Engineering Commons^™

B2b E-Marketplaces In The Airline Industry: A Study On Process Drivers And Performance Indicators, Claudia-Maria Wagner, Bernd Huber, Edward Sweeney

Practitioner Journals

No abstract provided.

Oxygen Exposure Promotes Fuel Diversity For Shewanella Oneidensis Microbial Fuel Cells, Justin C. Biffinger, Jacqueline N. Byrd, Breanna L. Dudley, Bradley R. Ringeisen

United States Navy: Publications

Miniature microbial fuel cells (mini-MFCs) were used to monitor the current generated by Shewanella oneidensis DSP10 under both anaerobic and aerobic conditions when exposed to glucose as a potential electron donor. In addition to glucose, other carbon fuels including fructose, sucrose, acetate, and ascorbic acid were also tested. When the anolyte containing S. oneidensis was grown in the presence of oxygen, power densities of 270±10, 350±20, and 120±10 W/m³ were recorded from the mini-MFC for glucose, fructose, and ascorbic acid electron donors, respectively, while sucrose and acetate produced no response. The power produced from glucose decreased considerably (≤100 W/m …

High Power Density From A Miniature Microbial Fuel Cell Using Shewanella Oneidensis Dsp10, Bradley R. Ringeisen, Emily Henderson, Peter K. Wu, Jeremy Pietron, Ricky Ray, Brenda J. Little, Justin C. Biffinger, Joanne M. Jones-Meehan

United States Navy: Publications

A miniature microbial fuel cell (mini-MFC) is described that demonstrates high output power per device crosssection (2.0 cm²) and volume (1.2 cm³). Shewanella oneidensis DSP10 in growth medium with lactate and buffered ferricyanide solutions were used as the anolyte and catholyte, respectively. Maximum power densities of 24 and 10 mW/m² were measured using the true surface areas of reticulated vitreous carbon (RVC) and graphite felt (GF) electrodes without the addition of exogenous mediators in the anolyte. Current densities at maximum power were measured as 44 and 20 mA/m² for RVC and GF, while short …

Evolution Of The Snow Area Index Of The Subarctic Snowpack In Central Alaska Over A Whole Season. Consequences For The Air To Snow Transfer Of Pollutants, A.S. Taillandier, F. Domine, W.R. Simpson, M. Sturm, T.A. Douglas, K Severin

United States Army: Publications

The detailed physical characteristics of the subarctic snowpack must be known to quantify the exchange of adsorbed pollutants between the atmosphere and the snow cover. For the first time, the combined evolutions of specific surface area (SSA), snow stratigraphy, temperature, and density were monitored throughout winter in central Alaska. We define the snow area index (SAI) as the vertically integrated surface area of snow crystals, and this variable is used to quantify pollutants’ adsorption. Intense metamorphism generated by strong temperature gradients formed a thick depth hoar layer with low SSA (90 cm² g^-1) and density (200 kg …

การปรับปรุงกระบวนงานของสำหนังานประกันสังคมโดยใช้แนวทาง ลีน ซิกซ์ ซิกมา, กาญจน์ สุนทราภา

