With the fast development of communication systems, computers and consumer electronics, the power supplies for telecoms, servers, desktops, laptops, flat-panel TVs, LED lighting, etc. are required for more efficient power delivery with smaller spaces. The LLC resonant converter has been widely adopted for these applications due to the advantages in high efficiency, high power density and holdup time operation capability. However, LLC resonant converter meets some issues, especially in high output current applications. Those issues include magnetic design, start-up, short-circuit protection, synchronous rectifier drive, EMI noise and integration, etc. To solve those issues, like start-up and short-circuit protection, SR driving and EMI, etc., a synthesis method is proposed to find the similar resonant topologies like LLC. Based on this method, lots of multi-element resonant converters are found to solve the issues that LLC resonant converter cannot handle. To evaluate the performance of found numerous valuable topologies. Thus, a general evaluation system is required. State-plane analysis with new normalization factors is utilized. Based on it, the voltage stress, current stresses and apparent power of resonant converters are easy to compare. This method can help select suitable circuit topology for certain applications. Meanwhile, it also can help resonant converters' design. The important performance factors, like start-up, short-circuit protection, SR driving, integration and EMI performance, are also taken into account for the whole evaluation system. The high switching frequency is needed recently for high power density requirement. However, LLC resonant converter suffers high transformer loss. Matrix transformer is introduced to reduce winding loss and total volume. Flux cancellation method is utilized to reduce core size and loss. Synchronous Rectifier (SR) devices and output capacitors are integrated into secondary windings to eliminate termination related winding losses, via loss and reduce leakage inductance. The passive integration is necessary for high power density resonant converter, especially for high order system. Based on stress, suitable passive components are chosen for integration. Then, the magnetic integration method is shown based on multi-winding transformer structure. The passive integration principles are discussed. A novel passive integration method is proposed for multi-elements resonant converters. In conclusion, this work is focus on the topology analysis and integration of resonant converters. Searching the suitable topologies for certain application, and evaluate the performance of them. Then, improve the system power density by integration techniques. / Ph. D.

Although suitable CAD tools for thermal and electrical analyses in power electronic systems are available, traditional stand-alone simulation method seldom takes into consideration of the inter-dependency of semiconductor device power loss and junction temperature in an iterative process. However these dependencies are important, especially for applications where both cooling and power losses are driven by complex mechanisms. For a power supply system, a dynamic design process is necessary to address both electrical and thermal issues. It is because the steady state temperatures of the system are obtained from loss-and-temperature iteration. Once a system solid body model is built, iterations between power loss and junction temperature calculations are performed to obtain the steady state temperature distribution. Since reliability and failure rate of components are directly related to temperatures, an accurate model is critical to provide proper thermal management, which achieves maximum power density. All cooling-related data such as placement of components, airflow rate, heat sink size, and device types are subjected to design changes in order to meet ultimately the temperature requirements. The goal of this thesis is to demonstrate the benefits of integrated analysis and design tools applied in distributed power supply systems designs. First, it will significantly speed up the design process and eliminate the errors resulting from repeated manual data entry and information exchange. Second, the integrated electrical-thermal design tools encompass electrical, thermal, layout, and packaging design to obtain the optimal system design. / Master of Science

Research work about European way of Russian separated enclave Kaliningrad, written by Sergey Naumkin. Table of contents: German ownership and germanisation. Associated membership with the EU. Republic or especial region in the structure of the Russian Federation. Independent State. Baltic Sea School, Humboldt University, Germany

