Low-cost GNSS receivers have recently been gaining reliability as good candidates for ionospheric studies. In line with these gains are genuine concerns about improving the performance of these receivers. In this work...Low-cost GNSS receivers have recently been gaining reliability as good candidates for ionospheric studies. In line with these gains are genuine concerns about improving the performance of these receivers. In this work, we present a comprehensive investigation of the performances of two antennas(the u-blox ANN-MB and the TOPGNSS TOP-106) used on a low-cost GNSS receiver known as the u-blox ZED-F9P. The two antennas were installed on two identical and co-located u-blox receivers. Data used from both receivers cover the period from January to June 2022. Results from the study indicate that the signal strengths are dominantly greater for the receiver with the TOPGNSS antenna than for the receiver with the ANN-MB antenna, implying that the TOPGNSS antenna is better than the ANN-MB antenna in terms of providing greater signal strengths. Summarily, the TOPGNSS antenna also performed better in minimizing the occurrence of cycle slips on phase TEC measurements. There are no conspicuous differences between the variances(computed as 5-min standard deviations) of phase TEC measurements for the two antennas, except for a period around May-June when the TOPGNSS gave a better performance in terms of minimizing the variances in phase TEC. Remarkably, the ANN-MB antenna gave a better performance than the TOPGNSS antenna in terms of minimizing the variances in pseudorange TEC for some satellite observations. For precise horizontal(North and East) positioning, the receiver with the TOPGNSS antenna gave better results, while the receiver with the ANN-MB antenna gave better vertical(Up) positioning. The errors for the receivers of both antennas are typically within about 5 m(the monthly mean was usually smaller than 1 m) in the horizontal direction and within about 10 m(the monthly mean was usually smaller than 4 m) in the vertical direction.展开更多
Unmanned and aerial systems as interactors among different system components for communications,have opened up great opportunities for truth data discovery in Mobile Crowd Sensing(MCS)which has not been properly solve...Unmanned and aerial systems as interactors among different system components for communications,have opened up great opportunities for truth data discovery in Mobile Crowd Sensing(MCS)which has not been properly solved in the literature.In this paper,an Unmanned Aerial Vehicles-supported Intelligent Truth Discovery(UAV-ITD)scheme is proposed to obtain truth data at low-cost communications for MCS.The main innovations of the UAV-ITD scheme are as follows:(1)UAV-ITD scheme takes the first step in employing UAV joint Deep Matrix Factorization(DMF)to discover truth data based on the trust mechanism for an Information Elicitation Without Verification(IEWV)problem in MCS.(2)This paper introduces a truth data discovery scheme for the first time that only needs to collect a part of n data samples to infer the data of the entire network with high accuracy,which saves more communication costs than most previous data collection schemes,where they collect n or kn data samples.Finally,we conducted extensive experiments to evaluate the UAV-ITD scheme.The results show that compared with previous schemes,our scheme can reduce estimated truth error by 52.25%–96.09%,increase the accuracy of workers’trust evaluation by 0.68–61.82 times,and save recruitment costs by 24.08%–54.15%in truth data discovery.展开更多
For the last two decades,low-cost Global Navigation Satellite System(GNSS)receivers have been used in various applications.These receivers are mini-size,less expensive than geodetic-grade receivers,and in high demand....For the last two decades,low-cost Global Navigation Satellite System(GNSS)receivers have been used in various applications.These receivers are mini-size,less expensive than geodetic-grade receivers,and in high demand.Irrespective of these outstanding features,low-cost GNSS receivers are potentially poorer hardwares with internal signal processing,resulting in lower quality.They typically come with low-cost GNSS antenna that has lower performance than their counterparts,particularly for multipath mitigation.Therefore,this research evaluated the low-cost GNSS device performance using a high-rate kinematic survey.For this purpose,these receivers were assembled with an Inertial Measurement Unit(IMU)sensor,which actively transmited data on acceleration and orientation rate during the observation.The position and navigation parameter data were obtained from the IMU readings,even without GNSS signals via the U-blox F9R GNSS/IMU device mounted on a vehicle.This research was conducted in an area with demanding conditions,such as an open sky area,an urban environment,and a shopping mall basement,to examine the device’s performance.The data were processed by two approaches:the Single Point Positioning-IMU(SPP/IMU)and the Differential GNSS-IMU(DGNSS/IMU).The Unscented Kalman Filter(UKF)was selected as a filtering algorithm due to its excellent performance in handling nonlinear system models.The result showed that integrating GNSS/IMU in SPP processing mode could increase the accuracy in eastward and northward components up to 68.28%and 66.64%.Integration of DGNSS/IMU increased the accuracy in eastward and northward components to 93.02%and 93.03%compared to the positioning of standalone GNSS.In addition,the positioning accuracy can be improved by reducing the IMU noise using low-pass and high-pass filters.This application could still not gain the expected position accuracy under signal outage conditions.展开更多
The development of this technology has favored the advances noted in recent years in the field of precise positioning. It has also paved the way for a wide range of research into the evaluation of their performance an...The development of this technology has favored the advances noted in recent years in the field of precise positioning. It has also paved the way for a wide range of research into the evaluation of their performance and reliability, their potential use in different fields, the improvement of performance and combined systems, etc. Single-frequency GNSS receivers, which for a long time remained the only category of low-cost GNSS receivers, often limited by their level of accuracy (metric) mainly due to their single-frequency nature, have been joined in the last decade by dual-frequency GNSS receivers developed by certain manufacturers of positioning equipment. These receivers now offer possible alternatives to the relatively expensive conventional (topographic quality) or geodetic receivers and. In this study, the performance of these low-cost dual-frequency receivers was evaluated in static and real-time kinematic GNSS positioning modes. Static positioning was carried out on three points with sessions of 2 h and 4 h over three days with antenna swapping (CHC i50, Leica GS14 and Emlid Reach RS2+). Real-time observations were carried out on eleven (11) points in open, poorly open and not at all open environments, in order to assess not only performance but also receiver sensitivity in environments with a high risk of multipath. The results obtained showed an average agreement of 2 cm in planimetry between the low-cost Emlid RS2+ receiver and the Leica GS14 and CHC i50 receivers. The differences in altimetry are nevertheless greater (sometimes up to decimetres for certain points). Real-time positioning results provided an average convergence of around 1 cm on the E, N and H components with the results from the low-cost Emlid Reach RS2+ and Ublox ZED-F9P receivers and the CHC i50 receiver. Analysis of the results obtained has enabled us to highlight the various issues and challenges associated with this new generation of GNSS receivers, with a view to enhancing their appropriation and optimal integration in the professional and research worlds.展开更多
