Data Mining introduces in clear and simple ways how to use existing data mining methods to obtain effective solutions for a variety of management and engineering design problems. Data Mining is organised into two parts: the first provides a focused introduction to data mining and the second goes into greater depth on subjects such as customer analysis. It covers almost all managerial activities of a company, including: * supply chain design, * product development, * manufacturing system design, * product quality control, and * preservation of privacy. Incorporating recent developments of data mining that have made it possible to deal with management and engineering design problems with greater efficiency and efficacy, Data Mining presents a number of state-of-the-art topics. It will be an informative source of information for researchers, but will also be a useful reference work for industrial and managerial practitioners.

Safety of VVER-440 Reactors endeavours to promote an increase in the safety of VVER-440 nuclear reactors via the improvement of fission products limitation systems and the implementation of special non-destructive spectroscopic methods for materials testing. All theoretical and experimental studies performed the by author over the last 25 years have been undertaken with the aim of improving VVER-440 defence in depth, which is one of the most important principle for ensuring safety in nuclear power plants. Safety of VVER-440 Reactors is focused on the barrier system through which the safety principle is organised: * nuclear fuel matrix; * fuel cladding; * integrity of primary circuit; and * confinement system. All these barriers are described in detail and are compared to European standards. Industrial engineers will find Safety of VVER-440 Reactors a useful guide to the safe operation of nuclear power plants and it is an informative source of information for researchers in both industry and academia. Employees of related governmental and regulatory organisations may also benefit from reading this book.

The First African InterQuadrennial ICF Conference "AIQ-ICF2008" on Damage and Fracture Mechanics - Failure Analysis of Engineering Materials and Structures", Algiers, Algeria, June 1-5, 2008 is the first in the series of InterQuadrennial Conferences on Fracture to be held in the continent of Africa. During the conference, African researchers have shown that they merit a strong reputation in international circles and continue to make substantial contributions to the field of fracture mechanics. As in most countries, the research effort in Africa is und- taken at the industrial, academic, private sector and governmental levels, and covers the whole spectrum of fracture and fatigue. The AIQ-ICF2008 has brought together researchers and engineers to review and discuss advances in the development of methods and approaches on Damage and Fracture Mechanics. By bringing together the leading international experts in the field, AIQ-ICF promotes technology transfer and provides a forum for industry and researchers of the host nation to present their accomplishments and to develop new ideas at the highest level. International Conferences have an important role to play in the technology transfer process, especially in terms of the relationships to be established between the participants and the informal exchange of ideas that this ICF offers.

To determine the carrying capacity of a structure or a structural element susceptible to operate beyond the elastic limit is an important task in many situations of both mechanical and civil engineering. The so-called "direct methods" play an increasing role due to the fact that they allow rapid access to the request information in mathematically constructive manners. They embrace Limit Analysis, the most developed approach now widely used, and Shakedown Analysis, a powerful extension to the variable repeated loads potentially more economical than step-by-step inelastic analysis. This book is the outcome of a workshop held at the University of Sciences and Technology of Lille. The individual contributions stem from the areas of new numerical developments rendering this methods more attractive for industrial design, extension of the general methodology to new horizons, probabilistic approaches and concrete technological applications.

This book describes new thinking and practice in Advanced Design (ADD) - design that is not merely highly developed but anticipates the future by envisioning novel products and processes. The focus is especially on the front end of innovation and the search for solutions in complex pioneering processes using design-related tools and practices. The book opens by describing these tools, the approaches that characterize ADD and its historical dimension. Specific fields in which ADD has flourished are then examined, exploring the dynamics between research and design. The coverage ranges from transportation, lighting and electrical appliances through to business networks, technology parks and the development of ground-breaking materials. Advance Design is the name of the research group at the Politecnico di Milano (Italy's largest technical university) of which the authors are members. It was chosen to reflect both the "advanced", tangible dimension of design in terms of modern product development, materials and technologies and an orientation toward radical innovation through user involvement and imagination.

