The aim of the thesis is to devise a methodology which is capable of reliable evaluation of road vehicle’s crosswind sensitivity. The work consists of writing the mathematical model of a vehicle which includes aerodynamic loads and conducting a validation by means of technical experiment as defined by ISO 12021. A sensitivity analysis describing the influence of individual inputs on evaluation criteria of vehicle’s crosswind sensitivity is performed using the model, thereby establishing the overall model error caused by possible inaccuracies of input parameters. At the end, the relationship between discrete pressures on the surface of the vehicle in several aerodynamic configurations and the properties representing the vehicle’s motion is presented.

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Kvaliteten på produkterna som tillverkas av SME företag har hög betydelse för deras konkurrenskraft. Att kunna producera skräddarsydda artiklar med hög kvalitet samt kunna leverera i tid och enligt specifikation är några av de vanligaste krav stora företag ställer som kunder. Tillverkande SME företag differentierar sig gentemot konkurrenter genom att digitalisera sina processer. Behovet av digitala verktyg kan dock också anses vara en överlevandsfaktor ty kundernas krav blir allt högre desto mer automatiserade kundernas fabriker blir. Att övergå till en digitaliserad kvalitetsäkringsprocess för SME:er är inte enkelt. En del av problematiken kopplad till övergången mot en digitaliserad kvalitetssäkringsprocess är saknaden av IT kunskap och de begränsade medlen som SME bolag har. Syftet med arbetet är att analysera användandet av digitala mätverktyg som kan användas i kvalitetssäkringsprocessen hos tillverkande SME företag samt analysera hur denna implementation kan utföras på bästa möjliga sätt. För att nå detta syfte svarade arbetet på följande frågeställningar: 1) Vilka processer för kvalitetssäkring använder tillverkande SME företag i dagsläget? 2) Hur kan digitala verktyg implementeras för att assistera kvalitetsäkringsprocessen hos tillverkande SME företag? 3) Vilka utmaningar finns det vid implementation av digitala stödverktyg för kvalitetssäkring i tillverkande SME företag? Arbetet är baserat på teorier om olika kvalitetssäkringsprocesser. Exempel på dessa är Lean, TQM och Six Sigma. Metoden som användes var en fallstudie på företaget Marcus Komponenter AB i Järna utanför Södertälje. I fallstudien användes det digitala mätsystemet MeasurLink som tillhandahålls av Mitotoyo, för att digitalisera kvalitetssäkringsprocessen av de tillverkade produkterna. Datainsamlingen i arbetet har utförts med hjälp av tre olika kvalitativa datainsamlingsmetoder; dokumentinsamlingsmetodik, intervjuer och observationer. Resultatet av arbetet visar på att företaget bör följa en handlingsplan så att de kan förbereda sig för att kunna implementera ett digitalt mätsystem fullskaligt i hela produktionen. Resultatet är viktigt ty det visar på att företag bör ha uppnått en viss mognadsgrad för att kunna implementera digitala mätsystem. Sammanfattningsvis har slutsatsen dragits att en storskalig implementation av MeasurLink vid närvarande inte är möjlig. Däremot kan implementationen utföras i mindre skala vid en teststation. När företaget byggt upp ett standardiserat arbetssätt kring mätning och dataanalys med hjälp av MeasurLink kan en fullskalig implementation genomföras. / The quality of products manufactured by SME companies is of high importance for their competitiveness. Being able to produce tailor-made items of high quality and being able to deliver on time and according to specification are some of the most common requirements large companies place as customers. Manufacturing SME companies differentiate themselves from competitors by digitalizing their processes. However, the need for digital tools can also be considered as a survival factor, as the demands of customers become higher the more automated customers' factories become. Switching to a digitalized quality assurance process for SMEs is not easy. Part of the problems associated with the transition to a digitalized quality assurance process is the lack of IT knowledge and the limited resources that SME companies have. The purpose of this bachelor’s thesis is to analyze the use of digital measuring tools that can be used in the quality assurance process in manufacturing SME companies. As well as to analyze how this implementation can be carried out in the best possible way. To achieve this goal, this thesis answered the following research questions: 1) What quality assurance processes do SME manufacturing companies currently use? 2) How can digital tools be implemented to assist the quality assurance process of manufacturing SMEs? 3) What are the challenges in implementing digital quality assurance tools in manufacturing SMEs? The thesis is based on theories of different quality assurance processes. Examples of these are Lean, TQM and Six Sigma. The method used was a case study at the company Marcus Komponenter AB in Järna outside Södertälje. In the case study, the digital measurement system MeasurLink provided by Mitotoyo was used to digitalize the quality assurance process of the manufactured products. The data collection has been carried out using three different qualitative data collection methods; document collection, interviews and observations. The result of the thesis shows that the company should follow an action plan so that they can prepare in order to be able to implement a digital measurement system full-scale throughout the production. The result is important because it shows that companies should have achieved a certain degree of maturity in order to be able to implement digital measurement systems. In summary, the conclusion of the case study was that a large-scale implementation of MeasurLink is currently not possible. However, the implementation can be done in a smaller scale, at a test station. Once the company has built up a standardized method of measurement and data analysis using MeasurLink, a full-scale implementation can be performed.

