Sharing piping CAD models of ocean plants based on international standards

In the shipbuilding industry, different computer-aided design (CAD) systems are used for different design domains, structure, and outfitting. We need to exchange data among different CAD systems such as Tribon, AutoCAD, Intergraph or PDMS to complete the whole design and production process. There are two approaches to data exchange. One is direct translation; the other is indirect translation, which is based on a neutral format. If we use a neutral format, the data specification is open to the public and the design model can be used by other CAD systems, including next-generation CAD systems. In this paper, we propose an indirect method that uses ISO 10303 (STandard for the Exchange of Product model data) AP227 and ISO 15926 to define neutral formats. A separate ShapeDB is constructed to manage the geometry information, referenced to the catalogue data defined by ISO 15926. An experimental implementation for data exchange between Tribon and PDMS is described.     

Study on a procedure for propulsive performance prediction for CRP-POD systems

The experimental procedure to predict the full-scale performance of the CRP-POD propulsion system is studied. In the CRP-POD system, the RPM ratio of the two propellers is not mechanically fixed, in contrast with conventional CRP systems. Therefore the existing procedure for conventional CRP systems is not appropriate for evaluating the performance of each propeller. In this paper, the characteristics of the CRP-POD system, designed for a 9,600 TEU class container carrier, are studied experimentally. Based on this study, a procedure for propulsive performance prediction for CRP-POD propulsion ships is suggested.     

Verification and validation study of URANS simulations for an axial waterjet propelled large high-speed ship

The accurate prediction of waterjet propulsion using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is of interest for performance analyses of existing waterjet designs as well as for improvement and design optimization of new waterjet propulsion systems for high-speed marine vehicles. The present work is performed for three main purposes: (1) to investigate the capability of a URANS flow solver, CFDSHIP-IOWA, for the accurate simulation of waterjet propelled ships, including waterjet–hull interactions; (2) to carry out detailed verification and validation (V&V) analysis; and (3) to identify optimization opportunities for intake duct shape design. A concentrated effort is applied to V&V work and performance analysis of waterjet propelled simulations which form the focus of this paper. The joint high speed sealift design (JHSS), which is a design concept for very large high-speed ships operating at transit speeds of at least 36 knots using four axial flow waterjets, is selected as the initial geometry for the current work and subsequent optimization study. For self-propelled simulations, the ship accelerates until the resistance equals the prescribed thrust and added tow force, and converges to the self propulsion point (SPP). Quantitative V&V studies are performed on both barehull and waterjet appended designs, with corresponding experimental fluid dynamics (EFD) data from 1/34 scale model testing. Uncertainty assessments are performed on iterative convergence and grid size. As a result, the total resistance coefficient for the barehull case and SPP for the waterjet propelled case are validated at the average uncertainty intervals of 7.0 and 1.1%D, respectively. Predictions of CFD computations capture the general trend of resistance over the speed range of 18–42 knots, and show reasonable agreement with EFD with average errors of 1.8 and 8.0%D for the barehull and waterjet cases, respectively. Furthermore, results show that URANS is able to accurately predict the major propulsion related features such as volume flow rate, inlet wake fraction, and net jet thrust with an accuracy of ~9%D. The flow feature details inside the duct and interference of the exit jets are qualitatively well-predicted as well. It is found that there are significant losses in inlet efficiency over the speed range; hence, one objective for subsequent optimization studies could be maximizing the inlet efficiency. Overall, the V&V work indicates that the present approach is an efficient tool for predicting the performance of waterjet propelled JHSS ships and paves the way for future optimization work. The main objective of the optimization will be reduction of powering requirements by increasing the inlet efficiency through modification of intake duct shape.     

U.S. import/export container flow modeling and disruption analysis

International containerized freight movement is a vital part of the supply chain for many companies, and a critical element of moving consumer goods to points of retail sale within the U.S. Containerized imports also present a clear security concern (e.g., terrorists attempting to ship “dirty bombs,” chemical, biological or even nuclear weapons, into the U.S. in a shipping container). The goal of the research presented here is to create a modeling tool for analyzing flows of U.S. imports and exports of containerized freight, and the potential changes in those flows under a variety of conditions (e.g., port disruptions, extensive security-related delays, etc.). Our focus is on movements through maritime container ports, and not overland movements between the U.S. and Canada or Mexico.The network model, referred to as the System for Import/Export Routing and Recovery Analysis (SIERRA), represents container movements between the U.S. and 46 other countries that account for the vast majority of U.S. imports and exports. The SIERRA model is a network equilibrium model that predicts flows between foreign countries and North American ports, the total volumes handled (import and export) by each port, the modal volumes (truck and rail) moving domestically into and out of each port, and volumes between each port and a set of transportation analysis zones within the U.S.     

