Scheduling and Lot Streaming in Flowshops with No-Wait in Process

Lot streaming involves splitting a production lot into a number of sublots, in order to allow the overlapping of successive operations, in multi-machine manufacturing systems. In no-wait flowshop scheduling, sublots are necessarily consistent, that is, they remain the same over all machines. The benefits of lot streaming include reductions in lead times and work-in-process, and increases in machine utilization rates. We study the problem of minimizing the makespan in no-wait flowshops producing multiple products with attached setup times, using lot streaming. Our study of the single product problem resolves an open question from the lot streaming literature. The intractable multiple product problem requires finding the optimal number of sublots, sublot sizes, and a product sequence for each machine. We develop a dynamic programming algorithm to generate all the nondominated schedule profiles for each product that are required to formulate the flowshop problem as a generalized traveling salesman problem. This problem is equivalent to a classical traveling salesman problem with a pseudopolynomial number of cities. We develop and computationally test an efficient heuristic for this problem. Our results indicate that solutions can quickly be found for flowshops with up to 10 machines and 50 products. Moreover, the solutions found by our heuristic provide a substantial improvement over previously published results.     

Isotropic Energies, Filters and Splines for Vector Field Regularization

The aim of this paper is to propose new regularization and filtering techniques for dense and sparse vector fields, and to focus on their application to non-rigid registration. Indeed, most of the regularization energies used in non-rigid registration operate independently on each coordinate of the transformation. The only common exception is the linear elastic energy, which enables cross-effects between coordinates. Cross-effects are yet essential to give realistic deformations in the uniform parts of the image, where displacements are interpolated.In this paper, we propose to find isotropic quadratic differential forms operating on a vector field, using a known theorem on isotropic tensors, and we give results for differentials of order 1 and 2. The quadratic approximation induced by these energies yields a new class of vectorial filters, applied numerically in the Fourier domain. We also propose a class of separable isotropic filters generalizing Gaussian filtering to vector fields, which enables fast smoothing in the spatial domain. Then we deduce splines in the context of interpolation or approximation of sparse displacements. These splines generalize scalar Laplacian splines, such as thin-plate splines, to vector interpolation. Finally, we propose to solve the problem of approximating a dense and a sparse displacement field at the same time. This last formulation enables us to introduce sparse geometrical constraints in intensity based non-rigid registration algorithms, illustrated here on intersubject brain registration.     

Stochastic inverse heat conduction using a spectral approach

An adjoint‐based functional optimization technique in conjunction with the spectral stochastic finite element method is proposed for the solution of an inverse heat conduction problem in the presence of uncertainties in material data, process conditions and measurement noise. The ill‐posed stochastic inverse problem is restated as a conditionally well‐posed L₂ optimization problem. The gradient of the objective function is obtained in a distributional sense by defining an appropriate stochastic adjoint field. The L₂ optimization problem is solved using a conjugate‐gradient approach. Accuracy and effectiveness of the proposed approach is appraised with the solution of several stochastic inverse heat conduction problems. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A stabilized volume‐averaging finite element method for flow in porous media and binary alloy solidification processes

A stabilized equal‐order velocity–pressure finite element algorithm is presented for the analysis of flow in porous media and in the solidification of binary alloys. The adopted governing macroscopic conservation equations of momentum, energy and species transport are derived from their microscopic counterparts using the volume‐averaging method. The analysis is performed in a single domain with a fixed numerical grid. The fluid flow scheme developed includes SUPG (streamline‐upwind/Petrov–Galerkin), PSPG (pressure stabilizing/Petrov–Galerkin) and DSPG (Darcy stabilizing/Petrov–Galerkin) stabilization terms in a variable porosity medium. For the energy and species equations a classical SUPG‐based finite element method is employed. The developed algorithms were tested extensively with bilinear elements and were shown to perform stably and with nearly quadratic convergence in high Rayleigh number flows in varying porosity media. Examples are shown in natural and double diffusive convection in porous media and in the directional solidification of a binary‐alloy. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Sensitivity Analysis for Scheduling Problems

This paper represents a first attempt at a systematic study of sensitivity analysis for scheduling problems. Because schedules contain both combinatorial and temporal structures, scheduling problems present unique issues for sensitivity analysis. Some of the issues that we discuss have not been considered before. Others, while studied before, have not been explored in the context of scheduling. The applicability of these issues is illustrated using well-known scheduling models. We provide fast methods to determine when a previously optimal schedule remains optimal. Other methods restore an optimal schedule after a parameter change. The value of studying the sensitivity of an optimal sequence instead of the sensitivity of an optimal schedule is demonstrated. We show that, for some problems, sensitivity analysis results depend on the positions of jobs with changed parameters. We identify scheduling problems where performing additional or different computations during optimization facilitates sensitivity analysis. To improve the robustness of an optimal schedule, selection among multiple optimal schedules is considered. We discuss which types of sensitivity analysis questions are intractable because the scheduling problem itself is intractable. We also study how heuristic error bounds vary when the data of a scheduling problem is continuously modified. Although we focus on scheduling problems, several of the issues we discuss and our classification scheme can be extended to other optimization problems.     

