The performance of commercial Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags is primarily limited by present techniques used for tag antenna design. Currently, industry techniques rely on identifying the RFID tag application (books, clothing, etc.) and then building antenna prototypes of different configurations in order to satisfy minimum read range requirements. However, these techniques inherently lack an electromagnetic basis and are unable to provide a low cost solution to the tag antenna design process. RFID tag performance characteristics (read-range, chip-antenna impedance matching, surrounding environment) can be very complex, and a thorough understanding of the RFID tag antenna design may be gained through an electromagnetic approach in order to reduce the tag antenna size and the overall cost of the RFID system. The research presented in this thesis addresses RFID tag antenna design process for passive RFID tags. With the growing number of applications (inventory, supply-chain, pharmaceuticals, etc), the proposed RFID antenna design process demonstrates procedures to design tag antennas for such applications. Electrical/geometrical properties of the antennas designed were investigated with the help of computer electromagnetic simulations in order to achieve optimal tag performance criteria such as read range, chip-impedance matching, antenna efficiency, etc. Experimental results were performed on the proposed antenna designs to compliment computer simulations and analytical modelling.

[pt] Em planejamento e operação de sistemas de energia elétrica, é necessário realizar diversas avaliações utilizando o algoritmo de fluxo de potência, para obter e monitorar o ponto de operação da rede em estudo. Em sua utilização determinística, devem ser especificados valores de geração e níveis de carga por barra, bem como considerar uma configuração especifica da rede elétrica. Existe, porém, uma restrição evidente em se trabalhar com algoritmo de fluxo de potência determinístico: não há qualquer percepção do impacto gerado por incertezas nas variáveis de entrada que o algoritmo utiliza. O algoritmo de fluxo de potência probabilístico (FPP) visa extrapolar as limitações impostas pelo uso da ferramenta convencional determinística, permitindo a consideração das incertezas de entrada. Obtém-se maior sensibilidade na avaliação dos resultados, visto que possíveis regiões de operação são mais claramente examinadas. Consequentemente, estima-se o risco do sistema funcionar fora de suas condições operativas nominais. Essa dissertação propõe uma metodologia baseada na simulação Monte Carlo (SMC) utilizando técnicas de amostragem por importância via o método de entropia cruzada. Índices de risco para eventos selecionados (e.g., sobrecargas em equipamentos de transmissão) são avaliados, mantendo-se a precisão e flexibilidade permitidas pela SMC convencional, porém em tempo computacional muito reduzido. Ao contrário das técnicas analíticas concebidas para solução do FPP, que visam primordialmente à elaboração de curvas de densidade de probabilidade para as variáveis de saída (fluxos, etc.) e sempre necessitam ter a precisão obtida comparada à SMC, o método proposto avalia somente as áreas das caudas dessas densidades, obtendo resultados com maior exatidão nas regiões de interesse do ponto de vista do risco operativo. O método proposto é aplicado nos sistemas IEEE 14 barras, IEEE RTS e IEEE 118 barras, sendo os resultados obtidos amplamente discutidos. Em todos os casos, há claros ganhos de desempenho computacional, mantendo-se a precisão, quando comparados à SMC convencional. As possíveis aplicações do método e suas derivações futuras também fazem parte da dissertação. / [en] In planning and operation of electric energy systems, it is necessary to perform several evaluations using the power flow algorithm to obtain and monitor the operating point of the network under study. Bearing in mind its deterministic use, generation values and load levels per bus must be specified, as well as a specific configuration of the power network. There is, however, an obvious constraint in running a deterministic power flow tool: there is no perception of the impact produced by uncertainties on the input variables used by the conventional algorithm. The probabilistic power flow (PLF) algorithm aims to solve the limitations imposed by the use of the deterministic conventional tool, allowing the consideration of input uncertainties. Superior sensitivity is obtained in the evaluation of results, as possible regions of operation are more clearly examined. Consequently, the risk of the system operating outside its nominal conditions is duly estimated. This dissertation proposes a methodology based on Monte Carlo simulation (MCS) using importance sampling techniques via the cross-entropy method. Risk indices for selected events (e.g., overloads on transmission equipment) are evaluated, keeping the same accuracy and flexibility tolerable by the conventional MCS, but in much less computational time. Unlike the FPP solution obtained by analytical techniques, which primarily aim at assessing probability density curves for the output variables (flows, etc.) and always need to have the accuracy compared to MCS, the proposed method evaluates only the tail areas of these densities, obtaining results with greater accuracy in the regions of interest from the operational risk point of view. The proposed method is applied to IEEE 14, IEEE RTS and IEEE 118 bus systems, and the results are widely discussed. In all cases, there are clear gains in computational performance, maintaining accuracy when compared to conventional SMC. The possible applications of the method and future developments are also part of the dissertation.

