• Title/Summary/Keyword: Robertson

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A Dynamic Frequency Controlling Technique for Power Management in Existing Commercial Microcontrollers

  • Lueangvilai, Attakorn;Robertson, Christina;Martinez, Christopher J.
    • Journal of Computing Science and Engineering
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    • v.6 no.2
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    • pp.79-88
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    • 2012
  • Power continues to be a driving force in central processing units (CPU) design. Most of the advanced breakthroughs in power have been in a realm that is applicable to workstation CPUs. Advanced power management systems will manage temperature, dynamic voltage scaling and dynamic frequency scaling in a CPU. The use of power management systems for microcontrollers and embedded CPUs has been modest, and mostly focuses on very large scale integration (VLSI) level optimizations compared to system level optimizations. In this paper, a dynamic frequency controlling (DFC) technique is introduced, to lay the foundation of a system level power management system for commercial microcontrollers. The DFC technique allows a commercial microcontroller to have minor modifications on both the hardware and software side, to allow the clock frequency to change to save power; results in this study show a 10% savings. By adding an additional layer of software abstraction at the interrupt level, the microcontroller can operate without having knowledge of the current clock frequency, and this can be accomplished without having to use an embedded operating system.

An Evaluation of Boar Pheromone Spray to Aid the Stimulation and Detection of Estrus in Small Farms in Nepal

  • Shrestha, N.P.;Edwards, S.A.;English, P.R.;Robertson, J.F.
    • Asian-Australasian Journal of Animal Sciences
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    • v.14 no.5
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    • pp.697-700
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    • 2001
  • A prolonged farrowing interval is common on small farms in Nepal and may be attributable to the absence of boar contact at the time of weaning. To examine whether synthetic boar pheromone spray might be of value to aid the stimulation and detection of estrus, 30 village farms, each with a single sow, were recruited into a field study. All sows entered the study on final weaning from their first lactation at 56 days post partum. For 13 treatment sows, a boar pheromone spray (SOA, Intervet, Boxmeer, The Netherlands) was applied each day after weaning whilst 17 other sows did not receive any stimulus (negative control). When estrous was detected by the farmer, sows were taken to the nearest boar for service. There was a significantly shorter weaning to re-mating interval for treatment sows (42.9 V 82.2 day, p<0.05), with a significantly higher proportion of treatment sows rebred by day 60 after weaning (p=0.024, Fishers Test). It is concluded that use of boar pheromones can improve reproductive efficiency of sows kept under Nepalese village conditions.

Full-scale study of wind loads on roof tiles and felt underlay and comparisons with design data

  • Robertson, A.P.;Hoxey, R.P.;Rideout, N.M.;Freathy, P.
    • Wind and Structures
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    • v.10 no.6
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    • pp.495-510
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    • 2007
  • Wind pressure data have been collected on the tiled roof of a full-scale test house at Silsoe in the UK. The tiled roof was of conventional UK construction with a batten-space and bitumen-felt underlay beneath the interlocking concrete tiles. Pressures were monitored on the outer surface of selected tiles, at several locations within the batten-space, and beneath the underlay. Data were collected both with and without ventilator tiles installed on the roof. Little information appears to exist on the share of wind load between tiles and underlays which creates uncertainty in the design of both components. The present study has found that for the critical design case of maximum uplifts it would be appropriate to assign 85% of the net roof load to the tiles and 15% to the underlay when an internal pressure coefficient of -0.3 is used, and to assign 60% to the tiles and 50% to the underlay when an internal pressure coefficient of +0.2 is assumed (an element of design conservatism is inherent in the apparent 110% net loading indicated by the latter pair of percentage values). These findings indicate that compared with loads implied by BS 6399-2, UK design loads for underlay are currently conservative by 25% whilst tile loads are unconservative by around 20% in ridge and general regions and by around 45% in edge regions on average over roof slopes of $15^{\circ}-60^{\circ}$.

