NURBS体参数化模型的无支撑打印算法

处理大角度悬垂结构的打印问题是无支撑打印的主要挑战。针对NURBS（non-uniform rational Bspline）体参数化模型的多自由度无支撑三维打印技术,提出一种锥形切片算法。通过对模型的三维文件进行几何映射,利用水平切片算法对其进行切片,得到模型变形后的连续打印路径G-code;然后对得到的G-code进行逆映射,生成适用于六轴机械臂的多自由度连续打印路径。利用锥形切片算法规划打印路径,可以在无须支撑的情况下,依靠自支撑结构实现对悬空结构部分的打印。最后,通过仿真实验和对比实验,验证了锥形切片算法的准确性、可行性和有效性。锥形切片算法的引入为NURBS体参数化模型的无支撑三维打印提供了一种更加高效、经济和环保的解决方案。     

认知增强型无线传感器节点设计

为了提高无线传感器节点及其网络的吞吐量和频谱利用率,从节点设计的角度,引入认知方法增强节点的频谱感知能力,设计了基于低功耗高速率处理器的多射频接口认知增强无线传感器节点.节点采用STR911系列的ARM9微处理器,具有4个射频接口,覆盖了ISM频段和ZigBee频段.实验结果表明,相比基于Atmega128处理器的节点,该节点具有更强的认知能力,吞吐量提高了68.41%,平均信道感知时延缩短了1.4782ms;相比于CSMA/CA方法,通信时延缩短了11.86%,链路层控制方案能够有效避免干扰对节点间通信的影响.     

CAN总线在汽车轮胎监测系统中的应用设计

针对当前独立的汽车轮胎监测系统存在的弊端提出一种新的实现方案,动态监测汽车各轮胎的参数,并把动态参数通过CAN总线传输到汽车驾驶室仪表上,实现汽车轮胎故障预警功能.该方案增加了系统的可靠性、灵活性,扩展了汽车轮胎压力监测系统的使用场合,在大型车辆的安全系统中有很高的实用价值.     

Entropy-volume plane: a new approach to on-line calculation of refrigerant properties

Implementation of new techniques for real-time control and failure detection of HVAC & R equipment requires fast and accurate methods for on-line calculation of the thermodynamic properties of refrigerants. This Paper presents a new approach to such on-line property calculations using a technique evolved from a new specific entropy-specific volume plane. The special feature of constant temperature lines in this entropy—volume plane provides the basis for the proposed fast, simple and accurate method. The results of a case study on R12 are presented with an accuracy in temperature calculations of within 0.5°C and higher.     

Will consumers accept food irradiation?

Food irradiation technology has recently been developed and has already gained preliminary regulatory approval. This report discusses the potential of food irradiation and possible consumer reaction to its increased use.     

First Report on Genome Editing via Ribonucleoprotein (RNP) in Castanea sativa Mill.

Castanea sativa is an important tree nut species worldwide, highly appreciated for its multifunctional role, in particular for timber and nut production. Nowadays, new strategies are needed to achieve plant resilience to diseases, climate change, higher yields, and nutritional quality. Among the new plant breeding techniques (NPBTs), the CRISPR/Cas9 system represents a powerful tool to improve plant breeding in a short time and inexpensive way. In addition, the CRISPR/Cas9 construct can be delivered into the cells in the form of ribonucleoproteins (RNPs), avoiding the integration of exogenous DNA (GMO-free) through protoplast technology that represents an interesting material for gene editing thanks to the highly permeable membrane to DNA. In the present study, we developed the first protoplast isolation protocol starting from European chestnut somatic embryos. The enzyme solution optimized for cell wall digestion contained 1% cellulase Onozuka R-10 and 0.5% macerozyme R-10. After incubation for 4 h at 25 °C in dark conditions, a yield of 4,500,000 protoplasts/mL was obtained (91% viable). The transfection capacity was evaluated using the GFP marker gene, and the percentage of transfected protoplasts was 51%, 72 h after the transfection event. The direct delivery of the purified RNP was then performed targeting the phytoene desaturase gene. Results revealed the expected target modification by the CRISPR/Cas9 RNP and the efficient protoplast editing.     

