Friday, December 28, 2012

Singapore - Catching Every Drop of Rain

Singapore - Catching Every Drop of Rain

The source of the map of the rivers of Singapore is the Singapore PUB
As a small island that doesn't have natural aquifers and lakes and with little land to collect rainwater, Singapore needs to maximize whatever it can harvest.
Currently, Singapore uses two separate systems to collect rainwater and used water. Rainwater is collected through a comprehensive network of drains, canals, rivers and stormwater collection ponds before it is channelled to Singapore's 17 reservoirs for storage. This makes Singapore one of the few countries in the world to harvest urban stormwater on a large scale for its water supply.
The newest reservoirs are Punggol and Serangoon Reservoirs which are our 16th and 17th reservoirs. By 2011, the water catchment area has increased from half to two-thirds of Singapore’s land surface with the completion of the Marina, Punggol and Serangoon reservoirs.
With all the major estuaries already dammed to create reservoirs, PUB aims to harness water from the remaining streams and rivulets near the shoreline using technology that can treat water of varying salinity. This will boost Singapore’s water catchment area to 90% by 2060,
The goal is to capture every drop of rain (Figure 1)


Reservoirs
Pandan ReservoirKranji Reservoir
Jurong Lake ReservoirMacRitchie Reservoir
Upper Peirce ReservoirLower Peirce Reservoir
Bedok ReservoirUpper Seletar Reservoir
Lower Seletar ReservoirPoyan Reservoir
Murai ReservoirTengeh Reservoir
Sarimbun ReservoirPulau Tekong Reservoir
Marina ReservoirSerangoon Reservoir
Punggol Reservoir

Rivers
Singapore RiverSungei Kallang
Rochor RiverSungei Whampoa
Geylang RiverSungei Bedok
Sungei KetapangSungei Changi
Sungei SelarangSungei Loyang
Sungei TampinesSungei Api Api
Sungei BlukarSungei Serangoon
Sungei PunggolSungei Tongkang
Sungei PinangSungei Seletar
Sungei Khatib BongsuSungei Seletar Simpang Kiri
Sungei SembawangSungei Mandai
Sungei ChinaSungei Mandai Kechil
Sungei Peng SiangSungei Tengah
Sungei KangkarSungei Buloh Besar
Sungei JurongSungei Lanchar
Sungei PandanSungei Ulu Pandan



Thursday, December 27, 2012

Advances in artificial intelligence: deep learning

Advances in artificial intelligence: deep learning

November 25, 2012 – 12:34 am
If you want to keep up with advances in artificial intelligence, the New York Times has an essentialarticle on a recent step forward called deep learning.
There is a rule of thumb for following how AI is progressing: keep track of what Geoffrey Hinton is doing.
Much of the current science of artificial neural networks and machine learning stems from his work or work he has done with collaborators.
The New York Times piece riffs on the fact that Hinton and his team just won a competition to design software to help find molecules that are most likely to be good candidates for new drugs.
Hinton’s team entered late, their software didn’t include a big detailed database of prior knowledge, and they easily won by applying deep learning methods.
To understand the advance you need to know a little about how modern AI works.
Most uses abstract statistical representations. For example, a face recognition system will not use human-familiar concepts like ‘mouth’, ‘nose’ and ‘eyes’ but statistical properties derived from the image that may bear no relation to how we talk about faces.
The innovation of deep learning is that it not only arranges these properties into hierarchies – with properties and sub-properties – but it works out how many levels of hierarchy best fit the data.
If you’re a machine learning aficionado Hinton described how they won the competition in a recent interview but he also puts all his scientific papersonline if you want the bare metal of the science.
Either way, while the NYT piece doesn’t go into how the new approach works, it nicely captures it’s implications for how AI is being applied.
And as many net applications now rely on communication with the cloud – think Siri or Google Maps – advances in artificial intelligence very quickly have an impact on our day-to-day tools.
 
Link to NYT on deep learning AI (via @hpashler)

Thursday, December 20, 2012

Maximum HGL Head Class in InfoSWMM AND H2OMAP SWMM

Maximum HGL Head Class in InfoSWMM AND H2OMAP SWMM

Maximum HGL Head Class in InfoSWMM AND H2OMAP SWMM

by dickinsonre
Maximum HGL Head Class in InfoSWMM AND H2OMAP SWMM
You can find the node flood or surcharge maximum occurrence during a simulation in the Junction Summary Report table in InfoSWMM and H2OMAP SWMM (Figure 1)
Empty                                   if the Node Head is below or equal to the Lowest Link Connecting  Elevation
Below Link Crown            if the Node Head is below or equal to the Highest Link Connecting Crown
Below Maximum Depth   if the Node Head is below or equal to the Node Invert + Full  Depth.  The column Max Surcharge Height above Crown will also tell you how deep the Surcharge in a Node.
Surchaged                           if none of the above is true.
Figure 1.  Junction Summary Report in InfoSWMM

