Numerical simulation of the structural response of a simple submerged structure

The present project is focused on the analysis of the dynamic response of a rotating disk in air and submerged in water. The main objective is to create a mathematical model that can reproduce the behavior of the actual geometry in the specified conditions. The approach has been to use the ANSYS WORCHBECH environment to perform different types of modal analysis, in air, in water, with and without the rotation using the modal analysis and the harmonic analysis tools. The first tool is used to find out the modes of vibrations of the structure, or what is the same, the natural frequencies and the mode shapes characterized by the orientation of the nodal lines. The second tool is used to analyze the response to an external load applied with a piezoelectric patch excited with a voltage signal. With this simulation, it is possible to calculate the strains and deformations induced by the natural frequencies on the body. Firstly, the model has been validated in the air without and with rotation to validate the model by comparison with experimental results. Then, the effect of the rotation on the natural frequencies has been analyzed. Secondly, the disk submerged in water has been investigated with a series of simulations to analyze the effect of water on the natural frequencies and the mode shapes. To carry out these analyses, it has been necessary to add a new component to the geometry, which is a tank full of water, and to develop a new numerical model based on the acoustic-structural Finite Element Modelling approach. Again, the results have been compared with the ones of the laboratory for validation with the use of a series of harmonic analyses. It must be noted that to obtain reasonable results with these models, the boundary conditions for bearings and the materials are of particular importance and an important effort has been devoted to obtaining accurate results. Lastly, from the analysis performed and from the comparison with the test results the model is validated both in air and in water with good accuracy, the model can simulate both the effect of the presence of the water on the natural frequencies and the effect of the rotation on the natural frequenciesra en el análisis de la respuesta dinámica de un disco giratorio en el aire y sumergido en el agua. El objetivo principal es crear un modelo matemático que pueda reproducir el comportamiento de la geometría real en las condiciones especificadas. El planteamiento ha consistido en utilizar el entorno ANSYS WORCHBECH para realizar diferentes tipos de análisis modales, en aire, en agua, con y sin la rotación utilizando las herramientas de análisis modal y de análisis armónico. La primera herramienta se utiliza para averiguar los modos de vibración de la estructura, o lo que es lo mismo, las frecuencias naturales y las formas modales caracterizadas por la orientación de las líneas nodales. La segunda herramienta se utiliza para analizar la respuesta a una carga externa aplicada con un parche piezoeléctrico excitado con una señal de tensión. Con esta simulación es posible calcular las deformaciones y deformaciones inducidas por las frecuencias naturales en el cuerpo. En primer lugar, el modelo se ha validado en el aire sin y con rotación para validar el modelo por comparación con los resultados experimentales. A continuación, se ha analizado el efecto de la rotación sobre las frecuencias naturales. En segundo lugar, se ha investigado el disco sumergido en agua con una serie de simulaciones para analizar el efecto del agua en las frecuencias naturales y las formas modales. Para llevar a cabo estos análisis, ha sido necesario añadir un nuevo componente a la geometría, que es un tanque lleno de agua, y desarrollar un nuevo modelo numérico basado en el enfoque de modelado acústico- estructural por elementos finitos. Una vez más, los resultados se han comparado con los del laboratorio para su validación mediante una serie de análisis armónicos. Hay que señalar que para obtener resultados razonables con estos modelos, las condiciones de contorno de los cojinetes y de los materiales son de especial importancia y se ha dedicado un importante esfuerzo a la obtención de resultados precisos. Por último, a partir de los análisis realizados y de la comparación con los resultados de las pruebas, el modelo se valida tanto en el aire como en el agua con una buena precisión, el modelo puede simular tanto el efecto de la presencia del agua en las frecuencias naturales como el efecto de la rotación en las frecuencias naturalesAquest projecte se centra en l'anàlisi de la resposta dinàmica d'un disc giratori a l'aire i submergit a l'aigua. L'objectiu principal és crear un model matemàtic que pugui reproduir el comportament de la geometria real a les condicions especificades. El plantejament ha consistit a utilitzar l'entorn ANSYS WORCHBECH per realitzar diferents tipus d'anàlisis modals, en aire, en aigua, amb rotació i sense utilitzant les eines d'anàlisi modal i d'anàlisi harmònica. La primera eina es fa servir per esbrinar els modes de vibració de l'estructura, o el que és el mateix, les freqüències naturals i les formes modals caracteritzades per l'orientació de les línies nodals. La segona eina s'utilitza per analitzar la resposta a una càrrega externa aplicada amb un pegat piezoelèctric excitat amb un senyal de tensió. Amb aquesta simulació és possible calcular les deformacions i deformacions induïdes per les freqüències naturals al cos. En primer lloc, el model s'ha validat a l'aire sense i amb rotació per validar el model per comparació amb els resultats experimentals. Tot seguit, s'ha analitzat l'efecte de la rotació sobre les freqüències naturals. En segon lloc, s'ha investigat el disc submergit en aigua amb una sèrie de simulacions per analitzar l'efecte de l'aigua a les freqüències naturals i les formes modals. Per fer aquestes anàlisis, ha calgut afegir un nou component a la geometria, que és un tanc ple d'aigua, i desenvolupar un nou model numèric basat en l'enfocament de modelatge acústic-estructural per elements finits. Un cop més, els resultats s'han comparat amb els del laboratori per validar-los mitjançant una sèrie d'anàlisis harmòniques. Cal assenyalar que per obtenir resultats raonables amb aquests models, les condicions de contorn dels coixinets i dels materials són d'especial importància i s'ha dedicat un esforç important a l'obtenció de resultats precisos. Finalment, a partir de les anàlisis realitzades i de la comparació amb els resultats de les proves, el model es valida tant a l'aire com a l'aigua amb una bona precisió, el model pot simular tant l'efecte de la presència de l'aigua a les freqüències naturals com l'efecte de la rotació a les freqüències natural

