Employee involvement in quality improvement: a comparison ofAmerican and Japanese manufacturing firms operating in the US

The authors sought to determine whether firms classified as incorporating a Japanese quality management approach had significantly higher levels of worker involvement in the quality effort as well as higher utilization of statistical quality control (SQC) tools. The three types of firms represented were traditional American firms, Japanese firms operating in the US, and nontraditional American firms emulating the Japanese approach to quality management. Results suggest that Japanese and nontraditional American firms (1) have a significantly higher level of worker involvement and (2) use simple SQC tools significantly more than traditional American firms. In addition, Japanese firms operating in the US showed results comparable to these American firms practicing Japanese quality management techniques     

三维控制图的应用

平均值x及极差R控制图是质量管理中用得最多的一种控制图,但它在日常生产中使用较困难,原因是经常有点跑出控制线外,即失控,而实际上生产线却无异常产生,这是从误报警而犯了第一类错误,这些主要是由平均值x及极差R控制图的局限性引起的。如果用平均值x及移动极差R控制图就完全可以解决以上问题,从而大大降低第一类风险而没有增加第二类风险。     

The Application of New Product Development Tools in Industry: The Case of Singapore

Literature suggests that new product development (NPD) is critical for industrial firms to gain a competitive advantage. Intriguingly, the systematic application of NPD tools in industry, despite the extensive effort that has been invested and the benefits that can be obtained, remains mostly uncommon. By conducting ten semi-structured interviews with selected academics and industrialists and using a sample of 67 industrial firms in Singapore for questionnaire survey, this empirical study investigates the diffusion and adoption of NPD tools in industry. It also probes the factors which may affect the application of NPD tools. Our findings reveal that the application of NPD tools is still under-exploited in most of the industrial companies in Singapore. Although the application of NPD tools is affected by many factors, the most significant are management support in the company and the innovativeness orientation of the company. Surprisingly, we found that the usefulness of tools has little influence on whether a tool is adopted or not     

PLC-1: A TASI System for Small Trunk Groups

The PLC-1 Private Line Voice Concentrator is introduced. This equipment uses the well-known TASI (time assignment speech interpolation) technique to reduce the number of transmission facilities required to transmit a number of trunks by a factor of up to two. In addition to reducing transmission facility requirements, the PLC-1 provides a very high level of management and diagnostic tools to the telecommunications manager.     

Energy Efficient Multi-hop Cooperative Transmission Protocol for Large Scale Mobile Ad hoc Networks

A great advancement has been made in intelligent transportation system and communication technologies in order to exchange secure information between automobiles, facilities provider have led an frame over road network. The intelligent transportation system provides an efficient traffic system for drivers, so that there must be less risk to users. In order to design a secure communication protocol among V & V and V & I is a challenging problem. In order to reduce the chance of attacks and increase privacy level, crypto graphic tools provides the feasible solution. In this paper, we proposed pseudonym changing strategy with mix zones (1) Anonymous authentication: the message should be authenticated by issuer due to mix zone and cryptographic tools secure message without any attack. (2) Privacy: Communication contents are confidential due to encrypted messages during communications also improving the scalability through address configuration scheme to reduce computational cost. (3) Efficiency: low storage requirements, The velocity and distance factors may also consider secure measurement, message delivery, overhead and coverage,packet delivery rate, reduce latency and overhead not only by computation cost and time but also compared our scheme, fast delivery rate, low latency and maximum coverage in order to enhance privacy against malicious attacks.

