Semiconductor manufacturing is a complicated flexible job-shop scheduling problem (FJSP) of combinatorial complexity. Because of the adoption of advanced process control and advanced equipment ...control, the processing time in advanced wafer fabs become uncertain. Existing approaches considering constant processing time may not be appropriate to address the present problem in a real setting. In practice, processing times can be represented as intervals with the most probable completion time somewhere near the middle of the interval. A fuzzy number that is a generalized interval can represent this processing time interval exactly and naturally. This paper developed a hybrid approach integrating a particle swarm optimization algorithm with a Cauchy distribution and genetic operators (HPSO+GA) for solving an FJSP by finding a job sequence that minimizes the makespan with uncertain processing time. In particular, the proposed hybridized HPSO+GA approach employs PSO for creating operation sequences and assigning the time and resources for each operation, and then uses genetic operators to update the particles for improving the solution. To estimate the validity of the proposed approaches, experiments were conducted to compare the proposed approach with conventional approaches. The results show the practical viability of this approach. This paper concludes with discussions of contributions and recommends directions for future research.
Monitoring and tracking infection is required in order to reduce the spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), induced by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). To ...achieve this goal, the development and deployment of quick, accurate, and sensitive diagnostic methods are necessary. The determination of the SARS-CoV-2 virus is performed by biosensing devices, which vary according to detection methods and the biomarkers which are inducing/providing an analytical signal. RNA hybridisation, antigen-antibody affinity interaction, and a variety of other biological reactions are commonly used to generate analytical signals that can be precisely detected using electrochemical, electrochemiluminescence, optical, and other methodologies and transducers. Electrochemical biosensors, in particular, correspond to the current trend of bioanalytical process acceleration and simplification. Immunosensors are based on the determination of antigen-antibody interaction, which on some occasions can be determined in a label-free mode with sufficient sensitivity.
UNISON framework for data-driven intermittent demand forecast that integrates machine learning and temporal aggregation mechanism for managing the demands of intermittent electronics components is ...developed to empower flexible supply chain management and smart production.
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•Data-driven forecast framework for intermittent time series is effectively developed.•Machine learning and temporal aggregation mechanism are integrated.•An empirical study was conducted that validated its practical vitality.•The developed solution is implemented in a leading distributor.
The complexity involved in demand forecast for supply chain management of electronics components is exponentially increasing owing to demand fluctuations in consumer electronics, shortening of product life cycles, continuous technology migration, lengthy production cycle time, and long lead time for capacity expansion. While global manufacturing networks often suffer the risks of oversupply and shortage of key components, the distributor that is the key intermediate participator in electronics product supply chain buys components from the suppliers, warehouses them, and resells different parts to a number of electronics manufacturers with vendor-managed inventories. Thus, the component distributors forecast the demands for large assortments of stock keeping units (SKUs) with distinct dynamics for inventory control and supply chain management. To address realistic needs to enhance demand forecast performance, this study aims to develop a UNISON data-driven analytics framework that integrates machine learning technologies and temporal aggregation mechanism to forecast the demands of intermittent electronics components. An empirical study is conducted in a world-leading semiconductor distributor for validation. The results have shown practical vitality of the proposed approach with better performance than conventional approaches and the existing practice. Indeed, the developed solution has been employed in this company to support flexible decisions to empower agile logistics and supply chain resilience for smart production.
Powered exoskeletons can facilitate after-stroke rehabilitation of patients with shoulder disabilities. Designs using serial mechanisms usually result in complicated and bulky exoskeletons. This ...paper presents a new parallel actuated shoulder exoskeleton that consists of two spherical mechanisms, two slider crank mechanisms, and a gravity balancing mechanism. The actuators are grounded and placed side-by-side. Thus, better inertia properties can be achieved while lightweight and compactness are maintained. An adaptive mechanism with only passive joints is introduced to compensate for the exoskeleton-limb misalignment and size variation among different subjects. Linear series elastic actuators (SEAs) are proposed to obtain accurate force and impedance control at the exoskeleton-limb interface. The total number of force sensors and actuators is minimized using the adaptive mechanism and SEAs. An exoskeleton prototype is shown to provide bidirectional actuation between the exoskeleton and upper limb, which is required for various rehabilitation processes. We expect this design can provide a means of shoulder rehabilitation.
