bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Smart Eyeglasses, e-Textiles, and the Future of Wearable Computing
Authors: Amft Oliver
Published: October 2016

Where a decade a ago mostly visions and bulky carry-on devices existed, today several wearable computing products could be found. For example, activity trackers are already selling in convenience stores. The development does neither mean that the core innovations of the wearable computing vision are realised, nor that there will be any successful wearable device beyond those activity trackers. The product announcements and explorations, such as Google Glass, have identified key challenges that are urging further research investments. The lessons to learn from those recent developments are discussed here, leading to an approach towards multi-function materials and wearable devices. Two projects are described that implement a multi-function approach. In the SimpleSkin project, a generic fabric is developed to realise different sensor functions, controlled via software apps in a Garment OS. The same fabric material is used in smart eyeglasses to realise temple-integrated electrodes. Whereas SimpleSkin aims at skin-attached wearables, the smart eyeglasses developed here closely resemble regular glasses and thus could become publicly accepted wearable accessories. Moving towards wearable technology that is truly embedded into everyday life opens a series of new health support applications that are sketched here, based on the concept of smart eyeglasses.
Extraction of Stair Walking Parameters in Living Space by Using Kinect v2
Authors: Ogawa Ami , Yorozu Ayanori , Mita Akira , Takahashi Masaki , Bock Thomas
Published: October 2016

These days, many problems are associated with the increase of people need nursing care due to the aging society. To help the problems, expanding the healthy life expectancy is important. Thus, we have been suggesting the “Monitoring System” which can monitor the resident’s daily life. This system aims to monitor changes of resident’s behaviors as unusual signs to prevent related accidents or diseases. As a part of the system, we focused on walking. As it is reported that the ability of walking is related to many disabilities, analyzing the walking patterns is effective to know the aging level. Especially for stair walking, relatively higher ability is needed compared with level walking, that is, the decline of walking ability will appear in stair walking earlier. Therefore, we focused on the stair walking in this study. In the previous researches, sensors such as markers or electrodes are mainly used to obtain the walking information. As our system is intended to be used in living space, sensors attached to a subject’s body are unacceptable. Thus we used Kinect v2 to acquire the coordinate points of human joints without restraining subjects in this study. We use depth data considering the privacy protection. Several verification experiments to evaluate accuracy of our proposed system have been conducted.
Biomimetic Design and Manufacturing of Anti-Erosion Functional Surfaces Inspired from Desert Scorpion
Authors: Han Zhi Wu , Yang Ming Kang , Yin Wei , Zhang Jun Qiu
Published: October 2016

Sand erosion is a phenomenon that solid particles impinging to a wall cause serious mechanical damages to its surface. It's tough to be a machine in the desert: particles of dirt and sand work their way into moving parts, where they abrade helicopter propellers, airplane rotor blades, pipes and other equipments. However, the desert scorpion (Androctonus australis) live their entire lives subjected to blowing sand, yet they never appear to be eroded. In this study, the anti–erosion characteristic rules of the scorpion surfaces under aerodynamics effect of gas/solid mixed media were studied. Biomimetic linear–cutted surfaces consisting of an array of three types of grooves, square–type, V–type and U–type, were designed and investigated to quantify their erosion wear resistance properties. A smooth surface sample was fabricated for comparison. The ANSYS-Fluent simulation of biomimetic models showed that the V-type groove sample, inspired by the desert organism's surface with different morphologies, exhibited the best erosion resistance. It also indicated the anti-erosion property of biomimetic samples could be attributed to the rotating flow in the grooves that reduces the impact speed of particles. The synchronized erosion test confirmed the conclusions. Furthermore, an application exploring of bionic blades on a centrifugal fan was conducted. The blades with optimum parameters could effectively improve anti-erosion property by 29%. We envision that more opportunities for biomimetic application in improving the anti–erosion performance of parts that work under dirt and sand particle environment will be proposed.
Recent Developments in Bio-Inspired Sensors Fabricated by Additive Manufacturing Technologies
Authors: Krijnen Gijs J.M. , Sanders Remco G.P.
Published: October 2016

In our work on micro-fabricated hair-sensors, inspired by the flow-sensitive sensors found on crickets, we have made great progress. Initially delivering mediocre performance compared to their natural counter parts they have evolved into capable sensors with thresholds roughly a factor of 30 larger than of their natural equivalents. Due to this disparity, and also instigated by our work on fly-halteres inspired rotation rate sensors and desert locust ear-drum mimicking membrane struc- tures, we have analysed the differences in performance between natural and man-made sensors. We conclude that two major drawbacks of main-stream micro-fabrication are the lack of easily applicable soft materials, as well as the limitations imposed by photolithography based fabrication with respect to freeform 3D shaping of structures. Currently we are targeting additive manufacturing for biomimetic sensor structures and in this contribution we report initial results of 3D printed sensor structures.
Auto-Gopher-2 - Wireline Deep Sampler Driven by Percussive Piezoelectric Actuator and Rotary EM Motors
Authors: Bar-Cohen Yoseph , Zacny Kris , Badescu Mircea , Lee Hyeong Jae , Sherrit Stewart , Bao Xiao Qi , Freeman David , Paulsen Gale L. , Beegle Luther
Published: October 2016

