Engineering Commons^™

Parameter Estimation For Superimposed Weighted Exponentials, Edwards A. Ingham

Theses and Dissertations

The approach of modeling measured signals as superimposed exponentials in white Gaussian noise is popular and effective. However, estimating the parameters of the assumed model is challenging, especially when the data record length is short, the signal strength is low, or the parameters are closely spaced. In this dissertation, we first review the most effective parameter estimation scheme for the superimposed exponential model: maximum likelihood. We then provide a historical review of the linear prediction approach to parameter estimation for the same model. After identifying the improvements made to linear prediction and demonstrating their weaknesses, we introduce a completely tractable …

Reaction Based Grasp Force Assignment, Mark W. Hunter

Theses and Dissertations

An iterative method is developed by which the contact forces required to apply an arbitrary wrench (six elements of force and moment) to a stably grasped object may be calculated quickly. The assignment of contact forces, given a required object wrench, is accomplished with the use of fuzzy logic. This concept is referred to as the fuzzy logic reactive system (FLRS). The solution is versatile with respect to goals inherent in the rulebase and the input parameters, and is also applicable for an arbitrary number of contacts. The goal presented in this research, to illustrate the concept of the FLRS, …

Low-Velocity Impact On Composite Sandwich Plates, Eric J. Herup

Theses and Dissertations

The objective of the research is to analytically model the response of composite sandwich plates to low velocity impact. A displacement based, plane stress, finite element code is modified for this purpose. Major new algorithms include 5th order Hermitian interpolation, three dimensional equilibrium integration for transverse stress calculations, sandwich core modeling as an elastic plastic foundation, loading by simulated contact with a spherical indentor, adaptive mesh, damage prediction, damage progression via stiffness reduction, and local-global analysis for displacement. An experimental effort is also included in which composite sandwich plates with graphite epoxy facesheets and Nomex honeycomb core are subjected to …

Visual Speech Recognition Using Multiple Deformable Lip Models, Devi Chandramohan

Electrical & Computer Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Motivated by the fact that human speech perception is a bimodal process (auditory and visual), several researchers have designed and implemented automatic speech recognition (ASR) systems consisting of both audio and visual subsystems, and shown improved performance relative to traditional purely auditory systems. Several visual speech reading approaches have used deformable templates to model the shape of a speaker's lips. Deformable templates are models of image objects, which can be deformed by adjusting a set of parameters to match the object in some optimal way, as defined by a cost function. Using a single deformable lip model has disadvantages such …

An Investigation Of The Influence Of Tightening Torque And Sea Water On Pultruded Gfrp Composite Bolted Joints, Satish Devara

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Pultruded glass fiber-reinforced polymeric matrix composites are candidate materials for ever-increasing structural applications due to their continuous production capability, light weight and excellent properties. In this investigation an extensive experimental study has been carried out to understand their structure, basic mechanical properties, and influence of fiber orientation on the unnotched, notched and pin-loaded tensile strength. Furthermore, the effects of sea water and tightening torque separately and together on the failure loads and failure modes of the bolted joints are also studied. It is shown that blockshear failure mode is also a principal mode of failure in the bolted joints of …

Effects Of Elevated Temperature On The Physical Aging Of A High Temperature Thermoplastic Resin And Composite, Mark Feldman

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Development of a High Speed Civil Transport is considered by the commercial aviation industry to be one of the next big challenges for our national aircraft industry. Critical to the success of this aircraft is the development of advanced polymeric composites for both the primary and secondary structures and the predictive methodology necessary for assessment of long term durability. While polymeric composites offer an excellent strength to weight ratio a key disadvantage is the time dependent properties exhibited by the polymer matrix which can age and ultimately effect the resultant stiffness of a laminate.

Experimental studies were performed to determine …

Lattice Truss Structural Response Using Energy Methods, Winfred Scottson Kenner

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

A deterministic methodology is presented for developing closed-form deflection equations for two-dimensional and three-dimensional lattice structures. Four types of lattice structures are studied: beams, plates, shells and soft lattices. Castigliano's second theorem, which entails the total strain energy of a structure, is utilized to generate highly accurate results. Derived deflection equations provide new insight into the bending and shear behavior of the four types of lattices, in contrast to classic solutions of similar structures. Lattice derivations utilizing kinetic energy are also presented, and used to examine the free vibration response of simple lattice structures. Derivations utilizing finite element theory for …

Comprehensive Conjunctive-Use Management Of Connected Surface Water Groundwater Systems Using Stochastic Inputs And Uncertainties, Seshadri Suryanarayana

