Sustainable supply chain management in the digitalisation era: The impact of Automated Guided Vehicles

Internationalization of markets and climate change introduce multifaceted challenges for modern supply chain (SC) management in the today's digitalisation era. On the other hand, Automated Guided Vehicle (AGV) systems have reached an age of maturity that allows for their utilization towards tackling dynamic market conditions and aligning SC management focus with sustainability considerations. However, extant research only myopically tackles the sustainability potential of AGVs, focusing more on addressing network optimization problems and less on developing integrated and systematic methodological approaches for promoting economic, environmental and social sustainability. To that end, the present study provides a critical taxonomy of key decisions for facilitating the adoption of AGV systems into SC design and planning, as these are mapped on the relevant strategic, tactical and operational levels of the natural hierarchy. We then propose the Sustainable Supply Chain Cube (S2C2), a conceptual tool that integrates sustainable SC management with the proposed hierarchical decision-making framework for AGVs. Market opportunities and the potential of integrating AGVs into a SC context with the use of the S2C2 tool are further discussed

Tram-tastic Cloud Computing

This master’s thesis evaluates the scalability and cost-effectiveness of the AWS cloud platform used to collect and utilize data generated by the 87 digitally equipped trams. The SL-18 Cloud Platform was developed before the trams arrived, and resource configuration estimates were made to handle the data generated by the trams. However, with a few trams currently operational, it is crucial to evaluate the allocation of resources to the services based on actual data. Thus, the thesis's objective is to estimate the data generated by all 87 trams and evaluate the current resource provisioning on the AWS Cloud Platform in terms of scalability and cost. By doing so, this study will provide insights into the optimal resource allocation required for the AWS Cloud Platform to accommodate the data generated by the trams. In this study, we use an existing Digital Twin tool for the trams to evaluate the scalability of the platform, ensuring that it can handle the load while keeping the cost low. To achieve this, the existing Digital Twin is modified to run 87 or more instances concurrently. Using this modified tool, the SL-18 IT platform, which processes real-time data from all 87 trams simultaneously, is evaluated. We monitored the metrics of AWS services to identify any issues. Then based on measurements, we make recommendations for each service's upgrading, downgrading, or keeping the current configuration. Most services are recommended to scale down to reduce costs, while three services require scaling up to be operational. Although our process is well-defined and could be replicated by other studies, it is crucial to have in-depth discussions with the relevant teams for each service and perform repeated validations and evaluations. This is also a necessary protocol in Sporveien to present the results to the various stakeholders and implement the recommended changes. With these changes, Sporveien can save costs and most importantly have a platform capable of handling the data load of 87 SL-18 trams

Energy Efficiency through Virtual Machine Redistribution in Telecommunication Infrastructure Nodes

Energy efficiency is one of the key factors impacting the green behavior and operational expenses of telecommunication core network operations. This thesis study is aimed for finding out possible technique to reduce energy consumption in telecommunication infrastructure nodes. The study concentrates on traffic management operation (e.g. media stream control, ATM adaptation) within network processors [LeJ03], categorized as control plane. The control plane of the telecommunication infrastructure node is a custom built high performance cluster which consists of multiple GPPs (General Purpose Processor) interconnected by high-speed and low-latency network. Due to application configurations in particular GPP unit and redundancy issues, energy usage is not optimal. In this thesis, our approach is to gain elastic capacity within the control plane cluster to reduce power consumption. This scales down and wakes up certain GPP units depending on traffic load situations. For elasticity, our study moves toward the virtual machine (VM) migration technique in the control plane cluster through system virtualization. The traffic load situation triggers VM migration on demand. Virtual machine live migration brings the benefit of enhanced performance and resiliency of the control plane cluster. We compare the state-of-the-art power aware computing resource scheduling in cluster-based nodes with VM migration technique. Our research does not propose any change in data plane architecture as we are mainly concentrating on the control plane. This study shows, VM migration can be an efficient approach to significantly reduce energy consumption in control plane of cluster-based telecommunication infrastructure nodes without interrupting performance/throughput, while guaranteeing full connectivity and maximum link utilization

