Sophisticated Data Acquisition System Research Articles

Dual threshold input receiver FPGA-only signal digitization method for time-of-flight positron emission tomography

As silicon photomultiplier (SiPM)-based time-of-flight (TOF) positron emission tomography (PET) becomes popular, the need for sophisticated PET data acquisition (DAQ) systems is increasing. One promising solution to this challenge is the adoption of a field-programmable gate array (FPGA)-only signal digitization method. In this paper, we propose a new approach to efficiently implement an FPGA-only digitizer. We configured the input/output (IO) port of the FPGA to function as a dual-threshold voltage comparator through the use of simple passive circuitry and heterogeneous IO standards. This configuration overcomes the limitations of existing methods by allowing different threshold voltages for adjacent IO pins, effectively reducing routing complexity and lowering manufacturing costs. An FPGA-only digitizer was implemented by integrating the dual-threshold voltage comparator and FPGA-based time-to-digital converter. By combining the dual-threshold time-over-threshold (TOT) method and curve fitting, precise energy information could be obtained. The performance of the FPGA-only digitizer was assessed using a detector setup comprising a 3 × 3 × 20 mm3 LYSO scintillation crystal and a single pixel SiPM. Using the configured evaluation setup, an energy resolution of 12.5% and a time resolution of 146 ± 9 ps were achieved for a 20 mm scintillation crystal. The dual-threshold TOT implemented using the proposed method showed consistent linearity across an energy range of 100 keV to 600 keV. The proposed method is well-suited for the development of cost-effective DAQ systems in highly integrated TOF PET systems.

Catheterization of Pulmonary and Carotid Arteries for Concurrent Measurement of Mean Pulmonary and Systemic Arterial Pressure in Rat Models of Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension.

Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a group of pulmonary vascular disorders in which mean pulmonary arterial pressure (mPAP) becomes abnormally high because of various pathological conditions, including remodeling of the pulmonary arteries, lung and heart disorders, or congenital conditions. Various animal models, including mouse and rat models, have been used to recapitulate elevated mPAP observed in PH patients. However, the measurement and recording of mPAP and mean systemic arterial pressure (mSAP) in small animals require microsurgical procedures and a sophisticated data acquisition system. In this paper, we describe the surgical procedures for right heart catheterizations (RHC) to measure mPAP in rats. We also explain the catheterization of the carotid artery for simultaneous measurement of mPAP and mSAP using the PowerLab Data Acquisition system. We enumerate the surgical steps involved in exposing the jugular vein and the carotid artery for catheterizing these two blood vessels. We list the tools used for microsurgery in rats, describe the methods for preparing catheters, and illustrate the process for inserting the catheters in the pulmonary and carotid arteries. Finally, we delineate the steps involved in the calibration and setup of the PowerLab system for recording both mPAP and mSAP. This is the first protocol wherein we meticulously explain the surgical procedures for RHC in rats and the recording of mPAP and mSAP. We believe this protocol will be essential for PH research. Investigators with little training in animal handling can reproduce this microsurgical procedure for RHC in rats and measure mPAP and mSAP in rat models of PH. Further, this protocol is likely to help master RHC in rats that are performed for other conditions, such as heart failure, congenital heart disease, heart valve disorders, and heart transplantation.

Repeated Drop-Weight Impact Testing of Fibrous Concrete: State-Of-The-Art Literature Review, Analysis of Results Variation and Test Improvement Suggestions.

The ACI 544-2R introduced a qualitative test to compare the impact resistance of fibrous concretes under repeated falling-mass impact loads, which is considered to be a low-cost, quick solution for material-scale impact tests owing to the simplified apparatus, test setup and procedure, where none of the usual sophisticated sensors and data acquisition systems are required. However, previous studies showed that the test results are highly scattered with noticeably unacceptable variations, which encouraged researchers to try to use statistical tools to analyze the scattering of results and suggest modifications to reduce this unfavorable disadvantage. The current article introduces a state-of-the-art literature review on the previous and recent research on repeated impact testing of different types of fibrous concrete using the ACI 544-2R test, while focusing on the scattering of results and highlighting the adopted statistical distributions to analyze this scattering. The influence of different mixture parameters on the variation of the cracking and failure impact results is also investigated based on data from the literature. Finally, the article highlights and discusses the literature suggestions to modify the test specimen, apparatus and procedure to reduce the scattering of results in the ACI 544-2R repeated impact test. The conducted analyses showed that material parameters such as binder, aggregate and water contents in addition to the maximum size of aggregate have no effect on the variation of test results, while increasing the fiber content was found to have some positive influence on decreasing this variation. The survey conducted in this study also showed that the test can be modified to lower the unfavorable variations of impact and failure results.