Figure 2.  Maximum Surcharge Height above Crown Definition







Sunday, December 16, 2012

InfoSewer Inflow Control for a Pump with a Pump Curve

InfoSewer Inflow Control for a Pump with a Pump Curve

You can control the pumps in InfoSewer and H2OMap Sewer by using a Pump Control which will control the pump based on:

1.       Volume
2.      Level
3.      Discharge
4.     Inflow
5.      Time

If you use a By Inflow control the pump speed of the pump is increased or decreased to make the Upstream Wet Well Level Constant (Figure 1) for an exponential 3 point curve


InfoSewer By Discharge Control for PUMP

InfoSewer By Discharge Control for a PUMP

InfoSewer By Discharge Control for a PUMP

by dickinsonre
InfoSewer By Discharge Control for a PUMP
You can control the pumps in InfoSewer and H2OMap Sewer by using a Pump Control which will control the pump based on:
1.       Volume
2.      Level
3.      Discharge
4.      Inflow
5.      Time
If you use a By Discharge control the pump speed of the pump is increased or decreased to pump the incoming Wet Well flow based on the pump rules and the geometry of the Wet Well (Figure 1).
Figure 1.  By Discharge Control for  PUMP in InfoSewer and H2OMAP Sewer will change the Pump Speed of the pump to follow the Base Pump Flow Rules.


InfoSewer Inflow Control for a PUMP

InfoSewer Inflow Control for a PUMP

InfoSewer Inflow Control for a PUMP

by dickinsonre
InfoSewer Inflow Control for a PUMP

You can control the pumps in InfoSewer and H2OMap Sewer by using a Pump Control which will control the pump based on:

1.       Volume
2.      Level
3.      Discharge
4.      Inflow
5.      Time 
If you use a By Inflow control the pump speed of the pump is increased or decreased to make the Upstream Wet Well Level Constant (Figure 1).
Figure 1.  Inflow Control for  PUMP in InfoSewer and H2OMAP Sewer will change the Pump Speed of the pump to make the Wet Well level constant


Friday, December 14, 2012

LEGO, Brick by Brick

Brick By Brick
Enhanced-buzz-31955-1355155876-6
Chana Joffe-Walt examines Lego's dominance despite their products' high cost and lack of exclusive patent:
Lego goes to great lengths to make its pieces really, really well, according to David Robertson, who is working on a book about Lego. Inside every Lego brick, there are three numbers, that identify exactly what mold the brick came from, and what position it was in in that mold. That way, if there's a bad brick somewhere, the company can go back and fix the mold. For decades this is what kept Lego ahead. It's actually pretty hard to make millions of plastic blocks that all fit together.
Dreher recently sang the praises of the toy company. Tip, The Daily Dish

Thursday, December 13, 2012

InfoSewer Minimum Travel Time Sensitivity

InfoSewer Minimum Travel Time Sensitivity

InfoSewer Minimum Travel Time Sensitivity

by dickinsonre
InfoSewer Minimum Travel Time Sensitivity

The three Run manager parameters, Maximum Number of Segments, Minimum Travel Distance and the Minimum Travel Time in InfoSewer and H2OMAP Sewer affect the shape and flow attenuation of the flow in a link.  The effect of decreasing the Minimum Travel Time is to reduce the peak flow and spread out the flow as the number of segments increases(Figure 1).  The larger the Minimum Travel Time, which has the effect of decreasing the number of segments in a link up the limit of the parameter Maximum Number of segments, the smaller the peak and the more attenuation of the flow in InfoSewer.

There is three ways to control attenuation in InfoSewer: (1) use the flow attenuation option, (2) increase the Maximum Number of Segments per link and (3) decrease the Minimum travel distance.    You can also use all three parameters to make more segments per link for long links and only a few segments for short links.
Figure 1.  Effect of the Minimum Travel Time in InfoSewer and H2OMAP Sewer



InfoSewer Minimum Travel Distance Sensitivity

InfoSewer Minimum Travel Distance Sensitivity

The three Run manager parameters, Maximum Number of Segments, Minimum Travel Distance and the Minimum Travel Time in InfoSewer and H2OMAP Sewer affect the shape and flow attenuation of the flow in a link.  The effect of decreasing the Minimum Travel Distance is to reduce the peak flow and spread out the flow as the number of segments increases(Figure 1).  The smaller the minimum travel distance, which has the effect of increasing the number of segments in a link up the limit of the parameter Maximum Number of segments, the smaller the peak and the more attenuation of the flow in InfoSewer.

