Automated plastic cup labeling machine

UPMC has been in the packaging business, offering services for various household names in the food industry. To keep up with the intense competition in manufacturing and packaging, the company has to maximize its production capacity and cut up on other possible costs. The manual labeling of the cups of the company\u27s particular product became a concern due to the delay it causes brought about by the varying speeds of the workers in the production line. This led the group to design and fabricate a machine that can automatically affix the labels to the cup. It is aimed to apply the adhesive around the cup and the label attached in a sequential fashion. The vast capacity of the PLC was utilized to achieve the objective. The PLC controlled the operation sequence of the machine. The Ladder Diagram served as our communication tool to encode the program into the PLC. It is further supported by the careful selection of the mechanical parts of the machine. AutoCAD helped us in this selection and design process and the CNC machine was of great help in fabricating some of the complex parts of the machine. To further explore the capability of the machine, we subjected the machine to experiments to determine the best adhesive, correct lift assembly height, label arm orientation and design, and labeling time. All the results of the experiments were taken into consideration in the final design of the Automatic Labeling Machine. The Automatic Plastic Cup Labeling Machine was able to deliver the task of automatically attaching the label to the cup. And importantly, it reduced the time from 9 seconds to 6 seconds. It has cut the labeling time by 34%. The machine will help cut up costs for the company and ensure delivery of goods considering the constant rate of labeling and production

Perinatal reduction of functional serotonin transporters results in developmental delay

Item does not contain fulltextWhile there is strong evidence from rodent and human studies that a reduction in serotonin transporter (5-HTT) function in early-life can increase the risk for several neuropsychiatric disorders in adulthood, the effects of reduced 5-HTT function on behavior across developmental stages are underinvestigated. To elucidate how perinatal pharmacological and lifelong genetic inactivation of the 5-HTT affects behavior across development, we conducted a battery of behavioral tests in rats perinatally exposed to fluoxetine or vehicle and in 5-HTT(-/-) versus 5-HTT(+/+) rats. We measured motor-related behavior, olfactory function, grooming behavior, sensorimotor gating, object directed behavior and novel object recognition in the first three postnatal weeks and if possible the tests were repeated in adolescence and adulthood. We also measured developmental milestones such as eye opening, reflex development and body weight. We observed that both pharmacological and genetic inactivation of 5-HTT resulted in a developmental delay. Except for hypo-locomotion, most of the observed early-life effects were normalized later in life. In adolescence and adulthood we observed object directed behavior and decreased novel object recognition in the 5-HTT(-/-) rats, which might be related to the lifelong inactivation of 5-HTT. Together, these data provide an important contribution to the understanding of the effects of perinatal and lifelong 5-HTT inactivation on behavior across developmental stages.16 p

Spatial aspects in the Alpilles-ReSeDA project

International audienc

Spatial aspects in the Alpilles-ReSeDA project

International audienc

A distinct adipose tissue gene expression response to caloric restriction predicts 6-mo weight maintenance in obese subjects.

International audienceBACKGROUND: Weight loss has been shown to reduce risk factors associated with cardiovascular disease and diabetes; however, successful maintenance of weight loss continues to pose a challenge. OBJECTIVE: The present study was designed to assess whether changes in subcutaneous adipose tissue (scAT) gene expression during a low-calorie diet (LCD) could be used to differentiate and predict subjects who experience successful short-term weight maintenance from subjects who experience weight regain. DESIGN: Forty white women followed a dietary protocol consisting of an 8-wk LCD phase followed by a 6-mo weight-maintenance phase. Participants were classified as weight maintainers (WMs; 0-10% weight regain) and weight regainers (WRs; 50-100% weight regain) by considering changes in body weight during the 2 phases. Anthropometric measurements, bioclinical variables, and scAT gene expression were studied in all individuals before and after the LCD. Energy intake was estimated by using 3-d dietary records. RESULTS: No differences in body weight and fasting insulin were observed between WMs and WRs at baseline or after the LCD period. The LCD resulted in significant decreases in body weight and in several plasma variables in both groups. WMs experienced a significant reduction in insulin secretion in response to an oral-glucose-tolerance test after the LCD; in contrast, no changes in insulin secretion were observed in WRs after the LCD. An ANOVA of scAT gene expression showed that genes regulating fatty acid metabolism, citric acid cycle, oxidative phosphorylation, and apoptosis were regulated differently by the LCD in WM and WR subjects. CONCLUSION: This study suggests that LCD-induced changes in insulin secretion and scAT gene expression may have the potential to predict successful short-term weight maintenance. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT00390637