Engineering Commons^™

Potential Effects Of Landscape Change On Water Supplies In The Presence Of Reservoir Storage, Andrew John Guswa, Perrine Hamel, P. James Dennedy-Frank

Engineering: Faculty Publications

This work presents a set of methods to evaluate the potential effects of landscape changes on water supplies. Potential impacts are a function of the seasonality of precipitation, losses of water to evapotranspiration and deep recharge, the flow-regulating ability of watersheds, and the availability of reservoir storage. For a given reservoir capacity, simple reservoir simulations with daily precipitation and streamflow enable the determination of the maximum steady supply of water for both the existing watershed and a hypothetical counter-factual that has neither flow-regulating benefits nor any losses. These two supply values, representing land use end-members, create an envelope that defines …

Repository Review: Nasa Pubspace, Laura Pope Robbins

Publications

Laura Pope Robbins is an advisor for The Charleston Advisor, and the review below is included in Scholarly Commons with the permission of the publisher.

PubSpace is a repository of full-text peer-reviewed articles resulting from NASA-funded research going back to 1961. The National Center for Biotechnology Information has integrated PubSpace into PubMed Central, a freely available repository of medical research. Using an established, stable, government-hosted platform for PubSpace seems to make sense. However, the lack of clear branding, an uneven application of phrase searching, and a missing thesaurus of NASA terminology highlights that this integration may not be the best.

Future Of The Mutcd, Steven G. Jewell P.E., Ptoe

Purdue Road School

The current edition of the national MUTCD was published in the Federal Register as a final rule in December 2009, effective on January 10, 2010. Most people probably don’t realize that this major tool of our trade is a living document that is under constant review and revision. The MUTCD is legally produced and maintained by FHWA. It usually gets officially revised and republished about every 6-10 years. There are a lot of legal issues and hoops that FHWA must progress through, including public review and documentation, to republish the Manual. Because of the constant changing and improving technology, FHWA …

Applications Of Ads-B In General Aviation, Chenyu Huang, Mary E. Johnson

Purdue Road School

ADS-B Applications for General Aviation Airports—ADS-B (Automatic Dependent Surveillance–Broadcast) Out will soon be required for aircraft operating in most assigned airspace categories. ADS-B data are more accessible for analysis than data from flight data monitoring devices and can potentially be used to improve airport operations. General aviation airports need low-cost, effective solutions. In this session we explore data from ADS-B technologies that support operations counting, landing/takeoff cycle characterization, and landing fee assessment, and that potentially identify areas of operational concern.

Deployment And Evaluation Of Sinusoidal Rumble Strips, Jijo K. Mathew, Andrew Balmos, Dana Plattner

Purdue Road School

Centerline and edge line rumble strips are effective tools for reducing crashes, but the resulting noise of rumble strip incursions can be disruptive to nearby residents. Sinusoidal rumble strips are emerging as quieter rumble strip construction technology. In this session we will discuss the design, construction, and evaluation of sinusoidal rumble strips on IN 1 in Fort Wayne.

Building A Better Pedestrian And Bicycling Infrastructure, Joyce E. Newland

Purdue Road School

The Federal Highway Administration has a long history of supporting pedestrian and bicycle transportation through funding, policy guidance, program management, and resource development. This Strategic Agenda for Pedestrian and Bicycle Transportation builds on this support and sets the stage for our activities in the coming years.

Practical Considerations In Determining Timber Pile Depth Using The Sonic Echo Method, Ali F. Jwary

Civil Engineering ETDs

The Federal Highway Administration indicates that about 85,000 bridges in the United States have no original contract documents with information about the type, depth, geometry and material of their foundations (FHWA, 2010). Furthermore, the National Bridge Inventory (NBI) provides information about 86,133 bridges nationwide that are rated as scour critical because of unknown foundation condition. In New Mexico, there are more than 281 bridges with unknown foundations, which are owned by the New Mexico Department of Transportation; 71 of these are timber bridges. These data indicate a serious problem that needs decisive action to assess the unknown bridge foundation characteristics …

Portable Signals: Indot Design Guidance And Specifications, Joseph Bruno

Purdue Road School

Until recently portable traffic signals, which are mounted on towable trailer supports, were not allowed in Indiana. However, portable signals have many advantages over fixed temporary signals, so the Indiana Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices was revised to allow them, and specifications for their use are now in place. This presentation provides an overview of portable signals, including INDOT’s current design and specification requirements for these devices.

