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Objective: In this paper, a mathematical modeling is presented to determine efficient locations for deployment of support forces using data envelopment analysis. Methodology: The proposed model has the possibility to first change the manageable inputs in order to improve the outputs according to the principle of managerial accessibility and also if it is not possible to reduce the unmanageable inputs according to the principle of natural accessibility, it keeps them at least at the existing level. Therefore, the most important innovation and contribution of the present research is the modeling of the positioning of the support forces to support the ground forces in future battles, which is created by using data envelopment analysis and the simultaneous use of natural and managerial accessibility principles. Findings: The intended model has been used to evaluate 25 potential locations that are ready to provide ground support services to help local forces in the disputed area so that the fire of war ends in favor of local forces. Finally, by providing a sensitivity analysis on the manageable input values, the maximum possible changes on the value of this type of input for each of the locations are specified. Originality: The results of this research are of great importance considering the conditions raised in making and the effectiveness of commanders' decisions in order to locate support forces in future battles.

The count, location, and size of shrimp larvae are important observations for their intensive breeding, which could evaluate the culture density, growth, and yield. Recent works on the counting of dense aquatic objects in an image are mainly accomplished by the density map regression based on convolutional neural network (CNN). These regression methods only give the estimated density map and the corresponding count, but cannot locate and size the objects accurately. To realize the noninvasive counting, locating, and sizing during aquatic breeding, we propose a novel detection architecture in computer vision for the larvae of Cherax quadricarinatus. In particular, a new shrimp larvae counting network (SLCNet) using the density map regression is designed to output the estimated density map of the shrimp larvae image and predict the corresponding number of the shrimp larvae. The local peak filtering (LPF) is applied to the estimated density map to locate the coordinates of every shrimp larva. We then use the K-nearest neighbor (KNN) and the bounding box search to find the fitting bounding boxes of the shrimp larvae in sparse regions and calculate the body length of the shrimp larvae in the fitting bounding boxes with the aid of the least squares regression method. Compared with typical CNN-based counting models, the mean absolute error and root mean square error of the proposed SLCNet are 4.13 and 5.75, respectively, and the counting accuracy is up to 98.57%. Then, we perform the detection of the location and size of the shrimp larvae using the density map estimated by the SLCNet. The locating and sizing accuracy can reach 90.6% (i.e., F1 value) and 90.28%, respectively. It proves that this detection architecture could be used as technical support for subsequent studies on larva growth and behavior recognition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given Iran's ongoing role in the Middle East and the constant threat of external threats, it is imperative that I must take action on the critical and important steps for my country Of the measures that can prevent the occurrence of malignancies Choosing the right place the activity in which the ability of a particular region, the existence of appropriate and sufficient land and its consistency with other urban and rural land uses is analyzed to select suitable locations the desired application. locationsting critical and sensitive centers using geomorphological parameters, this research has used questionnaire design through survey studies and interviews with geomorphological experts about factors affecting the selection of critical centers. Then ratings based on the weights of criteria for each factor were identified. Finally, data layers of the region such as slope map, slope direction, elevation, line maps, distance from urban and rural centers, Distance from the river, fault maps, geological maps(1:100000) Climatic Parameters , Aerial photo with scale(1/55000) , Landsat satellite imagery ETM, TM, MMS and Google Earth are used to identify the landforms point addresses have been collected and converted into rasters and multiplied by the weights of the criteria, the suitable locations have been chosenthe research tools are surveyed topographic maps, geology and satellite and aerial images of the area as well as interviews with experts identifying the effective factors in locating critical and important centers with emphasis on passive defense And after identifying them using ANP DAMATE to compare the criteria has been analyzed.

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Standard and novel concepts regarding the basing of objects and the base itself are analyzed, so as to identify their differences and assess their practical utility. Corrections are proposed to the idea of basing (locating) machine parts, taking account of systems categories. It is established that mining machines may be improved by refining the geometric relations between production objects at the design stage, on the basis of a systems approach; specific methods are noted. The proposed definitions take account of categories such as the internal (real) and external environments, so as to define the boundaries of the space considered and to develop basing algorithms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: The study aimed to investigate the influence of various factors on the localization of the second mesiobuccal (MB2) canal in maxillary molars, a commonly missed canal during endodontic treatment. Materials and Methods: A comprehensive assessment of maxillary molars treated over three years with a dental operative microscope was conducted. Factors such as patient gender, age, tooth type, pulp status, pre-operative cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT), and treatment modality were examined. Statistical analyses included chi-square and multiple logistic regression. Results: Among 333 treated maxillary molars, the MB2 canal was identified in 60.1%. The prevalence of MB2 canals was significantly higher in the first molars (72.3%) compared to the second molars (40.2%; P=0.001). Multiple logistic regression models showed that gender, tooth type, and treatment modality emerged as significant determinants of MB2 canal localization: males [odds ratio 3.01(CI 95%:1.71-5.32), P<0.001], first molar tooth [odds ratio 4.26 (CI 95%:2.53-7.18), P<0.001] and secondary endodontic treatment [odds ratio 0.06 (CI 95%: 0.004-0.890), P<0.04]. Conclusions: Patient gender, tooth type, and treatment modality play pivotal roles in the identification of the MB2 canal. Additionally, the availability of pre-operative CBCT imaging was associated with a heightened ability to locate the MB2 canal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A proper location is one of the most influential factors in shelter performance. Although considerable research focuses on finding a suitable site for temporary shelters, only a few address the effect of post-disaster circumstances on discovering the optimal location. This study primarily aims to investigate the influential factors in determining a suitable place for temporary shelters after a crisis. Therefore, an algorithm is proposed. This algorithm is achieved by analyzing and computing the post-crisis urban route and facility accessibility based on photogrammetric photographs taken by an unmanned aerial vehicle/satellite.

