Reliability of evaluations for the choice of system solutions at the example of automated order-picking systems for bagged goods

There is a steadily increasing pressure on cost-savings and productivity growth in sectors of order-picking such that the wish for rationalization by automation is rising. Special problems are faced trying to automatize handling operations of order-picking articles packed in bags. The mechanical properties of the objects and their hard-to-predict shape and position represent obstacles and are complicating handling operations. A systematic approach in system design is required. This article deals with the properties of such products under aspects of difficulties arising in automated handling and points out a useful system development methodology.

Morphology-Pragmatics Interface The Case of the Tanzanian Commercials in Swahili Newspapers

This work articulates the relationship between the choice of the vocabularies, their morphophonological modifications and the anticipated meanings in the language of commercial advertisements in Tanzanian Swahili newspapers. An eclectic approach that makes use of the Textual Analysis Approach and Lexical Morphology Theory brings into light important facts. For instance, apart from the use of standard Swahili, there is a good deal of English loan words which either undergo Swahilization morphologically or keep the original forms. Also, the intended meanings are captured by the intended audiences by, among others, the age and level of education of the newspapers’ readers. The contribution herein is that there is a link between the designed morphology of the words and the interpretation captured, at least in the language of commercials.

Distributed Control Nodes for Material Flow System Controls on the Example of Unit Load Conveyor and Sorter Facilities

The Chair of Transportation and Ware-housing at the University of Dortmund together with its industrial partner has developed and implemented a decentralized control system based on embedded technology and Internet standards. This innovative, highly flexible system uses autonomous software modules to control the flow of unit loads in real-time. The system is integrated into Chair’s test facility consisting of a wide range of conveying and sorting equipment. It is built for proof of concept purposes and will be used for further research in the fields of decentralized automation and embedded controls. This presentation describes the implementation of this decentralized control system.

Development of a novel material flow simulation model for the integration of spatial and process relevant information

Simulation techniques are almost indispensable in the analysis of complex systems. Materials- and related information flow processes in logistics often possess such complexity. Further problem arise as the processes change over time and pose a Big Data problem as well. To cope with these issues adaptive simulations are more and more frequently used. This paper presents a few relevant advanced simulation models and intro-duces a novel model structure, which unifies modelling of geometrical relations and time processes. This way the process structure and their geometric relations can be handled in a well understandable and transparent way. Capabilities and applicability of the model is also presented via a demonstrational example.