Compliant Curb Ramp Solutions, Katherine Smutzer

Purdue Road School

Public Rights of Way Accessibility Guidelines (PROWAG) for Curb Ramps. Answers to frequently asked questions for Curb Ramps and Curb Ramp Designs. Examples of curb ramp designs in restricted conditions and other types of curb ramp examples.

Mash Implementation For Guardrail, Katherine Smutzer

Purdue Road School

A review of the Manual for Assessing Safety Hardware (MASH) Implementation for w-beam guardrail. What will change and what designers need to know when moving to MASH.

Funny Games - A Definition For And Study Of Comic Videogames, Eric Guardara

Discovery Day (formerly Post & Beyond)

In this project, I define the genre of Comic Games and discuss its categorical independence of other genres. Until now, this genre has not been clearly defined in the videogame medium. I have conducted research and compiled games that are generally accepted as being humorous. I then weeded out games that simply contain humor and categorized the remaining works that are at their core Comic Games. Comic Games are those whose primary and prolonged purpose are to evoke laughter from the user. This is different than humorous games that passively include humor. A Comic Game is one that is predominantly …

Vistics, Scott Tongue

Discovery Day (formerly Post & Beyond)

Vistics is a 2.5D platformer game for virtual reality devices such as the Oculus Rift. One of the major software goals in the Vistics design is to reduce the effects of simulation sickness in virtual reality devices. On the technical side, Vistics needs to achieve a low enough rendering time that matches the refresh rate of the device of the Oculus Rift - 90 Hz (also known as 90 frames per seconds). Additionally, the camera in the game must be capable of updating in under 16ms. This means that when the user changes their head position in the real world, …

Construction Specifications And Special Provisions, Scott Trammell, Melissa Russell

Purdue Road School

The purpose of this presentation is to help project managers and designers prepare the necessary information required for their contracts with regard to the Standard Specifications and any necessary special provisions. Attendees will be exposed to examples of the right way to incorporate a Unique Special Provision, as well as things to avoid and questions to ask. It is important to know the proper way to write and present a Unique Special Provision.

Testing And Evaluation Of Modern Lighting Technologies, David Boruff

Purdue Road School

This presentation provides an overview of one of the steps INDOT has taken in order to make the change to solid state lighting technology: the adoption of a testing procedure and approved materials list for luminaires.

Intracellular Nanoparticle Dynamics Affected By Cytoskeletal Integrity, Martha E. Grady, Emmabeth Parrish, Matthew A. Caporizzo, Sarah C. Seeger, Russell J. Composto, David M. Eckmann

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Publications

The cell interior is a crowded chemical space, which limits the diffusion of molecules and organelles within the cytoplasm, affecting the rates of chemical reactions. We provide insight into the relationship between non-specific intracellular diffusion and cytoskeletal integrity. Quantum dots entered the cell through microinjection and their spatial coordinates were captured by tracking their fluorescence signature as they diffused within the cell cytoplasm. Particle tracking revealed significant enhancement in the mobility of biocompatible quantum dots within fibrosarcoma cells versus their healthy counterparts, fibroblasts, as well as in actin destabilized fibroblasts versus untreated fibroblasts. Analyzing the displacement distributions provided insight into …

Tailoring Magnetic Behavior Of Cofemnnix (X = Al, Cr, Ga, And Sn) High Entropy Alloys By Metal Doping, Tingting Zuo, Michael C. Gao, Lizhi Ouyang, Xiao Yang, Yongqiang Cheng, Rui Feng, Shuying Chen, Peter K. Liaw, Jeffrey A. Hawk, Yong Zhang

Mathematical Sciences Faculty Research

Magnetic materials with excellent performances are desired for functional applications. Based on the high-entropy effect, a system of CoFeMnNiX (X = Al, Cr, Ga, and Sn) magnetic alloys are designed and investigated. The dramatic change in phase structures from face-centered-cubic (FCC) to ordered body-centered-cubic (BCC) phases, caused by adding Al, Ga, and Sn in CoFeMnNiX alloys, originates from the potent short-range chemical order in the liquid state predicted by ab initio molecular dynamics (AIMD) simulations. This phase transition leads to the significant enhancement of the saturation magnetization (Ms), e.g., the CoFeMnNiAl alloy has Ms of 147.86 Am2/kg. First-principles density functional …