Rangeland improvement and restoration increases the quantity and quality of forage production and optimize the amount of livestock products. Land suitability is an activity to select the best sites for a specific plant species plantation. Application of optimal methods to accurate locating of rangeland plantation, considering rangeland potential and characteristics, leads to long-term sustainable economic benefits. Nitraria schoberi is a drought-resistant species that is important in stabilizing of sandy soils and soil erosion control. The locating of appropriate plantation sites of this species can play an important role in the improvement of degraded-winter rangelands. In this research, the geographic information system and two methods of classic and fuzzy logic were used to locate this plant. At first, the needed data and layers were gathered, for preparing the required maps. According to the ecological requirements of N. schoberi, the layers for the classic method were classified into two suitable and not suitable classes but for the fuzzy method the layers were classified into four classes via: not suitable, moderately suitable, suitable and highly suitable. Then, by combining the classifieds layers, the final maps were obtained using Boolean and fuzzy logic method. The results demonstrated that low precipitation, as well as, high salinity and temperature are the most limiting factors that must be considered in N. schoberi plantation projects. We found that the fuzzy logic gives better and more accurate results than the classic method, so it is recommended to localization of suitable areas for rangeland species plantation.

Background: Possible solutions to overcome the many challenges of home delivery are collection and delivery points (CDPs). In addition to commercial facilities, the role of CDPs can also be played by users' households, providing a crowd storage service. Key decisions regarding CDPs relate to their location, as well as the allocation of users to selected locations, so that the distance of users from CDPs is minimal. Methods: In this paper, the described problem is defined as a p-median problem and solved for the area of the city of Belgrade, using the heuristic "greedy" and the simulated annealing algorithm. Results: Fifty locations of CDPs were selected and the users allocated to them were distributed in over 950 zones. The individual distances between users and the nearest CDPs and the sum of these distances, multiplied by the number of requests, were obtained. An example of modification of the number of CDPs is presented as a way of obtaining solutions that correspond to different preferences of operators and/or users in terms of their distances from the CDPs. Conclusions: User households can be used as CDPs to achieve various benefits. Locating CDPs, i.e., selecting households, can be solved as a p-median problem, using a combination of heuristic and metaheuristic algorithms. In addition, by modifying the number of medians, the total and average distances between users and CDPs can be better managed. The main contributions of the paper are the establishment of users' households as potential locations of CDPs, the establishment of a framework for analysis of impact of the number of CDPs on the sum and average distances from the customers, as well as the creation of a basis for upgrading and modifying the model for implementation in the business practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Optical fiber sensors are used for partial discharge detection in many applications due their advantage of strong anti-electromagnetic interference capability. Multi-point distributed partial discharge detection and location are important for electrical equipment. In this paper, a distributed partial discharge location and detection scheme based on optical fiber Rayleigh backscattering light interference is experimentally demonstrated. At the same time, the location and extraction algorithm is used to demodulate the partial discharge signal; furthermore, the high-pass filter is used to reduce the system low-frequency noise and environment noise. It is clear that the proposed system can detect a partial discharge signal generated by metal needle sensitivity, and the detectable frequency range is 0–2.5 kHz. We carried out 10 locating tests for two sensing units, the experimental results show that the maximum location error is 1.0 m, and the maximum standard deviation is 0.3795. At same time, the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of sensing unit 1 and sensing unit 2 are greatly improved after demodulation, which are 39.7 and 38.8, respectively. This provides a new method for a multipoint-distributed optical fiber sensor used for detecting and locating a long-distance electrical equipment partial discharge signal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A set S ⊆ V (G) of an undirected graph G is a locating-dominating set of G if for each v ∈ V (G) \ S, there exists w ∈ S such tha vw ∈ E(G) and NG(x) ∩ S ̸= NG(y) ∩ S for any two distinct vertices x and y in V (G) \ S. S is a stable locating-dominating set of G if it is a locating-dominating set of G and S \ {v} is a locating-dominating set of G for each v ∈ S. The minimum cardinality of a stable locating-dominating set of G, denoted by γSLD(G), is called the stable locating-domination number of G. In this paper, we investigate this concept and the corresponding parameter for edge corona and lexicographic product of graphs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most manufactures sell their products through sale agents and are not directly engaged with consumers. Therefore, determination of optimal location and optimal number of sale agents is highly significant in their planning. The main objective of this paper is theoretical modeling of sale agents and expansion of location models through a method in such a way that the assumptions are closer to reality and could provide the required conditions for selection of optimal location and optimal number of sale agents. To this end, Spoke model of Chen & Riordan (2007) and Lijesen & Reggiani (2013) has been used. In each street n consumers have been uniformly located. The results showed under what conditions is the city center the optimal location of sale agents and when the city margin is the optimal location and indicated that the cost of launching sale agents is the main factor in making such decision. Moreover, the results showed that the optimal number of sale agents is a function of the number of streets, the customers' valuation of each unit of product, the price of sale agents, the number of consumers on each street, the earned profit by the sale agents and the cost of launching sale agents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The disadvantages of the traditional description of a mechanical engineering product are considered, which are based on features focused on single, typical and group operations of the technological process. It is proposed to design and manufacture individual elements of parts and the product as a whole from the standpoint of operation and monitoring of its condition using the modular approach in engineering and technology. The representation of parts by sets of modules makes it possible to identify the locating, working and binding modules of the surfaces and on their basis to build a unified classification of parts focused on various stages of the product life cycle. The fundamentals of the locating theory are updated, taking into account the revision of the existing description from theoretical mechanics by means of the position of 3 coordinate points; for the transition to a new description from the theory of machines and mechanisms by depriving of object of locating the degrees of freedom (mobility) in the technical system (design, technological, measuring one). It is shown how the design of the production technology of the product and the measurement of its characteristics is carried out in a system that includes equipment and facilities as mechanisms, the closing link of which are locating items.