     

Programming video cards for computational electromagnetics applications

Recently, programming tools have become available to researchers and scientists that allow the use of video cards for general-purpose calculations in computational electromagnetics applications. Over the past few years, developments in the field of graphic processing units (GPUs) for video cards have vastly outpaced their general central processing unit (CPU) counterparts. As specifically applied to vector mathematic operations, the newest generation GPUs can generally outperform current CPU architecture by a wide margin. With the addition of large onboard memory units with significantly higher memory bandwidth than those found in the main system, graphic cards can be utilized as a highly efficient vector mathematic coprocessor. In the past, this power has been harnessed by writing low-level assembly code for the video cards. Recently, new tools have become available to make programming possible in high-level languages. By formulating proper procedures to realize general vector computations on the GPU, it will be possible to increase the processing power available by at least an order of magnitude compared to the current generation of CPUs.     

Key Dimensions of Inhibitors for the Deployment of Web-Based Business-to-Business Electronic Commerce

There has been a rapid increase in the number of firms undertaking business-to-business (B2B) electronic commerce (e-commerce) initiatives. Although there are various benefits to B2B e-commerce, there are also inhibitors to its deployment. This study empirically investigates the inhibitors for deploying Web-based B2B e-commerce applications in organizations. A field survey of senior IT executives was conducted to examine the key problems that inhibit the deployment of Web-based B2B e-commerce. A comprehensive list of inhibitors was derived from an extensive review of the literature and pretested with senior IT executives. Data from 249 firms were factor analyzed to yield the underlying structural dimensions of inhibitors impacting the deployment of Web-based B2B e-commerce. Univariate$ t$-test and multivariate discriminant analysis were carried out on the resulting ten dimensions to compare B2B (i.e., firms who have deployed B2B) and non-B2B firms (i.e., firms who have not deployed B2B). The results suggest that key inhibitors in B2B deployment are the lack of top management support, unresolved technical issues, the lack of e-commerce strategy, and the difficulties in cost-benefit assessment of e-commerce investments. Implications of the results for researchers and IT/engineering management executives are discussed.     

From costs to prices: economic analysis of photovoltaic energy and services

A global economic analysis methodology is proposed in order to simplify the cost and the profitability assessment of energy and services delivered by photovoltaic (PV) systems. As examples, equations and graphic tools derived from this methodology give directly the overall discounted cost (ODC) of electricity delivered by grid-connected PV power plants and the ODC of water delivered by a stand-alone PV pumping system. The main criteria used for profitability analysis of PV projects are reviewed: net present value, internal rate of return and profitability index (PI). A simple method with associated equations and graphic tools is presented in order to assess the profitability of PV projects from their PI. Examples of profitability analysis of present and future grid-connected PV power plants built and operated by an independent power producer are presented and discussed, together with examples of stand-alone PV water pumping systems operated by the local community in developing countries. In both cases, equations and specific graphic tools are presented. Specific graphs can be used with different monetary units, different sizes and different investment costs of PV projects. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Investigating the linkage between total quality management and environmentally responsible manufacturing

This paper explicitly examines the relationship that exists between total quality management (TQM) and environmentally responsible manufacturing (ERM) systems. It has been presumed in numerous past studies that such a relationship does exist. It has been argued that those firms that have successfully implemented a TQM system are better positioned to successfully implement an ERM system. This relationship, however, has not yet been statistically and empirically evaluated. In this study, the authors evaluate this relationship using a large-scale survey of plant managers as the data source and confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling as the statistical tools. The study develops a series of measures for various aspects of both TQM and ERM. The results show that there is indeed a strong relationship between TQM and ERM. In many ways, ERM is conditioned by the presence of TQM. Furthermore, ERM systems have a parallel structure when compared to TQM systems.     

