An Evaluation Of The Safety Of The Cycling In Dublin City For Dit Students, Niamh O' Reilly

Articles

Cycling as a mode of transport offers many benefits including a cheap, cost effective, healthy, fast, mainly congestion free and environmentally friendly means of getting to and from places of employment and education. Given the central location of Technological University Dublin campus buildings this would seem an ideal option for its third level students, but on the contrary, a DIT online travel survey conducted in March 2014 found that only 7% of students chose cycling as their primary mode of transport. Concerns about cyclist safety were a major factor cited by students who chose alternative modes of transport. Based on …

Adaptive Environments For Enabling Senior Citizens: An Holistic Assessment Tool For Housing Design And Iot-Based Technologies, Matteo Zallio, Damon Berry, Niccolò Casiddu

Conference papers

The population of older adults will continuously increase over the coming decades. As they get older, people will require assistance and regular monitoring, with higher costs for welfare system and families. Two vital aspects of a healthy lifestyle, are domestic autonomy and maintenance of relationships within the neighborhood. This leads to an interesting research issue: “Could houses and appliances have the potential to improve autonomy and quality of life of citizens? Which methods and tools could enhance wellbeing and healthy conditions? The house has the potential to be a safe, adaptive environment, integrated with technologies for life support. This work …

Investigating The Impact Of Unsupervised Feature-Extraction From Multi-Wavelength Image Data For Photometric Classification Of Stars, Galaxies And Qsos, Annika Lindh

Conference papers

Accurate classification of astronomical objects currently relies on spectroscopic data. Acquiring this data is time-consuming and expensive compared to photometric data. Hence, improving the accuracy of photometric classification could lead to far better coverage and faster classification pipelines. This paper investigates the benefit of using unsupervised feature-extraction from multi-wavelength image data for photometric classification of stars, galaxies and QSOs. An unsupervised Deep Belief Network is used, giving the model a higher level of interpretability thanks to its generative nature and layer-wise training. A Random Forest classifier is used to measure the contribution of the novel features compared to a set …

Bim Innovation Capability Programme: An Irish Bim Study, Barry Mcauley, Alan Hore, Roger West

Articles

In 2011 the Royal Institute of Architects Ireland (RIAI) conducted a survey which found that BIM adoption within Ireland was quite low at 16%. Over the last five years these figures have risen significantly, with the 2016 Irish Digital Transition Survey reporting that 76% of respondents possess confidence in their organisation’s BIM skills and knowledge. This represents a significant shift of BIM adoption in Ireland over the last five years.

The BIM Innovation Capability Programme (BICP) Irish BIM study, builds on the findings from the BICP Global BIM Study by providing an in depth review of BIM in Ireland with …

Microbial Enzyme Production Using Lignocellulosic Food Industry Wastes As Feedstock: A Review, Amit Jaiswal, Rajeev Ravindran

Articles

Enzymes are of great importance in the industry due to their substrate and product specificity, moderate reaction conditions, minimal by-product formation and high yield. They are important ingredients in several products and production processes. Up to 30% of the total production cost of enzymes is attributed to the raw materials costs. The food industry expels copious amounts of processing waste annually, which is mostlylignocellulosicin nature. Upon proper treatment,lignocellulosecan replace conventional carbon sources in media preparations for industrial microbial processes, such as enzyme production. However, wild strains of microorganisms that produce industrially important enzymes show low yield and cannot thrive on …

A Dual Band 450lte/Gsm900 Pifa For Portable Devices, Abraham Loutridis, Kansheng Yang, Matthias John, Max Ammann

Conference Papers

A dual band PIFA antenna for portable devices is presented. It operates in the 450 LTE (449 − 461 MHz) and GSM 900 (876 – 922 MHz) frequency bands. The proposed antenna which has a very compact size of 7 (0.01λ0) × 7 × 70 (0.1λ0) mm3 and is suitable to integrate in small envelopes, consists of two branches and a metallic patch. The low cost and easily fabricated antenna offers high total efficiency and gain in both bands. Measured and simulated results are provided.

