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Kinds of Designers Terms modified by Designers Selected AbstractsOptimization of a single-effect evaporation system to effectively utilize thermal energyENVIRONMENTAL PROGRESS & SUSTAINABLE ENERGY, Issue 2 2009Raafat Alnaizy Abstract Wastewater treatment facilities at Emirates Gold in Dubai seek to improve the steam economy of the existing single-effect with recirculation and vapor-compression evaporation process. Maximizing steam economy is important as it impacts treatment costs. There are two main approaches for improving steam economy in evaporators. One is to use a multiple-effect evaporator; the other is to use a mechanical vapor recompression. Multiple-effect evaporators were rejected because of higher capital and power cost. One of the suggestions that were made towards improving the steam economy was to recover heat from the steam condensate. A modified process flow diagram was proposed and investigated. The modified process was simulated using SuperPro Designer and Hysys with complete material and energy balance computation. The modified process increased the total water evaporation capacity and gained 40% better steam economy of the process. Another advantage was an increase in the amount of water reused, which is both economical and environmentally friendly. © 2008 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Environ Prog, 2009 [source] Meet the New Hybrid DesignersDESIGN MANAGEMENT REVIEW, Issue 2 2010Michael Eckersley Many of them have changed careers, or the focus of their careers, and have arrived at graduate design programs from a background very different from that of traditional designers. They're likely to add a different flavor to the design mix,and bring a considerable amount of business acumen, as well. [source] Educating Designers for Broad Roles in OrganizationsDESIGN MANAGEMENT REVIEW, Issue 3 2007Chris Conley Professor Companies are looking to designers for talent in such fields as marketing, strategy, product management, and research and development. Chris Conley posits a five-part framework for applying design expertise across the spectrum of issues related to managing a business. He also offers a curriculum structure and course content that cultivate the skills needed to succeed in these broader roles. [source] Sustainable Responsible Design: Insights from Wales (UK)DESIGN MANAGEMENT REVIEW, Issue 3 2005Frank O'Connor As Frank O'Connor and Iain Cox share two cases to illustrate what Design Wales is doing to promote responsible design among SMEs, it is evident that several elements are needed to implement what turns out to be a complex mandate. Governments must support the agenda with appropriate policy. Companies must make the commitment to value-based brands. Designers have to contribute relevant expertise, and consumers must to be willing to buy. [source] The Economist as Engineer: Game Theory, Experimentation, and Computation as Tools for Design EconomicsECONOMETRICA, Issue 4 2002Alvin E. Roth Economists have lately been called upon not only to analyze markets, but to design them. Market design involves a responsibility for detail, a need to deal with all of a market's complications, not just its principle features. Designers therefore cannot work only with the simple conceptual models used for theoretical insights into the general working of markets. Instead, market design calls for an engineering approach. Drawing primarily on the design of the entry level labor market for American doctors (the National Resident Matching Program), and of the auctions of radio spectrum conducted by the Federal Communications Commission, this paper makes the case that experimental and computational economics are natural complements to game theory in the work of design. The paper also argues that some of the challenges facing both markets involve dealing with related kinds of complementarities, and that this suggests an agenda for future theoretical research. [source] The development of 3-D visualization technology: the potential impact on interior design and its consumersINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CONSUMER STUDIES, Issue 5 2009Seunghae Lee Abstract Three-dimensional visualization has developed and improved significantly over the last several decades and resulted in consumers' having multidimensional, multi-sensory experiences with a wide range of products and services. It has affected the built environment and its related businesses. Designers create 3-D images and walk-through animations to communicate with their clients more clearly, starting from the early stage of the design process. The interior,design-related material manufacturers and retailers have enhanced their online stores with 3-D visualization features to improve their interactivity and provide user-friendly interfaces for product information search and purchase planning. Because of the continuing widespread interest in 3-D visualization and the amount of its applications in the interior design field, a review of this area was a necessity to suggest the future research direction for the development of 3-D visualization in interior design. This paper sought to demonstrate the status of the development of 3-D visualization and its impact on the interior design field and its consumers while highlighting an area where future research is a potentially considerable benefit in developing 3-D visualization in interior design. [source] Residential Design Implications of Consumers' Recycling BehaviorsJOURNAL OF INTERIOR DESIGN, Issue 1-2 2003Sharon Macy M.A. ABSTRACT Each year landfills receive a growing amount of waste that could be eliminated by