No. 1

  Measurement of Physical Quantities

    Pages

Bojan Podgornik, Borut Žužek, Marko Sedlaček, Varužan Kevorkijan, Boris Hostej:

Analysis of Factors Influencing Measurement Accuracy of Al Alloy Tensile Test Results 

Abstract: 

In order to properly use materials in design, a complete understanding of and information on their mechanical properties, such as yield and ultimate tensile strength must be obtained. Furthermore, as the design of automotive parts is constantly pushed toward higher limits, excessive measuring uncertainty can lead to unexpected premature failure of the component, thus requiring reliable determination of material properties with low uncertainty.

The aim of the present work was to evaluate the effect of different metrology factors, including the number of tested samples, specimens machining and surface quality, specimens input diameter, type of testing and human error on the tensile test results and measurement uncertainty when performed on 2xxx series Al alloy. Results show that the most significant contribution to measurement uncertainty comes from the number of samples tested, which can even exceed 1 %. Furthermore, moving from experimental laboratory conditions to very intense industrial environment further amplifies measurement uncertainty, where even if using automated systems human error cannot be neglected.

V. Suresh, A. Abudhahir:

An Analytical Model for Prediction of Magnetic Flux Leakage from Surface Defects in Ferromagnetic Tubes

Abstract: 

In this paper, an analytical model is proposed to predict magnetic flux leakage (MFL) signals from the surface defects in ferromagnetic tubes. The analytical expression consists of elliptic integrals of first kind based on the magnetic dipole model. The radial (Bz) component of leakage fields is computed from the cylindrical holes in ferromagnetic tubes. The effectiveness of the model has been studied by analyzing MFL signals as a function of the defect parameters and lift-off. The model predicted results are verified with experimental results and a good agreement is observed between the analytical and the experimental results. This analytical expression could be used for quick prediction of MFL signals and also input data for defect reconstructions in inverse MFL problem.

Nawarat Piladaeng, Niwat Angkawisittpan, Sahalaph Homwuttiwong:

Determination of Relationship between Dielectric Properties, Compressive Strength, and Age of Concrete with Rice Husk Ash Using Planar Coaxial Probe

Abstract: 

This paper deals with an investigation of the dielectric properties of concretes that includes rice husk ash using a planar coaxial probe. The planar coaxial probe has a planar structure with a microstrip and coaxial features. The measurement was performed over the frequency range of 0.5-3.5 GHz, and concrete specimens with different percentages of rice husk ash were tested. The results indicated that the dielectric constant of the concretes was inversely proportional to the frequency, while the conductivity was proportional to the frequency. The dielectric constant decreased with the increasing age of the concrete at the frequency of 1 GHz. The conductivity of the concrete decreased with the increasing age of the concrete at the frequency of 3.2 GHz. In addition, the dielectric constant and the conductivity decreased when the compressive strength increased. It was also shown that the obtained dielectric properties of the concrete could be used to investigate the relationship between the compressive strength and age of the concrete. Moreover, there is an opportunity to apply the proposed probe to determine the dielectric properties of other materials.

Rammah A. Alahnomi, Z. Zakaria, E. Ruslan, Amyrul Azuan Mohd Bahar:

A Novel Symmetrical Split Ring Resonator Based on Microstrip for Microwave Sensors

Abstract: 

In this paper, novel symmetrical split ring resonator (SSRR) is proposed as a suitable component for performance enhancement of microwave sensors. SSRR has been employed for enhancing the insertion loss of the microwave sensors. Using the same device area, we can achieve a high Q-factor of 141.54 from the periphery enhancement using Quasi-linear coupling SSRR, whereas loose coupling SSRR can achieve a Q-factor of 33.98 only. Using Quasi-linear coupling SSRR, the Q-factor is enhanced 4.16 times the loose coupling SSRR using the same device area. After the optimization was made, the SSRR sensor with loose coupling scheme has achieved a very high Q-factor value around 407.34 while quasi-linear scheme has achieved high Q-factor value of 278.78 at the same operating frequency with smaller insertion loss. Spurious passbands at 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th harmonics have been completely suppressed well above -20 dB rejection level without visible changes in the passband filter characteristics. The most significant of using SSRR is to be used for various industrial applications such as food industry, quality control, bio-sensing medicine and pharmacy. The simulation result that Quasi-linear coupling SSRR is a viable candidate for the performance enhancement of microwave sensors has been verified.

Jelena Jovanović, Dragan Denić:

A Cost-effective Method for Resolution Increase of the Two-stage Piecewise Linear ADC Used for Sensor Linearization

Abstract: 

A cost-effective method for resolution increase of a two-stage piecewise linear analog-to-digital converter used for sensor linearization is proposed in this paper. In both conversion stages flash analog-to-digital converters are employed. Resolution increase by one bit per conversion stage is performed by introducing one additional comparator in front of each of two flash analog-to-digital converters, while the converters’ resolutions remain the same. As a result, the number of employed comparators, as well as the circuit complexity and the power consumption originating from employed comparators are for almost 50 % lower in comparison to the same parameters referring to the linearization circuit of the conventional design and of the same resolution. Since the number of employed comparators is significantly reduced according to the proposed method, special modifications of the linearization circuit are needed in order to properly adjust reference voltages of employed comparators.

