Intelligent Computing for the Management of Changes in Industrial Engineering Modeling Processes

Advancements in engineering modeling have changed the work of engineers during the last two decades. Sophisticated descriptions store information about shape oriented engineering objects and their relationships. Boundary representations of form features constitute shape models. Rules and checks have replaced simple data form of shape model entity attributes. This change of modeling facilitates a next step towards application of computer intelligence at engineering object related decisions. The authors propose a method of intelligent attribute definition for integrated decision assistance environments of modelling systems. This method provides quick and comprehensive assessment of situations for decisions on modification of modeled objects in very complex information environments. The paper starts with an outline of the approach to intelligent decision assistance by the authors. Next, an Internet portal communicated scenario of the proposed modeling is discussed. Following this, multilevel solution for modeling, adding characteristics for engineering objects, and definitions and communications are detailed as essential methods in the proposed modeling. Finally, behaviors for essential classes of modeled objects and an example for the definition of situations and behaviors represent implementation issues

A telemedicina előnyei és hátrányai

Telemedicine is used more and more frequently worldwide. It is increasingly popular in North America, Australia, South Africa, as well as the Scandinavian countries. However, it is not commonly used in Hungary despite various attempts, which is presumably due to earlier dismissive governmental attitude. In this paper the authors analyze ethical, legal and financial aspects of telemedicine from the viewpoints of physicians and patients, too. The results indicate that it cannot be clearly decided whether telemedicine is worth to apply at present. Further, introduction of telemedicine should be based on experience gained in local application

Robust Fixed Point Transformations in Adaptive Control Using Local Basin of Attraction

A further step towards a novel approach to adaptive nonlinear control developed at Budapest Tech in the past few years is reported. This approach obviates the use of the complicated Lyapunov function technique that normally provides global stability of convergence at the costs of both formal and essential restrictions, by applying Cauchy sequences of local, bounded basin of attraction in an iterative control that is free of such restrictions. Its main point is the creation of a robust iterative sequence that only slightly depends on the features of the controlled system and mainly is determined be the control parameters applied. It is shown that as far as its operation is considered the proposed method can be located between the robust Variable Structure / Sliding Mode and the adaptive Slotine-Li control in the case of robots or other Classical Mechanical Systems. The operation of these method is comparatively analyzed for a wheel + connected mass system in which this latter component is “stabilized” along one of the spokes of the wheel in the radial direction by an elastic spring. The robustness of these methods is also investigated againts unknown external disturbances of quite significant amplitudes. The numerical simulations substantiate the superiority of the robust fixed point transformations in the terms of accuracy, simplicity, and smoothness of the control signals applied.N/

Preliminary Sketch of Possible Fixed Point Transformations for Use in Adaptive Control

In this paper a further step towards a novel approach to adaptive nonlinear control developed at Budapest Tech in the past few years is reported. Its main advantage in comparison with the complicated Lyapunov function based techniques is that it is based on simple geometric considerations on the basis of which the control task can be formulated as a Fixed Point Problem for the solution of which a Contractive Mapping is created that generates an Iterative Cauchy Sequence for Single Input - Single Output (SISO) systems. Consequently it converges to the fixed point that is the solution of the control task. In the formerly developed approaches for monotone increasing or monotone decreasing systems the proper fixed points had only a finite basin of attraction outside of which the iteration might become divergent. The here sketched potential solutions apply a special function built up of the “response function” of the excited system under control and of a few parameters. This function has almost constant value apart from a finite region in which it has a “wrinkle” in the vicinity of the desired solution that is the “proper” fixed point of this function. By the use of an affine approximation of the response function around the solution it is shown that at one of its sides this fixed point is repulsive, while at the opposite side it is attractive. It is shown, too, that at the repulsive side another, so called “false” fixed point is present that is globally attractive, with the exception of the basin of attraction of the “proper” one. This structure is advantageous because a) no divergence can occur in the iteration, b) the convergence to the “false” value can easily be detected, and c) by using some ancillary tricks in the most of the cases the solution can be kicked from the wrong fixed point into the basin of attraction of the “proper one”. In the paper preliminary calculations are presented.N/

Analysis of the effect of locally applied inhomogeneous static magnetic field-exposure on mouse ear edema - a double blind study

