Offset Printing History

1 History of Printing Presses Printing is a method of transferring an image to surfaces for the purpose of communication. A printing press is a mechanical apparatus for applying pressure to an inked surface resting upon a print medium. The invention of the printing press is considered as the most influential event in the second millennium revolutionizing the way people learn and communicate. Rubbings from stone inscriptions were an early reproduction method in which images were carved into stone, similar to the gravure process.The substrate, which was a thin strong paper, was moistened to make it soft . A kind of adhesive is placed on the surface of the stone. The paper is placed over the surface of the stone and a stiff brush is used to rub the paper over the stone and into every depression of the stone. Ink is applied over the paper after it was dried. The paper is peeled off from the stone and a reversed image within black ink was revealed. Stone rubbings were used to print books, especially religious texts and historic classics. Drawing materials include charcoal, inksticks, graphite and wax.Seal Printing and the Origin of Letterpress Printing The Chinese also used a method of reproducing images that is similar to our present-day rubber stamp method (Fig. 1:1) called seal printing. Before seal printing was invented, the Chinese used a receipt-like system to transact business. Two ends of a bamboo stick were written in duplicate for a particular business transaction. When the transaction was completed, the bamboo stick was broken and each member would receive a record of the transaction. For nobility, the emperor provided a token of jade.The jade was broken and one half was given to the subject and the other half kept by the emperor. A seal stamp made of clay eventually replaced the tokens. One method of seal stamping was to force an impression into a surface with the seals. The other method was to ink the seal and transfer the wet inked image to a substrate . Presswork and Bindery Processes 1 An early form of seal printing was the use of signet stones. These stones were used in Babylon and other ancient countries as an alternative for signatures and as religious symbols. These stones or devices consisted of seals and stamps for making images on clay.The stone, often located on a ring, was dabbed with pigment or mud and then pressed against a smooth surface to make an impression. Fig. 1:1. Chinese seal and print. Fig. 1:2. Chinese ink stick. Block Printing in China The Chinese developed a method of printing in the fifth century in which a wooden block was used to reproduce images on certain surfaces over and over again. Wooden blocks were made from coniferous wood, honey locust trees, jujube trees, boxwood, and date and pear trees. Each tree had advantages and disadvantages as far as printing was concerned.The coniferous wood trees had a problem of uneven printing because of resin that was impregnated in the wood. If delicate and fine l ine images in illustrations were required, the honey locust tree was used. For text, the soft boxwood was used, while the pear tree provided the best wood to use for various types of images, followed closely by jujube and date trees. Blocks were soaked in water for about a month after they were cut. If the blocks were needed in a hurry, they were boiled, left to dry, and then planed on both sides. Some printers used both sides of the blocks.The printer had to cut away all portions of the block except the image area (Fig. 1:3). All images had to be carved backwards so that when printed on a substrate, the images would appear correctly for reading. The wood carver had to be very skillful in carving text and illustrations backward. These blocks marked the invention of letterpress printing. The non-image areas of the block are below the surface of the form, and the image areas are on the surface of the form. The printing method was simple. Ink was rubbed on the surface of the form with a brush (Fig. 1:3).A sheet of paper was then placed over the form with gentle pressure so it could receive the images . A dry brush was used to press the sheet against the form. It must be noted that the original paper was so thin that usually only one side was printed. Because the paper was very translucent, blank sides of the printed sheets were placed back to back in publications. 2 Presswork and Bindery Processes Fig. 1:3. Chinese wooden block printing. Fig. 1:4. The Diampond Sutra. A color technique was developed during this time. Color separated blocks were carved and printed in register with other color-separated blocks and text as well.This was the first attempt at multicolor printing. An important invention in printing technology occurred during the Song Dynasty. It was the invention of movable-type printing. A commoner by the name of Pi Sheng used movable-type blocks for printing during the Qingli years (1041-1048) of the Northern Song. This invention ushered in an era of movable-type printing and is a significant milestone in the history of printing. This invention soon died in China because it was very complex. The invention soon found its way to Europe in the fifteenth century. Movable TypeAn alternate method of reproduction called movable type was developed in the eleventh century in China. This method was established well after the wooden block method, which came around the fifth century. Movable type consists of individual letters, characters, and symbols creating a language or an alphabet (Fig. 1:5). These elements could be used in the printing of one form, and then be taken apart and used to print other forms. The thousands of different characters in the Chinese language made the use of movable type cumbersome and slow. The Chinese writing system was a pictographic and ideographic method of communication.The Chinese alphabet system consisted of almost forty-thousand characters. Each character represented something in real life such as trees, animals, and pottery. Pi Sheng is given credit for the invention of movable type. He used clay and carved individual characters. The carved letters were put into fire to harden them. A metal frame with a mixture of wax was used as a base for evening out the surface of the type. The typefaces were set close to each other to make up a form of type. The entire block of type was then forced into the waxed metal tray and planed down with a smooth board after the wax was melted down in an open flame.Presswork and Bindery Processes 3 Pi Sheng reasoned that each type or character was to be used over and over again. One advantage of the movable type method is that characters could be deleted or inserted without throwing the entire form away. Fig. 1:5. Chinese movable type. Fig. 1:6. Movable type printed document. The Middle Ages in Europe Before 1450, the majority of books in Europe were produced by the arduous task of manuscript writing and recopying. The few exceptions were books that were printed by the wooden-block method, which was introduced into Europe by the year 1400. This slow, laborious process required skillful workers.Block printing was also used for illustrations in books (Fig. 1:3) and in the printing of playing cards. During this era, a period that saw little or no advancement in the arts or sciences became known as the Dark ages. This period was also marked by a lack of communication. Monks, who worked in monastery rooms called scriptoriums or writeries, produced the majority of books written during the Dark Ages. The religious scribes were responsible for the recording of history and the production of books, as well as most other intellectual activity during this period. The bookmaking trade was highly specialized.Books were elaborately decorated with colored initials, and they often displayed special gems, precious stones, and gold on their covers. Books were scarce and the average person could not afford them. In addition, most people could not read or write in Europe during this era. During the Dark Ages, books were highly illustrated, since this facilitated communication. Many illustrations were featured in religious books as well as on playing cards. These illustrations were engraved in wood or metal, inked, and impressed on the sheet, a process that required great skill. There is proof 4 Presswork and Bindery Processes hat blocks were exchanged between printers. Several illustrations appeared in different publications. The same images were often used to illustrate different subjects. Type and illustrations at first were printed in two separate impressions because they were produced at different heights. Over time, type and illustrations were produced at the same height. The Renaissance era, a