Systems engineering is a mandatory approach in some industries, and is gaining wider acceptance for complex projects in general. However, under the imperative of delivering these projects on time and within budget, the focus has been mainly on the management aspects, with less attention to improving the core engineering activity - design. This book addresses the application of the system concept to design in several ways: by developing a deeper understanding of the system concept, by defining design and its characteristics within the process of engineering, and by applying the system concept to the early stage of design, where it has the greatest impact. A central theme of the book is that the purpose of engineering is to be useful in meeting the needs of society, and that therefore the ultimate measure of the benefit of applying the system concept should be the extent to which it advances the achievement of that purpose. Consequently, any consistent, top-down development of the functionality required of a solution to the problem of meeting a defined need must proceed from such a measure, and it is agued that a generalised form of Return on Investment is an appropriate measure. A theoretical framework for the development of functionality based on this measure and utilising the system concept is presented, together with some examples and practical guidelines.

Building upon the fundamental principles of decision theory, Decision-Based Design: Integrating Consumer Preferences into Engineering Design presents an analytical approach to enterprise-driven Decision-Based Design (DBD) as a rigorous framework for decision making in engineering design. Once the related fundamentals of decision theory, economic analysis, and econometrics modelling are established, the remaining chapters describe the entire process, the associated analytical techniques, and the design case studies for integrating consumer preference modeling into the enterprise-driven DBD framework. Methods for identifying key attributes, optimal design of human appraisal experiments, data collection, data analysis, and demand model estimation are presented and illustrated using engineering design case studies. The scope of the chapters also provides: A rigorous framework of integrating the interests from both producer and consumers in engineering design, Analytical techniques of consumer choice modelling to forecast the impact of engineering decisions, Methods for synthesizing business and engineering models in multidisciplinary design environments, and Examples of effective application of Decision-Based Design supported by case studies. No matter whether you are an engineer facing decisions in consumer related product design, an instructor or student of engineering design, or a researcher exploring the role of decision making and consumer choice modelling in design, Decision-Based Design: Integrating Consumer Preferences into Engineering Design provides a reliable reference over a range of key topics.

Design considerations for low-power operations and robustness with respect to variations typically impose contradictory requirements. Low-power design techniques such as voltage scaling, dual-threshold assignment and gate sizing can have large negative impact on parametric yield under process variations. This book focuses on circuit/architectural design techniques for achieving low power operation under parameter variations. We consider both logic and memory design aspects and cover modeling and analysis, as well as design methodology to achieve simultaneously low power and variation tolerance, while minimizing design overhead. This book will discuss current industrial practices and emerging challenges at future technology nodes.

Stochastic Analysis of Offshore Steel Structures provides a clear and detailed guide to advanced analysis methods of fixed offshore steel structures using 3D beam finite elements under random wave and earthquake loadings. Advanced and up-to-date research results are coupled with modern analysis methods and essential theoretical information to consider optimal solutions to structural issues. As these methods require and use knowledge of different subject matters, a general introduction to the key areas is provided. This is followed by in-depth explanations supported by design examples, relevant calculations and supplementary material containing related computer programmers. By combining this theoretical and practical approach Stochastic Analysis of Offshore Steel Structures cover a range of key concepts in detail including: The basic principles of standard 3D beam finite elements and special connections, Wave loading - from hydrodynamics to the calculation of wave loading on structural members, Stochastic response calculations with corresponding solution algorithms including earthquakes, and Fatigue damage, reliability calculation and reliability based design optimization. The broad and detailed coverage makes this a solid reference for research oriented studies and practical sophisticated design methods. Students, researchers, insuring bodies and practical designer offices can turn to Stochastic Analysis of Offshore Steel Structures to broaden their theoretical understanding and develop their practical designs and applications of 3D finite analysis in fixed offshore steel structures.

