• Journal of the Ergonomics Society of Korea
• /
• v.27 no.4
• /
• pp.27-35
• /
• 2008

Recently, many studies have reported the fact that an excessively accumulated psychological and physical burden induced from physical labor conducted routinely in home and industry can be one of main reasons of musculoskeletal disorders in the working population. This fact makes increase interests in studies to reduce a risk of musculoskeletal disorders through grafting ergonomic considerations on working environment. However, there are currently limited methodologies in quantitative evaluations of new ergonomic suggestions to reduce a risk of musculoskeletal disorders. The current study is therefore performed to evaluate quantitatively effects of a design of washing machine as a new ergonomic suggestion onto prevention of musculoskeletal disorders, through application of a biomechanical evaluation methodology. For this, three-dimensional motion analysis by using musculoskeletal models with Rapid Entire Body Assessment (REBA), which has been generally used for a simple evaluation of a degree of harmfulness of the human body at specific working postures to be considered, was performed. The results of REBA did not give us enough information and their results were somewhat simple and inaccurate, but the results of the three-dimensional motion analysis give us enough information such as alteration of main muscle forces and joint moments required during washing work. All results showed that the main muscle strengths and joint moments were decreased effectively for reduction of a risk of musculoskeletal disorders during the washing work with newly designed washing machine evaluated in the current study, compared with those generated during the washing work with general washing machine. From these results, it can be concluded that a risk of the musculoskeletal disorders, which may be induced by a repetitive washing work, may be reduced through using the washing machine designed ergonomically and newly. Also, it is thought that if our ergonomic design can be applied for improvement of working environment in lifting and laying works conducted repeatedly for a treatment work of goods, which have a strong resemblance to the behaviors generated frequently during the washing work, a possibility of occurrence of the musculoskeletal disorders by the lifting and laying works may be reduced highly.

• Journal of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute of Korea
• /
• v.36 no.6
• /
• pp.371-380
• /
• 2023

To calculate seismic fragility, it is important to select input earthquake ground motions that can properly express the characteristics of the target site. This study analyzed the seismic fragility of a single-degree-of-freedom (SDOF) model based on input earthquake ground motions in strong and low-to-moderate seismic regions. As a first step, a total of four sets of input earthquake ground motions were selected,: two sets measured near or far from overseas strong earthquake records and two sets exhibiting the characteristics of low-to-moderate earthquake regions in South Korea. A nonlinear SDOF model for three natural periods was applied to the target structure, and incremental dynamic analysis was used for fragility analysis. In addition, four damage states were defined, and seismic fragility results for each natural period of the nonlinear SDOF model for the four aforementioned input earthquake ground motion sets were obtained for each damage state.

• Journal of the Society of Naval Architects of Korea
• /
• v.57 no.2
• /
• pp.88-95
• /
• 2020

There have been many attempts to predict resistance of vessels in ice floe environment, but they mostly have both strong and weak points at the same time; for instance, simplified formulas are very fast but less flexible to types of ship and ice conditions and other numerical techniques need high computing cost for increased accuracy. A new numerical simulation technique of combining explicit finite element analysis code with a user-subroutine to control real-time forces acting on ice floes was proposed, thereby it was possible to predict ship-to-ice floe resistance with higher convenience and accuracy than other proposed approaches. The basic theory on how real-time hydrostatic and hydrodynamic forces acting on ice floes could be generated using user-subroutine was explained. The heave motion of a single ice floe was simulated using the user-subroutine and the motion amplitudes and periods were almost consistent with analytic values. Towing tests of an icebreaker model ship were simulated using explicit finite element analyses with the user-subroutine. The ice-induced resistance obtained from the towing experiments and simulations showed significant differences. Intentional increase of the drag coefficient to increase the contact duration between the ice floes and rigid model ship leaded the total resistance to be substantially consistent between the model tests and numerical simulations.

• Smart Structures and Systems
• /
• v.18 no.5
• /
• pp.955-982
• /
• 2016

Recent studies integrating vibration control and structural health monitoring (SHM) use control devices and control algorithms to enable system identification and damage detection. In this study real-time SHM is used to enhance structural vibration control and reduce damage. A newly proposed control algorithm, including integrated real-time SHM and semi-active control strategy, is presented to mitigate both damage and seismic response of the main structure under strong seismic ground motion. The semi-active independently variable stiffness (SAIVS) device is used as semi-active control device in this investigation. The proper stiffness of SAIVS device is obtained using a new developed semi-active control algorithm based on real-time damage tracking of structure by damage detection algorithm based on identified system Markov parameters (DDA/ISMP) method. A three bay five story steel braced frame structure, which is equipped with one SAIVS device at each story, is employed to illustrate the efficiency of the proposed algorithm. The obtained results show that the proposed control algorithm could significantly decrease damage in most parts of the structure. Also, the dynamic response of the structure is effectively reduced by using the proposed control algorithm during four strong earthquakes. In comparison to passive on and off cases, the results demonstrate that the performance of the proposed control algorithm in decreasing both damage and dynamic responses of structure is significantly enhanced than the passive cases. Furthermore, from the energy consumption point of view the maximum and the cumulative control force in the proposed control algorithm is less than the passive-on case, considerably.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
• /
• v.61 no.4
• /
• pp.527-538
• /
• 2017

