Browsing by Subject "conceptual"
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Item Material and processes selection in conceptual design(Texas A&M University, 2005-02-17) Krishnakumar, KarthikeyanMaterials and manufacturing processes are an integral part of the design of a product. The need to combine materials and manufacturing processes selection during the early stages of the design has previously been realized. The work that generally attracts the most attention is by M.F. Ashby. This methodology, like others, concentrates on materials and manufacturing processes selection after the conceptual design is completed and before moving into embodiment design. The disadvantage of waiting until the conceptual design is completed to address materials and manufacturing processes is that the designer cannot search for conceptual solutions when dealing with issues relating to the materials and manufacturing processes domains. By not considering these issues early on in the design process, the scope for innovation is reduced and this results in the designer being fixated on the configuration at hand. It is well recognized that this is not the best way to address a design challenge and an even worse approach to innovation. The basic framework for which enhancements and improvements are suggested is the design methodology practiced and taught by the members of the Institute for Innovation and Design in Engineering (IIDE) at Texas A&M University. Conceptual design is very much a part of the IIDE design process; but the current format concentrates on functional parameters and how to search for conceptual solutions for these, and does not highlight materials and manufacturing issues in the preliminary design stages where it could be most helpful. The work documented in this thesis is an attempt to ensure that there is no disconnect between function oriented design and the materials and manufacturing processes that are applicable to that design. The core of the thesis is to incorporate a thought process which will help the designer during conceptual design phase to: 1. Consciously question if there materials and manufacturing issues; 2. Identify critical parameters in both of these domains; and 3. Search for conceptual solutions to these identified critical parameters.Item The conceptual and operational definition of quality of life: a systematic review of the literature(Texas A&M University, 2005-11-01) Church, Marvel ClarkQuality of life (QOL) has been chosen as an outcome measure by various agencies of the United States federal government and has been employed to an increasing extent by healthcare researchers when evaluating various courses of treatment or health promotion interventions. In light of the increasing ubiquitousness of QOL, one can conclude there exists a commonly employed and accepted conceptual understanding of its meaning. A systematic review of the literature focusing on quality of life published between January 1990 and January 2004 was conducted in an effort to discover this definition. Based on inclusion and exclusion criteria outlined in the study, a population of 503 articles was identified for potential inclusion. From this population a random sample of 50 articles was selected for further review, with an emphasis placed on the conceptual and operational definitions of quality of life employed in the various studies. Twenty of the articles contained some conceptual discussion of quality of life and 38 contained some operational discussion. Although many articles contained some discussion of the term, little agreement with regard to its meaning and measurement was found. The only acknowledged fact in the majority of the articles concerns the subjective, multi-faceted nature of quality of life and its inherent measurement difficulties. As a result of this work, and because of this lack of cohesion in the understanding of the conceptual issues involved, the following conceptual definition has been proposed. Quality of life is a measure of an individual??s ability to function physically, emotionally and socially within his/her environment at a level consistent with his/her own expectations.