bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A State-of-the-Art in Spatio-Temporal Data Warehousing, OLAP and Mining
Authors: Gómez Leticia , Kuijpers Bart , Moelans Bart , Vaisman Alejandro
Published: December 2012

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) have been extensively used in various application domains, ranging from economical, ecological and demographic analysis, to city and route planning. Nowadays, organizations need sophisticated GIS-based Decision Support System (DSS) to analyze their data with respect to geographic information, represented not only as attribute data, but also in maps. Thus, vendors are increasingly integrating their products, leading to the concept of SOLAP (Spatial OLAP). Also, in the last years, and motivated by the explosive growth in the use of PDA devices, the field of moving object data has been receiving attention from the GIS community, although not much work has been done to provide moving object databases with OLAP capabilities. In the first part of this paper we survey the SOLAP literature. We then address the problem of trajectory analysis, and review recent efforts regarding trajectory data warehousing and mining. We also provide an in-depth comparative study between two proposals: the GeoPKDD project (that makes use of the Hermes system), and Piet, a proposal for SOLAP and moving objects, developed at the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Finally, we discuss future directions in the field, including SOLAP analysis over raster data.
Pattern Mining for Outbreak Discovery Preparedness
Authors: Long Zalizah Awang , Hamdan Abdul Razak , Abu Bakar Azuraliza , Sahani Mazrura
Published: December 2012

Today, the objective of public health surveillance system is to reduce the impact of outbreaks by enabling appropriate intervention. Commonly used techniques are based on the changes or aberration in health events when compared with normal history to detect an outbreak. The main problem encountered in outbreaks is high rates of false alarm. High false alarm rates can lead to unnecessary interventions, and falsely detected outbreaks will lead to costly investigation. In this chapter, the authors review data mining techniques focusing on frequent and outlier mining to develop generic outbreak detection process model, named as “Frequent-outlier” model. The process model was tested against the real dengue dataset obtained from FSK, UKM, and also tested on the synthetic respiratory dataset obtained from AUTON LAB. The ROC was run to analyze the overall performance of “frequent-outlier” with CUSUM and Moving Average (MA). The results were promising and were evaluated using detection rate, false positive rate, and overall performance. An important outcome of this study is the knowledge rules derived from the notification of the outbreak cases to be used in counter measure assessment for outbreak preparedness.
Social Aid Fraud Detection System and Poverty Map Model Suggestion Based on Data Mining for Social Risk Mitigation
Authors: Koyuncugil Ali Serhan , Ozgulbas Nermin
Published: December 2012

After last global financial crisis, one of the most important concerns of the governments became unemployment. Higher unemployment rates haves been forcing governments to develop some policies. Some of these policies has been included financial policies while some of them included social policies. One of the most important concerns of social policies is social risk mitigation and fight against poverty and social aids as its extensions. In general, measurement of social events have been mostly based on subjective statements. More specifically, targeting mechanisms have been using for determination of potential social aid owners. Most popular targeting mechanisms are subjective ones as well. In this chapter, an objective targeting mechanism model and a fraud detection system model have been developed via data mining for social aids as an identifier of poverty levels which includes early warning signals for inappropriate applications. Then, these models have been used for development of a poverty map. Developed new targeting mechanism which has been based on rating approach will be an alternative to Means Test and Proxy Means Test. In addition, social aid fraud detection system will be updated automatic with Intelligent System property and the poverty map computation approach can be used for absence of detailed data. Furthermore, Millenium Development Goals, Targeting Mechanisms, Poverty and Poverty Maps concepts have been reviewed from an analytical and objective point of view.
Designing an Early Warning System for Stock Market Crashes by Using ANFIS
Authors: Acar Murat , Karahoca Dilek , Karahoca Adem
Published: December 2012

This chapter focuses on building a financial early warning system (EWS) to predict stock market crashes by using stock market volatility and rising stock prices. The relation of stock market volatility with stock market crashes is analyzed empirically. Also, Istanbul Stock Exchange (ISE) national 100 index data used to achieve better results from the view point of modeling purpose. A risk indicator of stock market crash is computed to predict crashes and to give an early warning signal. Various data mining classifiers are compared to obtain the best practical solution for the financial early warning system. Adaptive neuro fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) model was proposed to forecast stock market crashes efficiently. Also, ANFIS was explained in detail as a training tool for the EWS. The empirical results show that the fuzzy inference system has advantages to gain successful results for financial crashes.
Advances of the Location Based Context-Aware Mobile Services in the Transport Sector
Authors: Patris Georgios , Vescoukis Vassilios , Giaoutzi Maria
Published: December 2012

