Search results for: Variable Importance
Commenced in January 2007
Frequency: Monthly
Edition: International
Paper Count: 2045

Search results for: Variable Importance

1385 Manufacturers-Retailers: The New Actor in the U.S. Furniture Industry. Characteristics and Implications for the Chinese Furniture Industry

Authors: Lidia Martínez Murillo

Abstract:

Since the 1990s the American furniture industry faces a transition period. Manufacturers, one of its most important actors made its entrance into the retail industry. This shift has had deep consequences not only for the American furniture industry as a whole, but also for other international furniture industries, especially the Chinese. The present work aims to analyze this actor based on the distinction provided by the Global Commodity Chain Theory. It stresses its characteristics, structure, operational way and importance for both the U.S. and the Chinese furniture industries.

Keywords: M&RC, blended strategy, U.S. furniture industry, Chinese furniture industry.

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1384 The Management of the Urban Project between Challenge and Need: The Case of the Modernization Project of Constantine

Authors: Nedjima Mouhoubi, Souad Sassi Boudemagh

Abstract:

In this article, and through the modernization project of metropolis of Constantine (PMMC) experience in Algeria, discussed to highlight the importance of management in an urban project at various levels: strategic and operational. The statement we attended to reach is to evaluate the modernization project of metropolis of Constantine in the light of management and prove the relation between a good urban management and the success of an urban project.

Keywords: Urban project, strategic management, operational management, the modernization project of Constantine.

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1383 Assessing Efficiency Trends in the Indian Sugar Industry

Authors: S. P. Singh

Abstract:

This paper measures technical and scale efficiencies of 40 Indian sugar companies for the period from 2004-05 to 2013-14. The efficiencies are estimated through input-oriented DEA models using one output variable—value of output (VOP) and five input variables—capital cost (CA), employee cost (EMP), raw material (RW), energy & fuel (E&F) and other manufacturing expenses (OME). The sugar companies are classified into integrated and non-integrated categories to know which one achieves higher level of efficiency. Sources of inefficiency in the industry are identified through decomposing the overall technical efficiency (TE) into pure technical efficiency (PTE) and scale efficiency (SE). The paper also estimates input-reduction targets for relatively inefficient companies and suggests measures to improve their efficiency level. The findings reveal that the TE does not evince any trend rather it shows fluctuations across years, largely due to erratic and cyclical pattern of sugar production. Further, technical inefficiency in the industry seems to be driven more by the managerial inefficiency than the scale inefficiency, which implies that TE can be improved through better conversion of inputs into output.

Keywords: Sugar industry, companies, technical efficiency, data envelopment analysis, targets.

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1382 Effects of Humidity and Silica Sand Particles on Vibration Generation by Friction Materials of Automotive Brake System

Authors: Mostafa M. Makrahy, Nouby M. Ghazaly, G. T. Abd el-Jaber

Abstract:

This paper presents the experimental study of vibration generated by friction materials of an automotive disc brake system using brake test rig. Effects of silica sand particles which are available on the road surface as an environmental condition with a size varied from 150 μm to 600 μm are evaluated. Also, the vibration of the brake disc is examined against the friction material in humidity environment conditions under variable rotational speed. The experimental results showed that the silica sand particles have significant contribution on the value of vibration amplitude which enhances with increasing the size of silica sand particles at different speed conditions. Also, it is noticed that the friction material is sensitive to humidity and the vibration magnitude increases under wet testing conditions. Moreover, it can be reported that with increasing the applied pressure and rotational speed of the braking system, the vibration amplitudes decrease for all cases.

Keywords: Friction material, silica sand particles, humidity environment, vibration of brake.

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1381 Determining Factors for ISO14001 EMS Implementation among SMEs in Malaysia: A Resource Based View

Authors: Goh Yen Nee

Abstract:

This research aimed to find out the determining factors for ISO 14001 EMS implementation among SMEs in Malaysia from the Resource based view. A cross-sectional approach using survey was conducted. A research model been proposed which comprises of ISO 14001 EMS implementation as the criterion variable while physical capital resources (i.e. environmental performance tracking and organizational infrastructures), human capital resources (i.e. top management commitment and support, training and education, employee empowerment and teamwork) and organizational capital resources (i.e. recognition and reward, organizational culture and organizational communication) as the explanatory variables. The research findings show that only environmental performance tracking, top management commitment and support and organizational culture are found to be positively and significantly associated with ISO 14001 EMS implementation. It is expected that this research will shed new knowledge and provide a base for future studies about the role played by firm-s internal resources.

