scholarly journals A Buckling Flexure-Based Force-Limiting Mechanism

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan T. Slocum ◽  
Kenneth Kamrin ◽  
Alexander H. Slocum
Keyword(s):  
Real World ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Structural Model ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Single Shot ◽  
Excessive Force ◽  
Molding Machine ◽  
Preliminary Model ◽  
Buckling Beam ◽  
Beam Thickness

A force-limiting buckling flexure has been created which can be used in a wide array of applications where excessive force from an implement can cause harm or damage. The buckling flexure is monolithic, contains no electronics, and can be manufactured using a single shot in an injection molding machine, making it extremely cost effective. In this paper, the design of this flexure is applied to a force-limiting toothbrush as an example of how this buckling flexure may be applied in a real-world technology. An overview of the buckling flexure is presented, and a structural model is shown to predict when the flexure will elastically buckle. This model is compared to data collected from flexures fabricated with varying buckling beam thickness. The data show that the force to buckle the flexure when applied at the tip can be predicted to within 20.84%. Furthermore, a preliminary model is presented which enables design of the buckling beam’s displacement, such that the total breakaway deformation can be maximized, making sensing the sudden deformation easier. As part of the application of the buckling flexure, an ergonomic, injection moldable toothbrush was created with the flexure built into the neck of the brush. When the user applies too much force while brushing, the flexure gives way and alerts the user when they have applied too much force and when the user lets off the force, the brush snaps back to its original shape. This design methodology is generalized and can be utilized in other force limited applications where an injection moldable, pre-set force, purely mechanical breakaway device is desired.

scholarly journals A Buckling Flexure-Based Force-Limiting Mechanism

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan Slocum ◽  
Kenneth Kamrin ◽  
Alexander Slocum
Keyword(s):  
Finite Element ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Structural Model ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Element Model ◽  
Single Shot ◽  
Excessive Force ◽  
Molding Machine ◽  
Preliminary Model ◽  
Wide Range

A force-limiting buckling flexure has been created which can be used in a wide range of applications where excessive force from an implement can cause harm or damage. The buckling flexure is monolithic, contains no electronics, and can be manufactured using a single shot in an injection molding machine, making it cost effective. In this paper, the design of the flexure is applied to a force-limiting toothbrush as a design study to show its application in a real-world technology. An overview of the buckling flexure is presented, and a structural model is presented to predict when the flexure will elastically buckle. Flexures of different geometries were tested and buckled. The data show that the model can predict buckling of the flexure with an error of 20.84%. A finite element model was also performed which predicts buckling of the flexure within an error of 25.35%. Furthermore, a preliminary model is presented which enables the design of the buckling beam’s displacement, such that the total breakaway deformation can be maximized, making sensing the sudden deformation easier to detect. As part of the application of the buckling flexure, an ergonomic, injection moldable toothbrush was created with the flexure built into the neck of the brush. When the user applies too much force while brushing, the flexure gives way and alerts the user when they have applied too much force; when the user lets off the force, the brush snaps back to its original shape. This design methodology is generalized and can be utilized in other force limited applications where an injection-moldable, pre-set force, and purely mechanical breakaway device is desired.

An approach to quantify integration quality using feedback on mapping results

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-70
Author(s):  
Fernando R.S. Serrano ◽  
Alvaro A.A. Fernandes ◽  
Klitos Christodoulou
Keyword(s):  
Data Integration ◽  
Empirical Evidence ◽  
Continuous Improvement ◽  
Real World ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Systematic Approach ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
User Feedback ◽  
Content Type

