Showing papers on "Design tool published in 1982"

Design centering by yield prediction

Abstract: Design centering is an appropriate design tool for all types of electrical circuits to determine the nominal component values by considering the component tolerances. A new approach to design centering will be presented, which starts at the initial nominal values of the circuit parameters and improves these nominal values by maximizing the circuit yield step by step with the aid of a yield prediction formula. Using a variance prediction formula additionally, the yield maximization process can be established with a few iteration steps only, whereby a compromise between the yield improvement and the decrease in statistical certainty must be made in each step. A high-quality interactive optimization method is described which allows a quantitative problem diagnosis. The yield prediction formula is an analytical approximation based on the importance sampling relation. This relation can also be used to reduce the sample size of the necessary Monte Carlo analyses. Finally the efficiency of the presented algorithm will be demonstrated on a switched-capacitor filter.

The advanced strip method – a simple design tool

Abstract: Synopsis The advanced strip method is a method for the design of slabs which are partly supported on columns, re-entrant corners or other point supports. On the basis of this general method, it is possible to formulate simple and straightforward rules for the design of most slabs met with in practice. The calculation of the design, moments is then reduced to a simple application of ordinary beam theory, supplemented by taking into account a few rules regarding moment distribution and curtailment of reinforcement. The procedure is illustrated by examples, covering supports on interior columns, exterior columns, corner columns, a wall extending under part of the slab and a re-entrant corner. The method is simpler and safer than design based on yield-line analysis, and just as economical as regards reinforcement.

Development of a thermal design tool

Abstract: A computer program is developed for the simulation of the thermal response of buildings, based on the UK.BRE “admittance procedure”, which can be based on mini-computers, and can be used at the sketch design stage for the comparative evaluation of many possible alternative designs. An account is given of the validation exercises completed and further intended refinements are outlined.

Frequency-response design of robust optimal controllers

Abstract: A simple guide to specifying the bandwidth of an optimal control feedback system (as measured by the unity-loop-gain crossover frequency) is developed. A brief description is given of how the guide helps in the design of robust optimally controlled systems. The only information necessary to use the guide is an open-loop gain plot for the plant, thus providing the designer with a powerful design tool, independent of the method used for solving the optimisation problem.

SL1 Language--A Specification and Design Tool for Switching Systems Software Development

Abstract: The paper presents a new programming language-the SL1 finite-state automata specification and design language-designed as a development tool for the Iskra 2000 multimicroprocessor telephone exchange software system [4]. SL1 is a concise and simple language used for the specification and design of finite-state automata and for the generation of the corresponding tables. The language is modular and structured, with control constructs inspired by the CCITT CHILL, only compile-time variables, simple macroprocessing facilities, and modest preprocessing facilities.

An experimental investigation of material handling in flexible manufacturing using computer simulation

Abstract: An important design issue for the automated factory of the future is the material handling function. Flexible manufacturing facilities demand an equally flexible material handling system. Material handling can have a significant impact on work-in-process inventory, and capacity requirements as well as material flow considerations. Since flexible manufacturing facilities are typically costly to design, install and maintain, direct experimentation is not feasible and analytical models give only an approximate solution at best. Due to the magnitude of the economics, even small errors of approximation can be significant.Clearly, computer simulation can be a very effective design and analysis tool for the investigation of material handling processes. This paper presents the results of an experimental investigation of alternative control procedures for dispatching driverless (automated) vehicles to transport "move orders" between manufacturing cells or "islands". Dispatching methodologies examined include first-come-first-served, a dynamic adaptation of the assignment problem and a dynamic programming approach which seeks an optimal tour over the next two, three, etc. moves. Both the value of such optimum-seeking dispatching rules and the appropriateness of computer simulation as an effective design tool are discussed.

A computer simulation model for the evaluation of mobile radio systems in the military tactical environment

Abstract: This paper discusses a computer simulation model, designed specifically for the analysis and evaluation of military mobile radio communication systems in the tactical environment. The algorithms and performance models used in the simulation model are briefly described, while statistical characteristics are derived, analytically, for a simplified scenario. Typical computer-generated histograms and distribution functions are presented for the more complex scenarios. The computer simulation model is shown to be an effective design tool for many different applications.

SOLARS5, a user-friendly computer-aided energy conserving design tool

Abstract: SOLAR5 is a simple, easy-to-use graphic design tool that gives architects an instantaneous display of their building's energy performance and allows immediate on-line design revisions. It is intended for use at the very beginning of the design process, the time when most of the decisions affecting the building's energy performance must be made, but when the building is the most vaguely defined.

Factors of safety for the design of breakwaters

Abstract: This paper proposes to improve the safety of breakwaters by two important changes in the philosophy of design. When hydraulic model testing is used as a design tool the authors propose to reduce the specific gravity of the model breakwater to introduce a factor of safety in the prototype. They also recommend that the concept of testing for stability with the once in 50 year or once in 100 year wave should be replaced by a more rigorous statistical analysis to determine a design wave which has a probability of exceedence of no more than 5% in the lifetime of the structure.

Graph-based hardware design specification system

Abstract: The design of special-purpose LSI chips for parallel processing is considered. A hardware design specification system (HDSS) with a graph-based system is proposed. The graph-based system s-graph, gives the fundamental structure and operations of the HDSS, and supports the design evolution indispensable for design processes. A graph language for the description of computations, c-graph, is introduced as an example of a hardware design tool at the top level of the hdss. Correspondences between the descriptions of the c-graph and the hardware elements are illustrated in order to show the capability of the c-graph as a hardware design tool. Finally, a Pascal-like language, PCDL, is introduced. The PCDL gives a useful and convenient way to describe the parallel computations, and the problem of serialisation is discussed using pcdl notations. 9 references.