Barocalorimetric technique for monitoring pressurized copolymer reactors

The problem of on‐line estimation of the conversion and composition evolutions in a pressurized batch copolymer reactor with temperature and pressure measurements was addressed. The estimation model consisted of mass and energy balances with a pressure equation built from phase‐equilibrium considerations. The application of a nonlinear geometric estimation approach yielded the underlying solvability condition with physical meaning, a straightforward estimator construction, and a conventional‐like tuning procedure. The resulting barocalorimetric estimator was an on‐line dynamic measurement processor with a model‐based predictor and a measurement‐driven corrector, and whose implementation did not require the polymerization rates and heat‐transfer coefficient function dependencies. The technique was tested with a representative laboratory styrene–butadiene system. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 96: 475–482, 2005     

A comparative study of two wayfinding aids for simulated driving tasks – single-scale and dual-scale GPS aids

Global Positioning System (GPS) is currently the most frequently used wayfinding aid for driving. Yet, GPS is designed to act as a driving guide rather than to help users gain spatial knowledge. Accordingly, GPS might be less usable in situations where such knowledge is required or highly desirable. In this study, we experimentally study the influence of GPS display scales (single-scale vs. dual-scale) using simulated driving tasks in a virtual environment. The single-scale GPS is similar to the regular GPS view. The dual-scale GPS aid is a dual-scale navigation tool that provides two levels of detail, including both detailed and contextual information. The results demonstrate that the dual-scale GPS was more efficient in leading the participants to the destination during the simulated driving and was more useful for the participants to establish spatial awareness and a cognitive map; the dual-scale GPS participants also reported higher subjective evaluations. The proposed dual-scale GPS design and experimental results show some indications for designing new wayfinding aids aimed at increasing wayfinding performance while simultaneously helping users construct a cognitive map.     

Social virtual world continuance among teens: uncovering the moderating role of perceived aggregate network exposure

Engagement in virtual worlds has become pervasive, particularly among the young. At the same time, the number of virtual environments has increased rapidly. Due to intensifying competition, promoting sustained usage, i.e. continuance, has become a top priority for virtual world operators. Prior research has shown that network externalities play a key role in the adoption of communication technologies. However, a small amount of research has examined the role of network externalities in continued IT usage in general or with respect to the virtual world participation in particular. To fill in this gap, we examine how perceived network externalities affect the continuance of social virtual worlds. To this end, we introduce the concept of perceived aggregate network exposure (PANE). We extend the original information systems (IS) continuance model with perceived enjoyment and position PANE as a moderator. We test the model with data collected from 2134 Finnish Habbo Hotel users and employ structural equation modelling in the analysis. The results demonstrate that PANE moderates the influence of motivational factors on continued use intention and satisfaction.     

Continuous Self‐Collision Detection for Deformable Surfaces Interacting with Solid Models

In this paper, we propose a new continuous self‐collision detection (CSCD) method for a deformable surface that interacts with a simple solid model. The method is developed based on the radial‐view‐based culling method. Our method is suitable for the deformable surface that has large contact region with the solid model. The deformable surface may consist of small round‐shaped holes. At the pre‐processing stage, the holes of the deformable surface are filled with ghost triangles so as to make the mesh of the deformable surface watertight. An observer primitive (i.e. a point or a line segment) is computed so that it lies inside the solid model. At the runtime stage, the orientations of triangles with respect to the observer primitive are evaluated. The collision status of the deformable surface is then determined. We evaluated our method for several animations including virtual garments. Experimental results show that our method improves the process of CSCD.     

Design and development of low‐cost optical‐fiber sensors for temperature metrology: Process monitoring of an epoxy resin system

This article reports the design and deployment of two optical‐fiber temperature sensors based on the fiber Fabry–Perot etalon. The first involved the use of an extrinsic fiber Fabry–Perot sensor, but in this instance, the coefficient of thermal expansion of the reflector and/or capillary was chosen to offer a mismatch. Hence, the cavity length could increase or decrease according to the coefficient of thermal expansion of the fiber and/or capillary. For comparison, single‐mode and multimode optical‐fiber Bragg gratings were also used as temperature sensors. The Fabry–Perot sensors operated from ?50 to 410°C. The accuracy of the measurements was up to ±0.5°C with a low‐cost charged‐coupling‐device spectrometer. The sensors also worked effectively in a microwave oven and in a composite panel in an autoclave. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 94: 83–95, 2004     

