• Title/Summary/Keyword: Performance-ability

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Response of integral abutment bridges under a sequence of thermal loading and seismic shaking

  • Tsinidis, Grigorios;Papantou, Maria;Mitoulis, Stergios
    • Earthquakes and Structures
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    • v.16 no.1
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    • pp.11-28
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    • 2019
  • This article investigates the response of Integral Abutment Bridges (IAB) when subjected to a sequence of seasonal thermal loading of the deck followed by ground seismic shaking in the longitudinal direction. Particular emphasis is placed on the effect of pre-seismic thermal Soil-Structure Interaction (SSI) on the seismic performance of the IAB, as well as on the ability of various backfills configurations, to minimize the unfavorable SSI effects. A series of two-dimensional numerical analyses were performed for this purpose, on a complete backfill-integral bridge-foundation soil system, subjected to seasonal cyclic thermal loading of the deck, followed by ground seismic shaking, employing ABAQUS. Various backfill configurations were investigated, including conventional dense cohesionless backfills, mechanically stabilized backfills and backfills isolated by means of compressive inclusions. The responses of the investigated configurations, in terms of backfill deformations and earth pressures, and bridge resultants and displacements, were compared with each other, as well as with relevant predictions from analyses, where the pre-seismic thermal SSI effects were neglected. The effects of pre-seismic thermal SSI on the seismic response of the coupled IAB-soil system were more evident in cases of conventional backfills, while they were almost negligible in case of IAB with mechanically stabilized backfills and isolated abutments. Along these lines, reasonable assumptions should be made in the seismic analysis of IAB with conventional sand backfills, to account for pre-seismic thermal SSI effects. On the contrary, the analysis of the SSI effects, caused by thermal and seismic loading, can be disaggregated in cases of IAB with isolated backfills.

Evaluation of Impact Energy Absorption Characteristics of Flexible Sand Asphalt Pavement for Pedestrian Way (보도용 연성 샌드 아스팔트 포장의 충격흡수 특성 평가)

  • Choi, Chang-jeong;Dong, Baesun;Kim, Kwang W.;Kim, Sungun
    • Journal of The Korean Society of Agricultural Engineers
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    • v.61 no.3
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    • pp.31-41
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    • 2019
  • More than 90% of roadway in the world are paved as asphalt concrete pavement due to its excellent properties compared with other paving materials; excellent riding quality, flexibility, anti-icing property and easy maintenance-ability. In this study, to make best use of the softer property of the asphalt mixture, the flexible sand asphalt mixture (FSAM) was developed for pedestrian ways. The mix design was conducted to prepare FSAM using PG64-22 asphalt, screenings (sand) less than 5mm, crumb rubber, hydrated lime and limestone powder without coarse aggregate. The deformation strength ($S_D$), indirect tensile strength (ITS) and tensile strength ratio (TSR) tests were conducted to make sure durability of FSAM performance. The impact energy absorption and flexibility were measured by drop-boll test and the resilient modulus ($M_R$) test. The impact energy absorption of FSAM was compared with normal asphalt pavement, concrete pavement, stone and concrete block for pedestrian way. As a result of drop-boll test, FSAM showed higher impact energy absorption compared with other paving materials with the range of 18% to 43%. Impact energy absorption of FSAM increased with increasing test temperature from 5 to $40^{\circ}C$. The results of $M_R$ test at $5^{\circ}C$ showed that the flexibility of FSPA was increased further, because the $M_R$ value of the sand asphalt was measured to be 38% lower than normal dense-graded asphalt mixture (WC-1). Therefore, it was concluded that the FSAM could provide a high impact absorbing characteristics, which would improve walking quality of the pedestrian ways.