A newly developed low-pressure expendable pattern casting (LP-EPC) process was introduced and its basic principles or effect factors were further analyzed. According to theoretical calculation and experimental results...A newly developed low-pressure expendable pattern casting (LP-EPC) process was introduced and its basic principles or effect factors were further analyzed. According to theoretical calculation and experimental results, the major casting parameters that are of great and critical importance on the process include pressure and flux of filling gas, decomposition characteristic and density of foam pattern, thickness and permeability of coating, pouring temperature, vacuum degree and their combination. Most of casting defects can be effectively avoided by choosing the suitable parameters. The success achieved in pouring motor housing and exhaust manifold castings demonstrates the advantages of LP-EPC process in the production of high-complicated castings with high dimension accuracy.展开更多
Aiming at the cracking phenomenon of the thin shell mould in the expendable pattern shell casting during the pattern removing process, some systemic researches are presented.The influence of the pattern removing metho...Aiming at the cracking phenomenon of the thin shell mould in the expendable pattern shell casting during the pattern removing process, some systemic researches are presented.The influence of the pattern removing method and temperature on the pattern removing were investigated.The shell mould cracking mechanism was analyzed by using thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA), and combining the temperature field and the volume change of the expanded polystyrene (EPS) foam pattern being tested.The results indicated that the shell mould was not easily cracked when the pattern removing process was carried out with the furnace being heated little by little because of the shell slowly shrinking with dehydration and shell strength gradually increasing.The shell mould was soon destroyed when it was set directly into the furnace at above 400 oC because of the thin shell mould rapidly shrinking and the foam pattern hindering.However, the shell mould had no cracking when it had been preheated for a long time even if the furnace temperature was above 400 oC and the shell was put into the furnace directly.Moreover, when the shell mould was directly set into the furnace at lower temperatures, 250 to 300 ℃, the shell would shrink slowly and the foam pattern would stay at the maximum expansion stage temperature of 100 to 110 ℃ for a long time; and the shell mould would experience an expansion force from the foam pattern for a long time.The expansion force is related to the pattern removing temperature, holding time, foam pattern thickness and density.Therefore, the foam pattern with higher density could make the shell crack.展开更多
This paper analysis the developing of expendable conductivity temperature depth measuring system(XCTD)and introduce its principle of measuring about temperature,salinity and depth of ocean.Some key techniques are put ...This paper analysis the developing of expendable conductivity temperature depth measuring system(XCTD)and introduce its principle of measuring about temperature,salinity and depth of ocean.Some key techniques are put forward.According to the real needs of XCTD,conductivity sensor with high sensitivity is designed by principle of electromagnetic induce,the ocean conductivity from induced electromotive force has been calculated.Adding temperature correction circuit would help to reduce error of conductivity measurement because of sharply changing temperature.Advanced temperature measuring circuit of high precision and the constant current source is used to weaken effect of self-heating of resistance and fluctuation of the source.On respect of remote data transmission,LVDS is a good choice for the purpose of guarantee the quality of data transmitted and the transmission distance is reaching to thousand meters in the seawater.Modular programming method is also brought into this research aimed at improve the stability,reliability and maintainability of the whole measuring system.In February,2015,the trials in South China Sea demonstrate that the developed XCTD realize effective measurement at a speed of 6 knots and detection depth at 800 m.The consistency coefficient of the acquired data is greater than 0.99 and the success rate of probe launching is above 90%.展开更多
The combination of magnesium alloys with the low-pressure expendable pattern casting(LP-EPC) process would bright future for application of magnesium alloys. The researches are focused on the effect of process paramet...The combination of magnesium alloys with the low-pressure expendable pattern casting(LP-EPC) process would bright future for application of magnesium alloys. The researches are focused on the effect of process parameters on the internal casting quality of magnesium alloy parts. AZ91D magnesium alloy castings were produced for different combinations of the LP-EPC process parameters. Specifically,pouring temperature,vacuum,filling velocity and coupling action of these factors were manipulated to observe their effect on the casting porosity and density distribution. The results indicate that the pouring temperature with LP-EPC process is lower than it in gravity casting. The selected process parameters,such as vacuum,filling velocity and coupled modes of them,must ensure melt metal flowing front profile exhibiting smooth and convex shape. The optimal process parameters for the castings are pouring temperature 983-1 023 K,vacuum 0.02-0.03 MPa,filling velocity 60-95 mm/s,and simultaneous filling with sucking.展开更多
To refine the microstructure and improve the mechanical properties of AZ91 D alloy by expendable pattern shell casting(EPSC),the mechanical vibration method was applied in the solidification process of the alloy.The e...To refine the microstructure and improve the mechanical properties of AZ91 D alloy by expendable pattern shell casting(EPSC),the mechanical vibration method was applied in the solidification process of the alloy.The effects of amplitude and pouring temperature on microstructure and mechanical properties of AZ91 D magnesium alloy were studied.The results indicated that the mechanical vibration remarkably improved the sizes,morphologies and distributions of the primaryα-Mg phase andβ-Mg17 Al12 phase,and the densification and tensile properties of the AZ91 D alloy.With an increase in amplitude,the microstructures were gradually refined,resulting in a continuous increase in mechanical properties of the AZ91 D alloy.While,with the increase of pouring temperature,the microstructures were continuously coarsened,leading to an obvious decrease of the mechanical properties.The tensile strength and yield strength of the AZ91 D alloy with a vibration amplitude of 1.0 mm and a pouring temperature of 730℃were 60%and 38%higher than those of the alloy without vibration,respectively.展开更多
