Learning Automata and Their Applications to Intelligent Systems
Comprehensive guide on learning automata, introducing two variants to accelerate convergence and computational update speed Learning Automata and Their Applications to Intelligent Systems provides a comprehensive guide on learning automata from the perspective of principles, algorithms, improvement directions, and applications. The text introduces two variants to accelerate the convergence speed and computational update speed, respectively; these two examples demonstrate how to design new learning automata for a specific field from the aspect of algorithm design to give full play to the advantage of learning automata. As noisy optimization problems exist widely in various intelligent systems, this book elaborates on how to employ learning automata to solve noisy optimization problems from the perspective of algorithm design and application. The existing and most representative applications of learning automata include classification, clustering, game, knapsack, network, optimization, ranking, and scheduling. They are well-discussed. Future research directions to promote an intelligent system are suggested. Written by two highly qualified academics with significant experience in the field, Learning Automata and Their Applications to Intelligent Systems covers such topics as: Mathematical analysis of the behavior of learning automata, along with suitable learning algorithms Two application-oriented learning automata: one to discover and track spatiotemporal event patterns, and the other to solve stochastic searching on a line Demonstrations of two pioneering variants of Optimal Computing Budge Allocation (OCBA) methods and how to combine learning automata with ordinal optimization How to achieve significantly faster convergence and higher accuracy than classical pursuit schemes via lower computational complexity of updating the state probabilityA timely text in a rapidly developing field, Learning Automata and Their Applications to Intelligent Systems is an essential resource for researchers in machine learning, engineering, operation, and management. The book is also highly suitable for graduate level courses on machine learning, soft computing, reinforcement learning and stochastic optimization.
Introduction to Quantum Computing
This textbook introduces quantum computing to readers who do not have much background in linear algebra based on the self-study experience of the author as an engineer. The author targets undergraduate and master students who are willing to spend about 60 -90 hours seriously learning quantum computing. This book is also suitable for self-study and teaching videos for each chapter and more than 200 exercises with answers are provided. Readers will be able to write their program to simulate quantum computing algorithms and run on real quantum computers on IBM-Q. Moreover, unlike books that only give superficial, "hand-waving" explanations, this book uses exact formalism so readers can continue to pursue more advanced topics based on what they learn from this book
POWER GENERATION - lightening the world
Energy is the ability to do work, and power plants are facilities that convert different forms of energy into electrical energy. The book covers the different types of power plants, including thermal, nuclear, hydroelectric, wind, and solar power plants.The book also explains the operating principles of power plants, which involve converting energy into mechanical energy, which is then converted into electrical energy. The major components of a power plant are explained in detail, including boilers or reactors, turbines, generators, transformers, and cooling systems.In addition to these topics, the book covers the various aspects of power plant engineering, including plant layout and design, instrumentation and control, maintenance and troubleshooting, and environmental issues.
Shenzhen Fast
How are electronics made overseas? Join engineer Jam as they visit a number of factories in Shenzhen, China. Learn about how every electronic device is made from start to finish by following a part through its whole design cycle! Learn about the people, processes and complications involved in getting a part made in China. Illustrated with Jam's friendly and approachable style, this guide is intended to give any curious person a deeper understanding of how things are made.
Photon Counting Computed Tomography
This book will provide readers with a good overview of some of most recent advances in the field of Photon Counting CT technology for X-ray medical imaging, especially as it pertains to new detectors. There will be a good mixture of general chapters in both technology and applications in CT medical imaging. The book will have an in-depth review of the research topics from world-leading specialists in the field. The conversion of the X-ray signal into analogue/digital value will be covered in some chapters. The authors also provide a review of CMOS chips for X-ray image sensors, methods of material discrimination and image reconstruction techniques.Covers a broad range of topics, including an introduction to novel spectral Computed Tomography;Includes in-depth analysis on how to optimize X-ray detection;Discusses analysis of electronics for X-ray detection.
Application and Theory of Petri Nets and Concurrency
This book constitutes the proceedings of the 44th International Conference on Application and Theory of Petri Nets and Concurrency, PETRI NETS 2023, which took place in Lisbon, Portugal, in June 2023. The 21 full papers included in this book were carefully reviewed and selected from 47 submissions. They were organized in topical sections as follows: Process mining; semantics; tools; verification; timed models; model transformation. The book also includes two invited talks in full paper length.
