Purpose – The purpose of this master thesis is to gain a better understanding of how value creation can be achieved with digital solutions in the energy industry. More specifically, this research aims to increase the understanding of factors that affect customer value in form of exploring the customers’ digital wants and needs. Method – This master thesis uses a combination of exploratory and descriptive approach which is based on qualitative data gathered from semi-structured interviews with area experts and focus groups with customers. In this study three area experts and four focus groups were included. The gathered data were analyzed through an abductive analysis approach and a thematic coding. Findings – The research found three main findings that energy company’s need to take into consideration. The first is that the energy industry needs to simplify the energy concept since customers’ state that the industry is too complex at the moment. Second is that value creation can be achieved in form of a superior mobile application where customers’ have the ability to follow their consumption and can gain improved customer care. The last main finding from this study show that there may be a lot of changes in the energy industry in the future, which entails many possibilities for energy companies to improve customer value. Recommendations – The recommendations from this study is that energy companies need to address that the driving force to buy in the energy industry is that customers want to like their energy company. The energy industry must change their focus and provide marketing strategies that are appealing to the customers’ emotions. Companies in the energy industry also need to deal with the increasing digitalization that is affecting society everywhere. The development of a great mobile application will improve a lot of things for the customers such as making their consumption controllable and easier to grasp, which will make them more satisfied. It is also recommended that energy companies in Sweden unite and together make a proposition to the EU to drop the regulations on electricity charges in order to unlock energy companies’ ability to make energy subscription customer friendly. Research contribution – This master thesis contributes to the three dimensions that customer value derived from, in the energy industry digital solutions affect functional and emotional value but has low impact on social value. It also occurred that simplicity, control, better information and customers’ buy with their heart are key factors that contributes to customer value in the industry, which contributes to both theoretical and practical. Digitalization are also moving fast in the energy industry which companies need to embrace right away and take action to not fall behind. Paper type – Master thesis

I detta examensarbete granskas, utifrån ett beslutsanalytiskt perspektiv, metodologin för lärosätesrankningen Times Higher Education World University Rankings, som rangordnar universitet med avseende på deras kvalitet för utbildning, forskning, kunskapsöverföring samt internationalisering. Först konstateras att rankningen ifråga skapas utifrån åtminstone fyra olika val, nämligen val av indikatorer, val av en kumulativ fördelningsfunktion via z-skalning som normaliseringsmetod, val av a priori/fasta viktkoefficienter samt val av en additiv aggregeringsmetod. Dessa val har följder som kan ses som problematiska. Ett antal av de indikatorer som valts för att representera kvalitén hos lärosäten skulle kunna ses som mindre adekvata då de i vissa fall skulle kunna sakna ett tydligt samband till lärosäteskvalité. Det föreligger även en risk för mindre adekvata värderingar vid normaliseringsprocessen då nyttofunktionerna för indikatorerna förutsätts vara strängt växande men där denna nyttofunktion för vissa indikatorer kan ifrågasättas. Vidare föreligger en risk för fenomenet inbördes byte av ordning hos oförändrade alternativ inom rankningen vilket pekar på ett grundläggande metodproblem eftersom det innebär att den inbördes rangordningen mellan två alternativ inte bara beror på underliggande deskriptiva data och värderingen av dessa, utan även på vilka andra alternativ som ingår i rankningen. Till sist konstateras även en risk för negativa följder utifrån fenomenet icke-stödda effektiva alternativ som är en konsekvens av den kompensatoriska modell som följer av additiv aggregering. Då användaren eller granskaren av rankningen inte har tillgång till underliggande deskriptiva data kan han/hon inte bedöma om ett alternativ som han/hon i något avseende betraktar som oacceptabelt ändå rangordnas högre än ett alternativ som är acceptabelt i alla avseenden.

This thesis investigates the possibility to measure vital signs, such as heartbeat and respiratory rate, by developing a RF-front end for wireless detection. The RF-front has been developed and manufactured as a continuous wave Doppler radar receiver, which utilizes quadrature demodulation by means of a multi-port correlator together with power detectors for down conversion. This thesis has been part of an ongoing research project at Link¨opings University, to develop a sensor platform for wireless vital signs detection. This sensor platform has been broken down into two major parts, a radar RF front-end system and a back-end digital signal processing system. The back-end system consist of data acquisition- and a processing-part. It was shown that very low-frequency signals emulating vital signs can be detected, when direct frequency conversion and demodulation are performed with the multi-port detector. Due to the limitations of the instruments, 10-Hz signals were demonstrated.

