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This paper discusses an experiment conducted with two groups of participants, composed of musicians and non-musicians, in order to investigate the impact that the speed of a sound sequence and the interval size which selected sounds are played on the grouping of sounds into perceptual streams. Significant differences were observed between musicians and non-musicians with respect to the threshold sequence speed at which the sequence was split into two streams. In modern psychoacoustic studies, the qualifying criteria for listeners usually include otologically normal hearing (verified by audiometric test) and age. The differences in the results for the two groups suggest that the musical background of the participating listeners may be a vital factor. The criterion of musical education should be taken into account during experiments so that the results obtained are reliable, uniform and free from interpretive errors.

This article discusses fundamental issues associated with the functional reliability of selected fire alarm systems (FASs) in operation during building fires. FASs operate under diverse external or internal natural environmental conditions, and the operational process of FAS should take into account the impacts of physical phenomena that occur during fires. Their operation is associated with the constant provision of reliability. FAS designers should also consider the system's reliability when developing fire control matrices, tables, algorithms, or scenarios. All functions arising from an FAS control matrix should be implemented with a permissible reliability level, RDPN(t), prior to, as well as during, a fire. This should be assigned to the controls saved in the fire alarm control unit (FCP). This article presents the process by which high temperatures generated during a fire impact the reliability of FAS functioning. It was developed considering selected critical paths for a specific scenario and the control matrix for an FAS. Such assumptions make it possible to determine the impact of various temperatures generated during a fire on the reliability of an FAS. To this end, the authors reviewed that the waveform of the R(t) function changes for a given FAS over time, Δt, and then determined the fitness paths. The critical paths are located within the fire detection and suppression activation process, using FAS or fixed extinguishing devices (FEDs), and the paths were modeled with acceptable and unacceptable technical states. The last section of this article defines a model and graph for the operational process of a selected FAS, the analysis of which enables conclusions to be drawn that can be employed in the design and implementation stages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A companion robot is capable of performing a variety of activities and thus supporting the elderly and people with disabilities. It should be able to overcome obstacles on its own, respond to what is happening around it in real time, and communicate with its surroundings. It is particularly important to pay attention to these issues, as a companion robot is likely to become a participant in traffic. The research aims to develop a mathematical model that considers the use of two navigation solutions in the companion robot. Thanks to this, it will be possible to use the obtained mathematical relationships to compare various types of navigation and make a rational choice, enabling the implementation of the assumed activities in a specific external environment. What is new in this paper is the analysis of several navigation methods and the presentation of research conducted in real time using an actual robot. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper presents issues associated with the impact of electromagnetic interference on static converters, which exploitation in a railway transport environment. The measurements of an electromagnetic field emitted by a static converter were shown. Designs of this kind are exploitation in railway facilities, therefore, they should not disturb the functioning of other equipment, the rail traffic control systems, in particular. As a result of the EMC tests, it was concluded that the permissible values of conducted interference emissions were exceeded. An analysis of the obtained results enabled developing a research model, and a further reliability and exploitation analysis, taking into account electromagnetic interference. This, in turn, enabled determining a relationship allowing to determine the probability of a static converter staying in a state of full ability. The presented discussions regarding a static converter, taking into account electromagnetic interference, allow for the numerical assessment of different types of solutions (technical and organizational), which can be implemented in order to mitigate the impact of electromagnetic interference on a system’s functioning.

