In order for leading industrial companies to remain competitive, the process of product developement constantly needs to improve. In order to shorten development time -- that is the time from idea to product -- simulations of products in-house is becoming a popular method. This method saves money and time since expensive prototypes become unnecessary. Today the calibration of steering gears is done in test vehicles by experienced test drivers. This is a time consuming process that is very costly because of expensive test vehicles. This report investigates possibilities and difficulties with transfering the calibrations from field to rig. A steering rig has been integrated with a car simulation program. Comparisons between simulation in the loop (SIL) and hardware in the loop (HIL) have been made and differences between different configurations of steering gears have been evaluated. An automatic process including calibration of parameters, testing and analysis of the test results has been implemented. The work laid the foundation of calibration of steering parameters and showed correlation between calibration parameters and objective metrics.

No description available.

Many traffic incidents are due to the driver’s lack of attention, resulting in dangerous lane departures, either sliding off theroad or into the oppose lane. These kinds of incidents often have serious outcomes, which has led to much effort being concentrated on preventing or lessening the damages when the incident is already a fact, for example by installing safety belts and air bags. These measures may be considered to be acts of so-called passive safety. Active safety on the other hand, means that the safety systems intervene before the incidents have occurred. Lane Keeping Aid (LKA), which has been developed and implemented in this master thesis project, is a system designed to support the driver in the lateral axis in situations when unwanted lane departure is an evident risk. To be able to determine when the system should intervene and support the driver, information regarding how the driver handles the vehicle, along with the vehicle’s position and direction in the lane, is essential. The car’s position may be obtained by installing a camera in the vehicle. The information needed regarding other things, e.g. the car’s position in relation to the lane, is obtained by using a Kalmanfilter, which is based on a physically developed model, and which estimates the mentioned distances. Based on measurements and estimated values, it is possible for the LKA system to calculate an assistance torque, aimed at decreasing the lateral deviation from the centre of the lane. An electric power steering, instead of a conventional hydraulic steering servo is then used to produce the torque. The LKA system has been developed in a simulation environment using Simulink before being implemented, in order to monitor the function of the system before beginning actual testdrives. Furthermore, real measurement data given at driving with the test vehicle has been used to adjust and test the function. The results from the project’s first phase, in the simulation environment, show that the estimated values from the Kalmanfilter correlates well with real test data. Simulations with real measurement data show that the system functions as intended. Finally, it may also be mentioned, that the system has yet not been fully tested in a vehicle equipped with an electric power steering, which ought to be included in future development of the system.

This thesis is to study the evolution of the EU - Africa relations, and how they have been shaped in the 21st Century. Bearing a historical perspective of the relations, the cornerstone of the study will cover the period between 2000 and 2010. It is at the turn of the century that the EU-Africa relations gained momentum with the adoption of the Cotonou Partnership Agreement and the first EU- Africa Summit in Cairo, 2000 that laid the foundation of the Joint Africa EU Strategy. This strategy epitomizes the desire of the EU and Africa to forge a close bond of relations towards achieving their shared interests based on a &lsquo / partnership of equals&rsquo / . EU-Africa relations have been characterized on the basis of clientelism inherent from its colonial legacy in Africa. Thus the main question is whether the strategy adopted guarantees a relationship based on a &lsquo / partnership of equals&rsquo / or is it pure rhetoric? The thesis concludes that, Africa&rsquo / s importance on the international arena has been increasing in the last decade with a proportionate increase in competition for its resources especially from emerging powers. This has threatened the EU&rsquo / s position in Africa and with the EU&rsquo / s quest to enhance its global actorness, there has been a need for the EU to restructure its relations with Africa. Though the strategy is based on a mutual partnership, it is skewed to the EU&rsquo / s favour due to its superior power both economically and politically.

