints within the seven categories were resources, access, interpersonal, affective, religious, socio-cultural, and physical in that order. The most important constraining items were a lack of time, access, information, adaptive skills, and parental and family support in that order. Qualitative research found young Korean’s participation constraints among three categories (time, parental control and interpersonal constraints). It is possible that different ethnic groups would be constrained by different factors; however, this is outside the scope of this study.

Keywords: Constraints, cultural adjustment, Sport, Young Koreans in Australia.

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4725 Solid Waste Management Challenges and Possible Solution in Kabul City

Authors: Ghulam Haider Haidaree, Nsenda Lukumwena

Abstract:

Most developing nations face energy production and supply problems. This is also the case of Afghanistan whose generating capacity does not meet its energy demand. This is due in part to high security and risk caused by war which deters foreign investments and insufficient internal revenue. To address the issue above, this paper would like to suggest an alternative and affordable way to deal with the energy problem. That is by converting Solid Waste to energy. As a result, this approach tackles the municipal solid waste issue (potential cause of several diseases), contributes to the improvement of the quality of life, local economy, and so on. While addressing the solid waste problem in general, this paper samples specifically one municipality which is District-12, one of the 22 districts of Kabul city. Using geographic information system (GIS) technology, District-12 is divided into nine different zones whose municipal solid waste is respectively collected, processed, and converted into electricity and distributed to the closest area. It is important to mention that GIS has been used to estimate the amount of electricity to be distributed and to optimally position the production plant.

Keywords: Energy problem, estimation of electricity, GIS zones, solid waste management system.

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4724 A Study of Visual Attention in Diagnosing Cerebellar Tumours

Authors: Kuryati Kipli, Kasumawati Lias, Dayang Azra Awang Mat, Al-Khalid Othman, Ade Syaheda Wani Marzuki, Nurdiani Zamhari

Abstract:

Visual attention allows user to select the most relevant information to ongoing behaviour. This paper presents a study on; i) the performance of people measurements, ii) accurateness of people measurement of the peaks that correspond to chemical quantities from the Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy (MRS) graphs and iii) affects of people measurements to the algorithm-based diagnosis. Participant-s eye-movement was recorded using eye-tracker tool (Eyelink II). This experiment involves three participants for examining 20 MRS graphs to estimate the peaks of chemical quantities which indicate the abnormalities associated with Cerebellar Tumours (CT). The status of each MRS is verified by using decision algorithm. Analysis involves determination of humans-s eye movement pattern in measuring the peak of spectrograms, scan path and determining the relationship of distributions of fixation durations with the accuracy of measurement. In particular, the eye-tracking data revealed which aspects of the spectrogram received more visual attention and in what order they were viewed. This preliminary investigation provides a proof of concept for use of the eye tracking technology as the basis for expanded CT diagnosis.

Keywords: eye tracking, fixation durations, pattern, scan paths, spectrograms, visual.

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4723 A Text Clustering System based on k-means Type Subspace Clustering and Ontology

Authors: Liping Jing, Michael K. Ng, Xinhua Yang, Joshua Zhexue Huang

Abstract:

This paper presents a text clustering system developed based on a k-means type subspace clustering algorithm to cluster large, high dimensional and sparse text data. In this algorithm, a new step is added in the k-means clustering process to automatically calculate the weights of keywords in each cluster so that the important words of a cluster can be identified by the weight values. For understanding and interpretation of clustering results, a few keywords that can best represent the semantic topic are extracted from each cluster. Two methods are used to extract the representative words. The candidate words are first selected according to their weights calculated by our new algorithm. Then, the candidates are fed to the WordNet to identify the set of noun words and consolidate the synonymy and hyponymy words. Experimental results have shown that the clustering algorithm is superior to the other subspace clustering algorithms, such as PROCLUS and HARP and kmeans type algorithm, e.g., Bisecting-KMeans. Furthermore, the word extraction method is effective in selection of the words to represent the topics of the clusters.