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  Measurement of Physical Quantities

Roman Sotner, Jan Jerabek, Norbert Herencsar, Jiun-Wei Horng, Kamil Vrba, Tomas Dostal:

Simple Oscillator with Enlarged Tunability Range Based on ECCII and VGA Utilizing Commercially Available Analog Multiplier

Abstract: 

This work presents an example of implementation of electronically controllable features to an originally unsuitable circuit structure of oscillator. Basic structure does not allow any electronic control and has mutually dependent condition of oscillation (CO) and frequency of oscillation (FO) if only values of passive elements are considered as the only way of control. Utilization of electronically controllable current conveyor of second generation (ECCII) brings control of CO independent of FO. Additional application of voltage amplifier with variable gain in both polarities (voltage-mode multiplier) to feedback loop allows also important enlargement of the range of the independent FO control. Moreover, our proposal was tested and confirmed experimentally with commercially available active elements (“Diamond transistor”, current-mode multiplier, voltage-mode multiplier) in working range of tens of MHz.

Wojciech Kapłonek, Krzysztof Nadolny, Grzegorz M. Królczyk:

The Use of Focus-Variation Microscopy for the Assessment of Active Surfaces of a New Generation of Coated Abrasive Tools

Abstract: 

In this paper, the selected results of measurements and analysis of the active surfaces of a new generation of coated abrasive tools obtained by the use of focus-variation microscopy (FVM) are presented and discussed. The origin of this technique, as well as its general metrological characteristics is briefly described. Additionally, information regarding the focus variation microscope used in the experiments – InfiniteFocus® IF G4 produced by Alicona Imaging, is also given. The measurements were carried out on microfinishing films (IMFF), abrasive portable belts with Cubitron™ II grains, and single-layer abrasive discs with Trizact™ grains. The obtained results were processed and analyzed employing TalyMap 4.0 software in the form of maps and profiles, surface microtopographies, Abbott-Firestone curves, and calculated values of selected areal parameters. This allowed us to describe the active surfaces of the coated abrasive tools, as well as to assess the possibility of applying the FVM technique in such kinds of measurements.

J. Mikulka, E. Hutova, R. Korinek, P. Marcon, Z. Dokoupil, E. Gescheidtova, L. Havel, K. Bartusek:

MRI-Based Visualization of the Relaxation Times of Early Somatic Embryos

Abstract: 

The large set of scientific activities supported by MRI includes, among others, the research of water and mineral compounds transported within a plant, the investigation of cellular processes, and the examination of the growth and development of plants. MRI is a method of major importance for the measurement of early somatic embryos (ESE) during cultivation, and in this respect it offers several significant benefits discussed within this paper. We present the following procedures: non-destructive measurement of the volume and content of water during cultivation; exact three-dimensional differentiation between the ESEs and the medium; investigation of the influence of ions and the change of relaxation times during cultivation; and multiparametric segmentation of MR images to differentiate between embryogenic and non-embryogenic cells. An interesting technique consists in two-parameter imaging of the relaxation times of the callus; this method is characterized by tissue changes during cultivation at a microscopic level, which can be monitored non-destructively.

Yaqing Tu , Yanlin Shen, Haitao Zhang, Ming Li:

Phase and Frequency Matching-based Signal Processing Method for Coriolis Mass Flowmeters

Abstract: 

Signal processing precision of Coriolis mass flowmeters affects the measurement accuracy directly. To improve the measurement accuracy of Coriolis mass flowmeters, a phase and frequency matching-based signal processing method for Coriolis mass flowmeters is proposed. Estimated phase difference is obtained by means of frequency estimation, 90° phase shift, generating reference signals and cross-correlation. Simulated results demonstrate that the proposed method has better phase difference estimation and anti-interference performance than the Hilbert transform method, cross-correlation method, data extension-based correlation method, and quadrature delay estimator. Measurement results of Coriolis mass flowmeters verify the effectiveness and superiority of the proposed method in practice.

Zhen Li, Zhaozong Meng:

A Review of the Radio Frequency Non-destructive Testing for Carbon-fibre

Abstract: 

The purpose of this paper is to review recent research on the applications of existing non-destructive testing (NDT) techniques, especially radio frequency (RF) NDT, for carbon-fibre reinforced plastics (CFRP) composites. Electromagnetic properties of CFRP composites that are associated with RF NDT are discussed first. The anisotropic characteristic of the conductivity and the relationship between the penetration depth and conductivity should be paid much attention. Then, the well-established RF NDT including eddy current technique, microwave technique and RF-based thermography are well categorised into four types (i.e. electromagnetic induction, resonance, RF-based thermography and RF wave propagation) and demonstrated in detail. The example of impact damage detection using the induction and resonance methods is given. Some discussions on the development (like industrial-scale automated scanning, three-dimensional imaging, short-range ultra-wideband (UWB) imaging and the radio frequency identification technology (RFID)-based NDT) are presented.

