Engineering Commons^™

Virtual And Hardware Prototyping Of A Modular Multilevel Inverter For Photovoltaics, Shweta Hardas

Electrical Engineering Theses

This thesis details the idea of virtual and hardware prototyping of a distributed controlled multilevel inverter used as a grid-tie interface for photovoltaic. The system framework consists of multilevel inverters composed of solar panel array connected in series with the inverter module, enabling the use of renewable energy resources. The inverter module is built of buck-boost converter and a cascaded h-bridge inverter, which converts the obtained independent DC voltage source from each of the solar array to AC. With the increasing convenience of using a small photovoltaic grid for residential purposes, this system can be used to facilitate various DC …

Embedded Data Acquisition Platform For Surface Measurements On Wet Concrete, Anuja Raikar

Electrical Engineering Theses

The early detection of roughness over newly poured wet concrete allows correction of the surface before concrete is hardened. The smoothness of the wet concrete can be monitored and controlled at an early stage saving additional effort and cost. The goal of this research study is to examine the techniques to detect the roughness over the surface of wet cement concrete. A sliding profiler is one of the techniques which estimates profile of the surface based on the bumps detected on freshly poured concrete. This thesis focuses on the data acquired by the sliding profiler using a different measurement sensor …

Channel Estimation And Statistical Analysis Of Indoor Environment Using Ultrawideband Radio Technology, Shruthishree Bangalore Krishnamurthy

Electrical Engineering Theses

Ultra-wideband technology finds various applications in radar technology, medical imaging, see-through-wall applications, surveillance and short distance communication applications. All of these applications require that the behavior of the channel be estimated giving a priori information about the various attributes of the channel like path loss, delay spread, channel capacity and so on. These parameters are the key to design an effective communication infrastructure suitable for the needs of the application.In this thesis, the main aim was to model the channel and extract the various parameters related to the channel through data processing methods. In particular, a classroom environment was chosen …

Optimal Tracking Control Of Uncertain Systems: On-Policy And Off-Policy Reinforcement Learning Approaches, Hamidreza Modares

Electrical Engineering Dissertations

Over the last few decades, strong connections between reinforcement learning (RL) and optimal control have prompted a major effort towards developing online and model-free RL algorithms to learn the solution to optimal control problems. Although RL algorithms have been widely used to solve the optimal regulation problems, few results considered solving the optimal tracking control problem (OTCP), despite the fact that most real-world control applications are tracking problems. On the other hand, existing methods for solving OTCP require complete knowledge of the system dynamics. This research begins with developing an adaptive optimal algorithm for linear quadratic tracking problem (LQT). A …

Evaluation Of Adaptive Video Optimization For Stall Minimization In Wireless Networks, Karishma Katara

Electrical Engineering Theses

Mobile devices such as smart phones and tablets have become an integral part of peoples’ daily lives. Users are consuming more content over wireless networks than ever before, and the largest portion of that traffic by volume is delivered as video. Even with the rollout of high speed LTE networks, subscriber demand for content is growing at an overall faster rate than network capacity is being added in many urban areas. This presents a challenge to the network operators since users expect a stall-free playback experience, on devices that support high resolution and high quality content. To help maintain the …

Forecasting Of Wind, Pv Generation, And Market Price For The Optimal Operations Of The Regional Pev Charging Stations, Piampoom Sarikprueck

Electrical Engineering Dissertations

The transition from the conventional spark ignition engine vehicles to the electric vehicular technologies helps reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions as well as improve the energy efficiency in the transportation sector. In the transformation of the electric vehicle, the hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) has evolved into the plug-in electric vehicle (PEV) due to the advancement in battery technologies that extend the electric driving distance of vehicles; however, this trend also creates concern among PEV users about how long or how far they might travel per battery charge. A well-planned charging infrastructure with a fast (level 3) charging station is critical …

Self-Similarity And Modeling Of Lte / Lte-A Data Traffic, Roopesh Kumar Polaganga

Electrical Engineering Theses

The mobile wireless communication system has evolved into its 4th generation with ubiquitous availability assuring higher data rates and reliable communication. To achieve a robust and reliable network, it is necessary to understand the traffic characteristics of the network. In this work, network traffic characteristics like Self-Similarity property and modeling of user arrivals are estimated for real-world LTE & LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) traffic. Lot of work has been done on Self-Similarity of Ethernet and Ad-Hoc Network's data traffic. But Self-Similarity in LTE and LTE-A data traffic has been left un-explored. Real world LTE and LTE-A data traffic collected from a live …