Keywords: Subspace Clustering, Text Mining, Feature Weighting, Cluster Interpretation, Ontology

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4722 Gas Generator Pyrotechnics Using Gun Propellant Technology Methods

Authors: B. A. Parate

Abstract:

This research article describes the gas generator pyro-cartridge using gun propellant technology methods for fighter aircraft application. The emphasis of this work is to design and develop a gas generating device with pyro-cartridge using double base (DB) propellant to generate a high temperature and pressure gas. This device is utilised for dropping empty fuel tank in an emergency from military aircraft. A data acquisition system (DAS) is used to record time to maximum pressure, maximum pressure and time to half maximum pressure generated in a vented vessel (VV) for gas generator. Pyro-cartridge as a part of the gas generator creates a maximum pressure and time in the closed vessel (CV). This article also covers the qualification testing of gas generator. The performance parameters of pyro-cartridge devices such as ignition delay and maximum pressure are experimentally presented through the CV tests.

Keywords: Closed vessel, data acquisition, double base propellant, gas generator, ignition system, ignition delay, propellant, pyro-cartridge, pyrotechnics, vented vessel.

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4721 Optimal Control Strategy for High Performance EV Interior Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motor

Authors: Mehdi Karbalaye Zadeh, Ehsan M. Siavashi

Abstract:

The controllable electrical loss which consists of the copper loss and iron loss can be minimized by the optimal control of the armature current vector. The control algorithm of current vector minimizing the electrical loss is proposed and the optimal current vector can be decided according to the operating speed and the load conditions. The proposed control algorithm is applied to the experimental PM motor drive system and this paper presents a modern approach of speed control for permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM) applied for Electric Vehicle using a nonlinear control. The regulation algorithms are based on the feedback linearization technique. The direct component of the current is controlled to be zero which insures the maximum torque operation. The near unity power factor operation is also achieved. More over, among EV-s motor electric propulsion features, the energy efficiency is a basic characteristic that is influenced by vehicle dynamics and system architecture. For this reason, the EV dynamics are taken into account.

Keywords: PMSM, Electric Vehicle, Optimal control, Traction.

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4720 Risk Management Approach for Lean, Agile, Resilient and Green Supply Chain

Authors: Benmoussa Rachid, Deguio Roland, Dubois Sebastien, Rasovska Ivana

Abstract:

Implementation of LARG (Lean, Agile, Resilient, Green) practices in the supply chain management is a complex task mainly because ecological, economical and operational goals are usually in conflict. To implement these LARG practices successfully, companies’ need relevant decision making tools allowing processes performance control and improvement strategies visibility. To contribute to this issue, this work tries to answer the following research question: How to master performance and anticipate problems in supply chain LARG practices implementation? To answer this question, a risk management approach (RMA) is adopted. Indeed, the proposed RMA aims basically to assess the ability of a supply chain, guided by “Lean, Green and Achievement” performance goals, to face “agility and resilience risk” factors. To proof its relevance, a logistics academic case study based on simulation is used to illustrate all its stages. It shows particularly how to build the “LARG risk map” which is the main output of this approach.

Keywords: Risk approach, lean supply chain, agile supply chain, green supply chain, resilient supply chain.

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4719 Critical Success Factors for Successful Energy Management Implementation towards Sustainability in Malaysian Universities

Authors: A. Abdullah Saleh, A. H. Mohammed, M. N. Abdullah

Abstract:

Recently, universities are increasingly consuming energy to support various activities. A large population of staff and students in Malaysian universities has led to excessive energy consumption which directly gives an impact to the environment. The key question then ascended “How well is an energy management (EM) been practiced in universities without taking the Critical Success Factors (CSFs) into consideration to ensure the management of university achieves the goals in reducing energy consumption. Review on past literature is carried out to establish CSFs for EM best practices. Thus, this paper highlighted the CSFs which have to be focused on by management of university to successfully measure the EM implementation and its performance. At the end of this paper, a theoretical framework is developed for EM success factors towards sustainable university.

Keywords: Critical success factors, energy management, sustainability, Malaysian universities.

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4718 Optimizing Operation of Photovoltaic System Using Neural Network and Fuzzy Logic

Authors: N. Drir, L. Barazane, M. Loudini

Abstract:

It is well known that photovoltaic (PV) cells are an attractive source of energy. Abundant and ubiquitous, this source is one of the important renewable energy sources that have been increasing worldwide year by year. However, in the V-P characteristic curve of GPV, there is a maximum point called the maximum power point (MPP) which depends closely on the variation of atmospheric conditions and the rotation of the earth. In fact, such characteristics outputs are nonlinear and change with variations of temperature and irradiation, so we need a controller named maximum power point tracker MPPT to extract the maximum power at the terminals of photovoltaic generator. In this context, the authors propose here to study the modeling of a photovoltaic system and to find an appropriate method for optimizing the operation of the PV generator using two intelligent controllers respectively to track this point. The first one is based on artificial neural networks and the second on fuzzy logic. After the conception and the integration of each controller in the global process, the performances are examined and compared through a series of simulation. These two controller have prove by their results good tracking of the MPPT compare with the other method which are proposed up to now.

