Work holding assessment of an UV adhesive and fixture design method

Adhesive work holding can be used to minimize clamping distortion and provide greater access to a work piece during machining. This paper proposes shear and tensile strength criteria to evaluate the work holding strength of adhesive grippers and definition of a strength safety coefficient of adhesive grippers. It also demonstrates a case study of work holding design with an UV adhesive for a grinding process based on a strength criteria explained in the paper. A test rig has been designed and manufactured to assess the capability of an adhesive work holding material. Tests include measurement of strength and repeatability of adhesion under different film thicknesses, curing times and pre-cleaning methods. The test shows the strength repeatability is less than ± 20%, which is good enough for many work holding applications. A shear-tensile combined strength can be evaluated by the strength sphere in a fixture design of a specific part geometry for production by the combined safety coefficient. Following the test rig assessment, a fixture has been designed with 3 grippers to demonstrate the adhesive for a grinding process with a simple part geometry. The method has a high potential for application in industry, and is not limited to the given part geometry and machining method. The grinding test shows that the adhesive work holding is strong enough for the application and that similar results can be expected for milling and turning with a good gripper arrangement

Slimy tactics: the covert commercialisation of child-targeted content

There are growing concerns about the commercialisation of childhood and the consequences of marketing to children, including marketing’s negative effects and increasingly sophisticated and potentially deceptive online tactics that permeate the contemporary media environment. Children and young people are prolific users of video-sharing platforms (VSP) such as TikTok and YouTube, yet little is known about children’s advertising literacy within these contexts. Therefore, this paper answers recent calls for a deeper understanding of children’s advertising literacy in light of their increasingly digital lifestyles. A combination of qualitative, participatory creative methods were used with children aged 9–11 from the UK. Findings show that despite their negative perceptions of online advertising, children place a level of trust in video-sharing platforms, based on a misconception that the commercialisation of content is always disclosed. This is concerning because children may prefer and pay more attention to content that they believe to be genuine

Why do travelers trust TripAdvisor? Antecedents of trust towards consumer-generated media and its influence on recommendation adoption and word of mouth

The proliferation of fake and paid online reviews means that building and maintaining consumer trust is a challenging task for websites hosting consumer-generated content. This study tests a model of antecedents and consequences of trust for consumer-generated media (CGM). Five factors are proposed for building consumer trust towards CGM: source credibility, information quality, website quality, customer satisfaction, user experience with CGM. Trust is expected to predict recommendation adoption and word of mouth. Data from 366 users of CGM were analyzed through structural equation modeling and the findings show that all the aforementioned factors with the exception of source credibility and user experience influence consumer trust towards CGM. Trust towards a CGM website influences travel consumers' intentions to follow other users' recommendations and fosters positive word of mouth. Findings also show that information quality predicts source credibility, customer satisfaction, and website quality

Machining distortion in asymmetrical residual stress profiles

This paper presents the results from a set of experimental and computational studies of the effect of asymmetrical residual stress on machining distortion of Al-7050 alloy. Aluminum coupons were physically bolted together for heat treatment to generate the asymmetrical residual stress profiles; which were measured using neutron diffraction method in the bulk of the samples after the heat treatment stage, and after the first machining stage to investigate the residual stress redistribution. A machining distortion model was successfully implemented to investigate comprehensibly the impact of the layer material removal in terms of depths of cut on the redistribution of the residual stress profile into the part, and how this redistribution influences the distortions in the coupon. This investigation allowed determining a robust machining approach capable of predicting the final desired distortion tolerance after clamping, irrespective of the highly asymmetric residual stress condition of the coupon. On machine inspection and CMM measurements were also done to validate the outcomes of the machining distortion model

Perspectives, opportunities and tensions in ethical and sustainable luxury: Introduction to the thematic symposium

Scholars agree that the environmental and societal impacts of consumption require greater attention, and need examining in more diverse market contexts. This editorial essay focuses on the nascent area of ethical/sustainable luxury, and critically considers how the scope of ethical/sustainable consumption can be broadened in the luxury sector. We address the compatibility of ethicality/sustainability and luxury by examining a range of opportunities (e.g., durability, rarity, quality, local embedment) and inherent tensions (e.g., excess, prestige, self-gratification, uniqueness) in relation to improving the ethical/sustainable consumption practices within the luxury sector. We also introduce several original articles published as part of this Thematic Symposium, whose arguments underscore both the merits, and flaws, of ethical/sustainable luxury. On the basis of this and prior research, we present a balanced perspective by identifying various factors that facilitate or inhibit the acceptance and furtherance of ethicality/sustainability within sector. Thus, this essay serves as a springboard for further research and development in ethical/sustainable luxury, whilst simultaneously highlighting the importance of the topic in general

Service robots in long-term care: a consumer-centric view

Service robots with advanced intelligence capabilities can potentially transform servicescapes. However, limited attention has been given to how consumers experiencing vulnerabilities, particularly those with disabilities, envisage the characteristics of robots’ prospective integration into emotionally-intense servicescapes, such as long-term care (LTC). We take an interdisciplinary approach conducting three exploratory studies with consumers with disabilities involving Community Philosophy, LEGO® Serious Play® and Design Thinking methods. Addressing a lack of consumer-centric research, we offer a three-fold contribution by: 1) developing a conceptualization of consumer-conceived value of robots in LTC, which are envisaged as a supporting resource offering consumers opportunities to realize value; 2) empirically evidencing pathogenic vulnerabilities as a potential value-destruction factor to underscore the importance of integrating service robots research with a service inclusion paradigm; and 3) providing a theoretical extension and clarification of prior characterizations of robots’ empathetic and emotion-related AI capabilities. Consumers with disabilities conceive robots able to stimulate and regulate emotions by mimicking cognitive and behavioral empathy, but unable to express affective and moral empathy, which is central to care experience. While providing support for care practices, for the foreseeable future service robots will not, in themselves, actualize the experience of ‘being cared for.

Tool wear inspection of polycrystalline cubic boron nitride inserts

In industry, highly frequent inspection of tooling used to machine safety critical components is common place. Worn or damaged tools produce undesirable surface finishes leading often to early failure of the part due to fatigue crack growth. In the development stages of polycrystalline boron nitride tools, the tool wear inspection technique is an off-line run-to-failure method. This approach interrupts the cutting process intermittently, to measure the tool wear using optical and scanning microscopy. This method is time consuming and expensive, causing bottlenecks in production. The overall aim in industry is to develop an on-line, automated system capable of informing the operator of the tool’s imminent failure. This paper focuses on treating this process as a preventative maintenance problem by studying whether acoustic emission can be used as an indirect measurement of tool wear at any given time. Acoustic emission measurements taken from the machining process of face turning are investigated here. Basic analysis in the frequency domain using principle component analysis reveals a number of interesting insights into the process. Relationships between the sharpness of the tool and the magnitude of the frequencies suggests promising link between acoustic emission and tool wear

Perfect weddings abroad

Approximately 16% of UK couples are currently married abroad. However, academic or practitioner focused research that explores the complex nature of a couple’s buying preferences or the development of innovative marketing strategies by businesses operating within the weddings abroad niche sector, is almost non-existent. This exploratory paper examines the role and relevance of marketing within the weddings abroad sector. The complex nature of customer needs in this high emotional and involvement experience, are identified and explored. A case study of Perfect Weddings Abroad Ltd highlights distinctive features and characteristics. Social networking and the use of home-workers, with a focus on reassurance and handholding are important tools used to develop relationships with customers. These tools and techniques help increase the tangibility of a weddings abroad package. Clusters of complementary services that are synergistic and provide sources of competitive advantage are identified and an agenda for future research is developed