The design and application of power line carrier communication and remote meter reading for use in integrated services and broadband - integrated services digital networks

SIGLEAvailable from British Library Document Supply Centre-DSC:DXN009939 / BLDSC - British Library Document Supply CentreGBUnited Kingdo

Investigación sobre la flexibilidad de la demanda en redes eléctricas inteligentes: control directo de cargas

In recent decades, the European Union has made decisive efforts to maintain its global leadership in renewable energies to meet climate change targets resulting from international agreements. There is a deliberate intention to reduce the usage of non-renewable energy sources and promote the exploitation of renewable generation at all levels as shown by energy production data within the Eurozone. The electricity sector illustrates a successful implementation of these energy policies: The electricity coming from combustible fuels was at historical lows in 2018, accounting for 83.6 % of the electricity generated from this source in 2008. By contrast, the pool of renewables reached almost 170 % of the 2008 production. Against this background, power systems worldwide are undergoing deep-seated changes due to the increasing penetration of these variable renewable energy sources and distributed energy resources that are intermittent and stochastic in nature. Under these conditions, achieving a continuous balance between generation and consumption becomes a challenge and may jeopardize the system stability, which points out the need of making the power system flexible enough as a response measure to this trend. This Ph.D. thesis researches one of the principal mechanisms providing flexibility to the power system: The demand-side management, seen from both the demand response and the energy efficiency perspectives. Power quality issues as a non-negligible part of energy efficiency are also addressed. To do so, several strategies have been deployed at a double level. In the residential sector, a direct load control strategy for smart appliances has been developed under a real-time pricing demand response scheme. This strategy seeks to minimize the daily cost of energy in presence of diverse energy resources and appliances. Furthermore, a spread spectrum technique has also been applied to mitigate the highfrequency distortion derived from the usage of LED technology lighting systems instead of traditional ones when energy efficiency needs to be improved. In the industrial sector, a load scheduling strategy to control the AC-AC power electronic converter in charge of supporting the electric-boosted glass melting furnaces has been developed. The benefit is two-fold: While it contributes to demand flexibility by shaving the peaks found under conventional control schemes, the power quality issues related to the emission of subharmonics are also kept to a minimum. Concerning the technologies, this Ph.D. thesis provides smart solutions, platforms, and devices to carry out these strategies: From the application of the internet of things paradigm to the development of the required electronics and the implementation of international standards within the energy industry.En las últimas décadas, la Unión Europea ha realizado esfuerzos decisivos para mantener su liderazgo mundial en energías renovables con el fin de cumplir los objetivos de cambio climático resultantes de los acuerdos internacionales. Muestra una intención deliberada de reducir el uso de fuentes de energía no renovable y promover la explotación de la generación renovable a todos los niveles, como demuestran los datos de producción de energía en la eurozona. El sector de la electricidad ilustra un caso de éxito de estas políticas energéticas: la electricidad procedente de combustibles fósiles estaba en mínimos históricos en 2018, representando el 83,6 % de la electricidad generada a partir de esta fuente en 2008; en cambio, el grupo de renovables alcanzó casi el 170 % de la producción de 2008. En este contexto, los sistemas eléctricos de todo el mundo están experimentando profundos cambios debido a la creciente penetración de estas fuentes de energía renovable y de recursos energéticos distribuidos que son de naturaleza variable, intermitente y estocástica. En estas condiciones, lograr un equilibrio continuo entre generación y consumo se convierte en un reto y puede poner en peligro la estabilidad del sistema, lo que señala la necesidad de flexibilizar el sistema eléctrico como medida de respuesta a esta tendencia. Esta tesis doctoral investiga uno de los principales mecanismos que proporcionan flexibilidad al sistema eléctrico: la gestión de la demanda vista tanto desde la perspectiva de la respuesta a la demanda como de la eficiencia energética. También se abordan los problemas de calidad de suministro entendidos como parte no despreciable de la eficiencia energética. Para ello, se han desplegado varias estrategias a un doble nivel. En el sector residencial, se ha desarrollado una estrategia basada en el control directo de cargas para los electrodomésticos inteligentes siguiendo un esquema de respuesta a la demanda con precios en tiempo real. Esta estrategia busca minimizar el coste diario de la energía en presencia de diversos recursos energéticos y electrodomésticos. Además, también se ha aplicado una técnica de espectro ensanchado para mitigar la distorsión de alta frecuencia derivada del uso de sistemas de iluminación con tecnología LED, empleados para la mejora de la eficiencia energética frente a las tecnologías convencionales. En el sector industrial, se ha desarrollado una estrategia de planificación de cargas para controlar el convertidor AC-AC de los hornos de fundición de vidrio con soporte eléctrico. El beneficio es doble: mientras que se contribuye a la flexibilidad de la demanda al eliminar los picos encontrados en los esquemas de control convencionales, también se reducen al mínimo los problemas de calidad de suministro relacionados con la emisión de subarmónicos. En cuanto a las tecnologías, esta tesis doctoral aporta soluciones, plataformas y dispositivos inteligentes para llevar a cabo estas estrategias: desde la aplicación del paradigma del internet de las cosas hasta el desarrollo de la electrónica necesaria y la implementación de estándares internacionales dentro de la industria energética

