bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Household disability costs and living standards in Turkey: evidence from a health reform
Authors: Ozdamar Oznur , Giovanis Eleftherios , Samuk Sahizer
Published: December 2020

Purpose

In this study, we attempt to estimate the disability costs of households employing the Standard of Livings (SoL) approach and evaluate the impact of the Universal health system reform implemented in Turkey in 2008.

Design/methodology/approach

We apply a Structural Equation Modelling (SEM), which simultaneously estimates the disability and living standard equations, including unobserved latent variables. Moreover, we apply a difference-in-differences (DiD) framework to investigate the impact of the universal health insurance (UHI) system and the Green Card programme on living standards. The empirical analysis relies on data derived from the cross-sectional Household Budget Surveys (HBS) during the period 2002–2013.

Findings

Our findings suggest a negative and significant impact of disability on SoL, where disability costs reach the 23% of the household income, which is equivalent almost to $2,600 (USD). Furthermore, the disability costs are reduced from $4,450 to $2,260 due to the UHI and the Green Card programme.

Research limitations/implications

A major limitation of the study is the data structure, which is based on repeated cross-sectional surveys. By using panel data, it is possible to follow the same individual across time and to implement panel data models to control for unobserved heterogeneity and omitted-variable bias.

Social implications

Disability has adverse effects on living standards. The estimation of the disability-related costs may provide a useful guide on policy planning and the design of social benefits.

Originality/value

The contribution of this paper is that it is the first study estimating the disability-related costs in Turkey. Furthermore, the contribution lies in the investigation of the 2008 health reform and the Green Card programme and its impact on disability costs.
Linking supply chain disruptions with organisational performance of construction firms: the moderating role of innovation
Authors: Kissi Ernest , Agyekum Kofi , Musah Labaran , Owusu-Manu De-Graft , Debrah Caleb
Published: December 2020

Purpose

Supply chain (SC) disruption, whether demand sided or supply sided, is conversely perceived to affect organisational performance of construction firms. This paper, therefore, aims to examine the linkage of supply chain disruptions with organisational performance of construction firms through the moderating role of innovation.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a quantitative research, approach the views of 84 construction professionals were elicited using a structured questionnaire. Ordinary least squares were utilised to validate the hypotheses set.

Findings

The study proved that there is a negative relationship between demand-related disruption and business performance as well as project performance. Also, it was clear from the study that supply-related disruptions had a significant impact on both project performance and business performance. Although SC innovation was seen to impact business performance, it had no relationship with project performance. Generally, innovation was seen to have a moderating effect of demand and supply disruption of project performance, but it played no moderating role in business performance.

Practical implications

The findings suggest that business firms must be innovative with the supply chain, as it moderated project success. The supply chain of a construction firm plays a very critical role on projects; hence, this study recommends that a supply chain manager ought to be innovative in their operations due to the moderating role SC innovation has on project performance and largely business performance.

Originality/value

Various studies on supply chain has been done on different sectors in the economy; however, little can be said about the construction industry on how supply chain disruptions affects business and project performance and how innovation moderates such effects.
Explicating the business model from a knowledge-based view: nature, structure, imitability and competitive advantage erosion
Authors: Chen Jin , Wang Luyao , Qu Guannan
Published: December 2020

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to conceptualize the business model (BM) from a knowledge-based view (KBV), to interpret its nature and knowledge structure and to investigate the relationship between its imitability and the erosion of firm’s competitive advantage.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on a systematic literature review, this study builds an integrated framework to explicate the nature and structure of the BM from a KBV. Moreover, on the analysis of two contrasting cases, the argument concerning the relationship between BM imitability and its strategic value is proposed, analyzed and supported.

Findings

The main finding of this study is that a BM can be viewed as a structured knowledge cluster that contains explicit and implicit parts. Its imitation is a dynamic process of knowledge diffusion across firm boundaries. Ceteris paribus, with a lower proportion of implicit knowledge, a BM is more likely to be imitated and the adopter’s competitive advantage is more likely to be eroded, and vice versa.

Practical implications

The proposed framework could provide managers with a deeper understanding of the nature and structure of the BM and help potential adopters develop a successful entry strategy by avoiding BMs that seem profitable but are incapable of maintaining competitive advantage.

Originality/value

As a complement to previous studies, the research conceptualizes the BM as a “structured knowledge cluster” to explicate its nature and knowledge structure from a KBV. The implicit part of the BM is explored, and its importance for the adopter’s competitive advantage is discussed and verified.
A framework for managing the agri-fresh food supply chain quality in Indian industry
Authors: Siddh Man Mohan , Soni Gunjan , Jain Rakesh , Sharma Milind Kumar , Yadav Vinod
Published: December 2020

Purpose

Research in agri-fresh food supply chain quality (AFSCQ) has been given less consideration in developing countries as compared to developed countries and its role in achieving organizational sustainability has not been researched yet. Thus, this study aims to determine and combine numerous significant factors to establish a framework for managing AFSCQ practices favorable to organizational sustainability in the Indian context.