HyungTae Kim, KyungChan Jin, SeungTaek Kim, Jongseok Kim,  Seung-Bok Choi:

3D Body Scanning Measurement System Associated with RF Imaging, Zero-padding and Parallel Processing 

Abstract: 

This work presents a novel signal processing method for high-speed 3D body measurements using millimeter waves with a general processing unit (GPU) and zero-padding fast Fourier transform (ZPFFT). The proposed measurement system consists of a radio-frequency (RF) antenna array for a penetrable measurement, a high-speed analog-to-digital converter (ADC) for significant data acquisition, and a general processing unit for fast signal processing. The RF waves of the transmitter and the receiver are converted to real and imaginary signals that are sampled by a high-speed ADC and synchronized with the kinematic positions of the scanner. Because the distance between the surface and the antenna is related to the peak frequency of the conjugate signals, a fast Fourier transform (FFT) is applied to the signal processing after the sampling. The sampling time is finite owing to a short scanning time, and the physical resolution needs to be increased; further, zero-padding is applied to interpolate the spectra of the sampled signals to consider a 1/m floating point frequency. The GPU and parallel algorithm are applied to accelerate the speed of the ZPFFT because of the large number of additional mathematical operations of the ZPFFT.  3D body images are finally obtained by spectrograms that are the arrangement of the ZPFFT in a 3D space.

Wei-Jiang, Tao-Zhang, Ying-Xu,Huaxiang-Wang, Xiaoli-Guo, Jing-Lei, Peiyong-Sang:

The Effects of Fluid Viscosity on the Orifice Rotameter     

Abstract: 

Due to the viscous shear stress, there is an obvious error between the real flow rate and the rotameter indication for measuring viscous fluid medium. At 50 cSt the maximum error of DN40 orifice rotameter is up to 35 %. The fluid viscosity effects on the orifice rotameter are investigated using experimental and theoretical models. Wall jet and concentric annulus laminar theories were adapted to study the influence of viscosity. And a new formula is obtained for calculating the flow rate of viscous fluid. The experimental data were analyzed and compared with the calculated results. At high viscosity the maximum theoretical results error is 6.3 %, indicating that the proposed measurement model has very good applicability.

Olena Punshchykova, Jana Švehlíková, Milan Tyšler, Richard Grünes, Ksenia Sedova, Pavel Osmančík, Jana Žďárská, Dalibor Heřman, and Peter Kneppo:

Influence of Torso Model Complexity on the Noninvasive Localization of Ectopic Ventricular Activity

Abstract: 

Location of premature ectopic ventricular activity was assessed noninvasively for five patients using integral body surface potential maps and inverse solution to one dipole. Precision of the inverse solution was studied using three different torso models:  homogeneous torso model, inhomogeneous torso model including lungs and heart ventricles and inhomogeneous torso model including lungs, heart ventricles and atria, aorta and pulmonary artery. More stable results were obtained using the homogeneous model. However, in some patients the locations of the resulting dipoles representing the focuses of ectopic activities were shifted between solutions using the homogeneous and inhomogeneous models. Comparison of solutions with inhomogeneous torso models did not show significantly different dispersions but localization of the focus was better when torso model including also atria and arteries was used. The obtained results suggest that presented noninvasive localization of the ectopic focus can be used to shorten the time needed for successful ablation and to increase its success rate.

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Theoretical Problems of Measurement

Zoltan Domotor, Vadim Batitsky:                      Invited paper

An Algebraic Approach to Unital Quantities and their Measurement

Abstract: 

This The goals of this paper fall into two closely related areas. First, we develop a formal framework for deterministic unital quantities in which measurement unitization is understood to be a built-in feature of quantities rather than a mere annotation of their numerical values with convenient units. We introduce this idea within the setting of certain ordered semigroups of physical-geometric states of classical physical systems. States are assumed to serve as truth makers of metrological statements about quantity values. A unital quantity is presented as an isomorphism from the target system’s ordered semigroup of states to that of positive reals. This framework allows us to include various derived and variable quantities, encountered in engineering and the natural sciences. For illustration and ease of presentation, we use the classical notions of length, time, electric current and mean velocity as primordial examples. The most important application of the resulting unital quantity calculus is in dimensional analysis. Second, in evaluating measurement uncertainty due to the analog-to-digital conversion of the measured quantity’s value into its measuring instrument’s pointer quantity value, we employ an ordered semigroup framework of pointer states. Pointer states encode the measuring instrument’s indiscernibility relation, manifested by not being able to distinguish the measured system’s topologically proximal states. Once again, we focus mainly on the measurement of length and electric current quantities as our motivating examples. Our approach to quantities and their measurement is strictly state-based and algebraic in flavor, rather than that of a representationalist-style structure-preserving numerical assignment.

  Measurement of Physical Quantities

Jian-Ping Yu, Wen Wang, Xin Li, Zhao-Zhong Zhou:

A Novel Quadrature Signal Estimation Method for a Planar Capacitive Incremental Displacement Sensor

Abstract: 

This paper presents a novel phase-shift arctangent (PSA) interpolation method to improve the measurement accuracy of a planar capacitive incremental displacement sensor. Signals of planar capacitive micro-sensors acquire waveform errors, including sensitivity differences and phase-shift errors, because of static errors and dynamic disturbances. In the proposed PSA scheme, such errors are removed completely by loading a particular arctangent function. Moreover, measuring efficiency of the proposed planar capacitive sensors is improved by combining coarse measurement and fine estimation. Experiments show unanimous results to model-based fitting. When electrode length is four times the gap distance, applying the PSA interpolation method decreases waveform errors from more than 4 % to 1.72 %.