recycling practices supported through the design of kitchens. This study had three objectives: (a) to examine residential design implications for incorporating recycling within the home, (b) to examine consumer's feelings of environmental altruism and their behaviors toward recycling within the context of situational conditions within the home, and (c) to examine consumer's views regarding the convenience of their home's recycling facilities. The primary research instrument was a survey of consumer behaviors and attitudes toward recycling. Certified Kitchen Designers provided client names for whom they had designed a kitchen as part of a remodel or new home construction within the last five years. Questionnaires were mailed to 271 households with a 58.2% response rate achieved. Five areas of information were addressed in the survey: sociode-mographics, behaviors and situational design factors, altruistic values, perceived inconvenience, and economic factors. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used for analysis with Chi-square tests used to examine relationships between variables. Results support including an area for recycling in the kitchen or a space that is directly adjacent such as an attached garage; convenience was found to be a primary factor in the recycling behaviors of highly altruistic individuals. It is important to design an environment that supports recycling. Whether recycling is convenient or not will have an influence on an individual's recycling behaviors. With environments that support recycling behaviors, consumers will increase their quantity and accuracy in recycling, which in turn could lead to an increase in attitudes toward other pro-environmental actions. [source] Fire exposure of liquid-filled vesselsPROCESS SAFETY PROGRESS, Issue 1 2003Larry L. Simpson Pressure vessels in the chemical industry generally have top-mounted pressure relief valves (PRVs) sized to handle fire exposure and other possible scenarios. Designers usually assume that the fire scenario causes liquid to boil and vapor to vent, regardless of the initial liquid level. Under some circumstances, however, a high liquid level, together with thermal expansion, can result in a vessel being full of liquid when the PRV opens. If so, the initial fluid discharged through the PRV would be a two-phase gas-liquid stream. This paper analyzes non-reactive phenomena occurring during the heat-up and venting process in non-agitated liquid-filled pressure vessels. A new criterion is developed to determine if the vapor-venting sizing assumption is justified. Results from several cases show that pressures in most liquid-filled vessels sized for vapor-only flow will be below the ASME Code-allowable values during fire exposure. Hence, the common industry practice of ignoring two-phase flow when sizing fire cases is usually justified. [source] Influence of proficiency level and constraints on viewpoint switching: a study in web designAPPLIED COGNITIVE PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 1 2009Aline Chevalier Web design is a complex problem in which designers have to consider the user's and the client's viewpoints to make satisfactory websites. Designers, particularly proficient ones, tend to privilege to the client's viewpoint to the detriment of the users' one. Consequently, websites often contain many usability violations and do not fit users' cognitive capacities, hence hampering navigation. The usability quality of websites may be proportional to designers' ability to switch between the client's and the user's viewpoints, which in turn may be influenced by designers' proficiency level. To explore the role of viewpoint switching in web design, performance was compared across three conditions emphasizing either the client's viewpoint, that of the user, or none of them in order to promote or hamper viewpoint switching. This manipulation had a significant effect on proficient designers' performance. Moreover, a significant relation between viewpoint switching and the usability quality of e-mock-ups was found. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Piercy Conner Architects & DesignersARCHITECTURAL DESIGN, Issue 6 2007Article first published online: 30 NOV 200 Abstract Piercy Conner, an innovative practice based in London, extends the theory and practice of architecture in a way ,that demonstrates a profound understanding of its cultural and communicational possibilities', and is the firm behind a number of microflat projects in and around London. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Planung von nichttragenden BodenplattenBETON- UND STAHLBETONBAU, Issue 10 2007Klaus Schöppel Dr.-Ing. Nichttragende Bodenplatten werden i. A. als unbedeutende Bauteile angesehen. Wie die Praxis zeigt, setzen sich die Planenden häufig weder mit den Vorstellungen des Bauherrn bezüglich seiner Bodenplatte noch deren Realisierbarkeit genau auseinander. Selten werden Sonderfachleute zur Beratung des Bauherrn, für Planung und Ausführung von Bodenplatten hinzugezogen. Der unbedachte Umgang mit dem Thema nichttragende Bodenplatten führt zwangsläufig zu Mängeln und häufig aufgrund der hohen Mängelbeseitigungskosten vor allem infolge des Nutzungsausfalls zu gerichtlichen Auseinandersetzungen. In diesem Beitrag werden daher die wesentlichen Randbedingungen und Vorgaben für eine nichttragende Bodenplatte, die bereits im frühen Planungsstadium mit dem Bauherrn abzuklären sind, aufgezeigt. Des Weiteren wird ein Überblick über die Konstruktionsmöglichkeiten nichttragender Bodenplatten gegeben. Ergänzend wird auf die Stellung von nichttragenden Bodenplatten im Regelwerk sowie auf häufig auftretende Schadensbilder