Design and construct unit to control fluid entering solar collectors during efficiency tests

This paper describes the development of an apparatus to control the fluids that enter a solar collector in experimental tests with respect to the Australian and New Zealand Standard AS/NZS 2535.1.2007. This standard explains the testing procedure, indicating that the inlet fluid should have specified temperature and flow rate uncertainties. The hardware components were constructed in the lab. A new sophisticated data acquisition system with an NI CompactDAQ was added to control the unit, and a new software application in LabVIEW was developed. The unit was operated in an open-loop to understand its behaviour as a multiple-inputs and multiple-outputs system (MIMO). A rule of thumb tuning method was used to design the proportional-integral PI controller for the heating system. Moreover, a custom decoupler with a PI controller was developed to reduce the interactions in the MIMO. The measured steady-state responses were analysed to determine the flow rate and temperature compared with the limited boundaries. The final results show that the system could supply water to the solar collector within the accuracy requirements. Achieving the fluid's absolute temperature and flow rate within the required constraints of the published standard has proven that the developed unit can be adapted to perform solar collector testing. However, additional steps are suggested for further work to enable the unit to provide field testing.

16 What’s a Connected Barn and How Do We Use It?

Abstract Internet enabled swine facilities with smart controllers are forging the future directions of swine management, data analytics, and research. Today’s smart controllers have capabilities far beyond just ventilation operation, they are sophisticated data acquisition and control systems with cloud-based platforms for data aggregation and visualization. This technology has promoted the concept of a connected barn – a facility with autonomous, real-time data capture, analysis, and decision making. Connected barns can monitor indoor environmental conditions, personnel traffic, ventilation function, power consumption, bin weights, weather, refrigerators, etc. This new abundance of customizable measurement options sampled at a high-resolution will fundamentally change swine production. There is often a general lack of information related to conditions/events the pigs experience inside a barn that impact short-/long-term productivity and provide context for interpreting conventional data. Information is now superimposable with other data streams and new relationships between, for example, pig activity, environment, feed intake, daily gain, water consumption, etc. can be discovered. This will enable new avenues in nutrition, health, genetics, technology, husbandry, and engineering because a unified data stream, across numerous spaces is possible. Connected barns provide the link between pigs, data, and their environment. While opportunities are limitless, several key challenges need addressing: representativeness and accuracy of data; diligent management of advanced technology; and cultivation of transdisciplinary knowledge to understand limitations and make thoughtful inquiries. A connected barn is no longer a future concept, but a tangible production system ripe with a myriad of opportunities that will shape the course of animal production.

AstrO: A portable cosmic ray telescope

This paper describes the design and performances of the AstrO (Astroparticle Outreach) cosmic muon telescope. The detector, contained in a trolley, is transportable and simple enough to be used by high-school students. The sophisticated data acquisition system is based on advanced DAQ technology and thanks to a simple interface is suitable for non-expert users. The detector is capable of measuring an integrated cosmic muon rate of 1–2 Hz with a precision (statistical and systematic) of a few percent in few hours of data taking. It can be used to detect variations induced by the solar activity, to determine the rate dependence on the geographical location (altitude and latitude) and to measure the cosmic muon rate attenuation due to surrounding high-density shielding such as rocks or concrete walls.

Robust Optimization of Demand Response Power Bids for Drinking Water Systems

The development of smart grids represents a major breakthrough in the management of electric power and drinking water systems. On the one hand, smart grids have contributed to the development of energy efficiency and demand side management mechanisms such as Demand Response, making it possible to reduce peak load and adapt elastic demand to fluctuation generation. On the other hand, smart water networks and sophisticated Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition systems in the water industry have allowed one to optimize, control and monitor the water flow throughout its entire process. Being a highly energy intensive industry and having an electrical flexibility by the presence of storage elements such as tanks, drinking water systems have the ability to address energy efficiency mechanisms such as Demand Response. In this paper, the French demand response mechanism in spot power markets is presented. Then, a chance constrained problem is formulated to integrate water systems flexibility to power system operation, under water demand uncertainties. Numerical results are discussed based on a real water system in France, demonstrating the relevance of the approach in terms of financial benefits and risk management.