Chuan Wang, ZhenqiangXie, Binggui Xu, Jun Li, Xu Zhou:

Experimental Study on EHD Flow Transition in a Small Scale Wire-plate ESP

Abstract: 

The electrohydrodynamic (EHD) flow induced by the corona discharge was experimentally investigated in an electrostatic precipitator (ESP). The ESP was a narrow horizontal Plexiglas box (1300 mm×60 mm×60 mm). The electrode set consisted of a single wire discharge electrode and two collecting aluminum plate electrodes. Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) method was used to visualize the EHD flow characteristics inside the ESP seeded with fine oil droplets. The influence of applied voltage (from 8 kV to 10 kV) and primary gas flow (0.15 m/s, 0.2 m/s, 0.4 m/s) on the EHD flow transition was elucidated through experimental analysis. The formation and transition of typical EHD flows from onset to the fully developed were described and explained. Experimental results showed that the EHD flow patterns change depends on the gas velocity and applied voltage. EHD flow starts with flow streamlines near collecting plates bending towards the wire electrode, forming two void regions. An oscillating jet forming the downstream appeared and moved towards the wire electrode as voltage increased. For higher velocities (≥0.2 m/s), the EHD transition became near wire phenomenon with a jet-like flow structure near the wire, forming a void region behind the wire and expanding as voltage increased. Fully developed EHD secondary flow in the form of counter-rotating vortices appeared upstream with high applied voltage.

Peter Kukuča, Igor Chrapčiak:

From Smart Metering to Smart Grid

Abstract: 

The paper deals with evaluation of measurements in electrical distribution systems aimed at better use of data provided by Smart Metering systems. The influence of individual components of apparent power on the power loss is calculated and results of measurements under real conditions are presented. The significance of difference between the traditional and the complex evaluation of the electricity consumption efficiency by means of different definitions of the power factor is illustrated.

Haifeng Huang, Huajiang Ouyang, Hongli Gao, Liang Guo, Dan Li, Juan Wen:

A Feature Extraction Method for Vibration Signal of Bearing Incipient Degradation

Abstract: 

Detection of incipient degradation demands extracting sensitive features accurately when signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is very poor, which appears in most industrial environments. Vibration signals of rolling bearings are widely used for bearing fault diagnosis. In this paper, we propose a feature extraction method that combines Blind Source Separation (BSS) and Spectral Kurtosis (SK) to separate independent noise sources. Normal, and incipient fault signals from vibration tests of rolling bearings are processed. We studied 16 groups of vibration signals (which all display an increase in kurtosis) of incipient degradation after they are processed by a BSS filter. Compared with conventional kurtosis, theoretical studies of SK trends show that the SK levels vary with frequencies and some experimental studies show that SK trends of measured vibration signals of bearings vary with the amount and level of impulses in both vibration and noise signals due to bearing faults. It is found that the peak values of SK increase when vibration signals of incipient faults are processed by a BSS filter. This pre-processing by a BSS filter makes SK more sensitive to impulses caused by performance degradation of bearings.

Alena Vimmrová, Václav Kočí, Jitka Krejsová, Robert Černý:

A Method for Optimizing Lightweight-Gypsum Design Based on Sequential Measurements of Physical Parameters

Abstract: 

A method for lightweight-gypsum material design using waste stone dust as the foaming agent is described. The main objective is to reach several physical properties which are inversely related in a certain way. Therefore, a linear optimization method is applied to handle this task systematically. The optimization process is based on sequential measurement of physical properties. The results are subsequently point-awarded according to a complex point criterion and new composition is proposed. After 17 trials the final mixture is obtained, having the bulk density equal to (586 ± 19) kg/m³ and compressive strength (1.10 ± 0.07) MPa. According to a detailed comparative analysis with reference gypsum, the newly developed material can be used as excellent thermally insulating interior plaster with the thermal conductivity of (0.082 ± 0.005) W/(m·K). In addition, its practical application can bring substantial economic and environmental benefits as the material contains 25 % of waste stone dust.

Andrzej Marynowicz:

Transient Infrared Measurement of Laser Absorption Properties of Porous Materials

Abstract: 

The infrared thermography measurements of porous building materials became more frequent in the recent years. Many accompanying techniques for the thermal field generation have been developed, including one basing on a laser radiation. This work presents simple optimization technique for estimation the laser beam absorption for selected porous building materials, namely clinker brick and cement mortar. The transient temperature measurements were performed with the use of infrared camera during laser-induced heating-up of the samples surfaces. As the results, the absorbed fractions of the incident laser beam together with its shape parameter are reported.