Design/methodology/approach

To accomplish this, all-inclusive framework of AFSCQ has been established through succeeding phases of data collection, analysis using structural equation modelling along with refinement of data. The collection of data for this study was from the Indian food industry, which relates to agri-fresh food products.

Findings

The AFSCQ practices are conducive to enrich organizational sustainability, and then enhance economic, social and environmental performance indirectly. The study established relationships among the AFSCQ practices promising to enhance organizational sustainability.

Originality/value

AFSCQ practices have a huge impact on organizational sustainability by means of practices that sum up activities along the whole supply chain. The organizational sustainability consists of economic, social and environmental sustainability.
VaR and market value of Fintech companies: an analysis and evidence from global data
Authors: Najaf Khakan , Schinckus Christophe , Chee Yoong Liew
Published: December 2020

Purpose

This study aims at determining the portfolio value at risk (VAR) and market value of Fintech firms and compare it with their counterparts.

Design/methodology/approach

By using on a dataset from 46 countries between 2009 and 2018, the authors use five measures of VaR to investigate their empirical dynamics in relation with the market value of Fintech and non-Fintech companies.

Findings

The empirical results indicate that Fintech firms' portfolios have a higher financial risk and a higher market value in comparison to non-fintech firms' portfolios. Furthermore, the authors also report that the Fintech firm portfolios experience more financial risk regardless of the holding period as long-term (one year) or short-term (quarter).

Research limitations/implications

There are some limitations in this research. This research does not segregate Fintech firms into their different types of services, such as direct financial investment services, loan provision services, insurance services (InsurTech), etc. The authors only aggregate the Fintech firms by country and region. Future research may consider analysing Fintech firms by differentiating the kind of financial services they offer

Practical implications

Given the importance of their market value, the results imply that Fintech companies might contribute significantly to financial fluctuations in case of large variations of the market. In terms of policy recommendation, this observation requires a particular attention from the regulatory bodies who need to find the best economic balance between promoting innovation/financial technology and regulating the Fintech companies.

Originality/value

This paper is the first study clarifying the relation of financial risk and market value for the Fintech firms, using the large enough database to obtain significant results. This article implies that Fintech companies require a robust risk management framework
Combining glomerular basement membrane and tubular basement membrane assessment improves the prediction of diabetic end‐stage renal disease
Authors: Zhao Lijun , Zhang Junlin , Lei Song , Ren Honghong , Zou Yutong , Bai Lin , Zhang Rui , Xu Huan , Li Lin , Zhao Yuancheng , Cooper Mark E. , Tong Nanwei , Zhang Jie , Liu Fang
Published: December 2020

Background

To address the prognostic value of combining tubular basement membrane (TBM) and glomerular basement membrane (GBM) thickness in diabetic nephropathy (DN).

Methods

This retrospective study enrolled 110 patients with type 2 diabetes and biopsy‐proven DN from 2011 to 2018. The pathological findings were confirmed according to the Renal Pathology Society classifications. GBM and TBM thicknesses were determined using the Haas' direct measurement/arithmetic mean method and orthogonal intercept method, respectively. Cox proportional hazard models were used to investigate the hazard ratios (HRs) for the influence of combined GBM and TBM thickness for predicting end‐stage renal disease (ESRD).

Results

Patients were assigned to three groups according to the median GBM and TBM thickness: GBMloTBMlo (GBM < 681 nm and TBM < 1200 nm), GBMhiTBMlo/GBMloTBMhi (GBM ≥ 681 nm and TBM < 1200 nm, or GBM < 681 nm and TBM ≥ 1200 nm), and GBMhiTBMhi (GBM ≥ 681 nm and TBM ≥ 1200 nm). The GBMhiTBMlo/GBMloTBMhi and GBMhiTBMhi groups displayed poorer renal function, a more severe glomerular classification and interstitial inflammation, and poorer renal survival rates than the GBMloTBMlo group The GBMhiTBMlo/GBMloTBMhi and GBMhiTBMhi groups had adjusted HRs of 1.49 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.21‐9.75) and 3.07 (95% CI, 2.87‐12.78), respectively, compared with the GBMloTBMlo group.

Conclusions

TBM thickness enhanced GBM thickness for renal prognosis in patients with type 2 diabetes.
The Dynamics of Maya State Process: An Integrated Perspective from the San Lucas Neighborhood of Copán, Honduras
Authors: Landau Kristin V.
Published: December 2020

Recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the city of Copán was a major center of Maya culture during the Classic Period (AD 250–900). While archaeologists have been traditionally concerned with the top‐down despotic power of Maya rulers, I show how infrastructural power—the ability of the state to affect the everyday lives of its residents—waxed and waned. As a representative subset of the city at large, the intermediate scale of neighborhoods best reveals effects of and reactions to state power. I focus on politcal dynamics at six households within the San Lucas neighorbood, attending to episodes of landscape engineering, architectural construction, and artifactual trends. I consider these changes together with political events recorded in hieroglyphic inscriptions at Copán Center. This correlation shows whether and how state policies altered the daily lives of residents. Incorporating a bottom‐up perspective from the intermediate scale of neighborhoods enables an integrated assessment of citywide political dynamics. [political dynamics, collective action theory, urbanism, neighborhoods, Maya]
Communication as Care across Borders: Forging and Co‐Opting Relationships of Obligation in Transnational Salvadoran Families
Authors: Arnold Lynnette
Published: December 2020

Recent scholarship on care urges close ethnographic attention to specific care practices rather than to the reflexive, meaning‐making accounts that dominated previous work, setting up a distinction between enacting and signifying care. However, as transnational Salvadoran families care through cross‐border communication, they produce and enact imaginaries of relational obligation that constitute asymmetrical care roles for migrants and nonmigrants. Communicative care practices thus simultaneously produce care and make care meaningful. As a multifunctional form of social action, care through communication works to sustain transnational kin ties even as it mirrors and incrementally reproduces global inequalities between North and South. The communicative mobilization of care across space and time thus regenerates kinship in ways that enact political belonging and exclusion. [care, communication, transnational families, migration, political economy]
Social support and diabetes distress among adults with type 2 diabetes covered by Alabama Medicaid
Authors: Presley Caroline A. , Mondesir Favel L. , Juarez Lucia D. , Agne April A. , Riggs Kevin R. , Li Yufeng , Pisu Maria , Levitan Emily B. , Bronstein Janet M. , Cherrington Andrea L.
Published: December 2020

Aims

Diabetes distress affects approximately 36% of adults with diabetes and is associated with worse diabetes self‐management and poor glycaemic control. We characterized participants’ diabetes distress and studied the relationship between social support and diabetes distress.

Methods

In this cross‐sectional study, we surveyed a population‐based sample of adults with type 2 diabetes covered by Alabama Medicaid. We used the Diabetes Distress Scale assessing emotional burden, physician‐related, regimen‐related and interpersonal distress. We assessed participants’ level of diabetes‐specific social support and satisfaction with this support, categorized as low or moderate–high. We performed multivariable logistic regression of diabetes distress by level of and satisfaction with social support, adjusting for demographics, disease severity, self‐efficacy and depressive symptoms.

Results

In all, 1147 individuals participated; 73% were women, 41% White, 58% Black and 3% Hispanic. Low level of or satisfaction with social support was reported by 11% of participants; 7% of participants had severe diabetes distress. Participants with low satisfaction with social support were statistically significantly more likely to have severe diabetes distress than those with moderate–high satisfaction, adjusted odds ratio 2.43 (95% CI 1.30, 4.54).

Conclusions

Interventions addressing diabetes distress in adults with type 2 diabetes may benefit from a focus on improving diabetes‐specific social support.
Resistance and tolerance of Douglas‐fir seedlings to inoculation with the fungal root pathogen Coniferiporia sulphurascens
Authors: Cruickshank Mike G. , Sturrock Rona N. , Pellow Kevin W. , Leal Isabel
Published: December 2020

Two‐year‐old interior Douglas‐fir seedlings in a greenhouse were artificially inoculated with Coniferiporia sulphurascens and grown for four years. The study population included 2,261 seedlings from 94 half‐sibling families distributed across four breeding zones. There was little mortality over the 4 years, but there was advanced stain internally at the root collar from infection by the fungus indicating host resistance/susceptibility. The breeding zones had no effect on stain incidence. The tallest trees had more staining, differing up to 30% incidence over the size range, and the families had at most ±6% incidence in stain from the average. Disease tolerance, assessed by height growth relative to controls, was affected by zone and family. The tallest families were the least tolerant, by at most 5% less than control tree height. There was little association between tolerance and resistance at the family level, meaning that both disease response mechanisms were likely separate. The most common response strategy at the family level was to combine higher resistance and tolerance, being about twice as common as lower resistance and tolerance trait combinations. Interior isolates of the fungus may have lower virulence than coastal isolates, which might help to explain the low genetic response to the fungus. Inoculum reduction versus tree breeding may be a better strategy for control of the disease for interior Douglas‐fir.
Accounting information, disclosure, and expected utility: Do investors really abhor uncertainty?
Authors: Johnstone D. J.
Published: December 2020

