Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The new product development process in the mechanical industry: evidences from some Italian case studies

New product development (NPD) refers to the process of bringing a new product or service to market and involves several steps. NPD involves cooperating with organizations within and outside the primary manufacturing company, consequently, interaction between NPD and supply chain management (SCM) is understood to be a crucial success factor. The aim of this paper is to explore the relationship between NPD and SCM in the specific context of the Italian mechanical industry. Based on analysis of the extant literature on NPD and SCM, an NPD framework was first developed; then, a case study-based research was carried out, with the purpose of investigating whether the companies analyzed adopt the NPD framework proposed, or at identifying different phases to be included in the framework, as well as phases to be deleted. Findings from this study provide managers with a preliminary picture of the NPD framework that the mechanical companies adopt, as well as with some useful guidelines for companies wishing to perform better in terms of NPD. Keywords : new product development, supply chain management, mechanical industry, Italy, case study.
L 2-Norm Optimal Trajectory Planning for Mobile Ground Vehicles in a Dynamically Changing Environment with both “Hard” and “Soft” Obstacles

In this paper, the real-time trajectory planning problem is considered for a differential vehicles in a dynamically changing operational environment. Some obstacles in the environment are not known apriori, they are either static or moving, and classified to two types: “hard” obstacles that must be avoided, and “soft” obstacles that can be run over/through. The proposed method presents trajectories, satisfying boundary conditions and vehicle’s kinematic model, in terms of polynomials with one design parameter. With a cost function of L2 norm, an optimal feasible trajectory is analytically solved for “hard” obstacles. By relaxing the optimal solution, “soft” obstacles are prioritized to be bypassed or overcome. The proposed method offers an automatic and systematic way of handling obstacles.The simulation is used to illustrate the proposed algorithm.
Impact of carbon monoxide on early cardiac development in an avian model

Carbon monoxide (CO) is a toxic gas that can be lethal in large doses and may also cause physiological damage in lower doses. Epidemiological studies suggest that CO in lower doses over time may impact on embryo development, in particular cardiac development, however other studies have not observed this association. Here, we exposed chick embryos in ovo to CO at three different concentrations (1ppm, 8ppm, 25ppm) plus air control (4 protocols in total) for the first nine days of development, at which point we assessed egg and embryo weight, ankle length, developmental stage, heart weight and ventricular wall thickness. We found that heart weight was reduced for the low and moderate exposures compared to air, and that ventricular wall thickness was increased for the moderate and high exposures compared to air. Ventricular wall thickness was also significantly positively correlated with absolute CO exposures across all protocols. This intervention study thus suggests that CO even at very low levels may have a significant impact on cardiac development.
Properties of MNOS structures

The properties of thin oxide MNOS structures are studied. An analytical theory for the switching time constant is derived and curves of the switching time constant versus the nitride field are computed. These curves are useful in the design of MNOS-memory transistors. The theory is compared with experiments. The normal current in the thin oxide MNOS structures is assumed to be a modified Fowler-Nordheim current. At small oxide thicknesses and low nitride field, an additional current is shown to exist that is attributed to direct tunneling into traps in the nitride. The discharge of MNOS structures is briefly discussed and is shown to be due to a direct tunneling of charge carriers from traps in the nitride into the semiconductor.
Fractional-Slot PMSMs With One Coil Parallel Branches Made Phases—Part 2: Circulating Harmonic Current Rejection Potential

The paper is aimed at a class of fractional-slot permanent magnet- synchronous machines (FSPMSMs) equipped with phases made up of one coil parallel branches, with emphasis on their potential to reject the circulating harmonic currents. Following the identification and topological characterization of this class of machines treated in Part 1, the star of slots approach is extended to the investigation of their back-EMF harmonic content, and the possible resulting circulating harmonic currents. It is found that all identified candidates exhibit the potential to reject the circulating harmonic currents. A case study dedicated to a candidate equipped with three phases made up of six parallel branches of one coil each, is treated. Following an analysis of its back-EMF harmonic content, the torque-speed characteristic is analytically-predicted and validated by 2D finite element analysis and by experiments. The study is achieved by a special attention paid to the iron loss and thermal analysis.
Adaptive Capacity on Flexible Learning in the New Normal: The Case of Davao Del Norte State College