As the main theme of Improving Complex Systems Today implies, this book is intended to provide readers with a new perspective on concurrent engineering from the standpoint of systems engineering. It can serve as a versatile tool to help readers to navigate the ever-changing state of this particular field. The primary focus of concurrent engineering was, at first, on bringing downstream information as far upstream as possible by introducing parallel processing in order to reduce time to market and to prevent errors at a later stage which would sometimes cause irrevocable damage. Up to now, numerous new concepts, methodologies and tools have been developed, but over concurrent engineering's 20-year history the situation has changed extensively. Now, industry has to work in the global marketplace and to cope with diversifying requirements and increasing complexities. Such globalization and diversification necessitate collaboration across different fields and across national boundaries. Thus, the new concurrent engineering calls for a systems approach to gain global market competitiveness. Improving Complex Systems Today provides a new insight into concurrent engineering today.

The possible use of adhesives in a new design should always be considered because of the economic and technical benefits thatthey can confer. Light, stiff and economic structures, free of the blemishes caused by conventional assembly methods, can be fabricated from a variety of materials in combinations which would otherwise be hard to achieve. Similarly, mechanisms may be built up using bonding techniques which are free of the costs and stresses implicit in press fitting. Adhesives are not a panacea, but they do have a great deal to offer as is shown by the vital role they play in modern production engineering. Yet, despite this, they are not generally regarded with enthusiasm by engineers and designers. The reason for this is not hard to find. There are so many adhesives with such diverse properties that, in the absence of a unifying science which can explain not only why adhesives stick but why they behave as they do, a very strong incentive is required to guarantee perseverance. In addition, although the polymeric structures of adhesives are well understood, this knowledge is usually of little help to the engineer who is used to dealing in precise terms and may be readily put off by a subject which he tends to regard as being arcane and wooly.

In the field of plastics technology, the process of extrusion is widespread and important. It is employed in the compounding and pelletising of plastics materials, in their conversion into products (such as profiles, pipe, hose, sheet, film or bottles) and in the coating of wires, cables, paper, board or foil. A major reason for its use is the screw extruder's ability to melt efficiently and pump continuously large amounts of plastics materials. The understanding of the melting/pumping operation of the extruder and the development of larger and faster-running machines so as to give higher outputs have been given great attention and the results have been widely published. However, the whole manufacturing technology for extruded products has also developed, particularly in recent years. This has occurred not only by the use of modern screw extruders, but also by the incorporation of improved process control systems, the better design of dies and extrudate handling machinery and by the utilisation of improved plastics materials and additives. It is the purpose of this book to present selected topics which contribute to, or exemplify, these developments in extrusion-based processes.

In recent years, interest in the technology of gas cleaning has grown, driven partly by environmental legislation, but also by demands for increases in process efficiency and intensity - notable for power generation and waste incineration. This book, which leads on from our successful Gas Cleaning at High Temperatures, describes the present state of the art and its industrial applications.

Up-to-date documentation on the current scope of the research of Rapid Prototyping, Tooling and Manufacturing. Explains and details the latest techniques and materials used for RP, RT and RM. Develops methodologies and technologies to support in a customer-focused product design and mass customization approach to production.

The series Advances in Industrial Control aims to report and encourage technology transfer in control engineering. The rapid development of control technology impacts all areas of the control discipline. New theory, new controllers, actuators, sensors, new industrial processes, computer methods, new applications, new philosophies..., new challenges. Much of this development work resides in industrial reports, feasibility study papers and the reports of advanced collaborative projects. The series offers an opportunity for researchers to present an extended exposition of such new work in all aspects of industrial control for wider and rapid dissemination. The environmental aspects of all of our society's activities are extremely important if the countryside; the sea and wildernesses are to be fully enjoyed by future generations. Urban waste in all its manifestations presents a particularly difficult disposal problem, which must be tackled conscientiously to prevent long lasting damage to the environment. Technological solutions should be seen as part of the available options. In this monograph, the authors M. R. Katebi, M. A. Johnson and J. Wilkie seek to introduce a comprehensive technological framework to the particular measurement and control problems of wastewater processing plants. Of course the disposal of urban sewage is a long-standing process but past solutions have used options (disposal at sea) which are no longer acceptable. Thus to meet new effluent regulations it is necessary to develop a new technological paradigm based on process control methods, and this is what the authors attempt to provide.