The aim is to study the current theory of the causal link between technological development and tactical development. The study will investigate how the implementation of new technology affects the development of tactics through the development of theories. The work will investigate whether there is new technological development that creates new tactical possibilities and changes use of tactics, or if there is a tendency for new technologies to be adapted to existing operations and thereby leaving tactics unchanged. The study attempts to explain the connection by typing and developing an existing theory to contribute to the theory development in technology and tactics.  This investigation has explained the causal link between technology and tactics through an existing theory. The work has through the study strengthened the theory and identified another cause of causation in the technology and tactics area. The study has therefore contributed to a theory development.

The global supply and demand of energy is facing different challenges. On one hand an increasing energy demand, foremost in developing countries, and an increasing pressure on reaching climate goals changes the requirements on the design of power supply systems. This may be particularly relevant in terms of decentralized energy solutions and hybrid systems that incorporates renewable energy sources. This study exemplifies the use of multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) to evaluate different power supply alternatives for a small-scale cocoa processing plant (SSCPP), placed in Côte d´Ivoire. MCDA is an analytical approach to evaluate decision alternatives according to certain criteria, with the aim to find a preferred alternative. The function of a cocoa processing plant depends highly on its power supply. This study has been performed by first analysing the energy needs of the processing plant, which includes electricity, heating and cooling. Based on those specific energy needs different power supply alternatives have been created. In a following evaluation it has been exemplified how MCDA can be used within the energy sector to evaluate different alternatives. Within this exemplifying evaluation, following power supply solutions have been considered: power grid, power grid with back-up generator, power grid with LPG-heating (Liquified Petroleum Gas), power grid with solar energy, off-grid solar system with back-up generator and an off-grid generator with heat exchanger. The evaluation of alternatives has been made by using the three evaluation attributes: levelized cost of energy (LCOE), loss of load hours (LOLH) and carbon footprint of energy (CFOE).

Machine learning is a field within the broader concept of artificial intelligence and addresses the questions of how to build systems which learn from experience. The field is one of the oldest disciplines in computer science but has had many recent advancements due to the large amounts of data being generated. Today, machine learning together with artificial intelligence is seen as the two most rapidly growing fields within computer science. The purpose of this thesis is to explore and identify the current knowledge base of machine learning across data analytics teams, within the matrix organization Wise Inc.. This study has been performed using an exploratory case study method, based on the embedded units within the matrix organization. In this research, the units represent thirteen different cross-functional teams existing within the Wise Inc. organization. All thirteen teams are data analytics teams and performing a variety of different analytics depending on the team’s individual purpose. The analysis of embedded units has been performed within the units, but also across units. Using data collected through a qualitative questionnaire and interview, the knowledge base of machine learning could be explored and identified. Analysing the collected data, it was showed that the knowledge base across the data analytics teams in Wise Inc. is currently relatively low. Two key teams have been identified to have a very high level of knowledge. The knowledge base was examined based on participants theoretical and practical knowledge when it comes to machine learning. The aspect of machine learning usage and experience was included in the analysis and appeared to show a weak positive correlation to the overall knowledge. However, the statistical significance could not be determined. The empirical study also indicates that across teams, the level of knowledge is slightly higher than the level of experience. As a positive result, most participants appear to have a good theoretical understanding of machine learning in relation to artificial intelligence, which normally is one of the most common miss-interpretations. Even though the overall knowledge base is low, there are a few key people which stand out with a high knowledge base amongst teams. Observing the team as a whole the knowledge base is medium, but when looking at the individuals within the team there are a few key members with high expertise. These people are not working within the two teams identified with a high machine learning knowledge base but are part of other analytics teams. These people are important to identify as they can contribute with great value to the Wise Inc. organization.

Today, rather than provide parts similar to their competitors and rely on one or two automakers, successful automotive component suppliers focus heavily on innovation and collaboration with several manufacturers in a global market. In this thesis, an as-is scenario for automotive winter testing is presented. A plausible to-be scenario framed by a Functional Product Innovation (FPI) vision is discussed. This vision places an emphasis on additional knowledge and information in early design phases, such as the importance of understanding the actual use of the product and the environment where it is going to be used since these aspects need to be designed into the final product. Life cycle perspective and close cross- company collaboration in the design and development of products constitutes a basis for realizing FPI. A simulation-driven approach during the early phases to support product development decisions, by the same token, try out those solutions in numerous of what-if business scenarios, is also included in the vision. A concept enabling distributed vehicle testing is suggested with an emphasis on vehicle dynamics simulation and visualization. The main benefit of this concept is that different disciplines involved in the product development process can use the system to enhance the concurrency between activities. Control system engineers and mechanical engineers can view ongoing tests in real-time and change designs, and efficiently re- simulate and influence ongoing tests in a distributed manner. The use of dynamic simulation software during the test in real-time will give more information of the vehicle's behavior and feed the visualization application with the data needed to render the moving vehicle in a 3D environment. By using visualization aids, engineers can simultaneously see the behavior of the vehicle and regular data presented in graphs or tables, and thus perceive more information from the test. A Java based visualization application presents the test results in a rich 3D environment, thus enabling non-experts to understand the dynamic behavior of complex vehicle systems. This application will contribute to an enhanced validation of the vehicle and the ability to collaborate in a distributed real-time virtual environment. By supporting test procedures with real-time simulations and in particular 3D visualization, how the tests are conducted radically changes. The approach supports decision-making to become a more concurrent activity, as well as facilitating and enabling distributed collaborative work. Furthermore, the approach increases the opportunity to extract rich information of the vehicle and its systems, which provides a good basis for well-informed decisions. / <p>Godkänd; 2007; 20070531 (evan)</p>