The present chapter focuses on the Location Based Context-aware Mobile Services (LBCAMS) in the context of the most recent technological advances in Decision Support Systems for the transport sector. The chapter demonstrates the rationale for the introduction of the Location Based Context-aware Mobile Services and the state of the art of the location-based services in the field of transport. In addition, a typology of market orientations is developed, including the demand side of context-ware mobile services in the field of transport. The chapter also introduces the theoretical outline of a five-layer model, studying the Location Based Context-aware Mobile Services, in a Decision Support System context, for applications in the transport sector. In order to advance understanding, some indicative applications are presented, on road safety and urban parking management and finally conclusions are drawn and future research orientations are explored.
Competition in Supply Chain
Authors: Rezapour Shabnam
Published: December 2012

In this chapter, first we will introduce the different forms of competition in the markets and the ways used in the literature to model them. Then we will discuss the kinds of competitions that exist in the field of supply chain. Finally we will present one of the works that have been done in each field in more detail.
An Examination of Standardized Product Identification and Business Benefit
Authors: Hill Douglas S.
Published: December 2012

This chapter goes on a supply chain journey where humankind attempts to make sense of its complex world through the application of numbers and associated data carriers. The trading world is famously becoming increasingly globalised and has had the effect of extending supply chains and subsequently making them more complex and prone to risk. To offset these risks, standards are being developed and applied in supply chains to identify and manage products as they travel along the physical supply chain. The following pages introduce the reader to the concepts of standardised product identity and data management. Both of these elements have been found to be foundational and enabling prerequisites when offsetting supply chain risk. The systems mentioned within the chapter are discussed through the lens of the GS1 system and have all been tested in manifold implementations. They are intended as best practices, patterns of application for supply chain managers, and thought leaders alike, which are proposed as a launch pad for improving organisational capabilities using standards.
Overview on 3PL Selection Problem
Authors: Aguezzoul Aicha
Published: December 2012

Many companies outsource their logistics functions to Third-Party Logistics providers (3PL) instead of achieving them internally. The studies on this field are mostly of empirical type and focused on reasons, benefits, and risks of working with 3PL as well as the role of those on supply chain management. This chapter focuses on 3PL selection problem and presents a literature analysis of 47 articles published within 2001-2011 period. The objective is to identify the mainly approaches applied and their evaluating criteria in measuring the performance of 3PL.
Proposed Framework for Research in the Triple A (Agility, Adaptability, Alignment) in Supply Chains
Authors: Arana-Solares Ivan , Machuca Jose , Alfalla-Luque Rafaela
Published: December 2012

In the rapidly changing global business environment, it can be seen that supply chain designs based solely on efficiency and speed do not necessarily lead to a sustainable competitive advantage. According to Lee (2004), this can only be done if supply chains are designed to incorporate the Triple A: Agility, Adaptability and Alignment. Although Lee provided some examples, to date his claim has not been empirically tested, which is essential. A number of studies have looked at the three component parts of the Triple A separately, but as yet no studies have focused on all three Triple A components concurrently, or on the impact they have on business performance. The main aim of this chapter is to determine the dimensions and factors that characterize these variables, in order to empirically test the accuracy of Lee’s claim.
The Outcome of Knowledge Process for Customers of Jordanian Companies on the Achievement of Customer Knowledge Retention
Authors: Talet Amine Nehari , Alhawari Samer , Alryalat Haroun
Published: December 2012

Organizations have increasingly recognized the importance of managing customer relationships, and Knowledge Management (KM) from the perspective of a process approaches assure positive impact on customer retention. Many organizations are turning to Customer Relationship Management (CRM) to better serve customers and facilitate closer relationships. This paper investigates how Knowledge Process for customers is used in practice by Jordanian companies to achieve Customer Knowledge Retention. The current practice is based on the data collected from 156, randomly drawn and reported from a survey of CRM applications and evaluation of CRM analytical functions provided by three software business solution companies working in the CRM area, and four companies that used the CRM system. Based on data collected from the companies, results from the analysis indicated that the knowledge process for customers had a positive effect on customer knowledge retention. The paper also verified the hypotheses of the effect of knowledge processes for customers on customer retention. The findings shed light on the potential relationship between the knowledge processes for customers and customer retention. It also provides guidance for the Information Technology (IT) industry as to how an analytical knowledge process for customers should be taken into account in developing countries to support to achieve customer knowledge retention due to cultural, social and educational differences.
Strategic Knowledge Management System Framework for Supply Chain at an Intra-Organizational Level
Authors: Gaumand Cécile , Chapdaniel Alain , Dudezert Aurélie
Published: December 2012