Power-Weighted Divergences For Relative Attenuation And Delay Estimation, Ruairí De Fréin, Scott T. Rickard Prof

Articles

Power-weighted estimators have recently been proposed for relative attenuation and delay estimation in blind source separation. Their provenance lies in the observation that speech is approximately windowed-disjoint orthogonal (WDO) in the time-frequency (TF) domain; it has been reported that using WDO, derived from TF representations of speech, improves mixing parameter estimation. We show that power-weighted relative attenuation and delay estimators can be derived from a particular case of a weighted Bregman divergence. We then propose a wider class of estimators, which we tune to give better parameter estimates for speech.

Evaluation Of Ultrasound Assisted Potassium Permanganate Pre-Treatment Of Spent Coffee Waste, Rajeev Ravindran, Swarna Jaiswal, Nissreen Abu-Ghannam, Amit Jaiswal

Articles

In the present study, novel pre-treatment for spent coffee waste (SCW) has been proposed which utilises the superior oxidising capacity of alkaline KMnO₄ assisted by ultra-sonication. The pre-treatment was conducted for different exposure times (10, 20, 30 and 40 min) using different concentrations of KMnO₄ (1,2, 3, 4, 5% w/v) at room temperature with solid/liquid ratio of 1:10. Pretreating SCW with 4% KMnO₄ and exposing it to ultrasound for 20 min resulted in 98% cellulose recovery and a maximum lignin removal of 46%. 1.7fold increase in reducing sugar yield was obtained after enzymatic hydrolysis of KMnO_{4 …}

Recording Of High Efficiency Volume Bragg Gratings In A Photopolymer Using Diffraction From Very Weak Pre-Recorded Gratings, Denis Bade

Articles

No abstract provided.

Development Of Traceable Capabilities In Non-Contact Thermal Metrology, Sam Boles

Masters

Accurate temperature measurement is crucial in industry to reduce waste and environmental impact. Industrial use of Radiation Thermometers (RTs) is becoming increasingly common due to their wide market availability, fast response time, large temperature ranges, and their ability to measure temperature without contact. With this growth in use, accurate RT measurements that are traceable to the International Temperature Scale of 1990 (ITS-90) are a growing requirement. Traceable calibrations are usually performed using horizontal Blackbody Cavity Radiation Sources (BCRSs). In the work presented, a unique vertical bath-based BCRS, constructed in-house at the National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI), was compared over …

Behaviour Of A Spd Switchable Glazing In An Outdoor Test Cell With Heat Removal Under Varying Weather Conditions, Aritra Ghosh, Brian Norton, Aidan Duffy

Articles

Suspended particle device (SPD) switchable glazing has potential to control transmission of solar radiation in the visible range by changing its transparency from 55% to 5%. Outdoor test cell characterisation of a SPD switchable glazing offered the dynamic solar heat gain coefficient (SHGC) which varied between 0.05 (when opaque) and 0.38 (when transparent). Reduction of maximum temperature rise of 11% and 15% was possible using SPD “transparent” and “opaque” state compared to same area double-glazing. Insulated test cell with water flow heat exchanger was employed to measure the cooling load reduction potential of SPD glazing while its transmission changed from …

Statistical Models Of Domestic And Sme Daily Gas Consumption - Applications To Gas Network Planning And Management, Ronan Oliver

Doctoral

This research is centred on three pillars of EU energy policy that aim to improve: 1) energy efficiency, in order to reduce CO2 emissions and therefore limit climate change; 2) security of energy supplies, in order to protect economic output and vulnerable citizens in extreme weather; and 3) market integration, in order to increase energy supplier competition and consumer choice in each member state. To help deliver on these policies, the EU has recently mandated that: 1) gas smartmeters are to be provided to consumers to help improve energy efficiency; 2) network operators ensure adequate gas supplies during extreme cold …

