Search results for: multi-criteria group decision making problems

Authors: B. Parchem, M. Watanabe, D. Modrakovic, L. Mathew, A. Franklin, M. Cao, R. E. Broudy

Abstract:

Objective: Executive functioning (EF) deficits underlie several mental health diagnoses including ADHD, anxiety, and depression. Community mental health clinics face extensive waitlists for services with many referrals involving EF deficits. A pilot trial of a four-week group therapy was developed using key components from Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), and mindfulness with an aim to improve EF skills and offer low-fee services. Method: Eight adults (M = 34.5) waiting for services at a community clinic were enrolled in a four-week group therapy at an in-house training clinic for doctoral trainees. Baseline EF, pre-/post-intervention ADHD and distress symptoms, group satisfaction, and curriculum helpfulness were assessed. Results: Downward trends in ADHD and distress symptoms pre/post-intervention were not significant. Favorable responses on group satisfaction and helpfulness suggest clinical utility. Conclusion: Preliminary pilot data from a brief group therapy to improve EF may be an efficacious, acceptable, and feasible intervention for adults waiting for services at community mental health and training clinics where there are high demands and limits to services and staffs.

Keywords: Executive functioning, cognitive-behavioral therapy, dialectical behavior therapy, mindfulness, adult group therapy.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 783

Authors: Praveen Boinee, Alessandro De Angelis, Gian Luca Foresti

Abstract:

Ensemble learning algorithms such as AdaBoost and Bagging have been in active research and shown improvements in classification results for several benchmarking data sets with mainly decision trees as their base classifiers. In this paper we experiment to apply these Meta learning techniques with classifiers such as random forests, neural networks and support vector machines. The data sets are from MAGIC, a Cherenkov telescope experiment. The task is to classify gamma signals from overwhelmingly hadron and muon signals representing a rare class classification problem. We compare the individual classifiers with their ensemble counterparts and discuss the results. WEKA a wonderful tool for machine learning has been used for making the experiments.

Keywords: Ensembles, WEKA, Neural networks [NN], SupportVector Machines [SVM], Random Forests [RF].

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1763

Authors: M. Rokonuzzaman, Z. Gürdal

Abstract:

This paper describes the design optimization of ferrocement-laminated plate made up of reinforcing steel wire mesh(es) and cement mortar. For the improvement of the designing process, the plate is modeled as a multi-layer medium, dividing the ferrocement plate into layers of mortar and ferrocement. The mortar layers are assumed to be isotropic in nature and the ferrocement layers are assumed to be orthotropic. The ferrocement layers are little stiffer, but much more costlier, than the mortar layers due the presence of steel wire mesh. The optimization is performed for minimum weight design of the laminate using a genetic algorithm. The optimum designs are discussed for different plate configurations and loadings, and it is compared with the worst designs obtained at the final generation. The paper provides a procedure for the designers in decision-making process.

Keywords: Buckling, Ferrocement-Laminated Plate, Genetic Algorithm, Plate Theory.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2183

Authors: Sam Teek Ling, Norhashidah Hj. Mohd. Ali

Abstract:

We investigate the formulation and implementation of new explicit group iterative methods in solving the two-dimensional Poisson equation with Dirichlet boundary conditions. The methods are derived from a fourth order compact nine point finite difference discretization. The methods are compared with the existing second order standard five point formula to show the dramatic improvement in computed accuracy. Numerical experiments are presented to illustrate the effectiveness of the proposed methods.

Keywords: Explicit group iterative method, finite difference, fourth order compact, Poisson equation.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1679

Authors: Fudziah Ismail

Abstract:

In this paper a new embedded Singly Diagonally Implicit Runge-Kutta Nystrom fourth order in fifth order method for solving special second order initial value problems is derived. A standard set of test problems are tested upon and comparisons on the numerical results are made when the same set of test problems are reduced to first order systems and solved using the existing embedded diagonally implicit Runge-Kutta method. The results suggests the superiority of the new method.

