Sharif Digital Repository

We propose a roll-forward error recovery technique based on multiple scan chains for TMR systems, called Scan chained TMR (ScTMR). ScTMR reuses the scan chain flip-flops employed for testability purposes to restore the correct state of a TMR system in the presence of transient or permanent errors. In the proposed ScTMR technique, we present a voter circuitry to locate the faulty module and a controller circuitry to restore the system to the fault-free state. As a case study, we have implemented the proposed ScTMR technique on an embedded processor, suited for safety-critical applications. Exhaustive fault injection experiments reveal that the proposed architecture has the error detection and... 

This work describes the essential tools and architecture of a simulation environment, which could help enhance general aviation training as well as safety issues, especially while dealing with flights over unfamiliar environments. It also describes how the authors could effectively generate any desired flight path and its associated surrounding images through implementing a virtual single camera with simultaneous localization and mapping (monocular simultaneous localization and mapping) techniques. The overall package enjoys an aerial three-dimensional (3D)/graphical engine integrated with a full six-degrees-of-freedom aircraft dynamics, which serves as its trajectory generator, together... 

The economic viability of industrial processes strongly depends on their safe and reliable operation. The method of inherent safe process design enables systematic consideration of safety measures in order to ensure process safe operation at the early stages of process design. The challenge is that the economic measures that are often considered for the design of industrial processes are often incommensurable with the safety measures. In the present research, a novel framework is proposed in which the safety criteria are quantified based on consequence modeling and aggregated with the economic performance using multi-objective optimization programming. The developed methodology was applied... 

In this manuscript a new phenomenon of adjacency and closeness rating is proposed for constructing the optimal facility layout design. In the proposed approach, the closeness rating is applied to every pair of neighboring departments in a range of their attached point up to a predefined distance between them. Also, while in the traditional approach the closeness rating is applied for determining either the proximity or farness of two departments, the proposed approach considers both the degree of closeness as the economical purposes, and farness as the safety purposes concurrently. A mathematical model is proposed for constructing the optimal layout design. For evaluating the efficiency and... 

The consequences of road accidents are significant for drivers and society. The connected vehicle system (CVS) is a promising technology that can improve road safety by warning drivers of traffic hazards. Broad implementation of the CVS could mitigate the harmful consequences of road accidents. Widespread implementation requires schemes that can promote the pervasive adoption of the system by drivers. This study proposes the innovative idea of implementing the CVS in usage-based insurance (UBI) as a measurement probe and modeling drivers' acceptance of the new UBI scheme. This study developed a random effect logit model demonstrating that the drivers of cheaper vehicles and middle-age... 

Riding quality and safety of rail tracks are directly influenced by track geometry; hence, their degradation along time could reduce safety and cause serious accidents. Standards propose thresholds for track geometrical parameters to keep track safety and riding comfort at an acceptable level. In this study, a method is proposed to select or define a set of proper thresholds for geometrical parameter irregularities according to desirable to safety level. The impact of track geometry irregularities on the derailment index has been investigated through the finite element model. The results suggest that twist and gauge shortage have a greater effect on the derailment index compared to the... 

In recent years, the security of integrated circuits (ICs) has received more attention as usage of ICs made by untrustworthy foundries has increased in safety-critical systems [1]. In this paper, we introduce a novel approach for fingerprinting the delay of functional paths in a sequential circuit that have millions of transistors, like processors. We present a method for inserting Ring Oscillators (ROs) into scan chain for measuring the delay of each functional path inside the chip. Using the proposed method, the payload part of Trojans will be detected according to their size and cell types. Our method can be used by power-based Trojan detection approaches for finding the trigger part of... 

Over the past few years, visual prostheses (namely, Argus II retinal implant) and gene therapy have obtained FDA approval in treating blindness resulting from retinitis pigmentosa. Compared to gene therapy; Argus II is less costly with a demonstrated favorable outcome, though the vision is yet artificial. To obtain better results, expectation counseling and preoperative retinal assessment are critical. The global experience with Argus II has enrolled no more than 300 cases so far. The first Argus II retinal prosthesis in Iran was successfully implanted in Shiraz (October 2017). To date, Argus II artificial retina is implanted in four patients in Iran. Beside successful surgery and... 

Voting logic or k out of p redundancy is widely used in safety systems to meet two key objectives: enhancing reliability and reducing spurious performance. Even so, in designing gas detector systems especially of flammable gas type, it is a common engineering practice to consider at least two different detection levels in addition to normal voting. Under such circumstances, the presence of gas is confirmed if sensed by two detectors at two different concentrations: one at a low level and another one in the same voting network at a high level. Existing formulations for optimal placement of gas detectors do not consider this type of voting. In this study, first the general form of multi-level... 

