Savremeni detalj u zoom-in-zoom-out tehnici - Bog i razmera

Considering both the visual and narrative character of architectural discourse it is possible to examine the capacity of a drawing as an autonomous form, but also as one assigned to it throughout the course of creation of new architecture. This paper's intent is to examine the place and the role of the architectural drawing of the detail within design research. Thematically different, the narratives are instruments used for creating a relationship between the project as a whole and its parts, while the detail defines the path from an idea to the realization of architecture, that is, from abstraction to concretization within the above-mentioned process. The notion of scalar imagination has been introduced in order to indicate the relationship between the traditional modernist understanding of the roles of detail and scale have, while the question of the real size of designed architecture has been moved aside. The scalar imagination reveals the relationships between the elements of architecture, while its visibility reveals the architect's ability to build the necessary information network while moving throughout the diverse levels of those relationships. The goal is to avoid vagueness of architecture represented by the drawing and favor the polyvalence of its meaning by presenting concrete information. In that sense, for the benefit of achieving clarity within the methodological approach, we researched the conditions of visibility within the relationship between the drawing and its meaning. Therefore, this paper focuses on the scale as a direct connection between the drawing of the detail and the continuity of the idea of architecture.Imajući u vidu i vizuelni i narativni karakter arhitektonskog diskursa moguće je ispitivati kapacitet koji crtež ima kao autonomna forma, ali i onaj koji mu se pretpostavlja tokom postupka stvaranja nove arhitekture. Namera je da se ovim radom ispita mesto i uloga crteža arhitektonskog detalja u istraživačkom projektovanju. Tematski odvojeno, narativi su instrumentalizovani kao konstruisanje odnosa između celine i delova projekta, dok se detaljem definiše put od ideje do realizacije arhitekture, odnosno od apstrakcije do konkretizacije unutar pomenutog postupka. Skalarna imaginacija pojmovno je uvedena kao veza između tradicionlno modernistički shvaćenih uloga detalja i razmere, dok je pitanje realne veličine projektovane arhitekture pomereno u stranu. Skalarana imaginacija je uzeta za manifestaciju odnosa između elemenata arhitekture, a njena vidljivost za sposobnost arhitekte da, krećući se kroz različite nivoe tih odnosa, gradi neophodnu mrežu informacija. Cilj je da se konkretnošću informacija izbegne zamagljenost crtežom predstavljene arhitekture u korist polivalentnosti njenih značenja. U tom smislu, zarad jasnoće metodološkog postupka, istraženi su uslovi vidljivosti veze između nacrtanog i označenog, a ovaj rad u fokus stavlja razmeravanje kao direktnu konekciju između nacrtanog detalja i kontinuiteta ideje o jednoj arhitekturi

Optimization of Semiautomated Calibration Algorithm of Multichannel Electrotactile Feedback for Myoelectric Hand Prosthesis

The main drawback of the commercially available myoelectric hand prostheses is the absence of somatosensory feedback. We recently developed a feedback interface for multiple degrees of freedom myoelectric prosthesis that allows proprioceptive and sensory information (i.e., grasping force) to be transmitted to the wearer instantaneously. High information bandwidth is achieved through intelligent control of spatiotemporal distribution of electrical pulses over a custom-designed electrode array. As electrotactile sensations are location-dependent and the developed interface requires that electrical stimuli are perceived to be of the same intensity on all locations, a calibration procedure is of high importance. The aim of this study was to gain more insight into the calibration procedure and optimize this process by leveraging a priori knowledge. For this purpose, we conducted a study with 9 able-bodied subjects performing 10 sessions of the array electrode calibration. Based on the collected data, we optimized and simplified the calibration procedure by adapting the initial (baseline) amplitude values in the calibration algorithm. The results suggest there is an individual pattern of stimulation amplitudes across 16 electrode pads for each subject, which is not affected by the initial amplitudes. Moreover, the number of user actions performed and the time needed for the calibration procedure are significantly reduced by the proposed methodology.The research was supported by Tecnalia Research & Innovation, Spain, and the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development of Republic of Serbia (Project no. 175016). The authors would like to thank all the volunteers who participated in this study

