2019 GMC Sierra MultiPro Tailgate

Tailgate GMAC 2019.139

The 2019 Sierra debuts a GMC exclusive, industry-first MultiPro Tailgate featuring six unique functions and positions, offering enhanced second-tier loading and load-stop solutions, a standing workstation mode, and easier access to items in the box.

To view the new functionality of this innovative tailgate, visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QlVR6b27dEc

TRIZ Application:  By using just Principles 1 Segmentation, 7 Nesting, and 15 Dynamization, GMAC was able to develop one of the most beneficial improvements to the simple one-dimensional truck tailgate.

Top 10 Technologies to Watch in 2020   

by Peter Fretty                                                                                 IWeek.141

DEC 04, 2019

We live in an age where new technologies hit the market almost daily. The question is, will manufacturers find meaningful applications for the latest advances? As technologies mature, here are ten we see with the most promise for the year ahead.


5G Network (1)1 5G Network.122

As manufacturers continue to embrace mobile technologies, 5G provides stability and speed needed to wirelessly process growing data sets common in today's production environments. 5G is crucial as manufacturers close the last-mile gap to connect the entire array of devices to the IIoT.

 

 

Drones (2)2.Drones123

From the ability to make just-in-time component deliveries to potentially fueling AI engines with operations observations, drones represent a significant opportunity to optimize production environments.

 

 

 

Wearables (3)3 Wearables124

From monitoring employee health to providing augmented training and application assistance, a growing array of wearable form factors represent an intriguing opportunity for manufacturing to put a host of other technologies in action, including AI, ML, virtual reality, and augmented reality.

 

 

 

 

3D Printing and Additive Manufacturing (4)3 D or Additive.125

The rise of the experience economy is ushering in the need for mass customization. The ongoing maturity of 3D printing and additive manufacturing are answering the call with the ability to leverage an ever-growing list of new materials. Continued software developments are simplifying the process, limiting the need for post-printing tasks.

 

 

 

 

 Edge computing (5)4 Edge Computing.126

As production equipment continues to advance, always waiting for data to move across the network before taking action is no longer a reality. Edge computing puts vital processing power where it is needed, only transmitting vital information back through the network.

 

 

 

 

Blockchain (6)5 Block Chain.127

As an inherently secure technology, the manufacturing-centric use cases for blockchain include auditable supply chain optimization, improved product trust, better maintenance tracking, IIoT device verification, and the reduction of systematic failures.

 

 

 

Quantum computing (7)7 Quantum Computing.128

According to the recent IBM report, "Exploring quantum computing use cases for manufacturing," quantum computing's entry into the manufacturing realm allows companies to solve problems impossible to address with conventional computers. Potential benefits include the ability to discover, design and develop materials with more advantageous strength-to-weight ratios, batteries that offer significantly higher energy densities as well as more efficient synthetic and catalytic processes that could help with energy generation and carbon capture.

 

 

 

Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) (8)8 Internet of Things.129

In a data-fueled environment, IIoT provides the means to gather data in near real-time from seamlessly connected devices. The infusion of other technologies on this list (edge computing, 5G, AI/ML) continue to expand IIoT's reach and potential to collect and leverage all available data.

 

 

 

Robotics and Automation (9)9 Robotics.130

The increasingly collaborative nature of today's robots is refining how manufacturers maximize automated environments—often leveraging cobots to handle difficult yet repetitive tasks. The potential to collaborate intensifies as the AI/ML penetrate this space.

 

 

 

 

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine learning (ML) (10)10 Artificial Intelligence.131

AI and more specifically ML, empower manufacturers to benefit from data-based insights specific to their individualized operations. Advancing the evolution from preventative to predictive maintenance is just the beginning. AI fuels opportunities within generative design, enhanced robotic collaboration and improved market understanding.

 

 

 ********************************************************************************************

UV Sterilization: Far-UVC light kills airborne flu viruses without danger to humans

The use of overhead far-ultraviolet C light in public spaces could provide a powerful check on seasonal influenza epidemics, as well as influenza pandemics.

John Wallace   Apr 1st, 2018

Continuous low doses of far-ultraviolet C (far-UVC) light can kill airborne flu viruses without harming human tissues, according to a new study at the Center for Radiological Research at Columbia University Irving Medical Center (New York, NY).1 The findings suggest that use of overhead far-UVC light in hospitals, doctors’ offices, schools, airports, airplanes, and other public spaces could provide a powerful check on seasonal influenza epidemics, as well as influenza pandemics.

Scientists have known for decades that broad-spectrum UVC light, which has a wavelength between 200 and 400 nm, is highly effective at killing bacteria and viruses by destroying the molecular bonds that hold their DNA together. This conventional UV light is routinely used to decontaminate surgical equipment. “Unfortunately, conventional germicidal UV light is also a human health hazard and can lead to skin cancer and cataracts, which prevents its use in public spaces,” says study leader David Brenner.

Several years ago, Brenner and his colleagues hypothesized that far-UVC could kill microbes without damaging healthy tissue. “Far-UVC light has a very limited range and cannot penetrate through the outer dead-cell layer of human skin or the tear layer in the eye, so it’s not a human health hazard. But because viruses and bacteria are much smaller than human cells, far-UVC light can reach their DNA and kill them,” Brenner said.

Excimer lamp sources207 nmUV light rl.688

Brenner and his group use filtered excimer lamps emitting in the 207–222 nm wavelength range (see figure). For example, 207 nm light is emitted by a krypton-bromine excimer lamp, while 222 nm is emitted by a krypton-chlorine excimer lamp. Brenner’s group started with the 207 nm lamp, publishing results on sterilization of bacteria in 20132—in 2017, the results at 222 nm for bacteria were reported.3

Antiviral effectiveness of 222 nm far-UVC light produced by an excimer lamp (inset) is shown in terms of fractional survival as a function of dose; the means and standard deviation for each treatment are shown in blue.

