<p>Universities have come under increasing pressure to move further along the innovation continuum and supplement their traditional role in the conduct of basic research with more applied research activities. This trend reflects a shift in government expectations that public investments in basic research should produce a tangible economic return. However, it is not believed that conditions for success are presently in place to enable universities to maximize the returns to Canadian taxpayers. The focus of this thesis is to answer one question: How can we create a commercialization ecosystem around universities that lack such a system?</p> <p>The thesis consists of three studies that address that question from different perspectives. The first study sought an understanding of the role that technology transfer offices can play in growing a new commercialization ecosystem, with appropriate university support and in collaboration with intermediary organizations. In the second study, a value chain centered model was identified to better describe the process of commercializing university research. The model identifies two main stages of the commercialization process. The first upstream stage focuses on de-risking the opportunity, based on the characteristics inherent in an academic spin-off. The second downstream stage focuses on successful entry to the market. In the third study, we examined the role new Masters programs specializing in venture creation can play in commercializing university intellectual property. We addressed the contribution these programs can offer to support both the upstream and downstream stages within our commercialization model.</p> <p>Together, the three studies examined the current practices of commercialization in universities, identified an analytical framework for the commercialization process in universities, and finally tested the role of students in this framework. This framework leads to a deeper understanding of the commercialization process, specific to the university environment, and provides insights into how to develop a more entrepreneurial university.</p> / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

<p>Som en del i Maskiningenjörsutbildningen vid Karlstads Universitet har detta examensarbete utförts under en 15 veckors period. Uppdragsgivare är Scana Steel AB:s stålverk i Björneborg och arbetet behandlar en av deras traverser. Arbetet bestod i att lokalisera och om möjligt förinta vibrationer som uppfattas som störande i förarhytten till traversen. För att lokalisera vibrationerna har olika analyser genomförts med hjälp av SpectraPro samt Vibshape, vilket är två mjukvaror tillhörande mätutrustningen Easy Viber. Dessa två program ger oss möjlighet att se animeringar av traverskroppens rörelse och visa spektran för specifika punkter.</p><p>Analyserna visar på att förarhytten huvudsakligen rör sig vid tre olika frekvenser. Frekvenserna i hytten visar sig överensstämma med frekvenserna från det sista kuggingreppet på växellådan samt från kopplingen mellan motor och växellåda. En del resonansfenomen har tagits i beaktning.</p><p>Metoderna för att undvika att föraren känner obehagliga vibrationer är flera och skiljer sig stort i hur omfattande operationer som krävs. Det finns dock några åtgärder som smidigt kan prövas.</p><p>Föreslagna åtgärder för avhjälpning av vibrationerna innefattar bland annat frekvensstyrning, dynamisk dämpare och dämpande maskinfötter.</p> / <p>As a part of the Machine engineer-program at Karlstad University this dissertation has been in progress for 15 weeks. The principal is Scana Steel AB, a steelworks in Björneborg and the dissertation concerns one of their cranes. The task was to find sources to vibration and, if possible, eliminate the vibrations that the driver in the wheelhouse finds uncomfortable. To locate the source of the vibrations different analyses have been made with the help of SpectraPro and Vibshape, which are two softwares belonging to the measuring instrument Easy Viber. These two programs gave us the possibility to animate the movements of different components and they also gave us different spectra to analyze.</p><p>The analyses show that the wheelhouse mainly vibrates in three different frequencies. These frequencies appear to be the same as the frequencies from the last cogwheel and the coupling. When determining the frequencies we have also taken some resonance phenomena into consideration.</p><p>The methods how to avoid that the driver is uncomfortable due to the vibrations are numerous and require different sizes of operation. Some actions can, however, easily be tried without any bigger problems.</p><p>Suggested actions are among others dynamic damper, frequency control and damping machine shoes.</p>

