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Article
Publication date: 18 October 2021

Nour El-Hoda Khalifeh, Rudy Youssef, Farah Fadel, Roy Khalil, Elie Shammas, Naseem Daher, Imad H. Elhajj, Thomas Irrenhauser, Michael N. Niedermeier and Christian Poss

The purpose of this paper is to detail the design and prototyping of a smart automation solution for de-strapping plastic bonding straps on shipping pallets, which are loaded with…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to detail the design and prototyping of a smart automation solution for de-strapping plastic bonding straps on shipping pallets, which are loaded with multiple containers secured by a top-cover as they move on a conveyor belt.

Design/methodology/approach

The adopted design methodology to have the system perform its function entails using the least number of sensors and actuators to arrive at an economic solution from a system design viewpoint. Two prototypes of the robotic structure are designed and built, one in a research laboratory and another in an industrial plant, to perform localized cutting and grabbing of the plastic straps, with the help of a custom-designed passive localizing structure. The proposed structure is engineered to locate the plastic straps using one degree of freedom (DOF) only. An additional strap removal mechanism is designed to collect the straps and prevent them from interfering with the conveyor.

Findings

The functionality of the system is validated by performing full-process tests on the developed prototypes in a laboratory setting and under real-life operating conditions at BMW Group facilities. Testing showed that the proposed localization system meets the specified requirements and can be generalized and adapted to other industrial processes with similar requirements.

Practical implications

The proposed automated system for de-strapping pallets can be deployed in assembly or manufacturing facilities that receive parts in standard shipping pallets that are used worldwide.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first mechanically smart system that is used for the automated removal of straps from shipping pallets used in assembly facilities. The two main novelties of the proposed design are the robustness of the strap localization without the need for computer vision and a large number of DOF, and the critical placement and choice of the cutting and gripping tools to minimize the number of needed actuators.

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Article
Publication date: 11 June 2018

Louma Ahmad Chaddad, Ali Chehab, Imad Elhajj and Ayman Kayssi

The purpose of this paper is to present an approach to reduce energy consumption in data centers. Subsequently, it reduces electricity bills and carbon dioxide footprints…

292

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to present an approach to reduce energy consumption in data centers. Subsequently, it reduces electricity bills and carbon dioxide footprints resulting from their use.

Design/methodology/approach

The authors present a mathematical model of the energy dissipation optimization problem. The authors formulate analytically the server selection problem and the supply air temperature as a non-linear programming, and propose an algorithm to solve it dynamically.

Findings

A simulation study on SimWare, using real workload traces, shows considerable savings for different data center sizes and utilization rates as compared to three other classic algorithms. The results prove that the proposed algorithm is efficient in handling the energy-performance trade-off, and that the proposed algorithm provides significant energy savings and maintains a relatively homogenous and stable thermal state at the different rack units in the data center.

Originality/value

The proposed algorithm ensures energy provisioning, performance optimization over existing state-of-the-art heuristics, and on-demand workload allocation.

Details

Management of Environmental Quality: An International Journal, vol. 29 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1477-7835

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