In the Web 2.0 and organization 2.0 era, implementing Knowledge Management Systems (KMS) in Supply Chain (SC) in companies should contribute to gain sustainable competitive advantage. Using a case-study in an Italian SME (BONFIGLIOLI), this chapter seeks to propose new processes and recommendations to design and operate an efficient KMS for a SC at an intra-organizational level. This case study shows in particular the role of IT as an artifact implying individuals in organizational knowledge creation. It also shows that implementing KMS in SC makes SC actors change their cognitive scheme and work practices and calls for a new role of middle management.
B2B eCommerce
Authors: Karakaya Fahri
Published: December 2012

This chapter discusses the use of Internet by businesses in marketing products and services to other businesses. The chapter starts with the well-known technology adoption model and the relationship between technology adoption and firm profitability and then expands into how businesses market to other businesses using a variety of methods and examples. Most businesses targeting their products and services to other businesses or distributors have developed web sites where purchasers can obtain information and place online orders with little or no human involvement. In addition to company specific web sites, there are also web portals where business customers and sellers meet to buy and sell products using auctions and bids. The chapter then discusses how to increase online traffic using search engine optimization as well as identifying potential customers using electronic databases. The chapter ends with a discussion on the importance of relationship marketing for B2B businesses using Customer Relationship Management software or other means.
Social Software in Customer Relationship Management
Authors: Memari Ammar , Gómez Jorge Marx , Asaad Waad
Published: December 2012

In this chapter, we present PurpleBee, a tool on top of Instant Messaging networks that serves as a communication point between the company and their customers. The application manifests itself as a “buddy” on the list of buddies the customer has on his IM service and allows him to interact in different ways with the company through sending and receiving Software Agents.
Trade Collaboration Systems
Authors: Denno Peter
Published: December 2012

A trade collaboration system (TCS) is a system designed to coordinate the work of supply chain stakeholders involved in the business processes of global logistics. Using the Software as a Service (SaaS) model, the TCS provides a cohesive, process-oriented viewpoint on the stakeholders’ collaborative work. The stakeholders supported by these systems include a customer and supplier, carriers, third party logistics providers (3PLs), freight forwarders, customs brokers, and government agencies. The National Institute of Standards and Technology, (NIST) through collaboration with the Automotive Industry Action Group (AIAG) is developing an enabling framework for trade collaboration systems. The AIAG Materials Off-Shore Sourcing (MOSS) project performed a pilot investigation of TCS capabilities in cooperation with a software vendor that developed a MOSS-conforming TCS. This chapter reports on the enabling framework, its approach to improving data quality (DQ), and a cost / benefit analysis of trade collaboration systems.1
Humanitarian Aid Logistics
Authors: Beresford Anthony , Pettit Stephen
Published: December 2012

This chapter contrasts the response to the Wenchuan earthquake (May 2008) which took place in a landlocked region of China with that of the January 2010 earthquake in Haiti, which as an island nation, was theoretically easily accessible to external aid provision via air or sea. In the initial period following the Wenchuan earthquake, the response was wholly internal as a detailed needs assessment was carried out. Once the Chinese authorities had established the scale of response required, international assistance was quickly allowed into the country. Several multimodal solutions were devised to minimize the risk of supply breakdown. Haiti required substantial external aid and logistics support, but severe organizational and infrastructural weaknesses rendered the supply chain extremely vulnerable locally. This translated to a mismatch between the volume of aid supplied and logistics capability, highlighting the importance of “last-mile” distribution management. The two earthquakes posed extreme challenges to the logistics operations, though both required a mix of military and non-military input into the logistics response. Nonetheless, in each case the non-standard logistics solutions which were devised broadly met the requirements for effective aid distribution in extreme environments.
Fuzzy Target Groups in Analytic Customer Relationship Management
Authors: Kaufmann Michael , Graf Cédric
Published: December 2012

Scoring models yield continuous predictions instead of sharp classifications. Scoring customers for profitability, loyalty, or product affinity corresponds to an inductive fuzzy classification: The model represents a continuous membership function mapping the set of customers into the fuzzy set of interesting customers – the fuzzy target group. This chapter presents a method for membership function induction based on normalized likelihood ratios. Applications of this method are proposed for selection, visualization, and prediction in the field of analytics in general, and for customer profiling, target group definition and customer scoring specifically for analytic customer relationship management. A real world case study is described. Furthermore, an implementation of the proposed method, developed at the research center for fuzzy marketing methods (FMsquare1), is presented.
Improving Performance and Customer Satisfaction via the Use of Information Technologies in Public Transportation and Logistics Systems
Authors: Sahin Dicle Yurdakul , Eliiyi Deniz Tursel
Published: December 2012

