Novel fabrication method for long silicon microneedles with three‐dimensional sharp tips and complicated shank shapes by isotropic dry etching

This paper proposes a novel fabrication method for long solid microneedles made of silicon, which have a three‐dimensional sharp tip, by using isotropic dry etching. Since the fabrication is done in a direction parallel to the surface of the silicon substrate, there is no limit for the needle length. Also, the shank shape of this needle is freely designed three‐dimensionally by defining the mask on the silicon surface. For example, a jagged or harpoon shape is possible by using the proposed method, which may be effective for some medical applications. First, several three‐dimensional, complicated‐shaped needles with sharp tip angles were fabricated by changing the mask pattern. Second, a penetration experiment with them on an artificial skin was carried out, and easy penetration comparable with a conventional metal solid needle was confirmed. For an example of lancet application for diabetics, one of the needles was inserted into a human skin, and bleeding was confirmed. Copyright © 2007 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan© 2007 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

A newly developed rotary-linear motion platform with a giant magnetostrictive actuator

Demands for machining and measuring three-dimensional geometries have recently increased in a variety of industries. In order to meet such demands, it is necessary to develop a compact versatile high performance spindle system. This paper presents a newly developed rotary motion platform combined with a linear motion mechanism driven by a giant magnetostrictive actuator. The developed platform can be characterized by a compact structure, a noncontact structure, and high accuracy. Performance evaluation results confirm that the developed platform provides precise linear motion during rotating.     

On‐Demand Control of the Photochromic Properties of Naphthopyrans

Photofunctional compounds have emerged as critically important materials for both fundamental studies and industrial applications. Control of the thermal decoloration speed to within several seconds while sustaining satisfactory photochromic colorability is an important challenge for the application of such materials to photochromic lenses and smart windows. Photochromic naphthopyran derivatives are utilized for photochromic lenses because of their high durability and easily controllable colorability. However, the residual color imparted by the long‐lived transient species upon ceasing light irradiation remains a hindrance to practical applications. In this study, a strategy is demonstrated for on‐demand control of the thermal decoloration speed of the transient colored species of naphthopyran derivatives. The increase in the ring‐size of the alkylenedioxy moiety on the naphthopyrans accelerates the thermal back‐reaction independently of the maximum‐absorption wavelength of the colored isomer, leading to the realization of yellow‐, red‐, and blue‐photochromic naphthopyrans with similar thermal fading speeds. This novel molecular design provides a strategy for the future development of advanced photoresponsive materials.     

Local structural arrangements around oxygen and hydrogen-related defects in proton conducting LaP3O9 investigated by first principles calculations

Local structural arrangements and stabilities of oxygen and hydrogen-related defects in proton-conducting LaP₃O₉ were studied using first principles calculations. When an oxygen was removed from LaP₃O₉, the crystal lattice was significantly distorted. Resulting structural arrangements considerably depended on the oxygen deficient site, and phosphate ions tended to condense by sharing a corner oxygen of PO₄ tetrahedra. On the other hand, when a proton was introduced, the proton was located at the interstitial sites positioned approximately 1 Å away from the nearest oxygen forming an O–H bond. The LaP₃O₉ lattice was only slightly distorted even after introduction of an interstitial proton. Based on the calculation results, the stabilities of the defects under moisturized conditions was discussed.     

Palladium/Phosphite or Phosphate Catalyzed Oxidative Coupling of Arylboronic Acids with Alkynes to Produce 1,4‐Diaryl‐1,3‐butadienes

The intermolecular oxidative coupling of arylboronic acids with internal alkynes efficiently proceeds in a 2:2 manner in the presence of palladium acetate, a triaryl phosphite or phosphate, and silver carbonate as catalyst, ligand, and oxidant, respectively, to produce the corresponding 1,4‐diaryl‐1,3‐butadiene derivatives.     

Algorithmic randomness and monotone complexity on product space

We study algorithmic randomness and monotone complexity on product of the set of infinite binary sequences. We explore the following problems: monotone complexity on product space, Lambalgen’s theorem for correlated probability, classification of random sets by likelihood ratio tests, decomposition of complexity and independence, and Bayesian statistics for individual random sequences. Formerly Lambalgen’s theorem for correlated probability is shown under a uniform computability assumption in [H. Takahashi Inform. Compt. 2008]. In this paper we show the theorem without the assumption.     

Safe operation of an autonomous underwater towed vehicle: Towed force monitoring and control

On underwater towed systems, the towing cable plays an important role in transmitting electric signals and towing forces. Hence, it is strongly recommended to monitor the towed force for preventing cable breaks and making use of it more efficiently; however, most existing underwater towed systems do not have such a capability. This paper discusses towed force monitoring and control for safe operation of an autonomous towed vehicle that is a kind of autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV). We first overview the autonomous towed vehicle and describe our related previous works. We then present our towed force measuring and monitoring manners and an experimental methodology for obtaining the feasible range of the towed force. In addition, towed force estimation only with vehicle dynamics is presented for the case when the towed force sensor became useless. Finally, we discuss towed force control to keep the towed force inside its feasible region.     

Lifetime-based phosphor thermometry of an optical engine using a high-speed CMOS camera

The surface temperature inside an optical engine was measured both with and without heating the intake gas. The temperature distribution was measured by lifetime-based phosphor thermometry using 10 time-sequential images during a single decay recorded by a non-intensified high-speed complementary metal oxide semiconductor camera and by accounting for the pixel-to-pixel variation in the nonlinearity of the sensor. Consequently, the system was simple and compact. One goal of this research is to use a single camera to measure the temperature field because it is easy to use such a system in practical experiments. The shot-to-shot standard deviation of the decay constant for uniform temperature conditions was 0.17–0.33% at 80–160 °C and it varied ±0.15% with position, indicating that the pixel nonlinearity is highly nonuniform. The present measurement method had a measurement error of ?2.25 to 1.15 °C and it exhibited a similar level of shot-to-shot fluctuations (±0.42–2.34 °C). This technique was used to measure the temperature in an optical engine and it gave reasonable temperature maps.