Computer assisted learning in power system relaying

A computer package developed for power system protection design is used to teach protection coordination at City University, London. Examples of package use and experience gained from computer assisted learning in this subject are described. The simulation of protection systems gives students an opportunity to observe the actions of each device after they complete their protection schemes. In order to preserve flexibility within this self-learning environment, an expert system is included in the package. The use of an expert system is to make learning as effective as possible by providing guidance on the teaching material. It plays its role only if it is invoked. In other words, the expert system does not supervise learning, but can provide the necessary guidance if a request is made. If there is any error, the result of the simulation will also show the nature of the problem. The debugging function can help the students to detect the errors they have made and know how the devices work in the power system. The potential of a well-designed computer package is not only to strengthen teaching and learning, but also lead to creative contributions to the educational process. This benefit is not available through traditional lectures and textbooks     

An integrated medical virtual reality program. The militaryapplication

There are basically three types of environments needed for battlefield medicine training: (1) a small task-oriented environment-for individual task training such as maintenance or surgical simulation; (2) a large space environment, usually with a terrain or architectural format for mission rehearsal or disaster training; and (3) a virtual prototyping environment for designing new and advanced technology for instruments, equipment, and even operating rooms. This arbitrary division provides specific types of virtual environments to be designed as stand-alone training simulators, or integrated into a larger training system. The military has been using various task-specific educational media as education and training devices for individual soldiers for decades. Within the context of training a medic or physician for a specific task, virtual environments can be utilized for simulation of combat first-aid and of surgical procedures to correct battlefield injuries. Today, this training is performed upon goats and includes performance of tracheostomy, chest tube insertion, subclavian vein cannulation, as well as inflicting a gunshot wound to the thigh to practice debridement and hemostasis     

Evaluation of the State of Passive UHF RFID: An Experimental Approach

In this paper, we identify the state of the technical capability of passive UHF RFID tags and readers using a simple, empirical, experimental approach. This paper does not focus on theoretical capabilities of RFID systems in ideal environments, but rather a pragmatic evaluation of the state of commercially available ISO 18000-6c systems and identifying areas where there are opportunities for improvements in the technology. We examine the free-space read distance of tags by readers, near-metal read distance, near-water read distance, frequency-dependence of read distance in those environments, near-field read distance in those environments, read speeds, and a determination of forward or reverse channel limits.     

采用体验性游戏模型的配电网运行仿真培训系统设计

将体验式学习理论和教育游戏理念引入配电网运行仿真培训系统的研发过程,利用体验性游戏模型理论建立了配电网运行仿真模型。配电网运行仿真培训系统采用面向服务的体系结构,实现了配电运行三维场景的组态式构建及仿真应用功能的灵活扩展,可应用于配电运行、检修、调试及调度人员的技能培训,改善了配电生产运行人员的仿真培训效果。     

In silico environments augment clinical trials

One of the most promising new approaches to interpreting complex systems data is to generate self-organizing simulations. We have previously applied Markov random field methods to create virtual worlds for the prototyping of wetlab experimentation. We have termed the virtual worlds “in silico environments” to express a synergism between computer simulation and wetlab experimentation. We show that in silico environments allow the planning of clinical trial procedures. A strong aspect of the method is the use of a dedicated object oriented language called Slang (simulation language)     

A web-based educational environment for teaching the computer cache memory

In this paper, a Web-based educational setting for teaching the computer cache memory is presented, aiming at supporting and enhancing the learning process and promoting the active and constructive involvement of students. The educational setting includes Web text-based educational material, a Web-based cache memory simulation program, and educational activities that enable the students to participate actively in the learning process and to collaborate in groups. The design of the educational setting was based on the principles derived from the conceptual change approach regarding the students' theory framework, the students learning difficulties/misconceptions, the text comprehension theory, and contemporary teaching approaches. The results obtained from the application/evaluation of a set of educational activities have been encouraging, indicating that the simulation program and the context of the activities can effectively support and enhance the learning process.     

A programming learning system for beginners-a completion strategyapproach

The purpose of this research is to develop a programming learning system for beginners using the completion strategy. The completion strategy uses well-designed programs to let students engage in completing, modifying, and extending their programs. The completion strategy is a paradigm of learning by examples with learning enforcement. In this paper, learning theories of the completion strategy are investigated. A template technique is employed to realize the strategy. An educational experiment was made to show the learning impact of the proposed system. The experimental result shows that the completion strategy is benefit to the programming learning for beginners     

Development of a Self-Balancing Human Transportation Vehicle for the Teaching of Feedback Control

Control systems education often needs to design interesting hands-on exercises that keep students interested in the control theory presented in lectures. These exercises include system modeling, system analyses, controller syntheses, implementation, experimentation, and performance evaluation of a control system. This paper presents an interesting pedagogical tool, a self-balancing human transportation vehicle (HTV), for the teaching of feedback control concepts in undergraduate electrical, mechatronic, and mechanical engineering environments. Such a pedagogical tool can be easily and inexpensively constructed using low-tech commercial components and feedback control approaches. The effectiveness and performance of the proposed HTV system are examined by conducting several experiments on three different terrains. An education process, together with a pedagogical method, is presented to show how the developed HTV can be incorporated into the laboratory course. To increase students' hands-on experience and keep them interested in learning feedback control, this study also investigated how the enrolled students responded to this new pedagogical tool. This education method along with the HTV system is shown to be significantly effective in helping students to understand feedback control theory and practices, and also to result in more motivated and active learning.      