The latest study showed that far-UVC at 222 nm inactivates more than 95% of airborne aerosolized H1N1 influenza viruses at a low dose of 2 mJ/cm2. Because light at wavelengths from 207 to 222 nm is wholly absorbed by the dead outer layer of skin and by the outer tear layer of the eye, these wavelengths are safe for humans (unlike the commonly used 254 nm germicidal wavelength that can cause skin cancers, including deadly melanoma).

As a result, continuous, very low-dose-rate far-UVC light could be integrated into overhead lamps for hospitals, schools, airports, and so on—potentially drastically reducing influenza. As a bonus, UVC light could prevent the spread of airborne microbial diseases such as tuberculosis.

207 nmUV light.688While the use of UV germicidal irradiation to kill germs is not new, the use of conventional (not far) UVC requires some way of greatly limiting peoples’ light exposure, such as the addition of louvers to prevent direct exposure to UV. These setups intrinsically are more limited in their usefulness, as they don’t irradiate the entire room. In contrast, the use of low-level far-UVC fixtures safely irradiate areas full of humans and their clouds of viruses.

At a price of less than $1000 per lamp, a cost that would likely decrease if the lamps were mass-produced, far-UVC lights are relatively inexpensive. “And unlike flu vaccines, far-UVC is likely to be effective against all airborne microbes, even newly emerging strains,” Brenner says.

REFERENCES

1. D. Welch et al., Sci. Rep. (2018); doi:10.1038/s41598-018-21058-w.

2. M. Buonanno et al., PLOS One (2013); see https://goo.gl/MqJT5V.

3. M. Buonanno et al., Radiat. Res. (2017); see https://doi.org/10.1667/rr0010cc.1.

Bloomberg Innovation Index -2020

Germany Breaks Korea’s Six-Year Streak as Most Innovative Nation

By Michelle Jamrisko and Wei Lu

January 18, 2020, 2:15 AM EST

  • Singapore leaps into third place in annual Bloomberg index
  • The U.S. falls a notch while China moves up a spot, narrowing the gap
  • Germany took first place in the 2020 Bloomberg Innovation Index, breaking South Korea’s six-year winning streak, while the U.S. fell one notch to No. 9.
  • Singapore’s leap into the third-place ranking returns it to its post from two years ago.

The annual Bloomberg Innovation Index, in its eighth year, analyzes dozens of criteria using seven metrics, including research and development spending, manufacturing capability, and concentration of high-tech public companies.

Innovation 2020.634

The ranking shed light on the ability of economies to innovate, a key theme at the annual World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, taking place Jan. 21-24.

In the Bloomberg Index, Germany scored three top-five rankings in value-added manufacturing, high-tech density, and patent activity. South Korea lost its crown in part due to a relative slump in productivity, falling to No. 29 from last year’s No. 18 ranking in that category.

“The manufacturing sector is still highly competitive and a source for innovation,” Carsten Brzeski, chief economist at ING Germany, said in an email. “Germany’s performance in such indicators is still strong and much better than the recent economic weakness would suggest.”

Still, Brzeski cited several reasons why Germany shouldn’t be complacent about its innovation standing. Its services innovation is much less impressive, and about a third of research and development spending is in the auto industry, meaning “disruption and longer weakness of this sector could weigh on Germany’s innovative strength,” he said.

Germany’s status as a manufacturing giant has been built on the car-making industry, but pollution concerns, trade conflicts, and slowing economies have weighed on demand.

Education Worries

Lack of innovation around tertiary education in Germany is an “increasing worry,” Brzeski added, especially as the global economy shifts more toward services and away from manufacturing. “The German government would be well advised to use the ongoing fiscal surplus to invest and safeguard Germany’s role as an innovator.”

South Korea’s narrow loss is hardly a reason to anticipate a crumbling in its innovative prowess. R&D spending “determines life or death for South Korean companies,” with tech-oriented heavyweights like Samsung Electronics Co.LG Electronics Inc., and Hyundai Motor Co. leading the economy, said Chang Suk-Gwon, a business management professor at Seoul’s Hanyang University.

“We don’t have any other natural resources -- we only have our brains to turn to,” said Chang. “The expression that’s often bandied about in South Korea is the ‘super gap.’ It’s about widening whatever lead South Korea has -- or else China will catch up.”

Singapore’s rise to third place overall, from sixth last year, was aided by productivity and value-added manufacturing gains, while it retains a best-in-world ranking for tertiary-education efficiency.

Less Rosy

The news is less rosy for the top advanced economies. The U.S., which was No. 1 when the Bloomberg index debuted in 2013, fell one spot to No. 9 since last year’s ranking. Japan dropped to No. 12, down three spots for the same-sized decline in last year’s index.

The world’s second-biggest economy, China, edged higher by one spot to No. 15. It held onto a second-place ranking on patent activity and broke into the top five for tertiary efficiency.

China’s strong performance probably shows that it was “busy building up and readying for a prolonged trade war and thus urgently needed to do a lot of in-sourcing, and getting up the value chain of manufacturing,” said Francis Tan, investment strategist at UOB Private Bank CIO Office in Singapore. China has President Donald Trump “to thank for accelerating their plans.”

The U.S. can at least celebrate holding onto world-beating performances in two categories: high-tech density and patent activity. Among the 20 exchange-traded companies with the highest research and development expenditures in their most-recent fiscal years, half were from the U.S., led by Amazon.com Inc.Alphabet Inc., and Microsoft Corp. Germany was second with four: Volkswagen AGDaimler AGSiemens AG, and Bayer AG.

What Our Economists Say

“Innovation is a critical driver of growth and prosperity. China’s move up the rankings, and the U.S. drop, is a reminder that without investment in education and research, trade tariffs aren’t going to maintain America’s economic edge.”

--Tom Orlik, Bloomberg Economics chief economist

Big winners among 2020s ranked economies were led by Slovenia, which gained ten spots to No. 21 on the back of a 34-tier improvement in patent activity. Chile climbed seven spots to No. 51, not losing ground in any category and making particular strides in tertiary efficiency.