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

งานวิจัยฉบับนี้มีวัตถุประสงค์เพื่อปรับปรุงการกระบวนงานให้บริการของสำนักงานประกันสังคมเขต 6 โดยการหาแนวทางเพื่อลดจำนวนขั้นตอนและระยะเวลาที่ผู้ประกันตนใช้ในการรับบริการในกระบวนงานขอรับประโยชน์ทดแทนจากกองทุนประกันสังคมจำนวน 5 ประเภทงาน โดยงานวิจัยนี้ใช้แนวคิดและขั้นตอนของ ลีน ซิกซ์ ซิกมา ซึ่งประกอบด้วย การนิยามปัญหา การวัดและเก็บข้อมูลเกี่ยวกับสภาพปัญหา การวิเคราะห์หาสาเหตุของปัญหา การหาแนวทางปรับปรุงแก้ไข และการควบคุมและปรับปรุงอย่างต่อเนื่อง จากการวิเคราะห์ระบบการให้บริการพบว่าสาเหตุหลักของปัญหาเกิดจากการกำหนดขั้นตอนการให้บริการและการจัดสรรเจ้าหน้าที่ไม่เหมาะสม ดังนั้นจึงกำหนดแนวทางในการปรับปรุงระบบการให้บริการตามแนวทางลีน ซิกซ์ ซิกมาโดย 1) ออกแบบผังที่นั่งทำงานของเจ้าหน้าที่ใหม่ 2) ปรับลดและรวมขั้นตอนการทำงาน 3) ปรับปรุงการจัดการการไหลของงานเอกสาร 4) จัดสรรจำนวนเจ้าหน้าที่ให้เหมาะสมและสมดุลในแต่ละขั้นตอนการทำงาน 5) จัดการฝึกอบรมให้เจ้าหน้าที่สามารถทำงานได้หลายหน้าที่ ทั้งนี้ในขั้นตอนการจัดรูปแบบของระบบการให้บริการ และจัดจำนวนเจ้าหน้าที่ให้เหมาะสมได้ใช้วิธีการเขียนแบบจำลองเข้ามาช่วย ซึ่งพบว่าหลังจากปรับปรุงระบบการให้บริการสามารถลดจำนวนเจ้าหน้าที่ในระบบให้บริการลงได้ อีกทั้งค่าเฉลี่ยของระยะเวลาที่ผู้ประกันตนอยู่ในระบบของทั้ง 5 ประเภทงานมีค่าลดลง คือ ก่อนปรับปรุงมีค่าเฉลี่ยอยู่ในช่วง 35-45 นาทีได้ลดลงจนมีค่าเฉลี่ยอยู่ในช่วง 30.9-35.1 นาที และร้อยละของผู้ประกันตนที่ใช้เวลาในระบบเกิน 40 นาทีได้ลดลงจากร้อยละ 19-90 เหลือร้อยละ 0.71-4.9

Adaptive And Probabilistic Power Control Algorithms For Dense Rfid Reader Network, Kainan Cha, Anil Ramachandran, Jagannathan Sarangapani

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

In radio frequency identification (RFID) systems, the detection range and read rates may suffer from interferences between high power devices such as readers. In dense networks, this problem grows severely and degrades system performance. In this paper, we investigate feasible power control schemes to ensure overall coverage area of the system while maintaining a desired data rate. The power control should dynamically adjust the output power of a RFID reader by adapting to the noise level seen during tag reading and acceptable signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). We present a novel distributed adaptive power control (DAPC) and probabilistic power control (PPC) as …

Neuro Control Of Nonlinear Discrete Time Systems With Deadzone And Input Constraints, Pingan He, Wenzhi Gao, Jagannathan Sarangapani

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

A neural network (NN) controller in discrete time is designed to deliver a desired tracking performance for a class of uncertain nonlinear systems with unknown deadzones and magnitude constraints on the input. The NN controller consists of two NNs: the first NN for compensating the unknown deadzones; and the second NN for compensating the uncertain nonlinear system dynamics. The magnitude constraints on the input are modeled as saturation nonlinearities and they are dealt with in the Lyapunov-based controller design. The uniformly ultimate boundedness (UUB) of the closed-loop tracking errors and the neural network weights estimation errors is demonstrated via Lyapunov …

Development And Implementation Of Optimized Energy-Delay Sub-Network Routing Protocol For Wireless Sensor Networks, Maciej Jan Zawodniok, Jagannathan Sarangapani, Steve Eugene Watkins, James W. Fonda

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The development and implementation of the optimized energy-delay sub-network routing (OEDSR) protocol for wireless sensor networks (WSN) is presented. This ondemand routing protocol minimizes a novel link cost factor which is defined using available energy, end-to-end (E2E) delay and distance from a node to the base station (BS), along with clustering, to effectively route information to the BS. Initially, the nodes are either in idle or sleep mode, but once an event is detected, the nodes near the event become active and start forming sub-networks. Formation of the inactive network into a sub-network saves energy because only a portion of …

Adaptive Distributed Fair Scheduling And Its Implementation In Wireless Sensor Networks, Maciej Jan Zawodniok, Jagannathan Sarangapani, Steve Eugene Watkins, James W. Fonda

Electrical and Computer Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

A novel adaptive and distributed fair scheduling (ADFS) scheme for wireless sensor networks is shown through hardware implementation. In contrast to simulation, hardware evaluation provides valuable feedback to protocol and hardware development process. The proposed protocol focuses on quality-of-service (QoS) issues to address flow prioritization. Thus, when nodes access a shared channel, the proposed ADFS allocates the channel bandwidth proportionally to the weight, or priority, of the packet flows. Moreover, ADFS allows for dynamic allocation of network resources with little added overhead. Weights are initially assigned using user specified QoS criteria. These weights are subsequently updated as a function of …

Influence Of Circadian Rhythm On The Physical And Mental Performance, Maryam Muhammed Amin

