Controlling Concurrent Change - A Multiview Approach Toward Updatable Vehicle Automation Systems

The development of SAE Level 3+ vehicles [{SAE}, 2014] poses new challenges not only for the functional development, but also for design and development processes. Such systems consist of a growing number of interconnected functional, as well as hardware and software components, making safety design increasingly difficult. In order to cope with emergent behavior at the vehicle level, thorough systems engineering becomes a key requirement, which enables traceability between different design viewpoints. Ensuring traceability is a key factor towards an efficient validation and verification of such systems. Formal models can in turn assist in keeping track of how the different viewpoints relate to each other and how the interplay of components affects the overall system behavior. Based on experience from the project Controlling Concurrent Change, this paper presents an approach towards model-based integration and verification of a cause effect chain for a component-based vehicle automation system. It reasons on a cross-layer model of the resulting system, which covers necessary aspects of a design in individual architectural views, e.g. safety and timing. In the synthesis stage of integration, our approach is capable of inserting enforcement mechanisms into the design to ensure adherence to the model. We present a use case description for an environment perception system, starting with a functional architecture, which is the basis for componentization of the cause effect chain. By tying the vehicle architecture to the cross-layer integration model, we are able to map the reasoning done during verification to vehicle behavior

THREE DIMENSIONAL MUSCULOSKELETAL MODELLING OF THE CHEST PRESS RESISTANCE EXERCISE FOCUSING ON THE BIOMECHANICAL AND ANTHROPOMETRIC CONSIDERATIONS OF THE END-USER

The aim of this study was to evaluate whether three dimensional (3D) musculoskeletal modelling could be effective in assessing the safety and efficacy of exercising on a chest press resistance training machine. Three anthropometric cases were created; these represented a 5th percentile female as well as a 50th and 95th percentile male based on body mass index (BMI). The results indicate that adjustments had to be made to the default model in order to solve the forward dynamics simulations using recorded joint angulations during the inverse dynamics simulations. The anthropometric dimensions of the end-users appeared to be adequately accommodated by the chest press’s engineered or manufactured adjustability. It did not appear as if the exercise put undue strain on the spinal structures when exercised with correct positioning and technique at an appropriate resistance

Representing the Unknown - Impact of Uncertainty on the Interaction between Decision Making and Trajectory Generation

Even though motion planning for automated vehicles has been extensively discussed for more than two decades, it is still a highly active field of research with a variety of different approaches having been published in the recent years. When considering the market introduction of SAE Level 3+ vehicles, the topic of motion planning will most likely be subject to even more detailed discussions between safety and user acceptance. This paper shall discuss parameters of the motion planning problem and requirements to an environment model. The focus is put on the representation of different types of uncertainty at the example of sensor occlusion, arguing the importance of a well-defined interface between decision making and trajectory generation

Image compression quality measurement : a comparison of the performance of JPEG and fractal compression on satellite images

Thesis (MEng)--Stellenbosch University, 2000.ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The purpose of this thesis is to investigate the nature of digital image compression and the calculation of the quality of the compressed images. The work is focused on greyscale images in the domain of satellite images and aerial photographs. Two compression techniques are studied in detail namely the JPEG and fractal compression methods. Implementations of both these techniques are then applied to a set of test images. The rest of this thesis is dedicated to investigating the measurement of the loss of quality that was introduced by the compression. A general method for quality measurement (signal To Noise Ratio) is discussed as well as a technique that was presented in literature quite recently (Grey Block Distance). Hereafter, a new measure is presented. After this, a means of comparing the performance of these measures is presented. It was found that the new measure for image quality estimation performed marginally better than the SNR algorithm. Lastly, some possible improvements on this technique are mentioned and the validity of the method used for comparing the quality measures is discussed.AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Die doel van hierdie tesis is om ondersoek in te stel na die aard van digitale beeldsamepersing en die berekening van beeldkwaliteit na samepersing. Daar word gekonsentreer op grysvlak beelde in die spesifieke domein van satellietbeelde en lugfotos. Twee spesifieke samepersingstegnieke word in diepte ondersoek naamlik die JPEG en fraktale samepersingsmetodes. Implementasies van beide hierdie tegnieke word op 'n stel toetsbeelde aangewend. Die res van hierdie tesis word dan gewy aan die ondersoek van die meting van die kwaliteitsverlies van hierdie saamgeperste beelde. Daar word gekyk na 'n metode wat in algemene gebruik in die praktyk is asook na 'n nuwer metode wat onlangs in die literatuur veskyn het. Hierna word 'n nuwe tegniek bekendgestel. Verder word daar 'n vergelyking van hierdie mates en 'n ondersoek na die interpretasie van die 'kwaliteit' van hierdie kwaliteitsmate gedoen. Daar is gevind dat die nuwe maatstaf vir kwaliteit net so goed en selfs beter werk as die algemene maat vir beeldkwaliteit naamlik die Sein tot Ruis Verhouding. Laastens word daar moontlike verbeterings op die maatstaf genoem en daar volg 'n bespreking oor die geldigheid van die metode wat gevolg is om die kwaliteit van die kwaliteitsmate te bepaa