ENSE 622: Project Abstracts, Spring Semester, 2011
[ Project 1 ]:
A Barcode and Optical Recognition System for Improved Food Safety
[ Project 2 ]:
Bacterial Biofilm Growth Modeling and Experimental Module
[ Project 3 ]:
Weather Data Processing and Distribution Systems of the National Weather Service (NWS)
[ Project 4 ]:
TerraPark (UMD Parking Mobile Application)
[ Project 5 ]:
An Automated Vehicle Identification System for Large Government Installations
[ Project 6 ]:
Automated Waterway (Lock) Systems
[ Project 7 ]:
Wheelchair Seating Systems
[ Project 8 ]:
Software Defined Radio Waveform Development and Management
[ Project 9 ]:
Deep Space Network Compatibility Testing Vehicle
[ Project 10 ]:
A Service Robotic Gripper for Elderly Care Assistance
[ Project 11 ]:
Smartphone Navigation through The Verizon Center
[ Project 12 ]:
Software Package Design for Technical Education Support
[ Project 13 ]:
Small Arms Ballistic Targeting System
Title: A Barcode and Optical Recognition System for Improved Food Safety
Authors: Garret Joseph and Steve Tran
Abstract: In the food industry, one of the main aspects of control and monitoring is food safety. The customer is kept safe from human error through testing, strict guidelines, and regulations. Human error can occur during production or cause by the introduction of counterfeit products into the market place. Therefore, a scanable two-dimensional (2D) barcode should be adapted into the food industry food safety guideline to ensure that counterfeit products do not appear into the market place. In addition, 2D barcodes will reduce the downtime and human error by eliminating unwanted packaging material from getting into the production floor. The encrypted 2D Data Matrix barcode carries a randomized number unique to the individual pack, which makes it difficult for counterfeiters to copy and bring their fakes to market. The -D Data Matrix barcode can be used to check vital data about the product, including recall information and the details of every trader, who has handled that pack in the supply chain.
One drawback is that not all printed 2D barcodes are created equal and out of spec barcode can cause a perfectly good product to be rejected or discarded. This can be anywhere from a 10-20 percent lost of production due to out of spec 2D coded packaging material. One way to eliminate this problem is to verify the code quality before product is placed into any packaging with a 2D code. Therefore, an optical recognition system is placed into the production floor to verify the products before they are packet. The system will scan and analyze the carton or box before it is packed into the product, hence improving the quality of the monitoring process during production.
The purpose of including the pre-packaging 2D barcodes and optical recognition system on the production floor is to automate this process and create a cradle-to-grave method of tracking not only internal to a production facility, but anywhere the product is brought and sold.
Project Resources
Title: Bacterial Biofilm Growth Modeling and Experimental Module
Author: Matthew Mosteller
Abstract: Recent studies at the National Institute of Health (NIH) have shown that as many as seventy-five percent of all bacterial infections can be attributed to the development of bacterial biofilms within the human body. As a result, the past decade has seen a drastic increase in interest from the biomedical community in developing methods to characterize and treat infections due to bacterial biofilms. The development of microelectromechnical systems (MEMS) and microfluidics continues to increase our ability to emulate in vivo environments, to enhance assay precision, and to decrease throughput time in biomedical testing through the use of microscale devices in lieu of traditional macroscale methods. To become successful, the next step in the study of bacterial biofilms is to develop a method for accurately predicting the development of these biological systems within microdevices. The ability to accurately model the effects of multiple parameters upon biofilm growth at this scale helps reveal factors of greatest interest in biofilm testing and to limit the costs associated with complex and time-consuming biomedical experimentation.
The purpose of this project will be to develop a front-end system architecture for a bacterial biofilm growth modeling and experimental module. This architecture, most likely described and characterized through the use of SysML, will allow the user to be able to model the growth of bacterial biofilms over time with varying parameters, thus showing how different environmental and biological factors affect these biofilms. As an integrated system, the system architecture would have both software (the computer-based model) and hardware (the actual microfluidic testing device) elements, with a strong focus upon the interaction of the two, i.e. how changes in the input parameters affect biofilm growth and how these changes correspond to the model's predictions. As a front-end development, we will be primarily concerning ourselves with the requirements of such a system, as well as the development of behavior models for the proposed system. From a high level, we will be able to develop the use-cases and interactions between system modules and to perform analysis of the system in terms of traceability, reliability, and trade-off studies.