Investors are said to “abhor uncertainty,” but if there were no uncertainty they could earn only the risk‐free rate. A fundamental result in the analytical accounting literature shows that investors buying into a CARA‐normal CAPM market pay lower asset prices, gain higher ex‐ante expected returns, and obtain higher expected utility, when the market payoff has higher variance. New investors obtain similar “welfare” gains from risk under a log/power utility CAPM. These results do not imply that investors “abhor information.” To realize investors' ex‐ante expectations, the subjective probability distributions representing market expectations must be accurate. Greater payoff risk can add to investors' expected utility, but higher ex‐post(realized) utility comes from better information and more accurate ex‐ante expectations. An important implication for accounting is that greater disclosure can have the simultaneous effects of (i) exposing more fully or perceptibly firms' payoff uncertainty, thereby increasing new investors' expected utility, and (ii) improving market estimates of firms' payoff parameters (means, variances, covariances), thereby giving investors a better chance of realizing their expectations. Paradoxically, better information can be valuable to new investors by exposing more fully and more accurately the risk in firms' business operations and results–new investors maximizing expected utility want both more risk and better information.
Extracellular vesicles‐encapsulated let‐7i shed from bone mesenchymal stem cells suppress lung cancer via KDM3A/DCLK1/FXYD3 axis
Authors: Liu Jiefeng , Feng Yuhua , Zeng Xinyu , He Miao , Gong Yujing , Liu Yiping
Published: December 2020

Accumulating evidence has suggested that extracellular vesicles (EVs) play a crucial role in lung cancer treatment. Thus, we aimed to investigate the modulatory role of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cell (BMSC)‐EV‐derived let‐7i and their molecular mechanism in lung cancer progression. Microarray‐based analysis was applied to predict lung cancer‐related miRNAs and their downstream genes. RT‐qPCR and Western blot analyses were conducted to determine Let‐7i, lysine demethylase 3A (KDM3A), doublecortin‐like kinase 1 (DCLK1) and FXYD domain‐containing ion transport regulator 3 (FXYD3) expressions, after which dual‐luciferase reporter gene assay and ChIP assay were used to identify the relationship among them. After loss‐ and gain‐of‐function assays, the effects of let‐7i, KDM3A, DCLK1 and FXYD3 on the biological characteristics of lung cancer cells were assessed. Finally, tumour growth in nude mice was assessed by xenograft tumours in nude mice. Bioinformatics analysis screened out the let‐7i and its downstream gene, that is KDM3A. The findings showed the presence of a high expression of KDM3A and DCLK1 and reduced expression of let‐7i and FXYD3 in lung cancer. KDM3A elevated DCLK1 by removing the methylation of H3K9me2. Moreover, DCLK1 suppressed the FXYD3 expression. BMSC‐EV‐derived let‐7i resulted in the down‐regulation of KDM3A expression and reversed its promoting role in lung cancer development. Consistently, in vivo experiments in nude mice also confirmed that tumour growth was suppressed by the BMSC‐EV‐derived let‐7i. In conclusion, our findings demonstrated that the BMSC‐EV‐derived let‐7i possesses an inhibitory role in lung cancer progression through the KDM3A/DCLK1/FXYD3 axis, suggesting a new molecular target for lung cancer treatment.
MRI Detection of Changes in Tissue Sodium Concentration in Brain Metastases after Stereotactic Radiosurgery: A Feasibility Study
Authors: A. Mohamed Sherif , Adlung Anne , Ruder Arne M. , Hoesl Michaela A. U. , Schad Lothar , Groden Christoph , Giordano Frank A. , Neumaier‐Probst Eva
Published: December 2020

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

To date, treatment response to stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) in brain metastases (BM) can only be determined by MRI evaluation of contrast‐enhancing lesions in a long‐time follow‐up. Sodium MRI has been a subject of immense interest in imaging research as the measure of tissue sodium concentration (TSC) can give valuable quantitative information on cell viability. We aimed to analyze the longitudinal changes of TSC in BM measured with 23Na MRI before and after SRS for assessment of early local tumor effects.

METHODS

Seven patients with a total of 12 previously untreated BM underwent SRS with 22 Gy. In addition to a standard MRI protocol including dynamic susceptibility‐weighted contrast‐enhanced perfusion, a 23Na MRI was performed at three time points: (I) 2 days before, (II) 5 days, and (III) 40 days after SRS. Nine BMs were evaluated. The absolute TSC in the BM, the respective peritumoral edemas, and the normal‐appearing corresponding contralateral brain area were assessed and the relative TSC were correlated to the changes in BM longest axial diameters.

RESULTS

TSC was elevated in nine BM at baseline before SRS with a mean of 73.4 ± 12.3 mM. A further increase in TSC was observed 5 days after SRS in all the nine BM with a mean of 86.9 ± 13 mM. Eight of nine BM showed a mean 60.6 ± 13.3% decrease in the longest axial diameter 40 days after SRS; at this time point, the TSC also had decreased to a mean 65.1 ± 7.9 mM. In contrast, one of the nine BM had a 13.4% increase in the largest axial diameter at time point III. The TSC of this BM showed a further TSC increase of 80.1 mM 40 days after SRS.