Purpose The pay-as-you-go approach to data integration aims to reduce the time and effort required by proposing a bootstrap phase in which algorithms, rather than experts, identify semantic correspondences and generate the mappings. This highly automated bootstrap phase is likely to be of low quality, thus pay-as-you-go approaches postulate a subsequent continuous improvement phase based on user feedback assimilation to improve the quality of the integration. The purpose of this paper is to quantify the quality of a speculative integration, using one particular type of feedback, mapping results, whilst taking into account the uncertainty of user feedback provided. Design/methodology/approach The authors propose a systematic approach to quantify the quality of an integration as a conditional probability given the trustworthiness of the workers. Given a set of mappings and a set of workers of unknown trustworthiness, feedback instances are collected in the extents of the mappings that characterize the integration. Taking into account the available evidence obtained from worker feedback, the technique provides a quality quantification of the speculative integration. Findings Experimental results on both synthetic and real-world scenarios provide valuable empirical evidence that the technique produces a cost-effective quantification of integration quality that faithfully reflects the judgement of the workers whilst taking into account the inherent uncertainty of user feedback. Originality/value Current pay-as-you-go techniques provide a limited view of the integration quality as the result of feedback assimilation. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first proposal for quantifying integration quality in a systematic and principled manner using mapping results as a piece of evidence while at the same time considering the uncertainty inherited from user feedback.

scholarly journals Generalisability of advertising persuasion principles

2016 ◽  
Vol 50 (1/2) ◽  
pp. 301-305 ◽  
Author(s):  
Byron Sharp ◽  
Nicole Hartnett
Keyword(s):  
Real World ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Predictive Accuracy ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Testing Procedure ◽  
Index Method ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Sales Effectiveness ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
The Ideal

Purpose – This paper aims to reflect on the generalisability of the predictive validity test of the Persuasion Principles Index (PPI) conducted by Armstrong et al. (2016). Design/methodology/approach – Different aspects of the test are considered, such as the sample of ads, the dependent variable and the comparability of the methods used to predict effectiveness, in terms of how relevant these are to real-world advertising testing. Findings – The sample of ads and the testing procedure may have contributed to the success of the PPI predictions over the other copy-testing methods. The sample of print ads does not bear a close resemblance to current advertising. The competing copy tests do not represent modern advertising copy testing. Research/limitations/implications – More research is needed to test the validity of the principles and the predictive accuracy of the PPI across a range of conditions (e.g. different ads, media, products and cultures). Testing against advertising sales effectiveness would be the ideal next step. Practical/implications – It certainly seems the index method has the potential to help advertisers make better decisions regarding what executions to support, for high-involvement products at least. Given the accessibility of the software, it should be easy and cost effective for advertisers to trial the PPI. Originality/value – This commentary directs researchers to the real-world conditions under which advertising pre-tests need to be evaluated.

scholarly journals Factors Affecting the Lut Desert Tourism in Iran: Developing an Interpretive-Structural Model

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (13) ◽  
pp. 7245
Author(s):  
Beniamino Murgante ◽  
Mohammad Eskandari Sani ◽  
Sara Pishgahi ◽  
Moslem Zarghamfard ◽  
Fatemeh Kahaki
Keyword(s):  
Sampling Method ◽  
Structural Model ◽  
Tourism Development ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Structural Modeling ◽  
Interpretive Structural Modeling ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Purposive Sampling ◽  
Interpretive Structural Model ◽  
Lut Desert

The Lut desert is one of the largest and most attractive deserts in Iran. The value of desert tourism remains unclear for Iran’s economy and has only recently been taken into consideration by the authorities, although its true national and international value remains unclear. This study was aimed at investigating the factors that influence tourism development in the Lut desert. Data collected through the purposive sampling method was analyzed using Interpretive Structural Modeling and the MICMAC Analysis. According to the results, cost-effective travel expenses, security, and safety provided in the desert, together with appropriate media advertising and illustration of the Lut desert (branding) are the leading factors that influence tourism in the Lut desert in Iran. This paper highlighted the importance of desert tourism, especially in this region.

Improving recommender systems’ performance on cold-start users and controversial items by a new similarity model

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 126-149 ◽  
Author(s):  
Masoud Mansoury ◽  
Mehdi Shajari
Keyword(s):  
Real World ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Cold Start ◽  
Selection Function ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Real World Data ◽  
Content Type ◽  
User Similarity ◽  
Active User ◽  
Similarity Model

