Heat-transfer thermal switch

Thermal switch maintains temperature of planetary lander, within definite range, by transferring heat. Switch produces relatively large stroke and force, uses minimum electrical power, is lightweight, is vapor pressure actuated, and withstands sterilization temperatures without damage

BMQ

BMQ: Boston Medical Quarterly was published from 1950-1966 by the Boston University School of Medicine and the Massachusetts Memorial Hospitals

BMQ

BMQ: Boston Medical Quarterly was published from 1950-1966 by the Boston University School of Medicine and the Massachusetts Memorial Hospitals

Constraint-driven diagram layout

Taking both perceptual organization and aesthetic criteria into account is the key to high-quality diagram layout, but makes for a more difficult problem than pure aesthetic layout. Computing the layout of a network diagram that exhibits a specified perceptual organization can be phrased as a constraint-satisfaction problem. Some constraints are derived from the perceptual-organization specification: the nodes in the diagram must be positioned so that they form specified perceptual gestalts, i.e., certain groups of nodes must form perceptual groupings by proximity, or symmetry, or shape motif, etc. Additional constraints are derived from aesthetic considerations: the layout should satisfy criteria that concern the number of link crossings, the sum of link lengths, or diagram area, etc. Using a generalization of a simple mass-spring layout technique to "satisfice" constraints, we show how to produce high-quality layouts with specified perceptual organization for medium-sized diagrams (10-30 nodes) in under 30 seconds on a workstation.Engineering and Applied Science

Cooperative design, Human-computer interaction, Interaction techniques, Graphical user interfaces, Design automation, Design methodologies, Automated design of graphical displays, Computer-aided design

Computer-aided-design (CAD) systems are now used to design all kinds of artifacts, from jet fighters to works of art. A major challenge in the design of a CAD system itself is the user interface (UI). Developing the UI to a CAD system raises myriad questions about input devices and techniques, display devices and techniques, and the details of the dialogue that relates the two. But these questions are ancillary to one central question: what is the fundamental nature of the interaction between human and computer in the design process supported by the CAD system? Is the design activity essentially manual, with the computer playing the role of  passive tool, like a pen or paintbrush? Or is the computer augmenting the human designer by actively restricting available design choices, or by playing the role of critic or “improver”? Or maybe the interaction paradigm is one of “interactive evolution,i in which  the computer is responsible for generating design alternatives, with the human merely choosing among choices suggested by the machine. Or perhaps the computer performs the design process completely automatically, with a final acceptance check being the only human contribution? The panelists will describe these different paradigms for human-computer cooperation in a set of related CAD systems and prototypes and discuss the conditions under which each paradigm might be most useful.