How to optimize the traditional retail market for FMCG sector?

Field lab: Entrepreneurial and innovative ventures

Contributions to gait recognition using multiple views

Esta tesis se centra en la identificación de personas a través de la forma de caminar. El problema del reconocimiento del paso ha sido tratado mediante diferentes enfoques, en los dominios 2D y 3D, y usando una o varias vistas. Sin embargo, la dependencia con respecto al punto de vista, y por tanto de la trayectoria del sujeto al caminar sigue siendo aún un problema abierto. Se propone hacer frente al problema de la dependencia con respecto a la trayectoria por medio de reconstrucciones 3D de sujetos caminando. El uso de reconstrucciones varias ventajas que cabe destacar. En primer lugar, permite explotar una mayor cantidad de información en contraste con los métodos que extraen los descriptores de la marcha a partir de imágenes, en el dominio 2D. En segundo lugar, las reconstrucciones 3D pueden ser alineadas a lo largo de la marcha como si el sujeto hubiera caminado en una cinta andadora, proporcionando así una forma de analizar el paso independientemente de la trayectoria seguida. Este trabajo propone tres enfoques para resolver el problema de la dependencia a la vista: 1. Mediante la utilización de reconstrucciones volumétricas alineadas. 2. Mediante el uso de reconstrucciones volumétricas no alineadas. 3. Sin usar reconstrucciones. Se proponen además tres tipos de descriptores. El primero se centra en describir el paso mediante análisis morfológico de los volúmenes 3D alineados. El segundo hace uso del concepto de entropa de la información para describir la dinámica del paso humano. El tercero persigue capturar la dinámica de una forma invariante a rotación, lo cual lo hace especialmente interesante para ser aplicado tanto en trayectorias curvas como rectas, incluyendo cambios de dirección. Estos enfoques han sido probados sobre dos bases de datos públicas. Ambas están especialmente diseñadas para tratar el problema de la dependencia con respecto al punto de vista, y por tanto de la dependencia con respecto a la trayectoria. Los resultados experimentales muestran que para el enfoque basado en reconstrucciones volumétricas alineadas, el descriptor del paso basado en entropa consigue los mejores resultados, en comparación con métodos estrechamente relacionados del Estado del Arte actual. No obstante, el descriptor invariante a rotación consigue una tasa de reconocimiento que supera a los métodos actuales sin requerir la etapa previa de alineamiento de las reconstrucciones 3D.

A Coopetition Space for Complex Product Specification

Part 3: Product-Service Systems

Equine exercise electrocardiogram : standardized lungeing test

Dissertação de Mestrado Integrado em Medicina Veterinária

Análise de métodos para aplicação de ventilação natural em projetos de edificações em Natal-RN

Natural ventilation is an efficient bioclimatic strategy, one that provides thermal comfort, healthful and cooling to the edification. However, the disregard for quality environment, the uncertainties involved in the phenomenon and the popularization of artificial climate systems are held as an excuse for those who neglect the benefits of passive cooling. The unfamiliarity with the concept may be lessened if ventilation is observed in every step of the project, especially in the initial phase in which decisions bear a great impact in the construction process. The tools available in order to quantify the impact of projected decisions consist basically of the renovation rate calculations or computer simulations of fluids, commonly dubbed CFD, which stands for Computational Fluid Dynamics , both somewhat apart from the project s execution and unable to adapt for use in parametric studies. Thus, we chose to verify, through computer simulation, the representativeness of the results with a method of simplified air reconditioning rate calculation, as well as making it more compatible with the questions relevant to the first phases of the project s process. The case object consists of a model resulting from the recommendations of the Código de Obras de Natal/ RN, customized according to the NBR 15220. The study has shown the complexity in aggregating a CFD tool to the process and the need for a method capable of generating data at the compatible rate to the flow of ideas and are discarded during the project s development. At the end of our study, we discuss the necessary concessions for the realization of simulations, the applicability and the limitations of both the tools used and the method adopted, as well as the representativeness of the results obtained

Desenhar a casa

Dissertação de Mestrado para obtenção do grau de Mestre em Arquitectura, apresentada na Universidade de Lisboa - Faculdade de Arquitectura.