There is three ways to control attenuation in InfoSewer: (1) use the flow attenuation option, (2) increase the Maximum Number of Segments per link and (3) decrease the Minimum travel distance.    You can also use all three parameters to make more segments per link for long links and only a few segments for short links.


Wednesday, December 12, 2012

How to Make an Excel Fixed Width File from SWMM 5

How to Make an Excel Fixed Width File from SWMM 5

How to Make an Excel Fixed Width File from SWMM 5

by dickinsonre
How to Make an Excel Fixed Width File from SWMM 5
You can use this macro for MATLAB or some other DOS based program by using the Tools command of SWMM 5 and configuring the EXCEL file option.  If you use the EXCEL tool then your SWMM 5 input file will be opened up in EXCEL and you can use this macro to make a fixed format file for SWMM 5.  Note, SWMM 5 does not use fixed format but other programs may need it for reading,  You adjust the column widths in the macro for your program.
Here is the macro, which is placed  in Excel using these command:
  1. Copy the code above.
  2. Open Excel.
  3. Alt + F11 to open the Visual Basic Editor.
  4. Click Insert-Module from the menu.
  5. Paste the code into the window that appears at right.
Option Explicit
Sub CreateFixedWidthFile(strFile As String, ws As Worksheet, s() As Integer)
    Dim i As Long, j As Long
    Dim strLine As String, strCell As String
    
     'get a freefile
    Dim fNum As Long
    fNum = FreeFile
    
     'open the textfile
    Open strFile For Output As fNum
     'loop from first to last row
     'use 2 rather than 1 to ignore header row
    For i = 1 To ws.Range("a65536").End(xlUp).Row
         'new line
        strLine = ""
         'loop through each field
        For j = 0 To UBound(s)
             'make sure we only take chars up to length of field (may want to output some sort of error if it is longer than field)
            strCell = Left$(ws.Cells(i, j + 1).Value, s(j))
             'add on string of spaces with length equal to the difference in length between field length and value length
            strLine = strLine & strCell & String$(s(j) - Len(strCell), Chr$(32))
        Next j
         'write the line to the file
        Print #fNum, strLine
    Next i
     'close the file
    Close #fNum
    
End Sub
 'for example the code could be called using:
Sub CreateFile()
    Dim sPath As String
    sPath = Application.GetSaveAsFilename("SWMM5_Fixed_EXPORT", "Text Files,*.inp")
    If LCase$(sPath) = "false" Then Exit Sub
     'specify the widths of our fields
     'the number of columns is the number specified in the line below +1
    Dim s(15) As Integer
     'starting at 0 specify the width of each column for the SWMM5 File, alter the columns if you need more columns in your data input file
    s(0) = 40
    s(1) = 20
    s(2) = 20
    s(3) = 20
    s(4) = 20
    s(5) = 20
    s(6) = 20
    s(7) = 20
    s(8) = 20
    s(9) = 20
    s(10) = 20
    s(11) = 20
    s(12) = 20
    s(13) = 20
    s(14) = 20
    s(15) = 20
     'for example to use 3 columns with field of length 5, 10 and 15 you would use:
    'dim s(2) as Integer
     's(0)=5
     's(1)=10
     's(2)=15
     'write to file the data from the activesheet
    CreateFixedWidthFile sPath, ActiveSheet, s
End Sub
 .

Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Batch Simulation in InfoSewer, InfoSWMM or InfoWater

Steps to set up a new icon for Batch Simulation in InfoSewer, InfoSWMM or InfoWater
1. Customize Arc GIS
2. Add an Icon
3. Run the command using the Icon


Sunday, December 9, 2012

InfoSewer Maximum Number of Segments Sensitivity

InfoSewer Maximum Number of Segments Sensitivity

InfoSewer Maximum Number of Segments Sensitivity

by dickinsonre
InfoSewer Maximum Number of Segments Sensitivity

The three Run manager parameters, Maximum Number of Segments, Minimum Travel Distance and the Minimum Travel Distance in InfoSewer and H2OMAP Sewer affect the shape and flow attenuation of the flow in a link.  The effect of decreasing the Minimum Travel Distance is to reduce the peak flow and spread out the flow as the number of segments increases(Figure 1).  The smaller the minimum travel distance, which has the effect of increasing the number ofsegments in a link up the limit of the parameter Maximum Number of segments, the smaller the peak and the more attenuation of the flow in InfoSewer.

