Search results for: roads quality awareness provision.

Authors: N. Kannan, Sabu Joseph

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Groundwater is an essential and vital component of our life support system. The groundwater resources are being utilized for drinking, irrigation and industrial purposes. There is growing concern on deterioration of groundwater quality due to geogenic and anthropogenic activities. Groundwater, being a fragile must be carefully managed to maintain its purity within standard limits. So, quality assessment and management are to be carried out hand-in-hand to have a pollution free environment and for a sustainable use. In order to assess the quality for consumption by human beings and for use in agriculture, the groundwater from the shallow aquifers (dug well) in the Palakkad and Chittur taluks of Bharathapuzha river basin - a paddy dominated agricultural basin (order=8th; L= 209 Km; Area = 6186 Km2), Kerala, India, has been selected. The water samples (n= 120) collected for various seasons, viz., monsoon-MON (August, 2005), postmonsoon-POM (December, 2005) and premonsoon-PRM (April, 2006), were analyzed for important physico-chemical attributes. Spatial and temporal variation of attributes do exist in the study area, and based on major cations and anions, different hydrochemical facies have been identified. Using Gibbs'diagram, rock dominance has been identified as the mechanism controlling groundwater chemistry. Further, the suitability of water for irrigation was determined by analyzing salinity hazard indicated by sodium adsorption ratio (SAR), residual sodium carbonate (RSC) and sodium percent (%Na). Finally, stress zones in the study area were delineated using Arc GIS spatial analysis and various management options were recommended to restore the ecosystem.

Keywords: Groundwater quality, agricultural basin, Kerala, India.

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Authors: Ahmed A. Hassan, Al-Ramadan Baqer

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Kenya Amboseli National Park hosts the largest elephant’s population in the country, protected and managed by the government under the Kenya Wildlife Service. The park has been experiencing highly organized poaching, in terms of both total elephant deaths and the level of sophistication employed by the poachers. The main objective of this study is to use GIS to map the entire park properly. GIS map of the park was produced including all leading roads, neighboring land use, main gates and water points with geographic co-ordinates well documented. The result obtained indicates the three main gates and the airport as the hotspot points that the tusks can be ferried out of the park. Therefore, this study recommends the government to put strong security measures on these areas. These procedures can lower the poaching threat and assist the game warders properly manage the endangered species.

Keywords: Elephants, GIS, poaching, Amboseli National Park.

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Authors: Valentina Obradović, Josip Mesić, Maja Ergović Ravančić, Kamila Mijowska, Brankica Svitlica

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French oak and American oak barrels are most famous all over the world, but barrels of different origin can also be used for obtaining high quality wines. The aim of this research was to compare the influence of different Slovenian (Croatian) and French oak barrels on the quality of Chardonnay wine. Grapes were grown in the Croatian wine growing region of Kutjevo in 2015. Chardonnay wines were tested for basic oenological parameters (alcohol, extract, reducing sugar, SO₂, acidity), total polyphenols content (Folin-Ciocalteu method), antioxidant activity (ABTS and DPPH method) and colour density. Sensory evaluation was performed by students of viticulture/oenology. Samples produced by classical fermentation and ageing in French oak barrels had better results for polyphenols and sensory evaluation (especially low toasting level) than samples in Slovenian barrels. All tested samples were scored as a “quality” or “premium quality” wines. Sur lie method of fermentation and ageing in Slovenian oak barrel had very good extraction of polyphenols and high antioxidant activity with the usage of authentic yeasts, while commercial yeast strain resulted in worse chemical and sensory parameters.

Keywords: Chardonnay, French oak, Slovenian oak, sur lie.