Semiotics of architectural: detail between rationalisation and representation

The aim of this paper is to discuss the realm of values upon which thoughts on architecture have been conceived, through the drawings of architectural detail. Although modernism, which opposes technical detail and ornament, is still regarded as influential theoretical position, it neglects to address a broader meaning of a detail in architecture. The research disputes the opposition between an ornament and a technical detail, claiming that a detail in architecture is the more abstract term, which represents a certain level of design throught besides utility and embellishment. It is argued that both modern and traditional values from different aspects of societal and cultural activities, as for their changes were being referenced to the micro level of architecture, transforming the way of their presence through different visual representations of detail along the history and theory of profession. In this paper, the small-scale drawing are used as a medium a medium which reflects transdisciplinarity of the profession and its entanglement with the knowledge and dynamics of other fields of human activity such as philosophy, economy, religion, engineering, and arts

The modified drawing test for assessment of arm movement quality

The cerebrovascular accident often results in motor impairment of one of the upper limbs, hence, compromising the quality of life of stroke survivors. Rehabilitation aims to restore the movement abilities of the paralyzed/paretic upper limb. An important element in rehabilitation is to apply a quantified measure of the quality of movement, in order to follow the recovery and select the most appropriate therapeutic modality. We developed a method that uses data recorded during planar movements and outputs an objective measure that relates to the smoothness, velocity and precision of the movement. This method is universal, in a sense that hand position can be recorded by any available means (e.g., robot assistant, digitizing board, motion tracking systems, etc). The method follows the Drawing Test, but generates results that show the ability of the patient to make point to point movements and track the presented trajectory. The method is based on measurements of hand position during movement along a target path in form of a 2 cm wide rectangle. The patient's task is to move the hand along the target path as quickly as possible, with as few contacts (collisions) with the sides of the path. This paper addresses the aspects of automatic detection of parameters that quantify the quality of movement (speed, smoothness and precision). The use of this method is presented with 10 patients

Dynamic Behaviour of a Two-Stage Cycloidal Speed Reducer of a New Design Concept

Traditional cycloidal speed reducers (with two cycloid discs per one stage, mutually turned by an angle of 180°) are well known for their remarkable dynamic stability. This paper analyses dynamic behaviour of a two-stage cycloidal speed reducer of a new concept, in which only one cycloid disc is used for each stage in order to further enhance its compactness. Lagrange’s displacement equations have been used to develop independent dynamic models for both the first and the second stage (six degrees of displacement freedom for the first stage, and eight degrees of displacement freedom for the second stage). A normal force acting at the contact of the cycloid disc teeth and the corresponding ring gear roller has been taken as an excitation force. For the newly designed two-stage cycloidal speed reducer, systems of differential displacement equations of the first and second stage have been solved using the Matlab – Simulink software package. A comprehensive analysis of the obtained diagrams of elastic dynamic contact forces of the first and second stage has revealed a certain analogy. In terms of dynamics, the cycloid disc of the second stage behaves similarly to the cycloid disc of the first stage. Since these cycloid discs are mutually turned by an angle of 180°, it can be concluded that from the aspect of the cycloid disc load, the two-stage cycloidal speed reducer of a new design concept exhibits good dynamic balance and stability

Interaction Between Th-17 Immune Response and Glutamate Excitotoxicity in the Pathogenesis of Multiple Sclerosis – Clinical and Experimental Study

