Digital Commons Network^™

Improving Group Integrity Of Tags In Rfid Systems, Reem Alkanhel

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

Checking the integrity of groups containing radio frequency identification (RFID) tagged objects or recovering the tag identifiers of missing objects is important in many activities. Several autonomous checking methods have been proposed for increasing the capability of recovering missing tag identifiers without external systems. This has been achieved by treating a group of tag identifiers (IDs) as packet symbols encoded and decoded in a way similar to that in binary erasure channels (BECs). Redundant data are required to be written into the limited memory space of RFID tags in order to enable the decoding process. In this thesis, the group …

Natural Fibre Reinforced Composite Materials, Aitor Hernandez Michelena

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

Abstract Nowadays, due to the global warming and pollution issues, sustainable materials must be considered. Composites materials can offer excellent mechanical performance with low weight, hence saving fuel. However, most of the composites systems are based on petrochemicals, and natural materials may be a better option; for example, fibre reinforcements from plant stems (bast) and bio-based resins are becoming available commercially. One of the major inconveniences of the NFRP is the moisture absorption in marine environments. This problem is usually solved increasing the fibre-matrix bonding. Commercially available fibre systems are chemically treated in order to tackle this issue, but those …

Fatigue Crack Growth Of Recycled Rubber In Natural Rubber/Butadiene Rubber Blends, Dayang Habibah Binti Abang Ismawi Hassim

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

Ground rubber from waste tyres may be added to elastomers to provide economic and environmental benefits. Both untreated and treated fillers have been investigated in different types of virgin rubber matrix. A principal concern is their crosslinked structure and large particle sizes. These additional fillers introduce flaws corresponding to micro-crack initiation sites especially under dynamic loading. Smaller particles, incorporated at a suitable concentration, may alleviate reduction of key mechanical properties. Many studies involving recycled rubber powder (RRP), untreated or treated materials, focus mainly on the quasi-static mechanical properties; generally few works examine the fatigue life and fracture morphology. In this …

Autonomous Drone Landings On An Unmanned Marine Vehicle Using Deep Reinforcement Learning, Riccardo Polvara

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

This thesis describes with the integration of an Unmanned Surface Vehicle (USV) and an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV, also commonly known as drone) in a single Multi-Agent System (MAS). In marine robotics, the advantage offered by a MAS consists of exploiting the key features of a single robot to compensate for the shortcomings in the other. In this way, a USV can serve as the landing platform to alleviate the need for a UAV to be airborne for long periods time, whilst the latter can increase the overall environmental awareness thanks to the possibility to cover large portions of the …

An Investigation Into How Teachers Develop Connected Approaches To School Mathematics, Nicola Jane Trubridge

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

This thesis details the longitudinal case study of a mathematics department as they implemented aspects of the Collaborative Connected Classroom (CCC) Model, a literature informed framework exemplifying teaching for understanding. The CCC Model describes the nature of mathematical activity as: activities build on learners’ prior knowledge; tasks connect different areas of mathematics or connect different ideas using multiple representations; links are made between procedures and concepts; tasks involve making comparisons and application tasks are presented as challenges. A CPD programme was designed to demonstrate the CCC Model to the department through a series of engaging, challenging and inspiring activities. Then, …

Cooperative Swarm Optimisation Of Unmanned Surface Vehicles, Yogang Singh

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

With growing advances in technology and everyday dependence on oceans for resources, the role of unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) has increased many fold. Extensive operations of USVs having naval, civil and scientific applications are currently being undertaken in various complex marine environments and demands are being placed on them to increase their autonomy and adaptability. A key requirement for the autonomous operation of USVs is to possess a multi-vehicle framework where they can operate as a fleet of vehicles in a practical marine environment with multiple advantages such as surveying of wider areas in less time. From the literature, it …

Securing Cloud Storage By Transparent Biometric Cryptography, Leith Abed

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

With the capability of storing huge volumes of data over the Internet, cloud storage has become a popular and desirable service for individuals and enterprises. The security issues, nevertheless, have been the intense debate within the cloud community. Significant attacks can be taken place, the most common being guessing the (poor) passwords. Given weaknesses with verification credentials, malicious attacks have happened across a variety of well-known storage services (i.e. Dropbox and Google Drive) – resulting in loss the privacy and confidentiality of files. Whilst today's use of third-party cryptographic applications can independently encrypt data, it arguably places a significant burden …