Project Resources
Project Title: Weather Data Processing and Distribution
Systems of the National Weather Service (NWS)
Author: Shanna Pitter
Abstract: This project characterizes a systems-level viewpoint of the the data ingest, processing, and distribution for a fictional weather data provider where the volume of data, products, and services being generated and distributed are now beginning to exceed the actual ability to ingest and efficiently utilize the data.
Much of the data will end up now being used by the normal man-in-the-loop operational enterprise for weather forecast generation. The infrastructure needed to distribute all these data are fast exceeding the provider’s capacity to implement and maintain. Therefore, there needs to be a change in what is being sent to users, how the data will be used, and what the end-user needs to do to adequately create their final value-added products.
The concept and systems requirements of a virtual centralized data processing and dissemination system for weather data has been idealized in ENPM 641. Now there needs to be the determination of the distribution of the functions of the system amongst existing weather data processing and distribution systems with the option of upgrading some or all systems to comply with the concept. Numerous factors will determine the optimal combination of functionalities within the system including cost, reliability, fail over capability, latency, and location and control of the interfaces. This project will assess the capabilities of the existing systems, determine possibilities of upgrades, and attempt to lay out options and make recommendations of the optimal choice.
Project Resources
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Project Title: TerraPark (UMD Parking Mobile Application)
Authors: Chris Huber, Dimitris Spyropoulos, Eddie Tseng and Vinit Parmanand
Abstract: This project is to create a cellular phone application to clarify parking information on campus to facilitate the changing needs of the Department of Transportation on the University of Maryland College Park campus. The general purpose of this application is to clarify parking permission and provide driving directions on campus during normal operation and during special events that cause displacement of parking availability.
The functions of the application will be accepting the user's license plate number, displaying allowed parking lots and providing driving directions towards each of parking lots. If the designated parking lots are not available the application will be alerted and new parking lots, designated from the Department of Transportation, will be displayed together with turn by turn directions for the motorist. A secondary function would be utilization of the GPS on the phone to track users while on the university roads in order to provide other users with traffic density information. This information will be used to provide alternate routes around campus, either towards parking lots or out of campus.
Project Resources
Project Title: An Automated Vehicle Identification System for Large Government Installations
Authors: Dwight Morgan and Jessica Howard
Abstract: Over the last 20 years, businessmen and women have become more and more reliant upon personal communication techniques such as cellular phones, smart phones, pagers, and personal digital assistants (PDAs) to stay competitive and productive in the marketplace. Personnel supporting US government entities such as the US Navy, US Army, and other branches of the military have not been immune to this trend and also have become reliant on these systems, some may say even more reliant than their private sector counterparts.
With many recent studies having detailed the inherent dangers of using these systems while driving, the trend as of late has been to ban, or attempt to ban, the use of these technologies by motor vehicle operators in the interest of public safety. Once again, US military installations have followed suit in the interest of force protection, or safeguarding the physical well being of the thousands of personnel including military, civilian, and contractors who live and/or work on the installations. This ban leaves a void in the communications capabilities of mission critical personnel such as Flag Level (i.e. Admirals and Generals), Sr. Executive Service (SES), and other Sr. Personnel who have grown to rely on personal communications devices to receive information such as meeting updates and cancellations from administrative personnel or to inform colleagues and subordinates of their current status such as when they are in route to a meeting.
This project will concentrate on developing an overall architecture and top level design of a system to help fill this void. Utilizing Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technologies such as those incorporated in the EZ Pass toll system, the system will integrate with a central messaging unit to deliver important information to critical personnel entering, leaving, or traversing a military installation. With this system, a unique RFID tag will be assigned to an individual vehicle, which will in-turn be assigned to a specific employee. At specific locations on the installation, such as entrance/exit gates, major intersections, etc, RFID readers will be installed to detect the tags onboard vehicles and determine who the tag belongs to. When the tag reader recognizes the RFID tag, it automatically searches a central database system to determine if there is a message needing to be delivered to the employee. If a message is waiting, it is automatically displayed on a large roadside sign some distance down the road. For example, when Admiral Smith enters a US Navy Installation, he/she may see a message greeting them and informing them that their meeting location has been moved from one building to another, or that their meeting has been cancelled altogether. Elsewhere on the facility, other meeting attendees can be informed through email (at their desk) that Admiral Smith in onboard the Naval installation and in-route to the meeting. This system eliminates the need for Admiral Smith to check his/her blackberry to receive messages regarding the meeting status, and allows for supporting personnel to be more productive while waiting for the Admiral to arrive.
