This thesis reports a software development effort to transplant Matlab algorithm into a Matlab license-free, platform dependent Java based software. The result is almost equivalent to a direct translation of Matlab source codes into Java or any other programming languages. Since compiled library is platform dependent, an MCR (Matlab Compiler Runtime environment) is required and has been developed to deploy the transplanted algorithm to end user. As the result, the implemented MCR is free to distribution and the streamline transplantation process is much simpler and more reliable than manually translation work. In addition, the implementation methodology reported here can be reused for other similar software engineering tasks. There are mainly 4 construction steps in our software package development. First, all Matlab *.m files or *.mex files associated with the algorithms of interest (to be transplanted) are gathered, and the corresponding shared library is created by the Matlab Compiler. Second, a Java driver is created that will serve as the final user interface. This Java based user interface will take care of all the input and output of the original Matlab algorithm, and prepare all native methods. Third, assisted by JNI, a C driver is implemented to manage the variable transfer between Matlab and Java. Lastly, Matlab mbuild function is used to compile the C driver and aforementioned shared library into a dependent library, ready to be called from the standalone Java interface. We use a caBIG™ (Cancer Biomedical Informatics Grid) data analytic toolkit, namely, the DDN (differential dependence network) algorithm as the testbed in the software development. The developed DDN standalone package can be used on any Matlab-supported platform with Java GUI (Graphic User Interface) or command line parameter. As a caBIG™ toolkit, the DDN package can be integrated into other information systems such as Taverna or G-DOC. The major benefits provided by the proposed methodology can be summarized as follows. First, the proposed software development framework offers a simple and effective way for algorithm developer to provide novel bioinformatics tools to the biomedical end-users, where the frequent obstacle is the lack of language-specific software runtime environment and incompatibility between the compiled software and available computer platforms at user's sites. Second, the proposed software development framework offers software developer a significant time/effort-saving method for translating code between different programming languages, where the majority of software developer's time/effort is spent on understanding the specific analytic algorithm and its language-specific codes rather than developing efficient and platform/user-friendly software. Third, the proposed methodology allows software engineers to focus their effort on the quality of software rather than the details of original source codes, where the only required information is the inputs and outputs of the algorithm. Specifically, all used variables and functions are mapped between Matlab, C and Java, handled solely by our designated C driver. / Master of Science

LED is widely used in many applications, such as indoor lighting, backlighting and street lighting, etc. For these application, multiple LED strings structure is adopted for reasons of cost-effectiveness, reliability and safety concerns. Several methods and topologies have been proposed to drive multiple LED strings. However, the output current balance and efficiency are always the two major concerns for LED driver. A simple two-stage multi-channel LED driver is proposed. It is composed of a buck converter as the first stage and a multi-channel constant current (MC3) CLL resonant converter as the second stage. For the CLL resonant converter, the magnetizing inductance of the transformer can be as large as possible. Therefore, the magnetizing current of the transformer has little influence on the output currents. In addition, the currents of two LED strings driven by the same transformer is balanced by a DC blocking capacitor. As a result, the current balance among LED strings is very good, even if the load is severely unbalanced. Meanwhile, the current flowing through the external inductance Lr1, instead of the magnetizing current is used to help the primary-side switches to achieve ZVS. Therefore, large magnetizing inductance is good for current balance and properly designed Lr1 is helpful for ZVS achievement. These properties of MC3 CLL are preferred to drive multi-channel LED strings. In the design procedure of MC3 CLL resonant converter, the parasitic junction capacitor of the secondary-side rectifier is taken into account. It influences the operation during dead time significantly when the voltage step-up transformer is applied. The junction capacitors of the secondary-side rectifiers, and the output capacitors of the primary-side switches will resonate with the inductor Le2 during the dead time. Finally, this resonance impact the ZVS achievement of the primary-side switches. Therefore, the inductors Lr1 and Le2 should be designed according the charge needed to achieve ZVS with considering the resonance. Additionally, the control strategy for this two-stage structure is simple. Only the current of one specific LED string is sensed for feedback control to regulate the bus voltage, and the currents of other LED strings are cross-regulated. Furthermore, the MC3 CLL is unregulated and always working around the resonant frequency point to achieve best efficiency. The compensator is designed based on the derived small signal model of this two-stage LED driver. Due to the special electrical characteristics of LED, the soft start-up process with a delayed dimming signal is adopted and investigated. With the soft start-up, there is no overshoot for the output current. Finally, a prototype of the two-stage LED driver is built. The current balance capability of the LED driver is verified with the experiment. Good current balance is achieved under balanced and severely unbalanced load condition. In addition, the efficiency of the LED driver is also presented. High efficiency is guaranteed within a wide load range. Therefore, this two-stage structure is a very promising candidate for multi-channel LED driving applications. / Master of Science