Introduction: Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic demyelinating disease of the central nervous system (CNS) characterized by episodic neurological defects, disseminated in time and neuroanatomical localization. The central role in the development of inflammatory mediated lesions in MS is now attributed to autoreactive, myelin-specific CD4+ T lymphocytes, which are thought to regulate all immune mechanisms that lead to the myelin sheath damage. It was originally thought that these cells belong to the subpopulation of Th-1 cells, however, a number of nowadays studies indicate the importance Th-17 cells in the pathogenesis of the disease. In addition to demyelination, which is still considered to be the main pathological feature of the disease, in the last few years special attention in MS research has been given to neurodegenerative processes, considering that it has been shown that the clinical symptoms of the disease are directly related to the degree of axonal damage and loss. Recently, glutamate excitotoxicity is considered as a possible mechanism of neurodegeneration in MS. This is a phenomenon that occurs when the excessive amount of excitatory neurotransmitter glutamate, overactivates its receptors on the membranes of neurons and oligodendrocytes, which leads to the intracellular accumulation of Ca2+ ions and the consequent cell death. Aims of the Thesis: To examine the association of Th-17 mediated inflammation and glutamate excitotoxicity in the development of MS. To determine the potential molecular mechanisms by which inflammation stimulates glutamate excitotoxicity and the consequent neurodegeneration with special emphasis on the role of astrocytes. Materials and Methods: The study had two integral parts: a clinical part conducted on the human material and experimental part conducted on the primary cultures of rat astrocytes. The clinical study enrolled 79 patients, divided into two groups: a control group and a group of MS patients. The presence of a Th-17 cells in the CNS of the studied subjects was monitored by IL-17A levels in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) determined by ELISA (Enzyme Immunosorbent Assay) method; while glutamate level was used to estimate excitotoxic damage by HPLC (High Performance Liquid Chromatography) method. The experimental Тh-17 имунски одговор и глутаматска ексцитотоксичност у патогенези МС др Милош Костић 10 study was carried out on the primary cultures of rat astrocytes. In order to investigate the effects of IL-17A on astrocyte ability to uptake and metabolize glutamate, cell cultures were stimulated with increasing concentrations of recombinant rat IL-17A protein, and then used for gene expression analysis of glutamate transporter (GLAST and GLT-1) and the enzyme glutamine synthetase, by PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction). Investigation of IL-17A effect on astrocyte ability to release glutamate, was conducted in basal conditions and under conditions of elevated and reduced extracellular Ca2+. Astrocyte cultures were stimulated with the rising concentrations of recombinant rat IL-17A protein, and then glutamate secretion was followed up by the level of glutamate in the cell supernatants by HPLC. Results: Patients suffering from MS had a significantly higher level of IL-17A in the CSF compared to the control subjects (P <0.005), which was directly related to the level of glutamate (rs = 0.368, P <0.05). The level of IL-17A was also directly related to the number of neutrophils in the CSF (rs = 0.426, P <0.05) and blood-brain barrier disruption (rs = 0.440, P <0.05), whereas a negative correlation between CSF IL-17A level and disease duration was observed (rs = -0.466, P <0.01). In the experimental study it has been shown that IL-17A in lower concentrations (10, 25, 50 ng/mL) reduces glutamate transporter and glutamine synthetase gene expression in astrocytes, however, this effect was lost when IL-17A was used in higher dose (100 ng/mL). IL-17A did not significantly modify glutamate secretion in basal conditions, but following Ca2+ stimulation, and after Ca2+ removal from culture medium, IL-17A stimulated glutamate release from astrocytes in dose-dependent manner. Conclusions: IL-17A plays an important role in the complex cytokine network that mediates MS pathogenesis. For the first time direct relationship between Th-17 immune response and glutamate excitotoxicity is reported, which could be a missing link between inflammatory and neurodegenerative processes in MS. Three mechanisms by which IL-17A stimulates extracellular glutamate increase to excitotoxic levels are postulated. Firstly, IL-17A reduces astrocyte ability to uptake and metabolize glutamate and in addition IL-17A also stimulates Ca2+ dependent glutamate release from astrocytes

Razvoj numeričkih modela za efikasnu kakaterizaciju disperzivnih i generalnih anizotropnih elektromagnetskih struktura u mikrotalasnom opsegu frekvencija