Keywords: ISO 14001 Environmental Management System, Malaysia, Resource based view, SMEs

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1380 Designing Intelligent Adaptive Controller for Nonlinear Pendulum Dynamical System

Authors: R. Ghasemi, M. R. Rahimi Khoygani

Abstract:

This paper proposes the designing direct adaptive neural controller to apply for a class of a nonlinear pendulum dynamic system. The radial basis function (RBF) neural adaptive controller is robust in presence of external and internal uncertainties. Both the effectiveness of the controller and robustness against disturbances are importance of this paper. The simulation results show the promising performance of the proposed controller.

Keywords: Adaptive Neural Controller, Nonlinear Dynamical, Neural Network, RBF, Driven Pendulum, Position Control.

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1379 Numerical Investigation of Indoor Air Quality and Thermal Comfort in a Ventilated Room

Authors: Ramy H. Mohammed

Abstract:

Understanding the behavior of airflow in a room is essential for building designers to provide the most efficient design of ventilation system, and having acceptable indoor air quality. This trend is the motive to solve the relationship between airflow parameters and thermal comfort. This paper investigates airflow characteristics, indoor air quality (IAQ), and the thermal comfort (TC) in a ventilated room with a displacement ventilation system using three dimensional CFD code [AirPak 2.0.6]. After validation of the code, a numerical study is executed for a typical room with dimensions of 5m by 3m by 3m height according to a variety of supply air velocities, supply air temperature and supply air relative humidity. The finite volume method and the indoor zero equation turbulence models are employed for solving the governing equations numerically. The temperature field and the mean age of air (MAA) in the modeled room for a displacement ventilation system are determined according to a variety of the above parameters. The variable air volume (VAV) systems with different supply air velocity are applicable to control room air temperature for a displacement ventilation system.

Keywords: Displacement ventilation, AirPak, Indoor zero equation, MAA.

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1378 A DOE Study of Ultrasound Intensified Removal of Phenol

Authors: P. R. Rahul, A. Kannan

Abstract:

Ultrasound-aided adsorption of phenol by Granular Activated Carbon (GAC) was investigated at different frequencies ranging from 35 kHz, 58 kHz, and 192 kHz. Other factors influencing adsorption such as Adsorbent dosage (g/L), the initial concentration of the phenol solution (ppm) and RPM was also considered along with the frequency variable. However, this study involved calorimetric measurements which helped is determining the effect of frequency on the % removal of phenol from the power dissipated to the system was normalized. It was found that low frequency (35 kHz) cavitation effects had a profound influence on the % removal of phenol per unit power. This study also had cavitation mapping of the ultrasonic baths, and it showed that the effect of cavitation on the adsorption system is irrespective of the position of the vessel. Hence, the vessel was placed at the center of the bath. In this study, novel temperature control and monitoring system to make sure that the system is under proper condition while operations. From the BET studies, it was found that there was only 5% increase in the surface area and hence it was concluded that ultrasound doesn’t profoundly alter the equilibrium value of the adsorption system. DOE studies indicated that adsorbent dosage has a higher influence on the % removal in comparison with other factors.

Keywords: Ultrasound, adsorption, granulated activated carbon, phenol.

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1377 Refined Buckling Analysis of Rectangular Plates Under Uniaxial and Biaxial Compression

Authors: V. Piscopo

Abstract:

In the traditional buckling analysis of rectangular plates the classical thin plate theory is generally applied, so neglecting the plating shear deformation. It seems quite clear that this method is not totally appropriate for the analysis of thick plates, so that in the following the two variable refined plate theory proposed by Shimpi (2006), that permits to take into account the transverse shear effects, is applied for the buckling analysis of simply supported isotropic rectangular plates, compressed in one and two orthogonal directions. The relevant results are compared with the classical ones and, for rectangular plates under uniaxial compression, a new direct expression, similar to the classical Bryan-s formula, is proposed for the Euler buckling stress. As the buckling analysis is a widely diffused topic for a variety of structures, such as ship ones, some applications for plates uniformly compressed in one and two orthogonal directions are presented and the relevant theoretical results are compared with those ones obtained by a FEM analysis, carried out by ANSYS, to show the feasibility of the presented method.

