Diffusion bonding of ferritic oxide dispersion strengthened alloys to austenitic superalloys

The superior high temperature mechanical strength and oxidation resistance of ferritic oxide dispersion strengthened (ODS) tubular alloys are compromised by the difficulties encountered in joining. Conventional fusion welding techniques generate a weld fusion zone which is devoid of the mechanical strength exhibited by the base material. Therefore, more sophisticated solid state joining techniques, such as diffusion bonding, must be employed when joining ODS materials. This paper describes a series of solid state diffusion bonding experiments carried out between two tubular ferritic ODS alloys and two high temperature austenitic alloys. Careful control of bonding conditions produced pressure retaining joints between one of the tubular ODS alloys and both austenitic alloys. The successful joint design was incorporated into the manufacture of a tubular creep component, which enabled a series of internally pressurized creep tests to be carried out. The microstructure developed at the bond interface of each of the four separate material couples is described and the high temperature performance of the pressure retaining joints is discussed.     

Sensorless speed measurement using current harmonic spectralestimation in induction machine drives

This paper proposes a sensorless speed measurement scheme that improves the performance of transducerless induction machine drives, especially for low-frequency operation. Speed-related harmonics that arise from rotor slotting and eccentricity are analyzed using digital signal processing. These current harmonics exist at any nonzero speed and are independent of time-varying parameters, such as stator winding resistance. A spectral estimation technique combines multiple current harmonics to determine the rotor speed with more accuracy and less sensitivity to noise than analog filtering methods or the fast Fourier transform. An on-line initialization routine determines machine-specific parameters required for slot harmonic calculations. This speed detector, which has been verified at frequencies as low as 1 Hz, can provide robust, parameter-independent information for parameter tuning or as an input to a sensorless flux observer for a field-oriented drive. The performance of the algorithm is demonstrated over a wide range of inverter frequencies and load conditions     

An image processing IC for backprojection and spatial histogrammingin a pipelined array

The first VLSI digital signal processor that performs both high-precision image backprojection and spatial histogram calculations at raster-scan rates as high as 30 MHz is described. Realized in 1 μm CMOS technology, this 13.3 mm×13.3 mm chip is designed to handle images as large as 1024×1024 12 b pixels. Loadable coefficients and a unified architecture allow this IC to be used with a variety of computed-tomography scanners for image reconstructions, including fan- and parallel-beam reconstruction. This chip also computes the forward Radon transform, which is a spatial histogram, permitting it to be used for iterative reconstruction algorithms. The bit lengths in the fixed-point architecture assure 12 b reconstruction accuracy     

An 80-Msample/s video switched-capacitor filter using a parallelbiquadratic structure

This paper describes a fifth-order, low-pass switched capacitor filter for video applications. It has a 4-MHz cutoff frequency and uses a parallel biquadratic structure with double sampling to achieve an 80-MHz input sampling rate in a 2-μm CMOS process. The prototype filter is fully differential, occupies an active area of 11 mm² , and dissipates 190 mW     

A mixed-signal RAM decision-feedback equalizer for disk drives

A mixed-signal RAM decision-feedback equalizer (DFE) that operates at 90 Mb/s is described. In the analog domain, the DFE subtracts intersymbol interference caused by the past four outputs. The equalized signal is fed into a nonuniform flash analog-to-digital converter (ADC) to produce the decision output and error signal used to adapt the RAM contents in the digital domain. With a 5 V supply voltage, the power dissipation is 260 mW during steady-state operation. The active area is 4.5 mm² in a 1 μm CMOS process     

Traffic officers'' attitudes toward blood alcohol law enforcement

Research findings in other countries suggest that drinking driving laws could be much better enforced even without resorting to special patrols or random checks. It has been reported that law enforcement officers apprehend or breath test only a small fraction of the potentially impaired drivers that they normally encounter on patrol. This survey of New Zealand traffic officers was designed to determine the extent to which this was the case here, and what were the major disincentives to breath testing. Traffic officer responses, obtained on an anonymous questionnaire, suggested that there were not so many missed opportunities as had been suggested by others, but that there was a great deal of variability in the number of drinking drivers detected by different officers. This was confirmed by the actual distribution of breath testing activity, which was markedly different in shape (positively skewed) compared to the distribution of traffic enforcement activities in general. Several clues from the disincentives cited on the questionaire suggested that there are major deterrents to a greater degree of alcohol enforcement activity on the part of most officers. These are discussed in terms of potential legislative changes, and in relation to the changes introduced in the 1978 Transport Act Amendment.     

Miller compensation using current buffers in fully differential CMOS two-stage operational amplifiers

Several Miller compensation schemes using a current buffer in series with the compensation capacitor to modify the right-half-plane zero in fully differential two-stage CMOS operational amplifiers are analyzed. One scheme uses a current mirror as a current buffer, while the rest use a common-gate transistor as a current buffer. The gain transfer functions are derived for each topology, and approximate transfer-function coefficients are found that allow accurate estimation of the zero(s) and poles.     

Numerical diffraction coefficients for surface waves

The numerical uniform theory of diffraction (UTD) is extended to include surface waves. A method for extracting surface wave diffraction coefficients from moment method data is given and Prony's method is applied to the problem of determining surface wave propagation constants. The method is validated through comparison with the exact solution of the problem of surface wave diffraction by a truncated dielectric slab recessed in a conducting surface. Examples are given for scattering from dielectric slabs and frequency-selective surfaces and for radiation from a conformal microstrip antenna with a truncated substrate. The accuracy obtained is demonstrated by comparison with moment method calculations     

Measuring health-related quality of life in rheumatoid arthritis: validity, responsiveness and reliability of EuroQol (EQ-5D)

The efficacy of photodynamic therapy is dependent upon the optical dose rate or upon the fractionation schedule on the light. These effects are thought to be limited by the time required for oxygen diffusion from the capillaries, since this therapy can consume oxygen faster than it can be supplied to tissues distant from the blood vessels. Oxygen diffusion and consumption by metabolic and photochemical mechanisms have been modeled here to compare theoretical predictions with experimental results of varying light fractionations and delivered dose rates. The mathematics of the problem have been described in the literature, and the present study extends these calculations to allow a more direct and quantitative comparison with fractionation experiments, using both analytical and numerical arguments. The optimum fraction time was found to depend only on the intercapillary spacing and not on the intensity of irradiation or the concentration of photosensitizer. The calculations indicate that experimentally observed optimum fractionation times of 30 and 60 s correspond to a distance from capillary to cell of approximately 1 mm. These results suggest that the fractionated light irradiation experiments need careful interpretation, and some possible reasons for longer optimum fractionation times are discussed.     

Impulse Control for Planar Spring-Mass Running

In this paper, we present a novel control strategy for running which is robust to disturbances, and makes excellent use of passive dynamics for energy economy. Our strategy combines two ideas: an existing flight phase policy, and a novel stance phase impulse control policy. The state-of-the-art flight phase policy commands a leg angle trajectory that results in a consistent horizontal center-of-mass velocity from hop to hop when running over uneven terrain, thus maintaining a steady gait and avoiding falls. Our novel stance phase control policy rejects ground disturbances by matching the actuated model’s toe impulse profile to that of a passive spring-mass system hopping on flat rigid ground. This combined strategy is self-stable for changes in ground impedance or ground height, and thus does not require a ground model. Our strategy is promising for robotics applications, because there is a clear distinction between the passive dynamic behavior of the model and the active controller, it does not require sensing of the environment, and it is based on a sound theoretical background that is compatible with existing high-level controllers for ideal spring-mass models.