Numerical Modelling Of Responses Of Offshore Wave Energy Converters In Extreme Waves, Pierre-Henri Musiedlak

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

Wave Energy is a promising sector for sustainable low-carbon energy production. Despite the effort put in the last decade, concerning problems remained unsolved. Numerical modelling can play a key role in the assessment of extreme responses necessary to the understanding of Wave Energy Converter (WEC) capacity to survive extreme conditions. However, high-fidelity codes are too time-consuming for industries, while codes of lower fidelity are based on major physical assumptions inducing concerning uncertainties. Therefore, the present study - sponsored jointly by DNV GL and the University of Plymouth - develops an hybrid model coupling the low-fidelity model WaveDyn, with a Computational …

On Coding And Detection Techniques For Two-Dimensional Magnetic Recording, Mohammed Dikko Almustapha

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

The areal density growth of magnetic recording systems is fast approaching the superparamagnetic limit for conventional magnetic disks. This is due to the increasing demand for high data storage capacity. Two-dimensional Magnetic Recording (TDMR) is a new technology aimed at increasing the areal density of magnetic recording systems beyond the limit of current disk technology using conventional disk media. However, it relies on advanced coding and signal processing techniques to achieve areal density gains. Current state of the art signal processing for TDMR channel employed iterative decoding with Low Density Parity Check (LDPC) codes, coupled with 2D equalisers and full …

Active Stereo Vision For Manipulator Robot, Abdulla Mohamed

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

This thesis describes a novel active stereo vision platform that was developed to provide visual guidance to fruit harvesting robots. A five degree of freedom camera platform was built in order to identify and localize tomatoes grown in greenhouses in farms. A novel cognitive model of attention with three main features map is used to control the gaze of the camera system. The three feature maps are (A) an online epipolar geometry update to produce a disparity map and affordance of grasping, (B) a vergence controller to provide a map of the depth of tomatoes at high accuracy and (C) …

Human Electroencephalogram Based Biomarkers For Detection Of Alzheimer’S Disease, Ali H. Husseen Al-Nuaimi

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a progressive disorder that affects cognitive brain functions and develops many years before there are any clinical manifestations. A biomarker that provides a quantitative measure of changes in the brain in the early stages of AD would therefore be useful for early diagnosis. However, this would involve dealing with large numbers of people because up to 50% of dementia sufferers do not receive a formal diagnosis. Thus, there is a need for accurate, low-cost, robust, and easy to use biomarkers that can be used to detect AD in its early stages. Recent guidelines promote the use …

Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics Modelling Of The Impact Of A Flat Plate Upon An Aerated Water Surface, Hassan Muhammad Sdiq

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) is a particle-based method for solving Navier-Stokes and similar equations and is well-suited to problems where the computational domain becomes highly deformed. This study will describe in detail SPH simulations of various single- and multiphase flows with free surfaces and interactions with structures and solid surfaces. All 2D and 3D implementations have been compared with other numerical and experimental results. By adoption of multiphase and 3D models the computational requirements rise due to the increased number of particles. The fact that large numbers of particles are required in the simulations means that a parallelised version of …

The Lattice Boltzmann Method For Flows With Slip And No-Slip Boundaries, Seemaa Abdulsattar Mohammed

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

This thesis assesses and extends a modern method to study the physics of simple and complex flows by using the lattice Boltzmann method (LBM). With the moment-based boundary conditions, different problems with no-slip and slip boundaries are simulated. The moment method is based on the specification of the appropriate hydrodynamic moments of LBM. Throughout this thesis, distinct collision operators of D2Q9 LBM are presented and examined; the models include the Bhatnager-Gross-Krook (BGK), multiple relaxation time (MRT) and a special case of the last model which is two relaxation times (TRT-LBM). Simple numerical simulations are given and the LBM proved its …

An Evaluation Of Targeted Security Awareness For End Users, Najem Mahmoud Ahmmed Ahmmed

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

Users are frequently cited as being the weakest link in the information security chain. However, in many cases they are ill-positioned to follow good practice and make the necessary decisions. Part of the reason here is that even if security awareness, training and/or education have been provided, some of the key points may have been forgotten by the time that users find themselves facing security-related decisions. There are several scenarios in which users find themselves facing security-related decisions. However, while in such situations, many do not have an adequate understanding of security and do not receive the appropriate advice to …

