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Defining and validating a map of related technologies is critical for managers, investors and inventors. Because of the increase in the applications of and demand for semiconductor lasers, analyzing the technological position of developers has become increasingly critical. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to adopt the technological position analysis to identify mainstream technologies and developments relevant to semiconductor lasers.

Correspondence analysis and k-means cluster analysis, which are data mining techniques, are used to reveal strategic groups of major competitors in the semiconductor laser market according to their Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) patent applications.

The results of this study reveal that PCT patent applications are generally obtained for masers, optical elements, semiconductor devices and methods for measuring and that technology developers have varying technological positions.

Through position analysis, this study identifies the technological focuses of different manufacturers to obtain information that can guide the allocation of research and development resources.

Selective laser sintering (SLS) is an essential technology in the field of additive manufacturing. However, SLS technology is limited by the traditional point-laser sintering method and has reached the bottleneck of efficiency improvement. This study aims to develop an image-shaped laser sintering (ISLS) system based on a digital micromirror device (DMD) to address this problem. The ISLS system uses an image-shaped laser light source with a size of 16 mm × 25.6 mm instead of the traditional SLS point-laser light source.

The ISLS system achieves large-area image-shaped sintering of polymer powder materials by moving the laser light source continuously in the x-direction and updating the sintering pattern synchronously, as well as by overlapping the splicing of adjacent sintering areas in the y-direction. A low-cost composite powder suitable for the ISLS system was prepared using polyether sulfone (PES), pinewood and carbon black (CB) powders as raw materials. Large-sized samples were fabricated using composite powder, and the microstructure, dimensional accuracy, geometric deviation, density, mechanical properties and feasible feature sizes were evaluated.

The experimental results demonstrate that the ISLS system is feasible and can print large-sized parts with good dimensional accuracy, acceptable geometric deviations, specific small-scale features and certain density and mechanical properties.

This study has achieved the transition from traditional point sintering mode to image-shaped surface sintering mode. It has provided a new approach to enhance the system performance of traditional SLS.

An interaction between emerging technologies (ETs) for facility management (FM) activities and stakeholder skills is necessary to promote the optimization of FM performance. Previous studies do not show strategies for the selection of ETs in FM considering the technological competencies of stakeholders. Thus, this study analyzes the interactions between ETs and FM from the perceptions of Brazilian professionals, identifying the most appropriate and effective technological solutions, based on a broad literature review.

The steps of the methodology are as follows: systematic literature review (SLR); detailing the ETs for FM; online questionnaire based on SLR findings; sample of Brazilian FM professionals; statistical treatment; and discussion.

Results indicate wireless sensor network, Internet of Thing, building information modeling and Big Data as ETs in FM with greater potential for optimization in the performance of FM activities, from survey respondents.

The scope of possible findings may have been biased, considering the small number of research participants and current transformations resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic (e.g. changes to standard operating procedures).

The results ensure greater security to facility managers in the effective implementation of ETs in FM activities.

The research explores the published studies and the consultation with Brazilian FM professionals in the selection of ETs.

Over the past decade, architecture, construction and engineering (ACE) industries have been evolving from traditional practices into more current, interdisciplinary and technology integrated methods. Intricate digital tools and mobile computing such as computational design, simulation and immersive technologies, have been extensively used for different purposes in this field. Immersive technologies such as augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) have proven to be very advantageous while the research is in its infancy in the field. Therefore, this study aims to develop an immersive pedagogical framework that can create a more engaging teaching and learning environment and enhance students' skill in the ACE field.

This study developed a BIM-enabled VR-based pedagogical framework for the design studio teaching in architectural courses, using a qualitative approach. A case study method was then used to test and validate this developed framework. Architectural Master Design Studio B, at Queensland University of Technology (QUT) was selected as the case study, with South Bank Corporation (SBC) as the industry partner and stakeholder of this project.

The practicality and efficiency of this framework was confirmed through increased students' and stakeholders' engagement. Some of the additional outcomes of this digitally enhanced pedagogical framework are as follows: enhanced students' engagement, active participation, collective knowledge construction and increased creativity and motivation.

The results have proven that the developed technology-enhanced and digitally enabled teaching pedagogy and framework can be successfully implemented into architectural design studios. This can bridge the existing gap between the technological advancements in ACE industry and higher education teaching and learning methods and outcomes. It is also expected that such innovative pedagogies will future-proof students' skill set as the future generation of architects and built environment workers. A major limitation of this framework is accessibility to the required hardware such as HMD, controllers, high-capacity computers and so on. Although the required software is widely accessible, particularly through universities licencing, the required hardware is yet to be readily and widely available and accessible.

