Automotive Engineering Commons^™

Interface Circuit For A Multiple-Beam Tuning-Fork Gyroscope With High Quality Factors, Ren Wang

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

This research work presents the design, theoretical analysis, fabrication, interface electronics, and experimental results of a Silicon-On-Insulator (SOI) based Multiple-Beam Tuning-Fork Gyroscope (MB-TFG). Based on a numerical model of Thermo-Elastic Damping (TED), a Multiple-Beam Tuning-Fork Structure (MB-TFS) is designed with high Quality factors (Qs) in its two operation modes. A comprehensive theoretical analysis of the MB-TFG design is conducted to relate the design parameters to its operation parameters and further performance parameters. In conjunction with a mask that defines the device through trenches to alleviate severe fabrication effect on anchor loss, a simple one-mask fabrication process is employed to implement …

A Framework For Dynamic Traffic Monitoring Using Vehicular Ad-Hoc Networks, Mohammad Hadi Arbabi

Computer Science Theses & Dissertations

Traffic management centers (TMCs) need high-quality data regarding the status of roadways for monitoring and delivering up-to-date traffic conditions to the traveling public. Currently this data is measured at static points on the roadway using technologies that have significant maintenance requirements. To obtain an accurate picture of traffic on any road section at any time requires a real-time probe of vehicles traveling in that section. We envision a near-term future where network communication devices are commonly included in new vehicles. These devices will allow vehicles to form vehicular networks allowing communication among themselves, other vehicles, and roadside units (RSUs) to …

Exploring The Effects Of Cooperative Adaptive Cruise Control In Mitigating Traffic Congestion, Georges M. Arnaout

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Theses & Dissertations

The aim of this research is to examine the impact of CACC (Cooperative Adaptive Cruise Control) equipped vehicles on traffic-flow characteristics of a multilane highway system. The research identifies how CACC vehicles affect the dynamics of traffic flow on a road network and demonstrates the potential benefits of reducing traffic congestion due to stop-and-go traffic conditions. An agent-based traffic simulation model is developed specifically to examine the effect of these intelligent vehicles on the traffic flow dynamics. Traffic performance metrics characterizing the evolution of traffic congestion throughout the road network, are analyzed. Different CACC penetration levels are studied.

The positive …

Data Aggregation And Dissemination In Vehicular Ad-Hoc Networks, Khaled Ibrahim

Computer Science Theses & Dissertations

Vehicular Ad-Hoc Networks (VANETs) are a fast growing technology that many governments and automobile manufacturers are investing in to provide not only safer and more secure roads, but also informational and entertainment-based applications for drivers. The applications developed for VANETs can be classified into multiple categories (safety, informational, entertainment). Most VANET applications, regardless of their category, depend on having certain vehicular data(vehicular speed, X position and Y position) available. Although these applications appear to use the same vehicular data, the characteristics of this data (i.e., amount, accuracy, and update rate) will vary based on the application category. For …

Drag Reduction Of A Modern Straight Truck, Drew Landman, Matthew Cragun, Mike Mccormick, Richard Wood

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Faculty Publications

A wind tunnel test program was conducted at the Langley Full Scale Tunnel (LFST) to evaluate the performance of five passive drag reduction configurations on a modern straight truck at full scale. Configurations were tested in a build-up fashion with results representing a cumulative effect. Tested configurations include a front valance, a front box fairing, a boat-tail, an ideal side-skirt, and a practical side-skirt. Configurations were evaluated over a nominal 9 degree yaw sweep to establish wind averaged drag coefficients using SAE J1252. Genuine replicate yaw sweeps were used in an uncertainty analysis. Results show up to 28% improvement in …

Marine Buoy Detection Using Circular Hough Transform, Loc Tran, Justin Selfridge, Gene Hou, Jiang Li

Electrical & Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

A low cost method for buoy detection in maritime settings is presented using inexpensive digital cameras. In this method, the circular Hough transform is applied to an edge image to circular objects in the image. The center of these circles will signify the locations of each buoy. The known color information of the buoys is also used to enhance the performance by removing false detections. The algorithm is compared to an approach that locates buoys purely on color information. In order to validate the method, we test the approach synthetically and also with real images captured from a small surface …