CONCLUSION

Changes in TSC using 23Na MRI shows the possible capability to detect radiobiological changes in BM after SRS.
Homography‐based structural displacement measurement for large structures using unmanned aerial vehicles
Authors: Weng Yufeng , Shan Jiazeng , Lu Zheng , Lu Xilin , Spencer Billie F.
Published: December 2020

Structural displacement is an important quantity to assess the health of civil infrastructure. Vision‐based approaches using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) mounted with high‐resolution cameras have been proposed for this purpose. However, because the camera itself is moving with the UAV, any video obtained will contain both the motion of the structure and the motion of the camera. Planar homography can be used to eliminate the errors induced by the camera movement without the need for camera parameters. However, its direct application to large structures still has limitations, because capturing the undeformed regions, along with the measurement points on the structure, within a single image with sufficient resolution is seldom feasible. In this study, a new framework is presented to address these issues and facilitate the extraction of the structural displacement from videos taken by a UAV‐mounted camera. First, a two‐layer feedforward neural network (FNN) is adopted to obtain the image coordinates of the selected features of the structure on its stationary position, which are further used as homography features. Next, the structural displacement is estimated with the homography transformation matrix determined from the obtained homography features. Finally, the proposed approach is validated on both a six‐story shear‐building model in the laboratory and an elevator tower located in Zhongshan City, China. These results demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed approach.
A case series of medication‐related fibrovascular hyperplasia following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation for Fanconi anemia
Authors: Ballardin Bárbara Soldatelli , Mobile Rafael Zancan , Coracin Fábio Luiz , Ribeiro Lisandro Lima , Bonfim Carmem Maria Sales , Schussel Juliana Lucena , Carvalho Torres‐Pereira Cassius
Published: December 2020

Systemic medications categorized as diphenylhydantoin, calcineurin inhibitor and calcium channel blocker may have effects on the oral cavity by modifying the inflammatory and immune response and causing undesired tissue proliferative reactions. Calcineurin inhibitors are medications commonly used for long periods in patients undergoing allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) and solid organ transplantation. Medication‐related fibrovascular hyperplasia (MRFH) is an extra gingival hyperplastic nodular growth associated with medications use. This study reports five cases of pediatric patients (6 to 12‐years‐old) diagnosed with Fanconi anemia (FA) after HSCT who presented similar oral mucosal lesions associated with the use of cyclosporine, phenobarbital and amlodipine. After excision of the lesions, histopathological analysis described them as pyogenic granuloma (PG). As the aetiology of the lesions manifested by the patients was associated with the use of medications, the final diagnosis was MRFH. Despite the clinical and histopathological similarity between PG and MRFH, it is fundamental to know the aetiological agent for achieving definitive diagnosis and correct management. Considering the etiologic agent (medication) and histopathological findings, it is suggested that the most appropriate term for this manifestation should be “medication‐related fibrovascular hyperplasia”. The correct nomenclature related to extra gingival hyperplastic lesions identified in patients on medications with potential to induce hyperplastic reactions should be adopted to facilitate scientific communication and improve the treatment.
Corba-Based Collaboration in a Virtual Assembly Design Environment
Authors: Jayaram Uma , Jayaram Sankar , Yang Yong , Lyons Kevin
Published: December 2020

The use of virtual environments to plan and evaluate assembly processes has been gaining significant acceptance in the engineering community. The prohibitive costs of immersive virtual environments and the availability of the internet have brought to the forefront the need for methods for sharing the virtual environment during the assembly evaluation process. This will support true collaborative engineering. This paper presents the design and implementation of a CORBA-based distributed virtual assembly environment. The architecture is based on capturing key states and events in the virtual assembly process. This collaborative environment is based on the VADE system created at Washington State University. Test cases were conducted using this system and the results are presented in this paper.
Sketching Free-Forms in Semi-Immersive Virtual Environments
Authors: Stork André , Schimpke Oliver , de Amicis Raffaele
Published: December 2020

In spite of the widely used sophisticated software tools for mechanical design, serious difficulties are encountered in the styling phase of the design process when free-form surfaces (shortly free-forms) have to be modelled. In this paper we extend the ideas of Sachs19 pioneering 3-Draw which allowed curve sketching in 3D space in several ways: we support the creation of NURBS surfaces (not only curves), we use a semi-immersive environment centered around a table-like stereoscopic back-projection display (also know as Virtual Table or Responsive Workbench16) and we give the user an immediate preview while he sketches free-form surface.

This combination of features makes our approach unique in comparison to similar systems. Some of them only work on polyhedral models and others are restricted to indirect 3D interaction with control points. Our approach follows the Walk-Up VR concept: the user can just step in front of a Virtual Table and work on his task intuitively.
A Software Tool for WWW-Based Learning of Multibody Kinematics
Authors: Galletti Carlo , Giannotti Elena
Published: December 2020

In this work we present a new software tool for helping students perform basic kinematic analysis using Internet. It allows students to model and analyze planar multibody systems with rigid bodies. Master objects that contain data and algorithms for modeling and analyzing rigid bodies and lower kinematic pairs have been developed following an object-oriented approach. The layouts of the objects are discussed and the way of instancing them for defining a model of a multibody system is described. The student can analyze interactively the model created in this way, using the software tool itself, or he can export it to the MAPLE code. From MAPLE the student can obtain, in an automatic way, numerical or closed-form solutions of the kinematic equations.
Enabling Collaborative Engineering With Computer Tools
Authors: Kitto Kathleen L. , McKell Eric K.
Published: December 2020