Two of the key purposes of future NASA’s solar system exploration of planetary bodies are the search for potentially preserved bio-signatures and for habitable regions. To address these objectives, a biologically inspired wireline deep rotary-percussive drill, called Auto-Gopher, has been developed. This drill employs a piezoelectric actuated percussive mechanism for generating impulsive stresses and breaking formations, and an electric motor to rotate the bit to break material and remove the cuttings. Initially, the drill was designed as percussive mechanism for sampling ice and was demonstrated in 2005 at Lake Vida, Antarctica, reaching about 2 m depth. The lessons learned suggested there is a need to augment the percussive action with bit rotation in order to maximize the penetration rate. The first generation implementation of the rotary augmentation was focused on the demonstration of this capability. In 2012, during the 3-day field test, the drill reached a 3-meter deep in gypsum. A separate mechanism was used to break and remove the cores. The average drilling power consumption was in the range of 100-150 Watts, while the rate of penetration was approximately 2.4 m/hr. Currently under development is the second-generation drill, called Auto-Gopher 2. The drill will be fully autonomous. In this paper, the capabilities that are being integrated into the Auto-Gopher-2 are described and discussed.
Printed Electroluminescent Fabrics
Authors: Hu Bin , Calvert Paul
Published: October 2016

Electroluminescence offers a versatile and simple route to printed light sources. A layer of poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly (styrene sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) was inkjet printed onto polyethylene terephthalate (PET) mesh fabrics. The conductivity–transparency relationship is determined for textile-based conductors with different thicknesses of the printed PEDOT:PSS film.
Alternating current powder electroluminescent devices were made by extrusion printing a layer of phosphor onto aluminum foil and then covering this with a fabric electrode. These devices are compared with indium tin oxide (ITO) glass electrodes on a similar device. Textiles coated with conducting polymers are a potential alternative to coated polymer films for flexible, transparent conductors. The strain response of these electrodes was improved by incorporating carbon nanotubes into the conductor. These bridge cracks that form on stretching.
Electrospun Drug-Loaded Textiles for Biomedical and Healthcare Applications
Authors: Bonadies Irene , Cimino Francesca , Ambrogi Veronica , Carfagna Cosimo
Published: October 2016

Electrospinning is a versatile technology for the production of polymer micro/nanoscale fibers. It provides the direct addition of bioactive payloads into micro/nanofibers thus improving the encapsulation efficiency and reducing the burst release via proper selection of drug-polymer-solvent system or electrospinning setup. In addition, since electrospun fibers have one dimension at the microscopic scale but another dimension at the macroscopic one, it is possible to combine the advantages possessed by functional materials on the nanometer scale. A large surface to volume ratio, with the properties of conventional solid membranes, such as ease of manipulation and applicability in any size and shape, making them suitable for biomedical or healthcare applications both topically (i.e. skin) and locally (i.e. tumor). This communication deals with electrospun fibrous systems containing active compounds extracts from plants such as Artemisinin and Propolis; these systems have been properly realized to preserve the pharmacological activity of drugs and evaluated as potential delivery systems for vector-born deseases and cancer, reducing the damage to non-target organism and environment.
UAV-Deployed Impulsive Source Localization with Sensor Network
Authors: Greenwood William , Zhou Hao , Lynch Jerome P. , Zekkos Dimitrios
Published: October 2016

The unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is a light weight flight system that can carry sensors and cameras for data collection. Tremendous excitement surrounds the use of UAVs because they can be deployed easily and rapidly for data collection; they also can be programmed to execute missions with high degrees of autonomy. For these reasons, UAVs hold promise in accelerating the collection of data in geophysical explorations. In this study, a UAV platform is explored for the collection of data from geophones deployed to measure the vibrations of a concrete slab foundation. The UAV is designed to drop a weight as a controlled energy source. Both the energy and location of the impulsive load are adjustable by the flight parameters of the UAV. The study adopts a time-domain analysis for source localization using the dense array of geophones
Shape Memory Alloy Morphing Airfoil Sections
Authors: Saravanos Dimitris , Machairas Theodoros , Solomou Alex , Karakalas Anargyros
Published: October 2016

Shape memory alloys (SMA) provide common solid state actuators with reliable and unique characteristics. Their special behavior is based on a reversible phase transformation and can provide high power density, induced strain and block force which render them indispensable for use in morphing structures that require large shape changes while space and weight restrictions are imposed. Yet, their implementation into morphing structures faces challenges related to their complex multi-disciplinary behavior, their interaction with the passive structural components, geometrical nonlinearity due to large shape changes, the lack of experimental data, and above all, the lack of modelling tools which can robustly simulate the complex thermomechanical behavior and make feasible their design. We briefly review the material characterization process, the developed modelling tools which can simulate the complex thermomechanical response of morphing structures with SMA actuators which can undergo large shape changes under severe geometric nonlinearity, and the testing of prototype morphing components. The design and validation of two morphing structural concepts for curvature control are presented. A morphing strip capable to deform towards a single target shape is initially presented. Subsequently, a morphing airfoil concept implementing an articulated mechanism capable to achieve multiple target shapes for aerodynamic load control is presented. The challenging task to continuously adapt the structural shape to time varying demands, dictates the use of antagonistic actuator configurations to maximize and control the range of morphing. The previously mentioned morphing airfoil configuration is used to alleviate the aerodynamic fatigue loads in wind turbine blades and aircraft wings.
Vision-Based Fuzzy Controller for Quadrotor Tracking a Ground Target
Authors: Chen Xu Chao , Cao Zhi Qiang , Yang Yue Quan , Zhou Chao
Published: October 2016