Alternatively, the biggest loser in this year’s index was New Zealand, falling five spots to No. 29 amid a slide in value-added manufacturing performance.

Four economies entered the Innovation Index for the first time: Algeria -- which made an especially strong debut at No. 49 -- as well as Egypt, Kazakhstan, and Macao.

The 2020 ranking process began with more than 200 economies. Each was scored on a 0-100 scale based on seven equally weighted categories. Nations that didn’t report data for at least six categories were eliminated, trimming the total list to 105. Bloomberg publishes the top 60 economies.

Bloomberg terminal users can see additional data here:

For a summary table

PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT JUN 29, 2018   SHARE

How China is Doing Science -- Inventing the future in Chinese labs.

Richard P. Suttmeier, Professor Emeritus of Political Science, University of Oregon

Genetic engineering, the search for dark matter, quantum computing and communications, artificial intelligence, brain science – the list of potentially disruptive research goes on. Each has significant implications for future industries, defense technologies and ethical understandings of what it means to be human.

And, increasingly, the notable achievements in these fields are coming not from the great centers of science in the West, but Beijing, Shanghai, Hefei, Shenzhen and some other Chinese cities that make up China’s extensive research system. Inevitably, the question arises: How much of the future is being invented in Chinese labs?

The current trade negotiations between China and the United States have brought China’s rapidly developing technological capabilities into clearer focus. As China aims to achieve leadership in emerging key technologies, the U.S. is quick to attribute much of Chinese progress to the theft of American intellectual property and forced technology transfers. But, as someone who has followed China’s scientific development for years, I’ve seen dramatic improvements in China’s internal innovative capacity, along with the science base needed for success in the knowledge-intensive industries it seeks to master.

In its quest for scientific achievement, China’s research and development spending have snowballed over the past two decades. It’s now second only to the United States. China has become a leading contributor to the world’s science and engineering literature, with Chinese papers in selected fields attracting an increasing number of citations.

Generous government science budgets have allowed China to build world-class facilities in some fields. And China is home to one of the world’s largest research communities, now enriched by high-quality domestic university programs as well as scientists returning from abroad with advanced degrees from the world’s leading universities.

But how is the enterprise of science in China organized? Who sets the priorities? And are its mechanisms of governance suitable for sustained progress?

Chinese Science, By Sector

In contrast to the U.S., where basic research is concentrated in universities, where there are strong traditions of corporate R&D and where research in government labs supports the missions of government agencies, the institutional arrangements for science in China reflect a different design.

Though each has been extensively reformed, Chinese science today is still largely conducted in five institutional sectors. The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), a legacy institution from the 1950s, oversees some 120 institutes – including China’s “big science” facilities – and three institutions of higher education. Following a series of reforms over the past two decades, scientists in many of its labs now engage in world-class research across a range of disciplines, including quantum physics, mathematics, and neuroscience.

Universities comprise the second institutional system, with the top schools competing with CAS for talent and prestige. The university-based research was not emphasized in the pre-reform era. But over the past two decades, China’s top universities have emerged as important centers of basic and applied research, while also promoting a culture supportive of high-tech entrepreneurship.

China’s industrial enterprises constitute the third institutional sector. Two of the most significant changes over the past two decades has been the growth of company-based R&D, especially in information and communications technology fields, and the emergence of non-state-owned, market-oriented high tech firms. R&D expenditures in the enterprise sector now amount to roughly 80 percent of the nation’s total.

Government research institutes under civilian ministries – such as those for agriculture, public health, environmental protection, natural resources and so on – constitute the fourth system.

Finally, research and development in support of the military constitute a fifth sector, one which remains largely opaque. In cooperation with civilian sectors, and guided by civil-military integration policies, it’s producing increasingly sophisticated national defense systems.

In the last few years, the Chinese government has introduced policies to encourage collaborative research across these sectors. In particular, China has established national laboratories and other significant new national research centers, inspired by the national lab experience in the U.S. and other countries. These new institutions – cross-disciplinary and problem-focused by design – are engaged in world-class research of international interest. For example, the University of Science and Technology in Hefei is home to a leading facility for quantum physics and quantum information.

The government has also sponsored the establishment of major government-owned national research centers within leading Chinese companies. For instance, iFlytek, a leader in voice recognition technologies, hosts one on human-machine interactions. China National Offshore Oil Corporation hosts another on natural gas hydrates.

Encouraging Policy from the Top

In contrast to the current U.S. administration, which has yet to define a clear policy for science and technology, China’s quest for global scientific leadership is driven by its top political leaders who see China’s future wealth and power is derived from its research and innovation capabilities.

Chinese science policy, as a result, is characterized by a strong emphasis on national needs as defined by a top-down design process. At the national government level, funding for research has become more centralized. It’s now channeled through programs, or “platforms,” administered by the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST). These do permit “bottom-up” investigator-initiated proposals, and efforts are being made to strengthen professional reviews and assessments of research projects. Nevertheless, the funding system is still characterized by strong state direction.

The themes of national science policy are also found in the initiatives of local governments, many of which have become major funders of R&D and partners in building the country’s new research facilities.

The emphasis on national needs had, until recently, biased the nation’s research away from basic science. Chinese policymakers, however, have come to realize that leadership in science-based industries requires basic research conducted at international frontier levels. As a result, financial support for basic research is increasing.

But, a controversial administrative reorganization in March of this year changed the status of China’s key agency for supporting basic science, the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC). No longer an independent agency under China’s State Council, NSFC is now an entity under the broad administrative direction of the Ministry of Science and Technology.

The NSFC had been seen as a pioneer in promoting a culture of basic science through the support of original investigator-driven, peer-reviewed research. Members of the scientific community now fear that NSFC operations will succumb to the more applications-oriented, bureaucratic procedures of its new home ministry.

Socialist Science

China’s aspirations for scientific distinction and its aggressive science policy in support of those aspirations is occurring in a political environment that’s quite different from that of other countries with strong traditions of science.

