Model Driven Architecture

Bei der Model Driven Architecture (MDA) bilden Modelle die zentralen Elemente des Softwareentwicklungsprozesses. Ziel ist es, plattformspezifische Modelle möglichst automatisiert aus plattformunabhängigen Modellen abzuleiten. Dadurch soll der Aufwand der Softwareentwicklung verringert und die Adaptierung an neue Technologien erleichtert werden.*Vorschläge an Prof. Dr. Frank Puppe oder Dieter Steinbauer Alle „Aktuellen Schlagwörter“ seit 1988 finden Sie unter: www.ai-wuerzburg.de/as     

Tensile,creep, and low-cycle fatigue behavior of a cast γ-TiAl-based alloy for gas turbine applications

The influence of chemical composition on the microstructure of the γ-titanium aluminide alloy Ti-48Al-2W-0.5Si (at. pct) and the accompanying tensile, low-cycle fatigue, and creep properties has been evaluated. The study showed that small variations in chemical composition and casting procedures resulted in considerable variations in the microstructure, yielding vastly different mechanical properties. Low contents of aluminum and tungsten led to a coarse-grained lamellar (γ/α ₂) microstructure with high creep resistance. A composition close to the nominal one produced a duplex (γ+γ/α ₂) structure with favorable strength, ductility, and low-cycle fatigue properties. By controlling the solidification and cooling rates at casting, a pseudoduplex (PS-DP) microstructure with a unique combination of high strength and high fatigue and creep resistance can be obtained. These unique properties can be explained by the diffuse boundaries between the relatively small γ grains and the neighboring lamellar colonies, combined with semicoherent interfaces between the γ and α ₂ phases. At tensile and low-cycle fatigue loading, these boundaries act like high-angle boundaries, producing a virtually fine-grained material promoting strength, whereas at creep loading, grain-boundary sliding is hindered in the semicoherent interfaces leading to high creep resistance.     

Bounds for the solution of hyperbolic problems

This article describes a newly developed and implemented method for computing guaranteed errorbounds for the solution of hyperbolic initial value problems. The basic concepts—modified fixed point theorems and approximated operators—allow an a posteriori error-estimation automatically. Therefore, no a priori knowledge of Lipschitz constants, monotonicity properties or additional error analysis is necessary.     

Law,liability and expert systems

This paper examines some of the possible legal implications of the production, marketing and use of expert systems. The relevance of a legally useful definition of expert systems, comprising systems designed for use both by laymen and professionals, is related to the distinctions inherent in the legal doctrine underlying provision of goods and provision of services. The liability of the sellers and users of, and contributors to, expert systems are examined in terms of professional malpractice as well as product liability. A recurring theme indicates that legislators may be inclined to restrict possibilities of liability suits in order to avoid disincentives to the creation of expert systems.     

Optimal characteristic polynomials for digital multistep pseudorandom numbers

The digital multistep method generates uniform pseudorandom numbers by transforming sequences of integers obtained by multistep recursions. The statistical independence properties of these pseudorandom numbers depend on the characteristic polynomial of the recursion. We describe a method of calculating characteristic polynomials that are optimal with respect to statistical independence of pairs of successive pseudorandom numbers. Tables of such optimal characteristic polynomials for degrees ≤64 are included.     

Observation of calcium aluminate inclusions at interfaces between Ca-treated,Al-killed steels and slags

The evolution of Al₂O₃-CaO inclusions on molten steel surfaces and at molten steel/slag interfaces was observed in-situ through a confocal scanning laser microscope (CSLM) equipped with a gold-image furnace. Depending on the slag chemistry, some of the initially liquid inclusions evolved into irregular Al₂O₃ or SiO₂-enriched inclusions during the separation across the interface. Inclusions were found to cluster at specific locations at the steel/slag interface. Unlike capillary-depression-driven clustering, which is observed on molten steel surfaces, a weak repulsive force opposes fluid-flow-driven clustering at the steel/slag interface. After clustering, the irregular solid inclusions were observed to agglomerate to form large aggregates. This article is based on a presentation given in the Mills Symposium entitled “Metals, Slags, Glasses: High Temperature Properties & Phenomena,” which took place at The Institute of Materials in London, England, on August 22–23, 2002.