The result of this study can be implemented in the architectural design studios and other ACE related classrooms in higher educations. This can bridge the existing gap between the technological advancements in ACE industry, and higher education teaching and learning methods and outcomes. It is also expected that such innovative pedagogies will future-proof students' skill set.

Such technology-enhanced teaching methods have proven to enhance students' engagement, active participation, collective knowledge construction and increased creativity and motivation.

Despite the advancement of digital technologies in ACE industry, the application of such technologies and tools in higher education context are not yet completely explored and still scarce. Besides, there is still a significant gap in the body of knowledge about developing teaching methods and established pedagogies that embrace the usage of such technologies in the design and architecture curricula.

An alliance portfolio can help latecomer firms to acquire the necessary knowledge and resources to catch up with market leaders. However, how latecomer firms construct an alliance portfolio in terms of the nature of windows of opportunity has not been fully analyzed. This paper aims to explore how latecomer firms can build appropriate coalitions according to the nature of the window of opportunity to achieve technological catch-up in different catch-up phases.

Based on a longitudinal case study from 1984 to 2018 of Sunny Group, now a leading manufacturer of integrated optical components and products, this paper explores the process of technological catch-up of latecomer firms building different types of alliance portfolio in different windows of opportunity.

This paper finds that there is a sequence when latecomers build an alliance portfolio in the process of catch-up. When the uncertainty of opportunity increases, the governance mechanism of the alliance portfolio will change from contractual to equity-based. Also, latecomer firms build market-dominated and technology-dominated alliance portfolios to overcome their market and technology disadvantages, respectively.

These conclusions not only enrich the theory of latecomer catch-up from the perspective of windows of opportunity but also expand research on alliance portfolio processes from a temporal perspective.

This paper aims to concentrate on recent innovations in flexible wearable sensor technology tailored for monitoring vital signals within the contexts of wearable sensors and systems developed specifically for monitoring health and fitness metrics.

In recent decades, wearable sensors for monitoring vital signals in sports and health have advanced greatly. Vital signals include electrocardiogram, electroencephalogram, electromyography, inertial data, body motions, cardiac rate and bodily fluids like blood and sweating, making them a good choice for sensing devices.

This report reviewed reputable journal articles on wearable sensors for vital signal monitoring, focusing on multimode and integrated multi-dimensional capabilities like structure, accuracy and nature of the devices, which may offer a more versatile and comprehensive solution.

The paper provides essential information on the present obstacles and challenges in this domain and provide a glimpse into the future directions of wearable sensors for the detection of these crucial signals. Importantly, it is evident that the integration of modern fabricating techniques, stretchable electronic devices, the Internet of Things and the application of artificial intelligence algorithms has significantly improved the capacity to efficiently monitor and leverage these signals for human health monitoring, including disease prediction.

Recently, powerful instruments for biomedical engineering research studies, including disease modeling, drug designing and nano-drug delivering, have been extremely investigated by researchers. Particularly, investigation in various microfluidics techniques and novel biomedical approaches for microfluidic-based substrate have progressed in recent years, and therefore, various cell culture platforms have been manufactured for these types of approaches. These microinstruments, known as tissue chip platforms, mimic in vivo living tissue and exhibit more physiologically similar vitro models of human tissues. Using lab-on-a-chip technologies in vitro cell culturing quickly caused in optimized systems of tissues compared to static culture. These chipsets prepare cell culture media to mimic physiological reactions and behaviors.

The authors used the application of lab chip instruments as a versatile tool for point of health-care (PHC) applications, and the authors applied a current progress in various platforms toward biochip DNA sensors as an alternative to the general bio electrochemical sensors. Basically, optical sensing is related to the intercalation between glass surfaces containing biomolecules with fluorescence and, subsequently, its reflected light that arises from the characteristics of the chemical agents. Recently, various techniques using optical fiber have progressed significantly, and researchers apply highlighted remarks and future perspectives of these kinds of platforms for PHC applications.

The authors assembled several microfluidic chips through cell culture and immune-fluorescent, as well as using microscopy measurement and image analysis for RNA sequencing. By this work, several chip assemblies were fabricated, and the application of the fluidic routing mechanism enables us to provide chip-to-chip communication with a variety of tissue-on-a-chip. By lab-on-a-chip techniques, the authors exhibited that coating the cell membrane via poly-dopamine and collagen was the best cell membrane coating due to the monolayer growth and differentiation of the cell types during the differentiation period. The authors found the artificial membrane, through coating with Collagen-A, has improved the growth of mouse podocytes cells-5 compared with the fibronectin-coated membrane.

