AI and robotics in the European restaurant sector: Assessing potentials for process innovation in a high-contact service industry

Electronic Markets - The restaurant technology market is rapidly evolving and is transforming the restaurant business as a significant sector of tourism and hospitality. Enabled by artificial...     

From competitive advantage to social welfare

Electronic Markets -     

Development and operation of Digital Twins for technical systems and services

Digital Twins are new solution elements to enable ongoing digital monitoring and active functional improvement of interconnected products, devices and machines. In addition, benefits of horizontal and vertical integration in manufacturing are targeted by the introduction of Digital Twins. Using the test environment of smart factory cells, this paper investigates methodological, technological, operative, and business aspects of developing and operating Digital Twins. The following Digital Twin dimensions are considered in scientific and application oriented analysis: (1) integration breadth, (2) connectivity modes, (3) update frequency, (4) CPS intelligence, (5) simulation capabilities, (6) digital model richness, (7) human interaction, and (8) product lifecycle. From this, design elements for the development of Digital Twins are derived and presented.     

Special Section of BPMDS’2016: Business Processes in a Connected World

Software and Systems Modeling -     

Electric transport properties of rare earth doped YbxCa1-xMnO3 ceramics (part I: Optimization of ceramic processing)

A comprehensive study was performed in order to find the effect of different calcination and sintering conditions on the physical properties of calcium manganite ceramics in dependence of temperature T and partial pressure of oxygen p(O₂). The eventual formation of oxygen vacancies during sintering was investigated and the results were confirmed by monitoring the release of oxygen using a ZrO₂ oxygen sensor. The phase transition behavior was studied using thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) in a wide range of p(O₂) ≈ 10^?1 MPa down to 10^-19 MPa at high temperatures accompanied by dilatometry- and XRD-measurements. Furthermore, the present study reveals for the first time a way for reducing and preventing crack formation that may occur during sintering. The present systematic research provides essential fundamental information before performing electrical measurements necessary in order to understand important factors about charge carriers and electrical transport mechanism.     

Synthesis of Hard Materials by Field Activation: The Synthesis of Solid Solutions and Composites in the TiB2–WB2–CrB2 System

The synthesis of solid solutions of (Ti,W,Cr)B₂ from elemental reactants using the field-activated, pressure-assisted synthesis method and employing the SPS apparatus was investigated. The nature of the products depended on temperature; they were nearly pure solid solutions at 1900°C with minor amounts of β-WB. The product density and microhardness depended on the temperature of synthesis for the same value of applied pressure (64 MPa). Samples with the highest density (94%) corresponded to a hardness of 22.7 GPa. When annealed at 1500°C, the solid solutions decomposed, precipitating a (W,Ti,Cr)B₂ phase in a spinodal form. In addition, β-WB precipitates in the form of thin (0.4–5.3 nm) layers were observed. They existed in a 60°/120° orientation to the (Ti,W,Cr)B₂ matrix, in agreement with previous observations. Highly faceted, small (nanosized) pores associated with the β-WB precipitates were also observed.     

Identification of the Thermodynamically Stable Fe‐Containing Phase in Aged Cement Pastes

Current developments in cement chemistry increasingly rely on predictive thermodynamic modeling of the phase composition in cementitious composites with the aim of linking the performance of the material with the phase composition of the material. This approach requires identification of the cement phases that form in hydrating cementitious materials using standard techniques, such as X‐ray diffraction (XRD) and thermal analysis (DTA, TGA), but also state‐of‐the‐art synchrotron‐based techniques, in particular for those cases in which the signals of solid solutions overlap in XRD and TGA measurements. In this study, two ordinary Portland cements, with different chemical compositions and subject to different hydration times (~10, ~50 yr), were investigated aiming at identifying the most stable Fe‐containing cement phase in the cement pastes. The Fe‐containing cement phases and their solid solutions with the Al analogues in the complex cement matrix were analyzed with X‐ray absorption spectroscopy, indicating the formation of a mixed Fe–Al siliceous hydrogarnet as the major Fe‐containing phase. The presence of this phase after long hydration periods and upon selective dissolution of the pastes further indicates that, independent of the chemical compositions of cements, formation of the mixed Fe–Al siliceous hydrogarnet is thermodynamically favored in aged pastes, which is supported by published thermodynamic calculations.