Anwendung von künstlichen neuronalen Netzen in Steuerung und Analyse von intralogistischen Materialflusssystemen (MFS) im Rahmen von Industrie 4.0

In modernen Intralogistikanlagen ist optimale Materialflusssteuerung die wichtigste Funktion neben der Verwaltung der eingelagerten Waren. Um eine kostspielige Konfiguration der oft sehr komplexen Anlagen zu vermeiden, ist es notwendig, den Konfigurationsprozess zu automatisieren. Das Ziel dieser Arbeit soll ein Prototyp zur Ermittlung der optimalen Konfiguration, im Hinblick auf Leistung und Verschleiß, von intralogistischen Materialflüssen sein. Hierzu werden im Rahmen dieser Diplomarbeit zunächst Inhouse-Experten zu den unterschiedlichen Konfigurationsparametern befragt. Auf Basis der gewonnen Daten soll ein abstraktes Modell zur Modellierung der verschiedenen Intralogistikanlagen erstellt werden. Des Weiteren sollen die unterschiedlichen Methoden zur automatisierten Optimierung der Lagerflüsse untersucht und die Methode der künstlichen neuronalen Netze in einem Prototyp, unter Verwendung des abstrakten Modells, umgesetzt werden. Der Prototyp soll in der Lage sein, eine optimale Konfiguration für ein gegebenes Modell eines intralogistischen Materialflusssystems zu ermitteln. Die ermittelte Konfiguration soll in einem nächsten Schritt gegen eine Standardinstallation der Software viadat und gegen eine Simulation in der Simulations- und Emulationssoftware Emulate 3D validiert werden können. Für eine spätere Automatisierung der Validierung soll die Software Emulate 3D auf vorhandene Programmierschnittstellen untersucht werden. Des Weiteren sollen die Möglichkeiten der Anbindung der Modelllösung an die Standardsoftware viadat evaluiert werden.In modern intralogistics systems, the optimized material flow control is the most important function, along with the management of the stored goods. To avoid the expensive configuration of the facilities, most of which are highly complex, it is required to automate the configuration process. The goal of this diploma thesis is to generate a prototype used to identify the optimum configuration of intralogistic material flows with regard to performance and wear. In the context of this diploma thesis, first of all in-house experts are to be questioned concerning the different configuration parameters. On the basis of the obtained data, an abstract model used to model intralogistics facilities of different types is to be generated. Moreover, different methods of automated optimization of the material flows are to be examined, and the method of artificial neural networks is to be implemented in a prototype, on the basis of the abstract model. The prototype must be able to identify the optimum configuration for a given model of an intralogistic material flow system. In the next step, it is intended to validate the identified configuration against a standard installation of the viadat software and against a simulation in the simulation and emulation software Emulate 3D. With regard to the automation of the validation at a later time, the software Emulate 3D is to be examined for existing programming interfaces. Another task is to evaluate the option of connecting the model solution to the standard software viadat

A qualitative study exploring parental perspectives and involvement in health visiting services during the Health Visitor Implementation Plan in the South West of England

Internationally, there is a strong interest in engaging the public more widely in both the development and governance of public services. This study aimed to explore family perspectives on the introduction of a new policy initiative called the 'Health Visitor Implementation Plan' (Department of Health [2011] Health Visitor Implementation Plan 2011-15: A Call to Action) and their experiences of the new health visitor service provision. The policy aimed to increase the health visitor workforce by 4200 additional practitioners between 2011 and 2015, in parallel with introducing a new service model to provide comprehensive and accessible support for parents with children 0-5 years. Using a qualitative approach, data were collected via semi-structured interviews and focus groups with 22 parents between March 2013 and March 2014. Questions focused around the extent to which the new service met parental expectation and need. Participants were recruited through Children's Centres and interviewed during established group sessions. Analysis was conducted using thematic analysis and constant comparative methods. The participants were asked to share their experiences of the health visiting service and their views on this national policy initiative. Although asked to comment on the policy at nation and local level, their responses were predominantly around personal experience. Parents welcomed the increase in workforce capacity and positive experiences centred on health visitors who were caring, knowledgeable, skilled and facilitated positive outcomes. Many of the negative experiences were seen to be due to poor relationships between the parent and the health visitor. Parents were influenced by the communication skills and personal attributes of the individual health visitors, including time to listen. The strength of parental opinion indicated that parents are willing to contribute to service development, consequently policy makers and health visitors themselves need to have clarity around the purpose and mechanism of parental involvement if meaningful partnership is to become a reality