<p>Many traffic incidents are due to the driver’s lack of attention, resulting in dangerous lane departures, either sliding off theroad or into the oppose lane. These kinds of incidents often have serious outcomes, which has led to much effort being concentrated on preventing or lessening the damages when the incident is already a fact, for example by installing safety belts and air bags. These measures may be considered to be acts of so-called passive safety. </p><p>Active safety on the other hand, means that the safety systems intervene before the incidents have occurred. Lane Keeping Aid (LKA), which has been developed and implemented in this master thesis project, is a system designed to support the driver in the lateral axis in situations when unwanted lane departure is an evident risk. </p><p>To be able to determine when the system should intervene and support the driver, information regarding how the driver handles the vehicle, along with the vehicle’s position and direction in the lane, is essential. The car’s position may be obtained by installing a camera in the vehicle. The information needed regarding other things, e.g. the car’s position in relation to the lane, is obtained by using a Kalmanfilter, which is based on a physically developed model, and which estimates the mentioned distances. Based on measurements and estimated values, it is possible for the LKA system to calculate an assistance torque, aimed at decreasing the lateral deviation from the centre of the lane. An electric power steering, instead of a conventional hydraulic steering servo is then used to produce the torque. </p><p>The LKA system has been developed in a simulation environment using Simulink before being implemented, in order to monitor the function of the system before beginning actual testdrives. Furthermore, real measurement data given at driving with the test vehicle has been used to adjust and test the function. </p><p>The results from the project’s first phase, in the simulation environment, show that the estimated values from the Kalmanfilter correlates well with real test data. Simulations with real measurement data show that the system functions as intended. </p><p>Finally, it may also be mentioned, that the system has yet not been fully tested in a vehicle equipped with an electric power steering, which ought to be included in future development of the system.</p>

yes / Not only is the participation of developing countries in international trade negotiations growing, so is their influence over the global trade agenda. This article highlights the increasing activism and impact of African states through a detailed study of the current Economic Partnership Agreement (EPAs) negotiations with the European Union (EU). In examining African resistance to EPAs, the article develops a constructivist approach to North-South trade negotiations that pays close attention to the role of development discourses. We argue that the growing willingness of African states to challenge the EU to deliver on its development promises during the decade-long EPA process was crucial to informing their sustained opposition to the EU’s goal of completing a comprehensive set of sub-regional economic agreements. We document African resistance to EU trade diplomacy in the EPAs, exploring how these otherwise weak countries were able to pursue normative-based negotiation strategies by recourse to the EU’s promise of a ‘development partnership.’