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Authors: Refaat H. Abd El Razek, Ahmed M. Diab, Sherif M. Hafez, Remon F. Aziz

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Time-Cost Optimization "TCO" is one of the greatest challenges in construction project planning and control, since the optimization of either time or cost, would usually be at the expense of the other. Since there is a hidden trade-off relationship between project and cost, it might be difficult to predict whether the total cost would increase or decrease as a result of the schedule compression. Recently third dimension in trade-off analysis is taken into consideration that is quality of the projects. Few of the existing algorithms are applied in a case of construction project with threedimensional trade-off analysis, Time-Cost-Quality relationships. The objective of this paper is to presents the development of a practical software system; that named Automatic Multi-objective Typical Construction Resource Optimization System "AMTCROS". This system incorporates the basic concepts of Line Of Balance "LOB" and Critical Path Method "CPM" in a multi-objective Genetic Algorithms "GAs" model. The main objective of this system is to provide a practical support for typical construction planners who need to optimize resource utilization in order to minimize project cost and duration while maximizing its quality simultaneously. The application of these research developments in planning the typical construction projects holds a strong promise to: 1) Increase the efficiency of resource use in typical construction projects; 2) Reduce construction duration period; 3) Minimize construction cost (direct cost plus indirect cost); and 4) Improve the quality of newly construction projects. A general description of the proposed software for the Time-Cost-Quality Trade-Off "TCQTO" is presented. The main inputs and outputs of the proposed software are outlined. The main subroutines and the inference engine of this software are detailed. The complexity analysis of the software is discussed. In addition, the verification, and complexity of the proposed software are proved and tested using a real case study.

Keywords: Project management, typical (repetitive) large scale projects, line of balance, multi-objective optimization, genetic algorithms, time-cost-quality trade-offs.

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Authors: SunWoo Lee, TaeBum Lee, YoonHwa Park, YooJeong Kim

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Solar lentigines appear predominantly on chronically sun-exposed areas of skin, such as the face and the back of the hands. Among the several ways to lentigines treatment, quality-switched lasers are well-known effective treatment for removing solar lentigines. The present pilot study was therefore designed to assess the efficacy of quality-switched ruby laser treatment of such lentigines compare between pretreatment and posttreatment of skin brightness. Twenty-two adults with chronic sun-damaged skin (mean age 52.8 years, range 37–74 years) were treated at the Korean site. A 694 nm Q-switched ruby laser was used, with the energy density set from 1.4 to 12.5 J/cm2, to treat solar lentigines. Average brightness of skin color before ruby laser treatment was 137.3 and its skin color was brightened after ruby laser treatment by 150.5. Also, standard deviation of skin color was decreased from 17.8 to 16.4. Regarding the multivariate model, age and energy were identified as significant factors for skin color brightness change in lentigo depigmentation by ruby laser treatment. Their respective odds ratios were 1.082 (95% CI, 1.007–1.163), and 1.431 (95% CI, 1.051–1.946). Lentigo depigmentation treatment using ruby lasers resulted in a high performance in skin color brightness. Among the relative factors involve with ruby laser treatment, age and energy were the most effective factors which skin color change to brighter than pretreatment.

Keywords: Depigmentation, lentigo, quality switched ruby laser, skin color.

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Authors: Wendong Tao

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Stormwater wetlands have been mainly designed in an empirical approach for water quality improvement, with little quantitative understanding of the internal microbial processes. This study investigated into heterotrophic bacterial production rate, heterotrophic bacterial mineralization percentage, and algal biomass in hypertrophic and eutrophic surface flow stormwater wetlands. Compared to a nearby wood leachate treatment wetland, the stormwater wetlands had much higher chlorophyll-a concentrations. The eutrophic stormwater wetland had improved water quality, whereas the hypertrophic stormwater wetland had degraded water quality. Heterotrophic bacterial activities in water were limited in the stormwater wetlands due to competition of algal growth for nutrients. The relative contribution of biofilms to the overall heterotrophic activities was higher in the stormwater wetlands than that in the wood leachate treatment wetland.

