How Novices Model Business Processes

In this paper, we examine the design of business process diagrams in contexts where novice analysts only have basic design tools such as paper and pencils available, and little to no understanding of formalized modeling approaches. Based on a quasi-experimental study with 89 BPM students, we identify five distinct process design archetypes ranging from textual to hybrid, and graphical representation forms. We also examine the quality of the designs and identify which representation formats enable an analyst to articulate business rules, states, events, activities, temporal and geospatial information in a process model. We found that the quality of the process designs decreases with the increased use of graphics and that hybrid designs featuring appropriate text labels and abstract graphical forms are well-suited to describe business processes. Our research has implications for practical process design work in industry as well as for academic curricula on process design.

An application of Keller’s Brand Equity Model in a B2B context

Powerful brands create meaningful images in the minds of customers (Keller, 1993). A strong brand image and reputation enhances differentiation and has a positive influence on buying behaviour (Gordon et al., 1993; McEnally and de Chernatony, 1999). While the power of branding is widely acknowledged in consumer markets, the nature and importance of branding in industrial markets remains under-researched. Many business-to-business (B2B) strategists have claimed brand-building belongs in the consumer realm. They argue that industrial products do not need branding as it is confusing and adds little value to functional products (Collins, 1977; Lorge, 1998; Saunders and Watt, 1979). Others argue that branding and the concept of brand equity however are increasingly important in industrial markets, because it has been shown that what a brand means to a buyer can be a determining factor in deciding between industrial purchase alternatives (Aaker, 1991). In this context, it is critical for suppliers to initiate and sustain relationships due to the small number of potential customers (Ambler, 1995; Webster and Keller, 2004). To date however, there is no model available to assist B2B marketers in identifying and measuring brand equity. In this paper, we take a step in that direction by operationalising and empirically testing a prominent brand equity model in a B2B context. This makes not only a theoretical contribution by advancing branding research, but also addresses a managerial need for information that will assist in the assessment of industrial branding efforts.

A new multilevel converter configuration for high power and high quality applications