Advanced Vehicle Systems promise improved safety and comfort for drivers. Steady advancements in technology are resulting in increasing levels of vehicle automation capabilities, furthering safety benefits. In fact, some of these vehicle automation systems are already deployed and available, but with promised benefits, such systems can potentially change driving behaviors. There is evidence that drivers have increased secondary task engagements while driving with automated vehicle systems, but there is a need for a clearer scientific understanding of any potential correlations between the use of automated vehicle systems and potentially negative driver behaviors. Therefore, this thesis aims to understand the state of knowledge on automated vehicle systems and their possible impact on drivers’ distraction behaviors. I have conducted two systematic literature reviews to examine this question. This thesis reports these reviews and examines the effects of secondary task engagement on driving behaviors such as take-over times, visual attention, trust, and workload, and discusses the implications on driver safety.

Bootstrap and Markov chain Monte Carlo methods have received much attention in recent years. We study computer intensive methods that can be used in complex situations where it is not possible to express the likelihood estimates or the posterior analytically. The work is inspired by a set of car crash data from real traffic. We formulate and develop a model for car crash data that aims to estimate and compare the relative collision safety among different car models. This model works sufficiently well, although complications arise due to a growing vector of incidental parameters. The bootstrap is shown to be a useful tool for studying uncertainties of the estimates of the structural parameters. This model is further extended to include driver characteristics. In a Poisson model with similar, but simpler structure, estimates of the structural parameter in the presence of incidental parameters are studied. The profile likelihood, bootstrap and the delta method are compared for deterministic and random incidental parameters. The same asymptotic properties, up to first order, are seen for deterministic as well as random incidental parameters. The search for suitable methods that work in complex model structures leads us to consider Markov chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) methods. In the area of MCMC, we consider particularly the question of how and when to claim convergence of the MCMC run in situations where it is only possible to analyse the output values of the run and also how to compare different MCMC modellings. In Metropolis-Hastings algorithm, different proposal functions lead to different realisations. We develop a new convergence diagnostic, based on the Kullback-Leibler distance, which is shown to be particularly useful when comparing different runs. Comparisons with established methods turn out favourably for the KL. In both models, a Bayesian analysis is made where the posterior distribution is obtained by MCMC methods. The credible intervals are compared to the corresponding confidence intervals from the bootstrap analysis and are shown to give the same qualitative conclusions.

With superior longevity, approximately 5 times that of compact fluorescents (CFLs), and high efficacy, around 1.5 times that of CFLs, LEDs are now attracting vast attention from both academic and industrial sectors. Unfortunately, current power supply drivers for LEDs have the following drawbacks: (1) for a two-stage configuration, the power factor correction (PFC) circuit can help LEDs achieve good operating performance but contain too many components and are large in size, have low efficiency and relatively high cost; (2) a single-stage configuration can perform well in PFC and efficiency, however reliability issues occur due to the use of the electrolytic capacitor. In this thesis, the theoretical analysis and implementation of two high power factor, soft-switched, electrolytic-capacitor-less LED drivers are presented. The two drivers solve the aforementioned issues while minimizing its size and cost. The detailed theoretical analysis illustrates the advantages of the presented circuits and provides insight into their design and operation. The simulated and experimental implementations verified the performance of both circuits, which achieve a high power factor, indicating that the drivers have good operating performance. Elimination of the electrolytic capacitors improves the LED drivers’ reliability. In addition, with the help of soft-switching capability, high efficiency is achieved. Simulation and experimental results are presented to support all merits of the two circuits. / Thesis (Master, Electrical & Computer Engineering) -- Queen's University, 2013-04-30 13:22:28.471