Keywords: chlorophyll-a, constructed wetland, heterotrophicproduction, mineralization, stormwater

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Authors: Tahereh Talebi, Reza Ghomashchi, Pejman Talemi, Sima Aminorroaya

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A high quality crack-free film of Bi₂Te₃ material has been deposited for the first time using electrophoretic deposition (EPD) and microstructures of various films have been investigated. One of the most important thermoelectric (TE) applications is Bi₂Te₃ to manufacture TE generators (TEG) which can convert waste heat into electricity targeting the global warming issue. However, the high cost of the manufacturing process of TEGs keeps them expensive and out of reach for commercialization. Therefore, utilizing EPD as a simple and cost-effective method will open new opportunities for TEG’s commercialization. This method has been recently used for advanced materials such as microelectronics and has attracted a lot of attention from both scientists and industry. In this study, the effect of media of suspensions has been investigated on the quality of the deposited films as well as their microstructure. In summary, finding an appropriate suspension is a critical step for a successful EPD process and has an important effect on both the film’s quality and its future properties.

Keywords: Bi2Te3, electrical conductivity, electrophoretic deposition, thermoelectric materials, thick films.

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Authors: Qiying Zhang, Panpan Xu, Hui Qian

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Groundwater is an important water resource in the world, especially in arid and semi-arid regions. In the present study, 141 groundwater samples were collected and analyzed for various physicochemical parameters to assess the irrigation water quality using six indicators (sodium percentage (Na%), sodium adsorption ratio (SAR), magnesium hazard (MH), residual sodium carbonate (RSC), permeability index (PI), and potential salinity (PS)). The results show that the patterns for the average cation and anion concentrations were in decreasing orders of Na^＋ > Mg^2＋ > Ca^2＋ > K^＋and SO₄^2－ > HCO₃^－ > Cl^－ > NO₃^－ > CO₃^2－ > F^－, respectively. The values of Na%, MH, and PS show that most of the groundwater samples are not suitable for irrigation. The same conclusion is drawn from the USSL and Wilcox diagrams. PS values indicate that Cl^－and SO₄^2－have a great influence on irrigation water in Jiaokou Irrigation District. RSC and PI values indicate that more than half of groundwater samples are suitable for irrigation. The finding is beneficial for the policymakers for future water management schemes to achieve a sustainable development goal.

Keywords: Irrigation water quality evaluation, groundwater chemistry, Jiaokou Irrigation District, Guanzhong Basin.

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Authors: D. Sathan, A. Meetoo, R. K. Subramaniam

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Context awareness is a capability whereby mobile computing devices can sense their physical environment and adapt their behavior accordingly. The term context-awareness, in ubiquitous computing, was introduced by Schilit in 1994 and has become one of the most exciting concepts in early 21st-century computing, fueled by recent developments in pervasive computing (i.e. mobile and ubiquitous computing). These include computing devices worn by users, embedded devices, smart appliances, sensors surrounding users and a variety of wireless networking technologies. Context-aware applications use context information to adapt interfaces, tailor the set of application-relevant data, increase the precision of information retrieval, discover services, make the user interaction implicit, or build smart environments. For example: A context aware mobile phone will know that the user is currently in a meeting room, and reject any unimportant calls. One of the major challenges in providing users with context-aware services lies in continuously monitoring their contexts based on numerous sensors connected to the context aware system through wireless communication. A number of context aware frameworks based on sensors have been proposed, but many of them have neglected the fact that monitoring with sensors imposes heavy workloads on ubiquitous devices with limited computing power and battery. In this paper, we present CALEEF, a lightweight and energy efficient context aware framework for resource limited ubiquitous devices.

Keywords: Context-Aware, Energy-Efficient, Lightweight, Ubiquitous Devices.

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Authors: Roy R. Gu, Mahesh Sahu

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The use of contour strips of perennial vegetation with bio-fuel potential can improve surface water quality by reducing NO3-N and sediment outflow from cropland to surface water-bodies. It also has economic benefits of producing ethanol. In this study, The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model was applied to a watershed in Iowa, USA to examine the effectiveness of contour strips of switch grass in reducing the NO3-N outflows from crop fields to rivers or lakes. Numerical experiments were conducted to identify potential subbasins in the watershed that have high water quality impact, and to examine the effects of strip size on NO3-N reduction under various meteorological conditions, i.e. dry, average and wet years. Useful information was obtained for the evaluation of economic feasibility of growing switch grass for bio-fuel in contour strips. The results can assist in cost-benefit analysis and decisionmaking in best management practices for environmental protection.