An update on the SimulNet educational platform. Towardsstandards-driven E-learning

E-learning is one of the killer applications in the new information society. Many educational systems have been developed, targeted to specific learning environments. One specific area of concern is practical training. This paper presents the latest update on the WWW-based teaching laboratory SimulNet. Particularly, we describe the functionality of the SimulNet whiteboard and authoring tools. Among others, the whiteboard features allow any kind of data sharing on the Web, on-line synchronous communication among learners and instructors and the possibility of following virtual presentations with an embedded Web-based slide projector. The SimulNet authoring environment includes a multimedia editor tool and both static and dynamic content structure generator. Also, current efforts in the learning technology standardization process were taken into account. We set the basis to become SimulNet compliant with the leading standard recommendations     

Structural and navigational analysis of hypermedia courseware

In addition to providing flexible access to instructional information and supporting convenient learning styles, educational hypermedia offers a nonsequential information presentation that markedly differs from conventional instructional systems. Many pedagogical issues are attributed to the nonlinear structures of educational hypermedia systems. Consequently, an ideal educational hypermedia system should provide navigation guidance, knowledge construction assistance and courseware analysis tools. By emphasizing courseware structure and navigational behavior in an educational hypermedia environment, this work presents several algorithmic analytical models of ideal educational hypermedia systems. Three graph algorithms are educational hypermedia analysis are used to identify courseware structures: minimum cut-set, strongly connected components and cut vertex. The algorithms allow one to construct a knowledge hierarchy, analyze a courseware network to determine whether it is well-structured and automatically generate a hierarchical guidance map to help users navigate in a hypermedia environment. This work also provides two quantitative measures, Hyper Degree and Hyper Distance, to describe further navigational behavior in hypermedia environments. After performing instructional experiments, the above methods were applied to the accumulated data     

An Internet-based graphical programming tool for teaching power system harmonic measurement

Traditional methods to measure power system harmonics employ the power harmonic analyzer or a software package, such as Matlab or others, but they do have certain limitations in the graphical programming environment, applications for remote monitoring and control performance. This paper presents a virtual instrument (VI) that can carry out power system harmonic measurement based on fast Fourier transform (FFT) in remote surveillance capability via the Internet. The strategies and guidelines are also developed to enhance teaching and/or learning the basics of operating Internet-based systems. Critical issues pertaining to engineering education, such as design of course, expected learning outcomes, assessment of student performance, and course evaluation are discussed in detail.     

A Pedagogical Software for the Analysis of Loudspeaker Systems

In this paper, a pedagogical software for the design and analysis of loudspeaker systems is presented, with emphasis on training students in the interaction between system parameters. Loudspeakers are complex electromechanical system, whose behavior is neither intuitive nor easy to understand by inexperienced students. Although commercial simulation software provides computation of the equations governing loudspeaker systems, they are mainly focused on the final product and are intended for experienced audio engineers. The proposed software was intentionally designed for education and training purposes. This software allows students to investigate loudspeaker systems that involve complex interactions by illustrating their effects in real time, both in a graphical interface and in numeric values. Unlike other academic simulation tools in the technical literature, students can modify the system parameters, both graphically and numerically, and observe their impact on the loudspeaker responses: pressure, diaphragm behavior, and electrical impedance. Results obtained during two academic semesters showed educational improvement by comparing the outcomes generated by a commercial software and by the designed tool. Students reported very positive attitudes toward this experience and perceived their interaction with the simulation as being generally effective in improving their skills in dealing with loudspeaker system interaction.      