Cluster randomized trials with treatment noncompliance.

Cluster randomized trials (CRTs) have been widely used in field experiments treating a cluster of individuals as the unit of randomization. This study focused particularly on situations where CRTs are accompanied by a common complication, namely, treatment noncompliance or, more generally, intervention nonadherence. In CRTs, compliance may be related not only to individual characteristics but also to the environment of clusters individuals belong to. Therefore, analyses ignoring the connection between compliance and clustering may not provide valid results. Although randomized field experiments often suffer from both noncompliance and clustering of the data, these features have been studied as separate rather than concurrent problems. On the basis of Monte Carlo simulations, this study demonstrated how clustering and noncompliance may affect statistical inferences and how these two complications can be accounted for simultaneously. In particular, the effect of the intervention on individuals who not only were assigned to active intervention but also abided by this intervention assignment (complier average causal effect) was the focus. For estimation of intervention effects considering noncompliance and data clustering, an ML-EM estimation method was employed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

An alternative formulation of the geometric stiffness matrix for plate elements

A simplified formulation of the geometric stiffness matrix for plate elements is presented. In this formulation the transverse displacement is defined along the element boundary but not for the element interior as with the usual formulation. As such the formulation is particularly suitable for use with hybrid stress or discrete Kirchhoff methods which are also based on boundary approximation of the transverse displacement.

The simplicity, computational economy and accuracy obtained with the formulation compare favorably with the usual order formulation.     

Automated Hybridization of X-ray Absorber Elements A Path to Large Format Microcalorimeter Arrays

We have developed an automated die-scale process for the attachment of X-ray absorbers onto microcalorimeters. Here, we describe the process for the production of absorber tiles on a handle wafer, their attachment to the microcalorimeter, and the removal of the supporting handle wafer. The process is shown to be a robust path to large format arrays of microcalorimeters.      

Combined effects of alcohol and distraction on driving performance

Although alcohol and distraction are often cited as significant risk factors for traffic crashes, most research has considered them in isolation. It is therefore necessary to consider the interactions between alcohol and distraction impairment sources, especially when examining the relationship between behavior and crash risk. In a driving simulator, the primary goal was to maintain a safe headway to a lead vehicle and the secondary goal was to maintain stable lane position. All participants engaged in distractions that represented different levels of resource competition and half of the participants consumed alcohol (target BAC 0.08 g/dl). Specific comparisons were made between sober driving while distracted and driving intoxicated without distraction. Distraction tasks produced more changes in driving behavior than did alcohol for both longitudinal (primary) and lateral (secondary) driving goals. Alcohol impairment was evident only in relation to lateral driving performance, however there was an amplification of impairment when alcohol and distraction conditions were combined. Distraction resulted in a general level of impairment across all driving goals, whereas participants with alcohol appeared to shed secondary driving goals to “protect” primary driving goals. Drivers’ strategies to cope with alcohol (and distraction) may not be sufficient to offset the increased crash risk.     

New Beta-lactamases in Candidate Phyla Radiation: Owning Pleiotropic Enzymes Is a Smart Paradigm for Microorganisms with a Reduced Genome

The increased exploitation of microbial sequencing methods has shed light on the high diversity of new microorganisms named Candidate Phyla Radiation (CPR). CPR are mainly detected via 16S rRNA/metabarcoding analyses or metagenomics and are found to be abundant in all environments and present in different human microbiomes. These microbes, characterized by their symbiotic/epiparasitic lifestyle with bacteria, are directly exposed to competition with other microorganisms sharing the same ecological niche. Recently, a rich repertoire of enzymes with antibiotic resistance activity has been found in CPR genomes by using an in silico adapted screening strategy. This reservoir has shown a high prevalence of putative beta-lactamase-encoding genes. We expressed and purified five putative beta-lactamase sequences having the essential domains and functional motifs from class A and class B beta-lactamase. Their enzymatic activities were tested against various beta-lactam substrates using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) and showed some beta-lactamase activity even in the presence of a beta-lactamase inhibitor. In addition, ribonuclease activity was demonstrated against RNA that was not inhibited by sulbactam and EDTA. None of these proteins could degrade single- and double-stranded-DNA. This study is the first to express and test putative CPR beta-lactamase protein sequences in vitro. Our findings highlight that the reduced genomes of CPR members harbor sequences encoding for beta-lactamases known to be multifunction hydrolase enzymes.