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A Journey Through A Design-Based Research Project, Wayne Cotton, Lori Lockyer, Gwyn J. Brickell Jan 2009

A Journey Through A Design-Based Research Project, Wayne Cotton, Lori Lockyer, Gwyn J. Brickell

Faculty of Education - Papers (Archive)

This paper discusses how Design-Based Research was utilised to inform the methodological design of a completed project conducted at the University of Wollongong in New South Wales, Australia. The project focused on the systematic development of an Electronic Performance Support System (EPSS) to assist K-12 teachers as they incorporated learning objects into a pedagogically effective learning design – a WebQuest. The paper specifically details the background of the project, the history of Design-Based research, why a Design-Based Research approach was adopted and how the approach was implemented. The paper also includes a discussion about the practical problems, issues and advantages …


Reflecting On Ontologies Towards Ontology-Based Agent-Oriented Software Engineering, Ghassan Beydoun, Brian Henderson-Sellers, Jun Shen, G. Low Jan 2009

Reflecting On Ontologies Towards Ontology-Based Agent-Oriented Software Engineering, Ghassan Beydoun, Brian Henderson-Sellers, Jun Shen, G. Low

Faculty of Informatics - Papers (Archive)

“Ontology” in association with “software engineering” is becoming commonplace. This paper argues for the need to place ontologies at the centre of the software development lifecycle for multi agent systems to enhance reuse of software workproducts as well as to unify agent-based software engineering knowledge. The paper bridges the state-of-the-art of ontologies research from Knowledge Engineering (KE) within Artificial Intelligence and Metamodelling within Software Engineering (SE). It presents a sketch of an ontology-based Multi Agent System (MAS) methodology discussing key roles on ontologies and their impact of workproducts, illustrating these in a MAS software development project for an important application …


Voltage Quality Behaviour Of A Wind Turbine Based Remote Area Power System, Nishad Mendis, Kashem Muttaqi, Sarath Perera Jan 2009

Voltage Quality Behaviour Of A Wind Turbine Based Remote Area Power System, Nishad Mendis, Kashem Muttaqi, Sarath Perera

Faculty of Informatics - Papers (Archive)

The power quality behaviour of a Remote Area Power System (RAPS) consisting of a Doubly Fed Induction Generator (DFIG), its main loads and a dummy load is presented in this paper. The dummy load is used to maintain the power balance of the system under changing wind and loading conditions. The performance of the remote area power system subject to various loading conditions has been evaluated in terms of the voltage quality, an aspect which has not received much attention in the past. The existing Distributed Generation (DG) power quality standards are taken as the basis to compare the voltage …


A Car Detection System Based On Hierarchical Visual Features, Fok Hing Chi Tivive, Abdesselam Bouzerdoum Jan 2009

A Car Detection System Based On Hierarchical Visual Features, Fok Hing Chi Tivive, Abdesselam Bouzerdoum

Faculty of Informatics - Papers (Archive)

In this paper, we address the problem of detecting and localizing cars in still images. The proposed car detection system is based on a hierarchical feature detector in which the processing units are shunting inhibitory neurons. To reduce the training time and complexity of the network, the shunting inhibitory neurons in the first layer are implemented as directional nonlinear filters, whereas the neurons in the second layer have trainable parameters. A multi-resolution processing scheme is implemented so as to detect cars of different sizes, and to reduce the number of false positives during the detection stage, an adaptive thresholding strategy …


An Age-Based Inspection And Replacement Policy For Heterogeneous Components, Philip A. Scarf, Cristiano A. V. Cavalcante, Richard A. Dwight, Peter Gordon Jan 2009

An Age-Based Inspection And Replacement Policy For Heterogeneous Components, Philip A. Scarf, Cristiano A. V. Cavalcante, Richard A. Dwight, Peter Gordon

Faculty of Engineering - Papers (Archive)

This paper considers a hybrid maintenance policy for a single component from a heterogeneous population. The component is placed in a socket, and the component and socket together comprise the system. The s-population of components consists of two sub-populations with different failure characteristics. By supposing that a component may be in a defective but operating state, so that there exists a delay time between defect arrival and component failure, we consider a novel maintenance policy that is a hybrid of inspection and replacement policies. There are similarities in this approach with the concept of ldquoburn-inrdquo maintenance. The policies are …