The mobile preschools of Uppsala are buses that are provided as a complement for stationary preschools. The buses are connected to one stationary preschool that provides the necessities such as food and a place for the children to be before and after the daily trips. In Uppsala, there are five mobile preschool buses and they have been operated since 2009. For the bus to provide heat, warm food and energy for activities on the bus, there is a generator installed that runs on biodiesel. The emissions from the generator, in combination with the loud noises that it emits, are of concern for both the children and educators on the bus as well as the people around it. This has caused for alternative ways to deliver electricity to the bus. This study examines three scenarios for delivering electricity and tries to evaluate what the best option could be from different Points of view. The three scenarios are replacing the generator with either a battery, replacing the generator with electricity poles and to replace the generator with a more efficient and quieter one. When evaluating the different scenarios from an economical point of view, the study found that the electricity poles would be the best option. When evaluating the best option with respect to the children and educators, the study found that the battery would be the best option. The negative consequences for continuing to use a generator to supply electricity would be a health hazard for the children and a limitation for the educators in the freedom of choosing location for the bus to visit.

The rapid and ubiquitous spread of information technologies (IT) is creating unprecedented effects that challenge traditional fundamentals of the business world. Platform-mediated ecosystems are increasingly attracting the attention of practitioners from diverse industries, from telecommunications to video consoles, as well as academics from different fields ranging from management to economics, and information systems (IS) and innovation management. A platform-mediated ecosystem can be defined broadly as an industrial architecture with an infrastructure in the center that facilitates value co-creation among different agents (platform owners, and providers and users of complementary products) and a set of rules governing their interdependencies. The speed and the magnitude at which platforms diffuse are inspiring numerous analyses from diverse perspectives, mainly focused on drivers of success and ecosystem interdependencies in different contexts. This thesis highlights the importance of detangling the different interdependencies within platform-mediated ecosystems, while building a comprehensive approach based on the ecosystem as a whole. The wide range of platform types and their rapid evolution makes it difficult to establish a consensual categorization of platforms. A common aspect among most of them is that platform-mediated ecosystems usually present network effects that is the value of products depend on the number of peers within the ecosystem. In this sense, the number of adopters, known also as the size of the installed base, in a market has traditionally had a central importance in the literature. The platform-mediated ecosystems, however, are becoming more and more complex due to rising competition. Thus, there is a need for advancing understanding of the fundamentals of platform-mediated ecosystems and the management alternatives inherent in designing such systems which would enable a comprehensive platform approach to be built. Consequently, the main purpose of this thesis is to advance the understanding of the strategic management of platform-mediated ecosystems. Specifically, this thesis aims to unravel the ecosystem interdependencies and to identify strategic choices as a source of competitive advantage. To achieve this aim, different methodologies are applied in this thesis. Specifically, Paper I was based on a structured literature review of relevant papers in platform-mediated ecosystems for the period 2000 through 2014. The empirical analyses conducted in Papers II, III, and IV use different secondary samples from the video console ecosystem. Finally, the results in Paper V were based on a qualitative, multiple case study of global manufacturing firms implementing product-service systems (PSS) through a platform architecture. Overall, the findings within this thesis present the following main theoretical contributions. First, the thesis presents a comprehensive approach toward platform mediated ecosystems covering new ways of value creation and value capture, new governance regimes, and new agents making interdependent choices. Precisely, platform ecosystems offer unprecedented efficiencies and innovation enhancements, and the possibility of establishing rules for new role participation and interaction. Thus, the findings shed light on the fundamentals and future trends in the platform approach. Second, different ecosystem interdependencies may increase the platform adoption and performance. Specifically, the thesis highlights the importance of the positive effects from different agents in the complementary product markets. Accordingly, the findings contribute on unraveling the interdependencies within platform ecosystems. Third, platform performance can be enhanced by exploiting complementarities among strategies and regions. Precisely, the findings show significant complementarities from the joint management of different activities related to the complementary products and the platform, and from the presence in several countries. Consequently, the findings provide strategic choices as a source of competitive advantage. Finally, transformation toward global PSS may be guided by a platform approach, which may be helpful to explain the origins in building a platform ecosystem. In this respect, the findings shed light on how platform-mediated ecosystems are created. In sum, these findings have important implications for researchers in strategic management, economics, and information systems as well as managers from highly innovative industries and traditional sectors under structural transformation. This thesis concludes with the limitations that should be considered when interpreting the findings and some suggestions for future researchers. / Godkänd; 2015; 20150917 (javcen); Nedanstående person kommer att disputera för avläggande av teknologie doktorsexamen. Namn: Javier Cenamor Gómez Ämne: Entreprenörskap och innovation/Entrepreneurship and Innovation Avhandling: Managing Platform-Mediated Ecosystems: Investigating Ecosystem Interdependencies and strategic Choises Opponent: Biträdande professor Andreas Larsson, Institutionen för maskinteknik, Blekinge tekniska högskola, Karlskrona. Ordförande: Biträdande professor Vinit Parida, Avd för innovation och design, Institutionen för ekonomi, teknik och samhälle, Luleå tekniska universitet, Luleå. Tid: Tisdag 10 november, 2015 kl 13.00

