Search results for: risk reduction.
1297 Effect of Substituent on Titanocene/MMAO Catalyst for Ethylene/1-Hexene Copolymerization
Authors: M. Wannaborworn, B. Jongsomjit, T. Shiono
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Copolymerization of ethylene with 1-hexene was carried out using two ansa-fluorenyl titanium derivative complexes. The substituent effect on the catalytic activity, monomer reactivity ratio and polymer property was investigated. It was found that the presence of t-Bu groups on fluorenyl ring exhibited remarkable catalytic activity and produced polymer with high molecular weight. However, these catalysts produce polymer with narrow molecular weight distribution, indicating the characteristic of single-site metallocene catalyst. Based on 13C NMR, we can observe that monomer reactivity ratio was affected by catalyst structure. The rH values of complex 2 were lower than that of complex 1 which might be result from the higher steric hindrance leading to a reduction of 1- hexene insertion step.Keywords: Constrained geometry catalyst, linear low density polyethylene, copolymerization, reactivity ratio
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 16251296 Real-Time Defects Detection Algorithm for High-Speed Steel Bar in Coil
Authors: Se Ho Choi, Jong Pil Yun, Boyeul Seo, YoungSu Park, Sang Woo Kim
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This paper presents a real-time defect detection algorithm for high-speed steel bar in coil. Because the target speed is very high, proposed algorithm should process quickly the large volumes of image for real-time processing. Therefore, defect detection algorithm should satisfy two conflicting requirements of reducing the processing time and improving the efficiency of defect detection. To enhance performance of detection, edge preserving method is suggested for noise reduction of target image. Finally, experiment results show that the proposed algorithm guarantees the condition of the real-time processing and accuracy of detection.Keywords: Defect detection, edge preserving filter, real-time image processing, surface inspection.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 32811295 Weight Comparison of Oil and Dry Type Distribution Transformers
Authors: Murat Toren, Mehmet Çelebi
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Reducing the weight of transformers while providing good performance, cost reduction and increased efficiency is important. Weight is one of the most significant factors in all electrical machines, and as such, many transformer design parameters are related to weight calculations. This study presents a comparison of the weight of oil type transformers and dry type transformer weight. Oil type transformers are mainly used in industry; however, dry type transformers are becoming more widespread in recent years. MATLAB is typically used for designing transformers and design parameters (rated voltages, core loss, etc.) along with design in ANSYS Maxwell. Similar to other studies, this study presented that the dry type transformer option is limited. Moreover, the commonly-used 50 kVA distribution transformers in the industry are oil type and dry type transformers are designed and considered in terms of weight. Currently, the preference for low-cost oil-type transformers would change if costs for dry-type transformer were more competitive. The aim of this study was to compare the weight of transformers, which is a substantial cost factor, and to provide an evaluation about increasing the use of dry type transformers.
Keywords: Weight, oil-type transformers, dry-type transformers.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 32931294 F-IVT Actuation System to Power Artificial Knee Joint
Authors: Alò Roberta, Bottiglione Francesco, Mantriota Giacomo
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The efficiency of the actuation system of exoskeletons and active orthoses for lower limbs is a significant aspect of the design of such devices because it affects their efficacy. The F-IVT is an innovative actuation system to power artificial knee joint with energy recovery capabilities. Its key and non-conventional elements are a flywheel that acts as a mechanical energy storage system, and an Infinitely Variable Transmission (IVT). The design of the F-IVT can be optimized for a certain walking condition, resulting in a heavy reduction of both the electric energy consumption and of the electric peak power. In this work, by means of simulations of level ground walking at different speeds, it is demonstrated that the F-IVT is still an advantageous actuator which permits to save energy consumption and to downsize the electric motor even when it does not work in nominal conditions.Keywords: Active orthoses, actuators, lower extremity exoskeletons, knee joint.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 24401293 Experimental Study of Exhaust Muffler System for Direct-Injection Gasoline Engine
Authors: Abdallah F. Abd El-Mohsen, Ahmed A. Abdelsamee, Nouby M. Ghazaly
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Engine exhaust noise is considered one of the largest sources of vehicle exterior noise. Further reduction of noise from the vehicle exhaust system will be required, as the vehicle exterior noise regulations become stricter. Therefore, the present study has been carried out to illustrate the role of engine operating parameters and exhaust system construction factors on exhaust noise emitted. The measurements carried out using different exhaust systems, which are mainly used in today’s vehicle. The effect of engine speed on the spectra level of exhaust noise is recorded at engine speeds of 900 rpm, 1800 rpm, 2700, rpm 3600 rpm and 4500 rpm. The results indicate that the increase of engine speed causes a significant increase in the spectrum level of exhaust noise. The increase in the number of the outlet of the expansion chamber also reduces the overall level of exhaust noise.