The differences have come into sharper focus under the leadership of President and Party Chairman Xi Jinping. While Xi has redoubled political support for science, he has also altered the political climate by insisting on more demanding ideological commitments from the academic community to his worldview. By strengthening the role of the Communist Party in research institutions and universities, by harnessing China’s technological progress to the development of a surveillance state, and by leaving little room for privacy and dissent, Xi will achieve his goals.

Combined with China’s long tradition of bureaucratic rule, these initiatives set the models of science-state relations, and Chinese scientific development more generally, apart. Other leading nations in science have political systems based on law and the protection of human rights, on free and open communications and on civil society traditions, which permit the autonomous operation of professional societies.

The Chinese model, arguably, has been quite successful in producing rapid development over the past 30 years of scientific and technological “catch-up.” China has certainly caught up in selected fields and, in some, is advancing the frontier. But, whether this model of science-state relations is suitable, over time, for the kinds of original innovation and creative scientific breakthroughs envisioned by the leadership – and for managing the complex ethical issues arising from new technologies – are among the more intriguing questions about China’s future.

Is anti--virus a Necessary Evil? 
Using TRIZ Ideality and Contradictions to find out what is Necessary and what is Evil.
By- Umakant Mishra, Bangalore, India   This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., http://umakant.trizsite.tk  
 
Contents
1. Anti-Virus Programs: a Background..................................................................1
2. Using Ideality to determine what is desirable....................................................2
3. The undesirable functions of an anti-virus program..........................................3
4. Using contradictions to differentiate what is Useful and what is Evil.................4
4.1 The problem of selection and procurement.................................................4
4.2 Problem of Anti-Virus renewal.....................................................................4
4.3 Problem of updating Virus Database...........................................................5
4.4 Problem of Scanning Time..........................................................................5
4.5 Problem of system performance..................................................................6
4.6 Problem of false positives............................................................................6
5. Summary and Conclusion.................................................................................6
Reference: ............................................................................................................7 
1. Anti-Virus Programs: a Background 
While everybody is becoming more and more dependent on computers there are some unscrupulous people who continuously try to misuse the technology and get illegal and illegitimate benefit out of this sophisticated environment. Today the Internet is like a busy street or open market place where you find almost everything you want. As there are some obvious risks when you stand or move in a busy street such as you are likely to be pick pocketed or cheated or even knocked out by a rash driving vehicle. Similar threats loom over the head of a user when he is exposed to the Internet. There are viruses, malware, spyware, spam, hackers and other malefic forces who not only damage the computer system of innocent computer users but also do more dangerous things like stealing their confidential data or stealing their identity to make bank transactions on their behalf.  
An anti-virus program is generally considered as a remedy to all the above problems. The anti-virus program (including anti-spyware, internet guard etc.) not only detects the malware in your system but also guards the computer system from external attacks while you are surfing the Internet. It is supposed to detect if a spyware is stealing your passwords or a hacker is making an inward connection to squeeze your PC. But is the current age anti-virus program really giving a remedy to all these problems? Many people think that an anti-virus program along with its siblings like anti-spyware, antiadware, internet guard etc. create a lot of burden on the user. While the computer users cannot afford to avoid using anti-virus programs most user fell it as a necessary evil.  
2. Using Ideality to determine what is desirable 
According to the concept of Ideality, the best anti-virus is “no anti-virus” or a “virus free environment where there is no need of any anti-virus”. However, for many practical reasons the above Ideal Final Result (IFR) is not possible to achieve in the present circumstances. When the ultimate IFR is not possible to achieve the problem solver has to take a step backward and consider a lower level IFR1. The best solution is that which is closest to the Ideal solution. The best solution is that which fulfils all the desirable functions of an anti-virus program without having any of its drawbacks.   
The desired solution from different prospective From users’ perspective From a practical perspective The computer should never get infected (no need of purchasing, installing or maintaining any anti-virus software) The computer should never get infected after using some kind of protection like installing an anti-virus product. The user should not spend money on buying anti-virus products nor waste time and energy on installing and maintaining those products.  The anti-virus product should be free or at least cheap and should be extremely easy to install and maintain.  The user should not waste valuable system resources for running anti-virus that could have been used for other purposes to increase productivity. The anti-virus should run fast and consume minimum system resources. 
 
                                            1 Umakant Mishra, Using TRIZ for Anti-Virus Development, Chapter-6: “Using Ideality to find the Ideal anti-virus solution”. 
 
 
 
As a “no virus environment” is practically not possible, using an anti-virus is the most accepted solution in the current scenario despite of its various drawbacks.  
3. The undesirable functions of an anti-virus program 
Any system is built to achieve its Main Useful Functions (MUF). The concept of Ideality in TRIZ helps us to determine what are the useful (or desired) functions of a system and what are the harmful (or unwanted) functions. If we apply that concept on an anti-virus system we can find the actual anti-virus requirements of an end-user and how much of it he is getting from an anti-virus program.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
A user gets an anti-virus program with a view to get rid of one type of problem, i.e., virus infection. But unfortunately after installing the anti-virus he gets into more and more problems of different types. The problem begins at the time of searching for a good anti-virus and continues throughout the life afterwards during scanning, updating, upgrading, renewing, reinstalling etc.  
 
The concept of Ideality tells us that the Ideal anti-virus system should consist of all useful functions and should be void of any harmful functions. But this feature of ideality is not easy to achieve. While improving the anti-virus system in this direction we come across various different contradictions. When we try improving one part (or aspect or functionality) of the anti-virus system it results in worsening another part (or aspect or functionality) of the system. These situations are called contradictions. Defining the contradictions help us clearly visualize what is desirable and what is not desirable in a system2.   
 