: This study aims to investigate the adaptive capacity of the students and faculty members of Davao del Norte State College in the new teaching and learning modalities demanded by this new normal setting. With the CoViD-19 pandemic lurking into the academic grounds, posing new challenges, the researchers initiated to describe the academic profile of the 2547 students and 109 faculty members. Results revealed that utilizing television and transistor radio devices on blended learning may not be effective due to a huge number of learners who will not be able to access learning materials delivered through these media. Moreover, 1148 of 2290 students described not having Internet connection at home. Yet, on the status of Internet connectivity, only 67 learners have no Internet access in their area. Fourteen (14) faculty members revealed not having Internet Connection at home, but was able to gain access during the physical duty schedules. This result suggests that even without Internet Connection at home, students and faculty members are findings ways to cope with the learning and teaching challenges in these difficult times.
Recent Development and Innovation in Tubular Structures

This paper highlights some of the research results achieved by the author and his teammates on tubular structures and thick-walled circular hollow section (CHS) connections. Excellent research and developmental work on thin-walled CHS connections has been conducted by a number of world renowned experts. However, there is little available information on thick-walled CHS connections, which are joints with chord outer radius-to-wall thickness ratio γ ≤ 10. This paper first presents the plastic load approach for strength definition of tubular joints and shows that current design recommendations may be un-conservative for thick-walled joints with equal diameter brace and chord members with γ ≤ 3.5. The behaviour of CHS K-joints, including the chord stress effect, is then summarized. The results from a detailed study on an innovative and effective external reinforcement scheme for CHS joints are presented. The paper also highlights the results obtained for the strength of fabricated pipe trunnions using the through brace scheme and novel implementation for plated structures which resulted in cost effective designs for heavy lift installation of structures.
Prioritising Municipal Solid Waste Management factors in India using fuzzy Analytic Hierarchy Process

Studies have shown that even elaborate Municipal Solid Waste Management (MSWM) schemes turn futile. Hence, people involved in MSWM should design the schemes carefully by taking in account the correct factors and giving them due weightage. Consequently, identifying the MSWM factors and their significance becomes an essential and crucial process for a waste management scheme to be environmentally effective, economically viable and socially acceptable. Thus, the objective of this paper is to propose an analytic framework to provide MSWM experts a more effective and efficient model for prioritising MSWM factors.
Effect of Water Conditioning for Extended Periods on the Properties of Asphalt Binders

Selecting materials with a low susceptibility to moisture damage (i.e., stripping) is critical to guarantee the performance of asphalt pavements. Stripping in the asphalt mix can accelerate damage and consequently reduce pavement life. Most current research on moisture damage considers the effect of water on the mastic, the aggregate, and the adhesive bond between the aggregate and the binder. However, limited research has been conducted to determine the effect of extended water exposure on the properties of asphalt binders. This study investigated the influence of extensive water exposure on the stripping potential of asphalt binders by measuring the rheological properties, bond strength, and wettability of a Colombian binder before and after immersion. Thin films (2-mm height) of asphalt were immersed in water for 3, 6, and 9 months, and comparisons were made between the experimental results of unconditioned and conditioned binders. Master curves for complex modulus and phase angle were obtained by using a frequency sweep test in a dynamic shear rheometer. The bond strength between the binder and aggregates was measured with the recently developed binder bond strength test. The wettability potential of the conditioned and unconditioned binder was estimated by using the sessile drop method, and dynamic modulus testing of mixes prepared with the unconditioned and conditioned binder was conducted. Experimental results showed significant changes in the properties of the binder after 9 months of water conditioning. Further, dynamic modulus of the mixes prepared with the binder conditioned for 9 months was significantly higher than the modulus of the unconditioned mix.
Molecular analysis reveals Latonius planus Kononova to be a derived species of Trissolcus Ashmead

The monotypic genus Latonius Kononova, 1982 (Platygastroidea, Scelionidae), was described from a single female specimen collected in southern Ukraine. It somewhat resembles Trissolcus Ashmead but has a distinctive claval formula. The only species in the genus, Latonius planus Kononova, 1982, is lacking any details regarding biology, sexual dimorphism, intraspecific variability, or distribution. Based on recently collected specimens the present study clarifies the position of Latonius within the Telenominae, provides a comprehensive description accompanied by high quality images, and compares Latonius and Trissolcus. Five molecular markers were amplified, and sequences of L. planus were analyzed using a data set for the molecular phylogeny of Telenominae (Taekul et al. 2014) and a molecular phylogeny of Trissolcus (Talamas et al. 2019). We dissected the metasoma, tarsi, antennae, and ovipositor and performed SEM imaging. The genera Latonius and Ioseppinella Mineo, O’Connor & Ashe, 2010, are treated as junior synonyms of Trissolcus and the type species of Latonius and Ioseppinella are considered to be conspecific (syn. nov.).
An automatic impact monitor for a composite panel employing smart sensor technology

