Operations Research, Systems Engineering and Industrial Engineering Commons^™

Somatic Stimulation Causes Frontoparietal Cortical Changes In Neonates: A Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy Study, Nasser H. Kashou, Irfaan Akram Dar, Kathryn Hasenstab, Ramzi W. Nahhas, Sudarshan R. Jadcherla

Biomedical, Industrial & Human Factors Engineering Faculty Publications

Palmar and plantar grasp are the foremost primitive neonatal reflexes and functions. Persistence of these reflexes in infancy is a sign of evolving cerebral palsy. Our aims were to establish measurement feasibility in a clinical setting and to characterize changes in oxyhemoglobin (HbO) and deoxyhemoglobin (HbD) concentration in the bilateral frontoparietal cortex in unsedated neonates at the crib-side using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). We hypothesized that bilateral concentration changes will occur upon somatic central and peripheral somatic stimulation. Thirteen preterm neonates (five males) underwent time 1, and six (two males) returned for time 2 (mean PMA ¼ 41.6 and 47.0 …

A Fuzzy Data Envelopment Analysis Framework For Dealing With Uncertainty Impacts Of Input–Output Life Cycle Assessment Models On Eco-Efficiency Assessment, Gokhan Egilmez, Serkan Gumus, Murat Kucukvar, Omer Tatari

Mechanical and Industrial Engineering Faculty Publications

The uncertainty in the results of input–output-based life cycle assessment models makes the sustainability performance assessment and ranking a challenging task. Therefore, introducing a new approach, fuzzy data envelopment analysis, is critical; since such a method could make it possible to integrate the uncertainty in the results of the life cycle assessment models into the decision-making for sustainability benchmarking and ranking. In this paper, a fuzzy data envelopment analysis model was coupled with an input–output-based life cycle assessment approach to perform the sustainability performance assessment of the 33 food manufacturing sectors in the United States. Seven environmental impact categories were …

Mechanisms And Solutions To The Brittle Solder Joint In Electroless Ni Plating, Xuan Wang, C. Key Chung

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

Brittle solder joints in Electroless Ni electroless Pd immersion Au (ENEPIG) surface finishes are one of the key reliability issues in electronics assembly. Previous characterization of the reflow process has indicated that interfacial voids formed after solder reflow are responsible for the decreases in solder joint strength. However, the mechanisms behind the formation of these voids in the ENEPIG process remain unclear. In this paper, the interaction between various aspects of the ENEPIG process and solder joint strength were investigated. Surface roughness, morphology, and nano-pitting at the interface between electroless Pd and Ni-P were characterized. The size and density of …

Development Of An Associate Degree Level Course On Lean, Jeremy Espinoza

Master of Technology Management Plan II Graduate Projects

Lean training and education has become a focal point in both industry and the realm of academics; however, the need within the industry remains, and oftentimes companies must take on the additional and high expense of training new graduates once they enter the workforce. Often, the classes that students study in the lean methodology, if any are studied at all, are taught within other disciplines, and the instruction is in a general sense as opposed to in depth and hands on. Within the past eight years it has been referenced in different academic articles that students are not coming into …

Fuzzy-Genetic Algorithm Approach To Generate An Optimal Meta-Architecture For A Smart, Safe & Efficient City Transportation System Of Systems, Rahul Alaguvelu, David M. Curry, Cihan H. Dagli

Engineering Management and Systems Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

A city's transportation infrastructure deeply affects its citizens' quality of life-from the freshness of food to the amount of frustration felt while commuting to work. Providing an optimal infrastructure has the possibility of dramatically improving the population's well-being. Since the transportation infrastructure is a system-of-systems (SoS) [1], it may be modelled and optimized for a given set of objectives [2]. In this manner, the city resources can be optimized for multiple objectives such as commute time, overall throughput, and sustainability. This is made possible by using a fuzzy assessor to map the individual objectives into a single overall fitness value …

Exploring Regional And Telecoupled Land Use Change Impacts From Environmental Shocks, Kevin Hill, Liz Wachs, Brady Hardiman, David Yu, Shweta Singh