Abstrakt   När ett fartyg ska anlöpa eller avgå en hamn måste det vanligtvis anlita en lots som kommer ombord för att vägleda fartyget. I Sverige genomförs ungefär 33 000 lotsningar varje år och vid majoriteten av dessa har lotsen kommit ombord fartyget genom att klättra på en lotslejdare som riggas utmed fartygssidan. Studien genomfördes i syfte att undersöka de riskfaktorer som påverkar säkerheten för lotsar och båtmän under bordningsmomentet. Studien genomfördes med en kvalitativ ansats i form av halvstrukturerade intervjuer. Resultatet visar att svenska lotsar och båtmän upplever bordningsmomentet som riskfyllt, framförallt vid sämre väderförhållanden. Lotsarna och båtmännen upplever att det är mer riskabelt för lotsen att debarkera än att embarkera eftersom lotsen har svårare att hålla koll på sin omgivning vid detta moment. Resultatet visar också att fler fartyg behöver bli bättre på att följa de riktlinjer som finns gällande bordningsarrangemang för att bordningsmomentet ska upplevas säkert bland lotsar och båtmän. / Abstract   When a vessel is to enter or leave a port, it usually needs to hire a pilot to guide the vessel. In Sweden approximately 33,000 pilotages are carried out every year, in the majority of these the pilots have boarded the ship by climbing on a pilot-ladder which have been rigged alongside the vessel's side. The study was conducted to investigate the risk factors that affect the safety of pilots and boatmen during the pilot transfer. The study was conducted with a qualitative approach in interview format. Interviews were conducted using an interview template based from previous literature in the subject. The study has been limited to Swedish pilots and boatmen. In the study, ten pilots and four boatmen participated in three Swedish pilot stations, which mainly handle different ship types and vessel sizes. In the study, the result shows that Swedish pilots and boatmen experience the pilot transfer operation as risky, especially in poorer weather conditions. The pilots and boatmen find it more risky for the pilot to disembark than to embark a vessel, as the pilots have more difficulty keeping track of their surroundings during this moment. The study shows that more vessels need to establish the international guidelines concerning pilot transfers and boarding arrangements, to ensure safe pilot transfers.