Holder exponent analysis for discontinuity detection

  • Sohn, Hoon;Robertson, Amy N.;Farrar, Charles R.
    • Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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    • v.17 no.3_4
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    • pp.409-428
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    • 2004
  • In this paper, a Holder exponent, a measure of the degree to which a signal is differentiable, is presented to detect the presence of a discontinuity and when the discontinuity occurs in a dynamic signal. This discontinuity detection has potential applications to structural health monitoring because discontinuities are often introduced into dynamic response data as a result of certain types of damage. Wavelet transforms are incorporated with the Holder exponent to capture the time varying nature of discontinuities, and a classification procedure is developed to quantify when changes in the Holder exponent are significant. The proposed Holder exponent analysis is applied to various experimental signals to reveal underlying damage causing events from the signals. Signals being analyzed include acceleration response of a mechanical system with a rattling internal part, acceleration signals of a three-story building model with a loosing bolt, and strain records of an in-situ bridge during construction. The experimental results presented in this paper demonstrate that the Holder exponent can be an effective tool for identifying certain types of events that introduce discontinuities into the measured dynamic response data.

Success Factors of Immigrant-Owned Informal Grocery Shops in South African Townships: Native Shop-Owners' Account

  • Mukwarami, Josephat;Tengeh, Robertson Khan;Iwu, Chux Gervase
    • Journal of Distribution Science
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    • v.16 no.3
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    • pp.49-57
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    • 2018
  • Purpose - This paper explores the perceptions held by native grocery shop-owners of their foreign counterparts to ascertain if there are lessons to be shared especially regarding operational/survival strategies. Research design, data and methodology - A questionnaire was used to collect data from 121 subjects who were purposively selected. The data was processed and analysed with the aid of Statistical Package for the Social Sciences(SPSS) software. Results - The study found that native South Africans hold the perception that immigrants have operational advantage over them. The study also found that with bulk buying, immigrants' stores stock a larger variety of groceries while their items are sold cheaper. It is also arguable from the standpoint of the findings that immigrant grocery store owners avoid expensive lifestyles which often is common among natives who own informal grocery shops. Conclusions - It is the position of this paper that adopting the strategies utilized by immigrant entrepreneurs, informal grocery shops owned by native South Africans are likely to see an improvement in their township-based grocery stores. A major merit of this study beyond its novelty is its potential to advance learnership and collaboration between immigrant entrepreneurs and their native counterparts.

High-Resolution Map of Zodiacal Dust Bands by WIZARD

  • Yang, Hongu;Ishiguro, Masateru;Usui, Fumihiko;Ueno, Munetaka
    • The Bulletin of The Korean Astronomical Society
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    • v.37 no.1
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    • pp.101.1-101.1
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    • 2012
  • Interplanetary dust particles are observable as zodiacal light, which is the sunlight scattered by the interplanetary dust particles. The origins of interplanetary dust particles are still in question because they are eroded by Poynting-Robertson photon drag and mutual collisions among dust particles. The small-scale structures in the zodiacal light provided a clue to specify their origins. Asteroidal debris were detected as band-like structures (dust bands), and the cometary large particles were detected as narrow trails (dust trails). However, little is confirmative about their detailed origins and mineralogical compositions because of the lack of observational data particularly in the optical wavelength. We made a high-resolution optical zodiacal light map based on the CCD observations at Mauna Kea, Hawaii. We analyzed data taken on November 12, 2004. After the data reduction, such as flat fielding and subtraction of airglow emissions, we succeeded in the construction of the zodiacal light map with the spatial resolution of 3' in the solar elongation between 45 degree and 180 degree. This is the highest resolution map in the visible wavelength so far. In this map, we confirmed the dust bands structures near the ecliptic plane. We will discuss about the similarities and the differences between optical and infrared dust bands.

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Interactive Information Retrieval: An Introduction

  • Borlund, Pia
    • Journal of Information Science Theory and Practice
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    • v.1 no.3
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    • pp.12-32
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    • 2013
  • The paper introduces the research area of interactive information retrieval (IIR) from a historical point of view. Further, the focus here is on evaluation, because much research in IR deals with IR evaluation methodology due to the core research interest in IR performance, system interaction and satisfaction with retrieved information. In order to position IIR evaluation, the Cranfield model and the series of tests that led to the Cranfield model are outlined. Three iconic user-oriented studies and projects that all have contributed to how IIR is perceived and understood today are presented: The MEDLARS test, the Book House fiction retrieval system, and the OKAPI project. On this basis the call for alternative IIR evaluation approaches motivated by the three revolutions (the cognitive, the relevance, and the interactive revolutions) put forward by Robertson & Hancock-Beaulieu (1992) is presented. As a response to this call the 'IIR evaluation model' by Borlund (e.g., 2003a) is introduced. The objective of the IIR evaluation model is to facilitate IIR evaluation as close as possible to actual information searching and IR processes, though still in a relatively controlled evaluation environment, in which the test instrument of a simulated work task situation plays a central part.