Managing the Dynamics of New-Product Development Processes merges product-based planning, process modelling, process execution, probabilistic simulations, and simulation based decision-making into one framework called the Dynamic new-Product Development Process. It provides readers with a means of improving the management of product development through enhanced methods and tools that are specifically tailored to the characteristics and challenges of such processes. It calls for a new Product Lifecycle Management paradigm of utilizing the managed product data for management of the product's development process. Within the framework, the methods used are enhanced or modified to fit the new-product development process requirements. Each specific method is exhaustively analyzed, from the basic definition of terms through a description of the state of the art of that topic and its limitations. Then, the method enhancements are illustrated by many examples, and discussed while suggesting further research directions. Finally, the enhanced methods are integrated and demonstrated by a test case. The main two methods described are the design structure matrix (DSM) and Petri nets, which are merged into a novel concept entitled DSM nets. Managing the Dynamics of New Product Development Processes provides algorithms, proofs, and practical examples that can be used for general study of the issues concerned. The main concepts presented are applicable to systems engineering and can be used by practitioners of product development processes, such as designers, product managers, and process managers, as well as developers of process management tools for systems with dynamically changing process structures.

Crandall's Power Supply Testing Handbook comes into the marketplace at an optimum time. Now, more than ever, there is an urgency for a comprehensive handbook on power supply testing that will fulfill the reference needs of the wide variety of professionals testing power supplies, including designers, manufacturers, purchasers, and field service organizations.

Topics on the Dynamics of Civil Structures, Volume 1, Proceedings of the 30th IMAC, A Conference and Exposition on Structural Dynamics, 2012, the first volume of six from the Conference, brings together 45 contributions to this important area of research and engineering. The collection presents early findings and case studies on fundamental and applied aspects of Structural Dynamics, including papers on: Human Induced Vibrations Bridge Dynamics Operational Modal Analysis Experimental Techniques and Modeling for Civil Structures System Identification for Civil Structures Method and Technologies for Bridge Monitoring Damage Detection for Civil Structures Structural Modeling Vibration Control Method and Approaches for Civil Structures Modal Testing of Civil Structures

The field of "microelectromechanical systems," or "MEMS," has gradually evolved from a "discipline" populated by a small group of researchers to an "enabling technology" supporting a variety of products in such diverse areas as mechanical and inertial sensors, optical projection displays, telecommunications equipment, and biology and medicine. Critical to the success of these products is the ability to design them, and this invariably involves detailed modeling of proposed designs. Over the past twenty years, such modeling has become increasingly sophisticated, with full suites of MEMS-oriented computer-aided-design tools now available worldwide. But there is another equally important side to the design process In my own book, Microsystem figuring out what to build in the first place. Design, I chose to emphasize the modeling aspect of design. The task of figuring out what to build was defined by a vague step called "creative thinking." I used practical product examples to illustrate the many subtle characteristics of successful designs, but I made no attempt to systematize the generation ofdesign proposals or optimized designs. That systemization is called "synthesis," which is the subjectofthis book."

The handling of bulk materials is a continuously completed projects. Much of the nomenclature has been changing science. Since very few schools teach the han brought up to date. dling of bulk materials, it is necessary for practicing en Publication of the material contained herein is not in gineers to develop their own training manuals. This book tended as a representation or warranty on the part of the is an abbreviated version of a manual used for that pur author, publisher, editors, or any other person or firm pose in our office, and developed over a period of more named herein that it is suitable for any particular use, or than 50 years. While some industrial firms follow their free from infringement of any patent or patents. own practices, the trend in the past few years has been The text is intended as a guide. When used for any to adopt the standards of equipment manufacturers' as specific project, a competent professional engineer sociations and similar organizations. The selection of should be retained to verify the assumptions, applica material and the use of drawiugs instead of photographs bility, calculations, and accuracy of the particular de is based on our experience. sign."