The objective of this study was to develop an approach for incorporating techniques used to interpret and evaluate deflection data for network-level pavement management system applications. A national pavement management system is being developed in Iran and the use of falling weight deflectometers (FWDs) at the network level was deemed necessary to compensate for the lack of vital construction history data in the pavement inventory. Because FWD measurements disrupt traffic flow and are a potential safety hazard, it is imperative to increase the interval between FWD testing points as much as possible to allow scanning of the entire 51,000 km network of freeways, highways, and major roads in... 

Dispersive soils, as one of the main categories of problematic soils, can be found in some parts of the earth, such as the eastern-south of Iran, nearby the Gulf of Oman. One of the most important factors enhancing the dispersive potential is the existence of dissolved salts in the soil water. The main objective of this study is to explore the influence of water salinity on the instability of a railway embankment due to rainfall infiltration. In order to achieve this goal, the embankment resting on a dispersive stratum is numerically modeled and subjected to transient infiltration flow. The effect of dispersion is simplified through variations in the soil-water retention curve with salinity.... 

In this paper, proper and safe planning of excavation method and design of support system in very weak rocks with case study of control room of Silveh dam are discussed. Silveh earth-storage dam, with 102 m height; is under construction in North-West of Iran. Due to numerous and various tectonic occurrences, the area of dam site is known as a high activity zone of Iran. In purposed location of control room, bedrock contains mostly weathered and crushed Shale and Schist. 60 m overburden and finite aquifers are another specific concern of this project. In this paper by using 3D finite element modeling, different stages of excavation and support system installation have been analyzed for the... 

In this study, a general 3D distributed modeling of Trolling-Mode AFM (TR-AFM) as a nanorobot is presented to analyze the 2D manipulation process of a spherical cell. To this aim, the analysis is categorized into 3 sections. In the first section, 6 deformations of TR-AFM are taken into account, and the standard model of the system is obtained. Moreover, the system is simulated in ANSYS Workbench. The results of modal and transient analyses of the system from both analytical and software methods reveal high agreement, which confirms the accuracy of the presented analytical model. In the second section, by utilizing the 3D derived model, displacement of a spherical yeast single cell (W303)... 

As the lightest structural alloys, magnesium alloys offer significant potential for improving the energy efficiency of various transportation systems. The lack of sufficient weldability of Mg alloys is a crucial barrier to their potential use in safety-critical applications. Porosity formation, grain structure engineering, solidification cracking, liquation, and liquation cracking are the key metallurgical challenges to obtain reliable and robust fusion welds in Mg alloys. This critical review highlights the current understating regarding controlling the metallurgical phenomena during fusion welding of Mg alloys and discusses the unresolved metallurgical challenges to shed light on the path... 

Triboelectric nanogenerators (TENG) have rapidly advanced in self-powered sensing in transportation engineering owing to its great sensitivity, high energy harvesting performance, simple structures, and low cost. TENG can be used to improve walker and car safety, detect driver fatigue, assess traffic conditions, and extend the useful life of roads. However, collecting sufficient energy have become a significant issue, limiting the lifespan of such self-powered sensors. A new generation of self-powered sensors bridges the gap between the energy acquired and the energy needed for sensing, computing, storage, and transmission. This article provides an overview of the recent progress of TENG... 

Wearable robots are becoming increasingly practical to use to rehabilitate wounded parts of the body as the number of injuries to the hand, particularly fingers, has increased. Wearable robots are designed to help people save time and money. This exoskeleton is intended to rehabilitate the thumb such that it may do an opposing movement with one Degree Of Freedom (DOF) and a cable system. Two drums, one on the thumb and the other on the tip of the assistive finger place the cables, which feature a cable adjusting screw that can be adjusted for fingers of various lengths. To choose the assistive finger from 4 intact fingers, the two perspectives of the cable length changes and finger forces... 

Natural soils contain a certain amount of salt in the form of dissolved ions or electrically charged atoms, originated from the long-term erosion by acidic rainwater. The dissolved salt poses an extra osmotic water potential being normally neglected in laboratory measurements and numerical analyses. However, ignorance of salinity may result in overestimation of stability, and the design may not be as conservative as thought. Therefore, this research aims to first experimentally examine the influence of pore water salinity on water retention curve and saturated permeability of natural dispersive loess under saline and desalinated conditions. Second, the measured parameters are used for...