摘要:

In the present state of the British economy, industrial innovation, although not easy, is necessary, and the paper draws attention to some of the factors which make for success in this field. Various types of change are reviewed, and the process of innovation discussed generally; it is suggested that three particular stages are crucial, namely the creation of the original idea, the capture and selection of worthwhile possibilities at the predevelopment stage, and the conversion of complete developments into successful commercial ventures. As an illustrative example, one of the early applications of large-scale digital solid-state systems to industrial control is described, and some conclusions are drawn about the climate and structure which help such innovation to succeed. Given a suitable structure, it is suggested that it is also necessary that the people involved should find it easy to work together in interdisciplinary teams, and one new way of training graduate engineers (total technology) with this in mind is outlined.

DOI:10.1049/piee.1977.0012

出版商:IEE    

年代:1977

数据来源: IET

摘要:

The optimisation of water resources systems has been the subject of several investigations throughout the world. Methods of optimisation such as linear, nonlinear and dynamic programming have been considered by many workers in the field. Dynamic programming has been one of the most widely used methods owing to its natural characteristics of being able to deal with discrete dynamic models and no limitations on the types of equations governing the system, constraints, or cost functional. Dynamic programming, although useful, has its shortcomings in the amount of storage and time consumed on a digital computer. In an attempt to use dynamic programming, several approximation schemes have been proposed. The ‘successive approximation’, ‘incremental dynamic programming’, and ‘corridoring’ are three such proposals. The primary concern of the last approach used in this study is that in each iteration a corridor is formed around a previously defined trajectory and a new trajectory is obtained by applying the discrete differential dynamic programming within the present corridor, hence reducing the computer time and memory requirements. In this paper a four-reservoir water-resources system with four power plants, two input rivers, and an irrigation area is considered. Optimum trajectories are obtained for the reservoirs' water storages and releases assuming statistical data for the rivers' inflows and evaporations. Limitations of the approximate dynamic programming solution are discussed.

DOI:10.1049/piee.1977.0013

出版商:IEE    

年代:1977

数据来源: IET

摘要:

The paper traces the development of standards of measurement from their earliest appearance in the weights and measures used in trade through scientific interest in systems of units to the complex of standards in use today. The work of the International Bureau of Weights & Measures and its associated committees in harmonising standards is discussed. The national electrical standards maintained by the National Physical Laboratory and their application in public services, health and safety, science and industry are described. Finally, some aspects of the organisation of standards in Britain and possible future developments are discussed.

DOI:10.1049/piee.1977.0014

出版商:IEE    

年代:1977

数据来源: IET