Civil & Environmental Engineering Theses & Dissertations

A comprehensive conjunctive-use management model is developed. The dynamics of flow and solute transport processes in connected surface water groundwater systems are integrated by a dual programming management model. The governing aquifer flow parameters and streamflows are treated as stochastic random processes. Multiple realizations of the random field are generated and are explicitly incorporated in a non-linear optimization model along with other system, environmental, and management constraints. To facilitate management of large aquifer systems, a linked simulation-optimization approach is used. The simulation program generates the response matrices for flow and transport processes. The management model then determines optimal well discharges …

Two-Dimensional Drift-Diffusion Simulations Of Silicon Avalanche Shaper (Sas) Devices For High Power Applications, Hamid Jalali

Electrical & Computer Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Silicon Avalanche Shaper devices have been projected as being important components of an inexpensive, semiconductor-based technology for high power switching applications. The primary advantage of this technology is that it is based on Silicon material which is easy to fabricate and has a well established processing technology. Unlike other high power technologies, the SAS devices do not rely on external optical triggering which eliminates the need for lasers and related optical circuitry.

The SAS based high power switching technology has been pioneered and tested by a Russian group. Though preliminary results have been very encouraging, the device reliability and its …

Numerical Prediction Of Turbulent Diffusion Flames Formed By Cylindrical Tube Injector, Ali S. Kheireddine

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

This work summarizes numerical results for a diffusion flame formed from a cylindrical tube fuel injector, issuing gaseous fuel jet vertically in a quiescent atmosphere. Both pure fuels as well as fuel mixtures are examined. The primary objective is to predict the flame base height as a function of the jet velocity. A finite volume scheme is used to discretize the time-averaged Navier-Stokes equations for the reacting flow, resulting from the turbulent fuel jet motion. The turbulent stresses, and heat and mass fluxes are computed from the Reynolds stress turbulence model. A chemical kinetics model involving a two-step chemical reaction …

An Artificial Life Model Of Engineering Attrition Contemplation: Why Do Federally Employed Civilian Engineers Think Of Quitting?, John William Herweg

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Theses & Dissertations

The research objective is, using engineer turnover, to develop an Artificial Life (A-Life) model and simulation methodology useful for studying behavioral variables of individuals in an organization.

One consequence of work stress is burnout, and its extreme expression is quitting or turnover. Various models have been used to explain and predict this behavior. Behavior models are useful tools to explore the ability of organizational policies to reduce stress levels and turnover. Advancing the usefulness of models is a goal which assists all research on human behavior. A-Life offers a new and different methodology for this purpose. It provides an ability …

A Cascadable Pragmatic Block Decoding Algorithm Exploiting Channel Measurement Information, William H. Thesling, Fuqin Xiong

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications

The complexity of algorithms to perform soft decision decoding on block codes has impeded their inclusion in practical systems. A well-known class of algorithms for decoding block codes utilizing channel measurement information along with the algebraic properties of the code are the Chase algorithms.¹ In this paper a decoding method similar to Chase's third algorithm is presented. However, in this method, a single test pattern or alternate codeword makes up one stage of the decoder. The method uses information from the previous decoding(s) to assist in generating a test pattern. This single stage ‘Second Chance Algorithm’ can then be …

Surface Modification Of Titanium Foil Substrates In Experimental Solar Cells, Richard Nishimuro, Omar S. Es-Said

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Works

A case study involving surface smoothing of titanium foil was obtained from a solar cell research company. It was believed that the rougher surface of metals was responsible for low solar cell efficiency when using titanium foil rather than glass as a substrate. A method was needed to reduce the surface asperity height of the titanium foil from the existing 1 μm to less than 0.1 μm. Several methods were investigated. The recommended method was the use of an excimer laser, a laser powered by excited noble gas-halide molecules as a lasing medium.

On The Excessive Porosity In The Welds Of Ams 4975 Titanium Air Compressor Rotor Duct, Stefanie Roberts, Rachel Hoang, Laura Pate, Joseph Foyos, Richard Nishimuro, Omar S. Es-Said

Mechanical Engineering Faculty Works

This case study deals with the existence of excessive porosity in the welds of an air compressor rotor duct. The duct does not meet the testing criteria because the diameters of the pores in the weld exceeded allowable specifications. As such, the duct failed inspection for excessive pore diameter and shrinkage due to welding. At this point, the part was beyond repair, and it was scrapped. The possible causes of failure were analyzed, and it was concluded that the source of the problem was the welding technique.