The lithium-sulfur(Li-S)battery with an ultrahigh theoretical energy density has emerged as a promising rechargeable battery system.However,the practical applications of Li-S batteries are severely plagued by the slug...The lithium-sulfur(Li-S)battery with an ultrahigh theoretical energy density has emerged as a promising rechargeable battery system.However,the practical applications of Li-S batteries are severely plagued by the sluggish reaction kinetics of sulfur species and notorious shuttling of soluble lithium polysulfides(LiPSs)intermediates that result in low sulfur utilization.The introduction of functional layers on separators has been considered as an effective strategy to improve the sulfur utilization in Li-S batteries by achieving effective regulation of LiPSs.Herein,a promising self-assembly strategy is proposed to achieve the low-cost fabrication of hollow and hierarchically porous Fe_(3)O_(4)nanospheres(p-Fe_(3)O_(4)-NSs)assembled by numerous extremely-small primary nanocrystals as building blocks.The rationally-designed p-Fe_(3)O_(4)-NSs are utilized as a multifunctional layer on the separator with highly efficient trapping and conversion features toward LiPSs.Results demonstrate that the nanostructured p-Fe_(3)O_(4)-NSs provide chemical adsorption toward LiPSs and kinetically promote the mutual transformation between LiPSs and Li_(2)S_(2)/Li_(2)S during cycling,thus inhibiting the LiPSs shuttling and boosting the redox reaction kinetics via a chemisorption-catalytic conversion mechanism.The enhanced wettability of the p-Fe_(3)O_(4)-NSs-based separator with the electrolyte enables fast transportation of lithium ions.Benefitting from these alluring properties,the functionalized separator with p-Fe_(3)O_(4)-NSs endows the battery with an admirable rate performance of 877 mAh g^(−1)at 2 C,an ultra-durable cycling performance of up to 2176 cycles at 1 C,and a promising areal capacity of 4.55 mAh cm^(−2)under high-sulfur-loading and lean-electrolyte conditions(4.29 mg cm^(−2),electrolyte/ratio:8μl mg^(−1)).This study will offer fresh insights on the rational design and low-cost fabrication of multifunctional separator to strengthen electrochemical reaction kinetics by regulating LiPSs conversion for developing efficient and long-life Li-S batteries.展开更多
When firefighters search inside a building that is at risk of collapse due to abandonment or disasters such as fire,they use old architectural drawings or a simple monitoring method involving a video device attached t...When firefighters search inside a building that is at risk of collapse due to abandonment or disasters such as fire,they use old architectural drawings or a simple monitoring method involving a video device attached to a robot.However,using these methods,the disaster situation inside a building at risk of collapse is difficult to detect and identify.Therefore,we investigate the generation of digital maps for a disaster site to accurately analyze internal situations.In this study,a robot combined with a low-cost camera and twodimensional light detection and ranging(2D-lidar)traverses across a floor to estimate the location of obstacles while drawing an internal map of the building.We propose an algorithm that detects the floor and then determines the possibility of entry,tracks collapses,and detects obstacles by analyzing patterns on the floor.The robot’s location is estimated,and a digital map is created based on Hector simultaneous localization and mapping(SLAM).Subsequently,the positions of obstacles are estimated based on the range values detected by 2D-lidar,and the position of the obstacles are identified on the map using the map update method in semantic SLAM.All equipment are implemented using low-specification devices,and the experiments are conducted using a low-cost robot that affords near-real-time performance.The experiments are conducted in various actual internal environments of buildings.In terms of obstacle detection performance,almost all obstacles are detected,and their positions identified on the map with a high accuracy of 89%.展开更多
Weather events put human lives at risk mostly when people might occupy areas susceptible to natural disasters.Deploying Professional Weather Stations(PWS)in vulnerable areas is key for monitoring weather with reliable...Weather events put human lives at risk mostly when people might occupy areas susceptible to natural disasters.Deploying Professional Weather Stations(PWS)in vulnerable areas is key for monitoring weather with reliable measurements.However,such professional instrumentation is notably expensive while remote sensing from a number of stations is paramount.This imposes challenges on the large-scale weather station deployment for broad monitoring from large observation networks such as in Cemaden—The Brazilian National Center for Monitoring and Early Warning of Natural Disasters.In this context,in this paper,we propose a Low-Cost Automatic Weather Station(LCAWS)system developed from Commercial Off-The-Shelf(COTS)and open-source Internet of Things(IoT)technologies,which provides measurements as reliable as a reference PWS for natural disaster monitoring.When being automatic,LCAWS is a stand-alone photovoltaic system connected wirelessly to the Internet in order to provide real-time reliable end-to-end weather measurements.To achieve data reliability,we propose an intelligent sensor calibration method to correct measures.From a 30-day uninterrupted observation with sampling in minute resolution,we show that the calibrated LCAWS sensors have no statistically significant differences from the PWS measurements.As such,LCAWS has opened opportunities for reducing maintenance costs in Cemaden's observational network.展开更多
A lot of mixed clay-resin waste sand from large-scale iron foundries is discharged every day; so mixed waste sand reclamation in low cost and high quality has a great realistic significance. In the study to investigat...A lot of mixed clay-resin waste sand from large-scale iron foundries is discharged every day; so mixed waste sand reclamation in low cost and high quality has a great realistic significance. In the study to investigate the possibility of reusing two types of waste foundry sands, resin bonded sand and clay bonded sand which came from a Chinese casting factory, a new low-cost reclamation method of the mixed foundry waste sand based on the wet-thermal composite reclamation was proposed. The waste resin bonded sand was first reclaimed by a thermal method and the waste clay bonded sand was reclaimed by a wet method. Then, hot thermal reclaimed sand and the dehydrated wet reclaimed sand were mixed in certain proportions so that the hot thermal reclaimed sand dried the wet reclaimed sand leaving some water. The thermal reclamation efficiency of the waste resin bonded sand was researched at different heat levels. The optimized wet reclamation process of the waste clay bonded sand was achieved by investigating the effects of wet reclamation times, sand-water ratio and pH value on the reclaimed sand characteristics. The composite reclamation cost also was calculated. The research results showed that the properties of the mixed reclaimed sand can satisfy the application requirements of foundries; in which the temperature of the thermal reclamation waste resin bonded sand needs to be about 800 oC, the number of cycles of wet reclamation waste clay bonded sand should reach four to five, the optimal sand-water ratio of wet reclamation is around 1:1.5, and the pH value should be adjusted by adding acid. The mass ratio of hot thermal reclaimed sand to dehydrated wet reclaimed sand is about 1:2.5, and the composite reclaimed sand cost is around 100 yuan RMB per ton.展开更多