Effect of fertilization and type of pruning on quality of fresh and dehydrated Stevia rebaudiana

Mestrado em Engenharia Alimentar - Instituto Superior de Agronomia - UL

Redesenhar e requalificar o lugar informal na contemporaneidade

Dissertação de Mestrado para obtenção do grau de Mestre em Arquitectura, apresentada na Universidade de Lisboa - Faculdade de Arquitectura.

Plano de negócios de uma plataforma de e-recruitment

Mestrado em Ciências Empresariais

Adaptive lighting design as a holistic approach to public lighting

Dissertação para obtenção do grau de Doutor em Design, apresentada na Universidade de Lisboa - Faculdade de Arquitetura.

Anti-anxiety effect of methanol extract of Pericarpium zanthoxyli using a strychnine-sensitive glycine receptor model

Purpose: To determine if the methanol extract of Pericarpium zanthoxyli exerts anti-anxiety effects and also to explore any probable anti-anxiety mechanism in vivo. Methods: The staircase test, elevated plus maze test, rota-rod treadmill test and convulsions induced by strychnine and picrotoxin on mice were tested to identify potential mechanism of anti-anxiety activity of the plant extract. Results: The plant extract (10 mg/kg, p.o.) significantly reduced rearing numbers in the staircase test while it increased the time spent in the open arms as well as the number of entries to the open arms in the elevated plus maze test, suggesting that it has significant anti-anxiety activity. Furthermore, the extract inhibited strychnine-induced convulsion. However, it had little effect on picrotoxin-induced convulsion, suggesting that its anti-anxiety activity may be linked to strychnine-sensitive glycine receptor and not GABA receptor. Conclusion: These results suggest that the Pericarpium zanthoxyli extract may be beneficial for the control of anxiety.

Avaliação dos efeitos da adição de sal e da densidade no transporte de tambaqui

Os objetivos deste trabalho foram testar a eficiência do sal como redutor de estresse e verificar a melhor densidade de transporte de juvenis de tambaqui (Colossoma macropomun) em caixas de plástico adaptadas. No primeiro experimento foram testadas diferentes concentrações de sal de cozinha (NaCl) na água; no segundo, o transporte foi realizado por três horas em caixas de plástico de 200 L estocadas com diferentes densidades de peixe, com 8 g de sal/L de água. O cortisol plasmático dos peixes sofreu aumento significativo após o transporte no tratamento sem sal e com 2 g de sal/L de água, retornando para níveis normais após 96 horas. A glicose plasmática dos peixes sofreu aumento após o transporte em todas as concentrações de sal testadas, com exceção da com 8 g/L de água, retornando para níveis normais em 24 horas. Nos peixes transportados no segundo experimento, com 8 g de sal/L de água, não foi verificada mudança significativa no cortisol plasmático, mas a glicose aumentou significativamente em todas as densidades após o transporte, retornando para níveis normais em 24 horas. Houve mortalidade de 11% em uma das repetições da densidade de 200 kg/m³ de água. Para o transporte com 8 g de sal/L de água, a densidade máxima deve ser de 150 kg/m³ de água. Nesta densidade os parâmetros físico-químicos de qualidade de água se mantêm com características adequadas, as respostas ao estresse são mínimas e não há mortalidade.

Estimation de cartes d'énergie de hautes fréquences ou d'irrégularité de périodicité de la marche humaine par caméra de profondeur pour la détection de pathologies