period that was marked by an intellectual awakening, began around the thirteenth century. People began to study the sciences and the arts and to explore their environment. Many discoveries were being made, and people wanted to have kn owledge of new ideas.Fig. 1:7. Statue of Gutenberg. Fig. 1:8. Gutenberg style screw press. Fig. 1:9. The Gutenberg Bible. The Gutenberg Era (1397-1468) During the Renaissance, people experimented with methods for the faster reproduction of books. One result of these experiments was the successful use of movable cast type and a press in printing by Johannes Gutenberg (Fig. 1:7). The invention was revolutionary for several reasons. European languages, in contrast to those of Asia, were alphabetic. They consisted of relatively few characters, such as the twenty-six letters of English.This small number of different characters made the use of individualcharacter types (movable type) practical. Casting each character in quantity from a mold and using a press for printing permitted very fast reproduction of written materials. Through experiments and innovations, Gutenberg perfected the printing process before the famous printing of the bible. Each page printed had thirtysix lines per page. Later the lines per page increased to forty-two. Because of this invention, printing soon spread rapidly throughout Europe. Books became plentiful because they could be printed more quickly.Many persons could now afford books, and printing fulfilled the demand. Intellectual activity and learning began anew. Because of the impact of books on the culture of Europe at this time, printing became recognized as the art that preserves all the arts. The following reasons help to further explain the importance of the invention of movable type: 1. With movable type, a greater degree of accuracy was possible. 2. The supply of books increased greatly. Over twenty thousand volumes for one book could be produced in one year. Presswork and Bindery Processes 5 3. Because books were plentiful, they were affordable.They became readily accessible among all classes of people. 4. The invention of printing stimulated the desire for learning. The invention of printing, more than any other invention, was credited with bringing Europe out of the Dark Ages. 5. A standard alphabet was in place. Despite many languages on the European continent, thousands could share from the same invention. Presses were set up in Holland, France, England, and other European nations. 6. Gutenberg invented a press (Fig. 1:8) fashioned from a wine press. Ink pads, which were made of leather stuffed with wool or horsehair, were used to apply ink to the form. . The ink that Gutenberg used was have been made from linseed oils and lampblack. Later it was discovered that traces of lead, titanium, and copper were also used. Gutenberg could not use the India ink produced in China, because it did not print well from metal types. 8. Gutenberg’s own contribution was a punch and mold system for producing metal types. This method created the mass distribution of movable types for printing. Despite the accomplishments of Gutenberg and other European printers, we cannot forget the Chinese influences on their inve ntions.These inventions eventually made their way to Europe via explorers, who came back with startling discoveries, including paper, playing cards, movable type, block printing, image prints, and paper money. The printing trade was not profitable. Gutenberg himself did not become rich from his innovations and contribution to the world. The problem lay in the marketing of books in Europe during that time. Although the demand for books and other printed matter was great, methods to market and transport books needed to be developed. Early European Printers (Graphic Arts Procedures) 460 Strasburg, Germany †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Johann Mentelin 1464 Strasburg, Germany †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Heinrich Eggestein 1465 Subiaco, Italy †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. Conrad Sweynhem 1467 Rome, Italy. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. Ulrich Han 1468 Basel, Switzerland †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Berthold Rappel 1469 Venice, Italy †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Johann of Speyer 1470 Venice, Italy . †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Nicholas Jenson 1470 Paris, France. †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Michael Fibiger 1473 Nuremberg, Germany †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Anthony Koberger 1473 Utrecht, Netherlands †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢ € ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Gerardus Leempt 1473 Lyons, France †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ .Guillaume Leroy 1494 Venice, Italy †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦.. Aldus Manutius 1497 Paris, France †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Henri Estienne 6 Presswork and Bindery Processes Fifteenth Century PrintingPrinting was a very important invention during the Renaissance era. The key to the invention of printing lies in the manufacturing of movable type. This technology had to be perfected in order for the printing process to be developed. A few inventors worked on the development of movable type. A punch of a particular type style and size had to be produced. This punch was used i n making an impression of the typeface in a mold. The mold was made from copper, which is soft enough to receive the impression from a steel punch, but durable enough to withstand the heat from the molten metal that was poured into it to produce the type.The punch itself had a reversed character, which was reversed into the matrix as a positive recessed character. A wrong reading character was produced from the casting of molten metal in the mold. The person that produced the punch was often the designer of the typeface. Fig. 1:10. Fifteenth century typesetting and type casting (Cary Collection). The term unjustified matrix or strike was referred to as matrix that was produced by depressing the punch within the copper. The term matrix is used after the copper with its impression is fitted within the mold for casting (Fig. 1:10).The goal in the casting of type was to produce type of equal height. This was necessary in order for printers to obtain an even impression with few difficult ies. The matrix and its fitting within the mold were the key factor in the controlling of the type height. This was accomplished by using the same mold throughout the manufacturing of a font. In addition to the type height, the paralleling or the side-by-side placement of the type was also important. If type were not produced on a square body, then it would not stand straight and would slant when locked together with other characters. Presswork and Bindery Processes 7Molds were made up of two parts and screwed together in a parallel adjustment. In this way the mold could accommodate matrix of varying size. During the hand casting process, a worker could face shrinking of type, uneven filling of the molten metal in the mold, and injury from the heat of the molten metal. The process was slow, but the type could be used for thousands of jobs. By the mid-nineteenth century, automatic methods replaced the manual methods of typecasting. Workflow in the Fifteenth Century The workflow in th e fifteenth century included composition, imposition, printing, and binding.In the composition stage, once the text was decided on to print, then the volume of copy was determined. Lines per page as well as the total number of pages for the job were determined. The printer would then know how much paper was needed for the job. The compositor set the type for the job using a composing stick. Every time the stick was filled, the lines were transferred to a metal tray called a galley. Pages were formed in the galley. Pages in the fifteenth century were arranged on large stones in printer spreads. Pages were enclosed by wooden pieces, which are called furniture.A metal frame called a chase surrounds all pages and furniture. To secure the form, locks or quoins were used. One page with no printing on the other side was called a broadside. Two pages were called a folio; four pages, a quarto; and eight pages, an octavo. A pressman pulled a proof sheet from the imposed form (Fig. 1:11). The proof was given over to a corrector and a reader. The reader read the original copy as the corrector trailed along on the proof sheet to ensure that the text was the same. This process continued until all corrections were found and changed.Because of these continuous changes, no