Connectivity Capabilities Research Articles

Evaluation of the Impact of Furniture on Communications Performance for Ubiquitous Deployment of Wireless Sensor Networks in Smart Homes

The extensions of the environment with the integration of sensing systems in any space, in conjunction with ubiquitous computing are enabling the so-called Smart Space Sensor Networks. This new generation of networks are offering full connectivity with any object, through the Internet of Things (IoT) and/or the Web, i.e., the Web of Things. These connectivity capabilities are making it feasible to sense the behaviours of people at home and act accordingly. These sensing systems must be integrated within typical elements found at home such as furniture. For that reason, this work considers furniture as an interesting element for the transparent location of sensors. Furniture is a ubiquitous object, i.e., it can be found everywhere at home or the office, and it can integrate and hide the sensors of a network. This work addresses the lack of an exhaustive study of the effect of furniture on signal losses. In addition an easy-to-use tool for estimating the robustness of the communication channel among the sensor nodes and gateways is proposed. Specifically, the losses in a sensor network signal due to the materials found within the communication link are evaluated. Then, this work proposes a software tool that gathers the obtained results and is capable of evaluating the impact of a given set of materials on the communications. This tool also provides a mechanism to optimize the sensor network deployments during the definition of smart spaces. Specifically, it provides information such as: maximum distances between sensor nodes, most suitable type of furniture to integrate sensors, or battery life of sensor nodes. This tool has been validated empirically in the lab, and it is currently being used by several enterprise partners of the Technological Centre of Furniture and Wood in the southeast of Spain.

Enhancing success with open innovation: an investigation of connective capabilities and network characteristics

The aim of this study was to investigate factors that led to increased success with open innovation. In particular, we explored two firm capabilities – relational proclivity and proactive market orientation – as connective capabilities that improved open innovation performance. Important to these capabilities and open innovation, is the environment that firms operate within, thus we considered network centrality and network density as moderators to the capabilities and open innovation link. Using a sample of 199 technology firms, we found that these connective capabilities improved open innovation performance and the moderation due to network characteristics was complex and could lead to improved performance. Relational proclivity did enhance the degree to which firms followed open innovation and that the greater the firm’s proactive market orientation, the greater the level of open innovation. Further, firms with a proactive market orientation and low network density outperformed those with proactive mar...

A Cross-National Investigation into the Marketing Department's Influence Within the Firm: Toward Initial Empirical Generalizations

This study of the influence of the marketing department (MD), as well as its relationship with firm performance, includes seven industrialized countries and aims to generalize the conceptual model presented by Verhoef and Leeflang (2009) . This investigation considers the antecedents of perceived MD influence, top management respect for the MD, and MD decision influence, as well as the relationships of these three influence variables with market orientation (MO) and business performance (BP). Meta-analytic procedures reveal initial empirical generalizations: Accountability, MD innovativeness, and the customer connection capabilities of the MD relate consistently to all three studied MD influence measures. The generalization also shows that MD influence contributes to BP indirectly through its positive relationship with MO and directly through its positive direct relationship with BP.