Keywords: Exhaust system, engine speed, expansion chamber.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 6051292 Variance Based Component Analysis for Texture Segmentation
Authors: Zeinab Ghasemi, S. Amirhassan Monadjemi, Abbas Vafaei
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This paper presents a comparative analysis of a new unsupervised PCA-based technique for steel plates texture segmentation towards defect detection. The proposed scheme called Variance Based Component Analysis or VBCA employs PCA for feature extraction, applies a feature reduction algorithm based on variance of eigenpictures and classifies the pixels as defective and normal. While the classic PCA uses a clusterer like Kmeans for pixel clustering, VBCA employs thresholding and some post processing operations to label pixels as defective and normal. The experimental results show that proposed algorithm called VBCA is 12.46% more accurate and 78.85% faster than the classic PCA. Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 19621291 High Speed NP-CMOS and Multi-Output Dynamic Full Adder Cells
Authors: Reza Faghih Mirzaee, Mohammad Hossein Moaiyeri, Keivan Navi
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In this paper we present two novel 1-bit full adder cells in dynamic logic style. NP-CMOS (Zipper) and Multi-Output structures are used to design the adder blocks. Characteristic of dynamic logic leads to higher speeds than the other standard static full adder cells. Using HSpice and 0.18┬Ám CMOS technology exhibits a significant decrease in the cell delay which can result in a considerable reduction in the power-delay product (PDP). The PDP of Multi-Output design at 1.8v power supply is around 0.15 femto joule that is 5% lower than conventional dynamic full adder cell and at least 21% lower than other static full adders.Keywords: Bridge Style, Dynamic Logic, Full Adder, HighSpeed, Multi Output, NP-CMOS, Zipper.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 32411290 A Family of Zero Stable Block Integrator for the Solutions of Ordinary Differential Equations
Authors: A. M. Sagir
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In this paper, linear multistep technique using power series as the basis function is used to develop the block methods which are suitable for generating direct solution of the special second order ordinary differential equations with associated initial or boundary conditions. The continuous hybrid formulations enable us to differentiate and evaluate at some grids and off – grid points to obtain two different four discrete schemes, each of order (5,5,5,5)T, which were used in block form for parallel or sequential solutions of the problems. The computational burden and computer time wastage involved in the usual reduction of second order problem into system of first order equations are avoided by this approach. Furthermore, a stability analysis and efficiency of the block methods are tested on linear and non-linear ordinary differential equations and the results obtained compared favorably with the exact solution.Keywords: Block Method, Hybrid, Linear Multistep Method, Self – starting, Special Second Order.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 14681289 Effect of Waste Bottle Chips on Strength Parameters of Silty Soil
Authors: Seyed Abolhasan Naeini, Hamidreza Rahmani
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Laboratory consolidated undrained triaxial (CU) tests were carried out to study the strength behavior of silty soil reinforced with randomly plastic waste bottle chips. Specimens mixed with plastic waste chips in triaxial compression tests with 0.25, 0.50, 0.75, 1.0, and 1.25% by dry weight of soil and tree different length including 4, 8, and 12 mm. In all of the samples, the width and thickness of plastic chips were kept constant. According to the results, the amount and size of plastic waste bottle chips played an important role in the increasing of the strength parameters of reinforced silt compared to the pure soil. Because of good results, the suggested method of soil improvement can be used in many engineering problems such as increasing the bearing capacity and settlement reduction in foundations.
Keywords: Soil improvement, waste bottle chips, reinforcement, silt, Triaxial test.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 19491288 Environmental Analysis of the Zinc Oxide Nanophotocatalyst Synthesis
Authors: Natália B. Pompermayer, Mariana B. Porto, Elizabeth F. Souza
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Nanophotocatalysts such as titanium (TiO2), zinc (ZnO), and iron (Fe2O3) oxides can be used in organic pollutants oxidation, and in many other applications. But among the challenges for technological application (scale-up) of the nanotechnology scientific developments two aspects are still little explored: research on environmental risk of the nanomaterials preparation methods, and the study of nanomaterials properties and/or performance variability. The environmental analysis was performed for six different methods of ZnO nanoparticles synthesis, and showed that it is possible to identify the more environmentally compatible process even at laboratory scale research. The obtained ZnO nanoparticles were tested as photocatalysts, and increased the degradation rate of the Rhodamine B dye up to 30 times.