The Queensland University of Technology (QUT) allows the presentation of theses for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the format of published or submitted papers, where such papers have been published, accepted or submitted during the period of candidature. This thesis is composed of ten published /submitted papers and book chapters of which nine have been published and one is under review. This project is financially supported by an Australian Research Council (ARC) Discovery Grant with the aim of investigating multilevel topologies for high quality and high power applications, with specific emphasis on renewable energy systems. The rapid evolution of renewable energy within the last several years has resulted in the design of efficient power converters suitable for medium and high-power applications such as wind turbine and photovoltaic (PV) systems. Today, the industrial trend is moving away from heavy and bulky passive components to power converter systems that use more and more semiconductor elements controlled by powerful processor systems. However, it is hard to connect the traditional converters to the high and medium voltage grids, as a single power switch cannot stand at high voltage. For these reasons, a new family of multilevel inverters has appeared as a solution for working with higher voltage levels. Besides this important feature, multilevel converters have the capability to generate stepped waveforms. Consequently, in comparison with conventional two-level inverters, they present lower switching losses, lower voltage stress across loads, lower electromagnetic interference (EMI) and higher quality output waveforms. These properties enable the connection of renewable energy sources directly to the grid without using expensive, bulky, heavy line transformers. Additionally, they minimize the size of the passive filter and increase the durability of electrical devices. However, multilevel converters have only been utilised in very particular applications, mainly due to the structural limitations, high cost and complexity of the multilevel converter system and control. New developments in the fields of power semiconductor switches and processors will favor the multilevel converters for many other fields of application. The main application for the multilevel converter presented in this work is the front-end power converter in renewable energy systems. Diode-clamped and cascade converters are the most common type of multilevel converters widely used in different renewable energy system applications. However, some drawbacks – such as capacitor voltage imbalance, number of components, and complexity of the control system – still exist, and these are investigated in the framework of this thesis. Various simulations using software simulation tools are undertaken and are used to study different cases. The feasibility of the developments is underlined with a series of experimental results. This thesis is divided into two main sections. The first section focuses on solving the capacitor voltage imbalance for a wide range of applications, and on decreasing the complexity of the control strategy on the inverter side. The idea of using sharing switches at the output structure of the DC-DC front-end converters is proposed to balance the series DC link capacitors. A new family of multioutput DC-DC converters is proposed for renewable energy systems connected to the DC link voltage of diode-clamped converters. The main objective of this type of converter is the sharing of the total output voltage into several series voltage levels using sharing switches. This solves the problems associated with capacitor voltage imbalance in diode-clamped multilevel converters. These converters adjust the variable and unregulated DC voltage generated by renewable energy systems (such as PV) to the desirable series multiple voltage levels at the inverter DC side. A multi-output boost (MOB) converter, with one inductor and series output voltage, is presented. This converter is suitable for renewable energy systems based on diode-clamped converters because it boosts the low output voltage and provides the series capacitor at the output side. A simple control strategy using cross voltage control with internal current loop is presented to obtain the desired voltage levels at the output voltage. The proposed topology and control strategy are validated by simulation and hardware results. Using the idea of voltage sharing switches, the circuit structure of different topologies of multi-output DC-DC converters – or multi-output voltage sharing (MOVS) converters – have been proposed. In order to verify the feasibility of this topology and its application, steady state and dynamic analyses have been carried out. Simulation and experiments using the proposed control strategy have verified the mathematical analysis. The second part of this thesis addresses the second problem of multilevel converters: the need to improve their quality with minimum cost and complexity. This is related to utilising asymmetrical multilevel topologies instead of conventional multilevel converters; this can increase the quality of output waveforms with a minimum number of components. It also allows for a reduction in the cost and complexity of systems while maintaining the same output quality, or for an increase in the quality while maintaining the same cost and complexity. Therefore, the asymmetrical configuration for two common types of multilevel converters – diode-clamped and cascade converters – is investigated. Also, as well as addressing the maximisation of the output voltage resolution, some technical issues – such as adjacent switching vectors – should be taken into account in asymmetrical multilevel configurations to keep the total harmonic distortion (THD) and switching losses to a minimum. Thus, the asymmetrical diode-clamped converter is proposed. An appropriate asymmetrical DC link arrangement is presented for four-level diode-clamped converters by keeping adjacent switching vectors. In this way, five-level inverter performance is achieved for the same level of complexity of the four-level inverter. Dealing with the capacitor voltage imbalance problem in asymmetrical diodeclamped converters has inspired the proposal for two different DC-DC topologies with a suitable control strategy. A Triple-Output Boost (TOB) converter and a Boost 3-Output Voltage Sharing (Boost-3OVS) converter connected to the four-level diode-clamped converter are proposed to arrange the proposed asymmetrical DC link for the high modulation indices and unity power factor. Cascade converters have shown their abilities and strengths in medium and high power applications. Using asymmetrical H-bridge inverters, more voltage levels can be generated in output voltage with the same number of components as the symmetrical converters. The concept of cascading multilevel H-bridge cells is used to propose a fifteen-level cascade inverter using a four-level H-bridge symmetrical diode-clamped converter, cascaded with classical two-level Hbridge inverters. A DC voltage ratio of cells is presented to obtain maximum voltage levels on output voltage, with adjacent switching vectors between all possible voltage levels; this can minimize the switching losses. This structure can save five isolated DC sources and twelve switches in comparison to conventional cascade converters with series two-level H bridge inverters. To increase the quality in presented hybrid topology with minimum number of components, a new cascade inverter is verified by cascading an asymmetrical four-level H-bridge diode-clamped inverter. An inverter with nineteen-level performance was achieved. This synthesizes more voltage levels with lower voltage and current THD, rather than using a symmetrical diode-clamped inverter with the same configuration and equivalent number of power components. Two different predictive current control methods for the switching states selection are proposed to minimise either losses or THD of voltage in hybrid converters. High voltage spikes at switching time in experimental results and investigation of a diode-clamped inverter structure raised another problem associated with high-level high voltage multilevel converters. Power switching components with fast switching, combined with hard switched-converters, produce high di/dt during turn off time. Thus, stray inductance of interconnections becomes an important issue and raises overvoltage and EMI issues correlated to the number of components. Planar busbar is a good candidate to reduce interconnection inductance in high power inverters compared with cables. The effect of different transient current loops on busbar physical structure of the high-voltage highlevel diode-clamped converters is highlighted. Design considerations of proper planar busbar are also presented to optimise the overall design of diode-clamped converters.

