Reconfiguration Capabilities Research Articles

ROBOMINER: Development of a Highly Configurable and Modular Scaled-Down Prototype of a Mining Robot

Historically, mining operations have faced numerous challenges, including safety hazards, inefficiencies, and environmental concerns. However, recent advances in robotics, automation, and artificial intelligence have presented opportunities for the mining industry. The ROBOMINERS project, a Horizon 2020 European Union initiative, aims to revolutionize the mining ecosystem by implementing disruptive robotic concepts. One such concept is resilience, which involves enabling mining robots to reconfigure morphologically during operation. This article presents the development of a modular robotic system that focuses on modularity and self-assembly to provide insight into developing a highly adaptable and compact solution for future mining robots. The robotic system is composed of a set of highly configurable modular robotic platforms that can be reconfigured with other robotic modules or submodules to form more complex systems to perform different tasks. Several module configurations are presented, and different locomotion experiments were carried out to test the ability of the modules to navigate unstructured environments. The modules exhibited great maneuverability in unstructured terrain and demonstrated self-assembly and reconfiguration capabilities during operation. This is a foundational step towards the long-term goal of developing compact autonomous agents capable of self-assembly and mining task execution.

Live demonstration of an SDN-reconfigurable, FPGA-based TxRx for an analog-IFoF/mmWave radio access network in an MNO’s infrastructure

This paper presents the end-to-end integration of a software defined network (SDN) reconfigurable real-time analog-intermediate frequency-over-fiber (A-IFoF)/millimeter wave (mmWave) layout into a real mobile network operator (MNO) infrastructure. The key part of the presented infrastructure is the fully programmable gateway array (FPGA)-based A-IFoF transceiver (TxRx), equipped with active SDN functionalities based on constant monitoring of the transport link. This layout was successfully evaluated in the physical data management and application layer. Regarding the physical layer performance evaluation, error vector magnitude values of 7.3% were achieved for quadrature phase shift keying waveforms, while the uninterrupted operation of real-time services such as augmented reality/virtual reality applications was enabled by the reactive SDN-based capacity reconfiguration capabilities.

How digital platform capabilities improve sustainable innovation performance of firms: The mediating role of open innovation

Despite growing research interests in digital platform-based innovation, the existing literature has largely focused on the role of digital platform capabilities in improving economic outcomes, with only limited understanding of whether and how digital platform capabilities affect sustainability-oriented innovations. With the data from a sample of 347 firms, this study first shows that digital platform integration capability and digital platform reconfiguration capability enhance sustainability-oriented innovation through open innovation. Using the polynomial regression with response surface analysis, this study further shows that sustainability-oriented innovation improves more when inbound open innovation and outbound open innovation increase in a balanced way but decreases when inbound and outbound innovation increase in an unbalanced way. The findings of this study contribute to a better understanding of why companies with digital platform capabilities perform better in sustainability-oriented innovation and provide new insights on how a firm can achieve better sustainability-oriented innovation to effectively address sustainability challenges.

Agile manufacturing and transformational capabilities for sustainable business performance: a dynamic capabilities perspective

Drawing on the ‘dynamic capabilities’ perspective, this study empirically investigates whether, or not, and how agile manufacturing contributes to sustainable business performance, including economic, environmental, and social performance. Building on the notion that dynamic capabilities indirectly improve organisational performance through modifying a firm’s resources/processes, we argue that agile manufacturing treated as a dynamic capability requires transformation to result in sustainable business performance. Therefore, we hypothesise the mediating effects of two transformational capabilities, namely internal learning, and reconfiguration capabilities, on the agile manufacturing-sustainable business performance relationship. Partial least square structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) was employed to explore the validity of the conceptual model and examine the hypotheses using survey data from 99 Italian manufacturers firms. The results show that internal learning fully mediates the relationship between agile manufacturing and economic performance and partially mediates the relationship between agile manufacturing and social performance. Also, the empirical findings indicate that reconfiguration fully mediates the relationship between agile manufacturing and economic/environmental performance and partially mediates the agile manufacturing-social performance relationship. Overall, both transformational capabilities are necessary to maximise the effects of agile manufacturing on sustainable performance.

