Hierarchical-level rain image generative model based on GAN

Autonomous vehicles are exposed to various weather during operation, which is likely to trigger the performance limitations of the perception system, leading to the safety of the intended functionality (SOTIF) problems. To efficiently generate data for testing the performance of visual perception algorithms under various weather conditions, a hierarchical-level rain image generative model, rain conditional CycleGAN (RCCycleGAN), is constructed. RCCycleGAN is based on the generative adversarial network (GAN) and can generate images of light, medium, and heavy rain. Different rain intensities are introduced as labels in conditional GAN (CGAN). Meanwhile, the model structure is optimized and the training strategy is adjusted to alleviate the problem of mode collapse. In addition, natural rain images of different intensities are collected and processed for model training and validation. Compared with the two baseline models, CycleGAN and DerainCycleGAN, the peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR) of RCCycleGAN on the test dataset is improved by 2.58 dB and 0.74 dB, and the structural similarity (SSIM) is improved by 18% and 8%, respectively. The ablation experiments are also carried out to validate the effectiveness of the model tuning

Acceleration compensation of a novel piezoelectric balance for the short duration impulse measurement: a time series analysis approach

A novel piezoelectric balance was developed to measure the six-component forces for the complex aircraft scaled model in the impulse combustion wind tunnel at a short duration airloads Mach number of 5. The piezoelectric balance using four triaxial piezoelectric load cells yields the high stiffness, sensitive and good dynamic response characteristics. The dynamic model-balance system was built to analyze the vibration characteristic. The time series analysis approach was developed on the basis of the system transfer function and the natural frequency, and the accelerated forces which induce the airloads overshooting oscillations had been obtained by the second order derivatives function. The experimental results have shown that the problem of overshooting oscillations effect of the impulse can be effectively solved by the acceleration compensation technology for the complex test model with the novel piezoelectric balance

A New Measurement Method of Relative Volume Wear Ratio Based on Discharge Debris Composition Analysis in Micro-EDM

In microelectrical discharge machining (micro-EDM) milling process, due to the unavoidability of electrode wear, selection of electrode with high electrical erosion resistance and accurate electrode compensation is entitled to be conducted to ensure high precision and high quality. The RVWR is used as criterion for electrode wear characteristics and is fundamental to achieve accurate electrode compensation; however, it is hardly measured accurately with conventional methods. In this paper, firstly, the error of RVWR measured by conventional measurement method is analyzed. Thereafter, for accurately measuring RVWR, a new measurement method is proposed based on electrical debris composition analysis. The RVWR of widely used tungsten, molybdenum, and copper electrode in machining different materials is measured, respectively, and the optimum electrode is selected based on the measuring results. Finally, microgrooves on different materials are machined with tungsten electrode, and the experiment results show that the microstructures have good bottom surface profiles, which indicates that the proposed method is effective to precisely measure the RVWR and guarantee accurate electrode compensation in micro-EDM process

Foliar applied 24-epibrassinolide alleviates salt stress in rice (Oryza sativa L.) by suppression of ABA levels and upregulation of secondary metabolites

Salt stress hinders plant growth and disrupts many physio-biochemical and molecular processes. The present study evaluated the potential role of foliar applied 24-epibrassinolide (EBR) for mitigating the adverse effects of salinity in rice plants. Our findings showed that salt stress reduced several growth and physiological parameters, and substantially increased oxidative stress in rice seedlings. The foliar application of EBR replenished the negative effects of salt stress by improving plant growth and physiological attributes in rice plants. Moreover, application of EBR substantially reduced oxidative injuries by enhancing antioxidant enzymes and phenolic compounds in rice plants during salt stress. Interestingly, the endogenous ABA levels were declined in stressed plants by EBR treatment, also validated by expression analysis of ABA-related genes. In addition, application of EBR upregulated carotenoids and flavonoids pathway genes, thus showing its function to activate secondary metabolism in rice plants during salt stress. The principal component analysis (PCA) indicated that, under salt stress, the response of EBR-treated rice plants was strongly correlated with the accumulation of phenolic compounds and flavonoids. Collectively, this study presents useful insight into the distinct role of EBR by activating underlying enzymatic and non-enzymatic defense mechanisms to mitigate salinity in rice plants.National Natural Science Foundation of China | Ref. 31901558China Postdoctoral Science Foundation | Ref. 2019M65017