The Turn of Moore's Law from Space to Time
This book states that a space-induced crisis is recognized as the cause of trouble that Moore's Law is currently facing. The contemporary practice of this empirical law can be considered as happening within a space-dominant paradigm. An alternative of exploiting potential in the dimension of time is identified as an emerging paradigm in microelectronics. The new practice is termed a time-oriented paradigm. It is justified as the turn of Moore's Law from space to time. The resultant Time-Moore strategy is envisioned as the next-generation enabler for continuing Moore's Law's pursuit of everhigher information processing power and efficiency. It also serves as the perpetuation of the spirit that Moore's law is nothing but a collective storied history of innovations. In the first part of this book, by following Thomas Kuhn's seminal work around the concepts of paradigm and scientific revolution, the argument for the Time-Moore strategy (Time-Moore: to use time more) and the paradigm shift from space to time is carried out heavily through philosophical persuasion rather than technical proof due to the difficult challenge of change-of-mindset. The second part of the book provides solid technical materials for supporting this transition from the old paradigm to the new one. In short, the goal of this book is to reevaluate the contemporary practice of microelectronics, identify the cause of the current crisis, advocate a change-of-mindset to circumvent the crisis, and ultimately point out a new route for advancing. After achieving so many unprecedented accomplishments through several decades of relentless endeavor, it's time for the big ship of Moore's Law (i.e., the art of microelectronic system design) to make a turn.
Trends in Circuit Design for Analog Signal Processing
This book discusses new possibilities and trends in analog circuit design, including applications in communication, measurement and RF systems. The authors combine the main features for circuit design with actual circuit realizations and demonstrate several performance limitations with example circuits.
System on Chip (Soc) Architecture
This book deals with a practical approach to defining a system on a chip (SoC) architecture. It is written by practicing industry experts with cumulative five decades of hands-on experience. The book discusses how the system-level design challenges are addressed at the architecture stage and clearly defines different SoC subsystems and components. The book explains the practical method of determining system subsystems in system architectures. System on Chip (SOC) Architecture: A Practical Approach provides readers with a complete understanding of methods for defining SoC architecture.
A Review of - Smart Attendance Monitoring System Using Raspberry Pi
Our project illustrates the importance of automation in the present world using the concept of face recognition. As we all know, a person's face plays a significant role in establishing their identity. This project consists of OpenCV algorithm modules running in Python. This effort also gives people hope for greater improvisation and fresh thinking in light of impending advancements in hardware and technology. The model has a 99.38% accuracy rate and offers a straightforward command line utility for face recognition. This tool is superior to generic algorithms because it just requires one image to work with and does not require grayscale conversion. Thousands of samples are required for the Haar cascade, LBPH, and Eigenface algorithms to determine the distance between points and pixels in an image. The Raspberry Pi's built-in email functionality is used to utilize IOT. We're helped in this via SMT Protocol. There may be plans for the project to boost model accuracy and speed in the future.
Build Your Own Robot
A DIY guide to bringing your first robot to life with cheap and basic components. Build Your Own Robot introduces you to the exciting world of robotics in a way that's fun and affordable! You'll build your own real robot with easy-to-find hardware and free open source software. Plus, all the components you need can be assembled with simple tools like a screwdriver. In Build Your Own Robot you'll learn how to: Use cameras to capture photos and let your robot see Add cameras and basic computer vision Coordinate DC motors to move your robot Write a web app to control your robot Set up controls for joysticks Read QR codes to find and identify objects This book shows you how anyone can start building their own robot--no special soldering or electronic skills required. All you need is some basic Python know-how to get started. From scratch, you'll go hands-on with DC motors, touch sensors, custom shell scripting, joystick controls, and even face detection for your robot friend. Purchase of the print book includes a free eBook in PDF and ePub formats from Manning Publications. About the technology You can build your own robot! With this book, you'll use readily-available hardware and author Marwan Alsabbagh's clear step-by-step instructions to create a robot that moves, manipulates objects, and responds to its environment. Along the way, you'll learn some serious skills like computer vision, networking, and the basics of robotics programming. About the book Build Your Own Robot is a project-based guide that takes you from spinning your first DC motor to programming a mobile robot that you can control from your phone or computer. You'll write simple Python code to help your new friend spin, move, and find its way. You'll even teach it to track faces and fetch snacks. Plus, a helpful hardware purchasing guide makes it easy to find exactly what you need to get started! What's inside Coordinate DC motors to move your robot Write a web app to control your robot Adding cameras and basic computer vision Read QR codes to find and identify objects About the reader Examples use simple Python code. No special skills or expensive tools required. About the author Marwan Alsabbagh is a seasoned software developer, who has studied mathematics and computer science at McGill University. The technical editor on this book was Alexander Ryker. Table of Contents 1 What is a robot? 2 Getting started 3 Driving the robot 4 Creating a robot shell 5 Controlling robots remotely 6 Creating robot web apps 7 Joystick-controlled robots 8 Keyboard-controlled camera 9 Face-following camera 10 Robotic QR code finder 11 Building a snack-pushing robot A Hardware purchasing guide B Configuring the Raspberry Pi C Robot assembly guide D Mocking the CRICKIT library