An on-field colorimetric sensing strategy employing gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) and a paper-based analytical platform was investigated for mercury ion (Hg2+) detection at water sources. By utilizing ...thymine–Hg2+–thymine (T–Hg2+–T) coordination chemistry, label-free detection oligonucleotide sequences were attached to unmodified gold nanoparticles to provide rapid mercury ion sensing without complicated and time-consuming thiolated or other costly labeled probe preparation processes. Not only is this strategy’s sensing mechanism specific toward Hg2+, rather than other metal ions, but also the conformational change in the detection oligonucleotide sequences introduces different degrees of AuNP aggregation that causes the color of AuNPs to exhibit a mixture variance. To eliminate the use of sophisticated equipment and minimize the power requirement for data analysis and transmission, the color variance of multiple detection results were transferred and concentrated on cellulose-based paper analytical devices, and the data were subsequently transmitted for the readout and storage of results using cloud computing via a smartphone. As a result, a detection limit of 50 nM for Hg2+ spiked pond and river water could be achieved. Furthermore, multiple tests could be performed simultaneously with a 40 min turnaround time. These results suggest that the proposed platform possesses the capability for sensitive and high-throughput on-site mercury pollution monitoring in resource-constrained settings.
To date, information on associations between motor skills and executive functions (EF) in autistic children is limited. The purpose of this study was to compare motor skills and EF performance ...between autistic children and typically developing (TD) children and to examine the relationships between motor skills and EF in these two groups. Forty‐eight autistic children and 48 TD children aged 6 to 12 years were recruited for this study. Motor skills were measured with the Bruininks‐Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency‐2 (BOT‐2). EF was assessed with the Stroop Color and Word Test, the Wisconsin Card Sorting Task (WCST), and the Test of Attentional Performance: Go/No‐go test. Independent sample t‐tests were used to compare the BOT‐2 scores and EF measures between autistic children and TD children. Pearson product–moment correlation and regressions were conducted to assess the relationships between the BOT‐2 scores and the EF measures for each group. Results showed that autistic children scored significantly lower than TD children on all four BOT‐2 composite scores and a total motor composite. Autistic children also demonstrated significantly lower levels of performance on all EF measures than TD children. Further, autistic children showed more significant associations between motor skills and EF than TD children, particularly pronounced in the domains of fine manual control and manual coordination to cognitive flexibility, as well as manual coordination and inhibitory control. Continued development of motor skills and EF in autistic children is important. The relationships between motor skills and EF were significant among autistic children, suggesting future research on promoting EF through motor skill interventions in autistic children is required.
Lay Summary
This study examined how motor skills and executive functions (EF) are related in autistic children. We compared 48 autistic children to 48 typically developing (TD) children, aged 6 to 12. Results revealed that autistic children face challenges in both motor skills and EF compared to TD children. Moreover, we discovered that motor skills and EF are closely connected in autistic children, highlighting the importance of supporting both motor skill development and EF in this group. This study is an important first step for future interventions, aiming to enhance motor skills and EF development in school‐aged autistic children.
Laminotomy and transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (TLIF) is usually used to treat unstable spinal stenosis. Minimally invasive surgery (MIS) can cause less muscle injury than conventional open ...surgery (COS). The purpose of this study was to compare the degree of postoperative fatty degeneration in the paraspinal muscles and the spinal decompression between COS and MIS based on MRI. Forty-six patients received laminotomy and TLIF (21 COS, 25 MIS) from February 2016 to January 2017 were included in this study. Lumbar MRI was performed within 3 months before surgery and 1 year after surgery to compare muscle-fat-index (MFI) change of the paraspinal muscles and the dural sac cross-sectional area (DSCAS) change. The average MFI change at L2-S1 erector spinae muscle was significantly greater in the COS group (27.37 ± 21.37% vs. 14.13 ± 19.19%, P = 0.044). A significant MFI change difference between the COS and MIS group was also found in the erector spinae muscle at the caudal adjacent level (54.47 ± 37.95% vs. 23.60 ± 31.59%, P = 0.016). DSCSA improvement was significantly greater in the COS group (128.15 ± 39.83 mm
vs. 78.15 ± 38.5 mm
, P = 0.0005). COS is associated with more prominent fatty degeneration of the paraspinal muscles. Statically significant post-operative MFI change was only noted in erector spinae muscle at caudal adjacent level and L2-S1 mean global level. COS produces a greater area of decompression on follow up MRI than MIS with no statistical significance on clinical grounds.
