Engineering Papers⌕ Search

SEARCH · Engineering Papers

Results for “system software”

Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 487 records · Page 27

High Level Software for 4.8 GHz LHC Schottky System

The performance of the LHC depends critically on the accurate measurements of the betatron tunes. The betatron tune values of each LHC beam may be measured without excitation using a newly installed transverse Schottky monitor. A high-level software package written in Java has been developed for the Schottky system. The software allows end users to monitor and control the Schottky system, and provides them with non-destructive and continuous bunch-by-bunch measurements for the tunes, momentum spreads, chromaticities and emittances of the LHC beams. It has been tested with both proton and lead ion beams at the LHC with very successful results.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗

A general approach to develop reduced order models for simulation of solid oxide fuel cell stacks

A reduced order modeling approach based on response surface techniques was developed for solid oxide fuel cell stacks. This approach creates a numerical model that can quickly compute desired performance variables of interest for a stack based on its input parameter set. The approach carefully samples the multidimensional design space based on the input parameter ranges, evaluates a detailed stack model at each of the sampled points, and performs regression for selected performance variables of interest to determine the responsive surfaces. After error analysis to ensure that sufficient accuracy is established for the response surfaces, they are then implemented in a calculator module for system-level studies. The benefit of this modeling approach is that it is sufficiently fast for integration with system modeling software and simulation of fuel cell-based power systems while still providing high fidelity information about the internal distributions of key variables. This paper describes the sampling, regression, sensitivity, error, and principal component analyses to identify the applicable methods for simulating a planar fuel cell stack.

Pan, Wenxiao↗

The ATLAS experiment software on ARM

With an increased dataset obtained during the Run 3 of the LHC at CERN and the even larger expected increase of the dataset by more than one order of magnitude for the HL-LHC, the ATLAS experiment is reaching the limits of the current data processing model in terms of traditional CPU resources based on x86_64 architectures and an extensive program for software upgrades towards the HL-LHC has been set up. The ARM architecture is becoming a competitive and energy efficient alternative. Some surveys indicate its increased presence in HPCs and commercial clouds, and some WLCG sites have expressed their interest. Chip makers are also developing their next generation solutions on ARM architectures, sometimes combining ARM and GPU processors in the same chip. Consequently it is important that the ATLAS software embraces the change and is able to successfully exploit this architecture. We report on the successful porting to ARM of the Athena software framework, which is used by ATLAS for both online and offline computing operations. Furthermore we report on the successful validation of simulation workflows running on ARM resources. For this we have set up an ATLAS Grid site using ARM compatible middleware and containers on Amazon Web Services (AWS) ARM resources. The ARM version of Athena is fully integrated in the regular software build system and distributed in the same way as other software releases. In addition, the workflows have been integrated into the HEPscore benchmark suite which is the planned WLCG wide replacement of the HepSpec06 benchmark used for Grid site pledges. In the overall porting process we have used resources on AWS, Google Cloud Platform (GCP) and CERN. A performance comparison of different architectures and resources will be discussed.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

The split system approach to managing time in simulations of hybrid systems having continuous and discrete event components

The efficient and accurate management of time in simulations of hybrid models is an outstanding engineering problem. General a priori knowledge about the dynamic behavior of the hybrid system (i.e. essentially continuous, essentially discrete, or 'truly hybrid') facilitates this task. Indeed, for essentially discrete and essentially continuous systems, existing software packages can be conveniently used to perform quite sophisticated and satisfactory simulations. The situation is different for 'truly hybrid' systems, for which direct application of existing software packages results in a lengthy design process, cumbersome software assemblies, inaccurate results, or some combination of these independent of the designer's a priori knowledge about the system's structure and behavior. The main goal of this paper is to provide a methodology whereby simulation designers can use a priori knowledge about the hybrid model's structure to build a straightforward, efficient, and accurate simulator with existing software packages. The proposed methodology is based on a formal decomposition and re-articulation of the hybrid system; this is the main theoretical result of the paper. To set the result in the right perspective, we briefly review the essentially continuous and essentially discrete approaches, which are illustrated with typical examples. Then we present our new, split system approach, first in a general formal context, then in three more specific guises that reflect the viewpoints of three main communities of hybrid system researchers and practitioners. For each of these variants we indicate an implementation path. Our approach is illustrated with an archetypal problem of power grid control.

