Accurate travel time data are necessary to monitor and evaluate traffic conditions effectively. In the past 20 years, the hours per year lost by the average driver have increased by 300% in the 85 largest U.S. cities, which translates into lost productivity and increased costs. State department of transportation (DOT) agencies and other government organizations need accurate travel time and speed information to better combat this congestion faced by motorists. In the past, ground truth travel time information was typically collected with probe vehicles using the “floating car” method. However, new methods using data collected from global positioning systems by private companies such as INRIX®, Navteq®, and TomTom® have emerged that allow travel time data to be obtained more cheaply and quickly. The Urban Mobility Report (UMR) has turned to these companies, specifically INRIX®, for calculating congestion indices across the United States. This is done by analyzing average speeds and reference speeds supplied by INRIX. The UMR analysis relies on INRIX-supplied reference speeds to calculate delay, which produces artificially high delay on many suburban arterials. Currently, these reference speeds are determined by taking the 85th percentile of weekly speeds (typically overnight hours [10PM to 6AM]). There is a need to refine the reference speeds on arterials in order to account for signal operations, particularly during the daytime hours, so that the UMR more accurately reflects arterial congestion across the nation. Using Bluetooth and INRIX speed data, this thesis develops a new reference speed methodology that accurately reflects arterial delay during daytime hours. This study found that a 60% daytime free-flow reference speed best represents arterial congestion. Using Highway Capacity Manual (HCM) guidelines, this thesis also explores the use of Bluetooth data for arterial and intersection level of service (LOS) analysis under both HCM 2000 and HCM 2010 methodologies. Through analysis, it was found that Bluetooth data capture more of the high and low LOS values compared to the HCM methodology based on segment speed calculations. These high and low LOS values, as well as the rapidly changing LOS between 15-minute intervals, could be attributed to an insufficient sample size.

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The choice of reference frames used in simulations is typically fixed in dynamic models based on modeling decisions made early during their development, restricting model fidelity, numerical accuracy and integration into large-scale simulations. Individual simulation components typically need to model the transformations between multiple reference frames in order to interact with other components, resulting in additional development effort, time and cost. This dissertation describes the methods for defining and managing different reference frames in a simulation, thereby creating a shared simulation environment that can provide reference frame transformations, comprising of kinematics and rotations, to all simulation components through a Reference Frame Manager. Simulation components can use this Reference Frame Manager to handle all kinematics and rotations when interacting with components using different reference frames, improving the interoperability of simulation components, especially in parallel and distributed simulation, while reducing their development time, effort and cost. The Reference Frame Manager also facilitates the development of Generic Dynamic Models that encapsulate the core service of dynamic model, enabling the rapid development of dynamic models that can be reused and reconfigured for different simulation scenarios and requirements. The Reference Frame Manager can also be used to introduce Intermediate Frames that bound the magnitudes of vehicle states, reducing roundoff error and improving numerical accuracy.

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Usually, consumers will collect market information about the product before they decide to buy it or not. In other words, the market information is a critical factor to affect consumers¡¦ purchasing intensions and behavior. Previous research points out that when consumers encounter a wider dispersion of price, they will expect to find cheaper stores. Besides, future price is often considered by consumers too. Kauffman et al. (2002) mentioned that the market price information might affect the recruiting of group buying. In a competitive market, if consumers are unable to perceive the utility of discounts provided by group-buying mechanism, they may shop at other retailers¡¦ stores. Further, because the final price of group buying will not be known until the transaction is closed, consumers¡¦ decisions might be up to their prediction about the final price. This study explores how price dispersion and price volatility affect consumers¡¦ internal reference price and expectation of final price of group buying. The difference between the internal reference and expectation of final price of group-buying indicates the consumers¡¦ transaction utility. How transaction utility affects consumers¡¦ intentions to join group buying is another issue being studied. In addition, if there is interference effect of consumers¡¦ risk attitude on final price forecast of group-buying, it¡¦s investigated, too. The result indicates that price dispersion has significant effects on consumers¡¦ all kinds of internal reference prices and predictions about the final price of group buying. However, the price volatility only has significant effects on consumers¡¦ perceived fair price, aspiration price, and reservation price. Neither significant effect of price volatility on consumers¡¦ price prediction of group buying nor interference effect of risk attitude is found. As expected, there is a significant positive causal relationship between transaction utility and intention to join group-buying. It shows that the transaction utility resulting from the comparison between the lowest market price and the most possible final price of group buying has the most explanatory power to predict consumers¡¦ participating intension to join group-buying.

The feature of group buying is that the price will go down as the accumulated orders are increasing. However, consumers will not know the final price until the end. As a result, consumers can only make decision based on the final price forecast of group buying. The final price forecast might be different depending on different pricing strategies of group-buying models and if there are competitions from posted-price stores. The purpose of this research is to understand how consumers¡¦ internal reference price and final price prediction of group buying would be influenced when facing different price curves in different market competition environment. The difference between the internal reference price and final price prediction of group-buying indicates the consumers¡¦ transaction utility. In addition, if consumers¡¦ perceived transaction utilities affect their intentions and behavior of joining group buying is another research purpose. In this research, there are three different pricing strategies, decreasing, neutral, and increasing based on the initial price, discount size and final price. For the market competition environment, it manipulated by if there are other posted-price stores to be chosen or not. The research result indicates that increasing price curve, which has higher final price, make consumers¡¦ final price prediction of group buying higher than the others under the best condition. On the other hand, it indicates that decreasing price curve, which has higher initial price, make consumers¡¦ final price prediction of group buying higher than the others under the worst condition. Consumers¡¦ internal reference prices are mainly influenced by market price information. When there are other posted-price stores to be chosen, consumers¡¦ internal reference price are higher averagely. In addition, the higher consumers¡¦ perceived transaction utilities are, the higher consumers¡¦ intentions to join group buying are. Finally, it shows consumers¡¦ intentions to join group buying have significant effect on their actual behavior.

