This book presents a range of low-dimensional superlattice thermoelectric materials based on physical vapor deposition (PVD) methods and explores various material types, thicknesses, and processing conditions. With the advances made in the performance of semiconductor thermoelectric materials and the efficiency of thermoelectric devices in recent years, thermoelectric power generation systems are likely to replace traditional mechanical heat engines, offering an environmentally friendlier alternative. The use of low-dimensional, nanostructured materials can significantly increase the density of states near the Fermi level and greatly improve the thermoelectric properties of materials. In addition, the book demonstrates that it is possible to influence thermoelectric performance, establish more accurate mathematical models through the regulation of relevant parameters, and ultimately improve the thermoelectric figure of merit (ZT).

Whistles: every child's favorite noise-maker, every police officer's most trusted alarm, every girl or boy scout's most treasured souvenir. With almost 500 full-color photographs, this cheerful new book catalogs whistles from the past century, from the simple wooden penny whistle to novelty whistles with built-in compasses, 15-jewel watches, and mink fur decoration. There are many examples of tin whistles decorated with lithographs, plastic whistles made of celluloid, vinyl, and other compounds, and even a reproduction of a clay whistle made in the 1400s! While whistles could be as frivolous as the water-filled `warbling bird' variety, sliding whistles, and kiddie whistles with 1950s TV cowboy logos, there are many more serious whistles shown as well, including a Kentucky coal mine whistle(used to check for toxic gases), a New York City taxi-cab whistle, and a plastic version of traditional African "nose-flute" used in mating rituals. This book covers them all, with discussion of when and how they were made, instructions for taking care of them, and a current price guide.

The book deals with intelligent control of mobile robots, presenting the state-of-the-art in the field, and introducing new control algorithms developed and tested by the authors. It also discusses the use of artificial intelligent methods like neural networks and neuraldynamic programming, including globalised dual-heuristic dynamic programming, for controlling wheeled robots and robotic manipulators,and compares them to classical control methods.

When I was first given the job of managing a small plastics factory back in 1989, I quickly realized that most of the books and teaching on Lean Manufacturing were designed for big companies and were not relevant to my factory.-Tim Mclean The last 25 years has seen Tim lead and assist over 100 small to medium-sized enterprise (SME) manufacturing operations. This experience has now been condensed in to Grow Your Factory, Grow your Profits: Lean for Small and Medium-Sized Manufacturing Enterprises, a start-to-finish guide on how to run a successful small and medium-sized manufacturing operation. The book presents case studies, practical examples, illustrations, charts, and pictures from real SME manufacturers to provide straightforward solutions to the issues facing every growing manufacturing business. In the book, Tim McLean explains: How to recruit the right people and design the right organization How to empower those people to take accountability and free yourself up from day to day "fire fighting" How to develop a Lean Plant Layout that will maximize productivity and optimize the use of space How to manage materials in order to slash inventory and shortages How to schedule production in order to cut lead times, cut inventory, and delight customers How to get started on a Lean transformation when you lack the resources of a big company The book details how SMEs differ from large organizations and why the approach to improvement must also be different. Covering the complete life cycle of small and medium-sized manufacturers, the book addresses a different SME manufacturing issue in each chapter. This enables readers to tackle issues at their own pace and in their own order of priority. Grow Your Factory, Grow Your Profits is essential reading for owners, managers, and operational leaders in the 90 percent of manufacturing enterprises that are small or medium sized.