CAPABILITY FOR INFRASTRUCTURE ASSET CAPACITY MANAGEMENT / INFRASTRUKTŪROS IŠTEKLIŲ PAJĖGUMO VALDYMO GALIMYBĖS

Infrastructure capacity management is the process of ensuring optimal provision of infrastructure assets to support business operations. Effectiveness in this process will enable infrastructure asset owners and its stakeholders to receive full value on their investment. Management research has shown that an organisation can only achieve business value when it has the right capabilities. This paradigm can also be applied to infrastructure capacity management. With competing needs for limited organisation resources, the challenge for infrastructure organisations is to identify and invest their limited resources to develop the right capabilities in the management of their infrastructure capacity. Using a multiple case study approach, the challenges faced in the management of infrastructure asset capacity and the approaches that can be adopted to overcome these challenges were explored. Conceptualising the approaches adopted by the case participants, the findings suggest that infrastructure organisations must strengthen their stakeholder connectivity capability in order to effectively manage the capacity of their infrastructure assets. Santrauka Infrastruktūros pajėgumų valdymas – tai procesas, lemiantis optimalų infrastruktūros išteklių užtikrinimą palaikant verslo operacijas. Šio proceso efektyvumas leis infrastruktūros išteklių savininkams ir jų akcininkams atgauti visą jų investicijų vertę. Valdymo tyrimai parodė, kad organizacija gali pasiekti verslo vertę tik tuo atveju, jei užtikrinamas tinkamas pajėgumas. Ši paradigma gali būti pritaikyta ir infrastruktūros pajėgumams valdyti. Esant konkurencingiems ribotų organizacinių išteklių poreikiams, infrastruktūros organizacijos susiduria su tikru iššūkiu – nustatyti ir investuoti savo ribotus išteklius į tinkamų jų infrastruktūros pajėgumų valdymo galimybių vystymą. Taikant daugialypį tyrimo požiūrį, buvo nustatyti infrastruktūros išteklių pajėgumo valdymo iššūkiai bei apibrežti požiūriai, kurie gali padėti išspręsti minėtus iššukius. Suvokiant koncepcijas, taikomas šio atvejo dalyvių, infrastruktūros organizacijoms siūloma stiprinti akcininkų įtraukimo galimybes, siekiant efektyviai valdyti jų infrastruktūros išteklių pajėgumus.

Plan for Quality to Improve Patient Safety at the Point of Care

The U.S. Institute of Medicine (IOM) much publicized report in “To Err is Human” (2000, National Academy Press) stated that as many as 98 000 hospitalized patients in the U.S. die each year due to preventable medical errors. This revelation about medical error and patient safety focused the public and the medical community's attention on errors in healthcare delivery including laboratory and point-of-care-testing (POCT). Errors introduced anywhere in the POCT process clearly can impact quality and place patient's safety at risk. While POCT performed by or near the patient reduces the potential of some errors, the process presents many challenges to quality with its multiple tests sites, test menus, testing devices and non-laboratory analysts, who often have little understanding of quality testing. Incoherent or no regulations and the rapid availability of test results for immediate clinical intervention can further amplify errors. System planning and management of the entire POCT process are essential to reduce errors and improve quality and patient safety.

Add-drop Benes network for scalable optical packet networks

For the scalable optical packet transport networks, an innovative design of add-drop Benes network (ADBN) is presented where the cost and energy consumption can be considerably reduced by element savings in the architecture. In a WDM optical packet transport switching node, the ADBNs are interconnected to achieve buffer sharing among multiple ADBNs. A corresponding switch configuration algorithm and architecture rules for the single ADBN and shared ADBN are proposed to mitigate the limited connection capability of the proposed ADBN designs. Switch scalability is verified in consideration of a crosstalk noise performance and element counts.

Seismic Performance Assessment of Steel Frames with Shape Memory Alloy Connections, Part II – Probabilistic Seismic Demand Assessment

This article is the second of two companion articles that evaluate the seismic performance of steel moment-resisting frames with innovative beam-to-column connections that incorporate shape memory alloy (SMA) elements to enhance the energy dissipation characteristics of such frames. Building upon the finite element models of the three- and nine-story frames that were developed in the first article, the seismic demands on partially restrained frames with and without SMA elements are evaluated within a probabilistic framework. The results of this evaluation, expressed in the form of demand hazard curves, depict the effectiveness of the SMA connections in enhancing building performance over a range of demand levels. Martensitic SMA connections are most effective in controlling deformation demands on the frame from high levels of seismic intensity. In contrast, the recentering capability of superelastic SMA connections make them most suitable for reducing residual deformations in the structure, a reduction that is achieved at the expense of increased deformation demands during strong excitation. However, neither connection is uniformly beneficial at all hazard levels, suggesting that SMA systems must be tailored to the specific performance objectives for the building structural system.

