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The problem of tracking radar targets in the low-angle region Where conventional monopulse radars face difficulties due to the presence of multipath waves is considered in this thesis. The emphasis of the presentation is mainly directed towards finding a new simple closed-form solution to the coherent multipath problem over a smooth surface. Another concern is to improve the performance of the three-subapertures maximum-likelihood estimator when the two received signals are in-phase or anti-phase at the centre of the array. The multipath phenomenon and its modelling for smooth and rough surfaces are discussed and simulation results obtained for different surfaces. subsequently the following are treated First. a new four-subapertures technique to improve the in-phase and anti-phase performance of the maximum likelihood estimator above is derived and simulation results are shown. Then. an improved version of this technique is introduced as a part of the new algorithm. Second. a new three-subapertures trigonometric solution to solve the coherent multipath problem is derived and demonstrated by simulation results. This new method is simpler than the maximum likelihood estimator above and very similar in its estimation accuracy. Third. the performance of the maximum entropy method is tested for the coherent multipath problem by using the three-subapertures arrangement of a linear array. Finally the performances of the above three methods and the normal phase monopulse radar are tested and compared to different surfaces when the coherent and noncoherent multipath exist together. Simulation results show that the performances of the maximum entropy method and phase monopulse are much better than the others when the target is low-tlyine over a rough surface.

This work addresses the challenges in design of heat integrated low-temperature separation processes. A novel, systematic and robust methodology is developed, which contributes to the design practice of heat-integrated separation sequence and the refrigeration system in the context of low-temperature separation processes. Moreover, the methodology exploits the interactions between the separation and refrigeration systems systematically in an integrated design context. The synthesis and optimisation of heat-integrated separation processes is complex due to the large number of design options. In this thesis, task representation is applied to the separation system to accommodate both simple and complex distillation columns. The stream conditioning processes are simulated and their associated costs are included in the overall cost of the process. Important design variables in separation systems, such as the separation sequence, type and operating conditions of the separation units (e.g. the operating pressure, feed quality and condenser type) are optimised. Various refrigeration provision strategies, such as expansion of a process stream, pure and mixed multistage refrigeration systems and cascades of multistage refrigeration cycles, are considered in the present work. A novel approach based on refrigeration system database is proposed, which overcomes the complexities and challenges of synthesis and optimisation of refrigeration systems in the context of low-temperature separation processes. The methodology optimises the key design variables in the refrigeration system, including the refrigerant composition, the number of compression stages, the refrigeration and rejection temperature levels, cascading strategy and the partition temperature in multistage cascaded refrigeration systems. The present approach has selected a matrix based approach for assessing the heat integration potentials of separation and refrigeration systems in the screening procedure. Non-isothermal streams are not considered isothermal and stream splitting and heat exchangers in series are taken into account. Moreover, heat integration of reboiler and condenser of a distillation column through an open loop heat pump system can be considered in this work. This work combines an enhanced simulated annealing algorithm with MILP optimisation method and develops a framework for simultaneously optimising different degrees of freedom in the heat integrated separation and refrigeration processes. Case studies extend the approach to the design of heat integrated separation sequences in above ambient temperature processes. The robustness of the developed framework is further demonstrated when it is utilised to design the LNG and ethylene plant fractionation trains.

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Today, large companies specialized in forestry or park maintenance may own very large machine fleets consisting of hundreds of trimmers, chainsaws and brush cutters. Husqvarna Group, whose core business lies within high-end forestry and gardening products, has noticed that such companies tend to buy cheaper, low quality forestry and gardening products. The reason is thought to be that the companies lack a proper overview of the service status and utilization levels of their machines, leading to insufficient service, causing machines to break prematurely and making it hard to motivate investments in more expensive products. Hence, the companies usually adopt a consumerist approach, and buy cheaper products that are thrown away upon breaking. To make their products more attractive to machine park owners, Husqvarna want to explore the area of Internet of Things and equip their machines with sensing and communication capabilities. Collected data could be used to provide an overview of machine usage and service requirements to the machine parks owners, and could make it easier for machine park owners to dimension their machine fleet. In addition to this, a machine monitoring system where specific operator behavior can be tracked could enable identification of operators who consistently mistreat their machines by, for example, running the machine engine at non-optimal rotation speeds. In this master's thesis, a demonstrator of the working principle of a Bluetooth Low Energy based Fleet Service System is designed and implemented, complete with an evaluation of if received signal strength indicator (RSSI) is a good enough distance estimator to determine which operator operates a certain machine.  Experiments carried out indicate that while RSSI is not a good estimator of distance, it could be used to determine the operator in closest proximity given that operators are not allowed to work closer than within a 10 m radius of each other.

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Theoretical part of thesis considers basic information about aviation industry in Czech republic, classification of air transport and airline companies. This part also describes specifics of airline marketing, especially low-cost airline marketing. The thesis follows on with a practical part. There is introduced SmartWings brand and judged marketing activities together with marketing mix. The target of the thesis is to reveal shortcomings in SmartWings marketing activities and to find their solutions.

