The current disjoint path Ad hoc On-Demand Multi-path Distance Vector (AOMDV) routing protocol does not have any energy-awareness guarantees. When AOMDV is used in wireless sensor networks (WSNs) energy is an important consideration. To enhance the AOMDV protocol an extra energy metric is added along with the hop count metric. This Energy aware or EA-AOMDV improves path selection using a trade-off between energy and hop count, thus giving more longevity to WSNs. EA-AOMDV is compared to the current AOMDV routing protocol to prove its worth in the context of WSNs. It is found that EA-AOMDV leads to better WSN energy-awareness in resource constrained WSNs.

The Ad Hoc On-Demand Multi-Path Distance Vector (AOMDV) routing protocol allows the transport of data along one or more paths in wireless sensor networks (WSNs). The path chosen is based on a single shortest path hop count metric. The data on some WSNs is mission critical, for example, military and health care applications. Hence, fault tolerance in WSNs is becoming increasingly important. To improve the fault tolerance of WSNs in lossy environments, this work adds to the AOMDV routing protocol as it incorporates an additional packet loss metric. This Multi-criteria AOMDV or M-AOMDV is evaluated using the ns2 simulator. Simulations show that M-AOMDV maintains relatively low packet loss rates when the WSN is experiencing loss.

Multipath routing does not minimize the consequences of security attacks. Due to this many WSNs are still in danger of most security attacks even when multipath routing is used. In critical situations, for example, in military and health applications this may lead to undesired, harmful and disastrous effects. These applications need to get their data communicated efficiently and in a secure manner. In this paper, we show the results of a series of security attacks on a multipath extension to the ad hoc on-demand distance vector AODV protocol, AOMDV. It is proved that many security parameters are negatively affected by security attacks on AOMDV, which is contradictory to research claims. This means that alternative refinements have to be made to present multipath routing protocols in order to make them more effective against network security attacks.

A study using the cuckoo search algorithm to evaluate the effects of using computer-aided workstations on employee health and safety (HS) is conducted. We collected data for HS risk on employees at their workplaces, analyzed the data and proposed corrective measures applying our methodology. It includes a checklist with nine HS dimensions: work organization, displays, input devices, furniture, work space, environment, software, health hazards and satisfaction. By the checklist, data on HS risk factors are collected. For the calculation of an HS risk index a neural-swarm cuckoo search (NSCS) algorithm has been employed. Based on the HS risk index, IHS four groups of HS risk severity are determined: low, moderate, high and extreme HS risk. By this index HS problems are allocated and corrective measures can be applied. This approach is illustrated and validated by a case study. An important advantage of the approach is its easy use and HS index methodology speedily pointing out individual employee specific HS risk.

A method for adaptive usability evaluation of B2C eCommerce web services is proposed. For measuring eCommerce usability a checklist integrating eCommerce quality and usability is developed. By a Glowworm swarm optimization (GSO) neural networks-based model the usability dimensions and their checklist items are adaptively selected. A case study for usability evaluation of an eCommerce anthurium retail website is carried out. The experimental results show that GSO with neural networks supports the allocation of usability problems and the defining of relevant improvement measures. The main advantage of the approach is the adaptive selection of most significant checklist dimensions and items and thus significant reduction of the time for usability evaluation and design.

It is quite common to have access to geospatial (temporal/spatial) panel data generated by a set of similar data for analyses in a meta-data setup. Within this context, researchers often employ pooling methods to evaluate the efficacy of meta-data analysis. One of the simplest techniques used to combine individual-study results is the fixed-effects model, which assumes that a true-effect is equal for all studies. An alternative, and intuitively-more-appealing method, is the random-effects model. A paper was presented by the first author, and his co-authors addressing the efficient estimation problem, using this method in the aforesaid meta-data setup of the ‘Geospatial Data’ at hand, in Map World Forum meeting in 2007 at Hyderabad; INDIA. The purpose of this paper had been to address the estimation problem of the fixed-effects model and to present a simulation study of an efficient confidence-interval estimation of a mean true-effect using the panel-data and a random-effects model, too in order to establish appropriate ‘confidence interval’ estimation for being readily usable in a decision-makers’ setup. The present paper continues the same perspective, and proposes a much more efficient estimation strategy furthering the gainful use of the ‘Geospatial Panel-Data’ in the Global/Continental/ Regional/National contexts of “Socioeconomic & other Developmental Issues’. The ‘Statistical Efficient Confidence Interval Estimation Theme’ of the paper(s) has a wider ambit than its applicability in the context of ‘Socioeconomic Development’ only. This ‘Statistical Theme’ is, as such, equally gainfully applicable to any area of application in the present world-order at large inasmuch as the “Data-Mapping” in any context, for example, the issues in the topically significant area of “Global Environmental Pollution-Mitigation for Arresting the Critical phenomenon of Global Warming”. Such similar issues are tackle-able more readily, as the impactful advances in the “GIS & GPS” technologies have led to the concept of “Managing Global Village” in terms of ‘Geospatial Meta-Data’. This last fact has been seminal to special zeal-n-motivation to the authors to have worked for this improved paper containing rather a much more efficient strategy of confidence-interval estimation for decision-making team of managers for any impugned area of application.

Training neural networks is a complex task of great importance in the supervised learning field of research. We intend to show the superiority (time performance and quality of solution) of the new metaheuristic bat algorithm (BA) over other more “standard” algorithms in neural network training. In this work we tackle this problem with five algorithms, and try to over a set of results that could hopefully foster future comparisons by using a standard dataset (Proben1: selected benchmark composed of problems arising in the field of Medicine) and presentation of the results. We have selected two gradient descent algorithms: Back propagation and Levenberg-Marquardt, and three population based heuristic: Bat Algorithm, Genetic Algorithm, and Particle Swarm Optimization. Our conclusions clearly establish the advantages of the new metaheuristic bat algorithm over the other algorithms in the context of eLearning.

This paper presents a new approach of user-oriented design for transforming users’ perception into product elements design. An experimental study on mobile phones is conducted to examine how product form and product design parameters affect consumer’s perception of a product. The concept of Kansei Engineering is used to extract the experimental samples as a data base for neural networks (NNs) with particle swarm optimization (PSO) analysis. The result of numerical analysis suggests that mobile phone makers need to focus on particular design parameters to attract specific target user groups, in addition to product forms. This paper demonstrates the advantage of using KE-PSO for determining the optimal combination of product design parameters. Based on the analysis, we can use KE-PSO to suggest customers’ preferences for mobile phone design attributes that would be considered optimal by various user groups of all surveyed. They can be used for improvement and development of new future products.