The Digital Twin of Humans
This book provides an interdisciplinary concept of digital working environments in industry 4.0 to enable the implementation of the digital twin of humans.Information and communication technology is penetrating all areas of daily life at a rapid pace in private and professional areas. These technologies enable companies to aggregate huge volumes of data. Collected personal data of employees creates the opportunity of a digital representation of the human being itself, that is conformant with the definition of a digital twin. These digital twins of humans include selected characteristics and behaviour of the humans, that are linked to models, information, and data. According to existing trend studies, the digital twin of humans is a technology that will have a significant impact on the economy, society, and people. It is important to consider the regulatory framework for the use of personal data and threats of misuse.This book will be of use to researchers and professionals in industry.
Distributed Coordination Theory for Robot Teams
Distributed Coordination Theory for Robot Teams develops control algorithms to coordinate the motion of autonomous teams of robots in order to achieve some desired collective goal. It provides novel solutions to foundational coordination problems, including distributed algorithms to make quadrotor helicopters rendezvous and to make ground vehicles move in formation along circles or straight lines. The majority of the algorithms presented in this book can be implemented using on-board cameras. The book begins with an introduction to coordination problems, such as rendezvous of flying robots, and modelling. It then provides a solid theoretical background in basic stability, graph theory and control primitives. The book discusses the algorithmic solutions for numerous distributed control problems, focusing primarily on flying robotics and kinematic unicycles. Finally, the book looks to the future, and suggests areas discussed which could be pursued in further research. This book will provide practitioners, researchers and students in the field of control and robotics new insights in distributed multi-agent systems.
Paintings and Sculptures: Where Do We Look First?
The book presents three studies in which eye tracking data were collected at the Mus矇e des Beaux-Arts in Rouen in June and July 2013. Overall, the results of those three studies highlight the knowledge gained from the analysis of the very first saccade in a museum context, when people look at paintings and statues. The first study analyzes how viewers orient their first saccade on paintings. This study shows that, in a museum, the first saccade is attracted toward the center of paintings. This attraction toward the paintings' center is found in all the subjects' groups that we have studied. Noteworthily, this effect is significantly less pronounced in individuals who never visit museums. It is among amateurs, who often visit museums, that the center attracts the most the first saccade. Among experts, painters or art history teachers, and to a lesser extent among amateurs, the pictorial composition largely determines the orientation of the first saccade. We indeed found that, as soon as the first saccade, experts orient their gaze toward the main subject. This phenomenon seems to be explained by the fact that experts immediately orient their gaze (here measured as the first saccade) toward the paintings' location conveying the most meaning. It can either be the center, or a peripheral area, depending on whether the paintings' most meaningful subject is located centrally or peripherally. The second study shows that the center does not attract the first saccade in 5-year-old children. This behavior appears later, in 8- to 10-year-old children. However, noticeably, the 8-10-year-old children orient significantly less frequently their first saccade toward the paintings' center as adults do, and this is also true when one considers non-expert adult viewers. The results of the third study focus on statues and reveal a very different oculomotor behavior: Indeed, rather than looking at the center, statues' viewers exhibit a clear tendency to saccade first at the statues' contours. This stands in contrast with the behavior that we observe with paintings. Our study concludes that statues trigger a specific oculomotor behavior. The latter appears to be mostly driven by the physical presence that stone bodies incarnate. The movement and the climax of this movement, that sculptors manage to convey, thus turn out to attract the gaze in a unique fashion. The book concludes that the first saccade is a powerful indicator of the oculomotor behavior that greatly improves our comprehension of the unique relationship between a viewer and artworks.
The Primordial Mind in Health and Illness
This book provides a compact but comprehensive treatment that guides readers through the C programming language with Microsoft(R) Visual Studio(R). The author uses his extensive classroom experience to guide readers toward deeper understanding of key concepts of the C language. Each concept and feature of the language is presented as a short lesson, illustrated by practical worked examples to aid student self study. The book will appeal to a broad range of students who are required to study the C programming language.