Keywords: Environmental impact analysis, inorganic nanoparticles, photocatalysts.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 34441287 Voice Command Recognition System Based on MFCC and VQ Algorithms
Authors: Mahdi Shaneh, Azizollah Taheri
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The goal of this project is to design a system to recognition voice commands. Most of voice recognition systems contain two main modules as follow “feature extraction" and “feature matching". In this project, MFCC algorithm is used to simulate feature extraction module. Using this algorithm, the cepstral coefficients are calculated on mel frequency scale. VQ (vector quantization) method will be used for reduction of amount of data to decrease computation time. In the feature matching stage Euclidean distance is applied as similarity criterion. Because of high accuracy of used algorithms, the accuracy of this voice command system is high. Using these algorithms, by at least 5 times repetition for each command, in a single training session, and then twice in each testing session zero error rate in recognition of commands is achieved.Keywords: MFCC, Vector quantization, Vocal tract, Voicecommand.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 31371286 Analyzing the Factors Influencing Exclusive Breastfeeding Using the Generalized Poisson Regression Model
Authors: Cheika Jahangeer, Naushad Mamode Khan, Maleika Heenaye-Mamode Khan
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Exclusive breastfeeding is the feeding of a baby on no other milk apart from breast milk. Exclusive breastfeeding during the first 6 months of life is of fundamental importance because it supports optimal growth and development during infancy and reduces the risk of obliterating diseases and problems. Moreover, in developed countries, exclusive breastfeeding has decreased the incidence and/or severity of diarrhea, lower respiratory infection and urinary tract infection. In this paper, we study the factors that influence exclusive breastfeeding and use the Generalized Poisson regression model to analyze the practices of exclusive breastfeeding in Mauritius. We develop two sets of quasi-likelihood equations (QLE)to estimate the parameters.
Keywords: Exclusive breastfeeding, Regression model, Quasilikelihood.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 17741285 Observation and Study of Landslides Affecting the Tangier – Oued R’mel Motorway Segment
Authors: S. Houssaini, L. Bahi
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The motorway segment between Tangier and Oued R’mel has experienced, since the beginning of building works, significant instability and landslides linked to a number of geological, hydrogeological and geothermic factors affecting the different formations. The landslides observed are not fully understood, despite many studies conducted on this segment. This study aims at producing new methods to better explain the phenomena behind the landslides, taking into account the geotechnical and geothermic contexts. This analysis builds up on previous studies and geotechnical data collected in the field. The final body of data collected shall be processed through the Plaxis software for a better and customizable view of the landslide problems in the area, which will help tofind solutions and stabilize land in the area.
Keywords: Landslides, modeling, risk, stabilization.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 20541284 Application of GAMS and GA in the Location and Penetration of Distributed Generation
Authors: Alireza Dehghani Pilehvarani, Mojtaba Hakimzadeh, Mohammad Jafari Far, Reza Sedaghati
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Distributed Generation (DG) can help in reducing the cost of electricity to the costumer, relieve network congestion and provide environmentally friendly energy close to load centers. Its capacity is also scalable and it provides voltage support at distribution level. Hence, DG placement and penetration level is an important problem for both the utility and DG owner. DG allocation and capacity determination is a nonlinear optimization problem. The objective function of this problem is the minimization of the total loss of the distribution system. Also high levels of penetration of DG are a new challenge for traditional electric power systems. This paper presents a new methodology for the optimal placement of DG and penetration level of DG in distribution system based on General Algebraic Modeling System (GAMS) and Genetic Algorithm (GA).
