An interactive optimization system for bulk-cargo ship scheduling

This article considers the efficient scheduling of a fleet of ships engaged in pickup and delivery of bulk cargoes. Our optimization system begins by generating a menu of candidate schedules for each ship. This menu can contain all feasible solutions, which guarantees we will find an optimal solution or can be heuristically limited to contain only those schedules likely to be in an optimal solution. The problem of choosing from this menu an optimal schedule for the fleet is formulated as a set-packing problem and solved with a dual algorithm. Computational experience is presented based on real data obtained from the Military Sealift Command of the U. S. Navy. Run times for this data were reasonable and solutions were generated with the potential of saving up to about $30 million per year over the manual system currently in place. We also describe a color-graphics interface developed to facilitate interaction with the optimization system.     

Approximate semieconomic design of control charts with multiple control limtis

Statistical quality control of complicated production processes subject to a multiplicity of assignable causes may require the utilization of control charts with multiple control limits. This article presents an approximate semieconomic design of such charts, which is easily implementable in practical situations. Evaluations of the semieconomic control chart design show that the proposed approximate method results in solutions that are very close to the true optima and can be obtained with minimal computational effort.     

On the robustness of the modified beta distribution for acceptance sampling in statistical quality control

The purpose of this article is to examine the robustness of the modified Beta distribution as a probability distribution of lot fraction defectives in Bayesian acceptance sampling for statistical quality control. In complex manufacturing systems, a production process may consist of multiple production stages in a serial or nonserial fashion. Hence, inputs to a production station can be a result of subassembly of several inputs, or outputs of some inspection stations for some prior work stages. We investigate the effectiveness of the modified Beta distribution as an approximation to the lot fraction defectives probability of inputs at intermediate work stations. The robustness of the modified Beta distribution simplifies both the determination of the optimal sampling plan for acceptance sampling, and the calibration of distributions resulted from subassembly or inspection operations in complex manufacturing systems.     

Landmarks in defense literature

Military Leadership: In Pursuit of Excellence: edited by Robert L. Taylor and William E. Rosenbach. Westview Press, Boulder, Colorado, 253 pp. 1984.     

An M/M/1 queue with a general bulk service rule

A model of an M/M/1, bulk queue with service rates dependent on the batch size is developed. The operational policy is to commence service when at least L customers are available with a maximum batch size of K. Arriving customers are not allowed to join in-process service. The solution procedure utilizes the matrix geometric methodology and reduces to obtaining the inverse of a square matrix of dimension K + 1 - L. For the case where the service rates are not batch size dependent, the limiting probabilities can be written in closed form. A numerical example illustrates the variability of the system cost as a function of the minimum batch service size L.     

Value added analysis for army equipment modernization

This paper describes the Value Added Analysis methodology which is used as part of the U.S. Army's Planning, Programming, Budgeting, and Execution System to assist the Army leadership in evaluating and prioritizing competing weapon system alternatives during the process of building the Army budget. The Value Added Analysis concept uses a family of models to estimate an alternative system's contribution to the Army's effectiveness using a multiattribute value hierarchy. A mathematical optimization model is then used to simultaneously determine an alternative's cost‐benefit and to identify an optimal mix of weapon systems for inclusion in the Army budget. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Naval Research Logistics 46: 233–253, 1999     

Drone Strikes and Grand Strategy: Toward a Political Understanding of the Uses of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Attacks in US Security Policy

This article analyzes the political utility of US drone strikes theoretically and deductively. Placing strikes within the context of the theorized political functions of force and considering how they fit into two grand strategies, restraint and selective engagement, I argue that these strikes buy the United States relatively little in the way of political effects assuring its own security because the terrorism threat they are intended to combat is a limited one within the skein of US global interests. Furthermore, their contribution to counter-terrorism efforts is likely to diminish with the adoption of armed drones by non-state actors. Drone strikes can, however, provide leverage over recalcitrant US client states while reassuring liberal partners and giving them some leverage over US choices. In addition, within the counter-terrorism sphere, drone strikes are less likely to inflame popular opinion than are alternative uses of force. This analysis contributes to an increasingly rigorous examination of the strikes’ role in US foreign and security policy.     

多弯头管道磁致伸缩导波无损检测技术

为了研究超声导波在弯管中的传播特性及检测可行性,使用磁致伸缩导波仪器及传感器对多弯头管道进行了检测实验,并对弯管中导波的传播速度、模态转换、能量衰减等现象进行了探讨。结果表明:当弯管弯曲程度较小时,弯管中导波传播速度与直管中近似;弯管中导波存在明显的模态转换现象;弯管中导波能量随着时间近似呈指数形式衰减,且衰减规律与激励频率存在密切联系。该研究结果可以为复杂结构弯曲管道的导波检测提供参考。     

基于分岔理论的数字液压缸稳定性分析与设计

为将分岔理论应用于数字液压缸稳定性分析与设计,对系统非线性模型进行了等价变换和光滑处理,同时为克服刚性问题影响,基于量纲分析理论通过选择合适的基本量将模型无因次化,并采用预测-校正延拓法确保分岔求解的精度和效率。在各自可行区间内,对重要参数和不确定参数进行了单参数分岔分析,结果表明:数字液压缸的初始设计具有一定的稳定裕度和鲁棒性,系统受不确定参数的影响较小;运用分岔理论,能够有效揭示各参数对系统动态稳定性的影响,为系统参数设计提供指导。