An optical tire contact pressure test bench

An optical tire contact pressure test bench developed by the IMMa group is described. The measurement system is based on the frustration of total internal reflection (FTIR) of light. The test bench allows performing normal pressure distribution and patch contact shape measurements on passenger car tires. The system is based on the use of a laterally illuminated glass on which the tire leans. Between them a plastic interphase is located that will cause the FTIR of light. A video camera catches the formed shining image through the glass. The brightness level in each pixel of the image can be related to the existing normal pressure. The study of the contact patch provided by the bench makes it possible to characterize tire behaviour under different loading states, inflation pressure, tire defects and toe and camber angles. The bench incorporates a computerized load and control system of the tire operation parameters, an image acquisition module and a data acquisition system that allow monitoring and acting on the experimental variables of interest in the tests such as load on the tire and environmental conditions. A supporting mechanical system incorporated to the bench allows providing the tire with variable toe and camber angles. From the images obtained with this system, the maximum normal pressure points, total force, size and shape of the patch can be determined, which are related to the tire-use conditions. As an application example, results that show the patch size and shape under different load and tire inflation pressures are presented. A further application, which is the use of the system for the detection and study of defective tires is also presented.     

Applying Human Systems Integration to the Rapid Acquisition Process

The rapidly changing complexity of the Global War on Terrorism has changed the approach to equipping forward-deployed military forces. Combatant Commanders conducting operations now require timely materiel solutions to enhance mission capabilities and reduce the risk for individual soldiers. To address this challenge, the US Army established the Rapid Equipping Force to assess emerging requirements, to propose solutions to those requirements, and to implement those solutions in an expedient time frame. Unfortunately, the REF lacks a consistent analytical methodology for assessing alternative materiel solutions. To address the need for a human systems integration (HSI) analysis method, the authors developed an Assessment-Based Rapid Acquisition HSI Analysis Method (ABRAHAM) capable of generating tailored surveys and evaluating these surveys for unacceptable risks to soldiers. To validate ABRAHAM's concept and content, ABRAHAM was showcased in three Department of Defense settings: the Human Factors Engineering Technical Advisory Group, the REF, and the US Marine Corps' Operational Test and Evaluation Activity. The ABRAHAM appears to fill a gap in the current library of HSI tools. Based on the feedback provided during the product showcases, there is sufficient interest and technological maturity to further develop ABRAHAM to serve both the traditional and rapid acquisition processes.     

The development of a stochastic non-linear and dynamic jack-up design and analysis method

This paper describes the development of a non-linear, dynamic jack-up analysis method in the time domain. It provides background as to why and when such analysis is required.

The theoretical background of the methods applied are discussed and the main features of the programme are described.     

Private tollroads in urban areas

Governments of all persuasions are increasingly seeking the participation of the private sector in the supply of transport facilities and services. Private sector participation in the financing, construction, operation and maintenance of infrastructure is considered a serious option in a number of countries in the search for ways of providing much needed investment which would otherwise be deferred. This paper considers some economic and financial problems in the private sector provision of major road infrastructure within urban areas. The main issues are attaching prices (i.e. tolls) to the provision of the service, the value of government rights which are being given up either permanently or temporarily, and the identification required by the promoters of the cost of capital which is essential information in establishing the risk. Broader environmental and equity issues are not addressed. If the approach to establishing a private presence in a previously public supply context is handled properly from the outset, the benefits can be significant. Contrarily however, the prospects could be quite undesirable if badly managed, despite the presence of an extended public purse.requests for offprints     

An investigation of a semiactive suspension for a fork lift truck

This paper investigates the feasibility of a semiactive suspension of the cabin of a fork lift truck as a way of reducing the effect of harmful vibrations on the health of truck drivers. A suspension based on MR fluid dampers has been designed and implemented on an actual vehicle and heuristic control strategy has been developed, which preserves the filtering properties of the passive suspension when the vehicle moves in a straight line with a constant velocity and suppresses the large amplitude pitch and roll motion during turns and braking. Field tests have demonstrated a substantial comfort improvement with respect to the passive suspension, during the braking and turning phases, without any noticeable detrimental effects.     

-statistic is the ratio between a normal (0,1) distributed variable and the square root of a centrally distributed chi-square variable divided by its expected value, i.e., its degree of freedom.

This paper evaluates empirically some very common theories of the freight rate generating process in the time charter markets. After a review of the most common assumptions made of the way time charter rates are set, the hypotheses are identified as follows: (a) the Zannetos Hypothesis, (b), the Lagged Zannetos Hypothesis, (c) the Koyck Lag Hypothesis, (d) the Rational Expectation Hypothesis, and (e) the Conventional Wisdom Hypothesis. These hypotheses are tested using statistical cointegration analysis that includes both an Augmented Dickey-Fuller (ADF), and a Johansen likelihood ratio test. Confronted with the data, hypotheses (a) and (b) are rejected outrightly. In the Koyck Lag case, the ADF statistic seem to confirm the hypothesis. A closer look at the numbers reveals that all of the impact on the time charter rates comes from the lagged dependent variable. Hence, the Koyck Lag Hypothesis is rejected. In the Rational Expectation case, the two tests conflicted. Based on the fact that the Rational Expectation Hypothesis includes the lagged dependent variable and that the Johansen test has been found to be a more robust test than the ADF test, the Rational Expectation Hypothesis is rejected. The fifth hypothesis is a reflection of the general bulk industry perception that the time charter rate is impacted by changes in the comparable spot rate and not much by the spot rate levels. In this case both the ADF and the Johansen test accepted the hypothesis for all markets. Thus, the paper concludes that the conventional market explanation of the time charter freight rate setting process is essentially correct-spot rate changes matter spot rate levels do not.     

Collision damage of jack-ups

North Sea collision accident records covering a period of ten years indicate that the risk of collisions involving jack-ups is not dissimilar to that for semi-submersibles or fixed jacket structures. However, jack-ups are much more flexible than jackets and have a much lower degree of redundancy. Their response to collisions and their ability to absorb impact energy is, therefore, expected to be considerably different in comparison to jackets. This paper examines available data and information regarding the capability of jack-ups to withstand collision impacts and investigates the level of local damage that can potentially be caused to jack-up legs due to accidental collisions.     

A 2D long term advection—dispersion model for the Channel and southern North Sea Part B: Transit time and transfer function from Cap de La Hague

A 2D advection-dispersion model, already described and validated, has been used to provide information about water trajectories, transit times, transfer factors and transfer functions in the Channel and North Sea, south of 57 ° N.It shows that a fast vein of water moves parallel to the coast and reaches the northern limit of the model in one year. Along the coast, a few dozen kilometers from this vein, transit times increase by 2–4 months.Tidal gyres in the Channel recirculate waters and dissolved elements for about 2 yr, and in all it generally takes 3 yr for a specific discharge made at La Hague to completely leave the area under study.The transfer factor was depicted and found to be of the order of 10⁻⁵ m.k.s.One utilization of the transfer function could be to predict the future evolution of water content in the months and years following a discharge in these coastal waters.