The performance of commercial Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags is primarily limited by present techniques used for tag antenna design. Currently, industry techniques rely on identifying the RFID tag application (books, clothing, etc.) and then building antenna prototypes of different configurations in order to satisfy minimum read range requirements. However, these techniques inherently lack an electromagnetic basis and are unable to provide a low cost solution to the tag antenna design process. RFID tag performance characteristics (read-range, chip-antenna impedance matching, surrounding environment) can be very complex, and a thorough understanding of the RFID tag antenna design may be gained through an electromagnetic approach in order to reduce the tag antenna size and the overall cost of the RFID system. The research presented in this thesis addresses RFID tag antenna design process for passive RFID tags. With the growing number of applications (inventory, supply-chain, pharmaceuticals, etc), the proposed RFID antenna design process demonstrates procedures to design tag antennas for such applications. Electrical/geometrical properties of the antennas designed were investigated with the help of computer electromagnetic simulations in order to achieve optimal tag performance criteria such as read range, chip-impedance matching, antenna efficiency, etc. Experimental results were performed on the proposed antenna designs to compliment computer simulations and analytical modelling.

The performance of commercial Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags is primarily limited by present techniques used for tag antenna design. Currently, industry techniques rely on identifying the RFID tag application (books, clothing, etc.) and then building antenna prototypes of different configurations in order to satisfy minimum read range requirements. However, these techniques inherently lack an electromagnetic basis and are unable to provide a low cost solution to the tag antenna design process. RFID tag performance characteristics (read-range, chip-antenna impedance matching, surrounding environment) can be very complex, and a thorough understanding of the RFID tag antenna design may be gained through an electromagnetic approach in order to reduce the tag antenna size and the overall cost of the RFID system. The research presented in this thesis addresses RFID tag antenna design process for passive RFID tags. With the growing number of applications (inventory, supply-chain, pharmaceuticals, etc), the proposed RFID antenna design process demonstrates procedures to design tag antennas for such applications. Electrical/geometrical properties of the antennas designed were investigated with the help of computer electromagnetic simulations in order to achieve optimal tag performance criteria such as read range, chip-impedance matching, antenna efficiency, etc. Experimental results were performed on the proposed antenna designs to compliment computer simulations and analytical modelling.

[pt] As companhias regionais de distribuição não são autossuficientes em energia elétrica para atender seus clientes, e requerem importar a potência necessária do sistema interligado. No Brasil, elas realizam anualmente o processo de contratação do montante de uso do sistema de transmissão (MUST) para o horizonte dos próximos quatro anos. Essa operação é um exemplo real de tarefa que envolve decisões sob incerteza com elevado impacto na produtividade das empresas distribuidoras e do setor elétrico em geral. O trabalho se torna ainda mais complexo diante da crescente variabilidade associada à geração de energia renovável e à mudança do perfil do consumidor. O MUST é uma variável aleatória, e ser capaz de compreender sua variabilidade é crucial para melhor tomada de decisão. O fluxo de potência probabilístico é uma técnica que mapeia as incertezas das injeções nodais e configuração de rede nos equipamentos de transmissão e, consequentemente, nas potências importadas em cada ponto de conexão com o sistema interligado. Nesta tese, o objetivo principal é desenvolver metodologias baseadas no fluxo de potência probabilístico via simulação Monte Carlo, em conjunto com a técnica da entropia cruzada, para estimar os riscos envolvidos na contratação ótima do MUST. As metodologias permitem a implementação de software comercial para lidar com o algoritmo de fluxo de potência, o que é relevante para sistemas reais de grande porte. Apresenta-se, portanto, uma ferramenta computacional prática que serve aos engenheiros das distribuidoras de energia elétrica. Resultados com sistemas acadêmicos e reais mostram que as propostas cumprem os objetivos traçados, com benefícios na redução dos custos totais no processo de otimização de contratos e dos tempos computacionais envolvidos nas estimativas de risco. / [en] Local power distribution companies are not self-sufficient in electricity to serve their customers, and require importing additional energy supply from the interconnected bulk power systems. In Brazil, they annually carry out the contracting process for the amount of transmission system usage (ATSU) for the next four years. This process is a real example of a task that involves decisions under uncertainty with a high impact on the productivity of the distributions companies and on the electricity sector in general. The task becomes even more complex in face of the increasing variability associated with the generation of renewable energy and the changing profile of the consumer. The ATSU is a random variable, and being able to understand its variability is crucial for better decision making. Probabilistic power flow is a technique that maps the uncertainties of nodal injections and network configuration in the transmission equipment and, consequently, in the imported power at each connection point with the bulk power system. In this thesis, the main objective is to develop methodologies based on probabilistic power flow via Monte Carlo simulation, together with cross entropy techniques, to assess the risks involved in the optimal contracting of the ATSU. The proposed approaches allow the inclusion of commercial software to deal with the power flow algorithm, which is relevant for large practical systems. Thus, a realistic computational tool that serves the engineers of electric distribution companies is presented. Results with academic and real systems show that the proposals fulfill the objectives set, with the benefits of reducing the total costs in the optimization process of contracts and computational times involved in the risk assessments.