Current therapeutic approaches for plantar fasciitis

Nicolò Martinelli, Carlo Bonifacini, Giovanni RomeoDepartment of Ankle and Foot Surgery, IRCCS Galeazzi Orthopaedic Institute, Milan, ItalyAbstract: Almost 1 million Americans are affected by plantar fasciitis (PF), which is the commonest cause of chronic heel pain. This condition is often managed conservatively, and many rehabilitation protocols, some with the aid of orthoses, have been adopted, with good-to-excellent clinical results. Although most cases of chronic PF can be successfully managed with a conservative approach, alternative treatments, including high-energy shock wave therapy and corticosteroid injections, are commonly accepted as second-line treatment when traditional conservative therapy fails. However, surgery is still an important mode of treatment. Recently, new minimally invasive surgical techniques that offer numerous advantages (faster recovery time, early weight-bearing, lower postoperative pain) over standard surgical approaches have been proposed, with good results and low complication rates. The purpose of this review is to report new conservative and surgical techniques for the treatment of PF. A literature search for articles about plantar fasciitis was conducted on the PubMed database in order to identify publications addressing the treatments of PF. The literature suggests that, initially, traditional conservative treatments consisting of rest, oral nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, foot orthotics, and stretching exercises can be tried for several weeks. In patients with chronic recalcitrant PF, extracorporeal shock wave therapy or corticosteroid injection can be considered. Surgery (minimally invasive techniques) should be considered only after failure of the conservative treatments.Keywords: heel pain, surgery, plantar fasciosi

Single-hit resolution measurement with MEG II drift chamber prototypes

Drift chambers operated with helium-based gas mixtures represent a common solution for tracking charged particles keeping the material budget in the sensitive volume to a minimum. The drawback of this solution is the worsening of the spatial resolution due to primary ionisation fluctuations, which is a limiting factor for high granularity drift chambers like the MEG II tracker. We report on the measurements performed on three different prototypes of the MEG II drift chamber aimed at determining the achievable single-hit resolution. The prototypes were operated with helium/isobutane gas mixtures and exposed to cosmic rays, electron beams and radioactive sources. Direct measurements of the single hit resolution performed with an external tracker returned a value of 110 $\mu$m, consistent with the values obtained with indirect measurements performed with the other prototypes.Comment: 18 pages, 18 figure

