Decision-making in testing process performance with fuzzy data

Over the years, numerous process capability indices (PCIs) have been proposed to the manufacturing industry to provide numerical measures of process performance. Most research efforts have focused on developing and investigating PCIs that assess process capability by precise measurements of output quality. However, real observations of continuous quantities are not precise numbers; in practice, they are more or less imprecise. Since observations of continuous random variables are imprecise the values of related test statistics become imprecise. Therefore, decision rules for statistical tests have to be adapted to this situation. This article presents a set of confidence intervals that produces triangular fuzzy numbers for the estimation of C_pk index using Buckley’s approach with some modification. Additionally, a three-decision testing rule and step-by-step procedure are developed to assess process performance based on fuzzy critical values and fuzzy p-values. This concept is also illustrated with an example for testing process performance.     

Assessing process capability based on the lower confidence bound of Cpk for asymmetric tolerances

It has been proved that process capability indices provide very efficient measures of the capability of processes from many different perspectives. At the present time, the C_pk index is used more than any other index for measuring process capability. However, most existing research works for capability testing have focused on processes with symmetric tolerances, but not for asymmetric tolerances. A lower confidence bound estimates the minimum process capability, conveying critical information regarding product quality, which is essential to quality assurance. The sample size determination, which provides the sample sizes necessary to achieve a desired lower confidence bound, is directly related to the cost of the data collection plan. This paper provides explicit formulas with efficient algorithms to obtain the lower confidence bounds and sample sizes required for specified precision of the estimation on C_pk for processes with asymmetric tolerances. A Matlab computer program using a binary search method is developed. For the practitioners to use in their in-plant applications, we tabulate lower confidence bounds for some commonly used capability requirement and the sampling accuracy of C_pk for sample sizes determination. A realistic example of forging process is presented to illustrate the applicability of the proposed method.     

Fuzzy inference to assess manufacturing process capability with imprecise data

Process capability indices provide numerical measures on whether a process conforms to the defined manufacturing capability prerequisite. These have been successfully applied by companies to compete with and to lead high-profit markets by evaluating the quality and productivity performance. The loss-based process capability index C_pm, sometimes called the Taguchi index, was proposed to measure process capability, wherein the output process measurements are precise. In the present study, we develop a realistic approach that allows the consideration of imprecise output data resulting from the measurements of the products quality. A general method combining the vector of fuzzy numbers to produce the membership function of fuzzy estimator of Taguchi index is introduced for further testing process capability. With the sampling distribution for the precise estimation of C_pm, two useful fuzzy inference criteria, the critical value and the fuzzy P-value, are proposed to assess the manufacturing process capability based on C_pm. The presented methodology takes into the consideration of a certain degree of imprecision on the sample data and leads to the three-decision rule with the four quadrants decision-making plot. The fuzzy inference procedure presented to assess process capability is a natural generalization of the traditional test, when the data are precise the proposed test is reduced to a classical test with a binary decision.     

Variable sampling inspection for resubmitted lots based on process capability index Cpk for normally distributed items

In this article, a variables sampling inspection plan for resubmitted lot based on the process capability index C_pk is developed for normally distributed items with unknown mean and variance. The three plan parameters, sample size n, critical acceptance value k_a and the number of resubmissions m, are determined simultaneously by minimizing average sample number (ASN) with two conditions specified by the producer and the consumer. The advantages of the proposed resubmitted sampling plan over the variables single sampling plan are also discussed. Tables of plan parameters for selected values of acceptable quality level (AQL), limiting quality level (LQL), producer’s α-risk and consumer’s β-risk are provided and discussed with the help of an application example.     

Assessing process capability based on Bayesian approach with subsamples

Process capability indices (PCIs) have been widely used to measure the actual process information with respect to the manufacturing specifications, and become the common language for process quality between the customer and the supplier. Most of existing research works for capability testing are based on the traditional frequentist point of view and statistical properties of the estimated PCIs are derived based on the assumption of one single sample. In this paper, we consider the problem of estimating and testing process capability using Bayesian approach based on subsamples collected over time from an in-control process. The posterior probability and the credible interval for the most popular index _Cpk$C_{\mathit{pk}}$ under a non-informative prior are derived. The manufacturers can use the presented approach to perform capability testing and determine whether their processes are capable of reproducing product items satisfying customers’ stringent quality requirements when a daily-based or weekly-based production control plan is implemented for monitoring process stability.     

