3,268 research outputs found
Key technologies for safe and autonomous drones
Drones/UAVs are able to perform air operations that are very difficult to be performed by manned aircrafts. In addition, drones' usage brings significant economic savings and environmental benefits, while reducing risks to human life. In this paper, we present key technologies that enable development of drone systems. The technologies are identified based on the usages of drones (driven by COMP4DRONES project use cases). These technologies are grouped into four categories: U-space capabilities, system functions, payloads, and tools. Also, we present the contributions of the COMP4DRONES project to improve existing technologies. These contributions aim to ease drones’ customization, and enable their safe operation.This project has received funding from the ECSEL Joint Undertaking (JU) under grant agreement No 826610. The JU receives support from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme and Spain, Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, France, Italy, Latvia, Netherlands. The total project budget is 28,590,748.75 EUR (excluding ESIF partners), while the requested grant is 7,983,731.61 EUR to ECSEL JU, and 8,874,523.84 EUR of National and ESIF Funding. The project has been started on 1st October 2019
Instance-based Learning with Prototype Reduction for Real-Time Proportional Myocontrol: A Randomized User Study Demonstrating Accuracy-preserving Data Reduction for Prosthetic Embedded Systems
This work presents the design, implementation and validation of learning
techniques based on the kNN scheme for gesture detection in prosthetic control.
To cope with high computational demands in instance-based prediction, methods
of dataset reduction are evaluated considering real-time determinism to allow
for the reliable integration into battery-powered portable devices. The
influence of parameterization and varying proportionality schemes is analyzed,
utilizing an eight-channel-sEMG armband. Besides offline cross-validation
accuracy, success rates in real-time pilot experiments (online target
achievement tests) are determined. Based on the assessment of specific dataset
reduction techniques' adequacy for embedded control applications regarding
accuracy and timing behaviour, Decision Surface Mapping (DSM) proves itself
promising when applying kNN on the reduced set. A randomized, double-blind user
study was conducted to evaluate the respective methods (kNN and kNN with
DSM-reduction) against Ridge Regression (RR) and RR with Random Fourier
Features (RR-RFF). The kNN-based methods performed significantly better
(p<0.0005) than the regression techniques. Between DSM-kNN and kNN, there was
no statistically significant difference (significance level 0.05). This is
remarkable in consideration of only one sample per class in the reduced set,
thus yielding a reduction rate of over 99% while preserving success rate. The
same behaviour could be confirmed in an extended user study. With k=1, which
turned out to be an excellent choice, the runtime complexity of both kNN (in
every prediction step) as well as DSM-kNN (in the training phase) becomes
linear concerning the number of original samples, favouring dependable wearable
prosthesis applications
Automatic Control and Routing of Marine Vessels
Due to the intensive development of the global economy, many problems are constantly emerging connected to the safety of ships’ motion in the context of increasing marine traffic. These problems seem to be especially significant for the further development of marine transportation services, with the need to considerably increase their efficiency and reliability. One of the most commonly used approaches to ensuring safety and efficiency is the wide implementation of various automated systems for guidance and control, including such popular systems as marine autopilots, dynamic positioning systems, speed control systems, automatic routing installations, etc. This Special Issue focuses on various problems related to the analysis, design, modelling, and operation of the aforementioned systems. It covers such actual problems as tracking control, path following control, ship weather routing, course keeping control, control of autonomous underwater vehicles, ship collision avoidance. These problems are investigated using methods such as neural networks, sliding mode control, genetic algorithms, L2-gain approach, optimal damping concept, fuzzy logic and others. This Special Issue is intended to present and discuss significant contemporary problems in the areas of automatic control and the routing of marine vessels
Efficiency and Sustainability of the Distributed Renewable Hybrid Power Systems Based on the Energy Internet, Blockchain Technology and Smart Contracts-Volume II