Keywords: Runge-Kutta Nystrom, Special second orderproblems.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1664

Authors: F. Lhafiane, A. Elbyed, M. Bouchoum

Abstract:

The design of Reverse logistics Network has attracted growing attention with the stringent pressures from both environmental awareness and business sustainability. Reverse logistical activities include return, remanufacture, disassemble and dispose of products can be quite complex to manage. In addition, demand can be difficult to predict, and decision making is one of the challenges task in such network. This complexity has amplified the need to develop an integrated architecture for product return as an enterprise system. The main purpose of this paper is to design Multi Agent System (MAS) architecture using the Prometheus methodology to efficiently manage reverse logistics processes. The proposed MAS architecture includes five types of agents: Gate keeping Agent, Collection Agent, Sorting Agent, Processing Agent and Disposal Agent which act respectively during the five steps of reverse logistics Network.

Keywords: Reverse logistics, multi agent system, Prometheus methodology.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2917

Authors: Chih-Cheng Chen, Meng-Lung Lin, Yung-Tan Lee, Tien-Tze Chen

Abstract:

The rotation of starting pitchers is a strategic issue which has a significant impact on the performance of a professional team. Choosing an optimal starting pitcher from among many alternatives is a multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) problem. In this study, a model using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and Technique for Order Performance by Similarity to the Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) is proposed with which to arrange the starting pitcher rotation for teams of the Chinese Professional Baseball League. The AHP is used to analyze the structure of the starting pitcher selection problem and to determine the weights of the criteria, while the TOPSIS method is used to make the final ranking. An empirical analysis is conducted to illustrate the utilization of the model for the starting pitcher rotation problem. The results demonstrate the effectiveness and feasibility of the proposed model.

Keywords: AHP, TOPSIS, starting pitcher rotation, CPBL

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2356

Authors: Elham Serkani, Hossein Gharaee Garakani, Naser Mohammadzadeh, Elaheh Vaezpour

Abstract:

Intrusion detection systems (IDS) are the main components of network security. These systems analyze the network events for intrusion detection. The design of an IDS is through the training of normal traffic data or attack. The methods of machine learning are the best ways to design IDSs. In the method presented in this article, the pruning algorithm of C5.0 decision tree is being used to reduce the features of traffic data used and training IDS by the least square vector algorithm (LS-SVM). Then, the remaining features are arranged according to the predictor importance criterion. The least important features are eliminated in the order. The remaining features of this stage, which have created the highest level of accuracy in LS-SVM, are selected as the final features. The features obtained, compared to other similar articles which have examined the selected features in the least squared support vector machine model, are better in the accuracy, true positive rate, and false positive. The results are tested by the UNSW-NB15 dataset.

Keywords: Intrusion detection system, decision tree, support vector machine, feature selection.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1238

Authors: Navid Mehdizadeh Afroozi, Khodakhast Isapour, Mojtaba Hakimzadeh, Abdolmohammad Davodi

Abstract:

The objective of the Economic Dispatch(ED) Problems of electric power generation is to schedule the committed generating units outputs so as to meet the required load demand at minimum operating cost while satisfying all units and system equality and inequality constraints. This paper presents a new method of ED problems utilizing the Max-Min Ant System Optimization. Historically, traditional optimizations techniques have been used, such as linear and non-linear programming, but within the past decade the focus has shifted on the utilization of Evolutionary Algorithms, as an example Genetic Algorithms, Simulated Annealing and recently Ant Colony Optimization (ACO). In this paper we introduce the Max-Min Ant System based version of the Ant System. This algorithm encourages local searching around the best solution found in each iteration. To show its efficiency and effectiveness, the proposed Max-Min Ant System is applied to sample ED problems composed of 4 generators. Comparison to conventional genetic algorithms is presented.