Keywords: Distributed Generation, Location, Loss Reduction, Distribution Network, GA, GAMS.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 26211283 Two-Stage Approach for Solving the Multi-Objective Optimization Problem on Combinatorial Configurations
Authors: Liudmyla Koliechkina, Olena Dvirna
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The statement of the multi-objective optimization problem on combinatorial configurations is formulated, and the approach to its solution is proposed. The problem is of interest as a combinatorial optimization one with many criteria, which is a model of many applied tasks. The approach to solving the multi-objective optimization problem on combinatorial configurations consists of two stages; the first is the reduction of the multi-objective problem to the single criterion based on existing multi-objective optimization methods, the second stage solves the directly replaced single criterion combinatorial optimization problem by the horizontal combinatorial method. This approach provides the optimal solution to the multi-objective optimization problem on combinatorial configurations, taking into account additional restrictions for a finite number of steps.Keywords: Discrete set, linear combinatorial optimization, multi-objective optimization, multipermutation, Pareto solutions, partial permutation set, permutation, structural graph.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 6471282 Analyzing Data on Breastfeeding Using Dispersed Statistical Models
Authors: Naushad Mamode Khan, Cheika Jahangeer, Maleika Heenaye-Mamode Khan
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Exclusive breastfeeding is the feeding of a baby on no other milk apart from breast milk. Exclusive breastfeeding during the first 6 months of life is very important as it supports optimal growth and development during infancy and reduces the risk of obliterating diseases and problems. Moreover, it helps to reduce the incidence and/or severity of diarrhea, lower respiratory infection and urinary tract infection. In this paper, we make a survey of the factors that influence exclusive breastfeeding and use two dispersed statistical models to analyze data. The models are the Generalized Poisson regression model and the Com-Poisson regression models.
Keywords: Exclusive breastfeeding, regression model, generalized poisson, com-poisson.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 15481281 Finite Element Simulation of Deep Drawing Process to Minimize Earing
Authors: Pawan S. Nagda, Purnank S. Bhatt, Mit K. Shah
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Earing defect in drawing process is highly undesirable not only because it adds on an additional trimming operation but also because the uneven material flow demands extra care. The objective of this work is to study the earing problem in the Deep Drawing of circular cup and to optimize the blank shape to reduce the earing. A finite element model is developed for 3-D numerical simulation of cup forming process in ABAQUS. Extra-deep-drawing (EDD) steel sheet has been used for simulation. Properties and tool design parameters were used as input for simulation. Earing was observed in the simulated cup and it was measured at various angles with respect to rolling direction. To reduce the earing defect initial blank shape was modified with the help of anisotropy coefficient. Modified blanks showed notable reduction in earing.Keywords: Finite element simulation, deep drawing, earing, anisotropy.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 19751280 Model Predictive Fuzzy Control of Air-ratio for Automotive Engines
Authors: Hang-cheong Wong, Pak-kin Wong, Chi-man Vong, Zhengchao Xie, Shaojia Huang
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Automotive engine air-ratio plays an important role of emissions and fuel consumption reduction while maintains satisfactory engine power among all of the engine control variables. In order to effectively control the air-ratio, this paper presents a model predictive fuzzy control algorithm based on online least-squares support vector machines prediction model and fuzzy logic optimizer. The proposed control algorithm was also implemented on a real car for testing and the results are highly satisfactory. Experimental results show that the proposed control algorithm can regulate the engine air-ratio to the stoichiometric value, 1.0, under external disturbance with less than 5% tolerance.Keywords: Air-ratio, Fuzzy logic, online least-squares support vector machine, model predictive control.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 17951279 Cladding of Al and Cu by Differential Speed Rolling
Authors: Tae Yun Chung, Jungho Moon, Tae Kwon Ha
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Al/Cu clad sheet has been fabricated by using differential speed rolling (DSR) process, which caused severe shear deformation between Al and Cu plate to easily bond to each other. Rolling was carried out at 100 and 150oC with speed ratios from 1.4 to 2.2, in which the total thickness reduction was in the range between 14 and 46%. Interfacial microstructure and mechanical properties of Al/Cu clad were investigated by scanning electron microscope equipped with energy dispersive X-ray detector, and tension tests. The DSR process was very effective to provide a good interface for atoms diffusion during subsequent annealing. The strength of bonding was higher with the increasing speed ratio. Post heat treatment enhanced the mechanical properties of clad sheet by forming intermetallic compounds in the interface area.