A Semi-Elliptical UWB Folded Dipole Antenna

In this paper, a novel structure of a semi-elliptical folded dipole for ultra-wideband (UWB) receiving applications is discussed. This proposed antenna has a directive radiation pattern resulting in a high gain over the bandwidth. The design uses a planar technology including a microstrip line to slot line transition and optimized curves to obtain a measured impedance bandwidth of 2.3–26 GHz with the condition of S11 < −6 dB (level accepted for receiving antenna) and meets S11 < −10 dB in several bands. Additionally, the simulated gain ranges from 5 dBi to 9.5 dBi across the entire bandwidth with an efficiency of at least 75%. This antenna model offers a reconfiguration capability. The symmetrical feeding used in this antenna creates the directive behavior. Characteristics of this semi-elliptical folded dipole antenna make it suitable for modern wireless communications, such as 5 G around 3.5 GHz, and easy to integrate in antenna arrays (MIMO systems). The four ports of the antenna also make it a candidate for radiation pattern reconfigurability applications reducing in this way the number of elements in network antennas.

Balancing structural IT capabilities for organizational agility in digital transformation: a resource orchestration view

PurposeTo achieve digital transformation, organizations have continued to rely on integrating the capabilities of information technology (IT) to facilitate decision-making and developing their reconfiguration capability to enhance agile operations. The pressure imposed by digital transformation necessitates investigations on leveraging different IT capabilities to attain substantial organizational agility in an optimal configuration. This study aims to provide a new perspective on balancing IT structural capabilities and proposes a framework for evaluating their coalignment and complementary returns based on resource orchestration theory.Design/methodology/approachA multi-method approach is used to evaluate the research model. This study tests hypotheses and explores the potential coalignment and complementary returns of balance in structural models and response surface analysis. Then, it analyzes the qualitative data and provides complementary findings to corroborate and confirm complex relationships.FindingsBalanced structural IT capabilities facilitate organizational agility but cooperate differently with internal (e.g. IT proactive stance) and external (e.g. environmental volatility) environmental factors. Balance between IT integration and reconfiguration must be maintained from several approaches during search/selection and configuration/deployment.Originality/valueThis study theorizes and empirically investigates the interactive mechanisms of two IT capabilities in influencing organizational agility under different boundary conditions. It enriches the understanding of balancing capabilities for organizational agility in digital transformation.

Symmetry-Tunable Full-Duty Triangular-Shaped Waveform Generation Using a Simple Single-Drive Mach-Zehnder Modulator

A novel and simple photonic approach for generating symmetry-tunable full-duty triangular-shaped microwave waveforms is proposed and experimentally demonstrated. In this approach, a simple commercial single-drive Mach-Zehnder modulator (MZM) is adopted and driven by the radio frequency (RF) input. By properly presetting the RF modulation index and simply adjusting the direct current (DC) bias voltage of MZM, the full-duty triangular-shaped microwave waveforms with self-defined symmetrical coefficients can be obtained. A complete theoretical analysis on operation principle is presented and a proof-of-concept experiment is carried out. The full-duty triangular-shaped waveforms with tunable symmetrical coefficients at the repetition rate of 5 GHz are successfully generated. This approach features simple architecture, less variables, excellent reconfigurability and integrable capability, which are highly desired for the high-performance triangular-shaped waveform generator.

Enhancing redox kinetics by electron orbital modulation for high-performance aqueous energy storage

The energy density of supercapacitors can be improved through rapid surface reconstruction of electrode materials in an alkaline medium. Transition metal sulfides (TMSs), including Co9S8, are widely used as energy storage electrode materials owing to their excellent structural characteristics. However, systematic research dealing with the enhancement of Co9S8 reconstruction ability induced by Se doping has not well been investigated. Herein, an electron orbital modulation strategy was developed to promote the reconfiguration capability of Co9S8 by substitution of the Se element. The theoretical simulation and experimental characterization confirmed the successful introduction of the Se element, resulting in more polarized charge distribution in Co9S8 and better charge transfer ability. The improved adsorption capacity of OH− also enhanced the intensity of surface reactions, as well as effectively increased the refactoring rate. The optimized Co9S5.1Se2.9 exhibited a specific capacitance of 1788.1 F g−1 at 1 A g−1. The assembled flexible asymmetric supercapacitor delivered a maximum energy density of 54.9 Wh kg−1. Overall, the proposed strategy can effectively be used to construct high energy density electrode materials with optimized reconstruction of dynamic rates through effective modulation of electron orbitals.