[pt] Sistemas de Medição de desempenho (SMDs) vem ganhando crescente destaque nos ambientes corporativo e acadêmico, tornando-se uma importante ferramenta para a gestão de operações. Contudo, ainda há uma carência de estudos de SMD contemplando a indústria automotiva, em particular, em elos específicos de sua cadeia de suprimentos como os associados aos terminais de veículos em áreas portuárias. A literatura acadêmica também carece de mais estudos com evidências empíricas sobre a aplicabilidade dos SMDs que, em sua maioria, concentram-se em metodologias de estudo de caso ou surveys. Neste contexto, o objetivo desta dissertação é desenhar um SMD, com foco no conjunto de indicadores de desempenho, para as operações de um terminal de veículos localizado no porto do Rio de Janeiro. A presente dissertação utiliza o método empírico de pesquisa-ação e apresenta as lições aprendidas no desenho do SMD que culminou no desenvolvimento de um Painel de Bordo experimental, abastecido com seis meses de dados reais. O SMD forneceu suporte a alta administração para tomadas de decisão, além de corroborar questões chaves da literatura referentes ao desenvolvimento do SMD, como a importância do apoio da alta administração, mitigação dos efeitos das limitações dos sistemas de informação, clareza e simplicidade no desenho do SMD de maneira que seja evitado o excesso de indicadores de desempenho no sistema. / [en] Performance Measurement Systems (PMSs) have gained increasing prominence in the corporate and academic environments, becoming an essential tool for operations management. However, there is still a lack of PMSs studies contemplating the automotive industry, particularly, in specific links of its supply chain such as those associated with vehicle terminals in port areas. The academic literature also lacks more studies with empirical evidence on the applicability of PMS, which mostly focuses on case study methodologies or surveys. Within this context, the objective of this dissertation is to design a PMS, focusing on the set of performance indicators, for the operations of a vehicle s terminal located in the port of Rio de Janeiro. This dissertation uses the empirical action-research method and presents the lessons learned in the design of the PMS, which culminated in the development of an experimental Maple Panel, supplied with six months of real data. The PMS provided support to top management for decision making, in addition to corroborating key issues in the literature regarding, like highlighting the importance of support from top management, mitigating the effects of the limitations of information systems, clarity and simplicity in the design of SMD in order to avoid excessive performance indicators in the system.