The climate changes that are becoming visible today are a challenge for the global research community. In this context, renewable energy sources, fuel cell systems, and other energy generating sources must be optimally combined and connected to the grid system using advanced energy transaction methods. As this reprint presents the latest solutions in the implementation of fuel cell and renewable energy in mobile and stationary applications, such as hybrid and microgrid power systems based on the Energy Internet, Blockchain technology, and smart contracts, we hope that they will be of interest to readers working in the related fields mentioned above
Low Power Memory/Memristor Devices and Systems
This reprint focusses on achieving low-power computation using memristive devices. The topic was designed as a convenient reference point: it contains a mix of techniques starting from the fundamental manufacturing of memristive devices all the way to applications such as physically unclonable functions, and also covers perspectives on, e.g., in-memory computing, which is inextricably linked with emerging memory devices such as memristors. Finally, the reprint contains a few articles representing how other communities (from typical CMOS design to photonics) are fighting on their own fronts in the quest towards low-power computation, as a comparison with the memristor literature. We hope that readers will enjoy discovering the articles within
Étude de la propagation des fumées lors d’un incendie de façade double peau (FDP) photovoltaïques intégrés au bâtiment (PVIB) sur la base des essais à l'hélium à petite échelle et de simulations
De nos jours, la capacité installée des panneaux photovoltaïques augmente considérablement. Cependant, l'augmentation pose un nouveau défi à la sécurité des occupants, y compris les incendies liés au PV. Malheureusement, il n'y a pas eu suffisamment de recherches pour étudier la sécurité incendie des incendies liés au PV. Pour combler les lacunes de la recherche, une nouvelle théorie de la similarité de l'hélium et une méthode de mise à l'échelle sont proposées, qui utilisent la libération d'hélium comme substitut de la fumée réelle du feu. Ensuite, une expérience d'hélium à petite échelle et une simulation CFD sont conçues sur la base de la similarité hélium-fumée et de la méthode de mise à l'échelle. Les résultats montrent que le nouveau modèle CFD proposé est bien validé par les résultats de l'expérience, et la similitude entre un modèle à grande échelle avec fumée, un modèle à petite échelle avec fumée et un modèle à petite échelle avec substitut d'hélium est bien compatible. Enfin, le mécanisme de propagation des fumées d'un incendie de façade double peau BIPV est étudié par l'étude paramétrique.Abstract: Reducing energy consumption and electricity demand in buildings by using advanced clean and energy-efficient technologies such as building attached photovoltaics (BAPVs) and building integrated photovoltaics (BIPVs) systems have been widely applied in new and existing constructions. Meanwhile, they can cause a new critical challenge, i.e., fire safety. Plumes from the PV panel fires could spread into the buildings through the windows and ventilation openings. This creates toxic conditions for people in and around the buildings, leading to inhalation injuries from the toxic chemicals released by solar panels and their batteries. The risk of fire can be elevated by affecting the propagation of fire inside and outside the building. Furthermore, interferes with the smoke and venting system, firefighting operation, and electrical shock dangers. Most of the studies on PV panels are to find the cause of failure, improve the cell efficiency, cost reduction, and extract maximum power, while there is the need to study the system for smoke propagation as well. Applying BIPV on the building causes major changes in the traditional method of using structural components. These changes may include changes in the material, standard distances, gaps, and duties of elements each of which can bring new issues. In this research, a case of BIPV application on the building double skin façade is studied.to observe the physics of smoke spread from ignited BIPV on the façade to the indoor environment. Therefore, a small-scale model is designed using a helium surrogate based on the helium-smoke plume similarity and Froud modeling. The validity of the CFD model is observed and the mentioned scaling method is verified by comparing the similarity of simulation results between the small-scale with helium, small-scale with fire, and full-scale with fire cases. Moreover, from the parametric experimental study, it has been seen that regardless of the fire location the greatest risk is for the top floor. According to the helium concentration results (both transient and steady-state), central floors can be the safest places for receiving smoke from the plenum. The profile of velocity is independent of the HRR magnitude. However, the fire risk can dramatically increase with the higher HRRs
Brain Computations and Connectivity [2nd edition]
This is an open access title available under the terms of a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 International licence. It is free to read on the Oxford Academic platform and offered as a free PDF download from OUP and selected open access locations.
