Engineering Commons^™

Spider Iii: A Multi-Agent-Based Distributed Computing System, Jianhua Ruan, Han-Shen Yuh, Koping Wang

Theses Digitization Project

The project, Spider III, presents architecture and protocol of a multi-agent-based internet distributed computing system, which provides a convenient development and execution environment for transparent task distribution, load balancing, and fault tolerance. Spider is an on going distribution computing project in the Department of Computer Science, California State University San Bernardino. It was first proposed as an object-oriented distributed system by Han-Sheng Yuh in his master's thesis in 1997. It has been further developed by Koping Wang in his master's project, of where he made large contribution and implemented the Spider II System.

A Doctor-Patient Communication Tool (Dpct) Ryodoroku Application On The Web, Hongwei Bi

Theses Digitization Project

No abstract provided.

The Need For Pfc Abatement In Semiconductor Manufacturing, Mohsen Manesh, Brian Kendrick

Inquiry: The University of Arkansas Undergraduate Research Journal

Perfluorocompounds (PFCs) are highly stable chemical compounds used in two integral steps of semiconductor manufacturing: chemical vapor deposition (CVD) chambers and etch chambers. Unfortunately, PFCs are also greenhouse gases linked to global warming. This, combined with their long atmospheric lifetimes gives them global warming potentials much higher than C02 the principal greenhouse gas. In a series of voluntary agreements with the United States and other national governments, the worldwide semiconductor industry has set a goal of reducing PFC emissions to 90% of their 1995 levels. To reach this goal, researchers have explored four main methods of reduction: substitution of PFCs, …

Finger Mouse And Text-To-Speech Application As Additions To The Smart Wheelchair, Karla Conn

Kaleidoscope

The smart wheelchair project is a unique investigation into the possibilities of helping the impaired navigate in a mobile chair. Many disabled people who need the help of a wheelchair to move about also need help communicating orally. This project allows the “walking” wheelchair to do some “talking.” A communication program for the wheelchair was developed, as well as a finger mouse that was implemented into all the programs. The finger mouse is a switch button small enough to wear on one’s finger. When the button is pressed, a signal is sent out from the transmitter and picked up by …

The Wright Stuff: A Redesign Of The 1905 Wright Flyer, Adam Richards, Ben Case, Eric Peterson, Nathan Holman, Wayne Goodrich, Amy Hintze, Carson Esplin, David Christensen, Jonathan Holfeltz, Nick Filimoehala, Nicholas Alley

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Capstone Projects

No abstract provided.

Critical Loading Events For The Assessment Of Medium Span Bridges, Colin C. Caprani, S. A. Grave, E. J. O'Brien, A. J. O'Connor

Conference papers

This paper describes the simulation of free-flowing traffic across bridges to predict the characteristic values for bridge load effects such as bending moment and shear force. The results of these simulations are then used to demonstrate that, in predicting the characteristic extreme load effects to which a bridge may be subjected, it is not sufficient to solely model one-or two-truck presence events. It is shown that loading events involving three or more trucks may need be included in the model for short to medium spans. The critical loading events for a particular load effect are strongly dependent on the span …

Basic Design Of Replogle Flumes, Charles M. Burt, Stuart W. Styles

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

To facilitate accurate flow measurement, this paper describes specific design and construction considerations applicable to Replogle flumes in irrigation applications. A design example is provided to illustrate these concepts.

Side Mounted Doppler Flow Meter For Canals, Stuart W. Styles

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

The Irrigation Training and Research Center has undertaken a performance review of advanced electronic flow measurement technologies in irrigation applications. An example is the SonTek Argonaut Side-Looking (SL) Doppler Flow Meter.

Doppler Flow Meters For Turnouts, Stuart W. Styles

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

Irrigation districts, farmers and other agricultural and environmental water users need reliable and low-cost flow meters with integrated dataloggers to measure water velocity and depth with a high level of precision. The Irrigation Training and Research Center has undertaken a performance review of advanced electronic flow measurement technologies in irrigation applications. Examples are the Unidata STARFLOW and the MACE AgriFlo Ultrasonic Doppler Meters.

Variable Frequency Drives - Planning Your System, Charles M. Burt

BioResource and Agricultural Engineering

Many irrigation districts are installing Variable Frequency Drives (VFDs) to increase their level of service to their customers and/or to reduce their energy consumption. This brochure is intended to help irrigation districts properly evaluate what type of VFD they need and how to install it.