Keywords: ethanol, modeling, water quality, NO3-N, watershed.

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Authors: Mst. Nilufa Sultana, Shatirah Akib, Muhammad Aqeel Ashraf, Mohamed Roseli Zainal Abidin

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Most people today are aware that global climate change is not just a scientific theory but also a fact with worldwide consequences. Global climate change is due to rapid urbanization, industrialization, high population growth and current vulnerability of the climatic condition. Water is becoming scarce as a result of global climate change. To mitigate the problem arising due to global climate change and its drought effect, harvesting rainwater from green roofs, an environmentally-friendly and versatile technology, is becoming one of the best assessment criteria and gaining attention in Malaysia. This paper addresses the sustainability of green roofs and examines the quality of water harvested from green roofs in comparison to rainwater. The factors that affect the quality of such water, taking into account, for example, roofing materials, climatic conditions, the frequency of rainfall frequency and the first flush. A green roof was installed on the Humid Tropic Centre (HTC) is a place of the study on monitoring program for urban Stormwater Management Manual for Malaysia (MSMA), Eco-Hydrological Project in Kuala Lumpur, and the rainwater was harvested and evaluated on the basis of four parameters i.e., conductivity, dissolved oxygen (DO), pH and temperature. These parameters were found to fall between Class I and Class III of the Interim National Water Quality Standards (INWQS) and the Water Quality Index (WQI). Some preliminary treatment such as disinfection and filtration could likely to improve the value of these parameters to class I. This review paper clearly indicates that there is a need for more research to address other microbiological and chemical quality parameters to ensure that the harvested water is suitable for use potable water for domestic purposes. The change in all physical, chemical and microbiological parameters with respect to storage time will be a major focus of future studies in this field.

Keywords: Green roofs, INWQS, MSMA-SME, Rainwater harvesting.

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Authors: M. Haghighi, M. Zowghi, B. Zohouri

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Quality Function Deployment (QFD) is an expounded, multi-step planning method for delivering commodity, services, and processes to customers, both external and internal to an organization. It is a way to convert between the diverse customer languages expressing demands (Voice of the Customer), and the organization-s languages expressing results that sate those demands. The policy is to establish one or more matrices that inter-relate producer and consumer reciprocal expectations. Due to its visual presence is called the “House of Quality" (HOQ). In this paper, we assumed HOQ in multi attribute decision making (MADM) pattern and through a proposed MADM method, rank technical specifications. Thereafter compute satisfaction degree of customer requirements and for it, we apply vagueness and uncertainty conditions in decision making by fuzzy set theory. This approach would propound supervised neural network (perceptron) for MADM problem solving.

Keywords: MADM, fuzzy set, QFD, supervised neural network (perceptron).

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Authors: Sumathi Poobal, G. Ravindran

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Image compression is one of the most important applications Digital Image Processing. Advanced medical imaging requires storage of large quantities of digitized clinical data. Due to the constrained bandwidth and storage capacity, however, a medical image must be compressed before transmission and storage. There are two types of compression methods, lossless and lossy. In Lossless compression method the original image is retrieved without any distortion. In lossy compression method, the reconstructed images contain some distortion. Direct Cosine Transform (DCT) and Fractal Image Compression (FIC) are types of lossy compression methods. This work shows that lossy compression methods can be chosen for medical image compression without significant degradation of the image quality. In this work DCT and Fractal Compression using Partitioned Iterated Function Systems (PIFS) are applied on different modalities of images like CT Scan, Ultrasound, Angiogram, X-ray and mammogram. Approximately 20 images are considered in each modality and the average values of compression ratio and Peak Signal to Noise Ratio (PSNR) are computed and studied. The quality of the reconstructed image is arrived by the PSNR values. Based on the results it can be concluded that the DCT has higher PSNR values and FIC has higher compression ratio. Hence in medical image compression, DCT can be used wherever picture quality is preferred and FIC is used wherever compression of images for storage and transmission is the priority, without loosing picture quality diagnostically.