Scattering Properties Of Dense Media From Monte Carlo Simulations With Application To Active Remote Sensing Of Snow, Lisa M. Zurk, L. Tsang, Dale P. Winebrenner

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Monte Carlo simulations are used to derive the phase matrix, effective permittivity, and scattering coefficient for a random medium consisting of densely packed spheres up to 5000 in number. The results include correlated scattering and coherent wave interaction among the scatterers. The Monte Carlo simulations are based on a multiple-scattering formulation of the Foldy-Lax equations. It is shown that the derived phase matrix is in good agreement with dense media radiative transfer theory for copolarized scattering. The depolarization, however, can be substantially larger than conventional theory. Two methods are used to analyze the behavior of the coherent wave to obtain …

The Noaa Corps -- A Participant Action Research Of A Uniformed Service Facing Termination, Richard Eugene Marriner Ii

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Theses & Dissertations

The NOAA Corps is a uniformed service of the Federal Government. It is composed of officers commissioned by the President of the United States as are the officers of the Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Marines, Navy, and Public Health Service. "NOAA" is the acronym for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, an agency within the U.S. Department of Commerce.

On January 24, 1996 the Clinton administration formally proposed that the NOAA Corps be terminated on October 1, 1996. If this were to become reality it would be the first time in U.S. History that a uniformed service has been …

Energy Use Analysis Of A Multi-Unit Housing Facility A Parametric Study, Brian David Cooper

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

In the continuing effort to reduce the energy use of buildings, design engineers and architects are called upon to design facilities which are more efficient and use less energy. The prediction of the energy used by a building's systems and occupants, for different design options and combinations, is an important part of the design of an energy efficient building.

An energy use analysis was conducted to determine the accuracy of a computerized building energy analysis simulation when only preliminary design information is available. Additional studies were made to determine the accuracy of the simulation as more detailed design, construction and …

Incommensurate One-Dimensional Fluctuations In Yba2cu3o6.93, Herbert A. Mook, Pengcheng Dai, K. Salama, D. Lee, Fatih Dogan, G. Aeppli, A. T. Boothroyd, M. E. Mostoller

Materials Science and Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

A novel neutron scattering technique has been utilized to discover one-dimensional fluctuations with a very sharply defined modulation period of 16.65 Å along the ba direction in YBa₂Cu₃O_6.93. The fluctuations are found to be absent in the reduced oxygen compound YBa₂Cu₃O_6.15. The wave vector of the fluctuations is consistent with accepted values of 2kF for the Cu-O chains.

A Review Of Prosthetic Interface Stress Investigations, Barbara Silver-Thorn, John W. Steege, Dudley S. Childress

Biomedical Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Over the last decade, numerous experimental and numerical analyses have been conducted to investigate the stress distribution between the residual limb and prosthetic socket of persons with lower limb amputation. The objectives of these analyses have been to improve our understanding of the residual limb/prosthetic socket system, to evaluate the influence of prosthetic design parameters and alignment variations on the interface stress distribution, and to evaluate prosthetic fit. The purpose of this paper is to summarize these experimental investigations and identify associated limitations. In addition, this paper presents an overview of various computer models used to investigate the residual limb …

Parametric Analysis Using The Finite Element Method To Investigate Prosthetic Interface Stresses For Persons With Trans-Tibial Amputation, Barbara Silver-Thorn, Dudley S. Childress

Biomedical Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

A finite element (FE) model of the below-knee residual limb and prosthetic socket was created to investigate the effects of parameter variations on the interface stress distribution during static stance. This model was based upon geometric approximations of anthropometric residual limb geometry. The model was not specific to an individual with amputation, but could be scaled to approximate the limb of a particular subject. Parametric analyses were conducted to investigate the effects of prosthetic socket design and residual limb geometry on the residual limb/prosthetic socket interface stresses. Behavioral trends were illustrated via sensitivity analysis.

The results of the parametric analyses …

Concept Hierarchy Memory Model: A Neural Architecture For Conceptual Knowledge Representation, Learning, And Commonsense Reasoning, Ah-Hwee Tan, Hui-Shin Vivien Soon

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

This article introduces a neural network based cognitive architecture termed Concept Hierarchy Memory Model (CHMM) for conceptual knowledge representation and commonsense reasoning. CHMM is composed of two subnetworks: a Concept Formation Network (CFN), that acquires concepts based on their sensory representations; and a Concept Hierarchy Network (CHN), that encodes hierarchical relationships between concepts. Based on Adaptive Resonance Associative Map (ARAM), a supervised Adaptive Resonance Theory (ART) model, CHMM provides a systematic treatment for concept formation and organization of a concept hierarchy. Specifically, a concept can be learned by sampling activities across multiple sensory fields. By chunking relations between concepts as …

Progressive Failure Analysis Methodology For Laminated Composite Structures, David Wayne Sleight

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

A progressive failure analysis model has been developed for predicting the nonlinear response and failure of laminated composite structures. The progressive failure analysis uses C¹ plate and shell elements based on classical lamination theory to calculate the in-plane stresses. Several failure criteria, including the maximum strain criterion, Hashin's criterion, and Christensen's criterion, are used to predict the failure mechanisms and several options are available to degrade the material properties after failures. The progressive failure analysis model is implemented in COMET and can predict the damage and response of a laminated composite structures from initial loading to final failure.

