Geometric stress distribution along the weld toe of the outer brace in two-planar tubular DKT-joints: Parametric study and deriving the SCF design equations

Regarding the research efforts expended so far on the calculation of stress concentration factors (SCFs) in tubular joints, two major shortcomings can be noted: (a) significant effort has been devoted to the study of SCFs in various uni-planar connections. Nevertheless, for multi-planar joints which cover the majority of practical applications, very few investigations have been reported due to the complexity and high cost involved; (b) majority of these research works focused on the study of SCFs at certain positions such as the saddle, crown toe, and crown heel, and they have ignored the hot-spot stress (HSS) at other positions along the weld toe. In the present paper, effects of dimensionless geometrical parameters on the SCF distribution along the weld toe of main (outer) braces in the axially loaded right-angle two-planar tubular DKT-joints are investigated. In order to study the multi-planar effect, SCF distribution in two-planar joints is compared with the distribution in a uni-planar joint having the same geometrical properties. A complete set of SCF database is constructed based on the two-planar DKT-joint Finite element models which are verified against experimental results and the predictions of Lloyd’s Register (LR) equations. The FE models cover a wide range of geometrical parameters. Six new SCF parametric formulae are developed through nonlinear regression analyses for the accurate and reliable fatigue design of two-planar DKT-joints under axial loads. An assessment study of these equations is conducted against the experimental data, the original FEM database and the acceptance criteria recommended by the UK Department of Energy.     

Reliability-based network flow estimation with day-to-day variation: A model validation on real large-scale urban networks

Day-to-day variation in the travel times of congested urban transportation networks is a frustrating phenomenon to the users of these networks. These users look pessimistically at the path travel times, and learn to spend additional time to safeguard against serious penalties that await late arrivals at the destinations. These additional expenses are charges similar to the tolls in system equilibrium flow problem, but may not be collected. With this conjecture, the user equilibrium (UE) formulation of congested network flow problem would lack some necessary factors in addressing appropriate path choices. This study, following a previous work proposing pessimistic UE (PUE) flow, aims to show how to measure this additional travel cost for a link, and investigates how different is PUE from UE, and when such differences are pronounced. Data are collected from the peak-hour travel times for the links of paths in the city of Tehran, to estimate the variance of travel times for typical links. Deterministic functions are obtained by calibrating the standard deviation of the daily variations of link travel times, and probabilistic functions by the technique of copula. UE and PUE traffic assignment models are built and applied to three large cities of Mashhad, Shiraz, and Tehran in Iran. The results show that the estimated flows by PUE model replicate the observed flows in screen lines much better than the UE model, particularly for longer trips. Since PUE is computationally equivalent to UE, this improvement is attained virtually at no cost.     

Flame propagation model for a rotary Atkinson cycle SI engine

The rotary Atkinson cycle engine includes two modes of combustion: combustion initiation and propagation in ignition chamber and then flame jet entrainment and propagation in expansion chamber. The turbulent flame propagation model is a predictive model for SI engines which could be developed for this type of combustion for the rotary Atkinson engine similar to the congenital engine with pre-chamber; in split combustion chamber SI engines, small amount of fuel is burned in pre-chamber while the fuel burned in ignition chamber of rotary Atkinson cycle is considerable. In this study a mathematical modeling of spherical flame propagation inside ignition chamber and new combined conical flame and spherical flame propagation model of a new two-stroke Atkinson cycle SI engine will be presented. The mathematical modeling is carried out using two-zone combustion analysis and the model also is validated against experimental tests and compared with previous study using non-predictive Weibe function model.     

Automated driving recognition technologies for adverse weather conditions

During automated driving in urban areas, decisions must be made while recognizing the surrounding environment using sensors such as camera, Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR), millimeter-wave radar (MWR), and the global navigation satellite system (GNSS). The ability to drive under various environmental conditions is an important issue for automated driving on any road. In order to introduce the automated vehicles into the markets, the ability to evaluate various traffic conditions and navigate safely presents serious challenges. Another important challenge is the development of a robust recognition system can account for adverse weather conditions. Sun glare, rain, fog, and snow are adverse weather conditions that can occur in the driving environment. This paper summarizes research focused on automated driving technologies and discuss challenges to identifying adverse weather and other situations that make driving difficult, thus complicating the introduction of automated vehicles to the market.     