The Engineering Technology Department at Western Washington University has been using the integration of advanced Computer Aided Engineering (CAE) tools to enable a redesign of the curriculum that uses a collaborative engineering approach similar to the environment used within our industrial counterparts. In today’s competitive global marketplace, those industrial organizations must produce higher quality, easier to manufacture and maintain parts in shorter periods of time. Products are most often created in concurrent engineering or collaborative business environments where rapid sharing of information is the very essence of modern engineering. In addition, the widespread use and availability of the Internet has changed the nature of engineering data management and exchange. Therefore, CAE tools must enable engineers, analysts, technologists and designers to do their jobs more efficiently in a world where time to market is ever shortening. The best CAE tools increase productivity, because they are “smarter” tools. Only when the students are well versed in the multi-faceted collaborative engineering atmosphere and the accompanying modern CAE tools within the curriculum are they truly ready to become immediately productive in the workplace after graduation.

This paper first describes the collaborative engineering approach used in the curriculum within the Engineering Technology Department during the past two years. It then describes the use of CAE tools used in the collaborative engineering approach in departmental projects. Next, it details the classes that have been specifically enabled by the use CAE tools including Engineering Design Graphics I, Engineering Design Graphics II, Numerical Control Operations, Advanced Computer Numerical Control (CNC), Tool Design, and Computer Integrated Manufacturing (which includes rapid prototyping and finite element analysis). The final section of the paper outlines future plans for enhancing the curriculum further in both the integration of computer tools and the continued development of continuing cross-disciplinary projects based on careful outcomes assessment and feedback from industrial advisory boards and professional societies.
A Requirement-Centered Design Support System for the Environmentally Conscious Product
Authors: Kurakawa Kei , Nakakoji Kumiyo , Kiriyama Takashi
Published: December 2020

We have developed the Green Browser to support a team of designers to collaboratively construct and share the product life cycle information for environmentally conscious design. We developed the ReqC model (Requirement-Centered Model) and the GLC model (Green Life-Cycle Model) for structuring design information in the Green Browser. The system allows the design team to construct the GLC model by chunking discourse and assigning types. It provides a visual presentation of the concept and scenario, and allows the user outside the team to share the model across different computer environments. We used Java2 and CORBA for system implementation. To test implementation of the system, we built a GLC model by using data collected in an industrial design project.
A General Mathematical Model for Whirlwind Milling Technique Machining Complex 3D Surfaces
Authors: Yi Xianzhong
Published: December 2020

Machining complex three-dimensional surfaces high-productively and effectively is a challenging task. The whirlwind milling technique is a new milling model proposed in this paper based on 5-axis CNC bed-type horizontal milling machine. Its milling cutter head is similar to a shallow disk, and its cutting lip consists of about two dozens of standard turning-tool cutters. It is easy for this whirlwind milling cutter to avoid gouging and tool interference because of its very narrow cutter width and sharp cutter tooth tip. Moreover, the machining strategy of this new technique is able to align principal curvatures of the machined surfaces with that of cutter tool rotational symmetric surface to generate a close fit. So, it can increase the metal removal rate (MMR) at the point of contact and enhance the milling productivity. The essential characteristics of this technique such as its working mechanism, kinematic relationship, fundamental milling equation and cutter location data, are discussed in details. The new proposed method has been used in practical process of manufacturing complex 3D surfaces in petroleum industry.
Processing the CAD Model of Sculptured Artifacts for Free-Form Thick-Layered Object Manufacturing
Authors: Horváth Imre , Rusák Zoltán , Broek Han J. , Douwes Bert
Published: December 2020

Processing CAD models of large sized, structurally complex, and dominantly sculptured objects for free-form thick-layered object manufacturing (FF-TLOM) is a non-trivial task. Algorithmic support is needed, especially when the applicators of the FF-TLOM technology are not specialized experts. The research team of the authors has developed and programmed a system of such algorithms to prepare NURBS-based assembly models for layered manufacturing, but also to control both the cutting tool and the manufacturing equipment. This paper starts with a brief overview of the FF-TLOM technology and the concept of reducing a CAD model to fabrication elements. Then, it explains the high-level concepts supporting the algorithms, and presents the details of their operation. The logically linked system of algorithms is applied to find the best position for segmentation. The best segmentation orientation can be found in a computation-intensive, multi-criterion optimization process. It is difficult to simplify and speed up, for the valuation of the parameters of the objective function cannot be done without a preliminary computation of the segments and layers.
Quantitative Analysis of an Agile Automation Control System Software
Authors: Durante Ryan , Derby Stephen
Published: December 2020