single copy of an early printed book is identical to any other. Fig. 1:11. Fifteenth century printing (Cary Collection). Paper was prepared the day before the actual press run. Piles of sheets each were set out, wetted, and allowed to stand overnight. This was necessary because the common screw presses of the time did not have enough power in them to force dry paper to evenly take the ink. 8 Presswork and Bindery Processes Two pressmen were involved in the printing process. One applied ink to the type, and the other pulled the bar and worked the paper.Pulling the bar required a lot of energy and printers would take turns in this process. Ink balls were used to applied ink to the form. These ink balls were ma de of leather pads, mounted in wooden cups and handles, and stuffed with wool or horsehair; they were then covered with a sheepskin pelt. Ink balls were inked, and ink was placed over the form in a rocking motion. A sheet of paper was then laid on the tympan. The tympan, paper, and frisket were folded together onto the form. The pressman then pulled the bar toward himself. This caused the turning of the screw, drawing the platen down and forcing the paper against the inked form.It sometimes took two pulls to print one form. The carriage was cranked out from under the platen. The tympan and frisket were raised, and the paper was removed. Sheets of paper were printed on the reverse side immediately while the sheet was still damp. Printing on both sides of the sheet is called perfecting. After the job was printed, the compositor cleaned the ink off the forms, unlocked the type, and distributed the type into the cases. Printed sheets were sent to a drying room and hung up in sets to dry . They were then piled into heaps on a long table and collated by signatures.Next they were folded once, pressed, and baled for delivery or storage. Fig. 1:12. Adams power platen press. Fig. 1:12a Early inking apparatus. Evolution of inking rollers. Fig. 1:13. Ink balls. Fig. 1:14. Ink brayer. Fig. 1:15. Inking rollers. Presswork and Bindery Processes 9 The Power Platen Press In 1830, Isaac Adams of Boston invented a press, which combined the advantages of the hand press and a press that could print larger forms. The platen on this press was stationary with the bed of the press rising to make contact with the platen to print.The form would be inked when the bed of the press returned to its lowest position. At this point the inking rollers would transfer ink over the printing form. A frisket was used to carry the sheet to the printing position (Fig. 1:12). The average speed of these presses was around 800 sheets per hour. Inking rollers evolved from a hand frame with two handles auto matically inking rollers, to the use of vibrating rollers to drive the rollers in the unit. An earlier method of inking employed a â€Å"roller boy† or an â€Å"assistant pressman†. Soon the inking apparatus (See Fig. :12a) was run by power, which was signaled by the action of the bed moving up and down. The Job Presses Job work consist of smaller work such as tickets, circulars, business cards and bills. This type of work became problematic for hand-press printing where the demand was in place for smaller, faster and more accessible presses. One of the first job presses was called the Adams press. This press did not meet the qualifications that were needed to run smaller job work. S. P. Ruggles of Boston introduced a series of presses in 1830. They were known as â€Å"card presses†.The card press was manufactured with a flat side on the side of a cylinder supported between side frames. A second flat surface known as the â€Å"platen† was directly across from the bed of the press. Rollers on the press, which traveled around the cylinder, did the inking. The largest press sheet on the press could accommodate a press sheet of 6† X 9†. Other notable presses include: The Albion Press of 1835 (Fig. 1:19), The Paragon Press of 1829 (Fig. 1:17), the Stanhope Press of 1816 (Fig. 1:20) and the Chandler and Price Platen Press of the early 1900s (Fig. 1:18). Harrison T. Chandler and William H.Price founded Chandler and Price Company in 1881 in Cleveland, Ohio. Chandler and Price manufactured machinery for printers including hand-fed platen jobbing presses, paper cutters, book presses, and assorted equipment. Fig. 1:16. Clymer-Columbian Press. Fig. 1:17. Paragon Press. 10 Presswork and Bindery Processes Fig. 1:18. Chandeler & Price Press. Fig. 1:19. Albion Press. Fig. 1:20. Stanhope Press. Many job presses came out with several improvements over the years. These improvements included: †¢ Larger press sheet sizes. †¢ Faster press speeds. †¢ Better synchronization of the bed and the platen. Improvement in the inking roller application. †¢ Better impression devices. †¢ Automatic feeding and delivery. The newspapers were printed on wooden hand presses operated by levers and screws. It was not until around 1816 that the new iron Columbian press came into general use. The Columbian press (Fig. 1:16), invented by George Clymer of Philadelphia, had, instead of a screw, a series of compound levers that multiplied the pull of the operator. All hand presses were slow. The forms had to be laid by hand and the inking of the form was notably poor and of uneven quality. Web Offset DevelopmentWith the nineteenth century came the addition of the steam-powered press, the cylinder press and the web press. An American inventor by the name of William A. Bullock (Fig. 1:32), patented the web press. The web press printed from rolls of paper rather than from individual sheets. This was followed by another Ame rican invention, the continuous roll press, devised by Richard M. Hoe. This device sped up the production of newspapers to around 18,000 newspapers an hour. In 1871 Hoe (Fig. 1:30) and company turned their attention to constructing a press that would feed a continuous roll of paper and print on both sides of the fed paper.They petitioned ink manufacturers for the development of fast drying inks. Paper manufacturers were asked to produce rolls of paper with Presswork and Bindery Processes 11 Fig. 1:21. William Bullock Web Press. Fig. 1:22. Web Perfecting Newspaper Press. Fig. 1:23. Turn bars Assembly on a Web Press. 12 Presswork and Bindery Processes Fig. 1:24. Web Press Infeed Section. uniform strength. But there were other problems that needed to be solved including the severing of sheets after printing and an accurate delivery of papers. Stephen D. Tucker, who was an employee of Hoe and Company, patented the gathering and delivery mechanism.This mechanism produced flat rapid deliv ery of printed sections. The web presses operated at speeds as fast as 18,000 impressions per hour. This finishing device was necessary for the production of â€Å"fold ready† products for immediate delivery by carrier or mail. The finishing steps were done â€Å"inline† or on the same piece of equipment. Initially equipment similar to the traditional folding machine was used. Conveyor belts would carry the sheet to right angle folding units, which were made up of folding rollers until the desired folded format was completed. Then in 1875 Stephen D.Tucker patented a rotating folding cylinder. This device folded the papers as fast as they were printed approaching speeds of 15,000 per hour. Paper enters from two rolls into two portions of the press. The web is printed (perfected) on both sides of the sheet and traveled towards the rotating folded cylinder. The sheets entered a triangular former, which folds the sheets at a predetermined place on center of the sheets. The sheets were then taken over a second cylinder, which gave it another fold. A knife then severed the sheet separating it from the web.The folded section traveled down a conveyor belt to be manually removed, wrapped and shipped Cylinder Press Invention William Nicholson received a patent for an idea for press in 1790 in which a form is to be placed on a cylinder over a flat bed. The substrate is fed between the bed and the impression cylinder to receive an image. The application of ink was done with rollers on this press. The rollers was composed of cloth covered with leather. Nicholson's envision for this press was far ahead of his time. Nicholson did not have a method for producing curved letterpress plates to fit around a cylinder.The securing of the plate for printing was another mystery at that time that would have to be figured out. In 1814, Frederick Koenig invented the first automatic press (Fig. 1:25). Frederick Koenig was a clock maker by trade. Koenig’s first press was actually patented in 1810. The entire bed moved laterally, and the form received ink from a set of inking rollers placed at one end of the press. The key to the automation of this press was the metal gripper finger, which in essence replaced human fingers for providing sheets to the press. Before this time, presses had been fed by hand.The automatic press was powered by steam and was used in printing the Times of London. It printed approximately 800 sheets per hour, an amazing feat in the 19th century and adequate for the population of that time. Thomas Bensley, a printer and Andrew Bauer a mechanic, assisted Koenig. They invented a press with a bed that moved laterally with the form and an impression cylinder that pressed the wet inked image on the substrate. The impression nip, or the area that prints at any given time, is very small on a cylinder press, resulting in a much better image transferred to the substrate.More importantly, this invention prevented many injuries and d amage to the press because operators were not in close contact with the moving parts on the press. Presswork and Bindery Processes 13 Fig. 1:25. Koenig’s cylinder press. Fig. 1:26 Hoe’s cylinder press. Fig. 1:27. Battery of cylinder presses. 