During the last two decades, the enhancements in Information Technologies (IT) and the extension of their usage have transformed completely the ways of doing business. In addition to providing a competitive advantage, the utilization of information technologies help businesses to organize all information related with their customers, increasing their level of satisfaction from the good or service provided, support decision making processes and increase the collaboration between supply chain members. Due to the increase in overseas trade and the globalization trends, the usage and importance of Information Technologies in transportation have risen up extremely. This chapter aims to emphasize the growing need for and role of IT in Turkish public logistics systems, present examples of these systems’ implementation around the world, and specific benefits to be gained in terms of efficient operations and improved performance, profitability, customer satisfaction, and social welfare. In this respect, the authors aim to draw attention to the significance of the management Information Systems in different areas of public service.
Applying Fuzzy Logic and Fuzzy Methods to Marketing
Authors: Donzé Laurent , Meier Andreas
Published: December 2012

Marketing deals with identifying and meeting the needs of customers. It is therefore both an art and a science. To bridge the gap between art and science, soft computing, or computing with words, could be an option. This chapter introduces fundamental concepts such as fuzzy sets, fuzzy logic, and computing with linguistic variables and terms. This set of fuzzy methods can be applied in marketing and customer relationship management. In the conclusion, future research directions are given for applying fuzzy logic to marketing and customer relationship management.
Key Issues and Challenges for Managing and Evaluating B2B E-Commerce Projects within the Australian Pharmaceutical Supply Chain
Authors: Lin Chad , Jalleh Geoffrey
Published: December 2012

The use of Business-to-Business (B2B) e-commerce within the Australian pharmaceutical supply chain can potentially assist in setting up an infrastructure which supports complex, multiparty Internet-based trading and transactions among pharmaceutical manufacturers, wholesalers, hospitals, pharmacies, medical supply importers and exporters, and other players in the healthcare system. Effective use of B2B e-commerce can help these organizations reduce costs in supplying and distributing medicines and other medical-related products to the general public. However, despite high expectations for realizing the benefits of B2B e-commerce in the pharmaceutical supply chain, issues surrounding its evaluation and management remain poorly understood and relatively under-researched. This chapter presents case study findings on key management and evaluation issues and challenges in adopting and utilizing B2B e-commerce systems on eight pharmaceutical organizations in Australia. The key objectives of this study are: (1) to establish current practices and norms in evaluating B2B e-commerce investments and projects in the pharmaceutical industry; and (2) to identify key B2B e-commerce management issues and challenges within the Australian pharmaceutical supply chain. A key contribution of this chapter is the identification and examination of key issues and challenges faced by the pharmaceutical organizations undertaking B2B e-commerce activities within their supply chain. The findings will guide senior executives in these organizations to develop their own approaches or strategies to manage the opportunities and threats that exist in the Australian pharmaceutical supply chain.
Coordination in Supply Chain Management
Authors: Sajadieh Mohsen Sheikh , Bolooriarabani Alireza
Published: December 2012

The aim of this chapter is to review various perspectives on supply chain (SC) coordination issues and appreciate a range of coordination categories and mechanisms. The application of information technology in supply chain coordination (SCC) and the related cases are also studied in this chapter.
Preparing for the Worst
Authors: Handfield Rob
Published: December 2012

The economic crisis has taken a major toll on almost every industry, as well as key customers and suppliers in all sectors of the economy. Supply chain managers are increasingly concerned about the financial impact on key customers and suppliers, deferred commitments and outstanding accounts. In an effort to probe into the underlying assumptions that their actions are based upon, the author surveyed supply chain executives, identifying key patterns that are beginning to emerge across industries and countermeasures that are being taken in response. Three key themes emerged. First, buyers and suppliers are co-dependent, and they should think within this context when faced with financial stress. Second, there is a need to better understand the warning signs and establish channels of communication, to address the key risks related to financial stress. Finally, managers should emphasize the need to better manage supplier relationships through modeling and event analysis, allowing them to take preventive actions before problems occur. These themes are discussed and developed into a set of propositions, as a foundation for future research.
Strategic Partners and Strange Bedfellows
Authors: Larson Paul D.
Published: December 2012