Chemistry of Semiconductors
Silicon, germanium, and compound semiconductors, among which silicon carbide, gallium arsenide and gallium nitride are the most representative examples, play a withstanding role in the world economy, since they were and still are the keys for the advancement of modern microelectronics and optoelectronics, with a wealth of sister technologies relevant for renewable energy solutions and advanced spectroscopy applications. This textbook will cover the synthesis, spectroscopic characterisation and optimisation of semiconductor materials, accounting for the most recent developments in the field of nanomaterials. It will be of great interest for scholars and instructors to have the chance to look at semiconductor science with a basic chemical approach. Homopolar semiconductors (silicon and germanium) are examined first, considering the role of these materials in modern microelectronics and in photovoltaics. Compound semiconductors (for example, carbides, arsenides, tellurides, nitrides) are also discussed in detail, considering that the chemistry of their preparation is even more critical and their role in photonic applications is strategic. Authored by a leading expert in the field, this easily accessible text is appropriate for advanced undergraduates and postgraduates studying materials science and technology.
GIS
The second edition of this introductory GIS textbook is thoroughly rewritten and updated to respond to the demand for critical engagement with technologies that address relevant issues across several disciplines preparing students for higher-level work in geotechnologies. Chapters are arranged to (1) build competence in fundamental skills, (2) explore applications of higher-level managerial and analytical functions that are typically called upon in public, nonprofit, and private sector milieu, and (3) propose and detail a template for organizing, executing, and completing a GIS project successfully. This interests all users from beginners to experienced professionals.Features: Uses the latest version of ArcGIS Pro (3.0) to present a fully rewritten and updated text with diverse perspectives. Includes many real-world examples with urban planning, environmental, and social justice foci. Presents new discussions, examples, and lab materials on open-source GIS projects. Includes lab activities and data available for download from Support Materials. Junior and senior level undergraduate students taking courses in remote sensing and GIS applications, studying in the fields of Geography, Environmental Sciences, Computer Science, Urban Studies, Public Health, and Social Disciplines, as well as researchers and academics in the same fields, will all benefit from the information provided in the updated version of this book.
Electrical Power Generation
This book attempts to provide relevant knowledge inputs in the field of Electrical Power Generation and Power Plant Administration by way of providing conceptual clarity on various aspects of the subject. It will be helpful for students of Electrical and Mechanical Engineering.
Visual Object Tracking Using Deep Learning
This book covers the description of both conventional methods and advanced methods. In conventional methods, visual tracking techniques such as stochastic, deterministic, generative, and discriminative are discussed. The conventional techniques are further explored for multi-stage and collaborative frameworks. In advanced methods, various categories of deep learning-based trackers and correlation filter-based trackers are analyzed. The book also: Discusses potential performance metrics used for comparing the efficiency and effectiveness of various visual tracking methods Elaborates on the salient features of deep learning trackers along with traditional trackers, wherein the handcrafted features are fused to reduce computational complexity Illustrates various categories of correlation filter-based trackers suitable for superior and efficient performance under tedious tracking scenarios Explores the future research directions for visual tracking by analyzing the real-time applications The book comprehensively discusses various deep learning-based tracking architectures along with conventional tracking methods. It covers in-depth analysis of various feature extraction techniques, evaluation metrics and benchmark available for performance evaluation of tracking frameworks. The text is primarily written for senior undergraduates, graduate students, and academic researchers in the fields of electrical engineering, electronics and communication engineering, computer engineering, and information technology.
Multiscale Geographically Weighted Regression
Multiscale Geographically Weighted Regression (MGWR) is an important method for exploring spatial heterogeneity and modelling local spatial processes in spatial analysis. This book introduces and explains how to model continuous spatial processes within a regression framework, and serves as a hands-on resource for students and researchers.
Autonomous Positioning of Piezoactuated Mechanism for Biological Cell Puncture
Autonomous Positioning of Piezoactuated Mechanism for Biological Cell Puncture gives a systematic and almost selfcontained description of the many facets of advanced design.