Development of environmentally friendly products gains an increasing - portance in science and in industry. While product development was strongly dedicated to achieve quality, cost and time targets, environmental issues indirectly had always been under consideration by engineers, see Fig. 1. Furthermore a methodology for the development of environm- tally sound products was missing. Despite of significant progress in using computer aided tools for product development and design, environmental aspects were attended. Computer aided tools typically do not include methods for considering environmental issues enabling the designer to - sess a product's environmental effects. Fig. 1. Vision of Environment as a key target for product development v vi Preface Product related environmental issues are getting more and more political and public awareness. Development of environmentally friendly products has become an action item for both, politics and industry (UNFCCC 1997). Energy consumption is on the agenda and covers pollution and resource saving. Typical topics of directives of the European Union are waste, noise, air pollution, water, nature and biodiversity, soil protection, civil protection and climate change. After the translation into national law the development of environmentally friendly products is a basic approach to contribute to the fulfilment of the topics mentioned above. In the European Community a "Communication from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament" on "Integrated Product Policy" was adopted on th 18 June 2003 (EC 2003).

This book presents the processing of the third edition of the Condition Monitoring of Machinery in Non-Stationary Operations (CMMNO13), which was held in Ferrara, Italy. This yearly event merges an international community of researchers who met - in 2011 in Wroclaw (Poland) and in 2012 in Hammamet (Tunisia) - to discuss issues of diagnostics of rotating machines operating in complex motion and/or load conditions. The growing interest of the industrial world on the topics covered by the CMMNO13 involves the fields of packaging, automotive, agricultural, mining, processing and wind machines in addition to that of the systems for data acquisition. The participation of speakers and visitors from industry makes the event an opportunity for immediate assessment of the potential applications of advanced methodologies for the signal analysis. Signals acquired from machines often contain contributions from several different components as well as noise. Therefore, the major challenge of condition monitoring is to point out the signal content that is related to the state of the monitored component particularly in non-stationary conditions.

There is an ever-increasing need for designers to create products that are genuinely inclusive of members of society with special needs. The population is growing older and legislative demands on industry to provide equal access for all are growing ever more stringent. Several research disciplines are working to find solutions to the problem of how to develop more inclusive products and the aim of Universal Access and Assistive Technology is to bring experiences from these different perspectives into a single reference. This book contains the proceedings of the first Cambridge Workshop on Universal Access and Assistive Technology (CWUAAT), incorporating the fourth Cambridge Workshop on Rehabilitation Robotics, held in Cambridge, England in March 2002. This book contains contributions from an international group of leading researchers in the fields of Universal Access and Assistive Technology. Contributions include papers on design, robotics and computer access, as well as the experiences of industry.It is composed of three parts containing material on: * design issues for universal access and assistive technology; * enabling computer access and new technologies; * assistive technology and rehabilitation robotics. Reflecting the spirit of recent moves to extend rights to universal accessibility, this series of workshops and accompanying books is aimed at a broad range of interests, with a general focus on the development of products and solutions. Numerous case studies are used to raise awareness of the challenges faced in developing truly inclusive products, along with examples of good practice.

This book deals with one of the most novel advances in natural computing, namely, in the field of tactile sense analysis. Massage, which provides relaxation and stimulation for human beings, is analyzed in this book for the first time by encoding the motions and tactile senses involved. The target audience is not limited to researchers who are interested in natural computing but also includes those working in ergonomic design, biomedical engineering, Kansei engineering, and cognitive science.