FuzzySTAR: Fuzzy set theory of axiomatic design review

Product development involves multiple phases. Design review (DR) is an essential activity formally conducted to ensure a smooth transition from one phase to another. Such a formal DR is usually a multicriteria decision problem, involving multiple disciplines. This paper proposes a systematic framework for DR using fuzzy set theory. This fuzzy approach to DR is considered particularly relevant for several reasons. First, information available at early design phases is often incomplete and imprecise. Second, the relationships between the product design parameters and the review criteria cannot usually be exactly expressed by mathematical functions due to the enormous complexity. Third, DR is frequently carried out using subjective expert judgments with some degree of uncertainty. The DR is defined as the reverse mapping between the design parameter domain and design requirement (review criterion) domain, as compared with Suh's theory of axiomatic design. Fuzzy sets are extensively introduced in the definitions of the domains and the mapping process to deal with imprecision, uncertainty, and incompleteness. A simple case study is used to demonstrate the resulting fuzzy set theory of axiomatic DR.published_or_final_versio

Numerical simulation of wave resonance in the narrow gap between two non-identical boxes

Wave resonance in the narrow gap between two side-by-side non-identical boxes is investigated by employing a two-dimensional numerical wave flume based on the OpenFOAM R package. The focus of this study is to examine the influence of the energy transformation and the energy dissipation on the hydrodynamic behavior of wave response around resonant conditions. Numerical simulations show that the unrealistic wave resonant responses in the narrow gap by the linear potential flow model are due to not only the energy dissipation induced by the fluid rotational motion, but also the energy transformation associated with the free surface. With the increase of incident wave amplitude, relatively more energy is reflected, leading to the decrease of wave resonant response and energy dissipation in the narrow gap at the resonant frequency. When slightly away from the resonant frequency, the energy dissipation becomes the dominant factor for the decrease of wave response in the narrow gap with increasing the incident wave amplitude. As for the influence of gap configuration, on one hand, energy dissipation has the dominant effect for the typical case of small upstream and large downstream box drafts. On the other hand, the reflected energy is more important for the typical large upstream and small downstream box drafts. More resonant fluid exists in the gap with the increase of gap breadth, leading to the decrease of reflection coefficient and the increase of transmission coefficient

Establishing production service system and information collaboration platform for mold and die products

This paper investigates how the new concept of product service systems can be used and extended to transform, elevate, and revitalize traditional equipment manufacturing industry such as the Mold and Die (MD) sector. A mold and die production service systems (MPSS) framework is established based on recent developments within our industrial collaborators. Within the MPSS framework, MD manufacturers become more specialized in producing MD products and components while sharing and outsourcing manufacturing-oriented services (MOS) from a service provider. Typical services include collaborative order pooling and release, collaborative project progress status tracking, contractor-managed collaborative outsourcing, collaborative product design, collaborative production planning and scheduling, and after-sales technical supports. MOSs are designed, developed, and deployed as SaaS (software as application services) following the service-oriented architecture. Collectively, they form iMPSS-an Information and Collaboration Platform that enables MPSS. The use of iMPSS leads to benefits for stakeholders involved in providing mold and die functionality including better shopfloor decisions and reduced IT investments. © 2010 The Author(s).published_or_final_versionSpringer Open Choice, 21 Feb 201

Genetic and Molecular Basis of Individual Differences in Human Umami Taste Perception

Umami taste (corresponds to savory in English) is elicited by L-glutamate, typically as its Na salt (monosodium glutamate: MSG), and is one of five basic taste qualities that plays a key role in intake of amino acids. A particular property of umami is the synergistic potentiation of glutamate by purine nucleotide monophosphates (IMP, GMP). A heterodimer of a G protein coupled receptor, TAS1R1 and TAS1R3, is proposed to function as its receptor. However, little is known about genetic variation of TAS1R1 and TAS1R3 and its potential links with individual differences in umami sensitivity. Here we investigated the association between recognition thresholds for umami substances and genetic variations in human TAS1R1 and TAS1R3, and the functions of TAS1R1/TAS1R3 variants using a heterologous expression system. Our study demonstrated that the TAS1R1-372T creates a more sensitive umami receptor than -372A, while TAS1R3-757C creates a less sensitive one than -757R for MSG and MSG plus IMP, and showed a strong correlation between the recognition thresholds and in vitro dose - response relationships. These results in human studies support the propositions that a TAS1R1/TAS1R3 heterodimer acts as an umami receptor, and that genetic variation in this heterodimer directly affects umami taste sensitivity

Characterization of the Modes of Binding between Human Sweet Taste Receptor and Low-Molecular-Weight Sweet Compounds

One of the most distinctive features of human sweet taste perception is its broad tuning to chemically diverse compounds ranging from low-molecular-weight sweeteners to sweet-tasting proteins. Many reports suggest that the human sweet taste receptor (hT1R2–hT1R3), a heteromeric complex composed of T1R2 and T1R3 subunits belonging to the class C G protein–coupled receptor family, has multiple binding sites for these sweeteners. However, it remains unclear how the same receptor recognizes such diverse structures. Here we aim to characterize the modes of binding between hT1R2–hT1R3 and low-molecular-weight sweet compounds by functional analysis of a series of site-directed mutants and by molecular modeling–based docking simulation at the binding pocket formed on the large extracellular amino-terminal domain (ATD) of hT1R2. We successfully determined the amino acid residues responsible for binding to sweeteners in the cleft of hT1R2 ATD. Our results suggest that individual ligands have sets of specific residues for binding in correspondence with the chemical structures and other residues responsible for interacting with multiple ligands