Capability-based quick switching sampling system for lot disposition

Various acceptance sampling schemes have been developed for quality control and assurance. In this research, two types of variables quick switching sampling (VQSS) system based on the process capability index C_pk are proposed. The VQSS is composed of two single sampling plans, one is under a normal inspection and the other is under a tightened inspection. Requirements for accepting a lot under the tightened inspection are more stringent than under the normal inspection. The concept of the VQSS system is that the sampling mechanism can adjust flexibly based on the quality history of the preceding submitted lots. A minimization model is constructed to solve the plan parameters for each type of the VQSS system under different mixes of quality levels and risk endurance levels, and several tables are prepared for references. In addition, the performance of the two types of VQSS system are compared with the single sampling plan through the operating characteristic (OC) curve and the average sample number (ASN) required for inspection. Finally, a real example from a dielectric layer coating machine is presented to show the practicality of the proposed system.     

A class of hypergraphs satisfying an inequality of Lovász

The following theorem is proved: Suppose that H = (X; E₁, E₂, …, E_m) is a hypergraph without odd cycles with n vertices and p components, such that any two edges have at most k vertices in common. If for any cycle C in H, there exist two vertices of C contained in at least two common edges of H, then Σ_i=1^m (|E_i| ? k) ≤ n ? pk.     

Some inequalities for the atom-bond connectivity index of graph operations

The atom-bond connectivity index is a useful topological index in studying the stability of alkanes and the strain energy of cycloalkanes. In this paper some inequalities for the atom-bond connectivity index of a series of graph operations are presented. We also prove our bounds are tight. As an application, the ABC indices of C₄ nanotubes and nanotori are computed.     

On Pimsner–Popa bases

In this paper, we examine bases for finite index inclusion of II₁ factors and connected inclusion of finite dimensional C ^?-algebras. These bases behave nicely with respect to basic construction towers. As applications we have studied automorphisms of the hyperfinite II₁ factor R which are ‘compatible with respect to the Jones’ tower of finite dimensional C ^?-algebras’. As a further application, in both cases we obtain a characterization, in terms of bases, of basic constructions. Finally we use these bases to describe the phenomenon of multistep basic constructions (in both the cases).     

Constrained best approximation in Hilbert space III. Applications ton-convex functions

This paper continues the study of best approximation in a Hilbert spaceX from a subsetK which is the intersection of a closed convex coneC and a closed linear variety, with special emphasis on application to then-convex functions. A subtle separation theorem is utilized to significantly extend the results in [4] and to obtain new results even for the “classical” cone of nonnegative functions. It was shown in [4] that finding best approximations inK to anyf inX can be reduced to the (generally much simpler) problem of finding best approximations to a certain perturbation off from either the coneC or a certain subconeC _F. We will show how to determine this subconeC _F, give the precise condition characterizing whenC _F=C, and apply and strengthen these general results in the practically important case whenC is the cone ofn-convex functions inL ₂ (a,b),     

Assessing the lifetime performance index of products with the exponential distribution under progressively type II right censored samples

In practice, lifetime performance index C_L is used to measure the potential and performance of a process, where L is the lower specification limit. Progressive censoring scheme is quite useful in many practical situations where budget constraints are in place or there is a demand for rapid testing. In this paper, under the assumption of exponential distribution, this study constructs a maximum likelihood estimator (MLE) of C_L based on the progressively type II right censored sample. The MLE of C_L is then utilized to develop the hypothesis testing procedure in the condition of known L. The new testing procedure can be employed by product managers to assess whether the lifetime of products (or items) adheres to the required level in the condition of known L. Finally, we give one example to illustrate the use of the testing algorithmic procedure under given significance level.     

Variables sampling plans with PPM fraction of defectives and process loss consideration

Acceptance sampling plans provide the vendor and the buyer decision rules for lot sentencing to meet their product quality needs. A problem the quality practitioners have to deal with is the determination of the critical acceptance values and inspection sample sizes that provide the desired levels of protection to both vendors and buyers. As today's modern quality improvement philosophy, reduction of variation from the target value is the guiding principle as well as reducing the fraction of defectives. The C_pm index adopts the concept of product loss, which distinguishes the product quality by setting increased penalty to products deviating from the target. In this paper, a variables sampling plan based on C_pm index is proposed to handle processes requiring very low parts per million (PPM) fraction of defectives with process loss consideration. We develop an effective method for obtaining the required sample sizes n and the critical acceptance value C₀ by solving simultaneously two nonlinear equations. Based on the designed sampling plan, the practitioners can determine the number of production items to be sampled for inspection and the corresponding critical acceptance value for lot sentencing.     