Electrochemical water splitting into hydrogen and oxygen is a promising strategy for future renewable energy conversion devices.The oxygen evolution reaction(OER)is considered as the bottleneck reaction in an overall ...Electrochemical water splitting into hydrogen and oxygen is a promising strategy for future renewable energy conversion devices.The oxygen evolution reaction(OER)is considered as the bottleneck reaction in an overall water splitting system because it involves 4e- and 4H+ transfer processes.Currently,it is highly desirable to explore low-cost alternative catalysts for OER at ambient conditions.Herein,we report for the first time that nickel phosphide(Ni2P)nanosheets can be facilely grown on Fe foam(FF)as an efficient electrocatalyst for OER with excellent durability and catalytic activity under alkaline conditions.To reach a current density of 10 m A/cm2,the Ni2P-FF catalyst required a low overpotential of only 198 mV for OER.The catalyst’s high OER activity and durability were well maintained at a high current density.The required overpotentials were only 267 and 313 mV to achieve the current densities of 100 and 300 m A/cm2,respectively.The combination of low-cost Fe foam with Ni2P provides a promising low-cost catalyst for large-scale application of electrocatalytic water splitting.展开更多
Drinking water is supplied through a centralized water supply system and may not be accessed by communities in rural areas of Malaysia.This study investigated the performance of a low-cost, self-prepared combined acti...Drinking water is supplied through a centralized water supply system and may not be accessed by communities in rural areas of Malaysia.This study investigated the performance of a low-cost, self-prepared combined activated carbon and sand filtration(CACSF) system for roofharvested rainwater and lake water for potable use. Activated carbon was self-prepared using locally sourced coconut shell and was activated using commonly available salt rather than a high-tech procedure that requires a chemical reagent. The filtration chamber was comprised of local,readily available sand. The experiments were conducted with varying antecedent dry intervals(ADIs) of up to 15 d and lake water with varying initial chemical oxygen demand(COD) concentration. The CACSF system managed to produce effluents complying with the drinking water standards for the parameters p H, dissolved oxygen(DO), biochemical oxygen demand(BOD5), COD, total suspended solids(TSS), and ammonia nitrogen(NH_3-N). The CACSF system successfully decreased the population of Escherichia coli(E. coli) in the influents to less than 30 CFU/m L. Samples with a higher population of E. coli(that is, greater than 30 CFU/m L) did not show 100% removal. The system also showed high potential as an alternative for treated drinking water for roof-harvested rainwater and class II lake water.展开更多
By using high-power and high-efficiency propulsion systems,current hybrid electric vehicles(HEVs) in market can achieve excellent fuel economy and kinetic performance.However,it is the cost of current HEVs that hind...By using high-power and high-efficiency propulsion systems,current hybrid electric vehicles(HEVs) in market can achieve excellent fuel economy and kinetic performance.However,it is the cost of current HEVs that hinders HEVs coming into widespread use.A novel hybrid electric propulsion system is designed to balance HEV cost and performance for developing markets.A battery/supercapacitor-based hybrid energy storage system(HESS) is used to improve energy conversion efficiency and reduce battery size and cost.An all-in-one-controller(AIOC) which integrates engine electronic control unit(ECU),motor ECU,and HESS management system is developed to save materials and energy,and reduce the influence of distribution parameters on circuit.As for the powertrain configuration,four schemes are presented:belt-driven starter generator(BSG) scheme,four-wheel drive HEV scheme,full HEV scheme,and ranger-extender electric vehicle(EV) scheme.Component selection and parameter matching for the propulsion system are performed,and an energy management strategy is developed based on powertrain configuration and selected components.Forward-facing simulation models are built,comprehending the control strategy based on the optimal engine torque for the low-cost hybrid electric propulsion system.Co-simulation of AVL CRUISE and Matlab/Simulink is presented and the best scheme is selected.The simulation results indicate that,for the best design,fuel consumption in urban driving condition is 4.11 L/(100 km) and 0-50 km/h accelerating time is 10.95 s.The proposed research can realize low-cost concept for HEV while achieving satisfactory fuel economy and kinetic performance,and help to improve commercialization of HEVs.展开更多
Thermally activated pinecone(TAP) was used for the adsorption of dimethyl trisulfide(DMTS)from aqueous solutions,which was proved to be the main odorous in algae-caused black bloom.The effects of adsorbent dosage,adso...Thermally activated pinecone(TAP) was used for the adsorption of dimethyl trisulfide(DMTS)from aqueous solutions,which was proved to be the main odorous in algae-caused black bloom.The effects of adsorbent dosage,adsorbate concentration and contact time on DMTS biosorption were studied.The TAP produced at 600℃ exhibited a relatively high surface area(519.69 m^2/g) and excellent adsorption capacity.The results show that the adsorption of DMTS was initially fast and that the equilibrium time was6 h.Higher initial DMTS concentrations led to lower removal percentages but higher adsorption capacity.The removal percentage of DMTS increased and the adsorption capacity of TAP decreased with an increase in adsorbent dosage.The adsorption process conforms well to a pseudo-second-order kinetics model.The adsorption of DMTS is more appropriately described by the Freundlich isotherm(R^2=0.996 1) than by the Langmuir isotherm(R^2=0.916 9).The results demonstrate that TAP could be an attractive low-cost adsorbent for removing DMTS from water.展开更多
A new low-cost demodulator for ZigBee receivers satisfying requirements of IEEE802.15.4 standard is presented,which is designed for ISM 2.4 GHz band and based on Zero-IF receivers.This demodulator extracts symbols dir...A new low-cost demodulator for ZigBee receivers satisfying requirements of IEEE802.15.4 standard is presented,which is designed for ISM 2.4 GHz band and based on Zero-IF receivers.This demodulator extracts symbols directly from baseband signal rather than recovering PN code chips,so its structure is simple.Two main techniques are used to improve the performance of demodulator.One is Phase-Axis Crossing Detector(PACD) which detects the phase correlation of baseband signal.The other is symbol synchronization and sampling clock correction algorithm.The result shows that this demodulator performance,Symbol Error Rate(SER) and Packet Error Rate(PER) meet IEEE 802.15.4TM standard requirements and the demodulator can handle frequency offset in excess of 200 kHz,involving a Zero-IF receiver with a Noise Figure(NF) lower than 17 dB,which is easily imple-mented in standard CMOS technology.展开更多
基金Centre for Atmospheric Research,Nigeria,for providing the research grant required to conduct this study。