DESIGN AND IMPLEMENTATION OF LEAN FACILITY LAYOUT SYSTEM OF A PRODUCTION LINE

Considering that the unreasonable facility layout of a production line directly or indirectly leads to low production efficiency is very common in Chinese manufacturing workshops, facility lean layout system of a production line is researched and designed. By analyzing the influencing factors of the facility layout system, optimization objectives and constraint conditions of facility layout system are summarized. A function model and a design structure model of the studied lean facility layout system are built. Based on the in-depth analyses of the mathematical model designed to denote the layout optimization design of a production line, a prototype lean facility layout system of a production line is developed. The application results of the designed facility layout system in cylinder liner production line show that the designed lean facility layout system can effectively enhance the production efficiency and improve the use efficiency of the equipments

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT OF PURCHASE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM FOR CHINESE MEDIUM AND SMALL MANUFACTURE ENTERPRISES

As there is no purchase management system suitable for Chinese medium and small manufacture enterprises, a purchase management mode adapted to Chinese medium and small manufacture enterprises is proposed and a purchase management system with the core of order is developed based on the product structure, the enterprise situation and the current information management situation of Chinese medium and small manufacture enterprises. The standardization of a series of processes such as applying purchase, order, purchase inspection, qualified products warehousing, etc. is achieved. Through the development design of design BOM, the purchase BOM is designed and the basic functions of MRP are achieved, and then the efficiency and accuracy of the purchase plan are enhanced. The application results have proved that the designed purchase management system has a good practical application effect

Design and implementation of Lean Facility Layout System of a Production Line

To resolve the problem that the unreasonable facility layout of a production line directly or indirectly leads to inefficient production efficiency are very common in Chinese manufacturing workshops, facility lean layout system of a production line is designed and developed. By analyzing the influence factors of the facility layout, Optimization objectives and constraint conditions of facility layout were summarized. A functional model and a design structure model of the lean layout system are built. Based on the in-depth analyses of the mathematical model designed to denote the optimization of facility layout of a production line, a prototype lean facility layout system of a production line is developed. The results of applying the facility layout system in cylinder liner product line showed that the designed lean facility layout system can effectively enhance the productivity efficiency and increase the efficiency of the using of equipments

Investigation on the accurate calculation of the temperature field of permanent magnet governor and the optimization method of heat conduction

Since the heat resistance capacity of permanent magnet governor's key components is poor and high temperature will affect the governor's lifespan, it is extremely necessary to conduct the study on temperature field. Taking the 250 kW permanent magnet governor which is researched and developed independently as an example, the present paper focuses on the present problem of magnetic-thermal unilateralism coupling field's failure of precisely calculating the transmission torque and temperature distribution. The paper proposes adopting bidirectional coupling calculation method, considering temperature's effect on the performance of magnetizer as well as permanent magnet's magnetic field and magnetic characteristics’ influence on temperature field, so as to realize the accurate calculation of magnetic field and thermal field. In addition, simulation results of unilateralism and bidirectional coupling have been verified through experiments. It turns out that the magnetic-thermal bidirectional coupling calculation is closer to the temperature value measured in the experiment, with an error only within 2%, which proves that the bidirectional coupling calculation is more accurate and is of great importance to guiding the design of permanent magnet governor's magnetic field. Meanwhile, as most of the current simulation models neglect the air gap of the connection between the actual magnetizer and the steel disc's rigging screw, the calculation of temperature field is not precise enough. The present paper has conducted a temperature simulation comparison between no air film and air films of varying thicknesses. In this way, it is discovered that the thickness of air film exerts an apparent effect on temperature field, with the highest temperature difference up to 22 ℃. Aiming at the issue of air film's reduction of heat conduction performance, the present paper proposes that the magnetizer disc and steel disc employ explosive welding to form composite board craft, so as to optimize heat condition. In addition, experiments have been conducted for verification. It has been proved that the temperature in the situation where explosive welding heat conduction optimization method is used is lower than the temperature when air film's thickness is 0.15 mm by 7–10 ℃, thereby greatly increasing the efficiency of heat conduction and guaranteeing the steady as well as reliable operation of permanent magnet governor. Keywords: Magnetic-thermal coupling, Temperature field, Explosive welding, Permanent magnet governo