Keywords: DCT, FIC, PIFS, PSNR.

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Authors: A. Radzevičius, P. Viškelis, J. Viškelis, R. Bobinaitė, R. Karklelienė, D. Juškevičienė

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Two cultivars ('Rutuliai', 'Saint Perrie') and five hybrids ('Tolstoi', 'Brooklyn', 'Tocayo', 'Benito', 'Tourist') of edible tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) were investigated at the LRCAF Institute of Horticulture. The following fruit quality parameters were evaluated: the amount of lycopene, β-carotene, ascorbic acid, total and inverted sugar, sucrose, dry matter soluble solids in fresh tomato matter, also were determined fruit skin and flesh firmness, color indexes (CIE L*a*b*) and calculated hue angle (h°) with chroma (C).

Keywords: Carotenoids, cultivar, nutrition, tomato.

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Authors: Justus S, K Iyakutti

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Object Relational Databases (ORDB) are complex in nature than traditional relational databases because they combine the characteristics of both object oriented concepts and relational features of conventional databases. Design of an ORDB demands efficient and quality schema considering the structural, functional and componential traits. This internal quality of the schema is assured by metrics that measure the relevant attributes. This is extended to substantiate the understandability, usability and reliability of the schema, thus assuring external quality of the schema. This work institutes a formalization of ORDB metrics; metric definition, evaluation methodology and the calibration of the metric. Three ORDB schemas were used to conduct the evaluation and the formalization of the metrics. The metrics are calibrated using content and criteria related validity based on the measurability, consistency and reliability of the metrics. Nominal and summative scales are derived based on the evaluated metric values and are standardized. Future works pertaining to ORDB metrics forms the concluding note.

Keywords: Measurements, Product metrics, Metrics calibration, Object-relational database.

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Authors: Vahid Khorramshahi, Alireza Behrad, Neeraj K. Kanhere

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In this paper we present a new method for over-height vehicle detection in low headroom streets and highways using digital video possessing. The accuracy and the lower price comparing to present detectors like laser radars and the capability of providing extra information like speed and height measurement make this method more reliable and efficient. In this algorithm the features are selected and tracked using KLT algorithm. A blob extraction algorithm is also applied using background estimation and subtraction. Then the world coordinates of features that are inside the blobs are estimated using a noble calibration method. As, the heights of the features are calculated, we apply a threshold to select overheight features and eliminate others. The over-height features are segmented using some association criteria and grouped using an undirected graph. Then they are tracked through sequential frames. The obtained groups refer to over-height vehicles in a scene.

Keywords: Feature extraction, over-height vehicle detection, traffic monitoring, vehicle tracking.

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Authors: Harri Laihonen, Antti Lönnqvist

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This paper challenges the relevance of knowledgebased management research by arguing that the majority of the literature emphasizes information and knowledge provision instead of their business usage. For this reason the related processes are considered valuable and eligible as such, which has led to overlapping nature of knowledge-based management disciplines. As a solution, this paper turns the focus on the information usage. Value of knowledge and respective management tasks are then defined by the business need and the knowledge-user becomes the main actor. The paper analyses the prevailing literature streams and recognizes the need for a more focused and robust understanding of knowledgebased value creation. The paper contributes by synthetizing the existing literature and pinpointing the essence of knowledge-based management disciplines.

Keywords: Knowledge-based, knowledge management, value creation.

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Authors: D. I. De Souza, G. P. Azevedo, R. Rocha

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The State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, will hold two important events in the nearby future. In 2014 it will have the final game of the Football World Cup, and in 2016 it will be holding the Olympic Games. Therefore, the public transportation system (mainly buses) is of a major concern to the Rio de Janeiro State authorities-. The main objective of this work is to compare the quality of service of the bus companies operating in the cities of ItaperunaandCampos, both cities situated in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The outcome of thiscomparison, based on the opinion of the bus users, has shownthemdispleased with the quality of the service provided by the bus companies operating in both cities. It is urgent the need to find possible practical alternatives to minimize the consequences of the main problems detected in this work. With these practical alternatives available, we will be able to offer to the Rio de Janeiro State authorities- suggestions about possible solutions to the main problems identified in this survey, as well as the time of implantation and costs of these solutions.