Keywords: Economic Dispatch (ED), Ant Colony Optimization, Fuel Cost, Algorithm.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2580

Authors: Ayman M. Mansour

Abstract:

In this paper, we propose a multi-agent intelligent system that is used for monitoring the health conditions of elderly people. Monitoring the health condition of elderly people is a complex problem that involves different medical units and requires continuous monitoring. Such expert system is highly needed in rural areas because of inadequate number of available specialized physicians or nurses. Such monitoring must have autonomous interactions between these medical units in order to be effective. A multi-agent system is formed by a community of agents that exchange information and proactively help one another to achieve the goal of elderly monitoring. The agents in the developed system are equipped with intelligent decision maker that arms them with the rule-based reasoning capability that can assist the physicians in making decisions regarding the medical condition of elderly people.

Keywords: Fuzzy Logic, Inference system, Monitoring system, Multi-agent system.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2282

Authors: Ashkan Ebadi, Adam Krzyzak

Abstract:

Recommender systems, also known as recommender engines, have become an important research area and are now being applied in various fields. In addition, the techniques behind the recommender systems have been improved over the time. In general, such systems help users to find their required products or services (e.g. books, music) through analyzing and aggregating other users’ activities and behavior, mainly in form of reviews, and making the best recommendations. The recommendations can facilitate user’s decision making process. Despite the wide literature on the topic, using multiple data sources of different types as the input has not been widely studied. Recommender systems can benefit from the high availability of digital data to collect the input data of different types which implicitly or explicitly help the system to improve its accuracy. Moreover, most of the existing research in this area is based on single rating measures in which a single rating is used to link users to items. This paper proposes a highly accurate hotel recommender system, implemented in various layers. Using multi-aspect rating system and benefitting from large-scale data of different types, the recommender system suggests hotels that are personalized and tailored for the given user. The system employs natural language processing and topic modelling techniques to assess the sentiment of the users’ reviews and extract implicit features. The entire recommender engine contains multiple sub-systems, namely users clustering, matrix factorization module, and hybrid recommender system. Each sub-system contributes to the final composite set of recommendations through covering a specific aspect of the problem. The accuracy of the proposed recommender system has been tested intensively where the results confirm the high performance of the system.

Keywords: Tourism, hotel recommender system, hybrid, implicit features.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1899

Authors: Jiratta Phuboon-ob, Raweewan Auepanwiriyakul

Abstract:

A data warehouse (DW) is a system which has value and role for decision-making by querying. Queries to DW are critical regarding to their complexity and length. They often access millions of tuples, and involve joins between relations and aggregations. Materialized views are able to provide the better performance for DW queries. However, these views have maintenance cost, so materialization of all views is not possible. An important challenge of DW environment is materialized view selection because we have to realize the trade-off between performance and view maintenance cost. Therefore, in this paper, we introduce a new approach aimed at solve this challenge based on Two-Phase Optimization (2PO), which is a combination of Simulated Annealing (SA) and Iterative Improvement (II), with the use of Multiple View Processing Plan (MVPP). Our experiments show that our method provides a further improvement in term of query processing cost and view maintenance cost.

Keywords: Data warehouse, materialized views, view selectionproblem, two-phase optimization.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1658

Authors: Wann-Ming Wey

Abstract:

In recent years, in addition to face the external threats such as energy shortages and climate change, traffic congestion and environmental pollution have become anxious problems for many cities. Considering private automobile-oriented urban development had produced many negative environmental and social impacts, the transit-oriented development (TOD) has been considered as a sustainable urban model. TOD encourages public transport combined with friendly walking and cycling environment designs, however, non-motorized modes help improving human health, energy saving, and reducing carbon emissions. Due to environmental changes often affect the planners’ decision-making; this research applies dynamic network process (DNP) which includes the time dependent concept to promoting friendly walking and cycling environmental designs as an advanced planning support system for environment improvements.

This research aims to discuss what kinds of design strategies can improve a friendly walking and cycling environment under TOD. First of all, we collate and analyze environment designing factors by reviewing the relevant literatures as well as divide into three aspects of “safety”, “convenience”, and “amenity” from fifteen environment designing factors. Furthermore, we utilize fuzzy Delphi Technique (FDT) expert questionnaire to filter out the more important designing criteria for the study case. Finally, we utilized DNP expert questionnaire to obtain the weights changes at different time points for each design criterion. Based on the changing trends of each criterion weight, we are able to develop appropriate designing strategies as the reference for planners to allocate resources in a dynamic environment. In order to illustrate the approach we propose in this research, Taipei city as one example has been used as an empirical study, and the results are in depth analyzed to explain the application of our proposed approach.