Created by Lean practitioners with real-world, results-proven track records, this book is designed to help struggling managers and leaders, interested in the benefits of Lean but bereft of budgets to hire full-time consultants, start substantial change in their enterprises and begin to reap the benefits of Lean.At once a how-to manual and a strategic management guide, the book lays out, in simple English, all the steps for implementing Lean, from formulating a strategy and managing organizational change, to establishing a kanban-driven, level-loaded production system.Presenting strategies that will fit in most existing budgets, Lean for the Cash-Strapped Leader: The Path to Growth and Profitability uses easy-to-read language with flashes of humor to reveal proven methods that will help your organization initiate change and begin reaping the rewards of a Lean operations system in any industry.The book avoids acronyms, complex Lean terminology, and academic froth to convey the essential instructions, detail, and information you need. Identifying powerful methods for initiating a Lean value stream that require minimal investment, the book is designed to help owners of small businesses and senior managers of larger ones make their enterprises more efficient, more productive, and ultimately more profitable.Along the way, the book gives detailed attention to the need for the "soft message" that underwrites and supports the actions required for a business to achieve the transformation that Lean can bring. Lean for the Cash-Strapped Leader emphasizes the messaging and the degree of management involvement required to achieve a successful Lean result. Learn more about the book at: http://www.leanforthecashstrappedleader.com/

This book will address key organizational issues that must be considered and addressed when implementing Lean business practices. The book offers solutions for many of the challenges, provides a resource that leaders can use in addressing cultural and regulatory issues, provides means to address the associated people issues and the challenging task of knowledge retention and succession planning. Vignettes are used to illustrate and provide examples of potential issues and solutions that can be considered for resolving issues and a case study demonstrating ways to address the technical and people aspects of implementing Lean to ensure project success.

Listed as one of the 30 Best Business Books of 2002 by Executive Book Summaries Proactive Risk Management's unique approach provides a model of risk that is scalable to any size project or program and easily deployable into any product development or project management life cycle. It offers methods for identifying drivers (causes) of risks so you can manage root causes rather than the symptoms of risks. Providing you with an appropriate quantification of the key factors of a risk allows you to prioritize those risks without introducing errors that render the numbers meaningless. This book stands apart from much of the literature on project risk management in its practical, easy-to-use, fact-based approach to managing all of the risks associated with a project. The depth of actual how-to information and techniques provided here is not available anywhere else.

We are in an era of high volatility and uncertain outcomes, driven by accelerating technologies, shortened product cycles, fast-changing information, an increasingly mobile workforce, more demanding customers, complex financial markets, ad-hoc public policies, and many other factors that add layers of uncertainty to all future possibilities. While most believe that good management requires better prediction of the future and better planning, Gill Eapen instead contends that the best way to manage effectively in an uncertain world is through the conscious application of flexibility - an ability to absorb constantly shifting variables and adapt quickly. Flexibility: Flexible Companies for the Uncertain World explores ways in which organizations can systematically enhance their ability to survive and succeed without the guarantees that come with certainty. In these pages, Eapen details: Specific attributes of status-quo organizations that hinder their capacity for flexibility in their three primary components: structure, systems, and strategies A tool and process for diagnosing flexibility-related problems within an organization Specific actions companies can take to improve flexibility, regardless of their size or age A case study of a technology company progressively losing flexibility due to management actions, as well as a detailed project plan for remedial actions Based on the author's years of experience working with a variety of industries, including life sciences, energy, technology, financial services, and manufacturing, and his expertise in decision options, Flexibility offers a holistic alternative approach for managing risk and making the best decisions possible in these especially uncertain times.

For all the interest that wireless sensor networks have created over the past decade, there are few examples to show that they are truly delivering on this promise and anticipation. What is missing? Deviating from the usual focus on routing and energy efficiency, Building Sensor Networks: From Design to Applications attempts to stitch together the path from conceptual development of applications, on one end, to actual complete applications at the other. With this change in perspective, the book examines important facets of wireless sensor networks (WSNs) that are not often discussed in the literature. From Design Practices to the Networking Protocols that Glue Applications Together Organized into three sections, the book presents insights from international experts representing both industry and academia. The first section, on design practices, explores alternative ways to approach the tasks of developing a suitable WSN solution to an application and assisting that development in a manner that is not necessarily tied to a particular application. The second section, on networking protocols, illustrates the impact of the intermediaries-the "glue" of putting applications together. Chapters look at ways to address traffic, delays in network clustering, and the coexistence of a WSN with other systems on a frequency band. The final section of the book delves into experiences with applications in chemical sensing, defense, global trade and security, and ecosystem monitoring. Although these applications may fail the purist definition of an ideal WSN, they offer valuable lessons for the future development and deployment of WSNs. Challenge Your Thinking about Designing WSN Applications Emphasizing the need to build applications, the contributors present examples of what applications of WSNs could look like and identify the constraints. Throughout, the book challenges and illuminates your thinking about how to tame the complexity of designing a WSN application. It is essential reading for anyone interested in future wireless technologies.