Gas Distribution and Monitoring for the Drift Chamber of the MEG-II Experiment

The reconstruction of the positron trajectory in the MEG-II experiment searching for the $\mu^+ \to e^+ \gamma$ decay uses a cylindrical drift chamber operated with a helium-isobutane gas mixture. A stable performance of the detector in terms of its electron drift properties, avalanche multiplication, and with a gas mixture of controlled composition and purity has to be provided and continuously monitored. In this paper we describe the strategies adopted to meet the requirements imposed by the target sensitivity of MEG-II, including the construction and commissioning of a small chamber for an online monitoring of the gas quality.Comment: 12 pages, 6 figures, submitted to Journal of Instrumentatio

221st ENMC International Workshop : Foot Surgery in Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease June 10th-12th, 2016 Naarden, The Netherlands

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Il Futuro della Cybersecurity in Italia: Ambiti Progettuali Strategici

Il presente volume nasce come continuazione del precedente, con l’obiettivo di delineare un insieme di ambiti progettuali e di azioni che la comunità nazionale della ricerca ritiene essenziali a complemento e a supporto di quelli previsti nel DPCM Gentiloni in materia di sicurezza cibernetica, pubblicato nel febbraio del 2017. La lettura non richiede particolari conoscenze tecniche; il testo è fruibile da chiunque utilizzi strumenti informatici o navighi in rete. Nel volume vengono considerati molteplici aspetti della cybersecurity, che vanno dalla definizione di infrastrutture e centri necessari a organizzare la difesa alle azioni e alle tecnologie da sviluppare per essere protetti al meglio, dall’individuazione delle principali tecnologie da difendere alla proposta di un insieme di azioni orizzontali per la formazione, la sensibilizzazione e la gestione dei rischi. Gli ambiti progettuali e le azioni, che noi speriamo possano svilupparsi nei prossimi anni in Italia, sono poi accompagnate da una serie di raccomandazioni agli organi preposti per affrontare al meglio, e da Paese consapevole, la sfida della trasformazione digitale. Le raccomandazioni non intendono essere esaustive, ma vanno a toccare dei punti che riteniamo essenziali per una corretta implementazione di una politica di sicurezza cibernetica a livello nazionale. Politica che, per sua natura, dovrà necessariamente essere dinamica e in continua evoluzione in base ai cambiamenti tecnologici, normativi, sociali e geopolitici. All’interno del volume, sono riportati dei riquadri con sfondo violetto o grigio; i primi sono usati nel capitolo introduttivo e nelle conclusioni per mettere in evidenza alcuni concetti ritenuti importanti, i secondi sono usati negli altri capitoli per spiegare il significato di alcuni termini tecnici comunemente utilizzati dagli addetti ai lavori. In conclusione, ringraziamo tutti i colleghi che hanno contribuito a questo volume: un gruppo di oltre 120 ricercatori, provenienti da circa 40 tra Enti di Ricerca e Università, unico per numerosità ed eccellenza, che rappresenta il meglio della ricerca in Italia nel settore della cybersecurity. Un grazie speciale va a Gabriella Caramagno e ad Angela Miola che hanno contribuito a tutte le fasi di produzione del libro. Tra i ringraziamenti ci fa piacere aggiungere il supporto ottenuto dai partecipanti al progetto FILIERASICURA

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

Does the Foot and Ankle Alignment Impact the Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Background: A convincing association between the foot and ankle alignment (FAA) and patellofemoral pain syndrome (PFPS) remains debatable in the literature. Therefore, all studies investigating the role of FAA in patients with PFPS were systematically reviewed. Methods: A systematic literature search was performed on the databases PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science. Inclusion criteria were all studies investigating static and/or dynamic FAA factors and PFPS. Studies with less than 20 patients or with patellofemoral osteoarthritis were excluded. The quality assessment was based on Cochrane study criteria, and the maximum score was set at eight. Results: Of 2246 articles, only 13 case-control studies were eligible. Considering static FAA factors, two studies found an association with rearfoot eversion and one with rearfoot inversion. While examining dynamic FAA characteristics, one study found an association with rearfoot eversion range of motion and three with gait kinematics. No further associations were reported. The quality assessment mean score was 5.5 (SD = 0.97) corresponding to moderate quality. Conclusions: In contrast to our expectations, a limited number of studies were founded supporting an association between FAA and PFPS. At present, the quality of the literature is still poor and conflicting, thus the need for further studies to determine any association between FAA and PFPS