IFHTSE Global 21: heat treatment and surface engineering in the first decades of the twenty-first centrury: Part 4 – Manufacturing in the global knowledge economy

Abstract

The global knowledge economy has emerged from the combination of information technology and global deregulation of trade and finance. This combination has led to the integration of production and trade in manufacturing and services to form a 'new manufacturing' sector. This sector is stimulating the development of new knowledge-intensive technological approaches to manufacturing. The development and application of nanotechnology is discussed as an example of the new approach needed in surface engineering and thermal processing to maintain competitiveness in a period of rapid change.     

Social perception and the motivational structure of interpersonal relations.

An extension of a previous research (see 28: 673). The introduction of another variable, viz., the knowledge of the result of cooperative or competitive ventures, affected the perception of the partner. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Knowledge transfer mechanisms for advanced surface engineering technologies

Abstract

A breakthrough in the area of PVD/CVD coating technologies, as in other surface engineering technologies, requires not only technical innovation but also innovative technological and organisational support. The cohesion of these diverse areas forms a basis for obtaining theoretical and physical models, which give rise to prototypes for the rapid application of breakthrough solutions. Mechanisms and structures aimed at reaching breakthrough research objectives are presented, taking as an example the investigation and application of new materials, particularly using surface engineering PVD plasma technologies. The advanced technology of thermal barrier coatings (TBC) is described and the associated process development, including the design and construction of a unique hybrid device for TBC creation, are presented. By means of this example, a combination of breakthrough and incremental research is explored and a real path for balancing research and knowledge transfer, leading to innovative solutions and technologically advanced product application, is demonstrated.     

IFHTSE Global 21: heat treatment and surface engineering in the twenty-first century Part 7 – Thermal processing and past,present and future development of automotive sheet steels

Abstract

The alloying, thermal processing, microstructure and properties that have resulted in a remarkable number of new automotive sheet steels developed and applied over the past several decades are surveyed. The powerful forces that have driven the development of new sheet steels, and the coupling of mechanical design, professional society promotion and international technical conferences that have established an extensive knowledge base for present and future developments, are reviewed. Sheet steels, because of differences in chemistries, processing and mechanical requirements from those applied to bar, forged and tool steels, are not typically considered in IFHTSE programming, but the factors that have led to the dynamic changes in automotive sheet steels, and the resulting knowledge base related to heat treatment and thermal processing, deserve to be considered in the context of Global 21.     

CREATIVE DESIGN BASED ON KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT IN ENGINEERING DESIGN

To support and serve engineering design, creative design based on knowledge management is proposed. The key knowledge factors of creative design are analyzed and discussed, and knowledge extraction tools are utilized to distill the important knowledge to serve for knowledge resource of creative design. The implementation of creative design mode is described and executed, which can promote the intelligent asset of the enterprise and shorten the period of creative design. With this study, design afflatus and conceptual design can be achieved expediently and effectively.     

Cooperative Q-learning: the knowledge sharing issue

A group of cooperative and homogeneous Q-learning agents can cooperate to learn faster and gain more knowledge. In order to do so, each learner agent must be able to evaluate the expertness and the intelligence level of the other agents, and to assess the knowledge and the information it gets from them. In addition, the learner needs a suitable method to properly combine its own knowledge and what it gains from the other agents according to their relative expertness. In this paper, some expertness measuring criteria are introduced. Also, a new cooperative learning method called weighted strategy sharing (WSS) is introduced. In WSS, based on the amount of its teammate expertness, each agent assigns a weight to their knowledge and utilizes it accordingly. WSS and the expertness criteria are tested on two simulated hunter–prey and object-pushing systems.     

基于MAS的气田生产监控平台的设计

基于AGENT的系统构造方法能有效地提高系统性能和解决问题的能力,增强系统的适应性,灵活性和可扩展性,有利于系统的集成,适用于生产监控系统这种复杂的系统。因此,提出用多AGENT技术构建气田生产监控平台的观点,给出了基于多A-GENT的生产监控体系结构的参考模型,并在此基础上探讨了基于多AGENT的气田生产监控平台的总体开发框架和实现方法。     

CONSTRUCTION METHOD OF KNOWLEDGE MAP BASED ON DESIGN PROCESS

Due to the increasing amount and complexity of knowledge in product design, the know-ledge map based on design process is presented as a tool to reuse product design process, promote the product design knowledge sharing. The relationship between design task flow and knowledge flow is discussed; A knowledge organizing method based on design task decomposition and a visualization method to support the knowledge retrieving and sharing in product design are proposed. And a knowledge map system to manage the knowledge in product design process is built with Visual C++ and SVG. Finally, a brief case study is provided to illustrate the construction and application of knowledge map in fuel pump design.     

Virtual reality based job training and human resource development for foundry skilled workers

Abstract

This paper proposes a new virtual reality based job training and human resource development for foundry skilled workers. In the author's proposed system, the education content is displayed in the immersive virtual environment, whereby a trainee may experience work in the virtual site operation. The system consists of two major systems for the user to acquire theoretical knowledge and practical skills. The most notable advantages are:

(i) the worker can virtually experience the foundry workflow before actually performing the works at the worksite in the foundry

(ii) one can learn about the work procedures beforehand

(iii) as well as the risks and danger throughout the work process, and

(iv) train beginner/intermediate level workers that have not yet reached the veteran level, so they can smoothly perform their tasks at the worksite.