Cooperative Control of Dual Series Robots

Development in manufacturing, automation, space and underwater exploration has shown vast number of robots being used where most of the existing robots are of coordinated control of a single arm only. Increasing demand for robots application, especially in manufacturing has opened a new challenge; dual arm robot cooperation. This challenge is to develop robots which can carry out greater task which could either be heavy in load or complex in working. The main objectives for this project are to study on the available techniques of cooperative control, to design a program based on the chosen technique, to integrate the program in the system of two existing robot arms handling one common load and to ensure precise tracking of a desired formation and simplicity in its design. The methods being used in this project are performing literature\ud review, selection of cooperative control technique where three cooperative control techniques namely Master/Slave control, Centralized and Decentralized control are compared and implemented to the existing robots, as well as conducting experiment on the real system. Results from the experiment are analyzed and improvised to prove that cooperative control technique could be used for this study. Results from this study are in form of programming of the control system, ladder diagram showing inputs and outputs of the system utilized and calculation of error of relative coordinate of the two robots after experiment execution. In conclusion, master/slave technique has been selected to be most suitable for this study based on its accuracy and simplicity of its design. The objectives for this project have been achieved where no error above lmm recorded which indicates accuracy and number of lines of programming are 21 lines for Master and 16 lines for Slave robot thus, proving its simplicity. However, improvement on the method used could be further studied to minimize number of lines, using other method or extension of this project where rotational motion could be studied

Cooperative Control of Dual Series Robots

Development in manufacturing, automation, space and underwater exploration has shown vast number of robots being used where most of the existing robots are of coordinated control of a single arm only. Increasing demand for robots application, especially in manufacturing has opened a new challenge; dual arm robot cooperation. This challenge is to develop robots which can carry out greater task which could either be heavy in load or complex in working. The main objectives for this project are to study on the available techniques of cooperative control, to design a program based on the chosen technique, to integrate the program in the system of two existing robot arms handling one common load and to ensure precise tracking of a desired formation and simplicity in its design. The methods being used in this project are performing literature review, selection of cooperative control technique where three cooperative control techniques namely Master/Slave control, Centralized and Decentralized control are compared and implemented to the existing robots, as well as conducting experiment on the real system. Results from the experiment are analyzed and improvised to prove that cooperative control technique could be used for this study. Results from this study are in form of programming of the control system, ladder diagram showing inputs and outputs of the system utilized and calculation of error of relative coordinate of the two robots after experiment execution. In conclusion, master/slave technique has been selected to be most suitable for this study based on its accuracy and simplicity of its design. The objectives for this project have been achieved where no error above lmm recorded which indicates accuracy and number of lines of programming are 21 lines for Master and 16 lines for Slave robot thus, proving its simplicity. However, improvement on the method used could be further studied to minimize number of lines, using other method or extension of this project where rotational motion could be studied

Post-financial Crisis 1997/1998: Disclosure of Corporate Governance among Banks in Malaysia

This research investigates the comprehensiveness of corporate governance disclosure in the annual reports among banks in Malaysia so as to identify the improvements on corporate governance disclosure after the financial crisis 1997/1998. A sample consisting of 17 foreign and domestic commercial banks operated in Malaysia has been selected based on the list obtained from Bank Negara Malaysia for the purpose of conducting this research. From the analysis of the annual reports, a finding shows that most of the banks have disclosed the corporate governance matters in detail according to the Malaysian Code of Corporate Governance and the Guidelines on Corporate Governance for Licensed Institutions issued by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) and the behaviour signals significant improvement in the corporate governance disclosure in the aftermath of the crisis

A Preliminary Study Of Academicians’ Perception Towards Women PN Boards In Malaysian Public Listed Companies

Gender diversity in the corporate board is still an issue for certain countries including Malaysia. The Malaysian Code of Corporate Governance (MCCG) 2017 anticipates 30% of women to be on the corporate board. However, recently the number of women on board reported is still lower. This study aims to examine the perception of academician towards women on board (WOB). The survey questionnaires were sent among academicians. The result indicates that the academicians believe that the appointment of women on boards will improve and enhance the companies’ performance. There are equal opportunities for men and women to be in management positions. The finding of this study will assist the policymakers and companies especially in formulating women policy to support the national agenda

Potential benefits of ICT for youth agro-based entrepreneurs in Malaysia

Information Communication Technology (ICT) offers an abundance of benefits to users, particularly in relation to socio-economic aspects. Agro-based entrepreneurs are one group of users that has experienced such benefits. Additionally, young agro-based entrepreneurs are able to access more opportunities due to their superior ICT knowledge and compatibility. The present study aims to identify the potential benefits of ICT usage for youth agro-based entrepreneurs. Through document analyses, it can be concluded that the benefits offered from ICT to youth agro-based entrepreneurs include improving operational efficiency, increasing income, strengthening marketing aspects and creating new opportunities. With all of these potential benefits in place, it is hoped that consistent involvement from youths in the agriculture industries can be ensured

