Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Connectome evaluation'

Due to the weakness of the connections between woodframe and stucco, a large number of woodframe residential buildings with stucco as a shear resisting member were damaged during past earthquakes. This has resulted in the shear resistance of stucco being reduced in a number of building codes. A number of research projects have been conducted on stucco shear walls since then and the results from all research projects indicated that stucco separates from the wood frame due to the weakness of the connections between the wood frame and stucco when subjected to lateral cyclic loading. On the other hand, when properly attached to wood frame, stucco can have a significant contribution to the stiffness of the structure. A special connector was developed to provide direct shear connection between stucco and woodframe structures. The device is designed to have adequate stiffness and strength, and to act as a ductile “fuse” so that stucco shear walls will have a well defined strength and significant ductility. As part of the current research project, numerous tests were conducted on stucco-connector-woodframe elements to study the shear connectors, and provide important design information. Tests were also conducted on 8 ft by 8 ft stucco wall panels with and without the special connectors. The tests show that stucco shear walls with the connectors have much greater shear strength and ductility than regular stucco walls. The tests also show that stucco walls with the shear connectors can achieve similar strengths and similar ductility as plywood shear walls.

The use of deck fasteners as shear connectors for composite open web steel joists is studied. Results of thirty-six push-off tests are evaluated in terms of strength and behavior. Six types of deck fasteners are considered. They are: 1. #12-24 Teks/5 self-drilling, self-tapping screws. 2. 1/4-14 Teks/3 with a 1 1/4 in. stand-off sleeve. 3. 1/4-14 Teks/3 with a 1 3/4 in. stand-off sleeve. 4. 1/4-14 Teks/3 with a 2 1/4 in. stand-off sleeve. 5. 0.150 in. dia. air fired pins. 6. Puddle welds (5/8 in. and 3/4 in. diameter). All push-off tests utilize Vulcraft 1.5 VL, 22 gage, composite deck. Several modifications to the typical push-off test arrangement are made, which will permit the test to more closely model the top chord of an open web steel joist. It was found from the push-off test results that all of the deck fasteners, tested in this study, can obtain composite action for snort span open web steel joists with the exception of 0.150 in. diameter air fired pins. A description and the results of each push-off test is included.
Master of Science

Hurricane Charley was the third named storm and the second major hurricane of the 2004 Atlantic hurricane season. At that time, it was also the strongest hurricane to strike the US coast since 1992. Charley made landfall on Friday, August 13, 2004 on the barrier islands off Lee County, Florida whence it moved rapidly inland towards Port Charlotte, DeSoto and Hardee counties. The purpose of this study was to understand the performance of undamaged residential home in Punta Gorda Isles (PGI) in Port Charlotte County that was crossed by Charley’s eye shortly after it made landfall. To achieve this goal, a representative sample of 20 undamaged residential homes (out of 210 identified in an earlier study) in PGI were selected from aerial photographs for detailed analysis. Unfortunately, information on dimensions of these buildings could not be obtained despite repeated attempts over a 6-month period. Consequently, a parametric study was conducted using an idealized building following procedures consistent with current practice. In the analysis, parameters such as wind velocity, exposure and building geometry were varied to assess the range of design forces. The maximum wind velocity was taken as 160 mph, based on findings reported in FEMA 488. Two idealized roof systems – a gable and hip – on a rectangular plan form were analyzed using ASCE 7-98’s Method 2. Both Main Wind Force Resisting System (MWFRS) and Components and Cladding (C&C) were evaluated. The results showed that forces resisted were significantly (over 70%) higher than those designed for. Since 210 out of 425 homes studied earlier were undamaged it suggests that properly constructed structures automatically have adequate reserve capacity to withstand higher-than-designed for lateral loads. If changes are needed, it should focus on inspection and construction rather than wind provisions in existing code.