LSU Master's Theses

This thesis studied the temperature circadian rhythm and its relationship with the physical and mental performance of the individuals. The objectives of this study were to determine (1) the effect of temperature circadian rhythm on the mental and physical performance, (2) whether a common oral temperature circadian rhythm pattern exists for all the participants, (3) the times of the day when the participants perform their best and worst in comparison to their highest and lowest temperatures respectively, (4) find out whether the effect of the oral temperature circadian rhythm on the physical and mental performance is different in males and …

Effect Of Overhead Drilling Support On Muscular Activity Of Shoulder, Bharat Kumar Bhogaraju Bhallam Venkata

LSU Master's Theses

This study examines the effect of an overhead drilling support and position of the arm on muscular activity of the shoulder. Five male participants simulated an overhead drilling task by using a drill in near, middle and far reach positions. Electromyographic measurements were taken from the dominant side anterior deltoid, bicep and trapezius muscles. Root mean square amplitude (RMS) of the EMG activity from these muscles was used to determine the load on the muscular system. The participants used a subjective rating scale to evaluate the overhead support stand and holding position. The results demonstrate that the overhead support stand …

Grinding Wheel Condition Monitoring With Boosted Classifiers, Fengming Tang

LSU Master's Theses

In this thesis, two data sets collected in grinding process under different cutting and wheel conditions were studied. One is the cutting forces in three directions, i.e. X, Y and Z, collected under two different cutting conditions. The other one is the acoustic emission (AE) signals collected under different wheel conditions(sharp and dull). For the goal of grinding wheel condition monitoring, the regression model with autocorrelated errors was proved to be effective and was used to extract features from signals in this study. The coefficients of the models served as the features used in the classification step that employed boosting …

Engineering Education Through Service-Learning In Developing Communities: Two Case Studies, Evan A. Thomas, Andrew Azman

Mechanical and Materials Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

This paper provides case studies of two service learning projects that University of Colorado at Boulder (CU-Boulder) students are integrating into their academic experience. The projects focus on developing communities and are managed under the auspices of Engineers Without Borders-USA (EWB-USA), a group founded by Dr. Bernard Amadei, Professor of Civil Engineering at CU-Boulder. These projects expand students? understanding of the social value of their chosen profession, and expose them to a type of engineering significantly different than what is presented in most of their classes. Specifically, focusing on developing communities provides students with the opportunity to design solutions to …

Management Of System Of Systems Engineering: System Of Systems Engineering Requirements, Charles Keating, Andres Sousa-Poza, Samuel Kovacic

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

Traditional systems engineering focuses efforts on developing requirements that are assumed to be objective, definitive, and unwavering. However, the function, development, and utilization of requirements for System of Systems Engineering (SoSE) do not have the level of maturity or sophistication as traditional systems engineering. To avoid miscalculation of the nature and role of requirements in SoSE, a closer examination is necessary. It would be presumptuous to assume that SoSE requirements are a simple extrapolation of traditional systems engineering requirements. The purpose of this paper is to explore the nature of requirements from a SoSE perspective. This examination is concentrated in …

Heuristics And Genetic Algorithms, Michael D. Mobley, Cihan H. Dagli, David Enke

Engineering Management and Systems Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Genetic algorithms are design tools used in generating optimal solutions. While they can often be shown to outperform various heuristic methods and hybrid approaches, using a combination of evolutionary algorithms and heuristic approaches can generate an optimal solution more quickly than either of the two methods independently. Our purpose is to provide an overview of genetic algorithms, to discuss the types of problems that lend themselves to being solved by genetic algorithms, and to identify heuristics that have been shown to aid genetic algorithms in their quest for optimal solutions. While the sample problems discussed in this paper are generally …

Applying The Mahalanobis-Taguchi System To Vehicle Handling, Kioumars Paryani, Elizabeth A. Cudney, K. M. Ragsdell

Engineering Management and Systems Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The Mahalanobis-Taguchi system (MTS) is a diagnosis and forecasting method using multivariate data. Mahalanobis distance (MD) is a measure based on correlations between the variables and patterns that can be identified and analyzed with respect to a base or reference group. The MTS is of interest because of its reported accuracy in forecasting using small, correlated data sets. This is the type of data that is encountered with consumer vehicle ratings. MTS enables a reduction in dimensionality and the ability to develop a scale based on MD values. MTS identifies a set of useful variables from the complete data set …

