Decision methodology of end-milling conditions using data-mining

The purpose of the present study is to apply data-mining methods to support the decision of reasonable cutting conditions. Although an enormous amount of information is listed in a catalog, it is not possible to know all of it. Seen from the viewpoint of the user, this enormous amount of information becomes a hindrance. For example, even if an expert worker does not look at a catalog, in end-mill processing, he can decide the appropriate processing condition efficiently from experience; however, this type of situation creates difficult problems for an unskilled worker or a skilled worker with little experience. The recommended cutting condition for every type of material is listed in a catalog together with the appropriate tool, but it takes much time and labor to search and examine the catalog to find the right tool, and this process is inefficient. The main subject of our research was to support the processing condition of the end-mill for each precision tool efficiently based on end-mill clusters. Our research applied the techniques of data mining, in particular, non-hierarchy clustering and hierarchy clustering, to catalog data. With these techniques, we applied multiple regression analysis and reached the following main conclusions. As a first step, we paid attention to the shape element of catalog data. In addition to using conventional mining processes, we grouped end-mills from the viewpoint of tool shape, which meant the ratio of dimensions, visually by applying the K-means method. We applied variable cluster analysis next to each cluster and extracted an predictor variable to represent each cluster, and we performed multiple regression analysis and derived a cutting condition decision formula. The cutting condition decision formula provided high accuracy. The accuracy was higher than the results achieved through mining of all data. A more highly precise processing condition decision formula was derived by doing mining again, excluding the peculiar data clusters such as small diameter end-mill. We understood what was effective for cutting condition decision to be factors related to blade length and the ratio of the full length, factors which have not been singled out through background knowledge or expert knowledge, but were noticed as an effect of catalog mining.     

Particle morphology, electrical conductivity, crystal and electronic structures of hydrothermally synthesized (Ce,Sr)PO4

We focused on Sr-substituted CePO₄—i. e., (Ce,Sr)PO₄—with the monazite structure and synthesized the orthophosphates hydrothermally. As for the obtained products, we investigated the particle morphologies by SEM and electrical conduction properties by conductivity measurements. In order to estimate the crystal and electronic structures, neutron and synchrotron X-ray diffraction measurements were also carried out. As a result, it was found that (Ce,Sr)PO₄ with a single phase of the monazite structure was successfully prepared by the hydrothermal method and the substitution amount of Sr was almost equal to the nominal one. It was also demonstrated that a powder morphology of the (Ce,Sr)PO₄ depended on the synthetic conditions; i.e, concentrations of cation sources and pH of aqueous solution in the hydrothermal process. The Sr-substituted sample showed much higher conductivities than the unsubstituted one, in the same way as the (Ce,Sr)PO₄ synthesized by other methods reported previously.     

Design methodology of magnetic fields and structures for magneto-mechanical resonator based on topology optimization

Magneto-mechanical resonators—magnetically-driven vibration devices—are used in many mechanical and electrical devices. We develop topology optimization (TO) to configure the magnetic fields of such resonators to enable large vibrations under specified current input to be attained. A dynamic magneto-mechanical analysis in the frequency domain is considered where we introduce the surface magnetic force calculated from the Maxwell stress tensor. The optimization problem is then formulated involving specifically the maximization of the dynamic compliance. This formulation is implemented using the solid-isotropic-material-with-penalization method for TO by taking into account the relative permeability, Young’s modulus, and the mass density of the magnetic material as functions of the density function. Through the 2D numerical studies, we confirm that this TO method works well in designing magnetic field patterns and providing matching between the external current frequency and eigenfrequency of the vibrating structure.     

Novel gold-capped nanopillars imprinted on a polymer film for highly sensitive plasmonic biosensing

Herein, a nanoporous alumina was fabricated to use as a mold in transforming nanopillar structures onto a thin film polymer by thermal nanoimprint lithography (NIL). The size of the pores was successfully controlled by varying the applied voltages and etching time. These nanoporous structures were transferred to the Cyclo-olefin polymer (COP) film surface from the porous mold by a thermal nanoimprinting process. A plasmonic substrate was fabricated by sputtering a thin layer of gold onto this nanopillar polymer structure, and the refractive index response in a variety of media was evaluated. Finally, the biosensing capacity of this novel plasmonic substrate was verified by analysis of Human immunoglobulin and achieved a minimum detection limit of 1.0 ng/mL. With the advantages of mass production with consistent reproducibility stemming from the nanoimprint fabrication process, our gold-capped polymeric pillars are ready for the transition from academic interest into commercialization systems for practical use in diagnostic applications.     

