The main aim of this research is to introduce financing cost optimization and different financing alternatives. There are many studies about financing cost optimization. All previous studies considering the cost of financing have many shortcomings, some considered only one source of financing as a credit line without taking into account different financing alternatives. Having only one funding alternative powers, restricts contractors and leads to a very specific financing model. Although it is beneficial for the contractor to use a long-term loan to minimize interest charges and prevent a substantial withdrawal from his credit line, none of the existing financial-based planning models have considered long-term loans in

Abstract

 This study investigated the optimization of wear behavior of AISI 4340 steel based on the Taguchi method under various testing conditions. In this paper, a neural network and the Taguchi design method have been implemented for minimizing the wear rate in 4340 steel. A back-propagation neural network (BPNN) was developed to predict the wear rate. In the development of a predictive model, wear parameters like sliding speed, applying load and sliding distance were considered as the input model variables of the AISI 4340 steel. An analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to determine the significant parameter affecting the wear rate. Finally, the Taguchi approach was applied to determine

In general, path-planning problem is one of most important task in the field of robotics. This paper describes the path-planning problem of mobile robot based on various metaheuristic algorithms. The suitable collision free path of a robot must satisfies certain optimization criteria such as feasibility, minimum path length, safety and smoothness and so on. In this research, various three approaches namely, PSO, Firefly and proposed hybrid FFCPSO are applied in static, known environment to solve the global path-planning problem in three cases. The first case used single mobile robot, the second case used three independent mobile robots and the third case applied three follow up mobile robot.  Simulation results, whi

Improving students’ use of argumentation is front and center in the increasing emphasis on scientific practice in K-12 Science and STEM programs. We explore the construct validity of scenario-based assessments of claim-evidence-reasoning (CER) and the structure of the CER construct with respect to a learning progression framework. We also seek to understand how middle school students progress. Establishing the purpose of an argument is a competency that a majority of middle school students meet, whereas quantitative reasoning is the most difficult, and the Rasch model indicates that the competencies form a unidimensional hierarchy of skills. We also find no evidence of differential item functioning between different scenarios, suggesting

Soil tillage is a critical agricultural practice that creates favorable conditions for seedbed preparation and plant growth. This study presents an innovative application of artificial intelligence (AI) in agriculture by employing the YOLOv7 algorithm to classify and assess post-tillage soil surface conditions, a domain underexplored in current research. The integration of mechanical operation parameters with AI-based image classification enables optimization of tillage quality and mitigation of soil compaction, highlighting the novelty of this approach. The study aims to improve the efficiency of moldboard plow operations by examining the effects of tillage speed and depth on soil clod distribution, fuel consumption, and power requ

In this paper a new structure for the AVR of the power system exciter is proposed and designed using digital-based LQR. With two weighting matrices R and Q,  this method produces an optimal regulator that is used to generate the feedback control law. These matrices are called state and control weighting matrices and are used to balance between the relative importance of the input and the states in the cost function that is being optimized. A sample power system composed of single machine connected to an infinite- bus bar (SMIB) with both a conventional and a proposed Digital AVR (DAVR) is simulated. Evaluation results show that the DAVR damps well the oscillations of the terminal voltage and presents a faster respo

Optical fiber chemical sensor based surface Plasmon resonance for sensing and measuring the refractive index and concentration for Acetic acid is designed and implemented during this work. Optical grade plastic optical fibers with a diameter of 1000μm were used with a diameter core of 980μm and a cladding of 20μm, where the sensor is fabricated by a small part (10mm) of optical fiber in the middle is embedded in a resin block and then the polishing process is done, after that it is deposited with about (40nm) thickness of gold metal and the Acetic acid is placed on the sensing probe.