Corporate R&D strategy portfolio in Japanese and Australiantechnology-based firms: an empirical study

This paper presents an empirical study on the strategic structure of corporate R&D in Japanese and Australian technology-based companies. The perceived importance and distribution of basic research, precompetitive strategic research and applied research within a corporate R&D portfolio are examined through a comparative analysis of survey data. The results suggest that Japanese firms tend to place great emphasis on basic and precompetitive strategic research, although applied research still retains its importance. They recognize that basic research is critical to achieve long-term competitive advantages in the marketplace. Australian firms also realize the importance of basic research and the use of portfolio approach in R&D management. However, research work in Australian firms tends to focus on applied research with only a limited involvement in medium- and long-term research. Finally, it is concluded that Japanese firms utilize a portfolio approach to corporate R&D management more systematically than do their Australian counterparts     

Formal modeling and verification of software‐defined networks: A survey

Unlike traditional networking devices, control and management plane are decoupled from data plane in software‐defined networks (SDN). The logically centralized control and management plane facilitate dynamic orchestration of network resources, services, and policies by writing software programs. This provides much needed flexibility and programmability where networking rules and policies can be modified dynamically depending upon the application context. As the operation of network services entirely depends on a program, a small fault may induce several issues which can adversely affect the expected behavior of the network. Formal modeling and verification help in catching inconsistencies and existence of errors prior to the deployment of the programs that control the behavior of a network. In this paper, we provide a comprehensive survey of tools and techniques available in the literature for formal modeling and verification of SDN. These tools and techniques are classified based on their types, the components of SDN where they can be applied, and the design and development phase when they are utilized. In particular, their respective benefits and limitations are discussed in terms of ease of use, interfaces, and the ability to capture and verify intended network properties.     

Business process management: survey and methodology

Due to the growing concern about the competitiveness of US industry in the international marketplace, several initiatives are now underway to enhance the competitive posture of the nation's firms. Many companies are engaged in assessing ways in which their productivity, product quality, and operations can be improved. A relatively new area of such improvements is business process management (BPM). BPM can be any structured approach used to analyze and continually improve fundamental activities, such as manufacturing, marketing, communications, and other major elements of a company's operation. This paper describes a generic step-by-step method for BPM which encompasses methods employed in industry from incremental improvements to reengineering. To better understand BPM, the authors have conducted a survey of major US companies on their approaches to process quality assessment. This report summarizes the findings of the survey and work with a number of leading companies, and may be useful to quality managers and others involved in total quality management, continuous improvement, or reengineering efforts. Due to the interest in BPM, a number of methods and tools, including software, have been used or developed to aid in its implementation. The authors relate some of these methods and tools to the individual steps of the generic BPM method     

浅谈认证后质量工作的持续改进

质量管理是每个组织的重要管理内容。但不少组织在质量管理体系认证后主要的工作仍然是在维持其符合性、保住证书,而在体系的持续改进、充分发挥其有效性方面感到非常困惑,不知如何开展。文章就笔者多年的工作体会给出一些方法和建议。希望组织应更多地参照ISO 9004指南,用科学的BCM目标管理方法带动质量管理和经营管理的结合,质量管理只有和经营管理密切结合才能长久不衰。另外还应开展全员参与的各种质量活动,坚持PDCA,真正使体系持续改善,为组织经营带来成果。     

Results of a pilot-survey about reliability-task effectiveness

Seventy electronic manufacturers (with at least 100 employees) in the northwest USA were contacted in 1990 September with the intent of measuring their perception of reliability-task effectiveness. There were 17 competent respondents; they rated the effectiveness of 26 reliability tasks; the highest rating (from top to third) were for development testing, failure reporting and corrective action, durability analysis, and durability testing. Interestingly, some US Mil-Std-785 reliability tools such as reliability qualification testing, sneak-circuit analysis, and reliability prediction received the lowest ratings. Many respondents thought reliability prediction was ineffective for improving product reliability, although the majority of respondents do use Mil-Hdbk-217. Since the response rate was so low, it is difficult to draw firm conclusions. Both a larger sample size and a virtual 100% response rate are needed for future studies. Other question-areas, especially about corporate culture, are desirable     

Analysis on the Intellectual Property Rights Capability of IT Enterprises in Shenzhen

The situation of intellectual property rights （IPR） capability of IT firms in Shenzhen is investigated and analyzed. They are IPR creation, application, protection, and IPR organizational situation, and the external environment of IPR management. Considering the problems that IT firms are faced with in IPR development, enterprises need to 1） Strengthen the capability building of endogenous IPR; 2） Establish alarming mechanism of IPR; 3） Be good at assembling different IPR tools; 4） Integrate the resources of public service in the government, enhance the level of agency service. A questionnaire method was adopted in this paper.     

