Wednesday, March 1, 2017

UK To Boost Funding For AI And Robotics Research

The UK government is set to announce funding for artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics research as part of the government’s strategy to help UK businesses maximize investment and trade opportunities.

Culture Secretary Karen Bradley is expected to make the funding announcement on Wednesday as part of the British government’s digital strategy.

The research, which will be carried out by top British universities, will have a fund of £17.3 million. The grant will come from UK’s Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council.

The funding support came after recent research revealed the potential long-term impact the AI and robotics field could have on UK’s economy. Accenture, last year, published a report projecting that AI could contribute up to £654 billion to the British economy by 2035.

BenevolentAI CEO Jerome Pesenti, who previously served as chief data scientist at IBM and Computer Scientist Dame Wendy Hall, who is currently a professor at University of Southampton, have been commissioned to review the status of UK’s artificial intelligence sector. The review aims to pinpoint areas of opportunity for UK’s growing AI research industry.

In a statement, Professor Dame Wendy said she was looking forward to exploring collaboration opportunities for the government and the AI sector. She notes that British scientists, researchers and entrepreneurs have been at the forefront of AI research and development.

Demand for British expertise in the artificial intelligence field has skyrocketed in recent years.

In 2014, search giant Google acquired DeepMind, a London start-up that invented a neural network that is capable of that mimicking the short-term memory of the human brain, for $400 million. In 2015, Apple paid $250 million to acquire UK-based start-up, VocalIQ, which specializes in machine learning that enables computers to understand natural human language. Microsoft likewise shelled out $250 million to buy SwiftKey, the London-based developer of a software keyboard with advanced predictive abilities.

A spokesperson for the UK’s Department for International Trade said the government is looking to help UK businesses make the most of trade and investment opportunities through targeted support and business matching.

If you are looking to strengthen your business finances and promote growth, a part time or interim FD from Assured FD Services can help.

This article was originally posted on Assured FD Services.

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Wednesday, February 1, 2017

Symptoms Of A Blown Head Gasket And How To Test

Before going directly to a mobile mechanic and spending a lot of money, there are symptoms of a blown head gasket you can check for at home first. Most of your common signs will be caused from the cooling system so those would be the first symptoms to check. This includes your radiator and heater.

The most common symptoms of a blown head gasket include milk-colored oil, overheating of the vehicle, white exhaust smoke, green-tinted spark plugs (green coolant) or a leaking radiator. You can also remove the radiator cap, start your vehicle, and see if there are bubbles of air protruding from the radiator. You can also turn on your heater in the car and if you smell a distinct antifreeze smell protruding from the heater vents, this could be a sign. If your vehicle is overheating, do not keep running it or you might end up the bigger issue of a blown engine.

Two sure-fire tests to know that you have a blown head gasket:

  • Coolant spewing from the spark plugs
  • A dark milk-colored ring around the oil cap: Through a crack in the head or a blown head gasket, coolant enters the engine oil and evaporates leaving the dark, milky ring around the oil cap.
  • Also, if your vehicle seems to working harder this could be a sign. If the engine seems like it is running rough this could be due to adjacent cylinders lacking compression. This could also cause a misfire in engine because of water running through the cylinders and causing the spark plugs to fail.
  • Another test to check is using a compression meter in which replaces a spark plug. This meter then tells you what compression each cylinder is running on, and if the compression is very low than you most likely have a blown head gasket or in some cases, a warped head. Make sure to check your repair manual for the correct compression required.

After performing some of these tests and checking for symptoms, one last test you can do is taking the head to a machine shop and seeing if it is possibly warped and if not, it is just the blown head gasket. Remember if you are not a professional, or are unsure of the problem-causing issue, you should still take your vehicle to a local mechanic.

Check out the video below for further help…

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Wednesday, January 25, 2017

5 Ways to Save More Fuel

Fuel is a natural resource. Try to imagine a day without diesel or petrol. This would lead to chaos and the price of most of the essential commodities would rise immensely . This is why it’s necessary to save fuel. We don’t require fuel to only run our vehicles but we also need it for better environment.

How to save fuel?

Avoid unnecessary braking – Consumption of fuel can be reduced by 20 to 24% if the sudden acceleration and unnecessary braking of vehicles is stopped. Unnecessary braking also causes damage to your vehicle’s engine. Driving at constant speed is a good idea because fast driving can make your fuel finish quickly.

Go for car sharing – Another way to save fuel is by car sharing and going for public transport instead of using your vehicle every time you step out of the house. If you own a company and several employees go to the same job site, you can go for car sharing instead of arranging a separate vehicle for each one of them.