Keywords: Buckling analysis, Thick plates, Biaxial stresses

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1376 A Petri Net Representation of a Web-Service- Based Emergency Management System in Railway Station

Authors: Suparna Karmakar, Ranjan Dasgupta

Abstract:

Railway Stations are prone to emergency due to various reasons and proper monitor of railway stations are of immense importance from various angles. A Petri-net representation of a web-service-based Emergency management system has been proposed in this paper which will help in monitoring situation of train, track, signal etc. and in case of any emergency, necessary resources can be dispatched.

Keywords: Business process, Petri net, Rail Station Emergency Management, Web service based system

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1375 Clustering Categorical Data Using Hierarchies (CLUCDUH)

Authors: Gökhan Silahtaroğlu

Abstract:

Clustering large populations is an important problem when the data contain noise and different shapes. A good clustering algorithm or approach should be efficient enough to detect clusters sensitively. Besides space complexity, time complexity also gains importance as the size grows. Using hierarchies we developed a new algorithm to split attributes according to the values they have and choosing the dimension for splitting so as to divide the database roughly into equal parts as much as possible. At each node we calculate some certain descriptive statistical features of the data which reside and by pruning we generate the natural clusters with a complexity of O(n).

Keywords: Clustering, tree, split, pruning, entropy, gini.

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1374 The Supply Chain Management and Supply Chain Responsiveness in the Competitiveness of the Agrofood Sector: An Econometric Analysis

Authors: Alma Lucero Ortiz, Mario Gómez

Abstract:

The purpose of this article is to conduct a theoretical and empirical study in order to analyze how the Supply Chain Management (SCM) and Supply Chain Responsiveness (SCR) affects the competitive advantage of the agrofood sector in 2017, in particular, the exporting companies of berries in Mexico. This work is presented in two parts, as a first part is developed a theoretical analysis of the main studies to measure the variables subject to the study. Subsequently an empirical study is carried out through field work and to process the data a logical econometric model is performed to be able to evaluate the effect of the SCM and SCR on the competitive advantage in the companies exporting berries. The results suggest that the SCM has a positive effect on the competitive advantage of the companies under study, so it is necessary to implement greater practices oriented towards a suitable SCM for the companies to achieve a competitive performance. In the case of SCR, it was found that this variable does not have effect on competitive advantage.

Keywords: Competitive advantage, econometric model, supply chain management, supply chain responsiveness, sustained competitive advantage.

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1373 Investigating the Impact of Wind Speed on Active and Reactive Power Penetration to the Distribution Network

Authors: Sidhartha Panda, N.P.Padhy

Abstract:

Wind power is among the most actively developing distributed generation (DG) technology. Majority of the wind power based DG technologies employ wind turbine induction generators (WTIG) instead of synchronous generators, for the technical advantages like: reduced size, increased robustness, lower cost, and increased electromechanical damping. However, dynamic changes of wind speed make the amount of active/reactive power injected/drawn to a WTIG embedded distribution network highly variable. This paper analyzes the effect of wind speed changes on the active and reactive power penetration to the wind energy embedded distribution network. Four types of wind speed changes namely; constant, linear change, gust change and random change of wind speed are considered in the analysis. The study is carried out by three-phase, non-linear, dynamic simulation of distribution system component models. Results obtained from the investigation are presented and discussed.

Keywords: Wind turbine induction generator, distribution network, active and reactive power, wind speed.