Commissioning for health improvement following the 2012 health and social care reforms in England: what has changed?

Background: The wide-ranging program of reforms brought about by the Health and Social Care Act (2012) in England fundamentally changed the operation of the public health system, moving responsibility for the commissioning and delivery of services from the National Health Service to locally elected councils and a new national public health agency. This paper explores the ways in which the reforms have altered public health commissioning. Methods: We conducted multi-methods research over 33 months, incorporating national surveys of Directors of Public Health and local council elected members at two time-points, and in-depth case studies in five purposively selected geographical areas. Results: Public health commissioning responsibilities have changed and become more fragmented, being split amongst a range of different organisations, most of which were newly created in 2013. There is much change in the way public health commissioning is done, in who is doing it, and in what is commissioned, since the reforms. There is wider consultation on decisions in the local council setting than in the NHS, and elected members now have a strong influence on public health prioritisation. There is more (and different) scrutiny being applied to public health contracts, and most councils have embarked on wide-ranging changes to the health improvement services they commission. Public health money is being used in different ways as councils are adapting to increasing financial constraint. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that, while some of the intended opportunities to improve population health and create a more joined-up system with clearer leadership have been achieved, fragmentation, dispersed decision-making and uncertainties regarding funding remain significant challenges. There have been profound changes in commissioning processes, with consequences for what health improvement services are ultimately commissioned. Time (and further research) will tell if any of these changes lead to improved population health outcomes and reduced health inequalities, but many of the opportunities brought about by the reforms are threatened by the continued flux in the system

Mapping surface hoar from near-infrared texture in a laboratory

Surface hoar crystals are snow grains that form when water vapor deposits on the snow surface. Once buried, surface hoar creates a weak layer in the snowpack that can later cause large avalanches to occur. The formation and persistence of surface hoar are highly spatiotemporally variable, making its detection difficult. Remote-sensing technology capable of detecting the presence and spatial distribution of surface hoar would be beneficial for avalanche forecasting, but this capability has yet to be developed. Here, we hypothesize that near-infrared (NIR) texture, defined as the spatial variability of reflectance magnitude, may produce an optical signature unique to surface hoar due to the distinct shape and orientation of the grains. We tested this hypothesis by performing reflectance experiments in a controlled cold laboratory environment to evaluate the potential and accuracy of surface hoar mapping from NIR texture using a near-infrared hyperspectral imager (NIR-HSI) and a lidar operating at 1064 nm. We analyzed 41 snow samples, three of which were surface hoar and 38 of which consisted of other grain morphologies. When using NIR-HSI under direct and diffuse illumination, we found that surface hoar displayed higher NIR texture relative to all other grain shapes across numerous spectral bands and a wide range of spatial resolutions (0.5–50 mm). Due to the large number of spectral- and spatial-resolution combinations, we conducted a detailed samplewise case study at 1324 nm spectral and 10 mm spatial resolution. The case study resulted in the median texture of surface hoar being 1.3 to 8.6 times greater than that of the 38 other samples under direct and diffuse illumination (p &lt; 0.05 in all cases). Using lidar, surface hoar also exhibited significantly increased NIR texture in 30 out of 38 samples, but only at select (5–25 mm) spatial resolutions. Leveraging these results, we propose a simple binary classification algorithm to map the extent of surface hoar on a pixelwise basis using both the NIR-HSI and lidar instruments. The NIR-HSI under direct and diffuse illumination performed best, with a median accuracy of 96.91 % and 97.37 %, respectively. Conversely, the median classification accuracy achieved with lidar was only 66.99 %. Further, to assess the repeatability of our method and demonstrate its mapping capacity, we ran the algorithm on a new sample with mixed microstructures, with an accuracy of 99.61 % and 96.15 % achieved using NIR-HSI under direct and diffuse illumination, respectively. As NIR-HSI detectors become increasingly available, our findings demonstrate the potential of a new tool for avalanche forecasters to remotely assess the spatiotemporal variability of surface hoar, which would improve avalanche forecasts and potentially save lives.</p

