Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio State University, 2007. / Title from first page of PDF file. Includes bibliographical references (p. 261-267).

Thesis (M.Env.Sc.-Res.)--University of Wollongong, 2007. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references: leaf 99-104.

A redução de custo com telefonia através do uso de voz sobre IP tem disparado a busca de soluções que transformem redes IP originalmente dedicadas a transporte de dados em redes para transporte de voz. Esta dissertação tem por objetivo apresentar uma metodologia para sistematizar a avaliação de redes para o tráfego de voz sobre IP de acordo com as possibilidades disponíveis no cenário a ser avaliado. Inicialmente é dada uma visão geral de voz sobre IP, apresentando os protocolos utilizados, os fatores que influenciam na qualidade da voz e os métodos de avaliação de qualidade da voz. Na seqüência são apresentados trabalhos correlatos a avaliação de qualidade de aplicações de voz sobre IP. E por fim descreve-se a proposta de uma metodologia para sistematizar a avaliação de redes com VoIP. / The use of voice over IP telephony was started with solutions to adapt existent data networks to carrier voice streams. The use of monitoring techniques, QoS and signaling protocols can be combined on a such design. Our goal is to present a methodology to evaluate and choose the probing points and the voice quality evaluation techniques to be used in network redesign. An overview about VoIP protocols and parameters that change the voice quality are presented as well as some related works on evaluating voice quality based on network parameters. A proposed methodology is presented, with a case study to show how one can choose the right combination of probing points with some voice quality measurement technique.

A redução de custo com telefonia através do uso de voz sobre IP tem disparado a busca de soluções que transformem redes IP originalmente dedicadas a transporte de dados em redes para transporte de voz. Esta dissertação tem por objetivo apresentar uma metodologia para sistematizar a avaliação de redes para o tráfego de voz sobre IP de acordo com as possibilidades disponíveis no cenário a ser avaliado. Inicialmente é dada uma visão geral de voz sobre IP, apresentando os protocolos utilizados, os fatores que influenciam na qualidade da voz e os métodos de avaliação de qualidade da voz. Na seqüência são apresentados trabalhos correlatos a avaliação de qualidade de aplicações de voz sobre IP. E por fim descreve-se a proposta de uma metodologia para sistematizar a avaliação de redes com VoIP. / The use of voice over IP telephony was started with solutions to adapt existent data networks to carrier voice streams. The use of monitoring techniques, QoS and signaling protocols can be combined on a such design. Our goal is to present a methodology to evaluate and choose the probing points and the voice quality evaluation techniques to be used in network redesign. An overview about VoIP protocols and parameters that change the voice quality are presented as well as some related works on evaluating voice quality based on network parameters. A proposed methodology is presented, with a case study to show how one can choose the right combination of probing points with some voice quality measurement technique.

