Toward Dynamic Manipulation of Flexible Objects by High-Speed Robot System: From Static to Dynamic

This chapter explains dynamic manipulation of flexible objects, where the target objects to be manipulated include rope, ribbon, cloth, pizza dough, and so on. Previously, flexible object manipulation has been performed in a static or quasi-static state. Therefore, the manipulation time becomes long, and the efficiency of the manipulation is not considered to be sufficient. In order to solve these problems, we propose a novel control strategy and motion planning for achieving flexible object manipulation at high speed. The proposed strategy simplifies the flexible object dynamics. Moreover, we implemented a high-speed vision system and high-speed image processing to improve the success rate by manipulating the robot trajectory. By using this strategy, motion planning, and high-speed visual feedback, we demonstrated several tasks, including dynamic manipulation and knotting of a rope, generating a ribbon shape, dynamic folding of cloth, rope insertion, and pizza dough rotation, and we show experimental results obtained by using the high-speed robot system

Rapid estimation of soluble fibrin monomer complexes by high performance liquid chromatography for the purpose of early detection of DIC

Thesis--University of Tsukuba, D.M.S.(B), no. 392, 1987. 6. 30Offprint. Originally published in: Thrombosis research, v. 30, pp. 521-526, 1983Joint author: Yoji IwasakiIncludes supplementary treatise

Bis[μ-3,5-bis­(2-pyrid­yl)pyrazolato]bis­(hydrogensulfato)­dicopper(II) methanol disolvate

The title compound, [Cu2(C13H9N4)2(HSO4)2]·2CH3OH, consists of discrete centrosymmetric dinuclear complex mol­ecules and methanol solvent mol­ecules. The CuII atom shows a square-pyramidal coordination geometry and is bonded to four N atoms of the two bis-chelating 3,5-bis­(2-pyrid­yl)pyrazol­ate ions (bpypz−) and one O atom of the hydrogensulfate ion. The bpypz− ligands in the complex mol­ecule are virtually coplanar [dihedral angle between the mean ligand planes = 0.000(1)°] with the CuII atom deviating in opposite directions from their best plane by 0.2080 (12) Å. π–π stacking inter­actions between the pyridyl and pyrazole rings [centroid–centroid distance = 3.391 (3) Å] and strong O—H⋯O hydrogen bonds between the hydrogensulfate ligands and the methanol mol­ecules assemble the mol­ecules into a one-dimensional polymeric structure extending along the a axis. The methanol mol­ecule acts both as an accepter and a donor in the hydrogen bonding

Design, Synthesis, and Mechanistic Evaluation of Iron-Based Catalysis for Synthesis Gas Conversion to Fuels and Chemicals

This project extends previously discovered Fe-based catalysts to hydrogen-poor synthesis gas streams derived from coal and biomass sources. These catalysts have shown unprecedented Fischer-Tropsch synthesis rates and selectivities for feedstocks consisting of synthesis gas derived from methane. During the first reporting period, we certified a microreactor, installed required analytical equipment, and reproduced synthetic protocols and catalytic results previously reported. During the second reporting period, we prepared several Fe-based compositions for Fischer-Tropsch Synthesis and tested the effects of product recycle under both subcritical and supercritical conditions. During the third and fourth reporting periods, we improved the catalysts preparation method, which led to Fe-based FT catalysts with the highest FTS reaction rates and selectivities so far reported, a finding that allowed their operation at lower temperatures and pressures with high selectivity to desired products (C{sub 5+}, olefins). During the fifth reporting period, we studied the effects of different promoters on catalytic performance, specifically how their sequence of addition dramatically influenced the performance of these materials in the Fischer-Tropsch synthesis. We also continued our studies of the kinetic behavior of these materials. Specifically, the effects of H{sub 2}, CO, and CO{sub 2} on the rates and selectivities of Fischer-Tropsch Synthesis reactions led us to propose a new sequence of elementary steps on Fe and Co Fischer-Tropsch catalysts. More specifically, we were focused on the roles of hydrogen-assisted and alkali-assisted dissociation of CO in determining rates and CO{sub 2} selectivities. During this sixth reporting period, we have studied the validity of the mechanism that we propose by analyzing the H{sub 2}/D{sub 2} kinetic isotope effect (r{sub H}/r{sub D}) over a conventional iron-based Fischer-Tropsch catalyst Fe-Zn-K-Cu. We have observed experimentally that the use of D{sub 2} instead of H{sub 2} leads to higher hydrocarbons formation rates (inverse kinetic isotopic effect). On the contrary, primary carbon dioxide formation is not influenced. These experimental observations can be explained by the two CO activation pathways we propose. During this reporting period, the experimental kinetic study has been also complemented with periodic, self-consistent, DFT-GGA investigations in a parallel collaboration with the group of Manos Mavrikakis at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. These DFT calculations suggest minimal energy paths for proposed elementary steps on Fe(110) and Co(0001) surfaces. These calculations support our novel conclusions about the preferential dissociation of CO dissociation via H-assisted pathways on Fe-based catalysts. Unassisted CO dissociation also occurs and lead to the formation of CO{sub 2} as a primary oxygen scavenging mechanism after CO dissociation on Fe-based catalysts. Simulations and our experimental data show also that unassisted CO dissociation route is much less likely on Co surfaces and that hydrocarbons form exclusively via H-assisted pathways with the formation of H{sub 2}O as the sole oxygen rejection product. We have also started a study of the use of colloidal precipitation methods for the synthesis of small Fe and Co clusters using recently developed methods to explore possible further improvements in Fischer-Tropsch synthesis rates and selectivities. We have found that colloidal synthesis makes possible the preparation of small cobalt particles, although large amount of cobalt silicate species, which are difficult to reduce, are formed. The nature of the cobalt precursor and the modification of the support seem to be critical parameters in order to obtain highly dispersed and reducible Co nanoparticles