Looking back over the history of translation in the world, it can be stated that ‘co-translation’ is a common translation phenomenon. It is largely prevalent in translation and interpretation activities around the world, and not least in providing access to important texts for various purposes. After a long absence from the field of translation studies, co-translation has been the focus of increasing attention in recent years. This paper investigates how co-translation within translation studies has been mapped in the international community. It also draws on the notions of James S. Holmes’s (2000) “map” of translation studies presented by Gideon Toury (2012) and Jeremy Munday (2016) in an attempt to put forth an overall framework that describes the ground covered by co-translation studies. Finally, a comparative analysis of three English versions of Shen Fu’s Fu Sheng Liu Ji (Six Records of a Life Adrift) is discussed in order to illustrate the influence on proper English translation and target readers’ expectation of co-translation and to explore the implications of this influence. This paper aims to offer a review of the latest developments in co-translation studies, the insightful findings of which may help scholars, researchers, students, and practitioners to reflect upon the important issues in this field and search for possible directions in their future research.

Lung cancer has the highest mortality rate among all malignancies. Non-micro pulmonary nodules are the primary manifestation of early-stage lung cancer. If patients can be detected with nodules in the early stage and receive timely treatment, their survival rate can be improved. Due to the large number of patients and limited medical resources, doctors take a longer time to make a diagnosis, which reduces efficiency and accuracy. Besides, there are no suitable approaches for developing countries. Therefore, we propose a 2.5D-based cascaded multi-stage framework for automatic detection and segmentation (DS-CMSF) of pulmonary nodules. The first three stages of the framework are used to discover lesions, and the latter stage is used to segment them. The first locating stage introduces the classical 2D-based Yolov5 model to locate the nodules roughly on axial slices. The second aggregation stage proposes a candidate nodule selection (CNS) algorithm to locate further and reduce redundant candidate nodules. The third classification stage uses a multi-size 3D-based fusion model to accommodate nodules of varying sizes and shapes for false-positive reducing. The last segmentation stage introduces multi-scale and attention modules into 3D-based UNet autoencoder to segment the nodular regions finely. Our proposed framework achieves 95.95% sensitivity and 89.50% CPM for nodules detection on the LUNA16 dataset, and 86.75% DSC for nodules segmentation on the LIDC-IDRI dataset. Moreover, our approach also achieves the accuracy-complexity trade-off, which can effectively realize the auxiliary diagnosis of pulmonary nodules in developing countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Large and unaccounted numbers of victims in disasters, events, or fires are often trapped in buildings or debris, and must be located and rescued as soon as possible. This study transforms smartphones into indoor locating tools without extra modification or complicated program installation, considering smartphones are likely to be carried when disasters strike. The study creates a system that converts smartphones into a lifesaving tool for trapped victims and rescuers. This study employs the Bluetooth beacon in smartphones to send signals using its low power consumption feature. The signal could continue transmitting for rescuers to locate trapped victims for longer. Rescuers could use the Bluetooth function on a regular notebook computer to search such signals without any hardware implementation or modification, allowing them to locate and determine the position of many trapped victims simultaneously. Implementing this system will decrease the search and rescue team's need to enter unsafe areas and increase their rescue speed, a critical factor for the survival of trapped victims. Furthermore, when disasters strike, the smartphone calling function might not work, and the trapped victim might be too weak to call for help. Thus, autoreply messages from victims' smartphones could help them be located within a 2-m error, even if covered by fallen debris such as wood piles or tiles. This effort will increase the chance of finding trapped victims within the golden rescue hours and reduce the exposure time of search and rescue teams in unsafe environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A proper location is one of the most influential factors in shelter performance. Although considerable research focuses on finding a suitable site for temporary shelters, only a few address the effect of post-disaster circumstances on discovering the optimal location. This study primarily aims to investigate the influential factors in determining a suitable place for temporary shelters after a crisis. Therefore, an algorithm is proposed. This algorithm is achieved by analyzing and computing the post-crisis urban route and facility accessibility based on photogrammetric photographs taken by an unmanned aerial vehicle/satellite. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The use of published research contents and the application of maps provided in such research is one of the most important ways to accurately discover and understand the location of ancient cities and their spatial analysis. The present research intends to identify the geographical location of the ancient city of Ray and its urban structure by referring to historical documents and maps, including maps provided by Robert Ker Porter and Pascal Coste, Wolfram Kleiss, aerial photographs of Eric Schmidt and Hussein Kariman’s map. This study has been conducted using a descriptive-analytical method and referring to content analysis of published sources and texts. In general, historical maps and documents play a significant role in locating Shahr-e-Rey in the early Islamic centuries. The results depict that some of these maps bear shortcomings, as such, they should be studied side by side. Through studying the maps and historical documents it became evident that Kohandej was located in the north of the city and along the Mount Tabarak. Moreover, it is observed that Sharestan area in the south of Kohendej was separated by a fence and rampart. The suburbs and Rabaz of the city were surrounded by a fortified rampart and fence. The fence and rampart in the west surrounded Imam Zadeh Abdollah’s shrine, passing along the northwest, then southwards passing through Qala Gabri, as the southern gate of the city, leading towards the western slopes. According to the study and investigation of historical maps and documents, it is found that the city has been developed and expanded on the southern and western parts.

The energy of processes is mainly supplied by fossil fuels. Short life of fossil energy sources and increasing environmental pollution caused by fossil fuels and increasing demand have made researchers introduce new solutions for supply of energy. Energy production in a photovoltaic solar power plant is cost-effective due to being clean and renewable. The power generation of these plants is affected by their site due to climate conditions, effective radiation periods, and the rate of solar radiation absorption. Therefore, finding the optimal location to establish a solar power plant is important. Identifying effective location criteria and the importance of these criteria is effective in choosing the optimal location.In this research, in the first phase, the effective criteria in locating a photovoltaic solar power plant were investigated based on the Delphi method. Then, in the second phase, based on the criteria identified in the first phase, fuzzy hierarchy method was used to compare the criteria with each other and determine the importance of each of them. The results of the study showed that the rate of solar radiation and average temperature were the most important criteria in locating photovoltaic solar power plant. Moreover, the criteria of slope, distance to main roads, distance to power lines, and land use were of highest importance in locating a photovoltaic solar power plant.