STATISTICAL PROPERTIES OF GRAVITATIONAL LENSING IN COSMOLOGICAL MODELS WITH COSMOLOGICAL CONSTANT

  • LEE HYUN-A;PARK MYEONG-GU
    • Journal of The Korean Astronomical Society
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    • v.27 no.2
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    • pp.103-117
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    • 1994
  • To extend the work of Gott, Park, and Lee (1989), statistical properties of gravitational lensing in a wide variety of cosmological models involving non-zero cosmological constant is investigated, using the redshifts of both lens and source and observed angular separation of images for gravitational lens systems. We assume singular isothermal sphere as lensing galaxy in homogenous and isotropic Friedmann­Lemaitre-Robertson- Walker universe, Schechter luminosity function, standard angular diameter distance formula and other galaxy parameters used in Fukugita and Turner (1991). To find the most adequate flat cosmological model and put a limit on the value of dimensionless cosmological constant $\lambda_0$, the mean value of the angular separation of images, probability distribution of angular separation and cumulative probability are calculated for given source and lens redshifts and compared with the observed values through several statistical methods. When there is no angular selection effect, models with highest value of $\lambda_0$ is preferred generally. When the angular selection effects are considered, the preferred model depends on the shape of the selection functions and statistical methods; yet, models with large $\lambda_0$ are preferred in general. However, the present data can not rule out any of the flat universe models with enough confidence. This approach can potentially select out best model. But at the moment, we need more data.

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Practical second-order analysis and design of single angle trusses by an equivalent imperfection approach

  • Cho, S.H.;Chan, S.L.
    • Steel and Composite Structures
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    • v.5 no.6
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    • pp.443-458
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    • 2005
  • Steel angles are widely used in roof trusses as web and chord members and in lattice towers. Very often angle members are connected eccentrically. As a result, not only an angle member is under an axial force, but it is also subject to a pair of end eccentric moments. Moreover, the connection at each end provides some fixity so neither pinned nor the fixed end represents the reality. Many national design codes allow for the effects due to eccentricities by modifying the slenderness ratio and reducing the compressive strength of the member. However, in practice, it is difficult to determine accurately the effective length. The concept behind this method is inconsistent with strength design of members of other cross-sectional types such as I or box sections of which the buckling strength is controlled by the Perry constant or the initial imperfection parameters. This paper proposes a method for design of angle frames and trusses by the second-order analysis. The equivalent initial imperfection-to-length ratios for equal and unequal angles to compensate the negligence of initial curvatures, load eccentricities and residual stresses are determined in this paper. From the obtained results, the values of imperfection-to-length ratios are suggested for design and analysis of angle steel trusses allowing for member buckling strength based on the Perry-Robertson formula.

LINEAR STABILITY OF TRIANGULAR EQUILIBRIUM POINTS IN THE PHOTOGRAVITATIONAL RESTRICTED THREE BODY PROBLEM WITH TRIAXIAL RIGID BODIES, WITH THE BIGGER ONE AN OBLATE SPHEROID AND SOURCE OF RADIATION

  • KUMAR, AVDHESH;ISHWAR, B.
    • Publications of The Korean Astronomical Society
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    • v.30 no.2
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    • pp.297-299
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    • 2015
  • In this paper we have examined the linear stability of triangular equilibrium points in the photogravitational restricted three body problem when both primaries are triaxial rigid bodies, the bigger one an oblate spheroid and source of radiation. The orbits about the Lagrangian equilibrium points are important for scientific investigation. A number of space missions have been completed and some are being proposed by various space agencies. We analyze the periodic motion in the neighbourhood of the Lagrangian equilibrium points as a function of the value of the mass parameter. Periodic orbits of an infinitesimal mass in the vicinity of the equilibrium points are studied analytically and numerically. The linear stability of triangular equilibrium points in the photogravitational restricted three body problem with Poynting-Robertson drag when both primaries are oblate spheroids has been examined by A. Kumar (2007). We have found the equations of motion and triangular equilibrium points for our problem. With the help of the characteristic equation we have discussed stability conditions. Finally, triangular equilibrium points are stable in the linear sense. It is further seen that the triangular points have long or short periodic elliptical orbits in the same range of ${\mu}$.