Digital Commons Network^™

Performance Improvement Using Simple Pid Controller Tuning Formulae, Aidan O'Dwyer

Conference papers

The proportional integral derivative (PID) controller is the most dominant form of automatic controller in industrial use today. With this technique, it is necessary to adjust the controller parameters according to the nature of the process. Thus, for effective control of a HVDC system, for example, specific values need to be chosen for the P, I and D parameters, which will be different for the values required to control, for example, an induction motor drive. This tailoring of controller to process is known as controller tuning. Controller tuning is easily and effectively performed using tuning rules (i.e. formulae for controller …

Measuring Tongue Movements During Speech: Adaptation Of A Magnetic Jaw-Tracking System, Christopher Dromey, Shawn Nissen, Petrea Nohr, Samuel G. Fletcher

Faculty Publications

The purpose of the present investigation was to determine whether measurements of tongue movement during speech could be obtained with an electronic device originally designed to record jaw movements via a magnetized pellet. The findings indicated that the system allowed basic quantification of tongue movements in a straightforward manner. The primary advantages of this system are that no distracting wires are attached to the pellet, and it is much less costly than other systems used for this purpose. Its main disadvantages are that it is unable to track multiple tongue fleshpoints simultaneously, lacks an anatomically based coordinate system, and the …

Digital Signal Processing (Second Edition), Jonathan Blackledge

Books/Book chapters

This book provides an account of the mathematical background, computational methods and software engineering associated with digital signal processing. The aim has been to provide the reader with the mathematical methods required for signal analysis which are then used to develop models and algorithms for processing digital signals and finally to encourage the reader to design software solutions for Digital Signal Processing (DSP). In this way, the reader is invited to develop a small DSP library that can then be expanded further with a focus on his/her research interests and applications.

There are of course many excellent books and software …

The Role And Future Of Nanotechnology In Research, Industry And Education, David Kennedy

Conference Papers

Major developments in Nanotechnology have taken place across the world
over the last few years. From a humble beginning, Ireland inc. became a leader in the Microelectronics industry and now has to face the challenge of developing a strategic plan to maintain its lead position in the nano field which in most cases will supersede the micro phase. Most countries are taking a similar path of development all be it alone or in collaboration with other countries. This process is expensive and requires market drivers and experts to lead and deliver demands from the industries of the future. The approach …

Settling In, I Rae, J Lansley, J Tormey

School of Art, Design and Architecture

No abstract provided.

Devon-Wide Gypsy And Traveller Housing Needs Assessment, R Southern, Z James

School of Law, Humanities and Social Sciences

No abstract provided.

Our Views Anybody Listening: Researching The Views And Needs Of Young People In Co. Kildare, Kevin Lalor, Katie Baird

Reports

No abstract provided.

Characterization Of An Acrylaminde Based Photopolymer For Fabrication Of Liquid Crystal Devices, Pavani Kotakonda

Conference Papers

Photopolymers are increasingly interesting as new materials for the fabrication of electro optical liquid crystal devices. Photoinduced surface relief gratings in dry, self developing acrylamide based photopolymers can be used to align liquid crystals (LCs) as an alternative to the rubbing technique. These optically recorded surface relief patterns can be used to fabricate electro-optical switchable LC Bragg gratings. An investigation of the dependence of photoinduced surface relief gratings on recording intensity and thickness of the photopolymer layer is reported. The surface relief gratings were filled with E7 LCs and a switchable LC diffraction grating was fabricated.

A Collision Avoidance System For Autonomous Underwater Vehicles, Chiew Seon Tan

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

The work in this thesis is concerned with the development of a novel and practical collision avoidance system for autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs). Synergistically, advanced stochastic motion planning methods, dynamics quantisation approaches, multivariable tracking controller designs, sonar data processing and workspace representation, are combined to enhance significantly the survivability of modern AUVs. The recent proliferation of autonomous AUV deployments for various missions such as seafloor surveying, scientific data gathering and mine hunting has demanded a substantial increase in vehicle autonomy. One matching requirement of such missions is to allow all the AUV to navigate safely in a dynamic and unstructured …

Convergence Improvement Of Iterative Decoders, Evangelos Papagiannis

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

Iterative decoding techniques shaked the waters of the error correction and communications field in general. Their amazing compromise between complexity and performance offered much more freedom in code design and made highly complex codes, that were being considered undecodable until recently, part of almost any communication system. Nevertheless, iterative decoding is a sub-optimum decoding method and as such, it has attracted huge research interest. But the iterative decoder still hides many of its secrets, as it has not been possible yet to fully describe its behaviour and its cost function. This work presents the convergence problem of iterative decoding from …

Mobility Support Architectures For Next-Generation Wireless Networks, Ql Wang

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

With the convergence of the wireless networks and the Internet and the booming demand for multimedia applications, the next-generation (beyond the third generation, or B3G) wireless systems are expected to be all IP-based and provide real-time and non-real-time mobile services anywhere and anytime. Powerful and efficient mobility support is thus the key enabler to fulfil such an attractive vision by supporting various mobility scenarios. This thesis contributes to this interesting while challenging topic. After a literature review on mobility support architectures and protocols, the thesis starts presenting our contributions with a generic multi-layer mobility support framework, which provides a general …