Keywords: Aluminum/Copper clad sheet, Differential speed rolling, Interface microstructure, Annealing, Tensile test.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 23381278 Optimization of CO2 Emissions and Cost for Composite Building Design with NSGA-II
Authors: Ji Hyeong Park, Ji Hye Jeon, Hyo Seon Park
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Environmental pollution problems have been globally main concern in all fields including economy, society and culture into the 21st century. Beginning with the Kyoto Protocol, the reduction on the emissions of greenhouse gas such as CO2 and SOX has been a principal challenge of our day. As most buildings unlike durable goods in other industries have a characteristic and long life cycle, they consume energy in quantity and emit much CO2. Thus, for green building construction, more research is needed to reduce the CO2 emissions at each stage in the life cycle. However, recent studies are focused on the use and maintenance phase. Also, there is a lack of research on the initial design stage, especially the structure design. Therefore, in this study, we propose an optimal design plan considering CO2 emissions and cost in composite buildings simultaneously by applying to the structural design of actual building.Keywords: Multi-objective optimization, CO2 emissions, structural cost, encased composite structure
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 21411277 Net Interest Margin of Cooperative Banks in Low Interest Rate Environment
Authors: Karolína Vozková, Matěj Kuc
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This paper deals with the impact of decrease in interest rates on the performance of commercial and cooperative banks in the Eurozone measured by net interest margin. The analysis was performed on balanced dataset of 268 commercial and 726 cooperative banks spanning the 2008-2015 period. We employed Fixed Effects estimation panel method. As expected, we found a negative relationship between market rates and net interest margin. Our results suggest that the impact of negative interest income differs across individual banking business models. More precisely, those cooperative banks were much more hit by the decrease of market interest rates which might be due to their ownership structure and more restrictive business regulation.
Keywords: Cooperative banks, performance, negative interest rates, risk management.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 10231276 Estimation of Groundwater Recovery by Recharge in the Agricultural Area
Authors: Tsutomu Ichikawa
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The Kumamoto area, Kyushu, Japan has 1,041km2 in area and about 1milion in population. This area is a greatest area in Japan which depends on groundwater for all of drinking water. Quantity of this local groundwater use is about 200MCM during the year. It is understood that the main recharging area of groundwater exist in the rice field zone which have high infiltrate height ahead of 100mm/ day of the irrigated water located in the middle area of the Shira-River Basin. However, by decrease of the paddy-rice planting area by urbanization and an acreage reduction policy, the groundwater income and expenditure turned worse. Then Kumamoto city and four companies expended financial support to increase recharging water to underground by ponded water in the field from 2004. In this paper, the author reported the situation of recovery of groundwater by recharge and estimates the efficiency of recharge by statistical method.Keywords: Groundwater recharge, groundwater level, spring water, paddy field.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 14051275 Cement Mortar Lining as a Potential Source of Water Contamination
Authors: M. Zielina, W. Dabrowski, E. Radziszewska-Zielina
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Several different cements have been tested to evaluate their potential to leach calcium, chromium and aluminum ions in soft water environment. The research allows comparing some different cements in order to the potential risk of water contamination. This can be done only in the same environment. To reach the results in reasonable short time intervals and to make heavy metals measurements with high accuracy, demineralized water was used. In this case the conditions of experiments are far away from the water supply practice, but short time experiments and measurably high concentrations of elements in the water solution are an important advantage. Moreover leaching mechanisms can be recognized, our experiments reported here refer to this kind of cements evaluation.
Keywords: Concrete corrosion, hydrogen sulfide, odors, reinforced concrete sewers, sewerage.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 33251274 2.5D Face Recognition Using Gabor Discrete Cosine Transform
Authors: Ali Cheraghian, Farshid Hajati, Soheila Gheisari, Yongsheng Gao
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In this paper, we present a novel 2.5D face recognition method based on Gabor Discrete Cosine Transform (GDCT). In the proposed method, the Gabor filter is applied to extract feature vectors from the texture and the depth information. Then, Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT) is used for dimensionality and redundancy reduction to improve computational efficiency. The system is combined texture and depth information in the decision level, which presents higher performance compared to methods, which use texture and depth information, separately. The proposed algorithm is examined on publically available Bosphorus database including models with pose variation. The experimental results show that the proposed method has a higher performance compared to the benchmark.Keywords: Gabor filter, discrete cosine transform, 2.5D face recognition, pose.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 17421273 State Programs Analysis and Social Crisis Management in the Republic of Kazakhstan: A Descriptive Study
Authors: Madina Kenzhegaranova, Aibol Mukhsiynov, Houman Sanandaji
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The article is about government programs and projects and their description which are aimed at improving the socioeconomic situation in the Republic of Kazakhstan. A brief historical overview, as well as information about current socio-economic, political and transitional contexts of the country are provided. Two theories were described in the article to inform this descriptive study. According to the United Nation's Development Reports for 2005 and 2011, the country's human development index (HDI) rose by several points despite the socio-economic and political imbalances taking place in the republic since it gained its independence in 1991. It is stated in the article that government support programs are one of the crucial factors that increase the population welfare which in its turn may lead to reduction of social crisis processes in the country.Keywords: human capital, social crisis, state programs, unemployment
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 15401272 Critical Success Factors of Information Technology Projects
Authors: Md. Athar Imtiaz, Abduljalil S. Al-Mudhary, Md. Taha Mirhashemi, Roslina Ibrahim
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Information Technology (IT) is being used by almost all organizations throughout the world. However its success at supporting and improving business is debatable. There is always the risk of IT project failure and studies have proven that a large number of IT projects indeed do fail. There are many components that further the success of IT projects; these have been studied in previous studies. Studies have found the most necessary components for success in software development projects, executive information systems etc. In this study previous literatures that have looked into these success promoting factors have been critically reviewed and analyzed. 15 Critical Success Factors (CSF) of IT projects were enlisted and examined. These factors can be applied to all IT projects and is not specific to a particular type of IT/IS project. A hypothesis was also generated after the evaluation of the factors.