文摘Low-cost GNSS receivers have recently been gaining reliability as good candidates for ionospheric studies. In line with these gains are genuine concerns about improving the performance of these receivers. In this work, we present a comprehensive investigation of the performances of two antennas(the u-blox ANN-MB and the TOPGNSS TOP-106) used on a low-cost GNSS receiver known as the u-blox ZED-F9P. The two antennas were installed on two identical and co-located u-blox receivers. Data used from both receivers cover the period from January to June 2022. Results from the study indicate that the signal strengths are dominantly greater for the receiver with the TOPGNSS antenna than for the receiver with the ANN-MB antenna, implying that the TOPGNSS antenna is better than the ANN-MB antenna in terms of providing greater signal strengths. Summarily, the TOPGNSS antenna also performed better in minimizing the occurrence of cycle slips on phase TEC measurements. There are no conspicuous differences between the variances(computed as 5-min standard deviations) of phase TEC measurements for the two antennas, except for a period around May-June when the TOPGNSS gave a better performance in terms of minimizing the variances in phase TEC. Remarkably, the ANN-MB antenna gave a better performance than the TOPGNSS antenna in terms of minimizing the variances in pseudorange TEC for some satellite observations. For precise horizontal(North and East) positioning, the receiver with the TOPGNSS antenna gave better results, while the receiver with the ANN-MB antenna gave better vertical(Up) positioning. The errors for the receivers of both antennas are typically within about 5 m(the monthly mean was usually smaller than 1 m) in the horizontal direction and within about 10 m(the monthly mean was usually smaller than 4 m) in the vertical direction.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China under Grant No.62072475.
文摘Unmanned and aerial systems as interactors among different system components for communications,have opened up great opportunities for truth data discovery in Mobile Crowd Sensing(MCS)which has not been properly solved in the literature.In this paper,an Unmanned Aerial Vehicles-supported Intelligent Truth Discovery(UAV-ITD)scheme is proposed to obtain truth data at low-cost communications for MCS.The main innovations of the UAV-ITD scheme are as follows:(1)UAV-ITD scheme takes the first step in employing UAV joint Deep Matrix Factorization(DMF)to discover truth data based on the trust mechanism for an Information Elicitation Without Verification(IEWV)problem in MCS.(2)This paper introduces a truth data discovery scheme for the first time that only needs to collect a part of n data samples to infer the data of the entire network with high accuracy,which saves more communication costs than most previous data collection schemes,where they collect n or kn data samples.Finally,we conducted extensive experiments to evaluate the UAV-ITD scheme.The results show that compared with previous schemes,our scheme can reduce estimated truth error by 52.25%–96.09%,increase the accuracy of workers’trust evaluation by 0.68–61.82 times,and save recruitment costs by 24.08%–54.15%in truth data discovery.
基金funded by the project scheme of the Publication Writing-IPR Incentive Program(PPHKI)2022Directorate of Research and Community Service(DRPM)Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember(ITS)Surabaya,Indonesia for the financial supports。
文摘For the last two decades,low-cost Global Navigation Satellite System(GNSS)receivers have been used in various applications.These receivers are mini-size,less expensive than geodetic-grade receivers,and in high demand.Irrespective of these outstanding features,low-cost GNSS receivers are potentially poorer hardwares with internal signal processing,resulting in lower quality.They typically come with low-cost GNSS antenna that has lower performance than their counterparts,particularly for multipath mitigation.Therefore,this research evaluated the low-cost GNSS device performance using a high-rate kinematic survey.For this purpose,these receivers were assembled with an Inertial Measurement Unit(IMU)sensor,which actively transmited data on acceleration and orientation rate during the observation.The position and navigation parameter data were obtained from the IMU readings,even without GNSS signals via the U-blox F9R GNSS/IMU device mounted on a vehicle.This research was conducted in an area with demanding conditions,such as an open sky area,an urban environment,and a shopping mall basement,to examine the device’s performance.The data were processed by two approaches:the Single Point Positioning-IMU(SPP/IMU)and the Differential GNSS-IMU(DGNSS/IMU).The Unscented Kalman Filter(UKF)was selected as a filtering algorithm due to its excellent performance in handling nonlinear system models.The result showed that integrating GNSS/IMU in SPP processing mode could increase the accuracy in eastward and northward components up to 68.28%and 66.64%.Integration of DGNSS/IMU increased the accuracy in eastward and northward components to 93.02%and 93.03%compared to the positioning of standalone GNSS.In addition,the positioning accuracy can be improved by reducing the IMU noise using low-pass and high-pass filters.This application could still not gain the expected position accuracy under signal outage conditions.
文摘The development of this technology has favored the advances noted in recent years in the field of precise positioning. It has also paved the way for a wide range of research into the evaluation of their performance and reliability, their potential use in different fields, the improvement of performance and combined systems, etc. Single-frequency GNSS receivers, which for a long time remained the only category of low-cost GNSS receivers, often limited by their level of accuracy (metric) mainly due to their single-frequency nature, have been joined in the last decade by dual-frequency GNSS receivers developed by certain manufacturers of positioning equipment. These receivers now offer possible alternatives to the relatively expensive conventional (topographic quality) or geodetic receivers and. In this study, the performance of these low-cost dual-frequency receivers was evaluated in static and real-time kinematic GNSS positioning modes. Static positioning was carried out on three points with sessions of 2 h and 4 h over three days with antenna swapping (CHC i50, Leica GS14 and Emlid Reach RS2+). Real-time observations were carried out on eleven (11) points in open, poorly open and not at all open environments, in order to assess not only performance but also receiver sensitivity in environments with a high risk of multipath. The results obtained showed an average agreement of 2 cm in planimetry between the low-cost Emlid RS2+ receiver and the Leica GS14 and CHC i50 receivers. The differences in altimetry are nevertheless greater (sometimes up to decimetres for certain points). Real-time positioning results provided an average convergence of around 1 cm on the E, N and H components with the results from the low-cost Emlid Reach RS2+ and Ublox ZED-F9P receivers and the CHC i50 receiver. Analysis of the results obtained has enabled us to highlight the various issues and challenges associated with this new generation of GNSS receivers, with a view to enhancing their appropriation and optimal integration in the professional and research worlds.
