Engineering Commons^™

Simulation Based Modeling And Scheduling Of A Generalized Flow- Line, Srinivas Anne

Theses

Simulation is a state of art technique, widely used to analyze the behavior of complex and dynamic real time systems. This study consists of two parts. The first part involves in the development of a simulation model of a real time flow line, used to assemble Printed Circuit Boards. The desired performance measures of the system, like, utilization, starving, blocking, failure and maintenance are recorded. The model developed can be used as a test pad to analyze scheduling rules and heuristics. This is illustrated in the second part of the study which consists of studying the behavior of the Apparent …

An Ergonomic Study Of Meat Processing Operations, Edgar Delgado

Masters Theses

In this study, physical stresses imposed on the different parts of the musculoskeletal system were assessed using a subjective ratings of perceived discomfort (RPD) scale in the meat industry. The effects of a microbreak system on the perceived discomfort of employees were studied. In addition, a comparison of human physical capacities (i.e., anthropometric, strength, and endurance measures) for Caucasian-American and Hispanic-Mexican employees in the meat industry was performed. These measures were also compared against those of employees engaged in manual material handling tasks. Twenty-eight employees participated in the study.

Based on this study, it can be concluded that: (a) RPD …

Acuta Enews November 1990, Vol. 19, No. 11

ACUTA Newsletters

In This Issue

Election of Directors

ICA backs universities

Vendor Liaison

An end to phone tag

Party Line

Hawaii air fares locked in

Acuta Enews October 1990, Vol. 19, No. 10

ACUTA Newsletters

In This Issue

Early warning of PVC fires

President's column

Attendant quiets complaints

Party Line

ISDN personalized

What do you charge?

Acuta Enews September 1990, Vol. 19, No. 9

ACUTA Newsletters

In This Issue

Are colleges aggregators?

President's column

Four workshops scheduled

Revising the directory

A six-node network

Update on Portland

Acuta Enews August 1990, Vol. 19, No. 8

ACUTA Newsletters

In This Issue

New President's column

Conference gets high marks

Regions consolidated

Birds of a Feather

Party Line

Summer-time Blues

Automated Harvesting Of Burley Tobacco I. System Development, Larry G. Wells, George B. Day V, Timothy D. Smith

Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering Faculty Publications

A fully automated system for harvesting and handling mature buriey tobacco has been developed. This article identifies the operations essential to this harvesting concept and describes the development of the mechanisms by which they were accomplished. The system detaches, inverts and places mature plants into portable holders for air curing under waterproof covering without requiring any manual handling of the crop. Manual labor currently required to harvest buriey tobacco would be reduced by 80-85% and the system would eliminate the drudgery associated with manual handling. The harvesting system has an approximate capacity of 1.4 to 2.0 ha/day (3.5 to 5.0 …

Automated Harvesting Of Burley Tobacco Ii. Evaluation Of System Performance, Larry G. Wells, George B. Day V, Timothy D. Smith

Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering Faculty Publications

A prototype system for fully automated harvesting of burley tobacco has been developed and tested. Three years of field testing has shown that mechanical losses associated with the system were only slightly higher than via conventional methods. The system performed reliably at a sustained harvesting rate of approximately 1.4 ha/day (3.4 acre/day), while indicating that a rate of 2 ha/day (5 acre/day) should be easily achievable. The system is operated by two workers and reduces conventional labor requirement by approximately 80-85%.

Acuta Enews July 1990, Vol. 19, No. 5

ACUTA Newsletters

In This Issue

Long distance aggregators: A new wrinkle

Telecommunications: one of 'hottest' careers

Message From President

Portland Seminar to give full story on TMS

Do thorough check before joining aggregator

Portland Seminar to give full story on TMIS

Party Line

Touch screens may replace Touch Tone

Workstations pay for themselves in 9 months

Univ. of Chicago fits old halls with new wires

Funding sought for high speed 'data highway'

Lpsolver: A Linear Program Solving Package For Educational And Instructional Modeling Applications, Paul Savory, Jeffrey Arthur

Department of Industrial and Management Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

LPSOLVER is a computer program developed to be a learning tool for students studying linear programming. This technical paper contains and overview of what LPSOLVER is and how to use it. The program allows one to enter linear programs in three different formats which are discussed in Section IV. Described in Section VI are the two methods available for solving linear programs. Other features of LPSOLVER are discussed in Section VII. Appendix A describes all the various files that LPSOLVER uses/creates. A listing of error messages is given in Appendix B. Information about how the program was implement is contained …

Synergy Of Artificial Neural Networks And Knowledge-Based Expert Systems For Intelligent Fms Scheduling, Luis Carlos Rabelo, Sema E. Alptekin, Ali S. Kiran

