Humanoid traffic control robot

A traffic control device in the form of a humanoid character robot, doll or dummy is used to warn driver of danger ahead on the road. The device can be used on roads, streets and in other sites where there are moving vehicles. The robotic device informs drivers of impending danger by moving its arms and sounding an acoustic alarm. In this way the robot can simulate a policeman or road flagging operator. The device may also include speed detection and preferably speed indication means. The robot may make decisions based on the detected speed of a vehicle and the limit for the area in operating the arms and sound warning means. The robot may also be equipped with a camera or video. The robot may also be controlled wirelessly.

Coordinated energy management of vehicle air conditioning system

Whilst air conditioning systems increase thermal comfortableness in vehicles, they also raise the energy consumption of vehicles. Achieving thermal comfort in an energy-efficient way is a difficult task requiring good coordination between engine and the air conditioning system. This paper presents a coordinated energy management system to reduce the energy consumption of the vehicle air conditioning system while maintaining the thermal comfortableness. The system coordinates and manages the operation of evaporator, blower, and fresh air and recirculation gates to provide the desired comfort temperature and indoor air quality, under the various ambient and vehicle conditions, the energy consumption can then be optimized. Three simulations of the developed coordinated energy management system are performed to demonstrate its energy saving capacity.

The implications of lung-regulated buoyancy control for dive depth and duration

Among air-breathing divers, control of buoyancy through lung volume regulation may be most highly developed in marine turtles. In short, the turtle lung may serve a dual role as both an oxygen store and in buoyancy control. A simple model is developed to show that, for turtles diving up to the maximum depth at which they can still use their lungs to attain neutral buoyancy, the total oxygen store will increase greatly with dive depth, and hence a corresponding increase in dive duration is predicted. Time–depth recorders attached to free-living green turtles (Chelonia mydas) at Ascension Island confirmed a marked increase in dive duration with depth, with the gradient of this relationship being >10 times that seen in diving birds and mammals. Consistent with the prediction that the lungs serve a dual role, we found that, when lead weights were added to some turtles to increase their specific gravity, the mean depth of dives decreased, but for dives to the same depth, weighted animals dived for longer. The depth distribution of green turtles seems to be generally constrained by the maximum depth at which they can still attain close to neutral buoyancy.

Dividing traffic sub-areas based on a parallel K-means algorithm

In order to alleviate the traffic congestion and reduce the complexity of traffic control and management, it is necessary to exploit traffic sub-areas division which should be effective in planing traffic. Some researchers applied the K-Means algorithm to divide traffic sub-areas on the taxi trajectories. However, the traditional K-Means algorithms faced difficulties in processing large-scale Global Position System(GPS) trajectories of taxicabs with the restrictions of memory, I/O, computing performance. This paper proposes a Parallel Traffic Sub-Areas Division(PTSD) method which consists of two stages, on the basis of the Parallel K-Means(PKM) algorithm. During the first stage, we develop a process to cluster traffic sub-areas based on the PKM algorithm. Then, the second stage, we identify boundary of traffic sub-areas on the base of cluster result. According to this method, we divide traffic sub-areas of Beijing on the real-word (GPS) trajectories of taxicabs. The experiment and discussion show that the method is effective in dividing traffic sub-areas.

H∞ dynamic output feedback control of power systems with electric vehicles

This paper presents a H∞ dynamic output feedback control scheme for load frequency control (LFC) of interconnected power systems with multiple input timedelays. In this study, electric vehicles (EVs) are participated in the LFC to support reheated thermal power units to rapidly suppress load and frequency fluctuations. A mathematical model of an interconnected power system is first introduced. This model takes into consideration of the different time delays in control inputs; specifically the communication/information delays between the control center and the fleet of EVs. We then derive stabilization conditions in terms of feasible linear matrix inequalities (LMIs) for the proposed system and develop an effective algorithm to parameterize H∞ controllers ensuring stability of the closed-loop system with H∞ performance. Extensive simulations are given to show the effectiveness of the proposed control method.

Static output feedback frequency stabilization of time-delay power systems with coordinated electric vehicles state of charge control

In this paper, for the first time, electric vehicles are used for both the primary and secondary frequency controls to support power plants to rapidly suppress fluctuations in the system frequency due to load disturbances. Via networked control and wide-area communication infrastructures, multiple interval time-varying delays exist in the communication channels between the control center, power plant, and an aggregation of electric vehicles. By coordinating batteries’ state of charge control, the behaviors of the vehicle owners and the uncertainties imposed by the changes of the batteries’ state of charge are taken intoconsideration. A power system model incorporating multiple time-varying delays and uncertainties is first proposed. Then, a robust static output feedback frequency controller is designed to guarantee the resulting closed-loop system stable with an H∞ attenuation level. By utilizing a novel integral inequality, namely refined-Jensen inequality, and an improved reciprocally convex combination, the design conditions are formulated in terms of tractable linear matrix inequalities which can be efficiently solved by various computational tools. The effectiveness of the proposed control scheme is verified by extensive simulations.