最优模糊控制的两种设计方法

本文基于二次型性能指标，给出了采用梯度法和遗传算法的模糊控制规则优化方法，并比较了它们的优缺点。仿真结果表明，这两种方法对未知系统的模糊规则优化具有明显的应用价值。     

A computer-aided, total quality approach to manufacturing educationin engineering

This paper describes an ongoing study in improving entry-level engineering education through the deployment of new teaching and learning tools. We introduce a computer-aided interactive multimedia manufacturing courseware. To improve manufacturing education we need to change not only the process of teaching and learning, but also provide new tools and technology that promote efficient learning and make it widely available and continuously improving. To address this manufacturing education challenge, we are presently designing a program based on a new computer-aided education paradigm that embodies total quality management (TQM) and critical thinking (CT) concepts. An interactive multimedia manufacturing courseware lies at the heart of this new computer-aided education paradigm. The manufacturing engineering multimedia courseware (MEMC) includes: on-line lectures, audiovideo education tools, interactive computer software, on-line assignment and exams, information about faculty, and on-line evaluation tools to obtain users' feedback to enhance teaching. It also makes access available to related academia, industry, and government research and education information through the World Wide Web. In this paper, we briefly review the status of engineering education in the United States and describe the appropriateness of unifying the concepts of TQM and CT. Additionally, we provide details of how these concepts can be used in an educational model     

The Development of Two Mobile Gait Rehabilitation Systems

The ability to walk without the help of a caretaker enhances the quality of life for those who are bed-ridden or confined to a wheelchair. At present, most of the available gait rehabilitation robot systems have been designed to support the body weight externally. For gait training to be effective, a mobile body weight support (BWS) mechanism is needed. In mobile gait training robot systems, functions such as patient path following and constant BWS are important issues, particularly in dynamic environments. In the present study, two types of robotic systems were developed for gait rehabilitation. The first is known as the mobile manipulator type and the second the mobile vehicle type. The differences between the two systems in design and control are discussed. A control algorithm based on a neural network was used to compensate for dynamic interactions, unmodeled dynamics, and disturbances by the user on the system. Both electrical and pneumatic BWS mechanisms were built and compared. The proposed BWS systems were tested experimentally for their effectiveness in gait rehabilitation while maximizing the therapeutic outcome.     

Trust and Security in RFID-Based Product Authentication Systems

Product authentication is needed to detect counterfeit products and to prevent them from entering the distribution channels of genuine products. Security is a critical property of product authentication systems. In this paper, we study trust and security in RFID-based product authentication systems. We first present a formal definition for product authentication process and then derive the general chain of trust as well as functional and nonfunctional security requirements for product authentication. Most of the scientific literature that covers the topic focuses on cryptographic tag authentication only. This paper, however, provides a broader view including also other known approaches, most notably location-based authentication. To derive the functional security requirements, we employ the concept of misuse cases that extends the use case paradigm well known in the field of requirements engineering. We argue that the level of security of any RFID-based product authentication application is determined by how it fulfills the derived set of functional and nonfunctional requirements. The security of different RFID-based product authentication approaches is analyzed. To study how RFID supports secure product authentication in practice, we investigate how the current EPC standards conform to the functional security requirements of product authentication and show how the unaddressed requirements could be fulfilled. The benefits of implementing a service that detects the cloned tags in the level of the network's core services are identified.     

Assessing the utility of an interactive electronic book for learning the Pascal programming language

Hypermedia is a broadly accepted technique to develop educational systems since its hypertext structure reflects a model of learning based on the students' semantic memory model and the use of multimedia provides interactive mechanisms that allow managing, manipulating and organizing the lessons. A hypermedia electronic book called CIPP (Curse Interactive de Programacion en Pascal) is introduced to help students learn the Pascal programming language and the empirical evaluation that was carried out to assess the book utility as an educational tool. One of the most encouraging results from this experience was that, at the end of the course, not only did most students agree with the didactic method which integrated lectures with the use of the electronic book, but also they felt motivated to continue learning Pascal by themselves.     

Learning systems design with UML and patterns

Research in educational multimedia shows many benefits of learning with the use of multimedia environments. To take advantage of these benefits, the authors developed a multimedia assisted teaching environment (MATE), which is being tried in supporting their teaching of information technology (IT) subjects, MATE's main strength is its ability to facilitate reuse of multimedia components while developing teaching material. In this paper, MATE is described from the perspective of a student learning systems analysis and design via projects and case studies. The workings of the MATE tool are illustrated with an example that shows their approach to teaching design skills with reusable design patterns.     

ObjectStab-an educational tool for power system stability studies

Traditionally, the simulation of transient and voltage stability in power systems has been constrained to domain-specific tools such as Simpow, PSS/E, ETMSP, and EuroStag. While being efficient and thereby able to simulate large systems, their component models are often encapsulated and difficult or impossible to examine and modify. Also, these simulators often require substantial training and are therefore not ideal for normal classroom use. For academic and educational use, it is more important that the component modeling be transparent and flexible, and that students quickly get started with their simulations. This paper describes a freely available power system library called ObjectStab intended for power system stability simulations written in Modelica, a general-purpose object-oriented modeling language. All component models are transparent and can easily be modified or extended. Power system topology and parameter data are entered in one-line diagram form using a graphical editor. The component library has been validated using comparative simulations with EuroStag.