Antithesis: The Dialectics Of Software Art, Geoff Cox

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

Software art refers to the production of software as art rather than the use of software to produce art. This thesis situates software arts practice in relation to a dialectical materialist tradition that focusses attention on the site of production and the contradictions within the relations of production. By making reference to post-Marxist theories, it is argued that antagonisms associated with traditional forms of labour have been extended to include the labour of machines and software. Therefore any analysis of the labour involved in making art must recognise the ways in which labour has become more immaterial, collective and communicative. …

Video Quality Measurement For 3g Handsets, Praveen Enjapuri

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

Internet provides many services. VOIP (Voice over IP) is one such service also known as Internet Telephony or IP Telephony. Using VOIP we can make voice telephony calls, participate in video conferences, etc over data networks (WAN'S and LAN'S) or internet. VOIP operates by first converting voice data into digital form, organizing them into packets, transmitting them through the most convenient route to their destination and finally reassembling them at the destination. Protocols like SIP/RTP, H.323, MGCP are designed which perform all the above steps. This project aims to make a video call from a 3G Mobile to an IP …

"Concerns Are Translated Into Conversations Of Sudden Community": Identification At The Iwca/Ncptw, Melissa Ianetta

The Writing Center Journal

No abstract provided.

The Idea Of A Writing Center Community, Lauren Fitzgerald

The Writing Center Journal

No abstract provided.

Local Practices, National Consequences: Surveying And (Re)Constructing Writing Center Identities, Jo Ann Griffin, Daniel Keller, Iswari P. Pandey, Anne-Marie Pedersen, Carolyn Skinner

The Writing Center Journal

No abstract provided.

Nonlinear Interactions Of Waves And Currents With Structures In Nearshore Environments, Baoxing Wang

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

In this thesis, nonlinear interactions of waves and currents with structures in nearshore environments are investigated. The emphasis of the research is to model the encountered multiple scales of hydrodynamics (e. g. monochromatic waves and three-dimensional currents) in a numerically efficient and accurate way on a beach and around a structure in the shallow coastal region. The radiation stress and mass flux have been analytically derived by inclusion of higher-order surface elevations. The Boussinesq-type model COULWAVE is used to assess the fully nonlinear wave transformation on a beach. The research unveils the essential roles of the Ursell parameter, Irribarren number …

Non-Intrusive Subscriber Authentication For Next Generation Mobile Communication Systems, Philip Maurice Rodwell

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

The last decade has witnessed massive growth in both the technological development, and the consumer adoption of mobile devices such as mobile handsets and PDAs. The recent introduction of wideband mobile networks has enabled the deployment of new services with access to traditionally well protected personal data, such as banking details or medical records. Secure user access to this data has however remained a function of the mobile device's authentication system, which is only protected from masquerade abuse by the traditional PIN, originally designed to protect against telephony abuse. This thesis presents novel research in relation to advanced subscriber authentication …

Big Al's: Ten Years On, Gerry Mortimer

Case studies

This case study was developed by Gerry Mortimer of the Technological University Dublin. It was developed as a basis for class discussion, rather than to illustrate effective or ineffective handling of an administrative situation. The author acknowledges the assistance of research student Tara Rooney in preparing this case and of Simon Walker and Blathnaid Ni Fhatharta of Kepak Convenience Foods and Niamh MacHale of An Bord Bia (Irish Food Board) in facilitating its development.

The Quality Movement Discourse In The Higher Education Sector: A General Review, Aidan Kenny

Level 3

This paper – the first of a series of three – describes some of the macro milestones in the evolution of the Quality Movement in the industrial environment. The emphasis then shifts to reviewing the discourse relating to quality in the higher education sector in the UK. Attention is given to Quality Assessment, Quality Assurance and Quality Enhancement models. The interface or tension lines between quality as a controlling mechanism or as a tool for development are outlined. Predominant concerns and issues as expressed by academics are clustered into macro questions, the answers to which will require further longitudinal research. …

The Application Of Learning Skills In An Engineering Programme, Leslie Shoemaker

Level 3

At the Dublin Institute of Technology, an engineering programme in the School of Control Systems and Electrical Engineering has successfully incorporated a study skills module into the core curriculum. The module, titled Academic Development and Key Skills, is part of the first year of the programme and has a two-fold purpose. Primarily the goal is to assist the students with the transition from second level education to third level by teaching them a more competent learning style. This, in turn, helps to create a positive impact with respect to the retention of this student group within the programme. The second …

Port Community Learning Needs: Analysis And Design, Edward Sweeney, Pietro Evangelista