Polynomial Formal Verification of Approximate Functions
During the development of digital circuits, their functional correctness has to be ensured, for which formal verification methods have been established. However, the verification process using formal methods can have an exponential time or space complexity, causing the verification to fail. While exponential in general, recently it has been proven that the verification complexity of several circuits is polynomially bounded. Martha Schnieber proves the polynomial verifiability of several approximate circuits, which are beneficial in error-tolerant applications, where the circuit approximates the exact function in some cases, while having a lower delay or being more area-efficient. Here, upper bounds for the BDD size and the time and space complexity are provided for the verification of general approximate functions and several state-of-the-art approximate adders.
Secure, Low-Power Iot Communication Using Edge-Coded Signaling
This book discusses single-channel, device-to-device communication in the Internet of Things (IoT) at the signal encoding level and introduces a new family of encoding techniques that result in significant simplifications of the communication circuitry. These simplifications translate into lower power consumption, smaller form factors, and dynamic data rates that are tolerant to clock discrepancies between transmitter and receiver. Readers will be introduced to signal encoding that uses edge-coded signaling, based on the coding of binary data as counts of transmitted pulses. The authors fully explore the far-reaching implications of these novel signal-encoding techniques and illustrate how their usage can help minimize the need for complex circuitries for either clock and data recovery or duty-cycle correction. They also provide a detailed description of a complete ecosystem of hardware and firmware built around edge-code signaling. The ecosystem comprises an application-specific processor, automatic protocol configuration, power and data rate management, cryptographic primitives, and automatic failure recovery modes. The innovative IoT communication link and its associated ecosystem are fully in line with the standard IoT requirements on power, footprint, security, robustness, and reliability.
The Heart and the Chip
There is a robotics revolution underway. A record 3.1 million robots are working in factories right now, doing everything from assembling computers to packing goods and monitoring air quality and performance. A far greater number of smart machines impact our lives in countless other ways--improving the precision of surgeons, cleaning our homes, extending our reach to distant worlds--and we're on the cusp of even more exciting opportunities.In The Heart and the Chip, roboticist Daniela Rus and science writer Gregory Mone provide an overview of the interconnected fields of robotics, artificial intelligence, and machine learning, and reframe the way we think about intelligent machines while weighing the moral and ethical consequences of their role in society. Robots aren't going to steal our jobs: they're going to make us more capable, productive, and precise.At once optimistic and realistic, Rus and Mone envision a world in which these technologies augment and enhance our skills and talents, both as individuals and as a species--a world in which the proliferation of robots allows us all to be more human.
Differentiated Layout Styles for Mosfets
This book describes in detail the semiconductor physics and the effects of the high temperatures and ionizing radiations in the electrical behavior of the Metal-OxideSemiconductor Field Effect Transistors (MOSFETs), implemented with the first and second generations of the differentiated layout styles. The authors demonstrate a variety of innovative layout styles for MOSFETs, enabling readers to design analog and RF MOSFETs that operate in a high-temperature wide range and an ionizing radiation environment with high electrical performance and reduced die area.
First and Second Order Circuits and Equations
First and second order electric and electronic circuits contain energy storage elements, capacitors and inductors, fundamental to both time and frequency domain circuit response behavior, including exponential decay, overshoot, ringing, and frequency domain resonance. First and Second Order Circuits and Equations provides an insightful and detailed learning and reference resource for circuit theory and its many perspectives and duals, such as voltage and current, inductance and capacitance, and serial and parallel. Organized and presented to make each information topic immediately accessible, First and Second Order Circuits and Equations offers readers the opportunity to learn circuit theory faster and with greater understanding. First and Second Order Circuits and Equations readers will also find: Root locus charts of second order characteristic equation roots both in terms of damping factor ζ as well as damping constant α. Detailed treatment of quality factor Q and its relationship to bandwidth and damping in both frequency and time domains. Inductor and capacitor branch relationship step response insights in terms of calculus intuition. Derivations of voltage divider and current divider formulae in terms of Kirchhoff's laws. First and Second Order Circuits and Equations is an essential tool for electronic industry professionals learning circuits on the job, as well as for electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, and physics students learning circuits and their related differential equations.
Biomechanical Analysis of Nursing Tasks for Physical Relief by Collaborative Robotics
Musculoskeletal disorders are among the most significant health risks contributing to the global decline in mental health and physical performance. Occupations with high physical work demands, such as patient handling in nursing, are associated with high rates of long-term absenteeism and disability due to musculoskeletal pain and disorders. Robotic assistance systems are revolutionizing bedside care and could provide a healthy future for caregivers. For the first time, the potential of a collaborative robotic system to assist nurses in a manual patient handling scenario has been quantified. Using the system significantly reduced the maximum effort required, resulting in physical relief. It demonstrates the feasibility of robot-assisted patient repositioning and highlights the need for interdisciplinary research to adaptively respond to the individual needs and functional abilities of nurses. This work provides a foundation for future research and practical implementation. The use of robotics is innovative, contemporary, widely applicable, and promising for reducing existing risk factors in nursing care.