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

In this paper we describe a hybrid architecture that integrates artificial neural networks and knowledge-based expert systems to generate solutions for the real time scheduling of flexible manufacturing systems. The artificial neural networks perform pattern recognition and, due to their inherent characteristics, support the implementation of automated knowledge acquisition and refinement schemes through a feedback mechanism. The artificial neural network structures enable the system to recognize patterns in the tasks to be solved in order to select the best scheduling rule according to different demands. The knowledge-based expert systems are the higher order elements which drive the inference strategy and …

Acuta Enews June 1990, Vol. 19, No. 6

ACUTA Newsletters

In This Issue

WMU gets 'complete' cable

President's message

Profiles of new staff members

Orlando update

Election preview

Bulletin Board

Mocad: A Graphic Predetermined Time Standards Software For The Ibm P.C., Raad A. Dawood

Masters Theses

MODCAD is a software program designed to give MODAPTS (MODular Arrangement of Predetermined Time Standards) the capability to generate workplace layouts that can be used in conjunction with the time study analysis. Software packages have been developed for MODAPTS such as MODAPTS Plus and Task Master that allow the user to input the predetermined codes of MODAPTS.

AutoCAD (a computer aided design software) is used to combine MODAPTS codes and workplace layout drawings in a single environment by customizing the standard AutoCAD menus and icons to include the MODAPTS codes and routines. AutoLisp (AutoCAD resident language) is used to write …

A Systematic Evaluation Technique For Assisting In The Identification And Prevention Of Wrist Stress In The Work Place, Karen Kleinfeld

Masters Theses

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome is a cumulative trauma disorder involving compression of the median nerve within the wrist. This disorder has become an industrial epidemic, striking workers whose daily activities involve repetitive motion, wrist deviation, awkward finger postures, and excessive forces to the hand. In an effort to identify and control existing trauma, as well as prevent the onset of further cases of CTS, a systematic evaluation technique has been developed to assist in the ergonomic analysis of the work place. This assessment technique identifies and quantifies occupational risk factors of a task that may predispose workers to CTS. With this …

A Suggested Model Program For Cim Education, Sema E. Alptekin

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

No abstract provided.

Adaptive Scheduling And Control Using Artificial Neural Networks And Expert Systems For A Hierarchical/Distributed Fms Architecture, Luis Carlos Rabelo, Sema E. Alptekin

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

An adaptive expert scheduler was developed that learns by itself and adapts to the dynamic FMS environment. This hybrid system uses a symbiotic architecture composed of expert systems (ESs) and artificial neural networks (ANNs) and provides a learning scheme guided by past experience. The artificial neural networks recognize patterns in the tasks to be solved in order to select the best scheduling rule according to different criteria. The expert systems, on the other hand, drive the inference strategy and interpret the constraints and restrictions imposed by the upper levels of the control hierarchy of the flexible manufacturing system. The level …

Acuta Enews May 1990, Vol. 19, No. 5

ACUTA Newsletters

In This Issue

IU installs first cohesive telecom network

Fun for the whole family in Orlando

Message From the President

Membership to elect VP, Secretary, Treasurer

On your own with the On-Call Book

Party Line

IU achieves first cohesive telecom system

Acuta Enews April 1990, Vol. 19, No. 4

ACUTA Newsletters

In This Issue

Northwest Missouri State Shares Long Distance Resources with Students

Message From The President

News from ACUTA Headquaters

Party Line

To Lan or Not To Lan: Local Area Networks, Part 2

A Case Study In The Development Of A Cost Reduction Methodology In The Public Sector, Ross Cooper Haines

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Intense fiscal pressures have caused the Department of Defense (DoD) to explore new ways of reducing operating expenses. The primary technique used to achieve this objective is the use of competition - recently for maintenance requirements not previously subjected to competition. One such maintenance requirement is the periodic overhaul of one of the Navy's front line fighter aircraft - the F-14A Tomcat. This case study documents the cost reduction methodology developed by the DoD's incumbent overhaul facility in preparation for competition. The methodology discusses task time estimation, cost center structure, labor rate development and analysis, internal cost transfers as well …

Acuta Enews March 1990, Vol. 19, No. 3

ACUTA Newsletters

In This Issue

To LAN or Not to LAN: Do You Really Need a Local Area Network?

Update: Incorporation & Bylaws Committee

Message From The President

Vegas Seminar to Cover Voice, Data, Video

Success Story: Connecting Campuses in Oregon

Party Line

Read Mail

Acuta Enews February 1990, Vol. 19, No. 2

ACUTA Newsletters

In This Issue

Ohio State's Innovative Technique for Student Resale: Bar-Coding

Message From The President

Winter Seminar in Scottsdale a Success!