A vision-based fuzzy controller for a quadrotor is proposed in this paper to realize ground target tracking. Due to the under-actuated property of quadrotors as well as the coupled dynamics in the image plane, it is challenging to design an image-based visual servoing controller for the quadrotor. Since the fuzzy control does not require an accurate model, a fuzzy-based approach is presented to solve the image-based tracking problem. Fuzzy controller takes image moments as inputs and its outputs are used to control the position of quadrotor in a form of tilt angles and vertical velocity adjustment. The proposed approach is verified by experiment.
Yaw Control of a Smart Morphing Tailless Aircraft Concept
Authors: Gamble Lawren L. , Inman Daniel J.
Published: October 2016

Aircraft morphing with regard to UAVs has recently gained incredible momentum; however, only a limited amount of research has been conducted on its effect on tailless aircraft. This is partly due to aerodynamic compromises such as directional instabilities that arise in the absence of a vertical stabilizer. Yet birds readily adapt to adverse flight conditions without vertical stabilizers and are unhindered with respect to stability and maneuvering due to their smooth continuous shape change and rapid muscle response. This research, motivated by the discrepancy between manmade and natural flight designs, investigates the aerodynamic effects of a smart morphing horizontal tail exhibiting bending-twisting coupling for yaw control on a bio-inspired aircraft. The structural response due to actuation was determined using Abaqus and coupled with a Reynolds-averaged-Navier-Stokes turbulence model for a low-Reynolds-number fluid analysis of the deformed shape. The morphing tail was simulated as piezoelectric Macro Fiber Composites with oriented PZT rods. Directional moment and stability derivative are presented to gain insight into the effect of the morphing horizontal tail on yaw control.
Adaptive Self-Protection against Shock and Vibration
Authors: Jankowski Łukasz , Graczykowski Cezary , Pawłowski Piotr , Mikułowski Grzegorz , Ostrowski Marian , Poplawski Blazej , Faraj Rami , Suwała Grzegorz , Holnicki-Szulc Jan
Published: October 2016

This contribution reviews the challenges in adaptive self-protection of structures. A proper semi-active control strategy can significantly increase structural ability to absorb impact-type loads and damp the resulting vibrations. Discussed systems constitute a new class of smart structures capable of a real-time identification of loads and vibration patterns, followed by a low-cost optimum absorption of the energy by structural adaptation. Given the always surging quest for safety, such systems have a great potential for practical applications (in landing gears, road barriers, space structures, etc.). Compared to passive systems, their better performance can be attributed to the paradigm of self-adaptivity, which is ubiquitous in nature, but still sparsely applied in structural engineering. Being in the early stages of development, their ultimate success depends on a concerted effort in facing a number of challenges. This contribution discusses some of the important problems, including these of a conceptual, technological, methodological and software engineering nature.
An Inkjet-Printed Carbon Nanotube Strain Distribution Sensor for Quasi Real-Time Strain Monitoring of Lightweight Design Materials
Authors: Zhao Ying Jun , Beisteiner Christoph , Gschossmann Sandra , Schagerl Martin
Published: October 2016

Carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) composites are lightweight, durable, and corrosionresistive materials that are popular for constructing automotive bodies and aircraft structures. However, their heterogeneous composition and anisotropic mechanical behavior make design of their service lives challenging. To address challenges in monitoring CFRP’s structural behavior, a cheap, weightless, and reliable sensor shall be developed for CFRPs to monitor their damage-to-failure mode. In this study a carbon nanotube (CNT)-embedded thin film is inkjet-printed onto a flexible substrate and applied over a tensile testing coupon. Coupled with the algorithm of electrical impedance tomography, the sensor with 16 electrodes is able to reconstruct the strain distribution of a surface under 8 sec. Non-uniform strain distribution can also be reconstructed at strain levels down to 0.001%.
Sparse Solution Techniques in Load and Damage Monitoring Systems
Authors: Fritzen Claus Peter , Ginsberg Daniel
Published: October 2016

Load monitoring and damage identification are important tasks in the field of Structural Health Monitoring and are necessary for assessing the structural integrity and predicting the remaining useful life time. Reconstructing unknown force inputs or system parameters usually involves the solution of an inverse problem which is mostly ill-posed and therefore needs regularization. Using prior information about the desired values is advisable for obtaining meaningful solutions. Damages like for example cracks can often be interpreted as spatial singularities, which cause local stiffness reductions of the observed structures. Damage identification is the task of localizingand quantifying these stiffness reductions. On the other hand, unknown structure excitation usually has also some specia lcharacteristics which can be assumed as known apriori, e.g. spatial concentration for singular forces, short time duration for impact loads or narrow frequency bands for harmonic loads. In this case force reconstruction becomes also a localization and magnitude estimation problem. Thischaracteristic information is used to transform the inverse problem into a sparse recovery task. Inthe last years sparsity constrained regularization of inverse problem has attracted a lot of attention inapplied mathematics, especially in the context of compressive sensing.In this contribution it is shown how sparse solution techniques can be applied in monitoring sys-tems and how this will improve the reconstruction results and additionally reduce the number of required sensors.
Integrated Sensing, Monitoring and Healing of Composite Systems
Authors: Kuponu Oluwafemi Sedoten , Kadirkamanathan Visakan , Bhattacharya Bishakh , Pope Simon Alexander
Published: October 2016

