Lyapunov functions for stable cascades and applications to global stabilization

This paper generalizes recent Lyapunov constructions for a cascade of two nonlinear systems, one of which is stable rather than asymptotically stable. A new cross-term construction in the Lyapunov function allows us to replace earlier growth conditions by a necessary boundedness condition. This method is instrumental in the global stabilization of feedforward systems, and new stabilization results are derived from the generalized construction.

Globally Unique Product Identifiers - Requirements and Solutions to Product Lifecycle Management

Managing product information for product items during their whole lifetime is challenging, especially during their usage and end-of-life phases. A major challenge is how to keep a link between the product item and its associated information that may be stored in backend systems of different organizations. This chapter analyses and compares three approaches for addressing this task-that is, the electronic product code (EPC) Network, DIALOG, and World Wide Article Information (WWAI). The EPC network has three key strengths with respect to Product lifecycle management (PLM): First, it is an internationally accepted standard that is supported by a world-wide standards body (GSI). Second, the lookup mechanism helps to insulate the data on the tag from change. Third, because it is becoming widespread and that this tag can also be used for PLM. WWAI is more technically sophisticated than the other approaches. The DIALOG approach might be the most general purpose one of the three because it places few restrictions on the format of the data on the tag. © 2006 Copyright © 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

High performance fibre-reinforced cementitious composite (CARDIFRC) - Performance and application to retrofitting

This paper describes first some of the recent performance checks on the high performance fibre-reinforced cementitious composite CARDIFRC and then its application to the retrofitting of damaged concrete beams. It is shown that an even distribution of fibres throughout the bulk of the material is crucial to its excellent fatigue performance and to the reduction in the autogenous shrinkage strains. The distribution of fibres in beams, cylinders and strips is examined using computerised tomography imaging and traditional image analysis. Thin strips of CARDIFRC are used to retrofit damaged concrete beams which are subjected to thermal cycling. It is shown that neither the load carrying capacity of the retrofitted beams nor the bond between retrofit strips and concrete deteriorates with thermal cycling. The load carrying capacity of retrofitted beams is predicted with a model based on fracture mechanics, and the predictions are shown to be in good agreement with test data. © 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

FBS Linkage ontology and technique to support engineering change management

© 2014, Springer-Verlag London. Engineering changes are essential for any product development, and their management has become a crucial discipline. Research in engineering change management has brought about some methods and tools to support dealing with changes. This work extends the change prediction method through incorporation of a function–behaviour–structure (FBS) scheme. These additional levels of detail provide the rationales for change propagation and allow a more proactive management of changes. First, we develop the ontology of this method based on a comprehensive comparison of three seminal functional reasoning schemes. Then, we demonstrate the FBS Linkage technique by applying it to a diesel engine. Finally, we evaluate the method.