Reliability Centered Maintenance - Reengineered: Practical Optimization of the RCM Process with RCM-R (R) provides an optimized approach to a well-established and highly successful method used for determining failure management policies for physical assets. It makes the original method that was developed to enhance flight safety far more useful in a broad range of industries where asset criticality ranges from high to low. RCM-R (R) is focused on the science of failures and what must be done to enable long-term sustainably reliable operations. If used correctly, RCM-R (R) is the first step in delivering fewer breakdowns, more productive capacity, lower costs, safer operations and improved environmental performance. Maintenance has a huge impact on most businesses whether its presence is felt or not. RCM-R (R) ensures that the right work is done to guarantee there are as few nasty surprises as possible that can harm the business in any way. RCM-R (R) was developed to leverage on RCM's original success at delivering that effectiveness while addressing the concerns of the industrial market. RCM-R (R) addresses the RCM method and shortfalls in its application -- It modifies the method to consider asset and even failure mode criticality so that rigor is applied only where it is truly needed. It removes (within reason) the sources of concern about RCM being overly rigorous and too labor intensive without compromising on its ability to deliver a tailored failure management program for physical assets sensitive to their operational context and application. RCM-R (R) also provides its practitioners with standard based guidance for determining meaningful failure modes and causes facilitating their analysis for optimum outcome. Includes extensive review of the well proven RCM method and what is needed to make it successful in the industrial environment Links important elements of the RCM method with relevant International Standards for risk management and failure management Enhances RCM with increased emphasis on statistical analysis, bringing it squarely into the realm of Evidence Based Asset Management Includes extensive, experience based advice on implementing and sustaining RCM based failure management programs

Have you ever puzzled over how to perform Boolean logic at the atomic scale? Or wondered how you can carry out more general calculations in one single molecule or using a surface dangling bond atomic scale circuit? This volume gives you an update on the design of single molecule devices, such as recitfiers, switches and transistors, more advanced semi-classical and quantum boolean gates integrated in a single molecule or constructed atom by atom on a passivated semi-conductor surface and describes their interconnections with adapted nano-scale wiring. The main contributors to the field of single molecule logic gates and surface dangling bond atomic scale circuits theory and design, were brought together for the first time to contribute on topics such as molecule circuits, surface dangling bond circuits, quantum controlled logic gates and molecular qubits. Contributions in this volume originate from the Barcelona workshop of the AtMol conference series, held from January 12-13 2012.

Low dimensional systems have revolutionized the science and technology in several areas. However, their understanding is still a great challenge for the scientific community. Solar energy conversion devices based on nanostructured materials have shown exceptional gains in efficiency and stability. In this context, nanostructures allow an improvement of surface properties, transport and charge transfer, as well as direct application as sensors and storage devices and energy conversion. This book discuss the recent advances and future trends of the nanoscience in solar energy conversion and storage. It explores and discusses recent developments both in theory as well as in experimental studies and is of interest to materials scientists, chemists, physicists and engineers.

The 3rd Annual International Conference on Design, Manufacturing and Mechatronics (ICDMM2016) was successfully held in Wuhan, China in 2016.The ICDMM2016 covers a wide range of fundamental studies, technical innovations and industrial applications in industry design, manufacturing and mechatronics. The ICDMM2016 program consists of 4 keynote speeches, 96 oral and poster presentations. We were pleased to have more than 80 participants from China, South Korea, Taiwan, Japan, Malaysia, and Saudi Arabia. However, finally, only 83 articles were selected after peer review to be included in this proceedings.