  Measurement in Biomedicine

James Hawkins, Siamak Noroozi, Mihai Dupac, Philip Sewell:

Development of a Wearable Sensor System for Dynamically Mapping the Behavior of an Energy Storing and Returning Prosthetic Foot

Abstract: 

It has been recognized that that the design and prescription of Energy Storing and Returning prosthetic running feet are not well understood and that further information on their performance would be beneficial to increase this understanding. Dynamic analysis of an amputee wearing a prosthetic foot is typically performed using reflective markers and motion-capture systems. High-speed cameras and force plates are used to collect data of a few strides. This requires specialized and expensive equipment in an unrepresentative environment within a large area. Inertial Measurement Units are also capable of being used as wearable sensors but suffer from drift issues.  This paper presents the development of a wearable sensing system that records the action of an Energy Storing and Returning prosthetic running foot (sagittal plane displacement and ground contact position) which could have research and/or clinical applications. This is achieved using five standalone pieces of apparatus including foot-mounted pressure sensors and a rotary vario-resistive displacement transducer. It is demonstrated, through the collection of profiles for both foot deflection and ground contact point over the duration of a stride, that the system can be attached to an amputee’s prosthesis and used in a non-laboratory environment. It was found from the system that the prosthetic ground contact point, for the amputee tested, progresses along the effective metatarsal portion of the prosthetic foot towards the distal end of the prosthesis over the duration of the stride.  Further investigation of the effective stiffness changes of the foot due to the progression of the contact point is warranted.

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  Measurement of Physical Quantities

Dobrzańska Magdalena, Dobrzański Paweł, Śmieszek Mirosław, Pawlus Paweł:

Selection of Filtration Methods in the Analysis of Motion of Automated Guided Vehicle

Abstract: 

In this article the issues related to mapping the route and error correction in automated guided vehicle (AGV) movement have been discussed. The nature and size of disruption have been determined using the registered runs in experimental studies. On the basis of the analysis a number of numerical runs have been generated, which mapped possible to obtain runs in a real movement of the vehicle. The obtained data set has been used for further research. The aim of this paper was to test the selected methods of digital filtering on the same data set and determine their effectiveness. The results of simulation studies have been presented in the article. The effectiveness of various methods has been determined and on this basis the conclusions have been drawn.

Guan Xu, Xinyuan Zhang, Xiaotao Li, Jian Su, and Zhaobing Hao:

Global Calibration Method of a Camera Using the Constraint  of Line Features and 3D World Points

Abstract: 

We present a reliable calibration method using the constraint of 2D projective lines and 3D world points to elaborate the accuracy of the camera calibration. Based on the relationship between the 3D points and the projective plane, the constraint equations of the transformation matrix are generated from the 3D points and 2D projective lines. The transformation matrix is solved by the singular value decomposition. The proposed method is compared with the point-based calibration to verify the measurement validity. The mean values of the root-mean-square errors using the proposed method are 7.69×10^-4, 6.98×10^-4, 2.29×10^-4, and 1.09×10^-3 while the ones of the original method are 8.10×10^-4, 1.29×10^-2, 2.58×10^-2, and 8.12×10^-3. Moreover, the average logarithmic errors of the calibration method are evaluated and compared with the former method in different Gaussian noises and projective lines. The variances of the average errors using the proposed method are 1.70×10^-5, 1.39×10^-4, 1.13×10^-4, and 4.06×10^-4, which indicates the stability and accuracy of the method.

Jablonská Jana, Kozubková Milada, Himr Daniel, Weisz Michal:

Methods of Experimental Investigation of Cavitation in a Convergent - Divergent Nozzle of Rectangular Cross Section

Abstract: 

Cavitation is a phenomenon with both positive and negative effects and with dynamic manifestations in hydraulic, food, chemical and other machinery. This article deals with the detection and dynamic behavior of cavitation clouds in water flows through a rectangular cross-section convergent-divergent nozzle. Cavitation was measured by methods applicable in engineering practice. Pressure, flow rate, noise, vibration, and amount of air dissolved in the liquid were measured and cavitation region was recorded with a high-speed camera. Evaluation of acquired images in connection with measured pressure pulsations and mechanical vibrations was performed with the use of the FFT method. In certain cases, dimensionless parameters were used to generalize the measurements. The results will be used to specify multiphase mathematical cavitation model parameters.

Hongfang Chen, Zhi Tan, Zhaoyao Shi, Huixu Song, Hao Yan:

Optimization Method for Solution Model of Laser Tracker Multilateration Measurement

Abstract: 

Multilateration measurement using laser trackers suffers from a cumbersome solution method for high-precision measurements. Errors are induced by the self-calibration routines of the laser tracker software. This paper describes an optimization solution model for laser tracker multilateration measurement, which effectively inhibits the negative effect of this self-calibration, and further, analyzes the accuracy of the singular value decomposition for the described solution model. Experimental verification for the solution model based on laser tracker and coordinate measuring machine (CMM) was performed. The experiment results show that the described optimization model for laser tracker multilateration measurement has good accuracy control, and has potentially broad application in the field of laser tracker spatial localization.