[pt] A demanda global por soluções sustentáveis para geração de energia elétrica cresceu rapidamente nas últimas décadas, sendo impulsionada por incentivos fiscais dos governos e investimentos em pesquisa e desenvolvimento de tecnologias. Isso provocou uma crescente inserção de fontes renováveis nas redes elétricas ao redor do mundo, criando novos desafios críticos para as avaliações de desempenho dos sistemas que são potencializados pela intermitência desses recursos energéticos combinada às falhas dos equipamentos de rede. Motivado por esse cenário, esta dissertação aborda a estimativa de risco de inadequação de grandezas elétricas, como ocorrências de sobrecarga em ramos elétricos ou subtensão em barramentos, através do uso do fluxo de potência probabilístico, baseado na simulação Monte Carlo e no método de entropia cruzada. O objetivo é determinar o risco do sistema não atender a critérios operativos, de forma precisa e com eficiência computacional, considerando as incertezas de carga, geração e transmissão. O método é aplicado aos sistemas testes IEEE RTS 79 e IEEE 118 barras, considerando também versões modificadas com a inclusão de uma usina eólica, e os resultados são amplamente discutidos. / [en] The global demand for sustainable solutions for electricity generation has grown rapidly in recent decades, driven by government tax incentives and investments in technology research and development. This caused a growing insertion of renewable sources in power networks around the world, creating new critical challenges for systems performance assessments that are enhanced by the intermittency of these energy resources combined with the failures of network equipment. Motivated by this scenario, this dissertation addresses the estimation of risk of inadequacy of electrical quantities, such as overload occurrences in electrical branches or undervoltage in buses, through the use of probabilistic power flow, based on Monte Carlo simulation and the cross-entropy method. The objective is to determine the risk of the system not meeting operational criteria, precisely and with computational efficiency, considering load, generation and transmission uncertainties. The method is applied to IEEE RTS 79 and IEEE 118 bus test systems, also considering modified versions with the inclusion of a wind power plant, and the results are widely discussed.

近年來隨著法規與市場逐漸的開放，使得券商可以發行衍生性商品的種類也逐漸增加，而在眾多結構型商品中，不少商品其連結標的包含了多資產與路徑相依條款，可以看成投資一藍子股票且具有多個觀察時間的商品，一方面若連結資產上漲投資人將可得到一定的報酬，另外一方面同時具有下方保護的條款可避免本金嚴重虧損。 而此類商品包含了多資產連結且有路徑相依條款，在評價方面是一個高維度的問題，若使用傳統的蒙地卡羅法來評價，因其收斂速度緩慢常需秏費大量的計算時間，使得蒙地卡羅法在應用上有此缺點，一般來說可以使用對立變數法或控制變數法來改進收斂的速度，另外也可以使用低差異性數列即所謂的準蒙地卡羅法來改進收斂速度，並且準蒙地卡羅法與布朗橋結構或主成份分析法相結合還可加快收斂速度。 本文主要提供二種不同報酬型態的商品，第一個商品為低維度上入局商品，其報酬型態與障礙型選擇類似，第二個商品為連結多資產且路徑相依商品，以此兩商品來探討各種不同方法在不同報酬型態下的收斂速度與準確性，最後文中模擬的結果顯示在所有方法中，使用準蒙地卡羅法結合主成份分析法皆可以得到不錯的收斂速度與準確性。

