The Star Online: Metro: Central
The Star Online: Metro: Central |
| Condo to be fitted with sensors Posted: 27 Nov 2012 03:59 AM PST A locally-developed wireless sensor network (WSN) will be used to determine the cause of cracks at a condominium in Bukit Antarabangsa. The cracks are believed to be due to structural movements, making the condominium a good case study for the pilot project that will begin at the end of this month. The cracks began appearing half a year after the 2008 landslide that occurred opposite the condominium in Jalan Bukit Antarabangsa. Hollow gaps can be seen underneath the shifting floors near the cracks found at the ground floor parking bays and pipes that were once aligned with the pillars have moved away from the structure. The WSN technology is jointly developed by Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM), Kontron, Intel and Mimos. It became a focus under the Malaysia Information Communication and Multimedia Services (MyICMS886) short-range communication services initiative during the Ninth Malaysia Plan. To that end, the National Centre of Excellence for Sensor Technology (NEST) was established in 2007 to carry out research and development on sensor technology and devise a national strategic plan for WSN application locally. It currently comes under the purview of the Information, Communication and Culture Ministry (KPKK). According to UPM Engineering Faculty senior lecturer Dr Shaiful Jahari Hashim, the sensors they are installing will record four types of readings. These are settlement (ground vibration), inclination (tilting of structure), vibration (other factors like wind) and the actual widening of the cracks using a specially acquired strain gauge sensor. "The sky is the limit when it comes to what we can monitor using this device. It all comes down to getting the right sensor," he said when highlighting the potential of WSN. There are two components to the technology — namely the nodes attached to the sensor that records and processes data before sending it wirelessly to the gateway which sends the information to a remote server via the Internet. Shaiful said there were several advantages to a wireless network. "The nodes can be placed anywhere and barring any damage, are able to store collected data until they can connect with another node or the gateway again to forward the information," he said. Lack of wires also means the system saves on deployment time and cost as well as being aesthetically pleasing. "This system is also flexible and one can install additional nodes immediately as it does not require rewiring, just some programming," Shaiful said. The system that will be set up at the condominium is one out of two pilot projects they will be undertaking, the other being a set up for the Penang Bridge. NEST director and UPM Engineering faculty Professor Borhanuddin Mohd Ali said the main objective of the pilot project was to evaluate the viability of the system. "The Penang Bridge, for example, already has a wired sensor system for monitoring purposes but is less flexible and more expensive to set up and maintain compared to a WSN-based system," he said, adding that WSN served as an early warning system to facilitate mitigation of any problems early. He said they were in talks with the Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD) for a third pilot project they hope to conduct on a rail-transport type of structure. According to the KPKK website on WSN, its applications include monitoring of soil, golf course grass, home assistive environment for aged citizens, production line as well as supply chain management and home automation. Prof Borhanuddin said WSN was already being implemented in precision agriculture locally. "Greenhouses in Penang, Terengganu and Sabah are growing rock melon crops in a controlled environment monitored by farmers through a computer. The sensor nodes are able to detect things like temperature and the combination of fertiliser that the plant needs," he said. While this sounds like a computer game becoming a reality, Prof Borhanuddin said the farmers were still required to personally check on the crops as there were still some things the sensors were not able to do such as detect disease or help the creeper climb. "The crops are the first batch. With ample data, NEST