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The purpose of this paper is to improve the problem of kinematics incompatibility of human–exoskeleton in the existing rigid lower-limb exoskeleton (LLE).

In this paper, following an introduction, the motion characteristics of the human knee joint and the design method of the exoskeleton were introduced. A kinematics model of the LLE based on cross-four-bar linkage was obtained. The structural parameters of the LLE mechanism were optimized by the particle swarm optimization algorithm. The predefined trajectories used in the optimization process were derived from the ankle joint, not the instantaneous center of rotation of the knee joint. Finally, the motion deviation of the optimization result was simulated, and the human–exoskeleton coordination experiment was designed to compare with the traditional single-axis knee joint in terms of comfort and coordination.

The lower limb exoskeleton mechanism obtained in this paper has a good tracking effect on human movement and has been improved in terms of comfort and coordination compared with the traditional single-axis knee joint.

The customized exoskeleton design method introduced in this paper is relatively simple, and the obtained exoskeleton has better movement coordination than the traditional exoskeleton. It can provide a reference for the design of lower limb exoskeleton and lower limb orthosis.

The purpose of this study is to quantitively characterize pitting or local corrosion of steel bars. Characterization of pitting or local corrosion is important for steel bar corrosion research in concrete, which is still an unsolved problem for the reason that the pitting on corroded steel is distributed irregularly, besides the varied pitting depths. To solve this problem in a certain degree, two parameters were collectively used to find the pitting distribution and pitting depth distribution of corroded steel bar surface.

Corroded reinforcement bars were subjected to two different corrosive conditions to obtain the profile of the surface of corroded steel bar. The arithmetic mean deviation of the profile, Ra, also a roughness parameter, and the fractal dimension, D, were computed using MATLAB software from the data on corroded steel bar profiles scanned by a profile tester. Statistical analysis was performed to determine the parameters distribution of Ra.

Ra and D can assist gravimetric technique in defining the degree of pitting corrosion and make further understanding about the characterization of local or pitting corrosion.

Two parameters were collectively used to find the pitting distribution and pitting depth distribution of corroded steel bar surface, while many studies only study the fractal dimension of pitting corrosion. And, the relationship between these two parameters is studied when using them to describing the non-uniformity of pitting corrosion degree. Using these two parameters can much better describe the non-uniform degree of pitting corrosion.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the conditions under which small independent retailers can improve their business performance by adopting a merchandising information orientation and strategically integrating into retailer buying groups.

This study tests hypotheses using a hierarchical multiple regression model and data obtained from 241 supermarket retailers that are existing members of buying groups in Japan.

The results indicate that merchandising information orientation alone may not be a beneficial strategy for small independent retailers to improve their business performance; however, by combining a merchandising information strategy with strong strategic integration with a buying group, optimal benefits can be achieved.

The findings highlight the potential benefits small independent retailers can gain from buying groups when pursuing a merchandising information orientation, which may prompt such retailers to actively integrate the policies and activities of the buying group into their business strategy.

The authors conceptualise retailers’ merchandising information in a model that demonstrates the link between a firm’s information strategy and its performance from the perspective of resource-based theory. Thus, this study advances the knowledge of the strategic behaviours of small independent retailers and provides valuable information for buying groups in the retail sector.

There is significant amount of literature tackling different issues related to the port industry. The present chapter focuses on a single business unit of seaports aiming at the documentation of works related to container terminals.

An effort to review, collect and present the majority of the works present in the last 30 years, between 1980 and 2010, has been made in order to picture the problems dealt and methods used by the authors in the specific research field. To facilitate the reader, studies have been grouped under five categories of addressed problems (productivity and competitiveness, yard and equipment utilization, equipment scheduling, berth planning, loading/unloading) and four modelling methodologies (mathematics and operations research, management and economics, simulation, stochastic modelling).

The analysis shows that most works focus on productivity and competitiveness issues followed by yard and equipment utilisation and equipment scheduling. In reference to the methodologies used managerial and economic approaches lead, followed by mathematics and operations research.

In reference to future research, two fields have been identified where there is scope of significant contribution by the academic community: container terminal security and container terminal supply chain integration.

The present chapter provides the framework for researchers in the field of port container terminals to picture the so far works in this research area and enables the identification of gaps at both research question and methodology level for further research.

Browsing knowledge documents in a peer-to-peer (P2P) environment is difficult because knowledge documents in such an environment are large in quantity and distributed over different peers who organize the documents according to their own views. This paper aims to propose a method for constructing a personal knowledge map for a peer to facilitate knowledge browsing and alleviate information overload in P2P environments.

The research presents a method for constructing a personal knowledge map. The method adopts an ontology-concept-tree-based classification algorithm to recognize a peer’s personal knowledge structure and construct a personal knowledge map, and uses a self-organizing map algorithm to cluster and visualize the knowledge documents. The correctness of the created knowledge map is evaluated with a collection of abstracts of academic papers.

