The design of a framework to control multiple semi-autonomous mobile robots is presented. The goals are to create a flexible framework that allows easy task reconfiguration for a fleet of mobile robots, and to provide a means of off-loading computationally intensive tasks to a central server. Four major components are specified: controllable devices, application servers, an application directory, and a mobile management system. Remote firmware upgrades via the mobile management system are achieved with the remotely managed operating system framework or RMOS. A prototype was created using field programmable gate arrays and system on a programmable chip technology from Altera. It was built with the application of selective herbicide spraying in mind. Although the prototype was a successful implementation of the designed framework, selective herbicide application was not implemented. A broad-leaf weed detection algorithm using Boltzmann machines was investigated. Its performance was good, but similar to that obtained by a statistical analysis of the input images of a lawn.

The design of a framework to control multiple semi-autonomous mobile robots is presented. The goals are to create a flexible framework that allows easy task reconfiguration for a fleet of mobile robots, and to provide a means of off-loading computationally intensive tasks to a central server. Four major components are specified: controllable devices, application servers, an application directory, and a mobile management system. Remote firmware upgrades via the mobile management system are achieved with the remotely managed operating system framework or RMOS. A prototype was created using field programmable gate arrays and system on a programmable chip technology from Altera. It was built with the application of selective herbicide spraying in mind. Although the prototype was a successful implementation of the designed framework, selective herbicide application was not implemented. A broad-leaf weed detection algorithm using Boltzmann machines was investigated. Its performance was good, but similar to that obtained by a statistical analysis of the input images of a lawn.

Mit der zunehmenden Bedeutung von virtuellen Prototypen in den frühen Phasen der Produktentwicklung wachsen ebenso die an die verwendeten Softwarelösungen gestellten Anforderungen. Sollen unterschiedliche Faktoren wie Funktionalität, Design oder auch Ergonomie getestet werden, so muss die verwendete Software Module bereitstellen, welche die Erstellung von ganzheitlichen Produktmodellen ermöglichen. Zu den benötigten Modulen zählen zum Beispiel Simulation, Grafik, Eingabeschnittstellen oder Sound. Mit der steigenden Komplexität der zu erstellenden Prototypen wächst jedoch auch der Aufwand für die Entwickler und Anwender, sich in diese einzuarbeiten, diese zu konfigurieren und zu verwalten. An dieser Stelle setzt das Forschungsprojekt GENIAC an. Sein Ziel ist es, die Konfiguration von hochkomplexen Software-Frameworks mit Hilfe natürlicher Benutzeroberflächen zu vereinfachen. Hierzu werden die zu untersuchenden Konfigurationen als Netzwerke auf großflächigen Multi-Touch Bildschirmen dargestellt und mittels natürlicher Gestensteuerung bearbeitet.

Mit der zunehmenden Bedeutung von virtuellen Prototypen in den frühen Phasen der Produktentwicklung wachsen ebenso die an die verwendeten Softwarelösungen gestellten Anforderungen. Sollen unterschiedliche Faktoren wie Funktionalität, Design oder auch Ergonomie getestet werden, so muss die verwendete Software Module bereitstellen, welche die Erstellung von ganzheitlichen Produktmodellen ermöglichen. Zu den benötigten Modulen zählen zum Beispiel Simulation, Grafik, Eingabeschnittstellen oder Sound. Mit der steigenden Komplexität der zu erstellenden Prototypen wächst jedoch auch der Aufwand für die Entwickler und Anwender, sich in diese einzuarbeiten, diese zu konfigurieren und zu verwalten. An dieser Stelle setzt das Forschungsprojekt GENIAC an. Sein Ziel ist es, die Konfiguration von hochkomplexen Software-Frameworks mit Hilfe natürlicher Benutzeroberflächen zu vereinfachen. Hierzu werden die zu untersuchenden Konfigurationen als Netzwerke auf großflächigen Multi-Touch Bildschirmen dargestellt und mittels natürlicher Gestensteuerung bearbeitet.