The identity of life in cities and its physical elements such as housing are of paramount importance. Housing is the smallest form of physical embodiment of human-environment interactions and spatial crystallization is a vital function of human habitation. Housing is considered to be a physical place and a primary shelter for family members.This shelter fulfills some of the basic needs of individuals or the household, such as sleeping, resting, protection from inclement weather, etc. . . . A proper housing or shelter is not limited to the physical structure of a house. Developing and proliferating Iranian-Islamic housing demand choosing a city or an urban district as a model, so that other districts be persuaded to follow. In this research, a district was chosen as a model from thirteen districts of Mashhad City. This was done based on the closeness of the elements of the district to the specified elements. Other districts, then, were compared with the model. Eliciting Iranian-Islamic housing elements, eleven indices were determined: identity, modulation, purposefulness, avoidance of arrogance, maintenance of hierarchy, having a central courtyard, introversion, security, modesty, density, and area. Using a Likert scale and Expert Choice software, weighting and evaluating were done. Afterwards, the numerical data were entered into GIS and analyzed. The results showed that various districts of Mashhad City, which is known as the spiritual capital of Iran, have not been formed in accordance with the Iranian-Islamic housing elements. The results also indicated that only municipality district number 8 has half of the research elements and the highest degree of conformity with the research indices. Having the highest value of 2.44 among all districts, this district was acceptable in terms of having Iranian-Islamic housing elements.

Let G be an undirected graph with vertex and edge sets V (G) and E(G), respectively. A set S ⊆ V (G) is a hop independent set of G if any two distinct vertices in S are not at a distance two from each other, that is, dG(v, w) ≠ 2 for any distinct vertices v, w ∈ S. The maximum cardinality of a hop independent set of G, denoted by αh(G), is called the hop independence number of G. In this paper, we show that the absolute difference of the independence number and the hop independence number of a graph can be made arbitrarily large. Furthermore, we determine the hop independence numbers of some graphs including those resulting from some binary operations of graphs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The mass production of combustion engines has caused numerous problems such as air pollution, the limitation of fossil fuel reserves and inconsistent prices. Therefore, much attention has been paid for research and design of electric vehicles (EVs) in developed countries, among which charging and discharging stations are of great significance in order to the promote EVs. This paper provides insights into the optimization of locating EVs charging and discharging stations equipped with solar panels. To this end, we determine the solar power generation capacity as well as the optimum charging/discharging time for EVs using the combination of multi-objective non-dominated genetic algorithm (NSGA-II) and fuzzy decision maker. In order to reasonably simulate the actual system conditions, increasing the applicability of results, we include the uncertainty of network consuming load, along with uncertainty of power generation using solar panels as well as the uncertainty of those EVs that return to the station considerably before the full discharge. These uncertainties are taken into account using the non-sequential Monte Carlo probabilistic method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study is to develop a robust two-stage stochastic location-routing-inventory model for perishable items. The proposed model is implemented in a two-stage structure. The first-stage decisions determine the establishment of distribution centres and the second-stage decisions identify the other variables of the problem. In order to reduce the effect of different scenarios on the outputs of the problem, the two-stage model is developed to a robust model. Two variability criteria called 'Partial Lower Deviation from Mean' (PLDM) and 'Partial Lower Deviation from Target' (PLDT) are considered for the problem. This robust model can manage the variability of different scenarios considering the variability needed for the problem. The summary of the results of the models indicate that the supply cost, the setup cost, the vehicle supply cost, and the production cost comprise 55%, 28%, 3%, and 14% of the total costs of the supply chain, respectively. Similarly, the ratio of net profit margin to the total revenue of the supply chain derived from the division of the objective function by the revenue function is 15%. Among free, fresher first, older first, and mixed policies, the free policy provides the decision maker with more profit than the other three policies since it imposes less constraints on the model.

Background: We aimed to identify the indicators and criteria to locate temporary shelters for conflict refugees. Methods: This systematic review evaluated the full-text of the related articles in international electronic databases, such as Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed, Cochran, and Google Scholar from the beginning and without time limit to 1 June 2019. In addition, this search was based on a strategy developed by the researchers. The studies were selected regardless of their methods and two data extraction forms were used to extract the most relevant and important information. Results: Among 10124 cases of primary documents, 38 articles were selected, and 25 articles were analyzed in full-text. Totally, 45 indicators were identified and classified into two main categories of physical and non-physical indicators with six subcategories of land ownership, host government, access to infrastructures, site safety, land characteristics, and economic, social, and cultural considerations. Conclusion: The selection of temporary shelters for the conflict refugees requires the identification of all the specific influential factors not properly addressed. The final indicators obtained in our review could be incorporated into the development of the models required in this regard.

