A Al-Habaibeh

A new approach for systematic design of condition monitoring systems for milling processes

Abstract This paper outlines an approach, termed ASPS (automated sensory and signal processing selection system), aimed at aiding the systematic design of condition monitoring systems for machine tools and machining operations. The work is based on utilising Taguchi’s orthogonal arrays to design an experimental programme for investigating the number and type of sensors and signal processing methods most appropriate for the detection of fault conditions for milling processes. Cutting tool condition is selected in this work as an application of the proposed approach. The goal is to reduce the number of sensors needed to detect cutter deterioration and reduce the cost and time required for developing and optimising the design of the condition monitoring system for machining operations.

An investigation into current production challenges facing the Libyan cement industry and the need for innovative total productive maintenance (TPM) strategy

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate maintenance and production problems in the cement industry in Libya, with particular emphasis on future implementation of total productive maintenance (TPM).Design/methodology/approach – The paper presents the use of case study approach of production data and history, field visits, a survey methodology using a detailed questionnaire with employees and interviews with top and middle managers in four cement factories.Findings – It has been found that the four factories under investigation have low productivity and production levels when compared with the design values. There is no clear TPM strategy and also it has been found that the lack of training and personal development is the main cause of this problem. In addition, employees are found not to be motivated as a result of the lack of a management strategy and reward structure.Research limitations/implications – Based on the findings, a new framework for TPM has been developed. This TPM strategy coul...

An investigation into international business collaboration in higher education organisations: A case study of international partnerships in four UK leading universities

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop a comparative analysis of the main objectives of international institutional partnerships in four UK leading universities. Based on the presented case studies, the paper outlines a model for objectives and implementation of international partnership.Design/methodology/approach – Using a multiple case study approach, the paper employs three sources of data: templates of international partnerships, actual agreements of international partnerships and interviews with senior and very senior managers concerned with internationalisation at the four universities. The analysis includes inter‐university comparative analysis and templates‐agreements‐interviews comparative analysis for each of the four universities separately.Findings – It is found that, for the four universities, the objectives of international partnerships are related to both students and staff with relative importance given to the student dimension. While the student dimension refers to any oversea...

A Survey on Condition Monitoring Systems in Industry

Advances in networking technologies are opening integration opportunities for Condition Based Monitoring (CBM) systems, presenting further possibilities for increasing CBM system functionality. This paper presents the results of a CBM Survey designed to determine present applications of CBM system within industry. Understanding how industry applies practices such as CBM in the work place offers valuable research results for CBM system providers, consultants and business users alike. The survey acts as a CBM application indicator for 2004. It targets 6 key areas: 1) Respondents’ company information, 2) The type of CBM technique/s applied by the respondents’ company, 3) Incentives that led the respondents’ company to implement their CBM system, 4) Technological and integration issues associated with respondents’ application of CBM, 5) Implementation issues associated with the respondents’ CBM system, and 6) Reliability and consequential maintenance awareness issues following implementation. An international response shows CBM to be a globally accepted maintenance practice. In addition to the survey results, the paper discusses developments in remote CBM systems using the Internet, with particular regard for developing suitable user interface designs.Copyright

Comprehensive experimental evaluation of a systematic approach for cost effective and rapid design of condition monitoring systems using Taguchi's method

Abstract This paper provides an extensive experimental and analytical evaluation of a previously presented approach to the systematic design of condition monitoring systems for machining operations [J. Mater. Process. Technol. 107 (2000) 243]. The methodology termed automated sensor and signal processing selection (ASPS), is based on Taguchi’s orthogonal arrays in order to provide cost effective and speedy selection of sensors and signal processing methods that are ultimately used for monitoring process conditions. The evaluation using tool damage in end milling operations shows that ASPS methodology can successfully achieve its objectives without significantly affecting the system’s capability for fault detection. The experiments investigate two new types of cutting tools each with three distinct conditions which are processed by four different and independent neural network paradigms—two supervised and two unsupervised. Thus, the results confirm the feasibility and efficiency of the proposed ASPS methodology and show that it can be applied to condition monitoring systems without the need for implementing pattern recognition tools during the design phase.

A novel approach for quality control system using sensor fusion of infrared and visual image processing for laser sealing of food containers.