Purpose This paper aims to improve the recommendations performance for cold-start users and controversial items. Collaborative filtering (CF) generates recommendations on the basis of similarity between users. It uses the opinions of similar users to generate the recommendation for an active user. As a similarity model or a neighbor selection function is the key element for effectiveness of CF, many variations of CF are proposed. However, these methods are not very effective, especially for users who provide few ratings (i.e. cold-start users). Design/methodology/approach A new user similarity model is proposed that focuses on improving recommendations performance for cold-start users and controversial items. To show the validity of the authors’ similarity model, they conducted some experiments and showed the effectiveness of this model in calculating similarity values between users even when only few ratings are available. In addition, the authors applied their user similarity model to a recommender system and analyzed its results. Findings Experiments on two real-world data sets are implemented and compared with some other CF techniques. The results show that the authors’ approach outperforms previous CF techniques in coverage metric while preserves accuracy for cold-start users and controversial items. Originality/value In the proposed approach, the conditions in which CF is unable to generate accurate recommendations are addressed. These conditions affect CF performance adversely, especially in the cold-start users’ condition. The authors show that their similarity model overcomes CF weaknesses effectively and improve its performance even in the cold users’ condition.

Understanding the complementary nature of paid and volunteer crowds for content creation

2020 ◽  
pp. 37
Author(s):  
Claudia Flores-Saviaga ◽  
Ricardo Granados ◽  
Liliana Savage ◽  
Lizbeth Escobedo ◽  
Saiph Savage
Keyword(s):  
Real World ◽  
Limited Resource ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Power Cost ◽  
Non Profit ◽  
Content Creation ◽  
Online Study ◽  
Complementary Nature ◽  
Different Populations

Crowdsourced content creation like articles or slogans can be powered by crowds of volunteers or workers from paid task markets. Volunteers often have expertise and are intrinsically motivated, but are a limited resource, and are not always reliably available. On the other hand, paid crowd workers are reliably available, can be guided to produce high-quality content, but cost money. How can these different populations of crowd workers be leveraged together to power cost-effective yet high-quality crowd-powered content-creation systems? To answer this question, we need to understand the strengths and weaknesses of each. We conducted an online study where we hired paid crowd workers and recruited volunteers from social media to complete three content creation tasks for three real-world non-profit organizations that focus on empowering women. These tasks ranged in complexity from simply generating keywords or slogans to creating a draft biographical article. Our results show that paid crowds completed work and structured content following editorial guidelines more effectively. However, volunteer crowds provide content that is more original. Based on the findings, we suggest that crowd-powered content-creation systems could gain the best of both worlds by leveraging volunteers to scaffold the direction that original content should take; while having paid crowd workers structure content and prepare it for real world use.

The effect of teaching style and academic enthusiasm of accounting and auditing students on stress, aggression, and anxiety

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Arash Arianpoor ◽  
Hameed Mohsen Khayoon
Keyword(s):  
Structural Equation ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Sampling Method ◽  
Structural Model ◽  
Teaching Style ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Statistical Population ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Confirmatory Factor ◽  
Negative Effect

Purpose This study aims to investigate the effect of teaching style and academic enthusiasm of Iraqi accounting and auditing students on their stress, aggression and anxiety. Design/methodology/approach The statistical population in this study consists of two parts. The first is the Iraqi accounting and auditing students in Iran and the second is the Iraqi accounting and auditing students in Iraq. By available non-probability sampling method, 62 people (Iraqi students in Iran) and 102 (Iraqi students in Iraq) were selected as samples. In this research, a questionnaire was used to collect information. The validity of the questionnaire’s structure was confirmed by confirmatory factor analysis. Also, Cronbach’s alpha coefficients in this study indicating the measurement tool’s reliability. In this research, structural equation modeling has been used to analyze and test the hypotheses. The primary criteria for determining the coefficient and evaluating the path coefficients were used to evaluate the structural model. Findings Findings indicate that in Iraqi students in Iraq and Iraqi students in Iran, teaching style negatively affects stress, aggression and accounting and auditing students’ anxiety. Also, in the group of Iraqi students in Iraq and the group of Iraqi students in Iran, the eagerness to study has a significant negative effect on accounting and auditing students’ stress and anxiety. In contrast, the effect of the desire to study accounting and auditing students’ aggression was confirmed only in Iraqi students in Iraq. Originality/value As the accounting and auditing professions are among the most stressful occupations that increase the characteristics of aggression and anxiety in the employees of that profession, the results of leading research can show that the stress, anxiety and aggression of accounting and auditing students how to reduce through training so that their stress, anxiety and aggression do not appear in the workplace and the reports of accountants and auditors are not affected.