Additional benefits of such a system could include incorporating it into the military installation's physical security system. Through this integration, the system could be used to detect stolen vehicles and alert security personnel performing identification verifications of the upcoming stolen vehicle. While it would not be envisioned that this system would be used to grant access to a facility, it could be used to deny access until military personnel verify a motor vehicle operator's identity/status.
This system also has applicability, although to a lesser extent, in the commercial market where corporations exist in large campus environments.
Project Resources
Project Title: Automated Waterway (Lock) Systems
Author: Leonard Petnga and Rong Wang
Abstract: Waterway lock chambers are the centerpieces and bottlenecks of canal navigation systems. They define system capacity and performance and regulate its operations. This is particularly true for the Panama Canal which, with the evolution of the technology and exponential increase of commercial exchanges between Asia and the US, has seen its initial capacity exploded a long time ago and need a major makeover to remain competitive.
This project aims to bring a system engineering perspective to the question of the design, maintenance and operation of these critical civil infrastructures by constructing a high level representation of an automated lock system.
We also plan to build and simulate their operations, based on publicly available data as well as personal knowledge and experts' insight. While we will focus on the locks, our work will maintain the spirit of the ongoing effort of modernization of the canal and current trends in cyber-physical infrastructure systems.
Project Resources
Project Title: Wheelchair Seating Systems
Authors: Craig Aukett and Heather Nicholas
Abstract: Wheelchair cushions and seating systems aid in patient stability, positioning and pressure relieve to prevent subcutaneous ulcers. Typically, cushions are designed to fit standard wheelchair bases with a one size fits all shape. Technology improvements in pressure mapping can assist manufactures in designing custom seating systems to ideally meet a patients needs. Companies have been experimenting with obtaining three dimensional pressure maps coupled with modeling software and finite element analysis to develop customizable wheelchair seating systems. Ideally the design will reduce high pressure areas through pressure relive and redistribution, provide maximum stability and temperature reduction for the patient. New gel, foam and fabric materials coupled with rapid manufacturing techniques can make this system a reality.
The system model will encompass data collection at the point of use, design and fabrication of the custom cushion.
Project Resources
Project Title: Software Defined Radio Waveform Development and Management
Authors: Gary Toussaint and Mike Sotak
Abstract: Typical radios receive and send signals using hardware components, such as mixers, filters, amplifiers, etc.
A Software Defined Radio (SDR) is a radio that replaces these stovepipe hardware components with flexible software modules. The software inside of the SDR provides the following:
While SDRs can be developed for a wide range of radio applications and environments, the focus of this project will be in the Department of Defense (DoD) realm, namely the Multi Information Distribution System Joint Tactical Radio System (MIDS JTRS). Over the past decade the DoD has placed increased emphasis on data fusion and analysis in order to provide a high level of situational awareness, culminating in the recent development of the Global Information Grid (GIG). As part of the GIG effort, the MIDS JTRS is designed to supply a means for better interoperability between the disparate branches of the DoD, including the Navy, Army, Marines, Coast Guard, and Air Force, by providing streamlined waveforms to facilitate radio communications.
Since waveform development is crucial to the development of these SDRs, providing a way so that waveforms can be used on different platforms is mission critical. Thus, it is proposed that this project will explore waveform management and development in order to discover if there are ways to improve the process and management of waveforms. Concordantly, as part of this analysis our group will propose a set of requirements and corresponding diagrams with the intent of capturing an enterprise DoD platform similar to the MIDS JTRS.
Project Resources
Project Title: Deep Space Network Compatibility Testing Vehicle
Authors: Taylor Casey, Devin Bitner, Kyle Gregory
Abstract: The purpose of Goddard Space Flight Center Compatibility Testing (CT) is to determine spacecraft compatibility with the supporting networks telemetry, ranging, and command systems, including the Radio Frequency links. Compatibility Testing is a service that is provided by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)/Space Communications and Navigations Program (SCaN) so that customers can be assured that their communications system interacts seamlessly, as demonstrated through testing, with the network assets anticipated for that mission. CT is meant to show that the selected, to be deployed, communications system and the network assets can correspond well.
The majority of tests are conducted at a manufacturer's facility due to spacecraft size, project support equipment required, test time schedules and transportation costs. The Compatibility Test Van (CTV) provides the capability of testing the RF interface of a spacecraft at any U.S. location having the required site and power facilities. Currently, CT only supports spacecraft compatibility testing with the Space Network (SN) and Near Earth Network (NEN). The objective of this project is to determine the requirements, design, and trade-off analysis for upgrading the CTV to include the capability to determine spacecraft compatibility with the Deep Space Network.