Zellproliferation stellt einen integralen Bestandteil der Plaqueentstehung und somit der Atherosklerose dar. Zahlreiche Studien belegen, daß oxidativ verändertes LDL eine Schlüsselrolle in diesem Pathomechanismus spielt. Neben einer Reihe von proatherogenen Eigenschaften, vermag oxLDL die Zellzyklusregulation insbesondere über den Zyklinkinaseinhibitors p27kip1 zu beeinflussen. Als wichtigen Regulator der Zellproliferation wurde die kleine GTPase RhoA identifiziert. Vor diesem Hintergrund sollte in der vorliegenden Arbeit die oxLDL induzierte Expressionsminderung des Zyklinkinaseinhibitors p27kip1 sowie Zellproliferation über eine Aktivierung des RhoA/Rho-Kinase Signalwegs untersucht werden. Die Aktivierung von RhoA in HUVEC durch oxLDL sollte mittels immunhistochemischem Nachweisverfahren sichtbar gemacht werden. Weiterhin war interessant welche Rolle RhoA in der Signaltransduktion von oxLDL-Wirkungen spielt. Aus diesem Grund und um die Wirkung von RhoA analysieren zu können verwendeten wir die inaktive RhoA N19-Mutante und untersuchten sowohl die Auswirkung der RhoA-Hemmung auf die oxLDL induzierte Zellproliferation als auch auf die oxLDL induzierte p27kip1 Suppression. Zusätzlich sollten die Auswirkungen der Hemmung des nachgeschalteten Effektorproteins von RhoA nämlich Rho-Kinase mittels Y27632 auf die oxLDL-vermittelte Zellproliferation dargestellt werden. Es konnte gezeigt werden, daß oxLDL RhoA zu stimulieren vermag, indem die Translokation von RhoA aus dem Zytosol in die Plasmamembran, als Marker für die Aktivierung von RhoA nach oxLDL Stimulation sichtbar gemacht werden konnte. Die deutlichste Translokation von RhoA wurde nach 5 minütiger oxLDL Inkubation nachgewiesen. Die Hemmung der RhoA Aktivierung durch Transfektion einer dominant negativen RhoA N19 Mutante verdeutlichte, daß sowohl die oxLDL induzierte p27Kip1 Suppression in HUVEC als auch die oxLDL induzierte Proliferation auf die oxLDL vermittelte RhoA Aktivierung angewiesen sind. In Endothelzellen, welche nur mit dem Leervektor pcDNA3 transfiziert waren (Kontrolle), bestätigte sich nach einer vierstündigen oxLDL Inkubation wie in den früheren Untersuchungen eine signifikante Expressionsverminderung von p27Kip1 um ca. 66%. Im Gegensatz dazu konnte in Zellen, die mit der dominant-negativen RhoA N19 Mutante transfiziert waren keine p27Kip1 Suppression festgestellt werden. Ebenso zeigte sich in MTT-Assays bei Zellen mit der inaktiven RhoA N19 Mutante eine nahezu vollständig fehlende Proliferationsantwort. Im Anschluß daran, wurde in weiteren MTT-Assays die oxLDL induzierte Proliferation unter der Verwendung des Rho-Kinase Inhibitors Y27632 untersucht und eine signifikant reduzierte Proliferationsrate von 166 + 19 % im Vergleich zu Kontrollzellen 200 + 12 % nachgewiesen. Dieses Ergebnis könnte dadurch erklärt werden, daß neben dem nachgeschaltetem Effektorprotein Rho-Kinase, die Phosphatidylinositol 3-Kinase (PI3K) in der RhoA vermittelten p27Kip1 Suppression und Zellzyklusprogression eine zusätzliche Rolle zu spielen scheint. Zusammenfassend läßt sich sagen, daß sowohl die oxLDL induzierte Expressionsverminderung von p27Kip1 in HUVEC und somit die Zellprogression als auch die oxLDL induzierte Endothelproliferation auf die oxLDL vermittelte RhoA Aktivierung angewiesen ist. Diese Ergebnisse aus der vorliegenden Arbeit untermauern, daß der RhoA/Rho-Kinase Signalweg ein neuer therapeutischer bzw. medikamentöser Ansatz bei kardiovaskulären Erkrankungen sein könnte. / A typical feature of atherosclerotic plaques is increased cellular turnover, with the parallel existence of cell proliferation and cell death. Oxodized LDL plays a key role in its pathogenesis. Oxidized LDL induces proliferation in HUVEC. The influence of oxLDL on the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor p27Kip1, on the activity of small GTPase RhoA as a known regulator of p27Kip1, and on the resulting cell proliferation was studied. RhoA stimulation was assessed by means of its translocation from the cytosolic to the particulate fraction, an effect that is associated with RhoA activation. After oxLDL stimulation the translocation of RhoA to the cell membrane was visible after 1 min and peaked after 5 min of stimulation. We next investigated the influence of RhoA activation on oxLDL induced downregulation of p27Kip1 expression and proliferation. RhoA activity was inhibited in HUVEC by transfection with dominant inhibitory RhoA N19 mutant before stimulation with oxLDL. In cells that were transfected with dominant negative RhoA, the effect of oxLDL on p27Kip1 expression and on cellular proliferation was abolished. HUVEC that were preincubated with the Rho-kinase inhibitor Y27632 also showed a significantly decreased proliferative response to oxLDL stimulation. In summary, oxLDL induced cell-cycle progression via regulation of p27Kip1 expression, resulting in cellular proliferation, involving activation of RhoA. This results confirm, that the Rho/Rho signaling pathway could be a new target for the treatment of vascular disease.