Master of Science in Engineering, University of Akron, 2014, Engineering

Simulators are useful to investigate the behaviors of new phenomena and systems before designing and implementing prototypes of such systems. This thesis presents the design, algorithms, and implementation of a new simulation platform for a novel material handling systems called the Cloud Conveyor System (CCS). CCS is a new approach to conveying entities, i.e., materials and people, that comprises a collection of mobile units that periodically move along xed tracks. In- puts and outputs are located at the ends of these xed tracks; entities arrive via the inputs and transfer through the system to some output by riding on the mobile units. When two units meet, an entity may transfer from one unit to another as long as the receiving unit has adequate capacity. This simple model of conveying entities oers a rich spectrum of spatio-temporal behaviors that have interesting connections to core issues in scheduling, resource allocation, communication, embedded systems, automation, and programming. The complexity of CCS arises from the interactions between the mobile units, hence, it is dicult to construct a system-level model that can be analyzed, even though the behavior of individual units is simple. The simulator presented in this thesis enables a systematic investigation of cyber-physical issues in CCS. Since all the details of CCS are not yet fully under- stood, an extensible simulator was designed using the Model-View-Controller (MVC) architecture. In this approach, there is a clear separation between the system-model, its presentation to users, and user interaction with the model. To cope with the complexity of the CCS, an object-oriented design approach was used. Consequently, the system-model comprises a collection of classes that directly map to a natural description of the CCS. The relationships between dierent object instances were carefully analyzed and separated into multiple classes. Object interaction diagrams were construc (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Shivakumar Sastry Dr. (Advisor); Forrest Bao Dr. (Committee Member); Zhong-Hui Duan Dr. (Committee Member); Michael Branicky Dr. (Committee Member) Subjects: Systems Design

Master of Computer Science, Miami University, 2012, Computer Science and Software Engineering

This thesis suggests a software architecture for a video discussion board using the Online Language Environment (OLE) Board as a case study. A more suitable architecture will enable it to meet its goals. Goals for the new board are to support future developers and users. Developer-oriented goals are ease of readability, maintenance, and enhancement. User-oriented goals are ease of use, new or improved features such as data collection, and enhanced security. The old system is out of date, making planned expansion difficult. The new system uses a Model-View-Controller architecture utilizing updated frameworks. Updated protocols based on XML were introduced, and elements were added to allow for new features. Developer goals have been met with minimal drawbacks. The new board was used by 42 students at the University of Aizu and Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. New features proved useful and security was increased, with some decrease in usability during initial testing.

Committee: Dr. Douglas Troy (Advisor); Dr. Scott Campbell (Committee Member); Dr. Paul Lyddon (Committee Member) Subjects: Computer Science; Educational Software; Educational Technology