System identification for FES-based tremor suppression

Tremor is an involuntary motion which is a common complication of Parkinson's disease and Multiple Sclerosis. A promising treatment is to artificially contract the muscle through application of induced electrical stimulation. However, existing controllers have either provided only modest levels of suppression or have been applied only in simulation. To enable more advanced, model-based control schemes, an accurate model of the relevant limb dynamics is required, together with identification procedures that are suitable for clinical application. This paper proposes such a solution, explicitly addressing limitations of existing methodologies. These include model structures that (i) neglect critical features, and (ii) restrict the range of admissible control schemes, together with identification procedures that (iii) employ stimulation inputs that are uncomfortable for patients, (iv) are overly complex and time-consuming for clinical use, and (v) cannot be automated. Experimental results confirm the efficacy of the proposed identification procedures, and show that high levels of accuracy can be achieved in a short identification time using test procedures that are suitable for future transference to the clinical domain

Repetitive control of electrical stimulation for tremor suppression

Tremor is a rapid uncontrollable back-and-forth movement of a body part often seen in patients with neurological conditions such as Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and Parkinson’s disease. This debilitating oscillation can be suppressed by applying functional electrical stimulation (FES) within a closedloop control system. However current implementations use classical control methods and have proved capable of only limited performance. This paper develops a novel application of repetitive control (RC) that exploits the capability of learning from experience to enable complete suppression of the tremor. The proposed control structure is applied to suppress tremor at the wrist via FES regulated co-contraction of wrist extensors/flexors. Experimental evaluation is performed using a validated wristrig and results are compared against classical feedback control designs to establish the efficacy of the approach

Urban Design of Bristol Waterfront, Lower Thames Street

The marketplace is going to be one of the highlights on Thames Street, serving as a destination for leisure, shopping and dining. The concept of the project is to have indoor space continue out to the water, providing an outdoor space for dining and leisure, but also giving the boardwalk a resting point. The building is planned as two floors, with the fish market and multipurpose area on the first and an eatery, sitting area, balcony and facilities on the second. The building will be made of a light metal frame with panels to enclose the space and is designed with a folded glass panel that can be opened up to the outside, yet decrease wind pressure in a storm

Analysis of the Perceptions of Administrators on the Educations Regulations

The main purpose of the Ministry of National Education Guidance and Inspection Directorate and Education Inspectors Directorates Regulation consists of defining the organizations and duties of these directorates. In this respect, the regulation deals with the power and responsibilities of education inspectors to be appointed in the directorates separately and regulates issues such as their appointment, employment, training and replacement; in short all working style and principles. In this study, it is aimed at analyzing and evaluating the Ministry of National Education Guidance and Supervision Directorate and Education Inspectors Directorates Regulation taking the views of inspectors in the dimensions of structure, process and understanding. In line with this purpose, the views of education inspectors (N=86) have been obtained by Baskan and Kapusuzoğlu (2013) through a survey of 25 items developed in line with the regulations. The obtained data has been analyzed through averages, the T- test, Anova and Tukey-B tests. As a result of the study, it has been concluded that the inspectors do not find the application terms related to the competition examination and the changes made in terms of the examination board, regulations made in terms of the reclamation period and the oral examination process “appropriate†and that they find the regulations related to the written examination subjects and score weight, their training and appointment “partially appropriate.†In addition, the views of the inspectors do not display differences based on personal characteristics with the exception of terms of service

The histone H3-K27 demethylase Utx regulates HOX gene expression in Drosophila in a temporally restricted manner

Trimethylation of histone H3 at lysine 27 (H3-K27me3) by Polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2) is a key step for transcriptional repression by the Polycomb system. Demethylation of H3-K27me3 by Utx and/or its paralogs has consequently been proposed to be important for counteracting Polycomb repression. To study the phenotype of Drosophila mutants that lack H3-K27me3 demethylase activity, we created Utx., a deletion allele of the single Drosophila Utx gene. Utx. homozygotes that contain maternally deposited wild-type Utx protein develop into adults with normal epidermal morphology but die shortly after hatching. By contrast, Utx. homozygotes that are derived from Utx mutant germ cells and therefore lack both maternal and zygotic Utx protein, die as larvae and show partial loss of expression of HOX genes in tissues in which these genes are normally active. This phenotype classifies Utx as a trithorax group regulator. We propose that Utx is needed in the early embryo to prevent inappropriate instalment of long-term Polycomb repression at HOX genes in cells in which these genes must be kept active. In contrast to PRC2, which is essential for, and continuously required during, germ cell, embryonic and larval development, Utx therefore appears to have a more limited and specific function during development. This argues against a continuous interplay between H3-K27me3 methylation and demethylation in the control of gene transcription in Drosophila. Furthermore, our analyses do not support the recent proposal that Utx would regulate cell proliferation in Drosophila as Utx mutant cells generated in wild-type animals proliferate like wild-type cells

Finite volume modeling of the solidification of an axial steel cast impeller

In the foundry industry, obtaining the solidification contours in cast geometries are extremely important to know the last location(s) to solidify in order to define the correct feeding path and the number of risers. This paper presents three-dimensional simulation of transient conduction heat transfer within an axial impeller, made of AISI 1016 steel, poured and solidified in chemically bonded mold and core medium, by using FVM technique and ANSYS CFX. Specific heat, density and thermal conductivity of AISI 1016 steel, mold and Core materials are considered as functions of temperatures. In this transient thermal analysis, the convection heat transfer phenomenon is also considered at the outer surfaces of the mold. In order to shorten the run-time, the nonlinear transient analysis has been made for 600/3600 segment of the impeller, core and mold. The solidification contours of the impeller as well as isothermal lines in core and mold have been obtained in 3-D. The cooling curves of diff erent points are also shown in the result section

Effects of chills on the solidification pattern of an axial steel cast impeller

This paper presents three-dimensional simulation of transient conduction heat transfer within an axial impeller (AISI 1016), two different sizes of chills (AISI 1016), core (green sand) and mold (green sand) by using Ansys CFX. Specific heat, density and thermal conductivity of AISI 1016 steel, mold and Core materials are considered as functions of temperature