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1372 Electricity Power Planning: the Role of Wind Energy

Authors: Paula Ferreira, Madalena Araújo, M.E.J. O’Kelly

Abstract:

Combining energy efficiency with renewable energy sources constitutes a key strategy for a sustainable future. The wind power sector stands out as a fundamental element for the achievement of the European renewable objectives and Portugal is no exception to the increase of the wind energy for the electricity generation. This work proposes an optimization model for the long range electricity power planning in a system similar to the Portuguese one, where the expected impacts of the increasing installed wind power on the operating performance of thermal power plants are taken into account. The main results indicate that the increasing penetration of wind power in the electricity system will have significant effects on the combined cycle gas power plants operation and on the theoretically expected cost reduction and environmental gains. This research demonstrated the need to address the impact that energy sources with variable output may have, not only on the short-term operational planning, but especially on the medium to long range planning activities, in order to meet the strategic objectives for the energy sector.

Keywords: Wind power, electricity planning model, cost, emissions.

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1371 Evaluation of Leagile Criteria Using DEMATEL Approach

Authors: Naveen Virmani, Rajeev Saha, Rajeshwar Sahai

Abstract:

There is drastic change in manufacturing era in last two decades. It has become mandatory for the industries to become aware of latest and advanced manufacturing technologies and strategies. Leagile manufacturing focuses on minimizing the wastes and meeting customers’ requirements in minimum time possible. However, it becomes difficult to implement all leagile tools simultaneously in industry. In this paper, 17 main criteria of leagile manufacturing have been found and DEMATEL (Decision Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory) approach has been applied to analyze importance of criteria and casual relations among these criteria.

Keywords: Agile, DEMATEL approach, lean, leagile manufacturing.

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1370 Design Optimization of a Compact Quadrupole Electromagnet for CLS 2.0

Authors: Md. Armin Islam, Les Dallin, Mark Boland, W. J. Zhang

Abstract:

This paper reports a study on the optimal magnetic design of a compact quadrupole electromagnet for the Canadian Light Source (CLS 2.0). The nature of the design is to determine a quadrupole with low relative higher order harmonics and better field quality. The design problem was formulated as an optimization model, in which the objective function is the higher order harmonics (multipole errors) and the variable to be optimized is the material distribution on the pole. The higher order harmonics arose in the quadrupole due to truncating the ideal hyperbola at a certain point to make the pole. In this project, the arisen harmonics have been optimized both transversely and longitudinally by adjusting material on the poles in a controlled way. For optimization, finite element analysis (FEA) has been conducted. A better higher order harmonics amplitudes and field quality have been achieved through the optimization. On the basis of the optimized magnetic design, electrical and cooling calculation has been performed for the magnet.

Keywords: Drift, electrical, and cooling calculation, integrated field, higher order harmonics (multipole errors), magnetic field gradient, quadrupole.

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1369 Measurement of the Bipolarization Events

Authors: Stefan V. Stefanescu

Abstract:

We intend to point out the differences which exist between the classical Gini concentration coefficient and a proposed bipolarization index defined for an arbitrary random variable which have a finite support. In fact Gini's index measures only the "poverty degree" for the individuals from a given population taking into consideration their wages. The Gini coefficient is not so sensitive to the significant income variations in the "rich people class" . In practice there are multiple interdependent relations between the pauperization and the socio-economical polarization phenomena. The presence of a strong pauperization aspect inside the population induces often a polarization effect in this society. But the pauperization and the polarization phenomena are not identical. For this reason it isn't always adequate to use a Gini type coefficient, based on the Lorenz order, to estimate the bipolarization level of the individuals from the studied population. The present paper emphasizes these ideas by considering two families of random variables which have a linear or a triangular type distributions. In addition, the continuous variation, depending on the parameter "time" of the chosen distributions, could simulate a real dynamical evolution of the population.

Keywords: Bipolarization phenomenon, Gini coefficient, income distribution, poverty measure.

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1368 Characterization of a Pure Diamond-Like Carbon Film Deposited by Nanosecond Pulsed Laser Deposition

Authors: Camilla G. Goncalves, Benedito Christ, Walter Miyakawa, Antonio J. Abdalla

Abstract:

This work aims to investigate the properties and microstructure of diamond-like carbon film deposited by pulsed laser deposition by ablation of a graphite target in a vacuum chamber on a steel substrate. The equipment was mounted to provide one laser beam. The target of high purity graphite and the steel substrate were polished. The mechanical and tribological properties of the film were characterized using Raman spectroscopy, nanoindentation test, scratch test, roughness profile, tribometer, optical microscopy and SEM images. It was concluded that the pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technique associated with the low-pressure chamber and a graphite target provides a good fraction of sp3 bonding, that the process variable as surface polishing and laser parameter have great influence in tribological properties and in adherence tests performance. The optical microscopy images are efficient to identify the metallurgical bond.