A Method To Design Transmission Resonances Through Subwavelength Apertures Based On Designed Surface Plasmons, Jinsong Liu, Lan Ding, Kejia Wang, Jianquan Yao Jan 2009

A Method To Design Transmission Resonances Through Subwavelength Apertures Based On Designed Surface Plasmons, Jinsong Liu, Lan Ding, Kejia Wang, Jianquan Yao

Faculty of Engineering - Papers (Archive)

A plasmonic metamaterial is proposed for which an array of subwavelength apertures is pierced into a metallic foil whose one flat surface has been made with periodic rectangle holes of finite depth. Designed surface plasmons sustained by the holes are explored when the size and spacing of the holes are much smaller than those of the apertures. The transmission property of electromagnetic waves through the metamaterials is analyzed. Results show that the designed surface plasmons characterized by the holes could support the transmission resonances of the incident wave passing through the subwavelength apertures, and that the peak transmission wavelengths could …


A Simulation Study On The Energy Efficiency Of Pure And Slotted Aloha Based Rfid Tag Reading Protocols, Alejandro Ruiz-Rivera, Dheeraj Klair, Kwan-Wu Chin Jan 2009

A Simulation Study On The Energy Efficiency Of Pure And Slotted Aloha Based Rfid Tag Reading Protocols, Alejandro Ruiz-Rivera, Dheeraj Klair, Kwan-Wu Chin

Faculty of Informatics - Papers (Archive)

This paper studies the energy efficiency of twelve Pure and Slotted Aloha tag reading protocol variants via simulation. We compare their energy consumption in three collision resolution phases: 1) success, 2) collision, and 3) idle. Our extensive simulation results show that Pure Aloha with fast mode and muting has the lowest energy consumption, and hence is most suited for deployment in energy-constrained environments.


Development Of Non-Antibiotic-Resistant, Chromosomally Based, Constitutive And Inducible Expression Systems For Aroa-Attenuated Salmonella Enterica Serovar Typhimurium, Jake Matic, Tamsin D. Terry, David Van Bockel, Tracy A. Maddocks, David Tinworth, Michael Jennings, Steven P Djordjevic, Mark J. Walker Jan 2009

Development Of Non-Antibiotic-Resistant, Chromosomally Based, Constitutive And Inducible Expression Systems For Aroa-Attenuated Salmonella Enterica Serovar Typhimurium, Jake Matic, Tamsin D. Terry, David Van Bockel, Tracy A. Maddocks, David Tinworth, Michael Jennings, Steven P Djordjevic, Mark J. Walker

Faculty of Science - Papers (Archive)

Live-vaccine delivery systems expressing two model antigens from Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae, F2(P97) (Adh) and NrdF, were constructed using Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium aroA (STM-1), and immunogenicity in mice was evaluated. Recombinant plasmid-based expression (PBE) and chromosomally based expression (CBE) systems were constructed. The PBE system was formed by cloning both antigen genes into pJLA507 to create an operon downstream of temperature-inducible promoters. Constitutive CBE was achieved using a promoter-trapping technique whereby the promoterless operon was stably integrated into the chromosome of STM-1, and the expression of antigens was assessed. The chromosomal position of the operon was mapped in four clones. Inducible …


Gremo: A Gis-Based Generic Model For Estimating Relative Wave Exposure, Austen Pepper, Marjetta L. Puotinen Jan 2009

Gremo: A Gis-Based Generic Model For Estimating Relative Wave Exposure, Austen Pepper, Marjetta L. Puotinen

Faculty of Science - Papers (Archive)

Wave exposure plays a major role in shaping the ecological structure of nearshore communities, with different community types able to survive and/or thrive when typically exposed to different levels of wave energy. This can be quantified by taking direct field measurements with wave buoys over time and then manipulating the data to derive typical conditions. However, taking these measurements is only feasible for very limited areas due to logistical constraints, and generating them with numerical wave models can also be expensive to run and may require data inputs that are either lacking or are highly uncertain. Instead, the relative differences …


Project Based Learning In The First Year Engineering Curriculum, Brad Stappenbelt, Chris Rowles Jan 2009

Project Based Learning In The First Year Engineering Curriculum, Brad Stappenbelt, Chris Rowles