14 Presswork and Bindery Processes Fig. 1:28 Advertisement of a cylinder press. Richard Hoe and the Rotary Press Richard Hoe (Fig. 1-30) was born in New York City. He went to work for his father, who manufactured printing presses. His father experimented with cylinder presses until his retirement in 1830.Richard carried on this work after his father retired in 1830. He invented the single cylinder press, which was capable of printing 200 copies per hour. Hoe also introduced the double cylinder press in 1844, known today as the rotary press. One cylinder carried the type to be printed while the other cylinder carried the paper and provided printing pressure so that the image could be transferred to the substrate. Rotary presses requ ires curve metal letterpress plates. The difficulty of making these curved plates slowed the acceptance and growth of rotary presses.Curved stereotype plates were accepted and used by 1870. The rotary press became the press of choice for newspaper reproduction, business forms, catalogues and magazines. A flying splicer was introduced for the continuous printing of publications without the need of stopping the press. This device changed the rolls by attaching a new roll to and expired roll. Hoe also invented an additional press in 1847 (Fig. 1-30), which featured a type form and four cylinders for carrying the sheets through the press. It is interesting to note that a boy, who fed sheets to the cylinder, also attended each cylinder.This press produces prints at the rate of 8,000 sheets per hour. Hoe is also credited with the invention of a web perfecting press. This press feeds from rolls of paper and is printed on both sides of the sheet. The presses were powered for the most part b y steam. Electric power took over in the nineteenth century as the main power source for presses. Presswork and Bindery Processes 15 Fig. 1:30 Richard Hoe (left) and his six rotary press (above). Fig. 1:31. Richard Hoe web press. Fig. 1:32. William Bullock. 16 Presswork and Bindery Processes Fig. 1:33. William Bullock’s rotary press.

Is Man Naturally Good or Evil? Philosophy of Man University of Santo Tomas Essay

I. Summary All men are equal by nature, are we not? We all have the same faculties, all needing the same provisions. From this equality and needs comes the survival of the fittest. One could go to any length just to attain his ends, ends such as dominion over the majority. Now, dominance can only exist if there are people you can dominate on. If one feels that his companion is a threat, there is a possibility of him subduing this companion, or maybe looking for another company he could dominate over. The existence of these competitions could be attributed to the principle that man is inherently evil. With these competitions, comes diffidence and glory. Man is constantly in pursuit of these three, whether we are aware of it or not. Man exists in the external world as a reactive creature that senses objects and is driven to act by the constant motions of the world. These constant motions lead to man’s constant and insatiable desires and wants, which in a state of nature pits everyone against another in a perpetual state of war. Here men are equal in that anyone can kill anyone else, and as such men live in a constant state of fear and anxiety. Humans live to survive. This goes way back to our very beginnings as cave people who, would hunt and do anything to live and keep on living. Now, living consists of more than just eating and not being killed. There are ones that live in the lap of luxury, and ones that live with much lower standards. As so, selfishness also has different levels depending upon lifestyle and what makes you ‘live’. So, technically, selfishness is something that we as humans are born with, but it’s perceived differently usually depending upon how the person was brought up as a child or has learned over time. However, overtime, it can be proven that everything we do will always lead back to one point: We do it for ourselves. Man is basically good since it is a fact that man is a social animal whose existence depends on the continued physical and spiritual relations between human beings, these relations must be based either on affinity, solidarity and love, or on hostility and struggle. If each individual thinks only of his well-being, or perhaps that of his small consanguinity or territorial group, he will obviously find himself in conflict with others, and will emerge as victor or vanquished; as the oppressor if he wins, as the oppressed if he loses. Natural harmony, the natural marriage of the good of each with that of all, is the invention of human laziness, which rather than struggle to achieve what it wants assumes that it will be achieved spontaneously, by natural law. In reality, however, natural Man is in a state of continuous conflict with his fellows in his quest for the best, and healthiest site, the most fertile land, and in time, to exploit the many and varied opportunities that social life creates for some or for others. For this reason human history is full of violence, wars, carnage (besides the ruthless exploitation of the labour of others) and innumerable tyrannies and slavery. If in the human essence there had only existed this punitive instinct of wanting to prevail and to profit at the expense of others, humanity would have remained in its barbaric state and the development of order as recorded in antiquity, or in our own times, would not have been possible. This order even at its nastiest, always signifies a kind of mitigating of the despotic spirit with a minimum of social solidarity, indispensable for a more civilised life. But fortuitously there exists in man another feeling which lures him closer to his neighbour, the feeling of sympathy, of love, and, thanks to it, mankind became more civilised, and from it grew our idea which aims at making society a true gathering, all working for the common good. Reaction The topic of human nature has been debated over for years, maybe even centuries. Who wouldn’t be tempted to wonder about the logic of human behaviour? Nonetheless, the bigger question is: Is the answer a sheer ‘good’ or ‘evil’? If your answer to that is a yes, then I beg to disagree. Experiences have pushed me to the conclusion that there is no such thing as good or evil. This notion is a meagre attempt to the conception of the underpinning of an organization. We are all different; we would cease to exist otherwise. People have diverse everything: perspectives, habits, feelings, senses, and methods. God made us so. Each of us has functions vital to each society we belong in. The loss of one function would create a ripple effect that would spread all over the society that could bring it to its demise. . The good and evil that you see don’t even exist in reality, at least outside of the mind that believes in them. They are only judgments passed by the individual from their own unique perspective. What one person sees as bad or evil may seem to be the only logical thing to do from some other perspective. The ideas of both good and evil are point of view specific. To sum it all up good is the name we give to people who do things that we think we like. Evil is the name we give to people who do the things that we don’t like. This is of course based solely on our particular point of view. This ‘Good and Evil’ concept DOES NOT EXIST. It is merely an illusion. What people have is what we should call ‘diverse perceptions’. I don’t think we have to the right to judge a person ‘evil’ especially if we do not know their story. After all, we are mere human beings giving our best shot at survival.

