Measuring inefficiency in the rubber manufacturing industry

Malaysia is the fifth largest producer of natural rubber in the world after Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam and China as well as producing rubber products exported to more than 190 countries worldwide. However, the slowdown in growth of major importers such as China, the European Union and the United States and the perception of stock surplus as output exceeds demand led to fluctuating rubber production performance over the period 2010 to 2016. Hence, this article aims at examining the level of technical efficiency (TE) and to analyze the determinants of the inefficiencies of the rubber manufacturing industry. The analysis was conducted using the latest 145 firms’ data obtained from the Department of Statistics Malaysia (DOS) and using the Stochastic Frontier Analysis (SFA) method. The results showed that the overall TE level was high while the determinants such as the capital-labor ratio, wage rate and firm size had a negative and significant impact that could reduce industrial technical efficiencies. The policy implication is that the rubber manufacturing industry needs to focus on high technological production investment, increase employee motivation through wage increment and create more strategic cooperation with international industry

Practice of law in the provisioning of accessibility facilities for person with disabilities in Malaysia

Malaysia’s significant changes can be seen clearly through the improvement of social welfare of the disabled and people with disabilities. Although the governments has carried out various policies and provide facilities as well as provision for the disabled but there are still many obstacles encountered by people with disabilities, especially the legal and the accessibility of facilities and services. Therefore, this paper attempts to discuss the practice of law relating of legal procedure particularly for disabled users which affects the movement of these people from one destination to another. This paper discusses the practice of law adopted in the preparation of facilities for disabled people to help them make movement independently. The study was conducted by secondary data to the Malaysia legal and policies for disabled person by comparing with United Kingdom (UK). Malaysia has come out with a strong legal framework for disabled person through People with Disabilities Act 2008 (Act 685). There are several areas in the act that still can be improved to support disabled person

Pembangunan kerangka konsep penyertaan latihan : kajian kes staf akademik di universiti awam Malaysia

Latihan merupakan aktiviti formal dan usaha berterusan yang dilakukan oleh pengurusan universiti dalam meningkatkan prestasi dan kualiti kerja staf akademik di Universiti Awam Malaysia. Latihan juga penting kepada staf akademik meningkatkan keupayaan dan keyakinan dalam menjalankan tugas yang diberikan. Namun terdapat isu dan permasalahan tentang ketidakcukupan penyertaan staf akademik dalam latihan. Kajian lepas menunjukkan kebanyakkan permasalahan dalam penyertaan latihan diselesaikan hanya melalui kajian peringkat penentuan faktor sahaja. Oleh itu, kajian ini dijalankan bagi meneroka dan mendalami faktor-faktor yang mempengaruhi penyertaan staf akademik Universiti Awam Malaysia dalam latihan. Seterusnya satu kerangka konsep baharu telah dibangunkan bagi melihat signifikan perkaitan faktor yang mempengaruhi penyertaan dalam latihan. Kajian ini telah menggunakan kaedah kualitatif kajian kes di mana seramai tujuh (7) orang pegawai latihan dan dua puluh lapan (28) orang staf akademik Universiti Awam Malaysia telah ditemu bual. Temu bual separa berstruktur bersama kaedah ’probing’ digunakan bagi mendapatkan maklumat dengan lebih mendalam. Data yang diperolehi telah dianalisis dengan menggunakan kaedah Analisis Tematik. Berdasarkan analisa yang dijalankan, didapati empat faktor domain mempengaruhi penyertaan staf akademik Universiti Awam Malaysia dalam latihan. Empat faktor yang dimaksudkan adalah faktor kerja, individu, organisasi dan latihan. Berdasarkan keempat-empat faktor yang telah dikenalpasti, kajian ini telah membangunkan kerangka konsep berdasarkan pengintegrasian teori (Teori Tindakan Bersebab, Teori Tingkahlaku Terancang, Teori Hierarki Keperluan Maslow, Teori Jangkaan, Teori Pembelajaran Sosial, Teori Pembelajaran Dewasa, Teori Modal Insan, Teori Matlamat dan Teori Kerjaya Holland) yang berkaitan penyertaan dalam latihan. Kerangka konsep yang dicadangkan dapat mengisi kelompongan permasalahan kajian serta boleh dimanfaatkan oleh pihak yang berkepentingan terutama Universiti Awam Malaysia dan Kementerian Pendidikan Tinggi Malaysia (KPTM) yang merupakan badan induk kepada Institusi Pengajian Tinggi Malaysia bagi meningkatkan penyertaan staf akademik dalam latihan