A Case Study for NoC-Based Homogeneous MPSoC Architectures

The many-core design paradigm requires flexible and modular hardware and software components to provide the required scalability to next-generation on-chip multiprocessor architectures. A multidisciplinary approach is necessary to consider all the interactions between the different components of the design. In this paper, a complete design methodology that tackles at once the aspects of system level modeling, hardware architecture, and programming model has been successfully used for the implementation of a multiprocessor network-on-chip (NoC)-based system, the NoCRay graphic accelerator. The design, based on 16 processors, after prototyping with field-programmable gate array (FPGA), has been laid out in 90-nm technology. Post-layout results show very low power, area, as well as 500 MHz of clock frequency. Results show that an array of small and simple processors outperform a single high-end general purpose processor.      

Tools for the computer-aided design of multigigahertzsuperconducting digital circuits

The realization of large integrated circuits depends upon the application of computer-aided design (CAD) tools. This paper summarizes the results of a survey of CAD tools targeting superconducting digital electronics. Five categories of tools: circuit simulators, circuit optimizers, layout tools, inductance estimators, and logic simulators are discussed in detail. Within each category, a comparison of several currently available CAD tools is presented, and a tool which has been adapted for use or developed at the University of Rochester is discussed in greater detail. In addition, tools for timing analysis as well as integrated design environments that permit the effective data interchange among various tools and support libraries of design models are discussed. Future tools for timing optimization, automated logic synthesis, and automated layout synthesis are shown to be necessary for the design of superconducting circuits at the very large scale of integration (VLSI) level of integration. Trends regarding changes in the requirements for effective CAD tools are discussed, and expected improvements to existing tools and features of new tools currently under development are presented     

基于准KLT域的线谱对参数压缩感知量化研究

用尽可能少的比特数实现线谱对(LSP)参数透明量化一直是语音编码领域的研究热点。该文基于压缩感知理论,研究了LSP参数在准KLT域的稀疏性,并设计了LSP参数先压缩感知再矢量量化的方案。编码端,利用压缩感知理论,在准KLT域将原始LSP参数投影到低维空间,得到低维测量值,而后采用分裂矢量量化算法对测量值进行量化;解码端,以量化后的测量值为已知条件,利用正交匹配追踪算法重构出原始LSP高维矢量,重构值作为最终量化值。实验结果表明,算法在适当的码本存储量和搜索复杂度下,达到透明量化效果所需的比特数最优时仅需5 bit/帧。     

Receiver optimization on non‐binary joint sparse graph for OFDM system

Low density signature for orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (LDS‐OFDM) is a promising technique for multiple accesses in wireless communications, but its performance is not optimal. In this paper, we study a non‐binary joint sparse graph which combines LDS‐OFDM and non‐binary low density parity check (LDPC) codes, namely non‐binary joint sparse graph for OFDM (NJSG–OFDM). Considering the fact that syndrome computing can be utilized to improve the convergence rate of the joint detection and decoding, syndrome nodes are added to the non‐binary joint sparse graph; consequently, an optimized receiver for the NJSG–OFDM is proposed and analyzed by extrinsic information transfer (EXIT) chart. Simulation results show that the optimized receiver has several advantages such as accelerating the convergence rate of the message passing, improving system performance and alleviating near‐far effect. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Esclangon diagram for voltage and current along a transmission line

This article offers a simple graphic construction that shows the variation of current and voltage along an electric line for a steady sinusoidal operation. The method complements the use of formula applications and the Smith chart, thus making for a good and easy understanding of transmission-line operation.