Verfahren zur Entdrosselung einer Brennkraftmaschine und entdrosselte Brennkraftmaschine

Air for the internal combustion engine (1) passes through a turbocharger (2,3) compressor (4). The air line (7) downstream of the compressor divides with some air bypassing (9) the intercooler (6) and passing through a control valve (10). There is a sensor (14) downstream of the point where the bypass joins the main air line. - Air is bled off downstream of the sensor to a control module (11). This may return air to the control valve or pass it to the waste gate (13) for the turbine (5). Some of the exhaust gas (8) passes through the turbine and some of it bypasses it (12) through the waste gate.

Facet selectivity in gold binding peptides: exploiting interfacial water structure

Peptide sequences that can discriminate between gold facets under aqueous conditions offer a promising route to control the growth and organisation of biomimetically-synthesised gold nanoparticles. Knowledge of the interplay between sequence, conformations and interfacial properties is essential for predictable manipulation of these biointerfaces, but the structural connections between a given peptide sequence and its binding affinity remain unclear, impeding practical advances in the field. These structural insights, at atomic-scale resolution, are not easily accessed with experimental approaches, but can be delivered via molecular simulation. A current unmet challenge lies in forging links between predicted adsorption free energies derived from enhanced sampling simulations with the conformational ensemble of the peptide and the water structure at the surface. To meet this challenge, here we use an in situ combination of Replica Exchange with Solute Tempering with Metadynamics simulations to predict the adsorption free energy of a gold-binding peptide sequence, AuBP1, at the aqueous Au(111), Au(100)(1 × 1) and Au(100)(5 × 1) interfaces. We find adsorption to the Au(111) surface is stronger than to Au(100), irrespective of the reconstruction status of the latter. Our predicted free energies agree with experiment, and correlate with trends in interfacial water structuring. For gold, surface hydration is predicted as a chief determining factor in peptide-surface recognition. Our findings can be used to suggest how shaped seed-nanocrystals of Au, in partnership with AuBP1, could be used to control AuNP nanoparticle morphology.

Mobility prediction based routing for minimizing control overhead in mobile ad hoc networks

Routing in ad hoc networks faces significant challenges due to node mobility and dynamic network topology. In this work we propose the use of mobility prediction to reduce the search space required for route discovery. A method of mobility prediction making use of a sectorized cluster structure is described with the proposal of the Prediction based Location Aided routing (P-LAR) protocol. Simulation study and analytical results of the of P-LAR find it to offer considerable saving in the amount of routing traffic generated during the route discovery phase.

A flow control methodology for the rapid generation of vehicle traffic models

This paper presents a conveyor-based methodology to model complex vehicle flows common to factory and distribution warehouse facilities. The AGV and human path modelling techniques available in many commercial discrete event simulation packages require extensive knowledge and time to implement even the simplest flow control rules for multiple vehicle interaction. Although discrete event simulation is accepted as an effective tool to model vehicle delivery movements, human paths and delivery schedules for modern assembly lines, the time to generate accurate models is a significant limitation of existing simulation-based optimisation methodologies. The flow control method has been successfully implemented using two commercial simulation packages. It provides a realistic visual representation, as well as accurate statistical results, and reduces the model development process cost.

Community center-based resistance training for the maintenance of glycemic control in adults with type 2 diabetes

OBJECTIVE--The purpose of this study Was to determine whether beneficial effects on glycemic control of an initial laboratory-supervised resistance training program could be sustained through a community center-based maintenance program.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS--We studied 57 overweight (BMI [greater than or equal to] 27 kg/[m.sup.2]) sedentary men and women aged 40-80 years with established (>6 months) type 2 diabetes. Initially, all participants attended a twice-weekly 2-month supervised resistance training program conducted in the exercise laboratory. Thereafter, participants undertook a resistance training maintenance program (2 times/week) for 12 months and were randomly assigned to carry this out either in a community fitness and recreation center (center) or in their domestic environment (home). Glycemic control ([HbA.sub.1c] [A1C]) was assessed at 0, 2, and 14 months.

RESULTS--Pooling data from the two groups for the 2-month supervised resistance training program showed that compared with baseline, mean A1C fell by -0.4% [95% CI -0.6 to -0.2]. Within-group comparisons showed that A1C remained lower than baseline values at 14 months in the center group (-0.4% [-0.7 to -0.03]) but not in the home group (-0.1% [-0.4 to 0.3]). However, no between-group differences were observed at each time point. Changes in A1C during the maintenance period were positively associated with exercise adherence in the center group only.

CONCLUSIONS--Center-based but not home-based resistance training was associated with the maintenance of modestly improved glycemic control from baseline, which was proportional to program adherence. Our findings emphasize the need to develop and test behavioral methods to promote healthy lifestyles including increased physical activity in adults with type 2 diabetes.