Impacts can inflict serious damage on composite structures. For structures on the surface of an aircraft this has potentially critical consequences. The problem is exacerbated by the fact that the damage is internal, with little or no indication on the surface of the structure, making it difficult to detect. A potential solution to the problem would be an impact monitoring system that could detect when an impact occurred. This idea was explored using a composite panel, inside which a SMART Layer was embedded. Two techniques were studied that were able to estimate the locations of impacts on the panel from the measurements provided by the piezoelectric strain sensors in the SMART Layer. The first technique employed artificial neural networks and the second used a triangulation procedure incorporating a genetic algorithm. The knowledge acquired during the study made it possible to develop a simple and efficient prototype impact monitoring system for the composite panel.
Improved Analysis of Low Frequency Noise in Field‐Effect MOS Transistors

An improved analysis of low frequency trapping noise in a MOS device is proposed. This analysis takes into account the supplementary fluctuations of the mobility induced by those of the interface charge. It enables an adequate description of the gate voltage dependence of the input equivalent gate voltage noise to be obtained in various actual situations. The outputs given by the Hooge mobility fluctuation model are also presented and discussed with respect to those obtained by the carrier number fluctuation model. In particular, the impact of the channel length or channel width, and the model type on the input gate voltage and drain current noise characteristics is studied and compared to typical experimental data. Finally, a procedure for the diagnosis of the low frequency noise sources in a MOS transistor is proposed.
Data-Driven Respiration-Gated SPECT for Liver Radioembolization

Respiratory motion leads to blur and artifacts in single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) images. This may be an issue in some treatments such as liver radioembolization. The purpose of this work was to reconstruct 4-D respiration-gated SPECT images using a data-driven approach. A respiratory signal was extracted from SPECT list-mode data using Laplacian eigenmaps and used for retrospective phase gating. The method was evaluated on various SPECT datasets: Monte Carlo simulation of a patient acquisition, several acquisitions of a dynamic phantom, and 20 acquisitions of patients treated with liver radioembolization. We observed an increase of the mean activity inside the tumor (A) and of the tumor-to-normal liver ratio (T/N) in the respiration-gated SPECT image compared to the 3-D image without motion correction. For the patient acquisitions, an average 3.3% (up to 11.9%) and 3.2% (up to 9.7%) increase was observed for A and T/N, respectively. For the simulation, the activity was within 2.6% of the reference without movement and around 3% for the three patterns of tumor motion simulated with the mechanical phantom. Overall, the proposed respiration-gated SPECT reconstruction improves the estimation of the activity in the tumor without the need for extra hardware.
Packaging of Components for Optical Fiber Technoidgy

A number of promising tedcniques used to intercmnect two or more optical fibers and optical fibers with guided wave optical devices are reviewed. Such waveguide-to-waveguide interconnections impose severe optical and mechanical design constraints. components used in single mode infrared optical systems use fibers of five to ten microns in core diameter. This creates the need for subnicron alignment toleranc between the waveguides. Such severe toleranc requirements are satisfied, in the case of single mode fiber connectors, through the use of precision ceramic ferrules. Achieving the same performance, when interconnecting fibers and waveguide devices, is somewhat less straightforward. Several approaches are currently under study. One such approach uses precisely etched silicon V-grooves. Another approach uses self-aligned grooves or slots that are formed in the substrate material through ion-milling or laser-assisted etching. Components used in multimode fiber systems use fiber with fifty to one thousand micron core diameters, and are therefore more forgiving to misalignment. Despite this, careful design is required to achieve satisfactory performance. The misalignment penalties associated with a number of interconnect situations are illustrated and discussed in terms of alignment tolerances and fabrication difficulties.
Knowledge sharing in collaborative supply chains: twin effects of trust and power

Knowledge sharing has been recognised as a key enhancer of supply-chain performance. However, the sharing of knowledge may not take place easily and automatically among the supply-chain partners. This paper attempts to shed some light on the mechanisms underpinning knowledge sharing in supply chains. In particular, we focus on knowledge sharing in a dyadic buyer–supplier relationship. We posit that trust and power are two important antecedents of two types of knowledge sharing between a buyer and supplier, namely technical exchange and technology transfer. To build our research model, a large-scale mail survey was conducted from a contact list of 800 companies provided by the Singapore Logistics Association. The results of the structural equation modelling suggest that trust has significant effects on technical exchange and technology transfer. Further, power also affects technical exchange and technology transfer significantly, though the impacts appear to be weaker than trust. The theoretical and practical implications of this research are discussed.
Power Prediction of Combined Cycle Power Plant (CCPP) Using Machine Learning Algorithm-Based Paradigm