Estimation of anisotropic properties of nano-structured arrays by modal vibration control at microscale

Nano-structured arrays are engineered to meet the requirements of a variety of applications such as microfilters, sensors, and structural interface due to their unique mechanical characteristics, which cannot be achieved by conventional solid materials. However, it is hard to evaluate the elastic properties of nano-structured arrays owing to the discrete structure, sample size, and availability of suitable techniques. To facilitate this, we develop an advanced three-dimensional microscale vibration testing process. In the test, a specially designed three-dimensional microspecimen with tuned mass is excited by a piezoelectric actuator, and the resonance frequencies are detected by a laser device successfully. The anisotropic elastic moduli of nano-structured array composed of helical nano-springs are identified from a single spectrum. This array shows so strong characteristic anisotropy that the solid one hardly can attain. The microscale testing technique can be extended to other materials and microstructures.     

Deformation and Fracture of Micron‐Sized Metal‐Coated Polymer Spheres: An In Situ Study

In situ imaging and analysis of the mechanical behavior of micron‐sized metal‐coated polymer particles under compression is reported. A nanoindentation set‐up mounted in a scanning electron microscope is used to observe the deformation and fracture of 10 μm polymer spheres with Ni, Ni/Au, Au, and Ag coatings. The spheres fracture in one of two metallization‐dependent modes, brittle, and ductile, depending only on the presence of a nickel layer. The metal coating always fractures parallel to the direction of compression. The mechanical properties up to the point of coating fracture are rate‐dependent due to the viscoelastic polymer core. Metal‐coated polymer spheres are an important composite material in electronics packaging, and this study demonstrates a novel method of evaluating the mechanical properties of particles to tailor them for electronic materials.

     

The intercomparison of cosmic rays with heavy ion beams at NIRS (ICCHIBAN) project

The ICCHIBAN-2 experiment, the first dedicated to the ground-based intercomparison of passive space dosemeters, was carried out between 23 May and 28 May 2002 at the National Institute of Radiological Sciences in Chiba, Japan. The primary objective of the ICCHIBAN-2 experiment was to intercompare the response of passive dosemeters used in space crew dosimetry to monoenergetic heavy ions of charge and energy spanning a significant portion of the galactic cosmic ray (GCR) spectrum. During the ICCHIBAN-2 experiment, dosemeters from 12 different laboratories in 9 countries were irradiated under identical conditions to heavy ion beams of 150 MeV n(-1) (4)He, 400 MeV n(-1) (12)C, 490 MeV n(-1) (28)Si and 500 MeV n(-1) (56)Fe at the NIRS Heavy Ion Medical Accelerator.     

Microcoaxial electrode for in vivo nitric oxide measurement

Nitric oxide (NO) is a gaseous mediator involved in various physiological phenomena, such as vasorelaxation and neurotransmission. Investigation of local cellular responses of NO production in vivo and in vitro requires a measurement method with a high spatial resolution. For selective NO measurement, we therefore developed a microcoaxial electrode whose tip diameter is less than 10 microm. Calibration using various concentrations of NO (0.1-1.0 microM) showed that the electrode has good linearity (r = 0.99) and its detection limit is 0.075 microM (S/N = 3). We verified the applicability of this electrode to in vivo and in vitro local measurement NO released from bovine aortic cultured endothelial cells (BAECs) stimulated by acetylcholine (ACh). After the addition of ACh, a transient increase in NO concentration was detected by the electrode. In the presence of NG-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME), a putative NO synthase inhibitor, NO release (peak NO concentration) from RAECs was significantly less than that in the absence of L-NAME (0.18 +/- 0.04 microM vs 0.47 +/- 0.13; P < 0.01). After removal of L-NAME, NO release partially recovered (0.39 +/- 0.10 microM). In conclusion, the microcoaxial electrode was successfully applied to direct and continuous NO measurement in biological systems.     

Stress field near interface edge of elastic-creep bi-material

Stress fields on elastic-creep bi-material interfaces with different geometry of the interface edge are analyzed by finite element method. The results reveal that the stress highly concentrates near the interface edge at the loading instant and it gradually decreases as the creep-dominated zone expands from the small-scale creep to the large-scale creep. The stress singularity due to creep which resembles the HRR stress singularity appears near the interface edge in all cases. The stress intensity near the interface edge time-dependently decreases and becomes constant when the transition reaches the steady state. The magnitude is scarcely influenced by the edge shape of elastic material, though it depends on the edge shape of creep material. The stress intensity during the transition can be approximately predicted by the J-integral at the loading instant.