Spark Ignition Engine Idle Speed Control Using a Novel Framework and Enabling Control of the Tradeoff between Fuel Consumption and Load Rejection Capability

In this paper, a new framework for idle speed control is presented [The idle control methodology described paper is protected by international patent law]. A simple new discrete event based engine model evolving in the crank domain is given and is parameterized using a combination of dynamic identification and steady state calibration. The majority of the non-linearities can then be inverted and a second synthetic output is introduced. This second output is the torque reserve of the engine and enables control of the tradeoff between disturbance rejection capabilities and engine efficiency. A linear controller is designed using the H 8 loopshaping technique and results are presented from dynamometer based engine tests.     

Land use-transportation scenario planning: promise and reality

Land use-transportation scenario planning has become increasingly common in regional and sub-regional planning processes. The technique promises to provide citizens with opportunities to engage in constructive dialogue about the future of their communities, and to serve as a basis for assertive action to direct the course of that future. This study reviews 80 scenario planning projects from more than 50 U.S. metropolitan areas. The analysis reveals important gaps in the practice of scenario planning—particularly in the areas of public participation, methodology, and institutional structures—and recent efforts to address the shortcomings.

Contributors to this issue

Contributors to this issue     

日本日立公司为英国制造城际列车

介绍了日本日立公司为英国制造新一代城际客运列车的主要技术特点,以及这些列车在英国的运营区域。     

Creating synthetic baseline populations

To develop activity-based travel models using microsimulation, individual travelers and households must be considered. Methods for creating baseline synthetic populations of households and persons using 1990 census data are given. Summary tables from the Census Bureau STF-3A are used in conjunction with the Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS), and Iterative Proportional Fitting (IPF) is applied to estimate the proportion of households in a block group or census tract with a desired combination of demographics. Households are generated by selection of households from the associated PUMS according to these proportions. The tables of demographic proportions which are exploited here to make household selections from the PUMS may be used in traditional modeling. The procedures are validated by creating pseudo census tracts from PUMS samples and considering the joint distribution of the size of households and the number of vehicles in the households. It is shown that the joint distributions created by these methods do not differ substantially from the true values. Additionally the effects of small changes in the procedure, such as imputation of additional demographics and adding partial counts to the constructed demographic tables are discussed in the paper.