There is currently a demand of mm‑wave on‑chip antennas to enable all kinds of new applications in several different areas. But the development requires, among other things, special equipment used during the measurement phase due to the small dimensions and the high frequencies. In this project a robotic measurement system, SAX (Single Arm eXtra), was designed and constructed at Micro and Nanosystems (MST) department at KTH Royal Institute of Technology (Sweden). The purpose of the SAX is to enable radiation pattern measurements of on‑chip antennas ( 140 GHz to 325 GHz ), whether the boresight is vertical or horizontal along with other requirements, by moving a converter with the measurement antenna around the antenna in question. Several alternative designs for the basic construction, both from other works and invented by the author, were analyzed based on the requirements for this project and other limitations. The chosen unique design, the SAX, is very compact and uses only one stepper motor. Several parts have been developed in this project to ensure the proper functionality of the SAX. That includes a main operator program, a motor input signal generating program, a motor input signal executing system, a security system, and a system for controlled rotation of the SAX. For the input signal to the motor two different algorithms to generate the time delays were developed and tested. They were adapted to make the motor manage the sweeps of an ever‑changing load with high inertia during acceleration and deceleration. One of them was developed to make the time delay array generation much more efficient albeit with larger approximation error. The SAX worked well and should be rather easy‑to‑use regarding the operation of the system, from the physical maneuvering to utilizing the sub‑systems to the running of the main operator program. It fulfilled the specific requirements by enable a cross pattern measurement from  -60° to +60°  both from above and from the side, adjustment of the radius between 15cm to 45cm , adjustment 10cm in height, to be rotated along the floor in steps of 1°, measurement steps of 1° with an accuracy of less than 0,5° (the largest error was measured to be ≤ 0,461°). However, some calibration work needs to be done before the optimal performance of the system is reached. As a verification of the operation of the system data from measurements of open‑ended waveguides was presented. / Det finns en efterfrågan på chipantenner för millimetervågor eftersom de kan möjliggöra allehanda produkter inom flera olika områden. Forskningen på dessa ställer dock bl.a. speciella krav på utrustning som används under testmätningsfasen p.g.a. de små dimensionerna och den höga frekvensen. I detta projekt har ett robotsystem, SAX (Single Arm eXtra), utformats och konstruerats på avdelningen för Mikro- och nanosystem på KTH. Syftet med SAX är att mäta högfrekventa chipantenner ( 140 GHz till 325 GHz ) genom att förflytta en frekvensomvandlare med tillhörande mätantenn i en cirkulär bana runt antennen ifråga, oavsett om den är riktad vertikalt eller horisontellt och givet andra kravspecifikationer. Flera designalternativ för den grundläggande konstruktionen, både från andras arbeten och framtagna av författaren själv, har analyserats utifrån kravspecifikation för detta projekt och andra begränsningar. Den valda unika designen, SAX, är väldigt kompakt och använder sig bara av en stegmotor. För att möjliggöra funktionen i den slutgiltiga produkten har flera delar tagits fram vilka inkluderar ett operatörsprogram, ett program för genererandet av motorstyrsignaler, ett program för motorstyrning, ett säkerhetssystem och ett rotationssystem för kontrollerad rotation av SAX. För genererandet av motorstyrsignaler i form av tidsfördröjda pulser framtogs två olika algoritmer. De ger anpassade accelerations- och retardationssignaler för att motorn ska klara av att förflytta en föränderlig last med stor tröghet. En av dessa framtogs med syfte att mycket effektivt generera pulstiderna om än med större approximationsfel. SAX fungerade tillfredsställande och torde vara ganska lättanvänd med tanke på vad systemet kräver av operatören, från att fysiskt manövrera systemet till att använda delsystemen till att använda operatörsprogrammet. Systemet uppfyllde de givna specifika kraven genom att möjliggöra mätningar i form av ett kryssmönster från -60° till +60°  både ovanifrån och från sidan, radiejustering från 15cm till 45cm , höjdjustering över 10cm , rotation över golvet i steg om 1° , mätningar i steg om 1° med en noggrannhet på 0,5° (den största avvikelsen uppmättes till ≤ 0,461°). Vidare kalibrering behöver dock utföras för att utnyttja den fulla potentialen hos konstruktionen. För att verifiera funktionsdugligheten för systemet presenterades data från mätningar gjorda på öppna vågledare.

No description available.

Recent large-scale blackouts revealed that power systems around the world are far from the stability and reliability requirement as they suppose to be. The post-event analysis clarifies that one major reason of the interconnection blackout is lack of wide area information. Frequency dynamics is one of the most important parameters of an electrical power system. In order to understand power system dynamics effectively, accurately measured wide-area frequency is needed. The idea of building an Internet based real-time GPS synchronized wide area Frequency Monitoring Network (FNET) was proposed to provide the imperative dynamic information for the large-scale power grids and the implementation of FNET has made the synchronized observations of the entire US power network possible for the first time. The FNET system consists of Frequency Disturbance Recorders (FDR), which work as the sensor devices to measure the real-time frequency at 110V single-phase power outlets, and an Information Management System (IMS) to work as a central server to process the frequency data. The device comparison between FDR and commercial PMU (Phasor Measurement Unit) demonstrate the advantage of FNET. The web visualization tools make the frequency data available for the authorized users to browse through Internet. The research work addresses some preliminary observations and analyses with the field-measured frequency information from FNET. The original algorithms based on the frequency response characteristic are designed to process event detection, localization and unbalanced power estimation during frequency disturbances. The analysis of historical cases illustrate that these algorithms can be employed in real-time level to provide early alarm of abnormal frequency change to the system operator. The further application is to develop an adaptive under frequency load shedding scheme with the processed information feed in to prevent further frequency decline in power systems after disturbances causing dangerous imbalance between the load and generation. / Ph. D.