Keywords: Environment Planning Support Systems, Walking and Cycling, Transit-oriented Development (TOD), Dynamic Network Process (DNP).

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1849

Authors: Chen Wu, Komal Narejo, Dandan Li

Abstract:

Some extended rough set models in incomplete information system cannot distinguish the two objects that have few known attributes and more unknown attributes; some cannot make a flexible and accurate discrimination. In order to solve this problem, this paper suggests an improved limited tolerance rough set model using two thresholds to control what two objects have a relationship between them in limited tolerance relation and to classify objects. Our practical study case shows the model can get fine and reasonable decision results.

Keywords: Decision rule, incomplete information system, limited tolerance relation, rough set model.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1193

Authors: Dilip K. Prasad, C. Krishna Prasath, Deepu Rajan, Lily Rachmawati, Eshan Rajabally, Chai Quek

Abstract:

This paper discusses the technical challenges in maritime image processing and machine vision problems for video streams generated by cameras. Even well documented problems of horizon detection and registration of frames in a video are very challenging in maritime scenarios. More advanced problems of background subtraction and object detection in video streams are very challenging. Challenges arising from the dynamic nature of the background, unavailability of static cues, presence of small objects at distant backgrounds, illumination effects, all contribute to the challenges as discussed here.

Keywords: Autonomous maritime vehicle, object detection, situation awareness, tracking.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1325

Authors: Illyani Ibrahim, Azizan Abu Samah, Rosmadi Fauzi

Abstract:

Land surface temperature (LST) is an important parameter to study in urban climate. The understanding of the influence of biophysical factors could improve the establishment of modeling urban thermal landscape. It is well established that climate hold a great influence on the urban landscape. However, it has been recognize that climate has a low priority in urban planning process, due to the complex nature of its influence. This study will focus on the relatively cloud free Landsat Thematic Mapper image of the study area, acquired on the 2nd March 2006. Correlation analyses were conducted to identify the relationship of LST to the biophysical factors; vegetation indices, impervious surface, and albedo to investigate the variation of LST. We suggest that the results can be considered by the stackholders during decision-making process to create a cooler and comfortable environment in the urban landscape for city dwellers.

Keywords: Biophysical factors, land surface temperature, urban planning.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2085

Authors: Mohammad Najafi Nobar, Bahareh Pourmehr, Mehdi Hajimirarab

Abstract:

One of the main processes of supply chain management is supplier selection process which its accurate implementation can dramatically increase company competitiveness. In presented article model developed based on the features of second tiers suppliers and four scenarios are predicted in order to help the decision maker (DM) in making up his/her mind. In addition two tiers of suppliers have been considered as a chain of suppliers. Then the proposed approach is solved by a method combined of concepts of fuzzy set theory (FST) and linear programming (LP) which has been nourished by real data extracted from an engineering design and supplying parts company. At the end results reveal the high importance of considering second tier suppliers features as criteria for selecting the best supplier.

Keywords: Supply Chain Management (SCM), SupplierSelection, Second Tier Supplier, Scenario Planning, Green Factor, Linear Programming, Fuzzy Set Theory

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1805

Authors: Ming-Tang Tsai, Chih-Wei Yen

Abstract:

In this paper, an Interactive Compromise Approach with Particle Swarm Optimization(ICA-PSO) is presented to solve the Economic Emission Dispatch(EED) problem. The cost function and emission function are modeled as the nonsmooth functions, respectively. The bi-objective including both the minimization of cost and emission is formulated in this paper. ICA-PSO is proposed to solve EED problem for finding a better compromise solution. The solution methodology can offer a global or near-global solution for decision-making requirements. The effectiveness and efficiency of ICA-PSO are demonstrated by a sample test system. Test results can be shown that the proposed method provide a practical and flexible framework for power dispatch.