An integrated information management model for ecologically sustainable development

Ecologically sustainable development has become a major feature of legal systems at the international, national and local levels throughout the world. In Australia, governments have responded to environmental crises by enacting legislation imposing obligations and restrictions over privately-owned land. Whilst these obligations and restrictions may well be necessary to achieve sustainability, the approach to management of information concerning these instruments is problematic. For example, management of information concerning obligations and restrictions in Queensland is fragmented, with some instruments registered or recorded on the land title register, some on external registers, and some information only available in the legislation itself. This approach is used in most Australian jurisdictions. This fragmented approach has led to two separate but interconnected problems. First, the Torrens system is no longer meeting its goal of providing a complete and accurate picture of title. Second, this uncoordinated approach to the management of land titles, and obligations and restrictions on land use, has created a barrier to sustainable management of natural resources. This is because compliance with environmental laws is impaired in the absence of easily accessible and accurate information. These problems demonstrate a clear need for reform in this area. To determine how information concerning these obligations and restrictions may be most effectively managed, this thesis will apply a comparative methodology and consider three case studies, which each utilise different models for management of this information. These jurisdictions will be assessed according to a set of guidelines for comparison to identify which features of their systems provide for effective management of information concerning obligations and restrictions on title and use. Based on this comparison, this thesis will devise a series of recommendations for an effective system for the management of information concerning obligations and restrictions on land title and use, taking into account any potential legal issues and barriers to implementation. This series of recommendations for reform will be supplemented by suggested draft legislative provisions.

Towards developing an integrated model of information behaviour

This paper presents the results from a study of information behaviors in the context of people's everyday lives undertaken in order to develop an integrated model of information behavior (IB). 34 participants from across 6 countries maintained a daily information journal or diary – mainly through a secure web log – for two weeks, to an aggregate of 468 participant days over five months. The text-rich diary data was analyzed using a multi-method qualitative-quantitative analysis in the following order: Grounded Theory analysis with manual coding, automated concept analysis using thesaurus-based visualization, and finally a statistical analysis of the coding data. The findings indicate that people engage in several information behaviors simultaneously throughout their everyday lives (including home and work life) and that sense-making is entangled in all aspects of them. Participants engaged in many of the information behaviors in a parallel, distributed, and concurrent fashion: many information behaviors for one information problem, one information behavior across many information problems, and many information behaviors concurrently across many information problems. Findings indicate also that information avoidance – both active and passive avoidance – is a common phenomenon and that information organizing behaviors or the lack thereof caused the most problems for participants. An integrated model of information behaviors is presented based on the findings.

The Development of a Critical Thinking Conceptual Model to Enhance Critical Thinking Skills in Middle-Eastern Nurses: A Middle-Eastern Experience

This paper aims to describe the development of a critical thinking conceptual model which was constructed to guide the teaching and evaluation of critical thinking skills to Middle-Eastern nurses.