Faculty of Engineering - Papers (Archive)

This paper examines the implementation of a project-based learning approach in the first year engineering curriculum at the University of Western Australia (UWA). As part of this initiative, the Engineers Without Borders (EWB) Challenge was employed as the focus of student activity within the core undergraduate unit Introduction to Professional Engineering. This unit is the foundation of the professional development component of the engineering degree at UWA. The EWB Challenge provided students with the opportunity to learn about professional engineering whilst contributing towards a real international development project. To create a successful project based learning environment, a comprehensive tutor training …


A Bio-Inspired Robotic Locomotion System Based On Conducting Polymer Actuators, Gursel Alici, Daniel Gunderson Jan 2009

A Bio-Inspired Robotic Locomotion System Based On Conducting Polymer Actuators, Gursel Alici, Daniel Gunderson

Faculty of Engineering - Papers (Archive)

This paper presents the conceptual design and testing of a bio-inspired locomotion system activated through ionic-type conducting polymer actuators, which can operate both in dry and wet environments. The locomotion system is proposed for a mini autonomous crawling device for applications typified by pipe inspection, search, inspection and data gathering in confined spaces, which require mini-robotic systems. The locomotion system is based on the cilia, which has a simple planar bending motion. This type of motion can be provided by bending-type polymer actuators (one-end fixed and the other-end free cantilever beam). The actuators mounted on a printed circuit board and …


A Comparative Study On Field, Temperature, And Strain Dependences Of The Critical Current For Doped And Undoped Mgb2 Wires Based On The Percolation Model, Sangjun Oh, Jung Ho Kim, Kyuhwan Cho, Chulhee Lee, Chan-Joong Kim, S. X. Dou, M Rindfleisch, Mike Tomsic, Jung-Ho Ahn Jan 2009

A Comparative Study On Field, Temperature, And Strain Dependences Of The Critical Current For Doped And Undoped Mgb2 Wires Based On The Percolation Model, Sangjun Oh, Jung Ho Kim, Kyuhwan Cho, Chulhee Lee, Chan-Joong Kim, S. X. Dou, M Rindfleisch, Mike Tomsic, Jung-Ho Ahn

Faculty of Engineering - Papers (Archive)

Field, temperature, and strain dependences of the critical current for a SiC doped multifilamentary in situ MgB2 wire have been studied. Measurement results were compared with that of the undoped wire, and the origin of the difference in the critical current is discussed. The critical current can be calculated with the percolation model considering the effect of anisotropy. The temperature dependence of the fitting parameters, the upper critical field along the ab-plane, and c-axis is compared with the dirty-limit two-gap theory. To assess the validity of the fitting parameters, resistive transition has been measured especially to …


Establishing A Project Based Learning Environment For First Year Engineering Students, Brad Stappenbelt Jan 2009

Establishing A Project Based Learning Environment For First Year Engineering Students, Brad Stappenbelt

Faculty of Engineering - Papers (Archive)

A project-based learning environment was recently established for first-year engineering students at the University of Western Australia. At the focus of this educational approach was a real international development project run within the core undergraduate unit Introduction to Professional Engineering. Students embarking on the professional development component of the engineering degree were traditionally taught about the role of the engineer, social and cultural engineering considerations, the multi-disciplinary nature of large engineering projects and team working and communication skills with minimal involvement in project and group work. The various concepts covered were treated primarily on an abstract theoretical level. Despite the …


Usability Testing Of Public Health Web-Based Information Systems, Sumayya Banna, Kholoud Alkayid, Helen M. Hasan, Joseph A. Meloche Jan 2009

Usability Testing Of Public Health Web-Based Information Systems, Sumayya Banna, Kholoud Alkayid, Helen M. Hasan, Joseph A. Meloche

Faculty of Commerce - Papers (Archive)

While the Internet provides many opportunities for increased levels of care and access to information services in the area of public health, many web designers are not yet taking full advantage of its potential. This study looks at Intensive Care and Palliative Care, as important instances where health informatics could improve public web-based services, in meeting the particular information needs of family members of critically and chronically ill patients. This study is significant in adopting an approach to the usability testing of websites based on concepts from Activity Theory. This takes a realistic and practical approach, which identifies the purpose …