Thermal and area optimization for component placement on PCB design using inverse genetic algorithm

Considering the current trend of compact designs which are mostly multiobjective in nature, proper arrangement of components has become a basic necessity so as to have optimal management of heat generation and dissipation. In this work, Inverse Genetic Algorithm (IGA) optimization has been adopted in order to achieve optimal placement of components on printed circuit board (PCB). The objective functions are the PCB area and temperature of each component while the constraint parameters are; to avoid the overlapping of components, the maximum allowable PCB area is 2(120193.4)mm2 , thermal connections were internally set, and the manufacturer allowable temperature for the ICs must be more than the components optimal temperature. In the conventional Forward Genetic Algorithm (FGA) optimization, the individual fitness of components are generated through the GA process. The IGA approach on the other hand, allows the user to set the desired fitness, so that the GA process will try to approach these set values. Hence, the IGA has two major advantages over FGA; the first being a reduction in the overall computational time and the other is the freedom of choosing the desired fitness (i.e. ability to manipulate the GA output). The objectives of this work includes; development of an IGA search Engine, minimization of the thermal profile of components based on thermal resistance network and the area of PCB, and comparison of the proposed IGA and FGA performances. From the simulation results, the IGA has successfully minimized the thermal profile and area of PCB by 0.78% and 1.28% respectively. The CPU-time has also been minimised by 15.56%

Optimal Placement of Phasor Measurement Units for Power Systems Using Genetic Algorithm

Power grids require monitoring to operate with high efficiency while minimizing the chances of having a failure. However, current monitoring scheme which consists of SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition), accompanied with conventional meters distributed throughout the grid, is no longer sufficient to maintain an acceptable operation of the grid. This is evident from the multiple failures and blackouts that happened and are still happening in grids worldwide. This issue became more severe due to systems being operated near their limits (to reduce costs and due to the increase in electricity demands), as well as, the addition of renewable energy sources, which usually have abrupt changes. Smart grids were introduced as a solution to this issue by the inclusion of Wide Area Monitoring System (WAMS), which is mainly based on Phasor Measurement Units (PMU), which are measurement devices that provides synchronized time stamped measurements with high sending rate which significantly improves the monitoring of the grid. However, PMUs are relatively expensive (considering both direct and indirect costs incurred). Thus, it is desired to know the minimum number of PMUs required for achieving certain monitoring criteria. Thus, Optimal PMU Placement (OPP) formulates an optimization problem to solve this issue. In the literature of OPP, multiple objectives and constraints are considered, based on desired criteria. In this thesis, a review of OPP is made, followed by the application of selected algorithms (Integer Linear Programming and Genetic Algorithm) on various test systems as a verification and then applying it to Qatar Grid, to compare between different considerations as well as gain insight about the possible PMU placements for Qatar Grid. The contribution of this thesis is introducing a modified fitness function for the Genetic Algorithm that provides more diverse results than previous papers, while incorporating for various considerations like Zero Injection Buses, Conventional Measurements and current branch limit. It also analyzes the results of current branch limit and provides new plots describing their effects

IMPROVING UNDERSTANDABILITY AND UNCERTAINTY MODELING OF DATA USING FUZZY LOGIC SYSTEMS

The need for automation, optimality and efficiency has made modern day control and monitoring systems extremely complex and data abundant. However, the complexity of the systems and the abundance of raw data has reduced the understandability and interpretability of data which results in a reduced state awareness of the system. Furthermore, different levels of uncertainty introduced by sensors and actuators make interpreting and accurately manipulating systems difficult. Classical mathematical methods lack the capability to capture human knowledge and increase understandability while modeling such uncertainty. Fuzzy Logic has been shown to alleviate both these problems by introducing logic based on vague terms that rely on human understandable terms. The use of linguistic terms and simple consequential rules increase the understandability of system behavior as well as data. Use of vague terms and modeling data from non-discrete prototypes enables modeling of uncertainty. However, due to recent trends, the primary research of fuzzy logic have been diverged from the basic concept of understandability. Furthermore, high computational costs to achieve robust uncertainty modeling have led to restricted use of such fuzzy systems in real-world applications. Thus, the goal of this dissertation is to present algorithms and techniques that improve understandability and uncertainty modeling using Fuzzy Logic Systems. In order to achieve this goal, this dissertation presents the following major contributions: 1) a novel methodology for generating Fuzzy Membership Functions based on understandability, 2) Linguistic Summarization of data using if-then type consequential rules, and 3) novel Shadowed Type-2 Fuzzy Logic Systems for uncertainty modeling. Finally, these presented techniques are applied to real world systems and data to exemplify their relevance and usage