Brain Computations and Connectivity is about how the brain works. In order to understand this, it is essential to know what is computed by different brain systems; and how the computations are performed.
The aim of this book is to elucidate what is computed in different brain systems; and to describe current biologically plausible computational approaches and models of how each of these brain systems computes.
Understanding the brain in this way has enormous potential for understanding ourselves better in health and in disease. Potential applications of this understanding are to the treatment of the brain in disease; and to artificial intelligence which will benefit from knowledge of how the brain performs many of its extraordinarily impressive functions.
This book is pioneering in taking this approach to brain function: to consider what is computed by many of our brain systems; and how it is computed, and updates by much new evidence including the connectivity of the human brain the earlier book: Rolls (2021) Brain Computations: What and How, Oxford University Press.
Brain Computations and Connectivity will be of interest to all scientists interested in brain function and how the brain works, whether they are from neuroscience, or from medical sciences including neurology and psychiatry, or from the area of computational science including machine learning and artificial intelligence, or from areas such as theoretical physics
Elements of Ion Linear Accelerators, Calm in The Resonances, Other_Tales
The main part of this book, Elements of Linear Accelerators, outlines in Part
1 a framework for non-relativistic linear accelerator focusing and accelerating
channel design, simulation, optimization and analysis where space charge is an
important factor. Part 1 is the most important part of the book; grasping the
framework is essential to fully understand and appreciate the elements within
it, and the myriad application details of the following Parts. The treatment
concentrates on all linacs, large or small, intended for high-intensity, very
low beam loss, factory-type application. The Radio-Frequency-Quadrupole (RFQ)
is especially developed as a representative and the most complicated linac form
(from dc to bunched and accelerated beam), extending to practical design of
long, high energy linacs, including space charge resonances and beam halo
formation, and some challenges for future work. Also a practical method is
presented for designing Alternating-Phase- Focused (APF) linacs with long
sequences and high energy gain. Full open-source software is available. The
following part, Calm in the Resonances and Other Tales, contains eyewitness
accounts of nearly 60 years of participation in accelerator technology.
(September 2023) The LINACS codes are released at no cost and, as always,with
fully open-source coding. (p.2 & Ch 19.10)Comment: 652 pages. Some hundreds of figures - all images, there is no data in
the figures. (September 2023) The LINACS codes are released at no cost and,
as always,with fully open-source coding. (p.2 & Ch 19.10
A Conceptual Model for Quality 4.0 Deployment in U.S. Based Manufacturing Firms
Manufacturing is currently undergoing a fourth industrial revolution, referred to as Industry 4.0, enabled by digital technologies and advances in our ability to collect and use data. Quality 4.0 is the application of Industry 4.0 to enhance the quality function within an organization. Quality practitioners are uniquely positioned within organizations and already possess data application skillsets. Despite a perception that Quality 4.0 will be critical to future success shared by a majority of industry, most companies have not attempted to implement Quality 4.0 strategy, and those that have report very low rates of success. The goal of this study was to understand the challenges and key factors behind implementation of a Quality 4.0 system and develop a model for implementation, highlighting those key factors. The model was developed through literature review, case study analysis, and expert interviews. The model indicated that four main constructs exist in Quality 4.0 deployment, digital strategy, enabling factors, methodologies, and technology. A top-level strategy should be developed to address key technology development themes as well as nontechnical business process themes. Strategy should then be executed in the domain of enabling factors and methodologies with a clear technology application serving as the output. A successful Quality 4.0 implementation will use the technology application to drive tangible quality improvement activities which add value to the business
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