The authors could distinguish the differences across the patient cohort when they used a collagen-coated microfluidic chip. For instance, von Willebrand factor, a blood glycoprotein that promotes hemostasis, can be identified and measured through these type-coated microfluidic chips.

The purpose of this paper is to introduce the simple synthesis process of thermal-insulation coating by using three different nanoparticles, namely, nano-zinc oxide (ZnO), nano-tin dioxide (SnO₂) and nano-titanium dioxide (TiO₂), which can reduce the temperature of solar cells.

The thermal-insulation coating is designed using sol-gel process. The aminopropyltriethoxysilane/methyltrimethoxysilane binder system improves the cross-linking between the hydroxyl groups, -OH of nanoparticles. The isopropyl alcohol is used as a solvent medium. The fabrication method is a dip-coating method.

The prepared S1B1 coating (20 Wt.% of SnO₂) exhibits high transparency and great thermal insulation property where the surface temperature of solar cells has been reduced by 13°C under 1,000 W/m² irradiation after 1 h. Meanwhile, the Z1B2 coating (20 Wt.% of ZnO) reduced the temperature of solar cells by 7°C. On the other hand, the embedded nanoparticles have improved the fill factor of solar cells by 0.2 or 33.33%.

Findings provide a significant method for the development of thermal-insulation coating by a simple synthesis process and low-cost materials.

The thermal-insulation coating is proposed to prevent exterior heat energy to the inside solar panel glass. At the same time, it can prevent excessive heating on the solar cell’s surface, later improves the efficiency of solar cell.

This study presents a the novel method to develop and compare the thermal-insulation coating by using various nanoparticles, namely, nano-TiO₂, nano-SnO₂ and nano-ZnO at different weight percentage.

Properly planned road illumination systems are collectively a public wealth and the commissioning of such systems may require extensive planning, simulation and testing. The purpose of this simulative work is to offer a simple approach to facilitate luminance-based road lighting calculations that can be easier to comprehend and apply to practical designing problems when compared to complex multi-objective algorithms and other convoluted simulative techniques.

Road illumination systems were photometrically simulated with a created model in a validated software platform for specified system design configurations involving high-pressure sodium (HPS) and light-emitting diode (LED) luminaires. Multiple regression analyses were conducted with the simulatively obtained data set to propound a linear model of estimating average luminance, overall uniformity of luminance and energy efficiency of lighting installations, and the simulatively obtained data set was used to explore luminaire power–road surface average luminance characteristics for common geometric design configurations involving HPS and LED luminaires, and four categories of road surfaces.

The six linear equations of the propounded linear model were found to be well-fitted with their corresponding observation sets. Moreover, it was found that the luminaire power–road surface average luminance characteristics were well-fitted with linear trendlines and the increment in road surface average luminance level per watt increment of luminaire power was marginally higher for LEDs.

This neoteric approach of estimating road surface luminance parameters and energy efficiency of lighting installations, and the compendia of luminaire power–road surface average luminance characteristics offer new insights that can prove to be very useful for practical purposes.

This paper aims to explore how a shared service centre (SSC) is mobilised in a power-dominant context of a Chinese state-owned enterprise (SOE). Specifically, it examines the mobilisation of SSC within this multi-divisional SOE, the role and dynamics of actors involved and the influence of changes in the integrated information system (IIS) during the mobilisation process.

The study follows a qualitative case study methodology. The authors draw on actor-network theory to examine the network and translation processes constructed in mobilising SSC in the chosen SOE. The data sources of this study were collected through semi-structured interviews, observations and documentary reviews.

The mobilisation of SSC is not a linear process but rather a “spiral” interplay through continuous interactions and compromises between human and non-human actors. Power gave the core actor as an orchestrator legitimacy and formality to reduce resistance and obstruction in translation for the mobilisation of SSC. The changes in IIS appear to facilitate the interaction between the heterogeneous actors.

This case study contributes towards understanding the mobilisation of SSC in a power-dominant context by highlighting the impact of changes in IIS and the details of the mobilisation of SSC in terms of the role played by both the individual actors and the technology.

This study provides a broader understanding of the interactions of the heterogeneous actors for mobilising SSC in a power-dominant context. More importantly, the study inspires future research into examining how SSC practices unfold and how the changes in IIS influence the mobilisation of SSC.