This chapter is about relationship building in relief supply chains. Its primary purpose is to present and discuss the author’s actor-based typology of humanitarian relationships. The framework includes relationships among NGOs, as well as between NGOs and UN agencies, military units, and business firms. Examples are used to explore unique issues in the various types of relationships. One particular NGO, Airline Ambassadors International, is offered as an example of an NGO that builds relationships with a wide variety of humanitarian actors. The chapter also examines compatibility and complementarity of organizations across the three phases of humanitarian work: preparation, response, and recovery or development. Research opportunities are discussed in the concluding comments.
Total Quality Management in the Global Supply Chain
Authors: Sanders Janet H.
Published: December 2012

This chapter provides an overview of the importance of total quality management in supply chain management. It provides a summary of the evolution of quality and how supply chain management fit into the evolution. It then discusses the importance of quality for each entity of the value chain and how the reduction of variability along the entire supply chain is critical to optimum delivery performance. The latter sections of the chapter discuss how quality and continuous improvement tools and methodologies can be mapped with supply chain management strategies to optimize the performance of the entire supply chain.
Evaluating Customer Relationship Management in the Context of Higher Education
Authors: Kosch Lubov , Friedrich Ina , Breitner Michael H.
Published: December 2012

The current economic climate has its effect on the higher education sector as less money is provided by governments and increasing number of students with higher demands and expectations intensify competition among universities. Customer relationship management (CRM) has become a key instrument in attracting paying students as retaining a long-lasting relationship provides financial and other benefits. This paper presents a structured literature review to analyze requirements for a student relationship management system (SRMS) as discussed in literature and analyzes the findings with results gained through an online survey which was conducted with students and alumni from four Ivy League universities. The results of this preliminary study show that universities need to focus on perceived service quality, satisfaction and trust of their students to enhance student and alumni retention. Preferred communication channels vary by communication partner and topic. In regard to student-university communication, university administrations need to improve their relationship and communication habits as student satisfaction with administrative services is lowest in comparison to lecturers and mentors. Current SRMS revealed gaps for student life support, class selection and financial aid.
Supply Chain Reengineering
Authors: Newlands David J.
Published: December 2012

This chapter describes a debacle that occurred when a large assembler of fast moving consumer electronics commissioned the set up of a new supply chain. Four key players undertaking five processes were involved. These companies planned to operate sell-buy relationships. Upon starting to ramp-up of the first product component sets, it became clear that companies did not trust their successors to pay for all goods delivered. Similarly, suppliers were not trusted to deliver perfect goods. Companies receiving component sets refused liability for damage or defects introduced by companies further up the supply chain. A remedial quick-fix using centralised inspection at the principal supplier soon was adopted to facilitate supply of complete sets of mechanical parts to the assembler. Significant similarities exist between the case study supply chain and the concepts used in business process reengineering. The chapter identifies stages undertaken to improve an inbound supply chain for complex plastic mouldings assemblies. The principal research methods used were participant-observer and action orientation. All company names have been disguised to comply with confidentiality agreements. The author was a Logistics Project Leader during the period of this research. He acted as an internal consultant for Alpha Co, with responsibilities for encouraging new product development teams to modify the products to take into consideration ‘design for logistics’ concepts.
The Human Side of Supply Chains
Authors: Ancarani Alessandro , Di Mauro Carmela
Published: December 2012

The adoption of the behavioural approach for the study of OM and Supply Chain Management is still fairly novel. However, there is evidence that in order to improve supply chain management it is crucial to develop models that correctly describe human behaviour. Failure to account for behavioural components such as risk perception, time effects and social interaction may lead to models that are biased in their predictions. This chapter reviews extant behavioural research relevant to supply chain risk management. In particular, its implications for supply chain management are outlined, and opportunities for future developments of theory that is robust to behavioural effects are identified.
Greening the Automotive Supply Chain
Authors: Garg Miti
Published: December 2012

The word “green” today connotes less environmentally destructive practises that minimize damage to the environment and decrease the side- effects of modern day living. The challenges of modern day automotive supply chain management and logistics as well as green technology adoption have grown manifold in today’s profit-driven automotive industry. A few of these challenges are explored for- Jiangxi Chuaxing Hau Autos Co. Ltd., one of China’s growing automobile manufacturers and for Toyota, the world’s largest automaker in the following case studies.
Large Retailers’ Responsible Initiatives in Support of Local Communities
Authors: Risso Mario
Published: December 2012