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are essential for the economy in many countries, given that the majority of companies often are SMEs. The use of modern information and communication technologies provides opportunities for SMEs to act on a global market. When an SME exports products or services to a foreign country, it should acquire knowledge of both customer and cultural preferences to avoid business failures. The main purpose of the studies presented in this thesis was to investigate what the product design preferences are like in three example countries, the USA, South Korea and Germany in order to illustrate possible design preference differences among cultures. Furthermore, the studies examine how an SME can use this information for increasing export sales. Field studies were conducted in the target countries to gather information concerning design preferences and to study the information gathering process. The selected methods, questionnaires, interviews and observations used for gathering information were assumed to be well known and easily accessible for most SMEs. The presented results show both similarities and differences. Americans found "good value for the price" to be the most important factor when buying a product, while Germans preferred "long life". Koreans found aesthetic factors more important than both Americans and Germans. Furthermore, most visual characteristics were found to be similar in the three target countries, but a colourful example was found to be one of the least preferred characters by Americans and Germans, while Koreans found it considerably more preferable. In addition, approaches to gathering information about customers in a foreign culture are presented as well as design concept suggestions for two example products based on results from the field studies. / <p>Godkänd; 2007; 20070413 (ysko)</p>

Companies are currently being encountered with increasing competition in the international markets, since products are exported more easily to a variety of countries. In order to succeed in export countries, product preferences should correspond to customer needs, since similarities and differences are found concerning product attribute preferences. However, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) might not have the resources to conduct vast studies to discover what the preferences are. In order to present the SMEs with information and possible explanations of what the various preferences are, a group of respondents´ product design preferences were investigated in three example countries, the USA, South Korea and Germany. The purpose is to demonstrate how SMEs can benefit from using quantitative and qualitative methods to develop products to better suit the intended target market, by providing knowledge of applicable methods and approaches when culture-related product design preferences are studied. Furthermore, the study provides knowledge of product design preferences in the three target countries with regard to example products, with supportive material concerning general design preferences. Based on the results, it is possible to draw conclusions about what product attribute categories should be emphasized when exporting to the example countries. The studied Americans rated economic attributes, especially good value for money, significantly more important than the other target countries concerning the example products. Then again, the Koreans and Germans emphasized usability, especially safe to use, higher than the Americans for specific products. Overall, the aesthetic attributes were not considered important, although the Koreans preferred a trendy and exclusive look significantly more than the Americans. To demonstrate how the acquired knowledge can be implemented in practice, a design concept with examples of function, design, materials, colours and other visual attributes is presented. The results are presented in four papers based on the acquired material. / <p>Godkänd; 2007; 20070413 (ysko)</p>

The trend today is to produce automobiles that have exciting systems which enhance the users' driving experiences, however, the distraction potential of these systems has not fully been considered. Since there can be large differences in the driver's level of distraction caused by visual overload due to individual and cultural characteristics. Therefore, three different markets were chosen due to their distinct vehicle and driving traditions and laws; China, Sweden and United States of America (US). The aim of this thesis, from an instrumentation design point of view, is to gain a better understanding of what information, and where information should be presented, in instrument panels to achieve low levels of distraction and, hence, decrease cognitive load, increase safety and functionality. Studies undertaken in this thesis sought a user based solution. The questionnaire results showed that safety attributes were ranked before, quality, practicality, and attractiveness in automobiles. The number one concern for the Chinese market was safety features presented to them from HDD in the instrument panel, the Swedish market preferred the traditional features and placements, the US preferred safety features and those assisting in safe driving to be placed in the HUD. A high-fidelity driving simulator was used to study respondents of varied age and driving experience, of which drove through both rural and city traffic with speed limits ranging from 50 to 70 km/hour while responding to information presented in HUD, HDD, IF, and CS positions. All groups rated the HUD as a very good placement for information retrieval while driving, followed by HDD, IF, and CS respectively. The overall preferred placement was HUD as it also was the preferred position of serious failures and vehicle operation. The results from both studies showed that people wanted logical groupings of driver information placed in the vehicle so to reduce the risk of distraction. / <p>Godkänd; 2008; 20081203 (phitre)</p> / OPTIVe - Optimised system integration for safe interaction in vehicles