Robust controller design with hard constraints on the control signal

Contents  The paper deals with robust controller design for motion control systems in case of constraints on the control signal. Furthermore, in order to enhance the dynamic performances of the designed control system – in case of limitation of the control signal – gain-scheduled control strategy is considered. The proposed robust controller design approach is verified by experimental results in case of a vector controlled brushless d.c. drive. Received: 11 February 2001     

Effect of the nucleophilicity and solvent on the chemical modification of flexible poly(vinyl chloride) by substitution

The chemical modification might become an alternative to the thermal degradation of waste polyvinylchloride (PVC). Therefore, the nucleophile substitution of chlorine from flexible PVC by hydroxide (OH^?), thiocyanate (SCN^?), azide (N₃^?), and iodide (I^?) was investigated in ethylene glycol (EG) at 190°C. With the exception of I^?, all nucleophiles used resulted in substitution yields of about 20%. However, also high elimination yields were observed. When SCN was used as the nucleophile, the substitution/elimination ratio increased with decreasing temperature. The product at 150°C contained a mixed structure of thiocyanate and isothiocyanate groups, while at 190°C, only the structure of isothiocyanate was present the product, due to the isomerization of the ? S? C?N group under the formation of ? N?C?S at elevated temperatures. The substitution and dehydrochlorination yields increased with an increasing molar SCN/Cl ratio. When EG was replaced by diethylene glycol (DEG) or triethylene glycol (TEG), the dehydrochlorination was found to proceed more rapidly. The use of a solvent with a lower polarity improved the contact between the solvent and the polymer; however, solvents with a lower polarity favor the elimination over the substitution. Therefore, the substitution–elimination ratio increased in the order EG > DEG > TEG. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2011. © 2011 Society of Plastics Engineers.     

Strengthening of cross tension strength of spot-welded lap joints by increasing the opening angle on the nugget edge

This paper deals with the strengthening of spot-welded lap joints by increasing the opening angle on the nugget edge. Based on the equation proposed by past researchers to predict the strength, the factor necessary for the strengthening was extracted. And, based on this factor, the strengthening of spot-welded lap joints was examined. First of all, in order to increase the opening angle on the nugget edge, the vicinity of the nugget edge was bent with a bending machine. Next, cross tension strength (CTS) tests were conducted into the spot-welded lap joints with various opening angles on the nugget edge. Finally, the relationship between CTS and the opening angels of the nugget edge was clarified. As a result, by increasing the opening angles on the nugget edge, we found that the CTS could be improved by 20%.     

Fast calculation approach to semi-empirical molecular orbital method using real space division method

The authors have developed a new approach for large-scale systems including over 100,000 atoms to obtain physical strength from the viewpoint of atom–atom bonding energy. Combining the semi-empirical molecular orbital method with real space division method makes it possible to estimate structural parameters, electronic structures and bonding energy for various large systems. With this method, various quantum physical properties can be obtained quickly using the semi-empirical molecular orbital method, while adopting real space division improves the computational efficiency of parallelization. In this study, the authors applied this method to SiH₄ molecule and crystalline silica system, and carried out bond order and bonding energy analyses. In this analysis, the developed method offered almost the same analytical accuracy as the first principle method, while its calculation speed was much faster than that of the latter. The developed method was also suitable for parallel computing.     

Vision‐Based Hierarchical Recognition for Dismantling Robot Applied to Interior Renewal of Buildings

Abstract: New robotic systems are going to play an essential role in the future dismantling service for renewing office interiors in buildings. In dismantling tasks, robots are expected to be able to find and remove very small parts such as screws and bolts. Such recognition of small parts is difficult for robots. The article describes a vision‐based hierarchical recognition applied to dismantling tasks where large structures are detected at first, thus small parts attached to these structures are detected easier. Regarding the items in the ceiling side, after the dismantling task of the ceiling panels, it is necessary to remove carefully the screws that once held these panels to the light gauge steel (LGS), with the purpose of reusing it. With the pose detection of the large structure (LGS) and considering a robot arm with a stereo camera on its tip, a trajectory near that structure can be computed to detect the small parts, in this case the screws. The large structure is detected by using a process of line detection in 2D and its 3D pose is measured with the stereo camera. During the motion along the structure, the screws are detected by applying a multi‐template matching process to every captured image. Followed by, the Support Vector Machine (SVM), which recognizes those screw candidates with high true positive rate and low false positive one. These rates are improved with a temporal multi‐image integration for tracking the screw candidates. In the experiment, 10 actual screws distributed in 1.1 m along a linear segment on the LGS are successfully recognized with a few false positives and with a final computed 3D position of 2 mm in average. Feasibility of methodology is evaluated by experimentation under different lighting conditions in a realistic environment. Experimental results show that the method works well to be applied in an actual dismantling site.     