In the aftermath of the financial and economic crisis, and as a result of consumer pressure, enterprises are increasingly expected to evolve strategies of corporate social responsibility (CSR) into sustainable business practices to create and sustain shared values. In such, large food retailers are intensifying their efforts to develop CSR initiatives that are able to achieve economic, environmental and social goals simultaneously, both upstream and downstream, in their supply chain. Recently, they have focused on managing closer relationships with customers by supporting the local communities to which their customers belong. Two case studies, Tesco PLC and Carrefour, are used to show how new local initiatives, fair miles/local buying and “social stores,” respectively, can be introduced as part of an emerging sustainable strategic view of large retailers. The descriptive study reveals an increasing interest of some large retailers in promoting sustainable projects that aim to entrench sustainability into their operations.
Consumer-Brand Relationship
Authors: Loureiro Sandra Maria Correia
Published: December 2012

The relationship between a brand and consumers is known to produce positive outcomes for both partners. Consumers develop relationships with diverse brands regarding brands as partners. Brands are humanized in the minds of consumers and therefore provide symbolic meanings and social and cultural value, which is beyond the utilitarian benefits. Following this paradigm, the purpose of this chapter is to show an overview of the research from customer relationship management to consumer-brand relationship and propose a theoretical model of consumer-brand relationship process. In this vein, the chapter begins with the conceptualization of customer relationship management. Then, the foundation, an overview of main theories, and the seminal models of consumer-brand relationship are shown. Finally, a model of consumer-brand relationship process is proposed and insights for further research are provided.
E-Procurement Systems as Tools for the Development of Supply Chains
Authors: Sánchez-Ramírez Cuauhtémoc , Alor-Hernandez Giner , Cortes-Robles Guillermo , García-Alcaráz Jorge Luis , Rodríguez-González Alejandro
Published: December 2012

The Supply Chain Management is a strategy that has allowed the organizations that have established in their business models a competitive advantage. The supply chain is a network of elements, where different key process such as: procurement, manufacturing, distribution, inventory, customer services, and information should be managed and controlled to meet customer requirements. To achieve this goal, different tools have been developed to help to the key processes of the supply chain; one of these tools is the e-procurement system, which helps an organization to control the interactions with the most crucial suppliers.
Adaptive Network Structures for Data/Text Pattern Recognition (Theory)
Authors: Buabin Emmanuel
Published: December 2012

The objective of this chapter is the introduction of artificial neural networks in the context of directed graphs. In particular, a linkage from graph theory through signal flow graphs to artificial neural networks is provided. Within the context of pattern recognition, a number of feed-forward neural based approaches are introduced and discussed. Motivation leading to the design of each neural method is also given. The main contribution of this book chapter is the provision of a basic introductory text with less mathematical rigor for the benefit of students, tutors, lecturers, researchers, and/or professionals who wish to delve into the foundational representations, concepts, and theory of bio-inspired intelligent systems.
Chinese Postman Problem
Authors: Mohammaditabar Davood
Published: December 2012

One of the very popular applications of the graph theory in real world problems is related to the concept of Eulerian tours and trails introduced in Eulerian trail and tours chapter. There are many problems in which users should serve all the connections (edges in a graph, streets of a city, pipelines of a network and etc.) between nodes. In chapter 7 of this book, the existence of such trails and tours in graphs were discussed, and appropriate algorithms were introduced to find Eulerian trails and tour. But in the case a graph does not have such a tour or trail, it’s important to traverse some edges more than once, and this is what usually happens in real world applications. M.K. Kwan in 1962 was the first who introduced this problem as the Chinese postman problem (CPP). The question was that, given a postal zone with a number of streets that must be served by a postal carrier, how can one develop a tour that covers every street in the zone and brings the postman back to his or her point of origin, having traveled the minimum possible distance (Wang et al., 2008)? In this chapter, the Chinese postman problem is discussed, and different variations of it are introduced. Then the very early form of the CPP in which the graph is undirected is explained in more detail.
GuessXQ
Authors: Fonte Daniela Morais , da Cruz Daniela , Henriques Pedro Rangel , Gancarski Alda Lopes
Published: December 2012

XML is a widely used general-purpose annotation formalism for creating custom markup languages. XML annotations give structure to plain documents to interpret their content. To extract information from XML documents XPath and XQuery languages can be used. However, the learning of these dialects requires a considerable effort. In this context, the traditional Query-By-Example methodology (for Relational Databases) can be an important contribution to leverage this learning process, freeing the user from knowing the specific query language details or even the document structure. This chapter describes how to apply the Query-By-Example concept in a Web-application for information retrieval from XML documents, the GuessXQ system. This engine is capable of deducing, from an example, the respective XQuery statement. The example consists of marking the desired components directly on a sample document, picked-up from a collection. After inferring the corresponding query, GuessXQ applies it to the collection to obtain the desired result.
On Quality Assessment of Learning Technology Specifications
Authors: Janssen José , Berlanga Adriana J. , Koper Rob
Published: December 2012