Most current methods permit design evaluation of software architecture only once the design is implemented in executable code. Unfortunately, this does not allow early evaluation decisions of architectural designs. This paper proposes a easy to implement method that calculates the relative complexity of two competing architecture design.
CMM Measurement Planning in FAPPS
Authors: Ha Sungdo , Hwang Inshik , Park Myon Woong , Rho Hyung-Min
Published: December 2020

FAPPS (Feature-based Automatic Process Planning System) is developed as a comprehensive metal cutting process planning system operated in PC environments. It can recognize the machining features automatically from a given 3D part design model, and then generates operation sheets, divided process drawings, NC codes, and inspection sheet. It consists of the following modules: tolerance input module for menu-driven input of tolerances, feature recognition module for automatic recognition of pre-defined machining features and compound features, process planning module for rule based determination of machining processes, divided process drawing module for automatic generation of divided process drawings, operation planning module for rule based generation of specific operation plans, and measurement planning module for automatic generation of CMM measurement plans.

The CMM measurement planning in FAPPS uses both geometric information and tolerance information from CAD files in order to determine measurement surfaces, number and positions of measurement points, and measurement sequences for inspecting machined parts. The measurement plan is represented in DMIS format for automated measurements using CMM’s. The measurement planning module that is realized in FAPPS is explained in this paper with the developed algorithms. Fuzzy logic calculation is used to determine the number of measurement points and geometric consideration for selecting measurement positions is performed.
G1 Continuity of C-Bezier Rectangular Surfaces
Authors: Wen Manhong , Ting Kwun-Lon
Published: December 2020

This paper probes G1 continuity between two adjacent c-Bezier rectangular patches. The necessary and sufficient conditions are derived. It shows that the coplanar condition for G1 continuity of two adjacent Bezier patches is not necessary for c-Bezier patches. Such a relaxation of constraints on control points is beneficial from vector weights of c-Bezier surfaces, which leads to two extra free design parameters for each control point. C-Bezier surfaces offer the possibility of obtaining G1 continuity by just adjusting the weights, which greatly simplifies the design to construct composite surfaces.
Smoothness of C-Bezier Curves
Authors: Wen Manhong , Ting Kwun-Lon
Published: December 2020

This paper presents G1 and G2 continuity conditions of c-Bezier curves. It shows that the collinear condition for G1 continuity of Bezier curves is generally no longer necessary for c-Bezier curves. Such a relaxation of constraints on control points is beneficial from the structure of c-Bezier curves. By using vector weights, each control point has two extra free design parameters, which offer the probability of obtaining G1 and G2 continuity by only adjusting the weights if the control points are properly distributed. The enlargement of control point distribution region greatly simplifies the design procedure to and enhances the shape control on constructing composite curves.
Finite Element Analysis and Fuzzy Logic Control of a Levitated Droplet
Authors: Ciocirlan Bogdan O. , Beale David G. , Marghitu Dan B. , Overfelt Ruel A.
Published: December 2020

In this paper, the electromagnetic levitator at Space Power Institute at Auburn University is analyzed via finite element method. The electromagnetic field quantities were calculated for various geometric parameters and source conditions. The results of the analysis were used in the design process of a fuzzy logic controller designed to stabilize the motion of the levitated samples. The fuzzy logic control scheme and the control program are also presented.
Development of a Design Sensitivity Analysis Technique for Explicit Finite Element Software With Applications in Crashworthiness
Authors: Stillman Douglas W.
Published: December 2020

Design Sensitivity Analysis (DSA) is a widely used technique in many areas of finite element analysis, but one that hasn’t yet become available for industrial problems in crashworthiness and automotive safety. In the following effort, an implementation of DSA in the automotive safety simulation program, Radioss, is described. Radioss is a non-linear structures program using an explicit time integration method. A full set of DSA equations are developed and integrated into Radioss so that the design sensitivities can be computed directly and accurately as a result of a single crashworthiness simulation. Some validation results are included. The resulting methodology promises to be an extremely useful tool for engineers involved in the design of safety and crashworthiness of automobiles.
Product Design Selection Under Uncertainty and With Competitive Advantage
Authors: Li Hui , Azarm Shapour
Published: December 2020

This paper presents an approach wherein product design is viewed as a selection process with two main stages: design alternative generation and design alternative evaluation. The focus of this paper is mainly on a design alternative evaluation model in that designer’s preferences, customers’ preferences, and market competition are accounted for in order to select the best possible design. In the model, uncertainties in the product design life, market size and its yearly change, cost and its yearly change, price, and discount rate are considered. Product design selection of a cordless screwdriver is used as a demonstration example. However, the emphasis in the example is on the approach, and not on the details per se.
Exploring the Design Tradeoffs and Computational Savings of Executing Vehicle Simulations in a Parallel Computing Environment
Authors: Hacker Kurt , Kasprzak Edward M. , Lewis Kemper
Published: December 2020