This paper presents a new mechatronic approach of using infrared thermography combined with image processing for the quality control of a laser sealing process for food containers. The suggested approach uses an online infrared system to assess the heat distribution within the container seal in order to guarantee the integrity of the process. Visual image processing is then used for quality assurance to guarantee optimum sealing. The results described in this paper show examples of the capability of the condition monitoring system to detect faults in the sealing process. The results found indicate that the suggested approach could form an effective quality control and assurance system.

Towards exporting renewable energy from MENA region to Europe: An investigation into domestic energy use and householders’ energy behaviour in Libya

Renewable energy in Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, particular solar energy, can be connected to Europe to provide the Northern neighbouring countries with electricity. To achieve this long term objective, it is necessary to understand the local domestic consumption of electricity in the MENA region as the main consumer of energy. The understanding of current and future trends could help to provide a complete picture of the energy situation in MENA region and the feasibility of exporting energy to Europe. For this reason, this paper investigates the domestic energy use and occupants’ energy behaviour in Libya. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effect of domestic energy consumption and householders’ awareness, attitudes and behaviour on the overall energy consumption in Libya and how this could affect the peak demand, capacity, future trends and government energy budget. The paper also investigates the sustainability aspect of consumer products and the awareness and attitude of consumers towards consumption and demand. A comprehensive survey has been conducted to evaluate several aspects of domestic energy demand and characteristics in Libya. The findings have indicated that there is a significant increase in energy demands in the household sector in Libya and it is significant to have a clear strategy to reduce carbon emission and energy use by improving occupants’ behaviour as well as utilising other sustainable measures. Minor adjustment in householders’ energy consumption behaviour and the technology used to generate energy could provide significant financial savings and contribute significantly to the reduction in carbon emission and energy consumption. This will allow significant benefit to the local economy and the energy sector in Libya but at the same time could provide sustainable energy resources for Europe on the long term.

Experimental design and investigation of a pin-type reconfigurable clamping system for manufacturing aerospace components

Abstract This paper presents an experimental design and evaluation of a pin-type universal clamping system. The clamping system is designed for holding complex-shaped aerospace components, such as turbine blades, during machining processes. The experimental investigation is performed by comparing the pin-type clamping system with a dedicated clamping system during the machining of aluminium and steel parts. Force signals are monitored during machining. The experimental results are presented and compared with a dedicated clamping system. From the comparison, the performance of the clamping system is discussed. The results provide an evaluation of the designed pin-type clamping systems for machining operations. The results prove that the pin-type clamping system can be reconfigured for machining different complex shaped components with performance comparable with a dedicated clamping system.

Self learning fuzzy controllers using iterative learning tuner

This paper describes the design of an adaptive fuzzy controller using iterative learning to tune input membership functions and scaling factor(s). The control scheme consists of a fuzzy controller and learning control laws. Peoples perception about the meaning of a linguistic variable differs from person to person or even from expert to expert. This difference in perception usually leads to different fuzzy control designs. Some where within these designs lays the required design which meets a specific performance criterion. This paper proposes an approach to tackle this uncertainty in perception, to find the required design using membership function modification. The membership function is adaptively adjusted through iterative learning technique. The results show that the scheme is robust, cost effective and very simple to implement. It makes use of the nonlinearity inherent in the fuzzy systems. This scheme can be used to design fuzzy controllers for different plants by finding the right membership functions to ensure the required design specifications. Designing fuzzy controllers with desired performance specifications is not a trivial task. Even the specification of linguistic variables, key concept in fuzzy system design, can be different from different experts. This scheme tries to fill this gap. Adaptive fuzzy techniques are computationally heavy to implement. The proposed scheme lays out a unique adaptive procedure for designing fuzzy controllers through iterative learning process.

The design of a novel sensor fusion model for monitoring people's density in public places using infrared thermography

There is an increasing need in modern cities for automated Crowd Condition Monitoring (CCM) in order to provide continuous real-time on-line information regarding the density, number and movement behaviour of crowd within a specific area in order to allow the required level of services and facilities to be specified and directed. This paper describes the novel application of low-cost infrared system for estimating people’s density using infrared thermography. Sensor fusion system is developed to compensate for environmental noise. The results show that the suggested monitoring system could provide an efficient method to estimate crowd’s density.