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Natural disasters or environmental shocks have the potential to disrupt local agricultural systems as well as distant agricultural systems through cascading effects. In this work we selected two distinct environmental shocks and traced their cascading effects on land use change. Quantifying cascading effects is a salient issue because climate change forecasts indicate an increase in frequency and intensity of global environmental shocks. This study incorporated the concept of telecoupled systems involving interrelating ecological, economic and political/social components. A telecoupled framework involving cascading effects was implemented using three approaches. The first approach involved using bilateral agricultural trade matrix data to analyze …

Leveraging Smart Infusion Pump Data For Workflow, Patient Care And Usability Improvement In Human Factors, Yan Ni Ding, Denny Yu, Poching Delaurentis, Kang-Yu Hsu, Joon Hong Kim

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Infusion pumps are medical devices that deliver fluids like medication, and nutrients in a precise, timely, and controlled manner that is critical to patient care. It is widely used in clinical settings especially in hospitals, nursing homes and sometimes at home. Smart infusion pumps technology are supposed to be reduce nurses’ workload, but due to the recurring number of alarms which disrupt the workflow of the infusion process, most nurses prefer to use the traditional infusion pumps or work-around the safety features of the smart pumps. Thus, the aim of this research is to leverage Smart Infusion Pump data to …

Impact Of Microscope, Loupes, And Video Displays On Microsurgeons’ Risk For Musculoskeletal Injuries, Yiyu Shi, Denny Yu

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Microsurgery is commonly performed with operating microscopes or loupes to repair traumatic injuries, damage from cancer surgery, etc.; however, the prolonged, awkward, and constrained postures from using these equipment puts microsurgeons at risk for musculoskeletal pain and injuries. An alternative heads-up displays may improve surgeons’ ergonomics by allowing microsurgeons to perform the procedure in a more comfortable and ergonomic position. The study compares the effect of microscope, loupes and video displays on postures during microsurgical targeting task. This study incorporated three steps to contrast displays. Firstly, 12 participants wearing six reflective markers completed a surgery simulation using all three displays, …

How User's Visualization Literacy Relates To Their Cognitive Traits, Jiming Yang, Sukwon Lee, Ji Soo Yi

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Researchers in the field of Information Visualization have suggested that users’ cognitive abilities would likely to affect their understanding of data visualizations and deeper exploration in the visualizations. However, the evidence is still scant to link between user’s visualization literacy and their cognitive traits. Thus, the research goal of this study is to explore how user’s visualization literacy and their cognitive traits are related. In particular, we focused on two cognitive traits: numeracy and need-for-cognition. In order to achieve the goal, first, we measured visualization literacy, numeracy, and need-for-cognition using existing instruments with 46 Amazon Mechanical Turk workers, and the …

Comparing Optimum Barrier Variables Of Aluminium And Mpet Foil Based Laminates For Coffee Packaging, Abhishek Dutta, Gautam Dutta

Journal of Applied Packaging Research

The barrier property variables for Aluminum based laminates, both under flexed and unflexed condition, were compared with that of MPET based laminates in order to understand comparative suitability of the later for coffee packaging. Keeping the expected shelf life condition of 180 days the different barrier property variables of the sample MPET and Aluminum based laminates, at the optimality condition, were found out. At the optimum condition, Oxygen transfer rate (OTR) under flexed condition is marginally better for MPET based laminates. However, Aluminium laminates in flexed condition allowing moisture transfer (WVTR) at the rate 24.32 percent stronger than MPET based …

A Benders Based Rolling Horizon Algorithm For A Dynamic Facility Location Problem, Mohammad Marufuzzaman, Ridvan Gedik, Mohammad S. Roni

Mechanical and Industrial Engineering Faculty Publications

This study presents a well-known capacitated dynamic facility location problem (DFLP) that satisfies the customer demand at a minimum cost by determining the time period for opening, closing, or retaining an existing facility in a given location. To solve this challenging NP-hard problem, this paper develops a unique hybrid solution algorithm that combines a rolling horizon algorithm with an accelerated Benders decomposition algorithm. Extensive computational experiments are performed on benchmark test instances to evaluate the hybrid algorithm’s efficiency and robustness in solving the DFLP problem. Computational results indicate that the hybrid Benders based rolling horizon algorithm consistently offers high quality …

