Adaptive compensation of persistent actuator failures of nonlinear systems

In this article, adaptive compensation designs are developed for nonlinear systems with uncertainties from the system functions and persistent actuator failures of characterizations that (i) some unknown system inputs are stuck at some unknown fixed or varying values at unknown time instants and (ii) the failure pattern always switches from one to another and the switching does not stop. Such a controlled plant is described by an uncertain time-varying nonlinear system, and some robust adaptive feedback linearization based failure compensation results are studied for closed-loop system stabilization and bounded output tracking for some specific conditions. To improve the tracking performance in the presence of persistent actuator failures, a new adaptive control scheme is developed, using the failure indicator function which contains the failure pattern and failure time in the formulation. Detailed stability and tracking performance are shown. Simulation results are shown to verify the effectiveness of the proposed adaptive actuator failure compensation method.     

Adaptive finite-time tracking control for parameterized nonlinear systems with full state constraints

In this article, the issue of adaptive finite-time dynamic surface control (DSC) is discussed for a class of parameterized nonlinear systems with full state constraints. Using the property of logarithmic function, a one-to-one nonlinear mapping is constructed to transform a constrained system into an unconstrained system with the same structure. The nonlinear filter is constructed to replace the first-order linear filter in the traditional DSC, and the demand on the filter time constant is reduced. Based on finite-time stable theory and using modified DSC, the finite-time controller is designed via DSC. Theoretical analysis shows that all the signals in the closed-loop system are semiglobal practical finite-time stable. Furthermore, none of the states are outside the defined open set. In the end, simulation results are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed control schemes with both linear filters and nonlinear filters.     

Flow conditioning system for tri-sonic high pressure aerothermal testing

Blowdown testing offers a cost-effective experimental tool to replicate the aerothermal conditions in numerous high speed systems. The wind tunnel must replicate the inlet operating conditions, while the spatial and time dependent inlet flow conditions should be assessed carefully. This paper provides a design methodology and rules that ensure adequate flow conditioning in high inlet pressure wind tunnels suitable for subsonic and supersonic operation with mass-flow limits ranging from 1 kg/s to 25 kg/s, Reynolds numbers from 10³ (1/m) to 4x10⁷ (1/m), and Mach numbers from 0.01 up to 6. The quality of the proposed flow conditioning system was evaluated using stereo PIV measurements combined with hotwire, Pitot probe, and total flow temperature traverses.     

基于拼接缝自适应消除和全景图矫直的快速图像拼接算法

针对图像拼接存在色差过渡不均匀、图像倾斜扭曲及拼接效率低的现象，提出一种基于拼接缝自适应消除和全景图矫直的快速图像拼接算法。首先，用尺度不变特征变换（SIFT）提取图像指定区域特征点并用双向K近邻（KNN）算法进行图像配准，有效提高算法效率；其次，利用动态规划思想提出自适应公式找到最优拼接缝并用图像融合算法对其自适应消除，解决拼接缝色差过渡不均匀问题；最后，针对累积拼接误差形成全景图倾斜的现象，利用边缘检测算法提出自适应拟合四边形矫直模型，把原始全景图矫直为一个全新的全景图。所提算法与分块图像拼接和二叉树图像拼接算法相比，图像质量提升了5.84%~7.83%，拼接时间仅为原来的50%~70%。实验结果表明，该算法不仅通过自适应更新机制减少不同图像背景下拼接缝色差过渡不均匀的现象，从而提高了图像质量；而且提高了拼接效率，降低了全景图倾斜扭曲程度。     

中国钢铁产品全生命周期评价理论与实践

阐述了全生命周期评价的基本原理和内涵，分析了全生命周期评价在国内外钢铁行业的应用现状、差距及研究进展情况，论述了钢铁企业开展全生命周期评价的重要意义，研究了中国政府、行业协会、钢铁企业、咨询机构等在推进绿色设计产品评价技术规范系列标准等方面开展的相关工作。提出钢铁行业全生命周期评价推广与应用的具体建议，探讨了发展方向，对钢铁企业开展生命周期评价具有一定的指导意义。     

Strategic environmental assessment in Romania: between benefits and constraints

This paper offers an overall picture of the importance of Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) in Romania and its opportunities and constraints. The role, scope and effectiveness of SEA in Romania are presented in two good practice examples and examined in order to highlight the strengths and weaknesses of the procedure at national and local scale. In practice, the number of SEA procedures is very high due to the legislation in force, and it is increasingly effective in decision-making about programmes and plans. SEA can be viewed as a great opportunity for the implementation of sustainable development in practice. It also continues to be an important procedural and decisional instrument for management and monitoring of socioeconomic development, spatial planning and environmental protection in Romania.     