Human activities have increased the concentration of CO2 into the atmosphere, thus it has caused global warming. Construction equipment are semi-stationary machines and spend at least 30% of its life time during idling. The majority of the construction equipment is diesel powered and emits toxic emission into the environment. In this work, the idling will be investigated through adopting several statistical regressions models to quantify the fuel consumption of construction equipment during idling. The regression models which are studied in this work: Multivariate Linear Regression (ML-R), Support Vector Machine Regression (SVM-R), Gaussian Process regression (GP-R), Artificial Neural Network (ANN), Partial Least Square Regression (PLS-R) and Principal Components Regression (PC-R). Findings show that pre-processing has a significant impact on the goodness of the prediction of the explanatory data analysis in this field. Moreover, through mean centering and application of the max-min scaling feature, the accuracy of models increased remarkably. ANN and GP-R had the highest accuracy (99%), PLS-R was the third accurate model (98% accuracy), ML-R was the fourth-best model (97% accuracy), SVM-R was the fifth-best (73% accuracy) and the lowest accuracy was recorded for PC-R (83% accuracy). The second part of this project estimated the CO2 emission based on the fuel used and by adopting the NONROAD2008 model.  Keywords:

The area of formal analysis of cryptographic protocols has been an active one since the mid 80’s. The idea is to verify communication protocols that use encryption to guarantee secrecy and that use authentication of data to ensure security. Formal methods are used in protocol analysis to provide formal proofs of security, and to uncover bugs and security flaws that in some cases had remained unknown long after the original protocol publication, such as the case of the well known Needham-Schroeder Public Key (NSPK) protocol. In this thesis we tackle problems regarding the three main pillars of protocol verification: modelling capabilities, verifiable properties, and efficiency. This thesis is devoted to investigate advanced features in the analysis of cryptographic protocols tailored to the Maude-NPA tool. This tool is a model-checker for cryptographic protocol analysis that allows for the incorporation of different equational theories and operates in the unbounded session model without the use of data or control abstraction. An important contribution of this thesis is relative to theoretical aspects of protocol verification in Maude-NPA. First, we define a forwards operational semantics, using rewriting logic as the theoretical framework and the Maude programming language as tool support. This is the first time that a forwards rewriting-based semantics is given for Maude-NPA. Second, we also study the problem that arises in cryptographic protocol analysis when it is necessary to guarantee that certain terms generated during a state exploration are in normal form with respect to the protocol equational theory. We also study techniques to extend Maude-NPA capabilities to support the verification of a wider class of protocols and security properties. First, we present a framework to specify and verify sequential protocol compositions in which one or more child protocols make use of information obtained from running a parent protocol. Second, we present a theoretical framework to specify and verify protocol indistinguishability in Maude-NPA. This kind of properties aim to verify that an attacker cannot distinguish between two versions of a protocol: for example, one using one secret and one using another, as it happens in electronic voting protocols. Finally, this thesis contributes to improve the efficiency of protocol verification in Maude-NPA. We define several techniques which drastically reduce the state space, and can often yield a finite state space, so that whether the desired security property holds or not can in fact be decided automatically, in spite of the general undecidability of such problems. / Santiago Pinazo, S. (2015). Advanced Features in Protocol Verification: Theory, Properties, and Efficiency in Maude-NPA [Tesis doctoral]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/48527