The focus of this thesis is on the vertical integration of mechatronics in the mechanical engineering curriculum at Virginia Tech. It reports the details of an experimental strategy to integrate mechatronics at an early level in the education of engineers. A proposal was submitted to and accepted by the NSF/SUCCEED coalition to fund this experiment. Through this assistance, the experiment of vertically integrating mechatronics was initiated. The methodology in which it was integrated is presented -- through optional participation in a sophomore design class and a required design project in a junior system dynamics course. The material developed for the vertical integration of mechatronics is in the appendices. This material is appropriate for other institutions to use to vertically integrate mechatronics into their curriculums, which is part of the NSF/SUCCEED coalition's initiative. For the sophomore class, ME 2024, Introduction to Engineering Design and Economics, selected sections were exposed to the concepts of mechatronic design, along with the normal course material. Students in the mechatronic sections were given an opportunity to incorporate the use of a custom-built VT Project Box and the PIC Visual Development (PVD) software, both of which were created specifically for the task of vertical integration of mechatronics. Throughout the semester, the students were given several demonstrations of mechatronic systems through the use of the project box and software. Many students decided to implement mechatronic concepts in their final design projects. A smaller number of students made a decision to use the project box and software to develop a prototype of their final design project. Candid remarks about the students experiences, obtained from a survey at the semester's end, indicated that the vertical integration of mechatronics was a motivational feature in the second-year curriculum. For the junior class, ME 3514, System Dynamics, all sections were exposed to the concepts of mechatronics, along with the normal course material. The students were required to acquire steady-state velocity data from a DC motor and create an analytical model of the motor to predict the steady-state velocity for a given duty cycle of a pulse-width modulated controller. After the collection of the data and the creation of the analytical model, the students compared the results of simulations to the actual data collected, and report the comparison to the instructor in a memorandum. The collection of the steady-state velocity data was accomplished using the PVD software and the VT Project Box. The essentials of mechatronics was communicated to the students in two lectures, and the students gained hands-on experience with mechatronics through the use of the project box and the software. The lecture material covered the basics of mechatronics, the Mechatronics course at Virginia Tech, and detailed information about the design project. The assessment of the vertical integration of mechatronics into this junior course was accomplished by surveying all of the students in the course. The results of the survey indicated that the inclusion of mechatronics material increased the students understanding of the course material and also increased their interest in mechatronics. / Master of Science

Body representation disorders have a key role in the characterization of obesity. So far, the literature consistently pointed to a negative attitudinal body image. Conversely, after reviewing the pertinent literature, it emerges that more incoherent results have been reported for the self-perceived body size. Chapter 2 tries to clarify this issue by adopting a more innovative theoretical framework (i.e., the implicit/explicit model; Longo, 2015). For the first time, we probed the implicit representation underlying position sense in obesity, reporting a similar representation to healthy weight participants. Importantly, this result shows that not all components of body representation are affected by obesity. Chapter 3 addresses another aspect of body representation that has been neglected in obesity, namely bodily self-consciousness. The Rubber Hand Illusion has been traditionally used to investigate the mechanisms underlying body awareness. Our results show that individuals with obesity have comparable subjective experience of the illusion, while the effect of the illusion on self-location is reduced. This dissociation can be interpreted as the result of a preserved visuo-tactile integration and an altered visuo-proprioceptive integration in obesity. However, in Chapter 4 we reported that individuals with obesity have a reduced temporal resolution of visuo-tactile integration, meaning that they integrated stimuli over an extended range of asynchronies than healthy weight participants. In fact, this evidence predicts that in the RHI individuals with obesity might perceive more synchronously the asynchronous stimulation, showing a greater effect of the illusion also in this condition. Nevertheless, we failed to show this pattern of results in our study with an interval of asynchronous stimulation of 1000 ms (usually adopted in the RHI paradigm). We hypothesized that smaller time-lags, which are inside the temporal binding window of individuals with obesity and outside the temporal binding widow of healthy weight participants, might not be perceived by individuals with obesity but detected by healthy weight individuals. Accordingly, a dissimilar susceptibility to the illusion should be observed. Chapter 5 investigates this issue by adopting a modified version of the RHI that enables a parametrical modulation of the timing of the stimulation. However, we could not replicate the RHI even in healthy weight participants. The possible methodological reasons for this failure are discussed. Overall, this work tries to fill some gaps in the previous literature about body representation in obesity. Moreover, our findings provide an important clue about the possible cognitive mechanisms involved in body representation disorders in obesity. However, many questions still need an answer: due to the complexity of the domain a comprehensive knowledge of the topic might be challenging. A deep understanding of obesity is fundamental to develop multidisciplinary and efficacious rehabilitative protocols. Indeed, better treatments would significantly ameliorate individuals’ well-being but also contribute to reduce the huge health costs related to obesity comorbidities.

Background: Integration of immigrants is an interactive process of learning a new culture, an obtaining of rights, access to a position and status and building of personal relations between migrants and the receiving society.  Their ability to reciprocally adjust to intercultural encounters is one of the most important factors of successful integration. Aim: The purpose of this study is to investigate Swedish young adults perception and attitudes towards immigrants and immigrants’ integration into the Swedish society. Furthermore the aim is to study their perception of social interaction of immigrants and the Swedish host society. How Swedish young adults perceive their country’s immigration policy. Method:  A qualitative research, using an online open-ended questionnaire and in-depth telephone interviews were applied to collect the data about Swedish young adults perceptions and attitudes. The transcribed data were subjected to thematic analysis. Result:  The results of the qualitative research helped to understand Swedish young adults perceptions and attitudes. The findings showed that two of the biggest reasons that Swedish young adults support immigration are: humanitarism and labor force. Swedish young adults are very aware of immigrants’ integration in Sweden. They socialize with immigrants and have contact with them in daily basis. Swedish young adults, have a negative opinion regarding Sweden’s immigration policy Conclusion: Swedish young adults define immigrants as a people born in one country but move to another (particularly in Sweden) with an intention to reside there permanently. Regarding their acculturation expectations, they support integration as the best acculturation strategy. They think that immigrants in Sweden are “half way” integrated, geographically segregated, discriminated, prejudiced in different degrees and immigrant woman are the most excluded category.