The effect static magnetic field (SMF)-exposure may exert on edema development has been investigated. A 6 h long whole-body (WBSMF) or local (LSMF), continuous, inhomogeneous SMF-exposure was applied on anesthetized mice in an in vivo model of mustard oil (MO)-induced ear edema. LSMF was applied below the treated ear, below the lumbar spine, or below the mandible. Ear thickness (v) was checked 8 times during the exposure period (at 0, 0.25, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 h). The effect size of the applied treatment (eta) on ear thickness was calculated by the formula eta = 100% x (1-vj/vi), where group i is the control group and j is the treated group. Results showed that MO treatment in itself induced a significant ear edema with an effect of 9% (p11% in both cases compared to SMF-exposure alone (p<0.001). In these cases SMF-exposure alone without MO treatment reduced ear thickness significantly (p<0.05), but within estimated experimental error. In cases of LSMF-exposure on the head, a significant SMF-exposure induced ear thickness reduction was found (eta = 5%, p<0.05). LSMF-exposure on the spine affected ear thickness with and without MO treatment almost identically, which provides evidence that the place of local SMF action may be in the lower spinal region

Patient and general population values for luminal and perianal fistulising Crohn’s disease health states

Background In patients with Crohn’s disease (CD), luminal disease activity paralleled by perianal fstulas may seriously impair health-related quality of life (HRQoL). Health utility values are not available from patients with CD that refect the health loss associated with both luminal and perianal CD. Objective To generate utilities for luminal and concomitant perianal fstulising CD health states directly from patients and from members of the general public. Methods A cross-sectional survey was undertaken enrolling CD patients and a convenience sample of members of the general population. Respondents were asked to evaluate four common CD heath states [severe luminal disease (sCD), mild luminal disease (mCD), severe luminal disease with active perianal fstulas (sPFCD), and mild luminal disease with active perianal fstulas (mPFCD)] by 10-year time trade-of (TTO). In addition, patients assessed their current HRQoL by the TTO method. Results Responses of 206 patients (40.8% with perianal fstulas) and 221 members of the general population were analysed. Mean±SD utilities among patients for sPFCD, sCD, mPFCD and mCD states were 0.69±0.33, 0.73±0.31, 0.80±0.29 and 0.87±0.26. Corresponding values in the general public were: 0.59±0.31, 0.65±0.29, 0.80±0.26 and 0.88±0.25. Patients with active perianal fstulas, previous non-resection surgeries, and higher pain intensity scores valued their current health as worse (p<0.05). Conclusions TTO is a feasible method to assess HRQoL in patients with perianal fstulising disease, often not captured by health status questionnaires. Utilities from this study are intended to support the optimization of treatment-related decision making in patients with luminal disease paralleled by active perianal fstulas

Exposure to inhomogeneous static magnetic field beneficially affects allergic inflammation in a murine model

Previous observations suggest that static magnetic field (SMF)-exposure acts on living organisms partly through reactive oxygen species (ROS) reactions. In this study, we aimed to define the impact of SMF-exposure on ragweed pollen extract (RWPE)-induced allergic inflammation closely associated with oxidative stress. Inhomogeneous SMF was generated with an apparatus validated previously providing a peak-to-peak magnetic induction of the dominant SMF component 389 mT by 39 T m(−1) lateral gradient in the in vivo and in vitro experiments, and 192 mT by 19 T m(−1) in the human study at the 3 mm target distance. Effects of SMF-exposure were studied in a murine model of allergic inflammation and also in human provoked skin allergy. We found that even a single 30-min exposure of mice to SMF immediately following intranasal RWPE challenge significantly lowered the increase in the total antioxidant capacity of the airways and decreased allergic inflammation. Repeated (on 3 consecutive days) or prolonged (60 min) exposure to SMF after RWPE challenge decreased the severity of allergic responses more efficiently than a single 30-min treatment. SMF-exposure did not alter ROS production by RWPE under cell-free conditions, while diminished RWPE-induced increase in the ROS levels in A549 epithelial cells. Results of the human skin prick tests indicated that SMF-exposure had no significant direct effect on provoked mast cell degranulation. The observed beneficial effects of SMF are likely owing to the mobilization of cellular ROS-eliminating mechanisms rather than direct modulation of ROS production by pollen NAD(P)H oxidases