Tesis por compendio / [ES] La herramienta criptográfica Maude-NPA es un verificador de modelos especializado para protocolos de seguridad criptográficos que tienen en cuenta las propiedades algebraicas de un sistema criptográfico. En la literatura, las propiedades criptográficas adicionales han descubierto debilidades de los protocolos de seguridad y, en otros casos, son parte de los supuestos de seguridad del protocolo para funcionar correctamente. Maude-NPA tiene una base teórica en la rewriting logic, la unificación ecuacional y el narrowing para realizar una búsqueda hacia atrás desde un patrón de estado inseguro para determinar si es alcanzable o no. Maude-NPA se puede utilizar para razonar sobre una amplia gama de propiedades criptográficas, incluida la cancelación del cifrado y descifrado, la exponenciación de Diffie-Hellman, el exclusive-or y algunas aproximaciones del cifrado homomórfico. En esta tesis consideramos nuevas propiedades criptográficas, ya sea como parte de protocolos de seguridad o para descubrir nuevos ataques. También hemos modelado diferentes familias de protocolos de seguridad, incluidos los Distance Bounding Protocols or Multi-party key agreement protocolos. Y hemos desarrollado nuevas técnicas de modelado para reducir el coste del análisis en protocolos con tiempo y espacio. Esta tesis contribuye de varias maneras al área de análisis de protocolos criptográficos y muchas de las contribuciones de esta tesis pueden ser útiles para otras herramientas de análisis criptográfico. / [CA] L'eina criptografica Maude-NPA es un verificador de models especialitzats per a protocols de seguretat criptogràfics que tenen en compte les propietats algebraiques d'un sistema criptogràfic. A la literatura, les propietats criptogràfiques addicionals han descobert debilitats dels protocols de seguretat i, en altres casos, formen part dels supòsits de seguretat del protocol per funcionar correctament. Maude-NPA te' una base teòrica a la rewriting lògic, la unificació' equacional i narrowing per realitzar una cerca cap enrere des d'un patró' d'estat insegur per determinar si es accessible o no. Maude-NPA es pot utilitzar per raonar sobre una amplia gamma de propietats criptogràfiques, inclosa la cancel·lació' del xifratge i desxifrat, l'exponenciacio' de Diffie-Hellman, el exclusive-or i algunes aproximacions del xifratge homomòrfic. En aquesta tesi, considerem noves propietats criptogràfiques, ja sigui com a part de protocols de seguretat o per descobrir nous atacs. Tambe' hem modelat diferents famílies de protocols de seguretat, inclosos els Distance Bounding Protocols o Multi-party key agreement protocols. I hem desenvolupat noves tècniques de modelització' de protocols per reduir el cost de l'analisi en protocols amb temps i espai. Aquesta tesi contribueix de diverses maneres a l’àrea de l’anàlisi de protocols criptogràfics i moltes de les contribucions d’aquesta tesi poden ser útils per a altres eines d’anàlisi criptogràfic. / [EN] The Maude-NPA crypto tool is a specialized model checker for cryptographic security protocols that take into account the algebraic properties of the cryptosystem. In the literature, additional crypto properties have uncovered weaknesses of security protocols and, in other cases, they are part of the protocol security assumptions in order to function properly. Maude-NPA has a theoretical basis on rewriting logic, equational unification, and narrowing to perform a backwards search from an insecure state pattern to determine whether or not it is reachable. Maude-NPA can be used to reason about a wide range of cryptographic properties, including cancellation of encryption and decryption, Diffie-Hellman exponentiation, exclusive-or, and some approximations of homomorphic encryption. In this thesis, we consider new cryptographic properties, either as part of security protocols or to discover new attacks. We have also modeled different families of security protocols, including Distance Bounding Protocols or Multi-party key agreement protocols. And we have developed new protocol modeling techniques to reduce the time and space analysis effort. This thesis contributes in several ways to the area of cryptographic protocol analysis and many of the contributions of this thesis can be useful for other crypto analysis tools. / This thesis would not have been possible without the funding of a set of research projects. The main contributions and derivative works of this thesis have been made in the context of the following projects: - Ministry of Economy and Business of Spain : Project LoBaSS Effective Solutions Based on Logic, Scientific Research under award number TIN2015-69175-C4-1-R, this project was focused on using powerful logic-based technologies to analyze safety-critical systems. - Air Force Office of Scientific Research of United States of America : Project Advanced symbolic methods for the cryptographic protocol analyzer Maude-NPA Scientific Research under award number FA9550-17-1-0286 - State Investigation Agency of Spain : Project FREETech: Formal Reasoning for Enabling and Emerging Technologies Scientific I+D-i Research under award number RTI2018-094403-B-C32 / Aparicio Sánchez, D. (2022). Modeling and Analysis of Advanced Cryptographic Primitives and Security Protocols in Maude-NPA [Tesis doctoral]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/190915 / Compendio