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗

Application of Manufacturing Quality Management Principles to PV System Installations

To help SETO/DOE achieve its goals, the IBTS team proposed a project addressing system reliability by improving installation standards and quality management. The proposed approach was designed to help achieve measurable reductions in installation defect density and improvements in the performance of PV systems by optimizing design and installation of residential and commercial PV systems. This approach addressed the soft costs associated with installations and quality management. The project demonstrated improved system reliability and reduced PV system installation costs. The software developed improved operations, decreased risk, and increased the overall value of PV systems across their lifecycle. The project used several data collection methods, including extensive industry surveys, face-to-face high-level interviews at industry conferences, stakeholder teleconferences, and in-depth interviews conducted by IBTS staff. Results from the research found the industry needs a uniform assessment method for national providers to be more efficient; the software should support both code officials and installers; most industry stakeholders would find value in a centralized software system that allows them to collect, report, and review information on in-process and completed solar installations; and mobile solutions that bridge existing knowledge gaps with inspectors and integrate with existing methodologies (such as permitting software) are of great value. The software solution developed is web-based, allowing for national access, and is built on a Google Firebase platform that can handle significant users and data. It can be used onsite or remotely, allowing for code compliance to continue despite ongoing pandemic related delays or shutdowns for local economies. The information provided by the software tool allows users to uniformly assess a system for compliance and use that aggregated data to identify training topics or create internal process designed to improving issues and reducing occurrence. This solution has multiple benefits in managing quality at time of use and promoting an increase in future safety and quality through education. Perhaps most importantly, this software increases public safety by ensuring compliance of installed systems and allows for local AHJs to remotely engage specialized and qualified solar specific expertise for oversite of the installation in their jurisdictions. Data analysis provides the quality feedback loop identifying the root cause of failure and drives installation practices to improve through training and education, resulting in systems with higher performance, greater reliability, and reduced operations and maintenance costs. With the successful completion of this project, the industry can expect reduced soft costs and increased performance and safety and will ultimately benefit from longer performing systems that cost less to operate.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

Joint emulation of Earth System Model temperature-precipitation realizations with internal variability and space-time and cross-variable correlation: fldgen v2.0 software description

Earth System Models (ESMs) are excellent tools for quantifying many aspects of future climate dynamics but are too computationally expensive to produce large collections of scenarios for downstream users of ESM data. In particular, many researchers focused on the impacts of climate change require large collections of ESM runs to rigorously study the impacts to both human and natural systems of low-frequency high-importance events, such as multi-year droughts. Climate model emulators provide an effective mechanism for filling this gap, reproducing many aspects of ESMs rapidly but with lower precision. The fldgen v1.0 R package quickly generates thousands of realizations of gridded temperature fields by randomizing the residuals of pattern scaling temperature output from any single ESM, retaining the spatial and temporal variance and covariance structures of the input data at a low computational cost. The fldgen v2.0 R package described here extends this capability to produce joint realizations of multiple variables, with a focus on temperature and precipitation in an open source software package available for community use (https://github.com/jgcri/fldgen). This substantially improves the fldgen package by removing the requirement that the ESM variables be normally distributed, and will enable researchers to quickly generate covarying temperature and precipitation data that are synthetic but faithful to the characteristics of the original ESM.

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES↗

Finite-Test-Case Development to Demonstrate Logical Integrity of Software in DRPS

Reactor protection system (RPS) in nuclear power plant (NPP) is in the process of digitalization in response to advanced features of digital systems. In this context, software integrity in the RPS becomes an important issue since it may cause common-cause failure. Therefore, to guarantee the safety of NPPs, the integrity of the software need to be properly demonstrated or assessed. There are three typical approaches for software reliability quantification: software reliability growth model (SRGM), Bayesian belief network (BBN), and test-based method. Basically, SRGM is difficult to apply to the safety-critical software because not only sufficient failure sets are unavailable but consequence of system failure is also unacceptable. Then the result obtained through the BBN model may have large uncertainty, so it produces difficulties in integrity demonstration of safety-critical software. Thus, the BBN result need to be complemented or verified by test-based method. Currently, for the integrity demonstration of safety-critical software, black-box test which feeds inputs and examines just outputs whether they succeeded or failed is considered based on trajectory-form-of-input (a series of successive values for the input variables that occur during the operation of the software over time). Usually these trajectory-inputs are randomly sampled from operational profile. In this approach, however, there are some practical difficulties. Therefore, we proposed a new test method for safety-critical software in digitalized reactor protection system (DRPS). The main contents described in this paper are about basic concepts under development of finite-test-cases by which the integrity of the software logic can be verified. It should be noted that the influence of the environments, such as operating system and other hardware, are not considered since the method focuses on software logic only. (authors)