Land Use Mix And Pedestrian Travel Behavior: Advancements In Conceptualization And Measurement, Steven Robert Gehrke

Dissertations and Theses

Smart growth policies have often emphasized the importance of land use mix as an intervention beholding of lasting urban planning and public health benefits. Past transportation-land use research has identified potential efficiency gains achieved by mixed-use neighborhoods and the subsequent shortening of trip lengths; whereas, public health research has accredited increased land use mixing as an effective policy for facilitating greater physical activity. However, despite the celebrated transportation, land use, and health benefits of improved land use mixing and the extent of topical attention, no consensus has been reached regarding the conceptualization and measurement of this key smart growth principle …

2017 Directory Of Indiana State, County, City And Town Officials Responsible For Road And Street Work, Indiana Ltap

Indiana Local Technical Assistance Program (LTAP) Directory

Contact information for agency officials and employees responsible for Indiana’s local road infrastructure.

Optimizing Jets For Wake Control Of Ground Vehicles, Domenic Barsotti, Sandra Boetcher

Publications

A system of wake control for a ground vehicle to help promote increased fuel efficiencies of the ground vehicle by modifying an air flow wake generated during the movement of the vehicle in a forward direction. The system includes at least one slot jet configured to be located along a rear profile portion of the ground vehicle. The at least one slot jet is configured to provide a continuous flow of air at a non-zero velocity when the ground vehicle is moving in a forward direction, the non-zero velocity being at least partially directed in a rearward direction with an …

Negahban Group Report: Saw-Tooth Shear Response Of Aged Poly(Methyl Methacrylate) (Pmma), Mehrdad Negahban

Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering: Faculty Publications

Results for isothermal saw-tooth shear loading experiments conducted on annealed and oven-cooled poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) at temperatures between 50^oC and 140^oC. The experiments were conducted 1996.

Universal Slip Dynamics In Metallic Glasses And Granular Matter – Linking Frictional Weakening With Inertial Effects, Dmitri V. Denisov, Kinga A. Lorincz, Wendelin J. Wright, Todd C. Hufnagel, Aya Nawano, Xiaojun Gu, Jonathan T. Uhl, Karin A. Dahmen, Peter Schall

Faculty Journal Articles

Slowly strained solids deform via intermittent slips that exhibit a material-independent critical size distribution. Here, by comparing two disparate systems - granular materials and bulk metallic glasses - we show evidence that not only the statistics of slips but also their dynamics are remarkably similar, i.e. independent of the microscopic details of the material. By resolving and comparing the full time evolution of avalanches in bulk metallic glasses and granular materials, we uncover a regime of universal deformation dynamics. We experimentally verify the predicted universal scaling functions for the dynamics of individual avalanches in both systems, and show that both …

Application Of Numerical Modeling To Study River Dynamics: Hydro-Geomorphological Evolution Due To Extreme Events In The Sandy River, Oregon, Sarkawt Hamarahim Muhammad

Dissertations and Theses

The Sandy River (OR) is a coastal tributary of the Columbia River and has a steep hydroshed 1316 square kilometers which is located on the western side of Mount Hood (elevation range 3 m to 1800 m). The system exhibits highly variable flow: Its average discharge is ~40 m³/s, and the highest recorded discharge was 1739 m³/s in 1964. In this study I model the geomorphic sensitivity of an 1800m reach located the downstream of the former Marmot Dam, which was removed in 2007. The hydro-geomorphic response to major flood has implications for system management and …

Influence Of Noise Generating Factors On Cross Correlation Ebsd Measurement Of Gnds, David T. Fullwood, Landon Hansen, Brian Jackson, Stewart I. Wright, Marc De Graef, Eric Richards Homer, Robert Wagoner

