A note on a model for evasive vehicle movement along a fixed path

A model for a vehicle moving evasively along a fixed path is defined in terms of a two- state semi-Markov process. An important feature of this model is the continuous movement of the vehicle as a function of time. One potential application of this model is the development of a strategy for the deployment of long-range missiles on long underground tracks.     

A dynamic,nonstationary inventory problem for a price/quantity setting firm

A dynamic and nonstationary model is formulated for a firm which attempts to minimize total expected costs over a finite planning horizon. The control variables are price and production. The price p and the demand ζ are linked through the relationship ζ = g(p) + η, where g(p) is the riskless demand curve and η is a random variable. The general model allows for proportional ordering costs, convex holding and stockout costs, downward sloping riskless demand curve, backlogging, partial backlogging, lost sales, partial spoilage of inventory, and two modes of collecting revenue. Sufficient conditions are developed for this problem to have an optimal policy which resembles the single critical number policy known from stochastic inventory theory. It is also shown what set of parameters will satisfy these sufficiency conditions.     

Evaluation of commonly used rules for detecting “steady state” in computer simulation

A definition of the problem of the initial transient with respect to the steady-state mean value has been formulated. A set of criteria has been set forth by which the efficaacy of any proposed rule may be assessed. Within this framework, five heuristic rules for predicting the approximate end of transiency, four of which have been quoted extensively in the simulation literature, have been evaluated in the M/M/1 situation. All performed poorly and are not suitable for their intended use.     

A mathematical model for generating the area of a drainage basin

This paper presents a mathematical model that yields the area drained by a naturally-occurring network of streams. The model is based on empirically derived relationships in the field of quantitative geomorphology and an assumption concerning the probabilistic nature of stream system formation. A wide range of model solutions is indicated, and the model is validated by comparing the results to statistics from actual stream systems.     

On a generalized bin-packing problem

In this paper we address a bin-packing problem which possesses a variety of modifications of the classic theme. Among these are bin-dependent chip weights, bin costs, and bin-dependent penalties for unused capacity. Lagrangian relaxations are employed in the context of a branch-and-bound framework in order to solve the problem after which substantial computational experience is provided.     

Developing production schedules which balance part usage and smooth production loads for just-in-time production systems

A mixed-model multilevel manufacturing facility running under a just-in-time (JIT) production system is controlled by setting the production schedule for the highest level in the facility, which is usually a mixed-model final assembly line. The schedule is set to achieve the goals of the organization, which under JIT are (1) to keep a constant rate of part usage, and (2) to maintain a smooth production load. In this article we extend earlier work in the literature, which focused on the first goal, by developing scheduling procedures which satisfy both goals. Properties of the resulting production schedules are analyzed and illustrative examples are presented.     

On the behavior and shape of mixture failure rates from a family of IFR Weibull distributions

Populations of many types of component are heterogeneous and often consist of a small number of different subpopulations. This is called a mixture and it arises in a number of situations. For example, a majority of products in industrial populations are mixtures of defective items with shorter lifetimes and standard items with longer lifetimes. It is a well‐known result that distributions with decreasing failure rates are closed under mixture. However, mixtures of distributions with increasing failure rates are not easily classifiable. If the subpopulations involved in the mixture have increasing failure rates, there might be some upward movement in the mixture and later a general downward pull towards the strongest component. Little work has been done in describing the shape of mixture failure rates when all subpopulations do not have decreasing failure rate. In this paper, we present general results that describe the shape and behavior of a failure rate of a mixture obtained from two Weibull subpopulations with strictly increasing failure rates. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2004     

Optimization of buckling load for laminated composite plates using adaptive Kriging-improved PSO: A novel hybrid intelligent method

An effective hybrid optimization method is proposed by integrating an adaptive Kriging (A-Kriging) into an improved partial swarm optimization algorithm (IPSO) to give a so-called A-Kriging-IPSO for maxi-mizing the buckling load of laminated composite plates (LCPs) under uniaxial and biaxial compressions. In this method, a novel iterative adaptive Kriging model, which is structured using two training sample sets as active and adaptive points, is utilized to directly predict the buckling load of the LCPs and to improve the efficiency of the optimization process. The active points are selected from the initial data set while the adaptive points are generated using the radial random-based convex samples. The cell-based smoothed discrete shear gap method (CS-DSG3) is employed to analyze the buckling behavior of the LCPs to provide the response of adaptive and input data sets. The buckling load of the LCPs is maximized by utilizing the IPSO algorithm. To demonstrate the efficiency and accuracy of the proposed methodology, the LCPs with different layers (2, 3, 4, and 10 layers), boundary conditions, aspect ratios and load patterns (biaxial and uniaxial loads) are investigated. The results obtained by proposed method are in good agreement with the literature results, but with less computational burden. By applying adaptive radial Kriging model, the accurate optimal results-based predictions of the buckling load are obtained for the studied LCPs.     

Reviews

Ian Castle and Ian Knight, Fearful Hard Times: The Siege and Relief of Eshowe, 1879. Greenhill Books, London 1994, Pp.256, 85 illus, 6 maps, index. £17.95. ISBN 1–85367–180–0.

Michael E. Brown (ed.), Ethnic Conflict and International Security. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1993, Pp.263, selected biblio, index. $45/£30 (cloth); $14.95/£12.95 (paper). ISBN 0–691–03368 and 00068–9.

Deborah Poole and Gerardo Renique, Peru: Time of Fear. London: Latin American Bureau (Research and Action) Ltd., 1992. Pp.212, 7 maps, photographs, glossary, sources/further reading, index. £17.99 ISBN 0–906156–70‐X and ‐71–8.

David A. Charters (ed.), Peacekeeping and the Challenge of Civil Conflict Resolution. Center for Conflict Studies, University of New Brunswick, 1994. Pp.viii+220. NP.

Joachim Remak, A Very Civil War: The Swiss Sonderbund War of 1847. Boulder, Colorado: Westview Press, 1993. Pp.xvi+221, 6 map's, 68 illus, biblio, index. $24.95/£16.95.