We will not discuss the drawbacks and limitations of anti-virus systems as we have discussed it earlier in separate articles3. We will just illustrate a few contradictions solving which can eliminate the evilness of an anti-virus program. 
                                            2 Refer to other articles on “contradictions” in the reference.  3 Umakant Mishra, Methods of virus detection and their limitations, TRIZsite Journal, Feb 2007 
 
Unwanted Functions 
Useful functions of Anti-virus program 
The Anti-Virus System 
 
 
Is Anti-Virus a Necessary Evil, by Umakant Mishra   http://umakant.trizsite.tk 
 
4. Using contradictions to differentiate what is Useful 
and what is Evil 
Contradictions are conflicting situations in a system where improving one parameter of the system affects another parameter of the system which results in a deadlock situation. For example, “scanning all types of viruses requires a lot of system resources thereby makes a system slow.” In this example, “scanning” is desirable but “affecting system performance” is undesirable.  
 
Before solving a problem it is important to define a problem. Formulating the right contradiction defines the exact nature or technicality of the problem and helps to solve the problem in the right way. The following are some of the problems faced by users presented in the form of contradictions. These contradictions clearly differentiate as what is desirable and what is undesirable in an anti-virus system. 
4.1 The problem of selection and procurement 
Selection and procurement of the right anti-virus product is a difficult job for an ordinary computer user. The user has to compare various aspects of the product like the price of the anti-virus, renewal costs, user friendliness, performance, reliability, load on computer resources etc. An ordinary user cannot be sufficiently knowledgeable to evaluate various aspects of an anti-virus software in order to choose the right product. 
 
The common user wants to install an anti-virus program that is best in its performance but cheapest in price. But choosing the best antivirus is not easy even for an experienced technocrat. Even specialized organizations engage full time professionals for doing anti-virus evaluations. The common user wants to use the best anti-virus but does not want to spend time on evaluating anti-virus products. 
 
4.2 Problem of Anti-Virus renewal 
Even if a person buys an anti-virus product his difficulties are not over. In order to ensure continuity of anti-virus service, the current day anti-virus venders renew the product by automatically taking money from the credit card numbers given by the customers. Although the problem of forgetting about renewing of the antivirus is solved, this mechanism leads to other problems as below. 
 
 
 
Is Anti-Virus a Necessary Evil, by Umakant Mishra   http://umakant.trizsite.tk 
 
If the customer does not opt for automatic renewal then he may forget to renew the anti-virus product at the end of the year which may result in discontinuance of the anti-virus service. On the other hand if he opts for automatic renewal then the money will be taken from his credit card even if he has stopped using that product. The customer wants an automatic renewal but he doe not to pay money if he has already discontinued using that product. 
 
4.3 Problem of updating Virus Database 
With the current mechanism of virus detection, installing an anti-virus program is not enough to prevent viruses. One has to update the virus definition database on a regular basis. But updating the virus database is a boring job and the user often avoids to update until the virus affects him again.  
 
We want to scan for the latest viruses but we don’t want to download the latest virus database from the Internet because it is a boring and time consuming job. Even if we update the virus database we don’t want to spend time and resources for the purpose.  
 
4.4 Problem of Scanning Time  
The continuous increase in the population of viruses increases the size of signature database which in turn increases the required scanning time. With hundreds of thousands of possible virus types and hundreds of gigabytes of file storage a complete virus scan can take an enormous time which is simply not acceptable to any user. 
 
If a scanner includes less number of signatures or less number of algorithms then there is possibility of some viruses being escaped. On the other hand if a scanner includes all available signatures and all possible algorithms then the scanning will take very long time. We want to apply more scanning methods to detect all types of viruses, but at the same time we want to apply less scanning methods to finish the scanning fast. 
 
 
 
Is Anti-Virus a Necessary Evil, by Umakant Mishra   http://umakant.trizsite.tk 
 
4.5 Problem of system performance 
Running an anti-virus consumes significant amount of system resources and affects the system performance negatively. An anti-virus loaded system takes more time to boot, more time to shutdown and runs slow while executing other programs. That’s why many users don’t like running an anti-virus.  
 
We want to run an anti-virus to keep the computer free from viruses. But we don’t want the other programs to run slow because of the burden of anti-virus on the computer. In other words, we want the anti-virus to scan the computer, but we don’t want it to affect the performance of other programs. 
 
4.6 Problem of false positives 
There are situations where the anti virus program finds a file to be infected because of insufficient heuristics. Some device drivers are stopped because of false positives. In other cases the anti-virus finds that a system file has been modified but it cannot be sure about whether the file has been modified by a virus or by the user. In such a situation, if the program generates a virus alarm it may lead to a false positive.  
 
If the anti-virus program is not definitive about a suspicious alternation in a system file and raises a virus alarm then it may lead to a false positive. On the other hand if it ignores such a suspicious alteration then it may lead to a false negative. Both the situations are dangerous.  
 
5. Summary and Conclusion  
While the anti-virus has become a necessity, it has many negative impacts on our day-to-day computer usage. The anti-virus frequently connects to internet to download its updates and patches and consumes our Internet bandwidth. When the anti-virus scans the computer, it consumes significant amount of system resources thereby making all other programs running slow. An anti-virus program consumes more memory and processor than an average harmful virus. Hence, the anti-virus program is considered as a necessary evil by almost all users.  
 
 
 