However, not all VFDs are the same. The performance quality of a VFD will depend on the characteristics of the particular VFD, as well as how the VFD system is set up. Many times it is the seemingly small details that will have a large impact on performance in the long run. This brochure is …

Audio-Visual Speech Recognition By Speechreading, Xiaozheng Zhang, Russell M. Mersereau, Mark A. Clements

Electrical Engineering

Speechreading increases intelligibility in human speech perception. This suggests that conventional acoustic-based speech processing can benefit from the addition of visual information. This paper exploits speechreading for joint audio-visual speech recognition. We first present a color-based feature extraction algorithm that is able to extract salient visual speech features reliably from a frontal view of the talker in a video sequence. Then, a new fusion strategy using a coupled hidden Markov model (CHMM) is proposed to incorporate visual modality into the acoustic subsystem. By maintaining temporal coupling across the two modalities at the feature level and allowing asynchrony in the state …

Bimodal Fusion In Audio-Visual Speech Recognition, Xiaozheng Zhang, Russell M. Mersereau, Mark A. Clements

Electrical Engineering

Extending automatic speech recognition (ASR) to the visual modality has been shown to greatly increase recognition accuracy and improve system robustness over purely acoustic systems. especially in acoustically hostile environments. An important aspect of designing such systems is how to incorporate the visual component Into the acoustic speech recognizer to achieve optimal performance. In this paper, we investigate methods of Integrating the audio and visual modalities within HMM-based classification models. We examine existing integration schemes and propose the use of a coupled hidden Markov model (CHMM) to exploit audio-visual interaction. Our experimental results demonstrate that the CHMM consistently outperforms other …

Nebraska Summary: S405 Case-Ih Jx85, Nebraska Tractor Test Lab

Nebraska Tractor Tests

ABOUT THE TEST REPORT AND USE OF THE DATA The test data contained in this report are a tabulation of the results of a series of tests. Due to the restricted format of these pages, only a limited amount of data and not all of the tractor specifications are included. The full OECD report contains usually about 30 pages of data and specifications. The test data were obtained for each tractor under similar conditions and therefore, provide a means of comparison of performance based on a limited set of reported data. EXPLANATION OF THE TEST PROCEDURES Purpose The purpose of …

The Quality Problem Solving Method And Its Effectiveness At Nortech Inc., Jeffrey Henderson

Honors Capstones

Capstone submitted as a graduation requirement for the BSU Honors Program.

Thai Students' Attitudes And Concepts Of Technology, Kurt Henry Becker, Somchai Maunsaiyat

Engineering Education Faculty Publications

Of the eight major programs mentioned in Thailand's Eighth National Education Development Plan (1997-2001), one is aimed at developing human capability in the areas of science and technology. This is to address the fact that the teaching of technology in Thailand is lagging behind the technological changes of the last decade. Part of this reform effort is the development of conceptual based learning activities in science and technology for 12 to 15-year old students. These concepts are being introduced through the offering of a subject at the high school level. de Klerk Wolters (1989) indicated learning the concepts of technology …

Managing Runoff Following Manure Application, John E. Gilley, L. Mark Risse, Bahman Eghball

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Rainfall patterns, soil factors, topography, climate, and land use may all influence runoff. To minimize environmental concerns, excessive runoff should be avoided on areas where manure has been applied. Management practices used to control runoff include contouring, strip cropping, conservation tillage, terraces, and buffer strips. In some cases, secondary containment systems, sedimentation basins, or ponds may be necessary to collect runoff. More than one runoff-control practice may be necessary for protection in areas with high runoff potential. Soil properties, including infiltration, may be improved by manure application. The method, rate and timing of manure application should be considered to reduce …

Constructivism And The Use Of Technology, Kurt Becker

Engineering Education Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Optimal Placement Of Dampers And Actuators Based On Stochastic Approach, Franklin Y. Cheng, Hongping Jiang, Xiaozhe Zhang

Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

A general method is developed for optimal application of dampers and actuators by installing them at optimal location on seismic-resistant structures. The study includes development of a statistical criterion, formulation of a general optimization problem and establishment of a solution procedure. Numerical analysis of the seismic response in time-history of controlled structures is used to verify the proposed method for optimal device application and to demonstrate the effectiveness of seismic response control with optimal device location. This study shows that the proposed method for the optimal device application is simple and general, and that the optimally applied dampers and actuators …

An On-Line Acid-Base Titration Applet In The Generic Tutorial System For The Sciences Project, Thomas Lee Gummo

Theses Digitization Project

The purpose of this Master's Project was to develop an Acid-Base Titration Simulator. It was also to be a part of the California State University - San Bernardino's GTSS, Generic Tutorial System for the Sciences, project. The main benefit is that students will be able to conduct titration experiments over the Internet without being in the laboratory and without costly equipment or dangerous chemicals. Instructors at the high school and college level can demonstrate the key principles of titration.

