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Found 6414 publications

Examining the links between logistics outsourcing, company competitiveness and selected performances: the evidence from an emerging country

Innocent Senyo Kwasi Acquah Yaw Agyabeng-Mensah Ebenezer Afum Joseph Amponsah Owusu Essel Dacosta Charles Baah Clifford Sekyere Owusu

Publication Name: International Journal of Logistics Management

Publication Date: 2021-01-01

Volume: 32

Issue: 3

Page Range: 1068-1090

Description:

Purpose: This study examines the mediation effects of time-based competitiveness, cost-based competitiveness and customer performance between logistics outsourcing and financial performance. Design/methodology/approach: The study relied on a questionnaire as the primary data collection instrument and further employed partial least squares structural equation modelling technique to test all formulated hypotheses. Findings: The results demonstrate that logistics outsourcing has a significant positive impact on time-based competitiveness, cost-based competitiveness, customer performance and financial performance. Time-based competitiveness and cost-based competitiveness were both found to have a significant positive impact on financial performance; however, customer performance had no significant impact on financial performance. The mediation analysis further indicates that while both time-based competitiveness and cost-based competitiveness play mediation effects between logistics outsourcing and financial performance, customer performance plays no mediation effect between logistics outsourcing and financial performance. Research limitations/implications: The sampled firms for this study came from a single emerging country; hence, the results cannot be generalized or imported to reflect the results that may be obtained from other emerging geographical settings. Practical implications: The results provide sufficient evidence for managers to turn their attention to logistics outsourcing, as a transformative business initiative, to gain time-based and cost-based competitiveness so as to improve financial performance. Originality/value: The study provides significant insight and makes an additional contribution to literature in the area of logistics outsourcing, especially by collecting data from an emerging country. Modelling time-based competitiveness, cost-based competitiveness and customer performance as mediating variables between logistics outsourcing and financial performance make this work relatively different from other studies.

Open Access: Yes

DOI: 10.1108/IJLM-05-2020-0205

Performance Comparison of IP Packet Forwarding Solutions

Melinda Kosák G. Lencse

Publication Name: 2024 47th International Conference on Telecommunications and Signal Processing Tsp 2024

Publication Date: 2024-01-01

Volume: Unknown

Issue: Unknown

Page Range: 243-248

Description:

Nowadays we know several IP packet forwarding solutions, and they are getting faster and more efficient. We chose Fast Data Project / Vector Packet Processing (FD.io VPP) for our investigation, because it is regarded as an extremely high speed and secure networking data plane. In this paper, we present how to install and configure FD.io VPP and we also demonstrate its high IP packet forwarding performance compared to that of the Linux kernel. To achieve this, we built a testbed using two Dell PowerEdge R620 servers. One of the servers was the Tester and the siitperf measurement software was used for executing IPv4 and IPv6 packet forwarding performance tests. The other server was the DUT (Device Under Test), on which FD.io VPP was installed and its packet forwarding performance was measured. As a basis for comparison, we also measured the packet forwarding performance of the Linux kernel. It was found that FD.io VPP seriously outperformed the Linux kernel. The details of the measurements and their results are disclosed and analyzed in the paper.

Open Access: Yes

DOI: 10.1109/TSP63128.2024.10605773

The Legal Status of Independent Regulatory Organs and Their Place in the Hungarian State Administration

János Kálmán

Publication Name: Public Governance Administration and Finances Law Review

Publication Date: 2023-01-01

Volume: 8

Issue: 1

Page Range: 105-119

Description:

Independent regulatory organs as a type of administrative body were included among the central state administrative bodies upon the entry into force of the Fundamental Law of Hungary. The key feature of independent regulatory organs is that they also have the power to legislate within the framework of the regulatory authority’s activity; in other words, they can intervene in the relations of their administered sector through the creation of generally binding rules of conduct, which are enforced through the official activities falling within their scope of duties and powers. The characteristics of the legal status of independent regulatory organs and the components of their independence are therefore of particular importance in the system of public administration. The content and strength of their independence are not identical but are adapted to the professional content and EU and constitutional requirements of the specialised area of administration for which the Fundamental Law authorises the National Assembly to establish these bodies.

