The objective of this study is to minimize the expected present worth of the production costs incurred over the operational life of a robotic assembly system that is integrated with an Automatic Storage/Retrieval System (AS/RS). Production costs include inventory cost and capital cost of equipment. Inventory cost consists of ordering, holding, and lostproduction costs; and all of these costs de...

This paper discusses efforts to parameterize the actuation models of a four-wheel automobile for the purposes of closed-loop control. As a novelty, the authors used the equipment already available or in use by the vehicle, rather than expensive equipment used solely for the purpose of system identification. After rudimentary measurements were taken of wheelbase, axle width, etc., the vehicle wa...

We developed a method that focuses on the problem of optimizing the use of equipment units in an existing single-process production line for the design of a new chemical batch process. The method considers standard heuristics from industrial practice as well as all equipment and processing details and constraints within a Tabu Search optimization algorithm. In this paper we propose an extended ...

Introduction With the introduction of the EC Directives on Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) (2002/96/EC), the Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances (RoHS) in Electrical and Electronic Equipment (2002/95/EC), and Packaging and Packaging Waste (94/62/EC), the onus is on retailers and manufacturers to reduce their waste output and better manage their respective log...

Community EyE HEaltH Journal | Vol 23 iSSuE 73 | SEPtEmBEr 2010 In many lowand middle-income countries, it is often the people who are poor or with a disability – or both – who find it most challenging to access and pay for health care. When people do come to us for eye care, it is therefore vital that we provide quality services efficiently and effectively. To achieve this goal, we must ensure...

■ Social—With increasing attention on health and technological progress both home and abroad, home health care engineering (HHCE) is an emerging discipline. It advocates the concepts of medical treatment at home, self health care, and remote diagnosis, and combines technology with medical treatment. While addressing the trends of an aging society, soaring medical expenses, and increasing health...