3D Imaging of the Environment
This is a comprehensive, overarching, interdisciplinary book and a valuable contribution to a unified view of visualisation, imaging, and mapping. It covers a variety of modern techniques, across an array of spatial scales, with examples of how to map, monitor, and visualise the world in which we live. The authors give detailed explanations of the techniques used to map and monitor the built and natural environment and how that data, collected from a wide range of scales and cost options, is translated into an image or visual experience. It is written in a way that successfully reaches technical, professional, and academic readers alike, particularly geographers, architects, geologists, and planners.FEATURES Includes in-depth discussion on 3D image processing and modeling Focuses on the 3D application of remote sensing, including LiDAR and digital photography acquired by UAS and terrestrial techniques Introduces a broad range of data collection techniques and visualisation methods Includes contributions from outstanding experts and interdisciplinary teams involved in earth sciences Presents an open access chapter about the EU-funded CHERISH Project, detailing the development of a toolkit for the 3D documentation and analysis of the combined coastline shared between Ireland and Wales Intended for those with a background in the technology involved with imaging and mapping, the contributions shared in this book introduce readers to new and emerging 3D imaging tools and programs.
Theory of Applied Robotics
Theory of Applied Robotics: Kinematics, Dynamics, and Control presents detailed robotics concepts at a theoretical-practical level, concentrating on their practical use. Related theorems and formal proofs are provided, as are real-life applications. This new edition is completely revised, and includes updated and expanded example sets and problems and new materials. This textbook is designed for undergraduate or first-year graduate programs in mechanical, systems, and industrial engineering. Practicing engineers, researchers, and related professionals will appreciate the book's user-friendly presentation of a wealth of robotics topics, most notably in 3D kinematics and dynamics of manipulator robots.
Avidly Reads Screen Time
What happens when screen time is all the time? In the early 1990s, the phrase "screen time" emerged to scare parents about the dangers of too much TV for kids. Screen time was something to fret over, police, and judge in a low-grade moral panic. Now, "screen time" has become a metric not only for good parenting, but for our adult lives as well. There's even an app for it! In the streaming era--and with streaming made nearly ubiquitous during COVID-19--almost every aspect of our day is mediated by these bright surfaces. Whether it was ever the real villain in the first place, or merely a convenient proxy for unaddressed familial, social, and institutional failures, screen time is now all the time. Avidly Reads Screen Time is a funny, insightful work of cultural criticism and history about how we define screens, and how they now define us. From Mad Men to iCarly, Vine to FaceTime, binge-watching to doom-scrolling, Phillip Maciak leads us on a sometimes heartwarming, sometimes harrowing tour of the media that brings us together and tears us apart.
Charged
Winner of the 24th Annual Susanne M. Glasscock Humanities Book PrizeFinalist for the 2023 Cundill History PrizeGold Medal Recipient, Nautilus Book Awards, SustainabilityThe dirty work essential to a clean energy transitionTo achieve fossil fuel independence, few technologies are more important than batteries. Used for powering zero-emission vehicles, storing electricity from solar panels and wind turbines, and revitalizing the electric grid, batteries are essential to scaling up the renewable energy resources that help address global warming. But given the unique environmental impact of batteries--including mining, disposal, and more--does a clean energy transition risk trading one set of problems for another?In Charged, James Morton Turner unpacks the history of batteries to explore why solving "the battery problem" is critical to a clean energy transition. As climate activists focus on what a clean energy future will create--sustainability, resiliency, and climate justice--the history of batteries offers a sharp reminder of what building that future will consume: lithium, graphite, nickel, and other specialized materials. With new insight on the consequences for people and communities on the front lines, Turner draws on the past for crucial lessons that will help us build a just and clean energy future, from the ground up.