22 GENERAL STUDIES OF NUCLEAR REACTORS↗

System and methods for hardware-software cooperative pipeline error detection

An error reporting system utilizes a parity checker to receive data results from execution of an original instruction and a parity bit for the data. A decoder receives an error correcting code (ECC) for data resulting from execution of a shadow instruction of the original instruction, and data error correction is initiated on the original instruction result on condition of a mismatch between the parity bit and the original instruction result, and the decoder asserting a correctable error in the original instruction result.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

A novel integrated time-resolved array avalanche photodiode detection system for nuclear resonant scattering measurements

Here, the nuclear resonant scattering (NRS) experiment requires photon-counting detectors with high time resolution, short dead time, large dynamic range, low noise, and large detection area. An 8-channel avalanche photodiode (APD) array detector system with high integrity, flexibility, and reliability has been developed to adapt to the demands of NRS experiments. The detector system mainly consists of four key parts: (i) an array-APD sensor, (ii) 8-channel integrated fast preamplifiers, (iii) the time-to-digital converter readout electronics, and (iv) a data acquisition system and EPICS support software. Remarkably, the system exhibits a time resolution of better than 500 ps and has a sufficiently low noise level, allowing for the lowest detection energy threshold of 4 keV. The performance of the new array-APD system as well as its real application in nuclear forward scattering (NFS) and nuclear resonant inelastic x-ray scattering (NRIXS) experiments was tested in two synchrotron facilities. With the new system, the NFS signal very close to the prompt electronic scattering signal can be extracted. Thanks to the customized EPICS-areaDetector-based control software, NRIXS spectra can be readily measured with time and energy information of the NRIXS signal stored in the raw data, which is promising for developing NRIXS data analysis in the time domain. The array-APD detector can be deployed for nuclear resonant scattering experiments at various synchrotron radiation facilities.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

Containerization in ATLAS Software Development and Data Production

The ATLAS experiment's software production and distribution on the grid benefits from a semi-automated infrastructure that provides up-to-date information about software usability and availability through the CVMFS dis-tribution service for all relevant systems. The software development process uses a Continuous Integration pipeline involving testing, validation, packag-ing and installation steps. For opportunistic sites that can not access CVMFS, containerized releases are needed. These standalone containers are currently created manually to support Monte-Carlo data production at such sites. In this paper we will describe an automated procedure for the containerization of AT-LAS software releases in the existing software development infrastructure, its motivation, integration and testing in the distributed computing system.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

INITIAL COMMISSIONING EXPERIENCE WITH THE SPALLATION NEUTRON SOURCE VERTICAL TEST AREA RF SYSTEM

The Spallation Neutron Source (SNS) has developed a vertical test area (VTA) for the testing and qualification of superconducting radio frequency cavities. The associated RF System successfully supported the initial commissioning of the VTA system and has been utilized for cavity testing at both 4 and 2 K. As operational experience was gained, improvements to the RF system were implemented to better utilize the dynamic range of the system, and software updates and additions were made to meet operational needs. The system continues to evolve as we gain better understanding of the testing needs.

Crofford, Mark↗

SU-E-T-465: Implementation of An Automated Collision Detection Program Using Open Source Software for the Pinnacle Treatment Planning System

Purpose: Potential collisions between the gantry head and the patient or table assembly are difficult to detect in most treatment planning systems. We have developed and implemented a novel software package for the representation of potential gantry collisions with the couch assembly at the time of treatment planning. Methods: Physical dimensions of the Varian Edge linear accelerator treatment head were measured and reproduced using the Visual Python display package. A script was developed for the Pinnacle treatment planning system to generate a file with the relevant couch, gantry, and isocenter positions for each beam in a planning trial. A python program was developed to parse the information from the TPS and produce a representative model of the couch/gantry system. Using the model and the Visual Python libraries, a rendering window is generated for each beam that allows the planner to evaluate the possibility of a collision. Results: Comparison against heuristic methods and direct verification on the machine validated the collision model generated by the software. Encounters of <1 cm between the gantry treatment head and table were visualized as collisions in our virtual model. Visual windows were created depicting the angle of collision for each beam, including the anticipated table coordinates. Visual rendering of a 6 arc trial with multiple couch positions was completed in under 1 minute, with network bandwidth being the primary bottleneck. Conclusion: The developed software allows for quick examination of possible collisions during the treatment planning process and helps to prevent major collisions prior to plan approval. The software can easily be implemented on future planning systems due to the versatility and platform independence of the Python programming language. Further integration of the software with the treatment planning system will allow the possibility of patient-gantry collision detection for a range of treatment machines.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

SMS Software Training Exercise 101: SMS and Janam XP20 Data Entry with PSU Collectors

The LANL Sample Management System (SMS) is a software system written in JAVA that supports record keeping associated with handling of media and samples in the BioWatch program. During this portion of the class the instructor will provide: 1. A general overview of what SMS is, 2. How SMS may be configured, 3. How to launch and log-in to SMS, 4. How to accomplish data entry, 5. How to use the Tracking / Exposure History features, 6. How to use the Tracking / Data View and Edit data view features (a. Specifically cover editing a PSU Collector name).