Remarkable progress has been made in the development of effective treatments for patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). To ensure that a patient is optimally responding to treatment, consistent monitoring of disease activity is recommended. Established composite and individual disease activity measures often cannot be computed due to missing laboratory values. Simplified measures that can be calculated without a lab value have been developed and previous studies have validated these new measures, yet differences in their performance compared with established measures remain. Therefore, the goal of my doctoral research was to examine and evaluate disease activity and composite measures to facilitate monitoring of response in clinical care settings and inclusion of patients with missing laboratory values in epidemiological research. In the first study, the validity of two composite measures, the Clinical Disease Activity Index (CDAI) and the Disease Activity Score with 28 joint count (DAS28) was examined and both were significantly associated with a rheumatologist’s decision to change therapy (CDAI OR=1.58; 95% CI: 1.42, 1.76) (DAS28 OR=1.34; 95% CI 1.27,1.56). However, further evaluation using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis found that they were not strong predictors of physician decisions to change therapy (AUC=0.75, 0.76, respectively). Thus, they should not be used to guide treatment decisions in the clinic. Two measures of disease activity, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and C-reactive protein (CRP) are often not measured and impede the computation of composite measures of disease activity. In the second study, significant factors which may predict the measurement of the ESR and CRP were identified and included physician and clinical variables but no quantitative disease activity measures. Thus the suitability of the ESR and CRP as measures of disease activity is suspect. In the final study, I created a new composite measure, the modified disease activity score with 28 joint count (mDAS28), by replacing the laboratory value in the DAS28. The mDAS28 was then validated by comparing its performance with the DAS28. The measures were strongly correlated (r=0.87), and strong agreement was found between the two measures when categorizing patients to levels of disease activity (ĸ=0.77) and treatment response (ĸ=0.73). Therefore, the mDAS28 could be used in place of the DAS28 when laboratory values needed to compute the DAS28 are missing. In summary, I found that the CDAI and DAS28 were not strong predictors of the rheumatologist’s decision to change therapy. I also found that the variability in the measurement of ESR and CRP was not associated with disease activity. I was able to modify the DAS28 by replacing the laboratory measure and create a new simplified measure, the mDAS28. I also validated the mDAS28 for use in the clinic and in epidemiological research when the DAS28 is unavailable.

碩士
國立交通大學
土木工程系所
102
An innovative shear connector, Wave-Perfobond Shear Connector (W-PSC), was experimentally evaluated to study its structural behaviors of shear strength and ductility. Perfobond is a traditional steel plate with holes used as a shear connector. The steel plate used for the Wave-perfobond is a wave shape. The experimental program consisted of seven test specimens which were conducted push out test in accordance with the Eurocode 4. The design parameters of the specimens included ratio of wave amplitude to wavelength, extension, holes, and lateral reinforcement inside of the hole. The test results demonstrated that the W-PSC had better shear strength and ductility than traditional perfobond. With larger ratio of wave amplitude to wavelength, the W-PSC achieved higher shear strength but poorer ductility because of the large bearing area. Extensions at both ends of the W-PSC provided extra shear strength and more stable behavior after peak load. Unlike flat steel plate, the wave-steel plate without hole reached higher strength and better ductility than wave-steel plate with hole. Because of the dowel, the transverse reinforcing bar inside the hole of the W-PSC effectively enhanced the shear strength. Because the W-PSC is superior in shear strength and ductility, this study verifies that the W-PSC is an excellent shear connector.

碩士
輔仁大學
管理學研究所
95
As economic development between China and Taiwan, most traditional and labor intensive industries have had transferred to China extensively. However, the quality control level of their suppliers is more uneven than ever, which causes extra costs from rework and replacement. What is worse, someone’s fault in overheat of battery used in notebook computer has damaged its customers’ reputation seriously. Hence, electronic industries ought to choose suppliers for better competitiveness when faced with tremendous change. The purpose of this research is to help electronic industries construct a performance evaluation of connector suppliers. In the beginning, it collects related papers concerning connectors and performance as basis; then, surveys status quo of connector industries in Taiwan. Making use of five perspectives quoted from balanced scorecard (BSC), except for financial capability, customer service capability, process capability, learning and growth capability, the research modifies the perspectives into five by adopting flexibility response capability. Also, it searches for proper and positive performance evaluation method for connector purchasers by means of expertise survey and weighted indicators computed by analytic hierarchy process (AHP). The result of this research can offer not only performance evaluation for electronic companies to purchase connectors, but also infrastructure for further study of suppliers’ competitive strategy.