Abstract The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of singing-integrated reading instruction on the oral reading fluency and motivation of elementary students in an after school program. Participants were third graders (n = 29) who attended the singing-integrated oral reading fluency (SI ORF) intervention twice a week for eight weeks. Components of the intervention included teacher-modeling of fluent oral reading, oral support, repeated reading and singing activities from a variety of children’s literature, and individual free-time. The adapted Elementary Reading Attitude Survey (ERAS; McKenna & Kear, 1990) measured recreational, academic, and composite reading attitudes. The Qualitative Reading Inventory – 5 (QRI-5; Leslie & Caldwell, 2011) measured the following fluency components: Word Recognition in Isolation (WRI), both Correct Automatic and Total Number Correct, Word Recognition in Context (WRC), and reading rate, calculated as Words per Minute (WPM). Pretests and posttests for components of both assessments were compared using paired-samples t – tests. Data analyses of adapted ERAS mean percentage scores revealed a statistically significant decline in recreational reading attitude, no statistically significant difference in academic reading attitude, and a decline that approached significance in participants’ overall reading attitudes. QRI-5 scores revealed a statistically significant increase from pretest to posttest in WRI Correct Automatic, WRI Total Number Correct, WRC, and reading rate scores. The after-school environment offered a viable option for SI ORF instruction and was free from restraints that can accompany high-stakes testing environments in the traditional school setting. Overall, participants were attentive and enthusiastic, particularly enjoying the singing and repeated lyrics components of the intervention.

[pt] A informação passou a ser vista ao longo do tempo como um insumo importante para a tomada de decisão e para a obtenção de vantagens competitivas pelas empresas. A tecnologia passou a fazer parte do cotidiano das empresas para melhor administrá-la e disseminá-la. Entretanto, nem sempre as organizações adotaram esse caminho de forma planejada. Percebe-se uma confusão no uso de conceitos e de soluções em TI, que se estende para o tema da integração eletrônica da informação. O trabalho consistiu em uma revisão da literatura sobre a integração de sistemas e de dados, verificando-se os conceitos mais comuns, as soluções mais utilizadas e as promessas encontradas. Além disso, realizou-se uma pesquisa de campo, na qual gestores expuseram em entrevistas qualitativas o que acontece na prática sobre o assunto, aludindo a benefícios, problemas e requisitos para o desenvolvimento e adoção de soluções de integração. / [en] Organizations began to see information like an important component for decision making and obtaining above average profits, when well used. Computational tools and communication technologies became common on the quotidian of these organizations. However, those tools and technologies weren`t always adopted through the right way. We notice confusion on the use of concepts and the adoption of solutions on IT and that problem extends to information integration. This work consisted on an intense review of the literature about systems and data integration, verifying most common concepts, most utilized solutions and promises about them. Besides, a field research was realized, which manages showed on qualitative interviews what actually happens about this subject, referring to benefits, problems and requisites for the development and adoption of integration solutions.

Systemintegration hat auf Grund des Einsatzes heterogener Systeme eine fortlaufende Bedeutung für viele Unternehmen und vor allem für Integrationsdienstleister. Die Praxis der Integration stimmt nicht immer mit den aktuellen Forschungsthemen überein. Diese qualitative Erhebung liefert einen Zustandsbericht über Herausforderungen und Probleme denen Integrationsdienstleister täglich begegnen und dient der Identifikation von praxisrelevanten Forschungsfragen.

This work is an attempt to outline prospects of theoretically and practically justified refugees' integration in its initial levels through orientation and education programmes using previous and present positive experience, but also taking into consideration the letter of International Law and Human Rights, moral and ethical perspective, so direct and prospective benefits for all the parties concerned, i.e. the EU, nation-states, communities, citizens, newcomers. The main focus is on multifaceted Orientation, Education, and Training Programmes (OETPs) that are presented as one of the most significant tools of social and structural integration into state's and public spheres. Presence of OETPs is being traced in theoretical framework, political discourse, and practical implementation of integration policies at different levels of the EU realm. There is a stress made on policy design, implementation, and evaluation provided by national governments and local authorities so role of civic sector, activities of UNHCR, and community level enterprises. .