Os acidentes de trânsito representam uma das principais causas de mortes violentas no Brasil e no mundo. O estado emocional do motorista é um importante aspecto da direção segura. A emoção raivosa é uma das causas dos acidentes, pois prejudica a percepção, a tomada de decisão e a psicomotricidade. O objetivo geral foi comparar a emoção raivosa de motoristas através de dois instrumentos. Participaram 400 motoristas de Manaus, Amazonas, Brasil. Houve cinco tipos de motoristas (todos com 80 participantes): (1) de automóvel, (2) de caminhão, (3) de motocicleta (4) de ônibus e (5) de táxi. Os instrumentos aplicados foram: (1) o STAXI (State Trait Anger Expression Inventory), composto por 44 itens e o (2) SRT (Situações de Raiva no Trânsito), composto por 20 itens. Foram estabelecidas seis hipóteses. O propósito da hipótese 1 foi verificar se nos motoristas existe correlação significativa entre a emoção raivosa, sentida na vida em geral, com a emoção raivosa sentida no contexto do trânsito. Nas outras cinco hipóteses compararam-se os índices médios de emoção raivosa entre: faixas etárias, homens versus mulheres, níveis de escolaridade, não infratores versus infratores e profissionais versus amadores. Os resultados demonstraram que: (1) os motoristas que apresentam menor emoção raivosa na vida em geral tendem a apresentar menor emoção raivosa quando dirigem, e vice-versa, (2) as médias de emoção raivosa foram significativamente mais baixas nos motoristas de mais idade, (3) não houve diferença significativa na emoção raivosa média de homens e mulheres que dirigem automóveis, (4) não houve diferença significativa na emoção raivosa dos cinco tipos de motoristas, quanto ao grau de escolaridade, (5) os motoristas não infratores apresentaram emoção raivosa média significativamente mais baixa que os motoristas infratores e (6) os motoristas amadores (automóvel) apresentaram emoção raivosa média significativamente mais alta que os motoristas profissionais de caminhão e de ônibus, e mais baixa do que motoristas de táxi e de motocicleta. Determinou-se uma ordem decrescente para as 20 situações de raiva no trânsito (SRT), da maior até a menor geradora de emoção raivosa (1ª a 20ª), para os motoristas em geral e para cada um dos cinco tipos de motoristas. Os resultados demonstraram que existem diferenças significativas nos níveis médios de emoção raivosa entre os cinco tipos de motoristas. Finalmente, os resultados sugeriram ser importante avaliar os níveis de emoção raivosa nos motoristas experientes e nos candidatos a motorista, quando esses realizam a Avaliação Psicológica, visto que a emoção raivosa pode ser uma importante causa de infrações e acidentes de trânsito. / Traffic accidents are one of the main causes of violent death in Brazil and in the World. The emotional state of the driver is important for safe driving. The emotion of anger is an important aspect of the causes of accidents, since it prejudices attention, decision making and psychomotor function. The general objective of this thesis was to compare the emotion of anger in drivers by way of two instruments. Four hundred drivers from Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil took part in this survey and there were five types of driver (each with 80 participants): (1) car; (2) truck; (3) motorbike; (4) bus; and (5) taxi. The instruments applied to the 400 drivers were: (1) the STAXI (State Trait Anger Expression Inventory), composed of 44 items, and (2) TAS (Traffic Anger Situations), composed of 20 items. Six hypotheses were established. Hypothesis 1 proposed to verify the possibility of a significant correlation between the emotion of anger felt by the driver in his daily life and that felt in the traffic context. The other five hypotheses compared the mean indices of the emotion of anger between: age ranges, men versus women, scholastic levels, non-violators versus violators and professionals versus amateurs. The results showed that: (1) in general drivers showing less anger in their daily life tended to show less anger when driving and vice versa; (2) the means of the emotion of anger were significantly lower in older drivers; (3) there was no significant difference between the mean anger felt by men and women who drive cars; (4) there was no significant difference in the anger of emotion between the five types of driver with respect to scholastic level; (5) the non-violator drivers presented a mean emotion of anger significantly lower than that of violator drivers; and (6) amateur drivers (cars) showed a mean emotion of anger significantly higher than that of professional truck and bus drivers, but lower than that of taxi and motorbike drivers. A decreasing order for the 20 traffic anger situations (TAS) was determined, from the greatest to the least generator of the emotion of anger (1st to 20th) for drivers in general, and for each of the five types of driver. The results showed that there are significant differences in the mean levels of anger between the five types of driver. Finally the results suggest it is important to evaluate the levels of the emotion of anger in experienced drivers and in learner drivers when they carry out their Psychological Assessment, considering that the emotion of anger could be an important cause of traffic violations and accidents.

Digital-to-analog converters with a range over 50 volts are required for driving micro-electro mechanical system deformable mirrors used in adaptive optics. An existing tested and deployed DM driver has 1024 channels and resolution of 15mV per Least Significant Bit. DMs used in the search for exoplanets require 3mV per LSB resolution. A technique is presented to employ a secondary high resolution and low voltage DAC which has for it's ground the output of the high voltage DAC. The entire system then has the range of high voltage DAC yet the resolution of the low voltage DAC. A method for providing signal and power to the floating system is given. Rudimentary micro controller firmware and also PC software is presented to achieve complete functionality. The technique uses all off-the-shelf components. Resolution of 1.6mV per LSB, 60V range and 36mW of power per channel is achieved.