An Exploratory Study on the Trends and Introductions of Innovation Management System International Standards (혁신경영시스템 국제표준 개발 동향 및 도입 방안에 관한 탐색적 연구)

  • Park, Se-Hoon;Chun, Dong-Phil
    • Journal of Korean Society for Quality Management
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    • v.46 no.4
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    • pp.761-784
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    • 2018
  • Purpose: The purpose of this study is to introduce the development trend of international standard in the innovative management system and propose the application method of the standard for SME certification system. Methods: This study is based on literature studies and case studies considering the initial stage of development of standards as well as lack of domestic and international research examples. In the literature review, we focused on the characteristics of the innovation management system standards at the national, regional and global level. We examined case studies of Spain and Portugal as case studies. Besides, the evaluation items and certification status of domestic innovative SMEs certification were also searched to find out how to introduce them in Korea. Results: The results of this study can be summarized in three major points. First, new international standards of innovation management are being developed under the ISO management system standard and are currently in the DIS stage. Second, in the case of Spain adopting the national innovation management system standard, it has been reported that the innovation management system standard has a significant effect on the innovation ability and management performance. Third, it was not easy to establish a standardized innovation process between the innovation based on creativity and the standardized based product. The Oslo manual was not enough to provide enough guidance in this area. Conclusion: Companies that want to strengthen their organizational innovation capabilities from a management system point of view and Policymakers that want to plan the upgrading and integrated certification operating system of the domestic innovation SME certification need to consider the ISO 50500 series as a global level standard other than the Oslo manual.

Spatiotemporal chronographical modeling of procurement and material flow for building projects

  • Francis, Adel;Miresco, Edmond;Le Meur, Erwan
    • Advances in Computational Design
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    • v.4 no.2
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    • pp.119-139
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    • 2019
  • Planning and management building projects should tackle the coordination of works and the management of limited spaces, traffic and supplies. Activities cannot be performed without the resources available and resources cannot be used beyond the capacity of workplaces. Otherwise, workspace congestion will negatively affect the flow of works. Better on-site management allows for substantial productivity improvements and cost savings. The procurement system should be able to manage a wider variety of materials and products of the required quality in order to have less stock, in less time, using less space, with less investment and avoiding multiple storage stations. The objective of this paper is to demonstrate the advantages of using the Chronographic modeling, by combining spatiotemporal technical scheduling with the 4D simulations, the Last Planner System and the Takt-time when modeling the construction of building projects. This paper work toward the aforementioned goal by examining the impact that material flow has on site occupancy. The proposed spatiotemporal model promotes efficient site use, defines optimal site-occupancy and workforce-rotation rates, minimizes intermediate stocks, and ensures a suitable procurement process. This paper study the material flow on the site and consider horizontal and vertical paths, traffic flows and appropriate means of transportation to ensure fluidity and safety. This paper contributes to the existing body of knowledge by linking execution and supply to the spatial and temporal aspects. The methodology compare the performance and procurement processes for the proposed Chronographic model with the Gantt-Precedence diagram. Two examples are presented to demonstrate the benefits of the proposed model and to validate the related concepts. This validation is designed to test the model's graphical ability to simulate construction and procurement.

The Effect of Computerized Cognitive Program on Cognitive Function and Activities of Daily Living of Stroke Patients (전산화 인지프로그램 적용이 뇌졸중 환자의 인지기능과 일상생활활동에 미치는 영향)

  • Jang, Cheul;Bae, Won-Sik
    • Journal of The Korean Society of Integrative Medicine
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    • v.9 no.4
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    • pp.49-58
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    • 2021
  • Purpose : This study investigates the effects of the application of traditional occupational therapy and the korean computerized cognition training system on the cognitive function and performance of daily activities of stroke patients with cognitive impairment. Methods : From inpatients referred for rehabilitation treatment at L Rehabilitation Hospital located in Busan, 20 patients diagnosed with stroke from April 05. 2021 to May 02. 2021 (study period) were selected, They were divided into two, an experimental group consisting of 10 subjects who underwent a computerized cognitive rehabilitation program and traditional occupational therapy in combination and a control group of 10 subjects who underwent traditional occupational therapy alone. In order to measure the cognitive function of the subjects before the intervention, two assessment tests were conducted: a Neurobehavioral Cognitive Status Examination (NCSE), which evaluates stroke-related cognitive ability, and a Functional Independence Measure (FIM) test, which evaluates life activities. Then, both groups received a total of 20 training sessions at 30 minutes per session, five times a week for four weeks. Results : A statistically significant difference was found in cognitive function between before and after the cognitive training for both the experimental group and the control group. For the FIM scores, statistically significant differences were observed after intervention in the categories of handling personal matters and social cognition, and in the total score. The average scores of the remaining items also improved. Conclusion : The results of this study showed that both the computerized cognition rehabilitation program and the traditional occupational therapy had a positive effect on the improvement of cognitive function in stroke patients.