The evaluation of the loss-of-support conditions of frictional beam-to-column connections using simplified numerical models describing the transverse response of a portal-like structure is presented in this paper considering the effects of the seismic-hazard disaggregation. Real earthquake time histories selected from European Strong-motion Database (ESD) are used to show the effects of the seismic-hazard disaggregation on the beam loss-of-support conditions. Seismic events are classified according to different values of magnitudes, epicentral distances and soil conditions (stiff or soft soil) highlighting the importance of considering the characteristics of the seismic input in the assessment of the loss-of-support conditions of frictional beam-to-column connections. A rigid and an elastic model of a frame of a precast industrial building (2-DoF portal-like model) are presented and adopted to find the minimum required friction coefficient to avoid sliding. Then, the mean value of the minimum required friction coefficient with an epicentral distance bin of 10 km is calculated and fitted with a linear function depending on the logarithm of the epicentral distance. A complete parametric analysis varying the horizontal and vertical period of vibration of the structure is performed. Results show that the loss-of-support condition is strongly influenced by magnitude, epicentral distance and soil conditions determining the frequency content of the earthquake time histories and the correlation between the maxima of the horizontal and vertical components. Moreover, as expected, dynamic characteristics of the structure have also a strong influence. Finally, the effect of the column nonlinear behavior (i.e. formation of plastic hinges at the base) is analyzed showing that the connection and the column are a series system where the maximum force is limited by the element having the minimum strength. Two different longitudinal reinforcement ratios are analyzed demonstrating that the column strength variation changes the system response.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Precision Engineering
• /
• v.28 no.11
• /
• pp.1259-1264
• /
• 2011

This paper suggests a new film-type haptic actuator based on cellulose acetate electro-active paper. Conventional tiny haptic actuators in mobile devices can create vibrotactile sensation at only near resonant frequency. The strategy of operating near the resonant frequency, however, brought a new issue for creating vibrotactile sensation which can be strong enough to feel in arbitrary frequency. Another problem is that the size of the conventional actuator is not small enough to be embedded into slim mobile devices. In order to achieve these issues, we propose a thin and tiny actuator based on a cellulose acetate material charged with an electric potential. The motion of the actuator can be a concave or a convex by controlling a polarity of both charged membranes and the actuator performance can be modulated by increasing level of biased electric potential.

• Earthquakes and Structures
• /
• v.27 no.1
• /
• pp.69-82
• /
• 2024

In the conventional seismic design approach for a bridge pier, the function of the stopper, and shear key are to serve as mechanisms for unseating prevention devices that retain and transmit the lateral load to the pier under strong earthquakes. This frequently inflicts immense shear forces and bending moments concentrated at the plastic hinge zone. In this study, a shear panel damper plus gap (SPDG) is proposed as a low-cost alternative with high energy dissipation capacity to improve the seismic performance of the pier. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the seismic performance of the pre-stressed concrete I girder (PCI-girder) bridge equipped with SPDG. The bridge structure was analyzed using nonlinear time history analysis with seven-scaled ground motion records using the guidelines of ASCE 7-10 standard. Consequently, the implementation of SPDG technology on the bridge system yielded a notable decrease in maximum displacement by 41.49% and a reduction in earthquake input energy by 51.05% in comparison to the traditional system. This indicates that the presence of SPDG was able to enhance the seismic performance of the existing conventional bridge structure, enabling an improvement from a collapse prevention (CP) level to an immediate occupancy (IO).

• Journal of the Earthquake Engineering Society of Korea
• /
• v.24 no.2
• /
• pp.111-119
• /
• 2020

Recently, some of the most destructive earthquakes have occurred in South Korea since earthquake observations began in 1978. In particular, the soil liquefactions have been reported in Pohang as a result of the ML 5.4 earthquake that occurred in November 2017. Liquefaction-induced ground deformations can cause significant damage to a wide range of buildings and infrastructures. Therefore, it is necessary to take practical steps to ensure safety during an earthquake. In the current seismic design in South Korea, the Hachinohe earthquake and Ofunato earthquake recorded in Japan, along with artificial earthquakes, have been generally used for input motions in dynamic analyses. However, such strong ground motions are only from Japan, and artificial earthquake ground motions are different from real ground motions. In this study, seven ground motions are selected, including those recorded in South Korea, while others are compatible to the current design spectra of South Korea. The effects of the newly selected ground motions on site response analyses and liquefaction analyses are evaluated.

• Journal of Advanced Marine Engineering and Technology
• /
• v.40 no.5
• /
• pp.403-411
• /
• 2016

Usually shell and tube heat exchangers are employed to recover energy between fluids. Recently, numerous papers on these heat exchangers have been published; however, the velocity and temperature profiles or comparison of the features of the flow with or without inside tubes have rarely been described. In this research, experimental and numerical studies were carried out to investigate the characteristics of the flow around the spiral baffle plates without inside tubes in a horizontal circular tube using a particle image velocimetry method and ANSYS 14.0~15.0 version (Fluent). The results showed that swirling flow was produced between the spiral baffle plates. The tangential components were strong between the two spiral baffles; however, the axial or radial velocities components were indicating nearly zero. From the spiral motion in the space of the two baffles, it is considered that there were no dead zones between the spiral baffle.

• Ocean Systems Engineering
• /
• v.4 no.2
• /
• pp.99-115
• /
• 2014

When caissons are mounted on a floating transportation barge and towed by a tug boat in waves, motion of the floating dock creates inertia and gravity-induced slip forces on the caisson. If its magnitude exceeds the corresponding friction force between the two surfaces, a slip may occur, which can lead to an unwanted accident. In oblique waves, both pitch and roll motions occur simultaneously and their coupling effects for slip and friction forces become more complicated. With the presence of strong winds, the slip force can appreciably be increased to make the situation worse. In this regard, the safety of the transportation process of a caisson mounted on a floating dock for various wind-wave conditions is investigated. The analysis is done by both frequency-domain approach and time-domain approach, and their differences as well as pros and cons are discussed. It is seen that the time-domain approach is more direct and accurate and can include nonlinear contributions as well as viscous effects, which are typically neglected in the linear frequency-domain approach.