There is three ways to control attenuation in InfoSewer: (1) use the flow attenuation option, (2) increase the Maximum Number of Segments per link and (3) decrease the Minimum travel distance.    You can also use all three parameters to make more segments per link for long links and only a few segments for short links.

InfoSewer Flow Attenuation Sensitivity

InfoSewer Flow Attenuation Sensitivity 

InfoSewer Flow Attenuation Sensitivity

by dickinsonre
InfoSewer Flow Attenuation Sensitivity 

The three Run manager parameters, Maximum Number of Segments, Minimum Travel Distance and the Minimum Travel Distance in InfoSewer and H2OMAP Sewer affect the shape and flow attenuation of the flow in a link.  The effect of using the flow attenuation is to reduce the peak flow and spread out the flow compared to the No Flag option (Figure 1). 

Figure 1.  Effect of the Flow Attenuation Option in infoSewer and H2OMAP Sewer

Saturday, December 8, 2012

How To Make HTML Code for Excel Spreadsheets

How To Make HTML Code for Excel Spreadsheets
Tabelizer Program for Converting Speadsheets to HTML Code
Copy your Speadsheet to this link http://tableizer.journalistopia.com/ and then tabelize it and copy the html and css code to a blog or other online comments box,  

InfoSWMMH2OMAP SWMMUS EPA
Titles Y Y Y
Options Y Y Y
Files Y Y Y
Raingages Y Y Y
Temperature Y Y Y
Evaporation Y Y Y
Subcatchments Y Y Y
Infiltration Subareas Y Y Y
3 Types of Infiltration Per Subcatchment Y Y N
Aquifers Y Y Y
Groundwater Y Y Y
Snowmelt Y Y Y
Junctions Y Y Y
Outfalls Y Y Y
Storages Y Y Y
Dividers Y Y Y
Conduits Y Y Y
Pumps Y Y Y
Orifices Y Y Y
Weirs Y Y Y
Outlets Y Y Y
Cross Section Shapes Y Y Y
Dual Drainage Outlets Y Y N
1D - 2D Connections Y N N
HEC-22 Inlets Y Y N
Transects Y Y Y
Losses Y Y Y
Controls Y Y Y
Pollutants Y Y Y
Landuses Y Y Y
Buildup Y Y Y
Washoff Y Y Y
Coverage Y Y Y
Inflow Y Y Y
DWF Y Y Y
Patterns Y Y Y
RDII Y Y Y
Unit Hydrographs Y Y Y
Loading Y Y Y
Treatment Y Y Y
Curves Y Y Y
Time Series Y Y Y
Reports Y Y P
Coordinates Y Y Y
Vertices Y Y Y
Polygons Y Y Y
Labels Y Y Y
Symbols Y Y Y
Backdrop Y Y Y
Tags Y Y Y
Profiles Y Y Y
Map Y Y Y
LID Controls Y Y Y
LID Usage Y Y Y
LID Reports Y Y P
LID Graphs Y Y N
Calibration Data Y Y P
Scatter Graphs Y Y Y
Mixed Graphs Y Y N
SWMM 5 Engine Up to Date Y Y Y

Friday, December 7, 2012

Global Dry Weather Flow Reduction in InfoSWMM and H2OMAP SWMM

Global Dry Weather Flow Reduction in InfoSWMM and H2OMAP SWMM

A cool tip to reduce the overall dry weather flow in InfoSWMM and H2OMAP SWMM without changing the mean dry weather flow is to do the following:

1.       Make a Reduction or Increase Flow Pattern in the Operations tab of the Attribute Browser (2),
2.      For example, if we want to have 85 percent of the flow use a value of 0.85
3.      In the Node DWF DB Table (2) use the pattern just created (3)
4.      All of the flows in the DWF table and during your simulation will be reduced by 15 percent.


Saturday, December 1, 2012

InfoSWMM 2D Report Variables

InfoSWMM 2D Report Variables

InfoSWMM 2D Report Variables

by dickinsonre
InfoSWMM 2D Report Variables

The Junction Graph variables for 2D Depth, 2D Speed, 2D Froude Number, 2D Unit Flow, 2D Inflow, 2D Volume and 2D Angle for a InfoSWMM 2D simulation for up to 1000 years can be plotted in the Report Manager of InfoSWMM.  This is an image of the 2D inflow over a 10 year period (A), all seven graph variables (B) for the mesh triangle associated with the 1D node (C).  The 2D inflow is + for flow out of the node to a mesh triangle and – for flow from the mesh triangle to the  1D junction.


GitHub code and Markdown (MD) files Leveraging

 To better achieve your goal of leveraging your GitHub code and Markdown (MD) files for your WordPress blog or LinkedIn articles, consider t...