Keywords: Public Transportation, Quality of Service, Riders' Opinion, Bus Companies, Practical Alternatives.

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Authors: S. Bouhouche, M. Lahreche, S. Ziani, J. Bast

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Modern manufacturing facilities are large scale, highly complex, and operate with large number of variables under closed loop control. Early and accurate fault detection and diagnosis for these plants can minimise down time, increase the safety of plant operations, and reduce manufacturing costs. Fault detection and isolation is more complex particularly in the case of the faulty analog control systems. Analog control systems are not equipped with monitoring function where the process parameters are continually visualised. In this situation, It is very difficult to find the relationship between the fault importance and its consequences on the product failure. We consider in this paper an approach to fault detection and analysis of its effect on the production quality using an adaptive centring and scaling in the pickling process in cold rolling. The fault appeared on one of the power unit driving a rotary machine, this machine can not track a reference speed given by another machine. The length of metal loop is then in continuous oscillation, this affects the product quality. Using a computerised data acquisition system, the main machine parameters have been monitored. The fault has been detected and isolated on basis of analysis of monitored data. Normal and faulty situation have been obtained by an artificial neural network (ANN) model which is implemented to simulate the normal and faulty status of rotary machine. Correlation between the product quality defined by an index and the residual is used to quality classification.

Keywords: Modeling, fault detection and diagnosis, parameters estimation, neural networks, Fault Detection and Diagnosis (FDD), pickling process.

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Authors: Fang Ye, Han Yu, Yibing Li

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Radio interference is one of the major concerns in using the global positioning system (GPS) for civilian and military applications. Interference signals are produced not only through all electronic systems but also illegal jammers. Among different types of interferences, continuous wave (CW) interference has strong adverse impacts on the quality of the received signal. In this paper, we make more detailed analysis for CW interference effects on GPS signal quality. Based on the C/A code spectrum lines, the influence of CW interference on the acquisition performance of GPS receivers is further analysed. This influence is supported by simulation results using GPS software receiver. As the most important user parameter of GPS receivers, the mathematical expression of bit error probability is also derived in the presence of CW interference, and the expression is consistent with the Monte Carlo simulation results. The research on CW interference provides some theoretical gist and new thoughts on monitoring the radio noise environment and improving the anti-jamming ability of GPS receivers.

Keywords: GPS, CW interference, acquisition performance, bit error probability, Monte Carlo.

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Authors: Vincent A. Adzika, Franklin N. Glozah, Collins S. K. Ahorlu

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Background: Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) is of major public-health concern globally, with majority of patients living in Africa. Despite its relevance, there is a dearth of research to determine the socio-demographic distribution and psychosocial impact of SCD in Africa. The objective of this study therefore was to examine the socio-demographic distribution and psychosocial consequences of SCD among patients in Ghana and to assess their quality of life and coping mechanisms. Methods: A cross-sectional research design was used, involving the completion of questionnaires on socio-demographic characteristics, quality of life of individuals, anxiety and depression. Participants were 387 male and female patients attending a sickle cell clinic in a public hospital. Results: Results showed no gender and marital status differences in anxiety and depression. However, there were age and level of education variances in depression but not in anxiety. In terms of quality of life, patients were more satisfied by the presence of love, friends, relatives as well as home, community and neighbourhood environment. While pains of varied nature and severity were the major reasons for attending hospital in SCD condition, going to the hospital as well as having Faith in God was the frequently reported mechanisms for coping with an unbearable SCD attacks. Multiple regression analysis showed that some socio-demographic and quality of life indicators had strong associations with anxiety and/or depression. Conclusion: It is recommended that a multi-dimensional intervention strategy incorporating psychosocial dimensions should be considered in the treatment and management of SCD.

Keywords: Sickle cell disease, quality of life, anxiety, depression, socio-demographic characteristics, Ghana.

