Browsing by Author "Dr. Robert E. Young, Committee Chair"

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    Development of Fuzzy Trigonometric Functions to Support Design and Manufacturing
    (2010-03-11) Ress, David Andress; Dr. Steven R. LeClair, Committee Member; Dr. James C. Lester, Committee Member; Dr. Yuan-Shin Lee, Committee Member; Dr. Shu-Cherng Fang, Committee Member; Dr. Robert E. Young, Committee Chair
    It is a well established fact that design undergoes stages from imprecision to precision. In the early design stages, fuzzy logic is a natural tool for modeling since it is by definition an imprecise representation. The mathematics behind fuzzy numbers have been well developed and defined in literature; yet, very little research exists in the form of fuzzy trigonometric functions. Two design problems are presented to support the motivation behind this research followed by a review of fuzzy set theory. Several approaches for mapping Y = cos(X) into the fuzzy realm are then discussed followed by the development of special purpose fuzzy trigonometric functions and fuzzy inverse trigonometric functions which are computationally simple and easy to implement. With these functions, 8 forward and 6 inverse trigonometric identities are shown to exist in the fuzzy realm. The proposal concludes by examining three engineering problems. The first problem involves the design of a fuzzy truss bridge with fuzzy forces. The second problem analyzes fuzzy forces on a block positioned on an inclined plane. The last example utilizes the fuzzy inverse trigonometric functions to calculate fuzzy bond angles within a chemical compound.
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    A Teaching Job Shop Control System with Real-time Inventory Management
    (2005-07-08) Maxwell, Andrew Charles; Dr. Ola L.A. Harrysson, Committee Member; Dr. Peter Bloomfield, Committee Member; Dr. Robert E. Young, Committee Chair
    This thesis presents a teaching job shop control system for running in assembly laboratories at colleges and universities in preparing Industrial Engineering students for challenges faced in real-world factories. Current techniques fail to encompass this idea of training for students like the proposed method does. Microsoft Access was used in creating a database that is the center point in this new system. Inventory is managed using this database system and added if parts are created in the manufacturing lab and moved to the assembly area. The system will stop if parts are low until new parts are created. In this new system, a pallet with an unfinished product on it moves down a conveyor system until it reaches the next workstation. At this station, the station operator scans a barcode on the pallet. This barcode contains what product is on this pallet. Based on this information, an ordered list of tasks appears on the workstation computer screen and must be done before the pallet can be moved on. When all tasks have been completed at a station, the station operator clicks 'done' on the screen and then can either move to the next pallet or end the run. Statistics are kept on the quality of the final products and parts as well as a work-in-process and on a goal percentage of good products out at the end of a one-hour time frame. Administrators will be able to assign tasks and parts to products and stations, as well as be able assign the goal ahead of time.