Additive Manufacturing (AM), popularly known as 3D printing, is playing an increasingly significant role in the manufacturing arena. AM has revolutionized how prototypes are to be made and small batch manufacturing should be carried out. Due to high flexibility and high efficiency of lasers, laser-assisted Manufacturing (LAM) and AM technologies are recently getting much attention over traditional methods.This textbook is a timely information resource for undergraduates, postgraduates and researchers who are interested in this emerging technology. The book will cover the basics of lasers, optics and materials used for manufacturing and 3D printing. It will also include several case studies for readers to apply their understanding of the topics, provide sufficient theoretical background and insights to today's key laser-assisted AM processes and conclude with the future prospects of this exciting technology.This is the first textbook tailored specifically for Lasers in 3D Printing and Manufacturing with detailed explanations. The book will focus on laser-assisted 3D printing and Additive Manufacturing (AM) from basic principles of lasers, optics and AM materials to advanced AM technologies, including in-depth discussion on critical aspects throughout the laser-assisted AM processes, such as optical system design, laser-material interaction and laser parameters' optimization.

Additive Manufacturing (AM), popularly known as 3D printing, is playing an increasingly significant role in the manufacturing arena. AM has revolutionized how prototypes are to be made and small batch manufacturing should be carried out. Due to high flexibility and high efficiency of lasers, laser-assisted Manufacturing (LAM) and AM technologies are recently getting much attention over traditional methods.This textbook is a timely information resource for undergraduates, postgraduates and researchers who are interested in this emerging technology. The book will cover the basics of lasers, optics and materials used for manufacturing and 3D printing. It will also include several case studies for readers to apply their understanding of the topics, provide sufficient theoretical background and insights to today's key laser-assisted AM processes and conclude with the future prospects of this exciting technology.This is the first textbook tailored specifically for Lasers in 3D Printing and Manufacturing with detailed explanations. The book will focus on laser-assisted 3D printing and Additive Manufacturing (AM) from basic principles of lasers, optics and AM materials to advanced AM technologies, including in-depth discussion on critical aspects throughout the laser-assisted AM processes, such as optical system design, laser-material interaction and laser parameters' optimization.

This book presents fabrication approaches that could be adapted for the high-throughput and low-cost manufacturing of the proposed transparent electrode. It proposes and demonstrates a new type of embedded metal-mesh transparent electrode (EMTE) that offers superior electrical, optical, and mechanical properties. The structure of the EMTE allows thick metal mesh to be used (for high conductivity) without sacrificing surface smoothness. In addition, the embedded structure improves the EMTE's mechanical stability under high bending stress, as well as its chemical stability in ambient environments. These design aspects are then shown to be suitable for larger electrode areas, narrower metal-mesh line widths, and a wide range of materials, and can easily be adapted to produce flexible and even stretchable devices. In closing, the book explores the practical applications of EMTEs in flexible bifacial dye-sensitized solar cells and transparent thin-film heaters, demonstrating their outstanding performance.

Additive Manufacturing (AM) technologies are developing impressively and are expected to bring about the next revolution. AM is gradually replacing traditional manufacturing methods in some applications because of its unique properties of customisability and versatility. This book provides a very comprehensive and updated text about different types of AM technologies, their respective advantages, shortcomings and potential applications.3D Printing and Additive Manufacturing: Principles and Applications is a comprehensive textbook that takes readers inside the world of additive manufacturing. This book introduces the different types of AM technologies, categorised by liquid, solid and powder-based AM systems, the common standards, the trends in the field and many more.Easy to understand, this book is a good introduction to anyone interested in obtaining a better understanding of AM. For people working in the industry, this book will provide information on new methods and practices, as well as recent research and development in the field. For professional readers, this book provides a comprehensive guide to distinguish between the different technologies, and will help them make better decisions regarding which technology they should use. For the general public, this book sheds some light on the fast-moving AM field.In this edition, new AM standards (e.g. Standard of Terminology and Classification of AM systems) and format standards will be included, Furthermore, the listing of new machines and systems, materials, and software; as well as new case studies and applications in industries that have recently adopted AM (such as the Marine and Offshore industry) have also been incorporated.

