The economics of the use of numerically controlled machine tools and program development

Brief History The introduction of numerically controlled machine tools into the manufacturing industries and design considerations for their technological progress. Classification Considered from three aspects: type of control, the machine tools with which they are combined and the procedure involved in machining. Programming The preparatory work which must be carried out before components can be machined in an N.C. machine tool. This includes planning and encoding the information into the input medium, using manual or computer assisted methods. N.C. Economics The number and type of N.C, machines in use in the U.K. are shown, plus an indication of their cost. This emphasises the fact that justification must be on economic grounds. Cost Analysis Comparison of N.C. and conventional methods. Examination of justification calculations shows the danger of using short cut methods. The method of discounting estimated future returns is used to show that accurate forecasting and alternative methods of investment must be considered before a decision can be made. Consideration of Batch Size A rational method of assessing batch size and component complexity is shown. Graphical results of several methods of manufacture are used to indicate the economic advantages and disadvantages of each process. Economic Considerations of Programming 'Analysed under two headings: planning and programming, the latter being considered under the headings of manual and computer assisted. The cost of preparing a control tape ready for prove out is examined and an analysis of special and general purpose systems has been carried out. Comparison of Methods The relative merits of in-house or computer bureau service have been analysed and a decision process outlined to assist in the correct system selection. Program Development Cost and levels of tape verification are considered, plus the essential facts of producing an accurate control tape. Methods of eliminating setting errors are considered. Program format is illustrated and an error checking program developed, using Fortran. Appendix A Fortran program description (T.E.S.P.) B Module table calibration chart. C Graph plotter output

Simulating healthcare provision: balancing capacity and demand for emergency care in England

Introduction Capacity and demand planning in English health care often follows historic patterns rather than a systemic analysis of data and does not account for the effects of agency on service performance. This discussion paper reviews computer-based approaches to simulate complex systems, with reference to emergency care systems, in order to provide information to decision makers. Methods A literature review. Results: Simulation offers decision makers various views of the effects of capacity and demand planning over time. Various simulation approaches used in health care research have produced useful information for service optimisation. However, in health care application, historic use of the simulation approaches is seen rather than selection of the most appropriate approach. Discussion and conclusion Simulation provides a valuable tool for understanding complex systems, the effects of capacity and demand and the role of agency, but decision makers should choose the appropriate approach according the research problem

Categorisation of visualisation methods to support the design of Human-Computer Interaction systems

During the design of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) systems, the creation of visual artefacts forms an important part of design. On one hand producing a visual artefact has a number of advantages: it helps designers to externalise their thought and acts as a common language between different stakeholders. On the other hand, if an inappropriate visualisation method is employed it could hinder the design process. To support the design of HCI systems, this paper reviews the categorisation of visualisation methods used in HCI. A keyword search is conducted to identify a) current HCI design methods, b) approaches of selecting these methods. The resulting design methods are filtered to create a list of just visualisation methods. These are then categorised using the approaches identified in (b). As a result 23 HCI visualisation methods are identified and categorised in 5 selection approaches (The Recipient, Primary Purpose, Visual Archetype, Interaction Type, and The Design Process).Innovate UK, EPSRC, Airbus Group Innovation

Strategy Selection for Product Service Systems Using Case-based Reasoning

A product service system integrates products and services in order to lower environmental impact. It can achieve good eco-efficiency and has received increase in the last decade. This study focuses on strategy selection for product service system design. Case-based reasoning is utilized to provide suggestions for finding an appropriate strategy. To build a case database, successful PSS cases from the literature and websites were collected and formulated. Twelve indices under three categories were analyzed and selected to describe cases. A lot of successful PSS cases and their information were collected. Forty seven cases were used in this study because of the completeness of information. The analytic hierarchic process is used to find the relative weights of the factors that relate to the selection of customers. These weights are used in calculating the similarity in the case-based reasoning process. The successful strategy of the most similar case is extracted and recommended for PSS strategy determination. More than 90% of tested cases obtained an appropriate strategy from the most similar case. Finally, two new products are introduced to find the best strategy for product service system design and development using the proposed case-based reasoning system

Proceedings of Abstracts Engineering and Computer Science Research Conference 2019

© 2019 The Author(s). This is an open-access work distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. For further details please see https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. Note: Keynote: Fluorescence visualisation to evaluate effectiveness of personal protective equipment for infection control is © 2019 Crown copyright and so is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Under this licence users are permitted to copy, publish, distribute and transmit the Information; adapt the Information; exploit the Information commercially and non-commercially for example, by combining it with other Information, or by including it in your own product or application. Where you do any of the above you must acknowledge the source of the Information in your product or application by including or linking to any attribution statement specified by the Information Provider(s) and, where possible, provide a link to this licence: http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/This book is the record of abstracts submitted and accepted for presentation at the Inaugural Engineering and Computer Science Research Conference held 17th April 2019 at the University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, UK. This conference is a local event aiming at bringing together the research students, staff and eminent external guests to celebrate Engineering and Computer Science Research at the University of Hertfordshire. The ECS Research Conference aims to showcase the broad landscape of research taking place in the School of Engineering and Computer Science. The 2019 conference was articulated around three topical cross-disciplinary themes: Make and Preserve the Future; Connect the People and Cities; and Protect and Care