The ability of a material to recover its nominal properties through self-healing is gaininginterest in the research community. However, current approaches remain predominantly passive incounteracting the effect of damage. As a result, healing only begins when the material has occurreddamage and typically there is a mismatch between the healing and damage rate. For applications suchas aircraft, where there is a thin line between functionality and non-functionality, these limitations maybe inherently restrictive. A self-healing system that combines a prognosis unit to predict and estimatethe failure rate and an active self-healing system that matches the healing rate to the estimated failurerate using a feedback loop, has the potential to overcome these limitations. In this paper we proposesuch a system and present results for its application to composite materials.
Model Order Reduction in Nonlinear Systems
Authors: Faravelli Lucia , Casciati Fabio
Published: October 2016

A model order reduction (MOR) technique for linear dynamic systems is extended to allow the integration of nonlinear components. The main purpose is to build numerical model of complex systems as support of the design process leading to the exploitation of meta-structures. The selected method is applied to a soil-structure interaction case study.
Effect of Dynamic Polyrotaxane Coating on Cytoskeletal Signaling Expression of Adhering Stem Cells and Downstream Differentiations
Authors: Seo Ji Hun , Hirata Mitsuhi , Kakinoki Sachiro , Yamaoka Tetsuji , Yui Nobuhiko
Published: October 2016

The effect of molecular mobility of the supramolecular surfaces on the intracellular signaling pathway and the downstream cell functions were investigated. As a supramolecular cell culture platform, polyrotaxanes (PRXs) with a varied number of threaded host molecules were synthesized and coated on glass surfaces. As a result, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) adhering on the dynamic PRX surface shows down-regulated RhoA-associated signaling pathway resulting in narrow and protruded adhering morphology. Moreover, mouse induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells on the dynamic PRX surface shows highly up-regulated Rac1-associated signaling pathway resulting in enhanced N-cadherin expression and cardiomyogenic differentiations. Because MSCs and iPS cells on the polymer surfaces with low molecular mobility show the reverse tendency with those of the dynamic PRX surfaces, it could be concluded that the control of molecular mobility induced by supramolecular PRXs is effective to control cytoskeletal signaling pathway and the downstream stem cell differentiation into the preference cells or tissue.
Legumain Targeting Peptide Conjugated Fluorescent Porous Silicon Nanoparticles for Breast Cancer Imaging
Authors: Kanathasan Jayasree S. , Swamy Varghese , Palanisamy Uma Devi , Radhakrishnan Ammu Kutty G.K.
Published: October 2016

Porous silicon (PSi) with a suite of most desirable biomaterial properties has attracted great attention as a multifunctional nanoplatform for bioimaging and drug delivery. Various surface functionalization treatments have been reported for PSi to use as an active tumor cell targeting nanovector. In this study, we investigated surface functionalization treatments using a peptide that is specific to the emerging biomarker legumain. The PSi nanoparticles were coated with dextran and subsequently two types of legumain targeting peptide, Y-shaped and linear chain, were conjugated to produce the functionalized PSi. The functionalized (ligand-conjugated) PSi materials were characterized for morphology, size, functional groups, and fluorescence response using electron and fluorescence microscopy and vibrational spectroscopy techniques. Fluorescence microscopy imaging with two excitation wavelengths (450 nm and 600 nm) suggests comparable fluorescence response of the conjugated PSi to “bare” PSi and the suitability of the PSi functionalized with peptide for bioimaging.
Two-Way Shape Memory Behavior of Electrospun Non-Woven Mats Prepared from Sol-Gel Crosslinked Poly(ε-Caprolactone)
Authors: Pandini Stefano , Agnelli Silvia , Merlettini Andrea , Gualandi Chiara , Focarete Maria Letizia , Paderni Katia , Messori Massimo , Toselli Maurizio
Published: October 2016

Non-woven fibrous mats based on semicrystalline networks were prepared starting from poly(ε-caprolactone) and by combining electrospinning process and sol-gel crosslinking reaction. The mats were subjected to proper thermo-mechanical cycles to investigate their two-way shape memory capabilities (i.e. the possibility to change between two distinguished shapes upon heating and cooling), and an improvement of the two-way behaviour was researched through the application of a training cycle. An ex-situ SEM analysis described the microstructural evolution accompanying the two-way shape memory cyclic response.
First-Principles and Monte Carlo Studies of Magnetocaloric Effects
Authors: Entel Peter , Talapatra Anjana , Arroyave Raymundo , Singh Navdeep , Gruner Markus , Dronskowski Richard , Bogdanovski Dimitri , Hucht Alfred
Published: October 2016