Detta arbete behandlar artificiell intelligens som beslutsmetod. Efter inledande diskussioner om de övergripande skillnaderna mellan hjärnans och datorns funktionssätt, olika utvecklingsinriktningar av artificiell intelligens samt olika metoder för att skapa artificiell intelligens identifieras strategier för hur artificiell intelligens kan användas som beslutsmetod beroende på faktorer som transparens, effektivitet samt mängden tillgänglig testdata. Exempelvis identifieras några typiska beslutssituationer där det kan antas att automatiserat beslutsfattande baserat på artificiell intelligens har stor potential, samt situationer då metoden kan antas vara mindre lämplig. Därefter analyseras teknikutvecklingen inom artificiell intelligens, både generellt och inom fyra specifika tillämpningsområden: inom autonoma fordon, inom finans, inom medicin och inom militären. Både den övergripande undersökningen av den generella teknikutvecklingen och studien av de fyra teknikområdena indikerar fortsatt mycket snabb utveckling inom området. Exempelvis visar en analys av patentdatabasen Espacenet att antalet patent inom området utvecklas i det närmaste exponentiellt. Samtidigt har det på senare tid gjorts flera tekniska genombrott, t.ex. utvecklandet av allt effektivare algoritmer genom användandet av hierarkiska strukturer med flera olika nivåer av ickelinjär informationsbearbetning, något som ofta benämns Deep Learning. Ett exempel är den metod för artificiell intelligens som utvecklas av DeepMind, som visat sig vara tillämpningsbar inom många olika områden, från att spela klassiska datorspel som Space Invaders och Breakout på en övermänsklig nivå till att göra betydande effektiviseringar i driften av Googles datorhallar. Även ur ett hårdvaruperspektiv är utvecklingen närmast exponentiell, driven av kontinuerliga framsteg inom tillverkningsprocesser samtidigt som det nyligen gjorts betydande framsteg med specialiserade kretsar för artificiell intelligens, något som sannolikt kommer att resultera i ännu snabbare utveckling av kraftfullare artificiell intelligens inom en nära framtid. Med hänsyn till teknikens effektivitet och den mycket snabba utvecklingen inom området diskuteras även några specifika frågeställningar som ofta nämns i diskussionen om artificiell intelligens, dess påverkan på arbetsmarknaden och den globala säkerhetsbalansen, för att baserat på detta sedan diskutera artificiell intelligens som beslutsmetod även i ett vidare perspektiv.

Flight and drop tests of the Martin 270 (M270) seaplane were conducted in 1955. Theoretical and empirical pressures were determined by use of Wagner’s theory and also by the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR). The pressure results from the experimental tests on the hull were compared with pressures calculated from Wagner’s theory to determine how well the theory correlated with the measured pressures. The experimental pressure data was also compared with the CFR results to determine how the current industry standard of estimating impact loads compares with actual pressures a seaplane is subjected to. Using the structural design and geometry of the M270 the seaplane hull was modeled in Maestro with a coarse mesh finite element model. The pressures from Wagner’s theory and the CFR were applied to the model of the M270 hull. The structural reactions of the drop test section were compared with the reactions determined from Maestro.

No description available.

Subsea pipelines are used extensively throughout the world’s oceans to transport oil and gas from offshore facilities to land, often hundreds of miles. These pipelines range in diameter from three to sixty inches and are installed in deeper depths every year, currently as deep as 2,900 meters. Pipeline construction and installation costs are a large percentage of offshore projects and thus, methods toward reducing costs is an imperative objective. With pipeline installation projects taking place in harsher environments, vessel operability is vital. This work presents an improved method for determining limiting criteria for pipelay operations to more effectively plan and execute offshore projects. This improvement is based on the consideration of total effective pipeline stresses as the limiting criterion rather than the traditionally used limiting pitch angle. Limiting sea curves based on a sample dynamic pipeline analysis are shown and their incorporation in workability planning is discussed.

There is an ongoing interest in analyzing the flow characteristics of swimming fish. Biology has resulted in some very efficient motions and formulating these motions is of interest to engineers. One such theory was written by Dr. William Vorus and Dr. Brandon Taravella involving ideal efficiency. It is therefore interesting to test the calculations to see if it is possible to design a motion that can create thrust without necessarily creating vorticity. The computational fluid dynamics software of ANSYS Fluent was used to calculate the resulting flow field of the eel motion to compare with the theoretical values.