Smart materials

The primary characteristic of a â€Å"smart material† is that it has the ability to respond to external stimuli in a technically useful and technically controlled way. The words â€Å"technically useful† and â€Å"technically controlled† are emphasized since all materials respond to external stimuli of some sort or other (as a simple example, all materials respond to temperature by changing their volume), however, to be considered a â€Å"smart material† the response must be one that is useful in an engineering application.Thus, any discussion of smart materials must include a consideration of the application of these materials. Animals and plants could be considered as consisting of a large number of smart materials, however, the scope of this article will be restricted to inorganic and organic materials that are used in a more traditional engineering sense. ) The term smart material often also has a historical context, only being applied to relatively ne w materials. For example, consider the simple bimetallic strip.Bimetallic strips have been around for centuries and consist of two metals Joined so that the difference in the coefficient of thermal expansion causes the strip to bend in response to a change in temperature. This can be used, eg, to open or close a echanical valve or electrical circuit. The stimuli may either be provided by the natural environment or engineered into a structure that the material is part of. However, bimetallic strips are often not thought of as smart materials because they have been around and used for a long time.Smart materials are also often characterized by the fact that they transform energy from one mode to another, eg, from electrical energy to mechanical energy. Smart materials are also often incorporated in so-called Smart Structures, which are structures that, as well as being the structural support of a building or vehicle, also have a further function. For example, a load-bearing structure that also measures the load that it is carrying is an example of a smart structure. 2.Classification Schemes How a material is considered or classified depends to some extent on the scientific or technical discipline that is considering the material. For example, a material scientist is interested in the internal structure and how this may change under the influence of an external stimulus, whereas an application engineer may be more concerned with the function of the material and what it can be used for. 2. 1 . Classification According to Function. Smart materials can be classified according to the intended primary function, eg, as a sensor, actuator, or energy generator.Piezoelectric material is an example of a class of smart materials that can be used in all three of these functions. When subjected to stress these materials generate an electrical voltage that can be used as a response signal and also to generate power. Alternatively, when subjected to a voltage these materials ge nerate a mechanical stress. The interchangeable nature of stimulus and response is a common, but not universal, characteristic ot 1 Kirk-Othmer Encyclopedia of Chemical Technology. Copyright John Wiley & Sons, Inc. All rights reserved. vol. O smart materials. Materials that exhibit this interchangeable nature are often good candidates for smart structures with minimal external support requirements: one smart material both sensing and generating power and also capable of providing a mechanical or other response. Active Sensing Materials. The primary action of these materials is to transform one form of energy to another form of energy for, in most cases, a further device or material used to then generate a response. Active sensing materials may often be used to generate energy.For example, the voltage developed by electric polarization of a material can be used to accumulate charge, and the solar cell both detects the presence of incident light and generates a significant voltage and current. Passive Sensing Materials. These materials have a passive response to external stimuli, ie, do not transform an energy source to another energy. Thus these devices need an external source of power to operate. They are not really â€Å"smart†, but are included here for completeness since they do appear as sensors in larger smart systems.An example of a passive response is a change in electrical conductivity due o, eg, a change in pH of a solution. Actuating Materials. The primary function is to transform one form of energy to another form as a response to some external stimuli and to perform an action. 2. 2. Classification According to Smartness. Another possible classification is according to the degree of independence of operation that the smart material needs to operate in a smart structure. In this case, materials that require the least external support (eg, external power or processing capability) being considered smarter.A common example of a totally independen t smart material is that used in photochromic sunglasses. In this case, the energy required to drive the response, darkening of the sunglasses is provided directly by the stimulus, the incident light. 2. 3. Classification According to Material Properties. A further way to look at smart materials is to consider the primary physical-chemical property of the material that is used in smart applications. This is particularly useful in studying and understanding the operation of smart materials.Crystal Structure Modification. A number of classes of smart materials have crystal structural properties that can be used directly for smart actuating or sensing applications. These include materials that undergo a crystallographic phase change (eg, shape memory alloys), materials that have an electrical polarization natural to the crystal structure that responds to external stress (eg, piezoelectric materials) and materials that undergo realignment ot internal domains, such as electro- and magnet ostrictive materials.Energy Absorption-Emission. This includes materials that absorb incident energy by an internal excitation process (eg, promotion of electrons, on absorption of a photon, to a higher energy band). These often have a de-excitation process that involves the emission of energy. Examples include semiconductor devices as light sensors and energy harvesting devices. Macroscopic Ordering. Includes (generally) mixtures of materials where the large scale ordering of the particles in the mixture induces a change in properties of the mixture.Examples include electro- and magnetorheological fluids, 3 where an applied field induces particles in the fluid to align resulting in a change in viscosity. The Liquid Crystal Display can also be considered in this category. Chemical Interaction. Includes materials with sensitized surfaces that interact with target chemical or biological species. Examples include conducting polymers with functional groups that bind to chemical species and change the resistance of the polymer, and antigen coatings on microbalance mass detectors. Indicator chemicals that change color with, eg, pH, are another form of chemical sensor. . Smart Materials Overview Table 1 is a summary ofa number of materials that can be used in smart applications, ‘e, classified as to function. The following sections consider a number of these materials in more detail. Some sections deal with a particular type of smart material, whereas others deal with a class of material types. Inevitably, there are verlaps between these two, however, consideration of smart materials in this way is beneficial since, as discussed above, the view of the subject is colored by the point of view of the discussion.Smart materials include such a wide range of materials and possibilities it is worthwhile viewing the subject from a number of angles. The following is not an exhaustive list of smart materials, but serves as examples of the more common smart materials. Man y of the materials in Table 1 can be described as â€Å"responsive† rather than truly smart, ie, these materials can form one part of a smart system, either the sensor or ctuator, but require another responsive material for the actuator or sensor, respectively, to make up a complete smart system.Only a few materials, eg, the photochromic sunglasses mentioned in the section classification schemes, are both sensor and actuator. Even materials that can be used as an actuator and sensor often cannot be engineered to perform both functions effectively at the same time. Thus, most smart materials are used in combinations to form smart systems. An example of a possible system is an antivibration device that uses a piezoelectric sensor to detect the vibration and a magnetorheological fluid as the damper.The reterence section includes a number ot Internet web sites tor turtner practical information and as examples of the use and current availability of some smart materials. A number o f these references are to commercial web sites as useful sites regarding the application and maturity of some of the technologies, but this in no way is an implied endorsement of the particular companies. 