Reversible Sub-Feature Retrieval: Toward Robust Coverless Image Steganography for Geometric Attacks Resistance

  • Liu, Qiang;Xiang, Xuyu;Qin, Jiaohua;Tan, Yun;Zhang, Qin
    • KSII Transactions on Internet and Information Systems (TIIS)
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    • v.15 no.3
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    • pp.1078-1099
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    • 2021
  • Traditional image steganography hides secret information by embedding, which inevitably leaves modification traces and is easy to be detected by steganography analysis tools. Since coverless steganography can effectively resist steganalysis, it has become a hotspot in information hiding research recently. Most coverless image steganography (CIS) methods are based on mapping rules, which not only exposes the vulnerability to geometric attacks, but also are less secure due to the revelation of mapping rules. To address the above issues, we introduced camouflage images for steganography instead of directly sending stego-image, which further improves the security performance and information hiding ability of steganography scheme. In particular, based on the different sub-features of stego-image and potential camouflage images, we try to find a larger similarity between them so as to achieve the reversible steganography. Specifically, based on the existing CIS mapping algorithm, we first can establish the correlation between stego-image and secret information and then transmit the camouflage images, which are obtained by reversible sub-feature retrieval algorithm. The received camouflage image can be used to reverse retrieve the stego-image in a public image database. Finally, we can use the same mapping rules to restore secret information. Extensive experimental results demonstrate the better robustness and security of the proposed approach in comparison to state-of-art CIS methods, especially in the robustness of geometric attacks.

A Study on the Meal Assistance and Nutrition Knowledge of Caregivers for the Elderly in Nursing Homes (노인요양시설 요양보호사의 영양지식과 식사보조수행도)

  • Kim, Woo Jeong;Kim, Dah-Sol;Joo, Nami
    • Journal of the Korean Dietetic Association
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    • v.27 no.4
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    • pp.232-247
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    • 2021
  • This study attempted to examine the nutrition knowledge of caregivers for the elderly and the diet-related medical treatment and dietary assistance given by them. Thus, this research is a descriptive study focusing on the current nutritional knowledge of caregivers and the dietary assistance given by them. The survey included a questionnaire (nutritional knowledge level of digestive system diseases, diabetes, cardiovascular risk, brain disease, bone disease, and meal assistance performance status) for caregivers working in nursing homes for the elderly. Self-administered questionnaires were completed by 235 caregivers between February and March 2020. The results were analyzed using the SPSS 25.0, and the significance test of each question was verified by the Friedman test and the Chi-square independence test. The number of elderly people who needed meal assistance from caregivers was 4.4 more than the average. The most common types of meal assistance were partial assistance (59.20%) and the task of when to stop eating for the elderly (58.71%). Besides, the higher nutritional knowledge level of the caregivers, the more the time spent on services related to meal assistance (P<0.001), and the higher the meal assistance level. The disease state of the elderly was considered the most relevant (P<0.001). Caregivers with high levels of knowledge and offering significant meal assistance were found to have received nutrition education (P<0.001). Up to 80% of the respondents needed nutrition education, and most of them answered that they needed education on appropriate management methods for the specific disease state of the elderly (P<0.01). Accordingly, providing nutrition education for caregivers for the elderly should be a means to improve their ability to offer meal assistance.