Site selection is a multi-dimensional optimization problem that influences a wide variety of stakeholders from local communities and authorities to governments, environmental protection agencies, etc. Locating an energy project as well as transportation infrastructure projects, for instance, are of great strategic importance and are connected to the top-level regulations and policy levels. These problems are significant from strategic levels to the productivity of a single construction project level, from energy to transportation and from infrastructure to residential buildings. A large number of publications in this field of study prove this significance. However, regarding the variety of applications, managerial decision levels, and the growing number of studies, it is important to comprehend the latest trends and conclude an appropriate research path in this field. This study is mainly focused on the application of MADM methodologies on locating problems by which many studies are carried out and have a high coincidence with the locating problem environment. Consequently, 425 studies are considered in this study, and 217 more relevant papers are selected for the subsequent reviews. Based on the results, Energy projects are by far the most frequent field of study in this regard which are considered as renewable and nonrenewable categories. Also, environmental planning and sustainable site selection are of secondary importance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: proper geographical access to hospital medical facilities will increase people’s visits to receive non-emergency services and no delay in providing emergency services. This research aimed to determine the level of access to hospital medical facilities with Geographical Information System in Yazd in 2019. Methods: This research is descriptive and applied. The required data for analyzing access included the information related to all existing hospitals, demographic data, and the layer of Yazd’s population blocks. Data analysis was carried out with GIS10.3 software. Results: Yazd city has 11 hospitals and 1915 active beds. The number of hospitals was proportional to the total population, but there was a shortage of 147 active beds. The per capita hospital space was 0.40 square meters, which is more than the standard (0.37 m2). The distribution of hospitals and beds in different regions of Yazd was inequitable. The population with high or desirable access (the population within a 1500-meter radius of the hospitals) to the hospitals with emergency, internal and surgery, pediatric, and gynecology units made up 54.12, 41.92, 44.44, and 48.34 percent of the Yazd’s population, respectively. Also, the population with limited access (the population out of a 3000-meter radius of hospitals) to the hospitals with emergency, internal and surgery, pediatric, and gynecology units made up 15.40, 31.72, 21.78, and 18.89 percent of the Yazd’s population, respectively. Conclusion: Regarding the obtained results, it is concluded that there is no shortage of hospitals and hospital space in Yazd, and the number of beds is not way below the international standard. However, locating the hospitals is not so that a large proportion of the population is placed within the radius of high or desirable access to hospitals.

Introduction Passive defense refers to the set of actions that does not require application of war wares and with using it, we can prevent vital installations damage, sensitive military and nonmilitary centers, and human loses and to decrease the extent of damage or to minimize them. Literally, the word defense is a combination of two terms in Persian language: “pad” and “afand”. In Persian literature, “pad” is a prefix meaning ant, counter, rear, and pursuit. “Afand” means war, fght, batle, and hostlityPassive defense is one of the basic measures in crisis management. It is possible that the passive defense decreases the losses as far as possible. In general It can be mentioned that passive defense includes a collection of unarmed actions which causes increasing of suppression, decreasing of vulnerability, continuity of vital activities , promotion of national stability and facility of crisis management against the threats and the enemy`s military actions. Passive defense, in addition to reducing damage from human-made hazards, is also used to reduce risks to natural hazards. Therefore, passive defense is not about war and peace but a preparation to deal with various natural disaster and abnormal events. Passive defense plans are developed before crisis, at the tme of peace, and include design for all steps of crisis management. Basic defnitons of passive defense may unwitngly focus one’s atenton on politcal and military defense issues, rather than events and crises caused by natural forces; however, the truth is that, in additon to reducing damage caused by human-made threats, passive defense measures in residential areas are also useful in reducing risks in face of natural hazard. An important issue in passive defense is selection of place. Site selection can be viewed as a Multiple Criteria Decision-Making or Multiple Attributes Decision-Making (MCDM/MADM) problems. The MCDM or MADM is the approach dealing with the ranking and selection of one or more sites from the alternatives. MCDM methods have been developed to assist decision makers in either ranking a known set of alternatives for a problem or making a choice among this set while considering the conflicting criteria. In recent years with the development of passive defense in the world, extensive studies were carried out in this area. In Iran, because of strategic and political importance of the Middle East region and due to its natural location and the confrontation with various types of natural disasters in Iran, studies on passive defense are necessary.The purpose of this research is to locate sites suitable for establishing sensitive and vital centers in Bojnourd Township. North Khorasan Province is one of the border provinces of Iran. Bojnourd township is a provincial capital because of the establishment of management and command centers, bordered by Turkmenistan and located on the international route of sensitive arteries and basic ways of the country. On the other hand, Bojnurd is geologically located in Kopet Dagh Zone. In this zone there are active and important faults. Methods In order to carry out the study, an applied research method and a ombinaton of documentary, descriptve, analytcal and case study methods were used.In this study, the research method is descriptive-analytic, and a FANP compilation model was used. Data was collected based on library studies and documentation reviews and the distribution of the questionnaire among experts .In this research, The natural and human criteria of the research, including the sub criteria of slope, direction of slope, elevation, vegetation, protected areas, lithology, distance from the fault, distance from the river, distance from industry, distance from the border, distance from the city, distance from the village, distance from the high power lines and distance from the roads were chosen. The questionnaire data was processed using the Super Decision software, based on the ANP model. Then, the coefficient of significance of each factor was multiplied by Arc GIS software with the desired layer. Ultimately, the fuzzy layers were fuzzy and maps were fused in the software. Results and Discussion The results of this study showed that the most suitable zones are the middle belt, east and south east of Bojnourd township. Unsuitable areas for the establishment of critical sites are located in the north, southwest and around the city of Bojnourd, with passive defense approach. Conclusion Based on the results of this zoning, Bojnourd city management centers such as the governor's office, the Radio and Television Organization, military centers, the main water pumping station, high voltage power plant and support centers such as wheat silos, industrial towns, etc. are not located in a suitable place.