Techno-economics of fiber versus microwave for mobile transport network deployments [Invited

One of the challenges network operators face is designing and deploying cost-efficient transport networks (TNs) to meet the high capacity and strict latency/reliability requirements of today’s emerging services. Therefore, different aspects, including the appropriate technology, the level of reconfigurability, and the functional split option, need to be considered. A crucial aspect of network design is assessing the impact of these factors against the total cost of ownership (TCO), latency, and reliability performance of a given solution. Therefore, this paper proposed a framework to investigate the TCO, latency, and reliability performance of a set of fiber and microwave-based TN architectures. They were categorized based on their baseband functional split option and the reconfigurability capabilities of the equipment used. The results, based on real data from a non-incumbent operator, show that, in most of the considered scenarios, a microwave-based TN exhibits a lower TCO than a fiber-based one. The TCO gain may vary with the functional split option, geo-type, reconfigurability features, fiber trenching costs, and cost of microwave equipment, with a more significant impact in a dense urban geo-type, where for a low-layer functional split option, the fiber- and microwave-based architectures have a comparable TCO. Finally, it was found that the considered fiber and microwave architectures have almost similar average latency and connection availability performance. Both are suitable to meet the service requirements of 5G and beyond 5G services in most of the considered scenarios. Only in extreme latency-critical scenarios, a small number of the cells might not fully satisfy the latency requirements of a low-layer split option due to multiple microwave hops in the microwave-based architecture.

Giant and reversible circular dichroism based on phase change materials for near-field image display

Switchable circular dichroism (CD) is in high demand in wireless communication, real-time imaging, etc. At present, the active switching range of CD magnitudes in a nanostructure is relatively narrow. Herein, the giant and reversible CD with large-range modulation is realized by controlling the phase transition of GST (Ge2Sb2Te5) in a double Z-shape array. The demonstrated CD undergoes the large range from −0.85 to 0.85, which is a major advance. The giant CD arises from the polarization-dependent excitations of electric and magnetic dipole resonances. Utilizing the giant and reversible CD, the application for dynamic near-field image display is demonstrated. The reconfiguration capability of our metasurface for large-range switchable CD will promote the prosperity of active chiro-optical devices.

Insights into the Temperature‐Dependent Switching Behavior of Three‐Gated Reconfigurable Field‐Effect Transistors

Three‐gated reconfigurable field‐effect transistors are innovative nanoelectronic devices that are rapidly and increasingly attracting substantial interest in several fields of application thanks to their inherent n/p‐type reconfiguration capabilities. For this reason, it is of significant importance to acquire a deeper knowledge about the temperature ranges in which such devices can be operated and, at the same time, gather a better understanding of the physical mechanisms that are involved in their operation. To achieve this aim, in‐depth observations about the functioning of such devices in an ultrawide temperature range, spanning from 80 to 475 K, are performed and are presented for their ambipolar and operation modes. In view of the data exhibited herein, it is possible to assess the performances of three‐gated reconfigurable field‐effect transistors within a considerable temperature span and finally provide significant insights on the temperature‐dependent physical mechanisms regulating their functionality.

Trusted Autonomous Operations of Distributed Satellite Systems Using Optical Sensors.

Recent developments in Distributed Satellite Systems (DSS) have undoubtedly increased mission value due to the ability to reconfigure the spacecraft cluster/formation and incrementally add new or update older satellites in the formation. These features provide inherent benefits, such as increased mission effectiveness, multi-mission capabilities, design flexibility, and so on. Trusted Autonomous Satellite Operation (TASO) are possible owing to the predictive and reactive integrity features offered by Artificial Intelligence (AI), including both on-board satellites and in the ground control segments. To effectively monitor and manage time-critical events such as disaster relief missions, the DSS must be able to reconfigure autonomously. To achieve TASO, the DSS should have reconfiguration capability within the architecture and spacecraft should communicate with each other through an Inter-Satellite Link (ISL). Recent advances in AI, sensing, and computing technologies have resulted in the development of new promising concepts for the safe and efficient operation of the DSS. The combination of these technologies enables trusted autonomy in intelligent DSS (iDSS) operations, allowing for a more responsive and resilient approach to Space Mission Management (SMM) in terms of data collection and processing, especially when using state-of-the-art optical sensors. This research looks into the potential applications of iDSS by proposing a constellation of satellites in Low Earth Orbit (LEO) for near-real-time wildfire management. For spacecraft to continuously monitor Areas of Interest (AOI) in a dynamically changing environment, satellite missions must have extensive coverage, revisit intervals, and reconfiguration capability that iDSS can offer. Our recent work demonstrated the feasibility of AI-based data processing using state-of-the-art on-board astrionics hardware accelerators. Based on these initial results, AI-based software has been successively developed for wildfire detection on-board iDSS satellites. To demonstrate the applicability of the proposed iDSS architecture, simulation case studies are performed considering different geographic locations.