Keywords: Interactive Compromise Approach, Emission Control, Economic Dispatch, Particle Swarm Optimization.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1452

Authors: S.A.M. Yatim, Z.B. Ibrahim, K.I. Othman, F. Ismail

Abstract:

The implicit block methods based on the backward differentiation formulae (BDF) for the solution of stiff initial value problems (IVPs) using variable step size is derived. We construct a variable step size block methods which will store all the coefficients of the method with a simplified strategy in controlling the step size with the intention of optimizing the performance in terms of precision and computation time. The strategy involves constant, halving or increasing the step size by 1.9 times the previous step size. Decision of changing the step size is determined by the local truncation error (LTE). Numerical results are provided to support the enhancement of method applied.

Keywords: Backward differentiation formulae, block backwarddifferentiation formulae, stiff ordinary differential equation, variablestep size.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2256

Authors: Lebari B. Gboeloh

Abstract:

Ficus exasperata is a plant used in the traditional management of malaria in south-south Nigeria. An investigation into the effects of the ethanolic extract of the leaf of the plant on some biochemical indices in albino mice infected with Plasmodium berghei (NK 65) was conducted. 48 mice with weight range of 13-23 g were grouped into six (A, B, C, D, E, and F). Each group contained 8 mice. Groups A, B, C, D and E were infected with blood containing the parasite. Group F was not infected and served as the normal control. On the 6^th day after infection, 4 mice from each group were sacrificed and blood samples are collected for investigation. The remaining mice in each group were treated. Mice in Groups A, B and C were administered orally with 200, 300 and 500 mg/kg body weight of Ficus exasperata respectively for six days. Group D was not treated while Group F was given distilled water. Group E was treated with 5 mg/kg body weight of chloroquine. On the 6^th day post treatment, these mice were sacrificed and blood samples were collected for biochemical analysis. The results indicated that on the 6^th day post inoculation, the levels of aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) in all the mice infected with the parasite were significantly (p < 0.05) elevated. However, on the 6^th day post administration of extract, the increased levels of AST, ALP and ALT were significantly (p < 0.05) reduced in groups administered with 300 and 500 mg/kg body weight of the extract compared with groups D and F. The reduction in the levels of these enzymes is an indication that F. exasperata have no hepatotoxic effect on the mice at the dose levels administered.

Keywords: Ficus exasperata, albino mice, Plasmodium berghei, biochemical parameters.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1022

Authors: Mimi Hafizah Abdullah, Hanani Farhah Harun, Nik Ruzni Nik Idris

Abstract:

With the implied volatility as an important factor in financial decision-making, in particular in option pricing valuation, and also the given fact that the pricing biases of Leland option pricing models and the implied volatility structure for the options are related, this study considers examining the implied adjusted volatility smile patterns and term structures in the S&P/ASX 200 index options using the different Leland option pricing models. The examination of the implied adjusted volatility smiles and term structures in the Australian index options market covers the global financial crisis in the mid-2007. The implied adjusted volatility was found to escalate approximately triple the rate prior the crisis.

Keywords: Implied adjusted volatility, Financial crisis, Leland option pricing models.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2944

Authors: Orkide Donma, Mustafa M. Donma

Abstract:

Basal metabolic rate (BMR) is widely used and an accepted measure of energy expenditure. Its principal determinant is body mass. However, this parameter is also correlated with a variety of other factors. The objective of this study is to measure BMR and compare it with the values obtained from predictive equations in adults classified according to their body mass index (BMI) values. 276 adults were included into the scope of this study. Their age, height and weight values were recorded. Five groups were designed based on their BMI values. First group (n = 85) was composed of individuals with BMI values varying between 18.5 and 24.9 kg/m². Those with BMI values varying from 25.0 to 29.9 kg/m² constituted Group 2 (n = 90). Individuals with 30.0-34.9 kg/m², 35.0-39.9 kg/m², > 40.0 kg/m² were included in Group 3 (n = 53), 4 (n = 28) and 5 (n = 20), respectively. The most commonly used equations to be compared with the measured BMR values were selected. For this purpose, the values were calculated by the use of four equations to predict BMR values, by name, introduced by Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)/World Health Organization (WHO)/United Nations University (UNU), Harris and Benedict, Owen and Mifflin. Descriptive statistics, ANOVA, post-Hoc Tukey and Pearson’s correlation tests were performed by a statistical program designed for Windows (SPSS, version 16.0). p values smaller than 0.05 were accepted as statistically significant. Mean ± SD of groups 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 for measured BMR in kcal were 1440.3 ± 210.0, 1618.8 ± 268.6, 1741.1 ± 345.2, 1853.1 ± 351.2 and 2028.0 ± 412.1, respectively. Upon evaluation of the comparison of means among groups, differences were highly significant between Group 1 and each of the remaining four groups. The values were increasing from Group 2 to Group 5. However, differences between Group 2 and Group 3, Group 3 and Group 4, Group 4 and Group 5 were not statistically significant. These insignificances were lost in predictive equations proposed by Harris and Benedict, FAO/WHO/UNU and Owen. For Mifflin, the insignificance was limited only to Group 4 and Group 5. Upon evaluation of the correlations of measured BMR and the estimated values computed from prediction equations, the lowest correlations between measured BMR and estimated BMR values were observed among the individuals within normal BMI range. The highest correlations were detected in individuals with BMI values varying between 30.0 and 34.9 kg/m². Correlations between measured BMR values and BMR values calculated by FAO/WHO/UNU as well as Owen were the same and the highest. In all groups, the highest correlations were observed between BMR values calculated from Mifflin and Harris and Benedict equations using age as an additional parameter. In conclusion, the unique resemblance of the FAO/WHO/UNU and Owen equations were pointed out. However, mean values obtained from FAO/WHO/UNU were much closer to the measured BMR values. Besides, the highest correlations were found between BMR calculated from FAO/WHO/UNU and measured BMR. These findings suggested that FAO/WHO/UNU was the most reliable equation, which may be used in conditions when the measured BMR values are not available.

Keywords: Adult, basal metabolic rate, FAO/WHO/UNU, obesity, prediction equations.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1009

Authors: Yuan-Jye Tseng, Jia-Shu Li

Abstract:

To design a product with the given product requirement and design objective, there can be alternative ways to propose the detailed design specifications of the product. In the design modeling stage, alternative design cases with detailed specifications can be modeled to fulfill the product requirement and design objective. Therefore, in the design evaluation stage, it is required to perform an evaluation of the alternative design cases for deciding the final design. The purpose of this research is to develop a product evaluation model for evaluating the alternative design cases by integrated evaluating the criteria of functional design, Kansei design, and design for supply chain. The criteria in the functional design group include primary function, expansion function, improved function, and new function. The criteria in the Kansei group include geometric shape, dimension, surface finish, and layout. The criteria in the design for supply chain group include material, manufacturing process, assembly, and supply chain operation. From the point of view of value and cost, the criteria in the functional design group and Kansei design group represent the design value of the product. The criteria in the design for supply chain group represent the supply chain and manufacturing cost of the product. It is required to evaluate the design value and the supply chain cost to determine the final design. For the purpose of evaluating the criteria in the three criteria groups, a fuzzy analytic network process (FANP) method is presented to evaluate a weighted index by calculating the total relational values among the three groups. A method using the technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS) is used to compare and rank the design alternative cases according to the weighted index using the total relational values of the criteria. The final decision of a design case can be determined by using the ordered ranking. For example, the design case with the top ranking can be selected as the final design case. Based on the criteria in the evaluation, the design objective can be achieved with a combined and weighted effect of the design value and manufacturing cost. An example product is demonstrated and illustrated in the presentation. It shows that the design evaluation model is useful for integrated evaluation of functional design, Kansei design, and design for supply chain to determine the best design case and achieve the design objective.