Open Access: Yes

DOI: 10.53116/pgaflr.6561

Statistical and fuzzy signature-based analysis of the aggressive attitudes of a forensic population

Dalia Susniene Daiva Žostautienė Ojaras Purvinis Laszlo T. Koczy

Publication Name: Journal of Infrastructure Policy and Development

Publication Date: 2024-01-01

Volume: 8

Issue: 8

Page Range: Unknown

Description:

Clustering technics, like k-means and its extended version, fuzzy c-means clustering (FCM) are useful tools for identifying typical behaviours based on various attitudes and responses to well-formulated questionnaires, such as among forensic populations. As more or less standard questionnaires for analyzing aggressive attitudes do exist in the literature, the application of these clustering methods seems to be rather straightforward. Especially, fuzzy clustering may lead to new recognitions, as human behaviour and communication are full of uncertainties, which often do not have a probabilistic nature. In this paper, the cluster analysis of a closed forensic (inmate) population will be presented. The goal of this study was by applying fuzzy c-means clustering to facilitate the wider possibilities of analysis of aggressive behaviour which is treated as a heterogeneous construct resulting in two main phenotypes, premeditated and impulsive aggression. Understanding motives of aggression helps reconstruct possible events, sequences of events and scenarios related to a certain crime, and ultimately, to prevent further crimes from happening.

Open Access: Yes

DOI: 10.24294/jipd.v8i8.5727

Which players will leave their community? Predicting guild abandonments in world of warcraft game data

Gergely Posfai Gabor Magyar Laszlo T. Koczy

Publication Name: Ifsa Scis 2017 Joint 17th World Congress of International Fuzzy Systems Association and 9th International Conference on Soft Computing and Intelligent Systems

Publication Date: 2017-08-30

Volume: Unknown

Issue: Unknown

Page Range: Unknown

Description:

World of Warcraft (WoW) is one of the most popular massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs) having more than 10 million subscribers over the world. In order to engage and retain users understanding and predicting their behavior can be very useful for game developers. An important component of WoW are so-called guilds, which are social communities whose members can act together efficiently to accomplish more difficult goals and also provide a social atmosphere in which the game might be more entertaining. In this paper, we build predictive models to forecast which of the players will leave their guild in the close future. Our best model uses fuzzy c-means clustering to capture groups of similar guilds, that serve as the basis of an ensemble model, which computes predictions for each cluster separately and combines individual predictions into one final prediction using the memberships of the fuzzy clusters. Empirical analysis on WoW game data shows that our methods convincingly outperform the only existing method in the literature. To ensure transparency and reproducibility we publish the source codes of the research and also provide a Docker image, which makes it possible for anyone who has Docker installed to reproduce all of our results with a single command.

Open Access: Yes

DOI: 10.1109/IFSA-SCIS.2017.8023234

The design of digital motivational systems for online education platform as a functional pre-test for future m-learning application integration

Istvan Biro

Publication Name: 2022 1st IEEE International Conference on Cognitive Aspects of Virtual Reality Cvr 2022

Publication Date: 2022-01-01

Volume: Unknown

Issue: Unknown

Page Range: 73-78

Description:

Today, VR is used in more and more fields (education, production, healthcare, banking, etc.). In connection with the spread of 3D VR, the number of developments aimed at displaying features on mobile devices has increased. The m-learning methodology and application development presented in the article aim to demonstrate the potential of digital motivation systems to expand people's psychological, cognitive, and social skills by developing a system of habits related to digital learning and content consumption. The article thus relates well to the philosophy of cognitive aspects of virtual reality (cVR). The goal of this research was to create and test a new theoretical model of online habit forming motivation system with available 3rd party tools.

Open Access: Yes

DOI: 10.1109/CVR55417.2022.9967660

Age-Specific Responses to Immersive Virtual Reality During Pediatric Venipuncture: Evidence from Routine Clinical Practice

Péter Prukner Domonkos Tinka Márta Kovács Mohammad Milad Shafaie

Publication Name: Healthcare Switzerland

Publication Date: 2026-01-01

Volume: 14

Issue: 2

Page Range: Unknown

Description:

Background/Objectives: Virtual reality (VR) is increasingly used to reduce pain during pediatric needle procedures, but its effectiveness may vary by developmental stage and gender. This study evaluated whether immersive VR reduces venipuncture pain in children and adolescents and examined parent–patient agreement and gender-specific response patterns. Methods: A prospective nonrandomized clinical study was conducted within a hospital-based pediatric venipuncture service using an alternating 1:1 allocation sequence. Participants aged 4–18 years underwent venipuncture with either VR (n = 49) or standard care (n = 29). Procedural pain was measured using the Faces Pain Scale–Revised (FPS-R) with independent parent ratings. Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) compared post-procedural FPS-R scores while adjusting for baseline pain. Exploratory age and gender-specific analyses were also performed. Results: VR led to a clear reduction in pain for children, even after adjusting for baseline scores (3.55 vs. 4.73; p = 0.003). Adolescents, however, reported similarly low pain in both groups (2.81 vs. 2.79; p = 0.60), and several mentioned that the PEGI 3 content felt too young for them, which likely limited how engaged they were. Among children, girls showed the most noticeable drop in pain, which matches the subgroup’s adjusted significance (p = 0.011). Parent–patient agreement was stronger in children (r ≈ 0.7–0.8) than in adolescents (r ≈ 0.4–0.5), and VR did not change this pattern. Most participants said they would choose VR again for future procedures. Conclusions: Immersive VR helped reduce venipuncture pain in children but had little effect in adolescents, underscoring the need for age-appropriate or more interactive VR content for older patients. Overall, these findings support using VR selectively as a distraction tool that fits the developmental needs of pediatric groups.

Open Access: Yes

DOI: 10.3390/healthcare14020173

Optimizing the geometry of a cylindrical dielectric resonator antenna (CDRA) in combination with the design of a microstrip patch antenna to improve antenna efficiency

Hussein Turki Alateewe Szilvia Nagy

Publication Name: Periodicals of Engineering and Natural Sciences

Publication Date: 2024-01-01

Volume: 12

Issue: 1

Page Range: 5-18

Description:

The primary objective of this study is to improve the efficiency of dielectric resonator antennas (DRAs) by the manipulation of their geometric and material characteristics. Two distinct cylindrical dielectric resonator antenna (DRA) with microstrip patch antenna designs chosen, and deliberate modifications implemented in a systematic manner to enhance crucial characteristics including gain, bandwidth, S-parameters, voltage standing wave ratio (VSWR), and directivity. Furthermore, an investigation was conducted to assess the efficacy of incorporating additional layers into the design of the DRA to achieve increased gain and enhanced efficiency at a frequency of 28 GHz. The research encompassed the process of collecting and designing and simulating CDRA and microstrip patch antenna antennas utilizing the CST framework. The study investigates different configurations of apertures and alterations or holes in the patch geometry to improve both the gain and efficiency. A comparative analysis between both antennas was carried out utilizing performance criteria such as S-parameters, gain, directivity, bandwidth, and VSWR and efficiency. The discourse explores the progress made in the field of technology pertaining to the improvement of gain and bandwidth. This includes the utilization of high-dielectric-constant materials, modifications in resonant frequencies, and the implementation of metamaterial (MTM) cells. The CST program is utilized for conducting realistic trials and assessments. The research highlights the advantages of CDRA antennas and microstrip patch antennas, including improved radiation efficiency, smaller size, lower profile, and lightweight design. The integration of photonic crystal layers into the design of the cylindrical dielectric resonator antenna (CDRA) was emphasized as a noteworthy enhancement, resulting in amplified gain. The significance of considering both intrinsic characteristics and external factors, such as surface Plasmon waves, in the computational modeling of DRA antennas to achieve maximum efficiency is emphasized by the research.

Open Access: Yes

DOI: 10.21533/pen.v12i1.3934.g1351

Vehicle Model for Driving Strategy Optimization of Energy Efficient Lightweight Vehicle

Péter Korös Zoltan Pusztai Ferenc Friedler

Publication Name: Chemical Engineering Transactions

Publication Date: 2021-01-01

Volume: 88

Issue: Unknown

Page Range: 385-390

Description:

The energy consumption and CO2 emission of urban vehicles are highly dependent on their operation. Vehicle models can be used for optimizing driving strategy for emission reduction. This paper proposes a novel vehicle model of a one-seat electric vehicle dedicated for Shell Eco-marathon (SEM), the most famous and largest race of energy efficient vehicles. The available vehicle dynamical formulas cannot be directly used to describe the characteristics of lightweight vehicles. In the current work, a novel grey-box vehicle model has been introduced, based on measurement scenarios. The whole model has been elaborated in MATLAB Simulink environment, where individual subassemblies were defined for driving resistance model, powertrain model, and the racetrack characteristics. The resistance force model manages the forces in straight line moving and also takes the effect of cornering into account. Based on test bench measurements the complete efficiency map of the drivetrain was created and implemented into the vehicle model. The presented vehicle model is suitable for driving strategy optimization. By optimizing this model, 7.1 % energy savings have been achieved compared to best human driven lap. Driving strategy optimization will be essential, especially for autonomous vehicles, expressing the importance of the presented results in the future.

Open Access: Yes

DOI: 10.3303/CET2188064