Exploring approaches to improve the performance of autonomous monitoring with imperfect data in location-aware wireless sensor networks

In recent years, information and sensing technologies have been applied to the construction industry to collect and provide rich information to facilitate decision making processes. One of the applications is using location data to support autonomous crane safety monitoring (e.g., collision avoidance and dangerous areas control). Several location-aware wireless technologies such as GPS (Global Positioning System), RFID (Radio-frequency identification), and Ultra-Wide Band sensors, have been proposed to provide location information for autonomous safety monitoring. However, previous studies indicated that imperfections (errors, uncertainty, and inconsistency) exist in the data collected from those sensors and the data imperfections have great impacts on autonomous safety monitoring system performance. This paper explores five computationally light-weight approaches to deal with the data imperfections, aiming to improve the system performance. The authors built a scaled autonomous crane safety monitoring testbed with a mounted localization system to collect location data and developed five representative test cases based on a live construction jobsite. Seven hundred and sixty location readings were collected at thirty-eight test points from the sensors. Those location data was fed into the reasoning mechanisms with five approaches to generate the safety decisions at those thirty-eight test points and evaluate system performance in terms of precision, recall and accuracy. The results indicate that system performance can be improved if at least ten position readings from sensors can be collected at small intervals at any location along the moving path. However, by including additional data such as velocity and acceleration that may be read from devices mounted on workers, localization error may be significantly reduced. These findings represent a path forward to improve localization accuracy by mixing imperfect data from the sensed environment with supplemental input.     

基于LabVIEW的虚拟数字存储示波器的设计

利用 LabVIEW 强大的数据采集、处理和程序设计功能,设计、开发了一款数字存储示波器。它主要是由信号输入模块、数据处理模块和波形显示及存储模块组成,是通过软件编程实现信号的显示和测量等功能的。在虚拟示波器上集成的虚拟信号发生器可以在声卡采集和虚拟信号输入之间切换。实验结果表明,该虚拟示波器基本实现了传统示波器的功能,并且运行可靠、性能良好,能够满足普通实验室正常的使用需求。     

基于Delphi的“虚拟胶片打印系统”的技术实现

利用Delphi和VS这两种开发平台,结合Oracle数据库,实现胶片排版、胶片调整、虚拟打印,自助打印、系统管理等功能。重点介绍了系统开发过程中针对特殊问题采用的几种技术。目的是完成胶片的集中打印管理,胶片存储备份,减少开支。     

智能虚拟环境中基于MAS的智能Agent体系结构

智能虚拟环境是人工智能和虚拟现实相结合的产物。由于多Agent系统具有可扩展性、自治性、主动性、可重构性和敏捷性等特点,已成为目前最感兴趣的AI技术之一。本文提出一种IVE中基于多Agent系统的智能Agent体系结构,着重于智能Agent内部机制的研究与设计,通过Agent的内部机制来提升系统的整体性能。     

Humidity‐sensitive properties of new polyelectrolytes based on the copolymers containing phosphonium salt and phosphine function

A simple strategy was developed based on a new reactive function‐ and a salt‐containing new monomer, 4‐vinylbenzyl dimethyl 2‐(dimethylphosphino)ethyl phosphonium chloride (VDEPC), to obtain stable humidity‐sensitive membranes. The major ingredient of a humid membrane is crosslinked polyelectrolytes obtained from copolymers of VDEPC/2‐ethylhexyl acrylate (2‐EHA) = 1/0, 4/1, and 2/1. Isothermal humidity absorption experiments were performed for the estimation of humidity‐sensing materials. The crosslinked copolymers prepared from the reaction of VDEPC/2‐EHA = 4/1 with 1,4‐dichlorobutane showed an average impedance of 595, 39.1, and 3.9 KΩ at 30, 60, and 90% RH, respectively. Their hysteresis, temperature dependence, frequency dependence, and response time were measured. The reliability including water resistance and a long‐term stability were estimated for the application of the common humidity sensor. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 89: 1062–1070, 2003