Quantification of Environmental Effects on PV Module Degradation: A Physics-Based Data-Driven Modeling Method

This paper explains the fusion of the physics-based material degradation mechanism with the statistics-based data modeling approach for predicting the degradation rate of photovoltaic (PV) modules. The degradation of PV module is mainly associated with the module construction type and climatic condition at its use location. The aim of this paper is to quantify the effect of dynamic environmental stresses (dynamic covariates) on the power degradation of the module over its lifetime. There are various physics-based models, such as Arrhenius model, for understanding the physical or chemical reaction-related root causes of PV degradation. But, to estimate the underlying material properties, such as activation energy (Ea), statistical modeling plays a key role. In addition, instead of being continuously monitored, the performance characteristics of PV modules are often measured only at intervals like quarterly or annually, which makes it difficult to model the complete degradation path of the module. On the other hand, the information on dynamic covariates is recorded more frequently with the development of sophisticated sensors and data acquisition systems. This information can be integrated through physics-based models to study the effects of environmental variables in degradation processes. Hence, in this paper, a cumulative exposure model is used to link the module degradation path and the environmental variables, including module temperature (both static and cyclic), ultraviolet radiation, and relative humidity, which are recorded as multivariate time series.

Human Beings Selecting the Right Data Acquisition System

Human beings often must monitor a handful of signals over extended periods of time, and then graph and analyze the resulting data. The need to monitor, record and analyze data arises in a wide range of applications, including the design-verification stage of product development, environmental chamber monitoring, component inspection, bench top testing and process trouble-shooting. This application note describes the various methods and devices you can use to acquire it, record and analyze data, from the simple pen-and-paper method to using today's sophisticated data acquisition systems. It discusses the advantages and disadvantages of each method and provides a list of questions that will guide you in selecting the approach that best suits your needs.

Centrifugal compressor surge detecting method based on wavelet analysis of unsteady pressure fluctuations in typical stages

Centrifugal compressors are complex energy equipment. Automotive control and protection system should meet the requirements: of operation reliability and durability. In turbocompressors there are at least two dangerous areas: surge and rotating stall. Antisurge protecting systems usually use parametric or feature methods. As a rule industrial system are parametric. The main disadvantages of anti-surge parametric systems are difficulties in mass flow measurements in natural gas pipeline compressor. The principal idea of feature method is based on the experimental fact: as a rule just before the onset of surge rotating or precursor stall established in compressor. In this case the problem consists in detecting of unsteady pressure or velocity fluctuations characteristic signals. Wavelet analysis is the best method for detecting onset of rotating stall in spite of high level of spurious signals (rotating wakes, turbulence, etc.). This method is compatible with state of the art DSP systems of industrial control. Examples of wavelet analysis application for detecting onset of rotating stall in typical stages centrifugal compressor are presented. Experimental investigations include unsteady pressure measurement and sophisticated data acquisition system. Wavelet transforms used biorthogonal wavelets in Mathlab systems.

Predictive maintenance using FMECA method and NHPP models

Most of predictive maintenance technologies are inaccessible to small scale and medium scale industries due to their demanding cost. This paper proposes a predictive maintenance policy using failure mode effect and criticality analysis (FMECA) and non-homogeneous Poisson process (NHPP) models which require minimal use of advanced monitoring technologies and sophisticated data acquisition systems. Most of the repairable systems show long term reliability degradation with repeated overhauls. Here, critical component of a system or machinery exhibiting sad (deteriorating) trend is used as an indicator to predict overall maintenance time of a system. Firstly, the component to be used as an indicator for predictive maintenance is chosen using FMECA method, in which the most critical component is chosen. Secondly, the failure data of the chosen component is analysed using NHPP models and based on analysis of the data, relevant NHPP model is selected and finally, the Mean Time Between Failure (MTBF) of the component is compared with the threshold mean time between failure [MTBF(Th)] of the component to decide the overall maintenance time for the system. The developed methodology is validated on an overhead crane in a steel manufacturing company.

Automatic Monitoring Technology for Surface Settlement of Underwater Foundation

With the construction boost of China marine projects, it is necessary to perform underwater foundation monitoring. This paper describes the modification of two types of vibrating wire instruments to achieve the automatic measurement of surface settlement of underwater foundation. Thus surface settlement of underwater foundation can be monitored by automatic data acquisition, storage and transmission with help of current sophisticated automatic data acquisition, automatic storage and battery systems. The automatic monitoring system can provide real-time and reliable monitoring data to guide the marine construction.