We have performed \textit{ab initio} electronic structure calculations and Monte Carlo simulations of magnetically frustrated intermetallic materials where complex magnetic configurations and chemical disorder lead to rich phase diagrams. With lowering of temperature, we find for magnetic Heusler alloys a ferromagnetic phase which transforms to an antiferromagnetic phase at the magnetostructural phase transition and to a cluster spin glass at still lower temperatures. We discuss chemical bonding features of Ni$_2$MnGa and the giant magnetocaloric effec of Ni-Mn-In with Co and Cr substitution as well as the origin of the magnetostructural transition.The numerical simulations allow a complete characterization of the magnetically frustrated materials.
Electroactive Polymer Based Conducting, Magnetic, and Luminescent Triple Composites
Authors: Kukhta Alexander V. , Paddubskaya Alesya G. , Kuzhir Polina P. , Maksimenko Sergey A. , Vorobyova Svetlana A. , Bellucci Stefano , Khanna Pawan K.
Published: October 2016

The latest our results on triple polymer composites based on graphene nanoplatelets (GNP) covered by copper nanoparticles, iron oxide nanoparticles, and CdSe two-dimensional and spherical nanoparticles are presented and analyzed. It was found that GNP covered by copper nanoparticles results in higher conductivity and film stability increase in PEDOT:PSS than pure GNP. It was revealed that in magnetic field, composites based on GNP with iron oxide nanoparticles have metallic conductivity and form thin films with higher surface while thin films formed without magnetic field are dielectrics and have less surface. Luminescent composite based on CdSe nanoplatelets has been obtained. Two maxima in the luminescence spectra of CdSe nanoplatelets have been found and explained with a model based on efficient absorption of photons between neighbor nanoplatelets. Luminescence of active particles was different in different places of the sample and strongly depends on the graphene type. Stronger luminescence is observed in graphene with less amount of defects.
Asymmetric Bilayer Artificial Muscles Based on Polypyrrole
Authors: Fuchiwaki Masaki , Martínez Jose Gabriel , Otero Toribio Fernandez
Published: October 2016

The characteristics of the asymmetric artificial muscles, PPy-ClO4/tape, PPy-DBS/tape and PPy-ClO4/PPy-DBS worked in 0.5 M NaClO4 aqueous solutions were discussed by the dynamo-voltammetric responses, coulo-dynamic Evolution responses and the bending angle per unit of consumed charge and the cooperative dynamic effects of PPy-ClO4/PPy-DBS artificial muscles is clarified. In the PPy-ClO4/PPy-DBS asymmetric bilayer artificial muscles, the PPy-ClO4 layer shrinks and PPy-DBS layer swells during reduction and the PPy-ClO4 layer swells and PPy-DBS layer shrinks during oxidation. The artificial muscle originates cooperative dynamic bending actuation of the constituent layers (swelling/shrinking or shrinking/swelling) and achieves the larger bending amplitude than those of the PPy-ClO4/tape and the PPy-DBS/tape. The bending angle per unit of consumed charge on the PPy-ClO4/tape and PPy-DBS/tape is 3.240 and 2.85, respectively, and the cooperative dynamic effect on PPy-ClO4/PPy-DBS is 8.257. In case of NaCl having same level bending angle per unit of consumed charge on PPy-DBS/tape, 2.396, the cooperative dynamic effect on PPy-ClO4/PPy-DBS is just 3.868. Because the bending angle per unit of consumed charge on PPy-ClO4/tape is very low, 0.101. Actually, the cooperative dynamic effect on PPy-ClO4/PPy-DBS in Na2CO3 is 5.184 and is larger than that in NaCl even the bending angle per unit of consumed charge on PPy-DBS is lower than that on NaCl. The expansion and contraction of the PPy-ClO4 film dominates the reaction-driven bending motion and those of the PPy-DBS have a minor influence on the bending actuation.
Elastomer Transducers
Authors: Chiba Seiki A. , Waki Mikio , Tanaka Yoshinori , Tsurumi Naoaki , Okamoto Kuniyoshi , Nagase Kazuya , Honma Masatoshi , Yokota Hideyuki , Odagiri Keiichi , Sato Hiromi , Saiki T. , Kaneko Junya
Published: October 2016

Electroactive polymer transducers have many features that are desirable for various devices. An especially attractive type of electroactive polymer is dielectric elastomer (DE).
Our recent progress is a DE actuator having only 0.1 g of DE that lifted a weight of 2 kg using carbon system electrodes. We also developed a ribbon form DE actuator having a sensor function that can be used to measure force, or pressure, as well as motion at the same time. This actuator can assist human and robot motions. At the same time, it can work as a motion feedback sensor. We hope that it may be useful for smart rehabilitation equipment for hands, legs, and fingers.
DE has also been shown to operate in reverse as a generator. Experiments have been performed on portable DE generators/wearable generators powered by human motion, ocean wave power harvesters mounted on buoys, solar heat generators, and water turbines. While the power output levels of such demonstration devices is small, the performance of these devices has supported the potential benefits of DE.
We are developing elastomers having larger dielectric constant using barium titanium oxide to produce a “super artificial muscle for energy harvesting devices, actuators & sensors” in the near future.
Humanoids and the Potential Role of Electroactive Materials/Mechanisms in Advancing their Capability
Authors: Bar-Cohen Yoseph
Published: October 2016