Is Anti-Virus a Necessary Evil, by Umakant Mishra   http://umakant.trizsite.tk 
 
While there is no problem of it being necessary, there is a need to make it free from its evil characteristics. This is possible by finding and eliminating contradictions within the anti-virus system. The TRIZ method of defining contradictions clearly points out the conflicts in the system, showing what is necessary (or useful or desirable) and what is not necessary (or harmful or undesirable). However, there are also contradictions in the super-system of an anti-virus system. While the end user wants a virus-free environment and does not want to see any computer virus in the world, the anti-virus developer does not want the same. The anti-virus developer wants some virus to survive for the survival of their business. Solving contradictions at higher level in super-systems can lead to tremendous results.  
Reference: 
1. Umakant Mishra, “Using TRIZ for Anti-Virus Development- Building better software through Continuous Innovation”, 2013, http://pothi.com/pothi/book/umakant-mishra-using-triz-anti-virusdevelopment 
2. Umakant Mishra, “An Introduction to Computer Viruses”, http://papers.ssrn.com/abstract=1916631 
3. Umakant Mishra, “An Introduction to Virus Scanners”, http://papers.ssrn.com/abstract=1916673 
4. Umakant Mishra, “Methods of Virus detection and their limitations”, http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1916708 
5. Umakant Mishra, “Solving Virus Problems by Anti-Virus Developers - A TRIZ Perspective”, http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1978385 
6. Umakant Mishra, Solving Virus Problems by Computer Users- a TRIZ perspective, TRIZsite Journal, Mar 2007, http://trizsite.tk/trizsite/articles  
7. Umakant Mishra, Solving Virus Problems by System Administrators- a TRIZ perspective, TRIZsite Journal, Mar 2007 http://papers.ssrn.com/abstract=1977496 
8. Umakant Mishra, Introduction to the Concept of Ideality in TRIZ, TRIZsite Journal, Oct 2007, http://www.trizsite.tk/trizsite/articles  
 
 
Is Anti-Virus a Necessary Evil, by Umakant Mishra   http://umakant.trizsite.tk 
 
9. Umakant Mishra, The Ideal IFR is no IFR- Criticism to the TRIZ concept of Ideality, http://ssrn.com/abstract=2282002   
10. Umakant Mishra, “Improving Speed of Virus Scanning- Applying TRIZ to Improve Anti-Virus Programs”, http://papers.ssrn.com/abstract=1980638   
11. Umakant Mishra, Overcoming limitations of Signature scanning - Applying TRIZ to Improve Anti-Virus Programs, http://papers.ssrn.com/abstract=1980629 
12. Umakant Mishra, Improving Speed of Virus Scanning- Applying TRIZ to Improve Anti-Virus Programs, TRIZsite Journal, Apr 2007 http://papers.ssrn.com/abstract=1980638 
13. Umakant Mishra, Finding and Solving Contradictions of False Positives in Virus Scanning , TRIZsite Journal, Apr 2012, also at http://arxiv.org/abs/1306.4652 
14. Umakant Mishra, Contradictions in Improving Speed of Virus Scanning, TRIZsite Journal, May 2012, also at http://arxiv.org/abs/1306.4660  
15. Umakant Mishra, How do Viruses Attack Anti-Virus Programs, TRIZsite Journal, Jun 2012. also at http://arxiv.org/abs/1307.5420  

 Courtesy of Haydn Shaughnessy, Contributor,

“I write about enterprise innovation”

Tech 3/07/2013 @ 6:32AM |50,392 views Forbes Magazine

What Makes Samsung Such an Innovative Company?

The Samsung headquarters (Photo credit: Wikipedia)Samsung.003

There are critics of Samsung who argue that its success is mostly due to copying and then tweaking the innovations of others. There is a good deal of truth in this, especially around the early Galaxy designs.

But Samsung is a global leader in screen technology, TVs, batteries, and chip design. So in terms of innovation it is doing a lot right. But we know very little about how.

We know how its competitors innovate – we look at Google and see the 20% time, the big adjacencies, the search for disruption, the bold statements about the future of autos, for example.

Samsung Engineers Perfect Marketing Storm For Galaxy S4 Ahead of 14th March Solving Apple's Innovation Problem Samsung.002 

We know that within Apple when a project gets to a critical stage, the company assigns three teams to its development, each of which competes against the other. We know the importance of design thinking, an attribute Google is learning about. And of customer experience.

What does Samsung do in comparison? How does it line up against these American masters or conversely are Google and Apple good enouSamsung.004gh to compete against Samsung?

There’s no doubt that patent circumvention is an aim when Samsung innovates. From its early forays into innovation, competing against Toshiba in washing and drying machines, Samsung has chased patents in areas where its competitors appear to have protection and has oriented its innovation efforts to find new patentable ideas in its competitors’ backyard (see, for example, this Samsung presentation).

There’s nothing unusual about that. It is a sideshow. Two developments convinced the company in the late 1990s and early 2000s that they could adopt a systematic approach to innovation and that is what seems to underpin their current success.

The first development provides a broader explanation for Samsung’s innovation capacity. In the late 1990s they were able to tap into a source of cheap scientific expertise in the former Soviet Union.

Samsung has nurtured a close relationship with the Russian Academy of Science since then. There is a framework agreement between the two parties. And the Korean Government has its own agreement under which it funds Korean small businesses to develop projects on the back of Academy research. Samsung meanwhile appears to help the Academy to increase its patent count and to exploit its inventions.

There is an undated copy of the framework agreement between them online and here is an extract:

Academy warrants that Institutes of RAS have the necessary authority to transfer Inventions on separate contracts (“Concrete Agreement”) to Samsung for evaluation, and support Samsung to share part in ownership of Inventions and Patents

One early advantage for Samsung was cheap fundamental science from Russia. But even now Samsung is able to buy Russian expertise at relatively low rates of between $3,000 to $5,000 per month.

Compare that with Google and Apple – in the post-9/11 era access to the world’s best talent has become increasingly difficult because of a reluctance to grant enough visas. Samsung had that problem cracked. But then again didn’t Apple and Google – both are a magnet for talent.

Has the Russian connection shown concrete value for Samsung?

TRIZ Feature

Alexander Selyutsky - a key figure in the history of TRIZ!

Alexander Selyutsky

Selyutsky Alexander Borisovich was born April 6, 1933 to an intelligent Jewish family residing in Leningrad. During the World War II the plant where his father was working was evacuated to the Urals, and the family (the parents and Alexander) moved to Chelyabinsk. Here, Alexander graduated from high school. He wanted to go to a military school, but didn’t pass vision test and entered the Chelyabinsk Polytechnic Institute. In his first year he was forced to learn boxing (because of frequent anti-Semitic attacks) and became a Komsomol activist.