Check your charge air cooler – If a charge air cooler in your vehicle is leaking, it can decrease your fuel efficiency by 0.5 mpg. Every time your vehicle is in service, ask the local mechanic to check the charge air cooler for any leakage. The whole process just takes about 20 minutes and can save you hundred of dollars.

Limit the use of Air Conditioning – The air conditioner in your vehicle should only be used when necessary. Air conditioner puts unnecessary load on your fuel economy and engine power. Also if the weather is too hot to bear without AC.

Get an engine overhaul – If your vehicle’s engine is old and you don’t want to buy a new one, to improve the engine’s performance you can contact your mobile mechanic for getting the engine overhaul. This improves the engine’s performance and increases fuel efficiency.

Even if someone doesn’t care about the environment, there are still important reasons to conserve fuel. With fuel prices increasing at frequent intervals, saving fuel just feels like a right thing to do.

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Sunday, January 15, 2017

Quick Tips On How To Find The Ignition Timing Connector And Specifications

Is your quest for how to find the ignition timing connector and specifications of a vehicle? Are you still struggling to locate the ignition timing connector and specifications as a mobile mechanic? Well, if these questions are creating a problem in your mind, then you have landed on the right page. Read on to discover some simple tips to help you when handling the ignition timing connector and specification projects.

It is important to know that the ignition timing connector can be found in the engine wiring harness conduit located adjacent to the distributor. It remains a single wire connector that has a black stripe lead with a tan. On the Vehicle Emission Control Information (VECI) label, you will also find timing specifications listed under the hood. It is expedient to always follow the VECI label procedures first prior to implementing the entire process. As a car mechanic, you can consult the manufacturer’s website, owner’s manual or call the dealer’s service center to ask about the procedure.

Tips To Set The Ignition Timing:

1. A/C “OFF”.

2. Air cleaner should be installed.

3. Ensure to follow normal temperature.

4. Ensure to disconnect set timing connector found in the harness near the distributor. Be careful not to disconnect the four wire connector at the distributor.

5. Keep the transmission in a neutral position.

6. The timing should be connected lightly and adjust or alter if necessary by rotating the distributor and loosening the hold down bolt.

Base Timing With Automatic And Manual Transmissions:

1. Try to stop the car engine and connect set timing connector.

2. Recheck the timing after tightening the hold down.

3. Clear ECM trouble code. This can be done by disconnecting ECM power source.

Conclusion:

With the comprehensive information in this content, how to find the ignition timing connector and specifications of a car will no longer a problem to you. You can give it a try now.

If you require any assistance with your motor vehicle, contact your local car mechanic.

The post Quick Tips On How To Find The Ignition Timing Connector And Specifications appeared first on Geek Mechanics.

Monday, January 9, 2017

Is Your Car Battery Working Correctly?

You are all psyched up to get to the office for an early meeting and all that is needed is hope into your car and off you go. Well, today is not the usual day. The car just wont start. A call to the magic man “mechanic” wont be of great assistance. Time is not on your side. Later, it is established that the car’s battery is faulty. The car battery plays an integral part in the normal running of your car. Simply put, for the car to move, the engine has to be ignited and a good functional battery has to play a part. Let us focus on the big

The car battery plays an integral part in the normal running of your car. Simply put, for the car to move, the engine has to be ignited and a good functional battery has to play a part. Let us focus on the big

Let us focus on the big question; s your car battery still good? How to test it There are a number of factors that contribute to the ungraceful aging of the battery. On average and with all other factors constant including a good charging system, the battery should last 4 years. As much as you trust your mobile mechanic to play every single role in the car’s functionality, there are a few ways the car owner can use to determine how good the battery is. A few tools are required for this check; A pair of gloves, multi-meter and safety glasses. Locating the battery is our primary assignment. They are strategically placed depending on the manufacturer and the car model. Now that the battery is located, ensure the ignition is off before trying to identify the negative and positive poles of the battery. Ensure the black

A few tools are required for this check; A pair of gloves, multi-meter and safety glasses. Locating the battery is our primary assignment. They are strategically placed depending on the manufacturer and the car model. Now that the battery is located, ensure the ignition is off before trying to identify the negative and positive poles of the battery. Ensure the black

Now that the battery is located, ensure the ignition is off before trying to identify the negative and positive poles of the battery. Ensure the black multi-meter cable goes to the negative side of the battery and the red cable to the positive . On the multi-meter, turn on the reading which is normally the DC and get the readings. Any readings at 12 volts indicates that the battery is charged and any reading below 12 volts shows the battery requires charging.