A Methodology For Deriving System Requirements Using Agent Based System Modeling, Karthik Gopalakrishnan, Sreeram Ramakrishnan, Cihan H. Dagli

Engineering Management and Systems Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

In this paper, we duscuss a method to derive the requirements for developing an Industrial Automation and Constrol System (IACS). An IACS has software components and associated hardware, which together implement the required monitoring, supervision and control of operations an a production plant. The requirements of such a system are multi-dimensional and may require multiple layers of abstraction. For this domain, we propose an agent-based modeling adopting an agent-based modeling approach is the implicit flexibility afforded by agents and the negotiation techniques that can be implemented to streamline the change management process associated with requirements modeling and analysis. This paper …

A Simulation Framework For Real-Time Management And Control Of Inventory Routing Decisions, Shrikant Jarugumilli, Sreeram Ramakrishnan, Scott Erwin Grasman

Engineering Management and Systems Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

We consider a logistics network where a single warehouse distributes a single item to multiple retailers. Retailers in the network participate in a Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) program with the warehouse, where the warehouse is responsible for tracking and replenishing the inventory at various retailer locations. The information update occurs every time a vehicle reaches a location and the decision on the delivery quantity and the next location to visit is made. For a small increase of locations in the network, the state space for the solution increases exponentially, making this problem NP-hard. Thus, we propose a solution methodology where …

Employee Commitment And Turnover: Literature And Data Analysis Of Correlations, Jean-Paul M. Arnaout, Gamze Karayaz, Andres Sousa-Poza

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Faculty Publications

Due to the current turbulent environment, companies had to evolve form their traditional rigid structures to flexible and efficient ones, in order to better adapt to the continuous changes in the environment. New practices have emerged in the workplace, particularly the large layoffs of employees due to budget cuts, leading to an increase in the organizations' turnover. Thus, in today's world, a company is subject to high turnovers at any time of its life cycle; a suggested approach for reducing this turnover is through the improvement of organizational commitment. This paper addresses the following question: "Do all forms of employee …

Imse Alumni Survey Of Abet Program Educational Objectives, Paul Savory

Department of Industrial and Management Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

This report showcases the results of the Department of Industrial and Management System Engieering's survey of alumni regarding our updated ABET Program Educational Objectives. The Program Educational Objectives represent the expected characteristics of industrial engineering graduates within three to five years of receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial and Management Systems Engineering from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. A total of 76 responses were received. The alumni survey responses indicate strong agreement and approval for the new Program Educational Objectives. The associated comments will be used by the IMSE faculty to future refine the course curriculum to ensure that …

A Template-Based Data Specification Framework For Modeling Physical Security Systems, Ashu Guru, Paul Savory

Department of Industrial and Management Systems Engineering: Faculty Publications

Simulation studies often fail to provide any useful results due to its success being highly dependent on the skills of the analyst to understand a system and then correctly identify all the required data parameters and dependent variables. This paper describes a template-based framework to help identify and specify the components and data parameters for developing models of physical security systems. The layered framework consists of fifteen templates built on top of fourteen data primitives representing 119 data parameters. The modeling framework has been programmed as an internet-based web application and is simulation language independent. The usefulness of the framework …

Development Of Integrated Process Simulation System Model For Spent Fuel Treatment Facility (Sftf) Design, Yitung Chen, Sean Hsieh

Separations Campaign (TRP)

The overall goal of this project is the creation of a framework that combines all the strengths of AMUSE’s complicated calculations, well-established commercial system process packages, and TRPSEMPro’s flexible parameter optimization modules. Development of the process simulation code can be done using the solvent extraction process at Argonne National Laboratory in collaboration with the UNLV Nevada Center for Advanced Computational Methods.

The major objectives are the following:

• Develop a framework for simulating the Spent Fuel Treatment Facility (SFTF) process using AMUSE code, commercial process package, such as ASPEN-PLUS, and system engineering model.
• Develop a middleware package that can communicate between …

Effect Of Time-Based Parameters On The Agility Of A Dynamic Mpc System, A. M. Deif, W. H. Elmaraghy

Industrial Technology and Packaging

This paper presents a dynamic manufacturing planning and control (MPC) system that can maintain agility through the ability to dynamically switch between different policies due to varying market strategies. The dynamic behavior of the developed system is investigated by studying the effect of the time based parameters on responsiveness and cost effectiveness of the system reflected in the natural frequency and the damping of its different configurations. Results showed that the agility requirements are directly affected by the time based parameters of the MPC system: production lead time, capacity scalability delay, and shipment time. This resulted in a better understanding …

