Fixed Wing Aircraft Automatic Landing with the Use of a Dedicated Ground Sign System

The paper presents automatic control of an aircraft in the longitudinal channel during automatic landing. There are two crucial components of the system presented in the paper: a vision system and an automatic landing system. The vision system processes pictures of dedicated on-ground signs which appear to an on-board video camera to determine a glide path. Image processing algorithms used by the system were implemented into an embedded system and tested under laboratory conditions according to the hardware-in-the-loop method. An output from the vision system was used as one of the input signals to an automatic landing system. The major components are control algorithms based on the fuzzy logic expert system. They were created to imitate pilot actions while landing the aircraft. Both systems were connected with one another for cooperation and to control an aircraft model in a simulation environment. Selected results of tests presenting control efficiency and precision are shown in the final section of the paper.

The origin of elevated low-relief surfaces in the Eastern Alps from geomorphic criteria and cosmogenic nuclide dating

<p>Elevated low-relief surfaces are peculiar landforms found in many areas across the Eastern Alps, most notably on the plateaus of the Northern Calcareous Alps and the southern metamorphic ranges from Nock Mountains to Koralpe. Found in domains both glaciated and unglaciated during the Pleistocene, (peri-)glacial erosion as well as fluvial prematurity have been cited as two opposing models for their formation. In order to contribute to this debate, we present a map of the existing low-relief surfaces in the Eastern Alps, bridging both glaciated and unglaciated regions, using a combined effort of field mapping and GIS-based mapping. Hypsometric statistics and analysis of longitudinal channel profiles show clear differences between formerly glaciated, partly-glaciated and unglaciated regions and their relations to the mapped surfaces. Furthermore, the pace of late- to post-Miocene incision is quantified via cosmogenic nuclide dating (<sup>26</sup>Al, <sup>10</sup>Be, <sup>21</sup>Ne) of allogenic siliceous sediments from discrete elevations correlating with the low-relief surfaces, in particular from cave sediments in the Northern Calcareous Alps. This information can be used to demonstrate that low-relief surfaces in many unglaciated regions, but also in some glaciated regions can be interpreted in terms of pre-Pleistocene relict landscapes.</p>

A fiberoptic orotracheal intubation successfully performed using a modified Guedel airway in a sedated emergency patient - A case report -

BackgroundAn airway assessment is usually best performed before an elective operation. But in an emergency operation, proper airway assessment can often be difficult. Fiberoptic intubation is a powerful and safe technique to deal with airway difficulty, but it requires a lot of training to be able to perform correctly. There are various specialized oral airways for fiberoptic intubation, but none of them have perfect functionality.CaseA 75-year-old male (body weight 71.6 kg, height 159.3 cm, body mass index 28.22 kg/m2) was diagnosed with acute appendicitis, and it was decided to do a laparoscopic appendectomy. After the induction of general anesthesia, it was impossible to insert the direct laryngoscope deep enough for vocal cord visualization without damaging the teeth because of limited mouth opening. We successfully performed fiberoptic intubation with a newly modified Guedel airway via a longitudinal channel on the convex side and a distal opened lingual end.ConclusionsOur modified Guedel airway can be useful in assisting fiberoptic intubation in unexpectedly difficult airway situations.

Notes Regarding the Dynamics of an Airplane subjected to Vertical Gusts

The behavior of the aircraft within turbulent atmosphere is a key aspect of design. Many books and articles deal with this topic. The current paper presents studies related to predicting the responses of aircraft flying through vertical gusts. The equations describing the dynamics of the longitudinal channel of the airplane are written to include the effect of the vertical wind. The paper includes comparisons of results provided by non-linear and linearized equations of motion.

A Combined Field and Numerical Modeling Study to Assess the Longitudinal Channel Slope Evolution in a Mixed Alluvial and Soft Bedrock Stream

A study approach is developed to assess the longitudinal channel slope under the equilibrium condition as well as the transient evolution of a mixed alluvial-soft-bedrock stream. Both the historical field data and 2D mobile-bed numerical modeling are adopted. The proposed approach is applied to a 14 km reach downstream of the Ji-Ji Weir, Chuo-Shui River, Taiwan, where continuous maintenance works have been carried out to stabilize this reach. In this study, the temporal evolution of the longitudinal channel profile is assessed numerically with three spatial scales: The large (the entire study reach), the medium (four sub-reaches), and the local (cross-sections) scale. The large scale analysis is the approach for purely alluvial streams and is shown to be difficult to use to characterize mixed alluvial-bedrock streams. The local scale analysis shows that the soft-bedrock incision has a widely fluctuating slope, reflecting the compound environmental forcing and complex riverbed setting. With the medium scale analysis, the longitudinal channel profile is found to follow a predictive trend if the reach is partitioned into four distinctive sub-reaches. Characteristics of the dynamic channel slope evolution in different spatial scales are computed and presented. The study results can be used to select the proper locations and types of the engineering stabilizing structures in a mixed alluvial and soft bedrock stream

Shear Stress-Based Analysis of Sediment Incipient Deposition in Rigid Boundary Open Channels

Urban drainage and sewer systems, and channels in general, are treated by the deposition of sediment that comes from water collecting systems, such as roads, parking lots, land, cultivation areas, and so forth, which are all under gradual or sudden change. The carrying capacity of urban area channels is reduced heavily by sediment transport that might even totally block the channel. In order to solve the sedimentation problem, it is therefore important that the channel is designed by considering self-cleansing criteria. Incipient deposition is proposed as a conservative method for channel design and is the subject of this study. With this aim, an experimental study carried out in trapezoidal, rectangular, circular, U-shape, and V-bottom channels is presented. Four different sizes of sand were used as sediment in the experiments performed in a tilting flume under nine different longitudinal channel bed slopes. A shear stress approach is considered, with the Shields and Yalin methods used in the analysis. Using the experimental data, functionals are developed for both methods. It is seen that the bed shear stress changes with the shape of the channel cross-section. Incipient deposition in rectangular and V-bottom channels starts under the lowest and the highest shear stress, respectively, due mainly to the shape of the channel cross-section that affects the distribution of shear stress on the channel bed.