Additive Manufacturing (AM) technologies are developing impressively and are expected to bring about the next revolution. AM is gradually replacing traditional manufacturing methods in some applications because of its unique properties of customisability and versatility. This book provides a very comprehensive and updated text about different types of AM technologies, their respective advantages, shortcomings and potential applications.3D Printing and Additive Manufacturing: Principles and Applications is a comprehensive textbook that takes readers inside the world of additive manufacturing. This book introduces the different types of AM technologies, categorised by liquid, solid and powder-based AM systems, the common standards, the trends in the field and many more.Easy to understand, this book is a good introduction to anyone interested in obtaining a better understanding of AM. For people working in the industry, this book will provide information on new methods and practices, as well as recent research and development in the field. For professional readers, this book provides a comprehensive guide to distinguish between the different technologies, and will help them make better decisions regarding which technology they should use. For the general public, this book sheds some light on the fast-moving AM field.In this edition, new AM standards (e.g. Standard of Terminology and Classification of AM systems) and format standards will be included, Furthermore, the listing of new machines and systems, materials, and software; as well as new case studies and applications in industries that have recently adopted AM (such as the Marine and Offshore industry) have also been incorporated.

From G.I. Joe*t to Star Wars*t John Marshall has provided a thorough, informative, and entertaining look at the action figures produced during the 1980s. In over 430 superb color photographs, fans of the pocket-sized G.I. Joes*t, of movie and TV characters, of fantasy figures, He-Man*t, the Thunder Cats*t, super heroes, of those ever-popular quick change artists of the robot world--the Transformers*t, and even pro-wrestling fanatics will find figures here to warm their souls! Price listings are provided for every figure shown and for every known figure produced within a particular product line. Price ranges are provided both for figures that are mint-in-the-box and for those which, while running loose, have retained all of their accessories and lost none of their finish.

Lean is about building and improving stable and predictable systems and processes to deliver to customers high-quality products/services on time by engaging everyone in the organization. Combined with this, organizations need to create an environment of respect for people and continuous learning. It's all about people. People create the product or service, drive innovation, and create systems and processes, and with leadership buy-in and accountability to ensure sustainment with this philosophy, employees will be committed to the organization as they learn and grow personally and professionally. Lean is a term that describes a way of thinking about and managing companies as an enterprise. Becoming Lean requires the following: the continual pursuit to identify and eliminate waste; the establishment of efficient flow of both information and process; and an unwavering top-level commitment. The concept of continuous improvement applies to any process in any industry. Based on the contents of The Lean Practitioners Field Book, the purpose of this series is to show, in detail, how any process can be improved utilizing a combination of tasks and people tools and introduces the BASICS Lean (R) concept. The books are designed for all levels of Lean practitioners and introduces proven tools for analysis and implementation that go beyond the traditional point kaizen event. Each book can be used as a stand-alone volume or used in combination with other titles based on specific needs. Each book is chock-full of case studies and stories from the authors' own experiences in training organizations that have started or are continuing their Lean journey of continuous improvement. Contents include valuable lessons learned and each chapter concludes with questions pertaining to the focus of the chapter. Numerous photographs enrich and illustrate specific tools used in Lean methodology. Baseline: Confronting Reality & Planning the Path for Success focuses on change management and how to manage and accelerate change. The authors also outline how to get ready to implement lean, how to baseline your processes prior to implementing Lean, and how to create a value stream map of processes. This book also discusses Lean accounting.