Value Based Methodology To Evaluate Sensors For Bridge Structural Health Monitoring Systems, Jefferson Santos De Oliveira

Theses and Dissertations

Structural health monitoring (SHM) systems have become important tools in the transportation industry to help monitor the behavior and health of civil structures. Today, there is a real concern about the health of bridges because these structures are aging, and various failure events have contributed to increase that concern. Consequently, the topic of improving the effectiveness and appropriate use of SHM systems have become the focus of various government agencies and researchers, both in industry and academia. In this context, this thesis work was developed to understand the general components of bridge SHM systems, and present a methodology to help …

Essays On Optimization And Modeling Methods For Reliability And Reliability Growth, Thomas Paul Talafuse

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This research proposes novel solution techniques in the realm of reliability and reliability growth. We first consider a redundancy allocation problem to design a system that maximizes the reliability of a complex series-parallel system comprised of components with deterministic reliability. We propose a new meta-heuristic, inspired by the behavior of bats hunting prey, to find component allocation and redundancy levels that provide optimal or near-optimal system reliability levels. Each component alternative has an associated cost and weight and the system is constrained by cost and weight factors. We allow for component mixing within a subsystem, with a pre-defined maximum level …

Laboratory And Full Boom-Based Investigation Of Nozzle Setup And Restriction Effects On Flow, Pressure And Spray Pattern Distribution, Shane H. Forney

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Pesticide application is an integral part of crop production and ground-based agricultural boom sprayers are used extensively to apply pesticides to the crop canopy or soil surface across millions of acres in the United States. Efficient application is necessary to minimize costs and limit adverse environmental impacts. Errors in flow rate and system pressure measurements may cause as-applied maps to incorrectly indicate application rates and could negatively affect downstream data processing or analysis. The goals of this study were to provide quantified measurements on the effects of nozzle setup errors on spray pattern uniformity and evaluate how laboratory patternator data …

Service-Level Based Response By Assignment And Order Processing For Warehouse Automation, Zijian He

Open Access Theses

Along with tremendous growth of online sales in this Internet era, unprecedented intensive competition in shortening the delivery time of orders has been occurring among several major online retailers. On the other hand, the idea of customer-oriented service creates a trend of diversified pricing strategy. Different price options are offered to cater to diversified needs of customers. It has become an urgent need for online sales industries to provide the differentiated service levels for different classes of customers with different priorities based on the charging prices and resource constraints of the supply network.

In response to the challenges mentioned above, …

Best Matching Processes In Distributed Systems, Mohsen Moghaddam

Open Access Dissertations

The growing complexity and dynamic behavior of modern manufacturing and service industries along with competitive and globalized markets have gradually transformed traditional centralized systems into distributed networks of e- (electronic) Systems. Emerging examples include e-Factories, virtual enterprises, smart farms, automated warehouses, and intelligent transportation systems. These (and similar) distributed systems, regardless of context and application, have a property in common: They all involve certain types of interactions (collaborative, competitive, or both) among their distributed individuals—from clusters of passive sensors and machines to complex networks of computers, intelligent robots, humans, and enterprises. Having this common property, such systems may encounter common …

Parametric Approaches To Fractional Programs: Analytical And Empirical Study, Chong Hyun Park

Open Access Dissertations

Fractional programming is used to model problems where the objective function is a ratio of functions. A parametric modeling approach provides effective technique for obtaining optimal solutions of these fractional programming problems. Although many heuristic algorithms have been proposed and assessed relative to each other, there are limited theoretical studies on the number of steps to obtain the solution. In this dissertation, I focus on the linear fractional combinatorial optimization problem, a special case of fractional programming where all functions in the objective function and constraints are linear and all variables are binary that model certain combinatorial structures. Two parametric …

Evaluating The Impacts Of Sleep Disruptions In Women Through Automated Analysis (Sjsl Framework), Shalini Gupta

