Platform Development and Path Following Controller Design for Full-Sized Vehicle Automation

The purpose of this thesis is to discuss the design and development of a platform used to automate a stock 2013 Ford Focus EV. The platform is low-cost and open-source to encourage collaboration and provide a starting point for fellow researchers to advance the work in the field of automated vehicle control. This thesis starts by discussing the process of obtaining control of the vehicle by taking advantage of internal communication protocols. The controller design process is detailed and a description of the components and software used to control the vehicle is provided. The automated system is tested and the results of fully autonomous driving are discussed

Path Planning for Aircraft Under Threat of Detection from Ground-Based Radar with Uncertainty in Aircraft and Radar States

Mission planners for manned and unmanned aircraft operating within the detection range of ground-based radar systems are often concerned with the probability of detection. Several factors influence the probability of detection, including aircraft position and orientation, radar position, and radar performance parameters. Current path planning algorithms assume that these factors are known with certainty, but in practice, these factors are estimated and have some uncertainty. This dissertation explores methods to consider the uncertainty in the detection factors for an aircraft path planner. First, the detection model is extended to include uncertainty in the aircraft position and orientation, radar position, and radar parameters. Second, an efficient method to estimate the aircraft position and orientation uncertainty is presented that enables rapid path evaluation. Third, the extended radar model and efficient aircraft uncertainty calculation are incorporated into a path planner that evaluates the sources of uncertainty and provides actionable information to the mission planner

Impacts of a professional practice doctorate: a collaborative enquiry

Doctoral education aims to benefit those who undertake it, but does it exert a wider influence? Professional doctorates are commonly designed to have an impact beyond the individual concerned, but is this influence realised? This paper focuses on a collaborative enquiry by a group of academics and doctoral alumni from non-discipline-specific professional doctorates. The enquiry examined how the professional practice of the graduates changed as a result of their studies and what influence this had on their work and their profession. It found that there was considerable impact on the wider context of the alumni, but that these effects were due more to the capacity-building effect of the doctorate than on the particular outcomes of the study undertaken. Key words: doctoral education, research impact, collaborative enquiry, professional practic

The pivotal role of student assessment in work-integrated learning

Work-integrated learning (WIL) is proliferating in university courses across many countries. Like many educational practices, students’ experience of it is shaped by the assessment processes adopted. Does assessment support or inhibit what WIL seeks to foster? To explore how students experience assessment in WIL, a small-scale investigation was undertaken across faculties in a UK university. Students who had recently undertaken WIL in contexts where it was either tightly coupled or loosely coupled to their programme of study undertook a drawing-stimulated interview about their placement and the role of assessment within it. A thematic analysis was used to discern key themes in student responses. Key issues identified were the importance of assessment in scaffolding learning, the multiple roles of university and workplace staff in assessment, the extent to which assessment practices promote students seeing themselves as becoming practitioners and the reflexive effects of assessment on learning. The paper discusses the implications of these issues for the design of WIL activities

Impacts of a professional practice doctorate: a collaborative enquiry

© 2020, © 2020 HERDSA. Doctoral education aims to benefit those who undertake it, but does it exert a wider influence? Professional doctorates are commonly designed to have an impact beyond the individual concerned, but is this influence realised? This article focuses on a collaborative enquiry by a group of academics and doctoral alumni from non-discipline-specific professional doctorates. The enquiry examined how the professional practice of the graduates changed as a result of their studies and what influence this had on their work and their profession. It found that there was considerable impact on the wider context of the alumni, but that these effects were due more to the capacity-building effect of the doctorate than on the particular outcomes of the study undertaken

Autism and the U.K. secondary school experience

This research investigated the self-reported mainstream school experiences of those diagnosed on the autistic spectrum compared with the typically developing school population. Existing literature identifies four key areas that affect the quality of the school experience for students with autism: social skills, perceived relationships with teaching staff, general school functioning, and interpersonal strengths of the young person. These areas were explored in a mainstream U.K. secondary school with 14 students with autism and 14 age and gender matched students without autism, using self-report questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. Quantitative analyses showed consistent school experiences for both groups, although content analysis of interview data highlighted some differences in the ways in which the groups perceive group work, peers, and teaching staff within school. Implications for school inclusion are discussed, drawing attention to how staff awareness of autism could improve school experience and success for students with autism attending mainstream schools

The Autism Spectrum Disorder Evaluative Education Model: a school-based method of assessing and selecting interventions for classroom use

Evaluating educational programs and interventions is generally considered a normal part of curriculum development and improvement, and published findings are readily accessible through peer-reviewed journals. Recently, however, researchers and practicing educators have identified a lack of evaluative research regarding Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) educational practices in the peer-reviewed literature. Autism Spectrum Australia (Aspect) has an established evidence-informed ASD curriculum that is constantly reviewed and updated to meet the needs of the students in Aspect schools and classes. Through a methodical evaluative process, all educational interventions and support processes and devices undergo a series of Evidence-Based Research Trials and evaluations before they are implemented in classes. This article demonstrates how a workflow model can deliver a systematic method for identifying, evaluating, implementing, and disseminating the research findings of a program or support intervention. The Autism Spectrum Disorder Evaluative Education (ASDEE) model is discussed