Discrete wavelet transform analysis of surface electromyography for the fatigue assessment of neck and shoulder muscles.

Assessment of neuromuscular fatigue is essential for early detection and prevention of risks associated with work-related musculoskeletal disorders. In recent years, discrete wavelet transform (DWT) of surface electromyography (SEMG) has been used to evaluate muscle fatigue, especially during dynamic contractions when the SEMG signal is non-stationary. However, its application to the assessment of work-related neck and shoulder muscle fatigue is not well established. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to establish DWT analysis as a suitable method to conduct quantitative assessment of neck and shoulder muscle fatigue under dynamic repetitive conditions. Ten human participants performed 40min of fatiguing repetitive arm and neck exertions while SEMG data from the upper trapezius and sternocleidomastoid muscles were recorded. The ten of the most commonly used wavelet functions were used to conduct the DWT analysis. Spectral changes estimated using power of wavelet coefficients in the 12-23Hz frequency band showed the highest sensitivity to fatigue induced by the dynamic repetitive exertions. Although most of the wavelet functions tested in this study reasonably demonstrated the expected power trend with fatigue development and recovery, the overall performance of the "Rbio3.1" wavelet in terms of power estimation and statistical significance was better than the remaining nine wavelets.

Supplier selection based on a neural network model using genetic algorithm.

In this paper, a decision-making model was developed to select suppliers using neural networks (NNs). This model used historical supplier performance data for selection of vendor suppliers. Input and output were designed in a unique manner for training purposes. The managers' judgments about suppliers were simulated by using a pairwise comparisons matrix for output estimation in the NN. To obtain the benefit of a search technique for model structure and training, genetic algorithm (GA) was applied for the initial weights and architecture of the network. The suppliers' database information (input) can be updated over time to change the suppliers' score estimation based on their performance. The case study illustrated shows how the model can be applied for suppliers' selection.