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1 – 6 of 6Jeff Wiegley, Ken Goldberg, Mike Peshkin and Mike Brokowski
Reviews Peshkin and Sanderson (1988) who showed that parts can be aligned as they move on a conveyor belt against a passive sequence of fences. Describes the first complete…
Abstract
Reviews Peshkin and Sanderson (1988) who showed that parts can be aligned as they move on a conveyor belt against a passive sequence of fences. Describes the first complete algorithm to design such sequences for a given convex polygonal part. The algorithm is complete in the sense that it is guaranteed to find a design if one exists and to terminate with a negative report otherwise. Based on an exact breadth‐first search of the design space, the algorithm is also guaranteed to find the design requiring the fewest fences. Describes the algorithm and compares results with those previously reported. Conjectures that a fence design exists to orient any convex polygonal part defined by a sequence of rational vertices.
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To report the findings of a European Social Fund (ESF) financed study into the investigation and development of business practices and managerial skills in the social enterprises…
Abstract
Purpose
To report the findings of a European Social Fund (ESF) financed study into the investigation and development of business practices and managerial skills in the social enterprises sector.
Design/methodology/approach
The qualitative and grounded research investigation was conducted using interviews with owner/managers of 15 social enterprises in Greater Manchester and Lancashire, UK, and aimed to develop a strategic understanding of social enterprise business practices and issues and to develop baseline information to develop a management tool based on the balanced scorecard (BS) of Kaplan and Norton (1996). Develops a definition of social enterprise and presents a brief background of the post‐war development of the social enterprises sector, its recent growth and increasing competition for resources.
Findings
The results indicated that social enterprises adopt varying practices, face many issues and, while many are beginning to make themselves more accountable in terms of their social value, there was little evidence to suggest that social enterprises were measuring their social impact beyond providing data that was sought by funders. Reveals that the social enterprise managers implied that the next step was to become more proactive in recording and marketing their social values and that developing social value indicators is the next challenge, while evidence suggests that tools developed for social enterprises need to be informal, non‐generic and based on experiential learning.
Originality/value
Reveals key concepts that will form the framework for a modified BS.
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Onno C. Goemans, Ken Goldberg and A. Frank van der Stappen
Proposes a simple bowl feeder primitive, consisting of one horizontally mounted convex polygonal metal “blade” that can feed a broad class of three‐dimensional polyhedral parts by…
Abstract
Purpose
Proposes a simple bowl feeder primitive, consisting of one horizontally mounted convex polygonal metal “blade” that can feed a broad class of three‐dimensional polyhedral parts by reorienting and rejecting all but those in a desired orientation. Owing to its simplicity, the proposed primitive allows for the development of methods to automate its design process.
Design/methodology/approach
Presents a computational geometric approach to construct the solution space for a given part and then use this space to report all designs that feed the part.
Findings
Given a polyhedral part and its center of mass as input, the complete algorithm identifies all single blade solutions that feed the part. The output is either the set of all valid blade designs or a notification that the part cannot be fed using a single blade.
Research limitations/implications
Aims to take a first step in the design of complete algorithms for three‐dimensional parts in the context of vibratory bowls. Future research encompasses the relaxation of several simplifying assumptions with regard to the physical modeling of the motion and interaction with the part.
Practical implications
Algorithms like the one proposed can be applied to generate an initial vibratory bowl design. The strength of our algorithm lies in its completeness which means that it identifies the complete universe of all possible designs. Such a rigorous exploration can neither be accomplished through human trail‐and‐error nor through heuristic approaches to automated design.
Originality/value
Proposes the first complete algorithm for automated design of a 3D part manipulator for vibratory bowls, which may serve as a building block for fully automated bowl design.
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Jenna M. Bubna and Pamela Norum
The purpose of this paper is to understand the apparel disposal process and explore, specifically, male disposal through consignment vs donation disposal modes. This study hopes…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to understand the apparel disposal process and explore, specifically, male disposal through consignment vs donation disposal modes. This study hopes to uncover not only the process but the influences that motivate these behaviors.
Design/methodology/approach
Observations at two sites included conversational interviews with employees as well as consumers disposing apparel through these sites. Collection took place over two months with 26 interviews taking place.
Findings
Themes of seasonal change and financial incentive suggest the use of consignment as a separate process for consumers from donation. Consignment suggested value, while donation was viewed as a habit.
Research limitations/implications
Previous research as well as the findings of this study suggest that apparel donation is similar across genders. They also suggest that consignment is viewed by male consumers as a separate action from donation.
Originality/value
Little to no research has been conducted to understand male apparel disposal, studies on disposal has focused primarily on college-aged females (i.e. Morgan and Birtwistle, 2009). This study adds to a limited body of work to understand the differences and very possible similarities across genders in this behavior.
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