基金This research work is sponsored and supported by the NationalNatural Science Foundation of China. The item number is50275058
文摘A newly developed low-pressure expendable pattern casting (LP-EPC) process was introduced and its basic principles or effect factors were further analyzed. According to theoretical calculation and experimental results, the major casting parameters that are of great and critical importance on the process include pressure and flux of filling gas, decomposition characteristic and density of foam pattern, thickness and permeability of coating, pouring temperature, vacuum degree and their combination. Most of casting defects can be effectively avoided by choosing the suitable parameters. The success achieved in pouring motor housing and exhaust manifold castings demonstrates the advantages of LP-EPC process in the production of high-complicated castings with high dimension accuracy.
基金supported by the National High Technology Research and Development Program of China (No.2007AA03Z113)
文摘Aiming at the cracking phenomenon of the thin shell mould in the expendable pattern shell casting during the pattern removing process, some systemic researches are presented.The influence of the pattern removing method and temperature on the pattern removing were investigated.The shell mould cracking mechanism was analyzed by using thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA), and combining the temperature field and the volume change of the expanded polystyrene (EPS) foam pattern being tested.The results indicated that the shell mould was not easily cracked when the pattern removing process was carried out with the furnace being heated little by little because of the shell slowly shrinking with dehydration and shell strength gradually increasing.The shell mould was soon destroyed when it was set directly into the furnace at above 400 oC because of the thin shell mould rapidly shrinking and the foam pattern hindering.However, the shell mould had no cracking when it had been preheated for a long time even if the furnace temperature was above 400 oC and the shell was put into the furnace directly.Moreover, when the shell mould was directly set into the furnace at lower temperatures, 250 to 300 ℃, the shell would shrink slowly and the foam pattern would stay at the maximum expansion stage temperature of 100 to 110 ℃ for a long time; and the shell mould would experience an expansion force from the foam pattern for a long time.The expansion force is related to the pattern removing temperature, holding time, foam pattern thickness and density.Therefore, the foam pattern with higher density could make the shell crack.
文摘This paper analysis the developing of expendable conductivity temperature depth measuring system(XCTD)and introduce its principle of measuring about temperature,salinity and depth of ocean.Some key techniques are put forward.According to the real needs of XCTD,conductivity sensor with high sensitivity is designed by principle of electromagnetic induce,the ocean conductivity from induced electromotive force has been calculated.Adding temperature correction circuit would help to reduce error of conductivity measurement because of sharply changing temperature.Advanced temperature measuring circuit of high precision and the constant current source is used to weaken effect of self-heating of resistance and fluctuation of the source.On respect of remote data transmission,LVDS is a good choice for the purpose of guarantee the quality of data transmitted and the transmission distance is reaching to thousand meters in the seawater.Modular programming method is also brought into this research aimed at improve the stability,reliability and maintainability of the whole measuring system.In February,2015,the trials in South China Sea demonstrate that the developed XCTD realize effective measurement at a speed of 6 knots and detection depth at 800 m.The consistency coefficient of the acquired data is greater than 0.99 and the success rate of probe launching is above 90%.
基金Projects (50275058) supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China
文摘The combination of magnesium alloys with the low-pressure expendable pattern casting(LP-EPC) process would bright future for application of magnesium alloys. The researches are focused on the effect of process parameters on the internal casting quality of magnesium alloy parts. AZ91D magnesium alloy castings were produced for different combinations of the LP-EPC process parameters. Specifically,pouring temperature,vacuum,filling velocity and coupling action of these factors were manipulated to observe their effect on the casting porosity and density distribution. The results indicate that the pouring temperature with LP-EPC process is lower than it in gravity casting. The selected process parameters,such as vacuum,filling velocity and coupled modes of them,must ensure melt metal flowing front profile exhibiting smooth and convex shape. The optimal process parameters for the castings are pouring temperature 983-1 023 K,vacuum 0.02-0.03 MPa,filling velocity 60-95 mm/s,and simultaneous filling with sucking.
基金the financial support from the State Key Laboratory of Materials Processing and Die&Mould Technology,Huazhong University of Science and Technology(P2020-05)。
文摘To refine the microstructure and improve the mechanical properties of AZ91 D alloy by expendable pattern shell casting(EPSC),the mechanical vibration method was applied in the solidification process of the alloy.The effects of amplitude and pouring temperature on microstructure and mechanical properties of AZ91 D magnesium alloy were studied.The results indicated that the mechanical vibration remarkably improved the sizes,morphologies and distributions of the primaryα-Mg phase andβ-Mg17 Al12 phase,and the densification and tensile properties of the AZ91 D alloy.With an increase in amplitude,the microstructures were gradually refined,resulting in a continuous increase in mechanical properties of the AZ91 D alloy.While,with the increase of pouring temperature,the microstructures were continuously coarsened,leading to an obvious decrease of the mechanical properties.The tensile strength and yield strength of the AZ91 D alloy with a vibration amplitude of 1.0 mm and a pouring temperature of 730℃were 60%and 38%higher than those of the alloy without vibration,respectively.