Revisiting Control Establishments For Emerging Energy Hubs, Vahidreza Nasirian

Electrical Engineering Dissertations

Emerging small-scale energy systems, i.e., microgrids and smartgrids, rely on centralized controllers for voltage regulation, load sharing, and economic dispatch. However, the central controller is a single-point-of-failure in such a design as either the controller or attached communication links failure can render the entire system inoperable. This work seeks for alternative distributed control structures to improve system reliability and help to the scalability of the system. A cooperative distributed controller is proposed that uses a noise-resilient voltage estimator and handles global voltage regulation and load sharing across a DC microgrid. Distributed adaptive droop control is also investigated as an alternative …

Design Of A Real Time Reconfigurable Bioreactor, Amol Vengurlekar

Electrical Engineering Theses

In this thesis we present the design of a reconfigurable continuous culture bioreactor that allows researchers to grow microorganisms in a controlled environment for long periods of time, as long as several months. The bioreactor monitors the experiment and measures the growth of microorganisms. A continuous culture bioreactor is an important tool that biologists use for research, most notably to study the response of bacteria towards drugs. This helps in the fight against the evolution of drug resistance in bacteria and other pathogens.The bioreactor acts like an isolated ecosystem. It periodically exposes the microorganisms to drugs that hamper their growth. …

Optimisation Of Stand-Alone Hydrogen-Based Renewable Energy Systems Using Intelligent Techniques, Adel Brka

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Wind and solar irradiance are promising renewable alternatives to fossil fuels due to their availability and topological advantages for local power generation. However, their intermittent and unpredictable nature limits their integration into energy markets. Fortunately, these disadvantages can be partially overcome by using them in combination with energy storage and back-up units. However, the increased complexity of such systems relative to single energy systems makes an optimal sizing method and appropriate Power Management Strategy (PMS) research priorities.

This thesis contributes to the design and integration of stand-alone hybrid renewable energy systems by proposing methodologies to optimise the sizing and operation …

Electric Vehicles In Smart Grids: Performance Considerations, Uttam Kumar Deb Nath

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Distributed power system is the basic architecture of current power systems and demands close cooperation among the generation, transmission and distribution systems. Excessive greenhouse gas emissions over the last decade have driven a move to a more sustainable energy system. This has involved integrating renewable energy sources like wind and solar power into the distributed generation system. Renewable sources offer more opportunities for end users to participate in the power delivery system and to make this distribution system even more efficient, the novel "Smart Grid" concept has emerged. A Smart Grid: offers a two-way communication between the source and the …

Stand-Alone Solar-Pv Hydrogen Energy Systems Incorporating Reverse Osmosis, Daniel Clarke

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The world’s increasing energy demand means the rate at which fossil fuels are consumed has increased resulting in greater carbon dioxide emissions. For many small (marginalised) or coastal communities, access to potable water is limited alongside good availability of renewable energy sources (solar or wind). One solution is to utilise small-scale renewably powered stand-alone energy systems to help supply power for everyday utilities and to operate desalination systems serving potable water (drinking) needs reducing diesel generator dependence. In such systems, on-site water production is essential so as to service electrolysis for hydrogen generation for Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cells. …

3d Printing, Open-Source Technology And Their Applications In Research, Chenlong Zhang

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Open-source software received tremendous success as it drives down the cost of software and expand the distribution. Open-source hardware, as part of the open-source movement, has just risen into public attention for its potential to further drive down the cost of all kinds of manufacturing goods and reshape the manufacture chain. In this report we explores the history, development and the future of open-source hardware project, summarizing the opportunities, challenges and possible solutions. 3D printing is demonstrated as a booster to assist open-source hardware’s development. Low-cost 3D printer enables at-home and in-time fabrication, the download-print-use-improve-distribute cycle is established to encourage …

Blind Area Target Aiming System And Preference Selection Training System Design, Zhine Kang

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

A cyber-physical system (CPS) is a system of leveraging computational elements controlling physical entities that is widely applied in our daily life for all kinds of purpose. It helps us build smart devices and make life become much easier. In this report, two projects were designed to show the idea that how cyber-physical system works in human daily life. The first project is designed for personal security, especially for one of the most dangerous job: security service. It helps user defend his back while he/she is in a tough situation while he or she is alone. First there will be …

An Efficient Fault Location Algorithm For Shipboard Power Systems, Pedram Jahanmard

