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Design Of Assembly Lines With The Concurrent Consideration Of Productivity And Upper Extremity Musculoskeletal Disorders Using Linear Models, Zhan Xu

Department of Industrial and Management Systems Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The productivity of assembly lines is considerably affected by the health condition of assembly workers, and work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) are common occupational diseases among assembly workers due to repetitive motions or heavy working loads. The conventional approaches to decreasing WMSD risks in the assembly lines include slowing the work-pace or applying job rotations. These adjustments usually focus on individual assembly workers at the station level but not the work allocation among the workers at the whole assembly line level, and thus may decrease the line productivity. To avoid these negative effects, some research started considering ergonomic characteristics at the …

The Green, Blue And Grey Water Footprint Of Farm Animals And Animal Products. Volume 1: Main Report, Mesfin Mekonnen, Arjen Y. Hoekstra

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Faculty Publications

The projected increase in the production and consumption of animal products is likely to put further pressure on the globe’s freshwater resources. The size and characteristics of the water footprint vary across animal types and production systems. The current study provides a comprehensive account of the global green, blue and grey water footprints of different sorts of farm animals and animal products, distinguishing between different production systems and considering the conditions in all countries of the world separately. The following animal categories were considered: beef cattle, dairy cattle, pig, sheep, goat, broiler chicken, layer chicken and horses. The study shows …

The Green, Blue And Grey Water Footprint Of Farm Animals And Animal Products. Volume 2: Appendices, Mesfin Mekonnen, Arjen Y. Hoekstra

Daugherty Water for Food Global Institute: Faculty Publications

Contents

Appendix I: Feed conversion efficiencies – in kg of feed (dry mass) per kg of output – per animal category and region

Appendix II: Estimated consumption of feed per animal category and world region (10³ ton dry mass/yr)

Appendix III. Estimated consumption of feed per production system and world region (10³ ton dry mass/yr)

Appendix IV. Drinking and service water footprint per animal

Appendix V. Water footprint of animals and animal products (m³/ton). Period 1996-2005

Acuta Enews December 2010, Vol 39, No. 12

ACUTA Newsletters

ln This lssue

Security Snapshot: Notre Dame

From the president..........Matt Arthur, Washington Univ. in St. Louis, ACUTA President

Tech Talk: Network of the People, by the People, and........... Kevin Tanzillo, Dux PR

That Smarts!

Establish Yourself on the ACUTA Community

ACUTA Webinar: Employer-Provided Cell Phone Policies

Nominate Now for 201 1 ACUTA Ruth A. Michalecki Leadership Award

Learn More about Financing lT, Network Management..... and More from Your Desktop

Board Report............ George Denbow, Univ. of Texas, ACUTA Secretary/Treasurer

Washington Update Newsletter

Professional Organizations Help Fill the Gaps Jeffry Handal, LSU

lnfo Links ............ Rondy Hayes, Univ. of Northern lowa

Thanks …

Sustainable Climate Control For Mid-Rise Office Building In The Salt Lake Valley, Philip M. Coleman

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

This report examines the sustainability of Trane’s EarthWiseTM climate control systems in the Salt Lake Valley (and the United States Mountain West in general). A simulation is performed to determine the best climate control system for a LEED Silver, 5-story tenant office building. This new building is a duplication of a pre-existing building. The climate control system installed at the preexisting building is used as a baseline against which three (3) alternative systems are compared. The social, ecological, and economic impact of each alternative is examined to determine which is the most sustainable. Since the baseline system is a proven …

Automation Of Pillow Speaker Button Testing To Avoid Repetitive Strain Injuries In Testing Technicians, Tyler P. Finnegan

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

Abstract Anacom MedTek, a medical device company, produces pillow speakers as their main product line. Pillow speakers are a healthcare communications tool that allow for hospital patients to control many entertainment and environmental components of the hospital room from one controller. These pillow speaker devices have anywhere from 3 to 27 metal dome key cap buttons based on their customization. Before they can be shipped to a customer, each button must be tested to ensure that it is functioning properly. This test is currently done manually by a testing technician. With so many buttons to be tested for each unit …

Fundamental Physical Equations Can Be Derived By Applying Fuzzy Methodology To Informal Physical Ideas, Eric Gutierrez, Vladik Kreinovich

Departmental Technical Reports (CS)

Fuzzy methodology transforms expert ideas -- formulated in terms of words from natural language -- into precise rules and formulas. In this paper, we show that by applying this methodology to intuitive physical ideas, we can get fundamental physical equations. This fact provides an additional justification for the fuzzy methodology.