Articles

The port industry is facing a dramatic wave of changes that have transformed the structure of the
industry. Modern seaports are increasingly shifting from a “hardware-based” approach towards “knowhow intensive” configuration. In this context knowledge resources, learning processes and training initiatives increasingly represent key elements to guarantee the quality of service supplied and hence the competitiveness of modern seaport communities. This paper describes the learning needs analysis conducted amongst key port community actors in three ports in the south east of Ireland during 2005 in the context of the I-Sea.Net project. It goes on to describe the learning requirements report …

Outsourcing: An Irish Perspective, Aoife O'Riordan, Edward Sweeney

Conference papers

This paper investigates three case studies with regards their outsourcing initiatives from an Irish perspective, the benefits and problems they encountered, the contracts they have constructed, and where they have outsourced and the reasons behind them. The research took place over a period of two years, and the information for the case studies was gleaned from a number of sources including: published papers about the companies, the company websites, annual financial reports, the questionnaire they filled out, and interviews with key decision making personnel in the company. Follow up interviews were conducted where it was felt they were required. Key …

Blended Problem-Based Learning For Teacher Education: Lessons Learnt, Roisin Donnelly

Journal Articles

Journal of Learning, Media and Technology, Vol. 31, 2, 2006, pp. 93-116

Available from the Publisher http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17439880600756621

What Is Required To Optimise Professional Development Opportunities For Academic Staff In A Specific College In The Further Education Sector?, Anne O'Donohue

Theses

The main aim of this research was to identify what was required to optimise professional development for the academic staff of Liberties College, a college in the further education sector. This research was a case study, focusing on the micro, one case on one site, with the emphasis on understanding the unity and the wholeness of this particular case. The theoretical perspective applied therefore, was constructionist and the research methods interpretive in design.

The research design was mainly qualitative though there was also a quantitative element in part of the questionnaire which was followed up by semi-structured interviews. The relevant …

Can Blending Face-To-Face Teaching With E-Learning Support The Development Of Phase 4 Apprentices In Mathematics? A Formative Evaluation Research Study., Peter Hinch

Theses

This thesis is a formative evaluation research study. Its purpose is to establish if blending face-to-face and e-learning delivery methods can support the development of Phase 4 apprentice plumbers in mathematics in the Department of Construction Skills in the Technologicl University Dublin. The study also included the design, development and evaluation of a mathematics web site called Plumatics 4 U which is grounded in established theoretical criteria for effective blended delivery within third level education. This web site is currently in use by Phase 4 apprentice plumbers and is delivered through WebCT. The CD accompanying this thesis contains a short …

Using Sketches And Knowledge Bases For Geo-Spatial Image Retrieval, Michela Bertolotto, James Carswell, E Mcloughlin, D O'Sullivan, C Wilson

Articles

This paper presents research in the field of knowledge management for geo-spatial imagery including scanned aerial photos and satellite images. We have developed a web-based system that allows users to query a database of images not only using metadata, but also drawing sketches of configurations of objects they are interested in as well as inputting textual descriptions of their intended task. Our system integrates case-based reasoning techniques to form a knowledge base from previously issued queries that can be exploited to improve future query processing and to build organizational memory through experience capture. The effective design and implementation of a …

Musical Pattern Design Using Contour Icons, Charlie Cullen, Eugene Coyle

Conference papers

This paper considers the use of Contour Icons in the design and implementation of musical patterns, for the purposes of detection and recognition. Research work had endeavoured to deliver musical patterns that were both distinct and memorable, and to this end a set of basic melodic shapes were introduced using a Sonification application called TrioSon that had been designed for the purpose. Existing work in the field (such as that concerning Earcon design) has considered the mechanisms by which patterns may be made distinctive, but it is argued that separate consideration must be given to the method of making such …

Survival Of Antibiotic Resistant And Antibiotic Sensitive Strains Of E. Coli O157 And E. Coli O26 In Food Matrices., Ciara Walsh, Geraldine Duffy, I. S. Blair, D. A. Mcdowell

Articles

Escherichia coli O157:H7 or E. coli O26, which were AS (antibiotic sensitive), AR (laboratory created antibiotic resistant mutants), or naturally MAR (multi-antibiotic resistant), were inoculated into laboratory media, yoghurt or orange juice and their growth/survival monitored during enrichment at 37 °C or storage at 4 °C. The strains were also inoculated into minced beef and their thermal inactivation (D-values) examined at 55 °C, with and without a prior heat shock at 48 °C. The growth kinetics (lag phases, growth rates) of the VTEC (verocytotoxigenic E. coli), incubated over 24 h at 37 °C in laboratory media, were …

Legal Pluralism And Human Agency, Jeremy Webber

Osgoode Hall Law Journal

Much legal-pluralist scholarship tends to naturalize "the law of the context," treating that law as though it were inherent in social interaction, emerging spontaneously, without conscious human decision. This view overstates the role of agreement in human societies and mischaracterizes the nature of law, including non-state law. All law is concerned with establishing a collective set of norms against a backdrop of normative disagreement, not agreement. It necessarily contains mechanisms for bringing contention to a provisional close, imposing a collective solution. This article presents a theory of legal pluralism that takes human disagreement seriously. The theory retains four themes crucial …