Several studies suggest that glial scars pose as physical and chemical barriers that limit neurite regeneration after spinal cord injury (SCI). Evidences suggest that the activation of the ...PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway is involved in glial scar formation. Therefore, inhibition of the PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway may beneficially attenuate glial scar formation after SCI. Phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome 10 (PTEN) negatively regulates the PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway. Therefore, we hypothesized that the overexpression of PTEN in the spinal cord will have beneficial effects after SCI. In the present study, we intrathecally injected a recombinant adenovirus carrying the pten gene (Ad-PTEN) to cause overexpression of PTEN in rats with contusion injured spinal cords. The results suggest overexpression of PTEN in spinal cord attenuated glial scar formation and led to improved locomotor function after SCI. Overexpression of PTEN following SCI attenuated gliosis, affected chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan expression, and improved axon regeneration into the lesion site. Furthermore, we suggest that the activation of the PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway in astrocytes at 3days after SCI may be involved in glial scar formation. Because delayed treatment with Ad-PTEN enhanced motor function recovery more significantly than immediate treatment with Ad-PTEN after SCI, the results suggest that the best strategy to attenuate glial scar formation could be to introduce 3days after SCI. This study's findings thus have positive implications for patients who are unable to receive immediate medical attention after SCI.
•I.t. Ad vector overexpression of astrocytic PTEN in normal and injured spinal cord.•Overexpression of PTEN following SCI led to improved locomotor function after SCI.•Overexpression of PTEN following SCI attenuated the glial scar formation.•Activation of the PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway may be involved in glial scar formation.
A semiconductor distributor that plays a third-party role in the supply chain will buy diverse components from different suppliers, warehouse and resell them to a number of electronics manufacturers ...with vendor-managed inventories, while suffering both risks of oversupply and shortage due to demand uncertainty. However, demand fluctuation and supply chain complexity are increasing due to shortening product life cycle in the consumer electronics era and long lead time for capacity expansion for high-tech manufacturing. Focusing realistic needs of a leading distributor for semiconductor components and modules, this study aims to construct a UNISON framework based on deep reinforcement learning (RL) for dynamically selecting the optimal demand forecast model for each of the products with the corresponding demand patterns to empower smart production for Industry 3.5. Deep RL that integrates deep learning architecture and RL algorithm can learn successful policies from the dynamic and complex real world. The reward function mechanism of deep RL can reduce negative impact of demand uncertainty. An empirical study was conducted for validation showing practical viability of the proposed approach. Indeed, the developed solution has been in real settings.
Summary The purpose of the current study was to explore various behavioral and neuroelectric indices after acute aerobic exercise in young adults with different cardiorespiratory fitness levels when ...performing a cognitive task, and also to gain a mechanistic understanding of the effects of such exercise using the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) biochemical index. Sixty young adults were separated into one non-exercise-intervention and two exercise intervention (EI) (i.e., EIH : higher-fit and EIL : lower-fit) groups according to their maximal oxygen consumption. The participants’ cognitive performances (i.e., behavioral and neuroelectric indices via an endogenous visuospatial attention task test) and serum BDNF levels were measured at baseline and after either an acute bout of 30 min of moderate intensity aerobic exercise or a control period. Analyses of the results revealed that although acute aerobic exercise decreased reaction times (RTs) and increased the central Contingent Negative Variation (CNV) area in both EI groups, only the EIH group showed larger P3 amplitude and increased frontal CNV area after acute exercise. Elevated BDNF levels were shown after acute exercise for both EI groups, but this was not significantly correlated with changes in behavioral and neuroelectric performances for either group. These results suggest that both EI groups could gain response-related (i.e., RT and central CNV) benefits following a bout of moderate acute aerobic exercise. However, only higher-fit individuals could obtain particular cognition-process-related efficiency with regard to attentional resource allocation (i.e., P3 amplitude) and cognitive preparation processes (i.e., frontal CNV) after acute exercise, implying that the mechanisms underlying the effects of such exercise on neural functioning may be fitness dependent. However, the facilitating effects found in this work could not be attributed to the transient change in BDNF levels after acute exercise.
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