Reducing Over-Conservative Expert Failure Rate Estimates In The Presence Of Limited Data: A New Probabilistic/Fuzzy Approach, Carlos M. Ferregut, F. Joshua Campos, Vladik Kreinovich

Departmental Technical Reports (CS)

Unique highly reliable components are typical for aerospace industry. For such components, due to their high reliability and uniqueness, we do not have enough empirical data to make statistically reliable estimates about their failure rate. To overcome this limitation, the empirical data is usually supplemented with expert estimates for the failure rate. The problem is that experts tend to be -- especially in aerospace industry -- over-cautious, over-conservative; their estimates for the failure rate are usually much higher than the actual observed failure rate. In this paper, we provide a new fuzzy-related statistically justified approach for reducing this over-estimation.

Adding Constraints -- A (Seemingly Counterintuitive But) Useful Heuristic In Solving Difficult Problems, Olga Kosheleva, Martine Ceberio, Vladik Kreinovich

Departmental Technical Reports (CS)

Intuitively, the more constraints we impose on a problem, the more difficult it is to solve it. However, in practice, difficult-to-solve problems sometimes get solved when we impose additional constraints and thus, make the problems seemingly more complex. In this methodological paper, we explain this seemingly counter-intuitive phenomenon, and we show that, dues to this explanation, additional constraints can serve as a useful heuristic in solving difficult problems.

Expansion In Existing And Future Franchises, Shane Hart, Daniel Jeng

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

Zensho Group has recently acquired the restaurant US based chains CoCo’s and Carrows but has not been able to affirm the same growth as the company has established in its home country of Japan. In order to fulfill their need to grow, extensive market analysis and research needs to be done. An expansion eastward and the introduction of their flagship restaurant chain, Sukiya, would offer growth potential. Determining the best locations for these new stores is the goal of this project. Low cost and high market penetration potential will be used to recommend the ideal locations that will benefit the …

47th Conference On Senior Engineering Design, College Of Engineering And Applied Sciences

Senior Engineering Design Conference

The 47th Conference on Senior Engineering Design Projects was held on December 7, 2010 at the College of Engineering and applied Sciences on the Parkview Campus of Western Michigan University. The college sponsors the conference to showcase the work of its graduating seniors, who are required to complete a capstone project that puts into practice what they have learned. Many of the projects are sponsored by business and industry.

Creating Tomorrow, Fall 2010, College Of Engineering

College of Engineering Magazines

Annual magazine of the College of Engineering at Utah State University.

Fusing Continuous And Discrete Data, On The Example Of Merging Seismic And Gravity Models In Geophysics, Omar Ochoa, Aaron Velasco, Vladik Kreinovich

Departmental Technical Reports (CS)

Towards Optimal Sensor Placement In Multi-Zone Measurements, Octavio Lerma, Craig Tweedie, Vladik Kreinovich

Departmental Technical Reports (CS)

In multi-zone areas, where the boundaries change with time, it is desirable to place sensors in such a way that the boundary is covered at all times. In this paper, we describe the optimal sensor placement with this property. In this optimal placement, sensors are placed along a see-saw trajectory going between the current location of the boundary and its farthest future location.

Towards Chemical Applications Of Dempster-Shafer-Type Approach: Case Of Variant Ligands, Jaime Nava

Departmental Technical Reports (CS)

Why Curvature In L-Curve: Combining Soft Constraints, Uram Anibal Sosa Aguirre, Martine Ceberio, Vladik Kreinovich

Departmental Technical Reports (CS)

In solving inverse problems, one of the successful methods of determining the appropriate value of the regularization parameter is the L-curve method of combining the corresponding soft constraints, when we plot the curve describing the dependence of the logarithm $x$ of the mean square difference on the logarithm $y$ of the mean square non-smoothness, and select a point on this curve at which the curvature is the largest. This method is empirically successful, but from the theoretical viewpoint, it is not clear why we should use curvature and not some other criterion. In this paper, we show that reasonable scale-invariance …

How To Bargain: An Interval Approach, Vladik Kreinovich, Hung T. Nguyen, Songsak Sriboonchitta

Departmental Technical Reports (CS)

Nanocrystalline Piezoresistive Polysilicon Film Obtained By Aluminum Induced Crystallization For Pressure Sensing Applications, Suraj Kumar Patil