Is naturalistic driving research possible with highly instrumented cars? Lessons learnt in three research centres

This paper provides an overview of the experiences using Highly Instrumented Cars (HICs) in three research Centres across Europe; Spain, the UK and Greece. The data collection capability of each car is described and an overview presented relating to the relationship between the level of instrumentation and the research possible. A discussion then follows which considers the advantages and disadvantages of using HICs for ND research. This includes the obtrusive nature of the data collection equipment, the cost of equipping the vehicles with sophisticated Data Acquisition Systems (DAS) and the challenges for data storage and analysis particularly with respect to video data. It is concluded that the use of HICs substantially increases the depth of knowledge relating to the driver's behaviour and their interaction with the vehicle and surroundings. With careful study design and integration into larger studies with Low(ly) instrumented Cars (LICs), HICs can contribute significantly and in a relatively naturalistic manner to the driver behaviour research.

Comprehensive Interpretation of a Three-Point Gauss Quadrature with Variable Sampling Points and Its Application to Integration for Discrete Data

This study examined the characteristics of a variable three-point Gauss quadrature using a variable set of weighting factors and corresponding optimal sampling points. The major findings were as follows. The one-point, two-point, and three-point Gauss quadratures that adopt the Legendre sampling points and the well-known Simpson’s 1/3 rule were found to be special cases of the variable three-point Gauss quadrature. In addition, the three-point Gauss quadrature may have out-of-domain sampling points beyond the domain end points. By applying the quadratically extrapolated integrals and nonlinearity index, the accuracy of the integration could be increased significantly for evenly acquired data, which is popular with modern sophisticated digital data acquisition systems, without using higher-order extrapolation polynomials.

Drilling Performance Is a Function of Power at the Bit and Drilling Efficiency

This article is a condensed version of paper IADC/SPE 151389, presented at the 2012 International Association of Drilling Contractors (IADC)/SPE Drilling Conference and Exhibition, held in San Diego, California, USA, 6-8 March 2012. Understanding of basic drilling mechanics has been greatly enhanced by the use of today’s sophisticated data acquisition systems for both surface and downhole drilling data. These systems have also helped in identifying major dysfunctions—particularly, harmful downhole vibrations. Various methods are used to optimize drilling practices, including monitoring efficiency indicators, such as mechanical specific energy (MSE), as well as preventing harmful vibrations by adjusting drilling parameters real time. However, focusing on the efficiency of components and the prevention of dysfunctions is only a partial solution. It is also necessary to focus on the magnitude of mechanical power delivered to the bit, as that defines the capacity of the system and directly affects efficiencies, operating practices, and performance. The paper shows how the power at the bit and drilling efficiency vary as a function of drillstring and bottomhole assembly (BHA) configuration, bit selection, and drilling parameter. Field examples illustrate the magnitude of parasitic losses caused by well geometry and the downhole environment. In many cases it is striking to learn how little power is left for the drill bit, which in the end dictates the potential rate of penetration (ROP) and thus the cost per foot and economics of the drilling process. Particular emphasis has been put on new and intuitive ways to visually display the power at the surface and downhole. These make it possible to quantify system limits and identify key dysfunctions in one simple graph that can be used in real time as well as in both pre- or post-well analysis. Better understanding of the entire drilling system and the functional relationship of its parts can be a strong driver for both short- and long-term improvements in system design, drilling practices, and bit selection, ultimately resulting in higher productivity and lower well construction cost. Introduction The oil and gas industry, unlike others, seldom focuses on power requirements for the rotating drilling system and their effect on performance and efficiency. This might be explained in part by the fact that for about 100 years roller cone bits have been the industry’s preferred drilling tool. Roller cone bits require relatively little torque due to their low aggressiveness, and, due to the limited load capacity of the bearings, they act as perfect torque limiters. The rotating power system therefore utilized only a small fraction of the total installed power of a rotary drill rig; lack of power was not considered a limiting factor.

A Low-Cost Stand-Alone Multichannel Data Acquisition, Monitoring, and Archival System With On-Chip Signal Preprocessing

The objective of this paper is to design a new generation of affordable sophisticated data acquisition and processing (DAQP) systems. Because of the proposed system hardware reconfigurability, it can be used to meet the need of many real-world applications while keeping the cost of a device low. The hardware implementation of the different processing functions of the device allows for high-speed processing without the need of expensive general-purpose processors, as is the case of computer-based or microcontroller-based data acquisitions (DAQs). The target technology of implementing the proposed design is the system on chip via field-programmable gate array (SoC-FPGA). A four-channel DAQP was designed, developed, and tested in the Embedded Systems Design Laboratory, Tennessee Technological University, Cookeville. Various modules of the conceptual design are implemented and verified. Performance evaluation and cost comparisons are provided. The comparison showed that the results of the proposed instrument are comparable to existing technologies at a fraction of the cost.