Application of a JXTA-overlay P2P system for end-device control and e-learning

This work is motivated by the need to develop decentralized P2P approaches for controlling end-devices in a wide-area network without changing the network security policy. Much of current research work on P2P systems is devoted to P2P networks of standard peers such as PCs. Due to improvements of connections capabilities of mobile devices and end-devices, there is an increasing interest to design, implement and deploy full featured P2P networks that integrate standard peers, mobile devices and end-devices. In this paper, we use the JXTA-Overlay for the control of end-devices and e-learning in a P2P network. We considered as end-devices the smart box (which is used for stimulating the learners in our implemented P2P e-learning system), robot, and room lightening. We also considered the control of a mobile car in order to prove the applicability of our approach in wireless environment. The proposed approach, due to the capabilities of JXTA protocols to overcome firewalls and NATs, is able to control devices without changing network security policies. We evaluate the proposed system by many experiments and have shown that the proposed system has a good performance and can be used successfully for the control of end-devices and in e-learning.

Experiences from an International Tele-Epilepsy Collaboration

Our main objective was to use videoconferencing as a primary means to: a) assist in launching an epilepsy surgery program in Pakistan; 2) participate in case conferences on complex epilepsy patients in each country. Extensive testing using both point to point and bridged integrated service digital network (ISDN) and internet protocol (IP) connections was carried out using bandwidths of 384-768 kilobits per second (kbps). Videoconferences between sites were arranged two to three weeks in advance and connections were tested a day prior to the scheduled conference. Sharing of PowerPoint presentations, neuroimaging and video-EEG was available to all sites. Discussions centered on patients with medically refractory epilepsy. Between July 2006 and June 2008, 17 sessions were booked. Five of these conferences bridged in specialists from West Virginia University. Most successful connections occurred using IP point to point calls or a bridge connecting end points through IP at 512 kbps. We conducted three surgeries for medically refractory temporal lobe epilepsy in Pakistan. At follow-up in January 2009, two patients have been seizure free and one had two breakthrough seizures after sudden unsupervised discontinuation of Levetiracetam. Our international tele-epilepsy collaboration has proven feasible and valuable to all participants. Our experience suggests considerable thought and preparation are needed before a teleconference to ensure its success. We provide a recipe to set-up similar telemedicine collaborations. Considerations include time zone differences, equipment type, interoperability between endpoints, connection capabilities, bandwidth availability, and backup plans for unsuccessful connections. Telemedicine can facilitate epilepsy care around the world, identifying with the concept of a "Global Health Village".

Structural behavior of tension joint with high-strength bolted split-tee

The strength and behavior of split-tee connections that are applicable to all tensile connections with high-strength bolts have been studied in many countries. The design code of each country (AISC, Eurocode 3) does not consider various field conditions, however, such as the painting of the connection surface, the length of the bolt shank, and the preload. Moreover, the previous studies (Bahaari) that used the link element on the preload of the bolt could not predict the correct behavior of high-strength bolts. In this study, to evaluate the tensile capability of split-tee connections, a total of 20 split-tee specimens with two bolts each were fabricated and tested. The experiment parameters that were used were the thickness of the T-flanges, painting, preload, and the length of the bolt shank. The joint stiffness of split-tee connections was compared with the stiffness equation of Faella et al., and finite-element method analysis with Ansys 8.0 was conducted. Further, to verify the reliability of the highstrength-bolt model, the load-to-bolt stress relation in the experiment test and the analysis results were compared.

Private Queries and Trajectory Anonymization

The emergence of mobile devices with Internet connectivity (e.g., Wi-Fi) and global positioning capabilities (e.g., GPS) have triggered the widespread development of location-based applications. Fo...

Active coordinated operation of a distribution network system for many connections of distributed generators

AbstractRecently, the total number of distributed generators (DGs) such as photovoltaic generation system and wind turbine generation system connected to an actual distribution network has increased drastically. The distribution network connected to many distributed generators must be operated keeping reliability of power supply, power quality, and loss minimization. In order to accomplish active distribution network operation to take advantage of many connections of DGs, a new coordinated operation of distribution system with many connections of DGs is necessary. In this paper, the authors propose a coordinated operation of distribution network system connected to many DGs by using newly proposed sectionalizing switch control, sending voltage control, and computation of available DG connection capability. In order to check the validity of the proposed coordinated operation of distribution system, numerical simulations using the proposed coordinated distribution system operation are carried out in a practical distribution network model. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 167(3): 46–57, 2009; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/eej.20655

Related aspects to the impact of virtual instruments implementation in the teaching process