Re-conceptualising IS function's support performance : a preliminary model

While IS function has gained widespread attention for over two decades, there is little consensus among information systems (IS) researchers and practitioners on how best to evaluate IS function's support performance. This paper reports on preliminary findings of a larger research effort proceeds from a central interest in the importance of evaluating IS function's support in organisations. This study is the first that attempts to re-conceptualise and conceive evaluate IS function's support as a multi- dimensional formative construct. We argue that a holistic measure for evaluating evaluate IS function's support should consist of dimensions that together assess the variety of the support functions and the quality of the support services provided to end-users. Thus, the proposed model consists of two halves, "Variety" and "Quality" within which resides seven dimensions. The Variety half includes five dimensions: Training; Documentation; Data- related Support, Software-related Support; and Hardware-related Support. The Quality half includes two dimensions: IS Support Staff and Support Services Performance. The proposed model is derived using a directed content analysis of 83 studies; from top IS outlets, employing the characteristics of the analytic theory and consistent with formative construct development procedures.

Using accelerometer, high sample rate GPS and magnetometer data to develop a cattle movement and behaviour model

The study described in this paper developed a model of animal movement, which explicitly recognised each individual as the central unit of measure. The model was developed by learning from a real dataset that measured and calculated, for individual cows in a herd, their linear and angular positions and directional and angular speeds. Two learning algorithms were implemented: a Hidden Markov model (HMM) and a long-term prediction algorithm. It is shown that a HMM can be used to describe the animal's movement and state transition behaviour within several “stay” areas where cows remained for long periods. Model parameters were estimated for hidden behaviour states such as relocating, foraging and bedding. For cows’ movement between the “stay” areas a long-term prediction algorithm was implemented. By combining these two algorithms it was possible to develop a successful model, which achieved similar results to the animal behaviour data collected. This modelling methodology could easily be applied to interactions of other animal species.

Generic decoupled image-based visual servoing for cameras obeying the unified projection model

In this paper a generic decoupled imaged-based control scheme for calibrated cameras obeying the unified projection model is proposed. The proposed decoupled scheme is based on the surface of object projections onto the unit sphere. Such features are invariant to rotational motions. This allows the control of translational motion independently from the rotational motion. Finally, the proposed results are validated with experiments using a classical perspective camera as well as a fisheye camera mounted on a 6 dofs robot platform.

Behaviour of image degradation model in multiresolution

Multiresolution techniques are being extensively used in signal processing literature. This paper has two parts, in the first part we derive a relationship between the general degradation model (Y=BX+W) at coarse and fine resolutions. In the second part we develop a signal restoration scheme in a multiresolution framework and demonstrate through experiments that the knowledge of the relationship between the degradation model at different resolutions helps in obtaining computationally efficient restoration scheme.

Towards dynamically-favourable quad-rotor aerial robots

This paper outlines progress towards realising practical quad-rotor robot helicopters and, in particular, the Australian National University’s ‘X-4 Flyer’ platform. Two challenges facing the X-4 are generating sufficient thrust and managing unstable dynamic behaviour. We address these issues with a rotor design technique for maximising thrust and the application of a novel rotor mast configuration. An aero-elastic blade design is described and its performance results are presented. A sprung teetering rotor hub that allows adjustment of the blade flapping characteristics and a quad-rotor dynamic model with blade flapping are introduced. The use of inverted rotors is shown to produce favorable stability properties for the Mark II X-4 Flyer.

Specifying and enforcing a fine-grained information flow policy : model and experiments

In this paper we present a model for defining and enforcing a fine-grained information flow policy. We describe how the policy can be enforced on a typical computer and present experiments using the proposed model. A key feature of the model is that it allows the expression of rules which detail precisely which information elements are allowed to mix together. For example, the model allows the expression of a policy which forbids a doctor from mixing the personal medical details of the patients. The enforcement mechanisms tracks and records information flows within the system so that dynamic changes to the policy can be made with respect to information elements which may have propagated to different locations in the system.