Die ständige Verfügbarkeit von molekularem Sauerstoff (O2) ist ein elementarer Bestandteil multizellulärer Lebensformen. Zur Aufrechterhaltung der Homöostase sind diese auf die Bildung des Energiesubstrates ATP durch oxidative Phosphorylierung angewiesen. Aus diesem Grunde mußten höhere Organismen während der Evolution komplexe Systeme entwickeln, die die Aufnahme und Verteilung von O2 in jede Zelle sicherstellen, sowie eine Adaptation in Phasen der Hypoxie erlauben. Mit der Identifikation des Transkriptionsfaktors "Hypoxia-inducible Factor-1" (HIF-1, 1995) wurde ein entscheidender Regulator der hypoxischen Adaptation gefunden. Unter anderem werden Prozesse wie die Erythropoiese, die Angiogenese, die Modulation des Gefäßtonus, des Glukosetransportes und der Glykolyse wesentlich durch HIF reguliert. HIF ist ein Heterodimer bestehend aus zwei Untereinheiten; einer konstitutiven beta- und einer regulativen alpha-Untereinheit. Letztere zeigt ein inverses Expressionsmuster zur perizellulären O2-Konzentration. Unter normoxischen Bedingungen ist HIFalpha instabil und wird mit einer Halbwertzeit von nur wenigen Minuten degradiert. Erst unter Hypoxie wird HIFalpha stabilisiert und ist transkriptionell aktiv. Es konnten bisher zwei funktionell relevante O2-abhängige alpha-Untereinheiten identifiziert werden: HIF-1 und HIF-2alpha. Die Bedeutung dieser beiden Systeme, der unterliegenden Regulationsmechanismen sowie die Relevanz dieses Systems in vivo waren weitgehend ungeklärt und sind wesentlicher Teil der hier zusammengefaßten Arbeiten. In den vorgelegten Studien ist es gelungen, die Expression und Regulation der beiden unterschiedlichen HIFalpha Isoformen sowohl in der Zellkultur, als auch in gesunden Geweben zu charakterisieren. In Zellkulturen zeigte sich ein sehr ähnliches Regulationsmuster hinsichtlich der O2-abhängigen Degradation, bzw. dem Induktionsverhalten unter Hypoxie, sowie der chemisch/pharmakologischen Modulation, so dass offensichtlich beide Isoformen über den gleichen O2-Sensing- und Transduktionsapparat reguliert werden. An Geweben von gesunden Ratten führten wir eine systematische Analyse der Expression und Regulation der beiden HIFalpha Isoformen durch. Nur unter systemischer Hypoxie konnten deutliche Signale für beide Isoformen gesehen werden. Interessanterweise zeigte sich, daß beide nur von spezifischen Zellpopulationen exprimiert werden. In vivo lassen sich also klare Unterschiede im Expressionsmuster der beiden Systeme feststellen. Über die unterschiedlichen zellulären Funktionen und different exprimierten Zielgene vermuten wir einen funktionell relevanten Unterschied. Mit der Identifikation des "von Hippel Lindau" Tumor Suppressor Gens als der bindende Anteil der E3 Ubiquitin Ligase, die für die HIFalpha Destruktion verantwortlich ist, konnte ein wichtiger Beitrag zu der späteren Klärung des O2-Sensing-Mechanismus geleistet werden. Diese Befunde wurden initial anhand von Zellkultur-Linien erhoben, liessen sich aber auf Nierenzellkarzinome aus einer klinischen Sammlung übertragen. Letzterer Befund ist daher für das Verständnis der Rolle von HIF für die Tumorbiologie, eventuell aber auch für die Entwicklung therapeutischer Ansätze von Bedeutung. / The permanent availability of molecular oxygen (O2) is an elemental need of multicellular life. For the maintenance of hemeostasis these are dependent on generation of the energy substrate ATP by oxidative phoshorylation. For this reason higher organisms had to develop complex systems during evolution that ensure the uptake and distribution of O2 into each cell, as well as permit adaptation to phases of hypoxia. With the identification of the transcription factor "Hypoxia-inducible Factor-1" (HIF-1, 1995) a master regulator of hypoxic adaptation has been found. Amongst others processes like erythropoiesis, angiogenesis, modulation of vascular tone, glucose transport and glycolysis are largely regulated by HIF. HIF is a heterodimer consisting of two subunits, a constitutive beta and a regulative alpha subunit. The latter shows an inverse relationship to the pericellular O2 concentration. HIFalpha is instable under normoxic conditions and degrades with a half life of only a few minutes. Under hypoxia the HIFalpha subunits are stabilised and are transcriptionally active. To date two functionally relevant O2-dependent alpha subunits have been identified: HIF-1 and HIF-2alpha. The importance of these two systems, the underlying regulatory mechanisms, as well as the relevance of this system in vivo were largely unknown and are a major part of the summarised studies. The presented work succeeded in characterising the expression and regulation of both HIFalpha isoforms in cell culture as well as healthy tissues. In tissue culture a very similar pattern of regulation was seen for oxygen dependent degradation, induction under hypoxia and chemical/pharmacological modulation, indicating that both subunits are regulated by the same O2-sensing and transduction apparatus. We undertook a systematic analysis of expression and regulation of both HIFalpha subunits in tissues of healthy rats. Signals for HIFalpha could only be seen under systemic hypoxia. Interestingly, both subunits were expressed by specific and different cell populations. Therefore, clear differences can be seen in expression pattern of both systems in vivo. We suspect that these differences will be functionally relevant through differing cellular functions and gene expression profile. With the identification of the "von Hippel Lindau" tumor suppressor gene as the binding part of the E3 ubiquitin ligase, which is responsible for HIF degradation, an important contribution to the clarification of the oxygen sensing mechanism was provided. Initially this data was generated in tissue culture lines, but could also be confirmed in renal cell carcinomas of a clinical collection. The latter finding is of importance for the understanding of the role of HIF in tumor biology, possibly also for the development of therapeutic strategies.

This thesis investigates and problematizes the notion of development in the context of the EU-ACP EPA agreements with a particular focus on Kenya. Official statements, documents, empirical observation and qualitative interviews conducted in Nairobi and Kagwe, Kenya in April of 2009 provide empirical data. Applying the concepts of international trade theory, capacity developments complex adaptive systems approach and supplementing these concepts with an underlying thread of axiology, this paper seeks to explore the drastically divided and widely differing definitions of the situation, world views and casual beliefs in viewing the EPA development tool for what it is vs. what it means. By problematizing the notion of development, the findings suggest that it seems as though much of the dissonance between what constitutes development, what the ‘problem’ is, why it exists, and what the ‘solution’ is, is the result of a clash between theoretical models and the informal concepts of how things get done in a particular context. Thus, it is difficult seeing the EPAs functioning as a tool for a form of development that would suit the values, norms, and voices involved in conceptualizing development.

Magister Legum - LLM / South Africa

Magister Legum - LLM