In the dissertation, two methods for the realization and implementation of compact numerical models are presented using the TLM (Transmission Line Matrix) method based on Z-transformation techniques for the modeling of dispersive and general anisotropic electromagnetic structures in the microwave frequency range. The formulation of the Z-TLM method has been extended to cover the general case of a numerical network based on nonuniform spatial discretization. The first method was developed in response to the problem of modeling geometrically small, but from an electromagnetic viewpoint of important, dispersive and generally anisotropic electromagnetic structures, by using conventional methods based on the use of a fine resolution network, being highly demanding regarding computer resources. Within this method, the structure is modeled by the introduction of an appropriate interface between the neighboring TLM nodes that simulates the exchange of voltage impulses in the same way as the structure is present in the numerical network, which is convenient in cases where the direct behavior of the electromagnetic field within the structure is not important for analysis. This significantly reduces amount of required memory and processor resources, as well as the duration of the simulation, where the necessary number of nodes in the numerical network can be reduced for more than 90% in some cases. Second presented method provides the possibility that dispersive and generally anisotropic structures, characterized only by the scattering matrix, are introduced into a numerical simulation in order to analyze the effects of the propagation and distribution of the electromagnetic field within these structures. Modeling is done using the effective electromagnetic parameters calculated by applying the appropriate retrieval method to the scattering matrix coefficients of the modeled structure, which can be obtained by experimental measurement, analytical approach, or using one of the reliable methods of electromagnetic simulation. This method opens the possibility for a potential analysis of the effect of changing the effective parameters on the distribution of the electromagnetic field for optimization of the existing and development of new components and devices based on generally anisotropic and dispersive materials such as antennas and filters. The developed methods are implemented into a non-commercial solver using the higher-level programming language - MATLAB in order to numerically simulate dispersive and generally anisotropic materials in the time domain. The efficiency and reliability of both methods are verified and illustrated on examples of thin panels of carbon fiber composites, metamaterials and chiral material

NUMERICAL COMPACT MODELING APPROACH OF DISPERSIVE MAGNETOELECTRIC MEDIA BASED ON SCATTERING PARAMETERS

Z-TLM based compact modeling approach for dispersive media exhibiting magnetoelectric coupling is presented in this paper. Scattering parameters based representation of considered medium is created in a form of compact model by extracting effective electromagnetic parameters using a retrieval method, and implementing them into a non-uniform TLM grid. Proposed approach is illustrated here on the example of dispersive isotropic chiral medium modeling

Domestico Bakery Interior Design [STRAND 2022]

The main focus of the interior, through which brand recognition is built, is the sales section. Using Domestico colors and motifs in the design, the interior is composed of flat, linear and circular geometric forms, which in their appearance contribute to the scenic nature of the tasting and sales space. The goal was to move away from the stereotypical experience of a bakery and create an exhibition space aimed at presenting characteristic products and craftsmanship. Overlapping spatial zones simultaneously contributes to greater transparency of production and communication with customers on a sensory level (overlapping smells, tastes, visual experiences, touch)

Mobilizing the Image: Ideological Narrative in The Interior Design of The Sava Center

The paper will examine the process of design and construction of the Sava conference center in Belgrade and its role in the creation of the ideological narrative on the disciplinary level through the conceptions of space. During the Cold war, Yu goslav cultural space was in a unique position between East and West, building its international image on the idea of political neutrality and the Non-aligned movement. The Sava center was built in 1977, for the purpose of hosting the second Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe, and the Non-Aligned Movement in 1983. The building of the conference center was not only the functional necessity but was also an important factor in presenting Yugoslavia on the international lev el. By questioning the critical theory and the postmodern condition in the domain of representation of architecture, the main aim of the research is to trace the pos sible aspects of reading the aesthetic and symbolic layers within the interior de sign of Sava center. The main hypothesis is that that interior space was a crucial el ement in the creation of the continual simulacrum, which embodies the idea of political neutrality and self-managing socialism, presenting the Yugoslavian poli tics as diplomatic and open unlike its communist counterparts in the USSR. The Sava center is typically considered through the prism of political and econom ic aspects while neglecting the design approaches, images and conceptions of space. The idea of building the new center can be related to the postmodern un derstanding of losing imposed centrality in the vision of history and the dominance of the single image as a condition for the unquestionable way of interpretation. By analyzing primary sources stemming from the period of its construction and nu merous visual materials, the research aims to discover the possible influences and conditions by which the architectural approach to designing was determined. In general, it the awareness of the importance of critical examination of the social ist heritage in the modern context for the current understanding of the discipline