Weihang Kong, Lei Li, Lingfu Kong, Xingbin Liu:

Calibration of Mineralization Degree for Dynamic Pure-water Measurement in Horizontal Oil-water Two-phase Flow

Abstract: 

In order to solve the problem of dynamic pure-water electrical conductivity measurement in the process of calculating water content of oil-water two-phase flow of production profile logging in horizontal wells, a six-group local-conductance probe (SGLCP) is proposed to measure dynamic pure-water electrical conductivity in horizontal oil-water two-phase flow. The structures of conductance sensors which include the SGLCP and ring-shaped conductance probe (RSCP) are analyzed by using the finite-element method (FEM). In the process of simulation, the electric field distribution generated by the SGLCP and RSCP are investigated, and the responses of the measuring electrodes are calculated under the different values of the water resistivity. The static experiments of the SGLCP and RSCP under different mineralization degrees in horizontal oil-water two-phase flow are carried out. Results of simulation and experiments demonstrate a nice linearity between the SGLCP and RSCP under different mineralization degrees. The SGLCP has also a good adaptability to stratified flow, stratified flow with mixing at the interface and dispersion of oil in water and water flow. The validity and feasibility of pure-water electrical conductivity measurement with the designed SGLCP under different mineralization degrees are verified by experimental results.

Wu Zhou, Lili Chen, Huijun Yu, Bei Peng, and Yu Chen:

Sensitivity Jump of Micro Accelerometer Induced by Microfabrication Defects of Micro Folded Beams

Abstract: 

The abnormal phenomenon occurring in sensor calibration is an obstacle to product development but a useful guideline to product improvement. The sensitivity jump of micro accelerometers in the calibrating process is recognized as an important abnormal behavior and investigated in this paper. The characteristics of jumping output in the centrifuge test are theoretically and experimentally analyzed and their underlying mechanism is found to be related to the varied stiffness of supporting beam induced by the convex defect on it. The convex defect is normally formed by the lithography deviation and/or etching error and can result in a jumping stiffness of folded microbeams and further influence the sensitivity when a part of the bending beams is stopped from moving by two surfaces contacting. The jumping level depends on the location of convex and has nothing to do with the contacting properties of beam and defects. Then the location of defect is predicted by theoretical model and simulation and verified by the observation of micro structures under microscopy. The results indicate that the tested micro accelerometer has its defect on the beam with a distance of about 290μm from the border of proof mass block.

Theoretical Problems of Measurement

Ignacio Lira, Dieter Grientschnig:

The Cosine Error: A Bayesian Procedure for Treating a Non-repetitive Systematic Effect

Abstract: 

An inconsistency with respect to variable transformations in our previous treatment of the cosine error example with repositioning (Metrologia, vol. 47, pp. R1–R14) is pointed out. The problem refers to the measurement of the vertical height of a column of liquid in a manometer. A systematic effect arises because of the possible deviation of the measurement axis from the vertical, which may be different each time the measurement is taken. A revised procedure for treating this problem is proposed; it consists in straightforward application of Bayesian statistics using a conditional reference prior with partial information. In most practical applications, the numerical differences between the two procedures will be negligible, so the interest of the revised one is mainly of conceptual nature. Nevertheless, similar measurement models may appear in other contexts, for example, in intercomparisons, so the present investigation may serve as a warning to analysts against applying the same methodology we used in our original approach to the present problem.

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Theoretical Problems of Measurement

Eva Fišerová, Sandra Donevska, Karel Hron, Ondřej Bábek and Kristýna Vaňkátová:

Practical Aspects of Log-ratio Coordinate Representations in Regression with Compositional Response

Abstract: 

Regression analysis with compositional response, observations carrying relative information, is an appropriate tool for statistical modelling in many scientific areas (e.g. medicine, geochemistry, geology, economics). Even though this technique has been recently intensively studied, there are still some practical aspects that deserve to be further analysed. Here we discuss the issue related to the coordinate representation of compositional data. It is shown that linear relation between particular orthonormal coordinates and centred log-ratio coordinates can be utilized to simplify the computation concerning regression parameters estimation and hypothesis testing. To enhance interpretation of regression parameters, the orthogonal coordinates and their relation with orthonormal and centred log-ratio coordinates are presented. Further we discuss the quality of prediction in different coordinate system. It is shown that the mean squared error (MSE) for orthonormal coordinates is less or equal to the MSE for log-transformed data. Finally, an illustrative real-world example from geology is presented.

Sergiusz Sienkowski:

A Method of m-Point Sinusoidal Signal Amplitude Estimation

Abstract: 

The paper presents a new and original method of m-point estimation of sinusoidal signal amplitude. In this method, an m-point estimator is calculated on the basis of m initial signal samples. The way the estimator is constructed is explained. It is shown that the starting point for constructing the estimator is two initial signal samples. Next, in order to determine the estimator general form, three and m subsequent initial signal samples appearing in a signal period are used. Some special cases of an estimator are considered. Such an estimator is compared with a four-point estimator proposed by Vizireanu and Halunga. It is shown that the m-point estimator makes it possible to estimate the signal amplitude more accurately.

