World container port rankings

In this paper the world's busiest container ports are examined in the context of their geographical locations. There are locational attributes that favour the top-ranked ports and these attributes can be modified to enhance the commercial appeal of particular seaport sites and situations.     

What makes a car-sharer?

Information from various sources, but most specifically from the YORKSHARE car-sharing schemes, is brought together in an analysis of public reaction to, and participation in, a car-sharing scheme with centralised matching of applicants. The importance of various attributes of the sites, of the individuals and of the scheme organisation are assessed and conclusions are drawn.The motivation of individual participants is analysed and is seen to vary from one person to another depending to some extent on their circumstances, but the universal importance of some features, notably cost savings, is revealed.     

An Investigation into Stick-Slip Vibrations on Vehicle/Track Systems

A model for the numerical simulation of vehicle/track interaction and stick-slip vibration is presented. A finite element model is developed to calculate vertical contact forces. These forces are then coupled through the contact patch into a non-linear time-domain model by which the stick-slip vibration behaviour of a wheel-rail system is analysed. The investigation suggests that stick-slip vibration may occur if a vehicle which has a maligned or an initial 'wind-up' wheeiset meets a vertical irregularity or contaminants on the track.     

The selection of fishing vessel fleet operations using a multiple criteria optimization method

The methodology adopted in the design of small fishing vessels is usually concerned only with the vessel's technical characteristics and the procedures utilized may not include consideration of the relevant fishing environment. This paper describes an approach which incorporates operational, economic and technical considerations in a compressive manner. The efficiency of using multicriteria decision making methods in design is investigated with special reference to small vessels. A model is presented which takes into account various operational and fish resource factors. This allows the inclusion of a number of potentially conflicting requirements and goals within the design process. The resulting analysis identifies the optimum fleet mix for three types of fishing vessels for use in a fishing environment of a developing country.     

Modelling the hydrodynamics and ecosystem of the North-West European continental shelf for operational oceanography

This paper outlines an approach to complex spatio-temporal marine ecosystem modelling as applied to the North Western European Continental Shelf. The model presented here combines an eddy-permitting (approximately 6 km horizontal resolution) baroclinic model, the Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory Coastal Ocean Modelling System (POLCOMS), with the European Regional Seas Ecosystem Model (ERSEM). This has been run within an operational framework using operationally available high resolution atmospheric and lateral boundary forcing, allowing hindcast and near-real time nowcast simulations to be performed. The modelled surface temperature and chlorophyll distributions are presented, and interannual variations discussed. Validation of both the physical and ecosystem submodels show the system to be effective, whilst highlighting areas where improvements in the system can be made. Distinct regional differences in predictive skill are shown. The system presented is ready for operational implementation to provide products and services for use both scientifically and in coastal zone and shelf seas management activities. A programme of work to update the system is already in place.     

On the Influence of Weight Reduction and Weight Distribution on Vehicle Handling, Ride and Performance

This investigation discusses the dynamic characteristics of a full sized passenger automobile of the 5000-6000 lb weight class relative to Vehicle Handling, Performance and Ride Quality. Weight and moment of inertia parameters are introduced to modify weights and mass moment of inertia judicially and the dynamic behavior is investigated on the basis of the above mentioned criteria. Finally weight reductions at discrete locations along the vehicle length axis are contemplated and the dynamic behavior is determined relative to the above criteria. The overall geometry of the vehicle is considered as being fixed for all weight modifications.     

Shipbuilding trends in response to environmental issues

This paper offers an overview about how societal issues and environmental challenges will influence shipbuilding in the near future. It begins with an evaluation of societal developments and refers to globalization and climate change. The paper then continues to assess the impact of these developments on ship design and operation, and considers how the adverse effects of shipping in this context can be reduced. In this respect, topics like emission control and scrapping of ships are considered.     

Steady-State Curving Performance of Railway Freight Truck with Damper-Coupled Wheelsets

The focus of this paper is on the steady-state curving behaviour of a freight car system with Damper Coupled Wheelset (DCW), where the wheels of conventional shape within an axle are coupled through a damper element. A freight truck model with two DCW and pseudo-car body on curved track is developed to study the influence of wheelset coupler parameter on the curving response and performance. The response is primarily evaluated in terms of wheelset tracking error and yaw misalignment in response to track curvature and cant deficiency. The curving performance is evaluated in terms of slip and flange boundaries. The results in general, indicate that when the value of coupler parameter is reduced, the wheelset response to track curvature increases, and results in flanging and wheel slip on a less tighter curve than those corresponding to conventional rigid axled wheelsets.     

Level and attitude control of the active suspension system with integral and derivative action

A 7-DOF full-car model with optimal active control suspension is utilized to evaluate the vehicle dynamic performances which are achieved through proposed controllers. The optimal controller, which includes the integral action for the suspension deflection, considerably improves the attitude control of a vehicle because the rolling and pitching motion in cornering and braking maneuvers are reduced, respectively. In the viewpoint of level control, the integral control acting on the suspension deflection results in the zero steady-state deflection in response to static body forces and ramp road input. The dynamic characteristics of the suspension control system are evaluated in terms of time domain and frequency domain. The simulations in the time domain demonstrate the advantages of the active suspension system obtained by penalizing the integral and derivative of suspension deflections and the derivative of roll and pitch angles in the performance index. The frequency characteristic curves obtained by simulations regarding integral action or derivative action show the increase of both ride comfort and road-holding performances by maximizing the use of suspension deflections. The potential of derivative control is shown by the performances of the car traveling over a bump and braking.     

A review of the road safety strategy in hong kong

Since the mid-1990s, the effectiveness of road safety measures in Hong Kong has been weakening. Six administrations in Australia, California, Great Britain (GB), Japan, New Zealand and Sweden are selected to help review the road safety activities in Hong Kong. Nine main components of the road safety strategy, including vision, objectives, targets, action plan, evaluation and monitoring, research and development, quantitative modeling, institutional framework and funding are summarized from the road safety strategies of these overseas administrations and compared to that of Hong Kong. It is found that Hong Kong's road safety activities have to be restructured to make significant improvement. In the future, a new approach structured by the nine different road safety components is recommended. The lessons learnt can be generalized to smooth the progress of other administrations at the Intermediate Stage towards the Advanced Stage of road safety development by using the short-, medium- and long-term approaches.