Le GNSS est actuellement présent dans de nombreux domaines et permet le positionnement et la navigation. Parmi ces domaines, l’aviation civile a besoin d’une qualité de service élevée, notamment pendant les phases de vol les plus exigeantes en termes d’intégrité, de précision, de disponibilité et de continuité. Afin de satisfaire ces exigences, toutes les sources de dégradations potentielles du service doivent être prises en compte. Les distorsions des signaux GNSS générées par la charge utile du satellite sont un exemple de problème qui doit être pris en compte par l’aviation civile. Elles peuvent se manifester de deux manières différentes: les distorsions nominales générées par les satellites en fonctionnement normal et les distorsions non nominales générées lors d’une panne de la charge utile. Tout d’abord, cette thèse aborde le problème des déformations nominales affectant les signaux GPS L1 C/A et Galileo E1C. Différentes observations sont réalisées à partir de la visualisation de la fonction de corrélation ou du signal et par l’utilisation d’antennes à haut gain et d’une antenne omnidirectionnelle. Après l’observation des distorsions nominales, cette thèse aborde le sujet des distorsions non nominales du signal. En utilisant les travaux réalisés dans le passé par l’aviation civile dans le cadre du signal GPS L1 C/A, le but est de proposer de nouveaux modèles de distorsions associés aux nouveaux signaux GPS et Galileo qui vont être utilisés par l’aviation civile après 2020. Dans cette optique, de nouveaux modèles de menace (appelés TMs) pour les nouveaux signaux (GPS L5 et Galileo E5a et E1C) sont proposés. La dernière étape de cette thèse se focalise sur l’étude d’une technique capable de protéger un utilisateur de l’aviation civile contre les TMs proposés pour les nouveaux signaux. Cette technique appelée SQM est aujourd’hui implémentée dans les systèmes GBAS et SBAS pour détecter les distorsions de la fonction de corrélation dans le cadre des signaux GPS L1 C/A. / GNSS is used nowadays in various fields for navigation and positioning including safety -of-life applications. Among these applications is civil aviation that requires a very high quality of service for the most demanding phases of flight in terms of integrity, accuracy, availability and continuity. To meet these requirements any source of potential service degradations has to be accounted for. One such example is GNSS signal distortions due to the satellite payload which can manifest in two ways: nominal distortions that are generated by healthy satellites due to payload imperfections and nonnominal distortions that are triggered by a satellite payload failure. The thesis first looks at the nominal distortions through GPS L1 C/A and Galileo E1C signals. Different types of observations are used based on correlation or chip domain visualization, and using high-gain and omnidirectional antennas. After the observation of nominal distortions, the dissertation investigates the non-nominal distortions due to the payload failure. Supported by the groundwork performed by civil aviation on signal distortion for the GPS L1 C/A signal, this dissertation aims at proposing new distortions models associated to the new GPS and Galileo signals that will be used by civil aviation after 2020. In particular, new TMs for new signals (GPS L5, Galileo E5a and Galileo E1C) are proposed. Finally, in this dissertation is built an appropriate monitor, referred to as SQM that is able to detect any distortion from the proposed TMs (for new signals) that could lead to a position integrity failure. Regarding GPS L1 C/A signal monitoring, such SQM is today implemented in GNSS augmentation systems including GBAS and SBAS. The current monitors are based on the analysis of the correlation function.

Neste trabalho é proposto e avaliado um sistema capaz de monitorar de forma não-destrutiva, não-invasiva, individualizada, em tempo real e em ambiente industrial, a qualidade de soldas produzidas através do processo de solda a ponto resistiva (PSPR), diminuindo ou mesmo eliminando a necessidade dos testes destrutivos, reduzindo custos e aumentando a produtividade. Este sistema de monitoramento é baseado em reconhecimento de padrões, através de redes neurais artificiais do tipo Perceptron multicamadas. As características do processo usadas na entrada da rede neural são os parâmetros ajustados de um modelo matemático parametrizável, criado com o intuito de refletir as propriedades fundamentais da grandeza do processo passível de ser medida e monitorada em tempo real, neste caso a curva de resistência dinâmica. Estes valores ajustados dos parâmetros do modelo são ainda relacionados com os estados ou condições do processo, de forma a permitir a identificação de possíveis causas para falhas detectadas. Para avaliar e validar este sistema, usaram-se dados reais obtidos na produção de lotes de contatos elétricos através do PSPR. Os resultados obtidos mostram que o sistema proposto é capaz de monitorar satisfatoriamente a qualidade do processo investigado, com erro médio quadrático de 16,5 N, na estimação da força de cisalhamento suportada pela solda, no pior caso. O sistema também mostrou-se capaz de identificar a causa para soldas cuja qualidade estimada foi considerada baixa, com taxa de acerto acima de 97%. Esse sistema proposto não contém especificidades de nenhum processo produtivo e, portanto, tem potencial para ser aplicado em outros processos, além do PSPR. / In this work a non-destructive, non-invasive, individualized, real-time system has been proposed and evaluated to monitor the quality of welds produced by resistance spot welding process (RSWP) in industrial environment. This system is able to reduce or eliminate the need for destructive tests, leading to cost reduction and increase in productivity. This monitoring system is based on pattern recognition with multilayer Perceptron artificial neural networks (ANN). The process features used as input of the ANN are adjusted parameters of a parametric mathematic model created to reflect the fundamental properties of the process variable that is measurable in real time, in this work, the dynamic resistance curve. The adjustable model parameters values are related with the process states and conditions, so that it is possible to identify the causes for detected bad quality. In order to evaluate and validate the proposed system, real data obtained in the production of electric contacts by RSWP were used. The results show that the proposed system is capable of properly monitoring the investigated process quality, with a mean square error of 16.5 N, in the estimation of the shear force supported by the weld, in the worst case. The system proved to be able to identify the causes for detected bad quality, with a reliability of more than 97%. The proposed system contains no productive process specificities, and, therefore, can be applied to other processes.