scholarly journals Hybrid Finite Element Method Development for Offshore Structures’ Calculation with the Implementation of Industry Standards

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 90-100
Author(s):  
Jacek Łubiński ◽  
Henryk Olszewski
Keyword(s):  
Finite Element ◽  
Method Development ◽  
Structural Model ◽  
Model Development ◽  
Steel Structures ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Offshore Structures ◽  
Wind Loading ◽  
Hybrid Finite Element Method ◽  
Industry Standards

Abstract In the design process of offshore steel structures, it is typical to employ commercial calculation codes in which simulation and evaluation of results are performed on the basis of the available standards (e.g. API, DNV, Lloyds). The modeling and solution rely on finite element methods and cover the simulation of the structure’s properties along with the influence of the marine environment – sea currents, wave and wind loading, as well as the influence of vibrations, buoyancy and accompanying mass of water. Both commercial and open source mathematical modeling software which is available nowadays allows for cost effective and flexible implementation of advanced models for offshore industrial structures with high level of credibility and safety. The models can be built to suit task-specific requirements and evaluated on the basis of the selected criterial system best suited to the needs of the customer. Examples of methodology for environmental and structural model development are presented, along with simulation results covering a wide scope of data, ranging from stress and deformation to resonant characteristics and issues of technological feasibility.

scholarly journals Multiple Noisy Label Distribution Propagation for Crowdsourcing

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hao Zhang ◽  
Liangxiao Jiang ◽  
Wenqiang Xu
Keyword(s):  
Supervised Learning ◽  
Real World ◽  
Effective Means ◽  
Ground Truth ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Nearest Neighbors ◽  
True Label ◽  
Real World Datasets ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Label Distribution

Crowdsourcing services provide a fast, efficient, and cost-effective means of obtaining large labeled data for supervised learning. Ground truth inference, also called label integration, designs proper aggregation strategies to infer the unknown true label of each instance from the multiple noisy label set provided by ordinary crowd workers. However, to the best of our knowledge, nearly all existing label integration methods focus solely on the multiple noisy label set itself of the individual instance while totally ignoring the intercorrelation among multiple noisy label sets of different instances. To solve this problem, a multiple noisy label distribution propagation (MNLDP) method is proposed in this study. MNLDP first transforms the multiple noisy label set of each instance into its multiple noisy label distribution and then propagates its multiple noisy label distribution to its nearest neighbors. Consequently, each instance absorbs a fraction of the multiple noisy label distributions from its nearest neighbors and yet simultaneously maintains a fraction of its own original multiple noisy label distribution. Promising experimental results on simulated and real-world datasets validate the effectiveness of our proposed method.

scholarly journals Silica-encapsulated DNA tracers for measuring aerosol distribution dynamics in real-world settings

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anne M Luescher ◽  
Julian Koch ◽  
Wendelin J Stark ◽  
Robert N Grass
Keyword(s):  
Real World ◽  
Complex Dynamics ◽  
Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Confined Space ◽  
Aerosol Dynamics ◽  
Novel Approach ◽  
Aerosol Distribution ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Series Of Experiments

Aerosolized particles play a significant role in human health and environmental risk management. The global importance of aerosol-related hazards, such as the circulation of pathogens and high levels of air pollutants, have led to a surging demand for suitable surrogate tracers to investigate the complex dynamics of airborne particles in real-world scenarios. In this study, we propose a novel approach using silica particles with encapsulated DNA (SPED) as a tracing agent for measuring aerosol distribution indoors. In a series of experiments with a portable setup, SPED were successfully aerosolized, re-captured and quantified using quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). Position-dependency and ventilation effects within a confined space could be shown in a quantitative fashion achieving detection limits below 0.1 ng particles per m3 of sampled air. In conclusion, SPED show promise for a flexible, cost-effective and low-impact characterization of aerosol dynamics in a wide range of settings.

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