eingegangen. Design of Non-Load-Bearing Base Plates In general, non-load-bearing base plates are considered unimportant components. Designers often neither realize the ideas of the owner concerning his base plate nor the possibilities of construction. Specialists are rarely asked to consult the owner to design and to construct the non-load-bearing base plates resulting in defects and often judicial discussions due to high costs for the repair. This paper shows essential basic conditions and requirements of non-load-bearing base plates to be discussed with the owner already in an early planning stage. Additional a review of construction possibilities of non-load-bearing base plates is presented. The paper also describes the position of non-load-bearing base plates in the complex of regulations as well as frequent damages. [source] Understanding Color: An Introduction for DesignersCOLOR RESEARCH & APPLICATION, Issue 6 2006Marilyn A. Read No abstract is available for this article. [source] Understanding Color: An Introduction for DesignersCOLOR RESEARCH & APPLICATION, Issue 6 2006Roy S. Berns No abstract is available for this article. [source] Multiresolution Surface Representation Based on Displacement VolumesCOMPUTER GRAPHICS FORUM, Issue 3 2003Mario Botsch We propose a new representation for multiresolution models which uses volume elements enclosed between thedifferent resolution levels to encode the detail information. Keeping these displacement volumes locally constantduring a deformation of the base surface leads to a natural behaviour of the detail features. The correspondingreconstruction operator can be implemented efficiently by a hierarchical iterative relaxation scheme, providingclose to interactive response times for moderately complex models. Based on this representation we implement a multiresolution editing tool for irregular polygon meshes that allowsthe designer to freely edit the base surface of a multiresolution model without having to care about self-intersectionsin the respective detailed surface. We demonstrate the effectiveness and robustness of the reconstructionby several examples with real-world data. [source] Childhood cancer,mainly curable so where next?ACTA PAEDIATRICA, Issue 4 2000AW Craft More than 70% of childhood cancer is now curable with best modern therapy. The treatment is expensive but in terms of cost per life year saved, USD 1750, compares very favourably with other major health interventions. The rate of improvement in survival is slowing down. New, "designer", treatments are needed and, better still, prevention. The causes of childhood cancer are beginning to emerge. The origin for many is probably in utero and may be initiated by dietary and other environmental exposures perhaps in susceptible individuals. However, one of the great challenges for the future must be to extend the benefits of modern treatment to the 80% of the world's children who currently have little or no access to it in economically disadvantaged and emerging nations. The International Paediatric Oncology Society (SIOP) is leading the way in bringing hope for children with cancer worldwide. In India, with the support of the WHO, there is a "train the trainers" programme. In Africa, pilot studies of cost-effective treatments for Burkitt's lymphoma are producing gratifying results in Malawi and there are several examples of twinning programmes between major centres in developed and less well-developed countries. Conclusions: The future for children with cancer is bright. Most are curable and prevention may be just over the horizon. [source] Gain-scheduling control of a rotary inverted pendulum by weight optimization and H, loop shaping procedureELECTRICAL ENGINEERING IN JAPAN, Issue 2 2008Kazuhiro Yubai Abstract Gain-scheduling control is an effective method for use with plants whose dynamics change significantly according to the operating point. The frozen parameter method, a practical gain-scheduling controller synthesis method, interpolates the controllers designed at prespecified (frozen) operating points according to the current operation point. Hyde and Glover proposed a gain-scheduling control method in which the H, loop shaping procedure is adopted as a controller synthesis method at each operating point. The H, loop shaping procedure is based on loop shaping of an open loop characteristic by frequency weights and is known to be effective for plants with bad condition numbers. However, weight selection satisfying the control specifications is a difficult job for a designer. This paper describes the design of suboptimal weights and a controller by means of an algorithm that maximizes the robust stability margin and shapes the open-loop characteristic into the desired shape at each operating point. In addition, we formulate the weight optimization problem as a generalized eigenvalue minimization problem, which reduces the burden on the designer in weight selection. Finally, we realize a robust, high-performance control system by scheduling both weights and controllers. The effectiveness of the proposed control system is verified in terms of the achieved robust stability margin and the experimental time responses of a rotary inverted pendulum, which involves strong nonlinear dynamics. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 163(2): 30,40, 2008; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/eej.20647 [source] Implementing life cycle assessment in product developmentENVIRONMENTAL PROGRESS & SUSTAINABLE ENERGY, Issue 4 2003Gurbakhash Singh Bhander The overall aim of this paper is to provide an understanding of the environmental issues involved in the early stages of product development, and the capacity of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) techniques to address these issues. The paper aims to outline the problems for the designer in evaluating the environmental benignity of a product from the outset, and to provide a framework for decision support based on the performance evaluation at different stages of the design process. The barriers that prevent product developers from using LCA are presented, as well as opportunities for introducing environmental criteria in the design process by meeting the designer's information requirements at the different life cycle stages. This can lead to an in-depth understanding of the attitudes of product developers towards the subject area, and an understanding of possible future directions for product development. This paper introduces an Environmentally Conscious Design method, and presents trade-offs between design degrees of freedom and environmental solutions. Life cycle design frameworks and strategies are also addressed. The paper collects experiences and ideas around the state-of-the-art in eco-design, from literature and personal experience, and provides eco-design life cycle assessment strategies. The end result of this presentation is to define the requirements for performance measurement techniques, and the environment needed to support life cycle evaluation throughout the evaluation of early stages of a product system. [source] The design process of expert systems development: some concernsEXPERT SYSTEMS, Issue 2 2006Mehdi Sagheb-Tehrani Abstract: A discussion is presented of why some expert systems that organizations have developed are not successful. The concept of design process plays a very significant role at the outset of the expert system development process. This concept has not been the subject of much debate and attention in expert systems development. From the author's point of view, one of the main issues is how the designer (knowledge engineer) thinks about the design process. In general, the designer's process is influenced by the knowledge engineer's conception. This paper endeavors to disclose some of the main factors related to the knowledge engineer's conception of the design process and an attempt is made to put forward a conceptual model of the expert system design process. This conceptual model is an initial step towards a successful implementation of expert system projects. [source] That site looks 88.46% familiar: quantifying similarity of Web page designEXPERT SYSTEMS, Issue 3 2005Giselle Martine Abstract: Web page design guidelines produce a pressure towards uniformity; excessive uniformity lays a Web page designer open to accusations of plagiarism. In the past, assessment of similarity between visual products such as Web pages has involved an uncomfortably high degree of subjectivity. This paper describes a method for measuring perceived similarity of visual products which avoids previous problems with subjectivity, and which makes it possible to pool results from respondents without the need for intermediate coding. This method is based on co-occurrence matrices derived from card sorts. It can also be applied to other areas of software development, such as systems analysis and market research. [source] Multi-Criteria Material Selection in Engineering Design,ADVANCED ENGINEERING MATERIALS, Issue 1-2 2004P. Sirisalee Material selection in real-world problems normally entails considering several, usually conflicting, design criteria/objectives. Thus, a designer has to strike a balance between these objectives to find the best compromise solution for the particular application. A novel design support tool, the exchange constant chart, has been developed in order to assist designers selecting materials in such multi-criteria situations. Two case studies are presented to illustrate the use of this tool. [source] Digital human modeling and workplace evaluation: Using an automobile assembly task as an exampleHUMAN FACTORS AND ERGONOMICS IN MANUFACTURING & SERVICE INDUSTRIES, Issue 5 2007Shao-Wen Chang This study proposes a method of conducting workplace evaluations in the digital environment for the prevention of work-related musculoskeletal disorders. For visual presentation, we apply a digital human modeling system to the workplace virtual dynamic simulation. Then, we use captured workplace motion data for ergonomics evaluation, including biomechanics analysis and posture analysis. By integrating dynamic simulation and ergonomics evaluation, it enables the system designer to visualize and improve workplace design in the digital space. The method has been applied to evaluate automobile assembly tasks and some ergonomic improvements have been implemented.f© 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source] Verbal and visual representations in task redesign: how different viewpoints enter into information systems design discussionsINFORMATION SYSTEMS JOURNAL, Issue 3 2005Jarmo Sarkkinen Abstract., We explore an important phase of information systems design (ISD), namely task redesign, and especially how different viewpoints enter into the discussions. We study how one particular visual representation, a process diagram, is interpreted and how alternative, even competing, representations are produced verbally. To tie the visual and verbal representations and the representational practices to wider social practices, we develop and use the Extended Three-dimensional Model of discourse. Visual representations emerged as focal in bringing in the different viewpoints and as reference points for discussions. Our model provided a focused and powerful means to unveil for the outside researchers how the