To increase productivity, application developers are using tools that allow them to create higher quality applications faster. One such set of tools, open-source frameworks, allows application developers to reuse software artifacts and should increase application quality. However, given the vast number of open-source frameworks available, users must be able to differentiate among frameworks and select the one best suited for them. In this study, we expand the taxonomy of open-source frameworks and analyze the impact of the framework's characteristics, technical quality, and social pressure on perceived usefulness and continued framework usage intention. Our findings suggest that understandability and flexibility have a significant impact on perceived ease of use, while perceived usefulness is mainly determined by flexibility and efficiency. Our research can be used to understand what influences developers to continue using frameworks and to improve framework development. / viii, 129 leaves : ill. ; 29 cm

Software systems are frequently designed using abstractions that make software verification tractable. Specifically, by choosing meaningful, formal abstractions for interfaces and then designing according to those interfaces, one can verify entire systems according to behavioral predicates. While impractical for systems in general, framework-based software architectures are a type of system for which formal analysis can be beneficial and practical over the life of the system. We present a method to formally analyze behavioral properties of framework-based software with higher-order logic and then demonstrate its utility for a significant, modern system.

Software systems are permanently changed in order to meet new requirements and to adapt them to permanently changing technology. Design modularity decouples design concerns that probably can be changed and in this way facilitates further system changes. Unfortunately, some design concerns, called crosscutting concerns, cannot be modularized using traditional modularization methods and techniques. Modularization of crosscutting concerns is the research subject of the new emerging software engineering paradigm, aspect-oriented analysis and design. However, this paradigm is still not enough mature. It is still unknown, which design patterns developed in the object-oriented paradigm can be adapted for aspect-oriented paradigm and how to transform them from one paradigm to another in a systematic way. Despite the fact that some attempts have been done to solve this problem, the proposed solutions only eliminate crosscutting concerns in object-oriented design patterns, but do not generate pure aspect-oriented patterns. The thesis defines the class of object-oriented design patterns which can be transformed into pure aspect-oriented ones, proposes a systematic procedure for such transformation and investigates properties of resulting patterns from the viewpoint of their applicability in the design of aspect-oriented domain frameworks. This is the main contribution of the research work. The case study methodology has been used for the experimental research of the properties of... [to full text] / Programų sistemos yra dažnai keičiamos, siekiant jas pritaikyti prie pasikeitusių reikalavimų ir dėl nuolat kintančių technologijų. Modulinė sistemos architektūra įgalina nepriklausomus dalykinius turinius realizuoti nepriklausomais ar nedaug vienas nuo kito priklausomais moduliais, kuriuos galima keisti nepriklausomai vienas nuo kito. Tačiau esamomis priemonėmis galima atskirti ne visus turinius. Kai kurie dalykiniai turiniai yra susipynę tarpusavyje ir jų negalima realizuoti savarankiškais moduliais. Šiai problemai spręsti buvo pasiūlyta nauja programų sistemų inžinerijos paradigma – aspektinė paradigma. Tačiau sistemų projektavimo technologija joje kol kas dar nėra pakankamai brandi. Vis dar nėra žinoma, kuriuos objektinio projektavimo šablonus galima panaudoti aspektinėje paradigmoje ir kaip juos transformuoti, keliant iš vienos paradigmos į kitą. Nors keliuose darbuose yra parodoma, kaip objektinių šablonų realizacijas perrašyti aspektinėmis programavimo kalbomis, nė viename iš jų šablonų transformavimo klausimai nebuvo nagrinėti sistemiškai. Šioje disertacijoje nagrinėjami grynieji aspektinio projektavimo šablonai, kurie buvo transformuoti iš objektinių projektavimo šablonų, apibrėžiama sistemiška tokio transformavimo procedūra ir analizuojamas tokių šablonų taikymas aspektiniams dalykiniams karkasams projektuoti. Atskiro atvejo analizės tyrimo metodas disertacijoje yra naudojamas, siekiant išsiaiškinti, kokį poveikį grynieji aspektiniai šablonai padaro aspektinių... [toliau žr. visą tekstą]