Design and evaluation of a scalable Internet of Things backend for smart ports

Internet of Things (IoT) technologies, when adequately integrated, cater for logistics optimisation and operations' environmental impact monitoring, both key aspects for today's EU ports management. This article presents Obelisk, a scalable and multi-tenant cloud-based IoT integration platform used in the EU H2020 PortForward project. The landscape of IoT protocols being particularly fragmented, the first role of Obelisk is to provide uniform access to data originating from a myriad of devices and protocols. Interoperability is achieved through adapters that provide flexibility and evolvability in protocol and format mapping. Additionally, due to ports operating in a hub model with various interacting actors, a second role of Obelisk is to secure access to data. This is achieved through encryption and isolation for data transport and processing, respectively, while user access control is ensured through authentication and authorisation standards. Finally, as ports IoTisation will further evolve, a third need for Obelisk is to scale with the data volumes it must ingest and process. Platform scalability is achieved by means of a reactive micro-services based design. Those three essential characteristics are detailed in this article with a specific focus on how to achieve IoT data platform scalability. By means of an air quality monitoring use-case deployed in the city of Antwerp, the scalability of the platform is evaluated. The evaluation shows that the proposed reactive micro-service based design allows for horizontal scaling of the platform as well as for logarithmic time complexity of its service time

Design and control of harbour area smart grids with application of battery energy storage system