Knots are not for naught: Design, properties, and topology of hierarchical intertwined microarchitected materials.

Lightweight and tough engineered materials are often designed with three-dimensional hierarchy and interconnected structural members whose junctions are detrimental to their performance because they serve as stress concentrations for damage accumulation and lower mechanical resilience. We introduce a previously unexplored class of architected materials, whose components are interwoven and contain no junctions, and incorporate micro-knots as building blocks within these hierarchical networks. Tensile experiments, which show close quantitative agreements with an analytical model for overhand knots, reveal that knot topology allows a new regime of deformation capable of shape retention, leading to a ~92% increase in absorbed energy and an up to ~107% increase in failure strain compared to woven structures, along with an up to ~11% increase in specific energy density compared to topologically similar monolithic lattices. Our exploration unlocks knotting and frictional contact to create highly extensible low-density materials with tunable shape reconfiguration and energy absorption capabilities.

Multiband Magnetless Isolators and Circulators With Reconfigurable Bandpass Filtering Capabilities

This article reports on the RF design and practical validation of new classes of magnetless multiband isolators and circulators with reconfigurable bandpass filtering capabilities. They are based on transversal frequency-selective signal paths shaped by frequency-tunable and spatiotemporally modulated resonators. Each path creates a passband that can be independently controlled in terms of frequency and direction of propagation. Thus, the overall network may exhibit 1-to- <inline-formula xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">$K$ </tex-math></inline-formula> frequency-reconfigurable non-reciprocal passbands. The operating principles and schematic of the magnetless and reconfigurable filtering isolator concept are first demonstrated through circuit-based simulations of two- and three-path transversal filtering networks (i.e., two- and three-band networks). The independent modulation parameters of the bands are determined through detailed parametric analyses. Next, the concept is extended to the design of magnetless, multiband filtering circulators. The operating and design principles of the circulator are expounded through a circuit schematic and an ideally simulated dual-band example. For practical demonstration purposes, three lumped-element (LE) prototypes, two isolators, and one circulator, shaped by two or three RF signal paths (i.e., two and three passbands), were implemented at very high frequency (VHF) band. They exhibited a maximum in-band isolation (IS) up to 50 dB. Moreover, a frequency tuning of up to 1.22:1 and change of directionality are achieved.

Organizational agility capabilities and sustainable competitive advantage in private multi-Practice hospitals in Kenya

This study’s purpose was to explore the relationship between organizational agility and sustained competitive advantage among Kenyan Private Multi-Practice Hospitals (PMPHs). The study was driven by positivism philosophy and used a descriptive correlational research design. The target population included 690 managers from 46 private level 5 hospitals in Kenya from which a sample of 253 managers was obtained using stratified simple random sampling technique. To gather data, a standardized questionnaire was administered. The collected data were analysed using descriptive statistics (means, percentages, frequencies and standard deviations) and structural equation modelling. The findings from the study established that organizational agility of the PMPHs in Kenya had a significant positive effect on their sustained competitive advantage (β= 0.556, CR = 5.158, p &lt;0.05). There are implications from the study findings for Kenya's private hospital administration to enhance the organizational agility capabilities of their hospitals such as sensing capabilities, leveraging capabilities and reconfiguration capabilities, as an avenue to effectively, and efficiently respond to the complex and dynamic external environment.

High-Gain Bidirectional LCLC Resonant Converter With Reconfigurable Capability

A reconfigurable gain circuit is proposed for an <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">LCLC</i> resonant converter with bidirectional capability considering wide varying redox flow battery source. A suitable hybrid control scheme for <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">LCLC</i> resonant converter with secondary synchronous rectifier is proposed in this work. The proposed reconfigurable circuit enables to configure secondary bridge as an active voltage doubler, full-bridge circuit during forward power transfer mode and reverse power transfer mode, respectively. The reconfigurability helps significantly to design a transformer with lower secondary turns and achieve desired high gain. The reduced transformer secondary turns result in reduced transformer parasitics. The presence of <italic xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">LCLC</i> resonant tank helps to provide the additional gain; the hybrid control scheme ensures zero-voltage switching turn- <sc xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">on</small> for the primary, and secondary synchronous <sc xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">mosfets</small> throughout the operating range. The proposed converter is analysed using fundamental harmonic approximation. The proposed reconfigurable gain circuit and hybrid control scheme is verified experimentally for an 800 V/1 kW hardware prototype fed from 24 to 54 V input.

