A Model-Driven Engineering Technique for Developing Composite Content Applications

Composite Content Applications (CCA) are cross-functional process solutions built on top of Enterprise Content Management systems assembled from pre-built components. Considering the complexity of CCAs, their analysis and development need higher level of abstraction. Model-driven engineering techniques covering the use of Domain-specific Modeling Languages (DSMLs), can provide the abstraction in question by moving software development from code to models which may increase productivity and reduce development costs. Hence, in this paper, we present MDD4CCA, a DSML for developing CCAs. The DSML presents an abstract syntax, a concrete syntax, and an operational semantics, including model-to-model and model-to-code transformations for CCA implementations. Use of the proposed language is evaluated within an industrial case study

Injection moulded radiata pine fibre reinforced polymer composites : properties and applications : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Technology in Product Development at Massey University

New Product Development (NPD) is important for an organization's growth, profitability and competitiveness. The product being developed depends on an organization's unique context and could either be market-driven or technology-driven. Technology-driven product development begins with a new proprietary technology, and the firm then identifies products where the technology can be applied. Models like Technology Stage-GateTM have been suggested for developing new technology-driven products. But this process has the drawback of isolating the technology development process from the product development process. The present project began with the observation that New Zealand had an enormous amount of Pine wood fibre resource at her disposal, and there was growing research and use of wood fibre reinforced polymer composites worldwide for applications like automotive interior components, decking, furniture, and so on. Development of commercial products with this material was limited to thermoforming, extrusion, and compression moulding process. Although there was limited research initiated into injection moulding of pine wood fibre reinforced polymer composites, there was no documentation of the effect of varying the melt temperature on the mechanical properties of the material. There was also no documentation, either of commercial injection moulded products that have been manufactured with this material, or of the process that could be employed to develop commercial products with the new material. This led to the broad research aim of identifying a commercial product idea that could be manufactured by injection moulding the composite material that was developed using wood fibre and medium density polyethylene powder (rotational moulding grade) and to document the process adopted to achieve this. Some of the objectives were to document the properties of the composite material that was developed without either pelletising, or modifying the properties of the wood fibre by chemical means. The effect of change in fibre content, melt temperature and fibre length were studied. The fibre content ranged from 10% to 40% (in steps of 10%), and the experiments were conducted at four melt temperatures (155° to 215°C, in steps of 20°C), and for two fibre lengths (up to 4mm, and between 4mm and 8mm). The results of the experiments were statistically analysed using the 'Analysis of Variance' method, for their significance. A new development model, "Technology Driven - Fuzzy Front End" (TD-FFE), was used to manage the "fuzzy" stage of developing the new material, identifying new product ideas, and analysing the product concepts. The model is discussed in detail. Brainstorming technique was adopted to identify new product ideas for the material. The effect of the increase in fibre content on the tensile properties of the composite material was found to be more significant, compared to the effect of melt temperature. The interaction between fibre content and melt temperature on the tensile properties of the composite material was also found to be significant. The results of testing the composite material indicated that addition of wood fibre to the polymer increased the viscosity of the polymer melt. The density of the composite was found to increase with increase in fibre content (up to 40%). The tensile properties of the material increased steadily with increase in fibre content up to 30%, after which it decreased. The maximum ultimate tensile strength was found to be about 20MPa (when moulded at 175°C). The brainstorming technique was not found to be very suitable for the current project as the number of new product ideas identified were very limited since there were constraints on the material and manufacturing method to be used. Nevertheless, the method identified a building foundation insulation and boxing product. The performance of the product was simulated using COSMOS software and from the results of the static stress analysis, it was concluded that the composite material had the required tensile strength to withstand the pressure exerted by wet concrete. A broad analysis to determine the financial viability of the product was also conducted. It was found that it was cheaper to manufacture the new product than assemble the formwork boxing in the traditional method. It offered additional benefits like improving the insulation of the house, and the feel (or appearance) of the foundation, and also could reduce the construction time of the foundation. It is hence recommended that the product concept be investigated in greater detail by conducting consumer and market research to determine its commercial feasibility, and take it through to production and into the market

Challenges to describe QoS requirements for web services quality prediction to support web services interoperability in electronic commerce