基金financially supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. U22A20193 and 51975218)Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities(No. 2022ZYGXZR101)+3 种基金Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province (No. 2021A1515010642)GuangdongHong Kong Joint Innovation Project of Guangdong Province(No. 2021A0505110002)Guangdong-Foshan Joint Foundation (No. 2021B1515120031)Innovation Group Project of Foshan (No. 2120001010816)
文摘The lithium-sulfur(Li-S)battery with an ultrahigh theoretical energy density has emerged as a promising rechargeable battery system.However,the practical applications of Li-S batteries are severely plagued by the sluggish reaction kinetics of sulfur species and notorious shuttling of soluble lithium polysulfides(LiPSs)intermediates that result in low sulfur utilization.The introduction of functional layers on separators has been considered as an effective strategy to improve the sulfur utilization in Li-S batteries by achieving effective regulation of LiPSs.Herein,a promising self-assembly strategy is proposed to achieve the low-cost fabrication of hollow and hierarchically porous Fe_(3)O_(4)nanospheres(p-Fe_(3)O_(4)-NSs)assembled by numerous extremely-small primary nanocrystals as building blocks.The rationally-designed p-Fe_(3)O_(4)-NSs are utilized as a multifunctional layer on the separator with highly efficient trapping and conversion features toward LiPSs.Results demonstrate that the nanostructured p-Fe_(3)O_(4)-NSs provide chemical adsorption toward LiPSs and kinetically promote the mutual transformation between LiPSs and Li_(2)S_(2)/Li_(2)S during cycling,thus inhibiting the LiPSs shuttling and boosting the redox reaction kinetics via a chemisorption-catalytic conversion mechanism.The enhanced wettability of the p-Fe_(3)O_(4)-NSs-based separator with the electrolyte enables fast transportation of lithium ions.Benefitting from these alluring properties,the functionalized separator with p-Fe_(3)O_(4)-NSs endows the battery with an admirable rate performance of 877 mAh g^(−1)at 2 C,an ultra-durable cycling performance of up to 2176 cycles at 1 C,and a promising areal capacity of 4.55 mAh cm^(−2)under high-sulfur-loading and lean-electrolyte conditions(4.29 mg cm^(−2),electrolyte/ratio:8μl mg^(−1)).This study will offer fresh insights on the rational design and low-cost fabrication of multifunctional separator to strengthen electrochemical reaction kinetics by regulating LiPSs conversion for developing efficient and long-life Li-S batteries.
基金supported by Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea funded by the Ministry of Education(No.2020R1I1A3068274),Received by Junho Ahn.https://www.nrf.re.kr/.
文摘When firefighters search inside a building that is at risk of collapse due to abandonment or disasters such as fire,they use old architectural drawings or a simple monitoring method involving a video device attached to a robot.However,using these methods,the disaster situation inside a building at risk of collapse is difficult to detect and identify.Therefore,we investigate the generation of digital maps for a disaster site to accurately analyze internal situations.In this study,a robot combined with a low-cost camera and twodimensional light detection and ranging(2D-lidar)traverses across a floor to estimate the location of obstacles while drawing an internal map of the building.We propose an algorithm that detects the floor and then determines the possibility of entry,tracks collapses,and detects obstacles by analyzing patterns on the floor.The robot’s location is estimated,and a digital map is created based on Hector simultaneous localization and mapping(SLAM).Subsequently,the positions of obstacles are estimated based on the range values detected by 2D-lidar,and the position of the obstacles are identified on the map using the map update method in semantic SLAM.All equipment are implemented using low-specification devices,and the experiments are conducted using a low-cost robot that affords near-real-time performance.The experiments are conducted in various actual internal environments of buildings.In terms of obstacle detection performance,almost all obstacles are detected,and their positions identified on the map with a high accuracy of 89%.
基金partially funded by Sao Paulo Research Foundation(FAPESP),Brazil,grant numbers#2015/18808-0,#2018/23064-8,#2019/23382-2.
文摘Weather events put human lives at risk mostly when people might occupy areas susceptible to natural disasters.Deploying Professional Weather Stations(PWS)in vulnerable areas is key for monitoring weather with reliable measurements.However,such professional instrumentation is notably expensive while remote sensing from a number of stations is paramount.This imposes challenges on the large-scale weather station deployment for broad monitoring from large observation networks such as in Cemaden—The Brazilian National Center for Monitoring and Early Warning of Natural Disasters.In this context,in this paper,we propose a Low-Cost Automatic Weather Station(LCAWS)system developed from Commercial Off-The-Shelf(COTS)and open-source Internet of Things(IoT)technologies,which provides measurements as reliable as a reference PWS for natural disaster monitoring.When being automatic,LCAWS is a stand-alone photovoltaic system connected wirelessly to the Internet in order to provide real-time reliable end-to-end weather measurements.To achieve data reliability,we propose an intelligent sensor calibration method to correct measures.From a 30-day uninterrupted observation with sampling in minute resolution,we show that the calibrated LCAWS sensors have no statistically significant differences from the PWS measurements.As such,LCAWS has opened opportunities for reducing maintenance costs in Cemaden's observational network.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation (Grant numbers:50575085,51075163 and 51375187)
文摘A lot of mixed clay-resin waste sand from large-scale iron foundries is discharged every day; so mixed waste sand reclamation in low cost and high quality has a great realistic significance. In the study to investigate the possibility of reusing two types of waste foundry sands, resin bonded sand and clay bonded sand which came from a Chinese casting factory, a new low-cost reclamation method of the mixed foundry waste sand based on the wet-thermal composite reclamation was proposed. The waste resin bonded sand was first reclaimed by a thermal method and the waste clay bonded sand was reclaimed by a wet method. Then, hot thermal reclaimed sand and the dehydrated wet reclaimed sand were mixed in certain proportions so that the hot thermal reclaimed sand dried the wet reclaimed sand leaving some water. The thermal reclamation efficiency of the waste resin bonded sand was researched at different heat levels. The optimized wet reclamation process of the waste clay bonded sand was achieved by investigating the effects of wet reclamation times, sand-water ratio and pH value on the reclaimed sand characteristics. The composite reclamation cost also was calculated. The research results showed that the properties of the mixed reclaimed sand can satisfy the application requirements of foundries; in which the temperature of the thermal reclamation waste resin bonded sand needs to be about 800 oC, the number of cycles of wet reclamation waste clay bonded sand should reach four to five, the optimal sand-water ratio of wet reclamation is around 1:1.5, and the pH value should be adjusted by adding acid. The mass ratio of hot thermal reclaimed sand to dehydrated wet reclaimed sand is about 1:2.5, and the composite reclaimed sand cost is around 100 yuan RMB per ton.