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS↗

MyEMSL MTS File Cache Manager

MTS manager for retrieving files from MyEMSL; The MyEMSL MTS File Cache Manager is a part of PRISM, the Proteomics Research Information and Management System. The software processes the MyEMSL Download Queue in the Mass and Time Tag System (MTS) to download files required for processing.

Monroe, Matthew↗

VOLTTRON-enabled Home Energy Management System

Home Energy Management Systems (HEMS) consist of software and hardware systems that provide communication, control, and management among different electronic devices, such as heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems. HEMS are a growing market sector in the era of smart grids and smart homes. HEMS can help both homeowners and utilities save money and energy by monitoring and controlling smart devices in a house. Based on the Department of Energy (DOE) Building Energy Data Book, 41% of the energy consumed in the United States is used by buildings (see Figure 1). This shows the importance of saving energy in the building sector. This report introduces two approaches that existing HEMS vendors can use to leverage VOLTTRON as their control and interoperability engine. The goal of this project is to make open-source, user-friendly HEMS available to the market so that everyone can benefit from them. The HEMS introduced as a result of this study should satisfy HEMS specifications such as device monitoring and control, seamless communication between devices, DR, intelligence, data management, and security.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗

WE-D-9A-06: Open Source Monitor Calibration and Quality Control Software for Enterprise Display Management

Purpose: Medical display monitor calibration and quality control present challenges to medical physicists. The purpose of this work is to demonstrate and share experiences with an open source package that allows for both initial monitor setup and routine performance evaluation. Methods: A software package, pacsDisplay, has been developed over the last decade to aid in the calibration of all monitors within the radiology group in our health system. The software is used to calibrate monitors to follow the DICOM Grayscale Standard Display Function (GSDF) via lookup tables installed on the workstation. Additional functionality facilitates periodic evaluations of both primary and secondary medical monitors to ensure satisfactory performance. This software is installed on all radiology workstations, and can also be run as a stand-alone tool from a USB disk. Recently, a database has been developed to store and centralize the monitor performance data and to provide long-term trends for compliance with internal standards and various accrediting organizations. Results: Implementation and utilization of pacsDisplay has resulted in improved monitor performance across the health system. Monitor testing is now performed at regular intervals and the software is being used across multiple imaging modalities. Monitor performance characteristics such as maximum and minimum luminance, ambient luminance and illuminance, color tracking, and GSDF conformity are loaded into a centralized database for system performance comparisons. Compliance reports for organizations such as MQSA, ACR, and TJC are generated automatically and stored in the same database. Conclusion: An open source software solution has simplified and improved the standardization of displays within our health system. This work serves as an example method for calibrating and testing monitors within an enterprise health system.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

10 CFR 830 Major Modification Determination for Advanced Test Reactor RDAS and LPCIS Replacement

The replacement of the ATR Control Complex's obsolete computer based Reactor Data Acquisition System (RDAS) and its safety-related Lobe Power Calculation and Indication System (LPCIS) software application is vitally important to ensure the ATR remains available to support this national mission. The RDAS supports safe operation of the reactor by providing 'real-time' plant status information (indications and alarms) for use by the reactor operators via the Console Display System (CDS). The RDAS is a computer support system that acquires analog and digital information from various reactor and reactor support systems. The RDAS information is used to display quadrant and lobe powers via a display interface more user friendly than that provided by the recorders and the Control Room upright panels. RDAS provides input to the Nuclear Engineering ATR Surveillance Data System (ASUDAS) for fuel burn-up analysis and the production of cycle data for experiment sponsors and the generation of the Core Safety Assurance Package (CSAP). RDAS also archives and provides for retrieval of historical plant data which may be used for event reconstruction, data analysis, training and safety analysis. The RDAS, LPCIS and ASUDAS need to be replaced with state-of-the-art technology in order to eliminate problems of aged computer systems, and difficulty in obtaining software upgrades, spare parts, and technical support. The major modification criteria evaluation of the project design did not lead to the conclusion that the project is a major modification. The negative major modification determination is driven by the fact that the project requires a one-for-one equivalent replacement of existing systems that protects and maintains functional and operational requirements as credited in the safety basis.

21 SPECIFIC NUCLEAR REACTORS AND ASSOCIATED PLANTS↗