Os motoristas de ônibus apresentam problemas de saúde física e psicológica decorrentes da exposição a fatores relacionados com a organização do trabalho e com a própria configuração do ônibus, mais especificamente da cabine, onde realizam suas atividades. Os projetos das cabines dos ônibus e do seu cockpit, interface através da qual o motorista envia comandos para o ônibus, normalmente desconsideram a opinião do motorista e a relação entre produto/usuário/contexto de uso real, fundamental para garantir um projeto de interface adequado, segundo os conceitos de ergonomia e design. Assim, esta pesquisa tem como objetivo estudar e determinar as demandas dos motoristas de transporte rodoviário e urbano de passageiros com relação aos cockpits de ônibus, a fim de propor melhorias considerando as características da tarefa e a opinião dos motoristas com relação ao seu conforto e desempenho. Participaram do estudo duas empresas de transporte de passageiros, uma rodoviária e outra urbana. A metodologia foi estruturada em três fases. A primeira (Pré-análise) teve como objetivo conhecer os cockpits dos ônibus, entender os requisitos considerados na compra de novos veículos e evidenciar as condições do cockpit que atuam na dirigibilidade do veículo. A segunda fase (Análise) consistiu em investigar a percepção dos motoristas com relação aos cockpits dos ônibus, realizado observação in loco, filmagens, entrevistas, questionário e dinâmica do protótipo de papel Na terceira fase (Pós-análise) foi realizada a triangulação dos dados para identificar os fatores de conforto mais relevantes e a comparação dos resultados dos dois grupos de motoristas. Os resultados da dinâmica convergiram com aqueles das entrevistas e questionários evidenciando que, em geral, os motoristas tendem a manter os comandos nos locais em que se acostumaram, modificando somente o posicionamento daqueles que não atendem suas necessidades de forma satisfatória. A principal demanda dos motoristas de transporte rodoviário está vinculada ao posicionamento do comando do ar-condicionado no cockpit e às condições de conforto térmico na cabine. Os motoristas de transporte urbano de passageiros, por outro lado, desejam o reposicionamento do comando do itinerário para um local de fácil alcance e visibilidade quando em sedestação. Esses também relataram desconforto térmico relacionando com a inexistência do dispositivo da ventarola, uma vez que a maioria dos veículos da frota não dispõe de ar-condicionado. Os dois grupos de motoristas indicaram a necessidade de melhorar a visibilidade do painel de instrumentos que, por vezes, é dificultado pelo mau posicionamento do volante. Além disso, os dois grupos de motoristas consideraram o espaço interno da cabine, o ruído, bem como o conforto do banco, características a serem melhoradas. / Bus drivers have physical and psychological health problems due to exposure to factors related to work organization and the configuration of the bus, specifically the cabin, where they carry out their activities. The bus cabins and their cockpit‟s designs, the interface through which the driver sends commands to the bus, usually disregard the driver's opinion and the relationship between product/ user/ context of actual use, primal to ensure a proper interface design, according to the concepts of ergonomics and design. Thus, this research aims to study and determine the demands of road and urban passenger transport drivers in relation to bus cockpits, in order to propose improvements considering the characteristics of the task and the opinion of the drivers regarding their comfort and performance. The study included an urban and a road passenger transport companie. The methodology was structured in three phases. The first one (Preanalysis) had as objective to know the cockpits of the buses, to understand the requirements considered in the purchase of new vehicles and to understand the conditions of the cockpit that act in the dirigibility of the vehicle. The second phase (Analysis) was to investigate the drivers' perception regarding the cockpits of the buses through in loco observation, filming, interviews, questionnaire and paper prototype dynamics In the third phase (Post-analysis) the triangulation of the data was performed to identify the most relevant comfort factors and the results of the two groups of drivers were compared. The results of the dynamics converged with those of the interviews and questionnaires showing that, in general, drivers tend to keep the controls in the places they have become used to, modifying only the positioning of those who do not meet their needs. The main demand of road transport drivers is linked to the positioning of the air conditioning control in the cockpit and the conditions of thermal comfort in the cabin. Passenger urban transport drivers, on the other hand, want the itinerary Command relocate to a location within easy reach and visibility when in the sitting position. They also reported thermal discomfort relating to the absence of ventarola device, since most vehicle do not have air conditioning. The two groups of drivers indicated the need to improve the visibility of the instrument panel which is sometimes hampered by poor steering positioning. In addition, the two groups of drivers considered the interior space of the cabin, the noise as well as the comfort of the seat, features to be improved.

