Display Method for Online Bookstore Emulating Real Bookstore by WebGL

Thanks to the spread of the Internet, opportunities to use online bookstores have been increasing in recent years. However, it is difficult for the typical customer to intuitively grasp which book sells well or which book is recommended by the shop. We have therefore developed a display system for virtual bookstores in which an image of books arranged in a bookshelf or stacked on a table is reproduced by using WebGL. Since the amount of book stock that is managed by the server side needs to be changed as orders come in from clients, we introduce a server side technology using a hypertext preprocessor(PHP).     

Dynamics of track/wheel systems on high-speed vehicles

For high speed railway vehicles, we consider a vibiation of flexible track/wheel system It is very important to deal with the complex phenomena of high-speed vehicles that can be occurred in the vertical vibration of the system From a viewpoint of multibody dynamics, this kind of problem needs accurate analysis because the system includes mutual dynamic behaviors of rigid body and flexible body The simulation technique for the complex problems is also discussed We consider the high-speed translation, rail elasticity, elastic supports under the rail and contact rigidity Eigen value analysis is also completed to verify the mechanism of the coupled vertical vibration of the system     

Artificial RNA aptamer production by the marine bacterium Rhodovulum sulfidophilum: improvement of the aptamer yield using a mutated transcriptional promoter

Noncoding small RNAs and artificial RNA aptamers are now expected to be potential candidates for RNA therapeutic agents. We previously proposed a unique method for economical production of these RNAs using the marine phototrophic bacterium Rhodovulum sulfidophilum. This bacterium does not produce any ribonucleases but does produce extracellular nucleic acids in the culture medium in nature. Using this bacterium and an engineered plasmid containing the rrn promoter for the RNA expression, we developed a method for production of the streptavidin RNA aptamer in the culture medium. However, the yield of this RNA product in the culture medium by this method was not enough for practical use. In the present paper, we improved the yield of this product by modification of the -35 region of the rrn promoter so as to escape from the Fis protein control and the use of a new vector plasmid. Using this system, the extracellular RNA aptamer of approximately 200 ng and the total RNA aptamer (both extra- and intracellular form) of about 20 μg from 1 L culture were accomplished by constitutive expression of the gene.     

Behavior of Three Kinds of Particles in Rotary Barrel with Planetary Rotation

Barrel polishing is carried out with a mixture of workpieces and grinding materials that are filled into a rotary barrel. However, workpieces and grinding materials may separate depending on proccessing conditions. The processing conditions of a planetary barrel, which simultaneously rotates around a horizontal axis and revolves around a vertical axis, include many unknown factors as well as the occurrence of segregation. The motions of workpieces and grinding materials in this barrel are basically the same as those of particles undergoing planetary rotation in a cylindrical barrel. In order to calculate the behavior of a large number of particles, a numerical method that can be applied many discrete body is necessary. We have already examined the behavior of two kinds of particles and the characteristics of segregation in planetary rotation using the discrete element method (DEM). However, there are cases in which multiple grinding materials are used in barrel polishing. Therefore, in this report, three kinds of particles of different materials and sizes are filled into a planetary barrel, and the behavior of these particles was examined through experiments and DEM simulations. As a result, the segregation was found to occur even when three kinds of particles were filled into the rotary barrel. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that the distribution of each of the three particles based on the segregation diagram could be obtained.     

Model for analysis of bogie frame motion under derailment conditions based on full-scale running tests

Preventing railway vehicles from derailing is the most important earthquake countermeasure. Similarly, formulating measures to prevent vehicles from deviating from the track in the event of a derailment is an extremely important secondary measure for minimizing the risk of fatalities. The authors have developed a post-derailment stopper, which prevents derailed vehicles from veering off the track by catching on guard rails. We conducted running tests under derailment conditions using real bogies and tracks to develop the stopper and evaluate its efficacy. Since we observed peculiar motions of the bogie frame when the stopper was attached during running tests, we propose a 15 DOF vehicle dynamics model in order to discuss, in particular, the motion of the bogie frame and the stopper under derailment conditions. In this model, we give degrees of freedom to the motors mounted on the bogie frame because contact between the stopper and the guards was observed repeatedly during running tests. In addition, in this simulation of a derailed vehicle, static equilibrium conditions are calculated using the data obtained from running tests prior to the time history analysis. We evaluated the validity of the proposed model by comparing the calculated results with measured data.     

