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The article studied the effect of transport vehicles on the grain harvester idle time during wheat, barley and rapeseed harvesting in 6 agricultural farms. In each of the farms one grain harvester and the established harvesting organization were studied without changing the unloading mode and the specific activities performed by the harvester operators and transportation vehicles. By multifactor regression analysis the effect of time for moving the transport vehicle on the grain harvester idle time was established. In addition, the value of the determination coefficient R²=0.54 reveals that 54% of the harvester idle time for unloading the grain hopper (T1) change is due to the change of significant times and 46% to the effect of unmanageable factors. It has been established that the change in the time from opening the unloading auger to its activation depends on the position of transport vehicles on the field (t1) and the time for their movement to the harvester auger (t2). The results obtained can be used to minimize costs in the technological process of crop harvesting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper addresses the essential part of modelling primary user (PU) activity pattern in the time domain, which involved choosing the best distribution fit to represent idle and busy time. The accurate PU activity model plays a vital role in developing high-performance cognitive radio (CR) network. This work formulates the PU activity model by using the empirical data measured from wireless local area network (WLAN) testbed. The detected idle time analysed in this work in two different scenarios, then a statistical approach performed to find the best fits. The finding shows the generalised Pareto (GP) distribution as the best fit with DKS=0.266 compared to other distribution fits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To describe the development and demonstrate the use of a statistical framework based on statistical quality control (SQC) in order to monitor the performance of operating rooms (ORs).Design: Data related to scheduled surgical operations have been collected from the information system of an existing Greek hospital. The data that contain the anesthesia and operation start and completion times of the operations carried out in the 14 ORs of the hospital are analyzed using control p-charts and hypotheses testing. The results obtained provide crucial information to health-care managers.Setting: A large Greek public hospital.Participants: Real-world data captured on daily basis from January 2015 to November 2017.Intervention: The proportion of the idle time of an OR over its total available time is proposed as an OR key performance index. We present two directions of data monitoring and analysis: one that uses control p-charts and a second based on hypotheses testing. The improved Laney's p΄-chart and the Laney's approach for cross-sectional data are employed in order to overcome overdispersion that affects OR idle time data.Results: The proposed methodology allows hospital management (i) to monitor the percentage of the idle time of an operating room through time and (ii) to identify the ORs that demonstrate exceptionally high or low percentage of idle time at a given period of time.Conclusion: SQC charts are simple, yet powerful tools that may support the hospital management in monitoring OR performance and decision-making. The development of a dedicated management information system that automatically captures the required data and constructs the corresponding control charts would support effectively managerial decision-making. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents the results of a study investigating the performance of unpaced unreliable production lines (i.e. subject to breakdown) that are unbalanced in terms of their buffer storage sizes. Simulation is carried out for five, eight and 10 station lines with mean buffer space set at two, four and six units. Buffer capacity is allocated in different configurations for each of these lines. Performance indicators on throughput, idle time and average buffer level are analysed using a range of statistical tools, and relationships between the independent and dependent variables are determined. Overall results show that the best patterns for unreliable lines in terms of generating higher throughput rates (or lower idle times) as compared to a balanced line are those where total available buffer capacity is allocated as evenly as possible between workstations. In contrast, concentrating more buffer capacity towards the end of the line gives best average buffer level results. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Societal factors influencing adolescent alcohol initiation and use are not well documented in Tanzania. The goal of this qualitative study was to explore the structural and environmental factors influencing adolescent alcohol uptake and use in urban Tanzania. 177 adolescents aged 15–19 from varying socioeconomic backgrounds participated in 16 participatory groups (separated by sex and in-school/out-of-school status) at sites in four different locations in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. Participatory methods were used, including listing and ranking activities, and photovoice, exploring adolescent's perceptions around youth alcohol use, and recommendations for structural interventions to prevent or reduce adolescent alcohol uptake and use. Themes included: (1) "idle time" shapes adolescent alcohol use in urban Tanzania; (2) societal influences shape the locations where adolescents consume or purchase alcohol; and, (3) adolescents' recommendations about structural approaches for reducing their idle time and vulnerability to alcohol use. Our findings highlight the need for programs and policies aimed at reducing youth idle time as an approach to reducing alcohol use, such as increasing opportunities for employment, extracurricular activities, and entertainment, particularly for adolescent boys in urban Tanzania, given their increased vulnerability to the uptake and use of alcohol. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is dedicated to the problem of sequencing handler's moves in cluster tools in the semiconductor industry. A suboptimal sequence of the handler's moves usually leads to long idle times in the cluster tool's chambers and hence longer makespan and lower throughput. Therefore, an effective algorithm that minimises idle times in the cluster tool's chambers is required. An algorithm called MinBIT (minimising bottleneck idle time) is presented as a new method for sequencing the handler's moves. The MinBIT algorithm gives priority to the bottleneck stage, and thus leads to a reduction in unnecessary idle times and hence a shorter makespan. We compared the MinBIT algorithm with other algorithms. Our algorithm achieved best performance in 98% of the cases. In the other 2% of the cases it achieved second or third best performance. The computational results show that the MinBIT algorithm can improve the performance of a cluster tool by up to 10%. A comparison between the MinBIT solutions and the optimal solutions found by using branch and bound, shows that the deviation between them ranged between 0% and 0.22%, which indicates that MinBIT gives optimal or near optimal results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article describes a model for examining the contribution of supervisors to an organization by considering the case work they complete as a production system. The average delay in case work is referred to as the service level. At a given service level, the minimization of total wages within one hour can be studied as a cost function. With this cost function, wage spending on handled-case time and idle time can be formulated. The ratio between the handled-case time and idle time of all employees at the kth level within 1 hour is defined as the 'busy index' at the kth level. From the optimal hierarchical structure, we find the following two properties: (1) Given any two levels i and j, the ratio between the idle times of ith and jth levels is independent not only of the service level but also the rate of arriving cases; and (2) At each level, the busy indices are proportional to the square root of each level's wage rates. This implies that the busy indices decrease with the hierarchical level. Ultimately, when the wage rates at all levels are equal, the increment also becomes equal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study addresses the influence of milking duration of individual cows on the performance of conveyor-like rotary milking parlors and seeks to optimize their operation parameters and operating modes. The observational experiment was conducted in the Zhdanovsky Farm in Nizhny Novgorod Region, Russia. The dairy farm had a herd of 600 cows, divided into 10 groups by physiological characters and milk yield, and operated a 36 point milking parlor. Distribution of milking time of individual cows was studied using statistical analysis methods. The cyclogram of parlor operation and the functional connection of main parameters were analyzed using Maple analytical computing system, including its standard libraries and functions. The trends in idle time, which occurs due to undermilking of animals in one turn of the parlor, were studied. The idle time can result in overestimation of the number of stalls or decrease in the nameplate performance of the milking parlor by 30–40% from 120 to 93 cows per hour. Mathematical models, taking into account the influence of the milking time of individual animals (2 to 17 minutes) on the parameters of parlor operation, were developed. The algorithms of adaptive control over the rotational speed were proposed to minimize idle time in parlor operation and maintain the nameplate performance. The mathematical models, control algorithms and developed software can serves as a scientific basis for new designs of high-performance rotary milking parlors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The NHS is a significant contributor to the UK's greenhouse gases and environmental pollution. The current review seeks to examine the degree to which ambulance services contribute to environmental pollution and provides quality improvement suggestions that may reduce emissions, save money and improve public health. A literature search was conducted to identify the English language literature for the past 7 years related to ambulance service carbon emissions and pertinent strategies for reducing harm. An average of 31.3 kg of carbon dioxide (CO2) is produced per ambulance response in the current box-shaped ambulance design. A number of quality improvement suggestions related to cost, emissions and public health emerge. Ambulance services should consider a range of systemlevel and individual-focused interventions in order to reduce emissions, save money and promote public health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The optimum voltage and delay time were measured to measure Vt closed curve in AC type plasma display panel (AC PDP) regardless of the state of charge in a cell. When the voltages are applied to an AC PDP, the discharge occurs and the wall charges are accumulated on the electrodes of the inner cell. For the next discharge, an appropriate voltage should be applied considering the wall charges. Therefore, it is necessary to measure the discharge start voltage according to the state of the wall charge accumulated in the cell or the structure of the panel and the figure showing the potential difference among the three electrodes in terms of two horizontal and vertical axes is a Vt closed curve. In order to measure the Vt closed curve, the previous wall charges are erased by the high voltage and the remaining priming particles should be removed by the idle time. In this paper, the Vt closed curve according to the change of the erase voltage and the idle time was measured, and the optimal conditions were investigated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The functioning of passenger transport systems should provide necessary quality of passenger service. The results of this research have shown possibility to increase the quality of urban public transport via influence on the driver's state due to the rational schedule planning. The state change patterns of drivers during the idle time on the final and intermediate bus stops were formalized, based on field observations. The following conclusion was made: decreasing of driver's body stress takes place during the idle time on the route stops. The intensity of decreasing of driver's body stress is inversely proportional to the meaning of activity index of driver's regulatory systems before the start of standing time. Consequently, the duration of idle time must be differentiated depending on the value of the indicator of activity of driver's regulatory systems before the start of standing time, which is influenced by the working conditions. ECG method was used for assessing driver's fatigue in elements of transportation process. Comparative analysis of driver's state changes during the different types of idle time shows the comparability of the results of the study. Transportation management experts can use the research results in urban transport schedule planning and monitoring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]