Theory-of-Mind Continuum Model: Why Mind Matters in Philosophy, Psychology and Education

Theory-of-Mind has been defined as the ability to explain and predict human behaviour by imputing mental states, such as attention, intention, desire, emotion, perception and belief, to the self and others (Astington & Barriault, 2001). Theory-of-Mind study began with Piaget and continued through a tradition of meta-cognitive research projects (Flavell, 2004). A study by Baron-Cohen, Leslie and Frith (1985) of Theory-of-Mind abilities in atypically developing children reported major difficulties experienced by children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in imputing mental states to others. Since then, a wide range of follow-up research has been conducted to confirm these results. Traditional Theory-of-Mind research on ASD has been based on an either-or assumption that Theory-of-Mind is something one either possesses or does not. However, this approach fails to take account of how the ASD population themselves experience Theory-of-Mind. This paper suggests an alternative approach, Theory-of-Mind continuum model, to understand the Theory-of-Mind experience of people with ASD. The Theory-of-Mind continuum model will be developed through a comparison of subjective and objective aspects of mind, and phenomenal and psychological concepts of mind. This paper will demonstrate the importance of balancing qualitative and quantitative research methods in investigating the minds of people with ASD. It will enrich our theoretical understanding of Theory-of-Mind, as well as contain methodological implications for further studies in Theory-of-Mind

A decision support system for sustainable urban development : the integrated land use and transportation indexing model

Broad, early definitions of sustainable development have caused confusion and hesitation among local authorities and planning professionals. This confusion has arisen because loosely defined principles of sustainable development have been employed when setting policies and planning projects, and when gauging the efficiencies of these policies in the light of designated sustainability goals. The question of how this theory-rhetoric-practice gap can be filled is the main focus of this chapter. It examines the triple bottom line approach–one of the sustainability accounting approaches widely employed by governmental organisations–and the applicability of this approach to sustainable urban development. The chapter introduces the ‘Integrated Land Use and Transportation Indexing Model’ that incorporates triple bottom line considerations with environmental impact assessment techniques via a geographic, information systems-based decision support system. This model helps decision-makers in selecting policy options according to their economic, environmental and social impacts. Its main purpose is to provide valuable knowledge about the spatial dimensions of sustainable development, and to provide fine detail outputs on the possible impacts of urban development proposals on sustainability levels. In order to embrace sustainable urban development policy considerations, the model is sensitive to the relationship between urban form, travel patterns and socio-economic attributes. Finally, the model is useful in picturing the holistic state of urban settings in terms of their sustainability levels, and in assessing the degree of compatibility of selected scenarios with the desired sustainable urban future.

A connective model for the practice-led research exegesis : an analysis of content and structure

Since the formal recognition of practice-led research in the 1990s, many higher research degree candidates in art, design and media have submitted creative works along with an accompanying written document or ‘exegesis’ for examination. Various models for the exegesis have been proposed in university guidelines and academic texts during the past decade, and students and supervisors have experimented with its contents and structure. With a substantial number of exegeses submitted and archived, it has now become possible to move beyond proposition to empirical analysis. In this article we present the findings of a content analysis of a large, local sample of submitted exegeses. We identify the emergence of a persistent pattern in the types of content included as well as overall structure. Besides an introduction and conclusion, this pattern includes three main parts, which can be summarized as situating concepts (conceptual definitions and theories); precedents of practice (traditions and exemplars in the field); and researcher’s creative practice (the creative process, the artifacts produced and their value as research). We argue that this model combines earlier approaches to the exegesis, which oscillated between academic objectivity, by providing a contextual framework for the practice, and personal reflexivity, by providing commentary on the creative practice. But this model is more than simply a hybrid: it provides a dual orientation, which allows the researcher to both situate their creative practice within a trajectory of research and do justice to its personally invested poetics. By performing the important function of connecting the practice and creative work to a wider emergent field, the model helps to support claims for a research contribution to the field. We call it a connective model of exegesis.