The Agile Model-Driven Method, Klaus Mairon

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

Today the development of business applications is influenced by increased project complexity, shortened development cycles and high expectations in quality. Rising costs in the software development are an additional motivation to improve the productivity by the choice of a suitable development process. In the development of complex applications models are of great importance. Models reduce complexity by abstraction. Additionally, models offer the possibility to build different views onto an application. If models are sufficiently formal they are suitable for the automated transformation into source code. For this reason, an important acceleration and quality factor in the software development is attributed …

Advancing User Authentication And Access Management, Jeffery Crume

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

In order for online systems to transact business or exchange other sensitive information, there must be an environment where the parties involved can verify that the other is who they claim to be. Authentication mechanisms provide this verification process, thereby, improving confidence in the confidentiality and integrity of communications. However, attackers can exploit this trust if they are able to successfully impersonate a legitimate user and gain access to the system with all the rights and privileges of that user. One particularly difficult class of attacks of this sort involves an attacker inserting themselves between the end user and the …

Network Security Intelligence Centres For Information Security Incident Management, Natalia Miloslavskaya

School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics Theses

Intensive IT development has led to qualitative changes in our living, which are driving current information security (IS) trends and require sophisticated structures and adequate approached to manage IS for different businesses. The wide range of threats is constantly growing in modern intranets; they have become not only numerous and diverse but more disruptive. In such circumstances, organizations realize that IS incidents’ timely detection and prevention in the future (what is more important) are not only possible but imperative. Any delay and only reactive actions to IS incidents put their assets under risk. A properly designed IS incident management system …

Mitochondrial Integrity In Neurodegeneration, Katrina Cowan, Oleg Anichtchik, Shouqing Luo

Peninsula Medical School

No abstract provided.

Computational Instantaneous Wave‐Free Ratio (Ifr) For Patient‐Specific Coronary Artery Stenoses Using 1d Network Models, Jason M. Carson, Carl Roobottom, Robin Alcock, Perumal Nithiarasu

Peninsula Medical School

No abstract provided.

A Research Study On The Impact Management Have On Employee Engagement In A Manufacturing Company, Alice Murphy

Theses

The purpose of this paper is to discover can management have an impact on employee engagement. Many companies put millions into creating the best fit policies for their organization without focusing on management behaviour and how it affects employees alone. Leadership theories have evolved over the years and will continue to change from generation to generation. The evolving term of the meaning of 'leadership' suggests to the researcher that there will never be enough studies done in this field. Despite the vast amount of research done, there seems to be a paucity in the area of leadership in the manufacturing …

An Investigation Of The Impact Of Nursing Support And The Financial Implications Associated With Cpap Adherence, Christine Brunnick

Theses

The prevalence of Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) is increasing. As the prevalence of OSA increases, as does the need for the condition to be treated effectively to reduce several risk factors which increase both mortality and morbidity rates. Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) therapy is easily recognised as the most effective treatment for OSA. Despite the recognised benefits of CPAP therapy, adherence rates reported worldwide remain suboptimal. A transitional change within the Irish healthcare system means that private medical device companies will provide CPAP devices in specific contractual regions throughout Ireland. This change presents challenges and opportunities for policymakers. This …

Corporate Social Responsibility, Path Dependency And Cultural Influence: An Analysis Of Equitable Health Insurance Schemes For Niger, Reynatou Mounkaila Noma

Plymouth Business School Theses

Health care is essential for the wellbeing of people and the development of a country. Populations in developing countries tend to encounter challenges in accessing good healthcare which could however be improved with health insurance. This thesis investigates the reasons for the low health coverage in Niger, in the perspective of proposing equitable schemes for attaining universal coverage. The study sheds light on the low rate of health insurance coverage in the country, as at least 70 % of the population, essentially from the informal sector does not have sustainable health insurance plan. For this study, the theoretical framework of …

An Analysis Of The Impact Of Performance Management In Higher Education, Andrew Brown

Plymouth Business School Theses

Recent changes in higher education sector have resulted in an increasingly marketised and competitive environment. Fee changes have heightened student expectations, whilst neo-liberal approaches, such as the removal of the student number cap have intensified focus on the recruitment and retention of students. Consequently performance in a variety of league tables has become a primary area of concern for universities, both as a means of student attraction and also as a response to pressure from a range of stakeholders. It is against this backdrop, that this research considers the impact of performance management within the sector. It is through such …