4. Piezoelectric and Related Phenomena Piezoelectric materials are materials that exhibit a linear relationship between electric and mechanical variables.The electric polarization is proportional to the mechanical stress. Piezoelectric materials are â€Å"two-way'; (a) they convert mechanical stress into an electric field (Fig. la), and this effect is employed in piezoelectric sensors; (b) application of an electric field produces a mechanical 4 stress (Fig. 1b, c), and this behavior is utilized in actuator and power generator- harvesting devices. Only materials with an electrically poled, anisotropic crystal stucture can form piezoelectrics; ‘e, there must be an intrinsic electric field maintained in a particular direction throughout the material.Thus the material must be p yroelectric. A feature of a pyroelectric material is the disappearance of this pontaneous electric field above the Curie point temperature. Piezoelectric devices are formed by raising the material above the Curie point temperature and then cooling in the presence of a strong electric field. The common term for this action is to say that the material is â€Å"poled† in the presence of the electric field. This results in partial or complete alignment of the spontaneous electric field within the material. A related material property is the ferroelectric effect.All ferroelectric materials are necessarily both pyroelectric and piezoelectric. The ferroelectric effect is the electric olarization brought about by the complete or partial realignment of the spontaneous polarization resulting in a static electric field at the surfaces of the materials. (But note, a net field is not normally detected because the surface charge is rapidly neutralized by ambient charged particles. ) There are two principal types of materials that can function as piezoelectrics: the ceramics and polymers. 1 .Ceramics: The most widely used materials are the piezoceramics based on the lead zirconate titanate (PZT) formations, mixed sodium and potassium niobates, lithium niobate, and quartz. The advantages of these piezoceramics are that they have a high piezoelectric activity and they can be fabricated in many different shapes. 2. Polymers: Poly(vinylidene fluoride), PVDF, is the most widely used polymer piezoelectric material. It has the advantages over ceramic devices of flexibility, formability and can be simply cut to shape. Polymer piezoelectric materials have lower authority (force and displacement) than ceramic devices.The PVDF structure is a good example of the spontaneous electric field seen in these types of material (Fig. A limitation of piezoelectric materials is that they exhibit small dimensional changes but with high applied force). Composite structures consisting of a le ngth of piezoelectric bonded to a nonpiezoelectric substrate can be used to convert the lateral change in dimension of the piezoelectric to a bending force. In this way, larger actuation strokes can be achieved. Piezoelectric materials are used in many different types of sensing and actuating devices and also for power harvesting.Examples include Sensors: vibration, sound, accelerometers, pressure, ultrasonics, strain, power generation. Actuators: print heads, vibration suppression, speakers and buzzers, spark generators, ultrasonic ransducers, micropositioning and translation. Electrical components: filters and resonators. 5 5. Shape Memory Alloys and Polymers Metal shape memory alloys (SMAs) exhibit the properties of pseudo-elasticity and the shape memory effect. These alloys undergo thermomechanical changes passing from a martensitic phase at low temperature to an austenitic phase at higher temperature (Fig. a). 5. 1 . Shape Memory Effect. In the martensite phase, the alloy is so fter and easily manipulated through large strains with a little change in stress, ie, it can be easily deformed. As the temperature of the alloy is increased above the critical transformation) temperature, it changes into the austentic phase. In the austentic phase, the alloy regains its high strength and high modulus and also reverts back to its original shape. Thus a SMA can be formed into shape above the transformation temperature, cooled below the transformation temperature, and formed into different shape.On heating, the SMA will revert to the shape that it was formed into above the transformation temperature (Fig. 3b). 5. 2. Pseudo-Elasticity. This occurs when the alloy is completely composed of austenite (‘e, the temperature is above the transformation temperature). If the temperature is kept constant and the material is loaded, then at some point there will be a transformation to the martensite phase simply due to loading. The load is absorbed by deformation of the sof ter martensite phase, but upon unloading the martensite starts to transform back into austenite and the materials springs back into its original shape (Fig. c). Shape memory alloys (SMAs) can be divided into three functional groups: one-way SMAs, two-way SMAs, and magnetically controlled SMAs. The magnetically controlled SMAS show great potential as actuator materials for smart tructures because they could provide rapid strokes with large amplitudes under precise control. The most extensively used conventional shape memory alloys are the nickel-titanium, copper-zinc-aluminium, and copper- aluminium-nickel alloys. Due to their low cost, iron-based shape memory alloys are becoming more popular in smart structure applications.Iron-manganese- silicon steels alloyed with chromium, nickel, and cobalt, and iron-manganese- silicon steels alloyed with nitrogen all fit into this category. As previously mentioned, the nickel-titanium alloys have been the most widely used shape memory alloys. T his family of nickel-titanium alloys is known as Nitinol (Nickel Titanium Naval Ordnance Laboratory in honor of the place where this material behavior was first observed). Nitinol can be used in robotics actuators and micromanipulators that simulate human muscle motion.The ability of Nitinol to exert a smooth, controlled force when activated is an advantage of this material family. SMAS have been used for military, medical, safety, and robotics applications. Specific usages include hydraulic lines, medical tweezers, anchors for attaching tendons to bones, eyeglass frames, control of hot house windows, underwire brassieres, and ntiscalding valves used in water taps, and shower heads. 5. 3. Shape Memory Polymers. Shape memory polymers (SMP) are polymers (polyurethane based thermoplastics) that can be heated (above the glass transition temperature), deformed, and cooled to retain the deformed 6 shape.Upon heating above the transition temperature, the material softens and returns to the shape that it had prior to deformation. Advantages of SMPs over metallic SMAS include light weight, high recoverable strains (up to 400%), injection moulding (to form complex shapes), low cost and SMPs have shape recovery temperatures selectable between A30 and 708C. The SMAs, however, have superior force characteristics and can operate at higher temperatures. 