Sensory processing and world modeling for an active ranging device

In this project, we studied world modeling and sensory processing for laser range data. World Model data representation and operation were defined. Sensory processing algorithms for point processing and linear feature detection were designed and implemented. The interface between world modeling and sensory processing in the Servo and Primitive levels was investigated and implemented. In the primitive level, linear features detectors for edges were also implemented, analyzed and compared. The existing world model representations is surveyed. Also presented is the design and implementation of the Y-frame model, a hierarchical world model. The interfaces between the world model module and the sensory processing module are discussed as well as the linear feature detectors that were designed and implemented

A Longitudinal Study on the Linkage between Public Transport Demand and Land Use Characteristics: A Pseudo Panel Approach

This study applies a pseudo panel approach to analyse public transport demand in the Sydney Greater Metropolitan Area (SGMA). A public transport demand model is constructed to incorporate two factors that have been highlighted in the literature of travel behaviour but still under-researched, which are: (i) the temporal effect of demand adjustment; and (ii) the land use characteristics of the built environment. The research gaps in previous applied pseudo panel data research including estimation techniques and issues involved with the applications to public transport are identified and addressed in this study. The pseudo panel approach allows for the identification of long-term demand changes using repeated cross-sectional data, which are collected at an individual level with detailed travel-related information and geographical information. This study constructs static and dynamic pseudo panel data models to analyse public transport demand in terms of its associations with price, socio-economic factors,level of public transport service, and land use factors. The research findings identify the significant determinants of public transport demand in the SGMA, with a distinction between short-run and long-run demand elasticities. This suggests a timeframe of 2.13 years is required to reach the long-run demand equilibrium. The estimated demand elasticities are used to forecast demand for the SGMA with validated results supporting the applicability of the public transport model based on the pseudo panel data. The main contribution of this thesis is the identification of long-run public transport demand elasticities using a pseudo panel dataset created from existing repeated cross-sectional household travel survey data which uses more individual information than aggregate data. This approach enables a longitudinal analysis in the absence of genuine panel data, and this in turn provides important implications for urban public transport planning and policy formulation

Myriad phases of the Checkerboard Hubbard Model

The zero temperature phase diagram of the checkerboard Hubbard model is obtained in the solvable limit in which it consists of weakly coupled square plaquettes. As a function of the on-site Coulomb repulsion U and the density of holes per site, x, we demonstrate the existence of at least 16 distinct phases. For instance, at zero doping, the ground state is a novel d-wave Mott insulator (d-Mott), which is not adiabatically continuable to a band insulator; by doping the d-Mott state with holes, depending on the magnitude of U, it gives way to a d-wave superconducting state, a two-flavor spin-1/2 Fermi liquid (FL), or a spin-3/2 FL.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figures, minor revisions, published in Phys. Rev. B as a Rapid Communicatio

The Trademark/Domain Name Protection War: A Comparative Study of the U.S., UDRP and Taiwanese Law, 12 J. Marshall Rev. Intell. Prop. L. 350 (2013)

Trademarks have ancient origins, and a long developmental history that has informed and shaped modern approaches to trademark disputes. Many of these disputes are familiar. Yet others are a product of technological developments, such as the threats modern trademark owners face as a result of young and vibrant domain names. The United States Congress and the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) have each attempted to address conflicts between trademarks and domain names, while Taiwan has not. After surveying the U.S. and ICANN attempts, and comparing each to existing Taiwanese law, this Article provides a set of recommendations for the government of Taiwan to adopt similar approaches to address domain name disputes and cybersquatting

The Impact of Bus Rapid Transit on Housing Price and Accessibility Changes in Sydney: a Repeat Sales Approach

New public transport infrastructure is expected to improve the accessibility for local residents, and thus contribute to the land value uplift. The contribution that a bus rapid transit (BRT) system can make to land value uplift is less certain than for rail based systems with the literature mostly containing bus-based examples from developing countries with extensive BRT networks. This paper considers a BRT system named the “Liverpool-Parramatta Transitway” (LPT) was implemented in the South-West of Sydney in 2003 to improve public transport accessibility in the local area. A repeat sales model is constructed to investigate the impact of the LPT on residential housing prices and accessibility changes using repeat sales data from before and after the opening of the LPT. This identified little price difference between properties close to LPT stations and outside of the area that could be considered as affected by the LPT service coverage. This outcome is at variance with the theoretical underpinning of land value uplift and other empirical evidence relating to the LPT. Hedonic models using the same repeat sales data investigate the study area in more detail, stratifying the sample by housing type and by comparing separate before and after models. These research outcomes identify the extent to which the BRT system has an impact on local housing prices through accessibility improvements to the study area and provide a deeper understanding as to how the quantification of land value uplift from BRT represents one element of the wider economic benefits of a BRT system