Flat Ball: Dynamic topology for energy management of optical interconnection networks in data centers

Cloud computing and web applications have further highlighted the need for powerful data centers with large bandwidth and low power consumption. In order to provide such a large bandwidth, today's electronic data centers require high power levels. Furthermore, communications and devices are not always used to their full potential. Optical networks can be a proper option for data centers, as they can offer large and variable bandwidth with lower power consumption compared to their electronic counterparts. In this regard, a dynamic all-optical network architecture is proposed in this paper, with bandwidth reconfiguration capability and low latency to reduce energy consumption. This proposed architecture, called Flat Ball, offers dynamic bandwidth utilizing passive optical devices with low power consumption and latency. Under realistic data center traffic scenarios, the latency of this network is up to 50% lower than its electrical counterpart, while providing a much higher throughput and consuming up to 60% less power.

Three-dimensionally reconfigurable focusing of laser by mechanically tunable metalens doublet with built-in holograms for alignment

Abstract Metalenses have potential to replace various bulky conventional optical elements with ultrathin nanostructure arrays. In particular, active metalenses with reconfigurable focusing capability have attracted considerable interest from the academic and industrial communities. However, their tuning range is currently restricted by limited material properties and fabrication difficulties. Here, a hybrid optical system capable of three-dimensional relocation of a focal spot is proposed and experimentally demonstrated. The system comprises a mechanically actuated passive metalens doublet that can be easily fabricated with commonly available materials and processes. An incident laser can be focused to a desired point in three-dimensional space simply by rotating two metalenses or changing their separation. In addition, exploiting the polarization-multiplexing capability of metasurfaces, a hologram is incorporated to the metalenses to guide rotational and positional alignment of two metasurfaces. The ease of fabrication and alignment provided by this approach could widen its application to many practical fields.

Dynamically adapting to the new normal: unpacking SMEs’ adoption of social media during COVID-19 outbreaks

PurposeThis paper aims to investigate small and medium enterprises’ (SMEs) adoption of social media platforms and how they integrated them within their marketing strategies during the COVID-19 outbreaks. Dynamic capabilities – observed as the interplay between sensing, seizing and reconfiguration capabilities – represent the principal theoretical framework used in this research to explain challenges in social media adoption and their effects on these businesses.Design/methodology/approachThis study adopts the grounded theory approach to analyze semistructured interviews with 19 key informants from Italian SMEs belonging to diversified industries.FindingsThe findings of this research are summarized in a holistic framework that explores three types of capabilities (i.e. sensing, seizing and reconfiguration capabilities) and the marketing outcomes of social media adoption among SMEs.Originality/valueThis study attempts to unpack the specific dynamic capabilities that allowed SMEs to be successful in social media adoption during COVID-19 outbreaks.

THE IMPACT OF DYNAMIC CAPABILITIES ON INSTITUTIONAL MATURITY VIA CMMI

Purpose: the ultimate aim of this paper is to highlight the impact of dynamic capabilities on institutional maturity at the NGOs in the southern Palestinian Governates. Methodology: This paper was completed using a structured survey and the descriptive analytical approach. We targeted NGOs in the southern Palestinian governates with a capital of more than 2 million shekels, an age of organization is more than 15 years, and a staff of more than 30 people. To carry out this research, a stratified random sample of 346 employees with administrative tasks and responsibilities was chosen. The selected organization has a different field of work, Health, and Rehabilitation, Education, Social Development, Culture Women's affairs, Youth and sport, and Endowment. SPSS version 26 was used to analyze the collected data. Finding: the outcome of the research is twofold. the result revealed three types of dynamic capabilities for the maturity of the organization through the CMMI, reconfiguration capabilities namely sensing, seizing, and reconfiguration capabilities. CMMI helps to standardize the organization's process to better performance operation. Dynamic capabilities have a positive effect on institutional maturity at the targeted NGOs in the Southern Palestinian Governates. Practical implications: The findings have practical significance and draw managerial focus on the importance of (1) investing DCs, (2) CMMI e as significant factors in increasing institutional maturity