Potential personality traits that explain cyberbullying among youth in Malaysia

This study aims to produce a comprehensive understanding on cyberbullying among youth from the perspective of personality traits. The conceptual understanding on cyberbullying was gained by analysing available documents and literature. Several personality traits namely loneliness, self-esteem and empathy were found to influence cyberbullying among youth. Additionally, cyber victim experience was found to be another influential factor for cyberbullying. This article attempts to provide a way forward and highlight the need for concerned parties to understand cyberbullying among youth in Malaysia

Malaysian youth perception on cyberbullying: the qualitative perspective

Cyberbullying is not an emerging new problem and number of international scholars have placed their interest on the issue. In Malaysia, although the number of cyberbully studies are increasing, however, studies on cyberbullying in particular from the qualitative perspective is still lacking. This has geared the current study to prod youth perception on cyberbullying from the qualitative perspective. Their perceptions on cyberbullying were based on six main aspects, namely their comprehension of it, sources of their knowledge, examples that they know, the reasons for youth involvement in cyberbullying and their suggestions on how to prevent cyberbullies. This study involved a total of four FGDs with 27 participants among youth aged between 20-30 years old. A number of discussions are placed and hopefully this study can further enhance understanding on cyberbullying among youths in Malaysia

Using satellite-measured relative humidity for prediction of Metisa plana’s population in oil palm plantations: a comparative assessment of regression and artificial neural network models

Metisa plana (Walker) is a leaf defoliating pest that is able to cause staggering economical losses to oil palm cultivation. Considering the economic devastation that the pest could bring, an early warning system to predict its outbreak is crucial. The state of art of satellite technologies are now able to derive environmental factors such as relative humidity (RH) that may influence pest population’s fluctuations in rapid, harmless, and cost-effective manners. This study examined the relationship between the presence of Metisa plana at different time lags and remote sensing (RS) derived RH by using statistical and machine learning approaches. Metisa plana census data of cumulated larvae instar 1, 2, 3, and 4 were collected biweekly in 2014 and 2015 in an oil palm plantation in Muadzam Shah, Pahang, Malaysia. Relative humidity values derived from Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) satellite images were apportioned to 6 time lags; 1 week (T1), 2 weeks (T2), 3 week (T3), 4 weeks (T4), 5 week (T5) and 6 weeks (T6) and paired with the respective census data. Pearson’s correlation was carried out to analyse the relationship between Metisa plana and RH at different time lags. Regression analyses and artificial neural network (ANN) were also conducted to develop the best prediction model of Metisa plana’s outbreak. The results showed relatively high correlations, positively or negatively, between the presences of Metisa plana with RH ranging from 0.46 to 0.99. ANN was found to be superior to regression models with the adjusted coefficient of determination (R2) between the actual and predicted Metisa plana values ranging from 0.06 to 0.57 versus 0.00 to 0.05. The analysis on the best time lags illustrated that the multiple time lags were more influential on the Metisa plana population than the individual time lags. The best Metisa plana prediction model was derived from T1, T2 and T3 multiple time lags modelled using the ANN algorithm with R2 value of 0.57, errors below 1.14 and accuracies above 93%. Based on the result of this study, the elucidation of Metisa plana’s landscape ecology was possible with the utilization of RH as the predictor variable in consideration of the time lag effects of RH on the pest’s population

ETR 300 Sport revolution centre / Mohd Azroff Yusup...(et al.)

We must have an efficient and comprehensive method of management in an administration of business. All partners must involve in this strategic management. The most important thing that we must take care is efficiency in management. To make sure our objective can be accomplished we have to put our effort in preparing this business proposal. Marketing, production and financial aspect must be considered which consist of a complete term of management that is planning, organizing, leading, and controlling. All this aspect really assists in achieving our goals. Administration must also set the company's vision and mission, which can be used by the organization as a guideline to earn profit. Other than that, administration also includes the allocation of resources to avoid wastage besides giving a better development based on the monetary value of every department. Another responsibility of administration is determining the process in achieving the organizational goals where this administration needs to ensure all of the department cooperate with each other. A part from that, the administration must able to provide better services for the employees. For example, welfare, allowances, SOCSO, EPF and other benefits to make employees feel secure working in our company. The roles played by the administration department really determine the effectiveness and efficiency of our organization to make sure our goals can be achieved

Identification and phenotypic plasticity of Pseudanabaena catenata from the Svalbard archipelago

A filamentous benthic cyanobacteria, strain USMAC16, was isolated from the High Arctic Svalbard archipelago, Norway, and a combination of morphological, ultrastructural and molecular characterisation (16S rRNA gene sequence) used to identify to species level. Cell dimensions, thylakoid arrangement and apical cell shape are consistent with the Pseudanabaena genus description. The molecular characterisation of P. catenata gave 100% similarity with Pseudanabaena catenata SAG 1464-1, originally reported from Germany. Strain USMAC16 was cultured under a range of temperature and photoperiod conditions, in solid and liquid media, and harvested at exponential phase to examine its phenotypic plasticity. Under different culture conditions, we observed considerable variations in cell dimensions. The longest cell (5.91±0.13 μm) was observed at 15°C under 12:12 light:dark, and the widest cell (3.24±0.06 μm) at 4°C under 12:12 light: dark in liquid media. The study provides baseline data documenting the morphological variation of P. catenata in response to changing temperature regimes