Industrial, Manufacturing, and Systems Engineering Dissertations - Archive

The proposed research suggests a solution for female sleep disruption by using automated analytics and attempts to improve our understanding of sleep disruption physiology. Although, sleep disruption monitoring is gaining attention with the use of sleep monitoring devices that track sleep disruptions. Automated technology can capture repeated measurements, evaluate sleep patterns, and make suggestions. However, facts revealed by clinical research suggest that it can measure sleep – disruption records, and sleep disorders. Moreover, this research can be useful for prescribing individual treatment, and hence improve individual healthcare optimization. In fact, some of the health tracking electronic devices assist individuals in …

Evaluating The Impacts Of The Internet Of Things To Reduce Runway Incursions: Understanding The Why, How, And When, Samuel Inanore Okate

Industrial, Manufacturing, and Systems Engineering Dissertations - Archive

The Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) mission is to maintain the safest and most efficient aerospace system in the world. The FAA has stated that runway safety is one of their top priorities, which encapsulates pilots, air traffic controllers, and airport vehicle drivers and workers (Federal Aviation Administration, June 2015). Federal Aviation Administration categorizes a runway incursion as a hazardous event that can occur in the Air Operations Area (AOA) that involves an incorrect presence of an aircraft, vehicle or person in the protected area of a surface designated for the landing and takeoff of an aircraft (Federal Aviation Administration, June …

Incorporating A New Class Of Uncertainty In Disaster Relief Logistics Planning, Emre Kirac

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In recent years, there has been a growing interest among emergency managers in using Social data in disaster response planning. However, the trustworthiness and reliability of posted information are two of the most significant concerns, because much of the user-generated data is initially not verified. Therefore, a key tradeoff exists for emergency managers when considering whether to incorporate Social data in disaster planning efforts. By considering Social data, a larger number of needs can be identified in a shorter amount of time, potentially enabling a faster response and satisfying a class of demand that might not otherwise be discovered. However, …

Profit Based Simulation Model For The Rail Transportation Industry, Mark Patrick Doran

Engineering Management & Systems Engineering Theses & Dissertations

Schedules often conflict in the rail transportation industry. Operations managers assign resources and make scheduling decisions with no visibility of the revenue, cost, and profitability characteristics of the route they are manipulating. Transit speed decisions focus on ensuring trains safely reach their destination on time with little regard given to the actual service needs of the customer. Although all customers want on-time deliveries, few actually pay a premium to garner this level of preferential treatment. Operating in this type of environment results in decisions that severely erode profits.

In this dissertation, a simulation model referred to as the Rail Profit …

Enhancing Local Search With Adaptive Operator Ordering And Its Application To The Time Dependent Orienteering Problem, Aldy Gunawan, Hoong Chuin Lau, Kun Lu

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

No abstract provided.

Synthesis Of Nanoporous Carbohydrate Metal-Organic Framework And Encapsulation Of Acetaldehyde, Saleh Al-Ghamdi, Ajay Kathuria, Mohamad G. Abiad, Rafael Auras

Industrial Technology and Packaging

Gamma cyclodextrin (γ-CD) metal organic frameworks (CDMOFs) were synthesized by coordinating γ-CDs with potassium hydroxide (KOH), referred hereafter as CDMOF-a, and potassium benzoate (C₇H₅KO₂), denoted as CDMOF-b. The obtained CDMOF structures were characterized using nitrogen sorption isotherm, thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). High surface areas were achieved by the γ-CD based MOF structures where the Langmuir specific surface areas (SSA) of CDMOF-a and CDMOF-b were determined as 1376 m² g⁻¹ and 607 m² g⁻¹; respectively. The dehydrated CDMOF structures demonstrated good thermal stability …

Design For Manufacturability: Off-Road Toyota Bumper, Drew Donlon

Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

The purpose of this project is to design a new off-road bumper that is improved from the stock form of a 1996-2002 Toyota 4Runner and a 1996-2004 Toyota Tacoma. The current state of the component is too weak to endure to off-road endeavors, and a kit bumper market is virtually untapped for these vehicles. The objectives of this project were met by redesigning the stock front bumper, conducting a finite element analysis on the model to test for strength, prototyping the bumper with CNC cut cardboard, and conducting a full cost analysis including the costs for waterjet and laser cutting …

