Analysis of Crepe Blade Vibration

The goal of this project was to take the first step in analyzing this vibration. This meant setting up measuring equipment and analyzing basic blade vibrations. In this experiment, a laboratory coater (Dow coater at Western Michigan University) was used instead of a tissue machine because it was readily available and easy to control and modify. An accelerometer was used to measure the vibration of a blade on the coater. A computer using Labview was used for data acquisition. Trials at various speeds were run with a piece of tape on the coater roll to cause and distinguish vibration at a given frequency. Spectral analysis was used to recover the given frequency. Analysis of the data showed several things. First, it was apparent that the data were not as hypothesized. A distinct disturbance was found, but it was the same frequency regardless of coater speed. Since the first thing done in the experiment was to use a signal generator to make sure the data was being read properly, it is speculated that the fault lies in the accelerometer. It is very possible that the accelerometer is not sensitive enough to detect vibrations at such low frequencies as it was designed for high-frequency tissue applications. More experimentation needs to be done to explore this

Introduction to Special Section on Research Activities at the Iztacala Campus of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, México

In fall 2002, we had the opportunity to initiate a long-term collaboration with colleagues from the Iztacala campus of the Universidad Autónoma de México (UNAM), whose research interests focus on coastal and nearshore fishes and decapod crustaceans of Veracruz state, Mexico

Introduction to Special Section on Research Activities at the Iztacala Campus of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, México

In October 2002, we had the opportunity to initiate a long-term collaboration with colleagues from the Iztacala campus of the Universidad Autónoma de México (UNAM), whose research interests focus on coastal and nearshore fishes and decapod crustaceans of Veracruz state, Mexico. This is an undergraduate campus with a strong Biology department whose faculty also maintain research programs despite limited sources of funding and a heavy teaching load. During the course of our initial visit, we realized that there is a wealth of unpublished undergraduate student research on understudied fish species