A Scoping Study Of Water Quality Conditions In The Missouri National Recreational River Reach From Near Gavins Point Dam To Ponca State Park, Nebraska

United States Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District

The unchannelized reach of the Missouri River below Gavins Point Dam has several ongoing water resource management issues that involve and affect the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps). Water quality management considerations are of particular importance to three issues: 1) management of a portion of the reach as a recreational river under the Federal Wild and Scenic Rivers Act, 2) the reach is included in an action area identified by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) under the Federal Endangered Species Act (ESA) for three species (pallid sturgeon, least tern, and piping plover) identified as being in jeopardy, …

Nebraska Summary 383: Agco Rt130 Diesel, Nebraska Tractor Test Lab

Nebraska Tractor Tests

No abstract provided.

Nebraska Summary 410: Fendt 410 Vario, Nebraska Tractor Test Lab

Nebraska Tractor Tests

ABOUT THE TEST REPORT AND USE OF THE DATA

The test data contained in this report are a tabulation of the results of a series of tests. Due to the restricted format of these pages, only a limited amount of data and not all of the tractor specifications are included. The full OECD report contains usually about 30 pages of data and specifications. The test data were obtained for each tractor under similar conditions and therefore, provide a means of comparison of performance based on a limited set of reported data.

EXPLANATION OF THE TEST PROCEDURES

Purpose

The purpose of …

Remediation Of Trapped Free-Phase Lnapl, T. M. Whitworth, Andrew Curtis Elmore

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Free-phase light nonaqueous phase liquids (LNAPLs) may be trapped in certain stratigraphic and structural features near or at contaminated sites due to seasonal or other variations in the water table elevation. The purpose of this article is to point out particular subsurface conditions that are conducive to trapping of free-phase LNAPLs and to suggest approaches to remediating LNAPL-contaminated sites exhibiting similar subsurface geometry and stratigraphy. To trap free-phase LNAPL, a structure must have, in addition to closed contours, an upper boundary with pores small enough so that the LNAPL will not enter them. This boundary usually consists of clay-rich sediments. …

Use Of Snow-Covered Ranges To Estimate Explosives Residues From High-Order Detonations Of Army Munitions, Thomas F. Jenkins, Marianne E. Walsh, Paul H. Miyares, Alan D. Hewitt, Nicholas H. Collins, Thomas A. Ranney

United States Army: Publications

Estimation of the amounts of residues resulting from high-order detonation of munitions is complicated by the presence of residues from previous detonations and the inability to easily obtain adequately-sized samples to overcome spatial heterogeneity in residue deposition. This study was conducted to assess the use of snow-covered ranges to provide these types of estimates. Specifically, snow-covered ranges were used to estimate the amount of explosives residues that resulted from detonation of individual mortar rounds and a small antipersonnel land mine. At Fort Drum, NY, 60 mm mortars were fired and at Camp Ethan Allen, VT, 81 mm mortars and a …

Computing Small-Fleet Aircraft Availabilities Including Redundancy And Spares, Jeffery K. Cochran, Theodore P. Lewis

United States Air Force: Publications

Logistics support is a key element of aircraft transportation systems. This paper is concerned with the impact of aircraft spares provisioning decisions on the availability of aircraft. Spares provisioning in this context is complicated by the fact that spares may be shared across aircraft and that aircraft may have redundant systems. In addition, decisions concerning aircraft spares support require a rapid response for safety reasons. Analytical models have proven to provide a quicker response time than corresponding simulation models. There is an existing analytical model that includes the effect of redundancy and spares, but the underlying assumption is that a …

Victim, Perpetrator, Family, And Incident Characteristics Of Infant And Child Homicide In The United States Air Force, Don R. Lucas, Kelley C. Wezner, Joel S. Milner, Thomas R. Mccanne, I. Nell Harris, Carla Monroe-Posey, John P. Nelson

United States Air Force: Publications

Objective: The present study describes factors related to fatal abuse in three age groups in the United States Air Force (USAF).