After graduation, he was sent to Petrozavodsk Onega tractor plant, where he worked as a designer. He continued leading a very active social life, organized and led voluntary militia patrolling the streets of the city because the situation was very criminal. In the search for more satisfying work he became interested in patenting, completed appropriate courses and became a patent agent.

In 1960, Alexander married Dolly Naumovna Audleys, and had a daughter Alla in 1961. The same year G.S Altshuller published a book " “Learn how to invent"[1] . After reading this book in 1965 Selyutsky wrote a letter to Altshuller. This letter started their acquaintance by correspondence. Since then, Alexander became one of the most dedicated Altshuller’s disciples and an active promoter of the emerging new science.

They finally met in 1968 in Dzintary (near Riga), at the seminar organized by the Central Board of VOIR (state leading inventors’ and innovators’ society) that invited Altshuller and several of his associates. It was the first time that Alexander and others got a chance to work under the direct guidance of Altshuller and to learn from him. Later, in 1983, Alexander participated as one of the instructors in the seminar conducted by G.S. Altshuller in Moscow at the Institute for continuous education for chemical and petroleum industries.

Quantifying the TRIZ Levels of Invention – A tool to estimate the strength and life of a Patent Navneet Bhushan Crafitti Consulting Pvt Ltd, (www.crafitti.com) Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Bangalore, INDIA

Introduction
TRIZ (Theory of Inventive Problem Solving) classifies inventions into five novelty levels (For example see [1]). At level 1 are slight modifications of the existing systems. Typically they are localized within a single sub-­‐system. At level 2 are those inventions that resolve a system conflict or contradiction (called a technical contradiction between two parameters of a system), using usually inventive solution or inventive principle used to solve similar problems in other systems. This is what resulted in the most used TRIZ tool of contradiction matrix and 40 inventive principles. In fact, since 77% of inventions were at level 1 or level 2, TRIZ in popular press and by many consultants/trainers have been reduced to exploring and explaining contradiction matrix and 40 inventive principles. However, it is the deeper understanding that leads to level 3 and above inventions where TRIZ can be very powerful. At level 3, the inventions change one subsystem or resolve the system conflicts in a fundamental way.

By Haydn Shaughnessy, Contributor, SAMSUNG logo

“I write about enterprise innovation”

Tech 3/07/2013 @ 6:32AM |50,392 views Forbes Magazine

Full article at: http://www.forbes.com/sites/haydnshaughnessy/2013/03/07/why-is-samsung-such-an-innovative-company/

Samsung is a global leader in screen technology, TVs, batteries, and chip design. So in terms of innovation it is doing a lot right. But we know very little about how.

Two developments convinced the company in the late 1990s and early 2000s that they could adopt a systematic approach to innovation and that is what seems to underpin their current success.

The first development provides a broader explanation for Samsung’s innovation capacity. In the late 1990s they were able to tap into a source of cheap scientific expertise in the former Soviet Union.

In 2009 BusinessWeek reported that Samsung relied on its relationships with Russian experts for its smartphone software development, adding: “Russian brains helped Samsung develop the image-processing chips in its digital TVs and refine its frequency-filtering technology that significantly reduced noise on its now-ubiquitous handsets.”

But a second effect of the relationship with Russian science was the introduction of TRIZ, an innovation method that Samsung adopted from 2000 onwards but which only reached American companies from the mid-2000s onwards (Intel is a user).

TRIZ is a methodology for systematic problem solving. Typical of its origins in Russia, it asks users to seek the contradictions in current technological conditions and customer needs and to imagine an ideal state that innovation should drive towards.

Samsung had early successes with TRIZ, saving over $100 million in its first few projects. It was also adopting Six Sigma at the time.

But it was TRIZ that became the bedrock of innovation at Samsung. And it was introduced at Samsung by Russian engineers whom Samsung had hired into its Seoul Labs in the early 2000s.

In 2003 TRIZ led to 50 new patents for Samsung and in 2004 one project alone, a DVD pick-up innovation, saved Samsung over $100 million. TRIZ is now an obligatory skill set if you want to advance within Samsung.

At the Samsung Advanced Institute for Technology, Hyo June Kim, who wrote The Theory of Inventive Problem Solving, a foundation text on TRIZ published in Korean, trained over 1,000 engineers across Samsung companies in 2004 alone.                  

What we know from this is how Samsung approaches innovation. Rather it is based on developing a creative elite. This explains how Samsung used TRIZ to get to its Super AMOLED displays.

Samsung Electronics has a sense of crisis that we have been a fast follower and we can not survive anymore in this position. Instead of leading the industry by developing innovative products, we have followed fast what the leading companies had developed. Top management pointed out this and asked employee not to be a fast follower, but to be an innovative leader.

At Samsung even the subsidiary CEO has to take TRIZ training. From looking at the various presentations I estimate that engineers get about 15 days of training plus 7 days specific project work. That’s quite an investment in method and people.

So the answer to why Samsung is so innovative – with at least two major product announcements this month – is that it is heavily invested in its people, it goes in search of special talent wherever it can find it, but specifically made astute moves into Russia early on; it targets its innovations towards specific competitors and patents that it wants to overhaul (as Apple did under Jobs); and it has an innovation culture based on extensive training, repeatable methodology and creative elite formation, backed by the highest levels of management.

To read the full article, click the link above.

TRIZ Feature

Is anti-virus a Necessary Evil?umakant mishra

Using TRIZ Ideality and Contradictions to find out

what is Necessary and what is Evil

By- Umakant Mishra, Bangalore, India

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., http://umakant.trizsite.tk

Using Ideality to determine what is desirable

According to the concept of Ideality, the best anti-virus is “no anti-virus” or a “virus free environment where there is no need of any anti-virus”. However, for many practical reasons the above Ideal Final Result (IFR) is not possible to achieve in the present circumstances. When the ultimate IFR is not possible to achieve the problem solver has to take a step backward and consider a lower level IFR1. The best solution is that which is closest to the Ideal solution. The best solution is that which fulfils all the desirable functions of an anti-virus program without having any of its drawbacks.