Specifications can be considered “hidden” technology: they are deployed in tools and applications without being directly visible. This poses a challenge regarding quality assessment of this type of technology. This chapter describes a framework for quality assessment of learning technology specifications and how it was used to evaluate and improve a case in point: the Learning Path Specification. However, although the importance of raising the quality of a specification is beyond question, this in itself is no guarantee for its (wider) adoption. The final section of this chapter discusses how quality assessment of the Learning Path Specification at best informs us on its chances of gaining adoption, but by no means suffices to establish it. For this discussion, the authors draw on Rogers’s work regarding five perceived characteristics of innovations influencing their diffusion: relative advantage, compatibility, complexity, triability, and observability.
Uniform Sampling of Rotations for Discrete and Continuous Learning of 2D Shape Models
Authors: Perez-Sala Xavier , Igual Laura , Escalera Sergio , Angulo Cecilio
Published: December 2012

Different methodologies of uniform sampling over the rotation group, SO(3), for building unbiased 2D shape models from 3D objects are introduced and reviewed in this chapter. State-of-the-art non uniform sampling approaches are discussed, and uniform sampling methods using Euler angles and quaternions are introduced. Moreover, since presented work is oriented to model building applications, it is not limited to general discrete methods to obtain uniform 3D rotations, but also from a continuous point of view in the case of Procrustes Analysis.
Security Applications Using Computer Vision
Authors: Sasi Sreela
Published: December 2012

Computer vision plays a significant role in a wide range of homeland security applications. The homeland security applications include: port security (cargo inspection), facility security (embassy, power plant, bank), and surveillance (military or civilian), et cetera. Video surveillance cameras are placed in offices, hospitals, banks, ports, parking lots, parks, stadiums, malls, train stations, airports, et cetera. The challenge is not for acquiring surveillance data from these video cameras, but for identifying what is valuable, what can be ignored, and what demands immediate attention. Computer vision systems attempt to construct meaningful and explicit descriptions of the environment or scene captured in an image. A few Computer Vision based security applications are presented here for securing building facility, railroad (Objects on railroad, and red signal detection), and roads.
Computer Vision Applications of Self-Organizing Neural Networks
Authors: García-Rodríguez José , García-Chamizo Juan Manuel , Orts-Escolano Sergio , Morell-Gimenez Vicente , Serra-Pérez José Antonio , Angelolopoulou Anatassia , Psarrou Alexandra , Cazorla Miguel , Viejo Diego
Published: December 2012

This chapter aims to address the ability of self-organizing neural network models to manage video and image processing in real-time. The Growing Neural Gas networks (GNG) with its attributes of growth, flexibility, rapid adaptation, and excellent quality representation of the input space makes it a suitable model for real time applications. A number of applications are presented, including: image compression, hand and medical image contours representation, surveillance systems, hand gesture recognition systems, and 3D data reconstruction.
Intelligent Stereo Vision in Autonomous Robot Traversability Estimation
Authors: Nalpantidis Lazaros , Kostavelis Ioannis , Gasteratos Antonios
Published: December 2012

Traversability estimation is the process of assessing whether a robot is able to move across a specific area. Autonomous robots need to have such an ability to automatically detect and avoid non-traversable areas and, thus, stereo vision is commonly used towards this end constituting a reliable solution under a variety of circumstances. This chapter discusses two different intelligent approaches to assess the traversability of the terrain in front of a stereo vision-equipped robot. First, an approach based on a fuzzy inference system is examined and then another approach is considered, which extracts geometrical descriptions of the scene depth distribution and uses a trained support vector machine (SVM) to assess the traversability. The two methods are presented and discussed in detail.
Collaborative Exploration Based on Simultaneous Localization and Mapping
Authors: Puig Domenec
Published: December 2012

This chapter focuses on the study of SLAM taking into account different strategies for modeling unknown environments, with the goal of comparing several methodologies and test them in real robots even if they are heterogeneous. The purpose is to combine them in order to reduce the exploration time. Indubitably, it is not an easy work because it is important to take into account the problem of integrating the information related with the changes into the map. In this way, it is necessary to obtain a representation of the surrounding in an efficiently way. Furthermore, the author is interested in the collaboration between robots, because it is well-known that a team of robots is capable of completing a given task faster than a single robot. This assumption will be checked by using both simulations and real robots in different experiments. In addition, the author combines the benefits of both vision-based and laser-based systems in the integration of the algorithms.
Artificial Visual Attention Using Combinatorial Pyramids
Authors: Antúnez E. , Haxhimusa Y. , Marfil R. , Kropatsch W. G. , Bandera A.
Published: December 2012