Acceptance inspection by variables when the measurements are subject to error

The situation considered is that in which measurement of the characteristic of interest is not exact but subject to appreciable error. The error is assumed to be unbiased and independent of the actual value of the characteristic measured. The population and error variances,σ ² andσ _e ² , are assumed to be such thatσ/σ _e has a known lower limit which is greater than zero. The probability distributions involved are assumed to be normal while the actual values and measurement errors each form a random sample. For suitable specified acceptable and unacceptable fractions defective, and forσ _e assumed known and unknown, this paper presents one-sided acceptance inspection criteria which are optimum in a specified sense, and which have the property that the producer’s and consumer’s risks have specified upper bounds.     

Concerning some variants of C-embedding in pointfree topology

We study three types of quotient maps of frames which are closely related to C- and C^?-quotient maps. We call them C₁-, strong C₁-, and uplifting quotient maps. C₁-quotient maps are precisely those whose induced ring homomorphisms contract maximal ideals to maximal ideals. We show that every homomorphism onto a frame is a C₁-, a strong C₁-, or an uplifting quotient map iff the frame is pseudocompact, compact, or almost compact and normal, respectively. These quotient maps are used to characterize normality and also certain weaker forms of normality in a manner akin to the characterization of normal frames as those for which every closed quotient map is a C-quotient map. Under certain conditions, we show that the Stone extension of a quotient map is C₁-, strongly C₁- or uplifting if the map has the corresponding property.     

Forwarding index of cube-connected cycles

For a given connected graph G of order v, a routing R in G is a set of v(v−1) elementary paths specified for every ordered pair of vertices in G. The vertex (resp. edge) forwarding index of G is the maximum number of paths in R passing through any vertex (resp. edge) in G. Shahrokhi and Székely [F. Shahrokhi, L.A. Székely, Constructing integral flows in symmetric networks with application to edge forwarding index problem, Discrete Applied Mathematics 108 (2001) 175-191] obtained an asymptotic formula for the edge forwarding index of n-dimensional cube-connected cycle CCC_n as . This paper determines the vertex forwarding index of CCC_n as asymptotically.     

Symmetric period solutions with prescribed minimal period for even autonomous semipositive Hamiltonian systems

We study some monotonicity and iteration inequality of the Maslov-type index i-1of linear Hamiltonian systems.As an application we prove the existence of symmetric periodic solutions with prescribed minimal period for first order nonlinear autonomous Hamiltonian systems which are semipositive,even,and superquadratic at zero and infinity.This result gives a positive answer to Rabinowitz’s minimal period conjecture in this case without strictly convex assumption.We also give a different proof of the existence of symmetric periodic solutions with prescribed minimal period for classical Hamiltonian systems which are semipositive,even,and superquadratic at zero and infinity which was proved by Fei,Kim and Wang in 2001.     

On the Lp-Theory of C0-Semigroups Associated with Second-Order Elliptic Operators, I

We study L_p-theory of second-order elliptic divergence-type operators with measurable coefficients. To this end, we introduce a new method of constructing positive C₀-semigroups on L_p associated with sesquilinear (not necessarily sectorial) forms in L₂. A precise condition ensuring that the elliptic operator is associated with a quasi-contractive C₀-semigroup on L_p is established.     

Взаимоотношение меж ду сходимостью подпоследовательно стей частных сумм числово го ряда и его суммируе мостью методами (C, α) и Абеля

Numerical series \(\mathop \Sigma \limits_{n = 0}^\infty u_n\) with partial sumss _n are studied under the assumption that a subsequence \(\left\{ {S_{n_k } } \right\}_{k = 0}^\infty\) of the partial sums is convergent. Then a sequence {η _k } is chosen, by means of which a majorant of the termsu _n is constructed. Conditions on {n _k } and {η _k } are found which imply the (C, 1)-summability of the series∑ u _n (Theorem 1). In the meanwhile, it is proved that the (C, 1)-means in Theorem 1 cannot be replaced by (C, α)-means, if 0<α<1 (Theorem 2). On the other hand, if the assumption in Theorem 1 is not satisfied, then in certain cases the series∑ u _n preserves the property of (C, 1)-summability (Theorems 4 and 5), while in other cases it is not summable even by Abel means (Theorems 3 and 6).