The article presents issues related to the reliability of power supply for electronic security devices in intelligent buildings. These systems function under varied environmental conditions and are exposed to external or internal natural and artificial interference; lightning, in particular. The authors conducted actual experimental tests of two surge arresters that are used to protect against a lightning impulse. As a result of conducted tests, followed by reliability and operational modelling, it was concluded that their use in internal connection structures increased the probability of a system staying in a state of full fitness. All of the deliberations included in the article enabled developing a new method for assessing the power supply continuity in electronic security systems of intelligent buildings, taking into account external natural interference. This method can also be applied to assess the power supply continuity in other electronic systems and devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The intensive development of photovoltaic (PV) micro-systems contributes to increased interest in energy efficiency and diagnosing the condition of such solutions. Optimizing system energy efficiency and servicing costs are particularly noteworthy among the numerous issues associated with this topic. This research paper addresses the easy and reliable diagnosis of PV system malfunctions. It discusses the original PV system energy efficiency simulation model with proprietary methods for determining total solar irradiance on the plane of cells installed at any inclination angle and azimuth, as well as PV cell temperature and efficiency as a function of solar irradiance. Based on this simulation model, the authors developed procedures for the remote diagnosis of PV micro-systems. Verification tests covered two independent PV systems over the period from April 2022 to May 2023. The obtained results confirm the high credibility level of both the adopted energy efficiency simulation model and the proposed method for diagnosing PV system functional status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Railway traffic control (RTC) equipment are technical devices developed for maintaining the safety of rail vehicle traffic operation, and must satisfy certain requirements related to a specific level of traffic safety and effectiveness. They are designed to ensure operational reliability under the intended application conditions throughout their entire service life. Regardless of their type and kind, however, they must behave in accordance with the assumed functional rules and requirements. This is why periodic tests of their correct operation are so crucial. Functional tests are applied to this end. They are employed in the course of device design and approval for use as well as in equipment operational diagnostics. Previous methods for generating test sets and their processing have been intuitive and often rely on the experience of testers that have been acquired in the course of implementing other tests. Such tests may be incomplete or fail to take into account all studied functions. Therefore, this article presents a proprietary method for generating functional tests covering railway traffic control devices that improve their readiness. The authors describe a test determination procedure algorithm and specify the conditions to be met by a test set and by optimization criteria. The article ends with a computer-based exemplification of the developed functional test generation method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article describes a new approach to the reliability–exploitation analysis of the critical information and communications technology (ICT) system power supply. A classic approach based on statistical indicators and a new one founded on uncertainty modelling based on the rough set method is presented. The main advantage of the uncertainty modelling approach is the simplification of the calculations and the fact that, unlike statistical analysis, uncertainty modelling does not require complete information on the used data sets. An extensive study of world publications was carried out, proving that this is an entirely innovative approach to solving the problem of reliability and exploitation analysis. Calculations, analyses and syntheses are also exhibited in a specific example. A sample of the ICT system power supply was simulated, and the simulation results are shown. The simulations were prepared by one of the co-authors for the purposes of this article. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Modern telecommunications techniques allow for continuous transmission of information from vehicles to dispatch centres during the operation process. The information included in this transmission may contain diagnostic data that make it possible to monitor the state of responsible components of the vehicle construction. The article presents the issues related to the analysis of the vehicle operation process including information received with the use of a CAN bus. The model of the vehicle operation process was presented, and the diagnosis state was taken into account. The use of transport telematics systems and intelligent transport systems in transport allow for the rolling stock profiling at the next stage. Owing to the rolling stock profiling, operational databases powered by a telematics interface are created. This, in turn, will allow to carry out the operational application process along with further optimisation of the operation process.

The paper includes a review of the following terms: anthropotechnical system, a layered model of an object operation process, safe car operation system structure. The current and predicted solutions in terms of car equipment impact on the safety of a driver-vehicle-road system were presented in detail.

Transport telematics systems integrate information technology with telecommunications for the purposes of transport systems. This helps to improve the safety of vehicles and facilities involved in transport tasks. At the same time, the efficiency of using transport infrastructure and means of transport increases. The development and use of specialised IT applications that use data from transport telematics systems helped to create Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS). Currently, in Poland (in Europe and in the world), more and more advanced services offered by Intelligent Transport Systems are being developed and implemented. It is particularly relevant in road transport, especially because Poland’s road safety is insufficient compared to other European countries. The article presents the authors’ proposed indicators and criteria that can be used for assessing ITS services in the context of road safety. The authors conducted analyses to study the application of AHP (Analytic Hierarchy Process), if ITS services were to be used to improve road safety. Then, it will be possible to choose one solution from all the assessed ones.