Programų sistemos yra dažnai keičiamos, siekiant jas pritaikyti prie pasikeitusių reikalavimų ir dėl nuolat kintančių technologijų. Modulinė sistemos architektūra įgalina nepriklausomus dalykinius turinius realizuoti nepriklausomais ar nedaug vienas nuo kito priklausomais moduliais, kuriuos galima keisti nepriklausomai vienas nuo kito. Tačiau esamomis priemonėmis galima atskirti ne visus turinius. Kai kurie dalykiniai turiniai yra susipynę tarpusavyje ir jų negalima realizuoti savarankiškais moduliais. Šiai problemai spręsti buvo pasiūlyta nauja programų sistemų inžinerijos paradigma – aspektinė paradigma. Tačiau sistemų projektavimo technologija joje kol kas dar nėra pakankamai brandi. Vis dar nėra žinoma, kuriuos objektinio projektavimo šablonus galima panaudoti aspektinėje paradigmoje ir kaip juos transformuoti, keliant iš vienos paradigmos į kitą. Nors keliuose darbuose yra parodoma, kaip objektinių šablonų realizacijas perrašyti aspektinėmis programavimo kalbomis, nė viename iš jų šablonų transformavimo klausimai nebuvo nagrinėti sistemiškai. Šioje disertacijoje nagrinėjami grynieji aspektinio projektavimo šablonai, kurie buvo transformuoti iš objektinių projektavimo šablonų, apibrėžiama sistemiška tokio transformavimo procedūra ir analizuojamas tokių šablonų taikymas aspektiniams dalykiniams karkasams projektuoti. Atskiro atvejo analizės tyrimo metodas disertacijoje yra naudojamas, siekiant išsiaiškinti, kokį poveikį grynieji aspektiniai šablonai padaro aspektinių... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / Software systems are permanently changed in order to meet new requirements and to adapt them to permanently changing technology. Design modularity decouples design concerns that probably can be changed and in this way facilitates further system changes. Unfortunately, some design concerns, called crosscutting concerns, cannot be modularized using traditional modularization methods and techniques. Modularization of crosscutting concerns is the research subject of the new emerging software engineering paradigm, aspect-oriented analysis and design. However, this paradigm is still not enough mature. It is still unknown, which design patterns developed in the object-oriented paradigm can be adapted for aspect-oriented paradigm and how to transform them from one paradigm to another in a systematic way. Despite the fact that some attempts have been done to solve this problem, the proposed solutions only eliminate crosscutting concerns in object-oriented design patterns, but do not generate pure aspect-oriented patterns. The thesis defines the class of object-oriented design patterns which can be transformed into pure aspect-oriented ones, proposes a systematic procedure for such transformation and investigates properties of resulting patterns from the viewpoint of their applicability in the design of aspect-oriented domain frameworks. This is the main contribution of the research work. The case study methodology has been used for the experimental research of the properties of... [to full text]

The demand for higher education has increased dramatically in the last decade. At the same time, institutions have faced continual pressure to reduce costs and increase quality of education, while delivering that education to greater numbers of students. The introduction of software systems such as virtual learning environments, online learning resources and centralised student record systems has become routine in attempts to address these demands. However, these approaches suffer from a variety of limitations: They do not take all stakeholders' needs into account. They do not seek to reduce administrative overheads in academic processes. They do not reflect institution-specific academic policies. They do not integrate readily with other information systems. They are not capable of adequately modelling the complex authorisation roles and organisational structure of a real institution. They are not well suited to rapidly changing policies and requirements. Their implementation is not informed by sound software engineering practises or data architecture design. Crucially, as a consequence of these drawbacks such systems can increase administrative workload for academic staff. This thesis describes the research, development and deployment of a system which seeks to address these limitations, the Module Management System (MMS). MMS is a collaborative web application targeted at streamlining and minimising administrative tasks. MMS encapsulates a number of user-facing tools for tasks including coursework submission and marking, tutorial attendance tracking, exam mark recording and final grade calculation. These tools are supported by a framework which acts as a form of “university operating system”. This framework provides a number of different services including an institution abstraction layer, role-based views and privileges, security policy support integration with external systems.