Ce travail présente deux nouveaux systèmes simples d'analyse de la marche humaine grâce à une caméra de profondeur (Microsoft Kinect) placée devant un sujet marchant sur un tapis roulant conventionnel, capables de détecter une marche saine et celle déficiente. Le premier système repose sur le fait qu'une marche normale présente typiquement un signal de profondeur lisse au niveau de chaque pixel avec moins de hautes fréquences, ce qui permet d'estimer une carte indiquant l'emplacement et l'amplitude de l'énergie de haute fréquence (HFSE). Le second système analyse les parties du corps qui ont un motif de mouvement irrégulier, en termes de périodicité, lors de la marche. Nous supposons que la marche d'un sujet sain présente partout dans le corps, pendant les cycles de marche, un signal de profondeur avec un motif périodique sans bruit. Nous estimons, à partir de la séquence vidéo de chaque sujet, une carte montrant les zones d'irrégularités de la marche (également appelées énergie de bruit apériodique). La carte avec HFSE ou celle visualisant l'énergie de bruit apériodique peut être utilisée comme un bon indicateur d'une éventuelle pathologie, dans un outil de diagnostic précoce, rapide et fiable, ou permettre de fournir des informations sur la présence et l'étendue de la maladie ou des problèmes (orthopédiques, musculaires ou neurologiques) du patient. Même si les cartes obtenues sont informatives et très discriminantes pour une classification visuelle directe, même pour un non-spécialiste, les systèmes proposés permettent de détecter automatiquement les individus en bonne santé et ceux avec des problèmes locomoteurs.

Optical Access Engine Setup and Validation

The optical access engine integrated with the diagnostic and optical measurement techniques is a great platform for engine research because it provides clear visual access to the combustion chamber inside the engines. An optical access engine customized based on a 4-cylinder spark ignited direct injection (SIDI) production engine is located in the Advanced Power Systems Laboratories (APS LABS) at Michigan Technological University. This optical access engine inside the test cell has been set up for different engine research. In this report, two SAE papers in engine research utilizing the optical access engine are reviewed to gain basic understanding of the methodology. Though the optical engine in APS LABS is a little bit different from the engines used in the literature, the methodology in the papers provides guidelines for engine research through optical access engines. In addition, the optical access engine instrumentation including the test cell setup and the optical engine setup is described in detail in the report providing a solid record for later troubleshooting and reference. Finally, the motoring tests, firing tests and optical imaging experiment on the optical engine have been performed to validate the instrumentation. This report only describes so far the instrumentation of the optical engine in the APS LABS by April 2015.

Design Optimization of Modern Machine-drive Systems for Maximum Fault Tolerant and Optimal Operation

Modern electric machine drives, particularly three phase permanent magnet machine drive systems represent an indispensable part of high power density products. Such products include; hybrid electric vehicles, large propulsion systems, and automation products. Reliability and cost of these products are directly related to the reliability and cost of these systems. The compatibility of the electric machine and its drive system for optimal cost and operation has been a large challenge in industrial applications. The main objective of this dissertation is to find a design and control scheme for the best compromise between the reliability and optimality of the electric machine-drive system. The effort presented here is motivated by the need to find new techniques to connect the design and control of electric machines and drive systems. A highly accurate and computationally efficient modeling process was developed to monitor the magnetic, thermal, and electrical aspects of the electric machine in its operational environments. The modeling process was also utilized in the design process in form finite element based optimization process. It was also used in hardware in the loop finite element based optimization process. The modeling process was later employed in the design of a very accurate and highly efficient physics-based customized observers that are required for the fault diagnosis as well the sensorless rotor position estimation. Two test setups with different ratings and topologies were numerically and experimentally tested to verify the effectiveness of the proposed techniques. The modeling process was also employed in the real-time demagnetization control of the machine. Various real-time scenarios were successfully verified. It was shown that this process gives the potential to optimally redefine the assumptions in sizing the permanent magnets of the machine and DC bus voltage of the drive for the worst operating conditions. The mathematical development and stability criteria of the physics-based modeling of the machine, design optimization, and the physics-based fault diagnosis and the physics-based sensorless technique are described in detail. To investigate the performance of the developed design test-bed, software and hardware setups were constructed first. Several topologies of the permanent magnet machine were optimized inside the optimization test-bed. To investigate the performance of the developed sensorless control, a test-bed including a 0.25 (kW) surface mounted permanent magnet synchronous machine example was created. The verification of the proposed technique in a range from medium to very low speed, effectively show the intelligent design capability of the proposed system. Additionally, to investigate the performance of the developed fault diagnosis system, a test-bed including a 0.8 (kW) surface mounted permanent magnet synchronous machine example with trapezoidal back electromotive force was created. The results verify the use of the proposed technique under dynamic eccentricity, DC bus voltage variations, and harmonic loading condition make the system an ideal case for propulsion systems.