The distribution of sports facilities in the city and its different regions can have a direct effect on the desirable and functional performance of the city. On the other hand, proper and complete distribution of sports usage will increase the power of selection and use of sports facilities and, as a result, the desirability of life increases. Considering women's essential and significant role in the social and economical development of the country and the effect of sports on the increase of their efficiency, women's participation in sport activities is undeniably important. The city of Iranshahr with sportsfacilities per capita of 0.28 square meters per person does not have a proper distribution of sports facilities, so that the difference in per capita space between the current situation and per capita standards in Iran and the world is 0.33 and 1.72 m2, respectively.This Study, by presenting a suitable model, seeks to establish and distribute the optimal sports facilities of this city. The required information of this study, which is descriptive-analytical and of an applied type, was collected in a field and library. By using them, the distribution of sports facilities in the city of Iranshahr was investigated and analyzed. While drawing up the current situation, its desirable situationis presented with locating new sports facilities. For this purpose, firstly, effective criteria were determined for locating the sports facilities and after collecting the information and preparing the layers for each criterion, fuzzy factor maps were prepared.The information layers based on fuzzy overlapping models were combined with each other and finally, the combination of the results from this stage suggested that the options be considered as a desirable location, which was categorized into five appropriate and inappropriate parts.The most suitable venue for the construction of sports facilities is a large part of the north of the Razi Zakaria street, the 3rd street of the city center, a large part of the 4th city street center, the southcenter of Ferdowsi, the 5th city street center and part of Zibashahr city center.Based on the size, theappropriate areas are 20.16% and the inappropriate parts are 19.59% of the total urban space.

Background: Possible solutions to overcome the many challenges of home delivery are collection and delivery points (CDPs). In addition to commercial facilities, the role of CDPs can also be played by users’ households, providing a crowd storage service. Key decisions regarding CDPs relate to their location, as well as the allocation of users to selected locations, so that the distance of users from CDPs is minimal. Methods: In this paper, the described problem is defined as a p-median problem and solved for the area of the city of Belgrade, using the heuristic “greedy” and the simulated annealing algorithm. Results: Fifty locations of CDPs were selected and the users allocated to them were distributed in over 950 zones. The individual distances between users and the nearest CDPs and the sum of these distances, multiplied by the number of requests, were obtained. An example of modification of the number of CDPs is presented as a way of obtaining solutions that correspond to different preferences of operators and/or users in terms of their distances from the CDPs. Conclusions: User households can be used as CDPs to achieve various benefits. Locating CDPs, i.e., selecting households, can be solved as a p-median problem, using a combination of heuristic and metaheuristic algorithms. In addition, by modifying the number of medians, the total and average distances between users and CDPs can be better managed. The main contributions of the paper are the establishment of users’ households as potential locations of CDPs, the establishment of a framework for analysis of impact of the number of CDPs on the sum and average distances from the customers, as well as the creation of a basis for upgrading and modifying the model for implementation in the business practice.

Optical fiber sensors are used for partial discharge detection in many applications due their advantage of strong anti-electromagnetic interference capability. Multi-point distributed partial discharge detection and location are important for electrical equipment. In this paper, a distributed partial discharge location and detection scheme based on optical fiber Rayleigh backscattering light interference is experimentally demonstrated. At the same time, the location and extraction algorithm is used to demodulate the partial discharge signal; furthermore, the high-pass filter is used to reduce the system low-frequency noise and environment noise. It is clear that the proposed system can detect a partial discharge signal generated by metal needle sensitivity, and the detectable frequency range is 0–2.5 kHz. We carried out 10 locating tests for two sensing units, the experimental results show that the maximum location error is 1.0 m, and the maximum standard deviation is 0.3795. At same time, the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of sensing unit 1 and sensing unit 2 are greatly improved after demodulation, which are 39.7 and 38.8, respectively. This provides a new method for a multipoint-distributed optical fiber sensor used for detecting and locating a long-distance electrical equipment partial discharge signal.

Large and unaccounted numbers of victims in disasters, events, or fires are often trapped in buildings or debris, and must be located and rescued as soon as possible. This study transforms smartphones into indoor locating tools without extra modification or complicated program installation, considering smartphones are likely to be carried when disasters strike. The study creates a system that converts smartphones into a lifesaving tool for trapped victims and rescuers. This study employs the Bluetooth beacon in smartphones to send signals using its low power consumption feature. The signal could continue transmitting for rescuers to locate trapped victims for longer. Rescuers could use the Bluetooth function on a regular notebook computer to search such signals without any hardware implementation or modification, allowing them to locate and determine the position of many trapped victims simultaneously. Implementing this system will decrease the search and rescue team’s need to enter unsafe areas and increase their rescue speed, a critical factor for the survival of trapped victims. Furthermore, when disasters strike, the smartphone calling function might not work, and the trapped victim might be too weak to call for help. Thus, autoreply messages from victims’ smartphones could help them be located within a 2-m error, even if covered by fallen debris such as wood piles or tiles. This effort will increase the chance of finding trapped victims within the golden rescue hours and reduce the exposure time of search and rescue teams in unsafe environments.

The magnitude of reaction forces in locating points is considered as one of the basic parameters in the fixture planning and element design stages of the fixture design procedure. The magnitude of these forces depends on the intensity, position, and orientation of the transient clamping and active machining forces and torque. Analysis of the effect of machining force and torque on reaction forces is a complex process because the magnitude, position, and orientation of machining loads change at any given time. In this paper, an analytical model is presented to investigate the effect of machining loads on online values of reaction forces in the contact points between the workpiece and the fixturing elements. The magnitude and direction of machining forces and torque are calculated on the tool path and using these parameters as inputs to the analytical model, the reaction forces are calculated in each of the six locators at each moment. A finite element analysis is performed to validate the values predicted by the analytical model. For this purpose, the necessary subroutines are prepared and the values of the reaction forces obtained from the simulation are compared to their corresponding values from the analytical model. A three-dimensional workpiece with a 3-2-1 locating system was used as a case study to evaluate the performance of the proposed model. The maximum error in calculating the reaction forces was obtained as 10.85% from the proposed analytical model which indicates the accuracy of the theoretical predictions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A set S ⊆ V (G) of a (simple) undirected graph G is a locating-dominating set of G if for each v∈V (G) n S, there exists w∈S such tha vw∈E(G) and NG(x) \ S 6= NG(y) \ S for any distinct vertices x and y in V (G) n S. S is a stable locating-dominating set of G if it is a locating-dominating set of G and S n fvg is a locating-dominating set of G for each v∈S. The minimum cardinality of a stable locating-dominating set of G, denoted by s l (G), is called the stable locating-domination number of G. In this paper, we investigate this concept and the corresponding parameter for some graphs. Further, we introduce other related concepts and use them to characterize the stable locating-dominating sets in some graphs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Iran is a dry land with very little rainfall. The average rainfall in Iran is less than a third of the global average. Nowadays, with the increase in population and the subsequent increase in demand for food, the utilization of water resources, and in particular groundwater resources, is considerably increased. Currently the amount of groundwater resources exploitation exceeds its supply and so the lack of groundwater resources should be compensated. The purpose of this study was to locate zones suitable for the artificial recharge of the aquifers with a case study for Lorestan Province. For this purpose, AHP was employed as an efficient techniques and comprehensive system designed for multiple criteria decision-making. Required layers such as the slope, soil and geological structure, land use, rainfall, distribution of Quaternary alluvial and satellite imagery of the area was prepared. Then GIS software was used to overlay the layers and information and with use of Fuzzy logic, distinguishing suitable sites for artificial recharge of groundwater and the flood spreading. Based on the results, form the total area of ​​the province (28294 km²), about 9258.36 km² (32.5%) are suitable for the design of artificial recharge and 5926.36 km² (about 21%) can be considered for flood spreading. Finally, the integration of the two resulting maps led to suitable sites for artificial recharge and flood spreading as about 7682.21 km² (21.79%). Therefore, GIS models are a powerful tool to locate artificial recharge and flood plain sites, because of their ability for analysis of large geographical data and prioritization of scientific decisions.