Computer vision systems have to deal with thousands, sometimes millions of pixel values from each frame, and the computational complexity of many problems related to the interpretation of image data is very high. The task becomes especially difficult if a system has to operate in real-time. Within the Combinatorial Pyramid framework, the proposed computational model of attention integrates bottom-up and top-down factors for attention. Neurophysiologic studies have shown that, in humans, these two factors are the main responsible ones to drive attention. Bottom-up factors emanate from the scene and focus attention on regions whose features are sufficiently discriminative with respect to the features of their surroundings. On the other hand, top-down factors are derived from cognitive issues, such as knowledge about the current task. Specifically, the authors only consider in this model the knowledge of a given target to drive attention to specific regions of the image. With respect to previous approaches, their model takes into consideration not only geometrical properties and appearance information, but also internal topological layout. Once the focus of attention has been fixed to a region of the scene, the model evaluates if the focus is correctly located over the desired target. This recognition algorithm considers topological features provided by the pre-attentive stage. Thus, attention and recognition are tied together, sharing the same image descriptors.
Survivability Enhancing Techniques for RFID Systems
Authors: Zuo Yanjun
Published: December 2012

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) has been applied in various high security and high integrity settings. As an important ubiquitous technique, RFID offers opportunities for real-time item tracking, object identification, and inventory management. However, due to the high distribution and vulnerability of its components, an RFID system is subject to various threats which could affect the system’s abilities to provide essential services to users. Although there have been intensive studies on RFID security and privacy, there is still no complete solution to RFID survivability. In this paper, the authors classify the RFID security techniques that could be used to enhance an RFID system’s survivability from three aspects, i.e., resilience, robustness and fault tolerance, damage assessment and recovery. A threat model is presented, which can help users identify devastating attacks on an RFID system. An RFID system must be empowered with strong protection to withstand those attacks and provide essential functions to users.
Effect of Personal Innovativeness, Attachment Motivation, and Social Norms on the Acceptance of Camera Mobile Phones
Authors: Rouibah Kamel , Abbas H. T.
Published: December 2012

This study develops a model to assess the consumer acceptance of Camera Mobile Phone (CMP) technology for social interaction. While there has been considerable research on technology adoption in the workplace, far fewer studies have been done to understand the motives of technology acceptance for social use. To fill in this gap, this study develops a model that is based on the following theories: the technology acceptance model, the theory of reasoned action, the attachment motivation theory, innovation diffusion theory, and the theory of flow. The first research method used was a qualitative field study that identified variables that most drive CMP acceptance and build the research model using a sample of 83 consumers. The second method was a quantitative field study. Data was collected from a sample of 240 consumers in Kuwait and used to test the proposed model. The results reveal two types of use: “social use” and “use before shopping,” explaining 32.3% and 30% of the variance respectively. Most importantly, the study reveals that personal innovativeness, attachment motivation and social norms have an important effect on CMP acceptance. The implications of this study are highly important for both researchers and practitioners.
MICA
Authors: Prause Christian R. , Jentsch Marc , Eisenhauer Markus
Published: December 2012

Thousands of small and medium-sized companies world-wide have non-automated warehouses. Picking orders are manually processed by blue-collar workers; however, this process is highly error-prone. There are various kinds of picking errors that can occur, which cause immense costs and aggravate customers. Even experienced workers are not immune to this problem. In turn, this puts a high pressure on the warehouse personnel. In this paper, the authors present a mobile assistance system for warehouse workers that realize the new Interaction-by-Doing principle. MICA unobtrusively navigates the worker through the warehouse and effectively prevents picking errors using RFID. In a pilot project at a medium-sized enterprise the authors evaluate the usability, efficiency, and sales potential of MICA. Findings show that MICA effectively reduces picking times and error rates. Consequentially, job training periods are shortened, while at the same time pressure put on the individual worker is reduced. This leads to lower costs for warehouse operators and an increased customer satisfaction.
Ontology-Based Personal Annotation Management on Semantic Peer Network to Facilitating Collaborations in E-Learning
Authors: Yeh Ching-Long , Chang Chun-Fu , Lin Po-Shen
Published: December 2012

The trend of services on the web is making use of resources on the web collaborative. Semantic Web technology is used to build an integrated infrastructure for the new services. This paper develops a distributed knowledge based system using the RDF/OWL technology on peer-to-peer networks to provide the basis of building personal social collaboration services for e-Learning. This paper extends the current tools accompanied with lecture content to become annotation sharable using the distributed knowledge base.