Humanoids are increasingly becoming capable biologically inspired robots that are appearing and behaving lifelike. Making humanlike robots is the ultimate challenge to biomimetics and, while for many years they were considered a science fiction, such robots are increasingly becoming engineering reality. Progress in producing such robots are allowing them to perform impressive functions and tasks. In 2012, in an effort to promote significant advances in developing humanoids, DARPA posed a Robotic Challenge to produce such robots that operate in disaster scenarios towards making society more resilient. The challenge was focused on the requirements that have been needed after the Fukushima accident in Japan, hoping to advance the field of disaster robotics. This disaster posed significant challenges to emergency responders since radiation prevented people from going into the station and venting the explosive gas. Another significant development in this field is the fact that major US corporations have entered into the race to produce commercial humanoids. As a result, one can expect significant and rapid progress in this field. Developing humanoids is critically dependent of the use of highly efficient, compact, lightweight actuators and electroactive materials are offering great potential. This paper reviews the state-of-the-art of humanlike robots, potential applications and challenges, as well as the actuation materials that are used or could be used.
Full Measurement of the Stokes Parameters Using a Subwavelength Silicon On-Chip Polarimeter
Authors: Espinosa-Soria Alba , Rodríguez-Fortuño Francisco J. , Griol Amadeu , Martínez Alejandro
Published: October 2016

Polarimetry enables to measure the state of polarization (SoP) of a light beam, which is essential in many disciplines. Typical polarimeters use bulky and expensive optical elements such as half-wave plates and grid polarizers. Plasmonic nanostructures may help to transform such bulky components into subwavelength metallic elements showing similar performance. Based on the concept of spin-orbit coupling, here we demonstrate a nanophotonic polarimeter that measures the Stokes parameters of a light beam over an ultrabroad bandwidth in a less than a square wavelength active region. Furthermore, the presented approach is applicable to any wavelength regime and technological platform, paving the way for the miniaturization of polarimeters.
Cell Performances of Inorganic-Organic Hybrid Solar Cells Using Fluorosilicate/Phosphorus Oxide Composite Microparticles
Authors: Sato Keisuke , Sugano Yuuki , Hirakuri Kenji , Fukata Naoki
Published: October 2016

We report on the structural characterization and the photovoltaic performances of novel photoelectric conversion materials fabricated by simplified and cheap procedures based on a chemical approach. Our prepared composite microparticles were composed of fluorosilicate/phosphorus oxide holding together by ammonium. When such composite microparticles were used in the active layer of the hybrid solar cells, the relatively high Jsc was obtained by causing the adequate carrier transport from the active layer to each electrode, attaining the best photovoltaic performance with a PCE of 4.45 %. These findings indicate that the fluorosilicate/phosphorus oxide composite microparticles have sufficient ability as the photoelectric conversion materials.
Versatile Lithium Fluoride Luminescent Detectors for High Resolution Imaging Applications from Extreme Ultraviolet to Soft and Hard X-Rays
Authors: Bonfigli Francesca , Nichelatti Enrico , Vincenti Maria Aurora , Montereali Rosa Maria
Published: October 2016

X-ray imaging represents a very relevant tool in basic and applied research fields due to the possibility of performing non-destructive investigations with high spatial resolution. We present innovative X-ray imaging detectors based on visible photoluminescence from aggregate electronic defects locally created in lithium fluoride (LiF) during irradiation. Among the peculiarities of these detectors, noteworthy ones are their very high spatial resolution (intrinsic ∼2 nm, standard ∼300 nm) across a large field of view (>10 cm2), wide dynamic range (>103) and their insensitivity to ambient light. The material photoluminescence response can be enhanced through the proper choice of reflecting substrates and multi-layer designs in the case of LiF films. The present investigation deals with the most appealing X-ray imaging applications, from simple lensless imaging configurations with commonly-available laboratory polychromatic X-ray sources to X-ray imaging-dedicated synchrotron beamlines in absorption and phase contrast experiments.
Characterization of Lead Lanthanum Zirconate Titanate Ceramics Co-Doped with Lanthanide Ions
Authors: Plonska Malgorzata , Dzik Jolanta
Published: October 2016

The aim of this work was to obtain Pb0.92(La0.08)(Zr0.65Ti0.35)0.98O3 materials co-doped with two different lanthanide ions (Ln3+) and characterization how they influence on the physical properties of prepared 8/65/35 PLZT: Ln3+ ceramics. As a co-dopant, praseodymium (Pr3+) and neodymium (Nd3+) ions were used at the concentration of 0.0 and 0.5 wt.% respectively. The ceramic powders of 8/65/35 PLZT, PLZT:Pr3+ as well PLZT:Nd3+ were synthesized by conventional ceramic route, from high purity raw oxide materials (>99,9%). All compositions of the ceramic samples were sintered via single time process at Ts=1200°C/3h, by the hot uniaxial pressing method. Performed measurements have shown dependence of used dopant on structure, microstructure, and dielectric as well optical properties of the fabricated 8/65/35 PLZT: Ln3+ materials.
Investigating the Selective Behaviour of CuO in Gas Sensing Applications
Authors: Palzer Stefan , Wöllenstein Jürgen , Kneer Janosch
Published: October 2016