Frequency dynamics is one of the most important signals of a power system, and it is an indicator of imbalance between generation and load in the system. The Internet-based real-time GPS-synchronized wide-area Frequency Monitoring Network (FNET) was proposed to provide imperative frequency dynamics information for a variety of system-wide monitoring, analysis and control applications. The implementation of FNET has for the first time made the synchronized observation of the entire U.S. power network possible with very little cost. The FNET is comprised of many Frequency Disturbance Recorders (FDR) geographically dispersed throughout the U.S. and an Information Management System (IMS), currently located at Virginia Tech. The FDR works as a sensor, which performs local measurements and transmits calculations of frequency, voltage magnitude and voltage angle to the remote servers via the Internet. Compared with its commercial counterpart Phasor Measurement Unit (PMU), FDR provides less expensive version for networked high-resolution real-time synchronized. The improved single phase algorithm in the FDRs made it possible to measure at 110V level which is much more challenging than PMUs due to the noise involved at this level. This research work presents the challenges and issues of both software and hardware design for the novel measurement device FDR, which is one of the devices with the highest dynamic precision for power system frequency measurement. The DFT-based Phasor Angle Analysis algorithm has been improved to make sure the high-resolution measuring FDRs are installed at residential voltage outlets, instead of substation high-voltage inputs. An embedded 12-channel timing GPS receiver has been integrated to provide an accurate timing synchronization signal, UTC time stamp, and unit location. This research work also addresses the harmonics, voltage swing and other noise components' impacts on the measurement results, and the optimized design of filters and a coherent sampling scheme to reduce or eliminate those impacts. The verification test results show that the frequency measurement accuracy of the FDR is within +/-0.0005Hz, and the time synchronization error is within +/-500ns with suitable GPS antenna installation. The preliminary research results show the measurement accuracy and real-time performance of the FDR are satisfactory for a variety of FNET applications, such as disturbance identification and event location triangulation. / Ph. D.

In an extensive outdoor propagation study, low antenna heights of 1.7 m are used at both the transmitter and the receiver to measure over 3500 wideband power-delay profiles (PDPs) of the channel for a peer-to-peer communications system. Rural and urban areas are studied in 22 different transmitter-receiver links. The results are used to characterize the narrowband path loss, mean delay, root-mean-square (RMS) delay spread, and timing jitter of the peer-to-peer wideband channel. Small-scale fading characteristics are measured in detail by measuring and analyzing 160 PDPs within each local area. This thesis shows the measurement setup for the calculation of fading rate variance and angular spread and reports the first known attempt to calculate angular spread from track power measurements. New analysis presented in this thesis shows the effect of measurement error in the calculation of angular spread. The expected characteristics of angular spread are derived using two different angle-of-arrival (AOA) models from the literature. Measurement results show initial validation of Durgin's angular spread theory. A new measurement-based algorithm for simulating wideband fading processes is developed and implemented. This simulation technique shows promise in the simulation of high-bit rate peer-to-peer radio communication systems. / Master of Science

La présente thèse vise à évaluer le degré d’implantation et d’utilisation de systèmes de mesure de la performance (SMP) par les décideurs des organisations de réadaptation et à comprendre les facteurs contextuels ayant influencé leur implantation. Pour ce faire, une étude de cas multiples a été réalisée comprenant deux sources de données: des entrevues individuelles avec des cadres supérieurs des organisations de réadaptation du Québec et des documents organisationnels. Le cadre conceptuel Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research a été utilisé pour guider la collecte et l’analyse des données. Une analyse intra-cas ainsi qu’une analyse inter-cas ont été réalisées. Nos résultats montrent que le niveau de préparation organisationnelle à l’implantation d’un SMP était élevé et que les SMP ont été implantés avec succès et utilisés de plusieurs façons. Les organisations les ont utilisés de façon passive (comme outil d’information), de façon ciblée (pour tenter d’améliorer des domaines sous-performants) et de façon politique (comme outil de négociation auprès des autorités gouvernementales). Cette utilisation diversifiée des SMP est suscitée par l’interaction complexe de facteurs provenant du contexte interne propre à chaque