Material Science and Engineering Dissertations - Archive

The overall objective of our research was to integrate various sensors on to a single flexible substrate for multi-sensory information gathering. Additional capabilities could be incorporated towards the realization of 'smart skin' for simultaneous and real time sensing of various mechanical, biological and chemical stimuli. Recent research venues are dictated by the trend of shifting from conventional silicon (Si) substrates to lower weight, low profile, structurally robust and lower cost flexible substrates. These flexible substrates easily conform to non-planar objects, could be batch fabricated at lower cost and enable multilayer construction. This would eventually evolve into seamless assimilation of sensors …

Destructive Testing And Finite-Element Modeling Of Full-Scale Bridge Sections Containing Precast Deck Panels, Travis R. Brackus

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Full-depth, precast panel deck systems are becoming more common in bridge installation and repair. The objective of these systems is to achieve the performance of cast-in-place systems while simultaneously saving time and money. The structural behavior of these systems has been the subject of scrutiny in recent research. The Utah Department of Transportation demolished a steel I-girder bridge containing a precast panel deck system and provided two full-scale specimens for this project. Destructive testing was performed at Utah State University on the specimens to investigate three failure modes: flexural, beam shear, and punching shear. Finite-element models were created using ANSYS …

Dynamic Testing, Finite Element Modeling, And Long-Term Instrumentation Of A Box Girder Post-Tensioned Bridge For The Long-Term Bridge Performance Program, Timothy Paul Thurgood

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

As part of the Long-Term Bridge Performance (LTBP) program, a flagship research program funded by the Federal Highway Administration in response to the aging bridge network, the Lambert Road Bridge near Elk Grove California was selected as the California Pilot bridge set to undergo non-destructive testing and monitoring. The purpose of the program is to obtain a database of scientific quality data concerning the health and maintenance procedures currently in use across the nation. FHWA program managers along with members of the Utah State University LTBP research team selected the bridge with the assistance of the National Bridge index and …

Auto Dialer Wireless Smoke Detector/Alarm System, Manny Linhares

Electrical Engineering

Smoke Detectors/Alarms save the lives of over sixty percent of people each year in the United States. Most of the existing homes are still fitted with the normal smoke detectors either running out of the 120V ac wiring or out of a 9V dc battery. These alarms are perfectly fine to alert residents if there is a fire while they are home. But for people who are away from home when a fire occurs, it would be nice if they could be alerted automatically of such an occurrence and therefore be able to act upon the event by either calling …

The Gel Documentation System: A Cornerstone To The Implementation Of The Introduction To Biotechnology And Introduction To Bioinformatics Cross-Disciplinary Course Series (Final Report), Marcy Kelly, Gregory Lampard, Constance Knapp

Cornerstone 3 Reports : Interdisciplinary Informatics

Our original goal was to offer Pace undergraduate students opportunities to be introduced to both Biotechnology and Computer Science as it relates to Bioinformatics. We proposed a two course series, offered to both computer science and biology students that will increase both biological and computer science literacy of our students. The two courses are Introduction to Biotechnology (BIO 372) and Introduction to Bioinformatics.

Use Of Mobile Phone Computing For Development Of Student 21st Century Skills, Susan M. Merritt, R. Lara Lee

Cornerstone 2 Reports : Community Outreach and Empowerment Through Service Learning and Volunteerism

Mobile phone computing enables immediate capture and transfer of data, images, notes and experiences from the field to a repository where retrieval, analysis, edits, aggregation, and further development are possible. Immediate findings and later results can be shared on the Web with local and global communities, and development of integrated service learning projects in concert with underserved communities is possible using this mode of information gathering and sharing.

Mobile phone computing incorporates moments when participants build tomorrow's skills while addressing today's learning goals. Use of digital tools and supporting resources bring real world problems into focus. Mobile phone computing enables …

The Effectiveness Of Damage Arrestment Devices In Delaying Fastener-Hole Interaction Failures In Carbon Fiber Polyurethane Foam Composite Sandwich Panels Subjected To Static And Dynamic Loading Under Increased Temperatures, Dominic E. Surano

Master's Theses

A study was conducted to investigate simple, cost-effective manufacturing techniques to delay skin-core delamination, micro-buckling and bearing stress failures resulting from fastener-hole interactions. Composite sandwich panels, with and without damage arrestment devices (DADs), were subjected to monotonic compression at a rate of 5mm per second, and compression-compression fatigue at 50% yield at an amplitude of 65%, under temperatures of 75, 100, 125, 150, 175, and 200 °F.