Keywords: Characterization, diamond-like carbon, DLC, mechanical properties, pulsed laser deposition.

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1367 Protein Secondary Structure Prediction

Authors: Manpreet Singh, Parvinder Singh Sandhu, Reet Kamal Kaur

Abstract:

Protein structure determination and prediction has been a focal research subject in the field of bioinformatics due to the importance of protein structure in understanding the biological and chemical activities of organisms. The experimental methods used by biotechnologists to determine the structures of proteins demand sophisticated equipment and time. A host of computational methods are developed to predict the location of secondary structure elements in proteins for complementing or creating insights into experimental results. However, prediction accuracies of these methods rarely exceed 70%.

Keywords: Protein, Secondary Structure, Prediction, DNA, RNA.

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1366 The Concept of Birthday: A Theoretical, Historical, and Social Overview, in Judaism and Other Cultures

Authors: Orly Redlich

Abstract:

In the age of social distance, which has been added to an individual and competitive worldview, it has become important to find a way to promote closeness and personal touch. The sense of social belonging and the existence of positive interaction with others have recently become a considerable necessity. Therefore, this theoretical paper will review one of the familiar and common concepts among different cultures around the world – birthday. This paper has a theoretical contribution that deepens the understanding of the birthday concept. Birthday rituals are historical and universal events, which noted since the prehistoric eras. In ancient history, birthday rituals were solely reserved for kings and nobility members, but over the years, birthday celebrations have evolved into a worldwide tradition. Some of the familiar birthday customs and symbols are currently common among most cultures, while some cultures have adopted for themselves unique birthday customs, which characterized their values and traditions. The birthday concept has a unique significance in Judaism as well, historically, religiously, and socially: It is considered as a lucky day and a private holiday for the celebrant. Therefore, the present paper reviews diverse birthday customs around the world in different cultures, including Judaism, and marks important birthdays throughout history. The paper also describes how the concept of birthday appears over the years in songs, novels, and art, and presents quotes from distinguished sages. The theoretical review suggests that birthday has a special meaning as a time-mark in the cycle of life, and as a socialization means in human development. Moreover, the birthday serves as a symbol of belonging and group cohesiveness, a day in which the celebrant's sense of belonging and sense of importance are strengthened and nurtured. Thus, the reappearance of these elements in a family or group interaction during the birthday ceremony allows the celebrant to absorb positive impressions about himself. In view of the extensive theoretical review, it seems that the unique importance of birthdays can serve as the foundation for intervention programs that may affect the participants’ sense of belonging and empowerment. In the group aspect, perhaps it can also yield therapeutic factors within a group. Concrete recommendations are presented at the end of the paper.

Keywords: Birthday, universal events, rituals, positive interaction, group cohesiveness.

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1365 An E-Coaching Methodology for Higher Education in Saudi Arabia

Authors: Essam Almuhsin, Ben Soh, Alice Li, Azmat Ullah

Abstract:

It is widely accepted that university students must acquire new knowledge, skills, awareness, and understanding to increase opportunities for professional and personal growth. The study reveals a significant increase in users engaging in e-coaching activities and a growing need for it during the COVID-19 pandemic. The paper proposes an e-coaching methodology for higher education in Saudi Arabia to address the need for effective coaching in the current online learning environment.

Keywords: Role of e-coaching, e-coaching in higher education, Saudi higher education environment, e-coaching methodology, importance of e-coaching.

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1364 Security Architecture for Cloud Networking: A Survey

Authors: Vishnu Pratap Singh Kirar

Abstract:

In the cloud computing hierarchy IaaS is the lowest layer, all other layers are built over it. Thus it is the most important layer of cloud and requisite more importance. Along with advantages IaaS faces some serious security related issue. Mainly Security focuses on Integrity, confidentiality and availability. Cloud computing facilitate to share the resources inside as well as outside of the cloud. On the other hand, cloud still not in the state to provide surety to 100% data security. Cloud provider must ensure that end user/client get a Quality of Service. In this report we describe possible aspects of cloud related security.