will eventually be able to correlate parameters and set a base for the system to perform certain auto correct functions based on installed actuators as needed in the greenhouse even without the farmers' direct involvement," he said. The WSN technology is not new and Dr Shaiful said it was already being used in structural monitoring in many countries around the world, including in the United States, Germany, Taiwan and South Korea. "We are perhaps a few years behind them so it is important for us to have more local expertise on this," he said, adding that 10 years ago the project would not have been viable as the equipment was still expensive then. |
| Shuttler Bao Ying in fiery form Posted: 27 Nov 2012 03:51 AM PST KUALA Lumpur's top ranked girls' Under-14 shuttler Loh Bao Ying bagged a double at the fourth Fleet-Hooi Yee Sport Junior Badminton Championships at the Sports Affairs' 15-court badminton hall in Taman Segar Perdana, Cheras recently. The Form Two student of SMK Seri Bintang Selatan complemented her untroubled run in winning the girls' Under-14 singles by forging a winning partnership with Kok Pei Xin in the doubles contest of the same age-group. En route to victory in the singles, Bao Ying did not face much difficulty to chalk the 21-16, 21-9 win over Lydia Ngor Zhuang Yi. However, the duo of Bao Ying-Pei Xin had a more tricky stint before they fended off their challengers Chen Yi Teng-Yonna Lee 21-16, 21-17 in the doubles. Former national women's doubles and mixed doubles shuttler Chor Hooi Yee, who runs her training camp at the competition venue, said it was an exciting affair with five of the eight finals in the boys' contests going down to the wire. Among the five finals decided in three games before the eventual winners came through were the boys' Under-10 singles; boys' Under-12 singles; boys' Under-14 singles and doubles; and boys' Under-16 singles. "The boys certainly delivered sterling performances. It was great to witness them producing spirited displays and offering stiff resistance to their opponents in the finals," she added. The three-day meet has been a regular feature in the year-end competition calendar for the promising talents based in the Klang Valley as well as visiting shuttlers from other states. "The shuttlers have shown that they have the potential. Our aim is to maintain the high level of competitiveness with the young talents joining the fray in the future," said Hooi Yee. In the girls' sections, the Under-12 singles champion Yap Ling came from a game down before she prevailed with a hard-earned 21-23, 21-13, 21-19 win over Pearly Tan Koon Le. Following the encouraging participation of 500 competitors last year, the recent tournament drew another overwhelming turnout with 620 participants in action. The boys featured in both singles and doubles in four age-groups — Under-10, Under-12, Under-14 and Under-16 — while the girls were also in action in the singles of the four age-groups. The two doubles categories for the girls were the Under-12 and Under-14. RESULTS (all finals) BOYS' - Under-10 Singles: Chia Jeng Hong bt Jacky Kok Jing Hong 21-19, 12-21, 21-17 - Under-10 Doubles: Lim Thian Loong-Ilhan bt Aziq Nabihah-Mohd Ikmal Aizat 21-19, 21-17 - Under-12 Singles: Low Eu Cong bt Teh Jia Heng 20-22, 21-14, 21-10 - Under-12 Doubles: Shaun Wong-Chun Kin Wai bt Aidil Soleh-Npr Aqmal 21-18, 21-11 - Under-14 Singles: Cheerandev bt Faiz Rozain 9-21, 21-15, 21-17 - Under-14 Doubles: Man Wei Choong-Faiz Rozain bt Ian Wong Jian Sern-Ooi Zhao Zhi 13-21, 21-19, 21-17 - Under-16 Singles: Bong Guang Yik bt Wong Kai Sheng 21-17, 20-22, 21-19 - Under-16 Doubles: Muhd Sharul Nazim-Muhd Sharul Nizam bt Wong Kai Sheng-Tan Vi Hen 21-14, 21-18 GIRLS' - Under-10 Singles: Teoh Le Xuan bt Cheah Wen Jun 26-24, 21-11 - Under-12 Singles: Yap Ling bt Pearly Tan Koon Le 21-23, 21-13, 21-19 - Under-12 Doubles: Pearly Tan Koon Le-Lim Hui Hui bt Teoh Le Xuan-Cheah Wen Jun 21-10, 21-11 - Under-14 Singles: Loh Bao Ying bt Lydia Ngor Zhuang Yi 21-16, 21-9 - Under-14 Doubles: Loh Bao Ying-Kok Pei Xin bt Chen Yi Teng-Yonna Lee 21-16, 21-17 - Under-16 Singles: Tan Wee Ling bt Chua Zhen Ee 21-15, 21-6 |
| You are subscribed to email updates from The Star Online: Metro: Central To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
0 ulasan:
Catat Ulasan