Reflecting Societal Values In Designing Flood Risk Management Strategies, Mark Adamson, John O'Sullivan, Zeinab Bedri

Conference papers

In 2006, the Office of Public Works (OPW) began the National Catchment-based Flood Risk Assessment and Management (CFRAM) Programme through a series of pilot studies. A Multi-Criteria Analysis (MCA) Framework was developed through the pilot studies that integrated a number of objectives related to a wide range of potential impacts and benefits into the core of process of appraising and selecting suitable flood risk management measures for a given area or location, and then for prioritising national investments for different schemes and projects. This MCA Framework, that provides a systematic process of developing a non-monetised but numerical indicator of benefit …

Evaluation Of Slope Stability Quantifying The Effect Of Vegetation, Roberto José Marín, Juan Pablo Osorio

Conference papers

The present study evaluates the shallow landslides susceptibility triggered by rainfall by means of multiple numerical simulations. The simulations integrate a transient rainfall infiltration model with an infinite slope stability model, both of them developed for unsaturated soils in a basin scale. TRIGRS’ infiltration model is used to calculate pore water pressure. The geotechnical model includes the evaluation of two parameters related to vegetation: root reinforcement and tree surcharge due to the weight of the vegetation. These simulations were carried out using multiple values of these parameters so that their behavior is analyzed for the topographic conditions of the watershed …

Support Vector Machines And Artificial Neural Networks: Assessing The Validity Of Using Technical Features For Security Forecasting, James Dipadua

Dissertations

Stock forecasting is an enticing and well-studied problem in both finance and machine learning literature with linear-based models such as ARIMA and ARCH to non-linear Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) and Support Vector Machines (SVM). However, these forecasting techniques also use very different input features, some of which are seen by economists as irrational and theoretically unjustified. In this comparative study using ANNs and SVMs for 12 publicly traded companies, derivative price “technicals” are evaluated against macro- and microeconomic fundamentals to evaluate the efficacy of model performance. Despite the efficient market hypothesis positing the ill-suitability of technicals as model inputs, this …

Pattern Reconfigurable Back-To-Back Microstrip Patch Antenna, Kansheng Yang, Xiulong Bao, Patrick Mcevoy, Max Ammann

Articles

A back-to- back microstrip patch antenna with a switchable pattern is proposed for WLAN applications. The patch elements, printed on FR-4 substrates with a common ground plane, are switched with a single-pole double-throw PIN diode circuit. Switching the feed selects either of two identical radiation patterns in the opposing hemispheres for spatial diversity that would benefit a distributed network.

Activist: A New Framework For Dataset Labelling, Jack O'Neill, Sarah Jane Delany, Brian Mac Namee

Conference papers

Acquiring labels for large datasets can be a costly and time-consuming process. This has motivated the development of the semi-supervised learning problem domain, which makes use of unlabelled data — in conjunction with a small amount of labelled data — to infer the correct labels of a partially labelled dataset. Active Learning is one of the most successful approaches to semi-supervised learning, and has been shown to reduce the cost and time taken to produce a fully labelled dataset. In this paper we present Activist; a free, online, state-of-the-art platform which leverages active learning techniques to improve the efficiency of …

Construction Professional Service Firm Management: A Longitudinal Study Of Strategic Planning In Irish Quantity Surveying Practices, Roisin Murphy

Conference papers

This paper reports on the ongoing investigation of strategic planning in Irish Quantity Surveying practices. The construction industry in Ireland has undergone a period of significant change in the last five years fuelling a shift in focus from tactical to strategic planning in professional service firms operating within the sector. A previous paper identified the type, scope and extent of strategic planning within Quantity Surveying (QS) practices in Ireland in the years up to and during the economic downturn. The current paper expands on the previous research by identifying changes in approach to strategic management within these professional service firms …

Empirical Comparative Analysis Of 1-Of-K Coding And K-Prototypes In Categorical Clustering, Fei Wang, Hector Franco, John Pugh, Robert J. Ross