Visualization of deuterium flux and grain boundary diffusion in duplex stainless steel and Fe–30 % Ni alloy,using secondary ion mass spectrometry equipped with a Ga focused ion beam

Time of flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS) equipped with a high spatial resolution Ga focused ion beam (Ga-FIB) was applied to understand hydrogen diffusion and desorption behavior in duplex stainless steel and Fe–30 % Ni alloys. Deuterium was used as a tracer of hydrogen. Results showed that the secondary ion intensity from body-centered cubic (bcc) and face-centered cubic (fcc) Fe represents the flux of deuterium from the surface and the concentration of deuterium, respectively. The deuterium-depleted zone can be visualized from the interface between bcc and fcc phase to fcc Fe on the surface. Furthermore, direct visualization of the grain boundary diffusion of deuterium is also possible in fcc Fe–30 % Ni alloys, using Ga-FIB-TOF-SIMS.     

Improvement of the photostability of isotactic polypropylene by the incorporation of ethylene

The effect of the incorporation of ethylene on the photostability of isotactic poly(propylene) (iPP) was studied with the aim of improving the photostability. iPP was prepared with a random ethylene sequence (ethylene–propylene random copolymer, rPP), and the photooxidative degradation behavior was compared with that of homogeneous iPP. Both samples were thermally post‐treated under vacuum to ensure the same crystallinity. The degradation behavior was studied by infrared spectroscopy (IR), gel permeation chromatography (GPC), and temperature rising elution fractionation (TREF) measurements. The rates of hydroperoxide and carbonyl formation in the irradiated iPP increased with irradiation time for > 192 h, whereas those in the irradiated rPP are almost constant after 96 h. The change in molecular weight with the irradiation time showed similar behavior, suggesting that the degradation reaction in the irradiated rPP was suppressed after 96 h. The degradation behavior of rPP was thought to be due to the dissociation of the methyl group, which leads to the termination of degradation. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 86: 1863–1867, 2002     

What is a surrogate marker for optimal dialysis?

To find a surrogate marker to obtain optimal dialysis delivery from the viewpoint of nutrition, 180 maintenance hemodialysis patients (109 males/71 females) were enrolled between October 1999 and June 2006 at our kidney center. In the 449 hemodialysis treatments, ultrapure dialysis solutions and high-flux synthetic membranes were utilized. Parameters were measured by Kt/V(urea) and postdialysis urea rebound, Kc (the cellular membrane clearance for urea), urea clear space (CS), %creatinine generation rate, %lean body mass, total body water, and so on. We examined the correlation between dialysis delivery and nutritional parameters: Kt/V(urea) and postdialysis urea rebound were found to be strongly and negatively correlated with nutritional parameters. However, Kc and CS have shown positive and strong correlations with nutritional parameters such as %creatinine generation rate, %lean body mass, and total body water as well. In addition, the age factor was correlated with Kt/V(urea) positively, and it influenced Kc and CS negatively. As a conventional dialysis parameter, Kt/V(urea) did not reflect nutrition, but Kc was found to improve nutrition due to the increase of the dialysis delivery. Therefore, Kc might be a reliable surrogate marker for optimal dialysis.     

Thermodynamic properties of neptunium nitride: a first principles study

The thermal and mechanical properties of neptunium nitride (NpN) were investigated by first principles calculations. From the Helmholtz free energy equilibrium lattice constants, thermal expansion coefficients, bulk moduli and specific heat capacities were calculated for temperatures up to 1500 K. The electronic specific heat capacity was also calculated from the electronic density of states at the Fermi energy. The obtained specific heat capacity reproduced the experimental data well. It was thus clarified that the specific heat capacity of NpN consists of the lattice and electronic specific heat capacities and the contribution of the lattice dilatation to the specific heat capacity.