Le confort et la sécurité de conduite sont les principaux critères de vente de l’industrie automobile actuelle. De nombreux projets de recherche sont mis en place afin de les améliorer et pour faire face aux mesures de législation et de contrôle mises en place pour réduire le nombre d’accidents routiers. Les mesures semblent efficaces : en France,par exemple, le nombre des accidents mortels diminue de 11% en moyenne chaque année.D’après de récentes études, 90% de ces accidents ont pour cause le facteur humain et il devient nécessaire de prendre en compte le conducteur pendant la phase de conception des systèmes de sécurité et d’aide à la conduite. Une assistance à la conduite basée sur le partage du contrôle du véhicule entre le conducteur et l’automate est un des axes de recherche privilégiés de l’industrie, notamment pour améliorer la sécurité.Il est maintenant devenu possible de récupérer une très grande quantité d’information sur l’environnement et de réaliser une interaction intelligente entre les différents acteurs du trafic. Les techniques existantes permettent même la conduite partagée entre le véhicule et le conducteur et, dans un horizon plus lointain, d’envisager un véhicule complètement autonome. Dans les situations de conduite automatisée, un algorithme adéquat est nécessaire pour remplacer le conducteur.L’intérêt principal de cette recherche se situe au niveau de l’interaction entre le conducteur et l’algorithme d’assistance ou de conduite automatisée. Il est indispensable de connaître et de comprendre le comportement du conducteur dans sa façon de conduire,de contrôler le véhicule et de prendre une décision. Par conséquent, un modèle adapté aux besoins est nécessaire. En plus de la nécessité de disposer d’un modèle suffisamment riche pour décrire le comportement de différents conducteurs dans les situations routières les plus fréquentes, il est indispensable de disposer d’une méthode de synthèse des systèmes d’assistance sur la base de ces modèles. / Driving comfort and safety are the main points of interest for the automotive industry. Many research projects were realized in order to improve them and to reduce the number of road accidents. The measures seem to be effective : in France, for example, the number of fatal accidents decreases by 11% on average each year. According to recent studies, 90% of these accidents are caused by the human factor. As a consequence, it becomes necessary to take the driver into account during the design of driving assistance systems. An assistance based on the control sharing between the driver and the automatic pilot is one of the main topics of research and a way to improve safety. It has now become possible to recover a very large amount of information on the environment and to achieve intelligent interaction between the various actors in the traffic. Existing technologies even allow imagining a completely autonomous driving in a more distant horizon. In such a situation, an adequate algorithm is required to replace the human driver.The main interest of this research is the interaction between the driver and the driver assistance algorithm. It is essential to know and to understand the behavior of the humanin his / her way to control the vehicle and to make a decision. Therefore, his model is necessary. Moreover, it is essential to develop a design method for such assistance systems on the basis of these driver models.

With the development of level 3 AVs, drivers can now disengage from the driving task for extended periods of time. However, drivers are still responsible for the overall safety of their drive. Moreover, when drivers are not engaged in their monitoring task, they lose situational awareness. This leaves drivers vulnerable when they have to retake control from the AV. This research looks to advance the development of camera-based driver monitoring systems that measure situational awareness. In addition, this research examines the effect of adaptable warning systems on driver situational awareness and takeover performance. In this study, we use situational awareness as ground truth to compare adaptable warning systems that reengage drivers in the monitoring task. Camera-based driver monitoring systems that measure gaze behavior can be used to adapt warning systems. Twenty-four participants split into three groups were asked to drive for approximately 40 miles in a level 3 AV simulator while completing a visual-manual secondary task. During the drive, participants experienced four events in which they had to disengage from the secondary task and take back control from the AV. Two interface designs based on gaze behavior were compared to a baseline warning system. The Attentional Maintenance group was given an alert throughout the drive after a fixed amount of time in which their gaze was directed away from the road. The State-Contingent Takeover group was given an alert only before takeover events after a fixed amount of time in which their gaze was directed away from the road. Results show that attentional maintenance alerts can increase situational awareness and takeover response time during automation failure. Future research to increase situational awareness is discussed in terms of advancements in cognitive control and bilateral communication between the driver and the AV.