Faculty Publications

Studies of dislocation density evolution are fundamental to improved understanding in various areas of deformation mechanics. Recent advances in cross-correlation techniques, applied to EBSD data have particularly shed light on geometrically necessary dislocation (GND) behavior. However, the framework is relatively computationally expensive – patterns are typically saved from the EBSD scan and analyzed offline. A better understanding of the impact of EBSD pattern degradation, such as binning, compression, and various forms of noise, is vital to enable optimization of rapid and low cost GND analysis. This paper tackles the problem by setting up a set of simulated patterns that mimic …

Drivers Of Research Topic Selection For Engineering Doctoral Students, Erika A. Mosyjowski, Shanna R. Daly, Diane L. Peters

Mechanical Engineering Publications

In this study, we explored engineering doctoral students’ motivations for selecting their research topic. The extent to whichindividuals are intrinsically or extrinsically motivated and the autonomy they have to make their own decisions hasimplications for their enjoyment of and success at a particular task. Given the importance of motivation, we sought toaddress a gap in the understanding of how doctoral students in engineering decide on a particular problem to study. Ourfindings are based on interviews with students with varying past educational and professional experiences that enable us tocapture a wide range of motivations for engineering PhD students’ research subject decisions. …

Validation Of Postural Sway Measurements Using Wii Balance Board, Zachary Meade

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Standing balance measurements, such as postural sway, are vital for determining functional ability, risk of falling and recovery of injuries. Often the need to collect data outside of the typical clinical or research setting arises. However, obtaining these measurements outside of a laboratory setting can be very difficult, as the mobility of a laboratory-grade force plate (FP) is minimal, and its cost can be upwards of $20,000. The purpose of this study is to create a cheaper alternative by validating the Wii Balance Board’s (WBB; Nintendo, Redmond, Washington, USA) ability to measure postural sway patterns. The WBB can be acquired …

Quantifying Static And Dynamic Stability Using Mobile Sensors, Mason Schleu

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Balance disorders impact millions of people causing substantial impact on quality of life due to psychological and physical hardships associated with poor balance. However, a clinically relevant, low cost, self-service system in detecting such disorders does not exist. Previous research has shown the built in accelerometer and gyroscope sensors of a smart phone to be valid tools in detecting standing balance performance using traditional linear analysis, however, such a system has yet to be proven useful in detecting dynamic postural variability. Indeed, more quantitative methods than are typically used in clinical settings are necessary for early detection of poor postural …

Autonomous Uav Navigation In An Indoor Environment For Warehouse Inventory Recording, Venkat Ramana Reddy Garlapati

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

UAV’s are currently used extensively in outdoor environments for various applications, including wildfire monitoring, and agricultural surveying, their use in indoor applications have been fairly restricted, owing mainly to the difficulty to maneuver them in smaller indoor spaces and the inability to use GPS-based navigation system. Nevertheless, there are many indoor applications where UAVs could provide a safe, reliable and resilient means to perform operations that are dangerous for humans such as surveillance inside chemical plants, inventory scanning in cold storages etc., Autonomous UAV navigation in an indoor environment can be achieved by finding a collision-free flight path to pass …

On Utilizing Big Data To Assess Health Levels, Elham Rastegari

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

The general relationship between mobility/gait patterns and health conditions, has been established by many research studies. Gait patterns have been used in predicting fall incidents, assessing the movement of people with Parkinson disease and assessing gait characteristics of patients with major depression. However, not much has been reported in terms of how to utilize mobility data along with gait patterns to assess health levels and to identify early stages of certain diseases or conditions that impact mobility/gait patterns. In this project, we propose to develop a population analysis system based on recent Big Data technologies that relies on different types …

A Hierarchical Learning Model For Extracting Public Health Data From Social Media, Elham Rastegari

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

In decision making processes, particularly when it comes to health-related decisions, each relevant piece of information is important. This is particularly important when it comes to health conditions for which there remains a high degree of non-determinism as far as diagnosis and treatment. Online social media, are places in which people feel free to share their opinions about numerous topics, including public health issues and how individuals have responded to different types of treatments associated with diseases. social media could represent a secondary source that can be used as a supplement to other data sources. This would allow individuals as …

Session D-3: Robotics Programming Using Java, Pat Patankar

Professional Learning Day

I will discuss how to program NXT kit with various sensors using Java programming language.