Keywords: Maximum power point tracking, neural networks, photovoltaic, P&O.

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4717 Spatial and Temporal Variability of Fog Over the Indo-Gangetic Plains, India

Authors: Sanjay Kumar Srivastava, Anu Rani Sharma, Kamna Sachdeva

Abstract:

The aim of the paper is to analyze the characteristics of winter fog in terms of its trend and spatial-temporal variability over Indo-Gangetic plains. The study reveals that during last four and half decades (1971-2015), an alarming increasing trend in fog frequency has been observed during the winter months of December and January over the study area. The frequency of fog has increased by 118.4% during the peak winter months of December and January. It has also been observed that on an average central part of IGP has 66.29% fog days followed by west IGP with 41.94% fog days. Further, Empirical Orthogonal Function (EOF) decomposition and Mann-Kendall variation analysis are used to analyze the spatial and temporal patterns of winter fog. The findings have significant implications for the further research of fog over IGP and formulate robust strategies to adapt the fog variability and mitigate its effects. The decision by Delhi Government to implement odd-even scheme to restrict the use of private vehicles in order to reduce pollution and improve quality of air may result in increasing the alarming increasing trend of fog over Delhi and its surrounding areas regions of IGP.

Keywords: Fog, climatology, spatial variability, temporal variability, empirical orthogonal function, visibility, Mann-Kendall test, variation point.

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4716 Hybrid Control Mode Based On Multi-Sensor Information by Fuzzy Approach for Navigation Task of Autonomous Mobile Robot

Authors: Jonqlan Lin, C. Y. Tasi, K. H. Lin

Abstract:

This paper addresses the issue of the autonomous mobile robot (AMR) navigation task based on the hybrid control modes. The novel hybrid control mode, based on multi-sensors information by using the fuzzy approach, has been presented in this research. The system operates in real time, is robust, enables the robot to operate with imprecise knowledge, and takes into account the physical limitations of the environment in which the robot moves, obtaining satisfactory responses for a large number of different situations. An experiment is simulated and carried out with a pioneer mobile robot. From the experimental results, the effectiveness and usefulness of the proposed AMR obstacle avoidance and navigation scheme are confirmed. The experimental results show the feasibility, and the control system has improved the navigation accuracy. The implementation of the controller is robust, has a low execution time, and allows an easy design and tuning of the fuzzy knowledge base.

Keywords: Autonomous mobile robot, obstacle avoidance, MEMS, hybrid control mode, navigation control.

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4715 Aquatic Modeling: An Interplay between Scales

Authors: Christina G. Siontorou

Abstract:

This paper presents an integrated knowledge-based approach to multi-scale modeling of aquatic systems, with a view to enhancing predictive power and aiding environmental management and policy-making. The basic phases of this approach have been exemplified in the case of a bay in Saronicos Gulf (Attiki, Greece). The results showed a significant problem with rising phytoplankton blooms linked to excessive microbial growth, arisen mostly due to increased nitrogen inflows; therefore, the nitrification/denitrification processes of the benthic and water column sub-systems have provided the quality variables to be monitored for assessing environmental status. It is thereby demonstrated that the proposed approach facilitates modeling choices and implementation option decisions, while it provides substantial support for knowledge and experience capitalization in long-term water management.

Keywords: Aquatic ecosystem, integrated modeling, multi-scale modeling, ontological platform.

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4714 Cutting and Breaking Events in Telugu

Authors: Vasanta Duggirala, Y. Viswanatha Naidu

Abstract:

This paper makes a contribution to the on-going debate on conceptualization and lexicalization of cutting and breaking (C&B) verbs by discussing data from Telugu, a language of India belonging to the Dravidian family. Five Telugu native speakers- verbalizations of agentive actions depicted in 43 short video-clips were analyzed. It was noted that verbalization of C&B events in Telugu requires formal units such as simple lexical verbs, explicator compound verbs, and other complex verb forms. The properties of the objects involved, the kind of instruments used, and the manner of action had differential influence on the lexicalization patterns. Further, it was noted that all the complex verb forms encode 'result' and 'cause' sub-events in that order. Due to the polysemy associated with some of the verb forms, our data does not support the straightforward bipartition of this semantic domain.