In this paper, we present an approach for the optimization of a racecar using vehicle dynamics simulation in a parallel-computing environment. The use of vehicle dynamics simulations in the automotive and auto racing industries is widespread. Complex vehicle simulations can include hundreds of parameters and be very computationally expensive to perform. This limits the number of design configurations that can be considered within a reasonable time, preventing thorough exploration of the design space. It also limits the usefulness of these simulations during the course a race weekend when time is of the essence. In this paper, we present the initial results from work to overcome this problem. By using distributed computing, the number of vehicle configurations that can be considered as well as the fidelity of the simulation can increase while keeping the execution time reasonable. The results focus on both the computational savings possible and the improved ability of the designer to make effective decisions due to the huge increase in the amount of design information available. To demonstrate the effectiveness of this approach the optimization of two vehicles will be considered, a two-design variable model and three-design variable model. These results are compared to previous results that were obtained executing the code on a single processor. Good speedup and excellent scalability is observed as the number of processors is increased from 2 to 32.
A Formal Approach to Integrate Design and Manufacturing Processes
Authors: Kwon Patrick , Chung Moon Jung , Pentland Brian
Published: December 2020

In this paper, we present a new paradigm where design and manufacturing processes can be integrated. Engineers can do what-if analysis of a particular design choice before they continue with the design process, and select a design process that meets constraints such as cost, manufacturing setting and machine shop resources. These constraints in turn enforce the designer to choose the ‘correct’ parameters and processes in earlier stages of design. Even with an incomplete set of design data, problems in manufacturing can be forecasted to the engineers in product development. The crux of the new paradigm is a process grammar, which provides the abilities to represent, abstract, manipulate and execute design and manufacturing processes. The grammar also provides a theoretical foundation for an execution environment to carry out the iterative nature of the engineering process. This approach to the integration of engineering design processes can also be applied to coordinate concurrent engineering activities in a distributed environment. We have developed a web-based prototype of the framework called Manufacturing Integration and Design Automation System (MIDAS). The represented design and manufacturing processes can be executed in a distributed environment through a process controller. Communication among engineers is made through a collaborative design browser with various visualization tools. MIDAS conforms to the CORBA standard, and uses JAVA to create a platform independent environment on the Web.
Hole Pattern Identification in Gang Spindle Head Design for Reconfigurable Machining Systems
Authors: Ling Catherine , Yip-Hoi Derek , Koren Yoram
Published: December 2020

A systematic methodology for automatic gang spindle head design through parallelism-based operation clustering is an important component in Reconfigurable Machining System (RmS)1 design. Such parallelism-based operation clusters as we refer to them, must satisfy a set of constraints in order to be processed simultaneously on a gang spindle head. A group of operations should be decomposed if any constraint is violated. In doing this, the identification of clusters with identical patterns can potentially lead to savings in machine design and reconfiguration costs. To identify these patterns manually is time consuming and prone to error. This paper presents a pattern identification algorithm that will recognize identical pattern clusters by first searching for translational vectors (or rotational vectors) and then extracting the appropriate sets of end-points. The algorithm automatically obtains all alternative solutions so that finding identical patterns on different faces of the part or on different parts within a part family can be implemented. This strategy maximizes the usage of identical spindles and/or machines. The cost associated with redesigning, testing, and reconfiguration is significantly reduced. Such a tool can be used by the system designer for gang spindle head design in the RmS domain.
A Quantitative Approach to Determining Product Platform Extent
Authors: Seepersad Carolyn Conner , Hernandez Gabriel , Allen Janet K.
Published: December 2020

In many cases, capabilities for providing product variety may be enhanced efficiently and effectively by creating families of products based on product platforms. However, the actual extent of a product platform — the range of products based upon the platform — is usually determined qualitatively. We present a quantitative method for determining the number of scaleable platforms for a specific market as well as the distribution of products among multiple platforms, recognizing that multiple factors determine optimal platform extent and that these factors often conflict. We model these factors quantitatively, at either the systems level or the individual product level, using the compromise Decision Support Problem including concepts derived from linear physical programming. We apply this approach to an example study of a family of absorption chillers. Our emphasis is on the approach rather than the results, per se.
About the Stabilization of Anisotropic Cylindrical Shell With Elastic Filling
Authors: Sarkisyan Vladimir , Sarkisyan Sarkis
Published: December 2020

The problems about the optimal stabilization of mechanical system of a potency of continuum have the large interest, both theoretical and practical. The solution of such problems is reduced to the nonhomogeneous integro-differential equation with the symmetric kernel.

The essential results in the solution of problems of the optimum stabilization for mechanical systems of a potency of continuum are obtained [4], [5]. In work [4,5,6] the convergence of series of solutions and the finiteness of a target functional is proved uniformly. Solved a numerous problems of the optimal stabilization of vibrations of plates and rather slanting shells.

In various statements the problem of the optimal stabilization for anisotropic cylindrical shells are solved in [6] etc. The given work is attempt to fill in a gap the problems of the stabilization by the problems about the optimal stabilization of vibrations of shells with filling, where the filling as Winkler’s elastic base, and for filling of Vlasov’s model [3] is considered.