Update: Board of Directors Meetings in Scottsdale

News from ACUTA Headquaters

Cable and Wire: The Ties That Bind, Gag and Choke

Telephone Calling Cards Save Travelers Time And Money

Acuta Enews January 1990, Vol. 19, No. 1

ACUTA Newsletters

In This Issue

Seasoned Pro & Nervous Novice

Message From The President

Make a membership

Working with Vendors

Party Line

Knowledge-Based Prototype For Improving Scheduling Productivity, Colin Othniel Benjamin, Daniel L. Babcock, N. B. Yunus, John B. Kincaid

Engineering Management and Systems Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The development of efficient construction plans and schedules presents continuing challenges to construction schedulers. Knowledge-based systems offer considerable potential as computer-based planning tools to aid the development of realistic project plans and schedules. This paper outlines the development of a knowledge-based prototype system for construction planning and scheduling and evaluates its effectiveness as a tool for improving the productivity of inexperienced construction project schedulers. The prototype, developed using the M.1 knowledge engineering shell, incorporates data bases, algorithm, and heuristics that mimic the decision process of expert construction project schedulers and identifies a work breakdown structure and precedence relationships. Inexperienced schedulers …

A Parallel Architecture For Stock Cutting Problem, Cihan H. Dagli, Alireza Hajakbari

Engineering Management and Systems Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The problem of allocating irregular patterns arises frequently in applications where it has to be determined how a set of two-dimensional shapes will fit onto a stock sheet of finite dimensions with minimum waste. The use of the simulated annealing approach for the solution of this problem is described

Cost Justification Of An Expert System, Alice E. Smith, Cihan H. Dagli

Engineering Management and Systems Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

It is pointed out that, like other projects which spend corporate dollars, an expert system must be analyzed for its economic and strategic worth to the organization. Both traditional engineering economy project analysis and multivariate holistic methods can be applicable. The fundamental strategy of the analyst is to decide upon the evaluation methodologies, gather cost and benefit data, study the project from various perspectives, and present the results and recommendations.

Simulated Annealing Approach For Solving Stock Cutting Problem, Cihan H. Dagli, Alireza Hajakbari

Engineering Management and Systems Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The simulated annealing approach is applied to stock cutting. The conceptual approach proposed uses an energy function that measures the area of the rectangular enclosure of all the patterns to be nested, the level of similarity between pattern pairs, and the amount of overlap among patterns in evaluating various pattern configurations to be generated by the simulated annealing algorithm. Three methods for pattern configuration generation are considered. The first method uses heuristics to generate the initial configuration. The second and third methods use random selection and random placement of patterns

Neural Networks In Manufacturing: Possible Impacts On Cutting Stock Problems, Cihan H. Dagli

Engineering Management and Systems Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The potential of neural networks is examined, and the effect of parallel processing on the solution of the stock-cutting problem is assessed. The conceptual model proposed integrates a feature-recognition network and a simulated annealing approach. The model uses a neocognitron neural network paradigm to generate data for assessing the degree of match between two irregular patterns. The information generated through the feature recognition network is passed to an energy function, and the optimal configuration of patterns is computed using a simulated annealing algorithm. Basics of the approach are demonstrated with an example.

Development And Validation Of A Model For Training Maintenance Supervisors For Productivity Improvements In Manufacturing Operations, Robert Reed Johnson

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The problem of this study was to develop and validate a training model for training maintenance supervisors. This training model focused on those areas, defined by industrial managers, where additional supervisory training was most likely to improve the performance of the maintenance departments.

Research of industrial and maintenance publications identified the maintenance function as having one of the lowest productivity levels in manufacturing organizations. Supervisor training was identified as a means to improve productivity in maintenance departments. An industrial survey completed by maintenance managers in manufacturing organizations in Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota, and Wisconsin identified those activities that were the responsibility …

The Importance Of Technology Assessment Procedures For Missionary Trainees, James Michael Hoeksema

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

The purpose of this study was to identify those technology assessment (TA) procedures that are most important to teach to missionary trainees. This was based on the perceptions of the chief executive officers of U.S. Protestant mission agencies.

A survey was used to collect the research data. A total of 175 usable survey instruments were returned (25.6%). Analysis of the data consisted of frequency distributions and Chi-square.

A "common core" of TA procedures which are being used by mission agencies was identified. These were: (a) on-site field investigation, (b) committee meetings, (c) brainstorming, (d) personal interviews, (e) review of related …

Relational Database Applications In Manufacturing System Design., Elizabeth C. Scheyder

Elizabeth C Scheyder

Relational databases can be implemented as an effective design tool during the Preliminary and Final Engineering phases of manufacturing system design projects. The use of a hierarchical relational database structure will be shown to enhance system development, handling detailed information about electrical, mechanical, chemical or other parameters of system components and their applications. Holding such information in a central database structure as it becomes available maximizes its accessibility and coordinates communication between disciplines involved in the project. This enables calculations to be automated, ensures data integrity, and minimizes redundant compilation and typing of data. The ability to interface with a …