Keywords: Cloud Computing, Cloud Networking, IaaS, PaaS, SaaS, Cloud Security.

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1363 Diagnosis of Multivariate Process via Nonlinear Kernel Method Combined with Qualitative Representation of Fault Patterns

Authors: Hyun-Woo Cho

Abstract:

The fault detection and diagnosis of complicated production processes is one of essential tasks needed to run the process safely with good final product quality. Unexpected events occurred in the process may have a serious impact on the process. In this work, triangular representation of process measurement data obtained in an on-line basis is evaluated using simulation process. The effect of using linear and nonlinear reduced spaces is also tested. Their diagnosis performance was demonstrated using multivariate fault data. It has shown that the nonlinear technique based diagnosis method produced more reliable results and outperforms linear method. The use of appropriate reduced space yielded better diagnosis performance. The presented diagnosis framework is different from existing ones in that it attempts to extract the fault pattern in the reduced space, not in the original process variable space. The use of reduced model space helps to mitigate the sensitivity of the fault pattern to noise.

Keywords: Real-time Fault diagnosis, triangular representation of patterns in reduced spaces, Nonlinear kernel technique, multivariate statistical modeling.

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1362 Anthropometric Profile as a Factor of Impact on Employee Productivity in Manufacturing Industry of Tijuana, Mexico

Authors: J. A. López, J. E. Olguín, C. W. Camargo, G. A. Quijano, R. Martínez

Abstract:

This paper presents an anthropometric study conducted to 300 employees in a maquiladora industry that belongs to the cluster of medical products as part of a research project to pretend simulate workplace conditions under which operators conduct their activities. This project is relevant because traditionally performed a study to design ergonomic workspaces according to anthropometric profile of users, however, this paper demonstrates the importance of making decisions when the infrastructure cannot be adapted for economic whichever put emphasis on user activity.

Keywords: Anthropometry, Biomechanics, Design, Ergonomics, Productivity.

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1361 Optimum Parameter of a Viscous Damper for Seismic and Wind Vibration

Authors: Soltani Amir, Hu Jiaxin

Abstract:

Determination of optimal parameters of a passive  control system device is the primary objective of this study.  Expanding upon the use of control devices in wind and earthquake  hazard reduction has led to development of various control systems.  The advantage of non-linearity characteristics in a passive control  device and the optimal control method using LQR algorithm are  explained in this study. Finally, this paper introduces a simple  approach to determine optimum parameters of a nonlinear viscous  damper for vibration control of structures. A MATLAB program is  used to produce the dynamic motion of the structure considering the  stiffness matrix of the SDOF frame and the non-linear damping  effect. This study concluded that the proposed system (variable  damping system) has better performance in system response control  than a linear damping system. Also, according to the energy  dissipation graph, the total energy loss is greater in non-linear  damping system than other systems.

 

Keywords: Passive Control System, Damping Devices, Viscous Dampers, Control Algorithm.

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1360 Assessing Semantic Consistency of Business Process Models

Authors: Bernhard G. Humm, Janina Fengel

Abstract:

Business process modeling has become an accepted means for designing and describing business operations. Thereby, consistency of business process models, i.e., the absence of modeling faults, is of upmost importance to organizations. This paper presents a concept and subsequent implementation for detecting faults in business process models and for computing a measure of their consistency. It incorporates not only syntactic consistency but also semantic consistency, i.e., consistency regarding the meaning of model elements from a business perspective.

