Over-Actuated Underwater Robots: Configuration Matrix Design and Perspectives

In general, for the configuration designs of underwater robots, the positions and directions of actuators (i.e., thrusters) are given and installed in conventional ways (known points, vertically, horizontally). This yields limitations for the capability of robots and does not optimize the robot’s resources such as energy, reactivity, and versatility, especially when the robots operate in confined environments. In order to optimize the configuration designs in the underwater robot field focusing on over-actuated systems, in the paper, performance indices (manipulability, energetic, reactive, and robustness indices) are introduced. The multi-objective optimization problem was formulated and analyzed. To deal with different objectives with different units, the goal-attainment method, which can avoid the difficulty of choosing a weighting vector to obtain a good balance among these objectives, was selected to solve the problem. A solution design procedure is proposed and discussed. The efficiency of the proposed method was proven by simulations and experimental results.

How to Choose the Best Architecture Design Pattern

The utilization of engineering and configuration designs affect the quality credits of a framework, and the use of examples rely upon plan settings. There are unpredictable reliant connections between them. In this examination, we investigate how engineers use to design and configuration designs regarding quality credits concerns and plan settings. We extricated design-related posts from Stack Overflow and broke down the engineering conversations. Our examination uncovers what settings and quality ascribe engineers consider when utilizing design examples, and we have recognized new and already obscure connections between these plan components. These discoveries can improve engineers' information when they plan with design designs, quality ascribes, and plan settings.

Lane-based optimization for signalized network configuration designs

Lane-based traffic signal design has been developed for designing signal-controlled intersections. Conventional designs take on fixed configurations as exogenous inputs to design traffic signal settings. The proposed study will be an extension to merge geometrical junction arrangement and signal controls together for network configuration designs. Design methodology would be directly extended from existing lane-based design method. New Path flows variables and new flow conservation constraints are required to ensure the users’ input OD flows could be assigned onto network paths through different signal-controlled intersections. This problem is new that involves binary variables and related linear constraints which is formulated as a BMILP. Standard technique could solve the optimum solution. A four-intersection network with two approach lane settings is optimized for demonstration purposes.

Study on the Effects of Mixing Vane Configurations on Flow Field in Rod Bundle

In most PWR designs, spacer grids are proposed to keep the fuel rods in fixed positions. Mixing vane grids (MVGs) contribute to inter-subchannel mixing as well as providing structural support, which has been demonstrated by both experiments and numerical simulations. The mixing vane configurations in the MVGs have significant influence on flow redistribution. The mixing vane configurations will lead to flow redistribution among neighboring subchannels. Appropriate mixing vane configuration designs in the MVG will result in expected flow redistribution coupled with the power distribution of the rod bundle. This paper analyzes the effects of different types of mixing vane configurations in the MVGs on the flow field in the 5×5 rod bundle using the improved mixing vane grid model in the subchannel code. In the improved model, source terms related to the MVGs performance were developed and some geometrical parameters of mixing vanes (such as the length, angle, area and configurations of the mixing vanes) were examined and brought in to improve the capability of subchannel code in predicting actual MVGs performance. This paper gives a brief introduction to both the original spacer grid model and the improved mixing vane grid model in subchannel analysis, and focuses on analysis of the effects of the mixing vane configurations. In this paper, different types of mixing vane configurations are considered for the comparison of hydraulic performance in the 5×5 rod bundle under uniform axial heating conditions. The calculation results applying the original model are also presented for the comparison analysis, and the calculation results without the MVGs are provided as the basis of the comparison. Both the qualitative and quantitative analyses are presented, and the hydraulic performance of different types of mixing vane configurations are evaluated. The analysis indicates that the improved MVG model can reflect the mixing vane configuration information, and could provide a reference for mixing vane configuration designs in the MVG as well as the experimental design related to the MVG performance study.