Epos – an instrument for the assessment of the ethical position in software development

Digital technology becomes more powerful, intelligent, pervasive and ubiquitous. Ethical aspects of this development have not yet drawn the appropriate attention of researchers and engineers. This paper presents an instrument that aims at measuring the individual ethical position with regard to the design and development of computer software. The development of the Epos tool was based on two data collections. The data of the first survey (n₁ = 147 participants) were used to select items and to determine the factorial structure of the questionnaire. Results show that the Epos instrument reliably assesses peoples’ ethical opinion with respect to five central components: (1) regulation, (2) data privacy, (3) domain specific knowledge, (4) societal responsibility and (5) company responsibility. In the second survey, we determined the stability of the instruments factor structure by assessing a sample of n₂?=?196 participants. A confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) supported the initial factor structure. Next steps and further implications are discussed regarding the final version of the questionnaire.     

Aviation deicing workers,global risk assessment of musculoskeletal injuries

Deicing technicians working from open baskets are exposed to ergonomic risks and fatigue. This study aims to assess the global risk of musculoskeletal injuries (MSIs) for this type of activity. An ergonomic study was conducted with the workers of a Canadian airport deicing operator during the winter of 2016–2017. Video recordings made it possible to observe the activities during the most intensive work shifts, as well as characterise and quantify (frequency and duration) the movements/postures of twelve human subjects. The resulting risk assessment identified the body structures submitted to exertion, analysed the efforts involved and globally assessed the forces exerted on the spine and upper limbs. This global risk assessment leads to the conclusion that the risks to the upper limbs are preoccupying and must be examined further.     

Developing social impact assessment guidelines in a pre-existing policy context

Few jurisdictions have translated internationally agreed social impact assessment (SIA) principles into statutory provisions. Governments and regulatory bodies tend to provide developers with high-level frameworks, or require that social impacts be ‘considered’, without specifying how this is to be done. In Australia, this lack of clarity leaves all parties uncertain about requirements for SIA. The New South Wales (NSW) Government’s 2017 release of the SIA guideline for State-significant mining, petroleum and extractive industry development represents an attempt to clarify requirements and provide guidance. In this paper, we describe the process of bringing this guideline to fruition from the perspective of being directly involved in its development, and highlight the challenges involved in integrating leading-practice principles into the state’s pre-existing policy framework. While the guideline represents a significant advance in policy-based SIA guidance, some aspects leave room for improvement. The real test of the guideline’s impact will lie in its influence on SIA practice in NSW, and ultimately in social outcomes for communities affected by resources projects.     

加权信息熵与增强局部二值模式结合的人脸识别

针对人脸识别因光照、姿态、表情、遮挡及噪声等多种因素的影响而导致的识别率不高的问题，提出一种加权信息熵（IEw）与自适应阈值环形局部二值模式（ATRLBP）算子相结合的人脸识别方法（IE （w） ATR-LBP）。首先，从原始人脸图像分块提取信息熵，得到每个子块的IEw；然后，利用ATRLBP算子分别对每个人脸子块提取特征从而得到概率直方图；最后，将各个块的IEw与概率直方图相乘，再串联成为原始人脸图像最后的特征直方图，并利用支持向量机（SVM）对人脸进行识别。在AR人脸库的表情、光照、遮挡A和遮挡B四个数据集上，IE （w） ATR-LBP方法分别取得了98.37%、94.17%、98.20%和99.34%的识别率。在ORL人脸库上，IE （w） ATR-LBP方法的最大识别率为99.85%；而且在ORL人脸库5次不同训练样本的实验中，与无噪声时相比，加入高斯和椒盐噪声后的平均识别率分别下降了14.04和2.95个百分点。实验结果表明，IE （w） ATR-LBP方法能够有效提高人脸在受光照、姿态、遮挡等影响时的识别率，尤其是存在表情变化及脉冲类噪声干扰时的识别率。