This contribution revisits recent results regarding the selective detection of the trace gases hydrogen sulfide, nitrogen oxide, and nitrogen dioxide using cupric oxide (CuO). It demonstrates how the variation of the surface temperature may be used to learn about basic material parameters as well as control the surface reactions. In contrast to commonly employed modulation schemes that continuously vary the temperature we use a steady-state approach in order to extract information about gas matrices. Our results highlight the potential for incorporating laboratory results regarding surface processes in pattern recognition schemes to improve the performance of these algorithms. We propose to implement the findings into temperature modulation schemes in order to allow for adding highly gas specific elements to the algorithms deployed.
Potential Fluctuation in RRAM Based on Non-Stoichiometric Hafnium Sub-Oxides
Authors: Islamov Damir R. , Kruchinin Vladimir N. , Aliev Vladimir Sh. , Perevalov Timofey V. , Gritsenko Vladimir A. , Prosvirin Igor P. , Orlov Oleg M. , Chin Albert
Published: October 2016

We study the structure of nonstoichiometric HfOx films with variable composition using methods of XPS, spectroscopic ellipsometry, and ab initio calculations. According to XPS and optical absorption experiment data HfOx consists of metal Hf and ~10-15% of nonstoichiometric hafnium sub-oxide HfOy (y<2). HfOy can be placed between HfO2 and Hf, inside HfO2, inside Hf. According to this model space fluctuations of chemical composition cause space fluctuations of bandgap in HfOx. We found that transport in such electronic systems is described by percolation theory. This approach can be applied to explain LRS transport of HfOx-based RRAM.
Simplified Modeling of Moisture Transfer in Porous Media under Condition of High Temperature Heat Shock
Authors: Ignaszak Zenon
Published: October 2016

High-temperature heat shock is caused by pouring a liquid alloy (cast iron in this case) into cavity of a wet sand mould. In the mould material, thermal-chemical-physical phenomena of very high intensity occur. These phenomena are important in metal alloys casting only insofar as they influence quality of a casting (dynamics od solidification and casting’s structure, gas and shrinkage defects). This quality can be forecasted using simulation codes dedicated for the foundry branch. The most important phenomena are subject of hard and/or soft modeling. Heat transfer from a casting to a mould is related to simultaneous mass transfer. This coupling of phenomena is differently interpreted by creators of simulation codes and introduced to algorithms solved numerically. The paper presents an example of simplified modeling of phenomena of thermal influence of a wet mould sand on solidification of a test cast iron casting, with use of selected foundry simulation codes.
Diffusion in Quasi-Crystalline Alloys
Authors: Mehrer Helmut
Published: October 2016

In this Chapter, we review knowledge about diffusion in quasi-crystalline alloys (quasicrystals). In Section 1 we first remind the reader of some major aspects of the quasi-crystalline state and in Section 2 we introduce phase diagrams with quasi-crystalline phases, for which detailed diffusion studies are available. We mention in Section 3 the more common experimental methods for diffusion studies. The diffusive motion of atoms in quasi-crystalline alloys can be studied by the same techniques used for crystalline metallic alloys and intermetallics – measurements of radiotracer diffusion and diffusion of stable isotopes and solute atoms by SIMS profiling. The best-studied quasi-crystalline alloys are icosahedral AlPdMn, icosahedral ZnMgRE (RE = rare earth metal), and decagonal AlNiCo. The major diffusion results for these quasicrystals are reviewed in Sections 4, 5, and 6. Section 7 is devoted to the pressure dependence of diffusion in quasicrystals and to a comparison of the activation volumes with those of crystalline metals. Positron annihilation studies are also mentioned, which together with activation volumes for diffusion strongly favour a vacancy mechanism in quasicrystals. The major results and conclusions are summarized in Section 8.
Effect of Grain Boundary Geometry on Grain Rotation during Curvature-Driven Grain Shrinkage
Authors: Barrales-Mora L.A. , Brandenburg Jann Erik , Molodov Dmitri A.
Published: October 2016

Molecular dynamics simulations were performed to analyze the curvature-driven shrinkage of individual cylindrical grains with geometrically different boundaries in Al. Grains with <100> tilt and mixed tilt-twist boundaries with the misorientations 5.5°, 16.3°, and 22.6° were simulated. The results revealed that the shrinking grains with tilt boundaries concurrently rotate increasing the misorientation angles, whereas grains with the mixed boundaries did not rotate during their shrinkage. Apparently, the grain boundary geometry/structure has a crucial impact on the observed rotational behavior of the computed grains. The grains with tilt boundaries rotate due to the lack of effectively operating mechanisms for annihilation of edge dislocations, which compose such boundaries. In contrast, for the mixed boundaries composed of edge-screw dislocations the sufficiently fast operating mechanisms of dislocation elimination are available, which facilitates grain shrinkage without rotation.
Ambient Blooming Behavior and Mechanical Properties of Vulcanized Natural Rubber Loaded with Non-Ionic Surfactants
Authors: Santiago Denise Ester O. , Pajarito Bryan B. , Aparre Mark John A. , Biolena Karl Joel E. , Condez Yvette Celina W.
Published: October 2016

