A mass separation of chondrocytes from cartilage tissue utilizing an automatic crushing device

Porcine articular cartilage tissue was crushed using Multi-Beads-Shocker^™ and digested with trypsin and collagenase type II. Chondrocyte cell yield was maximized by automatic crushing for 10 s, which was 4 times that by manual dicing with a surgical blade and might be useful for the automation of the cell processing.     

A 65 nm Single-Chip Application and Dual-Mode Baseband Processor With Partial Clock Activation and IP-MMU

Supporting both WCDMA with HSDPA and GSM/GPRS/EDGE, the 9.3 times 9.3 mm² SoC fabricated in triple-Vth 65 nm CMOS, has three CPU cores and 20 separate power domains. Unused power domains can be powered down to reduce the leakage power. Partial clock activation scheme especially focused on music playback scene dynamically stops a PLL and clock trees when not necessary and reduces power consumption from 33.6 mW to 19.6 mW. IP-MMU translates virtual address to physical address for 18 hardware-IPs and virtual address space can be allocated when necessary and can be freed after its operation, reducing external memory by 43 MB. Video performance of D1 (720 times 520) size with 30 frames per second for MPEG/AVC decoding and encoding can be achieved under mixed virtual and physical address usage.     

Mesophase structure discovered through in-situ X-ray measurement in drawing process of poly(ethylene 2,6-naphthalene dicarboxylate) fiber

The structure development in the continuous laser-heated drawing process of poly(ethylene 2,6-naphthalene dicarboxylate) (PEN) fiber was analyzed by in-situ X-ray diffraction measurement. Because of the rapid and uniform laser heating, and the resultant steady-state nature of the necking-drawing, the structure development after the on-set of necking could be measured in the time resolution of several hundred microseconds. We found for the first time the temporal appearance of meridional (001′) diffraction at several milliseconds after the on-set of necking indicating that the mesophase structure similar to the one reported for poly(ethylene terephthalate) was also formed in the initial stage of fiber structure development of PEN. The d-spacing of the (001′) diffraction 1.230 ± 0.003 nm was shorter than the c-axis lengths of both α and β crystals.     

High-Performance Induction Motor Drive System Using a PWM Inverter

A high-performance speed control system for cage induction motors is described which utilizes a PWM inverter. The effects of primary current coincidence and machine constant variation on system characteristics such as response time, torque precision, and operating noise were investigated. Based on the results obtained, new control methods have been devised; one varies the gain of the current controller in proportion to the primary frequency, and a second compensates for the slip frequency by using the deviation between the flux reference value and the actual value. Effectiveness of the compensation methods was confirmed in tests.     

X-ray absorption fine structure combined with fluorescence spectrometry for monitoring trace amounts of lead adsorption in the environmental conditions

The local structure of trace amounts of lead in an adsorbent matrix that contains a high concentration of iron and magnesium (Mg6Fe2(OH)16(CO3) x 3H2O) was successfully monitored by means of X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy combined with fluorescence spectrometry. A eutectic mixture of PbCO3 and Pb(OH)2 coagulated when Pb2+ was adsorbed from a 1.0 ppm aqueous solution, and in contrast, the major species was ion-exchanged Pb2+ in the case of adsorption from a 100 ppb aqueous solution. The difference was ascribed to the balance between the precipitation equilibrium for coagulation and the rate of the ion exchange reaction with surface hydroxyl groups.     

Coupling-loss reduction of a vertically coupled microring resonator filter by spot-size-matched busline waveguides

To improve the input-output coupling loss of a vertically coupled microring resonator filter, we fabricated microring resonators on an antiresonant reflecting optical waveguide (ARROW) with a large spot size and on the rectangular busline waveguide with a spot-size transformer. The spot size and the tapered structure were optimally designed from the viewpoint of spot-size matching to single-mode fibers and the reduction of radiation loss. Clear dropping responses were demonstrated for the ARROW-based microring resonator filters, and the coupling loss was successfully reduced by 22 dB.     

Age correlation of the time lag in signal change on EPI-fMRI

Rifampicin synoviorthesis has been empirically used for the treatment of haemophilic synovitis for some time. This paper reports on the experience of three Latin American centers with this treatment and compares it with radioactive synoviorthesis results. Chemical synoviorthesis with rifampicin is best indicated in younger patients (< 15 years) and small joint (ankles and elbows).     

Positron annihilation lifetime study of vapor sorption in polypropylene and polytetrafluoroethylene

Positron annihilation lifetime (PAL) spectra were measured for two different kinds of polymers: polypropylene (PP) and polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), during sorption of vapors of the following molecules: n-hexane, cyclohexane, benzene, methyl methacrylate, acrylic acid, and water. The behavior of ortho-positronium (o-Ps) annihilation parameters: lifetime, τ₃, and intensity, I₃, can be explained by considering different sorption mechanisms in rubbery and glassy polymers. The mean size of the intermolecular-space holes and the relative free-volume fraction of PP and PTFE were estimated before and during the sorption process from the o-Ps parameters obtained. Sorption of n-hexane, cyclohexane, and benzene in both polymers affect the o-Ps component in a systematic way, for PP τ₃ and I₃ tend to decrease, while in PTFE, τ₃ stay almost constant and I₃ diminishes. These effects are interpreted in relation to the different states of the polymers studied: rubbery for PP and glassy for PTFE. In case of methyl methacrylate molecules, the behavior of o-Ps parameters was more complicated. For acrylic acid and water, their associated polarity provokes a diminution in I₃, which is explained from the viewpoint of the spur model of positronium formation. Large changes in the mean size and the fraction of free volume, as well as their constant behavior in some cases, were interpreted to be due to positive or negative interactions, respectively, between vapor molecules and PP and PTFE, which could be correlated with the solvent-interaction parameters calculated. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.