Project Resources
Project Title: A Service Robotic Gripper for Elderly Care Assistance
Team Members: Milind Meheta, Nakul Sathyanarayana, and Shruti D Arora
Abstract: As human life expectancy is becoming longer the problem of maintaining independence and active participation in society later in life is receiving growing attention. Elderly people need physical help, as their ability to do daily routine decreases. Hence the focus is on making a service robot (with the gripper-arm, thus the ability to move things) for elderly people to assist them in daily activities as well as be a remote monitoring station for care givers. The Care-bot navigation in small spaces is attainable allowing existing design of homes unmodified in any way to facilitate Care-bot navigation. Once a digital map of the place has been acquired, the Care-bot can track its movement with respect to the map. As elderly people become physically weak, their own homes can pose substantial risks. For example, slipping and falling are serious hazards for elderly people. If an accident goes undetected by others, severe consequences can result. With tracking and detection, the Care-bots will be able to detect such incidents and alert caregivers and emergency teams about emergencies.
Project Resources
Project Title: Smartphone Navigation through The Verizon Center
Team Members: Nefretiti Nassar, Mamadou Faye, Meron Alemayehu
Abstract: The system is a smart phone application that will help people navigate to and in the Verizon Center. The process will start from the guuest's home and according to the planned method of travel, the application will suggest and layout the best possible route. The application will guide the ticket holder to the appropriate entrance based on the section/row coordinates within the center as well as to his/her seat. In addition, the application will also navigate the ticket holder throughout the center, to include accommodations such as the nearest restroom, first aid, and/or souvenir/food concessions. The human performance tasks include locating his/her seat, first aid, the restroom and/or concessions. The beginning of the project task is how the ticket holder will arrive to the Verizon Center (i.e., by automobile or public transportation). The end of the project task is how the ticket holder will exit the center.
Project Resources
Project Title: Software Package Design for Technical Education Support
Team Members: Matt Grenier and John McGahagan
Abstract: Every student can benefit from an enhanced knowledge-base at an earlier age and this is especially true of students who intend to enroll in a highly technical field such as Engineering, Computer or Physical Sciences. More importantly, these fields are showing to be especially weak in terms of curriculum available to students and as a result America's high school students are finding themselves ill-prepared for entry into major University programs in these fields.
To circumvent this problem, we propose a more robust, optional teaching program which focuses on the areas which are missed by the current high-school curriculum. The ideal initial scope for the program would be basic engineering courses from the Mechanical, Electrical, Civil, and Chemical engineering disciplines however we envision an eventual expansion into all fields of engineering and applied physical sciences. Moreover, the source of the material for the program can come from university PhD students from the relevant fields. These individuals demand a more modest pay rate than full-fledged professors would and given that the content is more basic, these PhD students should be more than qualified to create the content. An important aspect of the program is that it should be accessible on-line so that students can learn at their own individual pace and it would be ideal for school districts to "foot the bill" for the program so that students can access it from their school computers. In theory, this program should benefit all parties involved, from the students acquiring a greater knowledge-base, to the high-schools receiving higher admissions rates for their students into university programs, and of course the universities which will have higher graduation rates since students will be more prepared for the coursework and as a result, receive better grades in their courses.
Our project will consider all the processes, resources and subsystems which are required to generate this technical education software package
Project Resources
Project Title: Small Arms Ballistic Targeting System
Team Member: Jason Fonner
Abstract: Military precision shooters (aka, snipers) must take a wide range of variables into account in order to accurately engage their targets with small arms fire. Among these variables are the parameters that are primarily a function of their equipment (muzzle velocity, drop, drift, etc.) as well as the current atmospheric conditions (temperature, pressure, humidity, winds, etc.) and the effect that these non-standard conditions have on their equipment. Though snipers have been perfecting their craft for well over a century, only recent advances in technology have allowed for the possibility of a system which will take into account all of these variables while also proving easy to deploy and maintain in a battlefield environment.
This project will focus on a system-level representation of a small arms ballistic targeting system for use by military precision shooters in a battlefield environment. At a minimum this system-of-systems will incorporate the soldier, his rifle, one or more electro-optical devices, a suite of atmospheric sensors, and a portable ballistic computer.
Project Resources
Last Modified: March 28, 2011.
Copyright © 2011, Institute for Systems Research, University of Maryland