Keywords: Cluster analysis, Cutting and breaking events, Polysemy, Semantic extension, Telugu.

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4713 Worth of Sick Building Syndrome and Enhance the Quality of Life in Green Building

Authors: Kamyar Kabirifar, Majid Azarniush, Behbood Maashkar

Abstract:

A proper house is a suitable residential area which provides comfort, proper accessibility, security, stability and permanence of structure, enough lighting, proper initial infrastructures and ventilation for its inhabitants and the most important of all, it should be proportional to the family’s financial power .

Saving energy and making optimal usage of it and also taking advantage of stable energies are the bases of green buildings. Making green building will help the health of a person living in it and in its surrounding. It will support the people and provoke their satisfaction. Not only it will bring about the raise of level of the quality of life for building inhabitants, but it will cause the promotion of quality level of life of the people living in the surrounding area and in general the society. 

 

Keywords: Quality of Life, Green Building, environment pollution, Sick Building.

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4712 Model-free Prediction based on Tracking Theory and Newton Form of Polynomial

Authors: Guoyuan Qi , Yskandar Hamam, Barend Jacobus van Wyk, Shengzhi Du

Abstract:

The majority of existing predictors for time series are model-dependent and therefore require some prior knowledge for the identification of complex systems, usually involving system identification, extensive training, or online adaptation in the case of time-varying systems. Additionally, since a time series is usually generated by complex processes such as the stock market or other chaotic systems, identification, modeling or the online updating of parameters can be problematic. In this paper a model-free predictor (MFP) for a time series produced by an unknown nonlinear system or process is derived using tracking theory. An identical derivation of the MFP using the property of the Newton form of the interpolating polynomial is also presented. The MFP is able to accurately predict future values of a time series, is stable, has few tuning parameters and is desirable for engineering applications due to its simplicity, fast prediction speed and extremely low computational load. The performance of the proposed MFP is demonstrated using the prediction of the Dow Jones Industrial Average stock index.

Keywords: Forecast, model-free predictor, prediction, time series

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4711 Implementation of an Innovative Simplified Sliding Mode Observer-Based Robust Fault Detection in a Drum Boiler System

Authors: L. Khoshnevisan, H. R. Momeni, A. Ashraf-Modarres

Abstract:

One of the robust fault detection filter (RFDF) designing method is based on sliding-mode theory. The main purpose of our study is to introduce an innovative simplified reference residual model generator to formulate the RFDF as a sliding-mode observer without any manipulation package or transformation matrix, through which the generated residual signals can be evaluated. So the proposed design is more explicit and requires less design parameters in comparison with approaches requiring changing coordinates. To the best author's knowledge, this is the first time that the sliding mode technique is applied to detect actuator and sensor faults in a real boiler. The designing procedure is proposed in a drum boiler in Synvendska Kraft AB Plant in Malmo, Sweden as a multivariable and strongly coupled system. It is demonstrated that both sensor and actuator faults can robustly be detected. Also sensor faults can be diagnosed and isolated through this method.

Keywords: Boiler, fault detection, robustness, simplified sliding-mode observer.

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4710 Improving Spatiotemporal Change Detection: A High Level Fusion Approach for Discovering Uncertain Knowledge from Satellite Image Database

Authors: Wadii Boulila, Imed Riadh Farah, Karim Saheb Ettabaa, Basel Solaiman, Henda Ben Ghezala

Abstract:

This paper investigates the problem of tracking spa¬tiotemporal changes of a satellite image through the use of Knowledge Discovery in Database (KDD). The purpose of this study is to help a given user effectively discover interesting knowledge and then build prediction and decision models. Unfortunately, the KDD process for spatiotemporal data is always marked by several types of imperfections. In our paper, we take these imperfections into consideration in order to provide more accurate decisions. To achieve this objective, different KDD methods are used to discover knowledge in satellite image databases. Each method presents a different point of view of spatiotemporal evolution of a query model (which represents an extracted object from a satellite image). In order to combine these methods, we use the evidence fusion theory which considerably improves the spatiotemporal knowledge discovery process and increases our belief in the spatiotemporal model change. Experimental results of satellite images representing the region of Auckland in New Zealand depict the improvement in the overall change detection as compared to using classical methods.

Keywords: Knowledge discovery in satellite databases, knowledge fusion, data imperfection, data mining, spatiotemporal change detection.

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