This paper is devoted to emphasize some aspects related with the impact of Virtual Instruments (VI) software implementation in the teaching/learning process on different topics of the Sciences area. The study was made in the frame of the three years Socrates-Comenius 2.1 project “VccSSe - Virtual Community Collaborating Space for Science Education” (no. 128989-CP-1-2006-1-RO-Comenius-C21), co-funded by the European Commission, Education and Training, School Education: Socrates: Comenius. As known Virtual Instruments represent a fundamental shift from traditional hardware-centered instrumentation systems to software-centered systems that exploit the computing power, productivity, display and connectivity capabilities of the usual desktop computers and workstations. From the educational point of view, the most important characteristic of VI is that they can simulate physical phenomena. One of the most advantages of VI is the fact that pupils can create their own applications using specific software.

Wireless and Optical-Integrated Access Network With Peer-To-Peer Connection Capability

<para xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> We show a bidirectional optical access network with dynamic channel allocation capability of decimeter-wave band optical radio-over-fiber (RoF) and baseband signals. The network can be configured enabling peer-to-peer connectivity, and is based on a simple access point (AP) unit. The proposed RoF architecture is highly scalable, both in terms of channels and APs. </para>

Implementation of an Internet‐Based Data Acquisition System Prototype for Drugs Storage

This study presents an Internet‐based data acquisition system (IDAS) prototype for monitoring the storage temperature and humidity of drugs. It allows direct real‐time TCP/IP protocol interface of any serial‐interfaced and parallel‐interfaced device to an Ethernet, even the Internet, providing a non‐proprietary communication link between virtually any type of host, with both passive and active connection capabilities. The main advantages of IDAS are easy implementation, low cost, rapid measurement, anti‐virus capabilities, and the avoidance of new dedicated wiring tangles by use of existing telephone, Ethernet or Internet linkage. IDAS theory and practical implementation are presented, as well as experimental verification for a variety of conditions. It is found that actual performance is limited by server PC performance, specifically, PC interruptions resulting from computer viruses, operational errors by unauthorized users, automatic updating of the PC operating system, etc. Both system set‐up and operational costs are far lower than in traditional systems using individual PCs to connect remote sensors to the Internet.

A Layer-2 Framework for Interconnecting Ad Hoc Networks to Fixed Internet: Test-bed Implementation and Experimental Evaluation

It is widely recognized that a prerequisite for the commercial penetration of the ad hoc networking technologies is the integration with existing wired/wireless infrastructure-based networks to provide an easy and transparent access to the Internet and its services. However, most of the existing solutions for enabling the interconnection between IPv4-based mobile ad hoc networks and the Internet are based on complex and inefficient mechanisms, as Mobile-IP and IP tunnelling. In this paper, we describe an alternative approach to build multi-hop and heterogeneous proactive ad hoc networks, which can be used as flexible and low-cost extensions of traditional wired local area networks (LANs). Our proposed architecture provides transparent global Internet connectivity and address autoconfiguration capabilities to mobile nodes without requiring configuration changes in the pre-existing wired LAN, and relying on basic layer-2 functionalities. We have prototyped the core components of this architecture for Optimized Link State Routing-based ad hoc networks and we have conducted several experiments comparing the throughput performance obtained using our scheme and a well-known alternative (network address translation) NAT-based solution. The experimental outcomes show that our proposed technique ensures higher perconnection throughputs than the NAT-based solution in the considered network scenarios.

A Study of Information Technology Effectiveness in Select Government Organizations in India