Hierarchical Control and Optimization Strategies Applied to Solar Membrane Distillation Facilities
This book offers a systematic study of control algorithms applied in the operation of solar membrane distillation (SMD) facilities. After a short introduction to membrane distillation systems powered by solar energy, it reports on the various stages of the development of a comprehensive operating strategy, based on modelling, control, and optimization techniques, which enables an improved operation of SMD plants helping the commercialization of the SMD technology. A special focus of the research was to maximize the distillate production of the MD modules while reducing their thermal energy consumption, being those two important weaknesses of the current technology, as well as their minimizing operating costs. The optimised operating strategies were tested in a real pilot plant located at Plataforma Solar de Almer穩a (a dependency of the Centro de Investigaciones Energ矇ticas, Medioambientales y Tecnol籀gicas, CIEMAT, of Spain). All in all, this thesis offers extensive information on control and modeling algorithms, and on their practical applications in solar membrane distillation plants.
The Use of Energy Storage for Electrical Power Distribution
The use of photovoltaics with battery energy storage systems is popular because of the benefits it provides for household set-up as it helps with savings in electricity costs. In this dissertation, work is carried out for additional savings using energy storage systems and PV in residential set-ups and community-scale systems. The tariff which is taken is the time of use in which the rates varied between peak period and off-peak period. Hence, shifting the loading from the grid during the peak period to the off-peak period significantly reduces the electricity cost. The novel method which is the inclusion of time of use tariff with an algorithm that decides the power flow from the different components of the system like the grid, battery, and load is described in this dissertation. Additionally, the results of 1 household payback period of the initial outlay spent on PV-battery setup is compared with 10 households in community scale set-up which shows the significant savings and reduction in a payback period for the set-up. The work in this book is a complete review of the use of energy storage systems in distribution systems.
Design and Control of Grid-Connected Photovoltaic System
The current model for electricity generation and distribution is dominated by centralized power plants which are typically associated with combustion (coal, oil, and natural) or nuclear generation units.
Women in Mechanical Engineering
This book features influential scholarly research and technical contributions, professional trajectories, disciplinary shifts, personal insights, and a combination of these from a group of remarkable women within mechanical engineering. Combined, these chapters tell an important story about the dynamic field of mechanical engineering in the areas of energy and the environment, as seen from the perspective of some of its most extraordinary women scientists and engineers. The volume shares with the Women in Engineering and Science Series the primary aim of documenting and raising awareness of the valuable, multi-faceted contributions of women engineers and scientists, past and present, to these areas. Women in mechanical engineering and energy and the environment are historically relevant and continue to lead these fields as passionate risk takers, entrepreneurs, innovators, educators, and researchers. Chapter authors are members of the National Academies, winners of major awards and recognition that include Presidential Medals, as well as SWE, SAE, ASME, ASEE and IEEE Award winners and Fellows.
Influencing Factors in Speech Quality Assessment Using Crowdsourcing
This book evaluates the impact of relevant factors affecting the results of speech quality assessment studies carried out in crowdsourcing. The author describes how these factors relate to the test structure, the effect of environmental background noise, and the influence of language differences. He details multiple user-centered studies that have been conducted to derive guidelines for reliable collection of speech quality scores in crowdsourcing. Specifically, different questions are addressed such as the optimal number of speech samples to include in a listening task, the influence of the environmental background noise in the speech quality ratings, as well as methods for classifying background noise from web audio recordings, or the impact of language proficiency in the user perception of speech quality. Ultimately, the results of these studies contributed to the definition of the ITU-T Recommendation P.808 that defines the guidelines to conduct speech quality studies in crowdsourcing.
Resistor-Based Temperature Sensors in CMOS Technology
This book describes the background, principles, implementations, characterization, and future trends of temperature sensors made from silicon resistors in CMOS technology, including their readout circuits. Readers will benefit from the latest research of CMOS temperature sensors, and could learn about various precision analog techniques such as phase detection, continuous-time ΔΣ ADC, zoom ADC, FIR-DAC, dynamic element matching, OTA linearization, etc.
Intelligent Cyber-Physical Systems for Autonomous Transportation
This book provides comprehensive discussion on key topics related to the usage and deployment of AI in urban transportation systems including drones. The book presents intelligent solutions to overcome the challenges of static approaches in the transportation sector to make them intelligent, adaptive, agile, and flexible. The book showcases different AI-deployment models, algorithms, and implementations related to intelligent cyber physical systems (CPS) along with their pros and cons. Even more, this book provides deep insights into the CPS specifically about the layered architecture and different planes, interfaces, and programmable network operations. The deployment models for AI-based CPS are also included with an aim towards the design of interoperable and intelligent CPS architectures by researchers in future. The authors present hands on practical implementations, deployment scenarios, and use cases related to different transportation scenarios. In the end, the design and research challenges, open issues, and future research directions are provided.