The method for constructing a personal knowledge map is the main finding of this research. The evaluation shows that the created knowledge map is good in quality.

The proposed method provides a way for P2P platforms to understand their users’ knowledge background, as well as to improve the P2P platform environment. However, the proposed method will not help a peer when he has nothing in his individual knowledge document repository (i.e. the “cold start” problem). The method also requires a relatively good ontology base for a P2P document sharing system to use the method effectively.

It is novel that the proposed method organizes the knowledge documents related to a peer’s knowledge background into a personal knowledge map. Moreover, the created knowledge map combines the advantages of a hierarchical display and a map display. It has values for a distributed P2P environment to facilitate users’ knowledge browsing and to alleviate information overload.

The COVID-19 crisis has created enormous strain in global supply chains. The disruption has caused severe shortages of critical items, including personal protective equipment (e.g. face masks), ventilators and diagnostics. The failure of the industry to meet the sudden demand for these necessary items has caused a severe humanitarian crisis. These situations, resulting from the COVID-19, crisis have led to the informal growth of frugal innovation in sustainable global supply chains. This paper aims to provide a detailed overview of drivers of frugal-oriented sustainable global supply chains, following lessons acquired from emerging countries’ attempts to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.

The authors used a focused group approach to identify the drivers and this paper further validated them using existing literature published in international peer-reviewed journals and reports. The authors adopted total interpretive structural modeling (TISM) to analyze the complex relationships among identified drivers.

The authors present a theoretical framework to explain how the drivers are interlinked. This paper has developed the framework through a synthesis of the TISM modeling and Matrice d’impacts croisés multiplication appliquée á un classment analysis. This paper observed that government financial support, policies and regulations, under the mediating effect of leadership and the moderating effect of national culture and international rules and regulations, has a significant effect on the adoption of emerging technology, volunteering initiatives and values and ethics. Further, emerging technology, volunteering initiative and values and ethics have a significant effect on supply chain talent and frugal engineering. These results provide some useful theoretical insights that may help in further investigating the role of frugal innovations in other contexts.

The authors find that outcomes of the methodical contributions and the resulting managerial insights can be categorized into four levels. Industry and researchers alike can use the study to develop the decision-support systems guiding frugal-oriented sustainable global supply chains amid the COVID-19 pandemic and in recovering them thereafter. Suggestions for future research directions are offered and discussed.

Embroidery as a textile embellishment technique plays an important role in people's daily life. Esthetic embroidery artworks possess cultural values. With the development of robotics and artificial intelligence (AI), these technologies have been studied and applied in the embroidery process. This study aims to survey how these technologies facilitate embroidery from different aspects.

This paper surveys how the technologies of robotics and AI are applied in the embroidery field. The applications are mainly reviewed from three aspects: computerized robotic embroidery systems has been widely used for the mass production of embroidered textiles, the advanced technological systems and techniques have greatly facilitated the development of smart textiles and the artificial intelligence plays an important role in the inheritance, innovation and protection of traditional handicraft artwork of embroidery.

The programmable robotic embroidery machines have greatly improved the production efficiency of embroidered textiles and promoted the development of electronic textiles. The AI, mainly the deep learning technology, brings significant benefits to esthetic embroidery creation. Technology-based embroidery has become a hot research topic in the field of textiles.

This paper summarizes the application of robotics and AI technologies in the field of embroidery, which provides readers a comprehensive and systematic understanding about the research progress of modern technology-oriented embroidery. This helps readers gain inspiration from the technology perspectives.

The paper aimed to summarize innovative rules of Chinese manufacturing enterprises, and put forward some insights in optimal allocation of innovation resources and enhancing the capability of indigenous innovation, so as to overcome the innovation dilemma.

Having diagnosed the current research of innovation flows, the authors defined the concept and stated characteristics of mainstream and new‐stream innovation. Innovation life cycle theory and technology trajectory theory were used to map two evolution patterns of mainstream and new‐stream innovation. It took weeks to stay in firms to obtain original data and interview managers, engineers, and mechanists. From the case study the authors proposed the improvement projects and opportunities for firms to overcome the “innovation dilemma”.

In the indigenous innovation process, enterprises should breed new‐stream innovation as they strengthen the mainstream innovation, view the new‐stream technology as the innovation direction, and fulfill the constant innovation in the convergent innovation and replace evolution process. Meanwhile, enterprises should take precautions both to expand and develop, and fulfill technology transition and innovation upgrade through convergent innovation. Furthermore, firms' convergent innovation, which will finally achieve the “projects‐talents‐products‐markets” collaborative innovation, should be clear about target market and project‐oriented, take the product as the carrier, and be committed to cultivate creative talents and innovative teams.

This paper enriches the existing theory on indigenous innovation by introducing the new concept of mainstream and new‐stream innovation. The findings would help firms to jump out from the innovation morass.