  Measurement of Physical Quantities

Marek Kowalik, Mirosław Rucki, Piotr Paszta, Rafał Gołębski:

Plastic Deformations of Measured Object Surface in Contact with Undeformable Surface of Measuring Tool

Abstract: 

Measuring errors caused by deformation (flattening) of a measured object appear under the influence of pressure force and weight of the measured object. Plastic strain, arising at the contact of a measured object and an undeformable contact tip of a measuring device, can be calculated by applying the Hertz plastic solution and the hypothesis of plastic strain. In a small area of contact between two bodies pressing against one another with force F, there appears the so-called contact stress. It can sometime reach very high values, exceeding the yield point, even when the contact pressure is relatively small. In the present work, the authors describe a theoretical solution to the problem of plastic strain between two bodies. The derived relationships enable to calculate force F during measurements of a deformable object by means of an instrument with an undeformable, spherical measuring tip. By applying the τmax hypothesis, a solution was obtained for the force F in an inexplicit form. The theoretical solution was verified with the digital simulation and experimental measurement. With the FEM method, the limit length gage was modeled in interaction with the measured shaft of a diameter d larger than the nominal one of Δl value.

David Matoušek, Jiří Hospodka, Ondřej Šubrt:

Efficiency of Innovative Charge Pump versus Clock Frequency and MOSFETs Sizes

Abstract:

Charge pumps are circuits that produce the voltage higher than supply voltage or negative voltage. Today, charge pumps became an integral part of the electronic equipment. The integration of charge pumps directly into the system allows manufacturers to feed a complex system with many specific power requirements from a single source. However, charge pump efficiency is reduced by many phenomena. This paper is focused on the question of efficiency of proposed variant of the charge pump. In this article, the efficiency dependence on a number of stages, output current, clock frequency and MOSFETs sizes was simulated by Eldo. The aim of this study is to determine the MOSFETs sizes and theirs influence to efficiency and the output voltage. Complex optimization of the charge pump circuit will follow in further text.

D. V. Ryazantsev, V. P. Grudtsov:

Automatic Parameter Extraction Technique for MOS Structures by C-V Characterization Including the Effects of Interface States

Abstract:

An automatic MOS structure parameter extraction algorithm accounting for quantum effects has been developed and applied in the semiconductor device analyzer Agilent B1500A. Parameter extraction is based on matching the experimental C-V data with numerical modeling results. The algorithm is used to extract the parameters of test MOS structures with ultrathin gate dielectrics. The applicability of the algorithm for the determination of distribution function of DOS and finding the donor defect level in silicon is shown.

Tomáš Stejskal, Tatiana Kelemenová, Miroslav Dovica, Peter Demeč, Miroslav Štofa:

Information Contents of a Signal at Repeated Positioning Measurements of the Coordinate Measuring Machine (CMM) by Laser Interferometer

Abstract:

The input of this paper lies in displaying possibilities how to determine the condition of a coordinate measuring machine (CMM) based on a large number of repeated measurements. The number of repeated measurements exceeds common requirements for determining positioning accuracy. The total offset in the accuracy of spatial positioning consists of partial inaccuracies of individual axes. 6 basic errors may be defined at each axis. In a triaxial set, that translates into 18 errors, to which an offset from the perpendicularity between the axial pairs must be added. Therefore, the combined number of errors in a single position is 21. These errors are systemic and stem from the machine’s geometry. In addition, there are accidental errors to account for as well. Accidental errors can be attributed to vibrations, mass inertness, passive resistance, and in part to fluctuations in temperature. A peculiar set of systemic errors are time-varying errors. The nature of those errors may be reversible, for instance if they result from influence of temperature or elastic deformation. They can be also irreversible, for example as a result of wear and tear or line clogging, due to loosened connection or permanent deformation of a part post collision. A demonstration of thermal equalizing of the machine’s parts may also be observed in case of failure to adhere to a sufficient time interval from the moment the air-conditioning is turned on. Repeated measurements done on a selected axis with linear interferometer can provide complex information on the CMM condition and also on the machine’s interaction with the given technical environment.

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  Measurement of Physical Quantities

J. Liu, X.M. Suo, S.S. Zhou, S.Q. Meng, S.S. Chen, H.P. Mu:

Electrical Capacitance Tomography Measurement of the Migration of Ice Frontal Surface in Freezing Soil

Abstract: 

The tracking of the migration of ice frontal surface is crucial for the understanding of the underlying physical mechanisms in freezing soil. Owing to the distinct advantages, including non-invasive sensing, high safety, low cost and high data acquisition speed, the electrical capacitance tomography (ECT) is considered to be a promising visualization measurement method. In this paper, the ECT method is used to visualize the migration of ice frontal surface in freezing soil. With the main motivation of the improvement of imaging quality, a loss function with multiple regularizers that incorporate the prior formation related to the imaging objects is proposed to cast the ECT image reconstruction task into an optimization problem. An iteration scheme that integrates the superiority of the split Bregman iteration (SBI) method is developed for searching for the optimal solution of the proposed loss function. An unclosed electrodes sensor is designed for satisfying the requirements of practical measurements. An experimental system of one dimensional freezing in frozen soil is constructed, and the ice frontal surface migration in the freezing process of the wet soil sample containing five percent of moisture is measured. The visualization measurement results validate the feasibility and effectiveness of the ECT visualization method.