LSU Master's Theses

The Shipboard Power System (SPS) supply energy to sophisticated systems for navigation, communication, weapons, and operation. Due to the ship’s critical operating condition, faults can be very detrimental. Faults in the SPS may happen because of failure of electrical components or by damages that happen during a battle. These faults may interrupt the paths for supplying energy to loads that are not damaged. To enhance survivability of naval ships, SPS requires an efficient fault location algorithm in order to locate and clear the fault as well as provide an alternative path to supply energy to the loads that are not …

A Distributed Diffusion-Driven Algorithm For Load Balancing In An Electrical Power Grid, Isaac Abhilash Ayyala

LSU Master's Theses

In this thesis we propose a distributed algorithm, based on diffusion, to balance loads on an electrical power grid, while maintaining stable operation (system’s ability to maintain bus voltages within preset bounds). This algorithm, called the Diffusion-driven Distributed Load Balancing (DDLB) algorithm, is implemented on the OMNET++ Discrete Event Simulator and the response of the physical grid is simulated on a load flow program, which together simulate a deployment of the DDLB algorithm on the grid. The electrical grid is represented as a graph whose nodes are buses and whose edges are power lines connecting buses. Each node (except the …

New Identification And Decoding Techniques For Low-Density Parity-Check Codes, Tian Xia

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Error-correction coding schemes are indispensable for high-capacity high data-rate communication systems nowadays. Among various channel coding schemes, low-density parity-check (LDPC) codes introduced by pioneer Robert G. Gallager are prominent due to the capacity-approaching and superior error-correcting properties. There is no hard constraint on the code rate of LDPC codes. Consequently, it is ideal to incorporate LDPC codes with various code rate and codeword length in the adaptive modulation and coding (AMC) systems which change the encoder and the modulator adaptively to improve the system throughput. In conventional AMC systems, a dedicated control channel is assigned to coordinate the encoder/decoder changes. …

Design And Implementation Of A Passive Neurostimulator With Wireless Resonance-Coupled Power Delivery And Demonstration On Frog Sciatic Nerve And Gastrocnemius Muscle, Jose Aquiles Parodi Amaya

LSU Master's Theses

The thesis presented has four goals: to perform a comprehensive literature review on current neurostimulator technology; to outline the current issues with the state-of-the-art; to provide a neurostimulator design that solves these issues, and to characterize the design and demonstrate its neurostimulation features. The literature review describes the physiology of a neuron, and then proceeds to outline neural interfaces and neurostimulators. The neurostimulator design process is then outlined and current requirements in the field are described. The novel neurostimulator circuit that implements a solution that has wireless capability, passive control, and small size is outlined and characterized. The circuit is …

Output Consensus Control For Heterogeneous Multi-Agent Systems, Abhishek Pandey

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

We study distributed output feedback control of a heterogeneous multi-agent system (MAS), consisting of N different continuous-time linear dynamical systems. For achieving output consensus, a virtual reference model is assumed to generate the desired trajectory for which the MAS is required to track and synchronize. A full information (FI) protocol is assumed for consensus control. This protocol includes information exchange with the feed-forward signals. In this dissertation we study two different kinds of consensus problems. First, we study the consensus control over the topology involving time delays and prove that consensus is independent of delay lengths. Second, we study the …

Spectrum Allocation In Networks With Finite Sources And Data-Driven Characterization Of Users' Stochastic Dynamics, Ahsan-Abbas Ali

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

During emergency situations, the public safety communication systems (PSCSs) get overloaded with high traffic loads. Note that these PSCSs are finite source networks. The goal of our study is to propose techniques for an efficient allocation of spectrum in finite source networks that can help alleviate the overloading of PSCSs. In a PSCS, there are two system segments, one for the system-access control and the other for communications, each having dedicated frequency channels. The first part of our research, consisting of three projects, is based on modeling and analysis of finite source systems for optimal spectrum allocation, for both access-control …

Design And Optimization Of Nanoplasmonic Waveguide Devices, Pouya Dastmalchi

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

In this dissertation, we introduce compact absorption switches consisting of plasmonic metal-dielectric-metal (MDM) waveguides coupled to multisection cavities. The optimized multisection cavity switches lead to greatly enhanced modulation depth compared to optimized conventional Fabry-Perot cavity switches. We find that the modulation depth of the optimized multisection cavity switches is greatly enhanced compared to the optimized conventional Fabry-Perot cavity switches due to the great enhancement of the total electromagnetic field energy in the cavity region. We then investigate how to improve the computational efficiency of the design of nanoplasmonic devices. More specifically, we show that the space mapping algorithm, originally developed …

Autonomous Robot Sphere, Robert Haver, Melissa Haver, Daniel Madden, Noah Robertson

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

The Autonomous Robot Sphere is an interactive robot toy meant to entertain kids. The robot will locate its target and execute algorithms to autonomously evade or chase a child. The sphere will contain a platform equipped with four omni-wheels, which will allow the sphere to maneuver and change direction almost instantaneously. The robot will be configured to maintain a fixed distance from the transmitter, allowing it to chase or evade the child in response to their movement. The primary advantage of our design lies in its capability to quickly adapt to changes in direction.