This thesis presents a systematic scheme to design the optimal efficiency operations and axial force control of a single-sided permanent-magnet axial-flux motor with center pole (SPAMC) through the detailed mathematical model and operational analysis. According to the rotating magnetic field theory combining with the recoil line characteristics of permanent magnet and the magnetic equivalent circuit, appropriate projection of the stator currents to achieve the optimal efficiency operations and axial force control can be realized. From these evaluations, a feasible operational guidance for SPAMC field oriented control (FOC) framework can be successfully developed. Finally, based on the proposed operational scheme, a DSP-based drive system has been successfully implemented, and the optimal efficiency operations and axial force control objectives can be achieved.

Abstract This thesis aims to analyze metadramatic elements in Shakespearean history plays mainly from the interplay between the actor and the audience. I do not focus on a particular history play but on two characters: Richard III and Prince Hal. Different from most critics of metadrama, I do not search for ruptures in a dramatic text or interpret those ruptures from the deconstructionist¡¦s perspective. Nor do I view metadrama as an established theory when I notice that most critics of metadrama fail to offer a succinct definition to the term. To be specific, metadrama is a kind of dramatic practice on the Renaissance stage. Furthermore, matadrama is constituted of types of metadramatic modes, and during my research, I gradually realize that self-reference is a peculiar phenomenon in history plays. The function of self-reference is to challenge the audience¡¦s fixed perception of things and to reexamine the part of exaggeration and counterfeit in the historical documents. Shakespeare uses self-reference to develop not only the personality of dramatic personae but also his theatrical perspective of historical characters.¡@By analyzing self-reference, I wish to clarify Shakespeare¡¦s attitude toward historical characters. Also, I shall argue that Shakespeare modifies the historical portrayals of Richard III and Prince Hal and authenticates the theatrical perspective of them.

A typical steel plant includes iron-making, steel-making and rolling mills from the upstream to the downstream. The rolling mill can be extended and segmented as hot strip mill and cold strip mill in a large scale steel plant. A steel plant contains lots of automation control systems and process information systems to pursuit process efficiency and production optimization. The control systems and information systems are segmented based on physical model in ANSI/ISA-88 standard, and ranged up the enterprise-wide and down to each process. It is impossible to construct only a stand-alone Manufacturing Execution System (MES) to cope with the very complicated Computer Integrated Manufacturing (CIM) environment. An adequate MES should interface information systems in the plant seamlessly, and eliminate the duplicated pattern functions which exist elsewhere. To build up an MES model for a steel plant, it is essential to gather all MES-related structure elements in the information systems as the first step, and conceive additional MES¡¦ structure elements as the second step. The first step makes our approach different from the traditional stand-alone MES system development methodology. In this thesis, the MES is decomposed from the view points of ¡¥Structure View¡¦ and ¡¥Behavior View¡¦ to obtain Structure Elements and Behaviors. The MES can be fully described based on Structure Elements and Behaviors. Our modeling approach defines a ¡¥Steel Plant MES Architecture Description Language¡¦ in the beginning, and fabricates a ¡¥Steel Plant MES Reference Model¡¦ then. ¡¥Steel Plant MES Reference Model¡¦ includes a set of Architecture Hierarchy Diagram, Structure Element Diagram, Structure Element Service Diagram, Structure Element Link Diagram, Structure Behavior Coalescence Diagram, and Sequence Diagram. This reference model has been introduced to set up a companywide integrated MES in a brand new steel plant to validate the model.

Rapid growth of the internet and information technology help people communicate with others around the world through computers. The developing development of virtual communities¡]VCs¡^gather people with the same personalities in a VC website. VCs are not only a place of providing information and social contact for users, but also a precise market segment for marketers. The users of VCs are interested in the information provided within the VCs; therefore, marketers can reach potential customers in VCs more effectively. If the potential customers have high loyalty to a VC, they will consider the information provided by a VC as more important, their opinions on the product will be easily affected, and, ultimately, their purchasing decision will be influenced. Therefore, the purpose of this thesis is to analyze the loyalty of VC users to understand how VCs affect their purchasing decisions based on the EKB model by assuming VCs are external information sources, reference groups, and channels of post-purchase dissonance. Factors that affect VC users, including ¡uTechnology and Service¡v,¡uInformation Content¡v, and¡uEmotional Interact¡v, can be used to discover different types of loyalties of VC users and to understand if VC users are influenced by VCs when purchasing. A web survey was conducted on three VC websites discussing cosmetics¡]Fashion Guide, Urcosme and yam hercafe¡^,from January 18, 2008 to February 1, 2008 and received 416 valid samples. After analyzing the valid samples, the result suggested that¡G 1. ¡uInformation Content¡vis the most critical factor among the three factors of affecting loyalty of VC users. 2. VC users with a high level of loyalty who depend on the information provided by VC web sites consider VC websites as reference groups and are highly influenced by the site¡¦s recommendations 3. The users of high loyalty are affected by VC websites when purchasing. They search information in VCs before shopping, trust the information of VCs, are affected more easily by other VC users and recommend products to VC users or friends. Aside from this, they spend more time on the internet and VC websites than users of spurious loyalty. 4. The loyalty to and purchasing influence caused by a VC of female users are higher than male users as they consider the information provided by VCs more important. Users of low education levels have higher loyalties than those of higher education levels, however students are more easily influenced by VCs when purchasing.