Objective: To help the injured during the crisis, the planning must begin before the crisis. The aim of this study is to provide a model for locating and optimally allocating transfer points, relief centers and hospitals during an earthquake to help the injured including screening, first aid services and transfer to the facility. Methods: Quantitative modeling through the presentation of the mathematical model is used in this paper. For this purpose, the mixed integer, single and double-objective mathematical programming models are presented. The single-objective model seeks to minimize the injured transmission time, and the double-objective model minimizes the fines due to the failure in transferring the injured as well as minimizing the time. The models are applicable based on two approaches of locating and optimal allocation in a 6-Richter earthquake with fewer injuries and based on the selection of a limited number of facilities and optimal allocation approach in the 7-Richter earthquake with a large number of injuries and the use of total capacity of the facilities. Results: Models were applied based on the information of south-central districts of Tehran including districts 10, 11, 12, 16, 17, and 19. Transfer points, relief centers and selected hospitals in each model, manner and degree of the allocation of the injured to these points were specified. Conclusion: To provide proper relief in real conditions, adding relief centers to the problem due to the large number of injuries against hospitals capacities, the screening of the injured, the provision of outpatient treatment services at the transfer point and rejection of the injured in Hospitals are among the basic assumptions that should be considered in the models. Moreover, unbalanced distribution of hospitals in the city and the lack of basic infrastructure should be resolved before a possible crisis.

Lidar data matching is one of the key technologies in autonomous robot localization and mapping. The existing matching algorithms are generally sensitive to initial values and have a high computation cost. To this aim, a novel matching algorithm is proposed by com bing the characteristics of the feature extraction and ICP algorithm. First, the differential slope of adjacent points is calculated according to the scanning data by lidar. In addition, the points are segmented and the angular points and line features are extracted. Next, the corre sponding points through the characteristic value of characteristic points are obtained. Finally, the transformation matrix is calculated based on the principle of the ICP algorithm. By using the feature points for matching, the dependence on the initial value is reduced. Meanwhile, in stead of using the distances between two points to calculate the matching distance error of point set, the distances between line segments is used. which avoids the matching error caused by the length error of line segment features and further improves the accuracy of matching. The experimental results show that the proposed approach has a low computation cost and a higher accuracy than the Correlative Scan Matching (CSM) algorithm and ICP al gorithm both in single matching and consecutive multiple matching. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nowadays, cities are developing differently according to their needs, limitations and certain strategic plans. Moreover, conurbation areas will be more common in so many countries like Chile when there are two or more cities developing one next to another, leaning on each other. In this atmosphere, typical residents live in a region or a neighborhood based on certain criteria, so they know how and where they are going to live. From another point of view, a newcomer is usually faced with a city full of contrasts which make things completely and surprisingly complicated. In order to illustrate this, a real case was selected based on the research field, qualitative and quantitative (real) data. The Coquimbo-La Serena conurbation and it’s regions as “Comuna (in Chile)” is a really suitable case to show the complexity of the study. In order to face the challenge, a new hybrid Multiple-Attribute Decision-Making (MADM) method is introduced based on the Best-Worst Method (BWM) and Multi-Attributive Ideal-Real Comparative Analysis (MAIRCA). The five best different neighborhoods as Comunas of the conurbation were analyzed based on the two main scenarios: having a private car or using only public transportation. To obtain more reliable results, a sensitivity analysis was made so as to determine the behavior of the proposed model against weight changes. Besides, the final results were compared with the other MADM methods, for example: Multi-Attributive Border Approximation Area Comparison (MABAC), VIsekriterijumsko KOmpromisno Rangiranje (VIKOR) and COmbinative Distance-based ASsessment (CODAS).

The monitoring of telegraph poles as essential features supporting overhead distribution network lines is the primary subject of this work. This paper proposes a method for locating and extracting telegraph poles from an image matching-based point cloud. Firstly, the point cloud of the poles is extracted using the planar grid segmentation clustering algorithm and the connected component analysis algorithm of the region grows according to the isolated features of the poles perpendicular to the ground. Secondly, the candidate telegraph poles are located based on the suspension point of the buffer, considering that the top of the pole is connected to the power suspension line. Thirdly, the horizontal projection method of the backbone area is utilized to eliminate the interference of vegetation in the buffer area. Finally, the point cloud of the telegraph pole is extracted through the density-based spatial clustering of applications with noise (DBSCAN) algorithm. The experimental results demonstrate that the average values of Recall, Precision, and F1-score in telegraph pole detection can reach 91.09%, 90.82%, and 90.90%, respectively. The average RMSE value of location deviation is 0.51m. The average value of the F1-score in the telegraph pole extraction is 91.83%, and the average extraction time of a single pole is 0.27s. Accordingly, this method has strong adaptability to areas with lush vegetation and can automatically locate and extract the telegraph pole point cloud with high accuracy, and it can still achieve very high accuracy even under the holes in the data.