Keywords: Critical Success Factors, CSF, IT Projects, IS Projects, Software Development Projects.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 124271271 Embodied Energy in Concrete and Structural Masonry on Typical Brazilian Buildings
Authors: Marco A. S. González, Marlova P. Kulakowski, Luciano G. Breitenbach, Felipe Kirch
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The AEC sector has an expressive environmental responsibility. Actually, most building materials have severe environmental impacts along their production cycle. Professionals enrolled in building design may choice the materials and techniques with less impact among the viable options. This work presents a study about embodied energy in materials of two typical Brazilian constructive alternatives. The construction options considered are reinforced concrete structure and structural masonry. The study was developed for the region of São Leopoldo, southern Brazil. Results indicated that the energy embodied in these two constructive systems is approximately 1.72 GJ·m-2 and 1.26 GJ·m-2, respectively. It may be concluded that the embodied energy is lower in the structural masonry system, with a reduction around to 1/4 in relation to the traditional option. The results can be used to help design decisions.
Keywords: Civil construction, sustainability, embodied energy.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 27391270 Role of Sequestration of CO2 Due to the Carbonation in Total CO2 Emission Balance in Concrete Life
Authors: P. P. Woyciechowski
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Calculation of the carbon footprint of cement concrete is a complex process including consideration of the phase of primary life (components and concrete production processes, transportation, construction works, maintenance of concrete structures) and secondary life, including demolition and recycling. Taking into consideration the effect of concrete carbonation can lead to a reduction in the calculated carbon footprint of concrete. In this paper, an example of CO2 balance for small bridge elements made of Portland cement reinforced concrete was done. The results include the effect of carbonation of concrete in a structure and of concrete rubble after demolition. It was shown that important impact of carbonation on the balance is possible only when rubble carbonation is possible. It was related to the fact that only the sequestration potential in the secondary phase of concrete life has significant value.Keywords: Carbon footprint, balance of carbon dioxide in nature, concrete carbonation, the sequestration potential of concrete.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 8141269 Robustness of Hybrid Learning Acceleration Feedback Control Scheme in Flexible Manipulators
Authors: M. Z Md Zain, M. O. Tokhi, M. S. Alam
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This paper describes a practical approach to design and develop a hybrid learning with acceleration feedback control (HLC) scheme for input tracking and end-point vibration suppression of flexible manipulator systems. Initially, a collocated proportionalderivative (PD) control scheme using hub-angle and hub-velocity feedback is developed for control of rigid-body motion of the system. This is then extended to incorporate a further hybrid control scheme of the collocated PD control and iterative learning control with acceleration feedback using genetic algorithms (GAs) to optimize the learning parameters. Experimental results of the response of the manipulator with the control schemes are presented in the time and frequency domains. The performance of the HLC is assessed in terms of input tracking, level of vibration reduction at resonance modes and robustness with various payloads.Keywords: Flexible manipulator, iterative learning control, vibration suppression.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 18081268 A Simulation Model for Bid Price Decision Making
Authors: R. Sammoura
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In Lebanon, public construction projects are awarded to the contractor submitting the lowest bid price based on a competitive bidding process. The contractor has to make a strategic decision in choosing the appropriate bid price that will offer a satisfactory profit with a greater probability to win. A simulation model for bid price decision making based on the lowest bid price evaluation is developed. The model, built using Crystal Ball decisionengineering software, considers two main factors affecting the bidding process: the number of qualified bidders and the size of the project. The validity of the model is tested on twelve separate projects. The study also shows how to use the model to conduct risk analysis and help any specific contractor to decide on his bid price with associated certainty level in a scientific method.Keywords: Bid price, Competition, Decision making, Simulation.
Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2765