Model Checking Software
This book constitutes the refereed proceedings of the 29th International Symposium on Model Checking Software, SPIN 2023, held in Paris, France, during April 26-27, 2023. The 9 full papers and 2 short papers included in this book were carefully reviewed and selected from 21 submissions. They were organized in topical sections as follows: binary decision diagrams, concurrency, testing, synthesis, explicit-state model checking.
Verified Signal Processing Algorithms in MATLAB and C
This book is written for engineers who need to develop algorithms used for signal processing and/or implement algorithms using the C programming language or MATLAB. The book features a rich collection of recipes for applied signal processing such as FIR, IIR, FFT, correlation, complex FIR, adaptive filters and others. The book applies to those who want to implement in the shortest time to market working systems that are built from a collection of building blocks implemented in an FPGA firmware or C language software, running on an SBC or DSP. Structured as an instantly applicable guide, the author covers a wide collection of required solutions to common encountered problems with a software guide. All Codes in the book are verified and processing times for all C codes are specified, enabling the reader to estimate processing time on his own target, by comparing it to the I5 2.9 GHz CPU used here. Endorsements: "Your book bridges a gapbetween theory and implementation on hardware - which is a topic relevant to many in industry and many students who are targeting the digital signal processing industry (including communications and robotics)" Professor Alfred Hero, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, USA "I believe you that for many engineers the book will be practical" Professor Anthony J. Weiss, Tel Aviv University, Israel
Convergence of Iot, Blockchain, and Computational Intelligence in Smart Cities
This edited book presents an insight for modelling, procuring, and building the smart city plan using IoT and a security framework using blockchain technology. The applications of Li-Fi and 5G in smart cities are included along with their implementation, challenges, and advantages.
Advances in Technology Transfer Through Iot and It Solutions
High Temperature Superconductor and Me
Ruling Meng, the author, is an exceptional scientist from Texas Center for Superconductivity at University of Houston. This autobiography describes her colorful life in detail, with high-temperature superconductivity research as the through line from beginning to end. The book is divided in two parts. The first illustrates the fierce competition in high-temperature superconducting material research during the 80s and 90s, when many scientists worldwide were racing to find the hottest superconductors. Meng was a famous and important participant in this historic competition. The second part vividly records the author's tireless pursuit of the value of life, recalling her journey from young girl to respected scientist. Rich in content and fascinating detail, this book is well worth reading.◆Acknowledgement◆I am most indebted to my dear friend, Jianjun Zeng, who encouraged me to embark on the adventure of writing a book in Chinese and then in English. She always had time to talk through a point, an idea, or the form and content. Without her numerous hours of editing, this book would not be possible.I am also indebted to my dear friend, Zihong Zhang, who as a copy editor did many iterations of the content and form to make them fit for publication. This book would not be possible without his tremendous contributions.My thanks also go to Professor David Ross for his meticulous proof reading of the English texts and to Mr. William Nisbett and Professor Wei Li for their translations.My family has been part of the journey from the beginning. My dedication to research coincided with the formative years of my son and my daughter. I regret that I did not spend enough time with them when I was working long hours at the lab. My life story would be different without their understanding and support. Ruling Meng▲Ruling Meng, the author, was graduated from Zhongnan Institute of Mining and Metallurgy (now Central South University of Technology) in 1958. She engaged in material research and development at the Institute of Mining and Metallurgy and the Institute of Physics from Chinese Academy of Sciences. In 1979, she was invited by Professor C.W. Paul Chu of University of Houston to conduct research on superconducting materials. She was one of the main contributors to the discovery of yttrium-barium-copper-oxygen high-temperature superconductors in 1986. In 2000, she was selected by the American Institute of Scientific Information as one of the 1,000 scientists with the highest citation rate of scientific research papers among 500,000 scientific paper authors.
Security of Biochip Cyberphysical Systems
This book provides readers with a valuable guide to understanding security and the interplay of computer science, microfluidics, and biochemistry in a biochip cyberphysical system (CPS). The authors uncover new, potential threat and trust-issues to address, as this emerging technology is poised to be adapted at a large scale. Readers will learn how to secure biochip CPS by leveraging the available resources in different application contexts, as well as how to ensure intellectual property (IP) is protected against theft and counterfeits. This book enables secure biochip CPS design by helping bridge the knowledge gap at the intersection of the multi-disciplinary technology that drives biochip CPS.