[pt] Oleodutos têm um papel importante no transporte de petróleo e de seus derivados, pois são a maneira mais eficaz de transportar grandes volumes por longas distâncias. A motivação deste trabalho é que uma parte não negligenciável do preço final de um derivado de petróleo é influenciada pelo custo de transporte. Apesar disso, até onde sabemos, apenas alguns autores trabalharam neste problema específico, a maioria utilizando técnicas de programação inteira. Este trabalho analisa a utilização de técnicas de inteligência artificial, arcabouços de software e simulação discreta orientada a eventos para a construção de planejadores automáticos capazes de lidar com instâncias reais de problemas de transporte em oleodutos. A primeira contribuição dessa tese é a especificação de um novo domínio para problemas de planejamento, denominado PIPESWORLD. Este domínio é inspirado no problema de transporte em oleodutos e especificado em PDDL. Por sua estrutura original, ele foi incorporado ao benchmark oficial da 4th International Planner Competition, evento bi-anual que compara o desempenho de diversos planejadores automáticos de propósito geral. Mesmo sendo uma simplificação do problema original, o PIPESWORLD se mostra um domínio bastante desafiador para o estado da arte dos planejadores. É demonstrado também que problemas de decisão derivados de diversas configurações do Pipesworld são NP-Completos. A segunda contribuição dessa tese é o arcabouço de software PLANSIM. Este framework incorpora uma máquina de busca que pode utilizar diversas estratégias, e define uma estrutura que facilita a construção de planejadores automáticos baseados em busca heurística direta que utilizam como modelo do processo a ser planejado simuladores orientados a eventos discretos. São apresentadas instanciações do PLANSIM para a construção de planejadores para problemas clássicos de como o das Torres de Hanoi e Blocksworld. A terceira contribuição da tese é a instanciação do PLANSIM para a construção de um planejador automático capaz de tratar instâncias reais de planejamento de transporte em oleodutos, denominado PLUMBER 05. A utilização de técnicas de simulação discreta orientada a eventos para a representação do modelo do sistema a ser planejado permite que este seja bastante fiel ao problema original. Isto somado ao uso do PLANSIM facilita a construção de planejadores capazes de lidar com instâncias reais. / [en] Pipelines have an important role in oil and its derivatives transportation, since they are the most effective way to transport high volumes through long distances. The motivation for this work is that a non negligible part of the final price for those products are due to transportation costs. Few authors have addressed this problem, with most of the previous work using integer programming techniques. This work analyses the use of Artificial Intelligence techniques, discrete event simulators and software frameworks for building automated planners that are able to deal with real-world oil pipeline transportation instances. The first contribution of this thesis is the specification of a new planning domain called PIPESWORLD. This domain is inspired by the oil pipeline transportation problem, and is defined in PDDL. Due to its original structure, the PIPESWORLD domain has been incorporated to the 4th International Planning Competition benchmark. Even being a simplification of the original problem, PIPESWORLD instances in the benchmark are challenging to state of art solvers. It is also shown that decision problems based on PIPESWORLD configurations are NP-Hard. The second contribution of this thesis is the PLANSIM opensource framework. This framework incorporates a search engine that may use several different strategies, and defines a structure that facilitates the construction of automated planners based on heuristic forward search that use discrete event simulators as the model for the process to be planned. The third contribution of this thesis is a PLANSIM instantiation that results in an automated planner able to deal with real-world oil pipeline transportation instances, called PLUMBER 2. The use of discrete event simulation techniques for the model of the system to be planned allows this model to be very close to the original problem. This, in conjunction with PLANSIM usage, facilitates the construction of planners that are able to cope with real-world instances.