Keywords: Design evaluation, functional design, Kansei design, supply chain, design value, manufacturing cost, fuzzy analytic network process, technique for order preference by similarity to ideal solution.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 793

Authors: G. Schuh, T. Potente, D. Kupke, S. Ivanescu

Abstract:

As German companies roll out their standardized production systems to offshore manufacturing plants, they face the challenge of implementing them in different cultural environments. Studies show that the local adaptation is one of the key factors for a successful implementation. Thus the question arises of where the line between standardization and adaptation can be drawn. To answer this question the influence of culture on production systems is analysed in this paper. The culturally contingent components of production systems are identified. Also the contingency factors are classified according to their impact on the necessary adaptation changes and implementation effort. Culturally specific decision making, coordination, communication and motivation patterns require one-time changes in organizational and process design. The attitude towards rules requires more intense coaching and controlling. Lastly a framework is developed to depict standardization and adaption needs when transplanting production systems into different cultural environments.

Keywords: Culture, influence of national culture on production systems, lean production, production systems.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1824

Authors: Lalit Garg, Sally McClean, Maria Barton

Abstract:

Healthcare issues continue to pose huge problems and incur massive costs. As a result there are many challenging problems still unresolved. In this paper, we will carry out an extensive scientific survey of different areas of management and planning in an attempt to identify where there has already been a substantial contribution from management science methods to healthcare problems and where there is a clear potential for more work to be done. The focus will be on the read-across to the healthcare domain from such approaches applied generally to management and planning and how the methods can be used to improvement patient care. We conclude that, since the healthcare domain significantly differs from traditional areas of management and planning, in some cases there is a need to modify the approaches so as to incorporate the complexities of healthcare, and fully exploit the potential for improvement.

Keywords: Management science, management and planning, transforming services, healthcare.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1474

Authors: Fauzy M. Wan, Reem S.A. Baragash

Abstract:

This study examined the effects of two dynamic visualizations on 60 Malaysian primary school student-s performance (time on task), retention and transference. The independent variables in this study were the two dynamic visualizations, the video and the animated instructions. The dependent variables were the gain score of performance, retention and transference. The results showed that the students in the animation group significantly outperformed the students in the video group in retention. There were no significant differences in terms of gain scores in the performance and transference among the animation and the video groups, although the scores were slightly higher in the animation group compared to the video group. The conclusion of this study is that the animation visualization is superior compared to the video in the retention for a procedural task.

Keywords: Dynamic visualization, Procedural Task, Retention, Transference

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1428

Authors: Mustafa M. Donma, Orkide Donma

Abstract:

Anthropometric measurements are essential for obesity studies. Waist circumference (WC) is the most frequently used measure and along with hip circumference (HC), it is used in most equations derived for the evaluation of obese individuals. Morbid obesity (MO) is the most severe clinical form of obesity and such individuals may also exhibit some clinical findings leading to metabolic syndrome (MetS). Then, it becomes a requirement to discriminate MO children with MetS (MOMetS+) from MO children without MetS (MOMetS-). Almost all obesity indices can differentiate obese (OB) children from children with normal body mass index (N-BMI). However, not all of them are capable of making this distinction. The aim of this study was to find out the clinical availability of (waist circumference + hip circumference)/2 ((WC+HC)/2) for the differential diagnosis of MOMetS+ and MOMetS- and to compare the possible preponderance of it over some other anthropometric or fat-based obesity indices. 45 MOMetS+ and 45 MOMetS- children were included in the study. Participants have submitted informed consent forms. The study protocol was approved by the Non-interventional Clinical Studies Ethics Committee of Tekirdag Namik Kemal University. Anthropometric measurements were performed. BMI, waist-to-hip circumference (WHR), (WC+HC)/2, trunk-to-leg fat ratio (TLFR), trunk-to-appendicular fat ratio (TAFR), trunk fat+leg fat/2 ((trunk+leg fat)/2), diagnostic obesity notation model assessment index-2 (D2I) and fat mass index (FMI) were calculated for both groups. Study data were analyzed statistically and 0.05 for p value was accepted as the statistical significance degree. Statistically higher BMI, WC, (WC+HC)/2, (trunk+leg fat)/2 values were found in MOMetS+ children than MOMetS- children. No statistically significant difference was detected for WHR, TLFR, TAFR, D2I and FMI between two groups. The lack of difference between the groups in terms of FMI and D2I pointed out the fact that the recently developed fat-based index; (trunk+leg fat)/2 gives much more valuable information during the evaluation of MOMetS+ and MOMetS- children. Upon evaluation of the correlations, (WC+HC)/2 was strongly correlated with D2I and FMI in both MOMetS+ and MOMetS- groups. Neither D2I nor FMI was correlated with W/H. Strong correlations were calculated between (WC+HC)/2 and (trunk+leg fat)/2 in both MOMetS- (r = 0.961; p < 0.001) and MOMetS+ (r = 0.936; p < 0.001) groups. Partial correlations between (WC+HC)/2 and (trunk+leg fat)/2 after controlling the effect of basal metabolic rate were r = 0.726; p < 0.001 in MOMetS- group and r = 0.932; p < 0.001 in MOMetS+ group. The correlation in the latter group was higher than the first group. In conclusion, recently developed anthropometric obesity index (WC+HC)/2 and fat-based obesity index (trunk+leg fat)/2 were of preponderance over the previously introduced classical obesity indices such as WHR, D2I and FMI during the differential diagnosis of MOMetS+ and MOMetS- children.