Unraveling the relationship between trip chaining and mode choice: evidence from a multi-week travel diary

Abstract

Trip chaining (or tours) and mode choice are two critical factors influencing a variety of patterns of urban travel demand. This paper investigates the hierarchical relationship between these two sets of decisions including the influences of socio-demographic characteristics on them. It uses a 6-week travel diary collected in Thurgau, Switzerland, in 2003. The structural equation modeling technique is applied to identify the hierarchical relationship. Hierarchy and temporal consistency of the relationship is investigated separately for work versus non-work tours. It becomes clear that for work tours in weekdays, trip-chaining and mode choice decisions are simultaneous and remain consistent across the weeks. For non-work tours in weekdays, mode choice decisions precede trip-chaining decisions. However, for non-work tours in weekends, trip-chaining decisions precede mode choice decisions. A number of socioeconomic characteristics also play major roles in influencing the relationships. Results of the investigation challenge the traditional approach of modeling mode choice separately from activity-scheduling decisions.     

Telecommuting Suitability Modeling: An Approach Based on the Concept of Abstract job

A new approach to modeling telecommuting suitability is proposed in this paper. The approach, based on the concept of abstract job, can be employed to assess the level of suitability for telecommuting of the bundle of tasks comprising a job. By abstract job is meant a way of considering jobs on the basis of their elements and tasks, representing the general structure of the job. In this study, the basic tasks a job is composed of, pertaining to telecommuting suitability, are identified. To show the applicability of the approach, discrete choice models are calibrated, based on a sample of 245 employees in Tehran, Iran, indicating that from among the 6 tasks identified, 5 tasks are significantly associated with the level of telecommuting suitability.     

Investigation of pitch motion portion in vertical response at sides of a Tension-Leg Platform

Tendons vertically moor Tension-Leg Platforms (TLPs), thus, a deep understanding of physical tendon stresses requires the determination of the total axial deformation of the tendons, which is a combination of the heave, pitch, and surging responses. The vertical motion of the lateral sides of the TLP is coupled with surge and constitutes a portion of the pitch motion. Tendons are connected to the sides of the TLP; hence, the total displacement of the lateral sides is related to the total deformation of the tendons and the total axial stress. Therefore, investigating the total vertical response at the sides of the TLP is essential. The coupling between various degrees of freedom is not considered in the Response Amplitude Operator (RAO). Therefore, in frequency domain analysis, the estimated vertical RAO is incomplete. Also, in the time domain, only the heave motion at the center of TLP is typically studied; this problem needs to be addressed. In this paper, we investigate the portion of the pitch motion in the vertical response at the sides of the TLP in both the frequency and time domains. Numerical results demonstrate a significant effect of the pitch motion in the vertical motion of the edges of the TLP in some period ranges.     

Seismic response of liquid-filled tank with baffles

In thispaper, the effects of a rigid baffle on the seismic response of liquid in a rigid cylindrical tank are evaluated. A baffle is an annular plate which supplies a kind of passive control on the effects of ground excitation. The contained liquid is assumed incompressible, inviscid and has irrotational motion. To estimate the seismic response, the method of superposition of modes has been applied. To analyze the rigid tank response, Laplace＆#39;s equation is considered as the governing equation of the fluid domain, in both time and frequency domains. The boundary element method （BEM） is employed to evaluate the natural modes of liquid in a cylindrical tank. To gain this goal, the fluid domain is divided into two upper and lower parts partitioned by the baffle. Linearized kinematic and dynamic boundary conditions of the free surface of the contained liquid have been considered.     

Improving the efficiency of weigh in motion systems through optimized allocating truck checking oriented procedure

In the present paper, an effective procedure is proposed to determine the best location(s) for installing Weigh in Motion systems (WIM). The main objective is to determine locations for best performance, defined as the maximum number of once-checked trucks' axle loads and minimizing unnecessary actions. The aforesaid method consists of two main stages, including solving shortest path algorithm and selecting the best location for installing WIM(s). A proper mathematical model has also been developed to achieve objective function. The number of once-checked trucks, unnecessary actions and average installing costs are defined as criteria measures. The proposed procedure was applied in a road network using experimental data, while the results were compared with the usual methods of locating enforcement facilities. Finally, it is concluded that the proposed procedure seems to be more efficient than the traditional methods and local experts' points of view.     

Identifying the most critical transportation intersections using social network analysis

Traffic congestion negatively impacts our society. Most of the traditional transportation planning techniques – though effective – require rigorous amounts of data and analysis which consumes time and resources. This paper uses social network analysis (SNA) to analyze transportation networks, and consequently corroborate the effectiveness of SNA as a complementary tool for improved transportation planning. After creating the connection between the language and concepts of SNA and those of transportation systems – as well as developing a model that utilizes different SNA centrality measures within the transportation context – the authors utilize SNA to investigate traffic networks in three case studies in the state of Louisiana, analyze the results and draw conclusions. To this effect, with minimal cost and time, the model identifies the most critical intersections that should be further investigated using traditional techniques. These results are in agreement with the findings of Louisiana’s Department of Transportation and Development.