Global trade occurs mostly on seaborne vessels, and harbours exist as the most significant part for enabling the economic development of any country. However, the amount of fossil fuels used by conventional diesel-engine powered vessels produce a great number of types of toxic emissions, such as air pollution particles at harbours, which create a threat to human health that can contribute to higher morbidity and mortality rates among humans. Therefore, the International maritime organisation and the European Directives recommend that ships implement methods that limit toxic gas emissions and air pollution, such as using onshore power supply and fuel with low-sulphur content for on-board power generation in vessels while remaining at harbours. This research presents cutting-edge methods and tools for contributing to the development of future marine solutions and analyses of modern vessel technological requirements as well as harbour grids, and it proposes novel models of harbour area smart grids for facilitating the support of onshore power supply and charging of batteries for those vessels that require it. This research explores the usage of multiple battery-charging configurations with either slow- or fast-charging systems for electric or hybrid vessels, and it analyses the technical challenges that could inhibit or prevent the practicality of their implementation. The suitable size and allocation of battery energy storage systems for real-world case power systems of Åland Islands harbour grid are also investigated to enhance power capacity of harbour grids. Moreover, a control algorithm for the battery energy storage controller was first developed in MATLAB/Simulink for the Vaasa harbour grid, and then its performance was tested in the OPAL-RT real-time simulator by conducting a controller hardware-in-the-loop test to maintain the power balance inside the harbour grid. The proposed harbour grid models can reduce the degree of pollution that degrades the environment while providing onshore power supply and battery-charging stations for hybrid or electric vessels. Moreover, this dissertation acts as a foundation for developing future business strategies for ship owners, port administrators, and local authorities to solve similar problems as technology develops and environmental degradation continues to be a problem of every country in the world.Maailmanlaajuinen kauppa tapahtuu pääasiassa merialuksilla, ja satamista on tulossa merkittävin osa minkä tahansa maan talouskehitystä. Perinteisten dieselmoottorialusten käyttämä fossiilinen polttoaine aiheuttaa kuitenkin satamissa monenlaisia myrkyllisiä päästöjä ja ilmansaasteita, jotka ovat uhka ihmisten terveydelle ja aiheuttavat monenlaisia vaarallisia sairauksia. Tästä syystä Kansainvälinen merenkulkujärjestö IMO ja EU-direktiivit suosittelevat, että alukset käyttävät satamissa ollessaan maalta tulevaa sähkönsyöttöä tai vähärikkistä polttoainetta myrkyllisten kaasupäästöjen ja ilmansaasteiden rajoittamiseksi. Tämä tutkimus esittelee uusimpia ja tulevaisuuden merenkulun ratkaisuja, analysoi nykyaikaisten alusten teknisiä vaatimuksia sekä satamaverkkoja ja esittelee uusia malleja satama-alueen älykkäille sähköverkoille, joilla tuetaan maasähkön käyttöä ja akkujen lataamista vaativia aluksia. Tutkimuksessa tarkasteltiin useita akkuenergiavarastojen latauskonfiguraatioita sekä hitailla että nopeilla latausjärjestelmillä sähkö-/hybridialuksille ja analysoitiin niiden käytännön toteutukseen liittyviä teknisiä haasteita. Akkuenergiavarastojen sopivaa kokoa ja sijoittelua satamaverkkojen tehokapasiteetin parantamiseksi selvitettiin todelliseen verkkoon perustuvassa tapaustutkimuksessa, jossa parannettiin Ahvenanmaan verkon satamien tehokapasiteettia. Lisäksi kehitettiin akkuenergiavarastojen ohjausalgoritmi tehotasapainon ylläpitämiseksi Vaasan satamaverkossa ensin MATLAB/Simulink-mallina, jonka jälkeen sen suorituskykyä testattiin OPAL-RT reaaliaika-simulaattorilla suorittamalla ns. laitesilmukkasimulaatioita. Ehdotetuilla satamaverkkomalleilla voidaan vastata ilmansaasteista aiheutuviin ympäristöongelmiin sekä mahdollistaa maasähkönsyöttö ja akkujen latausasemat tuleville hybridi- ja sähköaluksille. Lisäksi tämä väitöskirja voi toimia pohjana uusien liiketoimintastrategioiden kehittämiselle alusten omistajien, satamajohtajien ja paikallisviranomaisten tarpeisiin.fi=vertaisarvioitu|en=peerReviewed

Optimization-Based Energy Management for Multi-energy Maritime Grids

This open access book discusses the energy management for the multi-energy maritime grid, which is the local energy network installed in harbors, ports, ships, ferries, or vessels. The grid consists of generation, storage, and critical loads. It operates either in grid-connected or in islanding modes, under the constraints of both power system and transportation system. With full electrification, the future maritime grids, such as all-electric ships and seaport microgrids, will become “maritime multi-energy system” with the involvement of multiple energy, i.e., electrical power, fossil fuel, and heating/cooling power. With various practical cases, this book provides a cross-disciplinary view of the green and sustainable shipping via the energy management of maritime grids. In this book, the concepts and definitions of the multi-energy maritime grids are given after a comprehensive literature survey, and then the global and regional energy efficiency policies for the maritime transportation are illustrated. After that, it presents energy management methods under different scenarios for all-electric ships and electrified ports. At last, the future research roadmap are overviewed. The book is intended for graduate students, researchers, and professionals who are interested in the energy management of maritime transportation