So far, we have the tested the charge in the battery but not how functional it is. A good battery retains charge unlike a bad one that looses charge fast. A battery with less than 12 volts might still be good only that it requires charging. Now, how do we check the usefulness of the battery? Get the battery to be fully charged. Ask the assistance of an auto store or garage for the testing step. They are most probably going to use one of these 2 ways; an electronic tester that determines how good the cells inside the battery are or load test the battery while checking its voltage. Any drop in voltage below 9.6 calls for a battery replacement.

The importance of the car battery can not be undermined. It is all bliss when the car starts immediately on the first turn but there is a chance of a click instead of the engine roar mainly due to battery malfunctioning. Do regular check to determine its functionality. Drive safe.

Contact your local Mobile Mechanic Hull today for assistance in Hull and the surrounding areas.

 

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Thursday, January 5, 2017

Motorway Miles vs City Miles

The mileage of a car typically becomes an issue when various aspects of a car are being determined either for resale, evaluation of its worth, to know when the different levels of service will be due and assessing the car’s rate and level of depreciation. In other words, it is used to find out how much longer the car will last before it starts demanding the replacement or reconditioning of major mechanical components or whether it is worth considering at all. Mileage can be a useful tool for measuring all these quantifiables but it is a yardstick that is often misread.

There are two types of mileage: city mileage and motorway mileage (town mileage and country mileage, if you prefer). This is sometimes mentioned when talking about vehicles although very few people outside of an experienced mobile mechanic will know what this means and how each affects a car.

Motorway miles are reported to be much better for cars than city miles. When a vehicle’s fuel consumption is being declared by the manufacturer, they give both city and country figures. This is a clear indication that these are two very different environments under which the vehicle operates. You find that fuel consumption is much higher in the city because the engine is under strain, is not at its optimal operating pressure and the battery is stressed more because of the electronics’ strain on it in the form of air conditioning blowing at maximum capacity, the navigation system, the entertainment system, bluetooth, telephone, seat adjusters, etc. Obviously not all vehicles have these facilities and, more often than not, they are not all used simultaneously but you get the idea. A city-driven car will be a strained car that will, sooner or later, start to fall apart from all directions, relative to its country-driven equivalent.

And, of course, the build quality of your vehicle plays a major role in determining just how long it will last after being abused. With some models, you will not have to replace anything for decades.

A motorway driven car, however, will be quite the opposite. All the running gear will have been operating in optimum conditions for the duration of its life up until that point, which means that it will be closer to new than its town counterpart which may have the same or even way fewer miles on it. Efficiency is everything with machines and an efficient machine is better than a little used machine that is used wrongly or one that is not used at all. Lack of use does not equal longevity, frequent and appropriate use does. This means that a very low mileage car that you purchase and finally stretch the legs on is likely going to experience mechanical or electrical failure at some point because of previous inactivity. Rust, carbon, choke, blockage, water damage, clogging, decay… These do not occur to a substantial extent on an optimally functioning vehicle; but they do in a parked one and, in a different way, in a city-driven one.

So, the bottom line is that many motorway miles are better than few city miles. In fact, it would be better for the car if it was lying behind a garage door than if it is steadily putting in town miles without being occasionally let loose on a good, long motorway. If you are intending to purchase a pre-owned vehicle, here’s what to look out for: brake pedal wear – the brakes are used way more in town than in the country, fraying on the seat belt (same principle), road rash – microchipping on the front end of the car from motorway debris – (this may have been cleaned or detailed off) and bugs in the radiator fins, which only get there when the car is going relatively fast.

Contact your local Mobile Mechanic Middlesbrough today!

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Should You Patch or Plug Your Tyres?

To most motorists, this may seem like a simple question. Tyre get punctures very often, and the car owners have only to option for the puncture repair, these options are to patch or to plug.

Plugging

A plugging is a process by which a sticky and elastic substance is stuffed in the whole leaking the air from the tyre to stop the leakage. The sticky substance is known as the plug. For the air to stop leaking, the mobile mechanic must ensure that the plugs are exactly covering and fitting in the whole leaking air.

Patching

On the other hand, patching is the process of sealing tire punctures by adding a patch. These patches are known as a radial patch. They are made for repairing radial tyres. Unlike the plugging fixing a puncture using radial patching requires one to remove the wheel for repair.

Verdict

Patching is better than plugging. Plugging maybe cheap and it consumes little time, but it is not as effective as patching. Scientifically, when the vehicle speeds there is friction between the tyres and the road, the heat results in expansion of the air inside tyres and forces the tyres to expand. If there was a puncture repaired using a plug, definitely the plug will not expand at the same rate with the tyre since they are made up of different materials. The unequal expansion will provide room for the air to flow out of the tyre, and this can cause an accident. For radial patches, when they are heated they melt and become the part of the tyre. so whenever this question “Should you patch or repair your tyres?” pops up, you should always bear in mind that plugging is not safe.

Check out this video for more information…

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