Characteristics of thermally expanded core fiber

Thermally expanded core (TEC) fiber is expected to reduce fiber-to-fiber and fiber-to-laser diode connection loss. This paper describes the characteristics of TEC fiber theoretically and experimentally. We reveal theoretically that when fabricating TEC fiber the mode field diameter (MFD) is enlarged more effectively by increasing the heating temperature rather than the heating time. In the 1300-1600°C temperature range with heating times between 0 and 60 min, it is necessary to control the temperature accurately so that no deviation from the target temperature is more than ±30°C. This is in order to ensure that any connection loss caused by MFD mismatch is less than 0.1 dB. We show experimentally that the propagation loss of TEC fiber is dependent on the heating region and wavelength by using a micro burner with a propane/oxygen flame. Based on the relationship between the loss characteristics and the expanded MFD, we suggest a method for nondestructively measuring the MFD in TEC fibers     

Fuzzy logic switching of thyristor controlled braking resistorconsidering coordination with SVC

This paper presents a new switching control scheme for braking resistors (BR) using fuzzy logic to enhance overall stability of electric power systems. In addition, the coordination with an SVC is also considered to achieve a wider stable region. The braking resistor is set on one of the generator busbars, where the real power output from the generator is measured to determine the firing-angle of the thyristor switch. The switching control scheme is simple so as not to require heavy computation on the microcomputer based switching controller. An SVC is set on one of the busbars in the system. The switching of the SVC uses a similar fuzzy logic control scheme to the one for the BR. Simulation results show the effectiveness of the proposed fuzzy logic switching control scheme     

An Arctangent Unwrapping Technique of Photoelasticity Using Linearly Polarized Light at Three Wavelengths

Abstract:  In the automatic measurements of the principal stress directions ψ and the total relative phase retardation ρ _tol, ψ and ρ _tol can be easily obtained by the phase unwrapping method using the arctangent function. However, only some published works exist on the measurements of ψ and ρ _tol by photoelastic techniques using a linearly polarised incident light source. This paper presents the technique of applying an unwrapping by means of the arctangent function to photoelasticity. The technique overcomes the error associated with the quarter-wave plate by using an incident light of different wavelength and does not need an interpolation for the determination of ψ . The technique is validated by determining ψ and ρ _tol for the well-known circular disk subjected to a diametral compressive load model.     

Recent advances in high-power ignitron development

The authors describe the advances made in high-power ignitron switching capabilities in a comparison study between conventional size D and size E tubes, demountable experimental tubes, and the new NL-9000 (Richardson Electronics). The authors discuss the differences in tube design and the associated peak current and charge transfer capabilities and lifetime expectancies. The critical design criteria are the anode shape and placement in order to control the plasma and prevent prefires. Tube failure modes and recent studies on alternate ignitor schemes are presented. In addition, results of plasma diagnostics performed on a demountable ignitron with optical access to the discharge plasma are shown. Time-resolved images of the interference patterns from an optical Mach-Zehnder interferometer were recorded with a mechanical high-speed camera and evaluated with the help of image processing     

Aging and availability of binocular disparity and pictorial depth cues in 3D graphics contents

Some stereoblind observers do not perceive depth of 3D stimuli that depends on binocular disparity. These individuals, who have no disabilities, comprise over 5% of the general population. In addition, 17–30% of nonstereoblind young and young–middle people do not use disparity information in certain 3D environments, a phenomenon known as pseudo‐stereoblindness. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between aging and the proportion of pseudo‐stereoblindness in the general population. In an experiment, 134 nonstereoblind participants, ranging in age from 17 to 83 years, judged subjective depth of 3D stimuli containing binocular disparity and pictorial depth cues. Results showed that the proportion of pseudo‐stereoblindness among young (17–24 years old) and young–middle aged observers (25–39 years old) was 29%, in both cases. However, the proportion of pseudo‐stereoblind observers increased in older populations: 65% and 82% in the middle (40–54 years old) and senior (55–83 years old) age groups, respectively. These results suggest that a number of people, especially in elderly populations, have trouble perceiving depth from binocular disparity in 3D graphic contents despite their essential ability to use disparity information.     

Variations of stress intensity factor of a semi-elliptical surface crack subjected to mixed mode loading

Maximum stress intensity factors of a surface crack usually appear at the deepest point of the crack, or a certain point along crack front near the free surface depending on the aspect ratio of the crack. However, generally it has been difficult to obtain smooth distributions of stress intensity factors along the crack front accurately due to the effect of corner point singularity. It is known that the stress singularity at a corner point where the front of 3 D cracks intersect free surface is depend on Poisson's ratio and different from the one of ordinary crack. In this paper, a singular integral equation method is applied to calculate the stress intensity factor along crack front of a 3-D semi-elliptical surface crack in a semi-infinite body under mixed mode loading. The body force method is used to formulate the problem as a system of singular integral equations with singularities of the form r ⁻³ using the stress field induced by a force doublet in a semi-infinite body as fundamental solution. In the numerical calculation, unknown body force densities are approximated by using fundamental density functions and polynomials. The results show that the present method yields smooth variations of mixed modes stress intensity factors along the crack front accurately. Distributions of stress intensity factors are indicated in tables and figures with varying the elliptical shape and Poisson's ratio.     

A Soluble Epoxide Hydrolase Inhibitor, 1-trifluoromethoxyphenyl-3-(1-propionylpiperidin-4-yl) Urea,Ameliorates Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis

Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) are essential FAs for human health. Cytochrome P450 oxygenates PUFAs to produce anti-inflammatory and pain-resolving epoxy fatty acids (EpFAs) and other oxylipins whose epoxide ring is opened by the soluble epoxide hydrolase (sEH/Ephx2), resulting in the formation of toxic and pro-inflammatory vicinal diols (dihydroxy-FAs). Pharmacological inhibition of sEH is a promising strategy for the treatment of pain, inflammation, cardiovascular diseases, and other conditions. We tested the efficacy of a potent, selective sEH inhibitor, 1-trifluoromethoxyphenyl-3-(1-propionylpiperidin-4-yl) urea (TPPU), in an animal model of multiple sclerosis (MS), experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). Prophylactic TPPU treatment significantly ameliorated EAE without affecting circulating white blood cell counts. TPPU accumulated in the spinal cords (SCs), which was correlated with plasma TPPU concentration. Targeted lipidomics in EAE SCs and plasma identified that TPPU blocked production of dihydroxy-FAs efficiently and increased some EpFA species including 12(13)-epoxy-octadecenoic acid (12(13)-EpOME) and 17(18)-epoxy-eicosatrienoic acid (17(18)-EpETE). TPPU did not alter levels of cyclooxygenase (COX-1/2) metabolites, while it increased 12-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid (12-HETE) and other 12/15-lipoxygenase metabolites. These analytical results are consistent with sEH inhibitors that reduce neuroinflammation and accelerate anti-inflammatory responses, providing the possibility that sEH inhibitors could be used as a disease modifying therapy, as well as for MS-associated pain relief.