The sandwiches tested were composed of two-layer cross-weave carbon fiber facesheets, a polyurethane foam core, and an epoxy film adhesive to join the two materials. The most successful method to delay the aforementioned …

College Of Engineering Senior Design Competition Fall 2010, University Of Nevada, Las Vegas

Fred and Harriet Cox Senior Design Competition Projects

Part of every UNLV engineering student’s academic experience, the senior design project stimulates engineering innovation and entrepreneurship. Each student in their senior year chooses, plans, designs, and prototypes a product in this required element of the curriculum. A capstone to the student’s educational career, the senior design project encourages the student to use everything learned in the engineering program to create a practical, real world solution to an engineering challenge.

The senior design competition helps to focus the senior students in increasing the quality and potential for commercial application for their design projects. Judges from local industry evaluate the projects …

Hybrid Nanomanufacturing Process For High-Rate Polymer Nanofiber Production, Chad T. Peterson

Department of Engineering Mechanics: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Nanotechnology and nanomaterials have the potential to revolutionize existing and create entirely new industries. Unique physical, mechanical, chemical, and biological properties of nanomaterials have been extensively documented in the last two decades. However, most nanomaterials are discontinuous in nature, creating problems with their processing and manipulation into devices and raising health concerns. Continuous nanofibers represent an emerging class of nanomaterials with critical advantages to applications. Continuous nanofibers are readily produced by electrospinning process comprising spinning polymer solutions in high electric fields. Electrospinning is a very economic top-down nanomanufacturing process that has been used to produce ultrafine continuous nanofibers from several …

Improved Mobile Wireless In Vivo Surgical Robots: Modular Design, Experimental Results, And Analysis, Jeff Hawks

Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Laparoscopic surgery results in superior patient outcomes as measured by less painful recovery and an earlier return to functional health compared to conventional open surgery. However, the difficulty of manipulating laparoscopic tools from outside the patient’s body generally limits these benefits to patients undergoing relatively simple procedures. The use of miniature in vivo robots that fit entirely inside the peritoneal cavity represents a novel approach to laparoscopic surgery. These robots enable more complex laparoscopic procedures, increasing the number of patients that benefit from laparoscopic surgery.

This thesis describes recent work focused on developing a modular wireless mobile platform that can …

Estimation Of Mechanical Properties Of Soft Tissue Subjected To Dynamic Impact, Mohamed R. S. Amar

Department of Industrial and Management Systems Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This study attempted to estimate the damping properties of human tissue by using spring and damper system as a model. Data of impacting human tissue at the deltoid area was used to obtain a continuous, second order system to represent the mass-spring-damper system. A discrete ARMA(2,1) model was fitted using the data obtained from experiments in which the deceleration of a pendulum impacting human shoulders in the area of the deltoid muscle was measured. The data of the deceleration was integrated twice to obtain estimates of displacement. The integration was done until the maximum displacement occurred at zero velocity.

An …

Information Quality On The World Wide Web: A User Perspective, Jaikrit Kandari

Department of Industrial and Management Systems Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Information Quality has emerged as an important measure for the success of Information Systems. At the same time the World Wide Web has established itself as the key infrastructure for information administration, exchange, and publication. Users are getting information from the web at the click of a button however they must filter sub-standard information before they can use quality content. Researchers have aimed to address this problem by suggesting various information quality frameworks. Research till date has seen twenty important Information Quality (IQ) frameworks emerge. These models though varied in their approach and application share a number of characteristics regarding …

Aortic Coarctation: Recent Developments In Experimental And Computational Methods To Assess Treatments For This Simple Condition, John F. Ladisa, Charles A. Taylor, Jeffrey A. Feinstein

Biomedical Engineering Faculty Research and Publications

Coarctation of the aorta (CoA) is often considered a relatively simple disease, but long-term outcomes suggest otherwise as life expectancies are decades less than in the average population and substantial morbidity often exists. What follows is an expanded version of collective work conducted by the authors' and numerous collaborators that was presented at the 1st International Conference on Computational Simulation in Congenital Heart Disease pertaining to recent advances for CoA. The work begins by focusing on what is known about blood flow, pressure and indices of wall shear stress (WSS) in patients with normal vascular anatomy from both clinical imaging …