Free-Range Pre-Programmed Rc Car, Alexander L. Aubihl, Andrew S. Hopwood, Benjamin J. Riggs, Tyler P. Vance

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

There is a growing interest in the capabilities and utilization of autonomous vehicles. The objective of this project is to design a small scale illustration of an autonomous vehicle driven by user input. An application will be designed that will allow a user to create a track that an RC car will accurately follow. As the car follows the track, a microcontroller on the vehicle will send movement information back to the application. This information is used by the application to process where the vehicle is currently at and where it needs to go. While in motion, on-board sensors will …

Led Learning Guitar, Kellen C. Reusser, Justin Fiser

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

The goal of this project is to create an electric guitar that detects and displays chords in different tunings for learning and exploration purposes. A hexaphonic pickup will generate the required signals and a processor will detect the pitch. The computer software will apply the pitch information to determine the tuning and the voicings of chords. LEDs mounted on the fretboard of the guitar will indicate a note to be played.

Modular Biped Robotic Base, Lawrence T. Chiavaroli, Andrew J. Forchione, Wesley A. Miller, Joseph M. Drockton

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

This report contains the final developments and research involved with the modular biped robotic base. A need was first identified in 2011 when President Obama announced the National Robotics Initiative, an initiative focused on the funding of robotic development to work alongside or cooperatively with humans. This scope of this project concerns building a robotic base modeled after human legs and hips, capable of interfacing with future modular subsystems depending on what tasks are trying to be accomplished. Firstly, a mathematical torque simulation of the hip, knee, and ankle joints was developed in MATLAB. Using this information, complimentary actuators and …

Cameron Decomposition Applied To Polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar Signature Detection, Sean Wininger

Theses and Dissertations

Cameron et al, have developed a method of decomposing scatterer scattering matrices based on Huynen’s scattering matrix decomposition parameters. Huynen’s decomposition parameters are not unique, in that certain transformation properties, such as the angle of symmetry itself, may misidentify a scattering matriix and therefore misidentify a particular geometric shape. Cameron decomposition derives these parameters by direct calculations from the scatterer itself so that they may not be inferred or interpreted. A detailed explanation of the foundations and method of Cameron decomposition is presented here. A description of how Cameron decomposition is implemented in Polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (PolSAR) signature detection …

Iii-V Nitride Based Microcantilever Heaters For Unique Multimodal Detection Of Volatile Organic Compounds At Low Temperature, Ifat Jahangir

Theses and Dissertations

Detection of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which are widely used in industrial processes and household products, is very important due to significant health hazards associated with them. VOCs are commonly detected using photo-ionization detectors (PIDs), suspended hot bead pellistors, or heated metal oxide semiconductor functionalization layers. However, these techniques used for detecting VOCs often suffer from one or more of the following issues - high power consumption, limited selectivity, complicated functionalization technique and expensive characterization tools. On the other hand, microcantilevers offer excellent avenues for molecular sensing that arises out of their high sensitivity to various physical parameter changes induced …

Self-Balancing Two Wheeled Robot, David Laubli, Thomas Garabedian, Jordan Paul, Nikheel Patel, Michael Redle

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Automation is increasingly becoming a larger part of daily life. From automated telephone calls to machines in manufacturing, robots are generally an effective and efficient way to reduce overhead costs, increase consistency in products and services, and perform tasks that may be hazardous to humans. The successful design and building of a two-wheeled balancing robot demonstrates a knowledge of control systems and sensor interfacing that can translate to real world applications. Helping seniors live on their own, performing dangerous mining work, repeatedly screwing the same piece in an assembly line, are great examples of a controls automation system freeing time …

Monitoring System For Electric Motors, Sean Waples

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Induction motors are key to many applications and are one of the most commonly used electric devices. Currently, induction motor fault detection schemes are limited in features and computational power. With current technology, fault detection algorithms are operating in embedded systems and run on embedded processors. These processors do not have the computation power and functionality that more advanced computer systems have, which is the source of the issue. With the recent rise in cloud computing and connected devices, it is possible to build an induction motor monitoring system with a much greater set of features and possibilities.

Electronic Learning Guitar, Justin Fiser

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

No abstract provided.