Power prediction is important not only for the smooth and economic operation of a combined cycle power plant (CCPP) but also to avoid technical issues such as power outages. In this work, we propose to utilize machine learning algorithms to predict the hourly-based electrical power generated by a CCPP. For this, the generated power is considered a function of four fundamental parameters which are relative humidity, atmospheric pressure, ambient temperature, and exhaust vacuum. The measurements of these parameters and their yielded output power are used to train and test the machine learning models. The dataset for the proposed research is gathered over a period of six years and taken from a standard and publicly available machine learning repository. The utilized machine algorithms are K -nearest neighbors (KNN), gradient-boosted regression tree (GBRT), linear regression (LR), artificial neural network (ANN), and deep neural network (DNN). We report state-of-the-art performance where GBRT outperforms not only the utilized algorithms but also all the previous methods on the given CCPP dataset. It achieves the minimum values of root mean square error (RMSE) of 2.58 and absolute error (AE) of 1.85.
Assessment of asbestos and asbestos waste quantity in the built environment of transition country

Managing asbestos streams in developing and transition countries is particularly challenging. Deficiencies are often present for adequate procedures for the management of asbestos waste; solid quality data or databases on the quantities of asbestos production and usage are missing and asbestos inventories or the registry of asbestos-related diseases following European Union (EU) or other regulations are not in place. This paper aims to develop a model for determining and assessing the quantity of asbestos in the built environment of a transition country. Quantities of asbestos products and life expectancy of those products were assessed to develop a model that forecasts flows and stocks of asbestos products and wastes. The overall objective is to evaluate the model and show the manifestation of asbestos in the waste stream in a case study on a country with a transition economy, such as Serbia. Results show that total quantities of asbestos fibre consumption are approximately 0.5 million tonnes; the largest amount of waste generation is expected in the 2020s. Therefore, it is necessary to prepare for the forthcoming quantities of waste by improving legal procedures, implementation of existing regulations, and provision of economic resources. An important link for the adequate management of asbestos waste is to raise public awareness of the dangers and importance of proper and timely disposal of asbestos products.
Nonlinear magnetostatic BEM formulation using one unknown double layer charge

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to solve generic magnetostatic problems by BEM, by studying how to use a boundary integral equation (BIE) with the double layer charge as unknown derived from the scalar potential.Design/methodology/approach – Since the double layer charge produces only the potential gap without disturbing the normal magnetic flux density, the field is accurately formulated even by one BIE with one unknown. Once the double layer charge is determined, Biot‐Savart's law gives easily the magnetic flux density.Findings – The BIE using double layer charge is capable of treating robustly geometrical singularities at edges and corners. It is also capable of solving the problems with extremely high magnetic permeability.Originality/value – The proposed BIE contains only the double layer charge while the conventional equations derived from the scalar potential contain the single and double layer charges as unknowns. In the multiply connected problems, the excitation potential in the material .
Highly efficient optical phase modulator in SOI waveguides

The realisation of a low-loss, highly efficient, single-mode optical phase modulator in SOI is reported. At a wavelength of 1.5 mu m the figure of merit for the device, the induced phase shift per volt per millimetre, is greater than 200 degrees /V/mm. To our knowledge, this is the highest reported value to date. In addition, the device drive current ( >
A micromachined comb-drive tuning fork rate gyroscope

The development of single-crystal and polysilicon tuning fork gyroscopes of very small size and low cost using microfabrication technology is reported. These tuning fork gyroscopes are extremely rugged, inherently balanced, and easy to fabricate. For a 1-mm gyroscope, projected performance is 10 to 100 degrees /hr for bias stability and for resolution in a 60-Hz bandwidth. To date, 5000 degrees /hr in a 60 Hz bandwidth has been demonstrated. The principle of operation, projected and measured performance and fabrication of silicon, polysilicon, and nickel units and associated electronics and control issues are discussed. <<ETX>>
Evaluation of a Leaf -turn Method for Sampling Whiteflies in Cotton

Plans for sampling sweetpotato whiteflies in cotton were evaluated within 8,000 acres of cotton within central Arizona. These plans were found to be a practical and efficient way to track whitefly populations. In general they should add about 8 minutes to a pest sampling regime. Neither time of day nor sampler experience were found to have a significant effect on the number of whiteflies counted. Therefore, this method provides a common currency for growers, PCAs and others to compare whitefly numbers among fields and through time.