A CRISPR/Cas9-Based System with Controllable Auto-Excision Feature Serving Cisgenic Plant Breeding and Beyond

Transgenic or genetically modified crops have great potential in modern agriculture but still suffer from heavy regulations worldwide due to biosafety concerns. As a promising alternative route, cisgenic crops have received higher public acceptance and better reviews by governing authorities. To serve the purpose of cisgenic plant breeding, we have developed a CRISPR/Cas9-based vector system, which is capable of delivering target gene-of-interest (GOI) into recipient plants while removing undesired genetic traces in the plants. The new system features a controllable auto-excision feature, which is realized by a core design of embedded multi-clonal sequence and the use of inducible promoters controlling the expression of Cas9 nuclease. In the current proof-of-concept study in Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh., we have successfully incorporated a GOI into the plant and removed the selection marker and CRISPR/Cas9 components from the final product. Following the designed workflow, we have demonstrated that novel cisgenic plant germplasms with desired traits could be developed within one to two generations. Further characterizations of the vector system have shown that heat treatment at 37 °C could significantly improve the editing efficiency (up to 100%), and no off-target mutations were identified in the Arabidopsis background. This novel vector system is the first CRISPR/Cas9-based genome editing tool for cisgenic plant breeding and should prove powerful for other similar applications in the bright future of precision molecular breeding.     

Extension of the applicable range of the implicit curve-fitting method for refrigerant thermodynamic properties to critical pressure

The method of implicit curve-fitting and explicit-calculation has been used for fast and stable calculations of thermodynamic properties of subcritical refrigerants. In order to extend that method to the critical pressure, a method of sectional implicit curve-fitting and explicit-calculation for refrigerant thermodynamic properties is introduced in this paper. The whole data range is divided into several subsections. The requirements on the continuity of thermodynamic properties and the first order derivative of thermodynamic properties in the intersection points of subsections are indicated, and the methods to meet the requirements are presented. Quadric equations are constructed instead of curve-fitting when no data can be given. With the source data obtained from REFPROP 7.1, explicit fast calculation formulae for thermodynamic properties of R410A, covering the saturated temperature of 213.15–344.51 K and superheat of 0–65 K, are given as an example. The calculation speeds of the formulae of R410A are more than 7000 times faster than those of REFPROP 7.1 while the total mean relative deviation of the fast calculation formulae from REFPROP 7.1 is only 0.04%.     

Factor affecting the cooling rate of lettuce in vacuum cooling installations

Commercial-scale experiments carried out during the last five years have shown that the cooling time of a head of lettuce, wrapped in PVC film and packed in a carton, can vary from 25 to 65 min, depending on the design of the vacuum installation. Experiments were, therefore, carried out with a commercial four pallet vacuum cooler, provided in accordance with the requirements of the Agricultural Engineering Institute, with three vacuum pumps and two compressors. The influence of pumping speed, cooling unit capacity and initial temperature on the cooling time and on the final temperature of lettuce leaves and butts was investigated. The results were compared with the cooling rate obtained with other vacuum cooling installations. Design data are proposed.     

Elevation of Tear MMP-9 Concentration as a Biomarker of Inflammation in Ocular Pathology by Antibody Microarray Immunodetection Assays

Matrix metalloproteinases are a family of enzymes fundamental in inflammatory processes. Between them, MMP-9 is up-regulated during inflammation; thus, its quantification in non-invasive fluids is a promising approach for inflammation identification. To this goal, a biomarker quantification test was developed for ocular inflammation detection using anti-MMP-9 antibody microarrays (AbMAs). After validation with eight healthy control tear samples characterized by ELISA, 20 samples were tested from individuals diagnosed with ocular inflammation due to: cataracts, glaucoma, meibomian gland dysfunction, allergy, or dry eye. Concentration values of tear MMP-9 were obtained for each sample, and 12 patients surpassed the pathological threshold (30 ng/mL). A significant elevation of MMP-9 concentration in the tears of glaucoma patients compared with healthy controls was observed. In order to evaluate the diagnostic ability, an ROC curve analysis was performed using our data, determining the optimal threshold for the test at 33.6 ng/mL of tear MMP-9. In addition, a confusion matrix was applied, estimating sensitivity at 60%, specificity at 88%, and accuracy at 68%. In conclusion, we demonstrated that the AbMAs system allows the quantification of MMP-9 in pathologies that involve inflammation of the ocular surface.