Observations of earthquake damage indicate that stucco shear walls often fail at the connection (staples/nails) between stucco lath and wood frame members. To improve the connection of stucco to wood frame, special devices called Shear-locks have been developed. Shear-locks provide a direct connection between stucco and wood frame members that is stiff, strong, and has significant ductility. The objective of the current research project was to experimentally evaluate the specially developed shear transfer devices. The project involved a detailed examination of a number of variables and their influence on the performance of the connectors including the material properties and geometry of the connectors, the spacing and edge distance of the connectors, the stucco compressive strength, as well as the loading protocol used to conduct the tests. Because of the large number of tests that were needed, small specimens with a single piece of wood representing either the bottom, top or end stud connected to the stucco segment with two Shear-lock connectors were used. The element tests were conducted using a specially developed testing apparatus, which simulated the correct boundary conditions of the elements. The experimental study was divided into four phases and 68 specimens in total were tested. Phase I served as a pilot study to evaluate the specially designed testing apparatus. Phase II investigated the portion of the Shear-lock that is embedded in the wood (ductile portion). The tests examined variables that influence the displacement capacity of the Shear-lock. Phase III investigated the stucco (strong) portion in order to determine the anchorage strength of the Shear-lock in stucco. Finally, Phase IV involved full connection tests with no artificial strengthening of ductile/brittle portion of the connectors. For comparisons, tests were also conducted on element specimens of regular stucco construction, and plywood specimens. The results from the different elements are compared in terms of simple parameters characterizing the complete load - deformation response such as peak load, effective stiffness, displacement capacity, and displacement ductility. The results from the element tests demonstrate that Shear-locks with optimum characteristics are capable of resisting a shear force of up to about 2 kN (450 lbs) per connector while allowing displacements of up to 30 mm (1.2 in.) between stucco and Spruce-Pine-Fir (SPF) wood frame members with typical moisture content. The optimum characteristics of the Shear-locks include annealed fasteners and a sleeve with a smooth inner transition. Tests using over-strength fasteners indicate that the minimum pull-out resistance of Shear-locks from stucco with typical in-situ compressive strength is about 4 kN (900 lbs) per connector. Thus for normal strength fasteners (which yield at 2 kN) attached to typical SPF wood frame members there is a factor of safety of 2 against pull-out. The anchorage strength of Shear-locks is not significantly reduced when the connectors are spaced as close as 76 mm (3 in.) apart or located within 45 mm (1³⁄₄ in.) from the edge of the stucco. The final series of tests were done using very dry Douglas Fir (DF) wood frame members. These tests indicate that the species and moisture content of the wood has a very significant effect on the performance of the connectors. The stiffer wood resulted in a larger yield force (greater strength), but significantly reduced ductility as the final failure involved connector pull-out from stucco. The dry DF wood frame members also resulted in reduced performance of the nailed plywood elements. Additional element tests are required to more completely examine the influence of species and moisture content of wood frame members on both Shear-lock connectors and nailed plywood connections. As a future phase of the research program is expected to involve full-scale shear wall panel tests, a complete proposal is provided on how these tests should be conducted, including the type of specimens and their construction, testing apparatus, instrumentation, loading protocol, and acceptance protocol.

碩士
元智大學
通訊工程學系
95
Electric fields radiated from a prototype of a RJ45 connector for Ethernet transmission is under investigation using the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method and verified with measurement results. It is found that simulation results obtained by the FDTD method make a good agreement with measurement data. It is also found that simulation and measurement results for both vertical and horizontal polarizations surpass the regulation limit at 600 MHz. In order to meet regulation limits required by CISPR 22 Radiated Emission Limits for Class B Digital Devices (10 m), further studies are also conducted by taking various potential noise related factors into consideration for radiated electric fields computed by FDTD simulations; these factors include the aperture area, the location of the excitation, the material used for the aperture and grounding conditions. From simulation results presented in this thesis, it is found that the magnitudes of the higher emission levels can be reduced by reducing the aperture area, putting the location of excitation position deeper into the connector, using materials with smaller dielectric constant and conductivity for the aperture, and adding a grounding enclosure on the RJ45 connector.

碩士
中原大學
企業管理研究所
93
Since the quality of products is based on the capability of suppliers, an enterprise to compete in the market effectively needs to have competent suppliers who can supply high quality and reasonable price materials in time. The partnership in supply chain utterly shows the cooperated relationship. “Supply Chain Partnership” means the relationship between two independent enterprises who in order to achieve a certain goal and revenue, agree to share each other’s information and shoulder each other’s risks by reducing cost and stocks. Due to the springing trend of individuality and modernity, mobile phone manufacturers must launch more styles and designs than before to meet market’s need. The average life cycle of a mobile phone was 18 months a few years ago, but now it only lives 6 months. Influencing by the stress of short life cycle, major players start to practice the strategy of “great quantity but low price” with the intention of grabbing the market share. Gradually, in order to compete with each other, more and more mobile manufacturers use the strategy in the mobile phone market now. Different from personal computer that has hard standard, Wintel, mobile phone products put emphasis on their housing. Hence, while a new mobile phone starts to design, the connectors of it must be redesigned base on its machinery. Moreover, as colorful and camera mobile phones become the main stream products, mobile phone manufacturers must put much more efforts on their developing quantity, speed, capital and capability. They, as a result, cannot use general purchase examination to select their connector suppliers who have to highly custom-make to meet their purchaser’s need. Mobile phone manufacturers and their connector suppliers, therefore, ought to establish partnership to ensure the mobile phones can be launched to market in time. This research indicates that mobile phone manufacturers have changed their view on selecting connector suppliers. In the past, mobile phone manufacturers emphasized on what professional has conclude: Quality, Cost, Delivery and Service (QCDS). But now besides two most important conditions, Quality and Delivery, mobile phone manufacturers pay much more attention on capabilities of “RD and QC”, “Environmental Protection ” and “Information Exchanging System” when they select connector manufacturers, the suppliers who need to custom-make components for their purchasers. This information shows that not only mobile phone manufacturers but also component suppliers have to change their concept about the partnership among each other with the aim of existing and growing in this competitive market.