Feasibility and evaluation of the most appropriate regions for executing different irrigation systems according to water quantity and quality is of great importance, and prevents energy, credits and resources losses. In this research, using the fuzzy analytical hierarchy process method (FAHP), the possibility of execution of different irrigation systems (surface, sprinkler and drip systems) was evaluated based on the quantity and quality of groundwater in Miandoab plain. In this order, the effective qualitative and quantitative criteria which is needed to execute each of the three irrigation systems were determined and point values for each effective parameter in the decision were interpolated and zoned by geo statistical method. Then by turning of raster data layers into fuzzy mode using fuzzy membership functions and calculating relative importance weights of the criteria using Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) method, the above-mentioned layers were combined and the final layer of suitable areas for water harvesting at the three irrigation systems were identified. The zoning maps of Miandoab plain restrictions in different surface and pressurized irrigation systems execution showed that 32.32, 19.02 and 51.89 percent of the total areas of the plain has serious and very high restriction in surface, sprinkler and drip irrigation systems respectively.

Due to the lack of necessary equipment for measuring and recording changes in watershed runoff and flood situation after the implementation of corrective actions, using hydrologic models is considered as an efficient tool to assess the undertaken actions and simulate the behavior of the watershed before and after the implementation of these measures. The present study aimed to simulate the effects of corrective actions on runoff components using HEC- HMS hydrological models in the form of a rangeland and watershed plan in 2006 and the predicting plan of applicable operations in a region in the Meikhoran watershed, Kermanshah. For this purpose, three scenarios including the conditions before running the rangeland and watershed plan, the conditions after running the project and requirements and enforcement actions resulting from the proposed location map were considered in the spring of 2006. First, a map of the curve number (CN) changes was prepared under all three scenarios caused by the vegetation changes and by implementing HEC-HMS model, the curve number criteria, the peak discharge and flood volume were determined to assess the changes in hydrological basins and their values for all three scenarios were calculated and compared. The results showed that the HEC- HMS model for the base period (first scenario) with Nash-Sutcliffe coefficient 0/551 and the coefficient of determination 0/63 had an acceptable accuracy in predicting runoff. Nash-Sutcliffe coefficient for the second and third scenarios was 766/0 and 0/777, respectively. Also, the results showed that in the second scenario, there was an 8/85 and 7/74% decrease in the peak flows and runoff volumes, respectively, and these values for the proposed operation were estimated to be 12.84% and 6.33%, respectively. Overall, the results indicated the considerable impact of rangelands and watershed management (third scenario) on the reduction of effective runoff components, particularly flood peak, on the basis of the location model.

ABSTRACT Background & objective: The lack of suitable landfill for storage and disposal of solid wastes in different parts of Guilan has been not only led to deforestation and agricultural lands destruction, but also jeopardized public health. The Langroud County as a tourist destination of Guilan province is also affected by solid wastes. Therefore, the present study aims to locate the new appropriate area for municipal sanitary landfill, taking into account environmental standards in Langroud County. Materials & Methods: In this research, 20 criteria were used in accordance with the standards of the Iranian Environmental Protection Agency, the Alberta State Environmental Authority of Canada, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and the British Columbia Environmental Ministry as criteria for locating. TOPSIS method was used in combining the criteria maps in ArcGIS software environment. Results: After passing TOPSIS and combining the layers obtained in the ArcGIS software environment, the final map of urban landfill location within the study area was classified into five classes (very weak, weak, moderate, good and excellent). Conclusion: Based on the results, five prestigious areas in the south and southwest of the city with the highest degree of fit and excellent grade were proposed as new areas of urban solid waste disposal for the city of Langroud.

What is happening today at the dawn of the 21st century as a crisis in our cities and changes the cities to an ugly and unhappy places and makes citizens tired and prosaic is the breakdown of human-nature transplantation which has unfortunately been neglected in recent years in urban development and the urbanization system of the country. The importance of social health in today's densely populated and polluted cities is one of the main factors in attention to urban green spaces. Today, in many cities in the world, the development of health and social welfare policies in cities has emphasized on the availability of urban green spaces in the closest accessible areas for residential areas and workplaces. In the present study the optimal deployment of urban green spaces in the zone 8 of Tabriz has been assessed. Zone 8 as the central texture of Tabriz which has mainly a commercial-residential role (given the prevailing commercial role) receives a massive population from different parts of the city and even the province during certain times of the day. However only a few pieces of green space have been built in this zone. Regarding this issue, it is necessary to pay attention to the construction and optimal location of urban green space in accordance with demographic needs of the region.

The present study investigated the role of different factors in the organization of urban dry waste collection stations in Mashhad City using GIS software. Data were collected through library-based research and interviewing the experts. Then permanent dry waste exchange stations were determined separately in each district on the map of Mashhad City. Moreover, each station's level of income and the rate of people's referral were considered as the indices of success in achieving people's contribution. Accordingly, several information levels were created based on the indices such as education level, population, districts level of development, the proportion of dry waste to total waste, access networks, activities of the traditional sector, the distance between the existing stations from each other, and people's willingness toward contribution In this plan. The effectiveness of such components on the attribution and income of waste stations was also accounted in order to locate new stations. The findings of the present study showed that regions 1, 8, 9, and 11 were the appropriate places for the establishment of the new collecting stations. It was found that the opinions of experts, education level, environmental education and the level of development assigned the highest effectiveness to themselves.