Adaptive prescribed time control for quadrotor formation with stochastic links failure

The formation control for multiple quadrotors subject to maintaining the formation configuration and collision avoidance in the situation of stochastic links failure is investigated in this paper. First, the distributed formation controller is designed, the position controller is developed to manage the desired formation of position, and the attitude controller is developed to control the translation and rotation movements of the quadrotor. Then, in order to avoid the collisions between multiple quadrotors and the obstacles, a potential energy function method is introduced into the quadrotor formation control combined with the nest adaptive control. Inspired by the design of event trigger controller, a communication compensation controller is designed to ensure the stability of quadrotor formation under the condition of random communication interruption and recovery. Moreover, a prescribed time function is designed, which means the convergence time of the formation system can be set in advance. The prescribed time stability of the formation control system is proved by Lyapunov theory. Finally, the simulation results verify the effectiveness and superiority of this method.     

融合深度学习与成像模型的水下图像增强算法

水下机器人的视觉感知功能因受到水下环境因素的影响,面临着图像质量降低的挑战,如图像颜色畸变、整体色调偏绿、偏蓝、对比度较低、细节较为模糊等。提出一种结合深度学习方法与物理成像模型的新型水下图像增强算法,通过构建包含扩张卷积和带参数激活函数的神经网络,进行背景散射光和直接传输映射的估计,并结合成像模型的数学表达进行重建运算得到增强后图像。实验结果表明,与UDCP、IBLA、GLNet等典型图像增强算法相比,该算法具有更快的运算速度,且能够消除水下环境因素带来的影响,丰富图像色彩的同时能增强各类细节,在峰值信噪比指标和结构相似度指标上取得了较大值。此外,增强后的图像在特征点匹配实验中获得了更好的匹配效果。     

Solving cell formation and task scheduling in cellular manufacturing system by discrete bacteria foraging algorithm

We consider a joint decision model of cell formation and task scheduling in cellular manufacturing system under dual-resource constrained (DRC) setting. On one hand, machines and workers are multi-functional and/or multi-skilled, and they are grouped into workstations and cells. On the other hand, there is a processing sequence among operations of the parts which needs to be dispatched to the desirable workstations for processing. Inter-cell movements of parts can reduce the processing times and the makespan but will increase the inter-cell material handling costs. The objective of the problem is to minimise the material handling costs as well as the fixed and operating costs of machines and workers. Due to the NP-hardness of the problem, we propose an efficient discrete bacteria foraging algorithm (DBFA) with elaborately designed solution representation and bacteria evolution operators to solve the proposed problem. We tested our algorithm using randomly generated instances with different sizes and settings by comparing with the original bacteria foraging algorithm and a genetic algorithm. Our results show that the proposed DBFA has better performance than the two compared algorithms with the same running time.     

Cellular manufacturing system design considering machines reliability and parts alternative process routings

Cell formation is an important problem in the design of cellular manufacturing systems (CMS). Most cell formation methods appeared in the literature assume that each part has one process plan, and all machines are 100% reliable with unlimited capacity. However, this is not realistic in manufacturing systems. Considering machines reliability in addition to machines capacity and machine duplicates during the part route selection process help to obtain better machine grouping and minimum total cost for CMS. Considering these factors in addition to operations sequence and production volumes makes the problem more complex but more realistic. Most of the methods appeared in the literature to solve such problems use mathematical programming procedures that take large amount of computational efforts. Procedures using similarity coefficient method are more flexible in incorporating various important production data and lend easily to computer applications. A new similarity coefficient equation that incorporates all these production factors is developed. Also, a procedure that captures the similarity between machine groups and minimises the total CMS cost is developed. The procedure utilises functional cells to eliminate intercellular moves and achieve ‘one-piece flow’ practise. The methodology is compared with other methods in the literature and found to be more effective.     

High throughput research and evaporation rate modeling for solvent screening for ethylcellulose barrier membranes in pharmaceutical applications

Context: Ethylcellulose is commonly dissolved in a solvent or formed into an aqueous dispersion and sprayed onto various dosage forms to form a barrier membrane to provide controlled release in pharmaceutical formulations. Due to the variety of solvents utilized in the pharmaceutical industry and the importance solvent can play on film formation and film strength it is critical to understand how solvent can influence these parameters.

Objective: To systematically study a variety of solvent blends and how these solvent blends influence ethylcellulose film formation, physical and mechanical film properties and solution properties such as clarity and viscosity.

Materials and methods: Using high throughput capabilities and evaporation rate modeling, thirty-one different solvent blends composed of ethanol, isopropanol, acetone, methanol, and/or water were formulated, analyzed for viscosity and clarity, and narrowed down to four solvent blends. Brookfield viscosity, film casting, mechanical film testing and water permeation were also completed.

Results and discussion: High throughput analysis identified isopropanol/water, ethanol, ethanol/water and methanol/acetone/water as solvent blends with unique clarity and viscosity values. Evaporation rate modeling further rank ordered these candidates from excellent to poor interaction with ethylcellulose. Isopropanol/water was identified as the most suitable solvent blend for ethylcellulose due to azeotrope formation during evaporation, which resulted in a solvent-rich phase allowing the ethylcellulose polymer chains to remain maximally extended during film formation. Consequently, the highest clarity and most ductile films were formed.