 

Inside TRIZ

Case Study: Applying Triz in a non-technical setting for a fuel-cell start-up

By Jean-Francois DenaultDenault head shot

1.    Abstract

TRIZ is a systematic tool used to generate creativity and solve technical problems, but there is little litterature of its use in non-technical situations. This brings up the question: How can TRIZ be used to generate creativty and solve a non-technical problem?

The objective of this experimentwas to use TRIZ in a non-technical setting. As such, the article is very exploratory in nature. Working with a private company, we identified and defined a non-technical problem, and experimented with TRIZ to generate creativity in an attempt to solve the problem.  KEYWORDS: Creativity, Brainstorming, TRIZ, Problem Solving

2.    Introduction

2.1TRIZ in a non-technical setting

TRIZ is a Systematic Tool which is used to generate creativity to solve technical problems. Since it is a powerful tool to generate ideas, there is an incentive to use it in a non-technical setting as a creative thinking tool. For example, Zlotin believed that TRIZ concepts, such as ideality, contradiction and the systems approach are fully applicable to non-technical problems, and that analytical tools and psychological operators are directly applicable to accommodate non-technical applications (Zlotin, 2000).

Brainstorming (BS) is the “standard” method for creative thinking. However, when comparing BS to TRIZ, BS’s random nature becomes apparent. Where as BS can be described as “a way of looking for an idea accidently”, TRIZ is “equipped with technique, process, and knowledge database as a comprehensive methodology of a creative solution of a problem” (Nakamura, 2001). This makes TRIZ an attractive tool to explore.

TRIZ Features

dana clarke

Dana W. Clarke, Paul Nobles and Peter Ulan

Why Do We Need Innovation?

It’s all about the money;
unresolved problems = financial losses and lost opportunities
By Dana W. Clarke, Paul Nobels and Peter Ulan
“Innovation is the most vital factor in shaping a corporation’s success throughout the coming years.  For several decades, corporations have optimized products, processes and services for efficiency and quality; without losing control of quality, it is now time to innovate.  Today’s corporate challenge is to unshackle its innovation capacity to control growth and profitability while achieving leadership in its targeted markets.  Global-economic forces and financial constraints have made innovation-driven growth more essential than at any other time in history.  Corporations face an unprecedented need to stay ahead of continuously accelerating global changes, unyielding pressure for rapid results, and fierce competition from corporations that are aggressively pursuing their own innovation-driven futures.”  


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TRIZ Features

Photo of Dr. Toru NakagawaApril 2012

Dr. Toru Nakagawa

Creative Problem-Solving Methodologies TRIZ/USIT: Overview of My 14 Years in Research, Education, and Promotion

The capability of solving problems creatively is most desirable and indispensable not only for individual persons, regardless a student or a working adult, but also for companies, organizations, communities, and even countries. Since I joined Osaka Gakuin University in 1998, I have been working principally on the theme of 'methodologies for creative problem solving' in research, education, and promotion of social penetration. On retiring the University in March this year, it is my great pleasure to have a chance of publishing here an overview of my work for these 14 years.

The core of my working activities has been the research on TRIZ ('Theory of Inventive Problem Solving') and USIT ('Unified Structured Inventive Thinking'). I have attended and presented at international conferences on TRIZ every year, and extended USIT (i.e. a unified and simplified TRIZ) further to find a new paradigm called 'Six-box Scheme' for creative problem solving. In the field of education, besides several other classes on ordinary information science, I have been teaching on this theme in a lecture class and also in 3rd and 4th year seminars, where my students and I have made several successful case studies of solving familiar problems.

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TRIZ Features
 
Photo of Valery KrasnoslobodtsevMarch 2012
 
Valery Krasnoslobodtsev, Richard Langevin
 
Applied TRIZ in High-Tech Industry
 
Most often people are interested in problems of how to introduce TRIZ in conditions of a real manufacturing setting, the effects of this introduction, the tutoring of staff and concrete examples of its application. This paper is dedicated to consideration of these aspects.
 
TRIZ Features
Photo of Karthikeyan Iyer
December 2011
 
Karthikeyan Iyer
 
Today’s enterprises are increasingly dependent on innovation, not just to fuel growth but also to differentiate and survive in highly competitive environments. Enterprises feel the need for a structured process to manage the inherent complexity of innovation. Traditional approaches such as idea management funnels and stage-gate approaches are proving difficult to sustain and scale.

Studies have estimated that only one out of 3000 raw ideas (unwritten) or 300 submitted ideas makes it to eventual success. At each stage gate, decision makers select the ideas to be taken forward and identify the ones to be kept on hold or discarded. By applying TRIZ, we can take inspiration from living systems – cells, organisms, ecosystems, organizations, societies etc. to manage our complex systems better.
 
Photo of Darrell Mann
TRIZ Features
 
August 2011
 
Darrell Mann
 
 "The paper focuses on the relevance and application of TRIZ ideas and strategies to the design of software systems. The paper is divided into two main sections. In the first section the focus is on a historical review of innovations in the software domain. In the second part of the paper we consider a real case study application of the software evolution trends. The focus of the case study is design of control systems for unmanned air vehicles (UAVs)."

 

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TRIZ Features

Photo of Cathie M. Currie Ph.D.April 2011

Cathie M. Currie  

Cathie M. Currie, Ph.D. is a cognitive social psychologist who specializes in medical and science education. She heavily engaged with problem solving and innovation thinking skills, authentic assessment, and minority access to higher education. She is also an Advisor to Altshuller Institute.

In an attempt to understand how to better teach TRIZ, Dr. Currie has written and article to explain, in simple terms, the various methods of how people learn. Dr. Currie contends that tinkering, a cherished hobby of yesteryear, has reemerged as a novel catalyst for student engagement and higher-level thinking in thousands of school classrooms and after-school programs across our country. We can intuitively perceive that tinkering stimulates active participation in learning. However, educators need to know how cognitive and educative gains are produced in tinkering experiences to allow us to maximally develop the educative experience.

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