Iodine-filter-based mobile Doppler lidar to make continuous and full-azimuth-scanned wind measurements: data acquisition and analysis system, data retrieval methods, and error analysis

An incoherent Doppler wind lidar based on iodine edge filters has been developed at the Ocean University of China for remote measurements of atmospheric wind fields. The lidar is compact enough to fit in a minivan for mobile deployment. With its sophisticated and user-friendly data acquisition and analysis system (DAAS), this lidar has made a variety of line-of-sight (LOS) wind measurements in different operational modes. Through carefully developed data retrieval procedures, various wind products are provided by the lidar, including wind profile, LOS wind velocities in plan position indicator (PPI) and range height indicator (RHI) modes, and sea surface wind. Data are processed and displayed in real time, and continuous wind measurements have been demonstrated for as many as 16 days. Full-azimuth-scanned wind measurements in PPI mode and full-elevation-scanned wind measurements in RHI mode have been achieved with this lidar. The detection range of LOS wind velocity PPI and RHI reaches 8-10 km at night and 6-8 km during daytime with range resolution of 10 m and temporal resolution of 3 min. In this paper, we introduce the DAAS architecture and describe the data retrieval methods for various operation modes. We present the measurement procedures and results of LOS wind velocities in PPI and RHI scans along with wind profiles obtained by Doppler beam swing. The sea surface wind measured for the sailing competition during the 2008 Beijing Olympics is also presented. The precision and accuracy of wind measurements are estimated through analysis of the random errors associated with photon noise and the systematic errors introduced by the assumptions made in data retrieval. The three assumptions of horizontal homogeneity of atmosphere, close-to-zero vertical wind, and uniform sensitivity are made in order to experimentally determine the zero wind ratio and the measurement sensitivity, which are important factors in LOS wind retrieval. Deviations may occur under certain meteorological conditions, leading to bias in these situations. Based on the error analyses and measurement results, we point out the application ranges of this Doppler lidar and propose several paths for future improvement.

Nuclear fusion in collapsing bubbles—Is it there? An attempt to repeat an experiment that reported d–d fusion in bubble collapse induced by cavitation in deuterated acetone

The experiment of Taleyarkhan et al. [Science 295, 1686 (2002)] has been repeated [D. Shapira and M. Saltmarsh, Phys. Rev. Lett. 89, 104302 (2002)] in an attempt to detect the emission of neutrons from d–d fusion during bubble collapse in deuterated acetone. Using the same apparatus and method for bubble seeding and cavitation but a more sophisticated data acquisition system, and a large liquid scintillator detector we find no evidence for 2.5 MeV neutron emission correlated with sonoluminscence from the collapsing bubbles. Any neutron emisssion that might occur is at least four orders of magnitude smaller than that necessary to explain the tritium production reported in Taleyarkhan et al. as being due to d–d fusion. We demonstrate that the proper allowance for random coincidence rates in such experiments requires the simultaneous measurement of the complex time-varying singles rates.

Nuclear Fusion in Collapsing Bubbles—Is It There? An Attempt to Repeat the Observation of Nuclear Emissions from Sonoluminescence

We have repeated the experiment of Taleyarkhan et al. [Science 295, 1868 (2002)]] in an attempt to detect the emission of neutrons from d-d fusion during bubble collapse in deuterated acetone. Using the same cavitation apparatus, a more sophisticated data acquisition system, and a larger scintillator detector, we find no evidence for 2.5-MeV neutron emission correlated with sonoluminescence form collapsing bubbles. Any neutron emission that might occur is at least 4 orders of magnitude too small to explain the tritium production reported in Taleyarkhan et al. as being due to d-d fusion. We show that proper allowance for random coincidence rates in such experiments requires the simultaneous measurement of the count rates in the individual detectors.

HERA-B higher-level triggers: architecture and software

HERA-B will be studying CP-violation in the B-system in a high-rate hadronic environment. To accomplish this goal, HERA-B needs a sophisticated data acquisition and trigger system. Except for the first level, all trigger levels are implemented as PC-farms, running the Unix-like operating system, Linux, thus blurring the sharp border between online and offline application software. The hardware architecture and software environments are discussed.