Keywords: Business process modeling, model analysis, semantic consistency, Semantic Web

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1359 MHD Natural Convection Flow of Tangent Hyperbolic Nanofluid Past a Vertical Permeable Cone

Authors: A. Mahdy

Abstract:

In this paper, a non-similraity analysis has been presented to exhibit the two-dimensional boundary layer flow of magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) natural convection of tangent hyperbolic nanofluid nearby a vertical permeable cone in the presence of variable wall temperature impact. The mutated boundary layer nonlinear governing equations are solved numerically by the an efficient implicit finite difference procedure. For both nanofluid effective viscosity and nanofluid thermal conductivity, a number of experimental relations have been recognized. For characterizing the nanofluid, the compatible nanoparticle volume fraction model has been used. Nusselt number and skin friction coefficient are calculated for some values of Weissenberg number W, surface temperature exponent n, magnetic field parameter Mg, power law index m and Prandtl number Pr as functions of suction parameter. The rate of heat transfer from a vertical permeable cone in a regular fluid is less than that in nanofluids. A best convection has been presented by Copper nanoparticle among all the used nanoparticles.

Keywords: Tangent hyperbolic nanofluid, finite difference, non-similarity, isothermal cone.

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1358 Seismic Base Shear Force Depending on Building Fundamental Period and Site Conditions: Deterministic Formulation and Probabilistic Analysis

Authors: S. Dorbani, M. Badaoui, D. Benouar

Abstract:

The aim of this paper is to investigate the effect of the building fundamental period of reinforced concrete buildings of (6, 9, and 12-storey), with different floor plans: Symmetric, mono-symmetric, and unsymmetric. These structures are erected at different epicentral distances. Using the Boumerdes, Algeria (2003) earthquake data, we focused primarily on the establishment of the deterministic formulation linking the base shear force to two parameters: The first one is the fundamental period that represents the numerical fingerprint of the structure, and the second one is the epicentral distance used to represent the impact of the earthquake on this force. In a second step, with a view to highlight the effect of uncertainty in these parameters on the analyzed response, these parameters are modeled as random variables with a log-normal distribution. The variability of the coefficients of variation of the chosen uncertain parameters, on the statistics on the seismic base shear force, showed that the effect of uncertainty on fundamental period on this force statistics is low compared to the epicentral distance uncertainty influence.

Keywords: Base shear force, fundamental period, epicentral distance, uncertainty, lognormal variable, statistics.

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1357 The Role of Planning and Memory in the Navigational Ability

Authors: Greeshma Sharma, Sushil Chandra, Vijander Singh, Alok Prakash Mittal

Abstract:

Navigational ability requires spatial representation, planning, and memory. It covers three interdependent domains, i.e. cognitive and perceptual factors, neural information processing, and variability in brain microstructure. Many attempts have been made to see the role of spatial representation in the navigational ability, and the individual differences have been identified in the neural substrate. But, there is also a need to address the influence of planning, memory on navigational ability. The present study aims to evaluate relations of aforementioned factors in the navigational ability. Total 30 participants volunteered in the study of a virtual shopping complex and subsequently were classified into good and bad navigators based on their performances. The result showed that planning ability was the most correlated factor for the navigational ability and also the discriminating factor between the good and bad navigators. There was also found the correlations between spatial memory recall and navigational ability. However, non-verbal episodic memory and spatial memory recall were also found to be correlated with the learning variable. This study attempts to identify differences between people with more and less navigational ability on the basis of planning and memory.

Keywords: Memory, planning navigational ability, virtual reality.

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1356 Level of Concentration in Banking Markets and Length of EU Membership

Authors: Ivan Pavic, Fran Galetic, Tomislava Pavic Kramaric

Abstract:

The purpose of this article is to analyze the degree of concentration in the banking market in EU member states as well as to determine the impact of the length of EU membership on the degree of concentration. In that sense several analysis were conducted, specifically, panel analysis, calculation of correlation coefficient and regression analysis of the impact of the length of EU membership on the degree of concentration. Panel analysis was conducted to determine whether there is a similar trend of concentration in three groups of countries - countries with a low, moderate and high level of concentration. The conducted panel analysis showed that in EU countries with a moderate level of concentration, the level of concentration decreases. The calculation of correlation showed that, to some extent, with other influential factors, the length of EU membership negatively affects the market concentration of the banking market. Using the regression analysis for investigation of the influence of the length of EU membership on the level of concentration in the banking sector in a particular country, the results reveal that there is a negative effect of the length in EU membership on market concentration, although it is not significantly influential variable.

Keywords: Banking sector, concentration, EU

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