Control system design on a power-split CVT for high-power agricultural tractors

The problem considered in this paper is the design and tuning of the control system of a power-split continuously variable transmission (CVT) used in high-power tractors. Power-split CVTs are characterized by the combination of a traditional mechanical transmission and by a continuously-variable transmission. This guarantees, at the same time, smooth variations of the transmission-ratio and high efficiency of the overall transmission system. The control architecture of an hydrostatic power-split CVT is constituted by three main parts: 1) servo-controller on the current of the valve which drives the hydraulic transmission; 2) a servo-controller on the hydraulic transmission-ratio; and 3) a synchronizer which coordinates the hydraulic and the mechanical parts of the CVT. In this work, these three controllers are fully developed, including: design, implementation, and evaluation on an experimental system.     

Experimental real-time detector of GSM terminals

The authors present an experimental real-time GSM terminal detector, to be installed in a restricted area. The detector triggers terminal signaling, which can be captured.     

Formation of Arrayed Droplets by Soft Lithography and Two-Phase Fluid Flow, and Application in Protein Crystallization

This paper presents an overview of our recent work on the use of soft lithography and two-phase fluid flow to form arrays of droplets. The crucial issues in the formation of stable arrays of droplets and alternating droplets of two sets of aqueous solutions include the geometry of the microchannels, the capillary number, and the water fraction of the system. Glass capillaries could be coupled to the PDMS microchannels and droplets could be transferred into glass capillaries for long-term storage. The arrays of droplets have been applied to screen the conditions for protein crystallization with microbatch and vapor diffusion techniques.     

A multiwinding modeling method for high frequency transformers and inductors

This paper presents a method to obtain an electric model for transformers and inductors, including both frequency and geometry effects in the windings, which can be linked with existing core models. One-dimensional distributions for magnetic and electric fields are assumed, and from Maxwell's equations an equivalent electric circuit is easily obtained. This equivalent circuit has been included in analog simulators (Spice, AnalogWorkBench, Saber ...), and comparisons between measured and simulated results are shown, both in time domain and in AC sweep, which verify the model accuracy. The model described in this paper allows designers to deal with key issues in the design of high-frequency magnetic components (copper losses, leakage inductance, skin and proximity effects) by using analog simulators, which are usually more familiar to them than finite-element analysis tools.     

Optical-transmission characteristics of optical-fiber cables and installed optical-fiber cable networks for WDM systems

Many cables containing 1.3-/spl mu/m zero-dispersion single-mode (SM) optical fibers are installed in trunk and access networks. Recently, there have been a number of studies on wavelength-division-multiplexing (WDM) systems designed to increase transmission capacity and flexibility. If we can construct WDM systems using SM optical-fiber cable networks designed to transmit using wavelengths in the 1.3-/spl mu/m window (O-band), this will prove very effective in reducing construction costs. It is therefore important to examine the wavelength dependence of the transmission characteristics of SM optical-fiber cables and networks that have already been installed and in which several optical fibers are joined. In this paper, we describe the measured optical characteristics of SM optical-fiber cables and installed optical-fiber cable networks at various wavelengths. The optical characteristics were stable in the 1.46 to 1.625-/spl mu/m wavelength range and we confirmed that the installed SM optical-fiber cable networks could be used for WDM system applications.     

Recovery of gold cyanide using inherently conducting polymers

Removal of gold from basic solutions containing [Au(CN)₂]^? has been demonstrated using the inherently conducting polymer polypyrrole. Polymers containing sulfonated aromatic dopants have been found to display a significant ability to remove gold from such solutions. Experiments performed in solutions containing both gold and copper cyanide complexes indicate that the recovery process is not highly selective. However, the polypyrroles used display significantly faster rates of gold recovery than activated carbon. © 2003 Society of Chemical Industry     

Velocity selective filters recursively implemented in the spatiotemporal domain.

Energy-based methods for motion estimation in image sequences process the input data either in the spatiotemporal or in the frequency domain. In both cases, the algorithms already described in the literature often require a huge number of elementary operations. In this paper, we describe a class of velocity selective filters which yield an accurate detection of the edges moving in the sequence. We first present a filtering scheme based on a convolution operation computed on a finite size neighborhood and describe its properties in the spatiotemporal and frequency domains. Then, we show that filters with similar properties can be implemented recursively, i.e., as convolutions computed on infinite-size neighborhoods. As an example, we finally show the filters' responses in the case of two superimposed translational motions.     

Second harmonic generation from a ferroelectric film

We derive an expression for transmittivity (T_SHG) of second harmonic generation (SHG) signals from a ferroelectric (FE) film. Intensities of up and down fields in the medium are investigated in relation to T_SHG. The derivations are made based on undepletion of input fields and nonlinear wave equation derived from the Maxwell equations. We present two cases: film without mirrors and with partial mirrors. Expressions for the newly derived nonlinear susceptibility coefficients of SHG for real crystal symmetry [J. Opt. Soc. Am. B 19 (2002) 2007] are used to get more realistic results. Variations in T_SHG with respect to film thickness are illustrated.     

High-performance MIM capacitor using ALD high-k HfO/sub 2/-Al/sub 2/O/sub 3/ laminate dielectrics

For the first time, we successfully fabricated and demonstrated high performance metal-insulator-metal (MIM) capacitors with HfO/sub 2/-Al/sub 2/O/sub 3/ laminate dielectric using atomic layer deposition (ALD) technique. Our data indicates that the laminate MIM capacitor can provide high capacitance density of 12.8 fF//spl mu/m/sup 2/ from 10 kHz up to 20 GHz, very low leakage current of 3.2 /spl times/ 10/sup -8/ A/cm/sup 2/ at 3.3 V, small linear voltage coefficient of capacitance of 240 ppm/V together with quadratic one of 1830 ppm/V/sup 2/, temperature coefficient of capacitance of 182 ppm//spl deg/C, and high breakdown field of /spl sim/6 MV/cm as well as promising reliability. As a result, the HfO/sub 2/-Al/sub 2/O/sub 3/ laminate is a very promising candidate for next generation MIM capacitor for radio frequency and mixed signal integrated circuit applications.     

The Influence and Interpretation of Surface Parameters for Wetting Transitions in Ternary Mixtures

Starting from a microscopic Hamiltonian defined on a semi-infinite cubic lattice, and employing a mean-field approximation, the surface parameters relevant for wetting in confined ternary mixtures are derived. These are found in terms of the microscopic coupling constants, and yield a physical interpretation of their origins. In comparison with the standard expression for the surface free-energy density, several new terms arising from the derivation are identified. The influence of the surface parameters on a predicted unbinding transition in a mixture of oil, water, and amphiphile demonstrate that existing results are robust to the addition of the extra surface terms.