Rectified Synthesis Of Coupler Driven Four Bar Mechanisms For Two And Three Position Motion Generation, Ramanujam Thiruvenkatachari

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Four-bar mechanisms are widely used in the industry to solve a variety of motion problems. Till recently, their design was based on fundamental kinematics and brute force techniques, resulting in impractical designs and spurious linkages that failed to perform their desired functions effectively.

Procedures have been developed and implemented to guide the rigid body of crank driven four-bar linkages, through a set of design positions with techniques to avoid their defects. However, the practical applications of linkages used in the industry are coupler driven, with primitive synthesis procedures based on trial and error. The opening and closing of the hood …

A Study Of The Numerical Implementation Of Multidisciplinary Design Optimization Strategies, Rodney A. Taylor

Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Design optimization provides an organized, systematic, and efficient method for obtaining design improvements based upon a specified measure of design performance. In the multidisciplinary design optimization (MDO) environment efficient optimization techniques allow complex designs to be improved by managing conflicting disciplinary design goals so as to improve the global design. This thesis studies the implementation issues surrounding MDO techniques and strategies. To facilitate this investigation two testbed problems have been selected for study. These problems consider two approaches to the conceptual design of an aeroelastic wing. The first approach is based on an idealized, two-dimensional representation of an airfoil under …

Neural Generalized Predictive Control For Real-Time Control, Donald I. Soloway

Electrical & Computer Engineering Theses & Dissertations

In this thesis a computationally efficient Generalized Predictive Control (GPC) algorithm is presented and implemented. The algorithm is more efficient than others because the number of iterations needed for convergence is significantly lower with Newton-Raphson. The main additional cost with Newton-Raphson algorithm is the calculation of the Hessian. This overhead is not a problem because of the reduced number of iterations, making the algorithm suitable for real-time control. For nonlinear control applications, a neural network is used as a dynamical system predictor leading to a Neural Generalized Predictive Control (NGPC) algorithm which is presented in detail in this thesis. An …

Drug Delivery With Microsecond Laser Pulses Into Gelatin, Hanqun Shangguan, Lee W. Casperson, Alan Shearin, Kenton W. Gregory, Scott A. Prahl

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

Photo acoustic drug delivery is a technique for localized drug delivery by laser-induced hydrodynamic pressure following cavitation bubble expansion and collapse. Photoacoustic drug delivery was investigated on gelatin-based thrombus models with planar and cylindrical geometries by use of one microsecond laser pulses. Solutions of a hydrophobic dye in mineral oil permitted monitoring of delivered colored oil into clear gelatin-based thrombus models. Cavitation bubble development and photoacoustic drug delivery were visualized with flash photography. This study demonstrated that cavitation is the governing mechanism for photoacoustic drug delivery, and the deepest penetration of colored oil in gels followed the bubble collapse. Spatial …

Evaluation Of Edge Drains On Interstate 64 Fayette, Scott, And Woodford Counties, L. John Fleckenstein, David L. Allen, Brad W. Rister

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

This report documents findings of the investigation of edge drains and their associated outlets on Interstate 64 from Milepost 65 to Milepost 75.6 in Fayette, Scott, and Woodford Counties. The study was initiated due to significant amounts of water and fines coming up through the AC surface. State and Federal Officials were concerned that possible failures in the edge drains were causing pumping and staining which will ultimately lead to premature pavement failure. Several factors appear to be contributing to the staining and pumping at the surface. These factors are discussed in the report.

The Motor Fuel Tax Evasion Issue In Kentucky, Dwight V. Denison, Merl M. Hackbart

Kentucky Transportation Center Research Report

Tax evasion is an elusive and burgeoning problem. Methods of tax evasion are continually changing and adapting to new methods of tax enforcement. However, there are strategies that can reduce the potential loss due to fuel tax evasion. This study of fuel tax evasion in Kentucky and the southeastern states provides additional information regarding the causes and nature of the road fund tax evasion problem, and identifies state and federal/state efforts to mitigate the tax evasion challenge. The concepts, issues, and recommendations in this report can aid in reducing evasion of the Kentucky motor fuels tax., thereby, enhancing the efficiency …

Exploring Knowledge Processes For Technology Assimilation, Rochelle K. Young

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Theses & Dissertations

In the emerging knowledge society, the ability to make the experience and expertise of those involved in and affected by new technology unconditionally available to all members of an organization is becoming increasingly important. One of the problems in developing such knowledge processes for technology assimilation is that current social structures do not easily accommodate unconditional participation. Since the implementation of modern information technology is changing the workplace and the nature of work itself, alternative social structures are needed. This research takes as given that deep questions concerning knowledge processes and social transformation are in principle undecidable; and, only questions …

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Building Services Engineering

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