Message Factors That Favourably Drive Consumer’S Attitudes And Behavioural Intentions Towards Social Network And Media Platforms, Sarhang Majid

Plymouth Business School Theses

As consumers are increasingly utilising social network and media platforms for pre-purchase information, managers are confronted with producing effective social network and media platform (SNMP) messages that can favourably influence buyers’ attitudes and behavioural intentions towards brands and products. To ensure a thorough investigation of this research realm, and to develop awareness of the factors influencing the effectiveness of social media marketing, this study adopted a mixed methods approach involving a combination of both qualitative and quantitative research. An exploratory sequential research design was followed, starting with an in-depth, elite interview investigation with social media marketing experts. Adopting a thematic …

Code Smells Quantification: A Case Study On Large Open Source Research Codebase, Swapnil Singh Chauhan

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Research software has opened up new pathways of discovery in many and diverse disciplines. The research software is developed under unique budgetary and schedule constraints. The developers are often untrained transient workforce of graduate students and postdocs. As a result, the software quality hinders its sustainability beyond the immediate research goals. More importantly, the prevalent reward structures favor contributions in terms of research articles and systematically undervalues research code contributions. As a result, researchers and funding agencies do not allocate appropriate efforts or resources to the development, sustenance, and dissemination of research codebases. At the same time, there are no …

Grammatical Error Types Using A Picture Description Task In English And Spanish With Young Children, Lisa Valles

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Purpose: The current study was part of a larger project examining diagnostic accuracy of various assessment tools for bilingual children living in a border community. The purpose of this project was to examine language sample measures in young children using a picture description task (Eisenberg & Guo, 2013) by answering the following questions:

1. What were the frequent types of errors exhibited by young children in English and Spanish?

2. Were there distinct types of grammatical errors across languages in bilingual children?

Methods: Participants were recruited from a large city on the US/Mexico border. There were 47 participants in the …

Amplification Vs The Natural Ear: A Test On The Effectiveness Of The Natural Ear On Adults Ability To Match Pitch In Song, Celeste Orozco

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Background: Singing is a natural enjoyment of life; however, individuals tend to isolate themselves from this enjoyment due to their inability to match pitch accurately. A new technology, the Natural Ear provides altered auditory feedback to the user while singing. It is hypothesized that this feedback may aid in the userâ??s ability to match pitch.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to compare the effects of the Natural Ear to amplification and no amplification conditions on pitch matching accuracy in song.

Study Design: This study used a complex counterbalance within-subjects design.

Methods: 50 adults from the El Paso Metropolitan …

A Situational Analysis Of The Current Level Of Lecturers’ Engagement With Internationalisation Of The Curriculum In Ireland’S First Technological University, Deirdre Ryan, Fiona Faulkner, Dominic Dillane, Robert Flood

Journal Articles

The educational value of internationalisation in higher education is of critical importance for both domestic and international students. While national and institutional policies globally are increasingly prioritising internationalisation, the resultant consequences for the teaching and learning context are not adequately being explored. Understanding engagement with Internationalisation of the Curriculum from the lecturers’ perspective allows for a greater insight into the inherent implementation gap between the theory and practice of the process. This knowledge may then help inform strategies to address the gap. The present study details the current level of engagement between lecturers and Internationalisation of the Curriculum in Ireland’s …

The Difference Between A Deer And A Bullet, Dominic Laing

Wraparound South (Archived)

No abstract provided.

Additive Manufactured Ear Pinna For Spatial Cue Preservation In Custom Hearing Devices, Carlos Felipe Acosta Carrasco

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Advancements in additive manufacturing/3D printing technologies has permitted the fabrication of intricate features such as the ones present in the human ear. The outer ear, also known as the pinna, allows for the spectral cues from incoming sound to be captured and identified. The hypothesis of the preservation of auditory localization and externalization relies on the fabrication of an ear pinna via additive manufacturing embedded into a headset for spectral cue preservation and hearing protection. Before exploring these custom circumaural hearing devices, a study on the fabrication process of AM pinnae was performed. The KEMAR system for acoustic research was …