Current Industrial Practices in Assessing CYP450 Enzyme Induction: Preclinical and Clinical

Induction of drug metabolizing enzymes, such as the cytochromes P450 (CYP) is known to cause drug-drug interactions due to increased elimination of co-administered drugs. This increased elimination may lead to significant reduction or complete loss of efficacy of the co-administered drug. Due to the significance of such drug interactions, many pharmaceutical companies employ screening and characterization models which predict CYP enzyme induction to avoid or attenuate the potential for drug interactions with new drug candidates. The most common mechanism of CYP induction is transcriptional gene activation. Activation is mediated by nuclear receptors, such as AhR, CAR, and PXR that function as transcription factors. Early high throughput screening models utilize these nuclear hormone receptors in ligand binding or cell-based transactivation/reporter assays. In addition, immortalized hepatocyte cell lines can be used to assess enzyme induction of specific drug metabolizing enzymes. Cultured primary human hepatocytes, the best established in vitro model for predicting enzyme induction and most accepted by regulatory agencies, is the predominant assay used to evaluate induction of a wide variety of drug metabolizing enzymes. These in vitro models are able to appropriately predict enzyme induction in patients when compared to clinical drug-drug interactions. Finally, transgenic animal models and the cynomolgus monkey have also been shown to recapitulate human enzyme induction and may be appropriate in vivo animal models for predicting human drug interactions

Experiences of User Involvement in Mental Health Settings: User Motivations and Benefits

Introduction: Despite guidance promoting user involvement, meaningful involvement continues to be debated within services. To effectively implement involvement, it is important to acknowledge why users devote time to such activities. Aim: This study explores user representatives’ experiences of involvement, including motivations and personal benefits. Method: Thirteen user representatives involved in activities such as staff training and interviews were recruited from a UK National Health Service mental health Trust during 2015. Themes within semi-structured interviews were developed using constructivist grounded theory analysis. Memo-writing, process and focused coding, and core categories supported development of the conceptual framework of being a user representative. Findings: Being a user representative was inextricably linked to wellness, yet staff governed opportunities. Making a difference to others and giving back were initial motivating factors. Experiences depended on feeling valued, and the theme of transition captured shifts in identity. Discussion: User representatives reported increased confidence and wellbeing when supported by staff. However, involvement triggered mental health difficulties, and identified need for regular monitoring and reflection of involvement activities and practice. Implications for practice: Services should consider coproduction, where users and staff agree together on involvement definitions. Dedicated involvement workers are crucial to supporting individual wellbeing and monitoring involvement

Involving users in commissioning local services

This report is about service users’ experience and views of involvement in shaping services, and the experiences and views of commissioners when involving users. The research points to what is currently happening and what might be possible in the future shape of commissioning. It has not been written as a traditional research paper nor as a toolkit (there are a lot of good practice guidance and toolkits already in existence), but rather as a think piece – one that encourages all of us who are working with user involvement to ‘take a step back’ and reflect on the pressures and tensions that could have an impact on all parties involved in user involvement in general and commissioning in particular

Reconstitution par marche sur le chromosome de rétrotransposons Ty1-copia like de la vigne appartenant à une famille appelée Tvv1

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