Income-contingent user preferences in policy evaluation: application and discussion based on multi-agent transport simulations

Standard economic policy evaluation allows the realization of projects if the aggregated economic benefit outweighs their costs. The use of one single aggregated welfare measure for evaluating and ranking projects has often been criticized for many reasons. A major issue is that differentiated effects on individuals or subgroups of the population are not taken into consideration. This leads to the need for transport planning tools that provide additional information for politicians and decision makers. The microscopic multi-agent simulation approach presented in this paper is capable of helping to design better solutions in such situations. In particular, it is shown that the inclusion of individual income in utility calculations allows a better understanding of problems linked to public acceptance. First, individual income-contingent utility functions are estimated based on survey data in order to describe human mobility behavior. Subsequently, using the MATSim framework, the implementation is tested in a test scenario. Furthermore, and going beyond Franklin (2006), it is shown that the approach works in a large-scale real world example. Based on a hypothetical speed increase of public transit, effects on the welfare distribution of the population are discussed. It is shown that the identification of winners and losers seems to be quite robust. However, results indicate that a conversion or aggregation of individual utility changes for welfare analysis is highly dependent on the functional form of the utility functions as well as on the choice of the aggregation procedure.     

A dynamic traffic assignment model for a continuum transportation system

A predictive continuum dynamic user-optimal (PDUO-C) model is formulated in this study to investigate the dynamic characteristics of traffic flow and the corresponding route-choice behavior of travelers within a region with a dense urban road network. The modeled region is arbitrary in shape with a single central business district (CBD) and travelers continuously distributed over the region. Within this region, the road network is represented as a continuum and travelers patronize a two-dimensional continuum transportation system to travel to the CBD. The PDUO-C model is solved by a promising solution algorithm that includes elements of the finite volume method (FVM), the finite element method (FEM), and the explicit total variation diminishing Runge-Kutta (TVD-RK) time-stepping method. A numerical example is given to demonstrate the utility of the proposed model and the effectiveness of the solution algorithm in solving this PDUO-C problem.     

A random utility maximization (RUM) based dynamic activity scheduling model: Application in weekend activity scheduling

The paper presents a modeling framework for dynamic activity scheduling. The modeling framework considers random utility maximization (RUM) assumption for its components in order to capture the joint activity type, location and continuous time expenditure choice tradeoffs over the course of the day. The dynamics of activity scheduling process are modeled by considering the history of activity participation as well as changes in time budget availability over the day. For empirical application, the model is estimated for weekend activity scheduling using a dataset (CHASE) collected in Toronto in 2002–2003. The data set classifies activities into nine general categories. For the empirical model of a 24-h weekend activity scheduling, only activity type and time expenditure choices are considered. The estimated empirical model captures many behavioral details and gives a high degree of fit to the observed weekend scheduling patterns. Some examples of such behavioral details are the effects of time of the day on activity type choice for scheduling and on the corresponding time expenditure; the effects of travel time requirements on activity type choice for scheduling and on the corresponding time expenditure, etc. Among many other findings, the empirical model reveals that on the weekend the utility of scheduling Recreational activities for later in the day and over a longer duration of time is high. It also reveals that on the weekend, Social activity scheduling is not affected by travel time requirements, but longer travel time requirements typically lead to longer-duration social activities.     

Analyzing the time frame for the transition from leisure-cyclist to commuter-cyclist

A recent survey reported that many commuter-cyclists had enjoyed leisure bicycling on a regular basis prior to becoming a commuter-cyclist. While bicycling for leisure, it is assumed that they considered various factors that led them to consider becoming commuter-cyclists. This study began with the question of how long it would take for a leisure-cyclist to become a commuter-cyclist, and it focused on the time that elapsed between leisure-cyclists transitioning to commuter-cycling. In order to analyze the time frame, it was hypothesized that the probability that a leisure-cyclist would become a commuter-cyclist at a certain time would be conditional on the duration that elapsed from the onset of leisure cycling till that time, which represents the “snowballing” or “inertial” dynamics of duration. A robust methodology, which is known as the “hazard model,” was adopted to accommodate such characteristics of a time period. In addition, various external covariates such as individual-specific characteristics, variables associated with the current or previous commuting mode, supply variables regarding bicycle facilities, and individual latent propensities were adopted to account for the duration of changes that would be generally applicable. As a result, many useful results were derived that could be used in fomenting policies to promote cycling to work. It was found that government should invest in establishing segregated lanes for leisure- and commuter-cyclists. It also turned out that a long distance to work hinders a leisure-cyclist from progressing to commuter-cycling. According to the results, young white-collar workers who live in high-rise apartments and enjoy intensive leisure-cycling in groups, are a good target toward whom promotions for commuter-cycling should be focused. However, an unfortunate development was that, when compared with car-commuters, it was found that transit-commuters are more likely to become commuter-cyclists.