Keywords: Hip circumference, metabolic syndrome, morbid obesity, waist circumference.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 228

Authors: Ana Hol

Abstract:

Digital systems are in the Cognitive wave of the eTransformations and are now extensively aimed at meeting the individuals’ demands, both those of customers requiring services and those of service providers. It is also apparent that successful future systems will not just simply open doors to the traditional owners/users to offer and receive services such as Uber, for example, does today, but will in the future require more customized and cognitively enabled infrastructures that will be responsive to the system user’s needs. To be able to identify what is required for such systems this research reviews the historical and the current effects of the eTransformation process by studying: 1. eTransitions of company websites and mobile applications, 2. Emergence of new shared economy business models such as Uber, and 3. New requirements for demand driven, cognitive systems capable of learning and just-in-time decision-making. Based on the analysis, this study proposes a Cognitive eTransformation Framework capable of guiding implementations of new responsive and user aware systems.

Keywords: System implementations, AI supported systems, cognitive systems, eTransformation.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 951

Authors: Mohammad Jafariahangari, Marjan Habibi, Miresmaeil Mirnabibaboli, Mirza Hassan Hosseini

Abstract:

Self-service technologies (SSTs) make an important contribution to the daily life of people nowadays. However, the introduction of SST does not lead to its usage. Thereby, this paper was an attempt on discovery of the most preferred SST in the customers’ point of view. To fulfill this aim, the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) was applied based on Saaty’s questionnaire which was administered to the customers of e-banking services located in Golestan providence, northern Iran. This study used qualitative factors in association with the intention of consumers’ usage of SSTs to rank three SSTs: ATM, mobile banking and internet banking. The results showed that mobile banking get the highest weight in consumers’ point of view. This research can be useful both for managers and service providers and also for customers who intend to use e-banking.

Keywords: Analytical Hierarchy Process, Decision-making, Ebanking, Iran, Self-service technologies.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 2209

Authors: Chia-Hung Chen, Shangyao Yan

Abstract:

The solution algorithm, based on Lagrangian relaxation, a sub-gradient method and a heuristic to find the upper bound of the solution, is proposed to solve the coordinated fleet routing and flight scheduling problems. Numerical tests are performed to evaluate the proposed algorithm using real operating data from two Taiwan airlines. The test results indicate that the solution algorithm is a significant improvement over those obtained with CPLEX, consequently they could be useful for allied airlines to solve coordinated fleet routing and flight scheduling problems.

Keywords: Coordinated flight scheduling, multiple commodity network flow problem, Lagrangian relaxation.

Procedia APA BibTeX Chicago EndNote Harvard JSON MLA RIS XML ISO 690 PDF Downloads 1813