A Control Approach To Explore The Dynamics Of Capacity Scalability In Reconfigurable Manufacturing Systems, Ahmed M. Deif, Waguih H. Elmaraghy

Industrial Technology and Packaging

This paper presents a dynamic model and analysis for one of the major characteristics of reconfigurable manufacturing systems (RMSs) capacity scalability. The dynamic model is analyzed using its transfer function. Dynamic characteristics associated with the delay in capacity scalability and how to minimize this delay are discussed using control approaches. The problem of how to supply exact capacity in response to market changes is also examined by solving the dynamic problem of the production offset phenomenon in RMSs. The effect of work in process as a damping factor for production disturbances during capacity scalability is addressed. Finally, a general capacity …

Developing A New Program In Marine Engineering Technology, Anthony Dean, Gary Crossman, Alok Verma

Engineering Technology Faculty Publications

The Department of Engineering Technology, in the Batten College of Engineering and Technology at Old Dominion University, in conjunction with members of its advisory board and other industry representatives have begun a sustained effort to promote and develop a strong course of study in Marine Engineering Technology. Located in Norfolk, Virginia, Old Dominion University, and particularly the Department of Engineering Technology, is uniquely positioned to develop such a program. With strong ties to the world's largest Naval Base and superlative shipbuilding, maintenance and repair facilities, early qualitative research indicated high interest for development of such a program in support of …

Evaluation Of The Effect Of Vehicle Performance On Consumer Satisfaction, Elizabeth A. Cudney

Doctoral Dissertations

"Value is the relationship of functionality or benefit to the cost of a product or service. Consumers appear to seek value, but not all consumers are alike in their needs and wants. Common characteristics that consumers desire in automobiles include a high level of value relative to the product's cost. Consumers measure vehicle performance in terms of twenty-three attributes such as roominess, ride, reliability, handling, brake pedal feel, visibility, interior noise, acceleration, etc. Problems arise when automakers try to translate these characteristics into vehicle performance specifications and capabilities.

Quality is an essential element for both the consumer and producer since …

A Dyadic Composition To Foster Virtual Team Effectiveness: An Experimental Study, Gamze Karayaz

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Theses & Dissertations

The importance of effectiveness for virtual teamwork continues to gain momentum as technology and globalization of work accelerate. The implementation of virtual teams provides one approach to enhance competitiveness, overcoming the disadvantages of space and time differences through collaborative technologies. The influence of structure to virtual team performance has not been clearly established in the literature. The purpose of this research study was to investigate the effectiveness of a dyad structured approach for virtual teams using a quasi-experimental research design.

This research investigated four questions related to the influence of structure on virtual team effectiveness related to task performance, communication …

An Investigation Into Microwave Energy To Soften Scrap Tire Rubber Aiding Existing Mechanical Separation Processes, Russell Jon Lucas

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

This research was performed to soften scrap tires to aid in their transformation from whole tires to valuable streams of rubber and steel for reuse in industry. Actual shredded scrap rubber was used in this experiment to determine if this highly variable material could yield consistent results if subjected to volumetric heating from a magnetron emitting microwave energy.

A consumer microwave oven was used to heat this material. This oven had its control circuitry modified by using a programmable logic controller to operate the energy exposure time. The sample's surface temperature was measured utilizing a non contact infrared thermometer. All …

Effects Of The Use Of Soybean Oil As Cutting Fluid On The Surface Finish For Turning Operations, Carlos Alberto TeráN Yengle

Dissertations and Theses @ UNI

Concerns about the long term supply of petroleum, the instability of its prices, and growing environmental issues have led to a variety of legislative and public support for the use of agricultural commodities in industrial applications. This study is of importance because of environmental and health hazards concerns, and the possibility of reducing operating costs with the elimination of disposal of used cutting oil that the use of biodegradable oil offers to the metal-cutting operations.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of the use of an experimental soybean-based oil as a cutting fluid on surface finish …

Effect Of Repetitions On Static And Dynamic Strength, Sai Chaitanya Reddy Bogolu

LSU Master's Theses

The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of repetitions on static and dynamic strength. The study is divided into two parts, the first part investigated static and dynamic strength during one, three and six repetitions per minute, and the second part of the study analyzed dynamic strength data collected using the Multiaxial Multipurpose Isokinetic Dynamometer. The study comprised of dynamic strength test data at three speeds of one, five and ten inch per second. Five male subjects participated in the first part of the study, and the results were analyzed by plotting a time series to observe …