Fabrication and Evaluation of CdS/ZnS Quantum Dot Based Plastic Scintillator (CdS/ZnS 양자점 기반 플라스틱 섬광체 제작 및 성능평가)

  • Min, Su Jung;Kang, Ha Ra;Lee, Byung Chae;Seo, Bum Kyung;Cheong, Jae Hak;Roh, Changhyun;Hong, Sang Bum
    • Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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    • v.59 no.3
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    • pp.450-454
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    • 2021
  • Currently, gamma nuclide analysis is mainly used using inorganic scintillators or semiconductor detectors. These detectors have high resolution but there are less economical, limited in size, and low process ability than plastic scintillators. Therefore, quantum dot-based plastic scintillator was developed using the advantages of the quantum dot nanomaterial and the conventional plastic scintillator. In this study, efficient plastic scintillator was fabricated by adding CdS/ZnS based on the most widely used Cd-based nanomaterial in a polystyrene matrix. In addition, the performance of the commercial plastic scintillator was compared and it was analyzed through radiological measurement experiments. The detection efficiency of fabricated plastic scintillator was higher than commercial plastic scintillator, EJ-200. It is believed that this fabricated plastic scintillator can be used as a radioactivity analyzer in the medical and nuclear facility fields.

Investigating Non-Laboratory Variables to Predict Diabetic and Prediabetic Patients from Electronic Medical Records Using Machine Learning

  • Mukhtar, Hamid;Al Azwari, Sana
    • International Journal of Computer Science & Network Security
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    • v.21 no.9
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    • pp.19-30
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    • 2021
  • Diabetes Mellitus (DM) is one of common chronic diseases leading to severe health complications that may cause death. The disease influences individuals, community, and the government due to the continuous monitoring, lifelong commitment, and the cost of treatment. The World Health Organization (WHO) considers Saudi Arabia as one of the top 10 countries in diabetes prevalence across the world. Since most of the medical services are provided by the government, the cost of the treatment in terms of hospitals and clinical visits and lab tests represents a real burden due to the large scale of the disease. The ability to predict the diabetic status of a patient without the laboratory tests by performing screening based on some personal features can lessen the health and economic burden caused by diabetes alone. The goal of this paper is to investigate the prediction of diabetic and prediabetic patients by considering factors other than the laboratory tests, as required by physicians in general. With the data obtained from local hospitals, medical records were processed to obtain a dataset that classified patients into three classes: diabetic, prediabetic, and non-diabetic. After applying three machine learning algorithms, we established good performance for accuracy, precision, and recall of the models on the dataset. Further analysis was performed on the data to identify important non-laboratory variables related to the patients for diabetes classification. The importance of five variables (gender, physical activity level, hypertension, BMI, and age) from the person's basic health data were investigated to find their contribution to the state of a patient being diabetic, prediabetic or normal. Our analysis presented great agreement with the risk factors of diabetes and prediabetes stated by the American Diabetes Association (ADA) and other health institutions worldwide. We conclude that by performing class-specific analysis of the disease, important factors specific to Saudi population can be identified, whose management can result in controlling the disease. We also provide some recommendations learnt from this research.

Performance Evaluation of Radiation Protection Apron's (방사선방어 앞치마 성능 평가)

  • Kang, Jong-gu;Kang, Byung-Sam
    • Journal of radiological science and technology
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    • v.42 no.5
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    • pp.373-377
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    • 2019
  • Radiation exposure is on the rise as the working hours of radiation workers increase. Accordingly, the importance of protection products for decreasing the dose of exposure has risen, and excellent X-ray shielding ability and light weight are required. The purpose of this study is to compare the Pb which use currently and other elements in order to reduce the exposure of workers to the most effective protection products. For experiment, we used the general X-ray equipment and angiography equipment, and obtained the Pb and apron's shielding rate. When the shielding rate of Pb and apron was compared in general X-ray equipment, the shielding rate was 95.1% for Pb 0.5 mm, 96.1% for apron 0.5 mmPb and 95.6% for Bi+W 0.5 mmPb. When compared the shielding rate of each aprons in angiography equipment, 0.5 mmPb apron was the highest as 96.4% and Bi+W 0.25 mmPb apron was the lowest as 90.2% at the 50 cm distance. The shielding rate of 0.5 mmPb apron was the highest as 95.7% and Bi+W 0.25 mmPb apron was the lowest as 85.9% at the 100 cm distance. As a result of evaluating the apron efficiency through this study, 0.5 mmPb apron showed the best shielding rate, but it was the heaviest apron. 0.35 mmPb apron and Bi+W 0.25 mmPb apron weighed light but had low shielding rate. Through the results of this experiment, it is recommended that radiation workers reduce radiation exposure by using more efficient protection products.