planned changes in tasks and authority relationships instigated a social struggle. The IS designer was an outsider to the client organization and therefore considered only the information system, not the social system in which it was intended to operate. Other participants did not recognize this, therefore, seeing the designer as furthering managerial interests. Seeing task redesign in the social context of a client organization can help IS designers and researchers to understand what the users see naturally, that is, the ISD as a dynamic, enabling but socially constrained process where different viewpoints are represented. [source] Probabilistic safety analysis of structures under hybrid uncertaintyINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL FOR NUMERICAL METHODS IN ENGINEERING, Issue 4 2007Subrata Chakraborty Abstract The probabilistic and the possibilistic methods of safety evaluation of structure under uncertain parameters have been developed independently. When the structural system is defined with some of the input parameters as possibilistic and others are sufficient enough to model as probabilistic, available literatures normally start with either probabilistic or possibilistic description of all the variables. This may pose restriction on necessary flexibility to the designer at early stage of modelling of the structural system. The primary objective of the present work is to critically examine various emerging methods of transformation of the possibilistic variables to equivalent probabilistic variables so that probabilistic safety evaluation approach becomes compatible with the nature and quality of the input data. Relying on the fundamental concept of equivalent transformations, i.e. the entropy based transformation and the scaling of fuzzy membership function, the reliability analysis is proposed in the framework of second moment format. In doing so, the bounds on the reliability indices based on the evidence theory are also obtained encompassing the first-order reliability analysis for consistent comparison among alternative transformations. Finally, the reliability computation under hybrid uncertainty is elucidated numerically with examples for comparative study on the suitability of the transformation alternatives. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Power-delay optimization of D-latch/MUX source coupled logic gatesINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CIRCUIT THEORY AND APPLICATIONS, Issue 1 2005M. Alioto In this paper a design strategy for MUX, XOR and D-latch source coupled logic (SCL) gates is proposed. To this end, an analytical model of the delay and the noise margin as a function of the transistors' aspect ratio and bias current is first introduced. Successively, analytical equations of the transistors' aspect ratio to meet a given noise margin specification are derived as a function of the bias current, and are then used along with the delay model to express the delay as an explicit function of the bias current and noise margin. The simplified delay expression explicitly relates speed performance to power dissipation and the noise margin, thereby providing the designer with the required understanding of the trade-offs involved in the design. Therefore, the criteria proposed allow the designer to consciously manage the power-delay trade-off. The delay dependence on the logic swing is also investigated with results showing that this delay is not necessarily reduced by reducing the logic swing, in contrast with the usual assumption. Since the results obtained are valid for all SCL gates and are independent of the CMOS process used, the guidelines provided afford a deeper understanding of SCL gates from a design point of view. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Modelling of source-coupled logic gatesINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CIRCUIT THEORY AND APPLICATIONS, Issue 4 2002M. Alioto Abstract In this paper, the modelling of CMOS SCL gates is addressed. The topology both with and without output buffer is treated, and the noise margin as well as propagation delay performance are analytically derived, using standard BSIM3v3 model parameters. The propagation delay model of a single SCL gate is based on proper linearization of the circuit and the assumption of a single-pole behaviour. To generalize the results obtained to cascaded gates, the effect of the input rise time and the loading effect of an SCL gate are discussed. The expressions obtained are simple enough to be used for pencil-and-paper evaluations and are helpful from the early design phases, as they relate SCL gates performance to design and process parameters, allowing the designer to gain an intuitive understanding of performance dependence on design parameters and technology. The model has been validated by comparison with extensive simulations using a 0.35-µm CMOS process. The model agrees well with the simulated results, since in realistic cases the difference is less than 20% both for noise margin and delay. Therefore, the model proposed can be profitably used for pencil-and-paper evaluations and for computer-based timing analysis of complex SCL circuits. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Fundamentals of exergy analysis, entropy generation minimization, and the generation of flow architectureINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENERGY RESEARCH, Issue 7 2002Adrian Bejan Abstract This paper outlines the fundamentals of the methods of exergy analysis and entropy generation minimization (or thermodynamic optimization,the minimization of exergy destruction). The paper begins with a review of the concept of irreversibility, entropy generation, or exergy destruction. Examples illustrate the accounting for exergy flows and accumulation in closed systems, open systems, heat transfer processes, and power and refrigeration plants. The proportionality between exergy destruction and entropy generation sends the designer in search of improved thermodynamic performance subject to finite-size constraints and specified environmental conditions. Examples are drawn from energy storage systems for sensible heat and latent heat, solar energy, and the generation of maximum power in a power plant model with finite heat transfer surface inventory. It is shown that the physical structure (geometric configuration, topology) of the system springs out of the process of global thermodynamic optimization subject to global constraints. This principle generates structure not only in engineering but also in physics and biology (constructal theory). Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] A multimodal fusion system for people detection and trackingINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF IMAGING SYSTEMS AND TECHNOLOGY, Issue 2 2005Mau-Tsuen Yang Abstract Because a people detection system that considers only a single feature tends to be unstable, many people detection systems have been proposed to extract multiple features simultaneously. These detection systems usually integrate features using a heuristic method based on the designers' observations and induction. Whenever the number of features to be considered is changed, the designer must change and adjust the integration mechanism accordingly. To avoid this tedious process, we propose a multimodal fusion system that can detect and track people in a scalable, accurate, robust, and flexible manner. Each module considers a single feature and all modules operate independently at the same time. A depth module is constructed to detect people based on the depth-from-stereo method, and a novel approach is proposed to extract people by analyzing the vertical projection in each layer. A color module that detects the human face, and a motion module that detects human movement are also developed. The outputs from these individual modules are fused together and tracked over time, using a Kalman filter. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Imaging Syst Technol, 15, 131,142, 2005; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/ima.20046 [source] Learning weighted linguistic rules to control an autonomous robotINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INTELLIGENT SYSTEMS, Issue 3 2009M. Mucientes A methodology for learning behaviors in mobile robotics has been developed. It consists of a technique to automatically generate input,output data plus a genetic fuzzy system that obtains cooperative weighted rules. The advantages of our methodology over other approaches are that the designer has to choose the values of only a few parameters, the obtained controllers are general (the quality of the controller does not depend on the environment), and the learning process takes place in simulation, but the controllers work also on the real robot with good performance. The methodology has been used to learn the wall-following behavior, and the obtained controller has been tested using a Nomad 200 robot in both simulated and real environments. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source] A structure identification method of submodels for hierarchical fuzzy modeling using the multiple objective genetic algorithmINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF INTELLIGENT SYSTEMS, Issue 5 2002Kanta Tachibana Fuzzy models describe nonlinear input-output relationships with linguistic fuzzy rules. A hierarchical fuzzy modeling is promising for identification of fuzzy models of target systems that have many input variables. In the identification, (1) determination of a hierarchical structure of submodels, (2) selection of input variables of each submodel, (3) division of input and output space, (4) tuning of membership functions, and (5) determination of fuzzy inference method are carried out. This article presents a hierarchical fuzzy modeling method with an uneven division method of input space of each submodel. For selecting input variables of submodels, the multiple objective genetic algorithm (MOGA) is utilized. MOGA finds multiple models with different input variables and different numbers of fuzzy rules as compromising solutions. A human designer can choose desirable ones from these candidates. The proposed method is applied to acquisition of fuzzy rules from cyclists' pedaling data. In spite of a small number of data, the obtained model was able to give detailed suggestions to each cyclist. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [source] A robustness approach to linear control of mildly nonlinear processesINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ROBUST AND NONLINEAR CONTROL, Issue 13 2007T. Schweickhardt Abstract We present a novel approach toward linear control of nonlinear systems. Combining robust control theory and nonlinearity measures, we derive a method to (i) assess the nonlinearity of a given control system, (ii) derive a suitable linear model (not necessarily equivalent to the local linearization), and (iii) design a linear controller that guarantees stability of the closed loop containing the nonlinear process. A distinctive feature of the approach is that the nonlinearity analysis, linear model derivation and linear controller synthesis can be done on an operating regime specified by the designer. Examples are given to illustrate the approach. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||