A redução de custo com telefonia através do uso de voz sobre IP tem disparado a busca de soluções que transformem redes IP originalmente dedicadas a transporte de dados em redes para transporte de voz. Esta dissertação tem por objetivo apresentar uma metodologia para sistematizar a avaliação de redes para o tráfego de voz sobre IP de acordo com as possibilidades disponíveis no cenário a ser avaliado. Inicialmente é dada uma visão geral de voz sobre IP, apresentando os protocolos utilizados, os fatores que influenciam na qualidade da voz e os métodos de avaliação de qualidade da voz. Na seqüência são apresentados trabalhos correlatos a avaliação de qualidade de aplicações de voz sobre IP. E por fim descreve-se a proposta de uma metodologia para sistematizar a avaliação de redes com VoIP. / The use of voice over IP telephony was started with solutions to adapt existent data networks to carrier voice streams. The use of monitoring techniques, QoS and signaling protocols can be combined on a such design. Our goal is to present a methodology to evaluate and choose the probing points and the voice quality evaluation techniques to be used in network redesign. An overview about VoIP protocols and parameters that change the voice quality are presented as well as some related works on evaluating voice quality based on network parameters. A proposed methodology is presented, with a case study to show how one can choose the right combination of probing points with some voice quality measurement technique.

The focus of this project was to investigate the use of interdigitated electrodes (IDEs) as impedimetric ion-selective chemical sensors for the determination of several important analytes found within a freshwater aquarium. The overall aim of this research was to work towards a prototype sensing device that could eventually be developed into a commercial product for sale to aquarium owners. Polyvinyl chloride and sol-gels containing commercially-available ionophores for four aquarium-significant ions (NH4+, NO2-, NO3- and pH) were prepared and investigated for use within polymeric ion-selective membranes. Three separate IDE transducers were produced using either photolithography or screen-printing microfabrication techniques. A sinusoidal voltage was applied to the IDEs and an LCR meter was used to measure changes in the conductance and capacitance of the ion-selective membrane layer deposited over the electrode digits. Each ionophore, when tested within potentiometric ion-selective electrodes (ISEs), was found to be suitable for further investigation within IDE devices. Sol-gels were investigated as a potential membrane material for a coated wire electrode; however, poor response characteristics were observed. An IDE sensor fabricated in-house using lift-off photolithography and spin-coated with a polymeric membrane was found to produce non-selective responses caused by changes in the conductivity of the test solution. IDE devices with reduced geometric parameters were purchased and coated with a selective polymeric membrane. When the membrane was spin-coated, non-selective responses were observed; therefore, drop-coating of the membrane material was investigated. This initially resulted in an unacceptably long response time; however, this effect was reduced by decreasing the membrane solution viscosity prior to drop-coating. A fully-screen printed carbon IDE device was fabricated by incorporating the ionophore into a support matrix based on a commercial dielectric paste. Matrix interferences to the sensor response were reduced by printing ‘build-up’ layers over the sensing area prior to the ion-selective membrane. Two novel routes for monitoring the water quality of an aquarium, using IDE sensors fabricated by either photolithography or screen-printing, have been demonstrated. Due to the commercial aspect of this project, it is important to consider the final cost of producing these sensors. Both of the techniques used to produce ion-selective sensors require further experimentation to optimise the sensor response, prior to integration within a multi-analyte sensing prototype.

The thesis is focused on specifics of quality and customer satisfaction in health care. The theoretical part of the thesis summarizes the status of this issue in the literature; it compares theoretical approaches to quality that are generally applied and approaches that are recommended by authors for the health care sector. This part uses the Czech and foreign literature. The practical part of the thesis provides an overview of a current state of health care facilities, presents characteristics of the society where the research was conducted and its products. A satisfaction customer research is presented on a concrete example of a private eye care facility. Outcomes of the research are analyzed. Data obtained by the analysis are synthesized, the conclusion is made and further actions are suggested.

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