Method: Records from 32 substantiated cases of fatal child abuse in the USAF were independently reviewed for 60 predefined factors.

Results: Males were over-represented in young child victims (between 1 year and 4 years of age) and child victims (between 4 years and 15 years of age) but not in infant victims (between 24 hours and 1 year of age). African-American infant victims and perpetrators were over-represented. Younger victims were more likely to have been previously …

Biomineralization Of Poorly Crystalline Fe(Iii) Oxides By Dissimilatory Metal Reducing Bacteria (Dmrb), John M. Zachara, Ravi K. Kukkadapu, James K. Fredrickson, Yuri A. Gorby, Steven C. Smith

United States Department of Energy: Publications

Dissimilatory metal reducing bacteria (DMRB) catalyze the reduction of Fe(III) to Fe(II) in anoxic soils, sediments, and groundwater. Two-line ferrihydrite is a bioavailable Fe(III) oxide form that is exploited by DMRB as a terminal electron acceptor. A wide variety of biomineralization products result from the interaction of DMRB with 2-line ferrihydrite. Here we describe the state of knowledge on the biotransformation of synthetic 2-line ferrihydrite by laboratory cultures of DMRB using select published data and new experimental results. A facultative DMRB is emphasized (Shewanella putrefaciens) upon which most of this work has been performed. Key factors controlling the identity of …

Reduction Kinetics Of Fe(Iii), Co(Iii), U(Vi), Cr(Vi), And Tc(Vii) In Cultures Of Dissimilatory Metal-Reducing Bacteria, Chongxuan Liu, Yuri A. Gorby, John M. Zachara, James K. Fredrickson, Christopher F. Brown

United States Department of Energy: Publications

The reduction kinetics of Fe(III)citrate, Fe(III)NTA, Co(III)EDTA⁻, U(VI)O₂²⁺, Cr(VI)O₄²⁻, and Tc(VII)O₄⁻ were studied in cultures of dissimilatory metal reducing bacteria (DMRB): Shewanella alga strain BrY, Shewanella putrefaciens strain CN32, Shewanella oneidensis strain MR-1, and Geobacter metallireducens strain GS-15. Reduction rates were metal specific with the following rate trend: Fe (III)citrate ≥ Fe(III)NTA > Co(III)EDTA⁻ ›› UO₂ ²⁺ > CrO₄²⁻ > TcO₄⁻, except for CrO₄²⁻ when H₂ was used as electron donor. The metal reduction rates were also electron donor dependent with faster rates …

Influence Of Mn Oxides On The Reduction Of Uranium(Vi) By The Metal-Reducing Bacterium Shewanella Putrefaciens, James K. Fredrickson, John M. Zachara, David Kennedy, Chongxuan Liu, Martine Duff, Douglas Hunter, Alice Dohnalkova

United States Department of Energy: Publications

The potential for Mn oxides to modify the biogeochemical behavior of U during reduction by the subsurface bacterium Shewanella putrefaciens strain CN32 was investigated using synthetic Mn(III/IV) oxides (pyrolusite [β-MnO₂], bixbyite [Mn₂O₃] and K⁺-birnessite [K₄Mn₁₄O₂₇ • 8H₂O]). In the absence of bacteria, pyrolusite and bixbyite oxidized biogenic uraninite (UO₂[s]) to soluble U(VI) species, with bixbyite being the most rapid oxidant. The Mn(III/IV) oxides lowered the bioreduction rate of U(VI) relative to rates in their absence or in the presence of gibbsite …

Sorption Of Cs+ To Micaceous Subsurface Sediments From The Hanford Site, Usa, John M. Zachara, Steven Smith, Chongxuan Liu, James Mckinley, R. Jeffrey Serne, Paul Gassman

United States Department of Energy: Publications

The sorption of Cs⁺ was investigated over a large concentration range (10^-9–10^-2 mol/L) on subsurface sediments from a United States nuclear materials site (Hanford) where high-level nuclear wastes (HLW) have been accidentally released to the vadose zone. The sediment sorbs large amounts of radiocesium, but expedited migration has been observed when HLW (a NaNO₃ brine) is the carrier. Cs⁺ sorption was measured on homoionic sediments (Na⁺, K⁺, Ca²⁺) with electrolyte concentrations ranging from 0.01 to 1.0 mol/L. In Na⁺ electrolyte, concentrations were extended to near saturation with …