Lean is about building and improving stable and predictable systems and processes to deliver to customers high-quality products/services on time by engaging everyone in the organization. Combined with this, organizations need to create an environment of respect for people and continuous learning. It's all about people. People create the product or service, drive innovation, and create systems and processes, and with leadership buy-in and accountability to ensure sustainment with this philosophy, employees will be committed to the organization as they learn and grow personally and professionally. Lean is a term that describes a way of thinking about and managing companies as an enterprise. Becoming Lean requires the following: the continual pursuit to identify and eliminate waste; the establishment of efficient flow of both information and process; and an unwavering top-level commitment. The concept of continuous improvement applies to any process in any industry. Based on the contents of The Lean Practitioners Field Book, the purpose of this series is to show, in detail, how any process can be improved utilizing a combination of tasks and people tools and introduces the BASICS Lean (R) concept. The books are designed for all levels of Lean practitioners and introduces proven tools for analysis and implementation that go beyond the traditional point kaizen event. Each book can be used as a stand-alone volume or used in combination with other titles based on specific needs. Each book is chock-full of case studies and stories from the authors' own experiences in training organizations that have started or are continuing their Lean journey of continuous improvement. Contents include valuable lessons learned and each chapter concludes with questions pertaining to the focus of the chapter. Numerous photographs enrich and illustrate specific tools used in Lean methodology. Baseline: Confronting Reality & Planning the Path for Success focuses on change management and how to manage and accelerate change. The authors also outline how to get ready to implement lean, how to baseline your processes prior to implementing Lean, and how to create a value stream map of processes. This book also discusses Lean accounting.

The best-selling Distributed Sensor Networks became the definitive guide to understanding this far-reaching technology. Preserving the excellence and accessibility of its predecessor, Distributed Sensor Networks, Second Edition once again provides all the fundamentals and applications in one complete, self-contained source. Ideal as a tutorial for students or as research material for engineers, the book gives readers up-to-date, practical insight on all aspects of the field. Revised and expanded, this second edition incorporates contributions from many veterans of the DARPA ISO SENSIT program as well as new material from distinguished researchers in the field. Image and Sensor Signal Processing focuses on software issues and the history and future of sensor networks. The book also covers information fusion and power management. Readers of this book may also be interested in Distributed Sensor Networks, Second Edition: Sensor Networking and Applications (ISBN: 9781439862872).

Just because a problem is invisible doesn't mean it's not affecting your operation. While communication, distance, and culture are often ignored as real threats to your results, these unnoticed forces are negatively affecting companies that operate internationally. Globalization has amplified a series of obstacles we not have paid enough attention to in our organizations. Ultimately, it's humans that solve problems in coordination with other humans, and this requires excellent communication. Currently, people must coordinate actions and collaborate with teams sitting in geographically separated places. Misunderstandings and lack of clarity, however, cause high, unbudgeted costs. Global Lean: Seeing the New Waste Rooted in Communication, Distance, and Culture highlights the waste created by these interactions and adopts Lean thinking to provide methods, approaches, and real case studies to eliminate these problems at the source. As organizations evolve into global networks, Lean initiatives must now meet new needs. The book follows the story of a CEO and his company that, while successful in their local environment, are heavily impacted by new obstacles as they expand internationally. It illustrates how they adopt Lean methodologies to bring hidden problems to the surface.

One of George Daniels's central contributions to horology is his co-axial escapement. Having observed that the dominant lever escapement begins to change its rate after a year or two -- a disturbance caused by the sliding action of the impulse elements of the escapement -- Daniels set about developing a mechanism that avoided this problem. The result of his efforts was the co-axial escapement, a mechanism in which he sought to combine the strengths and eliminate the deficiencies of existing watch escapements, the lever escapement foremost among them. First devised in 1977, today it remains largely the same as fitted in watches of Daniels's own manufacture, as well as those of several wrist-watch manufacturers. This book explains the action of the escapement in terms accessible to both expert and layman, and is accompanied by a series of detailed line drawings.