This study investigated the ambient blooming behavior of additives and mechanical properties of vulcanized natural rubber (VNR) loaded with non-ionic surfactants coco diethanolamide (CDEA) and glycerol monostearate (GMS). Taguchi method and analysis of variance (ANOVA) were used to determine the significant main effects of additives on bloom rates and mechanical properties of VNR. Attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) spectra of VNR surface confirm the presence of chemical functional groups of stearic acid, paraffin wax, used oil, CDEA, and GMS. The amount of bloom (MB) versus square root of time (t1/2) plot yields two linear regions corresponding to distinct bloom rates which suggest that the blooming behavior of additives follows a non-Fickian mechanism. High loadings of stearic acid, used oil, and paraffin wax increase the bloom rates due to migration of excess unreacted additives to the surface of VNR. Also, additives easily diffuse out of the VNR due to softening of the rubber matrix. High loadings of sulfur and CDEA consistently decrease the bloom rates because of the increase in crosslink density and increase in filler dispersion, making it difficult for additives to bloom out of rubber matrix. High loading of sulfur significantly improves the tensile and compression moduli of VNR. Meanwhile, high loadings of ZnO and used oil significantly decrease the tensile and compression moduli of VNR. Sulfur as a crosslinking agent increases the crosslink density which resulted to increase mechanical properties. Excess used oil and zinc stearate, reaction product of ZnO and stearic acid, on the VNR matrix resulted to rubber matrix softening and decrease in mechanical properties.
Bionic Column Design Inspired by Macro and Micro Characteristics of Bamboo
Authors: Li Yong Xin , Wu Feng He , Wu Peng
Published: October 2016

The traditional design method of machine tool column easily leads to material redundancy and it is difficult to achieve the best structural efficiency. A bionic method is proposed, bamboo was used as the biological archetype, to design the column structure of an extra-heavy duty CNC boring and milling machine. The macroscopical and microscopic structural characteristic and the mechanical property of the bamboo are analyzed, and the intrinsic relationship between the microstructure and mechanical properties is obtained. The column is designed as cylindrical structure firstly, and the relationship between the number of transverse ribs and the whole bending deformation is ascertained. The transverse ribs are designed for cylindrical structure .By evolving the cylindrical member, A, B two kinds of bionic column are designed and compared. The specific stiffness of B type structure is increased 10.9% and its overall performance is better than the A. So the B scheme is selected as the final bionic structure of the column.
Automatic Segmentation of Cell Images by Improved Graph Cut-Based Approach
Authors: Oyebode Kazeem Oyeyemi , Tapamo Jules Raymond
Published: October 2016

Cell segmentation provides an opportunity to reveal object of interest from the background of an image. In the traditional graph cut segmentation approach, the user initiates the segmentation process by selecting pixels for foreground and background. However, one of the problems of traditional graph cut is that it is time consuming, especially on a large dataset. Thus, we propose a fully automatic technique for cell segmentation on graph cut to automate the selection of sample foreground and background pixels. In order to achieve this, a combination of two methods namely Otsu thresholding and kmeans clustering algorithm is explored. The Otsu thresholding and the k-means provides an initial cell segmentation, creating a platform to automatically select sample foreground and background pixels initiating the graph cut segmentation. Experimental results on two public datasets suggest promising results.
Design and Implementation of Neurosurgery Navigation System
Authors: Zhou Zhen Huan
Published: October 2016

Neurosurgery navigation system consists of an image workstation, infrared optical positioning device and surgical instrument components. The system can use the patient CT/MRI images to develop preoperative surgical plan, choose the best surgical approach, in surgery it can rely on the three-dimensional patient images and optical locator, avoiding critical organizations and major functional areas, to make surgery smaller incisions, more thorough, more secure. The development consists of the following steps: image group management, displaying three orthogonal plane (transverse, sagittal, coronal), 3D reconstruction, image segmentation, three-dimensional drawing, 3D image space and operative space registration structure and function like image fusion. The main work and contribution of this paper is: 1. three dimensional reconstruction using linear interpolation instead of the bilinear interpolation, improve image clarity; 2. 3D rendering, pixel reconstruction filter using windowing, then directly draw pixels to improve rendering speed; 3. human-computer interaction by reducing the resolution to accelerate and achieve real-time three-dimensional rotation; 4. 3D image space and space operation registration method using landmarks, enhanced registration reliability; 5. with fusion of the function and structure image surgery can be used to avoid important functional areas, reduce the risk of disability.
Investigation of a Biocompatible Artificial Muscle Based on Different Electrolyte Additive
Authors: Sun Zhuang Zhi , Zhao Gang , Song Wen Long , Zhang Guang Li , Bi Hong Shi
Published: October 2016

Recently, ionic actuator as a kind of artificial muscle has attracted great attentions according to their remarkable strain under low-voltage stimulation. Here, we investigated a biocompatible ionic polymer actuator, which consists of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MCNTs) film as the double electrode layer and an electrolyte layer equipped with a chitosan polymer skeleton. As a result, we found it presented various electromechanical properties under the preparation factors of the different additive glycerol (0mL, 2mL, 4mL). The actuators with 2mL glycerol behaved a longer life bending (65 times), which was obviously surpassed by the others. Also, based on strain and stress testing, Young's modulus of the electrolyte presented a decreasing trend. In fact, the improvement was mainly due to the weakened inter-molecular hydrogen and the rotation molecular of the electrolyte film. Results show the additive inside the electrolyte is very effective to improve the performance of artificial muscle.