Quality of service (QoS) is significant and necessary for web service applications quality assurance. Furthermore, web services quality has contributed to the successful implementation of Electronic Commerce (EC) applications. However, QoS is still the big issue for web services research and remains one of the main research questions that need to be explored. We believe that QoS should not only be measured but should also be predicted during the development and implementation stages. However, there are challenges and constraints to determine and choose QoS requirements for high quality web services. Therefore, this paper highlights the challenges for the QoS requirements prediction as they are not easy to identify. Moreover, there are many different perspectives and purposes of web services, and various prediction techniques to describe QoS requirements. Additionally, the paper introduces a metamodel as a concept of what makes a good web service

Damage identification in structural health monitoring: a brief review from its implementation to the Use of data-driven applications

The damage identification process provides relevant information about the current state of a structure under inspection, and it can be approached from two different points of view. The first approach uses data-driven algorithms, which are usually associated with the collection of data using sensors. Data are subsequently processed and analyzed. The second approach uses models to analyze information about the structure. In the latter case, the overall performance of the approach is associated with the accuracy of the model and the information that is used to define it. Although both approaches are widely used, data-driven algorithms are preferred in most cases because they afford the ability to analyze data acquired from sensors and to provide a real-time solution for decision making; however, these approaches involve high-performance processors due to the high computational cost. As a contribution to the researchers working with data-driven algorithms and applications, this work presents a brief review of data-driven algorithms for damage identification in structural health-monitoring applications. This review covers damage detection, localization, classification, extension, and prognosis, as well as the development of smart structures. The literature is systematically reviewed according to the natural steps of a structural health-monitoring system. This review also includes information on the types of sensors used as well as on the development of data-driven algorithms for damage identification.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Ono: an open platform for social robotics

In recent times, the focal point of research in robotics has shifted from industrial ro- bots toward robots that interact with humans in an intuitive and safe manner. This evolution has resulted in the subfield of social robotics, which pertains to robots that function in a human environment and that can communicate with humans in an int- uitive way, e.g. with facial expressions. Social robots have the potential to impact many different aspects of our lives, but one particularly promising application is the use of robots in therapy, such as the treatment of children with autism. Unfortunately, many of the existing social robots are neither suited for practical use in therapy nor for large scale studies, mainly because they are expensive, one-of-a-kind robots that are hard to modify to suit a specific need. We created Ono, a social robotics platform, to tackle these issues. Ono is composed entirely from off-the-shelf components and cheap materials, and can be built at a local FabLab at the fraction of the cost of other robots. Ono is also entirely open source and the modular design further encourages modification and reuse of parts of the platform

A comparison of processing techniques for producing prototype injection moulding inserts.

This project involves the investigation of processing techniques for producing low-cost moulding inserts used in the particulate injection moulding (PIM) process. Prototype moulds were made from both additive and subtractive processes as well as a combination of the two. The general motivation for this was to reduce the entry cost of users when considering PIM. PIM cavity inserts were first made by conventional machining from a polymer block using the pocket NC desktop mill. PIM cavity inserts were also made by fused filament deposition modelling using the Tiertime UP plus 3D printer. The injection moulding trials manifested in surface finish and part removal defects. The feedstock was a titanium metal blend which is brittle in comparison to commodity polymers. That in combination with the mesoscale features, small cross-sections and complex geometries were considered the main problems. For both processing methods, fixes were identified and made to test the theory. These consisted of a blended approach that saw a combination of both the additive and subtractive processes being used. The parts produced from the three processing methods are investigated and their respective merits and issues are discussed

Reducing risk in pre-production investigations through undergraduate engineering projects.

This poster is the culmination of final year Bachelor of Engineering Technology (B.Eng.Tech) student projects in 2017 and 2018. The B.Eng.Tech is a level seven qualification that aligns with the Sydney accord for a three-year engineering degree and hence is internationally benchmarked. The enabling mechanism of these projects is the industry connectivity that creates real-world projects and highlights the benefits of the investigation of process at the technologist level. The methodologies we use are basic and transparent, with enough depth of technical knowledge to ensure the industry partners gain from the collaboration process. The process we use minimizes the disconnect between the student and the industry supervisor while maintaining the academic freedom of the student and the commercial sensitivities of the supervisor. The general motivation for this approach is the reduction of the entry cost of the industry to enable consideration of new technologies and thereby reducing risk to core business and shareholder profits. The poster presents several images and interpretive dialogue to explain the positive and negative aspects of the student process