Conference papers

Clustering is a fundamental machine learning application, which partitions data into homogeneous groups. K-means and its variants are the most widely used class of clustering algorithms today. However, the original k-means algorithm can only be applied to numeric data. For categorical data, the data has to be converted into numeric data through 1-of-K coding which itself causes many problems. K-prototypes, another clustering algorithm that originates from the k-means algorithm, can handle categorical data by adopting a different notion of distance. In this paper, we systematically compare these two methods through an experimental analysis. Our analysis shows that K-prototypes is more …

Support Vector Machines And Artificial Neural Networks: Assessing The Validity Of Using Technical Features For Security Forecasting, James Di Padua

Dissertations

Stock forecasting is an enticing and well studied problem in both finance and machine learning literature with linear based models such as ARIMA and ARCH to nonlinear Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) and Support Vector Machines (SVM). However, these forecasting techniques also use very different input features, some of which are seen by economists as irrational and theoretically unjustified. In this comparative study using ANNs and SVMs for 12 publicly traded companies, derivative price “technicals” are evaluated against macro and microeconomic fundamentals to evaluate the efficacy of model performance. Despite the efficient market hypothesis positing the ill suitability of technicals as …

Using Spatialisation To Support Exploratory Search Behaviour, Clement Roux

Dissertations

Information-seekers traditionally interact with digital content through keyword-based search interfaces displaying results in list views. Well-defined lookup search tasks are performed brilliantly with these interfaces, enabling users to find relevant information and develop a relative understanding of the underlying information space. However, it is feasible to suggest that ill-defined and abstract search tasks could be better supported with a different interface that could allow the user to explore a library’s content and develop an appropriate mental model of the information space. One such approach is based on the use of visualisation, an approach to data analysis that aims to reduce …

A Regression Study Of Salary Determinants In Indian Job Markets For Entry Level Engineering Graduates, Rajveer Singh

Dissertations

The economic liberalisation of Indian markets in early 90s boosted the economic growth of the nation in various sectors over the next two decades. One such sector that has seen a massive growth in this time is Information Technology (IT). The IT industry has played a very crucial role in transforming India from a slow moving economy to one of the largest exporters of IT services. This growth created a huge demand in the labour markets for skilled labour, which in turn made engineering one of the top choices of study after high school over the years. In addition, the …

Investigating The Impact Of Unsupervised Feature-Extraction From Multi-Wavelength Image Data For Photometric Classification Of Stars, Galaxies And Qsos, Annika Lindh

Dissertations

This thesis reviews the current state of photometric classification in Astronomy and identifies two main gaps: a dependence on handcrafted rules, and a lack of interpretability in the more successful classifiers. To address this, Deep Learning and Computer Vision were used to create a more interpretable model, using unsupervised training to reduce human bias.

The main contribution is the investigation into the impact of using unsupervised feature-extraction from multi-wavelength image data for the classification task. The feature-extraction is achieved by implementing an unsupervised Deep Belief Network to extract lower-dimensionality features from the multi-wavelength image data captured by the Sloan Digital …

An Exploration Of The Impact Of Animal Agriculture On Human Sustainable Development Index And The Child Health Indicator, Hithesan Pandian

Dissertations

Several studies have shown that animal agriculture is one of the major contributors to climate change due to greenhouse gas emissions, deforestation, land degradation, freshwater shortages, general environmental pollution and world hunger. Apart from this, meat consumption is strongly associated with certain fatal health conditions such as cancer, cardiovascular disease and diabetes (Wu, 2014). Although meat production and export could be economically beneficial in the short run, it could lead to over-exploitation of natural resources and in turn the destruction of the environment in the long run. Hence, it is essential for the leaders of a nation to make smart …

Form, Function Or Fiction: Gender And Diversity In Engineering Programmes In Ireland, Domhnall Sheridan, Una Beagon, Eabhnat Ni Fhloinn

Conference papers

Messe agus Pangur Bán, cechtar nathar fria shaindán: bíth a menmasam fri seilgg, mu menma céin im shaincheirdd.