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Authors: Frank Emmert-Streib, Matthias Dehmer

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Inferring the network structure from time series data is a hard problem, especially if the time series is short and noisy. DNA microarray is a technology allowing to monitor the mRNA concentration of thousands of genes simultaneously that produces data of these characteristics. In this study we try to investigate the influence of the experimental design on the quality of the result. More precisely, we investigate the influence of two different types of random single gene perturbations on the inference of genetic networks from time series data. To obtain an objective quality measure for this influence we simulate gene expression values with a biologically plausible model of a known network structure. Within this framework we study the influence of single gene knock-outs in opposite to linearly controlled expression for single genes on the quality of the infered network structure.

Keywords: Dynamic Bayesian networks, microarray data, structure learning, Markov chain Monte Carlo.

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Authors: Zenon Chaczko, Essam Rahali, Rizwan Tariq

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This paper introduces a process for the module level integration of computer based systems. It is based on the Six Sigma Process Improvement Model, where the goal of the process is to improve the overall quality of the system under development. We also present a conceptual framework that shows how this process can be implemented as an integration solution. Finally, we provide a partial implementation of key components in the conceptual framework.

Keywords: Software Quality, Six Sigma, System Integration, 3SI Process, 3SI Conceptual Framework.

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Authors: Vijay Gajanan Neve, Pallavi V. Pullawar, G. M. Dhole

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Modern industrial processes are based on a large amount of electronic devices such as programmable logic controllers and adjustable speed drives. Unfortunately, electronic devices are sensitive to disturbances, and thus, industrial loads become less tolerant to power quality problems such as sags, swells, and harmonics. Voltage sags are an important power quality problem. In this paper proposed a new configuration of Static Var Compensator (SVC) considering three different conditions named as topologies and Booster transformer with fuzzy logic based controller, capable of compensating for power quality problems associated with voltage sags and maintaining a prescribed level of voltage profile. Fuzzy logic controller is designed to achieve the firing angles for SVC such that it maintains voltage profile. The online monitoring system for voltage sag mitigation in the laboratory using the hardware is used. The results are presented from the performance of each topology and Booster transformer considered in this paper.

Keywords: Booster Transformer, Fuzzy logic, Static Var Compensator, Voltage sag.

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Authors: A. Beheshti, S. Salkhordeh, H. Amini

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Based on statistics released by Islamic Republic of Iran Police (IRIP), from among the total 9555 motorcycle accidents that happened in 2007, 857 riders died and 11219 one got injured. If we also consider the death toll and injuries of other vehicles' accidents resulted from traffic violation by motorcycle riders, then paying attention to the motorcycle accidents seems to be very necessary. Therefore, in this study we tried to investigate the traits and issues related to production, application, and training, along with causes of motorcycle accidents from 4 perspectives of road, human, environment and vehicle and also based on statistical and geographical analysis of accident-sheets prepared by Iran Road Patrol Department (IRPD). Unfamiliarity of riders with regulations and techniques of motorcycling, disuse of safety equipments, inefficiency of roads and design of junctions for safe trafficking of motorcycles and finally the lack of sufficient control of responsible organizations are among the major causes which lead to these accidents.

Keywords: Motorcycle, Motorcycle riders, Road accidents, Statistical analysis of accidents.

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Authors: M. E. Silva, I. Brás

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The aim of this work was to study the viability of recycling the residual yeast and diatomaceous earth (RYDE) slurry generated by the beer brewing industry by composting with animal manures, as well as to evaluate the quality of the composts obtained. Two pilot composting trials were carried out with different mixes: cow manure/RYDE slurry (Pile CM) and sheep manure/RYDE slurry (Pile SM). For all piles, wood chips were applied as bulking agent. The process was monitored by evaluating standard physical and chemical parameters. The compost quality was assessed by the heavy metals content and phytotoxicity. Both piles reached a thermophilic phase in the first day, however having different trends. The pH showed a slight alkaline character. The C/N reached values lower than 19 at the end of composting process. Generally, all the piles exhibited absence of heavy metals. However, the pile SM exhibited phytotoxicity. This study showed that RYDE slurry can be valorized by composting with cow manure.