6. Electrostrictive Materials Electrostrictive materials are materials that exhibit a quadratic relationship between mechanical stress and an applied electric polarization (Fig. ). Electrostriction can occur in any material. Whenever an electric field is applied, the induced charges in the material attract each other resulting in a compressive force. This attraction is independent of the sign of the electric field. The strain in the material lies along the axis of the induced polarization, which is preferably the direction of the applied lectric field. Electrostriction is a small effect and, in contrast to piezoelectric mater ials, electrostrictive materials show a large effect near the Curie temperature, especially for ferroelectric substances, such as members of the perovskite family.Typical electrostrictive materials include such compounds as lead manganese niobate:lead titanate (PMN:PT) and lead lanthanium zirconate titanate (PLZT). Electrostriction is used in actuators for accurate and fine positioning. Electrostrictive translators are less stable than piezoelectric devices with greater sensitivity to temperature. The one advantage they offer is lower hysteresis than piezoelectric materials at temperatures typically >1 7. Magnetostrictive Materials The same type of material response as that seen in electrostrictive materials discussed above can be observed when the stimulus is a magnetic field.Shape changes are the largest in ferromagnetic and ferrimagnetic solids. The repositioning of domain walls that occur when these solids are placed in magnetic field leads to hysteresis between magnetization an d an applied magnetic field. All of these effects disappear when the ferromagnetic material is heated above its Curie temperature. Ferrimagnetic materials have macroscopic properties similar to ferromagnetics; however, their microscopic properties are different. The magnetic dipoles of a ferromagnetic solid are aligned parallel to each other; whereas in a ferrimagnetic the alignment can be either parallel or in other directions.Materials that have shown a response to a magnetic stimuli are primarily inorganic: alloys of iron, nickel, and cobalt doped with rare earths. TERFENOLD, an alloy of terbium, dysprosium, and iron, TbxDy1 †¦xFey with x between 0. 27 and 0. 30 and y between 1. 90 and 1. 95, is the most effective magnetostrictive material and has been escribed as the â€Å"200 lb† gorilla of magnetostrictive materials. The name TERFENOL is an acronym for two of the elements present in the alloy and NOL refers to the Naval Ordinance Laboratory where this type 7 of mat erial behavior was developed.Magnetostriction occurs at its fullest potential in crystalline materials. Cost still appears to be one of the hindrances to magnetostrictive materials becoming commercially important. Piezoelectric materials are generally more compact and require less energy to operate than magnetostrictive materials. Magnetostrictive materials (‘e, TERFENOL-D) are useful where high force, igh power, and a long stroke are required or where the high drive voltages typical of the piezoelectric materials cannot be tolerated. 8.Electro- and Magnetorheological Materials Electrorheological and magnetorheological materials are fluids that exhibit a dramatic change in viscosity with an applied electric or magnetic field. The fluid can change from a thick oily consistency to virtually a solid substance within a millisecond. There are a wide assortment of electrorheological and magnetorheological fluids, which are usually a uniform dispersion or suspension of particles with in a fluid. A typical example of an electrorheological fluid is a mixture of cornstarch in a silicone oil. The mechanism of how electrorheological fluids work is simple.When there is no electric field the particles in the fluid are distributed randomly and are free to move in the fluid. In an applied electric field the particles orient themselves in ?ber-like structures (fibrils) that are much harder to move and impede the flow of the fluid, dramatically increasing the viscosity of the fluid-particle mixture (Fig. 5). Typical magnetorheological fluids consist of tiny iron particles uspended in oil and have a similar behavior to the electrorheological fluids except initiated by the application of a magnetic field. 8. 1 . Electrorheological Materials.Electrorheological fluids are nonNewtonian fluids, ‘e, the relationship between shear stress and strain rate is nonlinear. The changes in viscous properties of electrorheological fluids are only obtained at relatively high electric fields, in the order of 1 kV/mm. The practical applications of electrorheological fluids center around their abilities to transfer shear stresses and of acting as a variable damping material in an electric field. They have been demonstrated in shock absorbers, brake systems, clutches, vibration damping, control valves, and actuators.An illustrative application of electrorheological fluids is their use as a smart space material. In this application, a single-link flexible-beam was constructed in a sandwich confguration with ER fluids distributed along its length. When the beam is to be rapidly moved back and forth, the ER fluid is not energized, providing flexibility during the transient response period of the maneuver (for speed). At the end point of the maneuver the beam is made rigid (for stability). . 2. Magnetorheological Materials.Magnetorheological fluids are the magnetic equivalent of electrorheological fluids. An advantage over the ER fluids is that high voltages are not req uired to actuate the MR fluids. These fluids are under development for use in shock absorbers, vibration damping, exercise equipment and surface polishing of machine parts. 8 9. Photoresponsive and Sensitive Materials There are several different types of material families that exhibit different types of light transmission-absorption or other responses to a stimulus.These include lectrochromism (a change in color as a function of an electrical field); thermochromism (color change with heat); photochromic materials (reversible lightsensitive materials); photographic materials (irreversible light-sensitive materials); photostrictive materials (shape changes due to light usually caused by changes in electronic structure); fluorescence (emission of light (photons) at a different wavelength to the incident light).An interesting material with both electro- and thermochromism behavior, V02, was evaluated for a smart window application. Materials are being developed to exhibit both photochro mic and photographic ehaviors and one such system is based on a substituted indolinospirobenzopyrene embedded in a polystyrene matrix. This system acts as a photochromic system at low exposure in the ultraviolet (uv) range and at high exposure it functions as a photographic system. The image can be devisualized by heat and can be restored many times witn uv irradiation.Another interesting application is the use ot polymers that fluoresce or change color in the presence of particular metal ions. This is being tested as a corrosion sensor with optical fibers coated with an appropriate polymer r with the polymer incorporated in a composite structure. The system is optically excited and the presence of light at the fluorescence wavelength indicates metal ions (and thus corrosion). Thermochromic materials find use in security devices and in thermal mapping applications.All semiconductor materials exhibit an electrical response to incident light due to the electron absorption of photons, of sufficient energy, and promotion of the electrons to the conduction band (change in resistance) and across doping gradients, as in diodes (generation of current and voltage) in solar cells. Of particular interest in this rea is the development of non-silicon systems, which may results in cheap, flexible, robust, and easy to transport and deploy solar energy collectors. 0. Chemical and Biochemically Sensitive Materials The most widely known classes of chemically sensitive materials are the pHsensitive materials that include the acids, bases, and indicators. The most interesting of these for smart applications are the indicators. These materials change colors as a function of pH and are usually totally reversible. Indicators have also been used in the development of novel chemical indicating systems.Devices based on the ermeability of organic vapors through polymeric films or porous polymeric plugs, and subsequent reaction with an indicator, are used for monitoring the condition of time and/or temperature sensitive items, eg, pharmaceutics, foods and other perishables. The system is activated by crushing the vial releasing the volatile component, which then slowly permeates through the film reacting with the indicator to give a visible color change. This change is 9 dependent on both time and temperature.Other examples of pH-sensitive materials include the smart hydrogels and smart polymers (see below in EAPs). There is increasing interest in the detection of other chemicals, particularly in the detection of chemical warfare agents, environmentally noxious chemicals, and the control and monitoring of (engine) emissions. Semiconductor film sensors based on metal oxides (eg, Sn02, ZnO, Ti02, W03) are used to