Rene Hartansky:

Analysis of Omni-directivity Error of Electromagnetic Field Probe using Isotropic Antenna

Abstract: 

This manuscript analyzes the omni-directivity error of an electromagnetic field (EM) probe and its dependence on frequency. The global directional characteristic of a whole EM probe consists of three independent directional characteristics of EM sensors - one for each coordinate. The shape of particular directional characteristics is frequency dependent and so is the shape of the whole EM probe’s global directional characteristic. This results in systematic error induced in the measurement of EM fields. This manuscript also contains quantitative formulation of such errors caused by the shape change of directional characteristics for different types of sensors depending on frequency and their mutual arrangement.

S. Solis-Najera, F. Vazquez, R. Hernandez, O. Marrufo, A.O. Rodriguez:

Numerical Analysis of a Flexible Dual Loop Coil and its Experimental Validation for pre-Clinical Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Rodents at 7 T

Abstract: 

A surface radio frequency coil was developed for small animal image acquisition in a pre-clinical magnetic resonance imaging system at 7 T. A flexible coil composed of two circular loops was developed to closely cover the object to be imaged. Electromagnetic numerical simulations were performed to evaluate its performance before the coil construction. An analytical expression of the mutual inductance for the two circular loops as a function of the separation between them was derived and used to validate the simulations. The RF coil is composed of two circular loops with a 5 cm external diameter and was tuned to 300 MHz and 50 Ohms matched.  The angle between the loops was varied and the Q factor was obtained from the S₁₂ simulations for each angle. B1 homogeneity was also evaluated using the electromagnetic simulations. The coil prototype was designed and built considering the numerical simulation results. To show the feasibility of the coil and its performance, saline-solution phantom images were acquired. A correlation of the simulations and imaging experimental results was conducted showing a concordance of 0.88 for the B₁ field. The best coil performance was obtained at the 90° aperture angle. A more realistic phantom was also built using a formaldehyde-fixed rat phantom for ex vivo imaging experiments. All images showed a good image quality revealing clearly defined anatomical details of an ex vivo rat.

Vitalij Novickij, Irutė Girkontaitė, Audrius Grainys, Auksė Zinkevičienė, Eglė Lastauskienė, Jurgita Švedienė, Algimantas Paškevičius, Svetlana Markovskaja, Jurij Novickij:

Measurement of Transient Permeability of Sp2/0 Myeloma Cells: Flow Cytometric Study  

Abstract: 

Electroporation is an electric field induced phenomenon occurring when the permeability of the cell membrane is increased due to the excess of critical transmembrane potential. Fluorescent dye assays are frequently used for evaluation of the permeabilization rate, however, the protocols vary, which negatively affects the repeatability of the results. In this work we have designed experiments to investigate the protocols and threshold concentrations of the Propidium Iodide (PI) and YO-PRO-1 (YP) fluorescent dyes for evaluation of mammalian cell permeabilization induced by electroporation. The Sp2/0 mouse myeloma cells were used and the bursts of 100 μs x 8 electrical pulses of 0.8–2 kV/cm were applied. It has been shown that the dye concentration has an influence on the detectable permeabilization, and the concentrations below 30 μM for PI and 1 μM for YP should be avoided for measurement of electro-permeabilization efficacy due to unreliable fluorescence signals. Further, based on the experimental data, the permeabilization curve for the Sp2/0 myeloma cells in the 0.8–2 kV/cm range has been presented.

Zhaozong Meng, Zhen Li:

RFID Tag as a Sensor - A Review on the Innovative Designs and Applications

Abstract: 

The Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology has gained interests in both academia and industry since its invention. In addition to the applications in access control and supply chain, RFID is also a cost-efficient solution for Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) and pervasive monitoring. The battery free RFID tags are used as independent electromagnetic sensors or energy harvesting and data transmission interface of sensor modules for different measurement purposes. This review paper aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the innovative designs and applications of RFID sensor technology with new insights, identify the technical challenges, and outline the future perspectives. With a brief introduction to the fundamentals of RFID measurement, the enabling technologies and recent technical progress are illustrated, followed by an extensive discussion of the novel designs and applications. Then, based on an in-depth analysis, the potential constraints are identified and the envisaged future directions are suggested, including printable/wearable RFID, System-on-Chip (SoC), ultra-low power, etc. The comprehensive discussion of RFID sensor technology will be inspirational and useful for academic and industrial communities in investigating, developing, and applying RFID for various measurement applications.

Mariusz Oszust:

A Regression-Based Family of Measures for Full-Reference Image Quality Assessment

Abstract: 

The advances in the development of imaging devices resulted in the need of an automatic quality evaluation of displayed visual content in a way that is consistent with human visual perception. In this paper, an approach to full-reference image quality assessment (IQA) is proposed, in which several IQA measures, representing different approaches to modelling human visual perception, are efficiently combined in order to produce objective quality evaluation of examined images, which is highly correlated with evaluation provided by human subjects. In the paper, an optimisation problem of selection of several IQA measures for creating a regression-based IQA hybrid measure, or a multimeasure, is defined and solved using a genetic algorithm. Experimental evaluation on four largest IQA benchmarks reveals that the multimeasures obtained using the proposed approach outperform state-of-the-art full-reference IQA techniques, including other recently developed fusion approaches.

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