organisation, des caractéristiques du SMP, du processus d’implantation appliqué et du contexte externe dans lequel évoluent ces organisations. Au niveau du contexte interne, l’engagement continu et le leadership de la haute direction ont été décisifs dans l’implantation du SMP de par leur influence sur l’identification du besoin d’un SMP, l’engagement des utilisateurs visés dans le projet, la priorité organisationnelle accordée au SMP ainsi que les ressources octroyées à son implantation, la qualité des communications et le climat d’apprentissage organisationnel. Toutefois, même si certains de ces facteurs, comme les ressources octroyées à l’implantation, la priorité organisationnelle du SMP et le climat d’apprentissage se sont révélés être des barrières à l’implantation, ultimement, ces barrières n’étaient pas suffisamment importantes pour entraver l’utilisation du SMP. Cette étude a également confirmé l’importance des caractéristiques du SMP, particulièrement la perception de qualité et d’utilité de l’information. Cependant, à elles seules, ces caractéristiques sont insuffisantes pour assurer le succès d’implantation. Cette analyse d’implantation a également révélé que, même si le processus d’implantation ne suit pas des étapes formelles, un plan de développement du SMP, la participation et l’engagement des décideurs ainsi que la désignation d’un responsable de projet ont tous facilité son implantation. Cependant, l’absence d’évaluation et de réflexion collective sur le processus d’implantation a limité le potentiel d’apprentissage organisationnel, un prérequis à l’amélioration de la performance. Quant au contexte externe, le soutien d’un organisme externe s’est avéré un facilitateur indispensable pour favoriser l’implantation de SMP par les organisations de réadaptation malgré l’absence de politiques et incitatifs gouvernementaux à cet effet. Cette étude contribue à accroître les connaissances sur les facteurs contextuels ainsi que sur leurs interactions dans l’utilisation d’innovations tels les SMP et confirme l’importance d’aborder l’analyse de l’implantation avec une perspective systémique. / This thesis aims to assess the degree of implementation and use of performance measurement systems (PMS) by decision makers in rehabilitation organizations and to understand the contextual factors that influenced their implementation. A multiple case study was conducted using two data sources: individual interviews with senior executives in rehabilitation organizations from the province of Quebec and organizational documents. The Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research was used to guide the collection and analysis of data. Intra-case analysis and a cross case analysis were conducted. Our results show that organisational readiness for PMS implementation was high and that the PMS was successfully implemented and used in several ways, based on organizational needs. Organizations used them passively (as an information tool), purposefully (to act on underperforming areas) and politically (for negotiating with government authorities). This diverse use of PMS is the result of complex interactions between factors from the internal context of each organization, PMS characteristics, the implementation process and the external environment in which these organizations operate. Within the internal context, the continued commitment and leadership of senior management were decisive in implementing the PMS through their influence on the identification of the need for a PMS, users’ engagement, organizational priority given to the PMS, resources allocation to its implementation, quality of communications and organizational learning climate. However, even if factors such as resources allocated to the implementation, organizational priority of the PMS and the learning climate were found to be barriers to its implementation, ultimately, these barriers were not important enough to hinder PMS use. This study also confirmed the importance of PMS characteristics, particularly the perception of quality and usefulness of the information. However, by themselves, these characteristics are insufficient to ensure implementation success. This implementation analysis also revealed that although the implementation process did not follow formal stages, a PMS development plan, participation and commitment of decision makers and the appointment of a project leader all facilitated implementation of the PMS. However, the lack of evaluation and collective reflection on the implementation process limited the potential for organizational learning, a prerequisite for performance improvement. As for the external context, the support of an external organization proved to be an essential enabler for PMS implementation by rehabilitation organizations despite the absence of governmental policies and incentives to do so. This study contributes to increasing knowledge about the contextual factors and their interactions in the implementation of innovations such as PMS and confirms the importance of addressing implementation analysis with a systemic perspective.