Active compliance control strategies for multifingered robot hand

Safety issues have to be enhanced when the robot hand is grasping objects of different shapes, sizes and stiffness. The inability to control the grasping force and finger stiffness can lead to unsafe grasping environment. Although many researches have been conducted to resolve the grasping issues, particularly for the object with different shape, size and stiffness, the grasping control still requires further improvement. Hence, the primary aim of this work is to assess and improve the safety of the robot hand. One of the methods that allows a safe grasping is by employing an active compliance control via the force and impedance control. The implementation of force control considers the proportional–integral–derivative (PID) controller. Meanwhile, the implementation of impedance control employs the integral slidingmode controller (ISMC) and adaptive controller. A series of experiments and simulations is used to demonstrate the fundamental principles of robot grasping. Objects with different shape, size and stiffness are tested using a 3-Finger Adaptive Robot Gripper. The work introduces the Modbus remote terminal unit [RTU] protocol, a low-cost force sensor and the Arduino IO Package for a real-time hardware setup. It is found that, the results of the force control via PID controller are feasible to maintain the grasped object at certain positions, depending on the desired grasping force (i.e., 1N and 8N). Meanwhile, the implementation of impedance control via ISMC and adaptive controller yields multiple stiffness levels for the robot fingers and able to reduce collision between the fingers and the object. However, it was found that the adaptive controller produces better impedance control results as compared to the ISMC, with a 33% efficiency improvement. This work lays important foundations for long-term related research, particularly in the field of active compliance control that can be beneficial to human–robot interaction (HRI)

Implementación del modelo cinemático y dinámico y control de movimiento de un mecanismo planar 2R con componentes elásticos en las articulaciones

En esta tesis se desarrollan los modelos matemáticos de la cinemática y dinámica y una estrategia para el control de movimiento de un mecanismo planar 2R, el cual imita el movimiento de la cadera y la rodilla en el plano sagital durante la marcha humana y posee componentes elásticos en las articulaciones. Se inicia con una revisión bibliográfica de algunos métodos para el control de movimiento de Sistemas de Accionamiento Flexible, haciendo énfasis en aplicaciones robóticas, dispositivos de rehabilitación de miembro inferior y Actuadores Elásticos Seriales (SEA), correspondiendo estos últimos a los utilizados en el mecanismo. A continuación se desarrollan los modelos matemáticos, determinando la cinemática directa a partir del método de Denavit-Hartenberg y la dinámica inversa a partir del método de LagrangeEuler. Estos modelos se implementan posteriormente para predecir el movimiento de los actuadores en función del movimiento de las articulaciones, cuyos resultados se comparan con los obtenidos en pruebas realizadas al equipo real. Finalmente se desarrolla la estrategia para el control de movimiento del mecanismo, para lo cual se realizaron pruebas de desempeño a los controladores internos en los actuadores; a partir de estos resultados se desarrolló, implementó y evaluó un algoritmo basado en una forma simplificada del control adaptativo por planificación de ganancias, usando dos puntos de ajuste de los parámetros en los controladores internos y tomando como criterio de evaluación las desviaciones angulares entre cada articulación y su actuador.Abstract: In this thesis the mathematical models of the kinematics and dynamics, and a strategy for the movement control of a 2R planar mechanism are developed; this mechanism imitates the movement of hip and knee in sagittal plane during the human gait and it has elastic components in the joints. It begins with a literature review of some methods for movement control of Compliant Actuation Devices, emphasizing robotic applications, lower limb rehabilitation devices and Serial Elastic Actuators (SEA), the latter corresponding to those used in the mechanism. Then the mathematical models are developed, determining the direct kinematics from Denavit-Hartenberg method and the inverse dynamics from Lagrange-Euler method. These models are subsequently implemented to predict the actuators movement from the joints movement, whose results are compared with those obtained in performance tests on the real equipment. Finally, the strategy for the movement control of the mechanism is developed, for which performance tests on the internal controllers in the actuators were made; based on these results, an algorithm based on a simplified form of adaptive control for gains planning was developed, implemented and evaluated, using two adjustment points of the parameters in the internal controllers and taking as an evaluation criterion the angular deviations between each joint and its actuator.Maestrí

Remote-controlled ambidextrous robot hand actuated by pneumatic muscles: from feasibility study to design and control algorithms

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University LondonThis thesis relates to the development of the Ambidextrous Robot Hand engineered in Brunel University. Assigned to a robotic hand, the ambidextrous feature means that two different behaviours are accessible from a single robot hand, because of its fingers architecture which permits them to bend in both ways. On one hand, the robotic device can therefore behave as a right hand whereas, on another hand, it can behave as a left hand. The main contribution of this project is its ambidextrous feature, totally unique in robotics area. Moreover, the Ambidextrous Robot Hand is actuated by pneumatic artificial muscles (PAMs), which are not commonly used to drive robot hands. The type of the actuators consequently adds more originality to the project. The primary challenge is to reach an ambidextrous behaviour using PAMs designed to actuate non-ambidextrous robot hands. Thus, a feasibility study is carried out for this purpose. Investigating a number of mechanical possibilities, an ambidextrous design is reached with features almost identical for its right and left sides. A testbench is thereafter designed to investigate this possibility even further to design ambidextrous fingers using 3D printing and an asymmetrical tendons routing engineered to reduce the number of actuators. The Ambidextrous Robot Hand is connected to a remote control interface accessible from its website, which provides video streaming as feedback, to be eventually used as an online rehabilitation device. The secondary main challenge is to implement control algorithms on a robot hand with a range twice larger than others, with an asymmetrical tendons routing and actuated by nonlinear actuators. A number of control algorithms are therefore investigated to interact with the angular displacement of the fingers and the grasping abilities of the hand. Several solutions are found out, notably the implementations of a phasing plane switch control and a sliding-mode control, both specific to the architecture of the Ambidextrous Robot Hand. The implementation of these two algorithms on a robotic hand actuated by PAMs is almost as innovative as the ambidextrous design of the mechanical structure itself