Keywords: Beer brewing wastes, compost; quality, valorization.

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Authors: R. Sinthavalai, N. Memongkol, N. Patthanaprechawong, J. Viriyanantavong, C. Choosuk

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In Thailand, the practice of pre-hospital Emergency Medical Service (EMS) in each area reveals the different growth rates and effectiveness of the practices. Those can be found as the diverse quality and quantity. To shorten the learning curve prior to speed-up the practices in other areas, story telling and lessons learnt from the effective practices are valued as meaningful knowledge. To this paper, it was to ascertain the factors, lessons learnt and best practices that have impact as contributing to the success of prehospital EMS system. Those were formulized as model prior to speedup the practice in other areas. To develop the model, Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award (MBNQA), which is widely recognized as a framework for organizational quality assessment and improvement, was chosen as the discussion framework. Remarkably, this study was based on the consideration of knowledge capture; however it was not to complete the loop of knowledge activities. Nevertheless, it was to highlight the recognition of knowledge capture, which is the initiation of knowledge management.

Keywords: Emergency Medical Service, Modeling, MBNQA, Thailand.

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Authors: Etsuo Morishita

Abstract:

This paper presents the project and experiment-based fluid dynamics education in Meisei University, a private institution in Tokyo, Japan. We pay attention not only to the basic engineering courses but also to the practical aspect of engineering experience. So, we prepare courses called the Projects from I to VI. The Projects I and II are designed for the first year, III and IV are designated for the second year, V and VI are prepared for the third year, respectively. Each supervisor is responsible for two of these projects every year. When students take the Project V and VI at the third year, we automatically assume that these students will join the lab of the project for the graduation thesis. We would like to show our experience in the Project I in the summer term, 2016. In this project, we introduce a traction flight vehicle called Cat Flyer. This is a kind of a kite towed by a car for example. This is very similar to parasailing, but flight is possible even on the roads. Experiments in mechanical engineering education are also very important, and we would like to explain our course on centrifugal pump, venture, and orifice. Although these are described in detail in the text books of fluid dynamics, it is still crucial to have practical experiments as a student.

Keywords: Aerodynamics, experiment, fluid dynamics, project.

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Authors: Ahd Aljarf, Saad Amin

Abstract:

Images are important source of information used as evidence during any investigation process. Their clarity and accuracy is essential and of the utmost importance for any investigation. Images are vulnerable to losing blocks and having noise added to them either after alteration or when the image was taken initially, therefore, having a high performance image processing system and it is implementation is very important in a forensic point of view. This paper focuses on improving the quality of the forensic images. For different reasons packets that store data can be affected, harmed or even lost because of noise. For example, sending the image through a wireless channel can cause loss of bits. These types of errors might give difficulties generally for the visual display quality of the forensic images. Two of the images problems: noise and losing blocks are covered. However, information which gets transmitted through any way of communication may suffer alteration from its original state or even lose important data due to the channel noise. Therefore, a developed system is introduced to improve the quality and clarity of the forensic images.

Keywords: Image Filtering, Image Reconstruction, Image Processing, Forensic Images.

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Authors: Funmilayo L. Amao

Abstract:

As a result of the high cost of housing, the increasing population is forced to live in substandard housing and unhealthy conditions giving rise to poor residential neighborhoods. The paper examines the causes and characteristics of poor residential neighborhood. The paper finds the problems that have influence poor neighborhoods to; poverty, growth of informal sector and housing shortage. The paper asserts that poor residential neighborhoods have adverse effects on the people.

The secondary data was obtained from books, journals and seminar papers while primary data relating to building and environmental quality from structured questionnaire administered on sample of 500 household heads, from sampling frame of 5000 housing units.

The study reveals that majority of the respondents are poor and employed in informal sector. The paper suggests urban renewal and slum upgrading programs as methods in dealing with the situation and an improvement in the socio-economic circumstances of the inhabitants.

Keywords: Environmental Degeneration, Housing, Poverty, Quality of life, Urban Upgrading.

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