Conclusion: Employing high throughput capabilities paired with evaporation rate modeling allowed strong predictions between solvent interaction with ethylcellulose and mechanical film properties.     

不同形貌Ti-O基纳米结构的可控制备与形成机制探讨

利用碱辅助水热法实现了Ti-O基纳米管、纳米带和纳米结构微球的合成,通过TEM、SEM等手段对所制备的纳米结构进行表征。当采用商品级锐钛矿TiO2为原料,热水处理温度为180℃、碱的浓度为10mol/L,热处理48h时可以得到Ti-O基纳米带。纳米带宽度为50~200nm,长度达到几十微米甚至一百多微米;产物产率高,质量好,结晶良好,表面洁净,无缺陷。当热处理温度为120℃时,可以得到Ti-O基纳米管,纳米管的长度为200~500nm,外径在20~50nm之间。当所用前驱体的粒径较小时,容易形成较细或者较窄的纳米带或者纳米线,当在选用前驱体的粒径较大时,可以生成纳米结构微球。     

单颗CBN磨粒磨削20CrMo的微观成屑过程研究

为研究20CrMo材料的磨削去除机理与微观成屑过程,采用Johnson-Cook模型作为20CrMo的本构模型,应用有限元软件Abaqus建立了单颗CBN磨粒磨削20CrMo成屑过程的三维有限元分析模型。通过该模型探究不同磨削参数下的微观成屑过程,仿真分析结果表明:磨削速度对成屑过程中的耕犁与成屑阶段影响较大,磨削深度对滑擦与成屑阶段影响较大。设计了单颗磨粒磨削实验装置,对微观成屑进行了实验研究与分析,从磨痕沟槽和磨屑的整体特征来看,实验结果与仿真结果都较为吻合,验证了该三维仿真模型的正确性。     

面向等离子体材料钨中氘/氦滞留行为的研究进展

作为面向等离子体材料,钨(W)在服役的过程中不仅受到等离子体造成的高能热负荷的作用,还受到高束流粒子如氘(D)、氚(T)、氦(He)等的轰击和D-T聚变反应产生的高能中子的影响。W中D、T、He的滞留和起泡,仍是聚变堆装置中有待解决的关键问题之一。综述了D、T和He的滞留行为及其气泡形成与辐照条件之间的关系,简要评述了W的服役性能和强化机理。通过降低W中D/He滞留量、抑制气泡的形成可有效改善W的服役性能。深入研究D/He滞留行为与辐照缺陷之间的相互作用关系,进而构建D/He的宏观热脱附行为与其微观状态之间的对应关系,为寻找合适途径来改善W的服役性能提供理论支撑。     

Gas formation and biological effects of biodegradable magnesium in a preclinical and clinical observation

Magnesium alloys are biodegradable metals receiving increasing attention, but the clinical applications of these materials are delayed by concerns over the rapid corrosion rate and gas formation. Unlike corrosion, which weakens mechanical properties, the gas formation issue has received little attention. Therefore, we evaluated the gas formation and biological effects for Mg implants through preclinical (immersed in Earle’s balanced salt solution and in vivo) and clinical studies. The immersion test examined the gas volume and composition. The in vivo study also examined gas volume and histological analysis. The clinical study examined the gas volume and safety after Mg screw metatarsal fixation. Gas was mainly composed of H₂, CO and CO₂. Maximum volumes of gas formed after 5 days for in vivo and 7 days in clinical study. Within the clinical examination, two superficial wound complications healed with local wound care. Osteolytic lesions in the surrounding metaphysis of the Mg screw insertion developed in all cases and union occurred at 3 months. Mg implants released gas with variable volumes and composition (H₂, CO, and CO₂), with no long-term toxic effects on the surrounding tissue. The implants enabled bone healing, although complications of wound breakdown and osteolytic lesions developed.     

Shrinkable Nanotubes for Duplex Formation of Short Nucleotides

Molecular monolayer nanotubes produced by self‐assembly of an amphiphile modified with a 2‐nitrobenzyl group as a photoresponsive unit are able to encapsulate dinucleotides via electrostatic attraction. Upon photoirradiation, the 18 nm inner diameter of the nanotubes shrinks to less than 2 nm as a result of photochemical cleavage of the 2‐nitrobenzyl group in the amphiphile. This shrinking of the nanotube channels leads to a propulsive release of the dinucleotides into the bulk solution and simultaneously accelerates formation of the dinucleotide duplexes. The larger nanotube channels without photoirradiation merely release each dinucleotide into the bulk solution, indicating that the squeezing via transportation in the narrow nanotube channels is necessary for duplex formation. In addition to the size effect, water with a lower polarity confined within the narrow nanotube channels helps to stabilize the energetically unfavorable hydrogen‐bonded base pair between the dinucleotides. This system should enable researchers to perform biological reactions that occur only in specific environments and conditions in living organisms.