Behavior of Two Kinds of Particles in Rotary Barrel with Planetary Rotation

Barrel polishing is an extremely efficient processing method for the surface smoothing treatment of a large number of workpieces. However, workpieces and grinding materials may separate depending on processing conditions. Since barrel polishing is carried out while mixing workpieces and grinding materials, the occurrence of segregation should be avoided. The processing conditions inside a planetary barrel which simultaneously rotates around the horizontal axis and revolves around the vertical axis include many unknown factors as well as the occurrence of segregation. The motions of workpieces and grinding materials in this barrel are basically the same as those of particles undergoing planetary rotation in a cylindrical barrel. However, in order to calculate the behavior of a large number of particles, a numerical method that can be applied to a discrete body is necessary. Therefore, in this study, two kinds of particles of different materials and sizes were filled into a planetary barrel, and the behavior of those particles was examined through experiments and simulations using the Discrete Element Method (DEM). As a result, it was demonstrated that certain combinations of length and inside diameter of the rotary barrel could prevent the segregation.     

Display Method for Online Bookstore Emulating Real Bookstore by WebGL

Thanks to the spread of the Internet, opportunities to use online bookstores have been increasing in recent years. However, it is difficult for the typical customer to intuitively grasp which book sells well or which book is recommended by the shop. We have therefore developed a display system for virtual bookstores in which an image of books arranged in a bookshelf or stacked on a table is reproduced by using WebGL. Since the amount of book stock that is managed by the server side needs to be changed as orders come in from clients, we introduce a server side technology using a hypertext preprocessor (PHP).     

Study of rocking motion of rigid body with slide contact

The purpose of this study is to formulate the motion of a rigid body with unilateral contact problems by applying techniques of multibody dynamics and to analyze the issue of rocking condition of rigid bodies with slide contact. In To investigate rocking motion with slide contact, we formulate for dynamics of a simple rigid body system with a unilateral contact model. Judgment for the occurrence of contact between a rigid body and a base is applied. The planar motion of a rigid body system having a simple shape and both with and without slide cases is assumed. Using constraint conditions for the contact as algebraic equations, the rocking motion of the rigid body, including slide and frictional force, is analyzed. The differential algebraic equation is solved by the augmented method with Lagrange multipliers, using generalized coordinates and independent variables that describe the contact points. The influence of the frequency and amplitude of disturbance given to the base is discussed. This paper was presented at the 4th Asian Conference on Multibody Dynamics(ACMD2008), Jeju, Korean, August 20–23, 2008. Keisuke Nozaki is graduate student at Sophia University in Tokyo, Japan. Yoshiaki Terumichi received a Ph.D. degree in Mechanical Engineering from keio University in 1994. Dr. Terumichi is currently a Professor at the Department of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Sophia University in Tokyo, Japan. He is currently contributing as a member of Advisory Boad Eccomas Thematic Conference “Multibody Dynamics 2009” and an editor of the International Journal of System Design and Dynamics of JSME. His research field is on multibody dynamics, vehicle dynamics, and pattern formation phenomena. Kazuhiko Nishimura received a B.S. degree in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Tokyo in 1994. He has worked for the Central Japan Railway Company (CJR) since 1994. As an engineer of the railway industry, he also studied mechanical engineering at the University of Michigan and received his M.S. degree in 2003. He is currently a senior research engineer at Komaki Research Center of CJR and also a Ph. D. candidate at Sophia University. His research/engineering interests are in the area of vehicle/track interaction issues in high speed railway system. Kiyoshi Sogabe received a B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from Kyusyu Institute of Technology, Japan. He received M.S. and Dr. Eng degrees from the University of Tokyo in 1971 and 1975, respectively. Dr. Sogabe is currently a Professor in the Department of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Faculty of Science and Technology, Sophia University, Tokyo, Japan. Dr. Sogabe was the Dean of the faculty during April 2004–March 2008. His main research interests are in the field of dynamic analysis of machines and structures, multibody dynamics.