Fundamentals of General Description Of Technologies

  ¹ St-Petersburg State University of Technology and Design, North-West Institute of Printing, Russia

  ² North-West Branch of the Academy of Information Technologies in Education, Russia

Basic concepts of general theory of technologies are presented. The technology denotes as a set of scheduled actions which could be exactly described. These actions transform the input goods, stuffs or services into output ones. Input, transformation and output construct basic technology triad. The matrix description of each of this triad parts is the best form for theoretical analysis of technology. Three types of streams build all interactions inside the technology area and outside too. These streams are: the stream of material, the stream of energy and the stream of information. All possible technologies of our World build so called technological sphere which is the significant part of noosphere.  The areas on which this zone can be divide are also discussed. The coefficient of uncertainty of output production is the main value which allows to find location of borders between the principal parts of the technological zone.

Keywords: model, triad, algorithm, scheduled operations, technology zone, basic streams,  uncertainty.

Introduction: Universe and models

The Universe is so complex system that its behaviours may be known only partially. Never the less one has possibility to interpret  observed behaviours of Universe and generate different conclusions and predictions on the base of various models. The model simplify reality in any way. Each model can investigate and describe only a restricted set of observed reality. These restrictions are the price for exact conclusions given with the help of model usage. The best investigation of Universe behaviours could be found in the zone where interfere several models. The practical value of each model depends on the rank of its integration. Small rank of integration allows to give concrete forecasting in real situations. Yet the generality of given predictions is not high. The enlargement of this rank allows to generate more general conclusions. At the same time these conclusions are fewer tailored with real problems.

We shall illustrate this point with the help of simple example. Let us one want to build new lecture hall. It is necessary to find illumination in the middle of this housing. For this purpose one need to know all hall dimensions, the amount of windows and all behaviours of different light sources. In addition to these evident data the projector has to find information about geographical and climatic characteristics, building orientations and possible shadows from neighbouring structures. All these data have to be introduced in the computation model which permits to find how many electrical bulbs of given power can provide necessary illumination. Unfortunately this result will be correct only in the prefixed town or village. For instance results found for the city of London are not correct to the city of Mexico. If one wants to study illumination for rural territory in Lithuania or Ukraine among others he or she has to explore an other model. The integration of this model has to be of more higher rank. With the help of this model the projector can find useful results about illumination of large areas. These data are of fewer generality than in previous case. Thereafter the price for enlarging of described area is the lost of concrete practical recommendations given by the more general model [1].

Taxonomy of different models was described in[1,2]. The rank of models’ generalization was studied in these publications too. The higher rank is attributed with the models which in the case covered all possible theoretical and practical situations of human practice. These models called global ones. Theory of systems, theory of manifolds, theory of information are examples of these few general theoretical models. All these theories posses interdisciplinary nature. One of these theories is the general theory of technologies. This theory is the focus of our presentation.

The first definition of the technology

There are two important questions in the field of technique and natural sciences. The first question is WHAT IT IS  and the second one is HOW TO DO IT. The answer on the first question is given in physics and engineering. The answer on the second question one can find in the field of chemistry and technology. In principle the technology is the path of fabrication the object we need. One can prepare any object in different ways. For instance we can mix some matters and some time get interesting object. Yet we frequently can not explain why the properties of fabricated matter are useful in several cases only. Have these results are accidental we have recommendations or receipts but have no technology. We build the technology if the set of our actions generates strictly determined result.   Accordingly to this the first determination is: Technology is the strictly determined sequence of operations which guaranties the desirable result. It means that the base of technology is the algorithmization of the sequence of operations which can strictly predict the final result[3,4]. It is possible to say that technology products or transforms some starting stuff or goods into desirable objects. Consequently the principal behaviour of technology may be presented in triad form (fig.1):

Fig.1 The basic presentation of technology as the triad form which transforms the starting object into the finish one.

This triad consists of starting (input) and finishing (output) objects. These objects can have very different nature. Transformation or production process includes the schedule of operations and different technical systems – engines, tools, instruments[3-9]. This part of technology triad is the main content of theory of technical systems[5,6]. The simple configuration of technology on fig.1 corresponds to the so called ‘black box approximation’ in which interaction between technology area and its environment is neglected.

For  real situation this simple presentation needs to be replenished. At first it is necessary to add interactions between technology and its environment (fig.2). Three different flows realize these interactions:  the flow of matter, the flow of energy and the flow of information. Each of them can be as ingoing so outgoing too (fig.3). Interactions between flows of different origin also are possible. The same flows describe interactions inside the object. All interactions flows have two rates. One of them is the rate of interaction between the environment and the boundary (interface) surrounded the object. The second rate describes the interaction between the interface and the middle parts of object[10].

Fig.2 Interaction between object and its environment.

Let us enumerate some basic problems which must be studied in the theory of technologies. The first one is to find the answer how to find the best universal representation of quantitative description of the transformational processes. It would be correct if we say that the matrix form of such representation was recognized as the better at this way[3,7-9]. Implementing of computing technique into different technologies engaged this concept on new areas of practical fabrication of different products. The second problem in the general theory of technologies is who to find optimal

ways for building complex technologies on the base of technologies which are tied with more simple processes.

Fig.3. The transformation process as the open system.

This problem is the simplest from of the problems which are connected  with industrial technologies. Its solutions are discussed in[4]. By our opinion at this time the more interesting and valid problem is the study of all technological zone of our world. The guided transformation of different objects does not restricted on the industrial processes only. Teaching is guided transformation of students knowledge, skills and abilities. Advertising is also a process.

Fig. 4. The sketch of whole technology area of our the World.

which change customers information about different goods in the predicted way. That is why we can engage our understanding of technologies. One can say the whole zone of technologies can be divided on the three different parts (fig.4). The division of these tree parts is associated with relation between the humans and the technology. If the humans are out of technology and can only observe it or can manage it we have the industrial technologies. If the technology actions are affects on humans it is the case of humanities technologies. The advertising, the firms management are the few among them. If the humane is simultaneously the actor and the object of technology action we can say this process is combined. The psychological, medical and learning technologies are excellent examples of the combined ones. The investigation of the real border between these types of technologies and the study of their principal differences is the problem of higher interest. There are two dimensions affected on this border position. Both of them are presented on the axes on fig.5. One of them is the complexity of technology. The other one is the magnitude of uncertainty of transformation process. Each technology is prediction of transformation results.

Fig.5. Position of the border between different parts of technological zone

These prediction can not be full exactly. For instance it is simple to say which result would be reached on the line of car assembling. Yet scheduled actions of steel melting are connected with the higher uncertainty. If we take amount of actions with good predictions of its results and divide it on the whole amount of actions we determinate the so called coefficient of uncertainty. If this coefficient is fewer than 50% the technology transforms to set of recommendations. One new the human behaviour with higher uncertainty than behaviour of different stuffs, matters and goods. That is why we can observe situation which is represented on fig.5. Creative part of recommendations posses the largest amount of uncertainty. That is why in the area of humane technologies all predictions are fuzzy.

References

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