I and Pangur Bán, my cat 'Tis a like task we are at; Hunting mice is his delight Hunting words I sit all night.

The poem Pangur Bán [1] was written by an unknown Irish monk in the Benedictine Abbey of Reichenau, in southern Germany in the ninth century. The Abbey, founded in 724 by Saint Pirim, was a centre of learning in Europe for many centuries, reaching its apex under Abbot Berno of Reichenau (1008–48). The Christian church was the sole …

Model-Free And Model-Based Active Learning For Regression, Jack O'Neill, Sarah Jane Delany, Brian Macnamee

Conference papers

Training machine learning models often requires large labelled datasets, which can be both expensive and time-consuming to obtain. Active learning aims to selectively choose which data is labelled in order to minimize the total number of labels required to train an effective model. This paper compares model-free and model-based approaches to active learning for regression, finding that model-free approaches, in addition to being less computationally intensive to implement, are more effective in improving the performance of linear regressions than model-based alternatives.

Short Term Forecasting Of Nitrogen Dioxide (No2) Levels Using A Hybrid Statistical And Air Mass History Modelling Approach, Aoife Donnelly, Owen Naughton, Brian Broderick, Bruce Misstear

Articles

A novel hybrid model has been developed to support the provision of real-time air quality forecasts. Statistical techniques have been applied in parallel with airmass history modelling to provide an efficient and accurate forecasting system with the ability to identify high NO2 events, which tend to be the episodes ofmost significance in Ireland. Airmass history modelling and k-means clustering are used to identify air mass types that lead to high NO2 levels in Ireland. Trajectory matching techniques allow data associated with these air masses to be partitioned during model development. Non-parametric regression (NPR) has been applied to describe nonlinear variations …

Optical Wavelength Ratiometric Monitoring System For Data Centre Cwdm Applications, Anthony Colohan, Thomas Freir, Derek Finlay

Conference papers

The development of the internet and the subsequent increase in the quantity of connected devices in recent years has given rise to an explosion in demand of data traffic across telecommunication networks. Converged networks deliver high speed bit rates for the purpose of streaming videos, downloading music files and communicating over the internet; voice over internet protocol (VOIP). Further additional data traffic growth stemming from the upsurge in the amount of ‘tweets’ and instant messages (IM) created as well as emails written and cloud storage, has led to a demand for the construction of much larger data centres, which …

Energy Managment Of Photovoltaic Charging Station (Pv-Cs) For Green University Campus Transportation, Ayda Esfandyari, Brian Norton, Michael Conlon, Sarah Mccormack

Conference Papers

Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs) have been recognised as the ideal solution for lowering the CO₂ emissions in the transport sector and helping to achieve a sustainable future. When BEV technology is leveraged with a solar energy source such as a Photovoltaic Charging Station (PV-CS), the CO₂ saving potential is extended to both generation and consumption points. Due to the intermittent nature of our solar resource, once the PV-CS is combined with a storage unit, energy production is achieved without risking the disruption to power supply reliability and quality. Technological University Dublin (DIT) has recognised the viability of this …

A Time For Change” An Evaluation Of The Ability Of The Quantity Surveyor To Measure Mechanical And Electrical Services Under The Irish Public Works Contracts (Designed By The Employer) Using The Agreed Rules Of Measurement., Charles Mitchell

Other Resources

Abstract

This dissertation seeks to examine the ability of the quantity surveyor to measure mechanical and electrical bills of quantities under the Irish Public Works Contracts using the Agreed Rules of Measurement 4. The study uses the opinions and perspectives of a broad range of industry stakeholders to identify barriers and drivers which will facilitate this change.

A mixed methodology research method incorporating both quantitative and qualitative research methods was used. A literature review covers relevant research in the field of the Public Works Contracts, the use of bills of quantities and specialist sub-contractors. The results of an unreported survey …