Achieving Information Technology (IT) effectiveness in government offices is a daunting prospect. This is because the bureaucratic structure, perceived (and often actual) laxity in the workplace, weak accountability and responsibility relationships, and cumbersome and conflated work processes act as serious inhibitors of IT effectiveness. There are many indirect influencers of IT effectiveness. The broad working propositions for this study have been formulated keeping in mind the working environment of the government organizations and the past studies that have looked at government organizations in the context of IT. In some of the organizations, the methodology of IT use is simple, while in some others, it is tedious and complicated. IT projects are often fraught with cost overruns and delays. Once deployed, many systems fail to meet functional requirements or are too complex to be feasible for many organizations. Hence we should expect to find that government organizations, in general, do not use IT effectively. This study specifically examines the effects of IT use, user satisfaction, organizational culture, top management, and IT management on the effectiveness of IT in government organizations in India. Further, the enablers for IT use are identified that enhances the organization's performance. A questionnaire survey was employed among the users in Indian government organizations situated in Delhi and surrounding areas for the collection of data. The descriptive and inferential statistical analyses result into the following conclusion: User satisfaction is the indicator of system success and the users like a friendly system. The users are influenced more by the information systems (IS) staff in comparison to non-IS staff. Top management involvement is relatively high in IT-related problems resulting in higher budget for IT, which in turn plays a positive role in increasing the satisfaction of users. However, the initiative to motivate IS staff is not enough and the computer training given to the users fails to take care of the latest needs. The users are required to be familiar with the latest technology and therefore be given the latest training for better IT use. The difficulty in effective IT use is also due to some resistance experienced from the employees of the organizations. This is further compounded due to the existence of workers� union problems. Correlation and regression analyses reveal that: the independent variables (viz., IT use, user satisfaction, top management, IT management, sand organizational culture) have significant positive effect on the dependent variable, i.e., IT effectiveness. leadership, managerial awareness of costs and benefits, centrality of IT business strategy, top management support, higher position of IS manager, easy accessibility to computer, enhanced connectivity capability, favourable cost performance trends, vendor push, and competitive pressure were found to be the IT enablers. The future scope of research lies in extending the study to all government organizations of India and also comparing state government organizations with those of the central government.

分散型電源の導入拡大に対応した配電系統の協調運用形態

Recently, total number of distributed generators (DGS) such as photovoltaic generation system and wind turbine generation system connected to an actual distribution network increases drastically. The distribution network connected with many distributed generators must be operated keeping reliability of power supply, power quality and loss minimization. In order to accomplish active distribution network operation to take advantage of many connections of DGS, a new coordinated operation of distribution system with many connections of DGS is necessary. In this paper, the authors propose a coordinated operation of distribution network system connected with many DGS by using newly proposed sectionalizing switches control, sending voltage control and computation of available DG connection capability. In order to check validity of the proposed coordinated operation of distribution system, numerical simulations using the proposed coordinated distribution system operation are carried out in a practical distribution network model.

A Flexible Connection Model for Software Components

A component connection enables a component to use the functionality of other components directly, without generating adapters or other mechanisms at run-time. In conventional component connection models, the connection between components, particularly third-party components, is very costly for code reuse because the component source code must be modified if the types of requester-side and provider-side are different. This paper proposes a new component model, built upon an existing component architecture, which abandons a component service type and connects components based on a method type collection of the provider and requester components. Our model enables flexible connections owing to relaxed component matching, in which the system that implements our model automatically converts values of parameters, return values, and exceptions between required methods and provided ones within a well-defined range. As a result of experimental evaluations, it is found that our model is superior to conventional models in terms of the component-use cost and the capability of changing connections.

Web services and multimedia in m‐business applications: Opportunities and concerns

Web services refer to a specific set of technologies used to implement a Service Oriented Architecture. Thanks to maturing Web‐services standards, and to new mobile devices and application solutions, progress is being made in presenting similar Web‐services offerings in both mobile and fixed networks. To bring that architecture and the solutions it will support to the world of mobility is indeed a significant issue in m‐business applications, because mobile Web services present various advantages: Reduction of the overall cost of development (by reusing existing system components), faster time to market introduction of products (provided by applications’ rapid development and deployment) and remarkable possibilities to emerge new applications with increased functionalities. In addition, the new and forthcoming mobile networks, with native IP connection and high speed transmission capability, allow the development of a variety of modern multimedia services. Multimedia Messaging Services (capable to mix the media types in order to enable more intuitive messaging operation), and Instant Messaging and Presence Services (dedicated for presence, instant messaging, and distribution and sharing of multimedia content in groups of users), provide suitable underlying capabilities to support location‐based and context‐sensitive multimedia services. In this paper we will present the current approaches regarding architectural, functional and security features that allow enterprises to enjoy the benefits of traditional Web services in the mobile multimedia domain.