measure the concentration of toxic and flammable gases.These devices operate at several hundreds of degrees and a chemical reaction between the gas and the metal oxide changes the electrical conductivity of the oxide. The conductivity is a function of the t emperature and gas concentration. Higher temperature devices (to $10008C) have been demonstrated using Sic and SrTi03 systems. At low temperatures, the gases interact with the metal oxide by a chemisorption mechanism. The chemically adsorbed particles receive a partial charge and the opposite charge is made available to the oxide as a tree electron to increase its conductivity.Metal oxide sensors (MOS) are finding applications in the automotive industry monitoring the composition of exhaust gases. Many actions in organic systems are governed by highly selective reactions that are in effect molecular recognition mechanisms. The molecules responsible for these rocesses are highly selective in the molecules that they bind to (‘e, recognize) and can be used in engineered devices as sensors. An example of this is coating piezoelectric material with a selective material and then detecting the increase in mass of the coating as the target molecule binds to the coating.Being organic i n nature means that a wide range of ways to modify these molecules are available, eg, light stimulated regions that change their fluorescence frequency in the presence of the target molecule. Conducting polymers can also be tailored to respond (by a change in resistance) to ifferent chemicals. In this case, the response is rather broad (ie, not very selective), however, systems have been developed with a number of polymers treated to react to different types of chemicals to obtain â€Å"fingerprints† that are specific to particular chemicals.These systems generally have a limited lifetime and increasing the life and stability of the conducting polymers is the main challenge facing their acceptance as sensors. A novel proposal for chemical detection is the use of molecularly imprinted plastics (MIPs). In this case, target molecules are imbedded in a (porous) plastic matrix that is pplied to some sensing-transducer device. The target molecule is then dissolved away leaving a ph ysical imprint in the plastic matrix.On exposure to the molecule in a gas or liquid the physical imprints left in the plastic are selective for the target molecule and collect it, altering the properties (eg, mass) of the plastic. 1 1 . Electroactive Polymers (Actuators) An electroactive polymer (EAP) is a polymer that exhibits a response to an applied electrical stimulation and often also develops an electrical response to a mechanical stimulation. Some of these materials have been touched on in previous sections.

English Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 4

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Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 13

Case Study Example However a host EJ had a negative incident with a guest and she lost a lot of her belongings and suffered losses. She posted the incident in different networking sites and it soon became viral. The site was late to respond to the problems of EJ and did little to address the issues. Airbnb as a responsible firm should have made sure that the guests that it is referring to the hosts. Moreover even after the complaint was lodged by the host, it did not take initiative to look into the matter. In EJ’s case the site should have contacted the guest and asked for proper explanations. Proper probes that would have provided detailed insights into the matter should have been conducted such that the positions of both the parties can be properly reviewed. The results of the probe would have declared the guilty party and if proved guilty the guest should have been asked to pay for the damage done to the host. In case the host was found guilty defamation charges should have been filed agains t the host. But the site had taken no such initiative till the matter started getting widely publicised. There were repeated complaints regarding the site’s credibility and the firm should have taken initiative to resolve the issues such that it could ensure maximum customer satisfaction. Moreover customer review system is faulty in the case of the site and needs reviewing. The guests who decline requests due to inappropriate customer profiles are penalised by way of low rankings on the site. It also has a very dysfunctional customer service that failed to address the customer issues. On the site’s portal there are various complaints from the customers who have faced difficulty regarding registering their house and also from guests who had repeatedly found their bookings cancelled without any proper justification. The guests have tried to contact the customer care service

Operational management Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Operational management - Case Study Example In the work of Barnes (2008) operations management entails proper use of the available resources to make effective and quality production successful. McDonalds embraced the operations management strategy, validating the reason for its success in the market. First, Hill (n.d.) argues that McDonalds has spent a great deal of their energy on product planning. This is inclusive of coming up with products that are friendly to the clients in terms of cost and attractiveness. In the case of McDonalds, a lot of clients have indicated their passion for the chicken nuggets by the restaurant (Hill, n.d.). With the schedule manager on board, McDonalds is able to plan a sales chart, which allows production at any given time. The clients, therefore, return as they yearn for more from McDonalds and are rarely disappointed by the organization. New products are constantly added on the menu as seen in Hill’s (n.d.) work since the client’s preferences constantly change. The menu is inclusive of all foods and drinks for all weathers even the cold season (Hill, n.d.). McDonalds is keen to plan a way forward to deal with its high demand. Hill (n.d.) clearly indicates how McDonalds deals with the volume of production and how to deal with the demand of the clients. Planning the capacity in this case has led to the organization deal with the demand variations both on long and short term basis. Hill (n.d.) emphasizes that the McDonald’s managers are quick to respond to the peak hours of the business, for instance lunchtimes, Friday evenings and weekends in the Eastborough restaurant. With adequate stock of ingredients, McDonalds is able to maintain its large clientele base. In the McDonalds world, layout design has been of essence in making the organization a success. Hill (n.d.) quickly explains the arrangement of the organization that allows effective working, service provision, welcoming the clients, administration and

Select one of your favorite brands that is involved in licensing Research Paper

Select one of your favorite brands that is involved in licensing. Write one page on why or why not it works for the brand - Research Paper Example 529). Acne Studios is a part of the Creative Collective Acne. The Studio was founded in the year 1996 in Stockholm, Sweden. Acne Studios is a fashion manufacturing brand that designs fashion apparels and jeans. The operations of Acne Studio are not only limited to Sweden. In fact, the operations are expanded across the world. In order to expand its operations, the company relies on licensing agreements. With the help of licensing agreements, the company has successfully expanded its operations in Europe and Asia. The Swedish company is also planning to expand its business in London, Paris, and Japan. The effectiveness of licensing for Acne Studios can be realized from the fact the company has successfully expanded its operations in 35 locations with the help of licensing agreements (Okonkwo pp. 353). Under the licensing agreement, the company sells its licenses to other companies. Those companies use the brand, design, and IP of the parent company. The licenses can be sold to several companies in the same market. The licensing agreements have also allowed Acne Studios to exercise control over how the brand is used. This has allowed the company to maintain the standard of its products (Okonkwo pp. 353). Hagedoorn, J., S. Lorenz-Orlean, and H. van Kranenburg. â€Å"Inter-firm Technology Transfer: Partnership-embedded Licensing or Standard Licensing Agreements?† Industrial and Corporate Change 18.3 (2008):