Attending To Scientific Practices Within Undergraduate Research Experiences, Gina Quan, Chandra Turpen, Andrew Elby

Faculty Publications

Ford (2015) argues for viewing “scientific practice” not as a list of particular skills, but rather, more holistically as “sets of regularities of behaviors and social interactions” among scientists. This conceptualization of scientific practices foregrounds how they meaningfully connect to one another and are purposefully employed in order to explain nature. We apply this framework in the context of undergraduate research experiences (UREs) to understand the early forms of student engagement in scientific practices, and how these specific forms of engagement may be consequential for students’ future participation. Using video from interviews with students and research mentors, we argue that …

Privacy And The Information Age: A Longitudinal View, Charles E. Downing

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

As information systems and data storage capacity become increasingly sophisticated, an important ethical question for organizations is “What can/will/should be done with the personal information that has been and can be collected?” Individuals’ privacy is certainly important, but so is less costly and more targeted business processes. As this conflict intensifies, consumers, managers and policy makers are left wondering: What privacy principles are important to guide organizations in self-regulation? For example, do consumers view the five rights originally stated in the European Data Protection Directive as important? Comprehensive? Is there a product discount point where consumers would forsake these principles? …

An Empirical Investigation On Ceo Turnover In It Firms And Firm Performance, Peiqin Zhang, David Wierschem, Francis A. Mendez Mediavilla, Keejae P. Hong

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

Drawn upon upper echelon theory and organizational theory, this research proposes to examine the impact of CEO turnover in IT firms on firm performance in terms of both sustainable accounting performance and market performance. We find that CEO turnover is a significant determinant of firm performance, especially in IT firms. This paper contributes to the IS literature by investigating the CEO turnover impact in IT firms compared to other industries. This study also has practical implications by providing the guideline for IT firms on the CEO turnover policy. Such firms should place additional emphasis on their succession planning efforts.

Facebook Use Among African American And Hispanic Students: An Exploratory Investigation Of Perceived Academic Impact, Sathasivam Mathiyalakan, Sharon D. White, Jorge O. Brusa

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

Facebook is one of the world’s leading social networking sites. It is pervasive in students’ lives and can impact their academic careers in a variety of ways. However, little research exists evaluating the use of Facebook in minority academic settings. An early step in this direction is to gain an understanding of how different student demographic groups use Facebook. An interest in further assessment of Facebook’s role in diverse segments of academia motivates the collection and analysis of Facebook-related data from minority serving institutions such as Historically Black Colleges or Universities (HBCUs) and Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs). This study presents …

Crowdsourcing Management Education Assessment, Owen P. Hall Jr, Charla Griffy-Brown

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

Assessment is now at the center of the new business education zeitgeist. This focus is the direct result of feedback from the business community regarding the growing gap between their needs and graduates from many business schools. Recently this divide has fallen under even closer scrutiny because of increasing student debt and the growing controversy over return-on- investment. Today business leaders are looking for web-savvy, problem-solving graduates. To this end, AACSB and regional accrediting bodies are calling for the adoption of comprehensive collaborative learning strategies to better align graduates’ skill sets with the real needs of business. Crowdsourcing, which is …

Towards A Taxonomy Of Challenges In An Integrated It Governance Framework Implementation, Mathew Nicho, Suadad Muamaar

Journal of International Technology and Information Management

The rapid adoption of IT governance (ITG) frameworks in organizations worldwide, along with the subsequent need to select and integrate overlapping ITG frameworks has presented practitioners with challenges in choice and integration of frameworks. In this respect, the purpose of this study was to explore the ITG frameworks integration (ITGFI) challenges faced by organizations worldwide; develop and test a theory-based integrated ITG challenges (IIC) taxonomy model created from extant literature; and validate and compare these with those empirically extracted from three case studies in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The results present the audience with a taxonomy of a prioritized …