基金financially supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2017YFA0402800)the National Natural Science Foundation of China (51772285)the National Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory at USTC.
文摘Electrochemical water splitting into hydrogen and oxygen is a promising strategy for future renewable energy conversion devices.The oxygen evolution reaction(OER)is considered as the bottleneck reaction in an overall water splitting system because it involves 4e- and 4H+ transfer processes.Currently,it is highly desirable to explore low-cost alternative catalysts for OER at ambient conditions.Herein,we report for the first time that nickel phosphide(Ni2P)nanosheets can be facilely grown on Fe foam(FF)as an efficient electrocatalyst for OER with excellent durability and catalytic activity under alkaline conditions.To reach a current density of 10 m A/cm2,the Ni2P-FF catalyst required a low overpotential of only 198 mV for OER.The catalyst’s high OER activity and durability were well maintained at a high current density.The required overpotentials were only 267 and 313 mV to achieve the current densities of 100 and 300 m A/cm2,respectively.The combination of low-cost Fe foam with Ni2P provides a promising low-cost catalyst for large-scale application of electrocatalytic water splitting.
基金supported by the Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia Grant(Grant No.GUP-2014-077)
文摘Drinking water is supplied through a centralized water supply system and may not be accessed by communities in rural areas of Malaysia.This study investigated the performance of a low-cost, self-prepared combined activated carbon and sand filtration(CACSF) system for roofharvested rainwater and lake water for potable use. Activated carbon was self-prepared using locally sourced coconut shell and was activated using commonly available salt rather than a high-tech procedure that requires a chemical reagent. The filtration chamber was comprised of local,readily available sand. The experiments were conducted with varying antecedent dry intervals(ADIs) of up to 15 d and lake water with varying initial chemical oxygen demand(COD) concentration. The CACSF system managed to produce effluents complying with the drinking water standards for the parameters p H, dissolved oxygen(DO), biochemical oxygen demand(BOD5), COD, total suspended solids(TSS), and ammonia nitrogen(NH_3-N). The CACSF system successfully decreased the population of Escherichia coli(E. coli) in the influents to less than 30 CFU/m L. Samples with a higher population of E. coli(that is, greater than 30 CFU/m L) did not show 100% removal. The system also showed high potential as an alternative for treated drinking water for roof-harvested rainwater and class II lake water.
基金supported by General Motors (Low-cost Hybrid Electric Propulsion System)
文摘By using high-power and high-efficiency propulsion systems,current hybrid electric vehicles(HEVs) in market can achieve excellent fuel economy and kinetic performance.However,it is the cost of current HEVs that hinders HEVs coming into widespread use.A novel hybrid electric propulsion system is designed to balance HEV cost and performance for developing markets.A battery/supercapacitor-based hybrid energy storage system(HESS) is used to improve energy conversion efficiency and reduce battery size and cost.An all-in-one-controller(AIOC) which integrates engine electronic control unit(ECU),motor ECU,and HESS management system is developed to save materials and energy,and reduce the influence of distribution parameters on circuit.As for the powertrain configuration,four schemes are presented:belt-driven starter generator(BSG) scheme,four-wheel drive HEV scheme,full HEV scheme,and ranger-extender electric vehicle(EV) scheme.Component selection and parameter matching for the propulsion system are performed,and an energy management strategy is developed based on powertrain configuration and selected components.Forward-facing simulation models are built,comprehending the control strategy based on the optimal engine torque for the low-cost hybrid electric propulsion system.Co-simulation of AVL CRUISE and Matlab/Simulink is presented and the best scheme is selected.The simulation results indicate that,for the best design,fuel consumption in urban driving condition is 4.11 L/(100 km) and 0-50 km/h accelerating time is 10.95 s.The proposed research can realize low-cost concept for HEV while achieving satisfactory fuel economy and kinetic performance,and help to improve commercialization of HEVs.
基金Supported by the Taihu Special Project of Water Pollution Control,Jiangsu Province(No.TH2013214)the National Water Pollution Control and Management Technology Major Project(No.2012ZX07103-005)+1 种基金the Industry-Academia Cooperation Innovation Fund Project of Jiangsu Province(No.BY2011165)the Open Foundation of State Key Laboratory of Lake Science and Environment,CAS(No.2014SKL005)
文摘Thermally activated pinecone(TAP) was used for the adsorption of dimethyl trisulfide(DMTS)from aqueous solutions,which was proved to be the main odorous in algae-caused black bloom.The effects of adsorbent dosage,adsorbate concentration and contact time on DMTS biosorption were studied.The TAP produced at 600℃ exhibited a relatively high surface area(519.69 m^2/g) and excellent adsorption capacity.The results show that the adsorption of DMTS was initially fast and that the equilibrium time was6 h.Higher initial DMTS concentrations led to lower removal percentages but higher adsorption capacity.The removal percentage of DMTS increased and the adsorption capacity of TAP decreased with an increase in adsorbent dosage.The adsorption process conforms well to a pseudo-second-order kinetics model.The adsorption of DMTS is more appropriately described by the Freundlich isotherm(R^2=0.996 1) than by the Langmuir isotherm(R^2=0.916 9).The results demonstrate that TAP could be an attractive low-cost adsorbent for removing DMTS from water.
基金Supported by Zhejiang Province Important Sci-Tech Foundation Item (No.2006C11107)
文摘A new low-cost demodulator for ZigBee receivers satisfying requirements of IEEE802.15.4 standard is presented,which is designed for ISM 2.4 GHz band and based on Zero-IF receivers.This demodulator extracts symbols directly from baseband signal rather than recovering PN code chips,so its structure is simple.Two main techniques are used to improve the performance of demodulator.One is Phase-Axis Crossing Detector(PACD) which detects the phase correlation of baseband signal.The other is symbol synchronization and sampling clock correction algorithm.The result shows that this demodulator performance,Symbol Error Rate(SER) and Packet Error Rate(PER) meet IEEE 802.15.4TM standard requirements and the demodulator can handle frequency offset in excess of 200 kHz,involving a Zero-IF receiver with a Noise Figure(NF) lower than 17 dB,which is easily imple-mented in standard CMOS technology.